Pink (Alecia Moore) and City and Colour (Dallas Green) are collaborating as You+Me on a new album Rose Ave. which releases October 14th. “You and Me”, the initial track, has been available for a month on Youtube. Besides being a great song, it appears to nicely foreshadow the album. Pink’s incredible vocals married to Dallas Green’s musical sensibilities as a singer/songwriter augur nothing less than stunning harmonies surrounding meaty and meaningful lyrics. “You and Me” embodies this.
In “You and Me,” the lyrics, the very structure of the song, and the overall sound convey that longing we all have for living the kind of starkly intimate and trusting relationship that provides a bedrock of strength in our lives. Lyrically, for example: “You can be flawed enough but perfect for a person / Someone who will be there for you when you fall apart / Guiding your direction when you’re riding through the dark.” I could see this song nestling next to Carole King’s “You’ve Got a Friend” on a playlist.
Structurally, we see that while the voices of You+Me mesh together in harmony demonstrating this tight relationship, the chorus is repeated with them echoing to one another, repeating “Oh, that’s you and me” to each other, finally ending the song in an a cappella manifesto of the relationship.
Musically, their voices weave over and around the acoustic guitar’s strain driving forward steadily throughout; their coming together evokes this single, directed melody. The overarching sound is mellow; it’s reminiscent of sitting with my wife, drinking coffee and alternately talking and reading. One of those golden Saturday mornings before the cares of the day barge in.
Some may find it a bit too mellow. I’ve read some fussing, mostly from Pink fans, that they want their fun rocker back. As one quips, “I want the I’m Not Dead Pink.” This Pink isn’t so very different than the Pink on “Just Give Me a Reason” (another collaboration) or even on “Try”, two of her most popular songs. Now, does she sound different than on “Stupid Girls”? Oh yeah. However, I’m Not Dead also includes “I Have Seen The Rain” and “Dear Mr. President.” Pink, it appears, has enough range to do both “Raise Your Glass” and “You and Me”.
That is the salient point, my friends. These are different facets of one Pink. It’s all her. When an actor like Tom Hiddleston can play Loki in Thor and Henry V in Shakespeare’s name sake play, we applaud his range. He’s not just a one character wonder but someone who can really act. Why should we want to reduce the singers we love into one side of themselves? It may be that we prefer one aspect of the artist to another, but let’s enjoy all of them.
So I applaud Pink and City and Colour for taking this step. I love this song and believe the album, as a whole, will be a wonderful collaboration. You can also check out “Capsized” and “Break the Cycle” from Rose Ave. on their Youtube channel YouplusmeVevo. For our friends north of the border, in celebration of Dallas Green’s Canadian roots, CBC Music is streaming the entirety of Rose Ave. up to release day.