Happy Birthdays

Today is a day of remarkable creativity: It is the 69th birthday of Billy Collins, the most widely-read American poet of our time, maybe of any time.  He has brought back humor to literate English poetry.  I first heard him on Prairie Home Companion about ten years ago and was absolutely delighted with his work: bought the books, bought the CD of him reading his work.  He was the Poet Laureate some time ago (under Clinton, I think), but how many people know who's the American Poet Laureate under any president?    The honor of his being Laureate was all ours, I think: that we had such a poet and that the politicians of our world knew about him.  Happy country, that.   Happy Birthday, Billy Collins, for all the listening and reading pleasure you've given me and all your other readers over the years.  You can listen to him read 3 of his poems here: 

And it's also the 80th birthday of Stephen Sondheim, our genius of the Broadway Musical stage.  Not only the composer of the music but also the writer of the lyrics, and lyrics that will break your heart and make you laugh and often at the same time.  How lucky I am to have been able to see productions of as many of his works as I have, and to have CD's of even the obscure ones (Merrily We Roll Along, Evening Primrose) easily available.  All this past week, there have been celebrations of his birthday in various formats and his fans talk about their favorite songs.  Since this is my blog, I get to pick my favorite songs.

But it's really almost impossible.  Tonight, these are my favorites, but tomorrow it might easily be three others.  I can't even pick my favorite show, although Into the Woods comes very close.  But some days it's overshadowed by the much less well-known Merrily We Roll Along.  And Bounce is also very close to my heart.  But then Sweeney Todd and Sunday in the Park with George are both pretty amazing.  And then comes the list of all the rest of them, not a loser in the pack, just some that are not quite as fantastically brilliant as some of the others.

I think sometimes of what it would be like not to have musical available in the ways it is to us.  I can't really imagine that life.  And now, you can find it all on Youtube.  Here are my three favorite Sondheim songs:  'Not a Day Goes By,' from Merrily We Roll Along; 'Move On,' from Sunday in the Park with George;  and 'No One is Alone,' from Into the Woods.  All three are performed by Bernadette Peters who knows how to do them.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Sondheim.  You have given all who love your music so many, many happy days over these years.  Thanks.