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Richie Havens — Darkness, Darkness
Album: Cuts to the Chase
Avg rating:
7.3

Your rating:
Total ratings: 408









Released: 1994
Length: 4:16
Plays (last 30 days): 0
Darkness, Darkness
Be my pillow
Take my hand
And let me sleep
In the coolness of your shadow
In the silence of your deep

Darkness, Darkness
Hide my yearning
For the things I cannot be
Keep my mind from constant turning
Toward the things I cannot see now
Things I cannot see now
Things I cannot see

Darkness, darkness,
Long and lonesome,
Ease the day that brings me pain.
I have felt the edge of sadness,
I have known the depth of fear.
Darkness, darkness, be my blanket,
Cover me with the endless night,
Take away, take away the pain of knowing,
Fill the emptiness of right now,
Emptiness of right now, now, now
Emptiness of ri-ight now.

Darkness, darkness, be my pillow,
Take my hand, and let me sleep.
In the coolness of your shadow,
In the silence, the silence of your deep.
Darkness, darkness, be my blanket,
Cover me with the endless night,
Take away, take away the pain of knowing
Fill the emptiness of right now,
Emptiness of right now now now
Emptiness of right....
Oh yeah Oh yeah
Emptiness, emptiness
Oh yeah
Comments (37)add comment
 LPCity wrote:
Saw Richie Havens many, many years ago at the Sun Valley Arts festival.  He closed the show with an acapella version of Joe Cocker's "You are so beautiful".

He certainly was. 

 
{#Clap}
 Me too.  I always have enjoyed his voice. I especially like his work with Steve Hackett 'How Can I'    westslope wrote:

Yes, this cover is growing on me.  

 


 ScottFromWyoming wrote:
Nice. I'm glad my baseball game finished just in time for me to switch back to RP and catch this...

 
Yes, this cover is growing on me.  
I get it   its Labor Day week end.  So, lets not work too hard.  Let's steal the work of others say.... the Youngbloods.  Call it our work and take credit.
RP  this is the 3rd cover you have played today.  How about something orinial, less pitifull. 

If you have to play Mr Havens  why not Freedom  from Woodstock.  Mindenumly repetative but its his work.  
 
Love this version...even better than original!
I met him once.  He was a force of nature. Love this 
God rest his soul...
Thanks Richie! 
Youngbloods did it better, Solas did it better still

 
This CAN'T be a Richie Havens original...it has a melody. :-P
Never heard this version before.  I like it.  Love his voice, but the drum is a bit over powering.
Check out the Mott the Hoople version c. 1971, probably my favorite version.
Pretty powerful song. 
Heard this version first and just listened to the Youngbloods, maybe I should have done it the other way round but that sense of pain in RH's rendition is more convincing to me. Both pretty awesome though.
love the man, love his voice
Not doing it for me.
The original is far superior.

Lots of covers lately.
Some are okay, some like this one miss the mark.
 paisleydancer66 wrote:
original is much better; sorry Richie  go to youtube and listen to the Youngbloods sing this

 
He's definitely got the voice for it, but that damn drum track turns it into an exercise.


original is much better; sorry Richie  go to youtube and listen to the Youngbloods sing this
when you are ready to learn the beautiful people who are all around Teach
Insane guitar melodies 
 oldfart48 wrote:


like most of your posts, no soul, no brain, no heart......go back to your pablum, and bubblegum i'm shure squeal young has something just for you.....

 
I love you... but I still do not like this
 rdo wrote:
I have failed to discern one iota of musical value in this song....3

 



I was going to say that this is the first Richie Havens song I find not completely intolerable.

I love some of RH's tracks, but this one leaves me cold. He sounds strained here. The original is hard to beat.
He always struck me as a holy man, enveloped in the faith of his music. Amazing vocalist and stylist. RIP.
 rdo wrote:
I have failed to discern one iota of musical value in this song....3

 

like most of your posts, no soul, no brain, no heart......go back to your pablum, and bubblegum i'm shure squeal young has something just for you.....
RICHIES BEST{#Dancingbanana}......always majic
Mr Havens was awesome!  I remember him as a strong poet, a beautiful musical presence, Godlike
I have failed to discern one iota of musical value in this song....3
Well done, a very beautiful version.
Saw Richie Havens many, many years ago at the Sun Valley Arts festival.  He closed the show with an acapella version of Joe Cocker's "You are so beautiful".

He certainly was. 
Rest in peace, Richie Havens
Great singer. I learned more about him on a radio piece on NPR or NYC university radio station WFUV. He was very thoughtful, witty and gracious. He wasn't scheduled to open the Woodstock mudfest way back when, but he was destined to do so, was asked to go on first, and he rocked the place with fire and improv. RIP. 
Nice. I'm glad my baseball game finished just in time for me to switch back to RP and catch this...
RIP Richie. Your covers were always unique. Gonna miss your voice. {#Good-vibes}
I got to see this man live a couple years ago. Spirited! Love his music, his soul...
I never heard this before, Richie Havens covering the Youngbloods. I like it.
The poet of the 60's singing poetry of the 60's. As it should be. Live long and thanks Richie!
(First....)  RIP to an icon

RIP Richie