Go Ahead, Get Too Close

On this blog I have too infrequently lauded the accomplishments of women in the bluegrass and traditional genres. Bluegrass is no different than other industries dominated by men. So today I just want to pay tribute to one of my favorite songwriters, performers, and people, who happens to be an extraordinary, strong, beautiful woman.

Laurie Lewis (pictured here with partner, companion, and performing buddy Tom Rozum on mando, there) is an exceptional talent and a joy to witness. The first time I caught her live was about a week after my mother's funeral. It was one of my earliest ventures into Kent (Ohio) to enjoy The Kent Stage, and I had taken my son and a couple friends along for the show. She is a singer, a storyteller, a fiddler of incredible dexterity, and a songwriter whose honest voice I could listen to over and over. Moreover, she is a woman who is very happy in her own skin, with where she is, and in what she does. No apologies. Also like almost every other industry, country music has gotten sexed up to sell records and steer the course of fashion. I'm grateful for the talented women who haven't fallen into that trap, or for it. They light my way.

This is one of my favorite Laurie Lewis songs--oh ok, I love ALL of her songs, so I went with the longest clip I could find! Its deft, infectious melody carries a lyric sweet and honest in its veiled reluctance.

While you enjoy, be sure to check out Laurie's blog/journal at http://www.laurielewis.info/, and tour dates at www.laurielewis.com.

Don't Get Too Close
Laurie Lewis, from Earth and Sky (Rounder, 1997)

http://www.bluegrassworks.com/music/profiles/26-Laurie-2.mp3

(Chorus) Don't get too close
You know I think I could love you
Don't get too closeI've got my own life to lead
When I lay me down to sleep, I don't wanna be dreamin' of you
Don't get too close, a heartache is something I don't need

You breezed in like a southwind in December
So warm and so surprising
So sweet and tantalizing that
I believed to my soul that I began to remember
Feelings that I thought were dead and buried long ago

Chorus
(banjo solo)

Well I guess I'd grown accustomed to the cold
I'd bundled up my dreams, and pulled my heart inside
I didn't realize, I thought it part of growin' old
But here are all these feelings flowin' like the spring tide

Chorus
(mando solo)

Chorus

Don't get too close, a heartache is somethin' I don't need.