Disyembre 28, 2024

"I've always have loved good tunes. And my dad played them on his piano... My cousin Betty introduced me to 'My Funny Valentine.'"

"I loved sort of classic pieces that I would hear. I would love ‘Cheek to Cheek,' Fred Astaire, all these things. I just thought, these are classics.... Heaven, I'm in heaven.... So, I had a lot of information in my head of those tunes.... People have said to me, do you believe in magic? And I say, I have to 'cause of that song.... I think I'd loaded my computer so strongly with 'Cheek to Cheek,' 'Stardust,' 'When I Fall in Love,' with these beautiful songs, I'd heard all my childhood. I mean, I can still remember standing in the kitchen of Forthlin Road and hearing 'When I Fall in Love' by Nat King Cole as I was reaching for an HP bottle and thinking, my God, this is good.... So, you know, that's all I can think is that all of that data — to use modern terminology — had gone into my very sophisticated computer. The human brain, right? Had jumbled up, done all this sort of stuff. And somehow as the dream, it just, it tumbled out this song."

Said Paul McCartney, in the "Yesterday" episode of the "Life in Lyrics" podcast. 

I had to look up HP. My own "computer" is full of A1 and Heinz 57. HP is in the British mind. "HP Sauce is a British brown sauce... named after London's Houses of Parliament."


What sauce is splattered on your magical dreams?

59 (na) komento:

David53 ayon kay ...

McIlhenny Tabasco Sauce.

RCOCEAN II ayon kay ...

I still love A1 and Heinz 57. The 57 sauce goes well with chicken, A1 is better for steak and pork. Too bad with Bidinflation its so expensive. but you only live once. BTW, the Beatles were lucky to grow up with so many musical influences, not just all the pop songs of the 30s/40s but Elvis and Chuck Berry, and 50s R/R stuff.

wild chicken ayon kay ...

Texas barbecue. Always the same, always good.

David53 ayon kay ...

Put it on your black eyed peas.

RCOCEAN II ayon kay ...

Soy souce is great too, especially if its matched with Ginger. Assuming you can handle the sodium.

RCOCEAN II ayon kay ...

My Funny valentine best version = Chet Baker.

flye ayon kay ...

For an instrumental version, I'd go with the duet by Bill Evans and Jim Hall from their amazing album Undercurrent

Narr ayon kay ...

What became of that History of Rock and Roll in 500 Songs project?

Old and slow ayon kay ...

Bacon sandwich with butter and HP sauce is one of the greatest things ever.

Ampersand ayon kay ...

Art always comes from something outside the artist. Nothing is entirely new. That's why AI art is so frightening. It systematizes inspiration and uses algorithms to transform inspiration into a specific work of seeming creativity.

FWBuff ayon kay ...

Worcestershire

Lem Vibe Bandit ayon kay ...

YouTube: Jeeves and Wooster - Oh by jingo

Lazarus ayon kay ...

"HP demands" in an Elton John song made me scratch my head. HP sauce? Houses of Parliament? Horsepower? High pressure? High powered? It actually means "hire purchase" or what we might call "rent to own" arrangements.

White sauce, brown sauce, green sauce, red sauce. Maybe RFK Jr. or whoever runs the FTC can get more descriptive names for these things. More descriptive than "Béarnaise" too. I once bought marked down "Salsa Verde" at the Dollar Store. It was indeed a "salsa" or sauce, but it was nothing like what we Yankees have come to think of as "salsa"

gspencer ayon kay ...

Or on any breakfast cereal. It enhances the milk.

RJ ayon kay ...

The scariest sentence I've read this week: "I once bought marked down "Salsa Verde" at the Dollar Store."

Readering ayon kay ...

McCartney was considered for the Romeo role opposite Hussey.

rhhardin ayon kay ...

No mention of Bloch Concerto Grosso 2 among the classics?

BUMBLE BEE ayon kay ...

HUKU has some good stuff w/Paul , I'm told.

BUMBLE BEE ayon kay ...

"Chipotle" rules!

mikee ayon kay ...

Original formula Vicks 44, a wonderful tonic with 30% alcohol content. A heavy tablespoon for me as a kid was essentially like a shot glass of vodka, and not only did it stop my coughing from colds, it put me right to sleep. The medicinal taste probably set me up for loving good peaty Scotches, so that was nice of it, too.

mikee ayon kay ...

Chalupa is what the sophisticated hot sauce user pours onto everything.

Aggie ayon kay ...

HP sauce is pretty similar to Heinz A-1 if I recall correctly, and both are a bit derivative of Worcestershire. Picka-Peppa is quite tasty from the mango, and it used to have tamarind too, but I see that's gone off the ingredients list on the bottle. Still good for pre-seasoning meat though.

Mikey NTH ayon kay ...

My dad made a cough syrup out of water, honey, and whiskey. Said the pediatrician gave them the recipe.

Marcus Bressler ayon kay ...

what doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Marcus Bressler ayon kay ...

I love all the old classics mentioned here. As to sauces, I do use Picka-Peppa and a GF's grandmother's homemade version of HP that she calls Old Zander's. I made it once -- took all day and gave it away as a steak sauce. It's pretty good but too much effort for the results.

Aggie ayon kay ...

Suddenly.....it's not half the steak it used to be...
There's a fork full calling out to me.
Oh, I believe in more HP

tcrosse ayon kay ...

Rooster sauce.

Hannio ayon kay ...

"Worcestershire"

As long as it's Lea & Perrins.

Aggie ayon kay ...

(now Heinz)

Jerry ayon kay ...

Patel's Fresh Kitchen Chatpati Chutney. I haven't found anything yet it isn't good on, from eggs to beef to chicken to potatoes to vegetables...

Haven't tried it on tamales, though... hmm...

mikee ayon kay ...

Lipton Instant Iced Tea Mix, sweetened with saccharine, could be made into a paste, lifted on a spoon, and licked like a horrible Lovecraftian candy. Not admitting that I did so, or that anyone I've ever known did so, but yes, possible.

BUMBLE BEE ayon kay ...

Off Topic: ACE sports an Althouse column...

So, where did the word 'grok' come from?
https://ace.mu.nu/archives/412914.php

robother ayon kay ...

Durkee's Famous. My dad was born and raised in Butte, and whenever we visited my nana we'd bring back pasties (wherever copper was mined, there were Cornishmen and their pasties--I've even encountered them in the UP of Michigan). After nana died, my mom started making them from a Butte recipe book. Hot pasties were always served with gravy, but dad always had Dukes Famous on cold pasties, and I've continued the tradition.

Lem Vibe Bandit ayon kay ...

From the podcast transcript: “standing in the kitchen of fourth Lynn Road”.

Althouse went through the trouble of checking and fixing the text?

WhoKnew ayon kay ...

robother said "I've even encountered them in the UP". Whereas I'd be saying "I've even encountered them in Montana" I thought the UP was the true American home of the pastie, Now I find out there are other contenders.

Wince ayon kay ...

Growing up in the Boston area we had "Tahtah" Sauce.

Rocky Comfort ayon kay ...

Henry Bain sauce made with Major Grey chutney is my family favorite. Great on everything.

effinayright ayon kay ...

When I saw "UP" I thought of the Indian state, Uttar Pradesh . Musta been because of the chutney references.

Christy ayon kay ...

Homemade molasses. Over thickly buttered white bread, over crumbled cornbread.... Every fall Papaw cut the cane and most of his numerous offspring showed up with spouses and kids to help feed the mill, to encourage the mule to turn the mill, to keep stirring the run off from the mill, to keep the fires going (Do I remember that right?) under the troughs and to feed everybody working and everybody getting in the way. Anyway, big Ball jars of molasses were a staple in all our homes.

rosebud ayon kay ...

Agreed that the UP of Michigan is the default place in the US to find pasties. Even as a Minnesotan, with our iron mines and miners and their pasties, I think UP when I think pasties.

Dr Weevil ayon kay ...

effinayright:
When I see Uttar Pradesh I can't help misreading it as Utter Pradesh, and thinking it must be somewhere way beyond Moderately Pradesh.

lonejustice ayon kay ...

l bought a bottle of original HP sauce on Amazon a while back after reading one of James Lileks' bleats when he wrote about having it served with beef steak when he was recently in England. It's pretty good, although rather expensive because it's imported and not in high demand here in the States. To me it tastes like a milder form of A1 sauce with a splash of Worcestershire. I don't think I would put it on a good beef steak, but it's great on a grilled 1 inch thick Iowa pork chop.

Mr. Majestyk ayon kay ...

It's amazing how even a creative genius like McCartney runs out of creative genius in his 40s.

MadTownGuy ayon kay ...

I agree on Chipotle hot sauce, but the absolute best I've tasted is Marie Sharp's Smoked Habanero from Belize. It adds pureed carrot which attenuates the heat, just a little, and lets the smokiness rise above the heat.

MadTownGuy ayon kay ...

Lead miners ("Badgers") in southwestern WI were also fond of pasties, and Madison is where I first encountered them.

Mary Beth ayon kay ...

I don't know why it's easier to find HP here than Henderson's Relish (it's like Worcestershire sauce, only better.) Between the two, I'd rather be able to get Henderson's.

GingerBeer ayon kay ...

Outerbridge's Original Sherry Peppers Sauce, from Bermuda. Does anybody else still eat Snapper soup? The best I've ever had was at a Holiday Inn at 18th & Market (Philadelphia). I'd bring my own bottle.

KellyM ayon kay ...

Agree. And the best version is on the recording "Chet in Chicago", made in 1986. It was released after his death.

I think there's also a version with Chet Baker and Paul Desmond.

KellyM ayon kay ...

Shhh, you aren't supposed to talk about that!!!!

KellyM ayon kay ...

Made with Cain's mayonnaise. Yum! One of the few things I miss about New England.

Dagwood ayon kay ...

Bear & Burton's Fireshire W Sauce. It's Worcestershire with a kick. Trust me on this one.

KellyM ayon kay ...

HP sauce is readily available here in SF in Anglo-Irish neighborhoods. I love it but the addition of HFCS makes it off limits. But I bet the A-1 + Worcestershire sauce combo would work well.

John Holland ayon kay ...

HP sauce is also popular in Canada and other former British colonies. Just about every greasy spoon in Toronto that serves a traditional breakfast offers a bottle of HP to glop onto your sunny-side eggs and steak. I used to love the stuff, but now it kicks off my reflux.

The recipe has changed a lot since Paul's day, because a Dutch subsidiary of Heinz bought the company, closed the British factory and moved production to Holland, and EU rules dictated that the original had too much salt and other nasty stuff. Same thing happened to Lee & Perrin's Worcestershire sauce. Both became weak and watery shadows of their former salty, peppery selves. This forced reformulation-by-bureaucrat of two British culinary icons may have had some effect on the Brexit vote in 2016, at least according to some Daily Mail columns I remember reading at the time.

The site of the former HP factory is now used as England's largest distributor of 'Asian' foods, i.e., foods imported from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, countries who now also supply 90% of future Britons. So really, who cares about a recipe for brown sauce? In two generations, there will be no Englishmen left to eat it.

Bunkypotatohead ayon kay ...

I had HP sauce on bangers and mash at British style pub once. Afterwards I searched out a bottle of the stuff, but it was never any good on anything else.

stlcdr ayon kay ...

HP has a unique spicy-but-bland flavor. For a long time it was HP, Tomato Sauce (catchup) or mustard. Luckily, the American spirit of making food better has filtered over to the UK over the past several decades.

HP is a staple, like it’s 1950 and you are on food rations.

Lazarus ayon kay ...

I have never tried HP sauce (or vegemite for that matter). The new "Fruity HP Sauce" doesn't make me any more likely to try it.

I do remember our fathers, back from the war, possibly traumatized all over again by sitting through commercials for Adolph's© Meat Tenderizer.

People have spent much time trying to understand and explain the mysteries of human creativity. Lately, AI seems to be the model: get a big enough corpus into your cortex and ... voilà! ... genius ensues. I'm not judging. It's an interesting addition to explanations going all the way back to the (nine?) muses.

Narr ayon kay ...

I was surprised (pleasantly) to find that restaurants in Belgium and France--at least some of them--now offer good old American ketchup as a matter of course.

Robin Goodfellow ayon kay ...

I grew up with A1 and Heinz 57.

RMc ayon kay ...

My own computer is full of A1 and Heinz 57.

You may have to de-frag, Professor.

Mag-post ng isang Komento

Please use the comments forum to respond to the post. Don't fight with each other. Be substantive... or interesting... or funny. Comments should go up immediately... unless you're commenting on a post older than 4 days. Then you have to wait for us to moderate you through. It's also possible to get shunted into spam by the machine. We try to keep an eye on that and release the miscaught good stuff. We do delete some comments, but not for viewpoint... for bad faith.