Today, I heard an enthralling version of a song I used to listen to long ago – After the Long is Gone by Earth, Wind and Fire, who I had the pleasure of seeing back in my college days at Eastern Michigan University. Leonid and Friends’ rendition was so good that I had to listen several times. You did it justice, my friends.
Did you know that this is one of the oldest Christmas songs and was officially written down in 1534? Coventry Carol was written for the nativity scene, which began with the Annunciation and ended with the Massacre of the Holy Innocents. Certainly, the darkest of the carols, the words reflect mothers soothing their soon-to-be slaughtered babies. The lament was part of a medieval play, performed annually until 1579, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I who outlawed Catholicism in favor of the new Church of England. The song was brought back to life during WWII after the Coventry blitz in November 1940, after 43,000 homes were destroyed, more than 550 people killed, along with the destruction of a medieval cathedral. The December BBC radio broadcast from the ruins, ended with the Coventry Carol.
This first video is Cold Play playing their song, live from Shepherd’s Bush Empire, featuring the multi-talented Ed Sheeran.
The second is BTS’s live version, unplugged via MTV plugged. No matter the version, I just adore this song.
I’ve watched several of his videos in the past year, then stumbled upon this one while skimming through YouTube, this morning. Of course, when I saw the subject matter, I had to check it out. Was happy to see that this simple tune wound its way through his heart, as it did mine.
Does it ever drive you crazy trying to remove duplicates from your Spotify playlists? Because there’s no easy way. And when you have multiple lists, it gets pretty insane. Well tonight I found an easy way and I’m delighted to share it with you. It took me under two minutes to accomplish this and now I’m a very happy camper.
As many of you know, I’m a real fan of David Gilmour-just look at some of my past posts. Tonight, I offer Rick Beato interviewing David in New York. As always, Rick asks superb questions like only a true musician …
