The recording made and released in S.Africa of the song Crowded Rooms was played by Penny Smith on Hayes fm recently

Recently, I had the pleasure of meeting and chatting with Penny Smith again at Hayes fm studios on her Sunday lunchtime programme.

As before, in other interviews, we talked about my music interests and Penny played some recordings of some more songs I have written.

Firstly, I told Penny about a project I have been working on which involved me arranging a song of mine for a mixed voice choir. I explained that I am only really used to arrangements for female voices, and so, to write for additional male voices was new to me, but a good experience.
I felt a great sense of achievement when it was completed, although I am sure I still have a lot to learn and will be trying some more of the same kind of work in the future.

The country ballad, Honey, You Don't Know Me, was then played. The song was sung by the lead singer of Medicine Bow, a popular Country and Western Band.

After playing You're the Love That Drives Me On, an entry for the Song for Europe contest, which was prior to the Eurovision Song Contest a few years ago, Penny then played Crowded Rooms. Crowded Rooms was commercially recorded abroad, something I mentioned in the first article on My
Gazette. Although the song was originally a country ballad (Tammy Wynette style), the S.African recording which is sung by Arina de Witt, was recorded as a MOR ballad.

The song was originally on a CD called Voices, then included again on a double CD set. It was nice for this particular recording to get its first airplay here, (as far as I know), and so I say thank you to Penny Smith and Hayes fm. I think Arina de Witt has a lovely voice and so I consider it an honour that she chose to include Crowded Rooms on her album.

I am in the process of displaying the album sleeves regarding Crowded Rooms on Hayes Middlesex Photo Galleries for the interest of music-minded people.

There could be a chance of another song being recorded, but there are so many choices with other writers that I can only hope that I will be extra lucky and Arina de Witt will hear something else she likes enough to record.

Story Posted By: Lilac on 27 July 2010 18:12:55
Viewed 372 times, Last viewed on 05 September 2010 10:10:24

Songwriter Returns For Radio Interview
Marian Heawood met Penny Smith on Sunday 8th June and was interviewed on the Past Times show on Hayes FM.
09 June 2008