We were fortunate to spend a morning sitting in front of microphones at the Pennsylvania home of Craig Bickhardt, one of our favorite songwriters, a good friend of ours, and a regular collaborator. You can hear Michael’s cello on many of Bickhardt’s recordings, and Michael often backs him up live. He is one of the finest song craftsmen we have ever had the pleasure to have known, and his songs stack up against anyone’s.
In this first half of our conversation, Craig will talk about his song “Crazy Nightingale,” originally released on his album “The More I Wonder.” It is a meditation on the poet and singer Dylan Thomas, his genius, and his reckless ways that led to his untimely death. It’s a heartbreakingly beautiful song if you just let it wash over you, but listen to the words, and it takes this song to another level.
Craig talks about where the songs come from, and how he learned to make his trademark guitar work an essential part of his sound. And Craig recounts an observation from songwriting legend Janis Ian that was right on the money. At the end of this episode, we’ll hear a solo acoustic version of “Crazy Nightingale” from his most recent release, “Soliloquy: Sixteen Solo Songs.”
Craig, a former Nashville resident, has lived the songwriters’ life, writing songs for such legends as Ray Charles, B.B. King, Johnny Cash, the Judds, Tony Rice and Alison Krauss. Over the last two decades he has focused on his compelling live show.
Stay tuned for the second half of our conversation next week.
