It’s Sunday, so that must mean that it’s time for some SLS. This week, in his post Perks of Having Kids, Jim outlines the theme of playing songs about children and families. Much to my great surprise this theme was suggested by Nancy, the Sicilian Storyteller – who knew? There is a rumour that Nancy’s suggestions will be keeping this going until Christmas – or maybe not. In any event Nancy’s blog, The Elephant’s Trunk, is well worth visiting.
I’m playing you two songs today, one of which I have played several times before but can’t resist sharing again, but that comes second. I’m leading with one I haven’t played before:
Not that they are unclear, but the lyrics are lovely so here they are:
I’m five years old
It’s getting cold I’ve got my big coat onI hear your laugh
And look up smiling at you I run and run Past the pumpkin patch And the tractor rides Look now, the sky is gold I hug your legs And fall asleep on the way homeI don’t know why all the trees change in the fall
But I know you’re not scared of anything at all Don’t know if Snow White’s house is near or far away But I know I had the best day with you todayI’m thirteen now
And don’t know how My friends could be so mean I come home crying And you hold me tight And grab the keysAnd we drive and drive
Until we found a town far enough away And we talk and window shop ‘Till I forgotten all their namesI don’t know who I’m gonna talk to now at school
But I know I’m laughing On the car ride home with you Don’t know how long it’s gonna take to feel okay But I know I had the best day with you todayI have an excellent father
His strength is making me stronger God smiles on my little brother Inside and out he’s better than I am I grew up in a pretty house And I had space to run and I had the best days with youThere is a video I found
From back when I was three You set up a paint set in the kitchen And you’re talking to me It’s the age of princesses and pirate ships And the seven dwarfs And Daddy’s smart And you’re the prettiest lady in the whole wide worldAnd now I know why the all the trees change in the fall
I know you were on my side Even when I was wrong And I love you for giving me your eyes Staying back and watching me shine andI didn’t know if you knew
So I’m taking this chance to say That I had the best day with you todaySource: LyricFind
Songwriter: Taylor Swift
The Best Day lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
I used to say that Taylor Swift was my guilty pleasure, given that I was probably around fifty years older than most of her fans, but I think it’s safe now to say that I have always liked her music. The Best Day was originally a track on her second album, Fearless, which was released in November 2008 in North America and March 2009 everywhere else. This was her first #1 album in the US and Canada, and gave her the breakthrough here in the UK, where it peaked at #5. The version I’m playing today is from the April 2021 album Fearless (Taylor’s Version), the first to be released as part of Taylor’s re-recording project following her dispute over the ownership of her back catalogue with her previous record label. At around 7.3m copies the original version is her biggest seller in the US, and the new version added a further 700k to that, whilst making #1 in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Australia.
Taylor reclaimed the original video for the re-recording – as you may have noticed it contains many home video clips from her childhood, including probably the only topless shots of her that you’ll ever see. At around a year old that’s fair, I think. The song is one of gratitude mostly to her mum, Andrea, though her father, Scott and her brother, Austin also get honourable mentions. The thanks are for the childhood they gave her, and I think it’s lovely: the video offers a charming accompaniment. It shouldn’t be overlooked that Taylor was only 18 when she wrote this song, and was still a month away from her 19th birthday when Fearless came out. And as you may have noticed she hasn’t done badly in her career since then, either.
My second song for today is one that I originally played in a post welcoming the birth of my first granddaughter, which I have reworked a few times since. Again, this is a lovely song with a beautiful video, so I’m making no apologies for the repeat showing:
I Hope You Dance is about Lee Ann Womack’s own children, written not long after her second child was born. I’m the world’s worst dancer, but fortunately for me the metaphor is used here to mean that Lee Ann hopes her child will find and take opportunities in life – ‘I hope you never lose your sense of wonder……and when you get the chance to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance.’ This was the title track on Lee Ann’s third album, which was released in May 2000, getting to #16 in the US and topping their Country Albums chart. The track had been released as a single ahead of the album, in March 2000, and peaked at #14 in the US and #40 in the UK, though that placing didn’t help the album into our charts. I bought it, though, and it is a lovely record.
The two stars in the video are Lee Ann’s daughters: she married singer-songwriter Jason Sellers in 1990, though they divorced in 1996. Together they had a daughter named Aubrie Sellers in February 1991, and Aubrey is now a country music singer-songwriter. Her second daughter, Anna Lise Liddell, was born in January 1999 after she had married record producer Frank Liddell, and has sung backing vocals on albums by her mum and Miranda Lambert, among others.
That’s it for today. A great theme chosen by Nancy, and it gave me a chance to play two songs which make me feel warm thoughts about my own daughters’ childhoods, and now my granddaughters’ too. Have a lovely day, and I’ll see you again for Tuesday Tunes 🎶