My Favourite Songs of 2018: The President Sang Amazing Grace - Joan Baez

The President Sang Amazing Grace - Joan Baez
from the album
Whistle Down The Wind
Razor & Tie
Produced by Joe Henry
Released 2nd March 2018

The President Sang Amazing Grace
written by Zoe Mulford
A young man came to a house of prayer
They did not ask what brought him there
He was not friend, he was not kin
But they opened the door and let him in

And for an hour the stranger stayed
He sat with them and seemed to pray
But then the young man drew a gun
And killed nine people, old and young

In Charleston in the month of June
The mourners gathered in a room
The President came to speak some words
And the cameras rolled and the nation heard

But no words could say what must be said
For all the living and the dead
So on that day and in that place
The President sang Amazing Grace
The President sang Amazing Grace

We argued where to place the blame
On one man's hate or our nation's shame
Some sickness of the mind or soul
And how the wounds might be made whole

But no words could say what must be said
For all the living and the dead
So on that day and in that place
The President sang Amazing Grace
My President sang Amazing Grace 

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You might wonder why I would have this song on my list of Favourite Songs of 2018, after all it's not the usual kind of thing I am known for listening to, but it gets on the list because in my mind it is one of the most beautiful songs that I have heard this year.

Originally written and performed by Zoe Mulford following the 17th June 2015 mass shooting in the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in downtown Charleston, South Carolina. Nine people were shot dead and there were three survivors of the shooting. President Barack Obama attended the funeral of one of the victims, state senator Clementa C. Pinckney and he gave the eulogy. I think that it was this moment (or maybe it was another meeting in those late days of June) that gave Mulford the inspiration for the song.

Baez heard the song on the radio whilst driving, "and I had to pull over to make sure I heard whose song it was because I knew I had to sing it."

In passing it's worth mentioning that Joan Baez did something that she had never done before in 2008 and that was to endorse a Political Candidate for the Presidency! Writing to the San Francisco Chronicle she had said, "Through all those years, I chose not to engage in party politics. ... At this time, however, changing that posture feels like the responsible thing to do. If anyone can navigate the contaminated waters of Washington, lift up the poor, and appeal to the rich to share their wealth, it is Sen. Barack Obama." Playing at the Glastonbury Festival in June 2008, Baez said during the introduction of a song that one reason she likes Obama is because he reminds her of another old friend of hers: Martin Luther King, Jr..

So for her first studio album in a decade she recorded it and a handful of other covers by the likes of Tom Waits, Josh Ritter, Mary Chapin-Carpenter, Anohni, Joe Henry, Kathleen Brennan, Eliza Gilkyson and Tim Eriksen. The album (Whistle Down The Wind) is actually quite beautiful and a wonderful listening experience. When you consider the years that Baez has given to the Civil Rights Movement and Human Rights and other Social and Political issues this collection of songs is a fitting end to her recording career.

Watch and Listen to a live version by Zoe Mulford Here.

The Victims of the Shooting Lest We Forget:

Clementa C. Pinckney (41) – the church's pastor and a South Carolina state senator.

    Cynthia Marie Graham Hurd (54) – Bible study member and manager for the Charleston County Public Library system; sister of politician and former state senator Malcolm Graham.

    Susie Jackson (87) – a Bible study and church choir member. She was the oldest victim of the shooting.

    Ethel Lee Lance (70) – the church's sexton.

    Depayne Middleton-Doctor (49) – a pastor who was also employed as a school administrator and admissions coordinator at Southern Wesleyan University.

    Tywanza Sanders (26) – a Bible study member; grandnephew of victim Susie Jackson. He was the youngest victim of the shooting.

    Daniel L. Simmons (74) – a pastor who also served at Greater Zion AME Church in Awendaw.

    Sharonda Coleman-Singleton (45) – a pastor; also a speech therapist and track coach at Goose Creek High School; mother of MLB prospect Chris Singleton.

    Myra Thompson (59) – a Bible study teacher.

Rest In Peace