I wake up at 6.50 every day, and Monday to Friday while I’m brushing my teeth and shaving, Radio 3 play some ‘Bach before 7.’ To be honest after the weather I tend to switch over to that new-fangled pop on 6 Music, but I start the day with a bit of truth; Bach goes somewhere deeper than emotion, into the blood stream of things.
You could listen to anything by him (except maybe that church organ stuff) but how about this dark and broody end to St. Johns Passion? – reminds me a bit of Black Sabbath. https://youtu.be/O9bOaHvKUZE
Wrote this in Nathaniel’s bedroom which may be why it become something about the 4 of us.
Last week in wet October me and Laurie, (or possibly Laurie and I) did the video, having gone through one phone and 2 cameras I finally figured out we could yank the computer about on extension lead and do the stop motion like that. A lot of it worked pretty well and some of it didn’t but that all got cut!
I’m
just no good
I can’t sing
I can’t chop wood
friends cast me out
but I’ve got1,2,3,4
something to be sure about
early combinations led me to a cold war
I’m in
I’m ready to begin
something to be sure about
I
can’t be found
all my hits
go underground
file them away
because I got
1,2,3,4
something to be sure about
early combinations led me to a cold war
I’m in
I’m ready to begin
something to be sure about
I didn’t know too much about the world before
I used to sit at home and observe the floor
I want more
so here I am
here’s my wife
here’s my pram
time slips away
but I got
1,2,3,4
something to be sure about
early combinations led me to a cold war
I’m in
I’m ready to begin
something to be sure about.
After the optimism of the previous ‘wedding’ song comes this,
a marriage gone sour.
It’s not my most popular, but it is one of my best – both the lyric and the melody hit the spot for me and Late Junction on Radio 3 played it last year
(they’re in the process of being cut by the way, so sign the petition here if like me you want a place for adventure and experiment on the radio).
About the song though, I wanted to write something that used the things people really say as opposed to what gets said in songs. To that extent it’s kind of kitchen sink drama – half a conversation, the male half, explaining how his cheating was partly her fault – there is a level of irony 😉
I’m not talking about my marriage by the way (we’re still all good, honest!), but the fact this guy’s talking like an idiot doesn’t mean I don’t feel it when I sing it.
well yes I did dig a hole – none of your photoshop fakery here.
then I got in it
various pop star poses were adopted
the artistic process was observed
it went on a while…
The idea came from a dream I had where I was walking round these suburban streets pointing out things like a big pot and telling a friend how everything was art (even asleep he’s pretentious). I turned around and in this grass verge of a very normal front garden, a Spanish looking man was buried to the waist standing; as I watched two woman walked from behind and put a marriage veil over his head.
Obviously I woke up and thought that will do for the cover. The hand is held up to resemble the international sign of greeting (I kept my trousers on).
I chopped it up a bit to add a hint of dis-orientation and off-set that with a ‘learning to read’ primary school font in lower case, because it’s nice to look at new things like 7 year old does.
As for the title: ‘over here in the trees’ refers to my finally drawing some attention to myself after all this time (and that joke with the punchline ‘over here on the swings’ – I’ll tell it to you some time 🙂 )
Late Junction (Radio 3) played me again on Thursday!
Flattered as always to be on the undisputed best show on radio. That’s 4 different songs Max Reinhardt has played of mine now so over the moon really – although shouldn’t I be rolling in money by now?
“vincent burke South Londons wry singer-songwriter and chronicler of our times has been busy cooking up a demo to make sure the chocolate hearts (on Valentines day) are bitter sweet – can I just explain?”
