Song for the Liar Joseph Strauss by Lennon714
Genre: Alternative Rock
Get Flash to see this player.
Having playback trouble, try the Quicktime player:
Attribution-ShareAlike
Fan List
Keywords:
Golden Gate Bridge (2), Charles Ellis (1), Joseph Strauss (1)
Description:
I imagined a letter between Joseph Strauss and Charles
Ellis and this is it. Joseph Strauss is credited with
being the man who bridged the Golden Gate. He won
support for the building of a bridge, but his design
was flawed and useless. Charles Ellis put together the
design we all know (along with another associate Leon
Moiseff). Ellis put together of 10 volumes of
mathematical equations for the bridge all while
Strauss fired Ellis via letter. LAME. A bridge of
Strauss stands by the bridge and Ellis' contributions
have been silenced up until about 10 years ago or so.
When I read this I thought it was make for a good
song. Here it is.
The bridge is quite shakey level wise. I need to
figure out how to scream while recording. I don't ever
do that. I also probably need a vocal mic, but that's
another day. Anyhow, I'd LOVE to hear feedback on the
mix. What needs fixing and whatnot. Mixing is my weak
spot and I really want to improve so let me have it!
Ellis and this is it. Joseph Strauss is credited with
being the man who bridged the Golden Gate. He won
support for the building of a bridge, but his design
was flawed and useless. Charles Ellis put together the
design we all know (along with another associate Leon
Moiseff). Ellis put together of 10 volumes of
mathematical equations for the bridge all while
Strauss fired Ellis via letter. LAME. A bridge of
Strauss stands by the bridge and Ellis' contributions
have been silenced up until about 10 years ago or so.
When I read this I thought it was make for a good
song. Here it is.
The bridge is quite shakey level wise. I need to
figure out how to scream while recording. I don't ever
do that. I also probably need a vocal mic, but that's
another day. Anyhow, I'd LOVE to hear feedback on the
mix. What needs fixing and whatnot. Mixing is my weak
spot and I really want to improve so let me have it!
Lyrics:
You're like a god to these folks in San FranciscoThey put a statue of you over by the bridge
You cast me off with a casual dismissal
But do these people know how much you really did.
You had the vision and for that I give you credit.
Times were tough and opposition was strong.
But it's to me and Moisseff you're indebted
And this bridge will still be standing when we're
gone.
Cause it's a hard row to hoe.
I built this bridge and it's taking its toll
It's a hard row to hoe
But you wouldn't know, no you wouldn't know.
I wrote 10 volumes and all I got was fired
You wrote a letter cause you didn't have a spine
You took the credit and it just proves you're a liar
You fed your family off the fruits of my design.
Cause it's a hard row to hoe.
I built this bridge but it's taking its toll
It's a hard row to hoe
But you wouldn't know, no you wouldn't know.
How do you sleep at night? Oh won't you tell me
What is your conscious like? Come on and tell me
How do you sleep at night.
Hardware:
Software:
You must be registered and logged-in to comment.
rsorensen
Man, this is good, Eric. Great concept and lyrics. Reminds me of Nylon Curtain era Billy Joel with a little Rentals mixed in. Love that synth and that bassline. Really catchy. The climax works really well too and the screaming sounds good to me. Great Beach Boys BG vox there.
The only suggestion I have regarding the mix is that the vocals are a touch inconsistent volume wise. That happens to me a lot too, but if you adjust the track volume throughout accordingly it's an easy fix. Sounds great though. You're definitely getting the hang of GarageBand. Well done.
Lennon714
posted this in the wrong place...
I'm a fan of all of those artists so I'm flattered. The bridge vocal is particularly bad in that the first syllable clips like a mother and then the others kind of back off. It should probably just be redone. I automated the volume in the bridge in the third line only but doing it for the whole song does actually make sense. I'll have to give that a try! Thanks for listening and for the constructive feedback!
Feter
very nice singin my friend ..great rockin jump
this song has ...sure the guitar and the drums
works fine...this Rock my friend !!
Lennon714
Glad to see you make it by and glad you enjoyed it. You must be the hardest working commenter on MJ!
Lennon 714 seems to be a big thinker, dealing with grand ideas and philosophical questions. Anyway --sinple but nice tune, catchy! Keep it up!
Lennon714
I appreciate the visit and the comments! ...and I'm not Lennon. But my daughter's name is Lennon and she was born on July 14th.
Very good song, excellent production, fine vocals. I like this song, very very nice.
Take Care
- Yeman A. Al-Rawi
Lennon714
THe production is getting better. I'm more comfortable using GB than I was a few weeks ago. I look forward to the progress, THanks!
magnatone
This IS really good! Thanks for posting your song description - that's really interesting, and gave the song a more personal touch. Love your lyrics, vocals, and that cool bridge. (Cool bridge - lol)
Lennon714
haha. Love the pun. Thanks for coming over and listening. I wanted to write a song that was different lyrically, but I was afraid that without the background info it would seem like nonsense.
lavalamp
I can hear the Weezer influence on this. This is amazing stuff. I see Ridd mentioned Billy Joel, I can see that, too.
The only problem is that Joe was my great-grand father.
Cheers,
Dave
Lennon714
I'm glad that the influences shine through. It makes me think I'd like this song if I had nothing to do with it... something I generally question.
Lennon714
I'm a fan of all of those artists so I'm flattered. The bridge vocal is particularly bad in that the first syllable clips like a mother and then the others kind of back off. It should probably just be redone. I automated the volume in the bridge in the third line only but doing it for the whole song does actually make sense. I'll have to give that a try! Thanks for listening and for the constructive feedback!
Vic Holman
the synth riff is cool. the guitar work is very nice as well.
excellent song! maybe stand back a bit from the mike on the scream part so it doesn't distort it. that's a minor issue. I totally dug it.
Lennon714
I usually don't do a lot of screaming (or a lot of singing, either according to some - da dum chee!). I may re-record that part and do just as you say, keeping in mind that I need to keep it at that same level. As is it's really loud on the first syllable and then barely there for the rest of the line. Glad you liked!
mikkinylund
Neatly done, love the guitar, the vocals and the synth. The chorus sits perfectly! This is a sing-a-long! Love the though, unexpected break! Great work! /Mikki
Lennon714
I just played it for my friend/drummer. I value his opinion greatly and he laid in to my for sticking with a "shit vocal performance" that had the "passion of someone singing from the yellow pages". Maybe I shouldn't think it's as funny as it is, but I love his approach. He refuses to lay drum tracks on it until I put some quality vocals together. I'm glad you enjoyed it even though it's not yet 100%.
The Orbiting
What a terrific song, Eric. I love so much about it, but ESPECIALLY the bass line and the main synth riff, especially. The overall concept is original and interesting, obviously, but still speaks to universal themes (high five on that!) and I always enjoy your rhymes. I especially like the way you paired "dismissal" and "San Francisco" this time around.
I see you want to re-sing the bridge. Having had some experience resing portions, it's sometimes really hard to get the sound to match, so it's often just faster to resing the whole thing. I downloaded and plan to enjoy this a lot. It's catchy a-go-go.
Lisa
Lennon714
Thanks, Lisa. I will probably be taking your advice and redo the whole vocals. My friend made me admit that I spent at least 5 times as much time on the tracking as I did the vocals. I need to be more patient vocally.
I appreciate your comments and thanks for stopping by!
The Orbiting
I have a friend like your friend the drummer. They're bastards, but they make us better and we love them for it. I enjoyed the vocal a lot, but I'll bet the new version will be even cooler.
Lennon714
I actually love him for it. I think I take constructive feedback very well. I like positive feedback as much as the next person, but sometimes it takes someone to reall push you. I'm glad we have assholes for friends :).
The Orbiting
Mine's the only straight man I know who will happily refer to himself as "lord high queen bitch."
egobandit
Cool inspiration for a song I like the bass line very tight song and great singing!
Lennon714
Now you can impress ALL of your friends with a little Golden Gate Bridge trivia... just what you always wanted :)
J.A.Stewart
cool idea, cool song. Reminds me of something Joe Jackson might have done. Show this tune a little more love and bring it home.
One thing that occurred to me was that I would have tried a couple of brief (2-3 note) guitar arpeggios with a whammied hanging chord at the end of them over those brief synth parts, to make them a bit more interesting. ;)
--- Joe
Lennon714
I'll have to try that. I was echoing the synth part on guitar but the vocal started too soon after the second one and would bleed awkwardly on to the vocal. I'll toy around with some idea and spruce it up. Thanks again!
BossHook
took the words right out of my mouth with the Joe Jackson reference. It has that real distinct early 80's pop/rock feel that defined Billy Joel, Joe Jackson and Elvis Costello. Good job and very unique subject matter.
Lennon714
I take all of those as huge compliments. Joe Jackson has always impressed me with how ecclectic his projects get. He's always doing something unique.
Thanks for listening and for hearing some of my favorites in the influence.
" I built this bridge but it's taking it's toll "
Would that be $8 or the stress of the lie? Clever!
Catchy synth right thru - never gets annoying, just stays true. 80s vibe done in a modern way - musically, could be The Cars, vocally could be one of those pre-mentioned artists from the UK. But it is not easy to box, so I'll just say it reminds me of that Lennon714 dude!
KC
Lennon714
The funny/sad part is I didn't realize the pun until after I had written that line. It works out splendidly, but was more mistake than method.
I'm glad you liked the tune. It's my first serious shot and recording on GB since my first tune. It's a marked improvement, but there's still so much more work to do. I think it sounds decent and then I hear some other work on here and I run away with my tail between my legs. Eventually I'll get it down. Until then, thanks for checking in!
davisamerica
right then ... have been giving this a rotation on current play list past few days before commenting. i fav'd this at first listen cos i just thought it to be on of the best finds in a while. now ... a few days latter i gotta admit this is just super sweet ... if you can 1 up another cover that's better .. go for it..... but this version stands and wails my friend .. hats off and very well done
Lennon714
I'm honored you'd place it so highly. I appreciate you stopping by and listening. The vocals bug me more and more so I'll definitely have to redo that but the tracking is essentially there. Thanks again!
Nice treatment of this particular page of history. I really like the arrangement. Love the synth riff.
You sing really well Eric. But like Vic said, stand back from the mic when you scream...Perhaps add a little reverb to your scream as well.
Nevertheless, this is a great tune. I'll be listening to this one again!
Be well man!
Lennon714
I will definitely rethink the whole vocal on the bridge and incorporate some of the ideas here. I was hoping to redo the vocals for this tune last night but did another project instead. Even though it's not necessarily sparking, I'm glad you were able to enjoy it. Thanks for the compliment.
Lennon714
I will definitely rethink the whole vocal on the bridge and incorporate some of the ideas here. I was hoping to redo the vocals for this tune last night but did another project instead. Even though it's not necessarily sparking, I'm glad you were able to enjoy it. Thanks for the compliment.
12parsecs
great hook. 'specially when the guitars double it after. i like the attitude your singing voice delivers... wish i had that.
"The bridge is quite shakey level wise."
pun intentional? a bridge in california... shaky? :)
i didn't find that levels that bad either. try a compressor or limiter plugin on your vocals. that helps tame the loud spikes in the levels. experiment a bit. too much compression can bring out noise and the sound of room reflections.
great job. ever heard "indian summer" by pedro the lion? this has a similar feel. (ok, i'll stop rambling on now.)
Lennon714
If I'm ever looking for a ride and hoping to avoid Imperial entanglements, I'll be sure to look your way.
Pedro the Lion/David Bazan is a big time favorite of mine and the entire "Control" album is nothing short of a masterpiece. The vocals could be a lot better so I hear that whenever I listen to this song. I think I was a bit hasty in posting it. I'll have a revamped version soon.
You're speaking Greek to me with the limiters, etc. I don't master my tracks yet and I don't go through a preamp for vocals. I desperately wish I knew about that stuff, but I'm sure it'll come with time.
Don't worry about rambling. I'm famous for it.
somebuddy
Great song. The best part is that it reminds me of a unique sound mixed with influences, not the other way around. I hear some Rentals with a little Cars as well. But most of all I hear an awesome Eric.
Lennon714
but who invited you here???
I love you like a milkshake, Russ.
Relic67
Hey I'm glad you commented on my song so I could check out your stuff.
the catchiness, neat synth line and quirky lyrical concerns put me in the mind of Fountains of Wayne or some such band.
Your drummer was way too hard on you. I think a somewhat laconic delivery can be extremely effective a la Beck, Malkmus etc.
Great work.
Lennon714
The pleasure was all mine. You have some solid work over there. I'm glad you took a liking to this little number. I'm so easily swayed. If I get enough compliments I start to think the vocals on this sound alright. I love Beck and Pavement so maybe I should be more selective on just how much weight I give critics. Thanks for stopping by, listening, and handing out some compliments!
Mckenzie
..this is catchy! Those synths and guitar work is really bloody good! I know it's bin said a million times, but what a great concept. It reminds me a little of stereophonics (not musically) but in the way that they often choose really interesting stories and anecdotes to base their songs on, just like you have. Brilliant songwriting.
Got a New fan fav'd
CHEERS!!
Mz
Lennon714
The song needs work, but I appreciate you being able to listen through the issues and hear the song out. Again, your songs are among the best here. I hope people start taking more notice of the gems you've got over on your page.
Also, thanks for the comment on my profile story. It pretty much sums me up :)
Mckenzie
that story on your profile page is friggin hilarious! made my evening!
anyway great tune
Nolan
Very cool sound. I love the instrumental bit between between the verses. Sounds like something Ben Folds might do. Good original lyrics too. Nice work.
Lennon714
for the comment. I was actually listening to TONS of Ben Folds when I recorded this (Rockin' the Suburbs). That it came across is a compliment I take pride in. Thanks again!