Tag: James Taylor

S_V_H Up On the Roof image4

Published on by Scott Von Holzen

upOnTheRoof4

Up On The Roof is a Classic Pop song written by Carole Kin, and first recorded by the Drifters in 1963. Years later it made it back to the charts with a recording by James Taylor in 1979.  I picked this song to paint, for some reason, somewhere, at some time,  I had good feelings towards this music. That feelings is constituent even today, every time I hear it.  I am not sure whose version I first heard, and fell for,  or when it made such a lasting impression on me.  Maybe, It is the lyrics or the way the words connect,  that puts it in my iTunes three stars plus list,  that now numbers 291 songs out of 20,000.

“When I come home feelin’ tired and beat
I go up where the air is fresh and sweet
Up on the roof
I get away from the hustling crowd
And all that rat race noise down in the street
Up on the roof”

For this artwork it was the next lines of this music that are the inspiration:

“On the roof, the only place I know
Where you just have to wish to make it so
Let’s go up on the roof
Up on the roof”

Of course this  music may have stuck in my head, because it is a rare pop song that has nothing to do with wanting, having, losing, or not getting it on with someone.  It is only about finding peace and maybe sharing it with another.

“And if this world starts getting you down
There’s room enough for two, up on the roof
Up on the roof”

Scott Von Holzen

S_V_H UP On the Roof image2 & 3

Published on by Scott Von Holzen

upOnTheRoof2

Up on The Roof Image 2

upOnTheRoof3

UP on the Roof Image 3

Up on the Roof is a Classic pop song from the sixties and on. There has been a major change that you may find hard to see in the full images.  In the first image  the first two canvases butt together.  In image two, and now three, what you are now seeing is that I have separated the first two canvases using  canvas two as a first step up.  Canvas three and four then are each another step up. This is my first artwork with four different levels.  The obvious reason that I am stepping these canvases is to follow the flow of the music. This artwork is going to look interesting, on a wall. Right now, it is hard to hold the work safely on the easels, without adding an arm to let the artwork move out from the support.

Next up is to put in the musical flow.

You can buy a finish print of this artwork at a discounted price at my Etsy site for $30.

Scott Von Holzen

S_V_H UP On the Roof image1

Published on by Scott Von Holzen

upOnTheRoof1

UP on the Roof is a new small work, 72 inches in length.  I decided to start this work while I wait the arrival of canvases needed for the next artwork in the Vivaldi Four Seasons series, Autumn Allegro 3rd movement.

Why paint Up on the Roof? That is a question that is as hard to explain, as it is easy to answer:  I like this music. I think it will hold well over time. The words say something that a lot of people can relate to, and the melody is catchy. Finally, the timing was right. This song happened to play in iTunes, and I became curious about it. I learned that Carole King, another old favorite of mine, co-wrote it. Searching for recordings I found a live performance of Up on the Roof with James Taylor and Carole King, and at that point the choice became clear.  UP on the Roof not only is a good song, it has history and depth with me, which all helps aid the decision-making process.  It comes down to this, I only have some much time to paint a limited number of musical pieces, so I have to pick wisely, or pick a song when it is hot, before I change my mind. Hopefully, I have chosen wisely, for unlike the just completed, Keep on Loving you, which has a buyer, this one is on its own to prove it worth.

I cannot remember which version of this song that I first heard, but I am thinking it may have been the version by the Crying Shames, a garage band, that dates to 1967.  The sound and the date sounds about right. Also, there is a slight possibility that it could have been James Taylor, because I have always been a fan of his music, ever since his Sweet Baby James album. Taylor’s version of UP on the Roof dates to 1979, which seems late for me. The last possibility may have been the original release, and major hit by the Drifters in 1963, but I doubt it.  I do not think music meant much to me until the Beatles, which was  when I was a sophomore in high school in 1964. I am going with the Crying Shames, for now.

One more personnel discovery about this song, is a rare cover by Laura Nyro, my musical first love when I arrived on campus in Madison in 1968.  Her record ,Eli and the Thirteenth Confession, was a heavy play in the dorm at that time.

The base colors are dark and gritty, to keep with the mood of the music. This changes as the work moves from left to right. The third canvas elevates about the first two, while the fourth canvas is another step up from the third  This artwork is another three-layered work, similar to The Four Seasons Work, Spring Danza, where you have to go to the firth canvas which is the first to touch the wall in my living room.

I am also posting this first image of Up On The Roof,  on Etsy, where you can pre-order a digital print for much less money, then when finished.

Scott Von Holzen