Back in session

Home at last. And not nearly as jetlagged as I expected, though I suspect my brain has been scrambled in more subtle ways. Lots of travel impressions to parse. First that comes to mind is the absence of live music. Sad to say, we failed to find anything resembling a band playing any place we passed through. The car stereo was ruled by Arab pop stations and opera, which was surprisingly appropriate for driving through the maze of Jerusalem streets.

I got this tune into my head shortly before we headed out. And it stayed there for the entirety of our travels. If all you knew about Robert Palmer was "Addicted to Love" and his harem of blank-faced video models, you'd probably never get around to hearing this gem. A real shame that would be. This one's just, uh, addictive. I love how the subdued vox cut against the beat and hook. Dude plays it distant and moody, in the vaguely imperial English gentleman expat role he enacted quite convincingly before stumbling into MTV stardom.

Maybe that distance is what resonated with me over the last two weeks. It was fascinating to be surrounded by Jews at levels of society not commonly seen in America (gas station attendants, beach bums, soldiers, etc). And yet, I felt little sense of belonging to the citizenry, certainly no sense of being in a land that was particularly "holy." Most of the time, and in just about every place, I felt overwhelmed by the weight of history - say a town built by Jews, captured by Romans, repurposed by waves of Byzantines, Arabs, Crusaders, now dressed up for tourists. Then there's the crippling debate over who gets to claim spiritual dibs, which, happily, most folks in Tel Aviv would rather ignore in favor of playing matkot on the Mediterranean shore.

Anyway, dig the song. And if you think it needs some more hip cred, note that it's Chris Frantz keeping it nice and tasteful on the traps.

Robert Palmer - Johnny and Mary