BRYAN FERRY : DMUS Mr Chancellor, I'd Like to Begin by Quoting a Lyric from 'Street Life', Written by Our Honorary Gradu
BRYAN FERRY : DMUS Mr Chancellor, I’d like to begin by quoting a lyric from ‘Street Life’, written by our honorary graduand today, Bryan Ferry. It’s from his seminal 1973 album, Stranded: ‘Don't ask me why I'm feeling blue 'Cause loving you is all I can do… Back to nature boys - Vasser girls too Watch what you say, or think, or do Continental-style strasse girls might But you know exactly if it's wrong or right Education is an important key - yes But the good life's never won by degrees - no Pointless passing through Harvard or Yale Only window shopping - it's strictly no sale’ Now, on this day, I think we can all agree, Mr Chancellor, it is indeed pointless passing through Harvard or Yale, but not Newcastle University. And today we are honouring one of our most talented and world-famous alumni. Not many people can claim to have helped create the soundtrack of an era, but Bryan Ferry can do so in a moment of quiet satisfaction, if he ever gets the chance between gigs on his current world tour. He composed many of the songs that are his most famous legacy: ‘Virginia Plain’, ‘Avalon’, ‘Dance Away’, ‘Slave to Love’, ‘Don’t Stop the Dance’. There are also those legendary tracks that he has made his own – including ‘Let’s Stick Together’ by Wilbert Harrison, and John Lennon’s ‘Jealous Guy’, released as a tribute following the ex-Beatle’s death in 1980. Just the other - 1 - BRYAN FERRY : DMUS day, I was walking through the Central Arcade in Newcastle, near Windows Music Shop – where our honoured guest used to browse for hours as a young man gazing at the record sleeves and instruments – and suddenly his version of ‘Jealous Guy’ was playing over the loudspeaker.
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