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E-Books (english-e-reader), Lord Mcdonald (2)

Lord Mcdonald (2)

'Who's that at this hour of the night?'

'Michael Coleman, tell Seamus Michael Coleman is here to play a tune, to play "Lord McDonald", Michael Coleman has landed from Killavil!'

'Wait there,' she said, and walked away back into the house. I knew that if I didn't get into the light something awful was going to happen. There was a lot of noise inside. It seemed a long while before she came back.

'Seamus Anderson isn't home tonight, he's out of town.'

He had been out of town the last five times I'd been to the house. Still, he was a busy man. A businessman. I still felt bad, so I leaned against the door and hoped the black waves in front of my eyes would disappear. I could hear a man's voice inside the house.

'Is Coleman gone? That man is nothing but trouble when he has drink in him.'

The voice could have been Seamus Anderson's but I was not certain. I banged on the door and shouted for them to let me in. There was another voice. A harder one, with an unpleasant laugh.

'Get out of here, go on, get out of here!' And then to someone else, 'Ye only have to lift him and he'll fall.'

In a narrow back street. Me lying on a pile of rubbish. And a good number of rats. You'll always know rats because they sit up and look you straight in the eye to let you know that's how carefully they're watching you. I thought these were real rats, not the rats I see when I've had a couple of drinks. 'Lord McDonald' was playing in my head.

There was a cop walking towards me. I realized my nose had been bleeding for a while and the front of my jacket was covered in blood. The cop was cautiously tapping his stick against the inside of his left hand, as he walked slowly towards me.

I stood up and stepped out from the wall. Into the light.

'Officer, I was only taking a rest.'

They take drunks down to the police station and beat them unconscious. With sticks. Sometimes they kill them for the fun of it.

'Christ, it's Michael Coleman, Michael Coleman, the great fiddle player. We've got a whole pile of your 78s at home. What are ye doing here?'

'If I knew that, I wouldn't have to drink.'

He smiled and put a hand under my elbow to stop me falling.

'Good luck, Mr Coleman. It's good to meet ye. Ye're a great fiddler when ye're playing.'

And he walked off. A good Irishman. The rats were still there, so they were real rats. Not my rats. The night was lovely and warm and there was nothing to be afraid of.

The drink is like music. How can you explain it to someone who has not fallen in love with it? How it floods your head and pushes the blood three times faster through your body. The wonderful moment of the first one the morning after, when it starts to clear away the fear and anxiety it put there the night before. Drink makes the world a place of certainty. In every way.

I remember the day I played 'Lord McDonald'. I sat in a small recording studio in the South Bronx at midday. Played another tune for a couple of minutes and then it started. I played the whole of 'Lord McDonald' just once and I could feel something running through me. Every second was like an hour and the music was coming from a place so far back in myself that it was tearing me apart. I followed the music, chased the music, with colours going through my mind and Killavil and my dead brother and the man who taught me to play and the end of all this and the twist in myself and green and brown. It was bringing me somewhere and I finally got there.

I walked away out from the studio when I finished, and two men from the record company came out into the street after me. One of them pulled a huge roll of dollars from a deep trouser pocket.

'Here you are, Michael, a couple of hundred dollars for a special performance. No one ever heard anything like that before.'

The sun was shining the way it does in New York in the summer. The rest of the musicians were sitting in the usual bar, talking about work and spending money. They didn't know then they'd never have that sort of money again.

I tried to explain what had happened. My hand was shaking and the beer was spilling onto the floor. Sunshine was coming through the dark glass of the front window. Blue-coloured light with dust flying round in it. I had got there. I looked at my fingers and said there would be so many more tunes that I would play like this.

But it never came again. Not that way. There was just that one day before it all finished for me. 'Lord McDonald' was the tune. My name is Michael Coleman and they say I am the finest fiddler that ever lived.

- THE END -

Lord Mcdonald (2) Lord Mcdonald (2) Lord Mcdonald (2) Lord McDonald (2) マクドナルド卿 (2) 로드 맥도날드 (2) Senhor Mcdonald (2) Lord Mcdonald (2) Лорд Макдональд (2)

'Who's that at this hour of the night?' « Qui est-ce à cette heure de la nuit ?

'Michael Coleman, tell Seamus Michael Coleman is here to play a tune, to play "Lord McDonald", Michael Coleman has landed from Killavil!' "Michael Coleman, dis à Seamus que Michael Coleman est là pour jouer un morceau, pour jouer "Lord McDonald", Michael Coleman a atterri de Killavil !" 'Michael Coleman, diga a Seamus que Michael Coleman está aqui para tocar uma música, para tocar "Lord McDonald", Michael Coleman chegou de Killavil!'

'Wait there,' she said, and walked away back into the house. « Attends là », dit-elle, et elle retourna dans la maison. "Espere aí", disse ela, e voltou para casa. I knew that if I didn't get into the light something awful was going to happen. Je savais que si je n'entrais pas dans la lumière, quelque chose de terrible allait se produire. There was a lot of noise inside. Il y avait beaucoup de bruit à l'intérieur. It seemed a long while before she came back. Il a semblé long avant qu'elle ne revienne.

'Seamus Anderson isn't home tonight, he's out of town.' "Seamus Anderson n'est pas à la maison ce soir, il n'est pas en ville." 'Seamus Anderson não está em casa esta noite, ele está fora da cidade.'

He had been out of town the last five times I'd been to the house. Il avait été hors de la ville les cinq dernières fois où j'avais été à la maison. Still, he was a busy man. Pourtant, c'était un homme occupé. A businessman. Un homme d'affaires. I still felt bad, so I leaned against the door and hoped the black waves in front of my eyes would disappear. Ich fühlte mich immer noch schlecht, also lehnte ich mich gegen die Tür und hoffte, dass die schwarzen Wellen vor meinen Augen verschwinden würden. Je me sentais toujours mal, alors je me suis appuyé contre la porte et j'ai espéré que les vagues noires devant mes yeux disparaîtraient. Eu ainda me sentia mal, então me encostei na porta e esperei que as ondas negras na frente dos meus olhos desaparecessem. I could hear a man's voice inside the house. Je pouvais entendre la voix d'un homme à l'intérieur de la maison.

'Is Coleman gone? 'Est-ce que Coleman est parti? That man is nothing but trouble when he has drink in him.' Dieser Mann macht nichts als Ärger, wenn er getrunken hat.' Cet homme n'est rien d'autre qu'un problème quand il a de l'alcool en lui.

The voice could have been Seamus Anderson's but I was not certain. Die Stimme könnte die von Seamus Anderson gewesen sein, aber ich war mir nicht sicher. La voix aurait pu être celle de Seamus Anderson mais je n'en étais pas certain. I banged on the door and shouted for them to let me in. Ich klopfte an die Tür und rief, dass sie mich hereinlassen sollten. J'ai frappé à la porte et leur ai crié de me laisser entrer. There was another voice. Il y avait une autre voix. A harder one, with an unpleasant laugh. Un plus dur, avec un rire désagréable.

'Get out of here, go on, get out of here!' « Sortez d'ici, allez-y, sortez d'ici ! And then to someone else, 'Ye only have to lift him and he'll fall.' Und dann zu einem anderen: "Ihr müsst ihn nur hochheben, dann fällt er. Et puis à quelqu'un d'autre, 'Vous n'avez qu'à le soulever et il tombera.'

In a narrow back street. In einer engen Seitenstraße. Dans une ruelle étroite. Me lying on a pile of rubbish. Ich liege auf einem Müllhaufen. Moi allongé sur un tas d'ordures. And a good number of rats. Und eine große Anzahl von Ratten. Et un bon nombre de rats. You'll always know rats because they sit up and look you straight in the eye to let you know that's how carefully they're watching you. Du erkennst Ratten immer daran, dass sie sich aufrichten und dir direkt in die Augen schauen, um dir zu zeigen, wie aufmerksam sie dich beobachten. Vous reconnaîtrez toujours les rats parce qu'ils s'assoient et vous regardent droit dans les yeux pour vous faire savoir avec quelle attention ils vous surveillent. I thought these were real rats, not the rats I see when I've had a couple of drinks. Je pensais que c'étaient de vrais rats, pas les rats que je vois quand j'ai bu quelques verres. 'Lord McDonald' was playing in my head. 'Lord McDonald' jouait dans ma tête.

There was a cop walking towards me. Ein Polizist kam auf mich zu. Il y avait un flic qui marchait vers moi. I realized my nose had been bleeding for a while and the front of my jacket was covered in blood. Ich merkte, dass meine Nase schon eine Weile blutete und die Vorderseite meiner Jacke mit Blut bedeckt war. J'ai réalisé que mon nez saignait depuis un moment et que le devant de ma veste était couvert de sang. The cop was cautiously tapping his stick against the inside of his left hand, as he walked slowly towards me. Der Polizist klopfte vorsichtig mit seinem Stock auf die Innenseite seiner linken Hand, während er langsam auf mich zuging. Le flic tapait prudemment son bâton contre l'intérieur de sa main gauche, alors qu'il marchait lentement vers moi.

I stood up and stepped out from the wall. Ich stand auf und trat von der Wand zurück. Je me levai et sortis du mur. Into the light. Dans la lumière.

'Officer, I was only taking a rest.' Herr Wachtmeister, ich habe nur eine Pause gemacht. "Officier, je ne faisais que me reposer."

They take drunks down to the police station and beat them unconscious. Sie bringen Betrunkene auf die Polizeiwache und schlagen sie bewusstlos. Ils emmènent les ivrognes au poste de police et les battent jusqu'à ce qu'ils perdent connaissance. With sticks. Mit Stöcken. Avec des bâtons. Sometimes they kill them for the fun of it. Parfois, ils les tuent pour le plaisir.

'Christ, it's Michael Coleman, Michael Coleman, the great fiddle player. "Mon Dieu, c'est Michael Coleman, Michael Coleman, le grand joueur de violon. 'Cristo, é Michael Coleman, Michael Coleman, o grande violinista. We've got a whole pile of your 78s at home. Wir haben einen ganzen Stapel deiner 78er zu Hause. Nous avons toute une pile de vos 78 à la maison. Temos uma pilha de 78 em casa. What are ye doing here?' Que fais-tu ici ?

'If I knew that, I wouldn't have to drink.' Wenn ich das wüsste, bräuchte ich nicht zu trinken. « Si je savais ça, je n'aurais pas à boire.

He smiled and put a hand under my elbow to stop me falling. Er lächelte und legte eine Hand unter meinen Ellbogen, um mich am Fallen zu hindern. Il sourit et posa une main sous mon coude pour m'empêcher de tomber.

'Good luck, Mr Coleman. « Bonne chance, monsieur Coleman. It's good to meet ye. C'est bon de vous rencontrer. Ye're a great fiddler when ye're playing.' Vous êtes un grand violoneux quand vous jouez.

And he walked off. Et il est parti. A good Irishman. Un bon Irlandais. The rats were still there, so they were real rats. Les rats étaient toujours là, donc c'étaient de vrais rats. Not my rats. Pas mes rats. The night was lovely and warm and there was nothing to be afraid of. Die Nacht war schön und warm, und es gab keinen Grund, sich zu fürchten. La nuit était belle et chaude et il n'y avait rien à craindre. A noite estava linda e quente e não havia nada a temer.

The drink is like music. La boisson est comme la musique. A bebida é como música. How can you explain it to someone who has not fallen in love with it? Wie kann man es jemandem erklären, der sich nicht in es verliebt hat? Comment l'expliquer à quelqu'un qui n'en est pas tombé amoureux ? Como se pode explicar a alguém que não se apaixonou por ela? How it floods your head and pushes the blood three times faster through your body. Wie es deinen Kopf überflutet und das Blut dreimal schneller durch deinen Körper drückt. Comment il inonde votre tête et pousse le sang trois fois plus vite à travers votre corps. The wonderful moment of the first one the morning after, when it starts to clear away the fear and anxiety it put there the night before. Der wunderbare Moment des ersten am Morgen danach, wenn er beginnt, die Angst und die Unruhe, die er in der Nacht zuvor verursacht hat, zu beseitigen. Le moment merveilleux du premier le lendemain matin, quand il commence à dissiper la peur et l'anxiété qu'il y avait mises la nuit précédente. O momento maravilhoso do primeiro na manhã seguinte, quando começa a dissipar o medo e a ansiedade que colocou na noite anterior. Drink makes the world a place of certainty. Alkohol macht die Welt zu einem Ort der Sicherheit. La boisson fait du monde un lieu de certitude. A bebida torna o mundo um lugar de certezas. In every way. Dans tous les sens.

I remember the day I played 'Lord McDonald'. Je me souviens du jour où j'ai joué à 'Lord McDonald'. I sat in a small recording studio in the South Bronx at midday. Je me suis assis dans un petit studio d'enregistrement dans le sud du Bronx à midi. Played another tune for a couple of minutes and then it started. Ich spielte ein paar Minuten lang eine andere Melodie und dann ging es los. J'ai joué un autre morceau pendant quelques minutes, puis ça a commencé. I played the whole of 'Lord McDonald' just once and I could feel something running through me. Ich habe 'Lord McDonald' nur ein einziges Mal ganz durchgespielt, und ich konnte spüren, wie mich etwas durchfuhr. J'ai joué l'intégralité de "Lord McDonald" une seule fois et j'ai senti quelque chose me traverser. Every second was like an hour and the music was coming from a place so far back in myself that it was tearing me apart. Jede Sekunde war wie eine Stunde, und die Musik kam von einem Ort, der so weit in mir selbst zurücklag, dass es mich zerriss. Chaque seconde était comme une heure et la musique venait d'un endroit si lointain en moi qu'elle me déchirait. I followed the music, chased the music, with colours going through my mind and Killavil and my dead brother and the man who taught me to play and the end of all this and the twist in myself and green and brown. Ich folgte der Musik, jagte der Musik hinterher, wobei mir Farben durch den Kopf gingen und Killavil und mein toter Bruder und der Mann, der mir das Spielen beigebracht hatte, und das Ende von all dem und die Wendung in mir selbst und grün und braun. J'ai suivi la musique, chassé la musique, avec des couleurs qui traversaient mon esprit et Killavil et mon frère mort et l'homme qui m'a appris à jouer et la fin de tout cela et la torsion en moi et le vert et le marron. It was bringing me somewhere and I finally got there. Es hat mich irgendwo hingebracht und ich bin endlich angekommen. Cela m'amenait quelque part et j'y suis finalement arrivé.

I walked away out from the studio when I finished, and two men from the record company came out into the street after me. Je suis sorti du studio quand j'ai fini, et deux hommes de la maison de disques sont sortis dans la rue après moi. One of them pulled a huge roll of dollars from a deep trouser pocket. Einer von ihnen zog eine große Dollarrolle aus einer tiefen Hosentasche. L'un d'eux a sorti un énorme rouleau de dollars d'une profonde poche de pantalon.

'Here you are, Michael, a couple of hundred dollars for a special performance. « Voilà, Michael, quelques centaines de dollars pour une représentation spéciale. No one ever heard anything like that before.' Personne n'a jamais rien entendu de tel auparavant.

The sun was shining the way it does in New York in the summer. Le soleil brillait comme il le fait à New York en été. The rest of the musicians were sitting in the usual bar, talking about work and spending money. Le reste des musiciens étaient assis dans le bar habituel, parlant de travail et dépensant de l'argent. They didn't know then they'd never have that sort of money again. Ils ne savaient pas alors qu'ils n'auraient plus jamais ce genre d'argent.

I tried to explain what had happened. J'ai essayé d'expliquer ce qui s'était passé. My hand was shaking and the beer was spilling onto the floor. Ma main tremblait et la bière se répandait sur le sol. Sunshine was coming through the dark glass of the front window. Le soleil entrait par la vitre sombre de la fenêtre de devant. Blue-coloured light with dust flying round in it. Lumière de couleur bleue avec de la poussière qui vole dedans. I had got there. J'y étais arrivé. I looked at my fingers and said there would be so many more tunes that I would play like this. J'ai regardé mes doigts et j'ai dit qu'il y aurait tellement plus de morceaux que je jouerais comme ça.

But it never came again. Mais ce n'est jamais revenu. Not that way. Pas comme ça. There was just that one day before it all finished for me. Il n'y a eu qu'un jour avant que tout ne soit terminé pour moi. 'Lord McDonald' was the tune. 'Lord McDonald' était la chanson. My name is Michael Coleman and they say I am the finest fiddler that ever lived. Je m'appelle Michael Coleman et on dit que je suis le meilleur violoniste qui ait jamais vécu.

- THE END - - LA FIN -