BBC News
Published I wrote the song to deal with the pressure. It was an escape.
When paramedic David Webster heard his hospital colleagues were becoming seriously ill with Covid and one had died, he wanted to find a release for the sadness he felt. It was near the start of the pandemic. We ended up with some of our staff in intensive care, being looked after by their own colleagues, he said. Everyone was really sad. You could tell everyone was really suffering with the weight of responsibility, not just to the public but to each other.
The 53-year-old father-of-two decided to commit his intense emotions to music, and googled How to write a song .
Writing songs in lockdown: It was an escape
bbc.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from bbc.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Dream come true for dancer as Irish language film receives rave reviews
sundayworld.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from sundayworld.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Died: October 23, 2020 JERRY Jeff Walker, who has died aged 78, was a country singer who stayed true to his outlaw spirit, even as he penned what became a classic of the American songbook. Walker wrote Mr Bojangles following a night in a New Orleans drunk tank, where he encountered the old street dancer who became its inspiration. Walker first recorded the song for his debut 1968 album of the same name. Since then, Mr Bojangles has been covered by a multitude of artists, including the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, who had a hit with it in1970. Others who recorded it include Neil Diamond, Bobbie Gentry, Bob Dylan, Dolly Parton and Edwyn Collins. The song became a central part of Sammy Davis Jnr’s act, while composer Philip Glass incorporated it into his opera, Einstein on the Beach. It was Nina Simone’s version, however, that Walker said he liked best.