Another song about a dying little town in America. The part about everything looking prettier when the sun is going down is actually true. Nothing like the Golden Hour to give any town a look of glory!
Hope y'all been doing well. Haven't been on here in a while and miss ya! Happy for spring. winter was a rough one for all of us!

Where I come From- Patty Griffin- cover - 4:10:21, 2.22 AM

This is a very old traditional song and written from a true story, so I have been told. as most songs are. old Time traditional music, which should be a category-genre on here!
such a sad song, why was Mary walking in a cold wind to her Dad's? was she afraid of her husband and trying to seek refuge? that was my first thought when I heard this song. Unfortunately that is still a story many women tell.  anyway this is my humble rendition of this old time song. Love to y'all. ( the picture is of my great grandfathers farm) His son was my Dad's father who abandoned his family and lived with another woman in the next town. I heard of this as a rumor, but found it all to be true when I moved back here. my grandmother lived alone and ran the farm on her own. I somehow knew she was an amazing woman, even when I was a child. bless her and all the women who have to find a way to go it alone. Some of them survive.
 (Mary was a popular name. it was my Mom's,  grandma's , my aunt and sisters name. )

Mary of the wild Moor - 5:5:21, 3.09 AM

This song is one of my faves of Patty's. so RAW and true about how much love we hold from those who are the closest to us, all the way to the grave . My father went to his grave never saying he was proud of me, and I know he knew I needed to hear it. Of course, this song is about the many marriages that may last till 'death do they part' but the love, or the attention to actively loving one another had left long ago. she has another song about this, that I covered here called "Top of the World". she obviously was touched by this theme in her life, as many of us are. A sensitive song writer she is, she is one of my faves. My versions are very humble, stumblings of her Beautiful work.

Long Ride Home-Patty Griffin-cover - 3:22:22, 2.00 AM

I heard this song on the radio several years ago and was immediately struck with a sadness I could not shake , as it was exactly how I was feeling about a dear friend, and Godfather to my daughter. The last time I had seen him he was drinking heavily and seemed as though he had lost his way. He called the same night I had heard this song, and he was walking in a heavy cold rain and was coughing badly and telling me that he saw no use in going on, that no one loved him and he was now homeless living in an abandoned house with no heat and could I come and see him soon. I told him I would send him a check to help out, and I would come down the following weekend and to just try and find a warm place at a friends.. he said "I don't have any friends anymore".. it was the saddest phone call i have ever had. That night I felt a sense of helplessness as I knew he needed help beyond my capabilities. The next day I felt an urgent need to get back in touch, and tried his cell phone multiple times but to no avail. The next day his daughter called to say he had been found alone and lifeless in that cold empty house surrounded by empty vodka bottles and a framed picture of his God daughter. We miss him every single day. He was a good kind soul, with a very bad disease .. I hope his spirit is at peace. You were loved Gary, I wish you had known..

-Are You Alright -Lucinda Williams Cover

I lost my Mother many years ago, not by her parting, but by my protecting my child from the cycle of abuse. I believe the cycle of abuse has to be 'tripped' even if this means losing your parental family, which i did. Sometimes we have to create our own family that may not have our blood , but they have our back and love us . I never share this part of my life with anyone, but music brings this out in us and helps to heal the pain. 


Mother - Kasey Chambers - Cover

I always felt so sorry for the character in this song begging so woefully to keep her man, but was also angry with her for begging to keep a cheater, Ha! But something about this song has always pulled at my heart strings and just love the flow of it.  I think the lady in this song has a few kids and really loves her man and the thought of losing him would be pretty tragic to her.. Thanks for listening and pardon me for not being no Dolly ! :)

Jolene- my rendition of a Dolly Parton song

Just had a year long relationship end with all the 'red flags' adding up to the heartbreaking truth ,which this song certainly is perfect for, guess this is an age old story that will never go out of style.

Come all Ye Fair & Tender Ladies

A very informal cover of this Dylan song with my friend, Jack Beck, who plays guitar much better than me and we are just enjoying some nights to sing and play together and thought we'd try this, as we are both Dylan lovers. He is from Scotland and I am Appalachian and we have noticed how much we share in music and ancestry. we are truly one and music is the connecting force we all share. the lyrics we discussed, Jack said he felt 'crawling down the avenue' was more suited for a woman, which I immediately protested ..after all,  it was written by a man, even Bob changed that verse to 'Flying down the avenue ' but tonight Jack and I made a compromise and sang it 'Running down the avenue' Not this version here, as we didn't record tonight, ANYWAY! so glad to be back and sharing here, as SC froze all my songs and wouldn't allow me to upload anymore as I somehow signed up for a different membership , Had to wait for over a year for that to expire and I think I paid for the correct plan now! Yay! I have missed y'all and look forward to sharing more songs and listening to your beautiful music ! Thank you to those who remember me and still visit my page, I can Thank Tony Lyrics  for that! Much love to all of you! Music is the Peace we all need more than ever! 
`Jack Beck is on SC now, if you would like to check him out and follow!'

Make You Feel My Love , Dylan Cover By Jack Beck (Guitar) Susi (vocal)

I know this was written about being on the road and leaving a loved one behind, but as I was listening to this tonight, I was thinking of my daughter and grandson and every time I visit and see him so sad  when I leave, I wish I could only fly right back to see them whenever I miss them. Just feeling this song tonight . been a while since I posted and been trying to figure that to cover, and this one tugged at my heart. Love to y'all, Hope you get to see the ones you love often. Thanks always for listening , appreciate ya.

If I could only fly. Foley Cover by Susi - 3:24:24, 2.16 AM

Found this lullaby I wrote for my daughter, 'Little Boo' September 1998, she was 7 and we had moved from an energetic beach town to a small town in the mountains at the urging of my father to care for him. I was a single mom and it was .. hard.. but I loved my daughter dearly and that love for her pulled me through everything that I encountered . I would fight for her and l learned how, just by loving her, which I never learned to do for myself. My daughter now calls her son 'Little Boo'  and I know she loves him dearly. Parenting is hard, but I am so glad that I helped my daughter get a college education and she is married and well, and that's my proudest accomplishment is investing in her future. I just put a melody to this lullaby tonight and y'all know I am a very simple guitar player, but I know y'all also respect my sincerity of trying to express myself through the art that unifies us all. I feel blessed to be a part of this peaceful loving tribe. Thank you for listening. Love y'all.

Little Boo - Original by Susi

Always liked this simple, yet heart felt song. I know it can be played with a lot more embellishments , but I can only do the simple versions. I know this is written about his lover or Maybe a good friend, but as a Mom I think of looking for a teenager who has run away and a Mom would do anything to get her back and let her know how much she is loved. That tends to be where my heart takes me on this kinda song road. ( Photo of me on the road in my younger days)

How I Got To Memphis - Cover - 4:9:24, 12.50 AM

I always like the stripped down version of songs and when I heard this one, by Gretchen Wilson, I love the raw honesty of how she is asking for space, after an argument and knowing things will be better if she can have the respect of being left alone to process the pain and come by loving again. such an important part of any relationship is to trust and know that things will be okay if ya just give it a day and some time for peace. anyway, this is my very humble rendition of this simple, but real song, that we can all likely relate to. Thanks for the listen and appreciate ya.

I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today' - Gretchen Wilson Cover

I love how this song is both an apology , but also a bit of defiance in saying "Hey, Im a human , cut me some slack" :) 
So many things among friends and lovers are forgivable .and Ive been thinking about what we choose to forgive depends on our upbringing and even geography- culture. What could be a slight to one person, could be heartbreaking  to another.  Peace !
The image I took of some musicians that were traveling through town . I asked if I could take some pix and they said Yes, but they needed fiddle strings , & some food money, which I went to my house and came back with .  I often think of them and hope they are well ! Music is such a connecting factor in life !

Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood- Animals- Susi version :)

Always loved the soft feeling of this song , but found the lyrics confusing. But now I think its a simple song about friends going to a 'pad' after a night of partying and one person thinking there was more to it than there was.. and so he/she lit a fire and thought "Isn't it good' either way .. friend or lover, we are blessed to be cared for . 
I recall folks thinking the title was  a play on 'knowing she would' :) and the song is truly about how we don't 'know' anyone.. yet told with a gentle simplicity .

Norwegian Wood - My take on a Beatles tune

This song always spoke to me, even though I was young when I heard it. Of course I knew many 'old people ' and they all lead very different lives . My Grandma ,on my Dad's side, was the most active woman I have ever known and yet she never left her farm ( I wrote the song "Grandma Understands" about her. I never once heard her complain or gripe about anything ! She was too busy surviving , which meant growing food, preparing it, cooking it and making clothes and quilts etc . I don't think she had any 'bills' because she had no plumbing or electricity until my uncle moved in with her and got her a new bathroom with running water and electricity with lights and this reduced her 'activity ' because she no longer had to go to the creek for water, or live by lanterns . Then my uncle decided to sell the farm , so he could get a new brick house in town and he had granny move in with an Aunt . That was the only time I recall her being 'lonesome ' even though the house bustled with many folks and modern convenience . Grandma just sat in the rocker  'looking out the 'backdoor screen' , as the song goes. Folks walked by her as they came and went and patted her head and such , but soon, she became part of the rocking chair and was not much noticed anymore. I was in my late teens then and when I saw her distant gaze I knew she was thinking of her home , the cows and goats and the creaky wooden porch where she once rocked after a long day of milking, and walking the land gathering water, corn, lettuce , and honeysuckle for the table. Her life was taken from her and there would never be enough 'company' to replace it. 
I knew, from this experience of watching my granny fade away that the key to life was to stay active , stay involved in your own life and not count on people too much to 'make ' you happy and  to never stop doing what you love.
I pray when I'm older that no one robs me of this kind of independence.
Modern life has brought many conveniences and seemingly made life 'easier' but with the ease comes the cost and with that comes the struggle to make ends meet . 
I wonder sometimes, what have us humans done to ourselves ?
I did not mean for this to sound so depressing :) I just ponder these things sometimes :) 
I wish us all a contented life !

Hello In There - John Prine-My Take :)

Angel From Montgomery - John Prine- my Take

The age old story, oh yeah. and yes guys, I know there are cheating women too. But, I love that Kitty wrote an answer to "Honky Tonk Angels" though and got it out of her system and told it like it is! Ha! Got to love her for that !

Honky Tonk Angels - Kitty - My take

Love Townes writing, such heart and soul.

My Proud Mountains -Townes Van Zandt- My Take

This song by Gillian just sounds like an old time mountain song and that's why I love it. I think its about children who never knew who their Dads were and therefore had no 'last name ' .. but if ya think about it, a woman has no last name, as we take on our fathers , just as our moms did and on and on. and so, I still have my fathers last name, as I never married, and my daughter, therefore has my fathers name , as she was born to a single Mom (me of course ) Her Dad was abusive and I chose to raise her 'alone' ,than to be abused by , well, anyone . My daughter went through an angry period where she blamed me for not having a Dad, but, as she grew older and spent time trying to get to know him,. she came to fully understand why I chose to raise her by myself in peace . She is 25 now and is doing well.. and ,of course she will always carry the sorrow with her, as we all do ,but she will also carry the joy of knowing she was wanted and loved by , at least one of her parents . Bless all the lonely hurting children. That is the seed of the utmost discontent of all humans & the pain we now witness. Some day I do believe there will be an awakening of empathy and compassion on earth. ( I did not know I was going to write all that !! I can be so sappy :) Love to all of you and thank you !

susi lawson's Album

No One Knows My Name- Tribute to all of you without Fathers- Gillian Welch- My Take

Just a late night share .. A song about how we all try to escape our heart break. It's rough, but I know you'll forgive me.
I'm actually an upbeat person , HA! 
I was in a bar ,a few nights ago, playing the jukebox and the bartender says to me "Can you play something more upbeat tonight ?"I looked at him and looked at the ten bux in my hand and ,  I should have said "It ain't your money Buddy" but Instead , I said "Sure " and played some more happy stuff just for him, cause he looked like he needed it more than me . :)

All the way to Jackson -Lucinda Williams -my take

My favorite verse of this song, which I have always related to ,and still do is : "I want to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free, silhouetted by the sea, with all memory and fate hidden deep beneath the waves, just  let me forget about today until tomorrow ". 
I mean , what a verse !! That , says it all... if we could all learn to live and love this moment in life that we are NOW living and rejoice in it, we would be soo very content to just be ALIVE!!
I do treasure life and sometimes the sheer joy of it brings me to tears , just as much as the sadness & sorrow we all must face .
There is so much beauty , sincerely ,in one another and in nature and music and art ! Its a grand life ...and life is Good ..even when its not ..that's my feelings tonight .
love to all of you !

Tamborine Man-Dylan- my humble version

Many of us have fond memories of our grannies, although like all things, grannies are much different now, than what I experienced  . It is a complicated evolution of pain, struggle , women's rights (which we evidently have to still struggle for ) but Ginny McJunkin and I were talking about this , when I went to interview her recently (look her up here on soundcloud, she is awesome ) Things just ain't what they used to be " ( she just wrote a song about this )and some things were in dire need of change and some things weren't . sometimes it feels like we gave up a lot to get what we wanted ,and needed ,to be whoever it is, we were, or was wanting to be. I miss the old times when we were all tired , not from boredom and stress, but from working the land and ensuring we had a good meal every night . Now we all have to pay for what we took for granted and what we didn't .. yeah, its complicated .. 
I just know when I see anger now, I understand and witness the raw pain.. (because that's the seed of any anger )if we can see that and respect the source .. then we can empathize and love one another ! I I still believe in peace !

Grandma's Hands - Bill Withers- my version

I always liked this song, Bonnie Tyler was a rock chick , and I am not . Ha! so this is my folky tame acoustic rendition. This song needs no explanation , we all been there. "Standing in the cold rain, feeling like a clown' that's a pretty good metaphor for how it feels !

It's a Heartache-Bonnie Tyler cover-Susi

I wrote this song for my book project :
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/singing-at-the-clothesline-book-project-music-photography#/
actually this memory inspired me to want to write a book about Appalachian music and how it was , and is, passed along for generations and every age from porch to porch , and clothesline to clothesline. I remain hopeful that I can get this book in print by next summer ! 
This song is very humble, as my granny was. She had a big impact on me , about how much a woman can accomplish on her own and how much we all can endure if we have faith and trust , in whatever you believe God to be and however that may speak to you personally . I do believe !
Huge thanks to Ginny McJunkin who took me out of 'stuck' mode with this song and sent me a melody ! I just was having a really rough time with that , and , she is truly a gifted singer-songwriter who sent me a melody pretty much over night ! Thank you Ginny! I am hoping she will download this and sing the chorus with me ! Check her out here on SC.
Love to y'all and hope you all have good memories to reflect on ! 
I often go back to the time I spent with my Granny.
Appreciate y'all !

Clothesline Religion- Original By Susi SoulJourney

We suffered a great loss in our community recently. 2 young lives murdered over drugs and , just lost young souls seeking a direction to belong and choosing the wrong path, which ended in betrayal and a huge loss of life for 2 young men. 
Can't quite wrap my brain around it, as I knew some of these kids,  I was capturing their 'moments' during my sports photography days, a few years ago. All I saw , from my camera lens, was young shining talented youth, bound for a HOPEFUL future. 
But , the camera , that captures the smiles and achievements ,cant reveal the broken heart or the lost soul beneath that facade.
WE all are hurting , in this community for the 2 who lost their lives and the 3 who made a heartless choice that night , to abruptly end the life of two of their 'friends' over something as insignificant , as a drug money debt. 
Its so painful to think of all the multitude of lives affected by this tragedy and all the questions , that no one can ever answer...
Let's  LOVE our children, not just the ones we birthed, but all of them. They need us now, more than ever. We have to somehow be there for them. Sometimes, one person, one 'interruption' in their life, can make all the difference. Don't be afraid to 'interrupt 'anyone, when you notice the need to do so. Time to be bold and take a chance to be there for our young ones !

The Way That It Goes- Gillian Welch-SusiSoulJourney

I always thought this song was a fun little ditty , but listened again today and really heard it ! I know this is about how young girls are expected to 'act right ' and marry young and behave themselves. I never did ! I mean I sure have been a decent kind human, but have not followed the expected path or roles we assign to females at birth !  I still carry the weight of "I wanna do right , but not right now" I did my own 'right in my own time and still doing it.
Running around with her rag top down has several meanings , of course literally its driving a convertible car with the top down. but of course it also means she is living free with the wind in her hair and not following anyone's rules ! She is not 'capped off' and is being free, but she is also being criticized by everyone she knows and even her Mommy is wanting her to do better and settle down with a fella . I feel for ya Miss Ohio! Keep the wind in your hair and try and let it blow all the guilt and judgements away! You don't have to 'do right' ...just know your rights :)
Anyway, this is my humble version of this Gillian song.

Miss Ohio-Gillian Welch -My take

Just was in the mood to sing a song tonight and thought of this one by Gillian. Love her!

One and Only-Gillian Welch-Cover -

when I first heard this song, it sounded so sweet to me, I heard it sung by Elizabeth Cotten's niece  who was very young and it was so pure. then I dug into the story of Elizabeth and of course realized that this song is about losing everything your family has worked for. but I love that little bit of sass, "Didn't I shake sugaree' as though she felt it in her bones that she had made a difference, and that she was heard, even if she lost everything. I love that message. as long as we have a voice we may be helping the next generation, such as her niece. Look up this beautiful lady. She has a great story! ( As a child, she named herself. when the teacher asked her what her name was, she said "Elizabeth ". The family just called her 'Lil'Sis')
 She divorced late in life and moved in with her daughter. 
Her first instrument was the banjo and then guitar. She was left handed so she turned the guitar upside down and played the bass strings with her fingers. She was known for her first song "Freight Train". 
What a cool woman she was. (Photo from the link below)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Cotten

Shake Sugaree- Elizabeth Cotten-Cover -

So relieved to have a new leader taking over in the USA who has empathy and compassion for all Americans and wants to help get our country united and well again. 
This is a humble version of my favorite song.
Imagine!
Love y'all!

Imagine Lennon - cover by Susi - 11:11:20

Always loved this song by Louis Armstrong. this is my humble version for my Grandson's tenth month 'birthday'. I sure love this little one.

What a Wonderful world- For Little O

I have been a visual artist all my life, but have always Loved music and wanted to play music and have loved to sing since I was kid, but was always too darn shy to do anything in front of people! 
Then I Discovered Soundcloud and thought this would be the perfect place to share with other like minded souls who would not make fun of me! You give me courage!   
Thank you so much for visiting and commenting ! Appreciate the kindness of kindred spirits ! Music & Art seems to bring out the best in us, don't ya think ! Hugs , Peace and Harmony!!

Popular tracks by SusiSoulJourney