Friday Forgotten Song: Three for the Weekend

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With an abnormally busy weekend in front of my wife and I (including an overnight school camping trip with my daughter + wedding reception [wife], and a Saturday night birthday party to take my son to at Universal Citywalk [me]), I thought today's forgotten post needed to be a triple-header. Though, the selections proved to be far easier than I'd have expected. First, let me state for the record that I've never have been into the television phenomenon known as American Idol. My wife and daughter are for sure, and sometimes my son. It's not that I haven't seen it (you can't live in the same house with the first two and not be exposed to it). It just doesn't interest me, normally. However, inspired by the great recent review by PCN, for the first selection I chose the great Curtis Mayfield and The Impressions song from 1965, People Get Ready. Covered by a host of singers (including the girl who'll probably win Idol this year, Crystal Bowersox) from Dusty Springfield to Alicia Keys, The Everly Brothers to Bob Marley, a song just doesn't get any better than this:

Next, with TCM scheduling their inaugural Classic Film Festival in Hollywood over this same weekend, I'm really going to be fighting fatigue to make some of the great classic films being presented at this fest. Check out what local film blogger Dennis has on his post for the event. Should I choose the Singing in the Rain tune since that film is on the festival schedule? A Judy Garland song from A Star is Born? How about any of the Bee Gees' tracks that reached #1 from the soundtrack of Saturday Night Fever (How Deep Is Your Love, Stayin' Alive, or Night Fever)? Any of those would be good stabs for the following selection. But if you know me, you know that my all-time favorite film is being shown (twice) during this event. The 1942 Michael Curtiz-directed, Casablanca. With all due respect to the stirring La Marseillaise dueling song sequence in the film, for me the second forgotten song has to be As Time Goes By, sung by the great Dooley Wilson, as Sam:

Of course, with blogging friends Jen and Christine flying in (and Pop Culture Nerd trekking in from the Valley), the majority of my time during Saturday's daylight hours will be spent at the L.A. Times Festival of Books. We'll be getting together (at book panels and/or the book signings) with authors like Robert Crais, Gregg Hurwitz, Sophie Littlefield, and others we know or haven't yet met. And after all of that (plus the birthday event), I don't think I'll get to see my entire immediate family back together until around 10 - 10:30 PM that night. Then come Sunday, we'll get up as a clan and head out to the book fest, once more. Whew... I'm tired already just typing about it. So, for all of this excitement and goings on, there really is only one song that epitomizes all of this (and will be the final forgotten). It is 1983's I Love L.A. by songwriter, arranger, composer/singer, Randy Newman. It remains the unofficial song of this city -- at one time, city officials tried to get Frank Sinatra's version of L.A. is My Lady instituted as such. There is no way I could ever see that song played at a local sporting event. No frakkin' way! That will not ever happen, IMO. There really is only one song for L.A., and this 80's tune still embodies it:

Have a great weekend everyone (I know I will).

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