Danny O’Keefe may be one of the most underappreciated and overlooked American folk singer/songwriters of the 1970s.

Photo Credit: Davis Freeman

My introduction to his music was the 1972 Top 10 Billboard hit Good Time Charlie’s Got the Blues. The song has been recorded by many, including Elvis Presley. O’Keefe says that Waylon Jenning’s version of the song is one of his favourites. It’s easy to hear why.

As I began to collect singles and albums in my teenage years, I began to notice his name show up as a songwriter. He wrote Magdalena on Leo Sayer’s 1977 Endless Flight album. In 1978, O’Keefe’s song The Road was on Jackson Browne’s Running on Empty album. It helped set the theme for the entire album about life on the road for a musician.

To paraphrase a line in the song The Road, O’Keefe’s songs have travelled far. While working in country radio during the 1980s, I also noticed his songs (and not just Good Time Charlie) were recorded by Cal Smith, Conway Twitty, and Gary Stewart. Recently, Miranda Lambert had a country hit with her cover of Covered Wagon, which was a minor hit in Canada in 1970. His material has also been recorded by Judy Collins, Alison Krauss, and Donny Hathaway.

Circular Turns is his latest release. It’s his first since 2020’s Looking Glass and The Dreamers. The double album features some of O’Keefe’s “lost tracks” from albums that have been out of print for some time. It also features live versions of his classics that were recorded at a 2016 house concert. All the usual themes you’d expect to find on a Danny O’Keefe album are there: songs inspired by the road, family, friends, relationships, politics and social issues.

The first single from the album, is a song he co-wrote with Bob Dylan. It’s about the importance of taking care of our water supply and was previously recorded by Maria Muldaur w/Mavis Staples.

Some of my favourite tracks on the double album include Alone in the Dark, You Don’t Have to Be Right, Litany, and his live version of Covered Wagon.

One song I may be playing on Oldies Without Borders, especially on Mother’s Day, is called Soul Provider – a song about the challenges of being a single mom. It’s a song that O’Keefe wrote the song with his mother in mind. “It’s an homage to mothers everywhere. My father died when I was 16, and my mother carried the load. She was my rock even before he died. He’d been sick for many years. It’s true of so many families that have single mothers – they are the rock. There should be a statue to the single mother. Unfortunately, she didn’t get to hear it. She died in the ’70s.”

The album was released on November 10. If you’re a fan, you’ll love it. If you’re a casual fan, the album is a great introduction to the music and legacy of the singer/songwriter. For more information on that album and about the works of Danny O’Keefe, go to dannyokeefe.com

In this interview, originally broadcast on Oldies Without Borders on November 11, 2023, Danny and I talk about the new album, what the title means, and why Good Time Charlie is one of his best friends. He also shares his thoughts on the recent passing of Canada’s Gordon Lightfoot.

Enjoy!

Interview Copyright Peter J. Maurin, The Vinyl Professor. Published under Creative Commons License: Attribution/Non-Commercial Use.