he would have been up there if the Zebel money had come in i would i have thought, he would and is just the sort of player that could turn us around... oh well nevermind.. NEXT......
Indeed, written by Emmylou about Gram after he died...
I interviewed her once about Gram for Uncut and she told me she wrote the song when she was staying at Linda Ronstadt's house in Laurel Canyon, when there was one of those forest fires raging around, hence the lines:
''It was in the wilderness and the canyon was on fire And I stood on the mountain in the night and I watched it burn I watched it burn, I watched it burn.''
Would have been an even better fit if it was Bob Bolder rather the Lee Bowyer whom Birmingham had signed!
That's the cleverness of a great lyricist - they take one experience like that, weave it into a song and invest it with other/deeper/wider meanings. If you are interested, I'll dig out the interview for you...
"There was one of those amazing fires going on in LA where the canyons are all ablaze. I remember standing there in the street with life going on normally all around and seeing the sky on fire. There was something in that juxtaposition that related to what I was going through in trying to deal with the loss of Gram. I'd had part of my life amputated and yet every day the sun was still coming up and going down. It was that moment that inspired Boulder to Birmingham''.
Emmylou Harris talking to NW, Nashville July 1999, quoted in Uncut issue 28, Sept 1999.
There's another intervew I did with her for The Times about Gram, which her record company has posted on-line here:
Don't want to brag, Oggy - it was just that it was my job to interview people for many years, from Maggie Thatcher to Emmylou Harris... Still is, but in a very semi-retired way. Averaged out, I guess I work about two days a week these days (far less in the cricket season) and collect the royalties. That's why I've got so much time to hang around causing trouble on Charlton Life!
No, not into Country & Western at all - although had a sneaking respect for old Johnny Cash, as a performer.
Semi-retired is the way to go, Nigel - keeps you in touch but gives you more time to have your life back.
Unless your work is your passion - and what you'd rather do most in the world.
That's a bit like being a pro footballer, isn't it?
Or doesn't that apply these days?
Comments
One of my all time favourite songs is Bowyer to Birmingham
I interviewed her once about Gram for Uncut and she told me she wrote the song when she was staying at Linda Ronstadt's house in Laurel Canyon, when there was one of those forest fires raging around, hence the lines:
''It was in the wilderness and the canyon was on fire
And I stood on the mountain in the night and I watched it burn
I watched it burn, I watched it burn.''
Would have been an even better fit if it was Bob Bolder rather the Lee Bowyer whom Birmingham had signed!
Emmylou Harris talking to NW, Nashville July 1999, quoted in Uncut issue 28, Sept 1999.
There's another intervew I did with her for The Times about Gram, which her record company has posted on-line here:
http://emmylou.net/gpvarious.html
Which other famous people have you interviewed ....?
Are you an Emmylou fan?
Semi-retired is the way to go, Nigel - keeps you in touch but gives you more time to have your life back.
Unless your work is your passion - and what you'd rather do most in the world.
That's a bit like being a pro footballer, isn't it?
Or doesn't that apply these days?