Letting go of the Lapbar

My feet ache as I shift my weight from one leg to the other. I patiently stand there in the hot summer sun, staring at the backs of people heads who are staring at the backs of peoples heads. A lineup, a waiting game for the next ride that will send me soaring up and down, left and right, over and over as my heart battles my voicebox for room in my throat. 60 minutes traded for 2. Seems fair! The climb up the clickety clack tracks, the rush in the final seconds before we inch over the top and scream down the other side. My hands clenching the bar at first, mind racing against the thoughts of peril vs pure adrenaline bliss. Stomach tightens as it swirls back and forth against the force of gravity, eyes watering, cheeks pressed back and a smile carved into my face like words in stone...and then in the blur of peripheral vision, my tightly clenched fingers begin to relax...my eyes open wide as I lift my arms to the sky and truly soak in the roller coaster ride before me. I become one with the speeding cart across the rails and the adventure truly is one I own...forever.

According to Albert, the only source of knowledge is experience. So when I took on the great journey into the mind of Mr. Pat Pattison, (the songwriting guru who walked 63,000 songwriters through the 6 week course offered through Coursera)...I was completely captivated. As a father of 6, a music teacher, and the husband of a wife finishing up law school, I was slightly intimidated by not only the course, but the idea of a weekly blog inspired by the Songwriters Association of Canada. But why not...let the roller-coaster ride begin.

Rusty fingers and tongue tied words fought to keep up with the concepts dangled before us all. The simplicity of Box thinking and the new revelations of all the parts of your song intensifying and strengthening the chorus. A bunch of new friends we made, all asking the questions that help bring the point of the song to the surface.

Diving into the unstable waters of week 2, I happily held my breath and tried to stay under as long as possible. Gathering new tricks of the trade before coming up for air. As an avid movie watcher, I often pull emotions, camera angles, intense situations into my songs, and with Pat holding a cheat sheet up at the spelling Bee...it became so much easier to bridge these two mediums together.

Like most songwriters, I thrive on rhyming. The dance of the language and sound that twists and turns as it burns a picture in the listeners mind. The rhymes they link the words, make us think that what we heard is not only important but real, phrases that make us feel resolve as we solve the story line, the state of mind, the point of view or just something new that no one else has said. I fed on week 3, and got caught up in the free thought of perfect vs family, additive, subtractive, assonance, and consonance and will probably never again write a lyric without the chance to hear it in another way.

The windows into the minds of my fellow songwriters in Canada and beyond was my favourite part of the entire adventure. Reading conversations, reviews, ideas on direction...hearing the doubt shared by others, the hopes, the desire and passion as it came out and seemed to inspire everyone I chatted with. I learned more from you guys, than from Pat himself. I throw my thanks into the ring and if you could see my smile upon reflection of these past weeks...you would know!

I am not the songwriter I was at the beginning of this course. I think most of the other writers would agree with me that we have all changed the way we look at writing, and every day that passes by I personally realize how little I know about everything on this planet...and that kind of excites me for the journey ahead. So let go of the "lapbar" put your hands in the sky and scream.

In closing, and to sum things up with a quote from a very famous Doctor.

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

                                                                        -Dr. Seuss  

One More Reason To Change

What was my expectation of the exploration and the information offered in this free online course?

Inspiration...education...and a combination of dedication and relaxation that would escalate my new creations and provide new foundations that would alleviate previous frustrations of standing still...so with little hesitation...i clicked ok!

And the ride has been everything I hoped so far...

Do you remember these bad boys?

There were over 7000 injuries and 4 deaths reported from these "JARTS" in the 70's and 80's. Launch em skyward and land them in a cheap little yellow ring. Horseshoes for the risk-takers. When the recall came, my family did what any well respected family would do...kept them and tested the boundaries.

The greatest things in our world today have come from exploration. Someone had to cover the ground first, cut through the trees, sail across the water, have an enormous lawn dart pierce right through a bare foot. The early Pioneers of invention and discovery...so chopping through the forest of Pat's videos this week has been a journey well worth taking. The coverage...the insight...the simple complexity of a worksheet to help collect thoughts, rhymes, structure and weight to the lyrical component of a song is brilliant.

If you are anything like me...at one point...songwriting was an absolute artform that could not be touched. The precious product of released creativity had to stay pure in its form. Whatever came out lived on the paper, in the mind and the heart of the song forever...a trophy on a shelf.

For me, it wasn't until 60 songs in..that my thought process in writing started to change. Writing a story about a song I was going to write...and then shrinking it down to a song using only all of the best parts.  Tapping all of the senses to think about an object...What it looked like, smelt like, tasted like, felt like, sounded like....involving Metaphor, Simile, Personification, Alliteration...and what a transformation this compilation of presentation has demonstrated to this writer. I tip my hat to the man and the classmates who have removed some of the wool from my eyes during these late night mornings. With shiny new tools, and a few that needed a little Silvo to bring back to life...I am excited for the days, weeks, months and years ahead, and the new creations that will find their way out of my heart and mind.

Assignment #5.

It all starts with boxes.

BOX 1

The song opens up on a girl running out of a house...late for something. Angry that she is running behind. She hears her own words in her head...guilty conscience...kinda like nails on a chalkboard. She heads in the same direction she always does, down to a bookstore where she frequents...not to buy books, but grab her cup of inspiration...caffeine rush, before she begins the day. She notices the same people, drinking coffee as they always do. Talking softly. This day plays out as it always has...seemingly nothing changes.

Enter Chorus:

One more reason to change, even the same old story needs a different ending.

BOX 2

Location..bus stop. Making small talk with the others waiting for transportation. Faking a smile while in her mind she is screaming out. Everything that happens next...she knows...Everyday is like the rest. She never thought that anything could last forever...but this seems like it is.

Enter Chorus:

One more reason to change, even the same old story needs a different ending.

BOX 3

The breakdown...staring out the window reflecting on a way to make it all change. (the music follows this sadness a little...less instruments more free lyric with soul) When you are tired of playing it out...close your eyes and rewind...Take a look at it all in a different way...and then...come to the realization and resolve...

Final Chorus:

One more reason to change...even the same old story needs a different ending.

_________________________________________________

THE WORKSHEET

Developing the worksheet was an eye opener for sure. The idea of key words being collected and rhymes of all types being searched out while considering the families and theme of the song itself was an excellent way to brainstorm where the song could lead. I put my own spin on Pat's design as there were more words I wanted to use to fully explore the idea of my song. The words I eventually used are all highlighted in blue on the worksheet below.

  If you are still reading my blog at this point...thank you. Here is the recording of this weeks assignment. Had allot of fun with this entire process and truly feel that new doors have opened because of it.


THE RECORDING


LYRICS

verse:

She's in a hurry , Feet through the back door,
Voices they play out like nails on a chalkboard
Following Footsteps, down to the bookstore
Where she opens her mind, turns the pages inside and sees

Everybody, drinking coffee talking softly
Holding on to the same old things
Every morning, just like a tape recording
always the same, nothing will change till ya

Say what you think right now and

Chorus:
One more reason to change,
Even the same old story,
Needs a different ending

verse:
Down at the busstop,
Chewing on small talk
under the smile on her face
She's screaming her head off
She knows whats coming next,
everyday is like the rest
She never thought that anything could every last forever
and it wont till She Sees


Chorus:
One more reason to change,
Even the same old story,
Needs a different ending


Bridge
And when your tired of playing it out
Close your eyes and rewind
Take a look at it all..right...now and find..

Chorus:
One more reason to change,
even the same old story,
Needs a different ending (repeat x6)

________________________________________________________________________________

Thats it for this weeks blog. Thank you for taking the time to have a read. Leave a comment if ya can.


Till next time,

North

Back To School House Rock!

One of my favourite things about writing music has always been the freedom of creation and perspective. What one person says and means a certain way can be seen in a completely different light by another. How I sing a certain word, speak a particular phrase...I mean, who really takes the time to think about how each word inflects upon the others in the sentence? well...Pat Pattison does!

So back to school my brain went...and a further respect to the intricacy of language and the breakdown of how it all comes together. I'm probably not the only one to flashback to my early Saturday Morning Childhood and School House Rock. Hooky songs, with educational messages. (check em out if you get the chance...two of my fav's from the old days...Conjuction Junction and Pronouns...just click the pic)

At the time, I just sat in my chair and sang along, but now...all these years later, I was fascinated by the explanation and more importantly the spotlights created that now seem to make all the sense in the world.

Down to the wire, Race against the Clock, Behind the Eight Ball, Down for the Count, Weight of the World, Under the Strain, Hang on by a Thread, Make or Break, Pressure Cooker, In Over one's Head, The end of One's Rope, The Breaking Point, Under the Gun, Uphill Battle, Running on Empty, Up against it all!!!

These are all expressions that are painted in stress... the moments where we either sink or swim, fight back or fall down...they all hint at something that someone has to accomplish, go through, or endure. And the moment that Pat started talking about Stressed and Unstressed syllables, many of these expressions popped into my mind. I am fully aware that he was speaking of how we say the words in our lyrics and wasn't trying to instill these other thoughts on stress...but in my mind, they are quite closely related.

This course has been an eye opening experience to say the least. I have read many blogs, and listened to more songs in these last 5 weeks than I have in the last year. And every deadline that approaches creates a pressure, or a little stress if you will, to not only get it done, but get it done well. I found myself (like a few others that I have read) cramming once again at the end of a busy week. I have realized not only how to read stressed and unstressed syllables, but also how to gage my own stresses and unstressed moments a little better. Easter Weekend with 6 kids is a journey in itself. I took the time to create many different riddles for my children to solve so they could find each and every treat that was hidden throughout the house. Pulling an all nighter on Saturday night was not only exhausting, but unbelievably fun as I strung ribbon throughout the house for the children to unravel. So what does this have to do with this weeks course?

I completed my assignment in the wee hours of Sunday Night with cloudy eyes, and tired shoulders. Coffee stained breath, cramped fingers and a smile of my face that will not soon go away. I used last weeks song as requested so rather than share that here with those who have already had a listen...I thought it would be more fun to introduce you to my kids and a little song that was written for them. They starred in the video (as they have in quite a few of my projects) and this weekend as the snow pulled back from the grass and roads lay dry and stretched out before us...we climbed on structures, laughed in the wind, and found hidden treats far better than chocolate will ever be.

Till next time

North

                   

Where the sidewalk begins

As writers we dabble in the ink of our minds to smash new thoughts together, while maintaining enough familiarity not to lose the average heart and brain out there interested in listening to music. 

Some study the greats, William Shakespeare, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson and Shel Silverstein. 

Shel Silverstein? you might wonder...Who is that? For those of you that recognize the picture above...you already know. For those that don't, Shel is a staple in the rhyming universe for me. A very creative chidrens writer and artist. Sometimes his view on the little things breaks up the big things for me.

In this weeks journey I was twisting and turning, listening and learning as I pulled out his book and had a look at the thoughts that caught me staring and sharing in the years before. My eyes sore as the clock wouldn't stop, page after page you could hear a pin drop as I focused on lines, every rhyme, every thought, every unstable moment, like it or not I was trapped on the hook from this interesting book and with Pat by my side this whole ride...well it took many hours just to put the book down. 

Thats Right! I just did that. Some of you rolling your eyes or dotting your T's. 

Assignment #3

She Is Holding on To Every One Of My Tomorrows

Verse:
Lay awake, and watch the day, creep in through the curtain
Theirs a certain light that hits her face that tears me up inside
Try and stay there quietly but its hard to sit there hurting
I Keep rehearsing what I'd say to her when there's nowhere left to hide

Chorus:
She is, Holding, on to every one of my tomorrows
She is, hoping, life will turn out just like in the novels
She is, She is.

We all grow at different speeds, mentally, physically, emotionally and socially. And right now, at this very moment, we stand on the edge of exploration. Innocent, curious, no fear of danger as we explore the untravelled paths before us. Sure new songs will be created, new friends will be made, realizations of our own abilities will come clearer but no matter what...all of us will change a little or allot every day and the application of the new information we get to consume every moment is truly amazing. 

For me...I look forward to finding out, not where the sidewalk ends...but where it begins.

Till next time.
North

To hear more from North Easton...check out
SEVEN DAY SONGS. (31 of them so far)
Check out his Band MY FAVOURITE TRAGEDY
Or visit his YOUTUBE CHANNEL

Stuck on the Stairs

Its funny the steps we take, in the world we wander. Each day another quest to make a memory...live out a dream...stand in the rooms we stand in...learning, watching, making something happen. There are many reasons people take the stairs in life. To grow, to explore, to reach new heights, to get in shape, stay in shape, realize how out of shape they are. Oh we take the stairs in so many different forms avoiding the escalators at times, the elevators, the easier way.

Week 2 is already an interesting set of steps that although I can see in my previous songs, I didn't plan them out so much. I think one of the greatest things about writing for me has always been...looking back at what you created and seeing new things YOU didn't even know you put there. There is a moment sometimes of greater power...a subconscious thought that just placed those words on the paper for me. For other writers...cue the grin...cause you know exactly what I am speaking of! Divine intervention? A message from another place? Most likely it is simply a collection of thoughts that formulate themselves while you sleep, work, play at something else. It truly makes me marvel at the depths of the human brain. But that is for another blog!!!

"Stuck on the stairs of this Two Story House. "
I can give you around 63,000 reasons why writing a song with this title didn't make allot of sense. I mean how many new Two Story House songs will there be? But my mind took on the challenge even while I slept. Despite the fact that I tried to feed it vast amounts of caffeine and sugar to spin it off in different directions...the damn thing tied me down and made me write a full song. I share it with you here...along with a few other random explosions of thought in my head.

The length of a line...the lift...the hold...the edge of your seat...the nail biting moments that pull us in and make us question...What is coming next?
I live for these moments in the movies I watch, the stories I read, the shows I see...and just like every other person on this planet...I put together an expected resolve that is truly satisfying when it lands in the lap of expectation.

Lets be completely honest here...there is something truly fascinating about unstable things. Human curiosity...like the scene of an accident...the fight that broke out in grammar school...the guy who stood up and proposed to his wife at the basketball game on the jumbo tron...We are drawn to the moments where we can find something new out, watch something shocking happen, be apart of an amazing moment. So leaving our listeners anticipating the next part of the song by changing the length of the lines...sure...that makes sense.

When I find myself in future decisions, trying to reach new levels, climb to new heights, touch the sky where i've never been...I for one will be taking the stairs to get there.

Thanks for stopping by!

Stuck on the stairs of this two story house

Leave a comment.....Ask a question....Random thoughts

Visit North Eastons Website here and check out 30 other Seven Day songs he has written.

The quick brown box jumps over the lazy blog

Sometimes, just a little boost is all we need to reach something from the top shelf, change a lightbulb, dunk a basketball or see the world in a different light. My fingers normally dance across tired strings, or black and white keys while I mumble into the air in search of a moment that gives my musical side the fix it needs. Like a junkie I sit there for hours at times waiting for that moment...that buzz...that satisfaction that compels me to stay up till my eyes rebel and my thoughts turn cloudy. I love it!

 Oh I don't stand up at a typewriter like Hemingway or wander the streets with no destination in mind ala Dickens...but I have my habits, my ticks, my routine. Over the years this process for me has evolved, changed, developed into a structure...a ritual...a recurring method that has certainly delivered some songs that I am happy I have written. And then...

Week 1

{enter Mr. Pattison} [lights up]

There is an area near home where several new houses have just been built. Each one unique in its own way. Red brick, grey siding, paved driveway, cobblestone walk, huge front door with steps, small entranceway with pillars. Inside, I imagine some of these homes have big foyer type entrances. Others have a winding staircase that climbs up to a second floor. Finished basement with a games room, or a bar, maybe a kick ass home theater set-up. But, they are all just houses. They all have bathrooms, kitchens, bedrooms, laundry rooms and hallways. And every single one of them was built with a detailed set of plans out of the mind of someone trying to make it fit into a mould but being uniquely different in some kind of way. 

After hearing Pat (and i can call him Pat, cause we are such good friends) walk me through the first phase of this course...I had a laugh. I have been building houses for years, just grabbing a hammer, some nails and a pile of wood and going with my gut. Try and see what I can create. I know I'm probably not the only one to sit back after he explained the boxes and say to myself..."Uh...why didn't I think of that before? That just makes sense!"

-The Science Fair-

I think what I loved best about the science fair in school...wasn't my own table (Capillary Action 101) but having a walk around the gymnasium floor and getting a chance to see in the minds of my classmates. Some of them, so extraordinary in their experiments. Detailed explanations, graphs, things that plug in, things that explode. This part was certainly the highlight of these events and Writing songs is no different. All of us songwriters taking part in this adventure are not only anxious to see where this journey takes us, but where will it take everyone else as well? 

The truth of the matter for me and my Capillary Action Experiment is quite metaphoric to the bulk of projects in my life. I didn't plan ahead and take weeks to write my hypothesis, or design some elaborate Rube Goldberg Machine . I waited till the night before the fair...panicked...and came up with something. Procrastination maybe? Delayed Gratification perhaps? Laziness...probably? 

And if I think back to some of the other accomplishments in my life...there are certainly a large number that kept me up the night before without sleep. But as Pat has tasked us on a new approach...I have managed to find a little time each day to not only reflect on my assignment, but plan it out before I picked up the hammer and the nails.

-So North...what song title did you choose and why?-

At the beginning of the week, after reading the titles to choose from, I did what any confident songwriter would do...chose my own! I thought of each box and how my idea would grow throughout and yet stay connected. My mind and my fingers sat down in the same room, talked into the night, worked together and by tuesday...I was ready to submit.

But then the question came back to me again. Why did I start this course? If I took the same roads, ordered the same food, watched the same movie over and over again...where would the new experience come from? So I dove back in on Wednesday night to the Two Story House title. I knew this would be one that some writers would pick and others would avoid like the plague simply because Pat had already given his take on it. And so the challenge began. Make it work. Put your own spin and write a story. Something that will bring out the emotion you search for when you write. Love? Pain? Anger? Bliss? 

I started getting really excited as the idea started to bloom. The clock was on vacation as I thought out each box in vivid detail. It wasn't easy at first, but when the common thread between my ideas hit me...I felt that adrenaline rush, that moment where you finally find your keys, those brand new shoes that make you run faster and jump higher. I once again found the reason why I love to write songs. 

Thats all for me this week as I have a bunch of my children, huddled up on a couch right now waiting for me so we can finish our "Bourne" marathon.

Thanks for reading. Leave a comment. Ask a question.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO SOME OF MY TUNES

-Coming Soon-

My Take on the Two Story House 

(recorded version as I also promised myself a finished song each week of this course.)

Week 2 and the new doors that open - Friday

Have a great March Break everyone!

Songwriters Association Of Canada CHALLENGE 2013

A number of years ago, i sat at a round table in a room with more than 200 songwriters. All of us on the edge of our seats, heads tilted, pens drawn like swords as we listened closely. I watched his feet, runners I believe, as he weaved in between tables speaking to the anxious room. I remember thinking…who is this guy? What does he know about songwriting that I don’t? 

And by the 30 minute mark of hearing him speak…it was pretty clear…he knew everything I didn’t. The inflated balloon in my head began to shrink quickly…and i couldn’t stop smiling.

I guess you could say that my first experience with Pat Pattison was a little unpredictable. I listened closely, opened my mind, laughed at his spontaneity, marvelled at the way he took lyrics that we all shouted out and created a song right there in front of us that not only made sense, but had a pretty cool hook. 

In these days leading up to Challenge 2013…I am excited to not only dive in deeper into the mind of this man, but embark upon a journey into honing my own craft that much further.

I have written over 600 songs to date. Happy songs, sad songs, story songs, pop songs, celtic, folk, rock, blues, christmas and many other that I cannot pin point stylistically. I recently challenged myself to write/record and put together a video on Youtube once a week called Seven Day Songs…and as a music teacher/band coach, devoted father of 6 and a passionate creator…I am positive that this experience will lead me to understand the writing process that much better.

Collaboration in any walk of life leads to new invention, and every great work that I have ever seen, heard or touched has come through that very process.

I look forward to meeting all of the songwriters who are taking part in this course. Listening and sharing thoughts that will take my songwriting craft to the next level.

LISTEN TO SOME OF NORTHS SONGS