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Description
Drift, drift on by.
That silly little lyric came to me when I think I was watching the clouds or noticed birds at the feeder. It occurred to me it could be a fun little assignment to write a little tune built from the lyrical formula of a verb describing or implying movement followed by a simplistic rhyming scheme. The results could be awful. But the idea seemed to have enough merit to pursue. I wrote the lyrics without much thought and rather quickly.
I had recently upgraded to an iPhone 4 and bought a Tascam iM2 mic for it. With the upgraded phone I now had access to the effects in the latest version of Harmonic Dog’s MultiTrack app. So I was looking for something suitable for an acoustic demo. I recorded two guitar tracks and some harmony vocals. But the more I added the more problems it created. Simple two track! The bird sounds were recording on my iPhone 3 while strolling through Louis Armstrong Park in New Orleans a few months ago. It struck me as such an odd and uniquely musical call.
During the days I worked on a chord sequence and recording I learned that a friend had passed after a battle with cancer. I was stunned. I hadn’t even known she was sick. It got me thinking how we fall out of touch with people. We grow apart or sometimes we outgrow each other. That got me thinking about the concept of outgrowing others. I know there are people I felt I had outgrown. But what about those people who had outgrown me? Were there any? There must be. I had never considered it. That got me thinking about what it must feel like to be the one left behind. In some cases I’m sure it’s okay. But in others I would think it can be a terrible thing. The concept seemed to fit my lyrics.
Then just this week I became aware of a dear friend who I hadn’t spoken to in a while. It turned out he was in the hospital in very grave condition. I’ll always remember him as a faithful husband, loving father, fine musician (he would have heard the music in the bird call), dedicated educator, and a gentle and thoughtful friend. His life had taken an unfortunate turn that he just never could accept or deal with. In the past I had tried to give the best advice I could. But it was just the kind of situation where the other person doesn’t want to hear you. So I drifted away assuming he would call if he needed me. He never did.
I shiver when I think of the hell he went through. His self-loathing was clear in the way he abused himself. Lyrics that originally had nothing to do with anybody in particular had new poignancy. It scared me how closely lines like “I deserve to be alone” and “I cannot swim you’d only watch me drown” fit what he had done to himself and how he must have been feeling in recent months.
My friend passed the other morning at just 38 years old. I’ll miss him. It’s not much, but I hope he’ll consider (if he can) this little song my heartfelt apology for not being there when he needed me. I’m sure there were others who did much more and others who did far less. In the end we’ll all have to look at ourselves in the mirror with honest hearts and eyes.
The artwork is a picture I took of one of the ponds at Louis Armstrong Park. I disabled commenting. This one isn’t about me or my ego.
That silly little lyric came to me when I think I was watching the clouds or noticed birds at the feeder. It occurred to me it could be a fun little assignment to write a little tune built from the lyrical formula of a verb describing or implying movement followed by a simplistic rhyming scheme. The results could be awful. But the idea seemed to have enough merit to pursue. I wrote the lyrics without much thought and rather quickly.
I had recently upgraded to an iPhone 4 and bought a Tascam iM2 mic for it. With the upgraded phone I now had access to the effects in the latest version of Harmonic Dog’s MultiTrack app. So I was looking for something suitable for an acoustic demo. I recorded two guitar tracks and some harmony vocals. But the more I added the more problems it created. Simple two track! The bird sounds were recording on my iPhone 3 while strolling through Louis Armstrong Park in New Orleans a few months ago. It struck me as such an odd and uniquely musical call.
During the days I worked on a chord sequence and recording I learned that a friend had passed after a battle with cancer. I was stunned. I hadn’t even known she was sick. It got me thinking how we fall out of touch with people. We grow apart or sometimes we outgrow each other. That got me thinking about the concept of outgrowing others. I know there are people I felt I had outgrown. But what about those people who had outgrown me? Were there any? There must be. I had never considered it. That got me thinking about what it must feel like to be the one left behind. In some cases I’m sure it’s okay. But in others I would think it can be a terrible thing. The concept seemed to fit my lyrics.
Then just this week I became aware of a dear friend who I hadn’t spoken to in a while. It turned out he was in the hospital in very grave condition. I’ll always remember him as a faithful husband, loving father, fine musician (he would have heard the music in the bird call), dedicated educator, and a gentle and thoughtful friend. His life had taken an unfortunate turn that he just never could accept or deal with. In the past I had tried to give the best advice I could. But it was just the kind of situation where the other person doesn’t want to hear you. So I drifted away assuming he would call if he needed me. He never did.
I shiver when I think of the hell he went through. His self-loathing was clear in the way he abused himself. Lyrics that originally had nothing to do with anybody in particular had new poignancy. It scared me how closely lines like “I deserve to be alone” and “I cannot swim you’d only watch me drown” fit what he had done to himself and how he must have been feeling in recent months.
My friend passed the other morning at just 38 years old. I’ll miss him. It’s not much, but I hope he’ll consider (if he can) this little song my heartfelt apology for not being there when he needed me. I’m sure there were others who did much more and others who did far less. In the end we’ll all have to look at ourselves in the mirror with honest hearts and eyes.
The artwork is a picture I took of one of the ponds at Louis Armstrong Park. I disabled commenting. This one isn’t about me or my ego.
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Lyrics
How It Seems
Words & Music by alackbass
Verse 1
Drift. Drift on by,
I cannot follow,
If I cannot fly,
That can't be changed,
There's no need to cry,
Or wonder why,
Flow, flow on down,
I cannot swim,
You'd only watch me drown,
No need to look,
For things that can't be found,
They're not around.
Chorus
Too many years.
Hiding behind things not real,
Too many days,
Chasing after dreams,
Too many nights,
Away from those who mattered most,
At least that's how it seems.
Verse 2
Run, run on home,
I deserve to be alone,
I was still while you had grown,
Now you have flown,
Slip, slip away,
You can't afford to waste another day,
There's nothing,
I could ever say,
To make you stay,
Chorus
Too many years,
Hiding behind things not real,
Too many days,
Chasing after dreams,
Too many nights,
Away from those who mattered most,
At least that's how it seems,
Verse 3
Speak, speak your mind,
Don't say the words are hard to find,
Sometimes the truth can be unkind,
Revealed in time,
Wait, don't wait for me,
Waiting for things never meant to be,
The time has come for you to be free,
We both can see,
Chorus
Too many years,
Hiding behind things not real,
Too many days,
Chasing after dreams,
Too many nights,
Away from those who mattered most,
At least that's how it seems.
Words & Music by alackbass
Verse 1
Drift. Drift on by,
I cannot follow,
If I cannot fly,
That can't be changed,
There's no need to cry,
Or wonder why,
Flow, flow on down,
I cannot swim,
You'd only watch me drown,
No need to look,
For things that can't be found,
They're not around.
Chorus
Too many years.
Hiding behind things not real,
Too many days,
Chasing after dreams,
Too many nights,
Away from those who mattered most,
At least that's how it seems.
Verse 2
Run, run on home,
I deserve to be alone,
I was still while you had grown,
Now you have flown,
Slip, slip away,
You can't afford to waste another day,
There's nothing,
I could ever say,
To make you stay,
Chorus
Too many years,
Hiding behind things not real,
Too many days,
Chasing after dreams,
Too many nights,
Away from those who mattered most,
At least that's how it seems,
Verse 3
Speak, speak your mind,
Don't say the words are hard to find,
Sometimes the truth can be unkind,
Revealed in time,
Wait, don't wait for me,
Waiting for things never meant to be,
The time has come for you to be free,
We both can see,
Chorus
Too many years,
Hiding behind things not real,
Too many days,
Chasing after dreams,
Too many nights,
Away from those who mattered most,
At least that's how it seems.
