Tuesday’s For Covers # 05 : I Can't Tell You Why by the Eagles

There are many songs that leave the listeners with a melancholy but for me “I Can't Tell You Why” is # 1.

This was the first song The Eagles completed for The Long Run. They finished the song in March 1978, but the album took about 19 months to complete and wasn't released until September 1979. It was The Eagles last studio album until they re-formed in 1994.

Glenn Frey played lead guitar on this song, which was rare at the time since Don Felder or Joe Walsh usually played lead, relegating Frey to rhythm.

In an interview, Frey said that this and "One Of These Nights" were the two Eagles songs he would put into a time capsule to represent The Eagles best work. [www.songfacts.com]

Even though I like the covers below, for some reasons the original is always on my mind and in my heart, but ... I can't tell you why!!

Howard Hewett [1990]

Vince Gill [1993]

The Cruel Sea [2002]

Diana Krall [2015]

Edsilia Rombley [2018]

 

Voices From Heaven : George Harrison 25/2/43 – 29/11/2001

 

On a day like today, 20 years ago, the world of music became poorer. Another one of the "Fab Four" took the stairway to heaven.

George Harrison may have been the quiet Beatle, but he was the most adventurous member of the group. And he was the most underappreciated. In the early days, he was typically given one song per album – a reflection of John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s overflowing songwriting. But by the middle of the ‘60s Harrison began exploring world music, which tied to his burgeoning spiritual quests. They both led him to India, which shaped his music for the next several years. By the time the Beatles broke up in 1970, Harrison had already released a pair of instrumental records. He was the first member to release a solo album, and he was the first to reach No. 1 with a single – 1970’s ‘My Sweet Lord,’ from his three-record set ‘All Things Must Pass.’ Harrison recorded sporadically over the years, releasing eight more albums before he passed away at 58 from lung cancer. [ultimateclassicrock.com]

Here is an unofficial collection of  songs that he wrote, as a member of The Beatles and as a solo artist.

 

Monday’s Song : The Traveling Wilburys - Handle With Care [1988]

This was the first single released by The Traveling Wilburys, who were a supergroup created by George Harrison and Jeff Lynne. Initially an informal grouping with Roy Orbison and Tom Petty, they got together at Bob Dylan's Santa Monica, California studio to quickly record an additional track as a B-side for the single release of Harrison's song "This is Love."

The title "Handle With Care" came offhand when George Harrison saw the phrase on the side of a cardboard box in the studio. [www.songfacts.com]