Kirsty and Donna and the mysteries of the universe

Kirsty MacColl sings "A New England"

This is Billy Bragg's "A New England," with lyrics specially rewritten for Kirsty MacColl. You can hear Billy Bragg performing this song here. Speaking of Billy Bragg and Jonathan Richman (well, weren't we though?), listen to Billy singing Jonathan's "Ice Cream Man" here.

And, to spiral the circle, here's the ageless Jonathan performing his own "New England" about the one in the USA



"New England" by Jonathan Richman lyrics

All this to draw your attention toward Wes Eichenwald's recent memoirs of his extraordinary Modern Love story with his soulmate Donna—a tender recollection of a trail with stops including Slovenia, New England and old England; through a landscape of mystery, grieving, globetrotting, music, serendipity, synchronicity and meaning- with a nudge from the internet, a spark via email, and a note from Christy McWilson.

Donna’s natural habitat was a piano bar. She had worked closely with, among others, the singing ringmaster of the Barnum & Bailey Circus as well as this guy [Ricky Ritzel], and was an excellent and dedicated cook, a Reiki practitioner, and a very entertaining raconteuse (without even trying, she had had encounters with a large number of celebrities, from Kathleen Turner and Liza Minnelli to Jackie Mason, Harvey Fierstein and Jonathan Richman, the latter of whom she had even helped inspire to write the song “You Can’t Talk To The Dude”). Clearly, this was someone worth getting to know.

How I got to this point, part I: Kirsty and Donna and the mysteries of the universe

How I got to this point, part II: Christy’s letter, the groom’s toast and farewell to Slovenia

Wes Eichenwald blogs at Pogoer 2.0: Memoirs of an experienced optimist

"You Can't Talk to the Dude" lyrics

Justice for Kirsty campaign