This may not change your life, hell it probably won't even make your life any more interesting but at least I won't be so bored.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
New Song: Off My Mind
What is this? A new song in less than a month? I know, I'm dumbfounded too. "Off My Mind" is just one of those songs where the inspiration, melody, and lyrics just hit all at once. I began writing the lyrics a couple of days ago after reminiscing about a recent trip I took to Boston. Originally this song was going to be a rather dour tune with just me and the acoustic but a new melody for it just happened to pop in my head yesterday, which made for a more upbeat ditty, and everything else just fell into place. I wish they all would do that. I spent the meatier part of the day working on this, taking breaks only for sustenance and to watch "Year One" at the theater, don't bother, trust me. I am quite surprised, and proud, of myself for finishing this in the same day, usually I get tired, bored, or just flake out until the next day or so. As usual I'd love to hear some feedback. Peace! No really, peace.
OFF MY MIND
On a train to Rhode Island it’s just one of many that divides us
Just to keep you from driving from the coast up to the termini
On a wait at the station was it Saturday or was it Sunday?
I’ve got time to wander so it doesn’t seem to bother me
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
But it’s never, never, never seems to work, and it’ll never work this time
On a walk through the flowers we’re not k-i-s-s-i-n-g
We’ve got time to talk aloud it doesn’t seem to bother me
There’s a green grass table top, no use in chasing kites from trees
As your hands form a cup around your face I sit and watch you sneeze
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
But it’s never, never, never seems to work, and it’ll never work this time
Now its back to the station, patrons wait, I ask how much it cost them
It feels like now we’re strangers and I hate this overcoming me
So I’m not so lost when huddled on that train ride back to Boston
Just to keep you from driving from the coast up to the termini
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
Is it all right if I get you off my mind?
But it’s never, never, never seems to work, and it’ll never work this time
©2009 Fish Egg Music
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Poignant Lyric O' The Day:
Or maybe she is underneath the sea
One, two, three, so easily"
~Bill Janovitz and Crown Victoria - "One, Two, Three"
New music coming soon, promise.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
New Song: Angry As Me
ANGRY AS ME
We both know
that through suffering we grow
don’t forget about
all the bullets, fights, and chains
but remember how
how their words ignite a flame in you
We both know
We have different ways to grow
and remembering
how you burned yourself a photo in effigy
how your good at burning bridges too
You stood for a dramatic pause
Then made a sacrifice to further your own cause
You have all of that but you will never be as angry as me
We both know
how you go against the flow
of what daddy said
how you drones in social circles are bottle fed
how the bottle gets the best of you
And we both know
how we push ourselves and think
we can turn it around
but through all that mess we might have found
that we can turn it into something new
And when I get political
You get excited 'cause the politics excite you
You are all of that but you will never be as angry as me
It was no occurrence to me that I'd be sick of complaining
'Cause intellectually I don't understand your conveyance
So come on over and whisper to me what you're saying, oh but that's ok
'Cause I'm sure I'll see you somewhere at the protest rally tonight
'Cause when I get philosophical
We get divided because philosophy divides us
We are all of that but you will never be as angry as me
You will never be as angry as me
You will never be as angry hey!
You will never be as angry hey!
©2009 Fish Egg Music
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Gibberish and Excuses
On the positive tip I've recently reacquainted myself with an old friend who I haven't been in touch with in over ten years. I was invited up to visit with her and her fiance over Memorial Day weekend. I must admit I was a bit apprehensive at first, it's been a while since we've spoken and even longer since we were friends in high school. Who knew if we were still friends material?
As geeky as it sounds, I'm grateful for social networking sites like Facebook, Myspace, and Classmates.com for making it easier to get back in contact and remain in contact with friends. Who doesn't want to know what one of their friends are eating at 2:30am on a Tuesday?
The main thing I remember about this person was that she was always the eternal optimist without being annoyingly saccharin about it. I never met anyone more even keeled and up for anything no matter the time or place. There were never any preconceived notions, the past was the past, the future has yet to come so the present was all that mattered. It was absolutely amazing to find that she hadn't changed a bit. We stayed up talking until the wee hours of mornings where she would tell me stories of the countries she's visited and the people that she's met along the way. She's seen the Dali Lama on three separate occasions, this blows me away, and seems to always be in the right place at the right time for encounters with famous people. Anyway, this encounter has refueled a fire within me that although I hadn't realized, had been slowly burning down to kindling over the years. Now I find myself planning more trips, taking more time away from work and just enjoying life. Simply because the past is the past, the future has yet to come so the present is all that matters.
A new song this weekend. Promise.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
New Song: Washington Streets
WASHINGTON STREETS
©2009 Fish Egg Music
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Under Covers: "Sundress" by Buffalo Tom
A couple of years later as my brother and I were both getting into drawing and into art in general he began bringing home Iron Maiden and Kiss albums. Of course not for the music itself but for the imagery, we would spend hours trying to copy the album covers. I on the other hand would be baited by the album artwork and ultimately fished in by the music. Long hair, leather jackets, chains and guitars followed me around through the last year of middle school and into most of my high school years. For most of that time there was no other music for me except metal. I denounced pop, hip-hop, country, and anything else that didn't come with a snarl and high-speed guitar licks. Megadeth, Anthrax, and Metallica were my gods and I was their humble servant. This is also when I started to play guitar and began having dreams of playing in a band.
I know it was quite the set up but this leads me to my "Under Covers" project. When I'm in a creative slump with my own music I tend to reach back and play around with the music that drove me to write in the first place. Inspired by Bill Janovitz's "The Life and Times of Bill Janovitz - Part Time Man of Rock" - Cover of the Week blog, I wanted to make the "Under Covers" project a place where I could pay homage to my musical heroes as well as keep inspired and in practice. I don't know how often I'll post to this section of the blog, I certainly couldn't do it on a weekly basis, but I hope to do it at least monthly.
Buffalo Tom's "Sleepy Eyed" was released in 1995 and I promptly picked it up along with their first three albums after falling in love with "Big Red Letter Day". "Sleepy Eyed" is full of in-your-face three chord rockers mixed in with a few sublime ballads to make a wonderfully listenable album. I feel nearly drained each time after listening the album through and it feels like the band gives every ounce of energy they have playing each song. "Sundress", the album's eleventh track, epitomizes the feel that the band was going for at the time, stripped down with a live sound but also comes across really well acoustically. I've played my version of it for years, usually to myself but on occasion will unleash it while everyone is putting on the drink. This basic recording was done last night on an M-Audio Microtrack in my walk-in closet at my apartment in south Georgia and then transferred to my Mac to add a little reverb and percussion. I thought I had all of the necessary components with me to record properly while I'm working out of town over the next year or so but alas, important cords are missing. So what's a guy to do? Improvise. I tell ya, a closet full of clothes makes a perfect isolation booth.
SUNDRESSThursday, March 26, 2009
O Rock 'N Roll, Where Art Thou?
Twenty-two years, a few guitars, and a couple of hack bands later I sometimes find myself feeling dour while wondering why I'm not as active in my one time passion as I used to be. Careers and relationships have taken over for the pseudo rock 'n roll lifestyle that I once craved and I now fight for those precious few moments when I can sit down, guitar in hand and stare glassy-eyed at the pen and blank piece of paper laying on the table in front of me. Inspiration is harder to come by too, my muse now has my ring on her finger (UPDATE: This is no longer the case.) and the things that used to get my creative juices flowing, anger, jealousy, heart break, are no longer there (UPDATE: Nope, all of that is back.) How do my musical heroes do it? I know they all have families now and some of them have other careers too but I still hear music coming from them, good music.
These days I would be perfectly content with a little garage band. We could practice a couple of nights a week at the house and play a gig at the local pub every once in a while. That would suit me just fine. But a career with many nights spent away from home hampers my efforts to form one right now but who knows, maybe soon. With the internet and my Mac I can at least get the full band experience without having a real band. So at least I can still dream. So what do I do now? All I know to do is to keep playing, take advantage of those rare occasions that a melody or lyric escapes from the old melon, and to rock on.
Below is another old song I laid down and dirty late one night 4 or 5 years ago. It's just me and the guitar and me on backing vocals. It's a really basic recording, the timing is off and so is my voice. It sounds like I was singing a bit out of my range. Who I was into at the time escapes me right now but I do remember that I was living in Memphis in an old house with a single upstairs room, literally, you walk up a flight of stairs and you're in the only room up there. I had my futon, my computer on an old drafting table, and my guitars. Good times.
THE MEAN STREETS
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Numero Uno - The Test Page
Of course I'll also use this blog as a sounding board to rant, vent, ponder, reminicse, pontificate and to sometimes just post "Balls" in big bold letters.
I'm still trying to figure out all of the nuances involved with blogging and posting links to music so the first few posts will be trial and error. Anyway here's the first post and a link to an older song that I wrote under the Some Herd Antics moniker.
CLIMB