breathtaking - covers or no covers, her voice simply takes my breath away. Wish she was still with us and creating more stunning music. It's heartbreaking to know angels like this are take away while those who are evil and do harm to others still walk this earth. If I didn't believe in god and an afterlife before, Eva's inner beauty and voice make me now a believer
I sometimes find myself physically angry that things like this have to happen. The songs Eva could have sung, the hearts she could have inspired - the world is a sadder place without her.
@sassyreggae Thinking the very same thing. The Paul Simon performance in 1975 was flawless and beautiful. I remember seeing it when it came on tv live. Just discovered Eva, this was chilling. Gorgeous. I can't sleep, nervous about playing jazz fest later today. This was the cure.
@sassyreggae Kind of how many of us felt when we 1st discovered her. I was living in New jersey when she did the Live at Blues Alley performance. I could have gone. Only like most of us I had no idea who she was. Nor had I heard her music...... Yet..... It took a tragic death & a VERY determined effort by many who loved her & cared about her to keep her music alive. Her voice did the rest. Listen to Dark Eyed Molly & hear how she sings that. Enjoy your life !
I have listened to Eva sing this song so many times. She never fails to reduce me to tears. The story of the song, the rendition she gives it tear my heart apart.
I gotta give it to Eva Cassidy for choosing such great covers to sing, she had class and great taste. She was truly a great muscian, it's a bummer so many great muscians have died so young in fact it sucks.
@tresjbenet There isn't a competition here, it is one artist paying homage, in her own way, to another artist's songwriting. Personally I can listen to both equally. Paul's words transcend the writer, as is often the case. Ask any writer and they will respond that 'they didn't know where it came from, it just was there'.
So whatever the virtues of Paul's version against Eva's, just listen and marvel that before he wrote there was nothing and after a wonderful lyric poem.
not literally advertise. i simply mean paul made the song and sing it but when Eva made her version the song was more appreciated by people. then the song became popular, i think...phillipines.
Can't help but express myself here. Paul simon invented and manufactured it. Eva cassidy advertized and sell it out. The best male and female best version, for me, so far. delivered in two different interpretation,,appreciation of which is personal.
Eva Cassidy did not advertise and sell out anything. She died at age 36 before she was even noticed outside of the small clubs she sang in. She charted for the first time in the UK and it was after she had died.
Paul Simon can do no wrong. Eva Cassidy can do no wrong. Whatever shall we do? I love both versions--Eva's is the Angel version, and if she altered some of Simon's historical poignancy, maybe she added a featherwing touch. Sometimes a groove gets so deep in our minds from a song that another version feels really wrong. That's all right, no need to switch. I have no groove yet for this particular song, so they're both good to me. Thanks, Sunsong23, nice work. You're a conduit of good vibes.
Sadly, I have to agree---Eva has a tremendous voice/talent (her "Fields of Gold" is phenomenal!) but this is a meager interpretation that looses Simon's aching, yearning intention.
I was so disappointed with this. I adore Eva Cassidy, her early death was a tragedy but this song is in my opinion the most powerful song Paul Simon wrote. It was written about a particular time in US history and still brings tears to my eyes 37 years later as it evokes that time. (Simon didn't know then of course that things would get much worse before they got better.) To change the words in my opinion renders the song almost meaningless. I agree with the lalalalala comment.
When you consider the original of this is actually 'O Haupt Voll Blut und Wunden' from Bach's St Matthew's Passion, discussing whether someone changed Paul Simon's, who changed Bach's, is moot. Enjoy it for what it is, a new take on a very old standard.
@TheRagFactory I had no idea... I just checked it out, but I had never heard the Bach composition before now. Hopefully Simon credited Bach somewhere!
@TheRagFactory The original is a love song, Hans Leo Hassler's (1564-1612) "Mein G'müth ist mir verwirret," (1601) in midi form here: choralwiki[dot]org/wiki/images/sound/hassler/hass-gmu[dot]mid. Get 30 seconds of it on Amazon. It was taken by the Lutherans around 1603/1613 and made into a religious contrafactum (see Wikipedia and de.Wikipedia), a common Renaissance practice. Johann Crüger added the well-know text in 1656. It is possible that it has earlier origins. Nothing is original.
Eva was a perfectionist. If she changed the lyrics, it was intentional. She took artistic liberties and altered many of the songs she sang from the original. As Katie Melua said, when someone takes a song and sings it, it becomes their song. It takes on a whole other meaning. Eva's Over the Rainbow is Eva's. Her Songbird is hers. When you listen to or sing a song, it's yours.
don't get me wrong i love both paul simon and eva cassidy but this does just sound like she's singing only half remembering the song. like others have said, the beauty is there; the meaning is lost.
"American Tune" is for me, " The Worker's Lament". After a bad day at work, or a bad week, this song comes unbidden to my mind and consoles, "but it's alright, it's alright" and, ends with "that's all I'm trying to get some rest." The version that plays in my head is the 1981 concert in Central Park with Art Garfunkel.
This arrangement, interpretation, & revision of the lyrics goes for beauty, but not IMHO, heart. The voice is technically good, but does not hit/evoke the right emotions.
I wouldn't say this is a disgrace, and I do think there is always poetic license in one's interpretation of another's song, but I really wish she had covered this with the lyrics as they were written by Paul Simon. Certainly her version does completely change the meaning of the song, and it's hard to like it when it stands as one of Simon's top 4 or 5 songs. No one can deny the beauty, grace and utter power of her singing, though.
her voice is perfect but she mangles the lyrics so badly it completely destroys the beauty of the song. The reason this song is so great - the reason paul simon is so great -is because his songs are so perfectly and poignantly constructed. All the words matter. This is a disgrace.
I strongly disagree with pouchmouth about Eva Cassidy mangling the lyrics of this song. Please explain the meaning of the word mangling as you are using it. Eva has the clearest, crystal sounding , and most beautiful voice of any singer. She does an excellent rendition of this song & brings to it a class & status that makes the song even better than the original.
Eva had a lot of lyrics to remember, if you think about it. She used to write them in a notebook, but she almost always sang from memory. She know that verse 3 is missing
This is for me the most perfect rendition of this song. When I heard S&G sing it it didn't touch my heart. The melody was very familiar (lifted from a hymn by Bach or Brahms) so I wasn't that impressed with the song. Hearing Eva sing it was a revlalation-the combination of words and melody and her signature emotional tone.
This version deserves my respect because it would be difficult, or at least I thought, for a female voice to interpret this. She sounds sublime as always. However the original is also superb. Paul's understated vocals make the poignancy of the lyrics more pronounced.I find it hard to understand why some1 could not be moved by it. I imagine you'd listen to the two different versions for 2 different reasons. Eva's version more for the beauty of her vocal. The original for its overall power.
But it is a shame she fluffed her lyrics. It happens to the best eg Ella Fitzgerald. However with a song like this, as Pouchmouth already mentioned, every lyric carries its own potency so it takes away from the song if it's not sung as written. Eva's distinctive arrangement and lovely voice make it a worthy effort nonetheless. It's a tough song to do justice to.
I know this won't be a popular comment but I dislike this version of this song. I very much like Eva Cassidy but here she seems to be trying to sing everything but the melody. This is a pity because it's such a beautiful tune. I also don't know why she has changed lots of the words. I know some people will say that she's interpreting the song and giving it her own stamp. Okay - I just don't think it works. Guitar's very nice though.
She has a voice that just carries you into the melody and makes you part of the experience... what a talent... one can only imagine what other marvels she would have weaved had she been of this world longer.
this is great that Eva recorded this song. there are some lines in there that are tooo close for comfort. it's poignant to hear her sing this. it sure can get you right in the heart. thank you for sharing Sunsong23 and thank you Paul and Eva
What an amazing gift she has left for us to enjoy.
OLPplayerVH1 3 months ago
please play this at my funeral. nlc
gallerycabaret 3 months ago in playlist Eva Cassidy
I prefer Paul Simon's version, for sure!!
ellenripley71 4 months ago
I don't know a soul who is at ease either. Three wars going on and drones killing other people who don't agree with our way of settling arguments.
cobalt100 9 months ago 2
@cobalt100 I disagree with your point. Send a drone to my house.
Gatsby999888 7 months ago
breathtaking - covers or no covers, her voice simply takes my breath away. Wish she was still with us and creating more stunning music. It's heartbreaking to know angels like this are take away while those who are evil and do harm to others still walk this earth. If I didn't believe in god and an afterlife before, Eva's inner beauty and voice make me now a believer
reallyrolly 10 months ago
I sometimes find myself physically angry that things like this have to happen. The songs Eva could have sung, the hearts she could have inspired - the world is a sadder place without her.
TovarishGlushkov1 11 months ago
I thought no one could sing this beautiful song more beautifully and poignantly than Paul Simon. Until 5 minutes ago, that is.
sassyreggae 1 year ago 3
@sassyreggae Listen to Darrell Scott's version
DickFile 10 months ago
@sassyreggae Thinking the very same thing. The Paul Simon performance in 1975 was flawless and beautiful. I remember seeing it when it came on tv live. Just discovered Eva, this was chilling. Gorgeous. I can't sleep, nervous about playing jazz fest later today. This was the cure.
redlipstickmafia 9 months ago
@sassyreggae Kind of how many of us felt when we 1st discovered her. I was living in New jersey when she did the Live at Blues Alley performance. I could have gone. Only like most of us I had no idea who she was. Nor had I heard her music...... Yet..... It took a tragic death & a VERY determined effort by many who loved her & cared about her to keep her music alive. Her voice did the rest. Listen to Dark Eyed Molly & hear how she sings that. Enjoy your life !
1tmoorehpford 5 months ago
this song brought a tear to my eye
TheAnaRayAna 1 year ago
great voice but she changed the lyrics around too much. :/
crikey5446 1 year ago
To my children: Play this at my funeral....and Neal Young's 'Heart of Gold'
74norton850 1 year ago 2
I have listened to Eva sing this song so many times. She never fails to reduce me to tears. The story of the song, the rendition she gives it tear my heart apart.
ogoldarose 1 year ago
I don't know a soul who's not been battered
remember that line before you judge somebody
bitte12pouce 1 year ago 2
I Pray that is how the Angels Sound!
JackvanValen 1 year ago
I gotta give it to Eva Cassidy for choosing such great covers to sing, she had class and great taste. She was truly a great muscian, it's a bummer so many great muscians have died so young in fact it sucks.
nat00ben06 1 year ago
Hans Leo Hassler, - "Mein Gmuth ist mir verwiret."
Bach, - Passion Chorale 7676D - BWV - 224/228
"O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden."
Amy Grant - My Father's Eyes
"O Sacred Head, Now Wounded"
Texoki 1 year ago
just love the words,,,,,,,
terigower 1 year ago
this falls a little short, but trying to cover Paul Simon isnt easy and probably shouldn't be done.
tresjbenet 1 year ago
@tresjbenet
What a sad comment....
twocanoes 1 year ago
@twocanoes , not really. Accurate. Im a huge Eva fan, but this one doesn't work very well.
tresjbenet 1 year ago
@tresjbenet There isn't a competition here, it is one artist paying homage, in her own way, to another artist's songwriting. Personally I can listen to both equally. Paul's words transcend the writer, as is often the case. Ask any writer and they will respond that 'they didn't know where it came from, it just was there'.
So whatever the virtues of Paul's version against Eva's, just listen and marvel that before he wrote there was nothing and after a wonderful lyric poem.
howhenmac1 1 year ago 3
@howhenmac1 , thanks for the high brow lecture, but perhaps you should read what I wrote. Ididn't compare her version to Mr.s Simon's, did I?
Hey when you become a grown up, write back, n'kay?
tresjbenet 1 year ago
"And I dreamed I was dying, I dreamed that my soul rose up unexpectedly and looking back down on me, smiled reassuredly..and I dreamed I was flying"
You are Eva , you are.... but I wish you weren't flying.....
topgazza 1 year ago 4
Superlative Eva ~ May you fly with the Angels ~ God Bless & keep you safe in the arms of Heaven's Love
Maeryanne 2 years ago 3
not literally advertise. i simply mean paul made the song and sing it but when Eva made her version the song was more appreciated by people. then the song became popular, i think...phillipines.
MrKapay 2 years ago
Oh, Eva! You are lost to us, we weep.
Oh, America! You are lost to us, we weep.
LibertyTreeBud 2 years ago 3
Amen to both of those :(
But at least we can feel better listening to Eva's Angel voice.....
Funzies1 2 years ago
Can't help but express myself here. Paul simon invented and manufactured it. Eva cassidy advertized and sell it out. The best male and female best version, for me, so far. delivered in two different interpretation,,appreciation of which is personal.
MrKapay 2 years ago
Eva Cassidy did not advertise and sell out anything. She died at age 36 before she was even noticed outside of the small clubs she sang in. She charted for the first time in the UK and it was after she had died.
retroviolet 2 years ago
@MrKapay Don't forget Bach's contribution :)
sumplais 2 years ago
Paul Simon can do no wrong. Eva Cassidy can do no wrong. Whatever shall we do? I love both versions--Eva's is the Angel version, and if she altered some of Simon's historical poignancy, maybe she added a featherwing touch. Sometimes a groove gets so deep in our minds from a song that another version feels really wrong. That's all right, no need to switch. I have no groove yet for this particular song, so they're both good to me. Thanks, Sunsong23, nice work. You're a conduit of good vibes.
FalafelFun 2 years ago 2
Very well said!!
Thank You.
Funzies1 2 years ago
At least the ' I dream I was flying. High up above...' part was indeed extraodinary.
jurian0101 2 years ago
Sadly, I have to agree---Eva has a tremendous voice/talent (her "Fields of Gold" is phenomenal!) but this is a meager interpretation that looses Simon's aching, yearning intention.
eldiran2 2 years ago
I was so disappointed with this. I adore Eva Cassidy, her early death was a tragedy but this song is in my opinion the most powerful song Paul Simon wrote. It was written about a particular time in US history and still brings tears to my eyes 37 years later as it evokes that time. (Simon didn't know then of course that things would get much worse before they got better.) To change the words in my opinion renders the song almost meaningless. I agree with the lalalalala comment.
bajoma123 2 years ago
This is one of the most heartfelt souls I have ever felt singing. Beautiful
miguelbaptista 2 years ago
When you consider the original of this is actually 'O Haupt Voll Blut und Wunden' from Bach's St Matthew's Passion, discussing whether someone changed Paul Simon's, who changed Bach's, is moot. Enjoy it for what it is, a new take on a very old standard.
TheRagFactory 2 years ago 14
@TheRagFactory I had no idea... I just checked it out, but I had never heard the Bach composition before now. Hopefully Simon credited Bach somewhere!
Winwood39 1 year ago
@TheRagFactory The original is a love song, Hans Leo Hassler's (1564-1612) "Mein G'müth ist mir verwirret," (1601) in midi form here: choralwiki[dot]org/wiki/images/sound/hassler/hass-gmu[dot]mid. Get 30 seconds of it on Amazon. It was taken by the Lutherans around 1603/1613 and made into a religious contrafactum (see Wikipedia and de.Wikipedia), a common Renaissance practice. Johann Crüger added the well-know text in 1656. It is possible that it has earlier origins. Nothing is original.
DonVueltaMorales 3 months ago
Who cares - She's an angel who visited us for too short a time
imjunipernow 2 years ago 12
Eva was a perfectionist. If she changed the lyrics, it was intentional. She took artistic liberties and altered many of the songs she sang from the original. As Katie Melua said, when someone takes a song and sings it, it becomes their song. It takes on a whole other meaning. Eva's Over the Rainbow is Eva's. Her Songbird is hers. When you listen to or sing a song, it's yours.
Astrodust3 2 years ago 4
don't get me wrong i love both paul simon and eva cassidy but this does just sound like she's singing only half remembering the song. like others have said, the beauty is there; the meaning is lost.
NeonLoveChicken1 2 years ago
"American Tune" is for me, " The Worker's Lament". After a bad day at work, or a bad week, this song comes unbidden to my mind and consoles, "but it's alright, it's alright" and, ends with "that's all I'm trying to get some rest." The version that plays in my head is the 1981 concert in Central Park with Art Garfunkel.
This arrangement, interpretation, & revision of the lyrics goes for beauty, but not IMHO, heart. The voice is technically good, but does not hit/evoke the right emotions.
angeluscorpius 3 years ago
I wouldn't say this is a disgrace, and I do think there is always poetic license in one's interpretation of another's song, but I really wish she had covered this with the lyrics as they were written by Paul Simon. Certainly her version does completely change the meaning of the song, and it's hard to like it when it stands as one of Simon's top 4 or 5 songs. No one can deny the beauty, grace and utter power of her singing, though.
RockDoc
RockDoc50 3 years ago
Bravo Sunsong23! You've done my favorite female vocalist great justice.
cccurtis 3 years ago
gosh i ador the pictures bravo !!this is hard work
saftaromanul 3 years ago
her voice is perfect but she mangles the lyrics so badly it completely destroys the beauty of the song. The reason this song is so great - the reason paul simon is so great -is because his songs are so perfectly and poignantly constructed. All the words matter. This is a disgrace.
pouchmouth 3 years ago
I strongly disagree with pouchmouth about Eva Cassidy mangling the lyrics of this song. Please explain the meaning of the word mangling as you are using it. Eva has the clearest, crystal sounding , and most beautiful voice of any singer. She does an excellent rendition of this song & brings to it a class & status that makes the song even better than the original.
Joner888 3 years ago
she mixes up the lines to the point that the meaning of the song is lost....she might as well be singing "lalalalalalala" to a Bach melody.
pouchmouth 3 years ago
Eva had a lot of lyrics to remember, if you think about it. She used to write them in a notebook, but she almost always sang from memory. She know that verse 3 is missing
Remeber this is a live verison from Pearls
Oslo13 3 years ago
One of my favorite songs ..... she sings so powerful ! emotional, ...this is her song...
janeas01 3 years ago
Why did she have to die? TT^TT;; She was such a great singer! O__O<3
0Wargen0 3 years ago
wonderful! Eva will always heal souls with her voice!
:)
Hilde
Lillemy1 3 years ago
an angel
OLPplayerVH1 3 years ago
My god the American people produce some incredible music.
FENDIN10 3 years ago 4
This is for me the most perfect rendition of this song. When I heard S&G sing it it didn't touch my heart. The melody was very familiar (lifted from a hymn by Bach or Brahms) so I wasn't that impressed with the song. Hearing Eva sing it was a revlalation-the combination of words and melody and her signature emotional tone.
raymonda100 3 years ago
I can only assume you haven't heard Paul's solo version. Artie is a technician and lacks emotion in his presentations. Not so with Paul
rvcrvc2 3 years ago
This version deserves my respect because it would be difficult, or at least I thought, for a female voice to interpret this. She sounds sublime as always. However the original is also superb. Paul's understated vocals make the poignancy of the lyrics more pronounced.I find it hard to understand why some1 could not be moved by it. I imagine you'd listen to the two different versions for 2 different reasons. Eva's version more for the beauty of her vocal. The original for its overall power.
AcousticUplift 3 years ago
But it is a shame she fluffed her lyrics. It happens to the best eg Ella Fitzgerald. However with a song like this, as Pouchmouth already mentioned, every lyric carries its own potency so it takes away from the song if it's not sung as written. Eva's distinctive arrangement and lovely voice make it a worthy effort nonetheless. It's a tough song to do justice to.
AcousticUplift 3 years ago
I know this won't be a popular comment but I dislike this version of this song. I very much like Eva Cassidy but here she seems to be trying to sing everything but the melody. This is a pity because it's such a beautiful tune. I also don't know why she has changed lots of the words. I know some people will say that she's interpreting the song and giving it her own stamp. Okay - I just don't think it works. Guitar's very nice though.
mikelheron20 3 years ago 3
man i would love to have a tab for this song...
Franciskinho 3 years ago
She has a voice that just carries you into the melody and makes you part of the experience... what a talent... one can only imagine what other marvels she would have weaved had she been of this world longer.
FEKIFIKNOW 3 years ago 5
this is great that Eva recorded this song. there are some lines in there that are tooo close for comfort. it's poignant to hear her sing this. it sure can get you right in the heart. thank you for sharing Sunsong23 and thank you Paul and Eva
funkandgroovin 3 years ago 5
You are most welcome. Thanks for your thought-provoking comment. I know what you mean about getting you right in the heart.
Sunsong23 3 years ago