Quote:
Originally Posted by sad99
I remember Kris Kristofferson telling a story about singing Me And Bobby McGee live shortly after Janis Joplin made it a big hit. It was a song the audience always sang along to, and she had changed a line or two. Kristofferson sang his original lyrics, which clashed with the audience was singing, so after a few shows, he gave up and sang it Janis's way. As I recall, he was quite amused by the whole thing, saying that once a song is out in the world, it has its own life to live.
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I guess if people were singing along, I'd just let them sing it, but, I change lyrics frequently in folk tunes. Me and Bobby McGee is a great example. It was recorded something like nine times before Janis did it and had a number of changes along the way. I grew up with Roger Miller's lyrics, so now I blend his and Kris's and Janis's to the ones I like. That's what folk tunes do. I wrote a couple of extra verses to an old British folk song because the story seemed unfinished to me. I doubt anyone would even realize they are new. I'm a pretty good lyricist (much better than player), so I feel comfortable making changes.