NPR's 200 Greatest Songs By 21st Century Women

"The 200 Greatest Songs By 21st Century Women+" -- NPR

"This list is part of Turning the Tables, an ongoing project from NPR Music dedicated to recasting the popular music canon in more inclusive – and accurate – ways. This year, our list, selected by a panel of more than 70 women and non-binary writers, tackles history in the making, celebrating artists whose work is changing this century's sense of what popular music can be. The songs are by artists whose major musical contributions came on or after Jan. 1, 2000, and have shifted attitudes, defied categories and pushed sound in new directions since then.

Our list includes songs performed by women and non-binary artists. The use of the term "Women+" is part of our engagement in a movement to recognize a wide spectrum of gender identities coming to greater light in the 21st century."

Before listing the folk music artists who made the cut, it is necessary to note that Dar Williams is somehow absent. Granted, a portion of her musical releases occurred prior to January 1, 2000 but not this song:

St. Christopher in song and music

"When I was young I spoke like a child, and I saw with a child's eyes
And an open door was to a girl like the stars are to the sky
It's funny how the world lives up to all your expectations
With adventures for the stout of heart, and the lure of the open spaces

There's 2 lanes running down this road, whichever side you're on
Accounts for where you want to go, or what you're running from
Back when darkness overtook me on a blind man's curve
I relied upon the moon, I relied upon the moon
I relied upon the moon and Saint Christopher

Now I've paid my dues cuz I have owed them, but I've paid a price sometimes
For being such a stubborn woman in such stubborn times
Now I've paid my dues cuz I have owed them, but I've paid a price sometimes
For being such a stubborn woman in such stubborn times

Now I have run from the arms of lovers, I've run from the eyes of friends
I have run from the hands of kindness, I've run just because I can
But now I'm grown and I speak like a woman and I see with a woman's eyes
And an open door is to me now like the saddest of goodbyes
It's too late for turning back, I pray for the heart and the nerve

And I rely upon the moon, I rely upon the moon
I rely upon the moon and Saint Christopher
I rely upon the moon, I rely upon the moon
I rely upon the moon and Saint Christopher"


"It's the back end of the season and the wind is bitter cold
It's just the sort of morning to make young bones feel old
The tanks are all topped off, we've got the permits free and clear
One more good haul could see us through until we start next year
Well it's my call alone to make and one I'd hate to blow
Six families now including mine dependent on the things I think I know.

I know the wind and water and I am not afraid
But living off the ocean is a complicated trade
I never get my profit margins or my pride confused
With the safety of this vessel or its good and hearty crew
But the time is now or never and the weather looks to hold
So I gather up the crew on deck, we bow our heads and pray before we go

St. Christopher protect us from the cold and stormy sea
Watch over all these fishermen who've put their trust in me
Never mind the salty spray or crashing of the waves
Bring us safely to our families and keep us from the grave
St. Christopher we call on you this day

I've fished in weather worse thatn this at least a hundred times
But I still can't shake the shivers that we are crawling up my spine
Eleven hours out the swells are getting deep
We can't put the nets out and it's too damn rough to sleep
If we stick it out 'til morning things may calm down with the light
But if it turns against us we'll be lucky if we see another night

St. Christopher protect us from the cold and stormy sea
Watch over all these fishermen who've put their trust in me
Never mind the salty spray or crashing of the waves
Bring us safely to our families and keep us from the grave
St. Christopher we call on you this day

Well it was on a night like this my father went away
Even though my mother begged and pleaded him to stay
I was standing there and waving as his trawler left the docks
Saw the pictures of the wreckage that they found upon the rocks
Seven men were rescued of the nine that left that day
The last they saw their captain he was on the bridge they swear they heard him say

"St. Christopher protect us from the cold and stormy sea
Watch over all these fishermen who've put their trust in me
Never mind the salty spray or crashing of the waves
Bring us safely to our families and keep us from the grave
St. Christopher we call on you this day"

Now the difference between bravery and foolishness is small
And a healthy sense of fear can bring perspective to us all
I know you men are hungry for the cash this catch could bring
And if we go back empty we'll be real tight come spring
But I've learned history's lesson and it isn't worth the pain
The things we stand to lose are so much greater than the things we have to gain

St. Christopher protect us from the cold and stormy sea
Watch over all these fishermen who've put their trust in me
Never mind the salty spray or crashing of the waves
Bring us safely to our families and keep us from the grave
St. Christopher we call on you this day

St. Christopher we call on you
Christopher we call on you

St. Christopher we thank you for this day."

Dave Carter's Day

On July 19, 2002 at age 49, Dave Carter physically left this world. His creations, the words and music, thankfully remain present (see his discography below).

A humble musical wizard, Carter (and Tracy Grammer) provided an experience which will remain an inspirational highlight until my departure: first hearing the song "When I Go" minus any knowledge of Carter and Grammer and their brilliance. It was as if a world of transcendent beauty beckoned directly to me.

"come, lonely hunter, chieftain and king, i will fly like the falcon when i go
bear me my brother under your wing, i will strike fell like lightnin when i go

i will bellow like the thunder drum, invoke the storm of war
a twistin pillar spun of dust and blood up from the prairie floor
i will sweep the foe before me like a gale out on the snow
and the wind will long recount the story, reverence and glory, when i go

spring, spirit dancer, nimble and thin, i will leap like coyote when i go
tireless entrancer, lend me your skin, i will run like the gray wolf when i go

i will climb the rise at daybreak, i will kiss the sky at noon
raise my yearnin' voice at midnight to my mother in the moon
i will make the lay of long defeat and draw the chorus slow
i'll send this message down the wire and hope that someone wise is listenin when i go

and when the sun comes trumpets from his red house in the east
he will find a standing stone where long i chanted my release
he will send his morning messenger to strike the hammer blow
and i will crumble down uncountable in showers of crimson rubies when i go

sigh, mournful sister, whisper and turn, i will rattle like dry leaves when i go
stand in the mist where my fire used to burn, i will camp on the night breeze when i go

and should you glimpse my wand'rin form out on the borderline
between death and resurrection and the council of the pines
do not worry for my comfort, do not sorrow for me so
all your diamond tears will rise up and adorn the sky beside me when i go"

+++++

Snake Handlin' Man (1995 self release)

"Cowboy Singer"
"Snake-Handlin' Man"
"Red (Elegy)"
"The Promised Land"
"Hey Tonya"
"The River Where She Sleeps"
"Long Black Road Into Tulsa Town"
"Texas Underground"
"Workin' For Jesus"
"Gun-Metal Eyes"
"Sarah Turn 'Round"

When I Go (self-release 1998, 2002)

"When I Go"
"Don't Tread on Me"
"Annie's Lover"
"Grand Prairie TX Homesick Blues"
"Kate and the Ghost of Lost Love"
"The River, Where She Sleeps"
"Lancelot"
"Frank to Valentino"
"Little Liza Jane"
"Elvis Presley"

Tanglewood Tree (2000)

"Happytown (All Right with Me)"
"Tanglewood Tree"
"The Mountain"
"Farewell to Saint Dolores"
"Hey Conductor"
"Crocodile Man"
"Walkin' Away from Caroline"
"Farewell to Fiddler's Rim"
"Cat-Eye Willie Claims His Lover"
"Cowboy Singer"
"Farewell to Bitterroot Valley"

Drum Hat Buddha (2001)

"Ordinary Town"
"Tillman Co."
"Disappering Man"
"The Power and Glory"
"236-6132"
"41 Thunderer"
"Gentle Arms of Eden"
"I Go Like the Raven"
"Highway 80 (She's a Mighty Good Road)"
"Love, the Magician"
"Merlin's Lament"
"Gentle Soldier of My Soul"

Flower of Avalon (2005) Carter songs sung by Tracy Grammer

"Shadows of Evangeline"
"Gypsy Rose"
"Laughlin Boy"
"Hard to Make It
"Hey Ho"
"Mother, I Climbed"
"Preston Miller"
"Winter When He Goes"
"Phantom Doll"
"Any Way I Do"

Seven Is The Number (2006)

"Seven Is the Number"
"Snake-Handlin Man"
"Red (Elegy)"
"The Promised Land"
"Hey Tonya"
"Texas Underground"
"Gas Station Girl"
"Long, Black Road into Tulsa Town"
"Workin for Jesus"
"Gun-Metal Eyes"
"Sarah Turn 'Round"

American Noel (2008)

Go Tell The Fox
Bring A Torch, Jeanette Isabella
Lo, How A Rose E'er Blooming
Footsteps Of The Faithful
The Ditching Carol
Giddyup Said Santa Claus
The Coventry Carol
American Noel

Little Blue Egg (2012)

Better Way
Hard Edge Of Livin’
Way Over Yonder In The Minor Key
Hard To Make It
Cross Of Jesus
Amazon
Three-Fingered Jack
Any Way I Do
Till We Have Faces
Gypsy Rose
September Sea

Joy My Love (2012)

Wild Gardenias
Hey Diddle Diddle
You Must Slumber
Celia Says
Merlin's Lament

Two looks at Juarez, Mexico

Brad Colerick's "Juarez":


"I was done out of money
I was dry as a bone
Standing on a corner in Juarez, Mexico
Outside Camila's Cantina
I caught a glimpse of hope
When a gentle man began to speak to me

He said he used to travel to El Norte
To work the San Joaquin
A locket from his mother would ease the suffering
There were days as dry as ashes
And nights as cold as hell
But faith and desperation served him well

If you see him you will know him
By the look upon his face
His left eye kinda twinkles
From the light of peace and grace
He said he speaks in any language
But he favors Español
Oh, Jesus lives in Juarez, Mexico

Well I could see it in his fingers
I could hear it in his voice
The years had not been kind to one
Who clearly had no choice
He was baptized in the waters
Of the restless Rio Grande
Now he's found a peaceful place to call his home

If you see him you will know him
By the look upon his face
His left eye kinda twinkles
From the light of peace and grace
He said he speaks in any language
But he favors Español
Oh, Jesus lives in Juarez, Mexico

Then it suddenly came clear to me
Just who this wise man was
I wondered if I'd get to see
The miracles he does
So I started in to tell him just where my life went wrong
But it didn't seem to matter anymore

If you get down to El Paso
Be sure to cross the border
Especially if you need
To get your life in order
Outside Camila's Cantina
That's where you can save your soul
Oh, Jesus lives in Juarez, Mexico

If you see him you will know him
By the look upon his face
His left eye kinda twinkles
From the light of peace and grace
He said he speaks in any language
But he favors Español
Oh, Jesus lives in Juarez, Mexico

He can speak in any language
Pero el mas prefierde Español
Oh, Jesus lives in Juarez, Mexico"

Tom Russell's "Juarez":

"Juarez, I couldn't sleep tonight
Juarez, you made me weep tonight
Across the Rio Grande, I saw your poverty lights
Goodnight, Juarez, good night

Juarez, I used to paint the town
Now you've gone and turned it upside down
Into a dark and bloody battleground
Goodnight, Juarez, goodnight

Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows
Just caught the last bus out
She said, "Seven sorrows used to fit the bill
But I'd need ten thousand now"

The mariachi horns are silent
The guitars don't make a sound
The children have all disappeared
Or they're hiding underground

The tourist market's empty now
You wouldn't recognize this town
Why, they even tore the bull ring down
Goodnight, Juarez, good night

Vuela, vuela, palomita, you old ragged
And torn Dove of Peace
Fly across this burning desert
Where the bodies lie beneath

Bring me back one faded rose
A sign of love and hope
And drop it down on this broken city
Before it all goes up in smoke

Juarez, I had a dream today
The children danced as the guitars played
And all the violence up and slipped away
Goodnight, Juarez, goodnight"

New Lori McKenna release out on July 20

First Listen: Lori McKenna, 'The Tree'

"Stoughton’s Lori McKenna gets nostalgic on new album, ‘The Tree’"

Another song of loss

Here's Cheryl Wheeler with another song of loss:

"I can see the place where I came from
I can hear those sounds right now
I can find the paths I used to run
And believe I still know how

Then I shake my head, clearing my vision
I keep those scenes at bay
And I can see the place where I came from
Slipping further and further away

And I can feel the way I used to feel
When the world was small and green
And you sang a song of soft appeal
And I curled into my dream

Then I shake my head, clearing my vision
I keep those scenes at bay
And I can feel the way I used to feel
Slipping further and further away

Time keeps moving faster and faster
I'm not losing track
I'm afraid that something's forgotten
So I keep looking back

I can hear the songs you used to sing
I can swear I won't let go
You were strong and you knew everything
That was all I had to know

Then I shake my head, clearing my vision
I keep those scenes at bay
And I can hear the songs you used to sing
Slipping further and further away"

Life moves swiftly

John Flynn

It starts off early in a sandbox
We blink as sand gets in our eyes
We blink up at the sun in wonder
We blink and somehow time just flies

We blink and we are in a schoolyard
We blink and drive dad's Chevrolet
We blink and we stand at an altar
And soon a baby's on the way

We blink and toddlers are teenagers
We blink and grandkids say hello
And in their eyes we see our parents
And in our hearts we miss them so

We squint and look around for glasses
to read that some old friend has died
We blink them as our eyes grow tired
And all too soon we close them wide

We blink like summer evening fireflies
Out on eternity's front lawn
and though we vanish in a moment
the love we share keeps shining on

I blink in disbelief that heaven
has given me these precious years
with you and I will still be grateful
long after we have blinked...
back tears