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The Beauty of ‘Talking In Your Sleep’ by Gordon Lightfoot


“Talking In Your Sleep” is not exactly a happy song. I chose it for the guitar background and the melody, both of which I find quite beautiful. I’m a long-time fan of Gordon Lightfoot, and I’ve covered many of his songs on this blog. However, this song is not as well known as many of Lightfoot’s others, and I hadn’t listened to it in decades. But the song kept popping up on the Pandora stations I’ve been listening to lately, and it captured my attention immediately.

“Talking In Your Sleep” is a touching, country-folk song written and performed by the Canadian singer-songwriter. Reprise Records released the song in 1971 on Gordon’s 6th album, Summerside of Life. It became a moderate hit, reaching #64 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Charts and #19 on the Canadian RPM charts. In case you were wondering, RPM stands for the title of a popular Canadian music trade journal called Records, Promotion, Music.

Moderate hit or not, “Talking In Your Sleep” rings my doorbell. I hope it will ring yours as well. My mentor, Jerry Lamberth, calls it “a wonderful song,” and one of the first lessons he posted on his site, Jerry’s Guitar Bar. With Jerry’s tutelage, I’m playing the song close to Lightfoot’s original.

Solo Version

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Townes Van Zandt’s “Pancho And Lefty”


Townes Van Zandt’s life touched mine only tangentially until recently. I first heard of Van Zandt through Nanci Griffith’s cover of his song “Tecumseh Valley.” Like many Van Zandt ballads, it tells a tragic and beautifully melodic story about a woman named Caroline. “Techumseh Valley” is about a life, a time, and a place far from the life I’ve led. Yet, it’s a song I’ll never forget. Although Van Zandt never became a big name in the music world during his career, it is because of the depth, emotion, and poignancy of songs like “Tecumseh Valley” that the singer and songwriter is remembered and celebrated today, almost thirty years after his death.

There are two more Van Zandt songs that have really touched me. They are “If I Needed You” and “Pancho and Lefty.” I’m covering “Pancho and Lefty” here. “If I Needed You” will arrive in the near future.

Thanks for listening.

ENHANCED VERSION

SOLO VERSION

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Leonard Cohen’s Gentle Breakup Message


The ending of a love relationship is often painful and dramatic. In “Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye,” Leonard Cohen has penned a poetic plea for a graceful, respectful breakup that honors the beauty of a dying connection, rather than dwelling on the pain, anger, and lingering regret of the ending.

Cohen wrote the song in 1966 on a decrepit bed in the Penn Terminal Hotel in Midtown Manhattan. In 1967, Judy Collins, who became Cohen’s good friend, recorded the song for her album  Wildflowers. The following month, Cohen’s own version was released on his debut album, Songs of Leonard Cohen.

Cohen described the song as “a moment of clarity in the middle of a love affair’s end.” He also explained, “It’s about acknowledging that love changes but doesn’t truly die. The bodies may part, but the connection remains in the light and the words left behind.”

While introducing “Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye” during his 1976 Live at Montreux performance, Cohen memorably said: “As you eastern metaphysicians know, just as from the darkest mud blooms the whitest lotus, so from the brownest hotel room you occasionally get a good song.”

Playing heartfelt, beautiful songs like this one juices me up. Enjoy these cover versions.

Solo Version

Enhanced Version