The Perfect Song

Subject: The Perfect Song
From: Cluin
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 03:56 PM

That song which, for you, epitomizes the ideal song to sing... the one that falls out so easily and smoothly that it just makes you feel good to sing it, no matter what mood you are in. It will be a completely subjective opinion, of course, and you should feel that you do it justice in you singing of it.

There aree lots of songs I like doing and feel I do them well, but for me there is one that I have been doing longest and best. It was one of the first I learned to sing by ear with my old guitar. No contest.

It's Gordon Lightfoot's "Early Morning Rain".

I still do it the way I first learned it, slow and soulful (but with the wrong chords I found when I got the songbook later). But I almost never play it for others. It's for me.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,HP
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 03:58 PM

Tolpuddle Man by Graham Moore......does it for me.
HP

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,DonMeixner
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 04:51 PM

"Can't help But Wonder Where I'm Bound". I never crack a case without doing at least some of this song. Doesn't matter the instrument. I learned it on the Autoharp in 1968. I changed it over to Guitar in 1974 and banjo in 1980. Now I do it on everything I play.

Great verse, singalongable chorus, unending sentiment.

Don

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Beer
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 05:08 PM

Stuff That Works by Guy Clarke
Immigrant Eyes by Tom Russell
Beer (adrien)

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: gnu
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 05:21 PM

The Castle Of Dromore... Eileen Aroon... Jug Of This....May Morning Dew... The Cobbler... The Wind That Shakes The Barley... I know, I know... but, to me, they are one... each as the other. When I was at my camp on the river on a frosty fall morn at dawn and I sent those echos up the river valley... they were perfect... if only to me.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Bru
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 05:23 PM

Agree about Early Morning Rain. Remember Peter Paul & Mary playing it (live I think) on UK television mid to late 60's. Badgered my dad into working out the chords for me. I don't play it so often (can't sing to save my life) but when I do I still use the same chords; G, Bm Am D7 G G Am D7 G

But there's so much singable material from the sixties, you'd be hard pressed not to find something you liked.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Nick E
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 06:16 PM

It seems to me Cluen is asking for the perfect song for SINGERS, but is it in my shower you mean or do you mean it more for performers?

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 07:28 PM

I was once at at an Irish songwriting festival(county galway) where one songwriter said he had written the perfect song - and he called it The Perfect Song. It didn't win. But neither did I.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Tootler
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 07:46 PM

I don't know about perfect song, there is no such thing IMO, but two I really enjoy singing and regularly come back to are

The Three Ravens
Jock of Hazeldean

In both cases it is a combination of the story, the melody - both have fine melodies - and the images that are conjured up by the song that give me a buzz when I am singing them.

I sing both unaccompanied. Just a matter of finding an comfortable key to sing in.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Janie
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 07:59 PM

I don't know that my answer will be the same tomorrow. But for now - two songs - The Sisters of Mercy by Leonard Cohen (which learned from a Judy Collins album), and It Rains Just the Same in Missouri. I'm fumbling with the writer. Ray Cliff? Roy Griff?

I agree, Bru. And if you (me) are of a certain age, we have strong emotional associations with them.

Janie

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Joe_F
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 08:00 PM

Dink's song

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: RTim
Date: 25 Aug 07 - 08:26 PM

The next one I chose to sing!

Tim radford

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,eoin o'buadhaigh
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 04:13 PM

'Farewell my Dearest Dear' such a strange air that lets you put your heart into every word. Every pause between lines (which you can change each time you sing it)lends to the air and when finished I'm always sad and think 'It'S TOO DAMN SHORT' I always feel good when I sing that song.
eoin

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Alice
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 04:23 PM

Easy answer for me, because there is one song I sing automatically
when washing clothes or dishes or doing things around the house,
and even though there are others I like more, this one comes out without
thinking - Wild Mountain Thyme.

Alice

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: The Borchester Echo
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 04:45 PM

Yeah, Jock o Hazeldean springs to mind for a soundcheck as it drops down an octave and a half (almost) over three bars.
Still, I suppose The Star Spangled Banner would do just as well . . .

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Celtaddict
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 05:00 PM

Except that in my opinion, despite the similar ranges, 'Jock o' Hazeldean' in vastly more singable. I have always thought, of the choice of 'To Anacreon in Heaven' as melody for a national anthem, 'What were they THINKING?'

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 05:10 PM

Sportsmen Arouse (The Innocent Hare)

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: COINWOLF
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 06:02 PM

The Rose as sung by Bet Midler
3 verses, all lines with that "prick up your ears and listen" factor.
Easy to memorise, easy to perform.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: terrier
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 06:35 PM

I agree with coinwolf, I still get shivers when I think of that song. Funnily enough, I was listening to a BBC prog today that featured Bet Midler, although she did not sing that song. Awesome performer.
For me, there are some beautiful hymn tunes that really stick in my mind, my favourites are probably Silent Night and Dear Lord And Father Of Mankind, but many others.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 07:08 PM

'That song which, for you, epitomizes the ideal song to sing... the one that falls out so easily and smoothly that it just makes you feel good to sing it, no matter what mood you are in.'

I don't even feel that good about people......

'falls out of you esily and smoothly......'

senokots, or a couple of pints of Mad Jacks Stout - if they're to hand. usually gets things moving.

Subject: RE: A pretty good song
From: Gene
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 08:00 PM

May not be the perfect song, but it sure is a pretty good one..

Someone Is Looking For Someone Like You
Written & Recorded by Gail Davies (1979)

The First Female Record Producer in Nashville.

You say that nobody cares where you're going
And that your life don't mean nothing at all
You've heard the saying you reap what you're sowing
So plant a good seed and watch it grow tall

CHORUS:
Somewhere a man's got no woman to turn to
Somewhere a woman is lonely and blue
Somewhere a child's got no mama to hold her
Someone is looking for someone like you

You say there's no road that you'd care to travel
Nothing to say that ain't been said before
And life's a mystery that you can't unravel
Well, love's the key that will open that door

CHORUS:

Think of all the time you waste complaining
Think of all the good that could be done
Think of all the friends you could be gaining
If you lift your hand to help someone

REPEAT VERSE 1:
You say that nobody cares where you're going
And that your life don't mean nothing at all
You've heard the saying you reap what you're sowing
So plant a good seed and watch it grow tall

CHORUS

TAG:
Play: Fiddle plays first 3 lines of chorus [then]
Sing: Someone is looking for someone like you

Email: [e-mail] for mp3

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Effsee
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 09:44 PM

Stardust by Nat King Cole...the pefect combination of lyrics, singer and arrangement.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 26 Aug 07 - 10:52 PM

When I lost my baby, I almost lost my mind.

    Perfect for a solitary day at home.

Pack up your sorrows.

    Fun to sing because of the way the energy comes in pulses.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Mark H.
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 08:17 AM

Move That Thing by the Memphis Jug Band. There are many variants, but taking it slow, singing "I said, move that thing", then everyone replying, "Keep on moving" and "Whole lotta movin'" - it's a satisfying high.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: The Borchester Echo
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 08:36 AM

"To Anacreon in Heaven"

a.k.a. (later) The Star Spangled Banner was also used as a Betelgeuse death anthem in The Hitchhikers's Guide To The Galaxy, though the key was was decipherable to neither earthdwellers nor beasts.

This has just got to be the perfect soundcheck tune.
Achieve a balance on that and anything else you do will be a piece of piss.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: frogprince
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 01:25 PM

For awhile now, I keep coming out with John McCutcheons "The Great Storm is Over". The one before that was Mary Chapin Carpenter's "Why Walk When You Could Fly".
















w

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: RTim
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 01:39 PM

The Great Storm is Over was written by Bob Franke NOT John McCutcheon, but I agree that Johns' version is very good.

Tim Radford

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,chinmusic
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 06:00 PM

My choice would be 'Over The Rainbow'.... Like all great tunes, it has stood the test of time, because of the perfect marriage between melody and lyric..... The feeling evoked is universal to the human condition....

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Celtaddict
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 06:45 PM

I thought it unlikely, but one song I have always thought perfect is also 'The Rose.' The lyrics are simple but poetic, the melody quite suited; every word and every note are exactly the one you KNOW must come at that point.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Midchuck
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 07:28 PM

There is, of course, no perfect song. Good thing, or there'd be no point in anyone writing any more.

Some of my favorites (long time and short):

Voices in the Hills (Dick McCormack)(If you never heard of it, lyrics were in the DT last I checked)

The Mary Ellen Carter (Stan Rogers)

Lock-Keeper (ditto)

Tonight We Ride (Tom Russell)

March of Cambreadth (Heather Alexander)

The Ballad of Charles Whitman (Kinky Friedman)(Possibly the song in the worst taste of any ever commercially recorded)

The Land (Kipling/Bellamy) (suggested subtitle: "A Concise History of English Real Estate Law")

Say Goodbye to Montana (Alex Harvey/Tim Rouillier)

But I have many more...

Peter

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: john f weldon
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 08:05 PM

Jump (Dudley Moore)

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: van lingle
Date: 27 Aug 07 - 08:44 PM

The Happy Wanderer when I'm in bear country just to let em know I'm coming.
In more normal circumstances "A Pair of Brown Eyes" and "These Dancehall Girls" because they're so easy for me and I never grow tired of them. "Phoebe Snow" also.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Gene
Date: 28 Aug 07 - 02:46 AM

Someone out there should learn and perform this beautiful song...

Someone Is Looking For Someone Like You
Written & Recorded by Gail Davies (1979)

[C] You say that nobody [F] cares where you're [C] going
And that your life don't mean [G7] nothing at all
[C] You've heard the saying you [F] reap what you're [C] sowing
So plant a good seed and [G7] watch it grow [C] tall

CHORUS:
[C] Somewhere a man's got no [F] woman to [C] turn to
Somewhere a woman is [G7] lonely and blue
[C] Somewhere a child's got no [F] mama to [C] hold her
Someone is looking for [G7] someone like [C] you

You say there's no road that you'd care to travel
Nothing to say that ain't been said before
And life's a mystery that you can't unravel
Well love's the key that will open that door

REPEAT CHORUS:

DIFFERENT CHORD PATTERN HERE:
[C] Think of all the time you waste com-[F]-plaining
[G] Think of all the good that could be [C] done
[C7] Think of all the friends you could be [F] gaining
[G7] If you lift your hand to help some-[C]-one

REPEAT 1ST VERSE:

REPEAT CHORUS:

TAG:
Play: Fiddle plays first 3 lines of chorus [then]
Sing: Someone is looking for someone like you

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 28 Aug 07 - 03:19 AM

lovely sentiment

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Songster Bob
Date: 28 Aug 07 - 08:03 PM

I'm not sure I have one song that fits this bill. When I pick up my guitar, I often play a little ragtime piece I wrote, or start singing a blues (if I fall into an E chord) or one of my songs or a Tom Paxton song if my fingers hit a G chord. If it's the banjo I pick up, what I gravitate to depends on the tuning (and the banjo -- I do different songs on the minstrel banjos than my fretted ones).

There is no "perfect" song. That said, I often play

Rambling Boy
World of Time (mine)
Ode (my setting)
Cotribution Rag (mine -- that instrumental I mentioned)
Can't Help But Wonder
Hail Columbia (doing it in an upcoming gig, so it's on my mind)
James Alley Blues (Born in the Country)
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
Grandfather's Clock
Year of Jubilo (Kingdom Coming)
Uncle Joe's Hail Columbia (another I'm working on now)
etc. etc. etc.

Bob Clayton

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Grab
Date: 29 Aug 07 - 09:41 AM

Downbeat...
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone (with a little guitar body percussion to keep the beat)
The keeper (Show of Hands, my arrangement)

Mellow...
I'm your man
I give you the morning
Wonderful tonight

Upbeat...
Never going back again
The sicknote
The teddy bears' picnic

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,LC fan
Date: 29 Aug 07 - 10:03 AM

"The Sisters of Mercy by Leonard Cohen"
Janie, I like you.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,Warwick Slade
Date: 29 Aug 07 - 04:44 PM

Not written it yet. Watch this space

moon

June

could be on to something here

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 29 Aug 07 - 06:58 PM

This Land Is Your Land. No contest.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,TJ in San Diego
Date: 29 Aug 07 - 07:04 PM

Early Morning Rain - Lightfoot
I Never Will Marry - trad.
Cloudy Summer Afternoon - Travis Edmonson
Four Strong Winds - Ian Tyson
Spanish is the Loving Tongue

Any of them seem to flow naturally for me. It's obvious that this is as personal as asking someone's favorite wine or food - "different strokes for different folks."

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: Cluin
Date: 30 Aug 07 - 12:51 PM

I did mention that it "will be a completely subjective opinion, of course". That was the point.

Subject: RE: The Perfect Song
From: GUEST,albert
Date: 30 Aug 07 - 04:13 PM

How about Barrett's Privateers by Stan Rogers and Brecht's Pirate Jenny?
Albert