Hello! As you may have guessed from the name of this blog, my name is Liz and I am fascinated by song lyrics. I hope you enjoy my waxing lyrical about lyrics and about music generally. I also review albums and gigs and have interviewed several wonderful musicians. Enjoy!
I am currently having a great time on a summer course in Salamanca, Spain. I am studying Spanish language, history and art. It is fascinating and I am learning a huge amount which is inspiring my writing and my own art.
You can keep up with my adventures on my travel blog (which recently reached 10,000 views!).
I'm planning posts for this blog as well: my review of The Kennedys' West, a piece on Canadian musicians and an exploration of the music that has so far defined my time in Salamanca, which includes Nanci Griffith, Céline Dion, Robin Gibb and Suzanne Vega.
So watch this space!
Thanks for reading; I hope you are having a nice summer (or whatever season it is in your part of the world!)
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.
There has been a fairly big development in my life, in that I have moved to a new University hall of residence.
There were various reasons behind the move which I won't go into. What I will say is that I settled into my new hall really quickly - even on the first day I felt that I was home. This song kept playing in my head:
That was last Wednesday - eight days ago. It feels like so much longer. I feel as though I've been living here for a long, long time. I already know a large number of the hall's residents, and I have made some wonderful friends. It's safe to say that I'm very happy here.
Long live my new home, and may many happy times be ahead of me here.
It was a gorgeous summer's evening as my dad and I arrived in Saltaire and found Caroline Social Club.
Inside the club I was surprised: the live room was smaller than I had expected, and candles sat on all the tables. It created a lovely ambience and we were just a few metres away from the performers which made the show feel much more intimate.
Maura and Pete Kennedy very kindly spoke to me before the show and asked if I had any requests and I put one in for Listen, a song I love.
One thing I regret is not requesting another song or two - partly because I was somewhat starstruck and my mind went blank, and partly because the other few songs I might have asked for were ones I thought there was a chance they might do anyway.
Some they did, some they didn't, but they performed two fantastic sets that contained many of my favourites as well as some songs I hadn't heard before and fell in love with.
Before The Kennedys came on stage we were treated to an opening set by Pip Mountjoy, an up-and-coming English folk singer, which I really enjoyed. She mentioned that she sews her EP covers - I was intrigued by this so looked them up; they are truly beautiful and I applaud her for such an original idea.
The Kennedys then came on stage and went straight into what is in my humble opinion their masterwork: Life is Large; an incredible, uplifting song. They then performed a first set made up of classics, songs from their latest album, Closer Than You Know, and requests, including mine, Listen.
I had never heard Listen performed live so I hadn't heard the story behind it; that Maura wrote it as a metaphor for life and living in the moment. Knowing the story behind the song makes it mean even more to me now, and overall it was an incredibly special few minutes for me.
Another song whose inclusion made me very happy was When I Go by Dave Carter; I found out that in fact they like to perform a Dave Carter song at every show to allow more people to hear and appreciate his music.
I listen to the recorded version of this a lot, but seeing it live was something very rare and almost magical; as Maura sang she seemed to be so in tune to the song, the lyrics; almost devoted - not in a religious way; more simply at one with the song and its depiction of life, nature, death and spirituality.
After the last strum from Pete I think everyone held their breath for a moment, afraid to clap too soon and break the beauty and magic of this moment. It was something I feel honoured to have been a part of.
The second set seemed to me to be slightly more experimental, with songs I hadn't heard them perform before - covers of Bob Dylan, The Byrds and Buddy Holly (their first date was at Buddy Holly's grave).
Pete also played some stunning guitar and ukulele solos; he is a brilliant guitarist and it was really something to see such a master at work, doing what he loves. Like Maura singing When I Go, he seemed completely tuned in to something powerful, lost to everything but the beautiful sounds he was creating. It was another very special part of the evening.
The Kennedys ended the show with Not Fade Away by Buddy Holly. I hadn't heard the original at the time and having listened to it since, I much prefer The Kennedys' version. It was electric, dynamic - simple bursting with energy and passion. It was the perfect end to the show, and stayed in my head for days afterwards.
They came back out to do an encore, and performed Stand, another of their songs that I like and might have requested.
Again, the anecdote attached - that they wanted to create a non-exclusive gospel song - really added to the experience of hearing and seeing the song performed. After the wonderful delirium of Not Fade Away, Stand was a calmer, more spiritual note to end on.
At the end of the evening I got their album Stand; I hope to listen to it through soon and post a review on this blog, so watch this space. Its opening track, Dharma Cafe, is one of the songs they performed tonight that I hadn't heard before but that I really liked and kept singing to myself afterwards.
I also had to have a quick photo with Pete and Maura - I would have liked to stay and chat a bit more with them and with other Kennedys fans at the venue but sadly I had an exam the next morning and had to dash off.
However, I had an amazing evening and I must stress how kind and down-to-earth Pete and Maura are at concerts: you can go to a great show and really enjoy it and leave afterwards without having seen the performer and it still be a great night out, so imagine all that but with performers who are willing to mingle with their guests, take requests, chat about the show...
Seeing the Kennedys live is more an experience than merely a show, and I am very grateful to have had that experience. I hope they retain their down-to-earthness - I have no reason to believe they won't - and that I can see them live many more times in the future.
I am going to review Closer Than You Know by US folk/rock duo The Kennedys, first released in late 2012. Being a Kennedys fan, I had high expectations for this album, and it didn't disappoint. I'm going to take you through the album track by track, and then give my final verdict. Enjoy!
1) Winter - This song struck me immediately as quite different to other Kennedys songs; it has a dark, haunting feel to it and sounds more heavily produced than their other songs.
Maura's voice sounds as though it has been put through a synthesiser which normally I would object to as it is beautiful without; however here it adds to the the mysterious feel of the song, creating a very powerful overall effect.
It's intense; a song you can get lost in. A good opening track that takes you by surprise and makes you wonder what is still to come in this album.
2) Rhyme and Reason - I heard somewhere that this album had some jazz influence; I feel that in this song it is most apparent. Certainly has a jazzy feel to it, a nice melody and some particularly nice vocals from Maura.
Something about it reminds me of Tumble and Fall by Nanci Griffith, a song I love. Rhyme and Reason is not my favourite track on the album personally, but nonetheless a good, well-crafted song.
3) I'll Come Over - This was the first song from this album that I heard - way back in early 2012 when I saw The Kennedys in concert for the first time. I liked it then and it has really grown on me.
Hearing the story behind it; that Maura wrote the lyrics for friends who were going through a tough time, makes it even more poignant. Beautiful lyrics, beautifully sung, with real emotion.
4) Cradle to a Boat - Not one of my stand-out tracks on the album, but a good song with some interesting lyrics, nice Spanish-style guitar work; certainly has its own ambiance. It seemed to finish very suddenly for me; I could have listened to another verse and chorus to try to better understand this unusual song.
5) Sigh - One of my favourite songs on the album. This could very easily have been a kitsch ballad, but Pete and Maura have managed to avoid that, and have instead produced a sophisticated, moving song that does exactly what I imagine it was intended to do - make you feel a bit better when you are feeling sad. Every bit of this song is gorgeous.
6) Home - I wasn't keen on this song at first, but it has grown on me somewhat; it has the same mysterious, haunting feeling as Winter and Cradle to a Boat.
It's a song I'd have to listen to in the right frame of mind; if I were feeling down then the sadness of the song probably wouldn't help! But it's an interesting song; one I'll have to listen to again to try to understand the meaning behind the lyrics.
7) Marina Dream - This isn't the song I was expecting; Marina Dream sounds - well, dreamy and relaxing. Instead, this is fast, urgent; like an epic from the middle ages. I like it.
8) Made of Sand - Certainly the most rock-orientated track on the album, this song of Maura's has nice lyrics, and her voice goes incredibly well with the beat... I'm very jealous of her ability to sing equally wonderfully on folk and rock tracks.
9) Big Star Song - I really like this. I listened to a few Big Star songs in preparation for reviewing this track, as I wondered if it was meant to sound like one. My conclusion is that it sounds more like a Kennedys song, which can never be a bad thing!
I could go on and on about Maura's vocals on any song and have tried to avoid doing so as it would become very repetitive. However, I feel this song deserves special mention. When she sings, "... the days are longer, maybe he'd have held on," and then on "lost in time," her voice is particularly gorgeous.
Whether this song is a straight tribute to Alex Chilton or a love song combined with an Alex Chilton tribute I'm not sure, but it is certainly very beautiful and is probably one of the two songs on this album I've listened to most, the other being the next track I am about to discuss: Wild Honey.
10) Wild Honey - This is The Kennedys' take on the U2 song; having U2 fan parents I probably heard the original once but had forgotten it when I heard the Kennedys' version, and it blew me away.
I subsequently listened to the U2 version, and I probably prefer the Kennedys' one. However, I'm not going to launch into comparisons; I'm simply going to talk from now on about the Kennedys version as a song in its own right.
I love the guitar work; the intro is lovely, as are the vocals, especially on "wild, wild, wild..." I think this song suits Maura's voice and the Kennedys have done a great job of making the song their own despite not straying that far from the original. Lovely song and perhaps my favourite on the album.
11) Happy Again - Like I'll Come Over and Sigh, this song seeks to comfort those in pain or sadness, and includes the album title, "closer than you know." It's a good song, perhaps not one of my favourites, but it's clear that the lyrics come straight from the heart.
12) Winter Lies - The album began with a song about winter and ends with one. Winter Lies is slow, almost like a poem, full of wintry imagery. It'a very different from the rest of the tracks, but provides a peaceful finish to the album.
Overall, I really enjoyed this album; it follows a number of different directions, from the jazzy Rhyme and Reason to the rocky Made of Sand to the folksy Wild Honey. Sigh is the high point for me musically; I think it is one of the Kennedys' best songs.
According to the album cover Maura wrote all of the lyrics for this album (besides Wild Honey) and I applaud her, as there are some very nice ones, particularly in Cradle for a Boat, Made of Sand and the aforementioned Sigh.
As always, Pete's guitar playing and arrangements are superb, and Maura's voice is stunning. This album has all you would expect from the Kennedys, which added to the diversity of musical styles makes Closer Than You Know a very strong release.
I have discovered that one of my favourite artists and one of my favourite bands, both of whom were perhaps better known for their music in the 1980s/90s, have recently released new songs. They are, more specifically, Alison Moyet and Deacon Blue.
What I have always loved most about Alison in her older hits such as "Is This Love?" and "Invisible" is her amazing voice, the emotion she puts into her songs, which really feels genuine, and the good production - her records tend to be very pleasant on the ear with regards to the music as well as her voice.
I came to this song half-expecting a belt-y ballad, and whilst it proved to be exactly that, it still quite surprised me. I think I had expected it to be looser and simpler, primarily a means of showcasing her voice, while in fact it is quite a complicated arrangement, which showcases her voice yet is also a really beautiful song with interesting lyrics and a catchy tune.
At first listening I quite liked it, at second listening I liked it a bit more - basically it's grown on me very quickly. It's the first single from her new album "the minutes," which is set to be released in May, and from which I am looking forward to hearing more material.
I like the video - the coastal theme provides a link back to her 1986 hit "Is This Love?" - one of my favourite songs - and they did a good job of finding a look-a-like who is also a good actress and presents the song well.
I was getting worried that we might not actually see the real Alison in the video, when happily she appeared. I love that unlike some artists who see a come-back as a chance to completely change their image, Alison is completely recognisable as the young woman who sang and danced about on the beach in "Is This Love?".
And of course, her voice is amazing, as always. The emotion is clear and raw. The production is also good; I really like the instrumental particularly; it sounds like it could have come from a Cure song, which is high praise from me because I love The Cure's arrangements.
All in all, I really love this new song; I had been doubtful as to whether it could match the sheer brilliance of some of Alison's older songs, but it is certainly one of the nicest songs I have heard in a long time. Welcome back, Alison ♥
♪♫♪
The next song I want to share with you is Turn by Deacon Blue, from their late-2012 album, "The Hipsters."
I heard this song on the radio a couple of days ago and quite liked it and wondered who it was by, then when the DJ announced that it was by Deacon Blue I was surprised and pleased.
At first I liked it but thought it sounded like a lot of other songs. Having heard it a few more times, it's really growing on me and I now think it sounds quite distinctive. The video is slightly bizarre but I like it.
Also, assuming the backing vocals are by Lorraine McIntosh as usual, I like them on this song more than on some of Deacon Blue's older songs. I think they add more to this song, maybe as she is just singing rather than doing fancy things with her voice as in some other songs; perhaps the simplicity is what works particularly well here.
I like the quieter, more lyric-based feel of this song, as opposed to some of the louder, faster material of Deacon Blue such as "Wages Day" and "Queen of the New Year" - although I still love these songs! I just think it's nice to have something more raw and stripped-back for a change, in addition to their brilliant back-catalogue.
I like the reference to "Dignity" in the video! I predicted that the third card would say "work" and was quite pleased with myself when it turned out I was right. I also think the first guy on the bus looks like Marcus Bridgestocke... Is he Marcus Bridgestocke?
I really like this song; it isn't my favourite Deacon Blue song - that would probably be "Your Swaying Arms" or "When Will You (Make My Telephone Ring)," but I do really like "Turn."
♪♫♪
So, two really good new songs from an artist and a group who have been about for years; let's hope they continue producing fantastic new material for many years to come.
It has been brought to my attention just today that Frank Christian died on Christmas Eve.
He was a singer-songwriter and amazing guitarist about whom I'm sad to say I don't actually know that much, except that he wrote a song that is very special to me: Three Flights Up.
The version with which I am familiar is the suberb live one below with Frank doing some terrific work on the guitar and Nanci Griffith's beautiful vocals.
It is such a pretty song; simple yet so effective. I love the music and the story in the lyrics. I often wonder if it's a true story from Frank's life, that he once lived or stayed somewhere so special to him that he was inspired to write a song about it.
It is an important song for me personally because I first discovered it just after returning from a brilliant college trip to Montpellier in the south of France in 2011. I had stayed in an apartment that may well have been three flights up, or it may have been two, I can't remember. But there were certainly a lot of stairs.
And far from being a chore, it was a pleasure to walk up those stairs every day because I knew I was going to the apartment which I came very quickly to love and see as a real home-from-home.
In fact walking up those stone steps; the sounds echoing in the stairwell; the promise of my destination: that is one of the clearest and dearest memories I have from that trip, and in fact from Montpellier (which I have since been back to) generally.
When I replay this scene in my head I often get a little twinge inside and wish I could be back there. I feel that a part of me lives on in Montpellier; that this city will always be a part of my life. I love it so much.
Three Flights Up never fails to make me think of Montpellier now; a city I love and the adventure of a lifetime that first time I visited. It is a beautiful song, one I can empathise with so much. Thank you, Frank Christian. May you rest in peace.
I listened again to the songs I liked so much a year ago, to decide how I feel about them now - and I found that I still really like them all, and that in some cases a song has taken on a new significance for me since I wrote that list back in March 2011.
After listing specific songs by a range of bands and artists, I ended the list with, "Pretty much anything written by Nanci Griffith, or by Ricky Ross of Deacon Blue (two very different people but both extremely gifted songwriters in my opinion. You'll be hearing a lot about them in this blog!)"
And the sad thing is, although I adore both of these songwriters, and have listened to their music so much before and since starting this blog, I have not blogged about them nearly as much as I had expected I would.
However, what I haven't done yet is a full post completely focussed on Nanci and just what her music has meant to me over the years, and I really want to do that. I also want to do a post all about Ricky Ross and Deacon Blue.
♥
I listened to music from both Nanci and Deacon Blue throughout my childhood, introduced to their music by my parents. Among my favourite Nanci songs were Gulf Coast Highway, Goin' Gone and Tumble and Fall.
My favourite songs by Deacon Blue were Queen of the New Year, Your Swaying Arms - at one point one of my favourite songs by any artist or band - and When Will You (Make My Telephone Ring).
As I got older, I discovered more and more amazing songs by both Nanci Griffith and Deacon Blue. A few months ago I had Nanci's 1988 album Storms bought for me, and have come to love the songs Storms(written by Eric Taylor), Radio Fragile and Brave Companion of the Road.
The latter I had heard before on what I'm guessing must have been a compilation tape that my family used to listen to in the car. I'd been searching a long time for that song when I found it on Storms and was very happy.
The reason I had had such trouble finding it was because I had thought the title was something to do with roses, probably because of the first line of the beautiful second verse:
"Some days come up roses,
Some days just come and go.
Some nights are so ruthless that you can't recall the day before.
This love has seen better days,
Come home for these holidays,
Cause this love has miles for sense of place,
Oh, my brave companion of the road."
Normally I wouldn't quote an entire verse, but Nanci Griffith is a genius. Her lyrics are among the most moving and memorable I know. I love the whole song; it is easy to overlook a track like this on an album like Storms which has louder, catchier songs, but I feel that Brave Companion of the Road is quietly beautiful, and is quite possibly my favourite song on the album.
♥
As for Deacon Blue, I got a new mp3 player recently, and onto it I put Our Town, their Greatest Hits CD. This meant I could listen to Deacon Blue on the bus on the way to and from college, and this way I came to really love some of their songs.
Love and Regret will now always remind me of college bus journeys and, to a degree, so will Dignity.
However, Dignity also brings back memories of writing for my college's magazine - I did a lyrics quiz for them, and one of the lyrics they had to guess was;
"And I'm telling this story in a faraway scene,
Sipping down raki, and reading Maynard Keynes."
Certainly unique lyrics! I love Dignity. I never used to because I found it too slow - I think the version I had heard was acoustic - yet recently I've begun to appreciate the beauty of the melody and the lyrics. Isn't that what everybody wants; dignity? To be respected?
I think that it is a very wise song. I'm glad that I learnt to like it and grew to love it.
♥
I must write proper blog posts about both Nanci Griffith and about Ricky Ross and Deacon Blue as soon as I can. Both Nanci and Ricky are wonderfully gifted songwriters, and I want them to know how much I admire them and how much I love their music and always have done. Hopefully one day they may read this blog and know.
I hope you enjoyed this post,
Thanks for reading,
Liz x
Songs: Brave Companion of the Road - Nanci Griffith - 1988
I am potentially very chuffed because I may have found out something that, to me anyway, is amazing. I just need to check to be absolutely sure that I am right.
On one of our Duke of Edinburgh's Award expeditions, we stopped in a Lake District village that I'm pretty sure was called Bouth. And if it is the right Bouth, it is where Christine McVie was born!
I must have read this sometime in the past, before we went, because I love Christine McVie and have researched her and her music many times. However, I had forgotten where she was from, and when we were in Bouth I never realised the incredible significance of the place - or, rather, the significance it should hold for me, personally, as a Christine fan.
Even without this significance, it is still a lovely village. And the Lake District is always wonderful. But to discover that, without knowing, I visited the birthplace of one of my idols, is pretty amazing news, at least for me☺♥
I think I mentioned Christine McVie in my very first post on this blog in which I listed some of my favourite songs, and her Songbird was among them. For a while Songbird seemed to be a staple on reality TV singing shows, and it probably still is, though I wouldn't know because I watch a lot less of that sort of thing than I used to. Life's too short! But anyway, for years I hadn't heard the original, though I knew it was by Fleetwood Mac. When I listened to it for the first time, I fell in love.
From those first lines,
"For you, there'll be no more crying.
For you, the sun will be shining."
You just know that what is going to follow is something beautiful and extraordinary. This really is one of the most sincere, from-the-heart things I have ever heard - more than most songs, more even than poetry. It's like a love letter, sung with all her heart and soul. None of the other versions of this, lovely as some of them may be, can possibly capture the spirit and feeling behind the original.
I hadn't been absolutely sure that it was her song, so many people have sung it, so I looked it up and when it said on Wikipedia, "written by Christine McVie," my heart gave a little twinge of happiness and love. Of course it's her song. How could I have doubted that for one minute? Only Christine McVie could write a song like this one.
I would love to be able to sing this in concert one day. If I ever become a good enough singer, and have enough confidence, to do her justice!
Although nobody can sing this as well as she who wrote it, I do believe this is one of those songs that anybody could sing well if they mean it with their heart and they pick out one person to whom they can sing every lyric and mean it with all their soul. It is one of the best love songs I know. And I can give no higher praise than that.
Christine McVie is a genius, and, almost more importantly, she writes straight from her heart. And that, when writing anything that is meant to touch the soul, is what really matters.
And her voice! Nobody else I have ever heard has a voice quite like hers. It is so, so beautiful and rich and full of love or pain or emotion or whatever she is feeling as she sings. She is blessed, yet I imagine she has also worked hard to train that voice, and I love it so much when a natural talent is nurtured properly to make the world a better and happier and more loving place, which for me, at least, it becomes when I listen to her singing.
Here is Over My Head, another of her songs which would probably never sound as good sung by anybody but her. It is just a Christine McVie song. It works with her voice so beautifully to create something truly magical.
There is another nice live version I wanted to put on here but Blogger won't let me! Ah well, this version is gorgeous, taken, it would seem, from the same concert (The Dance, 1997) as the Songbird one. I wish I had been at that concert! But I was only three at the time and I didn't really get to know the music of Fleetwood Mac until I was seven or eight, when my dad bought my mum the Very Best of Fleetwood Mac compilation CD (both my parents are Fleetwood Mac fans).
We used to listen to that CD all the time. My brother became a Lindsey Buckingham fan. I liked Gypsy by Stevie Nicks, and I came to really like a lot of Christine McVie's songs. However, it was when I was a lot older that I began to really appreciate the beauty and emotion of her lyrics, and to realise what a gifted songwriter she is. But Over My Head was always a favourite of mine and my brother's.
A Christine McVie song that I always liked but have recently come to love is You Make Loving Fun.
I just wish I could sit down at a piano and play and sing this! I could never be as good as her, but it would bring me such pleasure just to play those gorgeous chords and sing those bitter-sweet lyrics. I will try and find the sheet music to this and learn it! It could be my tribute to this amazing woman. Her maiden name was Perfect, and she really is perfect in every way as a musician.
"I never did believe in miracles, but I've a feeling it's time to try.
I never did believe in the ways of magic, but I'm beginning to wonder why."
I used to think it was "I've a feeling it's time to fly." Either lyric is beautiful.
I must also share Everywhere with you - as I said to my mum just now, "You can't have a Christine McVie post without Everywhere!" It is so... her. So Christine McVie. I know that sounds silly, but I feel this song just sums up perfectly what Christine McVie is all about. It is a beautiful love song, with simple yet amazingly powerful lyrics, and she sings with such strength and pride yet such vulnerability, in a voice as stunning as ever.
Here it is live in The Dance (with a bit of Dreams at the beginning):
And here is the video - there is another one which is similar to this but with Christine - and, I think, the other members of Fleetwood Mac as well - appearing in silhouette at intervals. Regretfully, I can't find that version on YouTube. So here is the video sans band (it's still a great video):
I remember feeling smug because I thought I was the only one who knew this was based on The Highwayman. Maybe I was, but I doubt that somehow! Anyhow, somebody has written about the poem on YouTube and it's the top comment as I write, so now everybody who looks at the video on YouTube knows.
Ah well. It's still a brilliant idea for a music video, and it really brought the poem - which I'd studied at school several times - to life for me. I just wish I could see the band's lovely faces in the video!
The song is gorgeous, and the beginning so distinctive, as is the case with many Fleetwood Mac songs - you hear it and you know at once that it's going to be Everywhere.Then that powerful drum beat kicks in, and Christine's amazing vocals, and you sit back and are taken on a journey into a fantastic, wonderful, magical song, and into her heart and soul. It is an amazing song; a masterpiece. Along with Songbird and so many other beautiful songs Christine McVie has written during her long and hugely successful and fruitful career.
I feel so privileged to have had the chance to listen to her amazing music for ten years or so and I hope to continue to enjoy her genius and talent and beauty for many years to come. Bouth is a lovely village, and from it came one of the best musicians of our time. I'm glad I got to visit it.
I will leave you with probably her biggest hit, "Don't stop," one of the most upbeat, hopeful, reassuring songs I know, which is just perfect for putting you in a better mood.
Fleetwood Mac are just amazing! And Christine McVie is a legend and should be very proud of all the beautiful, powerful, inspirational, moving songs that she has put into this world.
