‘Rag Doll’ by Gayle Skidmore immediately entrances you with a soft and emotive voice poetically singing about being a ‘rag doll, sewn by a blind man’ which conjures up the image that we are made with natural imperfections by a blind creator. The opening line says “I broke you butterfly. Crumpled up your wings and watched you die. Now I wear you on a pin. A sad medallion of my sin” This made us feel that you can destroy something that was so beautiful to you, and be reminded of it all through your days knowing that it is these imperfections and experiences in life that make you what you are, and sometimes make you repeat those same mistakes “Just because” .
It made us connect with a sombre regret of love and life that seemed to emanate in her beautiful soft voice – scented with a little pain, and with a very natural delivery of words that would not be out-of-place at a poetry reading evening. The music supports the imagery and the sentiment very harmoniously – a soft and eerie picking chord progression that lifts so beautifully when her chorus is sung. The sound and production is crisp and warm and draws you in from the first note.
Being a songwriter of over 2000 songs and playing music since she was tall enough to reach the piano it is no wonder that the quality of this and her other songs are reaching out fast and far across the world. It is a pleasure for us to listen and review songs like this because they are so full of heart, creativity and natural talent that it inspires us all. We made our own conclusions from her lyrics, and she might have meant something completely different. But that is the mark of a true song-smith and lyricist – to make people feel something from your art and reflect on its possible meaning and connection to you.
Photo of Gayle by Photos by O.
Winston Freeman
