september 16

Hans 2021 Song Draft: Round Eight-Pick Nine-Witness-Sarah McLachlan (1997)

Posted on October 19, 2021

Modern Vinyl Image One — Image Credit: Modern Vinyl

Hanspostcard has a song draft challenge. This is my Round Eight pick.

I remember when I heard Possession on the radio the first time. I was driving home from work and I was immediately in love. The music was stunning, her voice was stunning and I was captivated. Who is she, I thought to myself (I had no idea that Sarah McLachlan had two previous albums). I found the Fumbling Towards Ecstasy CD as fast as I could. It is a fantastic album. There is not a bad song on it.

When Surfacing came out in July 1997, I snatched it, too. It was released to coincide with the Lilith Fair. Though Fumbling Towards Ecstasy remains my favorite of her albums, Witness is my favorite single. The sixth track, it was never released as a single, has no chart information what-so-ever and it remains in the shadow of Building A Mystery, Sweet Surrender, Adia and, in particular, Angel. The album is one of two that reached #2 on the Billboard 200. It was the #1 album on Billboard’s Canadian Albums chart on August 2, 1997 and on Canada’s RPM Top Albums/CDs chart on July 28, 1997.

As an odd bit of trivia, this album is mentioned in the Starr Report, Ken Starr‘s investigation of the Monica Lewinsky Scandal, as was Altoid Mints, the movie Titanic, Billie Holliday, Elvis, Spinach Dip, Starbucks and Leaves of Grass. Monica apparently liked track #5.

This song speaks to me on so many levels. It’s a beautiful piece with beautiful lyrics… ~Vic

Sarah Recording YouTube Image Two — Image Credit: YouTube

Make me a witness
Take me out
Out of darkness
Out of doubt

I won’t weigh you down
With good intention
Won’t make fire out of clay
Or other inventions

Will we burn in heaven
Like we do down here
Will the change come
While we’re waiting

Everyone is waiting

And, when we’re done
Soul searching
As we carried the weight
And died for the cause
Is misery made beautiful
Right before our eyes
Will mercy be revealed
Or blind us where we stand

Additional:
Lilith Fair @ 20 (Billboard Article/Gil Kaufman/07-05-2017)
Official Instagram
Official Website
Sarah McLachlan Named In Starr Report (MTV News/09-16-1998)
Starr Report Unearths New Bedfellows (The Hartford Courant/Rock Critic Roger Catlin/09-17-1998)
The Pop Life: Musical Damage In Starr Report (The New York Times/Neil Strauss/09-24-1998/Web Archive)

No Official Video

Live From Mirrorball

Sarah Discussing The Surfacing CD

This entry was posted in Challenges, Music, Thoughts, Video and tagged 1997, 1998, 2017, 2021 song draft, adia, altoids, altoids mints, angel, archive, august 2, beautiful, beautiful music, beautiful words, bill clinton, billboard, billboard 200, billboard article, billboard canada, billie holiday, blind us where we stand, building a mystery, canada rpm, canadian rpm, carry the weight, clinton, collections canada, courant, die for a cause, do what you have to do, elvis, everyone is waiting, fumbling towards ecstasy, gil kaufman, hans, hans song challenge, hanspostcard, hartford courant, heaven, internet archive, july 28, july 5, ken starr, leaves of grass, lewinsky scandal, lilith fair, lilith festival, make me a witness, mercy be revealed, mirrorball, misery made beautiful, modern vinyl, monica lewinsky, mtv, mtv news, music challenge, musical damage, neil strauss, new bedfellows, new york times, odd trivia, pick nine, pop life, possession, rock critic, roger catlin, round eight, RPM, sarah mclachlan, september 16, september 17, september 24, slice the life, song challenge, song draft challenge, soul searching, spinach dip, starbucks, starr report, surfacing, surfacing video, sweet surrender, take me out of darkness, the new york times, the wayback machine, titanic, trivia, wayback machine, web archive, wikipedia, will we burn, witness, youtube.

Word Wednesday: Quondam

Posted on September 16, 2020 Updated on August 31, 2021

This is, clearly, an obscure word. It sounds like a portmanteau of quantum and condom. Hmmm…Quantum Condoms, for an “out of this world” experience! Whadda ya’ think? Can you make a sentence with this word? ~Vic

This entry was posted in Thoughts, Unusual, Words and tagged 16th century, 2020, adjective, adverb, advertisement, ancient, at one time, condom, dictionary, dictionary dot com, different stuff, english, former, former office holder, formerly, latin, learn something new, new word, obscure, odd word, old word, once upon a time, onetime, portmanteau, quantum, quantum condoms, quondam, screen capture, sentence, september 16, silliness, strange, uncertain origin, word, Word of the Day, word wednesday.

Music Monday: The Alarm 1989

Posted on September 16, 2019 Updated on February 16, 2020

The Alarm Image One — Photo Credit: 45cat.com

Shaking things up a bit and being different. ~Vic

Thirty years ago, today, Sold Me Down the River by The Alarm, a Welsh alternative rock/new wave band from Rhyl (formed 1981), debuted on the Billboard Alternative Rock chart, entering at number ten. The first release from the album Change, their fourth studio album, it peaked at number three after five weeks. It made it to number two on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart in October, staying there for two weeks and number 43 on the UK Singles Chart, starting September 10.

I confess. I’ve never heard of this band. They are still active (Band Website).

From LyricFind:

There’s a fire beneath my skin
There’s a fever that makes me ill
Got a love, a love that kills
I’ve got twenty-four hours to live, come back

I’m begging you please, come back
Come back
I’m down on my knees, come back
I’m begging you please

I don’t know why and I don’t understand
How you sold me down the river
I don’t know why, I don’t understand
How you sold me down the river
Sold me down the river

There’s a rose across my chest
Got your name written on it
Love’s the drug that I live by
Give me a shot before I die, come back

I’m begging you please, come back
Come back
I’m down on my knees, come back
I’m begging you please

I don’t know why, I don’t understand
How you sold me down the river
I don’t know why, I don’t understand
How you sold me down the river
Sold me down the river

Oh yeah, sold me down the river now

Sold me down the river tonight
Hoo-hoo

I’ve got twenty four hours
I don’t know why, I don’t understand
How you sold me down the river
Sold me down the river

This entry was posted in Music, Thoughts and tagged 1989, alternative rock, billboard alternative, billboard mainstream rock, change-album, debut, mainstream rock, new wave, number 10, october, september 10, september 16, the alarm, uk singles chart, welsh band.