Saturday, May 1, 2010

First of May is Labor Day here

Today is Labor Day - nothing much happens around here other than a public holiday. No wait, there used to be some sort of a Government-sponsored parade or gathering in some stadium to commemorate this occasion, a tribute to Workers, you and I - but not sure if this is still practised.

I know four people whose birthday is today, so Happy Birthday, ladies. Don't think you'd see this but just know that I thought of you. *Hugs&Kisses*..

I've always thought having a birth on Labor Day is so apt. I mean, a woman literally goes through labor on that day. Labor Day. Ouch!

All the same, Happy Labor Day or Happy Workers Day, everyone. For baby-boomer music fans, May 1st often brings to mind the Bee Gees number, First of May which is a song recorded by the Bee Gees with lead vocals by Barry Gibb. First of May is a reference to the birthday of Barry's dog, Barnaby. Cool!

Bananaz has put together a sweet version of this classic song. I'm also stoked to embed some videos of this lovely First of May.

Video-watching is eye-opening because the videos show us life as it was lived in a different era. This would sound cliched but, isn't technology wonderful? The hopscotch layout in this video brings back memories when kids games were free, kids playground was a lot safer and covered more grounds, and when roads were not so congested with auto traffic and pollution. Perhaps it's our culture, we'd never go near a cemetery, let alone hang out in one. This video of the movie Melody shows the puppy lovebirds hanging out in a cemetery after school. A little trivia.. The memorable graveyard scenes of the film were shot on location at Brompton Cemetery and Nunhead Cemetery; opened in 1840 Nunhead is one of the oldest Victorian era cemeteries in London.

I picked a video with lyrics so you can sing along before you go over to Bananaz's version. LOL!



This video shows how simple and free life was, maybe still is in rural areas in the West. You could just barter a belonging for a fish in a bottle. Have you done anything like this as a child? Oh, happy days..



A little about Melody. Melody (aka S.W.A.L.K.) is a 1971 British film about puppy love. Although initially a box office disappointment in both the United States and Britain it has over the years become a cult classic. The film turned out to be an enormous hit in Japan, and in some Latin American countries such as Argentina and Chile, according to Wikipedia. I have yet to see it. Will have to seriously look out for it. In the meantime, will have to just settle for this movie trailer.



If you're one who enjoys movie soundtracks, this movie has lots of hits by the Bee Gees including In the Morning, Melody Fair, Give Your Best, and the hit single To Love Somebody, First of May, and the Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young hit, Teach Your Children.

Enjoy!


Source: Wikipedia

15 comments:

  1. Beautiful post..am very touched by the videos reminiscing those were the days..oooh so Barry got the inspiration from Barnaby ~;) tQ.

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  2. Anonymous9:34 PM

    Happy labour day! :)

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  3. Oops overlooked to thankz you for the link. tQ

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  4. Labour day this year is no fun! It fell on Saturday so no extra holiday for me. LOL

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  5. Ouh...I didn't know that Bee Gees have such a song. :)

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  6. Thank God it's Labour Day if not, have to work!!!

    OH, I love this song 1st of May! Used to play it often : )

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  7. nothing special to me for labour day this year, as it falls on a saturday which is my non-working day.. why can't it just fall on a day before or after?? haiz~~

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  8. Bananaz, thank you. Yeah, they sure bring back some nostalgia, don't they?

    Mei Teng, hope you enjoyed it too.

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  9. Bananaz, LOL! You're welcome.

    Lina, I remember one year, Selangor arranged for those public holidays that they could adjust to fall on Sat. Not sure if it's still practised. Some companies compensate their employees. Mine does.

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  10. Tekkaus, Bee Gees have some classics and they are popular karaoke numbers. Check out You Tube for them.

    Foong, holidays are always great, eh?

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  11. SK, no replacement holiday, meh?

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  12. May 1 is celebrated as Labor’s Day all around the world. It is a way to show respect to the people doing physical or mental labor. It must raise our voice against any type of exploitation. Thanks for the post.

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  13. Hi Rithun, no doubt Labor Day is celebrated around the world but I believe the date varies. In the US and the UK, it is celebrated on the First Monday of September. Thanks for your thoughts and for stopping by.

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  14. Interesting observations for May Day.Two of my cousins have their birthdays on 1st May.Labor Day is a welcome holiday in the month of May as there are no holidays round the corner.Thanks for the lovely videos too.Thanks.

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  15. Hi there! You're welcome. How cool! Belated Happy Birthday to your cousins then.

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