k.d. lang is everyone’s favourite Canadian pop/country singer-songwriter. Whether she’s singing covers or originals – and I’m including both – her voice is something else. There’s a lot of brash and flashy music about and k.d.’s stands out for peeling it back. She lets you stop and go into yourself. So let’s get into it, shall we?
“Constant Craving” (lyrics here)
“Crying” (originally by Roy Orbison; lyrics here)
“Hallelujah” (originally by Leonard Cohen; lyrics here)
She’s a delight, isn’t she?
LOVE HER.
If you don’t know it, check out “Wash Me Clean.” I could (and probably have) listen to that song for hours.
My love for kd lang knows no bounds. Aside from the strength and beauty of her voice, she is a singer of impeccable taste. A lot of younger women singers today seem to approach an emotionally-powerful ballad as if it were an exercise in mere vocal athleticism. kd can belt with the best of them (and does, to great effect, as in Hallelujah) but you have to have more than one note, emotionally as well as literally, even within one song. kd sings like an actor, expressing the layers of emotional experience within each song, which may change from moment to moment. She’s sharing a story with you, not trying to win a race.
Off to listen to it, niemaodpowiedzi! Good to see you around the ‘sphere again.
There aren’t a whole lot of prominent older female singers to engage in singing ballads, one-notedly or otherwise! You describe k.d. lang beautifully, Maud. :)