A Gift from Janis Ian

I got an e-mail the other day that would have thrilled my sixteen-year-old self.  

Last year, my friend Janis Ian agreed to be my toastmistress for the Nebula Awards ceremony I produced for the Science Fiction Writers of America.  While I would never have asked her to perform music for free, Janis soon asked if it would be o.k. for her to sing at the event.  Duh!

Janis didn't just sing.  She wrote new lyrics for her hit At Seventeen for the evening, entitling it Welcome Home. Like At Seventeen, it hit the mark. Big Bang Theory co-creator Chuck Lorre, no stranger to musical composition himself, was sitting next to me and was blown away. Many of the attendees were referenced, as were many old friends no longer with us. There were many tears in the corners of eyes that night.

The e-mail Janis sent the other day included the file for the song she wrote with her good wishes to spread it wide (but asking that appropriate credit be given.)  She's now made it available for us to put it online.  Here's a link to Welcome Home, that goes through my friend Kristine Kathryn Rusch's website, since I don't know how to get it here any other way.  (And if you pass it on, please credit Music © Mine Music Ltd./EMI Japan Publishing/Lyric © Rude Girl Publishing.  All rights reserved.  International copyright secured.  Used by Permission.)

If you like the song, please consider going to Janis' website and make a contribution to The Pearl Foundation.  Her charity is named for her mother and it funds scholarships for older women who want to return to school.  It's a cause I can believe in, since A.A.U.W. gave me money to go to law school as an older student.