January 25 - Witold Lutosławski; Etta James (The Musical Birthday Series, 2nd Annual Cycle)

Witold Lutosławski (25 January 1913 – 7 February 1994) was a major Polish composer and conductor. 

[For last year's limerick on Jobim click here.]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Polished

Witold Lutosławski, of the Polish avant-garde,

Working in a country where his music could be barred

If someone in the government decided it was hard,

Found a way to forge a career, and largely went unscarred.

♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪      

Etta James (25 January 1938 – 20 January 2012) was an American singer who performed in blues, R&B, soul, rock and roll, jazz, and gospel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ettable

 

"Etta James was famous in real life, but she’s also “crossword-famous”—a woman whose handy, four-letter first name has gotten [crossword puzzle writers like myself] out of many tough corners and spared us countless painful rewrites." -- Matt Gaffney, in Slate

 

While no one aims

To stake such claims,

Some famous names,

Like Etta James,

Fit in the frames

Of crossword games.

 

 

 

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