As I prepare for the release of Come From Away on Apple TV I decided to go through on of my favorite songs in not just this show but in musicals period. As I wait to see how it plays out I decided to go through the song Me And The Sky, and discuss why this song not only makes for great music but also a great story. Not only giving information to the audience, but giving a narrative that hooks them while being a good song is no easy feat, let's see how this tune fares.
This song follows the story of pilot Beverly Bass from the moment she yearned to fly, to the obstacles she has overcome, how she conquered them, and what she is facing now. She gives us a tour of this story, making it not only relatable but also very personal. The tune begins with a wonderful acoustic guitar to lead us gently into the song, as the song goes more singers and instruments are added growing to highlight how far our narrator has come.
Beverly begins where it all started and gives us a song and a story in one which this show does masterfully in spades. She guides us into the chorus which uses the word suddenly, but not for the sake of repetition but rather holding a different meaning, showing how quickly your dreams can be realized, even if they start in a less then desirable passion you can still enjoy parts, and if you keep at it and keep chasing them. The instrumentation grows and we hear the powerful lyrics " Suddenly there's nothing in between me and the sky" both in a figurative and literal sense in this case.
We get to the next part of her career and even though she is in the air, Beverly is being blocked in one form or another. The story shows how at some points she is standing alone where none of her coworkers had her back, thinking she didn't belong as a pilot. But as the song heads back to the chorus we see she kept at it and became the first female American captain in history, and once again she shot for the sky and made it. Keeping her eyes on her dreams she preserves and mentions how over time things turned around, giving great inspiration.
But this is where the song takes all expectations and throws them out the window, what could have been a light, fun, inspiration added the truth and brings us back to the reality of the situations those on September 11th face even to a pilot. She describes family life and how suddenly she is married and a mother. Everything seems perfect but then the suddenly is used for something different, how she must land, how " something I loved more then anything was used as the bomb", and how something was between her and the sky. The song ends with less instrumentation and on a more somber note but a powerful one.
This song tells a full story, with ups and downs and thus tells a real one. Masterfully written and performed by the Jenn Colella and the original Broadway cast with great instrumentation, this song will give you everything. Inspiration, feeling, reality, a relatable story of overcoming and facing challenge all wrapped with very real and raw emotions. This song tells a full story and does not shy away from using the good and the bad, a beautiful piece that has shares the truth through a wonderful true story. This song is a must listen, and I can not recommend it enough.
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