JPF Home Page Forums Lyric and MP3 Feedback MP3 Feedback Forum *** Sweet Family Love - Gail King/Letha Allen ***

Hi everyone,

What I'm posting today is a collaboration between Letha Allen & myself.

I just received this finished song back from Letha & I'm so thrilled with what she did with my words & melody! You can tell that she put her heart & soul into this song. We both realize that the song is a bit long, but we can always edit it later. (Personally, I like it the length it is as I can not get enough of listening to Letha's beautiful voice!)

We wanted to share this with everyone... & we hope you will leave your thoughts as we truly appreciate them all.

Thanks in advance! (And Letha, thank you from the bottom of my heart!)

Gail & Letha

Sweet Family Love MP3


SWEET FAMILY LOVE

(c)2009 Gail King/Letha Allen


I was never one
To covet diamonds or pearls
Or material trappings
That consume this ole world
I find daily salvation
In the sweet Lord above
And my inspiration
From sweet family love

(Chorus)
That house on a hill
Can crumble and fall
Old Mother Nature
Can come claim it all
These earthly treasures
Can be taken away
But sweet family love
Will always stay

I don't need bright lights
Spelling out my name
I don't need lots of money
Fancy titles or fame
For my peace of mind
I need the good Lord above
And being surrounded
By sweet family love

(Chorus)
That house on a hill
Can crumble and fall
Old Mother Nature
Can come claim it all
These earthly treasures
Can be taken away
But sweet family love
Will always stay

Wherever you travel
Wherever you roam
Without sweet family love
No place will seem like home

(Chorus)
That house on a hill
Can crumble and fall
Old Mother Nature
Can come claim it all
These earthly treasures
Can be taken away
But sweet family love
Will always stay

(Repeat chorus)

Oh, sweet family love...
Will always stay

My Gosh how beautiful ... This is first rate, stunning voice and playing ... brought me to tears

Dan

Have to comment again
you ladies shot me right though the heart ,
I am speechless ...

right through my heart ladies

God Bless You
so darn beautiful

IF THERE ARE ANY NASHVILLE PROMOTERS, AGENTS OR RECORD COMPANY FOLKS ON THIS SITE TAKE NOTE: YOU HAVE ROCKS IN YOUR HEAD IF YOU DON'T SIGN THESE LADIES RIGHT NOW. IT DON'T GET BETTER THAN THIS ANYWHERE ANYPLACE ... Take the time to listen Nashville folks and hear what you have right now on this site with these ladies

Hi Gail and Letha,

Well, I'm sort of bummed here, since anything I say can only pale in comparison to Dan's glowing resports!! The thing is, he's RIGHT!

In fact Ladies, this is absolutely stunning. Gail, your lyrics are earthy and powerful and poignant, the music and arrangement are gorgeous and Letha, you take those words, infuse them with a joyous spirit, and send them soaring.

Truly, I just LOVE the message here. Especially in "times like these", I think it has HUGE commercial viability.

It's hard to pick out favorite parts, but I think I'd have to go with these, which are very impactful:

I find daily salvation
In the sweet Lord above
And my inspiration
From sweet family love

and gosh, I love the whole chorus!

That house on a hill
Can crumble and fall
Old Mother Nature
Can come claim it all
These earthly treasures
Can be taken away
But sweet family love
Will always stay

You two should be very proud of this. And in case you don't believe ME, I'm up at my family's beachhouse, where a lot of these sentiments are being played out....but anyway, I told them I wanted to play this for them...and as it got going, they MUTED THE RED SOX GAME!! That NEVER happens!!

So yay, I'm so happy for you both. GOOD LUCK, and don't forget to remember your old friends here at JPF....

Ciao for now,
Beth

I'm shaken

Dude

Gail and Letha
when you are famous which I think will be about a week from now
can I carry your guitar :-)

Dan!!!!!!!

God bless you!!! You are such a SWEETHEART!!!! I feel like it's "Christmas in July"!!!!! Letha doing such a beautiful job with my lyrics......and then posting this and getting such lovely comments. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. You just don't know how much I appreciate this.

I have been writing songs for over 25 years now.....and am finally at the point in life where I feel I can truly get around to doing something with this "dream" of mine. God blessed me by putting people like Letha into my life. She surely put her heart and soul in this. I truly love her voice. It is the most soulful one I have ever heard.

I am so thankful to have found this site, and the wonderful new friends that I have made here in the last couple of months....everyone has been so kind, helpful and supportive.

I would never forget any of you.....and Dan you have been a total doll. I do truly hope that Letha and I can get somewhere with this song. I jokingly told her this morning (after we realized the song was longer after the instrumentation) that this longer version could just be our "album cut"!!!......and that we could do a shorter "radio edit" later!! lol I truly don't won't to mess with this one......You could never capture all that exact emotion twice.

Thanks Dan.....for being the president of our new fan club!

Kind wishes,
Gail

Gail
I just speak the truth hon, I meant it, it doesn't get better anywhere. You two have to get signed on this one. With your permission I am going to pass the word around to some friends that record in Nashville ... can't hurt to have as many ears as you can listening.

God Bless
Dan

Dan,

Bless your heart....of course I don't mind.....yes, you have my permission.....that would just be wonderful! If they like this one.....I've written plenty more.

God bless you Dan,
Gail

I do software engineering. If you and Letha need a website to promote your music. I will do it free. I have lots of space on my servers. some of my best friends are the who's who of folk music and I have several of their sites that i did for them on my box. letha has my email so just drop me a line if you need one

always
Dan

Ladies,
This is one of those songs that conveys its message in a magical way. It's not the lyrics or the music by themselves but the whole thing just works together. Great work.
Love ya,
JW

Girls,
that's great. I don't know how to say it more precisely. I love it.

have fun,
John

Hi Beth,

Hope this finds you doing well this evening.

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look and listen to this song. I am so glad that you like it. Thanks for all of the very nice compliments also! I tell you, Letha and I have gotten some very kind comments on this song.....but I have to tell you, I think think one of the biggest had to be when you told me a group of Red Sox fans actually muted the game to listen to this song!!! Now, that IS a compliment!!!!!! lol!!

Thanks again Beth for stopping by......and I hope you're having a terrific time at the beach.

Kind wishes,
Gail

Hi Gail(and Letha),
Wow!My jaw just hit the floor.I have goosebumps.Its a combination of Letha's soulful voice and these extremely touching(and very true)lyrics.Definitely get this song out there any way that you can.Its one of the best I have heard and the message is so important in the times we are living in....Congratulations to both of you!
Michelle

OMG!!! This is great stuff!!! This is one of those songs that stay with you and you just want to hear again and again! I Love what you two have done!!!

Charles

Hi there Mark!

Thanks for coming by and taking a look and listen at our song. We appreciate that! Didn't mean for it to shake you up! But then again....I guess we're glad it did!

Thanks Mark.

Kind wishes,
Gail

Dan,

You are very kind....and that is a very generous offer! I'll talk to Letha about that later....and we'll see which direction we're going. If we decide on it, we'll send you a pm.

Thank you so very much for all your wonderful compliments. Letha and I both appreciate them. You certainly made my evening!

Best wishes to you Dan....and God bless.

Gail

Hi there JW,

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look and listen at this song. I am so glad that you like it.....and thank you for such nice comments! Letha and I both appreciate that more than you know.

Kind wishes,
Gail

Hey Gail & Letha, this is wonderful work! I could hear this becoming a standard.

Best, John

Hi John,

Hope this finds you doing well.

Thanks for coming by and taking a look and a listen to this song. I am so glad that you like it. You have always been so kind, helpful with advice, and so supportive.....and I do appreciate that more than you know.

Hope you have a fabulous Sunday afternoon!

Kind wishes to you always,
Gail

Hi Gail, Hi all,

I was gone away yesterday, and it sure was nice to come back in and see the nice comments for this song. Gail did a beautiful lyric, and when she sent it to me, I thought how true her words were. I think family is so important to most all of us, and I think that is what makes this song special to us.

I am glad that she liked it, and also that some of you like it. I especially appreciate your enthusiasm for it Dan, and thank you for that. It warms my heart that I could help Gail to get to hear her lyrics in a song, and that it touches you also. I am sorry if it made tears, but hopefully they are the good kind.

Have a beautiful day,

Letha

Quite beautiful and the lyrics are well put together. The sparseness of the arrangement and the soulful singing is just right. I didn't know Letha played the harmonica! Nice harmonies.

Letha, you have great "control" here in bringing the lyrics to life.

Kevin

I just got a case of the goosebumps. Just started pouring here but I don't think that's it. I think it was the song...

Beautiful!

Just the right choice for backing - guitar and that harmonica. Just them and Letha's voice are all that's needed here. Yes, I could see this becoming a standard too.

Scott

Hi Gail and Letha,

It's a beautiful lyric with a clear message and no wasted words.

Letha your singing is spirited and is in that Gospel pocket and sounds great.

Nice work ladies.

MIke

Hi Michelle,

Hope this finds you doing well.

Thanks so much for taking a look at this song. I really appreciate that and your kind comments. I am so glad you like it.

Michelle....I have to be honest with you and tell you..... the first time I heard Letha singing this, it brought tears to my eyes, and just overwhelmed me. I just knew she was the perfect one to take the sentiments of this lyric....and really bring them home to you. I truly could not be happier with her delivery and all the special touches she added. That harmonica is something else.

Thanks again Michelle....You have always been so kind and supportive and I appreciate that so very much.

Wishing you all the best,
Gail

Hi Charles!

Thank you so much for coming by and listening to this song. I am so glad you like it and appreciate the very nice compliments.

I feel so blessed to have Letha do the vocals and instrumentation to my lyric....she truly brought it to life and made it so gripping. Her voice and the emotion she puts in her delivery is just unbelievable.

Thanks again Charles.

My best to you,
Gail

Hi John,

I hope this finds you doing well.

Thank you so much for coming over and taking a listen to this song. Thank you also for the compliments, you are very kind.

I truly admire your work and am so glad that you liked this song.

John, I think the piece that you recently posted is just super....and think that you should consider doing an entire CD.... that would truly be fabulous for Halloween. I bet it would be a big hit. I know I would be the first in line to buy it!

Thanks again John...and take care.

Kind wishes,
Gail

Hi Gail and Letha

Well it's all been said very well above - but I wanted to let you know that I listened and enjoyed it very much also. Nice work and very best wishes. I'd love to see you get it published. : ) jm

Gail & Letha,

This is a wonderful song! The message in the lyric is so universal….and Gail, you say it so beautifully.

Letha, you bring out all the emotion behind those words with your singing and playing and it really shines.

Wonderful work, ladies. Best of luck with it!

Kristi

Hi Kevin,

Thanks so much for coming by and listening to this song. I am so glad that you like it. Thanks also for the compliments on it. I really appreciate that and I know that Letha does too.

I didn't know Letha played the harmonica either! Wasn't that a fabulous touch?! That lady sure is talented!

Thanks again Kevin,
Gail

Hi Scott,

Thanks so very much for coming by and taking a listen to this collaboration of ours. Gave you goosebumps ?? Well....that's a good thing with a song.....so in this case, I guess I'm glad it did have that effect on you!! Thanks so much for the very nice compliments.

Letha certainly did a beautiful job of bringing my lyric to life.....and I am so grateful to her.

Thanks again Scott.....I truly appreciate your input and thoughts more than you know....you are such a talented musician.

Kind wishes,
Gail

Hi Mike,

Hope this finds you doing well.

I really appreciate you coming by and taking a look at this song of our ours....and thanks so much for the nice compliments!

I admire your talent and musical expertise and truly respect your opinion.

Hope you have a fabulous day!

Kind wishes,
Gail

Well....it seems that I am once again...late for the party...but let me just reiterate what has already been said, beautiful heartfelt lyrics brought to sweet life with a most outstanding melody...perfect for these words....love everything about it....the backing vocs and that harmonica.....a great touch. Letha, I have to agree with Michael there...you certainly were in that gospel pocket there...love it.

Yes....Here's MHO....this deserves to be signed, sealed and delivered...you two are certainly on your way to that.

Nice work....to make the whole world think and feel....that's why we are all songwriters. You have both done it well.

Jan

Hi Joice,

Thank you so much for coming by and listening to this song.

I am so glad that you like it....and I do appreciate your very kind and supportive comments.

I feel so blessed for the opportunity to work with Letha. She certainly did breathe life into my lyrics with her rich soulful voice.

Thank you Joice for always being so helpful, kind and supportive. I appreciate that so very much!

Kind wishes,
Gail

Hi Gail & Letha,

So mellow and cool, I really like this one. It's really special. Yeah, what they all said!

Ricki

Hi there Kristi!

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a look at our song!

Letha and I certainly appreciate that.....and all of your very nice and supportive comments. We are certainly glad that you like it. I feel so blessed to have had Letha work with me on this one. I respect her and admire her work so much. She is as kind as she is talented.

Thanks again Kristi.

Wishing you all the best,
Gail

Hi girls,

GOOD SONGWRITING....

and....concerning this >(Personally, I like it the length it is as I can not get enough of listening to Letha's beautiful voice!)

Letha's voice should NEVER be cut short, let it ring !

Calvin


http://www.soundclick.com/bands/0/calvinstewart

Hi You All,

I just want to thank you all for such nice compliments, sometimes I don't know the right words to thank you properly, because I can write lyrics, but it is harder to write what comes from the heart in real life, if you can understand what I am saying.

So, there are only a few words we can say, and it is a sincere thanks to you. It really is Gail's lyric that is so heartfelt that you can't sing it unless you really believe it, and I do.

Letha

Gail and Letha,
Very pure and timeless. And oozes sincerity.
Like that guitar Letha. What kind do you play? Looks like a Gibson from your picture.

Tom

Janice.....once again you just leave me speechless.....and that's certainly an odd position for a songwriter to be in!

I appreciate so very much all of the nice compliments.... especially from a talented writer such as yourself.

You have always been right there to offer suggestions, share ideas, and give encouragement.....and I truly appreciate that more than you could ever know.

And Janice....when there's time for a "party" (LOL!)...(don't I wish!).....I promise... you would be the first one I'd invite.....and I won't let it start without you!! Now.....you better not forget to invite me to yours....o.k.??!!

Kind wishes to you always Janice,
Gail

Hi Ricki,

Thanks so much for coming by and taking a listen to our song.

Letha and I certainly do appreciate your nice compliments....and are so glad that you like it.

Kind wishes,
Gail

Hi Tom,

Thanks for your comments. Yes, I play a Gibson LG1. It is the guitar I learned on, a little battered with time but still loved by me.

Letha

Hi Calvin,

Hope this finds you doing well.

Thank you so much for taking a look and listen to this song of ours. Letha and I certainly do appreciate that.....and all of your nice compliments.

Calvin, you certainly keep me amazed at your creative genius! I can always count on your songs putting a smile on my face.

Thanks also for your vote on keeping this song the length it is....I feel the same way....I could listen to Letha sing all day!

Hope you have a fabulous day Calvin.

Kind wishes,
Gail

Hi there Tom,

Thanks so much for coming by and listening to this song. I am so glad that you like it....and appreciate your nice comments.

Kind wishes,
Gail

Gail and Letha,

I can't say anything that hasn't already been said on this thread, but it is a beautiful lyric and performance. Letha did an amazing job and this is a great lyric. Take Dan up on his offer.

This has a soulful, deep feel. The song is well crafted. The lyrics are quite good - with nothing forced. The music works well with the lyrics. The vocals are rich and full. This is a very fine song.

Tom

Hi Wendy,

Thank you so much for listening to this song. I do appreciate that and your very kind comments. I am so glad that you like it.

I always enjoy listening to your work Wendy. Your voice is so beautiful and has such an angelic, soothing quality. Your latest song with Mike Caro.....is a true gem.

My best to you,
Gail

Hi Tom,

I appreciate you coming by and listening to this song. I am glad that you like it. Thank you for your lovely comments....it really means a lot to me.

You have written a beautiful, touching lyric for Justice and I hope that you find just the right music that showcases it perfectly.

Best wishes to you and Justice,
Gail

What a cool experience that was! Thanks for posting this.

Best of luck with this...