“Breath of the Wind”: Musician, Author & Yardbirds Drummer Jim McCarty’s Voyage Through Loss & Love

In this special episode of Rock is Lit, one of the original members of The Yardbirds joins me: Drummer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Jim McCarty is here to talk about his brand new song, “Breath of the Wind”; his interest in and exploration of the paranormal and spirituality; his endearing and enduring relationship with his late wife, Lizzie; and his book ‘She Walks In Beauty’, the fascinating story of their relationship and Jim’s quest to connect with her after her passing.

Watch the Episode on YouTube

Episode Notes

If you’ve ever had an interest in the paranormal, spirituality in general, or wondered if there’s life after death, if our consciousness does not end when our bodies do; if you’ve ever lost someone dear to you, felt the weight of grief, ached to connect with that person again and asked yourself . . . is there a chance—any chance at all—that I could reconnect with my loved one: What would you do to find out? How open would you be to embarking on a quest for the bigger picture?

Yardbirds drummer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Jim McCarty made such a quest and wrote about it in his 2021 book ‘She Walks in Beauty’, a fascinating account of his endearing and enduring relationship with his beloved late wife, Lizzie, and his lifelong interest in the paranormal. He continues those themes in his brand new song, “Breath of the Wind,” from The Yardbirds’ UK label, Demon Music.

Join us for a candid, poignant discussion about the personal and spiritual dimensions of Jim’s life and his relationship with Lizzie—before and after her death of cancer in 2020.

I also invite you to listen to my first interview with Jim wherever you get your podcasts or watch the video version on YouTube (links below). In that interview, we explore his upbringing and musical development and his incredible musical career, including his tenure with The Yardbirds and beyond.

EPISODE PLAYLIST:

All songs by Jim McCarty

“Mountain Song”—played on episode intro and all transitions except where “Breath of the Wind” is referenced

“Breath of the Wind”—played on two transitions, in the outro, and a longer clip near the middle of the episode

“Walking in the Wild Land”

“Changing Times”

“Soft in a Hard Place” 

“Charmed”

LINKS:

Leave a rating and comment for Rock is Lit on Goodpods: https://goodpods.com/podcasts/rock-is-lit-212451

Leave a rating and comment for Rock is Lit on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rock-is-lit/id1642987350

Jim McCarty’s website: http://www.jamesmccarty.com/

Jim McCarty’s new song “Breath of the Wind”: https://jimmcarty.lnk.to/wind?fbclid=IwAR0WiPW3STBvLZ_GInH8MadOwEaRFao9MU0OcOYyumlrqX2QtIA61u6ql2s

Jim’s 2018 album ‘Walking in the Wild Land’ on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3Ic5T5ATtPPT4M4BxryUYi

Jim’s 2018 album ‘Walking in the Wild Land’ on Pandora: https://www.pandora.com/artist/jim-mccarty/walking-in-the-wild-land/ALl3KgfJZ4ltgbw

*Purchase Jim’s books and albums at his website

*All of Jim’s social media links can be found on his website

Listen to my first interview with Jim on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngxA8cH3_t4&t=211s

Listen to my first interview with Jim on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/yardbirds-drummer-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame/id1642987350?i=1000611052496

Listen to my first interview with Jim here on my website: https://www.christyalexanderhallberg.com/rockislitpodcast/jimmccarty

Music video I created for Jim’s song “Breath of the Wind”

Photo Lizzie & Jim McCarty from Jim’s book ‘She Walks in Beauty’

Download “Breath of the Wind” wherever you stream music

The Yardbirds, l-r: Jim McCarty, Chris Dreja, Keith Relf, Jimmy Page