Hey there.
Does anyone realize what a momentous day it is today? Fortunately for you, I'm going to tell you. It is the one-year anniversary of this blog! That's right. On July 15th, 2008, I wrote a post for the very first time, outlining my dream and the purpose of this blog. It wasn't until the next day, however, that I posted a song for the first time, so I'll commemorate that occasion in a different way tomorrow (if I get around to it; but if not, it'll come this weekend). I should probably say that in the year since I've first posted, my dream and my passion for that dream haven't changed, despite the various ways in which I myself have grown and gotten wiser. I'm still producing song lyrics, and I've begun to play the guitar moderately well (I think...I hope!), so it's progressing nicely. I still feel as though I'm holding my breath, though.
In the year since I first posted, my country music collection and my love for the genre have only increased and branched out astonishingly.
Because I like to mention songs, albums, or artists that I've recently discovered for myself on the blog, I will do so now. (I should just put out there that if I sound inane, sluggish, or long-winded it is probably because I'm working on two hours of sleep here: I went to the midnight premiere of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince last night, got home around half-past three, and I had to wake up to go to work two hours later. The film is brilliant, and most of the dialogues are taken verbatim from the books which I was afraid wasn't going to happen, and I highly highly recommend it.) We recently had a family from Switzerland stay over at our house, and as a gift to the 12-year-old son we gave books of guitar sheet music, "Top Country Hits of '06-'07" and "Top Country Hits of 2008 and 2009," for which I made CDs of all the songs. It is through this that I discovered many many songs that I like. For example, my new favourite song that I've listened to way too many times already is "God Love Her" by Toby Keith (an artist I typically dislike). I very much like this song, and I think it's because of the true country sound it has, as well as the intonation and melody on certain lines, particularly in the chorus: "she's a rebel child and a preacher's daughter / she was baptized in dirty water / her mama cried the first time they caught her with me / they knew they couldn't stop her / she holds tight to me and the Bible on the backseat of my motorcycle / left her daddy standing there preaching to the choir..." Other songs I've really begun to like are "Every Mile a Memory" by Dierks Bentley; "A Good Man" by Emerson Drive; "Sweet Thing" by Keith Urban; "Cowgirls Don't Cry," "Ain't Nothin' Bout You," and "My Maria" by Brooks & Dunn; "The Baby" by Blake Shelton; "Walk a Little Straighter" by Billy Currington; "Sounds So Good" by Ashton Shepherd; "She's in Love With the Boy" by Trisha Yearwood; and "Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven" and "Out Last Night" by Kenny Chesney. If you're so astute and literate in country music that you realize that some of these songs are hardly from 2006-2009, you're quite right. I'm also working on a project, that I will tell you about when it's finished (if I ever do complete it!), and it is through that project that I came across the other songs.
I've also discovered this hilarious and talented music group called "Harry and the Potters." Their songs are all about the Harry Potter books, and they are just so funny. I encourage you to check them out - they are actually quite talented, and the music is really good. It's not country in the least, but it's just damn good music. The albums are also available on iTunes. That is my unpaid endorsement for the day.
In terms of the song I am about to post, I like it, but it pales in comparison to the one I am listening to right now ("Cold Day in July" by the Dixie Chicks) and I think it's weaker than others I have written. But I'm never a fair judge of my own work, so we'll see what you think. The backstory is virtually nonexistent. It has to do with the fact that I was sitting in the train on the way to work this morning and there was a woman sitting across from me, reading a book named "Do They Hear You When You Cry," except that when I first glanced over at her, her fingers covered most of the title so that the only words I discerned were Do, They, You, and Cry, which spawned the title of my song in my mind. I wanted to write it in the form that Kenny Chesney's "Never Wanted Nothing More" is written in - where you have two verses, both of which have the song title as the last line, followed by the chorus once, a third verse that mirrors the first two, the chorus, a fourth verse that is the same, and the chorus again. If that is too complicated, or sounds exactly like any other song you've ever heard or read, then I suggest you have a listen to the song. So I wrote it in that form, but I took a few liberties here and there (see if you can spot them).
I think have some sort of prolific fascination with stars in my songs. That's probably because I think they're incredibly romantic. I could be wrong.
Do They Ever Make You Cry
look up and see the heavens above
twinkling like they know about us
the sky like a blanket unfurled
and we're the only two in this world
the stars like studs in the sky
do they ever make you cry
I hear you whisper in my ear softly
and with your strong arms hold me
the night around us starts to shine
and you put your face near mine
'til I can see dreams in your eyes
do they ever make you cry
CHORUS:
right now, everything is beautiful
and my heart is too full to speak
and I can't find the words anyway
sometimes you gotta let your eyes convey
all that you mean to say
driving in your car by night
the road visible by headlight
I like to turn on the old radio
to that station we both know
love songs playing to the sky
do they ever make you cry
CHORUS:
right now, everything is beautiful
and my heart is too full to speak
and I can't find the words anyway
sometimes you gotta let your eyes convey
all that you mean to say
one day someday when you're gone
and I've had to move ahead alone
I hope that you'll remember me
and our initials carved in that tree
but we all have to say our goodbyes
do they ever make you cry
do they, do they ever make you cry
So that's it. Having read it through again as I was typing it up, I've realized that I really like it. It' s kind of understated, minimalistic, but nice at the same time. I hope you find the same thing.
Much love, and thank you for the musik!
NBK
p.s. July 24th is Travis Zajac's salary arbitration hearing. I hope it all goes well and he's back with the team, not only for this season but for the rest of his career.
p.p.s. The Tour de France began on July 4th, and so far it has been exceptionally boring, except for the TTT and the Pyrennean stage that Brice Feillu won. I'm hoping for an Alberto Contador win, even though Lance is back in the pack. Or an Andy Schleck win, because he is just...terrific. And because he looks amazing in the white jersey (that he won last year), when he's scaling those mountains and has it a little unzipped. Okay, I'm done now.
