It was the late great Townes Van Zandt who said “Anytime anyone asks me who my favourite music writers are, I say Mozart, Lightning Hopkins, Bob Dylan and David Olney…. David Olney is one of the best writers I have ever heard, and that’s true. I mean that from my heart”. High praise indeed from someone who knew a thing or two about writing great songs.
Since his untimely death whilst performing on stage at the 30A Songwriter Festival at Santa Rose Beach, Florida, on the 18th January 2020, the legacy of David Olney has continued to grow and grow, with a brand new album just released entitled “Can’t Steal My Fire: The Songs Of David Olney”, that sees some of the finest and most respected writers of a generation come together to record their favourite Olney song. Artists such as Lucinda Williams, Steve Earle, Buddy Miller, Mary Gauthier, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Janis Ian, to name just handful who wanted to play their part in honouring this true giant of the singer-songwriting profession.
In his lifetime Olney recorded around 30 solo albums, either studio or live, though his musical career began way back in the 70’s, starting with the band Simpson, while in the early 80’s he formed The X-Rays. He would have been the first to admit that it took a little while for things to fall into place, and though never becoming a household name, many of those solo albums are now considered classics of their genre, with the songs constantly mined, covered by such luminaries as Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Tim O’Brian, and Del McCoury, and have become a constant inspiration for so many more.
With so many incredible songs to chose from, and let’s be honest, there are enough songs from just his first two albums to more than fill this so-called ‘Top 10 List” on their own, I have chosen to make life a little easier by selecting only from songs that Olney was credited for writing on his own. In truth this list will probably require a part 2, hell, possibly even a part 3, to come close to including all the deserving contenders, so somewhere down the road when our esteemed Editor is either not looking, had too many glasses of red, or simply forgotten, I will sneak the next edition passed him, for if ever a songwriter deserved the extra coverage then it’s surely got to be the great David Olney.
As always, I look forward to hearing your comments, and suggestions, being quite aware that many of your favourites will be missing from this list. Rest assured, many of my favourites are missing as well. It’s that old, pint into a half-pint pot scenario once again. Anyway, hope you enjoy.
Number 10: ‘Deeper Well’ (from “Deeper Well” 1989)
The title track from Olney’s sophomore album, this track would form the centrepiece of Emmylou Harris’ 1996 released Grammy Award-winning album “Wrecking Ball”, where strangely enough Harris and producer Daniel Lanois were co-credit with Olney on the songwriting credits, though the lyrical structure and melody differ little from the original. From its opening notes of the rustic fiddle playing against the driving intensity of an acoustic guitar, Olney takes the listener on a frantic journey through an almost apocalyptic landscape, the narrative brutally graphic, the vocals delivered with an urgency such as if his very life depended on it’s telling.
Number 9: ‘If I Knew I Couldn’t Do It’ (from “Omar’s Blues” 2000)
One of the many characteristics to be found in Olney’s writing was his penchant for retelling familiar tales from the history books, or in this case stories from the Bible. ‘If I Knew I Couldn’t Do It’ sees his focus here turn to the well known tale of David and Goliath, told through the eyes of David and his success for the little man against all the odds. One of Olney’s greatest strengths was his ability to inhabit the characters within his songs, like those great method actors of the past, transporting the listener to the scene of the action, regardless of time or place. This track would become a large part of his live shows for many years and the attached link is taken from his album “Woman Across The River”, recorded live in Holland, by longtime friend and collaborator Pieter Groenveld, founder of Strictly Country Records, where he had a large and loyal following. It was released in 2002.
Number 8: ‘Loves Been Linked To The Blues’ (from “Roses” 1991)
This song first appeared on Olney’s third album “Roses”, and offers a slightly different approach in his writing and sound. From it’s opening measures of a blues-infused slide guitar upon a 12 string acoustic that continues throughout, underpinning the song’s structure, along with the introduction of some jazzy chords from the piano that supply a splash of colour to the arrangement, all topped off by a sublime trumpet solo transporting this song to an orbit similar to that of those early Tom Waits albums. Here Olney’s vocal delivery and narrative continue to encourage that comparison on an album, which with its bigger production, was supposed to propel him into the big time. Unfortunately that wasn’t meant to be, but just possibly in the long run those of us in the know were the real beneficiaries.
Number 7: ‘If It Wasn’t For The Wind’ (from “Eye Of The Storm” 1986)
First appearing on Olney’s debut album “Eye Of The Storm”, in 1986, this beautiful number immediately announced him to the Nashville singer-songwriter fraternity, with its stunning melody and heartfelt narrative perfectly delivered. The arrangement is nothing more than guitar and vocal with just enough percussion to supply the motion, allowing the sagacity of the poetry to sit front and centre. There’s a timeless quality to this number, as if it could have been written anytime between 1950 and yesterday, and one feels it will continue to maintain this aura for decades to come.
Number 6: Queen Anne’s Lace (from “Eye Of The Storm”, 1986)
‘Queen Ann’e Lace’, the second track on this list from his debut album, and another perfect example of Olney’s craft at storytelling, but this time without any historical references. It follows a familiar theme, one time lovers crossing paths many years later, one fallen on hard times the other living the highlife, and though the song’s structure, verse and chorus, all follow a more recognisable format, the poetry still betrays that keenest of eyes, with the sweetest melody offering the perfect juxtaposition to the bitterness of the narrative as he sings, “traded all her pain for bright lights and chilled champagne”, before the veiled threat of “they think they know her well, (ah) the stories I could tell”. It is the ultimate in broken-hearted love songs, that can be traced all the way back to Hank Williams and the Louvin Brothers, and the equal to the very best that have followed since. It may be a slightly controversial choice, but be assured this is a personal favourite.
Number 5: ‘1917’ (from “Through A Glass Darkly”, 1999)
“The French prostitute, 1917”, are the opening lines, spoken by Olney as an introduction to this heartbreaking tale of World War 1. From here Olney tells the story from the prostitute’s viewpoint, as she offers comfort to the soldiers, broken, afraid and scarred, both from what they’ve seen and what they’ve done. Olney’s narrative here is neither judgmental nor overly emotive, more matter of fact, understanding the needs of both parties and the circumstances of war. Once again he takes the listener on a journey, and in barely five minutes makes you feel like you’ve just spent two hours enthralled in a cinematic masterpiece. The genius lies in the poetry, never cluttered, sparse but always with enough detail to develop the imagery, his characters immaculately defined and yet never truly unmasked, with the punchline always on point. “The morning always comes to soon, but tonight the war is over”, he sings, that perfectly captures the need to live in the moment, while towards the end, the line “They die in the trenches, they die in the air. In Belgium and France the dead are everywhere”, encapsulates both the inevitable fate of the soldier and the futility of war. And yet despite the sobriety of the subject, there lies in the narrative just enough compassion to render a faint sense of warmth and hope.
Number 4: ‘Millionaire’ (from “Roses”, 1991)
Though this song is now well over thirty years old, its subject matter seems to resonate louder today than when it was first released. Here Olney’s narrative focuses on the rich and powerful, how they are seen, as well as how they see themselves. He opens with the line “Well I started out with one lone dollar”, as if to somehow justify the evil and corruption that follows before demanding “How many of you want to see me dead, how many of you want to have my head, how many of you are wishing you were me”. And in that line he turns the spotlight on what’s wrong with so much of today’s society, with his lyrical sagacity exposing all the selfishness, envy, and greed, revealing the frailties of mankind. His poetry pulls no punches, his vocals delivered with an arrogant swagger “I’m bad but I don’t care, I’m going to be a millionaire”, while the broader accompaniment of a fiery fiddle and feisty percussion offer the perfect musical foil. Towards the latter stages of the song he sings the line “got myself in a good position, bought myself a politician”, that unapologetically decries the state of politics both of the time, and most definitely today.
Number 3: ‘Who’s The Dummy Now’ (from “One Tough Town”, 2007)
“A chunk of wood that’s me, a dummy on your knee”, is the opening line from this dark comedic tale, that highlights the power struggle between a ventriloquist and his dummy who have fallen on hard times. Once again Olney demonstrates his artistry of inhabiting the characters within his songs, in this case the dummy, with the narrative spiced full of one-liners that would make most writers hang up their pen. The song finds the dummy goading the ventriloquist, undermining his role, claiming “my lines are the best”, and “you know I’ve had my fill, it’s about time I got top bill”. The dummy doesn’t restrict his vitriol to just their professional relationship, attacking the ventriloquist’s failure in his personal life, deriding a recent unsuccessful date with utter glee as he mocks “she wanted to be kissed, (but) you couldn’t move your lips”. Totally ingenious, and just another example of Olney’s narrative capability. Nobody else writes songs with either this level of imagination or acute vocabulary. The narrative is accompanied here by some delightful clarinet playing, their rapport seeming to add the final nail in the ventriloquist’s coffin.
Number 2: ‘Jerusalem Tomorrow’ (from “Deeper Well”, 1989)
For those of you that are regular readers of these hallowed pages you will know that I have previously waxed lyrically about this track, the second to appear on this list from his classic album “Deeper Well”. Emmylou Harris was again one of the quickest out of the blocks to recognise Olney’s talents as a songwriter, including this track on her 1993 album “Cowgirl’s Prayer”. This song is one of the earliest examples of Olney taking familiar tales and replacing them in unfamiliar perspectives, taking well-known historical characters and placing them in a reimagined context. Here he inhabits the role of a bible-era charlatan, travelling through the local towns and villages, taking advantage of the locals with his sleight of hand deception and dishonesty, who has suddenly fallen on hard times due to some ‘upstart’ called Jesus stealing his thunder, making a much greater impression on his potential customers. Olney would go on to be lauded as one of Nashville’s most literate storytellers, with a novelist’s eye for detail, and songs structured symmetrically of concept, plot and imagery. As mentioned previously, Olney had a great singing voice, full of power and grace, but here he delivered the narrative in the style of those great method actors, embodying the role and conjuring up all the emotion and imagery to places the listener at the very heart of the scene. It is unlike any other song you’re ever likely to hear.
Number 1: ‘If My Eyes Were Blind’ (from “Deeper Well”, 1989)
So I know what you’re thinking. There he goes again, deliberately courting controversy, goading us readers into a response. Well, okay you may have a point, but please, hear me out. Yes, throughout this feature I have eulogised extensively about what made Olney’s song craft so uniquely different to his contemporaries. His eye for detail, sagacious poetry, structure, plot, and imagery, that these previous nine songs have all in one way or another highlighted and endorsed. However, he was just as skilled when it came to writing in a more traditional, songwriting style, drawing similarities and comparison to such luminaries as John Prine, Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt and Tom Russell. The third track on this list to have originally appeared on his sophomore release, ‘If My Eyes Were Blind‘ is the ultimate in epic love songs. Here Olney swaps his sagacious storytelling narrative that defines so many of songs, for an emotive number that still creates a cinematic aura, like those classic old cowboy songs that echoed with the vastness of the landscape. This reminds us just what a great singer Olney was, his vocal prowess full of emotion but without an ounce of saccharine, so that you believe and hang on to every poetic syllable, while some wonderful acoustic guitar playing fills the space between the lines. This song would be covered by such legends as Mimi Farina on her 1985 album “Solo”, and Steve Young on his album “Look Forward Angel” which was released the following year, and, for today at least, is my choice for David Olney’s finest song.
The Jimmy Dale Gilmore cover is beautiful, such a fine song. The rest are pretty good too.
Hi Steve, you’ll have to enlighten me. Which song do you believe to be written by Jimmie Dale Gilmore?
Ooops. The one he sings, not written by. It’s seems to suit JDG’s persona and voice.