John Denver : A Musical Experience...

[Oldposts]

Topic started by Vishvesh Obla (@ www.gltg.com) on Thu Nov 2 11:06:21 .


John Denver seems to me to be one of the rare musical personalities. In today's musical scenario, the expressions of a musician mostly haven't got anything related to his 'inner' experiences. Music has kind of become an organized sound, if not noise, popularized by the media and also by the insipidity of the declining taste and lack of discrimination of our modern generations. Denver seems to be a class apart in such a world of music.

When we look into the unique-ness of his songs, we find that they express his passion towards nature and certain human values. An artist is capable of 'inward' experiences which he can express too through his medium. Denver had a very fine perception of the 'country' ways of living ,the beauty of the outdoor world, and much more, the charm of the passionate life it is associated with. He found his first note of expressing it in his popular song "Take me home, country roads...". You must see him singing live ; the passion glows in his face. Why do it, if you are a guitarist, you can yourself feel the throb of life as you sing the soul-stirring tune accompanied by the lively rhythm. We find a series of experiments of musical expressions of a very original nature after the great hit of that song. His personal life was going through a turmoil too and this combines with his great passion for nature creating a unique genre of songs, which is so 'country' like, but still do not fall into the monotony of that genre of music. (One has to listen to him along with Randy Travis, Garth Brooks, Alabama, and most of the hyped-up modern country bands like Dixie Chicks to know what 'originality' means. He is so different even from the great country singers like Jim Reeves, Glen Campbell, Charley Pride and Kenny Rogers who contributed so much to this genre of music). If there is a thumbing rhythm so typical of country life in songs like "Sweet Melinda", "DownHill Stuff" and "Thank God I am a country boy", there is the moody experience of the pathos of life in songs like "I'm sorry" and "Like a sad song", there is his passion for nature is songs like "Coutry Roads", "Garden song" and "Shanghai Breezes" ; they are not just popular songs which the multitude listens to without any discrimination, but the deeper expressions of a sensitive soul. He has the ability to create and convey too various states of musical experiences to his audience. The experiences that one could feel on a walk along the colorado river walled by the rugged cliffs of the stretch of Grand Canyons, the picturesque scenery around the serene lakes of the Yellowstone National parks at Wyoming could bring one memories of such musical experiences (which did produce the music too, for Denver was very fond these places).

John Denver, to sum up, is an "experience" to listen to...

[Oldposts]

sorry dude. Don't listen to country music that much although I have heard he's up there with the greatest...

[Oldposts]

I was helping my daughter to sing a song she was taught in school. She had brought a video cassette of the song that was being sung by them. To my pleasant surprise I found it was a song from John Denver. It was a popular song called Garden Song which Denver was singing in The Muppet Show. This song has always brought tears to my eyes whenever I listen to it, and it was more than a visual treat to see John Denver singing with so much of passion for children. The feelings he puts into the lyric is so striking in all his songs, for music was a genuine form of expression to him, rather than a combination of sounds as it seems with most of the other popular musicians today. And the lyric in that song, seemed to match his passion for nature :


Inch by inch, row by row
Gonna make this garden grow.
All it takes is a rake and a hoe
And a piece of fertile ground.

Inch by inch, row by row
Someone bless these seeds I sow.
Someone warm them from below,
Till the rain comes tumbling down…

Make your rows, straight and long
Temper them with prayer and song.
Mother Earth will make you strong
If you give her love and care

There’s a crow watchin hungrily
From his perch on yonder tree.
In my garden I’m as free
As that feathered thief up there…


And it was so nice to see such songs being taught in schools here.

[Oldposts]

I Like this...
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[j.chenkalvarayan]

besides john denver i would recommend alan jackson,alison krauss,carpenters, cat stevens,don williams,george strait,kenny chesney,kenny rogers,paul brant,paul overstreet,tanya tucker.

[Guess_Me]

Hi

[thamizhvaanan]

The only John Denver song I've listened to is "leaving on a jet plane" and wow!!! wat a song it is! It is one of my all-time favs. His lyrics are simply amazing. Very simple and very touching, and the singing just compliments it. Simplicity and meaningfulness are at a premium these days, and it is worthy to listen to the past. Here goes the lyric for that song, if the lyric is touching enough, listen to the song!!

This song was composed and written by John denver (talk abt spontaneity) himself during a layover in washington airport.

Leaving on a Jet plane

All my bags are packed
Im ready to go
Im standin here outside your door
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye
But the dawn is breakin
Its early morn
The taxis waitin
Hes blowin his horn
Already Im so lonesome
I could die

So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that youll wait for me
Hold me like youll never let me go
cause Im leavin on a jet plane
Dont know when Ill be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go

Theres so many times Ive let you down
So many times Ive played around
I tell you now, they dont mean a thing
Evry place I go, Ill think of you
Evry song I sing, Ill sing for you
When I come back, Ill bring your wedding ring

So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that youll wait for me
Hold me like youll never let me go
cause Im leavin on a jet plane
Dont know when Ill be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go

Now the time has come to leave you
One more time
Let me kiss you
Then close your eyes
Ill be on my way
Dream about the days to come
When I wont have to leave alone
About the times, I wont have to say

Oh, kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that youll wait for me
Hold me like youll never let me go
cause Im leavin on a jet plane
Dont know when Ill be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go

But, Im leavin on a jet plane
Dont know when Ill be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go

Words and music by john denver

[thamizhvaanan]

Ironically he died in a plane crash

"Im leavin on a jet plane
Dont know when Ill be back again"

"Dream about the days to come
When I wont have to leave alone"

[ramky]

one of my all time favourites - ANNE'S SONG by John Denver :

you fill up my senses
like a night in a forest
like a mountain in spring time
like a walk in the rain
like a stroll in the desert
like a sleepy blue ocean
come to me again
come let me love you
let me give my life to you ...