 |
| Sinne Eeg. Billy Peterson, bass. |
I discovered it after seeing Sinne Eeg, the Danish superstar jazz performer, this past fall at the Oldenburg House in Carlton. The lyrics generate for me connections to classic literature (Cervantes' Don Quixote, Borges' exploration of labyrinths, among others.)
While the words are poetic and abstract, painting images of "windmills" -- a metaphor for the cyclical nature of thought, memory, emotion and life -- while phrases like "a circle in a spiral, like a wheel within a wheel" evoke a profound sense of the psyche's intricacies. And any reference to wheels within wheels immediately inserts a connection to Ezekiel's otherworldly vision of the four living creatures, the heartbeat of the universe. The Bergmans' words are both a puzzle and a revelation, inviting listeners to reflect on their own mental processes and, perhaps, divine insertions.
The song itself is structured in a way that musically mimics the complexity of the mind's own workings. Legrand's composition features a cyclical, almost baroque melody that keeps returning to its initial theme, much like the recurring thoughts suggested by the title. The lush piano arrangement captures the essence of introspection.
Eeg's version of "Windmills of Your Mind" transcends its initial cinematic context.
What do you think? I recommend repeated listens. It's a track worth exploring and savoring, a testament to the power of a performer to not just entertain but to provoke thought and emotion in equal measure.
Here's Sinne Eeg doing her magic with this penetrating song.
As for Sinne, the more your listen the more your hear,
and the more you're moved.
Related Link: A Night to Remember
'
Here are the lyrics for this profoundly moving song.
The Windmills of Your Mind
… Round, like a circle in a spiral
Like a wheel within a wheel
Never ending or beginning
On an ever-spinning reel
Like a snowball down a mountain
Or a carnival balloon
Like a carousel that's burning
Running rings around the moon
… Like a clock whose hands are sweeping
Past the minutes of its face
And the world is like an apple
Whirling silently in space
Like the circles that you find
In the windmills of your mind.
… Like a tunnel that you follow
To a tunnel of it's own
Down a hollow to a cavern
Where the sun has never shone
Like a door that keeps revolving
In a half-forgotten dream
Or the ripples from a pebble
Someone tosses in a stream
… Like a clock whose hands are sweeping
Past the minutes of its face
And the world is like an apple
Whirling silently in space
Like the circles that you find
In the windmills of your mind.
… Keys that jingle in your pocket
Words that jangle in your head
Why did summer go so quickly
Was it something that you said
Lovers walk along the shore
And leave their footprints in the sand
Is the sound of distant drumming
Just the fingers of your hand
… Pictures hanging in a hallway
And a fragment of this song
Half-remembered names and faces
But to whom do they belong
When you knew that it was over
Were you suddenly aware
That the autumn leaves were turning
To the color of her hair
… Like a circle in a spiral
Like a wheel within a wheel
Never ending or beginning
On an ever-spinning reel
As the images unwind
Like the circles that you find
In the windmills of your mind.
… Pictures hanging in a hallway
And the fragment of this song
Half-remembered names and faces
But to whom do they belong
When you knew that it was over
Were you suddenly aware
That the autumn leaves were turning
To the color of her hair
… Like a circle in a spiral
Like a wheel within a wheel
Never ending or beginning
On an ever-spinning reel
As the images unwind
Like the circles that you find
In the windmills of your mind.
