Well, the album is finally finished, but we were thinking the title was too long. Therefore, the new name of the album is “Comin’ Home”rather than Songs from My Desk Drawer.
COMIN’ HOME – This track is a poignant examination of that something special we feel when returning to our roots after a long absence. The song evokes memories I had returning from the first Gulf War as an Air Force pilot.
A LONG WALK – a melancholy look at ruined relationships and the losses we feel in the world in the immediate aftermath of a breakup. “I got no place I wanna go”.
AIN’T NO DOUBT – I am married to a very beautiful and strong woman and like most of us men, can’t comprehend why they married us and why they stay with us. This song tells Diana how much she means to me every day.
CRACKS – As a Yoga and Pilates instructor, Diana constantly references the lyrics of Leonard Cohen about the cracks in each of us and how “that is how the light gets in”. His lyrics helped influence this song. To Diana, “ You complete the puzzle that is me”.
EBB AND FLOW – My life is heavenly influenced by the world of Yoga, into which I have become immersed over the last seven years. This song reminds us that life has an Ebb and a Flow and always works itself out. Just breathe…..
FLY – Believe in yourself and fly. That is the message of this song. Too many people play it safe. Life is too short to wait. Take that leap of faith. “You are my Wendy. I am your Pan. Open your window…and fly”.
I DON’T WANT TO WAKE UP DEAD – I turned 75 in October and am looking at the end of life creeping up on me. I fear that I will fail to wake up one day and my run will be over. Hey, there is still sooo much yet that I want to do.
LOVE IS HARD – …and don’t let anyone tell you it’s not. Love takes constant nurturing and the depth of the pain felt when we fail at love is Difficult to fathom. Mechanically, I wanted to see how low my voice would go to make that point.
ONE IN A MILLION – This song reflects the joy in finding that rare human soul that makes each of us complete. That “One of a kind…a love all mine”.
ONE MORE MINUTE – My Bother-in-law, Pete, and I were enjoying a beer on his backyard waterside deck with the subject turning to the art of song writing. He suggested I write a song about the gratitude we should feel about getting to enjoy just one more beer. Gratefulness changes everything.
OUTSIDE FROM WITHIN – Feeling melancholy at times, this song reflects the changes we feel within ourselves as we grow older. “This old man once full of pride, is stuck now looking outside, from within”.
SHADES OF FALL – This song began as a simple guitar RIF, needing a subject line and lyrics. I subsequently took a quiet walk through a local copse of woods and immediately felt the peacefulness of the earth and trees overwhelm my senses. “Listen to the silence so profound”.
SOMEWHERE IN THE NIGHT – This song was a lyrical exercise, using my imagination to create a haunting examination of the many adjectives that a writer can use to describe how, “Love once blossomed, now is dead”.
YOU AND ME – Trying to keep the mood a bit lighter, I guess you could call this a country song, describing the synergistic effect of two people joined as one. “I look around and all I see is You. You. You. You and ME”.