John Fogerty wrote “Have You Ever Seen The Rain” about his brother, Tom Fogerty, who left Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1971 at the apex of the band’s popularity. The departure of his brother was a sad time for John.
Eventually, the hurt healed, and the meaning of the song changed. In Fogerty’s own words, “This song was originally written about a very sad thing that was going on in my life. But I refuse to be sad now. These days, this song reminds me of my little girl, Kelsy, and every time I sing it, I think about Kelsy and rainbows.
“Have You Ever Seen the Rain” is another song that emerged unexpectedly from my subconscious. The song bounced around in my head until I played it. Here’s my cover.
Kate Wolf’s music conveys Love, Beauty, and a full range of human emotions. “See Here She Says” is a remarkable song because it speaks to children and adults alike with a reminder that the dreams of the Heart are one of the most valuable commodities we own.
“The time that’s left is yours to keep” is a phrase at the end of the chorus of Kate’s song “See Here She Says.” The phrase impacts me powerfully because it is sweet advice to use our time wisely. This is especially true for children, but it is also important for people of all ages to keep in mind.
Each moment that is given to us is precious. Why waste it on foolish pursuits that bear no useful results? Yes, recreation, relaxation, and pleasure are important too, but they are best employed as a balance for the attainment of meaningful goals. And if the motivation to achieve these goals comes from the heart, then the process of manifesting them will surely, for the most part, be enjoyable.
In a truncated life of only forty-four years, Kate Wolf embodied the words of this song. She used her time to create over two hundred songs, performing mostly at venues in her native state of California. Kate’s work has warmed and gladdened the hearts of millions of people around the world. Here’s my cover of “See Here She Said.”
Bob Dylan wrote and recorded the original version of “Mr. Tambourine Man,” but The Byrds’ electrified folk-rock version shot it to #1 on both the US and UK charts. The song hadn’t been released when The Byrds learned it from a demo Dylan gave to their manager, Jim Dickson.
Dylan released Tambourine Man in March 1965 on his Bringing It All Back Home album.
What is “Mr. Tambourine Man” about? On the surface, this tambourine man is a wandering musician whose music has captured Dylan under its spell. The song is considered by many to be about drug experiences, with lines like “Take me for a trip upon your magic swirling ship” and “Take me disappearin’ through the smoke rings of my mind.” Phrases like these suggest a marijuana or LSD trip. Dylan is famously close-lipped about explaining his songs, but in his 1985 Biograph compilation album, he revealed that “Mr. Tambourine Man” is not about drugs. Instead, he said the song was inspired by a backup folk musician named Bruce Langhorne, who played a large tambourine in one of Dylan’s recording sessions.
To me, the song’s poetic images are like impressionist paintings. The melody is haunting and mesmerizing. The song stands alone as a true work of art. Here’s my version.
Here’s another Gordon Lightfoot tune that may not be as recognizable as many of the other songs of his that I’ve covered here. Somehow, “I’ll be Alright” crept into my consciousness and I’m happy to offer my cover of the song in this post. To me, the song is as lovely and memorable as many of Lightfoot’s hits including: “If You Could Read My Mind,”“Early Morning Rain,” and “Song For A Winter’s Night.”
Please enjoy this remembrance of the one and only Gordon Lightfoot.
“Summer Side of Life” is the lead-off song from a 1972 Gordon Lightfoot concert in London, England. The song kept rolling around in my head until I decided to learn it and post it here.
Ostensibly, the song is about a young man who returns from the Vietnam War and mourns a lost love and possibly his war experiences. It’s a song about before and after, and maybe two sides of life. After the first two verses, I find the lyrics to be somewhat impenetrable. So, I can’t say for sure what the song is about, but it speaks to me about the difference between youth and old age.
I’d love to have my youth back with my current perspective and the freedom to follow my bliss, as Joseph Campbell says. Wouldn’t it be lovely to have decades to develop ourselves and our abilities without the distraction of economic necessity? Ahhh…if it could only be so.
It’s been fun learning this song. I hope you enjoy it.
Did they really make a Canadian stamp imprinted with a portrait of GL as a young man?
“Sky Blue and Black” by Jackson Browne is an emotional roller coaster, looking back on the joys and sorrows of love and its lasting impact. Browne wrote the song over a four-year period and released it on his album “I’m Alive” in 1992. The source material comes from Jackson’s relationship with a famous actress. However, Browne never wants his songs to be identified with his specific life events, so he rarely speaks about his real-life relationships, especially in context with his music.
“It’s a drag to even imagine that people are thinking about [the] relationship instead of their own lives,” Jackson told the Los Angeles Times. “I think if a song is any good, eventually it’ll turn out to be about the life of the listener and not about the life of the writer. Anyway, that’s my hope.”
Have you heard of Steve Gillette? If you were alive in the 1960s and liked folk music, there’s a chance the name rings a bell. Gillette never reached the top of the charts, but he’s a very talented singer/songwriter. Many of his songs have been performed by artists you have heard of, including John Denver, Gordon Lightfoot, Ian and Sylvia, Nanci Griffith, and Linda Ronstadt.
The Bells in the Evening appears on Gillette’s debut album released in 1967. The album, simply titled “Steve Gillette,” stands as one of Steve’s finest recordings. “The Bells” is a bittersweet (actually sweet bitter) song of love blossoming in the spring and fading away in the fall. It’s a song full of immense joy and sorrow that combine in a mixture of incredible beauty. The song is also replete with imagery. When you listen, what images come to your mind?
I’ve revisited “The Bells of the Evening” adding some embellishments and the sound of my new guitar. Here’s my cover.
Since upgrading my music recording process from the iPhone to a professional microphone and software, I’ve started making music videos illustrated with photos from Shutterstock. This enables me to continue posting songs on my YouTube Channel.
Lately, I’ve been learning songs the way the artist plays them courtesy of my good friend and tutor, JerrysGuitarBar.com. All of these songs are posted on my other blog: davidgittlin.net.
If you are a child of the 1960’s/70’s, then you’ve probably heard of Don McLean’s memorable hit song, “And I Love You So.” What you may not know is that the song was widely covered by other recording artists, most notably Elvis Presley and Perry Como. Yes, I said Perry Como. In a career that spanned decades, Don McLean wrote and recorded twenty-two studio albums, four live albums, and 16 singles. He is best known for his song and album of the same name, “American Pie.” It took the better part of three weeks to master this song, but I enjoyed learning it. The ballad has some beautiful riffs in it. Here is my version of McLean’s hit.
In 1964, Gordon Lightfoot wrote one of his most memorable songs: Early Morning Rain. Lightfoot, a Canadian singer-songwriter, has become a folk legend. Along with his crystal clear singing voice and accomplished guitar playing, Lightfoot has written a library of outstanding folk songs depicting historical events and all manner of love relationships.
To single out a smattering of Lightfoot’s top hits is to do the man an injustice. “Early Morning Rain” appears on his 1966 debut album, Lightfoot! Before he released the song, another Canadian duo, Ian and Sylvia, recorded it in 1964. Many other folk singing notables (Peter, Paul, and Mary) also adopted the song.
The genesis of “Early Morning Rain” can be traced to Gordon’s 1960 stay in Westlake, Los Angeles. At the time, Lightfoot became homesick for his Canadian roots. He remembers going to the Los Angeles International Airport on rainy days to watch the aircraft take-off and land. The memories of the flights launching into the overcast skies stayed with him. In 1964, while caring for his 5-month-old son, Lightfoot remembers thinking, “I’ll put him over here in his crib, and I’ll write myself a tune.” At that moment, “Early Morning Rain” was born.
I’ve always loved this song. Lightfoot strums it. When I heard Eva Cassidy perform the song using a picking technique, I had to learn it her way. Unfortunately, there were no guitar tutorials available. Since Eva plays “Early Morning Rain” close to her version of “Kathy’s Song,” I was able to figure out how to play EMR three-quarters of the way she does. Here’s my version.
Moving Forward
Take the next step that’s in your wheelhouse. This is the path to your success. Don’t overreach. Falling off a cliff is no fun.
I’m reposting a blog previously titled “Vincent: A True Lover.” I’ve decided to re-learn the song closer to the original.
“Starry, starry night/ Paint your palette blue and grey/ Look upon a summer’s day/ With eyes that know the darkness in my soul.”
Those words came to Don McLean as he gazed at Vincent Van Gogh’s 1889 painting “The Starry Night.” Soon, he had a masterpiece of his own: “Vincent,” a 1972 hit that he released right on the heels of his defining epic “American Pie.”
Like Van Gogh’s painting, Mclean’s “Vincent” has touched a broad array of hearts and minds over the last 50 years. The song, the painting, and the book “Dear Theo,” written by Van Gogh’s brother, have certainly touched my heart again and again. I’ve always thought that Vincent’s style was at least in part inspired by his mental illness. To me, the brush strokes reflect an altered state of perception similar to the hallucinogenic patterns seen under the influence of Mescaline or LSD.
Van Gogh labored in obscurity until his self-inflicted death at the age of thirty-seven. He sold only a few of his paintings during his lifetime. Today, Van Gogh is a household word, and his paintings each sell for fifty million dollars or more. “The Starry Night” is one of Van Gogh’s most famous paintings.
Here’s the updated version of “Vincent” played closer to the original recording by Don Mclean.
Thought for the Day
When your world shrinks, your issues amplify. Keep your world and your perspective broad, for your own happiness, and the happiness of others.
A photographic interpretation of the Kate Wolf song “Muddy Roads.” Visit http://www.davidgittlin.net for the full post titled “Through Her Music.”
Lately, I’ve been posting on Facebook images of late 18th century impressionist paintings and 1930-40’s Art Deco cars and architecture. I’ve also been listening to and playing a lot of Kate Wolf’s music. I believe the unifying theme of these adventures is BEAUTY.
What I’m about to say may seem odd, self-inflated, or downright delusional, but what the hell. I’m going to say it anyway. It seems that I’m undergoing a dramatic shift in consciousness. I’m focusing on, feeling, and sensing the beauty and light within me and around me.
I’m choosing to focus on this beauty, not as some kind of self-improvement practice. It’s something I want to do. I don’t have to impose it on myself. You might say “the sun in my heart is rising,” finally, after all these years of struggling to arise out of the negativity in and around me. It’s not that the negativity has gone away. It’s just easier and more desirable to focus on something better.
It’s something that comes from inside and outside of me. It’s something that is beautiful, peaceful, and fulfilling. It’s something that beats the hell out of the over-controlled grind of daily life.
I started with the intention of sharing a selection of the beautiful images and music I mentioned earlier. I may have gotten a bit side-tracked along the way. So, without further delay:
Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1935 Falling Water House shown here at twilight.
This is a truly beautiful painting. “Daisies and Peonies in Blue Vase” by Paul Gauguin.
Painting by Claude Monet from his famous water-lilies series. Monet painted about 250 water-lily studies from his garden during the last thirty years of his life.
My version of “Poet’s Heart” written by Kate Wolf Copyright 1985
Three Days to Darkness 