Music Friday: 'Emeralds From Mountains Thrust Towards the Sky' in 1998's 'I’ll Be'

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you fantastic songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the lyrics or title. Today, Edwin McCain employs a key "emerald" reference in his timeless hit, "I’ll Be" — a tune that was selected by one-million-plus Dr. Phil viewers in 2005 as the best wedding song ever written.

The romantic gemstone metaphor is in the very first verse of the memorable 1998 tune: “The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful / Stop me and steal my breath / And emeralds from mountains thrust towards the sky / Never revealing their depth.”

Emeralds, in this case, embody the characteristics of his girlfriend: precious, beautiful, majestic, mysterious and sublime.

While most listeners would bet the farm that McCain intended “I’ll Be” to be a heartwarming love song, the 53-year-old singer-songwriter revealed that it was actually written as a prayer in a moment of personal and professional desperation. He was going through a rough breakup with his girlfriend while struggling with the unwieldy demands of his record label.

“It was kind of a Hail Mary prayer for me, personally,” he told songfacts.com. “The idea was that maybe if I write my future, it’ll come true.” He told the music website that, despite the misinterpretation of “I’ll Be,” he is very pleased that his song has become a favorite wedding song and he’s always proud to play it in concert.

“I’m not associated with the ’90s,” he said. “I’m associated with weddings. So it never ends. It’s timeless.”

McCain also revealed his inspiration for the song's repeating phrase, "cryin’ shoulder," and its final line, "The greatest fan of your life."

He explained to hudsonandemily.com, “There was a girl I dated who was on her way to being an actress and it was one of those things where it was never going to last, but I remember I used to always tell her I’d be her greatest fan."

He continued, "That and I overheard a drunk guy at a bar fumble over his words about being a 'shoulder to cry on' or 'crying shoulder' and I remember writing it down on a bar napkin because that phrase sort of hit me the right way, and I went home and wrote it all down, and there you go.”

“I’ll Be,” which was released as the first single from McCain’s second album, Misguided Roses, rose to #5 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and stands as McCain’s biggest hit.

Born in Charleston, SC, McCain toured with Hootie and the Blowfish in the early 1990s and eventually signed with his tourmates' label, Atlantic Records. McCain has released 11 albums and continues to perform live, with dates already scheduled through September 2024.

Check out the official video of McCain singing “I’ll Be.” The lyrics are below if you’d like to sing along…

“I’ll Be”
Written and performed by Edwin McCain.

The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful
Stop me and steal my breath
And emeralds from mountains thrust towards the sky
Never revealing their depth

And tell me that we belong together
Dress it up with the trappings of love
I’ll be captivated, I’ll hang from your lips
Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above

And I’ll be your cryin’ shoulder
I’ll be love suicide
And I’ll be better when I’m older
I’ll be the greatest fan of your life

And rain falls angry on the tin roof
As we lie awake in my bed
And you’re my survival, you’re my living proof
My love is alive, and not dead

And tell me that we belong together
Dress it up with the trappings of love
I’ll be captivated, I’ll hang from your lips
Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above

And I’ll be your cryin’ shoulder
I’ll be love suicide
And I’ll be better when I’m older
I’ll be the greatest fan of your life.

And I dropped out, I burned up, I fought my way back from the dead
I tuned in, I turned on, remembered the thing that you said

And I’ll be your cryin’ shoulder
I’ll be love suicide
And I’ll be better when I’m older
I’ll be the greatest fan of your life

And I’ll be your cryin’ shoulder
I’ll be love suicide
And I’ll be better when I’m older
I’ll be the greatest fan of your life
The greatest fan of your life.

Credit: Screen capture via Youtube.com.

Demi Lovato Shares Intimate Shot of Her New Pear-Shaped Engagement Ring

Singer-songwriter-actress Demi Lovato and her new fiancé Jordan “Jutes” Lutes have been sharing social media pics of their holiday-season engagement, and Lovato's stunning new pear-shaped diamond engagement ring has become a news story in itself.

While some "experts" have estimated the carat weight of the diamond at 4.5 to 5 carats, with a value of $150,000 to $200,000, others believe it's as large as 8 or 9 carats with a price tag of up to $760,000.

Nevertheless, what we do know for sure is that the natural diamond ring is set with five prongs in a cathedral solitaire setting on an unadorned yellow gold band. This design draws all of the attention to the large center stone..

The 32-year-old Lutes, who is a Toronto-based singer-songwriter, popped the question privately in Los Angeles a week ago Saturday and reportedly celebrated the engagement with members of both families the next day at Craig's, one of their favorite West Hollywood eateries.

“I’m still speechless," the "Confident" singer, 31, captioned a series of engagement pics on Instagram. "…last night was the best night of my life and I can’t believe I get to marry the love of my life @jutesmusic.”

The next day, Lovato shared an intimate closeup of her hand caressing the shoulder of her napping boyfriend while the impressive ring glistens in the foreground. Her caption read, "4 candles for forever," a reference to the four Sundays of Advent and the symbols of hope, peace, joy and love.

On Christmas Day, Lutes shared multiple photos of his first American Christmas, which included an adorable pic of the couple in matching hooded pajamas.

Commenting on the post, Lovato joked, "I’m still not over your uno championship reign. I’ll let you have it because it’s Christmas. Jkjk I loooooooove you and this was the best Christmas ever… getting to spend it with you has been a dream come true. Now can we pleeeease watch some love island together?"

Pagesix.com reported that the ring design was the result of a collaboration between the couple and Teresa Panico of the Material Good boutique, located in the Soho district of New York City. Lovato and Lutes reportedly "fell in love" with the pear-shaped diamond and the design came to life two weeks later.

In addition to collaborating on the ring design, Lovato and Lutes also co-wrote the former Disney star's song, "Substance," back in January of 2022. That was when they met, and they subsequently worked professionally and became good friends before taking the relationship to the next level in August of 2022.

“He was just so focused on the music,” Lovato said during a LadyGang podcast. “So we were friends for a while and then told each other how we felt.”

Credits: Ring photo via Instagram / ddlovato. Couple photo via Instagram / jutesmusic.

Artificial Intelligence Helps Unite Airline Passengers With Lost Jewelry, Watches

With the help of artificial intelligence (AI), holiday travelers who have lost their jewelry at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and 11 other major air hubs across the US have a much better chance of getting it back.

During an average year at DFW, for example, more than 18,000 items are reported lost by travelers. But, thanks to newly installed artificial intelligence software, about 90% of the items are successfully returned to their owners.

Shimaa Fadul, who runs daily operations at the DFW lost and found, told CBS News that her team of specialists have collected 587 rings and 414 watches, including seven Rolexes, so far in 2023.

As she opened a secured cabinet to show CBS News reporter Omar Villafranca the magnitude of the collection, all he could say was "Wow" as he viewed the labeled plastic containers brimming with watches, bracelets, necklaces, rings and miscellaneous jewelry, as well as keys, sunglasses and cell phones.

When the airport's team finds an item, it is immediately photographed and entered into a database. The team does its best to described the item in great detail. When travelers inquire about items, they, too, will provide descriptive information and photos, if available.

Lost and Found software, which is operated by Hallmark Aviation Services, uses AI and image recognition to automatically match found items with inquiries. Once the match is confirmed, the items can be quickly returned to their rightful owners.

Fadul noted that distinguishing marks, such as stickers or serial numbers, help the process along. In the case of jewelry, we're assuming that detailed gem configurations, hallmarks and inscriptions will be equally valuable in making a match.

She explained how her team came to the rescue of a woman who recently misplaced her wedding dress at DFW. Fadul's team found the dress and, with the help of AI, matched it to the bride-to-be and overnighted it to her barely 24 hours before she was set to walk down the aisle.

Check out the CBS News report here…

Credits: Screen captures via cbsnews.com.