Random thoughts on a Quiet Storm Thursday night
This is for the Lover in You
“I don't give a damn about the other demographics/When the quiet storm comes on, I fall sleep.” Chuck D, How to Kill a Radio Consultant
“Cause every time I close my eyes/I think of you/And no matter what the season is/I still love you/With all my heart/And I want to be with you/Wherever you are - I only think of you on two occasions/That's day and night/I'd go for broke if I could be with you/Only you can make it right.” The Deele, Two Occasions
“And every time I close my eyes/I thank the Lord that I've got you (that I've got you) yeah/And you've got me too (you've got me too)/And every time I think of it, I pinch myself 'cause/I don't believe it's true yeah/That someone like you loves me too yeah.” Babyface, Every Time I Close My Eyes
It recently dawned on me that Babyface’s 1996 classic Every Time I time Close My Eyes is the continuation of The Deele’s 1987 ballad Two Occasions.
The lyric ‘every time I close my eyes’ is the line that connects the two songs by way of intertextuality through space and time.
The difference between the two songs (both written by Babyface - with a 9 year gap in between them) is the 1987 hit Two Occasions is about the joy derived from the imaginings of a possible love affair with the apple of ones eye. While the 1996 chart topper Every Time I Close My Eyes is the expression of ones gratitude to their beloved after years of partnership.
Love,
A. Joseph
Copyright 2023 by Aharon Joseph