Akeem wrote: > I find the use of "ambitious" and "unambitous" hard to fathom - what exactly > > was Joni on about? I've heard Streisand's voice described in many ways, > from > sublime through majestic to histrionic - but ambitious?? As time goes by, > I'm becoming more inclined to take everything Joni says about other > performers with a pinch of salt! > >
My take on this was a bit different. I think Joni in her interviews and other public speaking has always taken care to avoid being phony - that is anathema to her, IMO - you can almost see her gagging at the thought of feigning humility or false praise. However, that does not mean that she does not try to be tactful (not that she always succeeds - but I think she often if not usually tries, where her true feelings are somewhere near neutral). Here, I think she may have been employing that rare literary device called "euphimism". She could have said "affected" or "pretentious" (which is my guess as being closer to what she felt) instead of "ambitious". Bob S (not a Barbra fan, but remember liking her covers of I Don't Know Where I Stand and If You Could Read My Mind)
