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Chris Whitley — Big Sky Country
Album: Living With The Law
Avg rating:
6.1

Your rating:
Total ratings: 468









Released: 1991
Length: 4:12
Plays (last 30 days): 0
Now when this is over
Over and through
And all them changes have come and passed

I want to meet you in the big sky country
I just want to prove, mama, love can last, yeah
Like hallelujah in the big sky country
Just like forever and ever is wide
Be getting over in the big sky country
Be kissing time, kissing time goodbye
And God knows it's all been done, let me tell you why

'Cause you held my number
You held my name
You held my body through the thick and thin

On a bed of roses in the big sky country
Spread out to love you, love you in your second skin
Like hallelujah in the big sky country
Just like forever and ever is wide
Be getting over in the big sky country
Be kissing time, kissing time goodbye

Hallelujah mama, razzle dazzle Problem prophet
Got lights on all over the place
Hallelujah, I mean glory hallelujah
If I only come around once and see your face

So just watch them lovers out on parade
Watch them lovers while they slip and slide

They gonna prove it doing the big sky country
Just going to prove it while the whole world collides, yeah
Like hallelujah in the big sky country
Just like forever and ever is wide
Be getting over in the big sky country
Be kissing time, be kissing time goodbye
Maybe I'll make up in the big sky country
Be just like lovers and love is why
When we hold over to the big sky country
We'll be kissing time
Kissing time goodbye
Comments (118)add comment
 westslope wrote:


Would a low-class, inexpensive female prostitute free of disease be attractive?
 
life's eternal questions...
 w3weasel wrote:
This song is just like a high-class, top-dollar call girl with syphilis.

I recognize that it's attractive, but I still want nothing to do with it.

 

Would a low-class, inexpensive female prostitute free of disease be attractive?
Fantastic freshman album...not any soy or filler on this gem!!{#Dancingbanana_2}
Strangely compelling.
 electronicthroat wrote:
 
I agree...had to turn down the volume it was awful
 really
A buddy of mine was working at a record store and brought this album home one day. Told me the record company was trying to push the new artist, but it wasn't taking off like they wanted. He tossed the CD to me.

Man, what a talent, and what a deep, deep artist. 
I remember listening to Chris' first album the first time—all the way through—couldn't tear my ears away. Loved where he took his music over his too-brief life. Truly one of the most amazing musicians I've ever heard. A huge loss.
 rivermantengo wrote:
Chris Whitley was a very interesting musician. Every recording had a completely different sound.
Bill and others check out War Time Blues and Rocket House. 
 
{#Clap}

I think this is a pretty good song. An overall lower rating than I would have guessed.
Great tune....he left way too early....
 sirdroseph wrote:
10 One of my all time favorite songs........period.
 

its a favorite always forget about. then when i hear it, i want it to keep going.
10 One of my all time favorite songs........period.
wow... it's like being stoned. but without the drugs. is there anything to eat around here?

 w3weasel wrote:
This song is just like a high-class, top-dollar call girl with syphilis.

I recognize that it's attractive, but I still want nothing to do with it.
 

Wow. What a beautiful simile. And one that I agree with. Don't even know why I dislike this so much. Always have. Something about the coldness of the music. See you in a few minutes...

Din of Ecstacy is an absolutely amazing album. Amazing guitar sound. But defintely challenging and a million light years from this tune. Dark, dark stuff - on Din he sounds like he either needs an exorcism or an intervention (and possibly both). He changed his approach to music like most people change shirts. I love all of it - a truly gifted, if somewhat tortured artist.

 
smdeeg wrote:

Chris Whitley was a very unusual musician, and this is probably his most commercial song.  You've always shown a breadth of musical taste, and I would suggest giving him a second chance.  I'm actually partial to an album of his called Din, which knocked my socks off, but is what you would call challenging listening.  In any event, more here then you might think.
 


This song is just like a high-class, top-dollar call girl with syphilis.

I recognize that it's attractive, but I still want nothing to do with it.
 toterola wrote:
I couldn't agree more. The album this  song comes from, "Living With The Law", is excellent. This song, "Poison Girl", the title track, and a song that was featured in the movie "Thelma and Louise" called "Kick These Stones (Out of My Bed) are as good as anything played on here. Definitely worth the time. {#Wave} 
 
Yep. A sleeper album for me. Surprised with the reaction. Solid southern acoustic blues/rock. My $0.03.
 fredriley wrote:
Sadly, to the Nottingham jury this is about as interesting as East Anglia. A solid 3 {#Sleep}
 
Chris Whitley was a very unusual musician, and this is probably his most commercial song.  You've always shown a breadth of musical taste, and I would suggest giving him a second chance.  I'm actually partial to an album of his called Din, which knocked my socks off, but is what you would call challenging listening.  In any event, more here then you might think.
I live in the prairies with horizon to horizon blue sky. It doesn't sound this bad.
"...., and keep in mind that we're very selective about what we add to the playlist. Expect to be puzzled by some of our rejections, .....

Bill, you should modify your note there - "Expect to be puzzled by some of our rejections in light of some of our acceptances...."

0.02p/c
 toterola wrote:


The album this  song comes from, "Living With The Law", is excellent. This song, "Poison Girl", the title track, and a song that was featured in the movie "Thelma and Louise" called "Kick These Stones (Out of My Bed) are as good as anything played on here. Definitely worth the time. {#Wave} 
 
I'm partial to "Dust Radio" from the same album, but it's all good.

"Big Sky Country" is a term employed as spin by tourist associations for areas that are flat as pancakes, such as East Anglia in England. Sounds better than 'sh1t boring flatsville countryside', I guess ;)

Sadly, to the Nottingham jury this is about as interesting as East Anglia. A solid 3 {#Sleep}


 healyf52 wrote:
I first heard this song on an episode of 'Homicide (life on the street)'. It played as the victim of a violent rape finally succumbed to her injuries and passed away. I thought it was a really good tune and still do. It does suffer from some poor production though. It has world class hooks but some really annoying repetitive chorus stuff. I think they were shooting for a more commercial sound and it didn't really work out. I bet CW and his resonator just by themselves would have rendered this tune beautifully. Listen to 'Hotel Vast Horizon' or 'Dirt Floor' if you want to hear some more representive CW stuff. His music had a lot of space in it.
 
I did see Chris in a bar in my hometown.  Just him and his guitar.  Pretty good stuff!

 rivermantengo wrote:
Chris Whitley was a very interesting musician. Every recording had a completely different sound.
Bill and others check out War Time Blues and Rocket House. 
 

I couldn't agree more. The album this  song comes from, "Living With The Law", is excellent. This song, "Poison Girl", the title track, and a song that was featured in the movie "Thelma and Louise" called "Kick These Stones (Out of My Bed) are as good as anything played on here. Definitely worth the time. {#Wave} 
 rivermantengo wrote:
Chris Whitley was a very interesting musician. Every recording had a completely different sound.
Bill and others check out War Time Blues and Rocket House. 
 
I moved from the DC area out to Central Oregon not too long ago...and this song resonates deeply with me. We have big sky here also...grin.

Chris Whitley was a very interesting musician. Every recording had a completely different sound.
Bill and others check out War Time Blues and Rocket House. 
Ahhhhh.
Montana!
What a concept!
 Thistle wrote:
A neat song... came and went.  Never heard much else from this fellow. 
 

That's because he's making music in the Big Sky Country now, RIP Chris!
I have several albums by Chris Whitley. Most are so so. But this particularly one eclipses them all. Every track is single handedly amazing, original and great to listen to. I highly recommend buying it.
A neat song... came and went.  Never heard much else from this fellow. 
I've always liked this song...the rest of the CD isn't too bad either.
makes me want to get behind the mule and listen to the bells ring in the big sky country
Has this been used as a Chevy commercial yet? Sounds like I should be seeing an American-brand truck climbing a rocky hill in the rugged West or something.

Love this guy! Sad to hear he left this Earth, though.


I saw Whitley near the end, at a place called the Blue Door in Oklahoma City.
It's the kind of place where you can byob and is extremely intimate.
So me and a bud were hanging around outside before the show and Whitley walked right up and bummed a smoke.


KurtfromLaQuinta wrote:
Hey! I'm from California and I knew that.
Ashamed to correct you, but Darth Cheney was born in Nebraska.
Saw Chris open for Tom Petty way back in the day. His "live" sound was much better than the sound on this (although I have always liked this song).
alux wrote:
Big Sky is Montana. Cheney is Wyoming born and bred. And no, they're not the same. Sheesh. Californians...
Hey! I'm from California and I knew that.
I first heard this song on an episode of 'Homicide (life on the street)'. It played as the victim of a violent rape finally succumbed to her injuries and passed away. I thought it was a really good tune and still do. It does suffer from some poor production though. It has world class hooks but some really annoying repetitive chorus stuff. I think they were shooting for a more commercial sound and it didn't really work out. I bet CW and his resonator just by themselves would have rendered this tune beautifully. Listen to 'Hotel Vast Horizon' or 'Dirt Floor' if you want to hear some more representive CW stuff. His music had a lot of space in it.
Having been born and now living here in big sky country, Montana is a little piece of heaven on earth. I never heard this guy before, but I must say he had excellent taste!
Big Sky is Montana. Cheney is Wyoming born and bred. And no, they're not the same. Sheesh. Californians... MinMan wrote:
Given the state motto that appears on license plates - might this to be a favorite of Dick Cheney?
electronicshaman wrote:
a boring, uninspiring, Dodge/Chevy/Ford commercial written by a frustrated lounge singer?
Please try listening to Din of Ecstasy. You'll probably hate it (I think it's great, but even other CW fans don't like it), but you'll never think of him as a lounge singer again.
This will be my first comment that is not praising the music. However, as long as I have ever been subjected to this piece, the grating, not really in tune singing that seems to wander around without finding its settling point, really is uncomfortable. It's not that I want music to make me comfortable, necessarily. This piece just never sounds sufficiently musical for my enjoyment.
Good song from an amazing and under appreciated artist. YMMV natch. Another who died too young (45). RIP.
This sucks... a lot.
Nauseating
terrible....absolutely terrible.
lathyris wrote:
Alright, this is not the WORST song I've ever heard -- but who in the world would rate this a 10? This as good to you as the best songs ever written? No way!!
mfassett wrote:
Yea. Well, that would be me. I won't take this (easy) opportunity to look at your ratings and insult YOUR taste. Instead, I will just say this is a brilliant song, IMHO, and has always moved me since I first heard it 20 years ago.
I will. Lathyris, you're an idiot for rating any REM song higher than a 6. (I know other people like REM, but they aren't putting down other people's ratings)
Pretty and peaceful.
Given the state motto that appears on license plates - might this to be a favorite of Dick Cheney?
mfassett wrote:
Yea. Well, that would be me. I won't take this (easy) opportunity to look at your ratings and insult YOUR taste. Instead, I will just say this is a brilliant song, IMHO, and has always moved me since I first heard it 20 years ago.
I concur. I loved it when I first heard it and when it just came out of my speakers I was inspired to vote it up! This is just a wonderful soulful song by a truly great under-rated artist. RIP Chris!
lathyris wrote:
Alright, this is not the WORST song I've ever heard -- but who in the world would rate this a 10? This as good to you as the best songs ever written? No way!!
Yea. Well, that would be me. I won't take this (easy) opportunity to look at your ratings and insult YOUR taste. Instead, I will just say this is a brilliant song, IMHO, and has always moved me since I first heard it 20 years ago.
Gotta be one of the worst choruses ever. Awful.
You people are boring me with your car commercial analogies. It's a good song.
Boring would be fine with me but it is a bit intrusive IMO
lame... realy lame.
a boring, uninspiring, Dodge/Chevy/Ford commercial written by a frustrated lounge singer?
boring
xkolibuul wrote:
Well, that would be the WHITE history of Montana. There were people in Big Sky for thousands of years before any damn gold rush. Did just fine without extractive industry too...
It's still pretty.
Matts wrote:
It is Definitely Chevy commercial, or maybe Ford f150 ?
This song is too good for that...it should be a DODGE commercial!!!
It is Definitely Chevy commercial, or maybe Ford f150 ?
So uninspiring
Alright, this is not the WORST song I've ever heard -- but who in the world would rate this a 10? This as good to you as the best songs ever written? No way!!
This sounds like a Chevy commercial....Madison Ave. execs, please take note (I accept 10% commission on all my ideas).
so sad---didn't he die this year? or last year?
Well, that would be the WHITE history of Montana. There were people in Big Sky for thousands of years before any damn gold rush. Did just fine without extractive industry too... Vogelfrei wrote:
The history of Montana has been about exploitation of natural resources by one extractive industry after another, usually controlled by and benefitting wealthy interests from out of state. First it was gold, then copper, then timber... now it's real estate. Don't it always seem to go...
Yeah, Jon Tester!!! Our Big Sky Man.
I'd say that Tibet is big sky country...
You clever guys playing this after that Kate Bush Big Sky song. I think I like this one a lot more.
I was flown to Toronto from Calgary by Sony Music around 1991 to see this new breaking act perform and record for a weekend feature national taped program; Celine Dion. Great voice, no charisma. We ditched that taping in favor of hailing a cab and checking out an act the Sony rep recommended; Chris Whitley on the "Living with the Law" release tour. It absolutely blew me away My favorite from the album is Poison Girl. Great artist, missed greatly.
shmiverson wrote:
I was born and raised in Montana. I truly miss it and am sadened everytime I go back and realize that more and more of the land has been broken up into tiny housing lots. Will there be no place left? It seems that way.
The history of Montana has been about exploitation of natural resources by one extractive industry after another, usually controlled by and benefitting wealthy interests from out of state. First it was gold, then copper, then timber... now it's real estate. Don't it always seem to go...
Sounds like something a frustrated lounge singer would write.
Great song, great album, great musician! Check out Dirt Floor although, Living with the Law is my favorite.
Thanks for the Montana nod. Chris Whitley - Big Sky Country Kate Bush - The Big Sky
An amazing debut album that Chris worked hard not to be stereotyped to. Every subsequint disc was a step away from this but right along the same line. Take some time to explore this unique artist. He will be missed!!!
Good tune. Love the way it moves, languid like a slow dancing lover.
Next has to be Big Sky by the Kinks (or the great Yo La Tengo cover)
Good Song. I'm trying to think who his voice reminds me of.
Coooool track!
Well, at least I've always thought so. I didn't know he has passed on. Sorry to hear that.
I miss you Chris.
I too am from Montana and this song takes me home every time. I dearly miss my big sky country! I am so sad that Chris died. I was slated to see him, but then he fell ill and cancelled his show.
Prince, and very likeable!
I was born and raised in Montana. I truly miss it and am sadened everytime I go back and realize that more and more of the land has been broken up into tiny housing lots. Will there be no place left? It seems that way.
This song at this time of day on Friday proves to me that I need to be sitting outside somewhere with a cold beer and some friends! Almost there!
saw him in a tiny club here in st. louis a few years ago, very shy, very quiet offstage, but onstage...that guy rocked.
I need to go back to Montana.
I think I heard this on Q103: Easy Listening That Ease You Through The Workday (don't forget the Phrase the Pays contest this summer!)
Geecheeboy wrote:
He left a HUGE catalog of recorded music that is appropriate for this venue. Bill, don't hesitate to add more!
whydontchauplodmore?
He left a HUGE catalog of recorded music that is appropriate for this venue. Bill, don't hesitate to add more!
mucre wrote:
whitley is brilliant do not stop short of murder to see him live
Here today and gone tomorrow. He played Austin frequently and I never caught his show. Sure regret it now...
the voice the emotion the lyrics the harmony the guitar licks coming in at the end and i love most of his other work much more....
I heard this song on NPR years ago. The moment the song ended, I walked out to get the album. For me, the way his voice dips and soars throughout the song truely envokes the feel of that part of the country. To find that he has died....it's ache-inducing.
This is a fabulous song - and it's not even his best. He left behind an amazing body of work and I truly felt a loss upon hearing of his passing. RIP, Chris - you're in the Big Sky Country now...
I first heard him on the soundtrack of "Thelma and Louise" (great song, brilliant guitar work. Can't remember the name of the song! "Kick the Stones"?) It's a true shame that we have lost him. Also a shame that more people never caught on to his music. P.S. The whole "Thelma and Louise" soundtrack is worth having.
I saw him maybe ten years ago in a small Seattle, Pioneer Square, back alley dive, and will remember his simple, absolute rawness, and the extraordinary circumstances that brought me to see him. So glad I did!
..never heard him but R.I.P. this is pretty damn good
mucre wrote:
whitley is brilliant do not stop short of murder to see him live
I missed my chance, sadly. Really loved his music, he leaves behind a nice body of work, even if not too many know about him.
RabbitEars wrote:
another lanois connection. dan plays guitar on this album, and i think it was recorded in his old studio in new orleans.
It was recorded in New Orleans in Lanois' studio with Malcolm Burns producing (Daniel's engineer). The studio is in an amazing walled old old lofty mansion in the french quarter. Lots of candles.
another lanois connection. dan plays guitar on this album, and i think it was recorded in his old studio in new orleans.
Chris was truly genius. As real as they get. So sad he is gone. This is my favorite of his...
This was my fave track of his. To bad he's gone now.
mucre wrote:
whitley is brilliant do not stop short of murder to see him live
Missed him.
always liked this song
Why didn't this song immediately follow Robbie Robertson a few songs earlier?
...Just reading 2 down , that he passed... how sad! what a loss.... thank you Chris!
Nice! Automatic 9!!! Thanks.
Whitley is great, just heard yesterday that he has passed away. This song is great to remember those views from the mountain tops. (click here)
Locked in the vault for 2 years? Looks that way based on comment dates. This is an outstanding album ... thanks for resurrecting it!
corny
Don't forget the Big Bend! When the crap isn't blowing in from Houston, we can see waaaay down into the mountains of Mexico! Roverfish wrote:
Thinking of heading to Yellowstone or Wyoming, Bill? Diamond Mountain, What a Wonderful World, In Gods Country, and Big Sky Country in succession...hmmm. ;) Sure love this song. Proved without a doubt how good Chris Whitley is.
Great talent.
Thinking of heading to Yellowstone or Wyoming, Bill? Diamond Mountain, What a Wonderful World, In Gods Country, and Big Sky Country in succession...hmmm. ;) Sure love this song. Proved without a doubt how good Chris Whitley is.
whitley is brilliant do not stop short of murder to see him live