Los Angeles, California: When Woodstock legend Melanie passed away on January 23 last year, we not only lost one of the most distinctive voices and songwriters of the last 60 years.
We lost, too, what promised to be one of the most audacious albums of her entire career - and with 30-plus others to choose from, that was a very high bar to clear.
Secondhand Smoke, as she called it, was to be a collection of covers chosen precisely because nobody would have expected her to choose them.
Nine Inch Nails, Radiohead, Depeche Mode, Morrissey, The Adverts, Britpop heroes Ash (their “Uncle Pat” had been in and out of Melanie’s live set since the 1990s) and more were lined up, and so was David Bowie, whose “Everyone Says Hi,” she admitted, resonated particularly deeply within her.
Indeed, it is one of the most emotionally affecting songs Bowie ever wrote. Taken from Bowie’s 2002 album Heathen, it is effectively a greeting to someone who has been loved and lost. And in the weeks and months following Melanie’s death, her son and long-time musical collaborator Beau Jarred found his thoughts increasingly returning to Bowie’s simple, but so moving lyric.
“Said you took a big trip, they said you moved away
“Happened oh so quietly, they say.”
Although nothing had been recorded, Beau Jarred and Melanie had already started working on the song’s arrangement; now he returned to it, laying down a vocal in one sleepless night, and initially intending it simply as a gift to his family and friends.
But the more people who heard it, the more the performance took on a life of its own - until finally, with the first anniversary of Melanie’s departure looming, he was persuaded to release it to the world, a tribute not only to his mom, but also to Bowie, whose own death, in 2016, was also remembered this month; and to Melanie’s myriad fans, whose messages of support and love have done so much to sustain Beau and his family across these last 12 months.
The accompanying video, made up from a subtly sync-ed collage of photographs and press cuttings, adds further emphasis to the song’s emotional impact, as Beau explains.
“It’s for everyone. There’s nothing any of us would like more than to be able to say ‘hi’ to her, ask her how she’s doing, tell her to call sometime. And wherever she is, I know she can hear us. Hi mom, hi dad. And hi to David Bowie as well. We miss you all.”
SINGLE: https://orcd.co/beaujarred_everyonesayshi
VIDEO: https://youtu.be/z1KDQ1OHY6Y
