Prison, Superman and the Open Road

You know that moment when you bite into a fresh slice of pizza. The smell of the baked crust as your fingertips cradle that precious triangle like a lizard on a hot rock lifting its feet every couple seconds to avoid the burn. You can feel the heat on the skin of your face as you bring that long awaited deliciousness to your watering mouth. There is a quick light that flickers in your brain...a warning light perhaps? A memory you just can't seem to grab hold of as you are lured by the distraction of melted cheese hiding delectable sauce over cooked dough. Your mouth opens wide as you ease a corner past your lips and over the tongue. Like an anxious puppy getting ready for a walk, your teeth slam down and your eyes roll back for the moment has finally arrived and the reason you are here...on this day...was to eat this very slice of pizza.

But, it's too late. The damage is done. The scalding melted cheese welds itself to the roof of your mouth, your eyes tear up, your nose pushes air out and the previous width of your jaw pales in comparison to the desperate plea for cold air as you breathe in quickly to minimize the pain. The cheese won't let go. Your teeth cannot cut it, so in that moment you are forced to pull more lava into the opening of your face as your eyes scour the room for those who may bear witness to this incredible feat you have just embarked upon. Its a kitchen dance gone bad as you hop from foot to foot shaking the contents of the inside of your mouth back and forth working up the courage to bring that fire down your throat and rescue you from the horrible ending your pizza dream should have seen coming. 

What does this have to do with songwriting?

Instead of picking someone to collaborate with this week...as given to us in the challenge...I took a big bite of hot pizza and ended up collaborating with 3 SAC songwriters. So my blog will be long for those who wander through it.

The three writers I worked with are Rosanne Baker Thornley, Robert Campbell and Kristine St. Pierre.

Song # 1 - TURN written by North Easton and Rosanne Baker Thornley

 This is Jack. He is 41 years old. He was arrested for drug trafficking 8 months ago and he has 3 years and 4 months left in his sentence. The words surrounding the wall behind Jack are his own. A letter to his younger self. A plea of sorts to urge the younger Jack to make better decisions. To stay true and not be swayed by the pressures of those he shares company with. Taken from the letter he wrote to himself..."Get to work Jack, get clean and avoid the madness because you are good enough to live your dreams and not just have them in your sleep"

When I received an email from fellow songwriter in the SAC challenge (Rosanne Baker Thornley) containing a link to Jack's picture and many other prisoners...I was captivated. Drawn in. Our first skype session was a discussion on the idea of writing a song based on the letters these men had written to themselves.

Writing songs is no easy feat. There are so many components to consider in the journey from the music, to the melody, to the words on the page and how they all tie in to a common point in a matter of 3-4 mins. Finding rhymes that aren't expected, using imagery that captivates the mind and pulls the listener into the setting of the song itself, and then the process of building the audio vision and the presentation afterward.  Music is a place where creativity stands hand in hand with formula and patterns, and its in the recreation of these patterns (words, chords, and melody) that original songs are born. I suppose that's why I love it so much. It is a challenge every time. And the challenge began in the first session me and Rosanne had. Our styles, our rhyming patterns, our thoughts on how to convey an idea. In fact, after our first session, I took to the guitar, climbed inside my studio and sent her back an almost completed song. Both of our ideas were in there...in my mind anyway...and I was truly excited about what I had created. Anxious...I sent it off to her...attached the lyrics and waited patiently for her response.

She wrote back"Hey North...Um...I like the first line in the pre-chorus."

My first thought..."This is not going to be as easy as I had hoped" but the challenge is the collaboration. So meeting number 2 over Skype took place. And we both felt that tension and apprehension as we both mentioned our intentions. We battled back and forth and finally like a crunched up ball of paper (my first version)...I slowly opened up to some of her thoughts and ideas and experienced the true magic of what songwriting collaboration is all about. With the barriers down, everything seemed to not only move quicker...but feel great. Each line got stronger as we analyzed it. The song unfolded and when we added the final polish, we had something not only unique and special, we had captured a little of what challenges these prisoners face every day of their lives.

For those of you who have had a chance to listen, or read Rosanne's lyrics...you know she has a great way of putting things together. All of her songs in this challenge have been fantastic and she truly is a pleasure to work with.  It looks like we are also going to carry on and write another song together.

The Turn for us, is the moment you make a decision to go the other way.

Have a listen:

VERSE:

At 17 a boy don't know bout living smart and moving slow

18 notches on the wall...carved em all

Once a year i mark the day 

I should have turned and walked away.

I had the hopes that young men do

not the strength to see them through

I followed blind, across the line, 

took the fall in  someone else's shoes

If I could go back, back to me I'd say.

Chorus:

Look before you follow, Think before you choose

Its not what you gain, Its in everything you lose

Don't forget your feet, you don't have to stay

You can always turn..... and walk away

In the shadow of my youth

I didn't care about  truth

I was desperate to belong

I could've put it right...but I did it wrong.

And the hardest part in the empty dark

is the quiet pain and the fear I face 

If only I could just go back and say

Chorus:

Look before you follow, Think before you choose

Its not what you gain, Its in everything you lose

Don't forget your feet, you don't have to stay

You can always turn... you can always turn...and walk away

My second collaboration session was with Robert Campbell from Nova Scotia. We bounced some ideas back and forth and had sort of settled on a topic in facebook messages and email. We brainstormed on it for a little while and nothing seemed to be clicking the way a song should...in my opinion. Finding the creative words to explain the subject we had chosen...and then Robert mentioned the word super hero. I know...i know...there are so many super hero songs out there.

And some really good ones. Five for Fighting (it's not easy), Crash Test Dummies (supermans song), 3 Doors Down (Kryptonite)...But at the very least it started the creative juices flowing. We visualized superman staring down at the world wanted to hang up his cape and just lay on some beach somewhere. Grow his hair long...maybe pickup the guitar. But no matter what the song metaphored...the idea itself was as basic as the desire for "THE SIMPLE LIFE"

And then lyric after lyric seemed to find the paper. The verse, the chorus, the bridge, the melody. Robert has a great thought process. He brainstorms well and seems to be neck deep in music. Much respect... And despite our many disconnections through Skype...we collaborated well together and turned out a pretty neat little song in a very short period of time. 

Give it a spin.

THE SIMPLE LIFE written by North Easton and Robert Campbell

Verse:

Maybe I'm just another superman

Standing on the edge of the world looking down

I don't wanna fall, when the fear gets too much

I don't wanna crash into the waiting crowd.

Im tired of facing the same old situations

Gotta get there in the nick of time

I wanna day, give me some space

I wanna sleep straight through the night

Chorus: 

If I had the simple life

I'd sit and celebrate

And in the quiet I would close my eyes and drift away

I'd spend my time in the sun

I would always be young

If only i could taste the simple life

Verse: 

IM sick of chasing those higher expectations

When I never reach the finish line

I'd settle for less, if the rest of the world 

would see that we'll never make it out alive (chorus)

Bridge:

If I could just take off this cape

Give myself a break

Take my time and Save the world another day

But I wont...no i wont.. damn i wont

Chorus

My third collaboration session was in person with Ottawa SAC member Kristine St. Pierre. Kristine drove twice out to my studio in Rockland (25 mins out of Ottawa heading east). We knew of each other over the years as the Ottawa Music Scene is not huge. 

When we sat in the get to know you part of our collaboration, we stumbled upon a common thread between us. A friend of ours. A woman who we both have known for years. I taught her children guitar, she watched over my little ones before as well. She truly is a remarkable person with a great spirit and beautiful heart. There was also another thread between us all as well. We had all lost our mothers.  There is a place in the mind that all of us go to in the hard and trying times of our worlds. Its a place where we lean upon the words and actions of others. They give us energy, advice, hope, belief in something bigger than the everyday. When your mother is gone...that place is harder to find sometimes. I know for me, thankfully, that songwriting allows me to not only feel and see my mother everyday, but it also allows me to share her world, memories and more with my children and as many others as I can. 

Our common friend, walks. She walks for more than just the exercise. Their is a purpose to her steps. Perhaps to find solace in the beauty of nature. Maybe its to breathe in the air from the country side or to raise awareness for causes such as the afflictions that take our loved ones far too early. 

How could this not be the subject matter of our Collaboration. 

When you know what you are writing about, words flow much easier and the song took shape quickly. It is not a song about pain, or pity...It is intended as an inspiration...a song to empower the faith of the lives we live and where we come from. And no matter what happens to us, no matter how hard we are pushed, or how much suffering we endure.. the words that keep pushing back against the challenges that try and knock us down....I'm Still here!

I'M STILL HERE written by North Easton and Kristine St. Pierre

Intro:
Alone on the road in the rain
And she walks with the light again
I'm still here

Verse:
And the sound of the city, Somewhere behind
And all the crowded cars, scream by
In a blinding race, Every step I take

Up comes the dust, Down comes the rain
Fight through the fire ,Calling her name
And suddenly she's, SHouting out...

Chorus:
Im still here


Verse 2
Hard Thoughts, hit me like a brick wall
never let the pain get through from a memory
and everything in front of me
Is like a gun shot, loaded and going off
Fight back but i'm still drowning in honesty
Draining my energy

I'm still here

Bridge:
When it comes to the heart and the courage it takes
All the fear and the worry you faced
And the words that I still hear you speak

And in the dark when i feel myself break
its the road where I go and...You save me

I'm still here..

As the snow slips into the drain pipes on the broken streets, the grass and the trees start waking up from a long winter slumber. The Birds, and the squirrels, and the feet of people everywhere breathe in the outside air...and sadly...because of the turning of the seasons...that little nasty flu bug sidelined my co-writer this morning and the song we intended on releasing took an extra day.

I look forward to sharing it with you all...and many more songs as the challenge to write a song a week continues for North Easton. I have enjoyed this challenge immensely, and the people in it are truly an inspiration to me and the future SAC songwriters.

I will post "I'm still here" tomorrow.

Till next week
North Easton

One Night - SAC Challenge 2014 Trusting the Subconscious

      Trusting the subconscious.

ONE NIGHT-WEEK #5

There is so much happening behind the curtain of our conscious selves. From blinking eyes to beating hearts, the breath that fills our lungs to the yawn that takes us over when we see someone else do the same. It's true that we can play around with trying to control these functions of our bodies...but they don't need us meddling in the everyday actions of their routine. If we were truly aware of every experience we undergo, every conversation we over hear, every little detail we unravel in our memories...there is a good chance we would all be lost in the labrynth of our minds making communication in the outside world almost impossible.

The subconscious songwriter is a pretty magical thing. I am sure I am not the only one who has sat down with a guitar or at a piano and wrote an entire tune as if someone was dictating what to say. In fact the first 100 songs I wrote primarily came out that way. I was protective of them, as if they were works of art that someone had painted and to change them or touch them in any way was against the laws of nature. I do miss those early songs, and the simplicity of how they came about.

The week before music became my life's passion, I was sitting in my video game store. I had purchased it a few years before and during the days things were kinda slow, so I sat in the back staring up at the monitor just in case a customer came in. On the desk in front of me was an open book. Empty pages waiting patiently for me and my guitar to write something new. In this challenged state, I spent 2 hours writing a song called "Broken". My defeat and lack of joy behind the counter of a store when all I really wanted to do was play music, was captured in a song that my brain had put together over the last couple months. The song was in a minor. It was slow...and heartwrenching, and when I reached the end of its creation, I was at the bottom of the ladder. I needed something to pick me up. It was in that moment that I had decided to sell the store and pursue music full time. I spent the next 25 minutes writing a song that would not only be on my first album, but be the lead track, win me the Bear's Rock Search and soon be charting across Canada. 

I was much younger than...for those that know me now. This was filmed in 1998...and well..youtube didn't come out till 7 years later. 

Now back to the subconscious. I am a firm believer that much of what we say, and almost all of what we write is coming from the subconscious. Put together nights, weeks, months and even years before. Its the reason it flows out of us sometimes. It has already been written.

This weeks song came to me out of an actual experience and as I reflected and took part in daily writing...I tapped into all kinds of things from this week and the past that related to the idea.

ONE NIGHT - is the title.

Sometimes we only need to catch up on sleep to put everything back together. I say it to my kids when they wake up in a bad mood...I feel it in myself when I burn the candle and push too hard. The brain is no different than the physical effects we feel in forms of aches and pains...and like our muscles and joints...it needs to not only recuperate...but reprogram and file away the thousands of events that happen to us everyday. If we push to hard, our brain like our bodies and cars need fuel...and coincidentally...this weeks song was written after I ran my vehicle out of gas.

Now you might be wondering, how does one do that. There are warning signs, lights, sounds to remind you. There is a reserve in the tank that should get you to where you are going. And the funniest thing about this running out of gas scenario...its not the first time I have done it. In my life, it has happened 5 times. I have established the primary reason it happens, and a few secondary's. The main reason  is a positive thing. It centers on my belief. I believe I wont run out before I get to the next station. So i push it...to the limit. I'm cocky and think that it won't happen to me...until it does. 

The tow truck that came (i had young children in the car to witness this...lol...proud moment) took almost 2 hours to arrive. I would have walked, but this was on a highway and my kids that were with me are 7 and 9...and for the first time in my life, I had recently purchased CAA. They were hook me up. But two hours? When the guy arrived, I walked up to his Cab trying to speed the process up. You see they give you 10 liters of gas to get you to the next station. As I neared the drivers door, I

saw something quite strange indeed. You see this guy's tow truck was a flat bed. And pinned up against the back on the flat bed itself...scared shitless...was a tiny little cat. On the outside. Shaking, scared...and probably just used up a few of its lives on the 60 minute trip it just took to come and rescue me. The driver was completely unaware that he had a stowaway.

Now what happened next was nothing short of comical. As he went to the compartment on the outside of his truck to retrieve the Gas Container...it was nowhere to be found. This guy travelled 60 minutes to come give me gas...and he brought no gas! 

These are moments when laughter is the only weapon you have. So he hoisted me and my kids up on to the flatbed and drove us to the nearest station.

Even tho, my bad day was nowhere near as bad as this guys...Sometimes staying in bed, seems like a much better idea. Hence the reason for this weeks song.

                            

Thanks for listening, and reading. 

Appreciate it.

North Easton

One Night - North Easton

I don't wanna wait for another bad day to find me
Every time I look there's another closed book behind me
Open up the shutters no I won't get up
Take away my covers but I won't get up
I don't wanna face another bad day
Inside me

One night to clear my head
I'm too tired to make it out of bed
Stuck in the middle of a life that just wont change

One Night to let things go
Too many times I am woah
Stuck in the middle of a riddle I can't escape
Stuck in the middle of a riddle I got, and yes little less thought about the things that make me go.

I dont wanna think about the chase, I dont wanna waste a minute
Focused on the finish line
But everytime i see the same old day after day I stop and
settle for the red light
Roll over but I wont get up
Start over but I wont get up
I dont wanna wait for another bad day to find me.

One night to clear my head
I'm too tired to make it out of bed
Stuck in the middle of a life that just wont change

One Night to let things go
Too many times I am woah
Stuck in the middle of a riddle I can't escape
Stuck in the middle of a riddle I got, and yes little less thought about the things that make me go.

I keep falling..Somebody..catch me. Somebody Catch me
I keep falling...somebody slow me down x2

Suddenly Love is - SAC Challenge Week # 4 The Cliche

There are two kinds of people in this world...

Those who write a cliche into their songs, and those who write many cliche's in their songs. (Check out this collection of TWO KINDS OF PEOPLE movie clips)

An original idea is extremely hard to achieve. Take the image above for example. If you look up love in Google images, you will find countless pictures of silhouetted couples kissing... Although we love great ideas, and new things, we feel comfortable ordering the same food, buying the same clothes, telling the same stories to different people day after day.

My father always told me "That good guys finish last" "You only live once" "If the shoe fits...wear it" "Dont hold your breath" "Quit while you're ahead" "Better late than never" "It never hurts to try"...and "never play leapfrog with a unicorn"

K that last one wasn't his...in fact none of them were, but when I hear or read these expressions, I think of him. A cliche is a very powerful tool in writing, and Christopher Ward "Hit the nail on the head" when he spoke of the importance of a cliche in a hit song. Upon further research...every hit song has a cliche in it...if not many. Think of the ironic cliche of Nickelbacks Rockstar. Nickelback who rose to fame and impacted so many singers with an original voice and great tunes...and then...cliche after cliche song that has turned most of the music world against them. This very song here lists all of the cliches around being a rockstar...which Chad Kroeger now has (hockey rink inside his house in the bastment...studio out back) and of course 56 million views on the video alone. Cliche's work. The big challenge is writing something original around the cliche that makes it stand out.





So for me...this week...I listened...I read...I looked around...and settled on a familiar cliche starting with "LOVE IS". Christopher himself used this in a hit song for Alanah Myles. Brilliant...so why not start there...I thought. Also sticking with last weeks journey...I decided to start this song with the chorus

Suddenly Love is

Chorus:

Suddenly Love is, love is just a place

Suddenly love is love is just another word that you cant explain

Love is love is just a face

That you can't erase 

Verse:  

Lips press down on a cigarette

light another up and you take a breath you

cough and close your eyes and  focus

Climb into the car in the parking lot

Look into the mirror with the same old thought

will anybody even notice

Foot to the floor, and the race is on

Try and get away from a ticking bomb

Drive into the dark before the world it closes (Chorus)

Chorus:

Suddenly Love is, love is just a place

Suddenly love is love is just another word that you cant explain

Love is love is just a face

That you can't erase 

Lost in the riddle of the radio

Heart beat pounds against your throat

Its hard as hell to See the signs  

Flashback  flickers, painful pictures, 

Time is quicker, everytime you wait...for the right..

Time..

And the red light, turns white...You can't stop...

or change your mind...You are caught between 

the faded yellow lines... 

  

Bridge:

Honestly its Hard to breathe,  I see your ghost

Slip into a  memory, cant let go

Honestly Its Hard to breathe breaking glass, the empty street,

the faded past is Out of reach, fear is taking hold

-------------------------------------------------------

I tried to use as many cliche's as possible without stepping on the potential of the song. They are bolded above.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog and listen to the tune.

"Until next time" "Absence makes the heart grow fonder" "Another day another dollar" "Always look on the bright side of life"...and blah blah blah.

Cheers everyone
North

Strong - SAC Challenge 2014 - Week # 3

Getting out of the box can be a difficult process. We as people are constantly finding ourselves in daily routines. How we wake up, what we wear, the way we brush our teeth, the path we take to work, where we stop for coffee and the words we greet people with...it seems like everything in our lives is a pattern...and breaking that is no easy feat.

This week's song did take a different path that the rest of my other songs in a long while. As most of my songs have extremely simple instrumentation...(acoustic and voice...or piano and voice), I thought it would be good for me to pick up the electric guitar and try my hand at rocking out a little more.

A friend of mine (Jith Paul) is putting together a movie called Clean Slate, and he asked me to write a track for it. I took the inspiration from his story and put this song together. The screenwriter (Paolo Della Malva) has a girl struggling to get up on stage. She is hiding out in the bathroom with her friends and band mates trying to coax her up to perform. Stage Fright...a real thing, as I am sure some of you can probably relate. Putting ourselves out there is not an easy thing, especially if we are singing something that we wrote ourselves. Eyes judge...just a fact of life...but I digress.

So...the song is called Strong.

And seeing how the event takes place in a bar, I went with more Rock than usual approach. I started writing the chorus first this time...normally I let me verses lead me to the chorus. I also built the song up from drums instead of music. Created the beat that I wanted...added in some bass...and then started creating the rest of it off that.

Lyrics normally come first or at the same time as my music...but this time, I waited and recorded the song and created lines over top of it. I did however have some melody in my head as it is near impossible for me to write without some kind of melody hook driving me forward.

Have a listen to the song here.

Tell yourself the fear it helps
The final bells are ringing clear as hell
Its time to get your shit together
its now or never you gotta face

Close your eyes And take a breath
count to ten and do your best to let it go...let it go

Pre:
Everytime you fall behind,
You look inside to find the reason that you wont...back...down..

Chorus:
Oh..you gotta get strong, you gotta get tough
You gotta get better than ever and love
What your gonna do, when you give what you got
to the world in front of you.
Love the life to live it long
To fight the fight...you gotta get strong

Verse 2.

Look into,the simple truth and try and find a way to get it
You gotta take a chance and let it, let it change your point of view

Hit the brakes and count the days, and just forget your last and past mistakes,

Let it go 

Chorus:
Oh..you gotta get strong, you gotta get tough
You gotta get better than ever and love
What your gonna do, when you give what you got
to the world in front of you.
Love the life to live it long
To fight the fight...you gotta get strong

Bridge:
Life is counting all the faces,
all the seconds we've all wasted
Life is counting all the space-

--------------------------------

Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog.

Feel free to comment.

All the best 

North Easton

-never stop writing.

Just Go Out - SAC CHALLENGE 2014 (Week #2)

 If you learn to keep in the shadows, not stare too long, and wear an interesting hat...people watching is a pretty easy thing to do. The interesting hat is so that when people catch you looking at them, they notice the hat first. And when they look back at you, they think you have noticed them looking at your hat...it's pretty much clear sailing after that. I know this from my countless days of being a private detective...well...sitting in front of the T.V. and watching private detectives. In fact, I can say that most of the cool knowledge I have obtained in this world comes from guys like Magnum P.I., Simon and Simon, Remington Steele and Angela Lansbury...yes...i just said Angela Lansbury. This lady was cool. And with all respect to Sir Paul McCartney...him and her kinda look the same (look it up) which brings us back to people watching.

So ten minutes of writing in 5 separate locations can  certainly get the brain moving. I think once you get past the literal and start letting the imagination and senses take over, songs exist around us in everything. The lives of people you don't know can be as fascinating as you would like them to be. Why someone is acting the way they are?...the conversation they could be having with each other? (check out Tina Fey and Steve Carrell in Date Night for more inspiration), the thoughts they could be having in their heads...watching people argue, or reach out for each others hands...a child looking up to a parent hoping for a treat in a store, the reaction the parent gives back...a guy riding his bike in the snow...the smiles and frowns of the people caught in traffic.  It truly can get your brain and heart wrapped up in a bunch of cool scenarios.

For me, I settled on a situation I watched unfold while enjoying a cup of coffee in a local coffee place...(no brand names here without compensation). There was a girl sitting by a fireplace reading a book, the look on her face was not a happy one.

I could not see the title of the book which got me thinking even more. She was near the window and kept looking up from her book to the outside. When I looked around the shop, I could also see a young guy in a suit waiting in line texting on his phone. A common everyday thing I have seen many times. It got me to thinking about these two and the lives that they wish they could escape to. 

And...in true songwriter form...what if their lives connected in another place further down the line?

This is what I came up with.

JUST GO OUT - NORTH EASTON

She sits by the fire, hands on a cup
Face in a book, soaking it up
Cant find the look that somebody took away from her
Eyes on the page, mind in the past
it was a heart break that led to the crash
And its hard not to let the inside change your day

Chorus: So just go out...take a walk
Let the sunshine change your thoughts
Just go out...Stop the clock and run away
Just Go out...and let it go, its time to bre-athe life in nice and slowly
Find another way...just go out today

He waits in a line, fixed on his phone
Talking to someone, while standing alone
Stuck in the same old, tightrope, blindfold...digging for some change
And he's tired of the push, and the feel of the weight
On the inside he's ready to break
And he cant understand why everything stays the same (chorus)

Bridge Life is...waiting..
Try and save it
Dont look away

SHe's under a tree, hands in the grass
Face in the clouds, wind on her back
She looks like a girl who's got the whole world in motion
ANd then he comes along, wearing a smile
She sends it right back with a whole other style
He can tell that the belle has the rest of her life wide open (chorus)

For all my Canadian Songwriting Compadres...keep writing...I am loving what you guys are all doing. It's a blast listening to each of your stories unravel. And for the love of god...STAY WARM.

-North

When you get Knocked Down...you get back up!

THE S.A.C. Songwriting Challenge -Week 1

When the winter months wreak their havoc upon our streets, our skin, our slippery shoes and salt covered cars, what better way to soak in the social scene by starting a weekly quest with a whole slew of creative Canadian Songwriters. 42 days from now, there will be a flood of new songs in the hands of us all, and I have to say...that's pretty damn exciting.



Here is my first song of 6 that I will write in this program followed by my assignment. Feel free to comment.


LYRICS

Have you every been waiting for someone to stop and tell you to come back, 

And just like a car crash, You hold on for your life

Have you ever been holding on to something so close, 

You suddenly let go,Your fingers they said so, And so you said goodbye

Chorus:   When you get knocked down you get back up

                Get dealt a bad hand...you Change your luck

                When you get pushed round you rise above and try again..

                Suffer a setback, you look ahead
                Think of the good things and leave the rest

                Who knows what might come or happen next ...When you try again

Have you ever been hanging around with your hand in your pockets

Whenever you talk its like a rocket hitting everything you face

Have you ever been somewhere alone, like a crowded room standing like stone

And you hit the floor and try not to break (chorus)

Bridge:    Have you ever been Scared in your life 

                Has it ever been too hard to fight

                Have you ever been falling and calling out as if somebody might help

                But there's no one else (chorus)

Titles normally come after the songs I write. I learned early enough that for a commercial purpose, the title should be in the song. But not every song needs to be one that everyone wants to buy...or even recognize by its name. And thanks to Shazam...we can pretty much figure out the title of any song in less than 10 seconds. That being said, 90% of the songs I write now have the title in the chorus...either first line...every line...or last line.

Here are a few I came up with this week.

MY TITLES

Where did all of the good things go

Talking Tables

Long Way Down

One More for the Road

Try Again 

MY OPENING LINES

1. "Where did all of the good things go...disappeared down the long and lonesome road" - this song opens with the chorus in my head. (a song of reflection perhaps, what we miss, what has changed)

2. "Ten thousand conversations with a good friend made of wood" - Talking Tables (this can be written from the tables point of view...or a series of little stories that all add up to the chorus)

3. "Somewhere in some other city, She is sitting on a train waiting for the last day of her life" - Long Way Down (the idea here is again a collection of a couple peoples lives who fall hard)

4. "Pour me one more for the road, Show me a sign that you don't want me to go, talk with your eyes...tell me with your smile...everything is fine...everything is ok." - One More for the Road (a goodbye song)

5. "Have you ever been waiting for someone to stop and tell you to come back" - Try Again (in the times that we get knocked down, we must find a way to get up.)

THEMES

I kinda covered the theme in the little descriptor after each opening lyric. 

As for artists who have inspired me along the way, and of course the rest of this weeks assignment.

INSPIRING TITLES
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Banana Pancakes - I know this has to be a weird looking choice for an inspirational title, but Jack Johnson captures something here in this odd little pick of language. I am constantly searching for great lyrics and compelling songs in the everyday experiences that we all go through and to be able to make a memorable song with a preposterous title is quite a fantastic feat in my opinion. With a combination of laid back chill feel, some unforgettable lyrics and an underlying relatability to the things we would love to do more often...this song hits home for me and inspires me to write everytime I hear it. 

BANANA PANCAKES - JACK JOHNSON

Bohemian Rhapsody - If you had never heard this song, and you read the title...how could you not be intrigued by what the hell it was about. This song does not follow the structures that most songwriting classes, teachers and books dangle before us. Instead, it is a string of songs intricately woven together in hook after hook. From Opera to rock song, screaming solo's, spot on Harmony and "Mama...just killed a man"...are you kidding me...inspirational from start to glorious finish. Just for fun...have a look at this video to understand the impact this song has on anyone...in any walk of life. 

BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY VIDEO - QUEEN

I shot the Sheriff - Who doesn't like Bob Marley. I'm not a die hard fan by any stretch, but song titles that push the boundaries of acceptance, not only inspire me, but get noticed by people even before the needle hits the record. Um...or the finger pushes down the black play button...er...we swipe across our screens and stream an mp3 on some server somewhere. You get my point. Doing this in a tasteful and hooky way is pretty damn impressive in my opinion.

I SHOT THE SHERRIFF - BOB MARLEY

OPENING LINES

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Don Mclean has one of the most recognizable, greatest songs of all time. American Pie. From start to finish this song encapsulates great writing...but I lead you into a different direction for opening lines.

"The Grave that they dug him had flowers" - Don Mclean

Their is a soul in the singers that I admire. A heartbeat that can be heard in every nuance of each word being sang. Adam Duritz has a feel that gets inside you. Their are not very many people who have not owned or still own the album August and Everything after. His opening line in the song Round Here...gets me every time.

"Step out the front door, like a ghost into the fog where no one notices the contrast of white on white" -Adam Duritz (Counting Crows)

For my third choice of great opening lines, I choose one of the best songwriters alive today. A legend and an enormous amount of recognizable music that paints pictures in your mind whenever his lyrics smack you in the face. The Boxer

"I am just a poor boy tho' my stories seldom told" - Paul Simon

When it comes to themes in songwriting, there are always common ones that come back time and time again. 

Party Songs
Friends and Family

Me against the world
Me against myself

Love, love and more love.

TRACY CHAPMAN 

Here is a woman who has soul in every little finger. Her hit "Fast Car" was a summer song for me when I was just a wee lad. Escaping the everyday.  Her pain can be heard in the lyrics of her songs and in the voice that carries them with. 

Rebellion - "Talking bout a revolution"  

Fear - "Cold Feet"...fantastic. 

Thats it for me this week folks. Thanks for taking the time to read my blog, and listen to my song. I look forward to hearing you all. From what I have heard already...there are some pretty talented people in this challenge.

Till next time. All the best...

Cheers
North Easton
www.northeaston.ca

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