Over the past week, both June Carter Cash & Freyda Epstein passed away. Everyone knows who June Cash is…the writer of Wheel of Fire. I am a writer (though not a songwriter) & I sometimes think that if I could’ve written anything as powerful, vivid & profound as that song, I’d be a happy man & consider my life worthwhile. See this wonderful New York Times obituary cum music review describing the music performed at her funeral.
Kieran Kane, a founder of the O’Kanes and proponent of country music’s neo-traditional movement, pays high tribute to June Carter Cash in the toe tapping, “June Carter (Can Sure Sing),” at the same time taking a swipe at today’s contemporary, so-called “country divas”, with lyrics such as “in a world of country costume jewelry, she’s a real diamond ring.” This song is a gem. For more on the song and album it is on see Takecountryback.com. Or buy the CD Shadows on the Ground
Freyda Epstein was a founding member of the folk group, Trapezoid. Her warm, lilting alto voice graced many a wonderful folk ballad like Do You Love an Apple? on their recordings. A KBCS-FM (Bellevue, WA) dj announced yesterday that she died in a car accident. She left us far before her time.
We had the good fortune to hear Trapezoid twice back in the early-mid 80’s – very warm and intimate yet somehow otherworldly. Some performers shift your reality so that exiting back into the mundane world is a shock – Trapezoid was like that. Now & Then and Another Country are two of my favorite albums.
I never heard the entire CD (can’t buy everything!) but the couple tracks I heard from Freyda’s Acoustic Attatude (sp?) sounded really good too.
i saw an obit last month in either Sing Out or Dirty Linen (can’t recall which). Terribly sad.
Thanks for pausing to take note…
June Carter co-wrote Ring of Fire, not Wheel of Fire.
Oops, thanks for the correction. And my apologies to June Carter’s memory for screwing up.