From A Distance

This was written by singer/songwriter Julie Gold, who was working odd jobs in New York to make ends meet when she received a very special 30th birthday gift from her parents back home in Philadelphia: the piano she had played as a child. The men who delivered her piano told her that it had gotten pretty cold in the truck on its way to her, and that she shouldn't play it for a day to give it time to adjust to its new surroundings in her apartment. Gold wanted to play it very badly, but, not wanting to cause damage, resisted the urge. Instead, she just "hugged it and polished it." The next day, she sat down at that piano and wrote this song in about 2 hours. In our interview with Julie Gold, she said, "I only set out to write a decent song about the difference between the way things seem and the way things are."

Julie Gold wrote this song in the winter of 1985. Nanci Griffith recorded it in 1987, and Midler in 1990, just when the first Persian Gulf War began. It became the most requested song on Saudi Band Radio and was very closely associated with that war. The song won a Minute Man award from the US Army for inspiring troops during the First Gulf War.

This was Gold's first recorded song. She told us: "My friend Christine Lavin heard it and mailed my demo of the song to Nanci Griffith, who fell in love with it and decided to record it. I should mention that Christine is an excellent (and famous) songwriter in her own right. She wrote 'Sensitive New Age Guys' with John Gorka, among many others. After Nanci Griffith recorded 'From A Distance,' it quickly became an anthem in Ireland and a favorite for her fans worldwide. In 1990, Bette Midler recorded it, and it went on to become a mega hit. Many 'From A Distance' covers came after Nanci Griffith's [version]. Some came after Bette Midler's, too. That's what makes it so cool, if you ask me. All of these legendary artists decided to record my song!"