Elton John‘s first hit, “Your Song,” has remained one of his most timeless since it first scaled the charts in 1970. Songwriter Bernie Taupin wrote the lyrics when he was only 17, but it could have been a hit in any decade.
John has played the song in concert thousands of times since it led off his self-titled second album in 1970, and I have heard it almost as many. Check out this video montage of John singing the song through the years.
What is your favorite Elton John song? Leave your two cents in the comments.
The Attic Sessions are a series of short documentaries of artists playing songs and telling stories in the Attic Lounge in the upper level of the War Memorial Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. Recent films have focused on singers Holly Williams, Joshua Black Wilkins, Face to Face, and one of my favorite new artists, Andrew Combs. Check out The Attic Sessions: Season Three, Episode Two: Andrew Combs.
For our previous Chimesfreedom review of the debut album from Andrew Combs, as well as a stream of that album, check out Andrew Combs Need Not Be A “Worried Man.” What is your favorite episode of “The Attic Sessions”? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Fresh off his run on America’s Got Talent, Marty Brown has recorded a new single, “Whatever Makes You Smile.” Brown wrote the song as a Valentine’s Day present for his wife Shellie, singing “Like the tin man, the lion, and the scarecrow, I’ll follow you down life’s Golden Road.” You might remember her from America’s Got Talent because she surprised Brown by arranging his appearance on the show.
Although Marty Brown has made some CD’s of newer music available in the last few years, it is great to see his new music being sold by mainstream sellers like iTunes and Amazon. I just bought a copy of the song and cannot wait for more. Check out “Whatever Makes You Smile.” [June 2014 Update: This post previously featured an acoustic version of the song that is no longer available on YouTube. Below is the official video for “Whatever Makes You Smile.”]
Brown remains active after his America’s Got Talent appearances. This week, he will be in Nashville to tape a TV episode of Words And Music for the Nashville Songwriters Association. Check out other upcoming performances on his brand new web page. Finally, you may get a free download his song “Love Signs,” which appeared on his independently released 17 Love Songs, at the CMT website.
What do you think of Marty Brown’s new song? Leave your two cents in the comments.
On October 9, 2013, the state of Arizona executed the 71-year-old Edward H. Schad, Jr. by lethal injection in Florence, Arizona. Schad, the oldest person on the state’s death row, had been convicted of killing a man during a robbery almost 35 years earlier.
The warden asked Schad if he had any last words. And the inmate responded, “Well, after 34 years, I’m free to fly away home. Thank you, warden. Those are my last words.”
The Song That Inspired the Last Words
Reverend Ronald Koplitz, who was Schad’s pastor and who met the prisoner in 1981 while serving as prison chaplain, explained that the last words were a reference to the hymn “I’ll Fly Away.” Rev. Koplitz had become friends with Schad and kept in touch with him after his time as prison chaplain.
Rev. Koplitz gave Schad the song “I’ll Fly Away” a few weeks before the execution. And apparently, Schad felt a connection to the song.
“I’ll Fly Away”
The song that gave some comfort to the prisoner in his final moments before being killed goes back to 1929. In that year, Albert E. Brumley wrote “I’ll Fly Away.” The wonderful hymn, about eternal life and flying away “to that home on God’s celestial shore,” is one of the most popular gospel songs of all time.
There are a number of great versions of “I’ll Fly Away.” The song has appeared in several movies, including in nice a version by Alison Krauss and Gillian Welch in O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000). Doc Watson played an instrumental version of “I’ll Fly Away” in his last public performance. And the song appeared in The Waltons.
Here is a great live version by Gillian Welch.
“The Prisoner” Inspired the Song that Inspired a Prisoner
When Schad referenced the song on the death gurney in Arizona, he likely did not know that his invocation of the song inside prison walls sort of brought the hymn home. When Brumley began writing the song while picking cotton, he was inspired by a song called “The Prisoner’s Song.”
Brumley thought about that song regarding a prisoner thinking of leaving his love behind. And he used a brilliant analogy using prison to represent life on earth.
Brumley was inspired by specific lyrics in “The Prisoner’s Song.” The line “Now, if I had the wings of an angel,/Over these prison walls I would fly” led to Brumley’s theme about flying away.
In this video, Johnny Cash sings “The Prisoner’s Song” on a January 20, 1971 episode of his TV show.
During the introduction, Cash refers to the popularity of “The Prisoner’s Song.” Vernon Dalhart initially recorded the song in 1924 as a B-side to his version of “The Wreck of the Old 97.” “The Prisoner’s Song,” which likely was written by Dalhart’s cousin Guy Massey and/or Guy’s brother Robert Massey, became a big hit for Dalhart.
In “I’ll Fly Away,” Brumley also retained the prison theme, using it as representing life on earth: “Like a bird from these prison walls I’ll fly.” It is not hard to see how Brumley’s wonderful song might bring some comfort to someone like Schad, strapped down on the execution gurney facing certain death. Music soothes both saints and sinners.
What is your favorite version of “I’ll Fly Aawy”? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Even if like me you have only periodically watched episodes of Glee, you will be moved by Lea Michele’s emotional performance of Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love” from last night’s episode. The song is a moving tribute to Cory Monteith, Michele’s real-life and on-screen love who passed away of an accidental drug overdose at age 31 in July. The episode did not delve into the way that Monteith’s character Finn Hudson died, but the show and the song were appropriate tributes to the actor and man who died at such a young age.
The song “Make You Feel My Love” was an excellent choice too. Chimesfreedom previously wrote about how the often-covered “Make You Feel My Love” is one of Bob Dylan’s late-career classics.
What did you think of the Cory Monteith tribute? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Elton John‘s first hit, “Your Song,” has remained one of his most timeless since it first scaled the charts in 1970. Songwriter Bernie Taupin wrote the lyrics when he was only 17, but it could have been a hit in any decade.
. I just bought a copy of the song and cannot wait for more. Check out “Whatever Makes You Smile.” [June 2014 Update: This post previously featured an acoustic version of the song that is no longer available on YouTube. Below is the official video for “Whatever Makes You Smile.”]