I was introduced to Melanie when I was about 15 years old. I bought a cd of Gospel classics, and "Lay Down" was the first song on it. I immediately fell in love with it.
Melanie and the Edwin Hawkins Singers - Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)
While I listened to this cd a lot during my teens, I kind of forgot about Melanie in the years since. That was until yesterday. I was watching Dutch television (De Wereld Draait Door Recordings) and saw Racoon, one of Holland's best artists, covering one of Melanie's old time favorites "Brand New Key". This song was her first (and only) number one hit in the US, and it sold millions of copies worldwide. In 1971 when "Brand New Key" was released it was actually censored by some radio stations as they thought she made sexual references in the song's lyrics. Melanie herself, however, claimed it was just about "freedom and roller-skates".
Racoon - Brand New Key
Melanie - Brand New Key
While Melanie was just an up and coming star in 1969, she was able to play at the legendary Woodstock Festival of 1969, with such great names as Janis Joplin, Joan Baez, Jimi Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane, CCR and the Grateful Dead. The festival helped launch her career and in the years after she managed to sell some 80 million records worldwide, and is still performing today. "Beautiful People" and "Birthday of the Sun" were among the songs she sang at Woodstock. Unfortunately I couldn't find the Woodstock version of "Beautiful People", but below is her version of "Birthday of the Sun", sung at Woodstock.
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Melanie - Birthday of the Sun
