The Year of Twelve Songs, Pt 4
The Year of Twelve Songs, Pt 4
Tomorrow (the sad version)
THE GOAL: A new music video every month in 2024.
THE EASY PART: I’ve already written the songs.
THE HARD PART: Everything else.
I’m a sixty-something, mostly self-taught, amateur wannabe with some songs I want to share—and eventually leave behind.
These songs tell the stories of my life, sometimes quite literally, sometimes less so. But I hope others can find something of their own story in there. I think that’s why we do art of any kind—to connect, right?
This Month’s Song
When I wrote this song, I was living in a 14-ft travel trailer parked in the driveway where my mother and her second husband were renting a two bedroom ranch house. This was 1985 or so, up in Red Bluff CA. I’d landed there because I’d run out of other places to land, I guess.
I told my mother and everyone who’d listen that I was trying to clean up my drug habit. But in truth I was just new in town and temporarily suffering from a lack of connections.
I call this the sad version because the arrangement is gounded in the despair underlying an addict’s promises. With the twist of the knife being the niggling sense of inevitability that, yes, this time I’m really gonna clean up… but you know, not tonight.
In the past, I’ve often done what you might call the party version. More uptempo and with a bit of a wink, in defiance, but also in acknowledgment of the flimsiness of the resolutions all of us make to conquer our stubborn habits, whether drugs, alcohol, tobacco, food or whatever. Sometimes you gotta laugh at human weakness, right?
Anyway, I didn’t stop using hard drugs for several years after I wrote the song, 1994 to be exact. So the party version got played a lot in the intervening years. My drug buddies seemed to enjoy singing along to the chorus. Most of them are dead now, though.
Performance & Production
I did some more experimenting with this one. It’s still just me on vocals, guitars and harmonicas. Plus the digital drummer. I used two harmonicas, low A and standard A. The main guitar part was played on my Martin 0015e retro. The lead guitar on the Taylor American Dream.
I also used a midi keyboard to add the organ parts, something I’d never tried before. I’d always wanted to hear this song with a bit of organ to give it just a hint of gospel flavor. I’m not a keyboard player at all, but I understand the way the keys are laid out, so I just had to hit the right notes in the right rhythm. Kept it very simple.
And this was my first time adding (or trying to add) background vocals. I don’t have a full understanding of how to sing harmony at this point, so I just made it up by ear.
It’s All Practice
All this experimentation is part of the journey I’ve chosen. It can be frustrating because, with the monthly deadline I’ve given myself, I’m pushing to finish these songs even though the perfectionist part of me knows I could have done this or that better if I did more takes.
But hey, it’s all practice. I once had a drawing teacher named Steve, who would walk around the class while the students hunkered over their latest assignment, full of tension and self doubt. And Steve would just walk by your table and say, “Remember, it’s all practice. Don’t worry, don’t fuss. It’s all practice.”
That was many years ago now, but it’s become a common saying, almost a mantra, around our house. It’s a comforting way to look at many annoyances in art (and life), so feel free to adopt it yourself. And thanks, Steve.
Gear & Software
(Tech shit)
Guitars: Martin 0015e retro, Taylor American Dream AD11e Grand Theater
Harmonicas: Seydel Session Steel A, Easttop Lucky 13 A
Keyboard: M-Audio Oxygen 25 Midi Keyboard
Digital drums: GarageBand Drummer
Hardware: MacBook Air 2020, with AOC 27-inch auxiliary monitor.
Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 Audio Interface
Sennheiser HD 280 Pro Headphones
Beyerdynamic DT900 ProX Open-back Headphones
PreSonus E5 Studio Monitors
PreSonus M7 Cardioid Condenser Microphone