The Big Sky

Kim Richey was the first person that wanted to tell my story in a co-write after I signed my first publishing deal. I was so honored to be in the room with her & I couldn’t understand why she wanted me to be the artist that day but I’m sure glad she did. We wrote this song about Wyoming. The way I’ve romanticized the place I’m from, how I long to go back one day, how it all makes sense when I’m there & turns back into a dream when I leave. I love the way she plays guitar & sings & the way she crafts lyrics is so stylized & poetic. She’s an icon & one of the few women whose careers has spanned decades as a vocalist & storyteller.

Over the course of a few months we wrote a handful of songs, all of which I love. My publisher at the time, Bobby Rymer, thought we should make an acoustic record from all the worktapes to pitch around town. We loved the idea but the timing wasn’t right & it never happened. The Big Sky is the first of three of those songs I’ve recorded for this project. It’s a sweet full-circle moment to have a song that has been so near to my heart for the last eight years in the world.

Many years ago I played the worktape for my Grandmother & she cried. She didn’t like to talk about Wyoming after her & my Grandpa moved away when it got too hard to live so remote in the mountains. She just patted my hand & said “that’s a good one.” The first time I played the recording for my Mom, she cried too. She felt like I wrote it for her & all the ways she’s missed home. I think I wrote it for all three of us. The Big Sky is out now & if you haven’t been to Wyoming, I hope you’ll visit.

Credits

Written by Melissa Fuller & Kim Richey

Produced by Davis Naish

Guitar, Piano, Bass & Tambourine - Davis Naish

Vocals - Melissa Fuller

Mixing - Davis Naish

Mastering - Adam Grover, Sterling Sound

Photos & Styling - Sunny Davis, Studio Sunny

Lyrics

I know who I am underneath a big sky

West of the Mississippi River running by the levee

Take me by the hand underneath the big sky

Where we can see forever, room to make a life together

Oh I miss you most when the stars come out

Late at night, late at night

I left all I found underneath the big sky

Where the streams run clear & cold, sunset turns the hills to gold

One day I'll lay down underneath the big sky

Back where I left my heart, all the way back to the start

Oh oh I miss you most when the wild wind blows

Late at night, late at night

Oh oh I miss you most when the first snow falls

Late at night, late at night