Shaving and Daydreaming:
The line originally went: "All the ketchup bottles that have come and gone," but that seemed more comic than sad. Then it was "All the hot sauce bottles..." That seemed like bragging.
Finally I searched for a mental image to accompany shaving. For a while now I've made brushing my teeth part of my daily hygiene routine. And it seems like I'm always running out of toothpaste. I know, the experts recommend using only a pea-sized portion, but I find that... Let's move on.
I've deleted you, repeatedly
Don't you remember? I'm the enemy.
All the toothpaste tubes that have come and gone
Since I said something wrong
Shaving and daydreaming
Blood drips on the porcelain...
I don't know if anyone else can relate, but I've had my share of happy, beautiful afternoons that somehow turned into sullen, unpleasant drives home. Half of these occurrences were due to a thoughtless comment on my part: criticism, talking about an old relationship, etc. OK, ALL of these occurrences. I'm a man. But I can change. If I have to. I guess.
Plaid blanket, picnic in the shade
You laugh eating watermelon, I like the way you fold your legs
All the sudden showers that have come and gone
Since I said something wrong
Animals strike curious poses
Awkward silence on the way back home...
I've always wanted to get that line from "When Doves Cry" into one of my songs. Finally I found the correct context, so it's my small tribute to Prince.
In the flashback/daydream, I wanted to talk about that incredible feeling of elation in a new relationship, where everything seems possible. Everywhere you go together is fantastic. The clouds seem majestic, spectacular. You may own next to nothing, but it feels like you're royalty.
We tasted unknown flavors,
King and queen of the city
The earth and moon were yours and mine
Mixed undiscovered colors
Endless fields of corn and wheat
Cloud castles to rule the sky
I live in the country, surrounded by horses, corn and soybeans. I have not seen wheat growing nearby for several years. I guess I could have used "endless fields of corn and soy." But somehow the word "soy" doesn't have the right seriousness to it. Maybe because it rhymes wth "toy."
What remains after a dream ends? That's the image I was trying to capture here:
I hold the ashes in my hand
What's left of our imaginary land
I hold the ashes in my hand
What's left of our imaginary land...
Now that I think about it, those would be imaginary ashes. Which are a lot easier to clean up than real ashes. I'm probably overthinking it.
Thanks for reading and listening!
Grace Kelly Crashed My Party:
My wife and I have probably watched Rear Window five times since we've been married.
Everyone has their favorite architectural element of the film, like the little sliver of busy street life you see between the buildings or the greenhouse-like studio apartment of the pianist-songwriter.
I like the railings and ledges that Lisa Fremont scales so gracefully in a dress and heels when sneaking into the locked apartment.
This song is inspired by that scene, which reveals that she has a much more adventurous spirit than Jeff supposed.
Grace Kelly died September 14, 1982, but that couldn't stop her from being the life of my party.
Grace Kelly crashed my party last night
But I didn't mind
She brought chips and salsa and we played charades
I never laughed, I never laughed so hard
A real live princess in my living room
She got my KISS records out
Plastered my fridge with Polaroid pictures
Ooh, baby!
I don't own any KISS records, but I liked that line from Cheap Trick's song Surrender, "Mom and Dad...got my KISS records out."
In Rear Window, there's the moment when Lisa, who had been dismissive of Jeff's theories, starts to believe.
Grace Kelly crashed my party last night
But I didn't mind
She asked to borrow my binoculars
We spied on the neighbors doing the cha-cha
She played twister like a straight up ghost
Euchre like a little old man
She let my daughters borrow her tiara
Ooh, baby!
For the bridge, I wanted her to share something that blessed the people at the party.
She said,
"Everybody wants to stay young forever
But after the boys of summer have gone
What we crave is kindness, mercy and compassion...
Let me show you a better way
Let me know you a better way
Let me show you, let me show you..."
The verses repeat, then at the end I worked in quotes from "Be My Baby" by Ronnie Specter and the Ronnettes, plus "Hey Ya!" by Outkast.
She said, "Be my, be my little baby!
Be my, be my little baby!
Shake it baby, shake it baby,
Shake it like a Polaroid picture!
My tribute to a beautiful, graceful princess.
They Call Me Eddy:
I didn't set out to write a song about Eddy, the informant from the detective movie, Bullitt, but the character had stayed in my memory.
I read the book by Robert L. Pike (Fish). The book is set in New York, and the feeling is different. I don't remember Eddy appearing in the book. If so, he's not described as he appears in the movie.
Mixing it up in San Francisco
Righteous burnstache and amber sunglasses
Office girls walk by on their way to lunch
I stand in the shadows, waiting for the signal...
They call me Eddy, they call me Eddy!
I took the liberty of giving Eddy more of a back story. He's only in the movie for a few minutes, just long enough to pass along some information about an crime syndicate to Frank Bullitt, SFPD.
I think you know what's in the briefcase
I think you know I can't be trusted
Documents that point to a certain someone
You know my boss, he's not a patient man, no!
They call me Eddy, they call me Eddy!
Bosses in crime movies are hardly ever patient, so that detail was a given. It feels good to kind of shout that line when I'm singing.
Here's where Eddy states his manifesto, his desire to break from the bonds of his given role, rebelling against the script writer, and so on.
I'm just a bit player in a major motion picture
I'm not Steve McQueen, but if I play my cards right
I could end up with Jacqueline Bisset
I hear you laughing, stranger things have happened...
They call me Eddy, they call me Eddy!
Now to grow a burnstache and find some amber sunglasses...
