LYRICS and SONG DETAILS

song notes:

The lyrics started out about myself and a bunch of friends who are burning the candle at both ends, chasing the endless parties, and all that crap. It's probably a bit too preachy for my tastes, but then when a close friend died from an overdose, well, the whole tone of the song changed and I was able to finish the song not so much as a preachy number but as a "hey let me help you pull your head out of your ass" kind of song. At least to me.

Whatchagonnado

Ten O'Clock on the telephone
call me up cuz I'm always home
what's it gonna be tonight
I'm sure we can get out somewhere

I'd rather see you
than worry worry about you
like whatchagonnado
if I can't keep you from your demons

Whatchagonnado
when the party is over
whatchagonnasay
when there's no one around
whatchagonnabe
when the story is ending
what's it gonna take you to see

Flowers makeup and a pretty suit
ain't the way i'd like to see you
any day I know you'll turn
how many bridges do you have left to burn?

A party's waiting round the corner
you can make it if ya wanna
I'll be the one in the easy chair
I won't go nowhere

Chorus

Not that's it's my case
to babysit and keep you fit
but from where I sit
it's only a matter of time

I've been there I'll be there
thick and thin and over again
go away fight your demons
and then call me up again

a thousand reasons can keep you hiding
and shame can be a bitch
I don't mind to be kept waiting
i've got time to give

Chorus

song notes:

This tune was a mother to mix. Between the three electric guitars and the acoustic guitar and John McKnight's killer drumming, it was hard to find a place for everything in the song. At first, the song had a lot more electric guitars in there, but Matthew suggested we add the acoustic, after a few different tries, I decided to play it with some swamp droning kind of thing going, which honestly kicked the song's own ass. Just my own opinion there, but, wow, this is one of my favorites on the CD.

Hell and Ecstasy

Everytime you leave me
you pull emotions out like teeth
Oh God I'm in ecstasy
from the pain I'm feeling

Go away and come back
but wait until I'm done with this
I mean I don't really wanna hurt you
Cause you're putting me in hell and Ecstasy

I kinda hate it everytime you
do it when you leave me
I mean it's not so bad
Are you serious, you, the girl who cried wolf
I don't believe you tell me why are you mad?

Go away and come back
but wait until I'm done with this
I mean I don't really wanna hurt you
Cause you're putting me in hell and Ecstasy

song notes:

The challenge to the harmonica solo is that it goes and goes and goes - hell - we've edited out parts of it here - so during Lindsey's solo, I was standing next to him, conducting the solo - pointing up for "go higher up" - making the hand guestures for "faster, slower, play less notes, sloppy" whatever. And in the end, all my direction probably just sterilized the solo. So, we did what already worked so well on Superhot Lady Cop. We reversed the solo, so what you hear is the solo played backwards. Wow - suddenly the whole thing sounded awesome. Who says cheap studio tricks don't work?

She's Too Rich For Me

Here she comes and I can feel it already
that sinking feeling deep inside my soul
well she's looking and staring right through me
I can tell what was her heart is now just a hole

I think she's too rich for me
I ain't got no chance
Just the way she carries herself
I ain't got no chance

There I go, looking like a zombie
my eyes are blank and my
mouth wide open and dry
if she only knew I could make her happy
but she don't know my name
don't even know I'm alive

I think she's too rich for me
I ain't got no chance
Just the way she carries herself
I ain't got no chance

song notes:

I came in to the studio to knock out the vocals on all songs in one day, and I knew that my voice would be shot at the end of the day, so I saved this song last. I knew there were some high notes in there that might suffer, but I wanted that rough edgy thing going, which paid off. Well. Except for that very last line - I can hear my voice break on "alive" - most folks might not catch it, but it drives me up a wall. Not to say anything negative about my CD, but, if Milton Chapman hadn't come in with the organ, everybody might only notice how my voice shoots the pooch there at the end. Another cool thing about the song - I wrote the tune to be this empty hollow country thing. Matthew and I went round and round about adding another guitar, and in the end, I said "okay, you do it, let's see if it works". And hey, it worked! And again with the reversing there at the beginning of the song. Studio tricks abound! Oh - that's Milton saying "damn" at the end of the organ solo. He'd never heard the song before, and Matthew and I just turned him loose on the B3 - "just play man, whatever". During that part, he hit some odd note - me and Matthew were in the studio totally digging on it, but apparently, Milton wasn't happy. When he said "damn" I was loving it. So much so that I made Matthew leave it in there.

Sometimes I Cry

I was so sure I saw you in my mirror
When I woke up, I hurt for so long
I spent the day thinkin, and I spent the night drinkin
Cuz I know you’re gone. I know you’re gone

Seventeen years with you on my mind
You never went away all that time

Sometimes I cry
Wishing you were still by my side
Sometimes I smile baby
Your memories keep you alive
and get me through the night

A day doesn’t go by without a memory
But it ain’t no use staying sad for so long
So I cry less each day,
instead I smile when I think of your face
I wish I could see you
and show you all the things I’ve done

As hard as it was to say goodbye,
I always wonder what would have happened
if you hadn’t died

Sometimes I cry
Wishing you were still by my side
Sometimes I smile baby
Your memories keep you alive
and get me through the night

As hard as it was to say goodbye,
I always wonder what would have happened
if you hadn’t died

Sometimes I cry
Wishing you were still by my side
Sometimes I smile baby
Your memories keep you alive
and get me through the night

song notes:

First of all, no, this is NOT a true story. I was reading a book about writing lyrics and it said to write about what you know, but to put it in the form of a story. I was in the car on a trip to Florida at the time, a cop drove by, and wham, the story pretty much wrote itself from there... I mean, really, when you combine 70's porn and police, the double entendres are just waiting to be said, the play on words are jumping at you - there's still hundreds more that I didn't use - "who gets the handcuffs", nightstick, oh, it's horrible. Apparently, the older generation is not so fond of my cheesy lyrics. I'll live. There's 500 guitar parts in this song. What a pain to mix so many parts. I wanted a wall o guitars without sounding like Ministry. And there's the first "reverse" we did on the CD - the guitar solo. It wasn't that bad going forward, but I just wanted something a whole lot more than what I got. After trying different things, I said, "hey what about reversing it?" Ol' Matthew looked at me like I said "hey let's call Celine Dion to sing on my record!" Apparently, studio engineers are not fans of "tampering" with the recording.

Superhot Lady Cop

Don't want a ticket
I can't pay the fine
don't wanna go to court mama
I ain't got the time
but this lady cop is driving me driving me
up out of my mind

Won't you stop writing that ticket
Won't this hundred help you change your mind
say whatcha doing with them handcuffs,
ya pretty lady
I thought that you and me could
reach a comprimise

Superhot Lady Cop - mama you're so fine
Superhot Lady Cop - you catch me everytime

So you got my licence and my registration
you say you got me going close to 69
That might be illegal in 47 states
I can't help myself mama, you're so fine

Chorus

She had a nice set of guns,
.38s at least
and as we talked I got into trouble when I
tried to show her my piece
See I was thinking, if I played my cards right
I hoped to get sprung by the end of the night

I worked my way out of this situation
but now I'm thinking I should have paid the fine
as I stepped in the van, I heard her tell her partner
if the paddywagon's rocking, don't come a knockin.

Chorus

song notes:

Okay, here's another song where I'm writing about what I know. The initial idea started when watching an old clip of Albert King singing about some kind of "oh I'm hot for the ladies" song. The thought of a heavy-set old man singing about gittin with the ladies just tore me up. And so here's the song. I'm not sure how many people will actually percieve that this song is entirely tongue in cheek. Well, I say that, but my wife totally clocked me on that - she said that I told her all these things when we met. I have no clue what she's talking about. That's me on the awesome piano solos - two of them. Matthew told me to get in there and just make noise. I did it, there were good and bad parts. He wanted just one more take, so I did the whole mess again, without hearing the first take. And then, by accident, we were playing both parts at the same time, and wow, talk about some magical piano-playing genius type solos. Not this one in particular, but, I digress. The two bad solos seemed to compliment the lyrical content -- in that they're both stilted and horrible - to the point of humor, well. I hope so. If I ever see a review that mentions how bad I play piano, I will revel in my glory.

Can I Get Some Lovin?

Hey ladies. You know you've all got that thing
that makes a man cry, a boy smile
makes an old man wish that he could
walk another mile for the good thing.
Y'all know what I'm talking about.
Can I hear ya?
Won't you get down on your knees with me?

This ain't a fantasy,
everybody knows how it's supposed to be
we should all drop down on one knee,
find a woman, look her in the eye
and repeat after me.

Can I Get Some Lovin? L-O-V-I-N
Can I Get Some Lovin? L-O-V-I-N

So fellas, you know we're living on a two-way street
and while the ladies, they got that good thang,
you know they also like to have a little piece.
OH!

I ain't trying to be nasty,
but we all know the facts of life
so come on ladies,
won't you sing with me?
come on, sing with all your might.

Can I Get Some Lovin? L-O-V-I-N
Can I Get Some Lovin? L-O-V-I-N

Ramble babble ramble.

break it down!!

You see, a man needs a woman, and a woman needs a man
or maybe, a woman needs a woman, and a man needs a man
a cat might need a penguin, a squirrel might need a corvette
teddybear might need a baseball glove, me, I'll take whatever I can get.

See we all got special needs
I'm no different, I mean, really, who are we
to deny ourselves the one thing that's good,
it's beautiful, most importantly, it's free.

Can I Get Some Lovin? L-O-V-I-N
Can I Get Some Lovin? L-O-V-I-N
 

song notes:

This was the first song we recorded in the studio. This was the one that determined the pace and process of all the other songs. See. Initially, I was going to play all the instruments, including drums. After 4 hours in the studio, trying to do the most basic of drums for this tune, I decided that there was no way in hell that you'd hear my ass on drums, ever again. But hey, that's me on everything else. Bragging rights and all that shit, right? Now, lyrically speaking, once again, I'm writing from the perspective of someone else, not myself. Okay, to be honest, maybe I AM writing from the perspective of myself, but it's somewhere back in the long ago - like when I was 17 or 18 maybe. And the line "Baby do ya wanna see God" is not my own. I have to credit my good friend Oscar for that piece of brilliance. Along with Superhot Ladycop, this is one of those songs that I've played so much at shows that I forget how fun it is to play; it's just a by-the-numbers tune, UNTIL I'm playing it live again. Don't know if that makes sense.

Oh Face

Tonight I’m on fire, I can barely stand myself
Amny doubts I had, I left them on the shelf
I’m on a mission
ain’t nothing gonna hold me back
Tomorrow when I tell you this story
you gonna fall and have a heart attack

I found a sweet baby
as pretty as she wants to be
By the end of the night
she’s gonna be amazed with me
Up around 11:30, I’m stopping by her crib
Tomorrow when you hear this story
you wont believe the things I did

I'm gonna show her my Oh Face

I got my best slacks
my shirt is looking fly
Ain’t no way she gonna say no
with the way I look tonight
I’m gonna love this, I know
she’s gonna tell her friends
And when I get to her place
I’ll wait til the right time to
slip in some Blind Slim

Chorus

Oh Oh Oh a few dozen times.

I made it to the club
the doorman gives me the nod
I walk up to the pretty little lady and say
baby do ya wanna see God?
Now this is gonna kill you
the girl looks me in the eye
And says hey pretty funny little cracker
that’s what your girlfriend said last night

Chorus

Says she knows Jesus,
I think she don't
She got a pierced heart to
go with her pierced nose
She got the most expensive
homeless clothes
so non-conforming,
she looks like a clone

She tries and she cries so hard at night
wants to be nice you know I've seen her try
so full of anger, so full of spite
she can't help herself,
she's an anti-social butterfly

I stand in the corner and
watch the madness fly
wonder what the hell is
going through her mind
is it anger is it some sort of sick revenge
she'll love him hurt him and
love him again

She tries and she cries so hard at night
wants to be nice you know I've seen her try
so full of anger, so full of spite
she can't help herself,
she's an anti-social butterfly

Late after midnight the hate might dissipate
only appears if you keep her up late
don't look for a reason 'cause a reason was never there
don't look for an answer, she don't know, she don't care

She tries and she cries so hard at night
wants to be nice you know I've seen her try
so full of anger, so full of spite
she can't help herself,
she's an anti-social butterfly

I Wanna Be The One

Boys on the left boys on the right here you are with me
You pick and choose which one you like and you pick me

Look so good you could have the you want
So many choices you can only have one
I want to be the one.
Oh.

23 nights and days I wait and wait around just to see
Let’s play tag and I’ll be it or you can forget all of it / Just please please tell me
Look so good you could have the you want
So many choices you can only have one
I want to be the one.

So many choices you can only have one
I want to be the one.
I wannabe I wannabe I wanna be the one

I want you pawing scratching begging pleading humping for me
I want to make you wish I’m all there was to see
I want to have you to myself to hell with spreading the wealth
I want I want I want I want

I wannabe I wannabe I wanna be the one
I wannabe I wannabe I wanna be the one

Swing Down

Swing down and rescue all my hungry brothers
Ain’t nobody left behind if you are up above us
Why should I care, why should I cry
How could you let so many innocent people die

Swing Down / Swing Down / Swing Down / Swing Down
Swing Down / Swing Down / Swing Down / Swing Down

I’m afraid of missing my destination
Of safety and security and some kind of salvation
So many preach at me but it’s on deaf ears
My intellect and logic have soothed each and every fear

Swing Down / Swing Down / Swing Down / Swing Down
Swing Down / Swing Down / Swing Down / Swing Down