SAW 2009 #23: Natural Disasters by Chris Devine

This one was just a bit of fun, really. Going into it, I just wanted to find an excuse to slap together a bunch of samples and see what would come of it. Didn't know what samples, didn't know what the music should sound like, anything ...

So with a whole bunch of twiddling and poking around in my CD collection for samples that would sound interesting, especially out of context, I came up with this. It should be noted that I was listening to a lot of KLF/JAMs/Timelords this week, gave a cursory reading of the first part of the JAMs' The Manual (fascinating read!) and also listening to Edelweiss's 1989 hit 'Bring Me Edelweiss', a sample-heavy European hit reputedly created by following The Manual's instructions and borrowing the melody for its chorus from ABBA's 'SOS'.

Since there are no actual sung lyrics, here's the musical and spoken word samples (in the order used):

I've got to have your word on this (Leonard Cohen, from The Best of the Columbia Records Radio Hour)
I've been on drugs for 20 years (Consolidated, from Friendly Fa$cism)
I've been on drugs for 20 years

(Ashley MacIsaac fiddle tune -- 'A' part only, twice) (from Fine(tm), Thank You Very Much

Thank you, thank you, thank you. (Consolidated, Tool and Die
Thank you, thank you, thank you.

I've been on drugs for 20 years
I've got to have your word on this

Using natural disasters (Shawn Colvin, from The Best of the Columbia Records Radio Hour
I've got to have your word on this
Using natural disasters
I've been on drugs for 20 years
I, I, I I I I
I've been on drugs for 20 years
I've got to have your word on this
I've got to have your word on this
I've been on drugs for 20 years
Using natural disasters

Only to feel the music (Consolidated, from Tool and Die
Only to feel the music
Using natural disasters

(Ashley MacIsaac Fiddle tune - 'A' part once, then repeated with each bar reversed)

Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

SAW 2009 #22: Firing Line by Erik Matthew Hendel

From the podcast feed:

Still behind schedule, but destined to catch up (someday), SAW plows forward with this EMH contribution. Enjoy the Bruce Springsteen inspired vocal performance in this rocked up acoustic gem of mixed metaphors.

SAW 2009 #21: I Wanted to Be by Chris Devine

The Song-a-Week Podcast took an unintentional two weeks off, and it's all my fault. A few things led to the absence ... I knew I would miss the first couple days of my week as a result of my vacation, which would just be ending that Friday, and I wouldn't get a start till at least Saturday.

So come Saturday night, when I came down with the flu it was anything but good news for the SAW. Under the best of circumstances, it's hard for me to get back into my normal groove that quickly. As it was, I was totally useless through the weekend, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday ... Finally, I went back to work on Thursday but really wasn't well until at least Saturday.

Then I was beset with the same problem I've had for most of the year so far: Writer's block. I couldn't think of anything. Still, I had faith that I would, so come Monday I promised my co-conspirators that I'd crank out two songs in time for next week's contribution from someone else (anybody else ... please!) and set fruitlessly to work. My earnest attempts at songwriting, even my usual tricks for getting myself out of a rut produced nothing but a REALLY annoying drum beat.

So it came as some surprised yesterday, then, when instead of leaving to attend a neighborhood association meeting as I'd committed to doing I instead stayed home because inspiration had finally struck, and there was no way I was going to take the chance that it would fly away.

Two and a half hours later, it was done. No spectacular arrangement choices, and musically the song bears a lot of resemblance to many others I've done before. But I kind of liked the lyric.

The song is a semi-intentional take-off on Dan Fogelberg's 'The Higher You Climb', including the fact that it starts on a few pick-up notes. I actually didn't notice the similarity until about halfway through the writing, but once I noticed it it was hard to get away from. I also noticed some similarities between this song's melody and the melody of Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah' (Hence the bridge that doesn't sound like a bridge that says 'Hallelelujah, the Canadian sang ...')

Production-wise, nearly every instrument (including the voice) is drenched in reverb, delay, and, in most cases, chorus. Honestly, I tried leaving them off of certain tracks, but they ended up sounding really out of place, so I turned it all back on and just let the thing echo like a little boy trapped in a well. It suits the soul-searching theme of the song, I think ... calling up to the universe and all that. Hope you enjoy! The next song should be along within a couple/few days.

The longer I go, the less I believe.
The farther I fall, the less I can see.
You may think that you know, but you cannot conceive
How badly I've lived up to what I wanted to be.

I've walked through the darkness between heaven and hell,
And a parcel of memories made me want to stay there.
And what to say of despair? Just that I knew it well,
And the closer I come now, well, the less I could care.

Hallelujah, the Canadian sang.
If I could say it and mean it, well, I could lose everything.

I am humbled before the vastness of space and time,
How little this matters and how little I mind.
With the deftness of spring, and a small dash of crime,
I can try to remember all that I left behind.

The longer I go, the less I believe.
The farther I fall, the less I can see.
And I think that I know that I got a reprieve,
For how badly I've lived up to all I wanted be,
For how badly I've lived up to what I wanted to be.

SAW 2009 #20: Difficult Goodbye by Erik Matthew Hendel

From the podcast feed:

Erik is very late with his submission for this week's SAW, and though he'd like to solely blame his malfunctioning computer for this tardy tune, procrastination is definitely a co-conspirator. Enjoy the nonsense!

SAW 2009 #19: Leaving by Richard E. Moore

From the podcast feed:

Chris finally gets a break with this song from the NyQuil-addled mind of Richard. He blames illness for a lack of polish and weak vocals ... Honestly, though, he sounds fine!