I first heard Emily West sing "Blue Sky" at a show she played at The Rutledge with Matt Jenkins in the summer of 2008. Later that year I saw her sing it again at the Capitol Records block party in Nashville. It took me two times to purchase the song (and digital EP) on iTunes and I've always felt that song sound absolutely glorious on the radio. And I'm right.
Possessing a voice that simple proves to be a master class every time she sings, "Blue Sky" is the first time that Emily West has come to radio with a ballad. Like Sarah Buxton, Emily West isn't a carbon-copy artist and perhaps that's what has made it hard for her previous singles "That Kind of Happy" and "Rocks In Your Shoes" to find an audience. The cheerful personality was 'too much' for some to bear, at least at first. But, all of this should change with "Blue Sky."
Written by Emily West with Gary Burr, this is a ballad where soft and subtle work as Emily sings this is a powerful rumination about finally taking the chance to step up and out of a horrible relationship. It's a song with a particularly strong second verse where she says exactly why she's giving up 'the ghost' of the relationship:
"So you heard the pitter-patter of a lost heart beating
And learned what it was for
So you made a list of shoulders that you’d be needing
Well mine aren’t yours anymore
Come on show me your temper
Be the man I remember
So I won’t forget what you’ve done?"
Anyone who has been in a relationship with somebody with a bad temper or who constantly masks it with their charm, only to have that temper return in the future, will certainly relate to that verse and the powerful chorus which she proclaims that she's not going to be blue sky to their rainy day, that shoulder that they can cry on to clear up their problems.
This re-worked for radio single features a slightly different melodic structure and Keith Urban (instead of Emerson Hart). And while adding K.U. to the song should help "Blue Sky” with its chances at radio (and digital retail), this song is still very much Emily West's song.
Hopefully it's the right song to introduce Emily West to radio and with that hope comes my "Blue Sky" where a whole album from the talented singer/songwriter gets released. The world needs more confident, independent minded singers like Emily West and "Blue Sky" is already a contender for one of 2010's best singles.
You can support Emily West by purchasing this single at Amazon | iTunes.
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