Tangier
Last night at dinner, while I waited for my swordfish to arrive, the restaurant music was playing “We Are The World.” I was trapped and I had to sit through the entire song… beginning to end… it was the first time I’d heard it in 15 years… after the initial shock to my system, it actually started feeling good to hear some American music, let alone English (after going so long without) and naturally, I played my own “name that singer” contest in my head.

After the tear dried on my cheek, the next song that came on was Kenny Rogers’ The Gambler. It used to be one of my dad’s favorite songs and he’d sing it and quote it all the time, imparting all its deep, life-wisdom truths like he’d discovered a secret verse from the Bible… “You know, Michael, you really do need to know when to walk away when you’re sitting at the table…”
All the nostalgic memories flooded in and I savored each English word that Kenny so beautifully pronounced.

Next, John Lennon Imagine came on and melted my heart into the chair. I was now in heaven. Sitting all alone in a restaurant, overlooking the Tangier nightlife of the bustling city, I couldn’t help sing along, getting emotional and heart-achey. Some other patrons entered and were led to the other side of the restaurant’s lounge area, and… r-i-i-i-i-i-pppp, only halfway through, the song was abruptly muted. I could feel it yanked right out of my heart. The owner replaced it with a live concert cd of Stephane Grappelli and the whole dark, red-lit place took on the vibe of a groovy jazz club. Not the worst punishment ever, but for those two short minutes, I was definitely floating in the clouds.