“Sunshine in the Shadows”
Recorded Thursday, August 25, 2011.
Key: G
A few days after our Brooklyn earthquake, now it’s Hurricane Irene. We’re just sitting here waiting for it. Leigh just took the baby to the park so he could run around and burn off some energy, anticipating a couple of days of being trapped inside. I grew up in Florida so I know a lot about hurricanes, although I have never actually been through one. We lived inland and when I was growing up, in the 1970s and 80s, we never got smacked by a hurricane. After I moved north, Gainesville started getting hit more.
Some of our friends in Red Hook, just south of here, were evacuated.
Anyway, the Carter Family Project forges ahead! This song is listed on our Carter boxed set as ”Sunshine in the Mountains” but we’re pretty sure the correct title is ”Sunshine in the Shadows.” Whatever. Does it sound familiar? This is a precursor to “Can the (Will the) Circle Be Unbroken”—same melody except for a slight difference in the chord structure at the end of every other verse.
We recorded this one on Thursday while Diane was here for a visit. She plays fiddle and sings harmony.
Leigh adds: You can hear Fran trying to get my attention at the end of the song, saying “second part! second part!” He had to say it three times, which means I must have been playing bass with the hollow stare of a dead-eyed meth user. Or a bass player.
Also, Hurricane Irene! We stocked up three days ago and now we’ve basically eaten through our rations. So here is what we will be eating: a half a chocolate bar, a bottle of beer, and some baby food. It would be nice if people would come over and pick—we’re staring out the window, lonely and bored with anticipating this storm.
