Hayley Thompson-King, ‘Old Flames (Can’t Hold a Candle to You)’ [Exclusive Premiere]
Country singer-songwriter Hayley Thompson-King is premiering her moody, vintage-inspired cover of “Old Flames (Can’t Hold a Candle to You)” exclusively for readers of The Boot. Press play below to listen.
Written originally by Rosemary Patricia “Pebe” Sebert (mother of pop singer-songwriter Kesha) and Hugh Moffatt, “Old Flames (Can’t Hold a Candle to You)” has been sung by Joe Sun, Brian Collins and, perhaps most famously, Dolly Parton. Thompson-King says she identified with the song because of her own relationship.
"I find it very hard to write about love gone right,” she tells The Boot. “I have a wonderful partner of eight years who really is the greatest thing in my life and sticks by me. He can't be matched, even by my demons. I picked up this song, and it fit instantly, so we decided to include it on the record.”
Recalling '70s country chanteuses such as Bobbie Gentry, Thompson-King offers a uniquely fuzzy, old-school brand of alt-country tunes. She describes her debut album, Psychotic Melancholia, as a “Sodom and Gomorrah concept album.”
“I was the skeptical kid with her hand up in Sunday school. Also, I spent weekends performing with my church youth group called Clowns for Christ," Thompson recalls. "I guess you could say I was obsessed with getting to the bottom of what exactly would send one to hell.”
Thompson-King spent her childhood growing up in small-town Florida. She earned a master’s degree in opera performance from the New England Conservatory of Music.
Psychotic Melancholia is set for release on Sept. 1.
Listen to Hayley Thompson-King, "Old Flames (Can't Hold a Candle to You)":
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