Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are in a serious situation, but I need a break from the gloom, doom and bullying by way of hoarding. Music has always been my refuge and watching those beautiful Italians singing to each other from their balconies reaffirmed my belief that music is the answer. So until the old normal returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day.  And if this helps anyone else, even better.

I have written before about how big 1978 was for me in  music, so not surprisingly today’s song was released that year as well.  It is by another band I liked enough to listen to when they came on the radio but that is about as far as it went.  Poco was born from the ashes of the 1960’s group, Buffalo Springfield, to become a 1970’s country rock group.  Today’s song and another hit, “Crazy Love”, helped them earn their place in that genre.  When they released their album, “Legend”, I fell head over heels in love with today’s track.  It has all the staples I love in a song: a good vocal, interesting lyrics, a beautiful string arrangement and a fabulous sax solo.  It was written & sung by Paul Cotton who joined the band after Jim Messina (yes, of Loggins & Messina fame) left in 1970.

Today’s song is a wonderful tribute to New Orleans and while that city is famous for its music, the track also celebrates other things, namely the beauty of the Mississippi River rising, the site of the “full moon in tight shining down on the Pontchartrain” and the peace of “the cool southern rain”.  It’s really a beautiful love letter to the city.  We should all love one as much as Cotton loves New Orleans, even if it’s only for a day.

“And I trust in your love
Never falling down
I trust in your love
Just like I do in this town
Whoa, never falling down“.

L-R:  Poco circa 1978 & songwriter Paul Cotton circa 1974.  (Images found online.  Original sources unknown.)

Poco:  “Heart Of The Night” (1978, written by Paul Cotton).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.