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End on reality
Check
1997
FATHER
lyrics & liner notes..
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| :..:...::|PURCHASE MUSIC|.:::.:.. |
| Music: Mody, Words: Harris |
| Leaves are falling all around me. Sun is rising in the sky. Hear the running water in the distance. Air that surrounds me smells familiar. I remember walking softly. Cool brisk wind in my face. Another autumn has arrived upon us. Takes me to that special place. Just like the seasons change as if to say goodbye.
And with each passing day, I laugh, I cry. Gone never to return, why, why. And with every passing breath I take, I live (I laughed, I cried, I lived, I die).
Watching birds fly in the forest. Sitting in this wooded serenity. with the water frozen in the distance. Silenced by overnight frost. Overwhelmed in meditation. Closer to my destination. Just like the seasons change as if to say goodbye.
Clouds of black form in the sky. Snow is falling on my eyes
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| A theme you'll be hearing through this albums liner notes is about the "alternative" style of writing. For so many years songs were based in power bar chords or harmony melodies. Turning the gain down on the amp was a new approach for me and I came up with some interesting chord phrasing. I liked texturing chords over some cool bass lines. It sounds cool in the studio but live it was hard to sound full. I'm not a big fan of U2 for my own persnal listening pleasure but I appreciate how bands like that can get a fullness and lock with the bass player live. The guitar sound is more of a "chung" than a "crush". My approach to bass was equally off my normal path because I was writing bass on my Boss DR-5 drum machine which is basically 6 rows of 5 note pads. The results were alot different than I'd come up with actually fretting a stringed instrument and this song really had a great running type bass line. Because it was written like I was typing I didn't think Billy would get the groove very well but I must say he nailed it dead on. I also like this song because it explodes at you right from the first note then simmers down a bit. . I remember having a hard time with my lead guitar sound on this song and though the solo has an alternative sloppiness to it which is probably appropriate, I still thinks the blend is off a bit from the rest of the song. I'm interested to read Jeff's liner notes because I believe there is something personal in the lyrics. As I mentioned on the album page, Jeff did all the main vocals in 2 continuous takes. The first take I thought was perfect but he just wanted to do it again and we kept the 2nd take. |
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This one will be difficult for me and I hope I don't come off too emotional. I also hope I don't offend any of my family. There won't be enough space to explain everything without actually writing the book so you'll have to get it through the condensed version. I have three fathers. God, who is really the father to all which gave us life. My biological father, which gave me my name sake, taught me valuable life knowledge and also equipped me with athletic abilities, which I am proud to possess. Then there is the person who most would call my stepfather. We had a saying in our household growing up... "The only steps in our family are the stairs." I call my stepfather Dad. He is a good man that worked his ass off so that we could have a good life. He also taught us valuable life knowledge. This man took us under his wing in many ways. One way in particular, is through the outdoors. He is truly an outdoorsman with a strong belief in God. He would take one of my brothers and myself into the woods at ages 5 & 8 and educate us of the outdoors. It stuck. I love the outdoors. Sometimes it can be overbearing to your family which you discover as you marry and have children. What better title to give the song than Father. Behind every good man is a great woman. That woman is my mother. Without her support for dad's outdoor activity, I may never have been able to write the story. What is the song about? Well, most people need to plug in. I need to unplug. Being in the outdoors helps me do just that. If you never know the experience of walking into the woods during the morning darkness, climbing a tree and sitting in a "stand" until evening darkness and walking out, you may never experience the true beauty that God has created and the serenity which it provides. This experience has a way of helping to put all things in perspective. But in a nutshell, we live and then we die. It is an experience. That is basically what this song is about and it is my gift to the listener/viewer. Note: I have taken two of my girls and my son to the woods at very early ages. I have video footage of my son in a tree stand at age 2.
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