I wanted to share with folks the performers and songwriters that excite and inspire me. I hope you like my selections and that you may be moved to renew your acquaintance with their music … or to give them a first listen if you are not yet familiar with them.

I was reminded just how outstanding a songwriter and performer Carole King is when I recently watched a short TV documentary about her. I confess I had forgotten just how many great songs she has written – both on her own and in collaboration with her husband (at the time), lyricist Jerry Goffin.

I discovered Carole’s work through a kind of backwards route. I remember having a copy of James Taylor’s Greatest Hits (on vinyl – this was the late 70s) and being really taken with the ballad “You’ve Got a Friend”. It is a truly beautiful song – and as a callow youth starting to discover the pleasure and pain of loving and losing, it resonated with my feelings at the time. Noticing that the composer credits went to “King”, I got curious and it didn’t take long to track down and listen to her solo album, “Tapestry”.

Now, for those unfamiliar with it, Tapestry is an absolute pearl of the singer-songwriter’s art – filled from start to finish with great songs. As well as King’s own rendition of “You’ve Got a Friend”, other notable tracks include: “I Feel the Earth Move”, “It’s Too Late”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” and “Will You Love Me Tomorrow?”.

It is those last two tracks that took me aback. I of course had heard them as recorded, respectively,  by Aretha Franklin and The Shirelles. It was a revelation to learn that they shared the same author as “You’ve Got A Friend”. The sheer scope of Carole King’s work then became apparent to me – from bubble-gum pop in the early 60s, passing through soul/R&B on its way towards the sophisticated balladry of the 70s.

Closer listening, I believe, reveals some common themes in her work. They often appear initially to be simple pop ditties – but turn out to be surprisingly sophisticated. Take “It Might As Well Rain Until September” as an example. It comes on as a typical rock and roll ballad of its time – with its I-VI-II-V changes. However, the chord sequence becomes more complex – even changing key for the middle section. In many ways, the song – once you strip away the style in which it is performed – harks back to an earlier generation of composers: Berlin, Rodgers, Porter et al. Although Carole is writing in the “rock” era and within that broad idiom, there often seems to be a nod and a wink towards the songwriters of broadway, jazz and swing.

The fact her primary instrument is the piano also helps shape her style. Piano based singer-songwriters definitely have a different vibe to their work from their guitar-based counterparts. Consider Billy Joel, Elton John or Stevie Wonder and how they differ from Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Bruce Springsteen etc. The different instruments just lend themselves to certain ways of approaching a song. My own songwriting is clearly shaped by the fact I am a guitarist and I do my composing with a guitar in my hands. Mental note to self… spend some composing time sat at the keyboard!

For my money, Carole King is right up there as one of the true greats as both a songwriter and a performer. The album Tapestry alone would be enough to place her in that bracket. The sheer breadth and depth of her musical contribution to the world is truly awe inspiring. I live in the hope that I might write just one song that a tenth as good as one of Carole’s. I will definitely be covering at least one of her songs in my new solo set.

Take a listen to her work and hear just how good it is for yourself!

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