Saint Cecilia Knows has just released a split 7" that pairs Mickey Newbury’s ‘Heaven Help The Child’ with a cover by Bill Callahan. It follows up from the label’s Newbury boxset, An American Trilogy, which was released last year. Callahan has previously spoken and sung of his admiration for Newbury, who died in 2002. You can listen to his take on the song, and watch the video, above.
"A wildly-ambitious, cross-generational odyssey, written in 1971 against the backdrop of the waning days of the Vietnam War, ‘Heaven Help The Child’ is the closest Newbury ever came to writing a pure protest song," say the label, "albeit one that, in true Newbury style, breaks the mould and emotes heartfelt paeans, seeking solutions rather than mere dissent. ‘Heaven Help the Child’ is the work of a master songwriter at the height of his powers."
