You Came, You Sang, You Conquered Me

I had no idea either. I probably didn't even know that's another language and they were four English schoolboy-looking guys. Not until I turned 15 or 16 was I told by my dad about this little "fetish" of mine. So it wasn't some profound understanding of the music or the meaning either. Nothing to be proud of. And then this came up and caught my eyes this morning: (excerpt from the NY Times) They Came, They Sang, They Conquered By ALLAN KOZINN From the distance of 40 years it seems almost silly, but on Sunday, Feb. 9, 1964, at 8 p.m., nearly 74 million Americans — just under half the country, according to the Nielsen ratings — plopped in front of their television sets to watch four English rock 'n' rollers in their early 20's introduce themselves to the country by playing five songs on "The Ed Sullivan Show" on CBS. The band was, of course, the Beatles, and their debut, which is being celebrated by the Museum of Television and Radio with a photography show starting today, drew the largest TV audience that had been measured up to that time. (For the complete story, please visit this page.) While reading this, my thoughts were taken back to the years when I was still sleeping in the crib, or between my parents in their comfortable bed. At that time I could recognize "Can't Buy Me Love" and babydance to it. Later my mind drifted to summer camp. We were trippin' - going on a canoe trip, that was - on an immense lake and it was warm and breezy. I, the preteen-looking counselor, was in a canoe with two supermodel-lookalike teenage girls who were singing pop songs like a self-powered radio. After a while they kind of ran out of sunny-day-appropriate songs to sing. Something ticked in me suddenly and I burst out: "Can't buy me love, love, Can't buy me love..." Melissa and Molly quickly joined me, "I'll buy you a diamond ring, my friend, if it makes you feel alright I'll get you anything, my friend, if it makes you feel alright 'Cause I don't care too much for money, and money can't buy me love I'll give you all I got to give if you say you'll love me too I may not have a lot to give but what I got I'll give to you I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love" We sang on the top of our lungs for the "no no no, NO." Soon we were known as "the loudest girls." Good times, good times. Heard Rod Stewart's rendition of "These Foolish Things" on the radio today. One of my favorite performances of it was by Nat King Cole, and fortunately I haven't heard anyone wrecked it. These Foolish Things Written by Jack Strachey, Holt Marvell and Harry Link A cigarette that bears a lipstick's traces An airline ticket to romantic places And still my heart has wings These foolish things remind me of you A tinkling piano in the next apartment Those stumblin' words that told you what my heart meant A fairground's painted swings These foolish things remind me of you You came, you saw, you conquered me When you did that to me I knew somehow this had to be The winds of March that make my heart a dancer A telephone that rings but who's to answer? Oh, how the ghost of you clings These foolish things remind me of you The scent of smouldering leaves the wail of steamers Two lovers on the street who walk like dreamers Oh how the ghost of you clings These foolish things Remind me of you How strange, how sweet, to find you still These things are dear to me They seem to bring you so near to me The sigh of midnight trains in empty stations Silk stockings thrown aside dance invitations Oh how the ghost of you clings These foolish things Remind me of you Remind me of you Remind me of you Don't know why this came so late, but I just realized, the lyrics said it best about the Beatles.