CNN is reporting tonight that Carly Simon’s big secret — the subject of the standard You’re So Vain— is David.
She’s just not saying David’s last name yet.
And maybe the best part of the entire issue is that Simon reveals the clue is when she whispers the name “David”, which is heard when played in reverse just before the bridge on a new version of the song. So even if The Beatles didn’t kill Paul and leave clues in their music, at least one artist says she has added a clue in reverse.
All of this has prompted London newspaper The Sun to report that David is mogul David Geffen. The tabloid’s sleuthing says that Carly was jealous about Geffen bringing Joni Mitchell to his startup label in the
Eh. Maybe.
Knowing the lyrics, I would say that’s a stretch. But it ain’t Warren (Beatty) or Mick (Jagger), so I guess either proved their vanity when claiming the song was about them.
Writing on her Facebook page today, Susan Werner, that gifted vocalist, songwriter and musician, released a free MP3 of The Night We Won The War.
When people speak about vocal stylists, the phrase “could sing the phone book” often sneaks out. No such cliches here, but I would pay to listen to her sing the phone book starting at her choice of yellow or white pages.
Night is accompanied by an on-page slideshow of the night President Obama won the election, the song’s topic.
The link for the free song download is down here too in case you missed it above.
Go grab a free track and maybe listen to a few more. When I think about people who will succeed Joan Baez or Joni Mitchell, I’m thinking Susan Werner.
Joni Mitchell is revered as quite possibly the greatest female singer/songwriter ever. She’s also a patron saint of sorts for the bohemian black: lauded by everyone from Prince to Janet Jackson to Q-Tip. There’s a reason for that. Much like kindred spirit Nina Simone, Mitchell’s voice radiates truth and conviction.
Not sure exactly when I discovered Joni. It must have been at some point in the early or mid Nineties when my musical spectrum was widening rapidly. ‘Cause like most artists whose music sticks to the ribs, Joni’s not a one-listen and “get it” type artist. Actually, it might have been (believe it or not) VH-1 who got me started on the Joni path by playing the video for “How Do You Stop”, a remake of a song written by the late Dan Hartman and performed by the late James Brown (believe it or not). Wouldn’t you know it, YouTube has the video, which features Seal.
From there, it was pretty easy to pick up the classics: “Blue”and “Court & Spark”. However, the performance that sealed my undying love for Joni (after being put off by some crochety comments she’d made towards reverent singer-songwriters of the present) was another unlikely source: the movie “Love Actually”.
That’s a lie. It wasn’t the actual movie (which I don’t think I saw until last year). It was the soundtrack. There, nestled amid songs by Kelly Clarkson & Maroon 5, was an absolutely stunning orchestral version of “Both Sides Now”. Look, the original version of this song is brilliant as is, but listening to it as sung by a woman who has gone through life and has 35 more years of experience with which to view this song’s lyrics…it’s an amazing experience.
This live version is similar enough to the version found on the soundtrack (actually, they’re more or less identical if you take out the crowd noise) for you to get a feel of the difference between a more idealistic, younger Joni, and the wizened, reflective Joni now. If there can be any argument made in favor of smoking cigarettes, it comes from the fact that Joni’s voice is even more beautiful now than it was then.
So right now I’m still trying to grasp “The Hissing of Summer Lawns” and “Mingus”, but her 2007 album “Shine” was a gem, and I’m sure Joni has some more great music left in her. But these two performances leave no doubt as to why she’s so beloved.