She is best-remembered for From a Distance, by Julie Gold, although the version that achieved greater commercial success was not Griffith's but Bette Midler's (From a Distance). Similarly, other artists have occasionally achieved greater success with Griffith's songs than did Griffith herself: for example, Kathy Mattea, who had a country music top five hit with a 1986 cover (Love at the Five and Dime) of Love at the Five and Dime.
ADDITIONALLY
In 1994, Griffith teamed up with Jimmy Webb to contribute the song "If These Old Walls Could Speak" to the AIDS benefit album Red Hot + Country produced by the Red Hot Organization. Griffith is a survivor of breast cancer which was diagnosed in 1996, and thyroid cancer in 1998.[2]
Singer-songwriter Christine Lavin remembers the first time she saw Griffith perform:
I was struck by how perfect everything was about her singing, her playing, her talking. I realized from the get-go that this was someone who was a complete professional. Obviously she had worked a long time to get to be that good.
During her career, Griffith toured with many artists, including Buddy Holly's band, The Crickets; John Prine; Iris DeMent; Suzy Bogguss; and Judy Collins. Griffith has recorded duets with many artists, among them Emmylou Harris, Mary Black, John Prine, Don McLean, Jimmy Buffett, Dolores Keane, Willie Nelson, Adam Duritz (singer of Counting Crows), The Chieftains, and Darius Rucker (lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish). She also contributed background vocals on many other recordings.
Griffith suffered from severe 'writers block' for a number of years after 2004, lasting until the 2009 release of her The Loving Kind album, which contained nine selections that she had written and composed either entirely by herself or as collaborations.
After several months of limited touring in 2011, Griffith's bandmates The Kennedys (Pete & Maura Kennedy) packed up their professional Manhattan recording studio and relocated it to Nashville, where they installed it in Griffith's home. There, Griffith and her backing team, including Pete & Maura Kennedy and Pat McInerney, co-produced her album, Intersections over the course of the summer. The album includes several new original songs and was released in April 2012.
In addition to her own songs, Griffith is well known for her versions of other people's material, usually by contemporary singer-songwriters.
Awards
Griffith won the 1994 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album for Other Voices, Other Rooms. In 2008, the Americana Music Association awarded her its Americana Trailblazer Award; Lyle Lovett, who contributed backing vocals to some of "The Blue Moon Orchestra's" recordings,[which?] had won it before her.
Band (The Blue Moon Orchestra)
Griffith refers to her backing band as "The Blue Moon Orchestra." This reference is believed to have been drawn from both the title of one of her earliest albums, Once in a Very Blue Moon, and its title selection, which reached #85 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1986.
The Flyer
Nanci Griffith Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On a plane from San Antonio
I was traveling to London
He was going off to Buffalo
Changing planes in Pittsburgh
We got grounded in a storm
Now, I would give anything
To be on that flyer's arm
We played cards, mostly blackjack
As we sat out on the tarmac
We sang songs we knew in Spanish
As we both loved songs of language
He'd heard me on the radio
I'd seen the flyers on San Antone
Now, I would give anything
To have that flyer for my own
God bless the flyer
Who would be flying home tonight
I would give anything
To see that flyer, flyin' tonight
He said he'd never married
'cause, his heart was in the clouds
And I said I was too clumsy
That I broke the wings of the loves I found
He shouted out his name to me
As I ran to make my flight
Now, I would give anything
To see that flyer, flyin' tonight
One year I watched a war in London
In the airport leaving London
And I wondered if I'd know him
If I saw his wings in motion
Did I leave my heart in Pittsburgh...
In the lightening of that flight?
I wish that you could tell me now
Will he be flyin' home tonight?
God bless the flyer
Who would be flying home tonight
I would give anything
To see that flyer, flyin' tonight
God bless the flyer
Who would be flying home tonight
I would give anything
To see that flyer, flyin' tonight
The song "The Flyer" by Nanci Griffith tells the story of a chance encounter between two people at an airport. The singer, who is travelling to London, meets a flyer for the Air Force who is on his way to Buffalo. They get stuck at the Pittsburgh airport due to a storm, and they spend the time together playing cards and singing Spanish songs. As they bond, the singer realizes that she has feelings for the flyer, who shares that he has never married because his heart belongs to the sky. As they depart, she wonders if she will ever see him again.
The lyrics of "The Flyer" capture the longing and wistfulness of a missed connection. The singer is filled with regret at not having the chance to explore her feelings further, and she wonders if her heart was left behind on the flight to Pittsburgh. The flyer represents the romantic ideal of escape and adventure, and the singer is drawn to him precisely because he is unattainable. The meaning of the song is open to interpretation, but it can be read as a commentary on the transience and unpredictability of life, and the fleeting moments of connection that can arise between strangers.
Line by Line Meaning
He was a flyer for the Air Force
The man was an Air Force pilot who flew planes.
On a plane from San Antonio
He was on a particular flight that originated in San Antonio, Texas.
I was traveling to London
The singer of the song was on the same flight as the flyer, but headed to London as her destination.
He was going off to Buffalo
The flyer's destination was Buffalo, New York.
Changing planes in Pittsburgh
Their flight had to make a connecting stop in Pittsburgh.
We got grounded in a storm
The flight was unable to continue due to a storm, so it was delayed on the ground.
Now, I would give anything
The singer now regrets not having been able to pursue the relationship and would do anything to be with the flyer.
To be on that flyer's arm
She wishes she had the chance to be physically close to the flyer and have a relationship with him.
We played cards, mostly blackjack
While they waited for the storm to pass, they occupied themselves with playing cards and blackjack.
As we sat out on the tarmac
They were on the runway waiting for the storm to pass and were unable to take off.
We sang songs we knew in Spanish
They bonded over their love of music and sang Spanish songs they both knew.
As we both loved songs of language
Both the flyer and the artist appreciated songs for their lyrics and the meaning behind them.
He'd heard me on the radio
The flyer had heard the singer's music on the radio.
I'd seen the flyers on San Antone
The singer had seen flyers advertising the Air Force in San Antonio, where the flyer was from.
God bless the flyer
The singer is expressing her appreciation and admiration for the flyer.
Who would be flying home tonight
The flyer would be flying back to his home that night.
He said he'd never married
The flyer admitted that he had never gotten married.
'cause, his heart was in the clouds
He loved flying planes so much that it was his life's passion.
And I said I was too clumsy
The singer is admitting to the flyer that she is not very graceful.
That I broke the wings of the loves I found
She is saying that she often ends up ruining relationships, causing them to end badly.
He shouted out his name to me
Before the flyer left for his next flight, he called out his name to the artist.
As I ran to make my flight
The artist had to run to catch her connecting flight after leaving the grounded plane.
One year I watched a war in London
At one point, the singer watched a war take place in London, indicating the passage of time.
In the airport leaving London
The artist was at the airport, possibly departing from London or in transit through it.
And I wondered if I'd know him
The singer wondered if she would recognize the flyer if she saw him again.
If I saw his wings in motion
She is saying that she would recognize him by seeing him actually flying a plane.
Did I leave my heart in Pittsburgh...
The singer questions whether she left part of herself back in Pittsburgh during that grounding incident.
In the lightening of that flight?
She wonders if she missed an opportunity or gained something (a love interest) on that flight that she didn't realize at the time.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: NANCI GRIFFITH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind