A Tune about Getting Better Gets Even Better

Tunes in The Flood repertoire are always subject to re-evaluation and rehabilitation. Perhaps a new key will freshen it up. Maybe there are new verses that can be sung. A new rhythm? A new chord or two?“Ready for the Times to Get Better,” the Allen Reynolds song that Randy Hamilton brought to the table a few years ago, is just such a song.About the SongAs reported here earlier, the tune already had very long journey to Floodlandia. The first time it was played in our band room was about 15 years ago on a mellow autumn night when Randy and his buddy Paul Martin dropped in to jam with us.Neither man was a member of The Flood yet — Randy would join the following year and Paul a few years after that — but their song was the hit of the evening (as reported in that week’s Flood podcast).However, “Ready for the Times to Get Better” didn’t work its way into our repertoire until a few years ago when Danny Cox happened to start picking it between songs on the night’s practice list.The jaunty melody really jingled in our memory and Dan and Randy got together to woodshed a little, working it out. And since then band had been honing its arrangement, Sam polishing his harmonica solo, Jack and Charlie smoothing out their respective drum and banjo rhythms.The Tommy Emmanuel-Doc Watson EffectThe song’s evolution in the band room took another turn last month when a Flood hero saluted another Flood hero with a special release from his first solo album in 10 years. Grammy-winning guitarist Tommy Emmanuel’s Living in the Light is a virtuosic blend of acoustic pop, jazz, classical and roots music.Most of the performances on Living in the Light were recorded in one or two takes, exuding the sense of joy and wonder in these sonic explorations.One track on the album — what he listed as “Waiting for the Times to Get Better” — has special meaning for Emmanuel, who in early March chose the 103rd anniversary of the late Doc Watson’s birth to release a video of the song he learned from Doc’s work.“When I heard Doc Watson sing this song,” he told Bluegrass Today, “I knew I should try to do the same. I love his voice and guitar playing so much — it’s so honest. If you look up the word ‘honesty’ in the dictionary, there’s a picture of Doc!“I wanted to do a tribute in my own way. ‘Ready for the Times to Get Better’ is my attempt at singing a message. It’s simple. We are all waiting for times to get better in our world, and singing seems to help me get through these tough times.”Meanwhile, when our Danny Cox listened to the track, he heard something else: a chord or two that were different from previous versions. Gently, Danny brought that Emmanuel effect to The Flood’s take on the tune, and that’s where its Floodifying stands today.For the back story of this great Allen Reynolds composition, see our earlier Flood Watch article by clicking here. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 1937flood.substack.com