Alter Bridge
BlackBird - Single

Do you know those songs that, despite the years passing by, things change, new albums come out, remain stuck in our hearts and minds?

Blackbird is one of those songs. In its notes and lyrics, there's melancholy, reflection; it's neither a headbanging track nor a radio-friendly ballad destined to be a best seller for its own sake.

Blackbird is a masterpiece of composition, vocals, and storytelling. The protagonist of the lyrics, the blackbird, is the representation of the soul leaving the earthly life, accompanied by Myles Kennedy's voice, which leads it away, giving it hope.

The Alter Bridge frontman recounted that the song is dedicated to the late childhood friend Mark Morse, with whom he grew up and from whom he bought his first guitar for a few bucks. Contrary to what might be thought, the dedication is posthumous to the composition, as Morse died a few days before the single's release.

In the lyrics, there are very explicit, occasionally dark passages. The soul flies away with its wings and is asked to interact with other souls so they can escape before seeing the new day. Just to avoid suffering:

“Cause some birds to fly long before they've seen their day

Long before they've seen their day”

Because the world is a static, cruel, and impure place where the fragile and weary cannot endure:

“The fragile cannot endure

The wrecked and the jaded, a place so impure

The static of this cruel world”

If we separate the narrative of the lyrics from the music and the singing, we might think we're facing eight minutes that leave us completely oppressed. Only by listening (not just hearing) the piece do we realize the opposite and the dimension into which we are catapulted. Kennedy's voice caresses us and holds our hand, then jerks us, forcing us to open our eyes. The octaves explode and reach their peak in the second chorus, from which derives the magnificent and famous double guitar solo with Mark Tremonti. I challenge anyone not to feel chills at this precise moment.

Blackbird was released in October 2007 and was included in the self-titled album, the second studio album. It was recognized by critics, fans, and the band itself as the best track on the record and the highest point in the career of the Orlando quartet. The definitive consecration came four years later, in the spring of 2011, when the British magazine Guitarist (the oldest and most acclaimed in England and in general in the field) awarded the double solo by Myles Kennedy and Mark Tremonti the title of "Greatest Guitar Solo of All Time." Surpassing performances by Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, John Petrucci, Steve Vai, and David Gilmour, to name them all.

Blackbird teaches us that even if we're seeing everything in black, we can still hope to fly away, carried by the breeze that will help us find those who have already gone elsewhere.