Today’s classic song of the day comes to us from Robert Altman’s acclaimed 1975 movie, Nashville. The tune is “I’m Easy,” and it was written and performed by actor Keith Carradine.
In the movie, Carradine’s character Tom Frank, an inveterate womanizer, performs it at a local club called the Exit/In and dedicates it to “a special someone.” Since he always has several “special someones” in his life, several women in the audience think it was written just for them.
Elektra/Asylum Records released “I’m Easy” as a single in May of 1976. It peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #10 on the Cash Box Top 100. It reached number-one on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart and won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. It also won a Golden Globe for Best Original Song (Motion Picture).
The movie Nashville garnered its share of accolades, too. It was nominated for five Oscars (including Best Picture and Best Director), winning one (for “I’m Easy”). It was also nominated for seven Golden Globes, again winning just one (also for “It’s Easy”). The film starred a huge cast of well-known actors, including Ned Beatty, Karen Black, Ronee Blakley, Geraldine Chaplin, Shelley Duvall, Henry Gibson, Scott Glenn, Jeff Goldblum, Barbara Harris, Michael Murphy, Lily Tomlin, Keenan Wynn, and, of course, Keith Carradine.
“I’m Easy” is the laid back kind of folkish/countryish tune that was popular in the singer/songwriter seventies. It’s actually a pretty good song, proving perhaps that everybody has one good song in them, even actors. The song was originally released on the Nashville soundtrack album on ABC Records, but ABC wouldn’t let Carradine use it on his own album. So he had to re-record it for Elektra/Asylum, which released it as a single. This is probably the version with which you’re familiar.
And here’s your daily bonus video of the day, Keith Carradine as Tom Frank performing “I’m Easy” in the movie Nashville. It is a good song, whether accompanied only by a single acoustic guitar or in a more elaborate studio arrangement.
