Warmin’ up the Pipes

Jim Nabors won’t be singing this year at the Indianapolis 500. I can remember very few Indy 500′s where he hasn’t sung Back Home Again(in Indiana). When I hear it sung, I never fail to tear up a bit, not because I’m an expatriate Hoosier, but because I know about the longing for places one holds dear.

There have been few Indy 500′s where Jim hasn’t sung the song; and over the course of those years, I think I’ve learned to belt out a good rendition myself.¹ So, I’m offering my services to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this year; if you need me to sing the song in Jim’s stead, send your jet to Dulles Airport. I can be to the ‘port in 10 minutes, from whence you can whisk me to the Brickyard, and I’ll perform.

Since it’s not bloody likely the foregoing will happen, here’s the song. ² Jim will be shown on the Brickyard’s Jumbotrons tomorrow, leading a sing-along.

Back home again in Indiana,
And it seems that I can see
The gleaming candlelight, still shining bright,
Through the sycamores for me.
The new-mown hay sends off its fragrance
Through the fields I used to roam.
When I dream about the moonlight on the Wabash,
How I long for my Indiana home.

May your mimosa-fueled singing be as joyful to you as mine is to me.

-k-

[tags]indiana, indy500, jimnabors[/tags]