A Sunny Country Afternoon.

It has been a golden September day today, so I took a stroll uptown. I had a mooch in one of the charity shops and was delighted to find two great CD’s in very good condition. One is called My Life by Iris Dement and the other is called Trio by Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt & Emmylou Harris. I was well chuffed because these are some of my favourite singers. When I got home, I sat in the kitchen with the sunshine streaming through the open door and listened to them, Iris first. This is the fourth Iris Dement album I have now after Infamous Angel, Sing The Delta & The Trackless Woods. After one listen, I think it is a rival to Infamous Angel as my favourite Iris album. It was released in 1994 and is dedicated to her father Patric Shaw Dement who died in 1992. There is a nice little booklet with the CD which contains a very moving story by Iris about her father. In his younger days he played the fiddle at all the local dances, but when he was ‘saved’ (found Jesus) he hid the fiddle away, never to play it again. Iris found the fiddle and asked him to play it, but he said, “I’m sorry Honey, I can’t do it”.  

Patric Shaw Dement.

I will not go through every song now because I have not heard it enough yet. After one listen though I especially liked the opening track Sweet Is The Melody, also No Time To Cry and The Shores Of Jordan. There are a lot of biblical references in Iris’s songs. Her upbringing is ingrained in her work. Her family and working-class roots are especially important to her. When you listen to Iris sing you know she is sincere and means every word she sings. I think that is why I like her so much, for her honesty, there is no showbiz pretension with Iris. One last little thing, I like her message of thanks to her good friend John Prine for his support in getting her music noticed.

After Iris finished, I played Trio which I also enjoyed. It was released in 1987. I have never owned a record of Dolly Parton before, but I have always liked her, for her personality and great songs. I will never forget her legendary performance at Glastonbury a few years ago. In the 1970’s I was a huge fan of Linda Ronstadt, she was beautiful. I had her Greatest Hits album & Hasten Down The Wind & Heart Like A Wheel. What can I say about Emmylou Harris?, one of my favourite singers of all time. I expect a lot of people who read this will be quite familiar with this album because it was a huge best seller. After one listen, I love it. Stand out tracks are The Pain Of Loving You, Wildflowers and Making Plans. I suspect though that after a few more listens I will realise that every track is a classic.

I have enjoyed my country music afternoon, so I’m pleased I went into that shop today. I just noticed it is nearly time for the pub. See you later.