Well, dear readers, once again and again once I have slept away an evening and all because I don’t seem to be able to get more than four hours of overnight sleep. Therefore, every time I sit on the couch like so much fish I slap that bass and doze off instantly without so much as a by your leave. I can’t even get through one damn YouTube video, whether irritating or not, before slapping that damn bass and dozing off without so much as a by your leave. I think I must have slept six hours last night, basically from six to midnight, with only a couple of wake ups in between. The only time I seem to be able to watch anything is at the computer, and I will admit, for example, to going down quite the rabbit hole, which kept me up until four and all because of the old Rodgers and Hammerstein adage, there is nothing like a Dame. Of course, I’m speaking of Dame Edna and yes, I went down a Dame Edna hole and was laughing so hard I thought I would fall off the thing I sit on at the computer – stool? Bar stool? Tall chair? I do know that the phrase going down a Dame Edna hole would have pleased the Dame no end. The interesting thing is that I had no idea who Dame Edna was the very first time I saw her, which was on Broadway at the Booth Theater in a little year I like to call 2000. I’d just begun a new label, and I was in New York planning the first of two albums for it – The Stephen Sondheim Album. I’d met with the musical director, Todd Ellison and the orchestrator, David Siegel, and gone over arrangements. I’d chosen all the singers at that point – the album being a mix of classics and some lesser-done stuff. I can’t remember what else I saw on that trip, but something compelled me, perhaps someone recommended it, to see Dame Enda’s The Royal Tour at a matinee. And so, I can’t remember if I just got a single at the box office or if I pulled some strings, but I got a great eighth row center seat. The photos out front were all of the Dame and made me laugh, so I at least was slightly prepared for what was in store. But nothing could have prepared me for the laugh fest inside. From her first entrance and her “possums” and tossing her gladiolas to her curtain call, I have rarely laughed so hard, so hard that tears of laughter were frequently streaming down my eyes and the eyes of everyone in the audience. The minute the show was over, I wrote a note to the Dame and her manager, Barry Humphries, introducing myself, mentioning the album we were doing, who was on it, and that it would be an honor to have the Dame join us, singing a song I had not been able to cast to my satisfaction – Losing My Mind. I included the number of my hotel.

I heard back from Mr. Humphries the next morning, saying the Dame would be delighted to join our merry troupe, with the only ask being that the Dame would like her pianist, Phil Reno, to accompany. Since I knew it had to be a piano only track, I said yes, of course, Phil – he was playing for the show at the Booth, so it was easy/breezy. Then I got a feeling of dread and knew I’d better call my close personal friend, Mr. Stephen Sondheim, and run this by him. I did and after a brief silence, he laughed and thought it was a really fun idea, as the song had been recorded so many times by so many great vocalists. (I never was able to cast the other classic Sondheim song, Send in the Clowns, so we didn’t do it, although I will reveal that I did ask Rosemary Harris to do it and I think she would have been wonderful, but she was too nervous to even attempt it.)

So, a few weeks later I was back to record all the New York vocals – we’d done the band tracks in L.A. I can’t remember which studio we were in – ah, Smash Studios – but I know we did the vocals on a Monday, the off day for most of the performers. At the end of that day, Mr. Humphries arrived with Phil Reno in tow and, of course, Dame Edna Everage. I did what I always do, said let’s rehearse one so I can hear what you’re doing and we can set levels. So, we rehearsed one, which I, of course, recorded. And it was hilarious – even engineer Vinnie was howling. My favorite thing was the way the Dame sang “lewssssssssing my mind.” I said, let’s do one right away. Take two wasn’t quite as funny and she didn’t do the “lewssssssing” at all. So, I played back both takes and said let’s do two more just to have them, but you have to do “lewssssssing” – Mr. Humphries agreed and spoke to the Dame. We did takes three and four and both were fine. In the end, all the “lewssssing’s” were from take one, and the rest was take three. Here is a photograph of Dame Edna’s manager, Barry Humphries, and me discussing “lewsssssing.”

I did speak to Mr. Humphries a few times after that, and we really wanted to do something else together, but it never happened. I would encourage you to go down a Dame Edna hole on the Tube of You and watch at least the few best-of videos – the timing, the jokes, the ability to instantly come up with something brilliant on the spot. In fact, the only time there’s trouble with her landing are people who think they’re funnier than her and who make the bad mistake of trying to top her – Conan O’Brien being the worst of the worst offenders, but also Robin Williams, because he can’t stop being brilliant himself long enough to let someone else have at it. But pair Dame Edna with the great Michael Parkinson and you’ll see genius at work. Same with Graham Norton.

Well, that was long. But there’s little else to say about yesterday – got up, answered e-mails, ate sweet and sour cabbage soup and a pastrami sandwich, dozed off, got one step closer to packaging approval on The Sherman Brothers Album, got the book files to the publisher, so that’s on the fast track now, did a few things that needed doing, and then came the big on again off again sleep from six to midnight.

Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, it’s the second Friday the thirteenth we’ve had this year, but hopefully it won’t be too scary, and I haven’t too much on the plate today, other than food, a telephonic call, and perhaps a visit to the mail place. Later, I really would like to watch, listen, and relax, but that will depend solely on how much sleep I’ve gotten.

The weekend is open for business, and then Monday we ship the French How to Succeed CDs, I hope to get a galley sooner than later so I can approve and get that to the printers, we should have print on My Fair Lady by the end of the week or early the week after, we’ll set the recording date for the album I’m producing, and do whatever else needs doing.

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, eat, have a telephonic call, maybe go to the mail place, and then watch, listen, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/Blu and Ray/streaming player? I’ll start – CD, listening to Applause quite a bit. Blu-ray, John Ford’s 7 Women. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, happy to have gone down a Dame Edna hole because – there is nothing like a Dame.