Your Way Home (more lyrics)
June 13th, 2009
[verse 2]
Chasing down
Misery
With a round
Of the scene
Is this love?
Could it be?
Live or die
Wait and see…
On Being Original
May 29th, 2009
The desire for originality is felt by nearly all musicians. The entire thrust of 20th century composition was around breaking the chains of the diatonic scale and finding ways to create music no one had created before. In other words, they desired to be original.
I struggle with this. If I do something radical and new, you will not like it. If I do something that has been done before, you will not like it AND I will violate copyright. The challenge for any songwriter writing for anyone other than himself is how to make a song catchy and accessible and yet uniquely interesting.
So this bit is interesting. It goes D-G-F-A. Nothing complicated. And it does so over and over. And yet I like it, and I don’t think I’ve heard anything like it recently.
Enjoy the percussa-foot…that’s my fleshy foot and its attached sandal striking the floor. Also, forgive the BlackBerry’s brief interruption.
The clip
Recorded
Three days ago.
Getting Things Started
May 25th, 2009
So while I’m working aggressively on the piece tentatively titled “Your Way Home,” I won’t post any additional lyrics or vocals for that song until after June 6th. This will allow Scott to develop his own melody independently, and it will be fascinating to hear how his melody blends or does not blend with mine.
In the mean time, here’s another fresh song idea. I am in the process of being stiffed out of some money by someone, and that has formed the inspiration behind this clip. Pay no heed to the mumbled pseudo-melody…though if you’ve been reading this blog for a while, that should come as no surprise. 
The clip
Recorded
Just a few minutes ago…
Your Way Home (take 1)
May 18th, 2009
Wow, this one has come together quickly! Not having access to a guitar while I was in California this past week, I instead took last week’s clip and edited it to form an actual song. It goes like this (in case the structure is not apparent from the song):
[intro]
[verse 1]
[chorus]
[verse 2]
[chorus]
[solo]
[chorus]
[outro]
The lyrics are still a work in progress, but I can definitely share with you verse 1 and get your initial feedback:
You’ve been gone
Wandering
Far too long
Asleepwalking
Strangely bound
For being free
Knowing down, deep down
Freedom’s key
Thoughts?
The clip
Recorded
See previous post. Edited on the plane home.
Clap Your Hands, All Ye People
May 11th, 2009
Well, while I putter along with the pieces of Someone New, here’s a little something-something. In my quest to settle on a definitive, coherent, unique, and fan-approved “sound,” I have been trying to ensure that all of my new stuff has a “pulse.” I want to create music that grooves, music that is easy to get into and clap along with and all that. The following clip is one I just enjoy listening to, and for that very reason.
This clip wanders a bit toward the end; I’ve already tightened it up a bit. One concern: there isn’t a lot of room here for vocals.
Your thoughts?
The clip
Recorded
May 9, 2009, 4:11:18 PM
Vocalizing
April 21st, 2009
I haven’t forgotten about you…just working on getting the vocals right for the next draft of Someone New. Stay (auto)tuned!
And in the mean time…enjoy this little freestyle ditty about the hit tv show, 24:
The ditty
Someone New (2 of …)
April 14th, 2009
[Ed. note: I got stuck in California last week...here it is, albeit a bit late. Also, feel free to comment on the song structure from the previous post. - MMM]
Time for some lyrics…I like most of the song structure so far, and I’m working on the melody. Here are the lyrics so far. There are definitely good bits and definitely bad bits…what do you think?
The lyrics
[verse 1]
Choosing infidelity
Hooking up with someone new
Finding independently
The greener patch, the wild side
[pre-chorus]
When suddenly it happens
The mask begins to crumble
You’re moving on to someone…
[chorus]
New…
Someone new…
[verse 2]
Shattering a family
Justifying every move
Seeking paradoxically
To have your cake and eat it, too…
[pre-chorus]
[chorus]
New, someone new
New…
[bridge]
No, I will never be afraid
To call a spade a spade
See, when he says “Forever,”
he means when he chooses to…
He’s moving on, moving on to someone…
[chorus]
Someone New (1 of…)
April 3rd, 2009
Two posts ago, I shared
that sounded to me like perhaps the intro to and the ending of a song. My intention is to build on that clip, adding something each week for the next few weeks until we have a completed song. It is also my intention to include you all in the songwriting process, getting your input at each step of the way.I’m currently using that progression for the intro, the ending, and the chorus. A simple verse progression ties it together, based on a melody that came to mind. After a bit of playing verse, chorus, verse, chorus to feel it out, I added a bridge in whom I am well pleased.
Here’s the song as it stands today. There are still things that need improving, big time. What are they? Is it too fast now? Is the ending too abrupt?
The clip
Recorded
April 3, 2009, 2:41 am
Taken for Granite
March 26th, 2009
My grand plans is to continue posting revisions of An Alpha and an Omega over the next few weeks, but I am stymied this week by being in the Granite State and without a guitar. I will therefore post something else this week and pick up again next week when I’m home.
I have been having a blast playing with a capo on the second fret across all but the low E. You can play regular rhythm chords and yet still get that low drop-D-ish feel. This clip is in that vein.
I like the progression, the chords themselves, and the walking bass line. There’s a song here…I know it!
The clip
Recorded
October 29, 2008, 1:47:22 AM
An Alpha and an Omega
March 20th, 2009
[So far, "a post every Friday morning" has turned into "a post at some point every Friday."]
I like this a lot, and it’s fresh and new, though I’m afraid it is an inadvertent ripoff of some existing song. Any ideas?
If not, though, I think I’m going to post some variation or improvement on this clip every week for the next four weeks. The goal: an actual, finished song.
So this sounds to me a bit like the beginning of a song, or maybe the ending of a song, or maybe both. What does it sound like to you? Options include:
A) Uninspired tripe.
B) Raw musical genius.
C) The definition of ho-hum.
D) A waste of scarce Internet resources.
What do you think?
The clip
Recorded
March 20, 2009, 6:12 pm