I was going to play a few songs at a women’s luncheon at which nine female candidates would introduce themselves. I kept thinking about the song “One” for which I had written both music and lyrics in 1977. It’s a song about wondering what we can do when we see injustice, and it expresses my long held belief that we - all of us humans - are most effective when we come together as “One” and stand up for our values such as dignity, inclusivity, equality of opportunity, and caring for our most vulnerable neighbors. Drawn to the piano like pins to a magnet, I was inspired to write some new lyrics for the last chorus to reflect my feelings about the 2018 election. And then I wanted to record it. My manager quickly booked Studio B at Henson Recording Studios. Studio B at A & M (as the studio was known in the 1970s) was where I recorded most of Tapestry. Studio B was still intensely magical for me on that October Saturday when I recorded “One 2018.” More details about that later. Meanwhile, I’m releasing the recording (a) for the sheer joy of sharing it, and (b) in the hope of inspiring more people to participate actively in the coming election by voting and bringing other people who value humanity, truth, and love above fear, lies, and hatred. - Carole King Credits: Video Directed by Alexandra Snow Videography by Sofia Danielson and Alexandra Snow Produced by Louise Goffin & Sherry Kondor Recorded at Henson Studios by Keith Greitlein, Second Engineer Brian Rajaratnam Mixed by Dave Way Mastered by Ian Sefchick at Capitol Studios One - Words and Music by Carole King Poetic phrases come to mind Whenever I find injustice being done And I wonder, what am I gonna do What am I gonna do What can one do except be one Talking to two, touching three, growing to four million Each of us is one All of us are one Open your heart and let the love come shining through And you will do what you need to do To know just where the other you is coming from We are one It just amazes me that I can be Part of the energy it takes to serve each other And I wonder, what am I gonna do What am I gonna do What will we do We’re gonna run Reach for the sun Come together as one Show ‘em how it’s done At the end of the day we’ll be able to say Love won.
Carole King comes out of retirement to release anti-Trump song
It has been seven years since musician Carole King has released a new song but that dry spell has finally been broken. The 76-year-old has come out of retirement and taken aim at US President Donald Trump in a reworked version of her 1977 track, ‘One’.
King initially rewrote the song to play at a political fundraiser last month, but then recorded the new version in hope that it would encourage more people to participate actively in the upcoming US election.
The song features a new final verse, which King told the Guardian is “a call to action” ahead of the mid-term elections in the US.
The original lines about being “part of the energy it takes to serve each other” are now sharpened into calls to “come together as one/show ’em how it’s done/at the end of the day, we’ll be able to say/love won”.
Read more: Carole King’s heartbreaking message to women
“It’s a song about wondering what we can do when we see injustice, and it expresses my long held belief that we — all of us humans — are most effective when we come together as ‘One’,” King explained of the track. “I was inspired to write some new lyrics for the last chorus to reflect my feelings about the 2018 election. And then I wanted to record it.”
The song also features King’s daughters Louise Goffin and Sherry Kondor on backing vocals.
King — the woman behind songs including ‘(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman’ and ‘You’ve Got a Friend’ — hasn’t written any music since her 2011 Grammy-nominated Christmas album.
The singer made her debut in 1971, with her album Tapestry, which became an immediate success. In her long, fruitful career, King has written more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists such as Aretha Franklin, The Monkees and The Chiffons.
King isn’t the first artist to write an anti-Trump song in recent times. Last month, Barbra Streisand recorded ‘Don’t Lie to Me’, which also takes aim at the US President.
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