On songwriters knowing their songs

It should be no surprise that songwriters have a good ear for songs.

But it never fails to surprise me how tribute albums to celebrated songwriters—like the recently released one for Nanci Griffith—are not merely a collection of greatest hits covers.

Some of the songs on this album are classics—including one of my favorites, “Love at the Five and Dime”—but others are less well-known.

But when Steve Earle picks out a song to sing from a songwriter’s catalog, you pay attention. When Emmylou Harris picks out a song, ditto.

So it was I encountered two delightful new Griffith tunes: “It’s A Hard Life Wherever You Go” and “Love Wore A Halo (Before the War).”