Jesse Winchester - Nothin' But a Breeze
Hi Dirk,
I was searching UU, looking for something I remembered you posting about strings in the past, when I stumbled across your post about Jesse Winchester.
I know it is an old thread here but I thought you might be interested to know that one of my all-time favourite songs is Jesse's
"Nothin' But a Breeze".
I always got the impression that Jesse was an OK sort of guy so, when I covered it on ukulele, I emailed him to let him know. I hoped he would reply but I was amazed when he replied the same day.
Like you, I was very sad to hear when Jesse passed away.
I had come across this quote by Bob Dylan before,
"You can’t talk about the best songwriters and not include him”.
In an obituary to Jesse, Janis Ian wrote,
“As underrated a singer as Chet Baker. As underrated a guitarist as Willie Nelson. A man who held the audience in the palm of his hand without moving an inch. One of the best songwriters on earth. Damn damn damn.” (“Tribute: Jesse Winchester”, LVVN Music, 7 April 2014)
And a really nice guy who could be bothered to reply promptly and kindly to "ukulele fan mail".
12 June 2013
Dear Jesse,
Nothing But A Breeze has stayed as one of my favourite songs since a very musical friend played it to me in the 1970's. We lost touch, met again over 20 years later and I asked him to play it to me again. Then I learned to play the ukulele and sing a bit and he helped me to work out the chords - D is fine for him but a little too high for me.
There is something very magical about this song and I do hope my attempt and the video please you
Best wishes,
Liz Panton
Thank you, Liz - that was beautiful - I'm very touched.
Keep picking,
Jesse Winchester
Thank you - I am VERY glad that you liked it.
I hope you keep in good health for long to come!
Best wishes,
Liz
9 August 2014
My sincere condolences to Jesse's family. I was very sad to hear that Jesse had passed away and know he must be a great loss to his nearest and dearest family and friends.
With all best wishes,
Liz Panton
As you can see, it was a while too before I heard that Jesse had died.
I hope you enjoy my ukulele version of "Nothin' But a Breeze", Dirk. It always goes down well as a cover song, I am always asked who wrote is and I never cease to be amazed how few people have heard of Jesse. He definitely deserved MUCH wider recognition.
Best wishes,
Liz