Angel From Montgomery...

Today, I discovered some interesting things about John Prine's hit, "Angel From Montgomery".  I had no idea that Carly Simon recorded it in 1972 with help from her ex husband, James Taylor, and James's pal, Danny Kortchmar.  I am very partial to Bonnie Raitt's stellar rendition, but I have to admit there's a certain style in Carly Simon's take on this song.

I think Carly might be a little too northern for this bluesy number, though...  She sings it like a New Yorker or a Bostonite instead of an "Angel From Montgomery"...  This track was never released for the album it was recorded for, No Secrets.  I did read that she later updated it for her box set, Clouds in My Coffee, and her son Ben Taylor helped her with it.  I haven't heard their rendition yet.

A young Bonnie Raitt sings with the song's author, John Prine...

I did this song the other day with a guy from Australia who turned out to be a really good partner.  I enjoyed it so much that I decided to record my own solo version of it.  This song really suits my voice.  It requires a certain sadness.



I suppose I should sharpen my video making skills, but it's more fun to make music.

Songs for Bill...

I'm sitting here thinking about songs that sum up how I feel about my husband.  One song that immediately comes to mind is this chestnut by Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, and Dolly Parton when they were in their "Trio" days…

"To Know Him Is To Love Him" was written by Phil Spector and has been covered plenty of times, but this version seems to speak loudest to me.  Maybe it's because I'm an 80s kid.

"Goin' Wild For You, Baby" is another song that has been done by a lot of singers.  This version by Bonnie Raitt is the one I like best, at least so far.  I would love to be able to sing it for Bill at some point.  Need to take piano or guitar lessons.

When Bill and I were dating, I made him a music mix and this song, "Feel It", was on it…

"Come Rain or Come Shine" by Dinah Washington is another one that makes me think of my husband, especially since rain may be coming.

And so does this classic starring Dinah Washington and Brook Benton…  "Baby, You Got What It Takes"…

"Lover Man" is a song Bill loves… especially when I sing it.  Maybe I'll record a version today.

Hmm… this makes me want to sing rather than write.  Maybe I'll come back to this post.

Jude Johnstone...

Singer-songwriter Jude Johnstone has written some beautiful songs for a wide variety of songs for singers like Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris and Trisha Yearwood.  I happen to own a couple of her albums.  I like her music because it's deeply personal and and poignant.  One song she wrote that a lot of country music fans might be familiar with is "The Woman Before Me", which was a hit for Trisha Yearwood.

The Woman Before Me

Another song she wrote was the beautiful "Wounded Heart", which was covered by Bonnie Raitt and featured on Army Wives during its first season.  

Jude Johnstone sings "Wounded Heart".

One of my favorite songs written by Jude Johnstone is "The Nightingale", which Trisha Yearwood covered.  I also sang it and blogged about it last year.  

   

Jude Johnstone sings "The Nightingale"

Emmylou Harris covers Johnstone's "Hold On"…

It's been awhile since I last sat down and listened to Jude Johnstone's music.  She's an amazing talent who likely doesn't get the notoriety she deserves.  But maybe she prefers it that way.  Her music is reflective and makes me think that maybe she's an introvert.

Bonnie Raitt covers "Wounded Heart"

"Matters of the Heart"...

Back in 1998, I purchased Bonnie Raitt's 1995 live album Road Tested.  That album included a lot of Bonnie Raitt's best loved hits as well as a few really good covers.  Bonnie sang a lovely cover of Michael McDonald's introspective song, "Matters of the Heart".  Imagine my surprise when I found it on SingSnap.  I decided to sing it today.  I think it turned out pretty nice.

Here he is singing it...

I think it's a very poignant song that many people probably relate to...  Michael McDonald has gotten around over the years.  When I was writing a whole lot of CD reviews, I went through a phase in which it seemed like he had a hand in everything I was listening to.  But hell, he is a talent.  I love the challenge of a beautiful ballad.

Love Me Like A Man...

I am also a big Bonnie Raitt fan...

This is "Love Me Like A Man", which is a bluesy, ass kicker of a song...  Watching this video makes me wish I could play guitar.  Maybe it's time I learned.

In any case, this is my version, which is more like the album version than Bonnie's live rendition.  I usually sing this song drunk, but I was pretty sober when I did this recording.



The video is again photos from Europe.  They have nothing to do with the music.

Yesterday, I also did some experimenting with Audacity, which is an open source music editing software program.  I was using it because I had an instrumental recording of the song "Bill" from Showboat.  It was in a key I was capable of doing, but a little higher than I really wanted to sing it in.  I was able to easily lower the key in Audacity.  It turned out relatively well, though I could probably do it better if the recording was better.  For some reason, changing the key seemed to distort it a bit.

I didn't put this on YouTube because it's kind of personal.  Yes, the photos are of "my Bill".

I think I like recording with Garage Band better than Audacity, though Audacity seems to be somewhat easier to figure out and use.  What I like about Garage Band is that the interface is more professional looking and the mic amplifies with it.  Also, I don't have to download as many plug-ins with Garage Band.

This is turning into a fun hobby.  I like to sing for myself and Bill... and for anyone else who happens to enjoy what I'm doing. 

My "comforting" playlist...

Some time ago, I made playlists for my iMac.  I usually play them on weekends, when my husband and I are at home together.  I made an 80s list, a 70s list, a holiday mix, and a "comforting" playlist.  Basically, this is a list of songs that are "comforting", no matter which decade they came from.  I find the older I get, the more I want to listen to comforting music.  I no longer care too much about the edgiest, newest stuff, though I still enjoy it to an extent.  I like music that makes me feel good and relaxes me.  I figure as long as I don't start listening to Muzak, I'm okay.

Today, I turned on the mix because I felt like making bread and figured that called for a little baking music.  I've had the mix on all day.  I'm trying to listen to as much as possible, because I have it set to play in order of plays.  The songs I've listened to most often play first and so on.  I have so many songs on my comforting mix, though, that some songs never get played.  It's not because I don't like them.  I just never get to them.

I suppose I could rearrange the list, but I always end up changing it back to the number of plays...

So I've heard a lot of...

And so many others before I get even close to the end of the mix...

Good thing my husband is so patient and doesn't mind when I get in the mood to be soothed.