This song had been sitting nearly finished in my ideas folder for a while. i finally took it out, cleaned it up, and released into the wild at the housefilk Saturday.
Naismith, Not Vorkosigan
by Rob Wynne
TTTO: “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” by Jimmy Kennedy and Nat Simon
(as performed by They Might Be Giants)
Miles Naismith was once Lord Vorkosigan
He’s Adm’ril Naismith, not Lord Vorkosigan
Pretending that he isn’t Vorkosi-
Make a fast retreat to the Dendarii fleet
Every gal on Dendarii missions
Loves Admiral Naismith not Lord Vorkosigan
They don’t know that he’s really Vorkosigan
They’re following the Admiral
Even young Lord Mark was once a clone of Miles
Which was which you couldn’t say
Sur Galen liked it better that way
So now Mark is Mark and not Miles Vorkosigan
He got real fat, unlike Lord Vorkosigan
So folks won’t think that he’s Miles Vorkosigan
When chaos and confusion start to mount
That’s nobody’s business but the Count’s.
Miles Naismith! (Miles Naismith!)
Miles Naismith! (Miles Naismith!)
Even young Lord Mark was once a clone of Miles
Which was which, you couldn’t say
Sur Galen liked it better that way
Miles Naismith was once Lord Vorkosigan
he’s Adm’ril Naismith, not Lord Vorkosigan
Pretending that he isn’t Vorkosigan
When chaos and confusion start to mount
That’s nobody’s business but the Count’s.
So now Mark is Mark and not Miles Vorkosigan
He got real fat, unlike Lord Vorkosigan
So folks won’t think that he’s Miles Vorkosigan
When chaos and confusion start to mount
That’s nobody’s business but the Count’s.
Miles Naismith!
browngirl
*giggle* 🙂
netpositive
ow… ow… ow…
mokatiki
hehehe
i’m reading Mirror Dance now!!
oh also…
*thwap*
filkertom
That is a Frickin’ Hoot
Oh, I like that! Must share it with friends. Must tell Anne and Leslie and ever-damn-body else. Good one, Rob!
Tom
Rob Wynne
Re: That is a Frickin’ Hoot
Wow, thanks. Glad you like it. 🙂
lysana
I love it.
mrpsyklops
This was so cool to hear on Saturday night.
batyatoon
…I can’t make it scan.
*grumbles*
keristor
You have to fit extra syllables into ‘Constantinople’ (at least, that’s the way I got it to scan). We don’ need no steenkin’ scansion…
Rob Wynne
It does scan, but barely, and you have to take a few liberties with it. Ask me next time we’re together and I’ll sing it for you. *vhug*
rdmaughan
I don’t knw the original which always screw me up when trying to listen to songs I’m reading. This time I found I was fitting Miles Naismith to Blackadder in the chorus of the theme some of that show. I suspect this spoiled the effect but i can now picture both of them saying “I have a cunning plan…”.
rdmaughan
Sigh typing too early. Should be theme song not theme some.
keristor
Glunk. I can’t make that scan… Grab myself or bardling sometime (there are probably other UK filkers who know the song as well), or find a copy of TMBG’s “Flood” (my favourite of their albums), if you want to hear the original.
(I’m hampered in appreciating the filk here because I haven’t read the books, but I’ve heard enough from other people that I get a sufficient idea.)
kayshapero
OOK! *snicker*
mrlogic
Hee! I’m glad made me read Mirror Dance, so that I’m able to appreciate this.
It seems to scan just fine to me (with a few epentheses here and there), although the “Miles Naismith! (Miles Naismith!)” in the break would be awfully hard to spit out at speed in the same rhythm as “Istanbul! (Istanbul!)”