Faith in Religion
June 21, 2010 7:33 PM
Here's a precocious ditty dating back to the late '80s. I must have been 16 or 17 when I wrote it. I was under the influence of Sting and Swing Out Sister at the time, and I was also starting to learn about classical music.
Pretty much, this song is teen-aged me thinking I'd one-up Sting's "We Work the Blackseam" and "Englishman in New York" by writing something that included a church choir, a jazz piano and droning electric guitars -- not all at once, mind you.
The original lyrics were my first stab at something politically-themed, but they referred to such dated events that I scrapped them when I recorded the song. I couldn't even remember what events they referred to.
I did revise a few other portions -- back then I didn't have a handle on dissonant chords, so that piano section is new, and some of the choral writing underwent revision after I took some music theory. The bass line at the end is a bit funkier than how I originally wrote it.
It's really an awkward work of youth, but I like the gumption behind it.
Pretty much, this song is teen-aged me thinking I'd one-up Sting's "We Work the Blackseam" and "Englishman in New York" by writing something that included a church choir, a jazz piano and droning electric guitars -- not all at once, mind you.
The original lyrics were my first stab at something politically-themed, but they referred to such dated events that I scrapped them when I recorded the song. I couldn't even remember what events they referred to.
I did revise a few other portions -- back then I didn't have a handle on dissonant chords, so that piano section is new, and some of the choral writing underwent revision after I took some music theory. The bass line at the end is a bit funkier than how I originally wrote it.
It's really an awkward work of youth, but I like the gumption behind it.
posted by NemesisVex (1 comment total)
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With the harmonies that come in at 2:55 or there abouts, I think it might be better if you stay on the same note for the last syllable of each phrase as the previous one. It works in the bit after the choir section because of the piano chords there. Some of the chords in the piano during the last chorus seem a bit overly dissonant, though, and don't match the organ(?) so well, particularly the second last chord in the progression. I think I get what you're aiming for, but as it is it sounds a bit accidental and not very well thought-out, IMHO.
I really love the choir bit, though; it's absolutely gorgeous! So is the piano before it. Haven't had time to listen to the lyrics too carefully, but I like the idea. The intro is very powerful and rocks pretty hard. All in all, it's a good tune.
posted by MaiaMadness at 9:44 PM on June 23, 2010