The WELL: deadsongs.vue.220: West L.A. Fadeaway

#8: searchlight casting (jstrahl) Wed 4 Jan 06 13:13

Wed, 04 Jan 2006 13:13:00 PST

FWIW, one would say ha'kol...., not kol. At least, that's what i learned in public school and from my parents. [Read entire topic]

#7: Marked from the Day That I was Born (ssol) Fri 11 Feb 05 14:24

Fri, 11 Feb 2005 14:24:00 PST

Wow. I only knew about the Hebrew, or more preciely Yiddish, supposed origin of the word. My Grandmother said it was a nonsense word used to disguise the meaning of something like "just exactly perfect" amongst the Jewish gangs in NYC back in the 1910's.

As she and I were never rubbed out, this information may have been false.

In any case, the mob/Italian/Jewish origin could well be true.

Paging Drs. Lansky & Siegle... [Read entire topic]

#6: Robin Russell (rrussell8) Fri 11 Feb 05 11:02

Fri, 11 Feb 2005 11:02:00 PST

From the Oxford English Dictionary, the earliest reference is:

1919 I. BACHELLER Man for Ages iv. 69 *As to looks I'd call him, as ye might say, real copasetic.* Mrs. Lukins expressed this opinion solemnly... Its last word stood for nothing more than an indefinite depth of meaning.

The origin of the word seems to be a mystery. From the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language:

Word History: We know very little about the origin of the word copacetic, meaning "excellent, first-rate." Is its origin to be found in Italian, in the speech of southern Black people, in the Creole French dialect of Louisiana, or in Hebrew? John O'Hara, who used the word in Appointment in Samarra, later wrote that copacetic was "a Harlem and gangster corruption of an Italian word." O'Hara went on to say, "I don't know how to spell the Italian, but it's something like copacetti." His uncertainty about how to spell the Italian is paralleled by uncertainty about how to spell copacetic itself. Copacetic has been recorded with the spellings copasetic, copasetty, copesetic, copisettic, and kopasettee. The spelling is now more or less fixed, however, as copacetic or copasetic, even though the origin of the word has not been determined. The Harlem connection mentioned by O'Hara would seem more likely than the Italian, since copacetic was used by Black jazz musicians and is said to have been Southern slang in the late 19th century. If copacetic is Creole French in origin, it would also have a Southern homeland. According to this explanation, copacetic came from the Creole French word coupers*tique, which meant "able to be coped with," "able to cope with anything and everything," "in good form," and also "having a healthy appetite or passion for life or love." Those who support the Hebrew or Yiddish origin of copacetic do not necessarily deny the Southern connections of the word. One explanation has it that Jewish storekeepers used the Hebrew phrase kol b*sedeq, "all with justice," when asked if things were O.K. Black children who were in the store as customers or employees heard this phrase as copacetic. No explanation of the origin of copacetic, including the ones discussed here, has won the approval of scholars, as is clearly shown by the etymology of copacetic in the first volume of the Dictionary of American Regional English, published in 1985: "Etym unknown."

While the Creole origin seems the most compelling to me, if I look into the components of the word more closely, perhaps it has something to do with a police officer with a particularly unpleasant (vinegary) disposition. [Read entire topic]

#5: Kosher Swan (shmo) Fri 11 Feb 05 06:43

Fri, 11 Feb 2005 06:43:00 PST

Is that the "kol b'seder" one? That's common Israeli slang for "everything's cool" or "it's all good." [Read entire topic]

#4: Christian Crumlish (xian) Thu 10 Feb 05 20:43

Thu, 10 Feb 2005 20:43:00 PST

has anyone traced the word copasetic to a definite source before Mr. Bojangles? There are a number of odd / interesting possible folk etymologies, with one theory relating to yiddish. [Read entire topic]

#3: David Dodd (ddodd) Thu 10 Feb 05 11:44

Thu, 10 Feb 2005 11:44:00 PST

A quick web search finds a band called Local H using copacetic and also rhyming it with pathetic.

Also, can't quite figure this out, a song called "She Was My Girl," supposedly from the Spiderman 2 soundtrack, rhymes copacetic with frenetic. [Read entire topic]

#2: Robin Russell (rrussell8) Thu 10 Feb 05 11:20

Thu, 10 Feb 2005 11:20:00 PST

One of the few songs (in fact, I can't think of another off hand) bold enough to include "copacetic" and, with a flourish of daredevil panache, to rhyme it as well. Reminds me of the "dubious" and "salubrious" rhyme in the Mary Jane Hot-Cha. [Read entire topic]

#1: Alex Allan (alexallan) Mon 8 Sep 03 18:43

Mon, 08 Sep 2003 18:43:00 PDT

West L.A. Fadeaway Lyrics: Robert Hunter Music: Jerry Garcia

Copyright Ice Nine Publishing; used by permission.

Looking for a chateau Twenty one rooms but one will do Looking for a chateau Twenty one rooms but one will do I don't want to buy it I just want to rent it for an hour or two

Met an old mistake Walking down the street today Met an old mistake Walking down the street today I didn't want to be mean about it But I, I didn't have one good word to say

Chorus West L.A. fadeaway West L.A. fadeaway Little red light on the highway Big green light on the speedway, hey, hey, hey

I had a steady job Hauling items for the mob I had a steady job Hauling items for the mob

You know the pay was pathetic It's a shame those boys couldn't be more copacetic

I met a west L.A. girl Already know what I need to know I met a west L.A. girl Already know what I need to know Name, address and phone number, Lord And just how far to go

[chorus]

Looking for a chateau Twenty one rooms but one will do Looking for a chateau Twenty one rooms but one will do I don't want to rent it I just what to use it for a minute or two

[chorus]

Little red light on the highway Big green light on the speedway, hey, hey, hey Little red light on the highway Big green light on the speedway, hey, hey, hey

Additional lyrics:

Here's what Ginger says She walks right, she ain't nobody's fool Here's what Ginger says She always tries to play by the golden rule She says if you treat other people all right Other folks probably treat you right too [Read entire topic]

#0: David Dodd (ddodd) Mon 8 Sep 03 09:49

Mon, 08 Sep 2003 09:49:00 PDT

West L.A. Fadeaway w: Hunter m: Garcia AGDL: http://arts.ucsc.edu/gdead/agdl/wla.html LASF: http://www.whitegum.com/songfile/WESTLA.HTM [Read entire topic]