27 July 2024

Celine Dion closes the Olympic Opening Ceremony with a courageous tour de force, Edith Piaf's "Hymne A L'Amour" (videos) 26JUL24

BREATHTAKING, absolutely beautiful and inspiring. Nobody could have done better Celine Dion gave her all and will be remembered forever for her heartfelt performance on the Eifel Tower. Thank you, Merci Ms Dion! Edith Piaf would be so proud! ( Check out Edith Piaf singing this song that she wrote below ). The French and English lyrics are the last entry in this post.....

Celine Dion closes the Olympic Opening Ceremony with a courageous tour de force

Celine Dion sings "Hymne A L'Amour" at the base of the Eiffel Tower following the cauldron-lighting. #NBCSports #Olympics #Paris2024

Edith Piaf - Hymne A Lamour [1949]

Classic Mood Experience The best masterpieces ever recorded in the music history. Join our Youtube: https://goo.gl/8AOGaN Edith Piaf - Hymne A Lamour [1949] "Hymne à l'amour" (French pronunciation: [imn a lamuʁ]; French for "Hymn to Love") is a popular French song originally performed by Édith Piaf. The lyrics were written by Piaf and the music by Marguerite Monnot. It was written to her lover and the love of her life, the French boxer, Marcel Cerdan. On October 28, 1949, Cerdan was killed in the crash of Air France Flight 009 on his way from Paris to New York to come to see her. She recorded the song on May 2, 1950. "Hymne à l'amour" was translated into English by Piaf's protégé Eddie Constantine as "Hymn to Love", which was recorded by Piaf on her album La Vie En Rose / Édith Piaf Sings In English (1956). This version was featured on Cyndi Lauper's 2003 album At Last. It was also adapted into English as "If You Love Me (Really Love Me)" with lyrics by Geoffrey Parsons. Kay Starr brought fame to this version in 1954, with her version reaching No. 4 on Billboard's charts of Best Sellers in Stores and Most Played by Jockeys. Starr's version was ranked No. 20 on Billboard's ranking of 1954's Most Popular Records According to Retail Sales and No. 20 on Billboard's ranking of 1954's Most Popular Records According to Disk Jockey Plays. Mary Hopkin released a version of "If You Love Me (Really Love Me)" in 1976, which reached No. 32 on the UK Singles Chart.

Some of the details below are from Wikipedia: HYMNE À L'AMOUR: Hymne à l'amour is a song by Edith Piaf released in 1950, with lyrics written by Edith Piaf and music by Marguerite Monnot1. Having become a classic of French song, it is one of Edith Piaf's greatest hits. Edith Piaf writes Hymne à l'amour thinking of the man she loves, the boxer Marcel Cerdan, whom she met in 1948 in New York, where she was on tour. At the beginning of 1949, the couple bought a house in Boulogne-Billancourt: it was in this interior that she wrote what was to become one of her greatest successes. Edith Piaf sang this song for the first time on September 14, 1949 at the "Versailles", a cabaret in New York. On October 28, 1949, Marcel Cerdan died in the crash of Air France flight 009, and she symbolically went up the same evening to pay homage to him by singing this song. She will finally record it before May 2, 1950 with Robert Chauvigny's orchestra. In 2016, a survey carried out by the BVA institute designated it as the “favorite French-speaking love song of the French5. » Since then, the song has been covered several times and adapted into various languages, with a few adaptations of the text when the performer is a man, such as Johnny Hallyday (during his Lorada Tour show in 1995-1996), "I would get myself dyed in blonde" becoming "I will forget brunettes and blondes" EDITH PIAF: Born in poverty, Edith Piaf was a child whose ancestors belonged to the entertainment world for two generations. She grew up shoved around from mother to father, grand-mother to aunts, and lived among prostitutes who were the ones who showed her some affection. Edith believed her weakness for men came from mixing with prostitutes in her grandmother's brothel. She sang from the age of five in the streets and cabaret. In 1935, Piaf was discovered in the Pigalle area of Paris by nightclub owner Louis Leplée who gave her the nickname that would stay with her for the rest of her life and serve as her stage name, La Môme Piaf (Paris slang meaning "The Little Sparrow").Leplée taught her the basics of stage presence and told her to wear a black dress, which became her trademark apparel. Leplée ran an intense publicity campaign leading up to her opening night, attracting the presence of many celebrities, including actor and singer Maurice Chevalier. Her nightclub gigs led to her first two records produced that same year. Piaf's career and fame gained momentum during the German occupation of France. She performed in various nightclubs and brothels, which flourished during the 1940–1945. By 1947, she was in great demand and very successful in Paris as France's most popular entertainer. After a glowing review in the New York Herald, her popularity grew to the point where she eventually appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show eight times, and at Carnegie Hall twice (1956 and 1957). On October 10, 1963, Edith Piaf died at the age of 47 from a ruptured aneurysm due to liver failure. She is worn down by excess, alcohol, morphine, rheumatoid arthritis and the suffering of a lifetime. Her last words: "Every fucking thing we do in this life, we have to pay for it."

Hymne à l’amour

Lyrics

The blue sky over us may fallLe ciel bleu sur nous peut s'effondrerAnd the Earth may well collapseEt la Terre peut bien s'écroulerI don't care if you love mePeu m'importe si tu m'aimesI do not careJe me fous du monde entier

As long as love floods my morningsTant qu'l'amour innondera mes matinsAs long as my body quivers under your handsTant qu'mon corps frémira sous tes mainsI don't care about the problemsPeu m'importe les problèmesMy love, since you love meMon amour, puisque tu m'aimes

I would go to the ends of the worldJ'irais jusqu'au bout du mondeI would get dyed blondeJe me ferais teindre en blondeIf you asked meSi tu me le demandaisI would go and get the moonJ'irais décrocher la LuneI would go and steal the fortuneJ'irais voler la fortuneIf you asked meSi tu me le demandaisI would deny my homelandJe renierais ma patrieI would deny my friendsJe renierais mes amisIf you asked meSi tu me le demandaisYou can laugh at meOn peut bien rire de moiI would do anythingJe ferais n'importe quoiIf you asked meSi tu me le demandais

If one day life tears you away from meSi un jour, la vie t'arrache à moiIf you die, may you be far from meSi tu meurs, que tu sois loin de moiI don't care if you love mePeu m'importe si tu m'aimesBecause I would die tooCar moi je mourrais aussi

We will have eternity for usNous aurons pour nous l'éternitéIn the blue of all the immensityDans le bleu de toute l'immensitéIn the sky, no more problemsDans le ciel, plus de problèmeMy love, do you think we love each other?Mon amour, crois-tu qu'on s'aime?God unites those who loveDieu réunit ceux qui s'aiment

Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race. Here is how the historic weekend played out. 21JUL24

I am glad Pres Biden decided not to continue his campaign. I hope and pray this decision grants him more years of good health that he can enjoy with his family and friends. Thank you President Biden for all you have done for America, thank you for your service in the senate and as our President. God Bless you and yours Pres Biden! From the Washington Post.....

Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race. Here is how the historic weekend played out.

By Michael Scherer

and

Updated July 21, 2024 at 7:36 p.m. EDT|Published July 21, 2024 at 6:08 p.m. EDT

President Biden called Vice President Harris on Sunday to tell her directly.

He spoke one-on-one with Jeff Zients, his White House chief of staff, and Jen O’Malley Dillon, his campaign chair.

Zients then convened Biden’s White House and campaign senior staff for a 1:45 p.m. call, so that Biden could tell those who had worked closest with him he was abandoning his dream of a second term.

As Biden spoke on that call, a letter announcing his intentions went live online. The chief of staff followed up with Zoom calls for the Cabinet and those in the White House with the rank of assistant to the president.

“There is so much more to do — and as President Biden says, ‘There is nothing America can’t do — when we do it together,’” Zients wrote to the entire White House team at 2:26 p.m.

There were mutterings that it was coming. But until it was done, many of the people who work for the campaign and the White House only assumed something had to happen — some pivot, some admission of reality — but they did not know what, when or how. The map was expanding in the wrong direction. The party had turned. The money was drying up. The polls in must-win states had gone from bad to worse.

This story is based on interviews with more than a dozen Democratic insiders from the campaign, the White House and Capitol Hill, many of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations.

Biden huddled through the weekend with a small crew of family and advisers in Rehoboth Beach, Del.: White House counselor Steve Ricchetti, senior campaign adviser Mike Donilon, deputy chief of staff Annie Tomasini and senior adviser to the first lady Anthony Bernal, all of whom were at the president’s vacation house.

Everyone else plowed forward, swearing publicly that none of that was happening, telling those that worked for them to not stop. O’Malley Dillon had laid down that marker Friday, when she went on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” and abruptly silenced the growing speculation that his exit was imminent. The feedback from door-knocks by campaign workers was good, she said. The campaign was humming. The president was determined.

“He’s not going anywhere,” she said.

That was followed by a tense high-dollar donor call Friday afternoon that left many of the party’s top money people fuming. Calling from the road, Harris joined the Zoom late for just a few minutes — boasted of the campaign’s efforts in Michigan and Wisconsin, expressed confidence in victory and then signed off, according to a person on the call. All the donor questions were left unasked and unanswered.

Donors left frustrated because “it was like we didn’t have eyes and couldn’t see what was going on,” another person on the call said.

It was a bold and definitive posture. Yet it was read by many inside the Democratic political world less as a final word and more like an extension of respect that the president was owed. This decision was always Biden’s to make. From the earliest days of the crisis, people close to Biden would contact those who went public with their dismay.

He deserved “grace,” was their message. Give him his space.

That created weeks of mixed signals, amid clearly deteriorating conditions. Ricchetti and Donilon were both full steam ahead during the Republican convention all the way through Friday, said one person familiar with the conversations. Ricchetti got to the house Friday. Donilon arrived Saturday. They met Saturday evening, according to another person familiar with the events. Inside the campaign, the polls late last week had deteriorated further. The president, suffering from covid, was briefed on the data.

“The poll numbers they got recently were very sobering for them,” this person said. “They wanted to stop the bleeding, to give him time to think about what he wants to say. … It was so relentless. Every day it was a new person.”

The campaign continued to plan trips and fundraisers for Biden on Saturday. A fundraising email for the Biden-Harris ticket was emailed out Sunday even after Biden had published his letter announcing his decision.

In fact, Biden had all but made up his mind Saturday night, said the person briefed on the events. He then went to bed. When he awoke, he did one more gut check before moving forward.

Biden made his decision feeling certain that he did not have a viable path forward. But he remained upset at Democratic lawmakers and party strategists who had begun to publicly come forward to push him out.

A member of Congress said that Biden is “deeply betrayed and upset” at all the people he thought were friends. The member said Biden had been receptive to arguments about polling and his legacy, but it took him some time, and that most staff were not in the loop.

Among much of the senior campaign leadership, the harsh reality had long ago been accepted. But people continued to speak on his behalf, routinely denouncing the anonymous sources describing what was happening.

A congresswoman said Biden had “honest talks” with his team this weekend about the polling, which was seemingly getting worse by the day. Democrats on Capitol Hill were also restless. Dozens of lawmakers had held off on going public, both out of respect for the president and in fear of the political risks of doing so. But many were discussing the best way to come forward in the coming week if Biden did not exit the race by the weekend, according to several people familiar with the discussions.

They were not, however, willing to bend to his will. Democrats in the Senate — where Biden served for 36 years — were being especially careful but had begun discussing whether to come out as a group or one after another, to arrange a number of senators to meet with Biden privately and urge him to exit or else warn that they would go public if he did not respond to their concerns, according to the people.

A number of his aides said on Sunday that they were upset about being kept in the dark, having been told Friday and Saturday to keep fighting for his candidacy. Some were even working on Sunday morning, preparing for the morning shows, and heading back to Wilmington for the week.

As of Sunday afternoon, it was still unclear when exactly Biden would address the nation directly. He was still suffering from covid symptoms, including a hoarse voice, said one person familiar with the situation, and they suspected Biden and his team would wait until he sounded better for any public remarks.

Among Democratic lawmakers, there is disagreement about the best path forward. Biden’s endorsement of Harris is likely to stymie discussion over whether another candidate would be better positioned to beat Trump. But before his endorsement, many lawmakers had concerns over Harris’s ability to take on Trump — in part because of mixed internal polling data, according to two Democratic senators — and were interested in exploring the possibility of an open convention.

Others in Biden’s inner circle believe there is no option, no time to restart and restaff a campaign, which Harris will probably be able to inherit directly barring some legal challenges. One donor said there would be a push for an open process, and that Biden’s announcement of his endorsement of Harris had been a letdown.

“People were thrilled for that brief period between the first Biden announcement and the second,” this person said.

But that was tomorrow’s worry. Enough had already changed.

“I need a drink,” one campaign staffer wrote in a text message, just after 2 p.m.

ELECTION 2024

HAND CURATED

By Michael Scherer

and

21 July 2024

Kamala Harris pledges to 'earn and win' the nomination after Biden's endorsement & Vice President Harris says she will ‘earn and win’ presidential nomination 21JUL24

VP Harris has a long, tough road to travel to the White House but there is no doubt she has the ability to serve as President of the United States of America. drumpf / trump and vance will do well to fear and respect her because she is not stupid and is not intimidated by their campaign of lies, deception, hatred, racism and misogyny. From NPR.....

Kamala Harris pledges to 'earn and win' the nomination after Biden's endorsement

JULY 21, 20244:28 PM ET

Deepa Shivaram

In this file photo from 2023, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris stand on stage at the Democratic National Committee winter meeting, Feb. 3, 2023, in Philadelphia. After deciding to no longer seek the Democratic nomination, Biden endorsed Harris to be the Democratic nominee and take on Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump.

Patrick Semansky/AP

Vice President Harris said she intends to "earn and win" the Democratic nomination for president in a statement released Sunday afternoon.

"I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party—and unite our nation—to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda." Harris said. "We have 107 days until Election Day. Together, we will fight. And together, we will win.”

She thanked Biden for his leadership and service, saying his legacy is "unmatched." She called his decision to step down "selfless and patriotic."

My fellow Democrats

"President Biden is doing what he has done throughout his life of service: putting the American people and our country above everything else," she said.

Harris spoke by phone with Biden earlier today, according to a person familiar with the conversation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Biden released a statement earlier Sunday, declaring his intention to no longer seek the Democratic nomination for president. He then endorsed Harris in a separate post on X, saying: "Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump."

Harris, in her own statement, said it was an honor to have his endorsement. Many Democratic groups have aligned with Biden, endorsing Harris, though other prominent Democrats have remained silent on the matter, with still others calling for an open nomination process.

The Democratic National Convention kicks off in Chicago on August 19.

Vice President Harris says she will ‘earn and win’ presidential nomination

Vice President Harris said Sunday that she intends to “earn and win” the Democratic presidential nomination after President Biden’s announcement that he is stepping aside as the party’s nominee. Harris vowed in a statement to defeat Donald Trump. Biden said in a letter to fellow Americans on Sunday that “it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President.” Harris was calling fellow Democrats on Sunday to shore up support.

12 min ago

By Michael Scherer

and

Holly Bailey

Chairs for the 57 state parties and territories met Sunday evening and voted to endorse Vice President Harris to be the Democratic Party’s nominee for president.

“Almost 15 million Democrats have already voted for Vice President Harris as a member of the Democratic ticket,” a statement from the Association of State Democratic Committees said. “As President Biden’s partner in the White House, Vice President Harris has been a cornerstone of this administration’s extraordinary successes, and she is the most qualified candidate to continue that legacy and serve as president.”

The statement said that no one voted in opposition. A handful abstained because their states’ parties don’t allow endorsement from chairs.

Post

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Joe Biden

@JoeBiden

My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term. My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.