Getting a vid idea in three easy steps
Dec. 31st, 2011 05:13 pm1. Begin reading Joshua Zeitz's Flapper: A Madcap Story of Sex, Style, Celebrity, and the Women Who Made America Modern. I got it from the library because my novel/screenplay/musical/whatever it is today is set in early 1932, so I figured background from the 20s would be helpful. It's good; I would prefer something slightly more academic, but it's definitely readable and informative. I like the attention to mundane(ish) detail like the types of fabric used in clothing and different styles of makeup, and the inclusion of anecdotes and quotations from both people like the Fitzgeralds and reasonably regular folks is very nice. Again, I wish there were a similar volume for the 30s; maybe there is and I just haven't found it.
2. Decide that period music would be a fun addition to the book. Visit Grooveshark. While I'm on this step, some interesting pieces I ran across:
Waiting for Katie - Benny Goodman
Dixie Stomp and Gee Baby, Ain't I Good To You - Brian Carpenter's Ghost Train Orchestra
Crazy Rhythm - Apparently this was covered by a zillion people during the decade, but this is a version by the Roger Wolfe Khan Orchestra
It's Time to Say Goodnight - Henry Hall and His Orchestra. This is actually from the 30s. I also found this lovely waltz demonstration to it, though I have no idea where the video comes from.
3. Wander a little too far into the 30s, come across "Two Sleepy People," and get blindsided by a desire to make a Nick and Nora Charles (or perhaps an everything-Myrna-Loy-and-William-Powell-were-in-together) vid to it. Well, more accurately, it might be to this version, if I can get past Seth MacFarlane's voice constantly reminding me of Brian from The Family Guy.
Rats.
I'm not sure it's going to work out for me; the tempo and dynamics are really regular, which I've found leads to uninteresting vids when I'm the one doing the vidding. But the lyrics and the general mood of the song evokes the gentle, alcohol-soaked adoration Nick and Nora had for each other so well that I can't resist.
2. Decide that period music would be a fun addition to the book. Visit Grooveshark. While I'm on this step, some interesting pieces I ran across:
Waiting for Katie - Benny Goodman
Dixie Stomp and Gee Baby, Ain't I Good To You - Brian Carpenter's Ghost Train Orchestra
Crazy Rhythm - Apparently this was covered by a zillion people during the decade, but this is a version by the Roger Wolfe Khan Orchestra
It's Time to Say Goodnight - Henry Hall and His Orchestra. This is actually from the 30s. I also found this lovely waltz demonstration to it, though I have no idea where the video comes from.
3. Wander a little too far into the 30s, come across "Two Sleepy People," and get blindsided by a desire to make a Nick and Nora Charles (or perhaps an everything-Myrna-Loy-and-William-Powell-were-in-together) vid to it. Well, more accurately, it might be to this version, if I can get past Seth MacFarlane's voice constantly reminding me of Brian from The Family Guy.
Rats.
I'm not sure it's going to work out for me; the tempo and dynamics are really regular, which I've found leads to uninteresting vids when I'm the one doing the vidding. But the lyrics and the general mood of the song evokes the gentle, alcohol-soaked adoration Nick and Nora had for each other so well that I can't resist.
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