“Forgive me for being, whatever it is that I am / cause I’ve been flying around for a lifetime, with nowhere to land”
As a songwriter, do you ever hear a song and think ‘wow, I really wish I wrote that’. Well, this song is my “that song”.
There is an intense amount of soul in this guy’s music and he has one of those undeniably powerful voices. A voice that doesn’t need to be super loud to come across as such, it just has a tone and quality that really speaks to the listener and hits you somewhere deep in your chest. The simplicity of two instruments and two voices cascading over remarkably well-crafted lyrics and song arrangement is something that when done right, is something of great artistry. Mark Whitaker and Eva Walsh have done just that in this song. Whitaker’s banjo playing is tasteful but really extraordinary. The places he takes a traditionally “plunky” instrument is truly amazing. The soft touches that Ms. Walsh adds, both vocally and on her fiddle, are also quite delightful. Together, the two musicians fashion a song that is moving, soothing, and just plain beautiful to listen to.
The video itself fits the song perfectly. Simple, shot in an apartment living room. It feels comfortable and really sets the tone of the song and the interaction between Mark and Eva. The best way I can describe it is that morning cup of coffee on a Saturday when you have nothing else to do but relax the entire day…in this case, relaxing means playing and singing extremely well.
Whatever the “it” is that you hear thrown around the music industry, the two of these musicians have it by the truckload. Mark informed me he is working on an EP later this year, so be sure to keep an eye out for it…or you could just go catch him live. He is playing all over the place!
Check him out online at:
http://www.markwhitakermusic.com/
and Eva at: