The author is the American bard John Denver, the song is called “Annie’s Song”. To whom is this work dedicated? Of course, the wife, fiancee or beloved of the author. Clear as twice two and true as the multiplication table. The guess is absolutely correct – this song was written for Annie, John’s young wife. At the same time, many fans of Denver believe that this is a folk ballad, the sound of the song is so soulful, which in 1974 won first places not only in the American, but also in the British charts. And it was like that.
In the summer of 1974, John Denver, a big fan of skiing, went skiing in Colorado. Climbing one of the peaks, John felt such delight, as if he drank a glass of excellent wine in one gulp and sparkling hops rushed to his head. Or as if he had just won a gold medal at the Winter Olympics, or maybe he had just learned about the award of the most prestigious Grammy music award in the United States and hears the applause of fans. In a word, the whole world seemed to John beautiful, sparkling and new, as if blinders fell from his eyes, and Annie seemed to him the embodiment of this beauty. Descending the mountain as if on the wings of the wind, the thirty-year-old musician rushed straight to the hotel room that he rented with Annie, and began to jot down the lines that came to his mind,
At the same time, John did not leave the feeling that somewhere he had already heard this music, and now he recorded the sounds that came to him from the depths of his memory. The premonition did not deceive the musician – when he sang “Annie’s Song” to his friends, they told him that this melody resembled Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony. There is nothing surprising in the fact that Americans know the works of the Russian genius by heart. Have you heard that some Americans are unaware that Pyotr Tchaikovsky is actually a Russian composer? After all, The Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty are the most popular ballets in the United States, and among the famous Americans there are a lot of people from Slavic countries. But John Denver knew perfectly well who Tchaikovsky was, and understood that even involuntary plagiarism is an ugly thing. Therefore, he set about further work on “Annie’s Song”, removing from there everything that reminded of the Fifth Symphony.
John called this song his prayer, dedicated not to a deity, but to his beloved woman. Even after John and Annie broke up, she repeatedly admitted that the sound of “Annie’s Song” brought tears to her eyes. This melody is perceived in the same way by music critics who love to find hidden meanings even in unpretentious tunes and lyrics, and country music fans around the world. Although this song is about to turn 50 years old, it is so popular that it is covered and even parodied. For example, fans of the Sheffield United football team remade almost all the lyrics in this song and made it their own chant. Hefty guys singing a romantic tune with a look like they are ready to kick their rivals with their boots is a truly unforgettable sight.
So what is this song about and what is its meaning? Although John Denver called this tune “Annie’s Song”, it is sung from the perspective of a man in love, so it is more correct to translate the title of this song not as “The Song that the Beautiful Annie Sings”, but as “The Song dedicated to my beloved Annie”. Like other poets and bards from the beginning of time to the present day, John compares his beloved with a night forest full of mysterious rustles, aromas of exotic flowers and selfless bird songs, with a walk in the ringing spring rain, a sleepy sea tired of storms and other natural phenomena that are admired by men and women. He prays to his girlfriend for love and asks her permission to devote her whole life to her. He is ready to die in the ring of her arms and looks into Annie’s eyes with a plea, asking for a “Yes” answer.
These appeals to the beloved woman are as old and as fresh as poetry itself, and can melt the heart of even the most incredulous beauty. Is it any wonder that this song has conquered the whole world and sounds today in English, French, Finnish and, of course, in Russian? Sing this melody to your sweetheart in a romantic setting – and she will be enchanted, like Eurydice listening to Orpheus singing, and will follow you to the ends of the world!
