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!
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.
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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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.
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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...
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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.
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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.
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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.
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.
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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.
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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.
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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!).
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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.
As you will know if you follow this blog or my Facebook page, I am a huge Eurovision fan. It is quite possibly the highlight of my year. I just love the sense of together-ness, of people all over Europe watching and enjoying the same spectacle.
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The host nation:
One thing I like about Eurovision is learning about the host nation, and in this way I felt slightly let down this year, as I found there wasn't much information about Denmark, or Copenhagen as a city.
The only thing that had anything to do with Danish culture was the performance of Hans Christian Anderson's The Ugly Duckling in one of the semi-finals. I would have liked more of that sort of thing, especially in the final.
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The hosts:
I thought the show was well-hosted, though I preferred Petra Mede last year. I think some of the hosts' humour was perhaps lost in translation, as I didn't find some things funny that I think I was supposed to.
I also didn't really get the continual China references - was that an in-joke of some kind? Overall, though, it was better hosted than a lot of past contests.
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The venue:
I was amazed when I saw pictures of the venue from the outside - it is a pair of former shipping containers, and looked so different from more glamourous past Eurovision venues. Yet inside, it looked wonderful; I liked the stage design and how it matched the gem theme of the contest.
When I first encountered the gem theme, I thought it too simple and ordinary. However, it really worked on the night and looked quite arty. The tagline, "#Join us," is too similar to Norway's 2010 slogan, "Share the moment," and I feel that Norway captured the sentiment better with their flashmob. But it is a nice sentiment to have in the first place.
I could have done without the hash tag, though. Not all of us use Twitter, and those of us who don't can still be part of Eurovision.
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The songs:
I thought the standard of songs this year was really good - probably the best overall quality across all the songs that I remember seeing at Eurovision. However, for me there were few really excellent songs. I voted for Malta and the Netherlands, my favourites by a long way.
I also quite liked Spain's song. But that was it. While many other songs were good, they just didn't blow my mind.
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The winner:
I like how Conchita's victory was a victory of sorts for equality. Also, Tom, the guy whose character she is, seems really nice in interview. However, I don't really like the song - it just seems to be about three other songs pasted together and generally dull.
The ideal situation for me would have been for Conchita to have come second, which would still have made a stir and a statement, and for the Netherlands to have won because they had the better song and it is a song contest at the end of the day.
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I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on the show. Congratulations to Conchita and to Austria, and thank you to everyone who was involved in making Eurovision 2014 such a great success.
Here's to Eurovision 2015 in Austria!
Thanks for reading! I have also written an article about Eurovision for my university's student newspaper, if you would like to check it out.
Just letting you know that my poem "Egg without a shell" has been published in Cadaverine Magazine! I'm very proud and happy. Give it a read if you have time.
In 2011 I went to the south of France with my sixth-form college, a trip that changed my life. I made a film about it, and wrote a blog post about the songs I used in the film. In 2012, I returned there and had another great trip. Again, I made a film, and in this post I will let you know the stories behind the songs I used.
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The first song I used, for the Montpellier segment of the film, is "In This City" by Iglu & Hartly.
I first discovered this song on a trip to Oxford, and I thought of it for the film as its chorus describes perfectly how I feel about Montpellier:
"And I know that down here, in this city,
That I won't disappear in this city,
I have nothing to fear in this city..."
I adore Montpellier and would love to live there some day. It is definitely my favourite city. I have even written a novel set there. It just seems to be to have its own vibe, its own air even. I find it to be a truly unique place.
I first discovered this song on a family trip to London when I was sixteen. We were driving through a very green neighbourhood with lots of trees, and now hearing the song always brings me back there. We went on to visit Hampton Court Palace, somewhere I'd dreamed of going for a long time as I was fascinated by the Tudors. It was a wonderful trip.
I rediscovered this by chance when I was making my film and tried it with the beach photos, not really expecting it to work - but it really did. So I kept it, and now I really like this part of the film - it may be my favourite part.
I did a post with a bit more about why I love this song.
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The third and final song covers Carcassonne, and is "Famille" by Jean-Jacques Goldman.
I first encountered this song when I was exploring Goldman's music - I did a post all about it. When it came to the film, this was probably the easiest song to choose: throughout the trip, the group had referred to each other as "ma deuxième famille" - "my second family." So I thought of this song right away.
Plus, it's a nice song to end the film on: it has that "ending" feel to it, but in a happy, celebratory way, rather than a sad, "it's over" kind of way.
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Overall, I really like the film. I had a limited amount of time in which to finish it - much less than I had for the first film - and I worried at the time that it wouldn't be able to match the first one. However, I think I managed it, and the music was a huge part of that.
I'm still on my Easter holidays and am enjoying having some rest and relaxation. Last weekend I went with my family to Northumberland for a few days, and I wanted to tell you about the trip, through, as always, music.
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Firstly, the way there was as much an adventure as the stay itself: the scenery was beautiful and an unexpected road diversion meant we had to go a very long-winded route that brought us even more moody views of mountains, lakes and heathland. It was very atmospheric.
We listened to two different compilations of 00s music. Here are some of the highlights:
This song always reminds me of a friend's birthday party I went to when I was young. Very nostalgic!
I remember Pop Idol being the first talent show I ever experienced, when I watched the last few shows and the final. I wanted Will to win and was so glad when he did.
I also did a post about Westlife's song Flying Without Wings.
This has inspired me to do a whole post about Dido, so watch this space!
Ah, the memories!
We also listened to the radio and this song played.
It is so typically Coldplay. If asked to identify the band you wouldn't hesitate a minute. While I'm not completely bewitched by it (see what I did there) I do find it quite pretty, and it will now always remind me of our journey to Northumberland.
I also found out through research for this blog that it was released on my 20th birthday!
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When we got there, we explored Kielder Water and the surrounding woodland - it's very scenic and peaceful. We also did some stargazing as the skies were dark and clear, and the moon was incredibly beautiful.
The first line from Annie's Song sprung to mind on more than one occasion.
"You fill up my senses, like a night in the forest."
For a while this was the only line I knew in the song, and I was almost disappointed when I heard that the song consists of similar analogies. For me, that one analogy was enough. "A night in the forest" on its own is such a powerful, evocative, lustrous image that I don't see the need for any others, although I do find the rest of the song very lovely.
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We also visited a bird of prey centre, where we saw some amazing owls and falcons. Let me share one of my favourite songs about flying. I hope to do a whole blog post about flying songs soon.
A talented singer performed this song at my school talent show; that was the first time I heard it and I immediately liked it. It remains one of my favourite songs.
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We saw lots of birds in the wild - chaffinches, a siskin, ducks and crows - as well as a red squirrel, rabbits - lots of rabbits -, deer and wallabies. Yes, wallabies.
We visited a castle, got lost in a maze and sat in a giant artwork.
The artwork
Our trip finally ended, and we drove home, going through Scotland this time. This song came on the radio. At the time, I thought I'd never heard it before, but now I think I may have done; I have a bit of déjà vu.
I really like it; it's very simple but I love simple love songs. It goes without saying that Heather Small's voice is amazing.
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Our weekend was brilliant and really refreshing, and one I'll always remember. I hope we can return to Northumberland in the future.
I am now on my Easter holidays! Hooray! Three weeks of relaxation before going back to University and facing my summer exams. I will do plenty of study, of course, but a lot has happened this half-semester, and it will be good to have the chance to chill out a bit.
I would like to bring to your attention that I have set up a blog for my poetry and possibly other types of writing. It would mean a lot to me if you could have a look at it. Feel free to comment and let me know what you think.
Finally, I thought I would share this song and clip from the film Casper. Beware of spoilers if you haven't seen the end of the film!
For anyone who doesn't want to see the clip for fear of spoilers, here is the song on its own:
As a kid, I'd occasionally go to an activity club where they had a TV room. At least half the time, this film was showing. I saw all of it in bits and pieces, but never from beginning to end.
It was only a couple of years ago that I caught it on TV and was able to sit back and enjoy the whole film. It was a lot better than I remembered; I think being older allowed me to appreciate the tragedy/friendship/romance side of the film, whereas as a kid I saw it more as an adventure/mystery film.
Anyway, I really love the dancing scene. While I do like the song in its own right, I believe that being fitted with this specific scene elevates it to something incredibly beautiful and poignant. The lyrics are very simple, but work so well with the music and with the scene.
