Emmylou Harris not only has the voice of an angel, but she is also a talented songwriter. Ever since Harris released her debut Gliding Bird album in 1969, she has been revered as one of country music’s most talented songwriters. These three Emmylou Harris songs she wrote all prove she is a stunning lyricist.
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“Boulder To Birmingham”
Harris wrote “Boulder To Birmingham” with Bill Danoff. On her 1975 sophomore Pieces Of The Sky record, the song is one of Harris’s most revered songs, even though it was not released as a single.
Harris wrote “Boulder To Birmingham” about the death of her close friend, and frequent collaborator, Gram Parsons.
“That song was very important,” Harris tells The Guardian. “Words can be so powerful to help you express something you otherwise can’t. And everyone has experienced loss. So, even though the song is deeply personal, I can understand how people can relate to it, having lost someone who is very close to them.”
“Boulder To Birmingham” says, “And I don’t want to hear a sad story / Full of heartbreak and desire / The last time I felt like this / I was in the wilderness and the canyon was on fire / And I stood on the mountain / In the night and I watched it burn / I watched it burn, I watched it burn / I would rock my soul in the bosom of Abraham / I would hold my life in his saving grace / I would walk all the way from Boulder to Birmingham. If I thought I could see, I could see your face.”
Dolly Parton and Joan Baez are among the artists who recorded their own versions of “Boulder To Birmingham”.
“Not Enough”
“Not Enough” is one of Harris’s more recent songs, relatively speaking. Out in 2008, the song, which Harris wrote by herself, is on her All I Intended To Be record.
“Not Enough” says, “Can’t believe you’re really gone for good / I still hold on to places that you once stood / I should move on, but I never could / Really believe that you’re gone for good / Oh, my friend, what could I do? / I just came home to bury you / The road is long, the road is rough / You’re in my heart, that’s not close enough.”
“Tulsa Queen”
Harris includes “Tulsa Queen” on her 1976 Luxury Liner album. Written with Rodney Crowell, “Tulsa Queen” is the only song Harris wrote for the record.
“Tulsa Queen” says, “And she don’t care where she goes / Don’t care where she’s been / And the Tulsa queen ain’t crying / ‘Cause I won’t see you again / And I want to ride / Like a Tulsa queen / Calling out to you / As she calls to me / As far away from Tulsa / As these ten wheels can be.”
Photo by Tibrina Hobson/CBS via Getty Images
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