Lonely Women

Album: Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "No one hurries home to lonely women," Laura Nyro laments on this jazzy cut from her sophomore album, "a gal could die without her man." Zoot Sims concurs with melancholy blues riffs on the tenor sax.

    In a 1969 interview with Down Beat magazine, Nyro recalled when the famed musician met with her and arranger Charlie Calello: "We played the tape for him - it was a rainy afternoon and the studio looked grey, this great big studio - it was just me and Charlie and our engineer. Zoot Sims walked in with his head down to the floor, looking so down and everything. Then he did a thing with his sax where you just hear the air coming out and, like, it's all scratchy and broken and he communicates his loneliness into the song. Charlie and I sat there, crying... It was so beautiful and it was so great because it was all in the air... this older man in this great big studio on this rainy day... he was so quiet, it was great."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Andrew Farriss of INXS

Andrew Farriss of INXSSongwriter Interviews

Andrew Farriss on writing with Michael Hutchence, the stories behind "Mystify" and other INXS hits, and his country-flavored debut solo album.

Jethro Tull

Jethro TullFact or Fiction

Stage urinals, flute devices, and the real Aqualung in this Fact or Fiction.

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: Tarantino Edition

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: Tarantino EditionMusic Quiz

Whether he's splitting ears or burning Nazis, Quentin Tarantino uses memorable music in his films. See if you can match the song to the scene.

Mike Rutherford (Genesis, Mike + The Mechanics)

Mike Rutherford (Genesis, Mike + The Mechanics)Songwriter Interviews

Mike Rutherford talks about the "Silent Running" storyline and "Land Of Confusion" in the age of Trump.

Donald Fagen

Donald FagenSongwriter Interviews

Fagen talks about how the Steely Dan songwriting strategy has changed over the years, and explains why you don't hear many covers of their songs.

Soul Train Stories with Stephen McMillian

Soul Train Stories with Stephen McMillianSong Writing

A Soul Train dancer takes us through a day on the show, and explains what you had to do to get camera time.