Monday, March 21, 2005

The Perfect Way To Spend A Driving Hour

I drove my wife's car to Connecticut this weekend and, while looking through her CDs, found an album I hadn't played in a while, Susanna McCorkle's, "Most Requested Songs". I remembered why I bought it - impeccable taste and fantastic musicianship. And, I remembered when I first heard her signature song, "The Waters of March"; it was on my last trip to Canada to oversee our return to the States after eight years in the North.

The album is a mix of Brazilian songs, old favorites and songs you'll likely be hearing for the first of many times. McCorkle really makes the old favorites new; you've never heard "Thanks for the Memories" quite like this. Nor will you ever forget her rendition of "For All We Know".

This album is so beautiful you wonder why she was so despondent that she committed suicide.

2 comments:

R J Adams said...

Ah, yes - when the world is falling apart around us, there is always music to make our lives worthwhile.
I haven't heard the singer you mention, Al, -though I may well give her a listen - but I have a CD that has a similar effect on me; Eva Cassidy's "Songbird". Her voice so pure and mellow, and yet she died of cancer when only in her early thirties. As you say - it sets one wondering.

Al DeVito said...

About a month ago, Terry Teachout, the music critic for The Wall Street Journal, called Cassidy the best vocalist he had ever heard.