I realized, halfway through entry #9, that this little Top Ten list was going to take more out of me than I'd originally calculated. Pulling together ten songs / albums / setlists was no trouble at all, of course. Exploring the effect they had on me, however, was a little dicier.
I also realize that compared to my other Top Ten efforts, I was a little more cavalier with the guidelines I set for myself. A Boy Named Sue hardly qualifies as a true "heartbreaker", but I included it just because I'm unhinged enough to get choked up while listening to it.
And, oh, the artists I ignored! Not a bluesman -- or woman -- in the bunch. Slaid Cleaves Broke Down, the entirety of which should qualify, didn't even make mention.
No doubt my blinders steered me right past some of your sad-eyed favourites. If so, don't be shy! Ennumerate and elucidate below.
10 comments:
Like M. Luther, I was ready with a list to be pounding on your blog's door. But that last post, #1 of the Heartbreakers, was such a deus ex machina, that I'm still sitting here wiping my brow and my cheeks. An inspired choice, indeed.
(an aside her, off in the corner where parantheses palces one's thoughts. No McGarrigle? No Roches? No Peggy Lee?)
Again with the "McGarrigle" - seriously, I hope you pound this list on your own virtual door, because it would be well worth the read. As for Peggy Lee, she's almost too cool to be a heartbreaker ("Is that all there is?" - I love it!). But go on: let's see what you've got!
You know we all got wrapped up in the magic (or non-magic per Darkov) of Emmylou, that I plumb forgot another singer that can wrench tears out of a dead Lenin: Kathy Mattea.
Now, come to think of it, I will share this tune with you (and please try Amazon to hear a few notes of the gorgeous tune), but will now hike over to Texas Trifles to try my own hand at 10 heartbreakers...or maybe just 5 - I'm usually an optimist.
"Where've You Been" by Kathy Mattea (Jon Vezner/Don Henry)
1st Verse
Claire had all but given up
When she and Edwin fell in love
She touched his face and shook her head
In disbelief she sighed and said
In many dreams I've held you near
Now at last you're really here
Chorus
Where've you been
I've looked for you forever and a day
Where've you been
(No) I'm just not myself when you're away
2nd Verse
He asked her for her hand for life
And she became a salesman's wife
He was home each night by eight
But one stormy evenin' he was late
Her frightened tears fell to the floor
Until his key turned in the door
(Repeat Chorus)
Bridge
They'd never spent a night apart
For sixty years she heard him snore
Now they're in a hospital
In separate beds on different floors
3rd Verse
Claire soon lost her memory
Forgot the names of family
She never spoke a word again
Then one day they wheeled him in
He held her hand and stroked her head
In a fragile voice she said
(WP, clearing throat): Wow. Yes, Kathy Mattea would certainly qualify - thank you. Hope to see her on this list. Say, any chance we could mutate this into a meme?
WP, is that an invitation or a meme thrown aside for future consideration?
If you're throwing down the meme gauntlet, then keep your hanky handy, although a linen doily will do in a watery emergency.
If not, I may have to steal this idea. Hope it's not like stealing horses in Texas; they still string up horse thiefs down there, don't they? Or do they just shoot 'em, claiming they were mistaken for quail?
DV and CP: Consider yourselves tagged!
Game on! But, give me a bit. I wanna make sure I leave Darkov in the dirt...*grin*.
Horse thieves are lower than snake bellies. I believe hanging is still down around Langtry.
Hanging is still LEGAL down around Langtry, is what I meant. Fridays suffer from a lack of brain reserves.
Hey WP, based on your little throwaway remark, I picked up Slaid Cleaves' Broke Down. What a great album! I could see why you were kicking yourself about not listing any of the fine songs from the album that would have qualified as Hearbreakers. One song, "This Morning I Am Born Again" sounded familiar, and not because of the lyrics but due to the music arrangements.
I pulled out a Ray Wylie Hubbard cd he had put out last year, also on Philo. Lo and behold, there was "This Morning..." with Mr. Cleaves being credited for the music. He jumped in on vocals as well as did Gurf Morlix, who also produced this cd (and Broke Down, as you well know).
Thanks for the tip. Enjoyed one of the comments on the cd from Tom & Ray Magliozzi, "Anybody who has the nerve to drive around in a Dodge Dart SPort is worth a listen." "Lydia" is exquisite. A box of Kleenex, for sure.
Excellent! I love "This Morning" - I wonder how Guthrie's original version went? As for the songs that choke me up, I Feel The Blues Moving In never fails. The harmonies are so exquisite, I start singing along, only to gurgle and gasp by the last plaintive verse.
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