Oh, Tracy ...
I was going to talk about the Grammys but right at the start, this song threw me off. I have never started an awards show crying. But I did with these Grammys. Got in my feels from the fucking jump. I love this song. Tracy Chapman's 1988 Fast Car always gets me. It gets me every fucking time. If you were watching and you heard the crowd roar when it was clear it was her playing that guitar, that was me, too.
So I remember when we were driving, driving in your car
Speed so fast, I felt like I was drunk
City lights lay out before us
And your arm felt nice wrapped 'round my shoulder
And I had a feeling that I belonged
I had a feeling I could be someone, be someone, be someone...
She's singing about me. That was my life.
I don't even remember the name of the artist who was dueting with her on that stage. All I remember is that Tracy Chapman was singing my song. And that was enough.
XOXO
P.S. happy Black History Month. I’m starting it with a (most possibly queer) Black artist sharing the stage with a white country singer after years of not performing live, after snatching the title of only Black woman with a number one Country song and then skyrocketing to number one on iTunes thanks to this performance tonight.
@thedemocrats
The artist was Luke Combs, and he is, believe it or not, a country western singer. This past year he took Fast Cars to number 1, and their performance made a lot of people cry. That's the video you should have posted.
ReplyDeleteOh, I know who he is. That's why I wrote that about Tracy being the only Black woman in the Country charts.
DeleteHe literally disappeared the second I saw it was Tracy on stage. For what I saw, everybody in that auditorium was with me. This is her song, no matter who covers it.
XOXO
HuntleyBiGuy:
ReplyDeleteI saw the duet on the Grammys and it was really fantastic. I read a story about it and the country singer, Luke Combs, said this was the first song that he was really exposed to by his father, and it holds special meaning for him. When he was able to do his cover, he wanted to do a faithful version and didn’t change the line “And I work in the market as a checkout girl.” And since Tracy holds the songwriters credit, she has topped the Country songwriters chart and she gets royalties from his version. Plus it has sparked new interest in her version. This is a win/win for her.
XOXO 👨🏼❤️💋👨🏽
Yes, he does have a connection to the song. It was touching to hear that.
DeleteIt's a very impactful song, the storytelling is fantastic. And her VOICE! The original version shot to #1 on iTunes right after the performance.
Combs was nominated, but he lost to a more established singer. He'll be ok.
XOXO
It's so great that this song is a top hit again due to Luke Combs' cover. Tracy Chapman's original version was such a huge hit when I was first coming out.
ReplyDeleteIt caused quite the stir.
DeleteAnd the performance at the Grammys sent Tracy's version to the lists again.
There was really nobody like Tracy when she came up...
XOXO
Big says,
ReplyDeleteSwitching between channels, we saw 2 Grammy performances and then switched off completely. The duet was once of them. There was quite the controversy over Combs' cover. But it appears Chapman put that B.S. to rest last night. XOXO
Oh, I'm sure Combs got all the permissions.
DeleteShe owns the rights to all her music (which should be quite nice, seeing that the song is a hit more than thirty years later!)
XOXO
Big says,
DeleteHe for sure got permission. But folks were pretty riled up over someone do a cover. Just by doing the song with him, I think Tracy let them know her opinion. XOXO
so moving! happy Black History Month!
ReplyDelete