The late John Denver was one of the world’s greatest songwriters. And it’s not just because he was a favorite collaborator with Jim Henson’s Muppets! It’s also for songs like “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” as well as other tracks, like those listed below.
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While Denver, who passed away in a plane crash in 1997 at the age of 53, wrote some of his hits with other songwriters—some, like “Thank God I’m a Country Boy,” were written by others (John Martin Sommers)—he did write a number of his own tracks solo. Here below, we will dive into four such songs, including one Denver penned for the Muppets.
[RELATED: The Meaning Behind John Denver’s Iconic Love Song, “Annie’s Song”]
“Annie’s Song”
Written by John Denver
This song was released as the lead single off Denver’s 1974 LP Back Home Again. A huge hit for the artist, it became his second No. 1 hit in the U.S. that same year. It also hit the top spot on the UK singles charts. A folk song, Denver explicates his deep feelings and gratitude for the object of his affection. Like an old Irish folk tune, he sings plainly, simply, and beautifully,
You fill up my senses
Like a night in a forest
Like the mountains in springtime
Like a walk in the rain
Like a storm in the desert
Like a sleepy blue ocean
You fill up my senses
Come fill me again
Come, let me love you
Let me give my life to you
Let me drown in your laughter
Let me die in your arms
Let me lay down beside you
Let me always be with you
Come, let me love you
Come love me again
“Leaving on a Jet Plane”
Written by John Denver
Sadly, Denver, who was an amateur pilot, died in a plane crash so this track bears with it some tragic irony. That aside, the song has remained part of the cultural zeitgeist for its lyricism and sticky chorus. Originally titled “Babe I Hate to Go” on Denver’s 1966 debut demo John Denver Sings, the title was changed to “Leaving on a Jet Plane” the following year. He recorded the tune again in 1969 for his formal debut LP Rhymes & Reasons, and it has stayed in the minds of music fans ever since, thanks also to many popular covers, including one from Peter, Paul and Mary. On it, Denver sings,
All my bags are packed
I’m ready to go
I’m standin’ here outside your door
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye
But the dawn is breakin’
It’s early morn
The taxi’s waitin’
He’s blowin’ his horn
Already I’m so lonesome
I could die
So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you’ll wait for me
Hold me like you’ll never let me go
‘Cause I’m leavin’ on a jet plane
Don’t know when I’ll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go
3. “Perhaps Love”
Written by John Denver
This John Denver song was recorded with Spanish opera singer Plácido Domingo. It was released on Domingo’s 1981 album of the same name and includes Denver’s vocals. Domingo released it as a single along with a cover of “Annie’s Song” and to date, the song has sold millions of copies, hitting No. 59 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1982. Epic and romantic, Denver sings on the duet,
Perhaps love is like a window
Perhaps an open door
It invites you to come closer
It wants to show you more
And even if you lose yourself
And don’t know what to do
The memory of love will see you through
“Alfie, the Christmas Tree”
Written by John Denver
This song comes from the 1979 holiday television special John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together and captures on an album of the same name. The song, which includes spoken word from Denver, tells the story of Alfie, the Christmas Tree, but also touches on the true meanings of Christmas, from its religious connections to St. Nick. It’s a solemn but lovely song that features the Muppets singing along. To open the song, Denver speaks,
Did you ever hear the story of the Christmas tree?
Who just didn’t want to change the show
He liked living in the woods and playing with squirrels
He liked bicycles and snow
He liked wolves and eagles and grizzly bears
And critters and creatures that crawled
Why bugs were some of his very best friends
Spiders and ants and all
Now that’s not to say that he ever looked down
On a vision of twinkled lights
Or on mirrored bubbles and peppermint canes
And a thousand other delights
And he often had dreams of tiny reindeer
And a jolly old man in a sleigh
Full of toys and presents and wonderful things
And a story of Christmas day
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Photo by Kathy Keough/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
