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SONG STATS:
Hits: 1514
Comments: 21
Votes: 6
Plays: 169
Last Played: Jul 08, 2008 - 05:35:34 PM
Downloads: 72
Fans: 6
Uploaded: Dec 04, 2005 - 01:02:53 AM
Last Updated: Dec 03, 2005 - 11:42:19 AM
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Keywords:
Boundary Waters (1), Canoe (1), Poetry (113)
Description:
I have led several high school canoe trips to the Boundary Waters of Minnesota. On one of my trips, a small group of us took a little night paddle...

Lyrics:
Dark

By Doug Crews-Nelson

Quiet scrape.
I pick up my foot and glide on the night water. Silence and darkness are well joined.
I, with three companions, are in Love with the Universe.
We do not speak. A few quiet strokes.
I hear the water curl as it swirls past.
Stars are suspended like a moment in a flood of white sparks flying across Black depth.
Still waters, like cold polished stone, are Black.
Stars flicker off the surface of the lake.
The flat Black of the tree line is backlit by a faint green luminescent arc to the north.

Look around! We have such short lives. What are we waiting for?
Life is here...NOW!
Peace. Forgiveness. Compassion.
How quickly I forget from moment to moment...

We don’t need to be reluctant to return from the wilderness.
It’s HERE in the office, the car, the mall, the park.
Take a moment to see the world as a child.
Look at shapes. Listen to the fan. What does paper feel like? The closet smells like autumn. Are associations more powerful than definitions?
Freedom comes to those who remember how to see.

Moments or hours.
We dip the paddle again and steer back to camp. The stars contrast with blackness of the sky. We cannot see into the waters.
Blackness invites contemplation on the Mystery and carries us to sleep.
Finding answers almost always leaves more questions.
Many times it is more satisfying to leave things unsolved.

Hardware:
7 layers of acoustic guitar.

After troubleshooting cables, I think I have eliminated a lot of hum. Anything else, I can't do anything with.

Software:
GB1
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stunning &mdash 12/04/05 - 08:25:34 AM
loved this experience tremendously.
perfect thing for a Sunday morning.
Listened with eyes closed and saw everything and then some.
The illustrative nature of the instruments was perfect and the words
themselves poked at parts of my brain and heart and ultimately led me
to thinking about that scene in Spinal Tap looks at their newly released
record album for the first time and Nigel Tufnel asks the proverbial
question "how much more black can it be?" and of course the answer is
"none.....none more black".

thanks for the canoe/mind trip.

[ Reply to This ]
stunning &mdash 12/04/05 - 12:03:04 PM
Wow! Thanks! I guess I consider it painting with words. When I find "that
place" where words become reality. It is a very rich world!

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
interesting &mdash 12/04/05 - 02:01:20 PM
Love the lines:
"Take a moment to see the world as a child" cool words indeed. Import
too. I think everybody can use those words from time to time!

Hey, really like that ending too, cool guitar work.

Thanks for sharing!



[ Reply to This ]
interesting &mdash 12/05/05 - 08:16:34 AM
Thanks, man! Your comments are appreciated.

Being a child: It seems more like wishful thinking. But on the other hand, I
often have people wink and ask when I will grow up.

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
Beautifully done &mdash 12/04/05 - 06:23:57 PM
I've been out on the lake on a dark, hot southern summer night looking
up at the stars and reveled in its beauty. Never been out on a cool
Minnesota lake late at night, but it seems the experience is similar. Very
moving and beautifully performed.

[ Reply to This ]
Beautifully done &mdash 12/05/05 - 08:19:47 AM
Much thanks!

The air is cold at night. This is good because it keeps the mosquitoes away!

They grow pretty big up here!

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
Great Guitar &mdash 12/07/05 - 09:19:22 AM
Love the use of the guitar against the words.

I really enjoyed listening to this. Thank you for sharing.

Downloaded.

[ Reply to This ]
Great Guitar &mdash 12/12/05 - 09:55:19 AM
Thanks. By using only an acoustic guitar to fit the setting, I thought it would
be kind of natural way to treat the mix. I would like to approach it again
sometime to develop the concept more completely.

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
I DON'T GET OUT ENOUGH &mdash 12/09/05 - 08:42:20 AM
I DON'T NEED A LAKE NOW. I HAVE THIS SONG. GREAT JOB ON ELIMINATION THE HUM, I DIDN'T HEAR ANY. YOUR VOICE IS HYPNOTIC. GUITAR IS VERY GOOD AND RELAXING. THANKS FOR SHARING.

REGARDS
JOHN

[ Reply to This ]
I DON'T GET OUT ENOUGH &mdash 12/12/05 - 09:57:49 AM
Thanks John!

I appreciate your comments. But don't skip out on the lake! It's worth the
time!

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
Clarity on the lake &mdash 12/19/05 - 08:09:58 AM
Good reading - lots of nuances coming out of this poetic story. Good lines - like "Finding answers almost always leaves more questions." Good music - nicely enhancing the literary rendition of the wilderness experience.

[ Reply to This ]
Clarity on the lake &mdash 12/20/05 - 02:11:07 PM
Thanks Warren!

This is a topic of inspiration for me. I'm glad you enjoyed it!

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
Freedom comes to those who remember how to see &mdash 12/20/05 - 03:07:04 PM
This song was a beautiful ride. The guitar playing like that very aurora borealis on the song image. Poetry, philosophy, i could almost watch you riding that boat. So beautiful.

[ Reply to This ]
Freedom comes to those who remember how to see &mdash 03/14/06 - 02:01:56 PM
Thank you so much!

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
i shall.. &mdash 12/31/05 - 04:56:39 AM
its sounding good. like the guitars. ill save this to my favorites and listen at a time when im awake, its 4 am, and i cant properly get the experience to give you a proper comment and this seems worth truly listening to

[ Reply to This ]
i shall.. &mdash 03/14/06 - 02:03:47 PM
Thanks for the listen! I like the idea of using the guitar in more ways. I just
need time and inspiration.

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
this reminds me... &mdash 01/15/06 - 12:44:01 AM
...of a self help/hypnosis program... meaninful words...
mesmerizing guitar work... nice tune...

[ Reply to This ]
this reminds me... &mdash 03/14/06 - 02:14:46 PM
Thanks! One thing I have to do is cut back a little on reverb.

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
Inspirational &mdash 02/27/06 - 05:44:39 PM
You wrote an inspiring, poetic piece, and then you sold it beautifully with your voice. It, too, is well-honed. Thank you.

[ Reply to This ]
Inspirational &mdash 03/14/06 - 02:16:55 PM
Thank you very much. Stuff from the heart is hard to deny.

---
We have a cat and a fish. Our fish behaves very well...

[ Reply to This ]
.. &mdash 07/08/08 - 05:45:35 PM
Beautiful guitar , & this wonderful poem saids it all..

THX helena

[ Reply to This ]
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