h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Some people walk in shabby shoes
Tell me, why is it so?
Father God that lives in heaven
maybe wants it that way

Father God that lives in heaven
eyes shut, sleeping sweetly
Who cares about a pair of shabby shoes
when you are old and tired?

Who cares how the days pass?
They wander as they will
Citizen, in one hundred years
you will be no more

Somebody else will have taken your seat
You will not know
You will not feel wind nor sun
down in your dark grave

Who cares how the nights fare
I don't care a bit
As long as I can hide my face
in the hair of my beloved

I am a dubious character
good for nothing
Death lurks behind a corner
He'll take me when he wants to

Some people walk in shabby shoes
until they have stopped walking
The devil that lives in hell
will have a good laugh then



- - - - - - - - - -

(another clumsy attempt of translating one of Cornelis Vreesvijk's songs from Swedish to English)

YAY!!!

*listens to 'Somliga går med trasiga skor' on the Cornelis cd he got for his birthday*

It's a lovely sentiment in the song,

*currently listening to a 'tribute to Cornelis' CD with Freddie Wadling and Fläskkvartetten doing a cover on 'Somliga går med trasiga skor' (pretty good if you ask me)

Sorry, the Fläskkvartetten has a cover on 'Balladen om Herr Fredrik Åkare och Fröken Cecilia Lind' - the shabby shoes cover is done by Eldkvarn - not too bad either

Yes, a few weeks ago, there was a T.V. program about "our" Cornelis Vreeswijk; The "Dutch Donovan" so to speak.

And he appears to be múch more popular in Sweden than in Holland and ;

oh, yes, that's how it went; he "finally" got a statue somewhere in a small town in our little country.

It's probably the dark undertone in his singing/writing that has so much impact on the Scandinavians (and on me, but not in the person of Vreeswijk).

There's always some irony in the fact when someone abroud is far more known then in his homeland.

He was well known here in the sixties and forgotten aften that.

Untill Titania was móre awake than God is, and gave the man a stage at H2G2; for God is - indeed - the best sleeper of the Universe.

Yes, it has always amazed me how a Dutch could be so popular in Sweden, but less known in his country of origin...

...although you woldn't have been able to tell he was Dutch - he spoke Swedish very well, complete with slang expressions and all (thinking of 'Brev från kolonien')

And there is a tremendous width - there are ballads about love, about misery, about hores, about death...

He apparently could speak Swedish in the same way, as you appear to write/speak English, because even my dictionary cannot always follow you.

Ah - but your dictionary's inability to follow me might be because *I* don't use a dictionary - much - I guess a lot! Most of the time I get it right, but sometimes I end up with a Swenglish word!

Well, your Swenglish happens to be só attractive and ímpressive, that Titti became Titania!

'best sleeper of the Universe' very good, Alfredo!
And thank you, Titania, for another wonderful bit of translation

Music loop on youtube - songs 1-13 are sung by Cornelis:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWHxsqOl_v0&list=RD02kmWdV6x4npI