Nesting Dolls:

I wrote this song thinking about being in a situation where you see someone's life kind of falling apart in front of you. You work with them, and likely they've never thought much about you. Just a friendly face. Small talk. TGIF. And on like that.

Set your expecations
Low enough and I
Just might be able to jump over them

Your pain will fade
As the days go by
You might find yourself getting over him

One Saturday morning, when the song was still green and hadn't solidified fully, I played it for my wife. She cried. And that's when I knew I had something.

I'm no prize
But I just might surprise you
I like spending time
Sitting here close beside you
You might have other plans
That's fine if you do...

I wanted to connect the feeling of opening a set of nesting dolls to the succession of faces we see in our journey though life. Some are passing through, some endure.

Like nesting dolls, life hides
Layers of different faces
Imagine my delight the first time I saw you

I feel closer to the center
Whenever we're together
I could be wrong but I hope you feel it too

I used the A to C#m change at the beginning of the verse, which I associate "Help," a song by a British band from the sixties called the Beatles.

I'm no prize
But I just might surprise you
I like spending time
Sitting here close beside you
You might have other plans
That's fine if you do...

Those last two lines of the chorus are acting. I've never actually been able to manage that feeling.

I made a 4-track recording and put it on my first CD, along with about 10 other songs. I asked my friend Kim at work if she was interested. She said yes. She came back to me later that day and said this was the song she liked best. I will always be thankful for her encouragement.

It's one of the few songs where I solo, and it's completely composed.

I hope you enjoy and pass on to others...