My friend Katey Laurel of Denver and Steamboat, Colorado is sort of a contradiction – persona and attitude of a hippie Dale Evans – which she loved when I called her, admitting to having proudly swung a Dale Evans lunch box as a kid despite being younger by a decade or two of those who were truly Roy and Dale's TV family. She counters that sunny and positive vibe with a deeply reflective nature and a depth that is often missing in sing-songwriters. She's not really a country singer, she's not a rock singer, she's a singer-songwriter who takes her craft seriously while staying true to whom she seeks to be. I got to know her through social media, chat with her often and she has kindly listened to some of my musical advice…not saying she followed it, but hearing a fan tell you the same thing producers tell you makes it seem a bit harder to ignore. I'd like to see more edge and a bit of darkness to her work; more realism, less "Happy Trails" and more "Last Gunfighter Ballad." She's working on it, but I think no matter what she does, it will have that optimism and hope that the world needs.
Katey's family includes a number of vets including her father, I believe as well as various uncles and cousins and I think an aunt or two. She's very active in the Denver Music scene which is really interesting in a lot of ways. We normally think of Denver as John Denver country. Well, there was a great Tucson Country-Swing band that migrated to Denver back in the 80s, Chuck Wagon and the Wheels.(Now playing as Chuck Maulsby and That Band, I believe.) Neither Tucson nor Denver is Music City Mountain States, but they could be. Lots of music, lots of art, lots of strong visions. In addition to her music, Katey also is an artist, and some of the premiums in her recent Kick Starter effort to fund her new CD "Up Periscope" included some of her original work. (In full disclosure, I opted for the signed CD, a download and a T-shirt.) She's very talented and I will follow her work with a great deal of interest going forward.
In October, Katey performed at a Wounded Warrior Benefit in Denver. This was a reasonably big deal and the local acoustic music community as well as some rockers came out to help raise money, awareness and to show the Vets and their families that somebody not only knew what they had done but wanted to thank them and honor them for it. Katey is kind of a leading light in the music community there, which is not the same as being Taylor Swift. Most of the folks in Denver, for one thing, don't use auto-tune all that much. Since I haven't seen her record in person, I can't swear that Katey is Katey, but I've listened to various versions of some of her material, and there's enough variation and immediacy (word I'm looking for is soul, I think) and my informed guess is this is her singing. This is a song she wrote in honor of that occasion, and her explanation of it is worth noting. She says on the video that
"I wrote this song this morning thinking of each of our daily battles in life and coming home to a place of peace and rest. I also considered our service men and women as they come home from protecting our rights and freedom."
You know, everybody at some points leaves home to go slay some dragons. If you miss out on that quest, then your soul is vastly diminished for it. Soldiers do this repeatedly – you deploy, your slay some dragons, you go home. Maybe the dragon is the enemy; maybe the Dragon is the BUDS course for the SEALS; maybe it's Jump School; maybe it's taking your first formation as a Company Commander or First Sergeant; maybe it's the first time you have to call Roll at a memorial service; maybe…maybe. Maybe you got the bastard dragon, maybe he got you, maybe -perhaps most often -- it's a draw. Everyone in uniform has done it, is stronger for it and at the same time is scared by it. Lots of times, the dragons are things you would not expect. Fear, loneliness, doubt, success and failure come to us all. They keep on coming, we keep slaying them over and over again. And at some point, we want to, we need to and we deserve to go home again. Probably can't, but we want to, we need to and we deserve to do so. Katey's song "No More Battlesongs" expresses that and the fulfillment of that hope. Love Her.
HYou will be able to order the CD through I-Tunes and other services as well as through Katey's Website. Up Periscope should be excellent. She's been sharing other tracks with the contributors to her Kick Starter and they showcase an excellent talent. Visit her Webpage and check out her offerings on YouTube. You will be glad that you did.
Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gjptv5vT6N0
No More Battlesongs
c 2012 Katey Laurel
I've been on the road so long
This is all I can afford to give
Just a sad and lonely battlesong
Of a soldier marching in the war to live
Girl, pick 'em up and put 'em down
My soles are worn thinner than my smile
These boots were made for marching 'round
I think that I will lay them down a while
I am coming home
'cause you won't let the sun go down again
You remind me who I've always been
Just a hometown hero coming back to be where I belong
No more battlesongs
Worn and weary, here I stand
Your open arms are all I'm longing for
I leave behind the foreign lands
So glad to finally wash up on your shore
The end has never looked so near
Your best girl is comin' home to you
From enemies I've fought and feared
And every shade of red and black and blue
I am coming home
cause you won't let the sun go down again
You remind me who I've always been
Just a hometown hero coming back to be where I belong
No more battlesongs
I see buildings, houses down the street
Friendly strangers where we used to meet
And it feels like a reunion of the souls I'll greet someday
All the ones I passed along the way
You won't let the sun go down again
You remind me who I've always been
Just a hometown hero coming back to be where I belong
cause you won't let the sun go down again
You remind me who I've always been
Just a hometown hero coming back to be where I belong
No more battlesongs
No more battlesongs
No more battlesongs
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