Hello everybody, and welcome back to another blog post. Today I will be writing about Sheryl Crow, who has been featured on several Lydia’s Girls albums and is one of my favorite artists. I saw her perform live in September of 2019 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN. If you get the chance to see her perform live, I highly recommend it.
Sheryl was born in Kennett, MO, to parents Bernice and Wendell Crow. Bernice was a piano teacher, and Wendell was a lawyer, but he grew up playing the trumpet. Sheryl was a very active child growing up, joining the track team, pep club, FFA, and National Honor Society. Sheryl attended the University of Missouri and received a degree in music education. After college, Sheryl worked as a music teacher at Kellison Elementary in Fenton, MO. On the weekends, she would sing in various bands. In the music scene, Sheryl met local musician and record producer Jay Oliver, who recorded her for jingle advertisements in his studio, which was in his parent’s basement. Sheryl was very successful in recording jingles with companies like McDonald's and Toyota. Sheryl also toured with many artists like Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Belinda Carlisle, Jimmy Buffet, Kevin Gilbert, and Don Henley during her early music career. In 1992, Sheryl worked with producer Hugh Padgham to release her debut album but agreed not to release it because Sheryl thought it was overproduced. Somehow the recordings were leaked and were dispersed due to file-sharing networks. Sheryl joined her boyfriend at the time, Kevin Gilbert, and other musicians in a group called Tuesday Night Music, where they wrote many songs for Sheryl’s official debut album called Tuesday Night Music Club. After the album's release, Sheryl and Kevin's relationship ended when there were disagreements with songwriting credits. Sheryl produced her second album, Sheryl Crow, and played many of the instruments in the recordings. The album had many successful songs like If It Makes You Happy, A Change Would Do You Good, and Everyday Is a Winding Road. In 1998, she released another album, The Globe Sessions, which addressed a period when Sheryl was depressed. Overall, Sheryl has 11 albums, including the previously mentioned ones ranging from genres of pop, blues, rock, and country.
Today I will be talking about one of Sheryl's most known songs, If It Makes You Happy. Sheryl and Jeff Trot wrote this song. Jeff wrote this song from the perspective of his ex-girlfriend, and Sheryl was able to empathize. The intro to the song sets the tone: dirty and moody. I say this because the guitars have a harshness that has a grimy sound to them. The guitar has an iconic rhythm that commands your attention. This song shows off Sheryl’s vocals with the twang sound when she holds out the words “long” in the first line. Something great about the songwriting is the details in the song. For example: “We went searchin’ through thrift store jungles. Found Geronmino’s rifle, Marilyn’s shampoo, and Benny Goodman’s corset and pen. Well, ok, I made this up. I promised you I’d never give up.” In these lines, Sheryl makes up crazy stories trying to convince herself or someone else that she hasn’t given up on her dream. Sheryl then proceeds to the chorus, where she belts out, “If it makes you happy, it can’t be that bad. If it makes you happy, then why the hell are you so sad?” This line is fantastic because it’s true; something that brings us a lot of joy can also bring pain. I think this is about Jeff’s relationship. He and his girlfriend had just broken up, and I feel that might have brought him some relief, but still left him upset. In the second verse, Sheryl sings about getting down on yourself and almost having a pity party. “You get down, real low down. You listen to Coltrane, derail your own train. Well, who hasn’t been there before? I come ‘round, around the hard way. Bring you comics in bed, scrape the mold off your bread, and serve you french toast in bed. Well, ok, I still get stoned. I’m not the kind of girl you take home.” I love that last line because she’s saying, “sorry, I’m not a perfect person, take it or leave it.” The third verse says, “Well, ok, we get along. So what if right now everything’s wrong?” Even though the relationship is messed up, it doesn’t mean that they don’t care for each other and want everything to work out.
Let me know what your favorite Sheryl Crow song is, and if you have any suggestions on other artists you would like to see written about, let me know in the comments below!
Click the link to listen to Lydia's Girls playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6ETYI6A3dsOe9fJTBQVWg8?si=1dca811ddd2d4ab6
Author: Lydia MacDavid
Chief Editor: Jacob Tomeny
Yes, the guitar riff opening is pure Keith Richards, and I would have thought it was a Stones or Keef recording if it wasn't her video of the song when I first heard it. Loved it at first hearing.