Now Hear This: Patty Griffin

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Now Hear This: Patty Griffin
by Marissa Davis

There is a point in everyone’s music life when they realize what they really truly love. Most of the time we figure it out in our teen years, those years when we realize that our parents’ music isn’t what we like, and that our parents are too old because they can’t stand having music turned up loud. In my case, I’m lucky not to have gone through that because my parents, or at least my Mom, likes everything I do, with the occasional exception, such as Metallica.

“Elizabethtown,” a movie with Orlando Bloom and Kirsten Dunst, was a big moment in my movie and music life. The movie could have been about my family, and I loved every part of it. Then came the music. My friend said, “Marissa, you are going to love this CD! Go buy it now, like now!” I obliged.

On the CD was Patty Griffin’s song “The Long Ride Home,” and right away, I fell in love with Griffin’s voice and the way her voice and the song complemented each other. She was on my iPod’s “25 Most Played” playlist immediately. After listening to that album, I kept coming back to her song. She was like Billie Holiday; I couldn’t stop listening to her. I felt the pain in her voice as she sang. I knew what she was going through.

I found her song “Rain” a couple months ago, and it recently shuffled up on my iPod. I sat down and realized that this was going to be a new favorite. Yes, Dad, that’s right, I said it’s my favorite, again. It has secured a spot on my “25 Most Played” playlist, next to “Drag” by Placebo and “Elegy for Dunkirk” by Dario Marianelli.

Griffin has a very expressive voice. She is like Billie Holiday in respect to talent and voice. Both are deep and expressive: you can feel every emotion they sing. Griffin has been nominated for a Grammy and has released seven albums. The guitars and other assorted instruments in her songs are a distinctly country sound. All in all she is an excellent singer to whom I give four and a half stars out of five.

DJ M’s Playlist
1. The Long Ride Home- Patty Griffin
2. Far Away- Nickelback
3. My Body is a Cage- Arcade Fire
4. Black Dog- Led Zeppelin
5. Untouched- The Veronicas