Sing a Song of Karen

Last night Andy and I watched "Great Performances: A Tribute to James Taylor." We've been fans of his for many years; I told Andy I couldn't really imagine anyone who could honestly say they hated James Taylor. He has so many wonderful songs that everyone's sure to find something. (Right?) Anyhow, this was a much more successful tribute than the Leonard Cohen fiasco; all you need to know is that it featured performances from the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Bruce Springsteen, Alison Krauss and Jerry Douglas, Taj Mahal and Dr. John, Sting, and many more. Of course some performances were better than others, but all in all it was really fun to watch. JT ended the whole thing with a rousing rendition of "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)," which seems like a fitting response to a tribute. He also said it was the first time he'd ever been in the audience hearing his own band, and that was a real treat. So, if you're a fan, try to catch the repeat on your local PBS station.

Meanwhile, when Alison Krauss started singing "Carolina in My Mind," I told Andy that that song was always special to me because it's the only song that features a girl named Karen ("Karen, she's a silver sun/You best walk her way and watch it shine"). He said, "How do you know it's the only one?" and I said, "I just know. No one writes songs with names like Karen anymore, and there weren't any others growing up." Well. Fast-forward to today, when I heard "Short Skirt / Long Jacket" by Cake. The last verse goes like this:

I want a girl with good dividends,
At Citibank we will meet accidentally,
We start to talk when she borrows my pen.

She wants a car with a cup-holder armrest,
She wants a car that will get her there.
She's changing her name from Kitty to Karen,
She's trading her MG for a white Chrysler LeBaron

I want a girl with a short skirt and a long jacket.

Now I know.

Comments

[susan]

According to the internets tubes there is an artist/group named Doves with a song about Karen:

Say you've found your soulmate
Well what did he do before
You say you've found your precious
Here's a gift thats been brought to your door
You say that I'll always be special
Tell me now what does that mean

Fear I've been cast as a villian
Tell me now how could that be?
Karen
How can you be so mean?
Karen
How can you be so mean?

[Jon]

And then there's Karen By Night,by Jill Sobule.

[James]

I love that Cake song!

[JOHN BROUHARD]

A Swedish group, "Club 8", on their album "The Friend I once had"(1998) has a song (track 11) called "KAREN". karolina Komstedt seems to have had, or has a best friend whose name is Karen. The "Karen thread" seems to run through this album and one or two other albums. "SPRING CAME, RAIN FELL" also mentions this "Karen" in "Karen Song". I don't know exactly who this "Karen" is, but she seems to be important to Karolina Komstedt and/or Johan Angergard, the co-founders of CLUB 8.