I Wish Zappa Had Her In One Of His Bands

Serendipity is often surreptitious in the way it justifies the cod’s way to man. As everyone knows: If you give a man a fish, he can have a decent meal, but if you teach a man to fish, he won’t stop until the ocean is completely devoid of all life.

As a demonstrably reluctant American human committed to lifelong learning who has yet to settle on a career path after 74+ years on this deservedly-dying planet, I am still susceptible to fascination, and Susanne Sundfør fascinates me, as I might have implied in a recent post about something I discovered while watching Atlantic Crossing.

I’ve listened to or watched dozens of her performances since that initial post & I remain in awe of what a wonderous instrument she was born to be, embraced, & has perfected. I’ve also been struck by how her songs remind me of so many of iconic tunes that I don’t often think about, because they weren’t & aren’t what really turns me on, but somehow Sundfor’s perfection of the phrases that made so many of yesterday’s parties so forgettable to me become a new kind of puzzle when Susanne takes me down & bludgeons me by the river. 

For example: it took me nearly half a day to realize that this song had more than a bit of Roberta Flack in it.