Tag: vocals

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Folk Guitar Music videos

Beauty In Blue

Human Connection to Inner peace, joy, and love. Living Fully From Within
Beautiful Cornflowers Blooming In The Morning Sun.

I first heard “Cornflower Blue” as the opening song on Kate Wolf’s 1983 double album “Give Yourself to Love.” As I listened to the album many times over, “Cornflower Blue” grew on me (no pun intended). I began to appreciate the exquisite beauty in the lyrics and in Kate’s lovely singing voice. I especially like the last verse of the song which goes:

“Cornflower Blue, deeper than the evening sky. Peaceful as a river. Bluer than goodbye. Blue like a diamond, when the light shine true. If love came in colors, I’d choose this one for you.”

Isn’t it, you know, beautiful?

Oftentimes, songs like this one will find their way into my heart and I feel compelled to play them myself. With this song, I had my doubts. The chances were good that I might not pull it off. Learning how to play “Cornflower Blue” like Kate does was like learning how to walk again. The style is completely counterintuitive to what I’m used to, but I’m glad I made the effort. I hope my cover of the song conveys some of the mystery and beauty of the original.

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Arts & Entertainment

Vincent: A True Lover

The Starry Night, Famous Oil Painting,

“Starry, starry night/ Paint your palette blue and grey/ Look out on a summer’s day/ With eyes that know the darkness in my soul.”

Those words came to Don McLean as he looked 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 wide range of creative spirits 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.

Famous Oil Paintings By Vincent Van Gogh

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 my interpretation of Mclean’s homage to the masterpiece.

Categories
Folk Guitar Music

These Days

Music Is A Balm For The Soul.

These days are unbelievable. And horrific. And wonderful.

Let’s forget about current events for a few moments. Let’s listen, instead, to some music by a singer/songwriter I admire.

“These Days” is a song by Jackson Browne. He wrote it when he was sixteen. He still performs it today many years later. Brown’s music is lyrical. He is a consummate guitarist and performer.

Please enjoy my version of this hauntingly beautiful song. Focus on the music. Ignore my facial expressions. The old bones are losing the war on multiple fronts. I’m playing this 75% the way JB does.

ACOUSTIC GUITAR STRINGS
Categories
Folk Guitar Music Poetry

Enough of the Night

Bleak night. Nightlife. After Hours District. Red Light District.

I’m a huge Jackson Browne fan. Here’s my version of one of his classic songs, “Enough of the Night.” In addition to his musical artistry, Browne is an extraordinary poet.

I’ve posted my rendition of another Jackson Browne tune on my other blog: www.davidgittlin.net It’s the title song from his 1993 album “I’m Alive.”

And, last but not least; the song is relevant to current events. We’ve had enough of the night. Elect Joe Biden.

Categories
Arts & Entertainment Folk Song Covers videos

Nanci Griffith: A 1980s Singer/Songwriter Legacy

Nanci Griffith was a popular singer/songwriter who came to prominence in the 1980s. I bought one of her albums recorded in 1988 and then tracked back to discover more and more of her music. She wrote and performed her first song at the age of twelve.

Griffith was the daughter of musical parents, and she spent her childhood involved with theater and literature as well as music. She began playing clubs around Austin at the tender age of 14 and continued to perform during her college years at the University of Texas, as well as during her stint as a kindergarten teacher in the mid-’70s. Nanci finally decided to make music her full-time ambition in 1977.

One observer said of Nanci, “She found it easier to deal with the cowboys in bars at night than she did with her kindergarten students during the day.”

Nanci Griffith’s world tours are now the stuff of memories and YouTube videos, but her heart and soul will endure for years to come. She recorded and released more than twenty albums during her brilliant career. The video above features me playing one of Nanci’s rousing  songs titled “Say It Isn’t So.”

David Gittlin has written three feature-length screenplays, produced two short films, and published three novels. Before quitting his day job, he spent more than thirty years as a marketing director, building expertise in advertising, copywriting, corporate communications, collateral sales materials, website content/design, and online marketing. He plays guitar as a hobby.