Linden is primarily a blues guitarist although he frequently collaborates with country and folk performers. He is also a member, with Stephen Fearing and Tom Wilson, of the group Blackie and the Rodeo Kings.
Born in Toronto, Canada, and raised in White Plains, New York, Colin Linden returned to Canada in 1970. He was already a guitar prodigy at 11 years old, and when most kids that age are playing sports, Colin was meeting and being mentored by one of his musical heroes, the great bluesman Howlin’ Wolf, which helped set the youngster on a course to pursue the sounds of his dreams. That encounter helped fuel a career that has featured his work on literally hundreds of albums. At last count, the total of recordings on which he has played approaches 400, while over 100 albums bear the “Produced by Colin Linden” credit.
As a testament to his roots music acumen and early devotion to the idiom, Colin - at the tender age of 15 and accompanied by fellow Canadian musician Doc MacLean – embarked on a summer blues odyssey of the USA, working down from the border and hitting Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Atlanta, Memphis and other points south in the Mississippi Delta. Along the way, they met up with and performed on numerous occasions with a “who’s-who” of blues legends, including Sippie Wallace, Buddy Moss, Little Brother Montgomery, Sunnyland Slim, Tampa Red, Henry Townsend, Robert Wilkins, Sleepy John Estes, Son House and Sam Chatmon.
Colin Linden is a genuine renaissance man of roots music. He’s a singer and songwriter of great skill, an in-demand and prolific record producer (Bruce Cockburn, Tom Wilson, Colin James), a sideman to the stars as guitarist for the likes of Bruce Cockburn, Emmylou Harris, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, and, for the past decade-plus, a member of the highly successful trio, Blackie and the Rodeo Kings.
Colin’s songs have been covered by The Band, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Keb’ Mo’, and Colin James, and his well-stocked trophy case includes eight JUNO Awards (the Canadian Grammy), multiple Maple Blues Awards, and a Toronto Arts Award. He was nominated for a Grammy Award for the star-studded A Tribute to Howlin’ Wolf CD, and was nominated in 2002 for Lucinda Williams’ track on the Timeless (Hank Williams tribute) album, which won for Country Album of The Year. That same year his involvement in the O Brother, Where Art Thou project was rewarded, as “O Brother” won for Best Album and the Down From The Mountain soundtrack won for Folk Album of The Year (Linden and Chris Thomas King had a song credited together on that one). Linden has a well-deserved reputation as a slide guitar virtuoso of true originality and his riveting slide work can be heard both on albums from numerous artists as well as on his own sizeable solo catalogue.
His previous studio album, From the Water, was viewed as an homage of sorts to his long-time musical collaborator and closest friend, legendary keyboardist Richard Bell, who passed away in 2007. Bell’s accomplishments included being a member of Janis Joplin’s Full Tilt Boogie Band. Linden and Bell played on over 100 albums together (more than 40 of them Linden productions), including records by The Band, Bruce Cockburn, Lucinda Williams, Blackie and the Rodeo Kings and Colin James. The new record Rich in Love marks a return to the same label that released Colin’s first studio album, The Immortals (1986) and also represents his first new studio recording since From The Water (2009).
“I felt like so much has changed since my last studio album,” says Linden. “It was as if I was writing from a different place for these songs. At some point I even began to suffer from insomnia, and several of the songs were composed literally in the middle of the night, such as ‘Date with the Stars’.”
Website: Colin Linden
Skeleton Key
Colin Linden Lyrics
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She said come and take whatever I need
Up under the stairs by her back door
I don't have to wait no more
My baby left me her skeleton key
My baby keeps her window open wide
She loves the breeze on a summer night
My baby keeps her window open wide
My baby keeps her fire burning all night long
She knows I won't stay gone too long
Winter comes and it's freezing cold
I've got some place warm to go
My baby keeps her fire burning all night long
In Colin Linden's song "Skeleton Key," the singer is lamenting a lost relationship but also expressing gratitude for the small gestures of kindness that his ex-lover has left behind. When his partner left him, she gave him a skeleton key and instructed him to take whatever he needs from under the stairs by her back door. This gesture serves as a symbol of the giver's trust and generosity, implying that, even though their romantic connection has ended, there is still a deeper connection between them.
The lyrics also describe how the singer's ex-lover keeps her window open wide on summer nights, providing a welcoming atmosphere for the singer to return to. The warmth of her fire burning all night long in winter serves as a beacon to draw the singer back to her, and she knows that he won't stay gone for long.
Line by Line Meaning
My baby left me her skeleton key
My partner gave me access to everything in their life.
She said come and take whatever I need
They trust me with their possessions and want me to have what I need.
Up under the stairs by her back door
There is a secret place where they keep the key.
I don't have to wait no more
I am free to come and go as I please.
My baby keeps her window open wide
They are welcoming and leave a way for me to easily enter their life.
She loves the breeze on a summer night
They enjoy sharing the small pleasures of life with me.
It don't matter where I've been, I know I can slip on it
No matter how far away I am, I can always come back to them.
My baby keeps her fire burning all night long
They create a warm and cozy environment for me.
She knows I won't stay gone too long
They understand my need to leave but know that I will always come back.
Winter comes and it's freezing cold
Times can be tough and uncomfortable.
I've got some place warm to go
I have a safe haven with my partner.
My baby keeps her fire burning all night long
They continue to provide warmth and comfort for me.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LINDEN, NICHOLSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind