Songspiel

It's commonly believed that the Twelve Days of Christmas is a 400 year old song encoded with the tennets of the banned faith in England. It's been said that this song was used to protect practicing catholic children from being imprisoned and executed. Kung Fu Jimmy explores the history of this song and the English Reformation

This week’s Songspiel begins with Kung Fu Jimmy’s home screening of the 90’s movie “Airheads” starring Brendan Fraiser, Steve Buscemi. The movie, a lighthearted comedy about the desperate measures a rock band, The Loan Rangers, reach to get their song played on the radio, is not the focus of the podcast. Instead, the song in the movie “Degenerate”, a song about the perils of mispent youth and drug use, is the focus. And more specifically about the legendary punk band Regan Youth, the originators of the song “Degenerated”, and the drugs and youthful shennanigans that eventually led to the death of lead singer and founding member Dave Insurgent.

Gloomy Sunday/The Hungarian Suicide Song. Written in 1933, Gloomy Sunday’s lyrics speak of the death of a lover and entertains thoughts of suicide. The song’s melancholia is believed to have set off wave of suicides which included the song’s composer and his lover. Banned by the nation of Hungary and the BBC for 60 years the Gloomy Sunday and the “Gloomy Sunday Suicides” incited hysteria in Europe and fascination in the US. Kung Fu Jimmy tells the story of a song so good that it can kill you.

This episode involves Alessandro Moreschi, the last castrato with his rendition of Ave Maria

Kurt Weill's Alabama Song.