Melanie Safka, Lay Down (Candles in the Rain) singing artist

[Mediafrog+]

Performed at Woodstock and had hits in the early 1970s: Melanie, Singer Who Performed at Woodstock and Topped Charts With ‘Brand New Key,’ Dies at 76

 

[Oldie919]

"Little sisters of the Sun" are shedding clouds of tears today......
RIP, Melanie.....
"....Mea Baba lives again......"!

 

[firepoint525]

One of my favorite clips by her:

 

[Phil Harmonic]

Melanie was one of only three female solo artists to perform at the original Woodstock festival, the others were Janis Joplin and Joan Baez.

 

[Greg Goodfellow]

I began my radio show Monday with a two-song tribute to her. Thanks for that info, Phil Harmonic.

 

[TheBigA]

There was a moment in time when folk singers like Melanie could get commercial airplay. Same with Joan Baez, Richie Havens, Arlo Guthrie, Phoebe Snow, Tom Paxton, Judy Collins, Tom Rush, and Phil Ochs. It was a very small window. But Melanie was the right singer at the right time. Joni Mitchell was one of the few who was able to exist beyond the window. A fun fact about Melanie was that she was on the same record label as the Lovin' Spoonful.

 

[TheBigA]

I'm reading a lot of stories about Melanie around the web. I saw this lengthy post from broadcaster Denny Somach:

Rock n Roll 4 Grownups

dennysomach.com

I interviewed her for my podcast just last week, so it was probably her final one.

Melanie was very gracious and told some fantastic stories that I don’t think people know about her.

First, her husband/manager/producer, whose office was across the hall from Michael Lang’s, asked if Melanie would play a garden party that they were planning for next summer. This was July of 1968. She agreed and thought nothing of it until late spring 0f 1969. So, she was actually the first artist to be booked for Woodstock. As it got closer to the date in 1969, she realized this was no garden party. She followed Sly and the Family Stone, who, just before they played their final song, passed out candles to the audience and asked that everyone light them. Out came Melanie, who hadn’t played for more than a couple of hundred people in the clubs of NYC. She looked out across the concert site and saw thousands of people holding candles. She went on from her appearance to become an international star. When she got home later that year, she was moved to write a song about her experience. She wrote the song, "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)", and got the Edward Hawkins Singers who were recording in the studio next door to sing backup. They nailed it in one take.

Next came “ Look What They Done To My Song, Ma” and then she left Buddha Records to start her own label, Neighborhood Records (distributed by Paramount.) She then released a single that went to number one around the world, "Brand New Key." As you correctly pointed out, she was really becoming a superstar. But it killed her career.

At the time of her death, she was just about to be back in the spotlight. She had been asked to sing a song for a tribute album for the late Pete Ham. She chose the classic, “Without You” which Ham wrote. It had been a big hit for Harry Nilsson, Mariah Carey, and others.

She truly was a star and I miss her…
Denny Somach

 

[Mark Roberts]

I'm reading a lot of stories about Melanie around the web. I saw this lengthy post from broadcaster Denny Somach:

Rock n Roll 4 Grownups

dennysomach.com

Interesting story - I always wondered how she got the Edwin Hawkins Singers to back her up on "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)". You can't get more Oakland than Edwin Hawkins (except for Tower of Power) but I liked that tune way before I actually ended up living in Oakland.

 

[newsbot2]

Interesting story - I always wondered how she got the Edwin Hawkins Singers to back her up on "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)". You can't get more Oakland than Edwin Hawkins (except for Tower of Power) but I liked that tune way before I actually ended up living in Oakland.

Plus the Edwin Hawkins Singers were on Buddha sublabel Pavilion.