The First Aid Kit song written about Johnny Cash
While some songs inherently pay homage to their author’s inspirations, others explicitly acknowledge the respect that they have for those who have gone before them. One such example is the First Aid Kit track ‘Emmylou’, which was released on their second studio album, The Lion’s Roar, in 2012.
First Aid Kit is the indie folk project of Swedish sisters Johanna and Klara Soderberg, and their track ‘Emmylou’ is their message of respect to the songwriters they admire. Amongst them are the respective duos of Johnny Cash and June Carter and the titular Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons.
The Soderbergh sisters once noted the nature of ‘Emmylou’. They said: “The artists we mention in ‘Emmylou’ are some of our all-time favourite singers and songwriters. They have inspired us endlessly, and in a way, this is a tribute to them. When they sing together, it’s an otherworldly power. You can hear the love seeping through those vocal cords.”
The sisters added: “The song is about the intimate connection you get when you sing together. Johnny and June were obviously married, and although Emmylou and Gram never were an official couple, there are certainly rumours. To us, the song is saying: ‘We may not be able to be together, but at least we can sing together.'”
What’s most interesting about ‘Emmylou’ is that its writers are themselves in a songwriting partnership. Klara Soderbergh admitted to sometimes being frustrated by her sister Johanna’s musical suggestions. “They’re so annoying!” she said. “Especially when she’s saying that one part of a song could work with another part of another song I’ve written. I’m like, ‘Are you crazy? That would sound terrible'”.
However, often those very scepticisms turn out to be unfounded. Klara added: “And then I play it, and it sounds great, and then I’m like, ‘Goddammit, you’re right.’ Even on ‘Emmylou’, the verse for that was for another song, and I said to her, ‘No, you can’t put those two together; the lyrics mean so much to me.’ But in the end, it worked out.”
Amazingly, Emmylou Harris herself said that she loved the song. “Everybody told me I had to hear this song, but for some reason, I didn’t seek it out,” she said. “Then I was on tour in Australia, and it came on in a store in Adelaide. I remember stopping and saying, ‘Boy, that’s really beautiful.'”
But if hearing a beautiful song wasn’t enough, Harris was then astounded to find that it was indeed about herself: “And then I heard these beautiful voices singing my name, and I went, ‘Oh my gosh, that’s the song everybody’s been talking about!’ It was nice to hear it in that way without expectation – it was one of those little gifts from the universe.”
