This week our word of the week is Ghost.  I don’t know if I believe in Ghosts but I am certainly not willing to rule out the possibility.  Whether real or not, Ghosts have certainly inspired a lot of great music over the years.  Today I present you with my favorite ghost songs.

After listening to the music, please take the time to read my note after the last song in the post.  Have a great weekend!

Ghost – Indigo Girls

Ghosts – Dan Fogelberg

Ghost Riders In The Sky – The Outlaws

Ghost of Cape Horn – Gordon Lightfoot

Ghost On The Canvas – Glen Campbell

Personal Note

In case you have not heard, Glen has Alzheimer’s and this song is from what will be his last album.  He meant a lot to me when I was first getting into music and including his last song in this post is my personal tribute to him.

In the late 1960s, as a teenager, I absolutely loved Glen and bought all of his singles: Gentle on My Mind, By The Time I Get To Phoenix, Wichita Lineman, and Galveston. During this time, he had a variety show on TV that I looked forward to watching each week.  He featured great musical guest on the show each week and by exposing me to this variety of performers he helped to expand my evolving musical tastes.  In addition to his musical guests, Glen sang a couple of songs each week and I never tired of listening to  his great voice.   I am happy to say that that voice has survived the intervening years as evidenced by this video!

As I have learned more about music history, I have grown to appreciate Glen’s skills as a musician.  He was a popular LA session musician in the early 60s, one of a group of players that came to be known as The Wrecking Crew.  They played on some of the biggest hits of that time supporting performers and producers as diverse as Rick Nelson, Elvis Presley, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Phil Spector.  In 1964-1965 Glen actually toured as a member of the Beach Boys replacing Brian Wilson when he quit touring to stay in the studio.

Glen…..we will miss you.  Thanks for your wonderful music over the last 50 years!