"River" by Joni Mitchell (cover)

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by woodbox

Wow oh WOW Glenn.

You really stepped up to the plate this time!
As with emtsteve, I saw the heading and thought:
“Huh? This is a tall order, who’s trying this?
Oh, it’s Glenn... well, this is a must see, must hear.”

I’m very impressed Glenn. Predictably, you did not disappoint.
Your playing is impeccable, as always.
The way you handled the vocal phrasing was truly remarkable.
But then, the high notes ... I was waiting to see how you were going to handle the slide up to the high notes on the chorus.

With authority, that’s how you did it, with authority!
You truly are an inspiration Glenn.
Thank you.

Hi Woodbox!

How nice of you to heap such kind praise on my performance! Thank you!

It was a challenge figuring out how to do this song and come close to doing it justice. She was such a musical presence back in the late 60s and early 70s. And she sang with such agility, it's not easy to come close to this at my age. So a person does the best he can.

As far as the high notes, they were easy to hit when playing in G with no capo, even with the capo on the first and 2nd frets. With the capo on the third fret, the long high note is a high G, it jumps up for a short time to a high A, then back to G, than to F. It takes me a half hour of singing to be able to hit those notes. And how to do it without overloading the record amps? I had to figure out how to hit those high notes while backing off on the volume.

And I wondered if this would even work, me doing a song written by a famous woman singer/songwriter. How does it work to switch the song around and sing it from a man's perspective? I tried it out on my wife and she was encouraging, so.... I gave it a shot.

Every time I work on a song like this, I gain new respect for the original artist and the unique gifts that made them so successful!

I'm very pleased that you felt this came out okay, Woodbox! Thank you so much for your kind comments!

- Glenn

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by Wrighty

Fantastic Glenn - it's a beautiful, emotive song and as always you have done it proud.

I would go so far as to say that it's one of your best to date in my opinion - the 12 string sounds warm and full and your vocal performance just sits on top of it so well - your range is getting better with age ;-)

I love it - thank you.

Have a great Christmas.

Thank you Wrighty!

Your kind and encouraging comments are very much appreciated!

It's funny about your comments about my vocal range getting better with age! I have thought the same thing. I think by singing more I have figured out that I can sing higher than I thought I could. Too bad I didn't know about this 20 or 30 years ago!

Thanks, too, for your thoughts that this might be one of my better performances. At one point as I was working on this I thought, I'll never be able to do this well. I'm terrible at this! But, I kept working at it, figuring out what I was missing, trying to get more on top of the notes, trying to make my old vocal cords as flexible as Joni Mitchell's were when she recorded this almost 50 years ago.

About the warmth of the 12-string, you are right again, Wrighty! I am using a pair of Warm Audio WA-84 SDC mics, modeled after the venerable Neumann KM84. Those SDC mics were known not only for their smooth upper frequency response but also for their warm bass. The WA-84 mics are pretty close and that shows through on the sound of the 12-string here. I was very pleased with how good the 12-string sounded.

Thanks for taking so much time to listen and comment here Wrighty!

I hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas season, too! Stay safe!

- Glenn

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by Don W

Love it...a very special song for me...well done.

Originally Posted by Don W

I saw her play this live at symphony hall in Boston...I fell in love with her that day.

Thank you Don!

I really appreciate your comments! Something about Joni Mitchell's singing takes a person back to when they were young -- at least this happens to me and it sounds like that happens to you, as well.

How cool that you got to see Joni Mitchell live! I would have fallen in love with her, too. Just watching her live performances on YouTube tends to cause that reaction in me. I can see why Graham Nash fell head-over-heels in love with her. In fact, many have suggested that the "River" song was written over the Joni Mitchell-Graham Nash breakup. He wanted desperately to marry her and she said no. She already tried that once. What a sad story that is.

I'm glad my cover touched something in you, Don! Take care and have a great Christmas season!

- Glenn

[Dustinfurlow]

Wonderful job here, Glenn. This song is now on my to-do list today!

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by Dustinfurlow

Wonderful job here, Glenn. This song is now on my to-do list today!

Hi Dustin!

Thank you! And that's cool that I have inspired you to learn this! Hopefully you can see what I am doing with my left hand. It's all standard tuning, key of G.

I hope all is well for you and that you have a great Christmas season!

- Glenn

[started with 1]

Nice cover Glen. Blue is certainly a great treasure. And this one is not in one of her alternate tunings. Guild and your singing both sound great.

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by started with 1

Nice cover Glen. Blue is certainly a great treasure. And this one is not in one of her alternate tunings. Guild and your singing both sound great.

Hi Started!

Yes, she played this song on the piano, so she had to live with standard tuning. It's funny, but the songs of hers that I like the most were all played on the piano.

Thanks for your thoughts and your encouragement! I'm so pleased that you felt this came out well!

I hope you and your family have a great holiday season! Be well!

- Glenn

[FrankHudson]

I'm always impressed with your singing, and so again with this one.

However as a person who plays 12-string sometimes I was listening to the nice even and separated articulation of the 12-string notes on this one. Very nice, and it served the song well! Reminded me that I don't do that, and that I should try to bring out that potential aspect of the 12-string.

[SalFromChatham]

bravo slow steady clap.....

[Organic Sounds Select Guitars]

Beautiful, soulful performance, Glenn. Plus, now I kind of want one of those Guilds! Thanks as always for sharing your talent

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by FrankHudson

I'm always impressed with your singing, and so again with this one.

However as a person who plays 12-string sometimes I was listening to the nice even and separated articulation of the 12-string notes on this one. Very nice, and it served the song well! Reminded me that I don't do that, and that I should try to bring out that potential aspect of the 12-string.

Hi Frank!

Yes, playing a 12-string can be a challenge. I played a Harmony 12-string as my only guitar for years from age 18-21 when I was heavy into learning to play, so somehow the ability to finger pick a 12-string got drummed into me.

Thanks, as always, for your kind comments and encouragement! I'm glad you thought this cover came out reasonably well!

I hope all is well for you, Frank! Stay safe and enjoy the holiday season!

- Glenn

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by SalFromChatham

bravo slow steady clap.....

Thank you Sal!

How nice to know you took time to watch this performance! And thanks for taking time to comment! Much appreciated!

I hope all is well for you! Enjoy the Christmas season!

- Glenn

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by Organic Sounds Select Guitars

Beautiful, soulful performance, Glenn. Plus, now I kind of want one of those Guilds! Thanks as always for sharing your talent

Thank you Larry!

I very much appreciate your thoughts and comments! I'm glad you appreciated my cover!

Among 12-strings, the Guild line is tops in my opinion and the F-512 model is my favorite. I have had an F-212 since 1975, but once I got this F-512 I found I didn't use the F-212 so I gave it to my oldest son who has been enjoying it.

I hope all is well for you Larry and that your business is doing well. And I hope you and your family enjoy this coming holiday season!

Stay safe Larry!

- Glenn

[Tahitijack]

GLENN
Merry Christmas and thanks for all the music this year....especially this year. When I was down I always could count on you to provide an uplifting moment. And yes, happy new year too.

[Chickee]

A melancholy carol for a melancholy year. You Willow, as always, put tremendous thought and follow through into your production on all fronts(musical, visual, recording value).

Nicely done my west coast friend!