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Review of The Holy or the Broken by Alan Light

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The Holy or the Broken: Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley, and the Unlikely Ascent of The Holy or the Broken: Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley, and the Unlikely Ascent of “Hallelujah” by Alan Light

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I’ve been a fan of Leonard Cohen’s songs for nearly 45 years. “Hallelujah” covers all the themes of Leonard’s songwriting: sex, death, and religion.

The Holy or the Broken covers the trajectory of Hallelujah from its appearance on a Cohen album that Columbia Records rejected to John Cale’s rendition to Jeff Buckley’s rendition – and beyond: particularly the song’s embrace by Simon Cowell on “American Idol.” It discusses Bono’s absolutely weird rendition of Hallelujah that appeared on the Tower of Song tribute album. The book helpfully contains QR codes that one can scan to get different covers of Hallelujah.

I am best acquainted with k.d. lang’s cover of Hallelujah on her Hymns of the 49th Parallel album. The Holy or the Broken makes me want to check out Cohen’s, Cale’s, and Buckley’s renditions – and also Neil Diamond’s rendition(!), which The Holy or the Broken describes as an effective reading.

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What’s “natural”?

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The titling of products as “natural” (see my comments on Natural Essentials Healing Dry Oil) is a pet peeve of mine.  I’m not a purist, but I think that many (including me) would not think that compounds made in the laboratory are “natural.”

The problem is that there’s no agreed-upon definition of “natural.”  There are definitions of what qualifies as “organic,” for example, through the USDA’s National Organic Program.  Here is a USDA fact sheet on labeling Cosmetics, Body Care Products, and Personal Care Products as organic.

The FDA does not have a definition for the term “organic.”

Bottom line: read the labels, including the ingredient list, and determine for yourself if the product meets your definition of “natural.”

Happy 4th of July!

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We recognized Canada Day; we would be remiss to not recognize our very own Fourth of July.

American Flag
American Flag

We associate the 4th of July with parades, barbeques, and fireworks, but let’s take a few moments today to reflect on The Declaration of Independence.  Read the Declaration of Independence on the National Archives web site.

The Declaration of Independence closes with these words:

And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

Indeed, several signers suffered for the cause of independence.

It surprised me to hear a man from Eritrea and a man from Pakistan say that they had memorized the Declaration of Independence in their home countries.

The Declaration of Independence is housed at the National Archives in Washington, DC. I was privileged to see the Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, and Bill of Rights arise from out of their vaults prior to visitor hours.

What about you?  How are you going to celebrate the 4th of July?  I’m going to take advantage of the movie theater discount to see Man of Steel: you know, “Truth, Justice, and the American Way.”

Canada Day

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Flag of Canada
Flag of Canada

Today is Canada Day. Warm wishes to all our Canadian readers (our second largest readership)!

Canada Day marks the joining of the British North American colonies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Province of Canada into a federation of four provinces (the Province of Canada was divided into Ontario and Quebec) on July 1, 1867. Happy 146th birthday, Canada!

Want to mark Canada Day with music? Here are The Style Page’s picks:

Classic Canadian Songs from Smithsonian Folkways
Classic Canadian Songs from Smithsonian Folkways

Smithsonian Folkways describes Classic Canadian Songs in this way:

Canadian identity was once truly a mosaic—of disparate regions and small communities widely dispersed over a vast and inhospitable landscape. Classic Canadian Songs from Smithsonian Folkways showcases the rich musical traditions from generations of European settlers and contrasts with that of Aboriginal peoples fiercely determined to preserve their ways of life in the wake of colonialism and its injustices.

Hymns of the 49th Parallel – k.d. lang covers songs by fellow Canadians Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Leonard Cohen,  Bruce Cockburn, and others

Famous Blue Raincoat – Jennifer Warnes is best known for her overwrought duets with Bill Medley (Dirty Dancing) and Joe Cocker (Top Gun), but this is her heartfelt tribute to the songs of Leonard Cohen (again!). Leonard Cohen himself appears as the voice of Fire that consumes Joan of Arc. Moody and melancholy, one friend said that this album was music to slit your wrists by.

Northern Songs: Canada’s Best and Brightest – this Starbucks Hear Music CD features signature songs Constant Craving by k.d. lang, Angel by Sarah McLachlan, the Cowboy Junkies’s cover of Lou Reed’s Sweet Jane, and more.

Introducing EVOLUTIONMAN

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EVOLUTIONMAN is a skin care and cosmetics collection founded by celebrity stylist Marco Berardini. It’s geared to men, as you might surmise from the name, but we ladies might find some products that we’d like. Recently, EVOLUTIONMAN sent me its Moisture Protect SPF 20 Bronze bronzing fluid and its Conceal & Treat concealer stick to try.

Bronzing fluid is great. It really warms up the complexion. This product would also flatter folks with deeper complexions than mine. You can use it to tone down redness or you can adjust your foundation shade by adding a touch of bronzing fluid – good to know for summer.

EVOLUTIONMAN Moisture Protect SPF 20 Bronze
EVOLUTIONMAN Moisture Protect SPF 20 Bronze

My complaint about EVOLUTIONMAN ‘s Moisture Protect SPF 20 Bronze bronzing fluid is that it’s runny. I lose a lot of product. It’s imperative that you shake the tube really well to mix the product. A more gel-like consistency would be better, or else EVOLUTIONMAN might consider a pump bottle. While Moisture Protect Bronze bronzing fluid is rated SPF 20, a thin layer will not provide adequate sun protection. Layer it over sunscreen.

EVOLUTIONMAN Conceal & Treat stick concealer
EVOLUTIONMAN Conceal & Treat stick concealer

I like EVOLUTIONMAN’s Conceal & Treat concealer stick. It blends easily with the skin. It’s drier than the Cover Girl + Olay’s concealer balm. I received Conceal & Treat concealer sticks in Light and Medium. Medium is too deep for my complexion. If you’d like to try it, please fire off an email to me at thestylepage [dot] com. I’d appreciate your review and comments for this blog.

EVOLUTIONMAN is offer readers of The Style Page 20% off its entire site!  To take advantage of this offer, go to the Facebook link https://www.facebook.com/pages/Evolution-Man/150691754953763?sk=app_237202476309340 and then share the link for your 20% off.

Oh, and did I mention that EVOLUTIONMAN also has a nail collection??  Another reason to take advantage of this offer!

How to open a blister pack

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Use a can opener to slit open a blister pack:

Use a can opener to open a blister pack
Use a can opener to open a blister pack

I wish that I had known about this when I bought the LuMESH three-fer set from Costco!  And yes, I’m looking forward to the collaborations between Costco and Pati Dubroff and Jenna Hipp.  Despite what Allure says about these collections becoming available this month, Hatch Beauty says that they won’t be available until next month.  No word about the blister packs, however! 🙂

The Bahu of Bengal and the rivers of #India

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The Style Page is also The Bahu of Bengal!   Bengal is a state in eastern India, and “Bahu” means daughter-in-law.  It’s a tribute to my in-laws, who reside in Bengal.

Today, I’ve been fiddling with creating a map of the rivers of India on the Bahu of Bengal blog.   Now you’ll understand why I haven’t been blogging about beauty.

Rivers of India
Rivers of India

You might enjoying browsing the Bahu of Bengal blog for other maps of India.

Which blog do you prefer? Blogger or WordPress?

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I had heard a lot about WordPress being a superior platform to Blogger.  It wasn’t until my husband set up his first blog in WordPress that I made the jump to WordPress.

I found that WordPress had a friendlier interface for blog administration; in addition the “Press This” button enabled me to “riff” on web pages.

I asked for quick impressions from Halifax of Sparkled Beauty (whom I consider my BBF – best blogging friend) and my husband about which design they liked better: this blog or the WordPress blog, The Style Page | Off the beaten beauty path.  Both said that they liked the format of the new WordPress blog.

Which do you prefer: the design of this blog or the WordPress blog?  Submit your comments on this article or send me an email at thestylepage [at] yahoo [dot] com.