Originally Posted By: HearToLearn
What an amazing post!!!

First off, the writers you worked with! What?!?! I know you provided their names; and links but for those who may be wondering...

Danny "Bear" Mayo was an American songwriter, primarily known for writing country hits for artists such as Alabama, Tracy Byrd, Pirates of the Mississippi and Confederate Railroad. Byrd's "The Keeper of the Stars", which he wrote with Dickey Lee and Karen Staley, was named Song of the Year by the Country Music Association in 1995.

Bucky Jones-writer of 9 number 1 songs, with 25 top tens and over 270 songs recorded in career.

Um...like the pirates say, "Holy Ship!" That's some pretty rare air! shocked

Now to the tale of two versions.

The studio demo, to me, sounds like a hit. It sounds like a song that if someone told me that it was a hit from that time; I would not question it for a second. The singer doesn't sound exactly like Reba, but the elements are there so you don't have to reach far to imagine she would have done this song. She even has the "ts" sound for her "s" sound. Great song; and a great version of it.

The second version, to me, sounds amazing in a different way. As people have mentioned it does feel a bit more emotional. I don't think it's any one factor though. I think it's a combination of you putting your influence on every aspect of the song. I'm not sure if it's re-imagined or finally imagined, but it's really great to hear. Your singing delivers the song extremely well. Add in Janice, and honestly, that home run ball took out the lights! You two sound absolutely incredible on this. If I had to use a term to describe the overall feel, I would say it sounds "intimate" in the instrument choice and production. This adds to the delivery of the vocals you are using. Each element coming together to masterfully deliver a beautiful song.

It's strange, because it's not like I dislike the Nashville version. I like it an awful lot! It's almost as though it's two different songs to me. Both feel right in different ways. The biggest "feeling" difference comes down to a singer/backup singer feel countered by a duet. Because of that, it's a very different comparison for me. Both have their strengths. I'm not really seeing a downside in either. Personal preference has me lean towards your version. I wouldn't say the other comes in second though. I'm not sure if that makes any sense? I differentiate quality and personal preference.

Either way, I loved both versions of the song. It's emotional. I love to FEEL when I hear music. You did that for me! Thank you!

***sorry. didn't have time to proof read it. It's speech to text, so there may be some interesting sentence and word choices. wink


And...what an amazing post you have given me in return!
I wrote with Danny a lot. He was a super guy. A heart of gold. His passing was a real blow. (I wrote a couple of times with Bucky).
How nice that you note the strengths of each of the versions. That is a nice way to put it - rather than picking one over the other, since they are different and (according to what has been written here) stand on their own, so to speak...
Thanks for mentioning my "other partner" - she (and Bud) have been a huge part of music for a long time. I've been fortunate to have great friends to do music with...
Thanks for a wonderful review!!...

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