released June 21, 2013

raised on a tv show

drums: wes paich

notes:

i asked wes to record some beats at his place and send them over. he sent me 20 minutes of him playing insane wes style beats and fills. i cut them up and formed the basic drum tracks for the verse and bridge. i knew the syncopated bridge was going to be fun to work with. the chorus was added in much later after it kind of hit me that the song didn't have one. several versions of this chorus came and went. the chorus in the end repeats three times, kind of like a round since the it starts and ends on and A7 chord. This was also one of the first songs i was able to play violin on.

also i really do like it when B.A. Baracus picks up bad guys and throws them at other bad guys. it's just genius. Here is an amazing compilation of clips of B.A. throwing people. Mostly he just piles up bad guys, but at 3:25. 4:00, you can see B.A. throw a bad guy at another bad guy.

lyrics:

hard to imagine, anyone liking CHIPs,
just seems so slow now, maybe it's not
Hard to believe I, used to like Michael Knight.
maybe i wasn't right, maybe i was

KITT can be cruising, cruising the parking lot
he just needs to find a spot, a spot to fit in
You heard the captain, he said be safe out there
I know you really care, you care a lot

CHIPs is on then the A-team,
knightrider and then Hill Street Blues
(i cant wait til)

raised, raised on a tv show,
every one i know, everyone i know

You know that B.A. is picking up other guys
to throw at the other guys
his weapon of choice

Carol is a good mom quit your bitchin
gotta ask Alice down in the kitchen
throw them bad guys B.A., throw them at the D.A.


itchy and scratchy on tv with a man dressed like a bumblebee
your off the case McGarnacle, no your off your case chief!

CHIPs is on then the A-team,
knightrider and then Hill Street Blues
(i cant wait til)

raised, raised on a tv show,
everyone i know, everyone i know







cebu

notes:

i woke up one morning with this melody in my head. kinda like a dream, i had to make a record of it before i really woke up and forgot it.


my good friends gary and christine got married in cebu Philippines this year. sam and i could not really afford to take the trip but i was thinking of them and wrote this song about it. that's how the love was shooting all around the world. i really felt it after this song was done. it never would have happened if it were not for them. i played with gary in P.I.C for more than 10 years but that's another story.

lyrics:

she wanted a man like she had read about
he needed a girl that knew a melody that only he had heard

they came to a place they'd never been before
they wanted a friend but found another thing, if anything, it's love

can you see the day grow up into the night?
can you see the night, through the city light?
can you feel the love, shooting all around the world?
tonight you'll hear them singing down in cebu.

they flew to the sun to land in paradise
they knew that the moon would glow for them
and light there passage in the night.

can you see the day grow up into the night?
can you see the night, through the city light?
can you feel the love, shooting all around the world?
tonight you'll hear them singing down in cebu.



have you heard?

notes:

this here song is only 5 chords long. and they are all major. E C G D A. i guess this irregular tonal and chord structure gives it a sense that its rolling down a hill a bit out of control. the main rhythm tracks are a bass with an acoustic doubling it an octave above, and then a harmony of that acoustic.

lyrics:

have you heard a bout the man
who was trapped inside a can
when he tried to get a tan?
it was such a stupid plan
but typical for stan

he was feeling kinda pale
and he wanted to get tail
cause the ladies always bail
and he always seemed to fail
especially with Gayle

but the lady from the place
had a nose upon her face
that could save the human race!
she would blow it just in case
it was raining down from space

have you heard all about it?
have you read the posts?
have you heard the jokes?
have you seen the notes?

there's a super comet storm
which is suddenly the norm
and its getting kind of warm
and its taking on the form
of a hippy in a dorm

and a tree upon the hill
that was planted there by bill
its a groovy place to chill
and i know you always will
cause you never drink swill

when the day is super long
and you feel you don't belong
you can sing a stupid song
sing a stupid song,
sing a stupid song

have you heard all about it?
have you read the posts?
have you heard the jokes?
have you seen the notes?


when the day is super long
and you feel you don't belong
you can sing a stupid song
sing a stupid song,
sing a stupid song

if it doesn't turn around
you can check the lost and found
for a different kinda sound
a different kinda sound
a different kinda sound

have you heard all about it?
have you read the posts?
have you heard the jokes?
have you seen the notes?



lights and music

drums: wes paich

this song is love song in disguise? or is it a song about going to a concert in disguise? not really sure but either way its about that feeling you get when you realize you are surrounded by thousands of people but you are with the one person that makes you fee like you are not alone. wes pretty much destroys it on the drums. this song took all winter.

lyrics:

you know i cant predict the future
i just hope tonight's alright
gotta get the engine running
before the lights go down
and we cannot find our way

lights and music fill your field of view
a thousand others still just me and you
looking for it, looking for it
looking for our place

i never knew this place existed
kind of off the beaten path
I'm just glad we finally made it
before the lights went down
and we could not find our way

lights and music fill your field of view
a thousand others still just me and you
looking for it, looking for it
looking for our place



plan on bein' dumb

i woke up with this chorus in my head and recorded it right away on the iphone before i fully woke up.
sorry the camera is pointed the wrong way but I'm not much to look at anyways.

although i asked wes to play drums on this he said what i did was perfect and he could not improve on it. i still don't believe him but I'm ok with the drums on here i guess.

this might be the most autobiographical song i have ever written. although i might not be as dumb as i think i am it's hard to tell because i might be as dumb as i think i am... or even more dumb. woah, this is blowing my mind. being dumb is all about having fun. don't forget to have fun!

lyrics:

don't nee no saddle soap to clean my shoes
don't need telescope to get the blues
i nod and smile while you talk
i never could chew gum and walk

and I'm not sure i know exactly what you mean
I'm not the best I'm not the worst I'm in between
you know what i mean?

if you plan on bein dumb well you can be dumb with me

i never understood the need to try
i never thought to ask the reason why
i never thought to ask the reason why

i didn't hear what you just said, i was drifting off instead
there's all these people in my head that i don't know
they take there time and undermine the status quo

can you tell me how i got this way?
can we try again some other day?
can i get this off my chest
I'm not the best I'm not the worst I'm in between
you know what i mean?

if you plan on bein dumb well you can be dumb with me



shark magic

this is where this album all started. i did these drum tracks first and added guitars and bass. the first 2 versions got scraped. this is the 3rd, although it still uses the original drums. if you like this song chances are you would like captain beefheart and if you like him you are a great human.



pictures (of you)

this song should be called "if i can't afford therapy i might as well sing a song about this BS so maybe it won't bother me anymore". When i first recorded this i texted mumbo and told him i had just recorded the most straight forward commercial thing i have ever done. i still kinda feel that way but i like this song and i know at least one other person that does. so yeah, i sure hope you like it too. ps this song was originally about a thermos.

here is the original song idea as it came to me late one night



saturn

drums by mumbo.

instrumental. named after this dumb storm

drums, log drum, bass, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, guitar with ebo



(black friday) drone scan at the junction

matt pugliese on the drums
jordan shapiro: piano
guitar solo: robbie seahag mangano

what can i say? this really happened. matt pugliese and paul dowd can confirm it.
we were scanned by a drone in my backyard.

lyrics:

this stories quite a gem, and it isn't no joke
black friday 4am, steppin out for a smoke.

hear that sound, come around again
it circled back again, flying low now, i just don't know how

lasers shoot out of the plane!spanning across the terrain
panning across from the sky
hitting matt right in the eye!

up in the sky there's a plane with no man in it!

glorious lasers fan down from the sky
hitting the earth and the trees and matt's eye
waiting to scan us as soon as it's near
what was the purpose the reason for it to appear

some might find it inhumane
hunting with a robot plane
soon you'll see them everywhere
soaring in the open air
some might find it inhumane...

i tried to run inside when i first saw the light
but i was petrified, inexplicable sight

laser light, dead of night, look up!

the lasers scanned the ground, just us not all around
i can still hear the sound, don't know what they have found

is it man or machine? look out!


up in the sky there's a plane with no man in it





old jack

mumbo on percussion
robbie seahag mangano: guitar solo and high vocals

i suppose this is just a song about the old guy at the bar. every bar has one. sometimes its me.
this song really took a turn for the better when robbie came over and added high harmonies to the chorus.

lyrics:

hour 2 of an all night run
Belly to the bar and I’m having fun

In walk oldest man I've new
Round these parts since '32

(so he) Finds the only vacancy
Which just so happens is next to me
telling stories and drinking beer
"did you know i used to be a bombardier

now i know like this spot
So I lean to the bar and order a shot
"Make it 2" he adds to the line
"And a miller back and a jug of that wine"

Started talking bout success
Surviving in a world of stress
I asked him for advice to go
Listen up young man if you wanna know

baby's got a listen to the man at the bar he's got wisdom he's buyin
baby's got a list of all the lies that he's told he's a fake and he's lyin
oh come on come on now, which is it?
now, which is it?
now, which is it?

In walks a chick about half my age
5 foot nine and dressed for the stage
He sez "get lost" and he's talking to me
I hit up a table near by to see

oh my my i can't believe

what old jack's got up his sleeve
What Old Jack's mans got up his sleeve
She takes the seat right next his
I hear him start with a "pardon me miss"

2 drinks in, there having a blast
She said she didn't’t even know that time had past
He said that’s ok I gotta head on back
Gotta turkey in the oven and another in the shack

"You aint goin home alone"
And her heel slipped on the cobblestone
He looked at me said "member what I said
Now I got to get her home to bed"

baby's got alisten to the man at the bar he's got wisdom he's buyin
baby's got a list of all the lies that he's told he's a fake and he's lyin
oh come on come on now, which is it?
now, which is it?
now, which is it?



the stand and leer

wes paich on drums

this song is about going to see your old band and feeling weird like your going to see your ex girlfriend. but it's also about the stand and leer.

when i used to play in project/object. we used to get a lot of people at our shows who would just stand in front of the crowd, arms crossed, with an expression of discontent. that's what this song is about. maybe these folks are just comfy in this position. maybe they think its uncool to smile or cheer or (god forbid) dance. but it kinda sucks to see that when your on stage. so if you can help it. try not to be that guy.

lyrics:

gotta know i like the stuff you say, and I'm diggin on the notes you play
you had to go you know i had to stay, i wouldn't have it any other way

come on come on and do the stand and leer

if you give me just a half a chance, i will tell you all about the dance
just cross your arms and spread your feet apart. make a face like you just smelled a fart
never smile, never move or cheer, now you got it it's the stand and leer

come on come on and do the stand and leer

it's getting better, you know it's getting better now hey,
(now i know) you gotta love a dude with a chicken under his seat
seat meat, seat meat. i know you're gonna be ok

who are the people underneath the lights
sound familiar but it isn't right
i had to see you just the other night
can't imagine we would reunite


come on come on and do the stand and leer



jonny beeochalo

mumbo on drums
wes and mumbo on percussion

the chorus of this song was based on this little memo minder i left for myself while i was partaking in some libations.
the verses ended up being about a bully who is a jerk because his dad is a jerk. but that's no excuse, dude's still gonna get his shampoo peed in.

lyrics:

when you see his face you know your done
he’s got a fist for you

another day another day
he’s got one comin too

the apple doesn't fall, very fall at all
jonny beeachalo

dude you have crossed me for the last time, you know.
and now i will take a piss in your shampoo

the day will come he’ll come undone
and strike his daddy down

and we’ll be free of tyranny
and we’ll get back our town

the apple doesn't fall, very fall at all
jonny beeachalo



i can't sleep

mumbo on drums

oh i can't sleep, oh i can't
oh i can't sleep, oh i can't sleep

don't be messin with the program I've been watchin in my head
I'll be watchin yet another later when i got to bed
i was thinkin bout the program i been watchin in my head
so i didn't get a sense of anything you said.

we tossed an turned, day broke through the window
heaven crept beyond, and our consciousness was gone

why did you wake me?
why did you wake me?
why did you wake me?
why did you wake me?




swampy

drums: wes paich
guitar solo: robbie seahag mangano:

i recorded some guitar and bass to a click and sent it to wes. it consisted of the main syncopated intro. (da da dada da dadada da daaaaaaaaaa). and a few of the riffs, and a big slow open section for wes to stretch out. he got to hear it a few times and then cam over and did recorded some drums. then i redid the bass on all the parts and rearranged them into a song form. once wes heard that he wanted to redo some drums again and we did that. then i redid the bass and added guitars, keys violin and trombone. then we had this monster song but there were no lyrics, not even the title (the working title was mystery). Well, they say write what you know, the problem is i know very little, but i do know swampy, he lives in the lake behind my house and he's scary at first but he really is totally chill. this song features a truly amazing guitar solo from robbie.

lyrics:

Down in the lake,
There’s a creature stirring and a bout to awake
Slimy and green,
With a head like shark and an oily sheen

Some say he’s comin to the surface,
To feed in the dead of the night
Saturday night,
I might head on down to check out the sight

Darker than black,
And we head to the lake to see it attack
Grabbing a seat,
With a bottle of tequila and package of meat

What’s that there looking at a ripple,
A figure risin on up
Gotta be it,
Then we heard it speak and I lost my shit

"feed me tequila. wanta keela wanta keela yoogota keela wan wan ta keelagood."

Don’t know what it was, It caught a buzz
Doin what he does, Just like us
Sleepin in the day, Faraway
Wakin in the night, The guys all right

What do you know, The guys alright by me.
Never knew a monster quite like swampy.
Bringin up carp, To cook up on the grill.
Givin him tequila. He likes to swill and chill.

The guy can sing. A little like a frog
What u expect. for a creature from a bog.
Don’t ever ask. How he found his this fate.
His fins go limp. Sez “The worlds got too much hate for me"

farewell Swampy, for the sun is coming up. Farewell.