I was in high school when Phoebe Snow released her self titled debut album. I can't explain it but there was something unique about it. Others like Carol King, James Taylor, Bread- they had a similar sound but Phoebe Snow was different in a way I couldn't explain then or now.
You have to remember that this was an era before MTV, auto-tune, American Idol, huge stadium shows and what all has become the norm for the modern music industry. It was the time of the singer craftsman (or woman) and Phoebe Snow was a master.
She died today at the age of 60. Immediately on hearing the news "Poetry Man" started playing in my head and has been in a continuous loop. I guess it will be for a few days to come. But unlike other songs that become annoying after a while (Afternoon Delight, anyone?) the haunting quality of "Poetry Man" is a bit comforting. It takes me back to when I was a young man and the music and lyrics to songs created images in my mind.
I'm thinking that we will probably not hear another artist like Phoebe Snow. I'm not saying this because she is/was one of a kind (although she is/was) but because of the what the music industry is today. Artifice instead of art; consumption instead of content; marketing before craft. We live in an age when a video on You Tube can turn a kid into a superstar (for a while). I sure there are others out there as skilled if not more so than Phoebe Snow but for some reason that don't fit the "Idol" format and will remain performing in the local cafes with local followings all the while doing a day to day just to get by. This is our lost.
So the voice of Phoebe Snow is silent but not forgotten. Though she is gone her music continues to live and for this I am grateful. Thank you Phoebe Snow for showing a young boy so many years ago magic and majesty in a song.
