100 and counting!

 Hello!

 Welcome to my 100th post on this blog! I'm incredibly proud and happy that my blog has reached 100 and is still thriving. It is also more or less three and a half years old - although it feels like I've had it much longer.

 So here is my joint 100th post/three and a half birthday celebration!

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 I celebrated my fiftieth post by looking back at how my blog had changed in the year and a half I'd had it at that point.

 I also looked back at my first post, which listed some of my favourite songs lyrics-wise, to see how I felt about them fifty posts later. Most of them I still loved at that point - and I still love now.

 So, I wondered what to do for my 100th post that would be different. I decided to do a list and a countdown and, in doing so, reflect on my relationship with music and writing over the past three and a half years and how it has evolved, and how it has shaped my life.

 I will link to various other posts on this blog, so this 100th post should also be a good navigational tool for finding music you like that I have written about.

 I hope you enjoy it!

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 Firstly, I present the top 10 most significant things I have achieved since starting this blog.

 Feb 2011 - I set up this blog.

 1) Mar-Apr 2011 - I visited the south of France with my sixth-form college. We were based in Montpellier and visited Carcassonne, Arles and Saintes Maries de la Mer. My love for the area has fuelled many choices I've made in life since, and also inspired my first novel - more about that later!

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 2) Sept - Dec 2011 - I applied for Oxford University and reached the interview stage, which meant I got to stay in Oxford for a few days and see it through a student's eyes.

 I ended up going to Manchester University and I like it very much, but it was nice to have that brief taste of being an Oxford student. I love the city.

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 3) Summer 2012 - I started my first paid job, in a small shop. I really enjoyed it and felt it helped me grow up a lot before going to university in the autumn.

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 4) Jul - Aug 2012 - I completed my Gold Duke of Edinburgh's Award expedition, four days camping and walking in the Lake District. I had a great team and came back with some lovely memories and a wonderful sense of achievement.

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 5) Sept 2012 - I started University. I had a great start, meeting the people who would become my good friends on my very first day.

 From there I had some ups and some downs, but overall I'm glad I came to Manchester. It has been a memorable experience and I have met some great people.

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 6) Dec 2012 - Jan 2013 - I went to Beijing with Uni. I applied for a free place on a three-week programme there and was amazed and thrilled to be accepted, especially as I was so young.

 Most people on the trip were older than me but I made some friends for life and it was three weeks I will never forget. Beijing in the snow is freezing cold but almost unbearably beautiful.

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 7) April 2013 - I interviewed folk-rock duo the Kennedys which was a wonderful experience and was the start of the great relationship I have with the Kennedys, who are lovely people. It also gave me the courage and confidence to interview Eddi Reader.

 I am currently interviewing another artist who I won't yet name but whose interview will hopefully feature on this blog soon!

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 8) May - Aug 2013 - I completed my first novel. I had been planning it since I was fourteen or fifteen but my trip to France aged seventeen added a whole new spin to the story. I knew it now had to be set in the south of France, and the location became a vital aspect of the book.

 I am immensely proud and hope to see it published some day.

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 9) Nov 2013 - I was made Fiction Editor at Miracle Magazine! I really love this job. I get on well with the rest of the Miracle team, and I am so proud when each issue of the magazine come out and I get to see the product of our hard work.

 In 2014 I was asked to also be the Blog Editor of the magazine, and I adore this position. I set up the Miracle Blog and maintain it, posting pieces I have written and commissioning them from other writers.

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 10) Oct 2014 onwards - I have accepted a job as English Language Assistant in a lycée (ages 14-18) in Perpignan, in the south of France. I am so happy to have been placed in Perpignan as it looks truly beautiful and my Catalan will come in useful!

 I am very grateful and am looking forward to what could be the best year of my life.

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 I will now list my top 20 songs that I have mentioned on this blog.

 1) Follow You, Follow Me - Genesis

 2) I Want You - The Silencers

 3) Your Swaying Arms - Deacon Blue

 4) Whole of the Moon - Waterboys

 5) Is This Love? - Alison Moyet

 6) On ira - Jean-Jacques Goldman

 7) Queen of the Slipstream - Van Morrison

 8) I've Been in Love Before - Cutting Crew

 9) These are the Days of Our Lives - Queen

 10) Almost Unreal - Roxette

 11) Pictures of You - The Cure

 12) Clouds Across the Moon - The Rah Band

 13) Why - Annie Lennox

 14) Linger - The Cranberries

 15) Coming Home - Firelight

 16) Listen - The Kennedys

 17) Bell, Book and Candle - Eddi Reader

 18) Jasmine - The Kennedys

 19) The Sun, Moon and Stars - Nanci Griffith

 20) Feels Like Home - Edwina Hayes

 21) You Make Loving Fun - Fleetwood Mac

 22) Don't Wanna Lose You - Gloria Estefan

 23) Romeo and Juliet - Dire Straits

 24) Right Here Waiting - Richard Marx

 25) Days Are Numbers - Alan Parsons Project

 Each song links to the post, or one of the posts, where it is discussed.

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 Phew, that was hard! I had to say goodbye to some songs I really love to fit in those I prefer. I would much rather do a Top 100 but I think picking the Top 25 has been a useful exercise in working out what I really like in a song.

 Lyrics are important, as you can tell from the title of my blog. But for me, the number one important thing about a song is the sincerity with which it is sung. A song can have beautiful lyrics, but the singer has to really mean them for me to like it.

 One of my songs, On ira, is French and even before I understood all of the lyrics - which are very beautiful - I loved it because I could clearly hear the love and honesty in Jean-Jacques Goldman's voice as he sang.

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 It's been an amazing experience keeping this blog. I'm so glad I actually got around to setting it up - for weeks I had wanted to and then, in February 2011, I finally took the plunge.

 I must thank my friend Megan, who responded positively to the idea when I mentioned it to her - that really encouraged me to actually do it.

 Thank you to my Mam, who often spurred me on when I was worried a post wasn't "good enough" and made me see that it's not about producing a really polished post, it's about producing an honest and heartfelt one.

 And finally, thank you to everyone who has read and supported my blog and my writing generally over the years.

 Thank you so much,

 Here's to another 100 posts!

 Liz xxx

Music, cake and loom bands

 Hello!

Beautiful petunias in Limerick

 I have recently come back from a lovely trip to Ireland - one of the best things that's happened to me in a long time. It was so nice to see my family, to attend my uncle's beautiful wedding, and simply to have a change of scene.

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 We were based in Limerick, a city I adore and which featured in my list of Top 5 River Cities for the Cuckoo Review. It is especially gorgeous at this time of year, and I enjoyed wandering around eating crêpes and photographing swans on the River Shannon.

Swan

 We also spent a day in Galway, where my father was born, and I liked it a lot - I love being near the sea. We met up with a couple of old friends, which was really nice.

Salthill, Galway

 Much time over the week was spent making bracelets and Despicable Me minions from loom bands! It was a brilliant holiday and, of course, I heard many songs that will now always bring me back there.

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 Firstly, Van Morrison's Brown Eyed Girl played both on the radio while we were driving somewhere, and at the wedding.

 Every single time I hear the beginning of this, I think it is I Can See Clearly Now, and then I'm surprised when it's not! Fortunately, I prefer Van!

 I am a big Morrison fan - I love his song The Queen of the Slipstream - yet this, perhaps his joint best known song with Moondance, sort of passed me by when I was younger. I heard bits and pieces of it, but never sat down and listened to it properly.

 I really like it now, though, and it will forever remind me of dancing at the wedding. Whenever I hear it I will wish I had someone else to hand to dance with!

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 Another song from the wedding is Neil Diamond's Cracklin' Rosie.

 I first encountered this on Stars in Their Eyes. I liked it. Then I heard the original, which to me sounded like a completely different song! Not singing-wise - the Stars in Their Eyes guy was pretty good if I remember rightly - the melody just seemed different.

 Nevertheless, I do still like it, and will now always associate it with one particular anecdote.

 It was the wedding reception, at a hotel in Limerick, and I was sitting in the bar with various relatives, chatting. I decided to go outside for some air. I hadn't realised it was raining, but I didn't mind.

 Then I discovered that the door was locked from the inside and I couldn't get in again. I could hear Cracklin' Rosie being played inside, which I was pleased about. I didn't mind being out at all; it was quite atmospheric. The night was blue and the rain was light and it was really nice.

 I wasn't there for long before one of the hotel staff found me and let me back in. It was a fun, unique experience - and one I will remember!

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 A third song that I heard a lot as it was on the music channels frequently is Chandelier by Sia.

 I was doing a shift volunteering at the Book-Cycle - like a free library/bookshop - and I heard the first few bars of this and was unimpressed. Then I heard the whole thing and I was impressed. It suits her voice and it is really nice and quite different to other sings in the charts at the moment.

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 I had a wonderful week in Ireland and it gave me some amazing memories - connected, as always, to music. The story of my life.

 And if you are wondering what the "cake" in the title refers to, we had two amazing cakes - the wedding cake, which was delicious and stunningly decorated, and a cake which my Granma bought to celebrate the summer birthdays among my family, of which there are a lot! That was lovely as well.

The wedding cake, designed by Gill Corrigan

The summer birthdays cake!

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

Songs: Brown Eyed Girl - Van Morrison - 1967
Cracklin' Rosie - Neil Diamond - 1970
Chandelier - Sia - 2014

Songs from Glasgow

 Hello!

 I have recently written a piece for the Cuckoo Review on songs by Glasgow bands and artists, both old and new. These include some I have mentioned on this blog, including Deacon Blue, the Silencers and Eddi Reader, as well as two new bands.

 I also did another piece for Cuckoo on my Top Five River Cities, if you are interested.

 I hope you enjoy them!

 Liz x

Celebrating Deacon Blue

 Hello, dear readers!

 The Commonwealth Games have begun in one of my favourite cities - Glasgow. To celebrate, I have decided to finally write the blog post I have been intending to write for a while about the music of one of my favourite bands, Deacon Blue.

 I have mentioned Deacon Blue's music in the past - back in 2011, in 2012, and then in early 2013, as well as on a special post commemorating the birth of Prince George just over a year ago. However, I am now going to devote a whole blog post to their excellence.

 I first discovered them through a mix tape my mother used to play in the car when I was younger. The first song I remember hearing and liking is Queen of the New Year.

 I have talked quite a bit about this in my Musical Royalty post, so here I will just add that it was the perfect introduction to Deacon Blue: such a happy, dance to-able song that made me keen to hear more of their music.

 If it were the only Deacon Blue song I knew, I would love them for it alone, so imagine how much I love them now I have heard a whole set of equally wonderful works.

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 The second song of theirs I remember becoming familiar with is Loaded.

 I didn't really like this at first; I found it too negative and sad. Years later, as a teenager, I came to like it. One day my brother, now about the age I was when I first heard it, grumbled about how negative it sounded. It intrigued me that we both reacted that way at the same age.

 I think children are much more in tune to the "vibe" of a song; whether it is positive or negative, perhaps because they don't really understand the lyrics, or they don't pay attention to them.

 That being said, I still don't really understand Loaded's lyrics!

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 When I was about ten I made an "official" list of my favourite songs. I now can't remember any but the top three. Bat Out of Hell was third, and two songs were forever grappling for first place. One was In Between Days by The Cure; the other was Your Swaying Arms by Deacon Blue.

 However, when it came down to it, I think I always knew that I liked Your Swaying Arms better. I liked In Between Days as a brilliant piece of music, but I liked Your Swaying Arms for the feelings of deep love that overflowed from the words and the performance.

 As a kid, I thought "Your Swaying Arms" was a pub! I knew a couple of pubs that were the Something Arms. As I've come to understand it better, I've come to love it even more. I love the lyrics so much; I would like to choose some to showcase but they are all so incredible!

 I wouldn't call it my favourite song any more. It isn't that it's gone down in my esteem; it is right where it always was. It is simply that I have since heard songs I like better. But it remains probably my favourite Deacon Blue song, for its simple beauty and the sheer amount of love behind every word.

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 The next song I would like to share is Chocolate Girl.

 Chocolate Girl was the first song on the second side of my mother's tape and I always loved hearing those firm, confident opening bars setting the scene for the rest of the side. It is a great opening song - some just are. It is the sort you start concerts or albums with.

 As a kid I liked it, but didn't see it as being in my little group of favourites. As a teenager I rediscovered it and realised that instrumentally, it is a lot better than I gave it credit for. I really love the cry of the guitar from the second chorus onwards after each line. ("So he calls her the chocolate girl (de-de-de-de), Cos he thinks she melts when he touches her (de-de-duh)").

 I've really come to like it.

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 Next up is When Will You (Make my Telephone Ring). 

 For a while when I was about twelve I saw this as my favourite song; however, I think a large part of that may have been the fact that I thought it was super-cool to like Deacon Blue. I did like the song, though. 

 As I've got older I've still liked it, and have realised that I can sing it decently (I hope!). One day I might do it on Karaoke or record a version.

"The wonder of it all... was you."

"I want you, in everything, in everything... in anything."

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 That is the end of my "original" Deacon Blue songs; the ones I discovered as a kid. Now I am moving on to the ones I first discovered when I was maybe fifteen.

 First up, probably their most famous song: Dignity.

 I actually did hear this as a kid but I heard a very slow acoustic version that I didn't like. It was only as a teenager that I wondered, "What's all the Dignity fuss about? Maybe I should listen to it again," and found the actual original song. And I really love it.

 I previously discussed it in 2012, and I will repeat what I said then: "Isn't that what everyone wants; dignity?"

 It's what I want; it's something I'm still working on, two years later.

 I'll get there.

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 The penultimate song I'll be sharing is Fergus Sings the Blues.

 This is not only the penultimate track on this list, it is the penultimate "old" Deacon Blue track I discovered. I have since heard their newer songs as they have come out, but Love and Regret is the only older track I heard after this one. 

 I was at sixth-form college when I heard Fergus, so I associate it with memories of sixth-form, which was one of the best times of my life. It is a lovely, upbeat song about travelling, and I'm so glad I found it. Deacon Blue do upbeat so well, but they also do slow and emotional beautifully.

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 And that note brings us to our final song. Love and Regret.

 

 I first discovered this on a bus journey home from sixth-form. I enjoyed the bus journeys as the college was quite a way out into the countryside and the scenery was very nice. Normally I wouldn't listen to a song for the first time on a bus, as the sound of talking makes it hard to hear it properly. 

 This time, for some reason, I did, and I'm glad because now whenever I hear this song I'll be rolling home again, though the cornfields, with the sky blue above me and the road wide and clear ahead.

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 So, you can see how the music of Deacon Blue has shaped my life and holds valuable memories for me. Glasgow should be so proud of this incredible group. There are other Glasgow groups/artists I like such as The Silencers, The Blue Nile and Eddi Reader, but I think that ultimately, Deacon Blue are my winners. Gold medals for all the members!

 Enjoy the rest of the Games.

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

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Songs: Queen of the New Year - Deacon Blue - 1989

Loaded - Deacon Blue - 1987

Your Swaying Arms - Deacon Blue - 191

Chocolate Girl - Deacon Blue - 1987

When Will You (Make my Telephone Ring) - Deacon Blue - 1987

Dignity - Deacon Blue - 1987

Fergus Sings the Blues - Deacon Blue - 1989

Love and Regret - Deacon Blue - 1989

Review: The Kennedys - Dance a Little Closer

 Hello!

 As you may remember, I saw Pete and Maura Kennedy live in Southport in June performing a show of the songs of Nanci Griffith. I had previously seen this show in 2013. Both evenings were very enjoyable.

 In June I came away with the Kennedys' live album of Nanci songs, Dance a Little Closer, and it is my great pleasure to review it for you.

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 The album opens with a lively rendition of Nanci's upbeat I Wish It Would Rain. It is followed by Trouble in the Fields, which the Kennedys manage to adapt slightly, yet keep completely true to the sentiment of the original: sad but hopeful.

 Next comes Across the Great Divide. I always find it so poignant and moving hearing the Kennedys perform this song, as they sang it with Nanci twenty years ago when they were her guitarist and backing singer, and it is great to see it come full circle.

 It is also interesting for being the cover of a cover - the Kennedys' version of Nanci Griffith's version of a Kate Wolf song. Through its reincarnations it has managed to stay anchored firmly to the the roots of the song: a sense of loneliness, of a haunting, of coming to terms with a loss with bravery and acceptance.

 Maura Kennedy's voice is always very beautiful but in this song especially, and in several others on this album, I noticed something extra in it - a deep kind of wisdom, of knowledge and sincerity, of someone who's seen many corners of the world. And so she has. It is very special to hear.

 The next track is Late Night Grand Hotel, which the Kennedys previously recorded for their album Songs of the Open road. That version was nice, but this song suits being live. Maura has mentioned how important this song is to her as it reminds her of when she first started touring with Nanci. It is also a favourite of mine.

 The original Late Night Grand Hotel is one of the more heavily produced Nanci tracks, so contrasts the most of any song on this album with the Kennedys' raw, emotional, acoustic trademark style.

 For me, the best part of the original was the way Nanci sang the line,

"No-one ever knows the heart of anyone else,"

 with such open sadness. I listened out to hear how Maura would do it, and was pleased to hear something similar in her voice.

 I like how the "no"s in the chorus were held back until the end. Something I think might have been nice is for no-one to sing them on the first chorus, then Maura on her own, then Pete on his own, then both of them, rather than nobody and then both. But the way they did it still works and I prefer it to Nanci's having them all the way through.

 The Kennedys also add a nice little bridge between the first chorus and second verse and an instrumental at the end, with lovely-as-ever guitar work from Pete. Overall, they did a great job on one of my favourite Nanci songs.

 Their version of Lone Star State of Mind - another cover-of-a-cover - is pleasant, although I'm not too keen on the jazzy feel they have introduced. Still, it is good that they made it their own. At the very end it reverts back to folksy with some more great guitar work.

 There's a Light Beyond These Woods is another song that is important to Maura as she witnessed a very emotional performance of it by Nanci which deeply moved her. She sings it beautifully; I especially like the way she sings,

"All the dreams we sang..."

 I'm Not Drivin' These Wheels is a song which I liked when I was younger, which I lost, and which I spent ages trying to find again by listening to snippets of songs on Amazon.

 I'm glad the Kennedys like it and identify with it as well - enough to include it not only on this album but also as their contribution on the Nanci tribute album by various artists, Trouble in the Fields, which they produced.

 Their version is perfect - it keeps everything good about the original and adds some very Kennedys guitar licks. A lovely piece of musicianship.

 I have sung the praises at least twice in the past of the Kennedys' version of Gulf Coast Highway, which I prefer to the original - theirs is softer, more gentle, while the original is sharper and more dramatic. The last verse, where Maura sings on her own and is then joined by Pete, is very lovely.

 They then go back up-tempo with Love Wore a Halo (Back Before the War). I feel this is often neglected as a Nanci song, and it's a good one. I'm glad the Kennedys are fans. Their version live is uproarious and great to sing along to, and the recording manages to capture that fun and spirit.

 We then have From a Distance. I don't really like Nanci's version of this, and I found the Kennedys' one very similar - it is probably the truest to the original of any song on the album. Still, Maura's voice is especially nice on the chorus.

 Ford Econoline moves in the vein of Love Wore a Halo: wild and joyful. I get the impression from the amount of applause that it may have been the final song in the concert and I agree that it is a great note to finish a night on - so happy and fun.

 The penultimate track is Love at the Five and Dime. I would really have liked this to be the ultimate track as I think it sums up all this album is about, plus it contains the line that forms the title of the album:

"Dance a little closer to me."

 It's slower than Nanci's version and I like it that way - they seem to put more focus on the story and the emotion than on the melody, although the melody is there and is strong.

 The final track is Hell No (I'm Not Alright). I don't want to comment on the song because I don't understand the politics behind it; even after watching the video I'm not sure what message Nanci is actually trying to give out. So I'll comment only on the musical side: the Kennedys play it well and with great enthusiasm.

 This album was very enjoyable to listen to - if there are a couple of songs I wouldn't listen to regularly, it's because I dislike the original, not because the Kennedys have done anything wrong. Maura's voice is gorgeous as ever; Pete's guitar playing is sublime; the two make an amazing duo. I've said these things many times before but they never stop being true.

 Overall, a lovely piece of work that is true to the person it is celebrating while incorporating the artists' own personalities, which is the best way to do a tribute.

 Rating: 8/10

Song: Across the Great Divide - Nanci Griffith - 1993

 More Kennedys pieces:

Amazing news and the Kennedys
Review: The Kennedys - Closer Than You Know
Interview with the Kennedys
A night with the Kennedys
A special night in Southport
A few more JSC songs
A magical evening

 Wow, I've written a lot about the Kennedys!

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

Review: Edwina Hayes - Pour Me a Drink

 Hello, readers!

 You may remember that I have been to two Nanci Griffith tribute concerts in Southport - one in 2013 and one in 2014. Both times, Edwina Hayes was present and I had the privilege of hearing her beautiful and unique voice. Both times, I also met her - last time, I literally ran into her - and she was lovely.

 So, it is a great pleasure to be able to listen to and review her album Pour Me a Drink. Released in 2008, it is Edwina's second solo album.

 I must begin by commenting on its beautiful artwork: it is incredibly pretty and I feel that the blossoms decorating both the cover and some of the inside pages of the sleeve represent the album really well: the songs are soft, delicate and fragile like blossoms, yet also very strong, as is a cherry tree.

 The album opens with Run, a rather dark, sad song which I personally would not have chosen as an opener but which is very good nonetheless. The next track is one of my favourites, Leave a Light on for You, which is simple but very sweet and for me is reminiscent of a Nanci Griffith song.

 Season of Love is more bluegrass and I like it, especially the chorus.Very American-sounding. Call Me flows in the same vein as Leave a Light on for You and is similarly sweet and delicate. One of several songs on the album written by Edwina alone rather than in collaboration, it is a good example of her song writing - a simple but beautiful song about a never-ending love.

 The title track, which I saw Edwina perform live in Southport, is slow and haunting and very sad. It's followed by her take on the traditional Froggie Went a Courting, which is smooth and pleasant to listen to and has a happy ending!

 Edwina's cover of Randy Newman's Feels Like Home is the first song I heard her sing, due to its use in the film version of My Sister's Keeper. It also became very important to me when I moved from one University hall of residence to another and felt much more at home in the second one. I kept playing this song in my head and I now associate it with that time.

 It is a marvel in that it manages to be smooth and very easy on the ear while being extremely raw and emotional. It is probably still my absolute favourite of her songs, although I have discovered several new favourites on this album.

 The album ends with Irish Waltz, a lovely piece that sounds genuinely like it could have been written centuries ago in Ireland unlike certain other modern pieces designed to sound so that don't. Edwina's voice is always lovely but here it is divine, and Jack McKeague's guitar work and especially his dobro work are stunning. It is a wonderful end to the album.

 I enjoyed this album. While most of the songs are quite similar in that they are simple, delicate love songs with an acoustic guitar, each one does create its own unique ambience. Edwina's guitar work is very nice and her voice is gorgeous.

 As a writer, one measure of what I think is a good song is one that I would use in a film of one of my books. I would certainly consider this for both Leave a Light on for You and Edwina's version of Feels Like Home (although the latter has already been done).

 Overall, a lovely album and one which I am sure I will listen to a great deal.

 Rating: 8/10

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

Miracle Magazine Blog

Part of my birthday message to Miracle - we are now two years old!

 Hi, everyone!

 I'm just letting you know that I recently set up a blog for Miracle Magazine, the literary magazine for which I am Fiction Editor - and now Blog Editor!

 It is a great honour to be trusted with the task of looking after the blog, and I would love it if you could check it out.

 I hope you're all well,

 Liz x

Review: Roxette - Look Sharp!

 Hello all!

 I am very pleased to have had a write-up of Roxette's classic album Look Sharp! published by The Mancunion. I hope you enjoy it!

 All the best,

 Liz x

A magical evening

 Hello!

 Firstly, a quick bit of news on the writing front: I have had a poem published in Ink, Sweat and Tears! It's a great honour.

 Now to the real purpose of this post which is to tell you about the concert I attended in Southport on Wednesday night. You may remember I went to a Southport gig last September, and in many ways this one was similar, yet it was also completely different.

 The venue was The Atkinson; the show was Nanci Griffith tribute show Trouble in the Fields, starring Pete and Maura Kennedy and Edwina Hayes - so far, so similar to September's show. However, this evening we also had the great pleasure of the company of Grateful Fred's House Band - Grateful Fred's also organised the evening.

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 My mother and I arrived in Southport by train and spent an interesting while searching for the venue - last time we came by car and it was a labyrinth reaching it from the station! However, we eventually found the beautiful place with its lovely fountains out the front, and climbed the stairs to the Studio.

 This was where the show last year was, and I was glad they were there again as it is a nice, cosy little space; very nicely lit and with a real ambience.

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 The show opened with a set from Grateful Fred's House Band which I greatly enjoyed. Their haunting rendition of Ride On was certainly my highlight; it was sublime, especially the guitar work.

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 The Kennedys then came on stage (and Maura very nicely gave me a shout-out) to play a short set of their own songs. I was pleased to hear Midnight Ghost, one of my favourites, as well as some brilliant-as-always guitar and uke work from Pete.

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 After a short break, the Kennedys returned for the Nanci Griffith tribute set, and after several songs were joined by Edwina Hayes.

 Having two such stunning voices as Edwina's and Maura's on the same stage was always going to be very special, and they also work incredibly well together - they harmonise beautifully.

 The trio just worked so well, and I am glad someone had the idea of them performing together - it really is something incredible that feels like it was destined to happen.

 Every song was a joy, but if I had to choose a few highlights, I would have to include Gulf Coast Highway, which I had been really hoping they would do because I adored it in September. I love the original song but the Kennedys' version may well top that for me.

 Also especially memorable were their versions of Lone Star State of Mind, Late Night Grand Hotel and I'm Not Driving These Wheels.

 Finally, I was very moved by A Light Beyond These Woods, a song which is special to me and to which they truly did justice, and Across the Great Divide, which I cannot hear and see the Kennedys perform without remembering them doing so twenty years ago with Nanci on Jools Holland.

 It is so lovely how the song has stayed around for twenty years, and has continued touching hearts. I have no doubt it will be around for another twenty.

***

 The show ended with Grateful Fred's House Band joining the trio on stage and everyone playing together, and it was a truly wonderful, joyful and memorable spectacle. They worked brilliantly together - their version of Full Circle made a fabulous finale.

***

 After the show I ran into Edwina who was absolutely lovely and then I had nice chats with both Kennedys. 

 I have mentioned many times before how down-to-earth and friendly Pete and Maura are, but I feel I should mention it again. It is very rarely that you come across two people who are so successful and popular, yet are willing to chat and laugh and mingle with their fans - who are not just willing, in fact, but seem to take huge pleasure in doing so.

 I came away with Edwina's album Pour Me a Drink, featuring Feels Like Home, a song with great emotional significance for me, as well as the Kennedys' Dance a Little Closer: a live album of them performing Nanci songs. I hope to post reviews of both on this blog in due course.

 As my mother and I rushed to the train station through the dark night with its light, misty rain and cool wind, I felt very, very happy - and I felt even more so when, sitting on the train, I discovered the lovely things the Kennedys and Edwina had written on my signed albums.

***

 Thank you to everyone involved in this night, it really was a night in a million.

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

 PS. If you like the Kennedys or want to learn more about them, I have done an interview with them, an album review and a write-up of a show of their own songs they did in the UK last June.

Song: Across the Great Divide - Nanci Griffith - 1993

Joni Mitchell

 Hello, dear readers!

 For a while I have been intending to do a Joni Mitchell post, but have only just got around to it. I've been pretty busy recently. Anyway, here is what I have to say about a very talented singer and songwriter.

***

 The first Joni song I will have heard is Blue, because it is on Girls and Guitars, a compilation album I listened to a lot when I was younger. I wasn't a fan of the song, however, and years later when I properly discovered Joni, I didn't remember it being her song; ie, I probably never knew the name of the singer of Blue.

 So my real first Joni song was Coyote - the version from The Last Waltz.

 My family obtained a copy of the famous concert film when I was about eight and since then it was a fixture in my childhood. We watched it many times; one particularly memorable occasion was when we were on holiday in the Lake District and watched it in our little cabin overlooking beautiful countryside.

 After watching the film through, each family member would pick our favourite act to watch again, and my request was always Joni. I liked the song, but what I loved was the presentation: it was so simple, yet mesmerising.

 A few years ago I heard the recorded version of Coyote, and I much prefer the Last Waltz one - it's much more fluid and organic. But then, the Last Waltz seemed to have that effect on songs: I also much prefer the Last Waltz version of Bob Dylan's Forever Young to the album version.

 I used to vow that if I ever learned to play guitar well enough I would perform this song. Sadly, my knowledge of guitar is still quite basic. One day...

***

 When I was fourteen I did some work experience at my local hospital. I heard Amy Grant's version of Big Yellow Taxi on the radio in the cardiology unit. It annoyed me because I knew I knew the song, but couldn't place it. 

 I eventually got it, and remembered hearing it for the first time not long before, on the radio in the car on the way to school. My dad was driving me, and he challenged me to identify the singer and the writer. I didn't get either. 

 When he told me, the name Amy Grant meant nothing to me, but I wasn't surprised to hear Joni's name - although I had only heard a couple of her songs, I could easily envisage her singing this one.

 So when I worked out what the song I heard in the hospital was, I looked up both Amy's and Joni's versions and enjoyed them both (and observed that Amy looked like Elaine from Seinfeld). I later became a big fan of Amy's song Baby, Baby, and blogged about it.

 Here they are, the two versions:

 I still bop along to this song in my head: it has a good beat, despite having such sad lyrics.

***

 The final Joni song I want to share is This Flight Tonight. I first heard the Nazareth version and somehow found out that Joni had written the original. 

 I found her version and on the first listening I observed that it was quite dark and strange, and very Joni-ish, and that I wasn't too keen on it, yet I also somehow knew that it would grow on me.

 Now I never listen to the Nazareth version - not that I don't like it; I just don't have any strong feelings towards it - and I often listen to the Joni one.

***

 So, there you have it: three Joni Mitchell songs. I have listened to others, but this trio remain my favourites, because they are great songs, and also because of the memories they evoke.

 I hope you have enjoyed this post,

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

Songs: Coyote - Joni Mitchell - 1976

Big Yellow Taxi - Amy Grant - 1995

Big Yellow Taxi - Joni Mitchell - 1970

This Flight Tonight - Joni Mitchell - 1971

Eurovision 2014: My two winners

 Hello, everyone!

The Calm After the Storm (photo by me)

 It's now been a week since Eurovision, and I'm pleasantly surprised that no less than four of its songs are in the UK Top 40 Singles Chart.

 Calm After the Storm, the Netherlands' song, is at number 9, Rise Like a Phoenix,the winning song from Austria, is at 17, the UK's entry, Children of the Universe, is at 23 and Swedish entry Undo is at 40.

 For me, this a a brilliant sign for Eurovision; that its songs are making their way into the daily lives of British people. They aren't things to be listened to as a one-off, but something to be enjoyed and valued.

 However, I am a bit sad that Malta's entry, Coming Home, hasn't yet made the Top 40. It and Calm After the Storm were definitely my two favourites, and both received a vote from me. I'm now going to talk a bit more about these two songs and why I love them.

♥☂✿

 I will start by debauching any perception anyone may have that, as both songs are folk/country songs, I only like Eurovision songs in this style. This is untrue.

 Some of my favourite ESC songs over the years have been pop, rock or semi-opera, and there are many folksy entries that I haven't liked; Latvia's entry this year, Bake a Cake, comes to mind.

 No, the reason I like Calm After the Storm and Coming Home are that they are both great songs, independent of one another of of their musical style.

♥☂✿

 Firstly, Coming Home by Firelight.

 Before hearing the sing itself, I heard a tiny bit of this on a recap of songs and I just knew I would like it. When I heard it through, I liked it even more than I had anticipated, and it became my favourite song in the competition. I also love the video; it's very moving and relevant for the Centenary of World War I.

 Commentators in the UK compared Firelight more than once to Mumford and Sons, but I don't hear that much of a resemblance. I agree with other comparisons, though - to Gary Barlow (Let Me Go) and One Direction (Story of my Life). 

 Despite these similarities, I think this song stands alone and is much better than any of the things it's been compared to!

 I'm really glad the UK gave several points to Malta, though I wish the song had achieved a better placing by the end (it came 23rd). It's certainly a song I'll listen to again and again, long after this year's Eurovision fever has sizzled out.

♥☂✿

 Secondly, Calm After the Storm by the Common Linnets. 

 I really glad to see this reach the UK Top 10; I had had a hunch that it would do well in our charts.

 When I first heard it, I thought it was a very average country song, but pretty enough. I hoped it would do well as it was so different and would be a refreshingly different winner. 

 However, it really grew on me in the two days between its semi-final and the final, and I liked it so much in the final that it received my second vote. I now like it even more: it is a real grower.

 I was really glad to see it receive so many 10s and 12s; it's really not your typical Eurovision winner and I had worried it would be overlooked, but instead it did incredibly well, eventually coming second. 

 I hope this is the beginning of a successful international career for both members of the Common Linnets, Ilse deLange and Waylon. They are already big in their own country; in fact, Ilse is a current coach on the Dutch version of the Voice (which I've just found out was the very first version of the show!).

♥☂✿

 I wish these two bands the very best for the future, and hope they will turn out to be Eurovision success stories, like Abba and Céline Dion. Even if they don't, I doubt their wonderful Eurovision offerings will ever be forgotten. They are a pair of songs with true longevity.

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

♥☂✿

Songs: Coming Home - Firelight - 2014

Calm After the Storm - The Common Linnets - 2014