At Last...Or... We've Lost a Great One

In a blog I wrote almost exactly one year ago, Name That Tune,  I quoted one of my all-time favorite songs, by the legendary Etta James.  I read on Yahoo news this morning, that James died this morning.  You can read the news piece here.

I love music.  It can set or transform a mood.  Music cuts across all barriers; class, race, sex, age, education.  It's boundless and eternal.  While I can certainly appreciate the sound, the beat, the tone of a song, as a writer, I am much more drawn in by the lyrics.  And Etta's were perfect in their simplicity.  There are others that come to mind, which I've also mentioned before, but I think the occasion warrants a reminder.  Supertramp, Maroon 5, RUSH, the Beatles.  And also a dear friend, whose lyrics remind me of that thinking man's band, because there is so much meaning behind simple words, melodic phrases.  He is truly talented.

But I digress, Etta James may be lost to this world, but her music will certainly live on forever.  And that song...At Last...which has so much meaning and memory for many of us, I'm sure, including me, will always be as timeless as it was back in the 50s, as relevant as it is still, today.

Rest in peace, Etta.