New Music Monday: MCC

 I bought a  number of CDs this summer, some by long-loved artists and some new to me. I thought it would be fun to share my favorites here.   

I load up the player Monday mornings for background music while we start our weekly visit with our granddaughter. We are lucky in Maine to have a locally owned store that sells new and used CDs and DVDs, and they offer free shipping with each $35 purchase [Bull Moose Music if you want to check them out]. I enjoy the new music as well as often-played favorites from our collection, and some days I put together a particularly well-conceived set. Luckily, some artists complement just about any other choices.

Mary Chapin Carpenter is just such an artist. I was going to share her 2020 release next week, but MDK [Modern Daily Knitting] just posted a review of her latest CD, which is worth a read if you feel so inclined. I have enjoyed her artistry for 30 years. Her music is sometimes soulful and sometimes lighthearted, always honest and poetic. The Dirt and the Stars is so perfect for this year that it's hard to believe she crafted the songs before the pandemic. I will play this magical mix over and over for months to come.

Here's the title song~

Between the Dirt and the Stars

Try to conjure up a night
Of jessamine upon the air
I'm 17 and in a car,
ready to ride anywhere
This summer night sticks to my skin
And the beer's gone to my head
My arm hangs out the window 
And I can't hear what you just said -

Over the radio
wild wild horses
everything you'll ever know
is in the choruses

Everything that made you whole
Everything that broke your heart
Whatever called you by your soul
And piece by piece took you apart
Every spark you ever chased
All the faith love robbed you of
Every light the dark erased
And every cause that gave you up

Turn on the radio
wild wild horses
everywhere we'd ever go
is in the choruses

Standing on the porch tonight
All I hear is a distant car
Watching the fading light
Between the dirt and the stars
Between the rough and smooth 
The easy and the hard
The lonely sound of loneliness 
That's shaped just like my heart

Years will pass before we turn
To face the place where we come from
Years will pass before we learn
What time denies to everyone
And if we're lucky ghosts and prayers
Are company not enemies
I time travel straight back there
When you were singing back to me

Along with the radio
wild wild horses
everything we'll ever know
is in the choruses

Over the radio
wild wild horses
everywhere we'll ever go
is in the choruses