Song and a Chat

Episode #137:  Dawn Chorus   (song starts at 3:45 & 27:57)

I had a busy today. For a while there, though, I was sitting in my car. So listened to some music.

One of the albums that came on was Tasman Bridge. Written and recorded by myself with Paul Dredge, it’s an album that’s close to our hearts - it was the first time we’d tried to write songs together internationally.

Paul lives in New Zealand, where I’m originally from. I’ve been living in Melbourne, Australia for 20 odd years now. After having played live together for years - thousands of gigs - and having written lots of songs, I thought it would be an idea if I moved to Australia.

We really missed writing and performing music together. Eventually we hit on the idea of writing a section of a song and sending it to the other person so he could ‘answer’ with the music for the next section of the song.

To date I’ve been the lyricist for this sort of arrangement.

Sometimes with lyrics I’ve written, I just know they would really suit Paul. It’s instinct, really.

I’ve never been disappointed with what Paul’s come up with, we seem to so much on the same page, it's amazing.

In this case, Paul wrote the music ( riff / chords and melody) for a verse and middle section, which he sent to me.

I put the headphones on and listened, piano and mic ready to go..and I just ‘winged’ what came to me - which turned out to be the choruses and bridge.

I’ve included a piano vocal version of Dawn chorus, which I recorded as part of this episode. At the end of the episode, you can hear the album cut.

You’ll hear Paul singing his parts and then I take over lead for the parts I wrote. It came about that way, as when it came time to record, we only had about 6 evenings to learn and record each other’s parts. In fact, it was really as we were recorded that we learned how the songs were going to go, so it made sense to sing our own parts.

Dawn chorus is an inspiring, brief part of the day where all the birds seem to decide to sing with one voice, seemingly just to ‘greet the magic day’ in celebration.

I love being out in nature. It inspires and energises me.

As usual, on this episode, I talk about how the words came together, and then on to the music. It’s fascinating for me to be talking like this. In the process, I’m discovering wha sort of things make me click as a songwriter.

I write for the joy of songwriting. So does Paul. We have a few albums you can find online at www.petepascoe.wordpress.com and most are now on Spotify and Apple Music, etc

We have a new album The Untrodden Track out now. I listened to this again today and messaged Paul to say how entertaining and relaxing I found it to be - again… I’ve been listening on the headphones, often in the evening before bed, it’s a pretty chilled listen.

Anyway if you’d like to hear how we write a song together. Sit back and have a listen. I hope you enjoy the song Dawn Chorus (both versions) - and the chat.

Episode #136: The Roughest Cut   (song starts 5:30 & 27:57)

It’s been a beautiful, pristine, blue sky, early spring day today. But as dusk happened, the night fell, the wind started to get up. I don’t mind that. In fact, listening to the wind when you’re safely indoors is pretty relaxing,

Music has the power to lift your spirits. The same with lyrics. The combined force of music and lyrics really has the power to dramatically change our mood for the better.

We always have the choice to focus on the good stuff. I include some audio I recorded as I sat in my car today…on my right was the grey city. On the left was a grassy section, the light catching the seed heads, & the shadows. Through the grass wound a path.

I chose to ignore the passing cars, the city and focussed on the sound of the wind in the grass, the way the grass moved in the late afternoon clear spring sunlight.

I planned to bring that sound of the field, well at least the mood, into my song this evening.

At that stage, I didn’t realise I’d be talking about 'The Roughest Cut'. It’s a bit of a rocker. But when I opened my song book tonight, it just seemed to be the one.

When that happens, I don’t question it.

So I recorded a quieter version, then couldn’t help myself…I started to dress it up a little with a vibraphone, a synth and some strings. It’s amazing how an arrangement can come together so quickly.

On this episode, I also include the version recorded by PP and The Patient Hum. This was the title track - the song that finishes a recent album of ours.

I talk about dynamics on this episode. Everything natural in life has its ups and downs. We all do. So by bringing the volume up and down as you perform a song, it’s going to be more engaging for the listener and it’ll have more emotion.

And emotion would be number one, in my opinion.

The words came first with this song. I just wrote it from top to bottom (you can read the lyrics on my blog www.petepascoe.wordpress.com )

Eventually the line ‘even the roughest cut becomes a diamond’ came through. That’s when I knew this would be the title, the main message of the song.

It’s a fascinating process. After all these episodes, I really feel like there’s still so much to discover and talk about…

The creative realm, it sure is a great way to get into the now.

Ok sit back and have a listen, I hope you enjoy the chat and the music, it’s all pretty relaxed around here. I present as if I’m on a small stage, sitting at my piano, addressing an intimate audience - that would be your good selves.

Ok, on with the show. Away we go. Enjoy!

Episode #135: Everybody’s Sleeping     (Song starts at 5:02)

Hi there & welcome. I’ll tell you what, I was really relaxed when I recorded this episode.

I’ve been doing a bit of exercise... I mowed the lawns today. But apart from that, I went for a bit of a bush walk. I’ve included some audio which I recorded as I walked. So you can come for a walk with me on a peaceful track. It’s good to get out of the studio sometimes.

We have a 2 for 1 deal on this episode. You’ll hear me improvising a mellow version of the song, then towards the end I’ve included the PP and the Patient Hum version of 'Everybody’s Sleeping' ( from the album The Roughest Cut).

It’s fascinating to me, how much a song can change, depending on how you choose to arrange it.

I’m a painter. I’ve painted a lot of seascapes over the last decade (you can view plenty here : www.petepascoe.com). I mention this, because when you exhibit your painting, that’s it. It’s done.

The thing I love about songwriting/recording (and performing, live) is: you can present a different version each time if you like. For instance, I’ve never sung such a ‘dreamy’ sounding version of 'Everybody’s Sleeping' before. I really enjoyed it.

It’s fun winging a version of my songs on this podcast.

Everybody’s sleeping is song 593 in my purple book. That’s a lot of songs, isn’t it. I’d like to say there was never a day when I sat down and thought to myself I am now going to write 800 songs. It’s happened because of..passion . It’s a calling. It’s something I do for the love of it.

As a singer, I enjoy playing. The same with songwriting. This sense of play is, I think an essential part of the creative process.

To play, you need to be relaxed. Hence the bush walk… or a bit of lawn mowing ( not quite so relaxing, but it sure feels good afterwards, to know you’ve used your muscles and have done a bit of breathing outdoors).

It blows a few cobwebs away. It clears your head. As a songwriter, snippets of sentences can drift in on the ether. These are gold, in my opinion. I gather them together and see where they take me.

This happened with the lyrics of everybody’s Sleeping.  Some seemingly random lines fell together and slowly a song started to take shape.

This one was a ‘words first music second song’.  The piano riff (that I use with the band version ) came along and I ‘winged’ the melody.

I work quickly - there’s certainly no rush. Like my walking style -there’s definitely no rush! I pretty much sort of lope along. I like to walk at a pace that allows me to take in some details of the scene that I’m walking through. Like the tiny bird that ‘pipes up’ as I was walking on the track. You’ll hear me take the time to really enjoy his song- the moment.

It’s that same sort of enjoying the moment that happens when you’re lost, writing a song.

Ok here we go, hope you enjoy the chat, both versions of the song - and the bush walk.

By the way, the lyrics will be on my blog as usual. www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com.

You can find my music (14 albums in a variety of styles, including piano solo) on Spotify, Apple Music, bandcamp, YouTube , etc.

Episode #134:  Alien Song   (Song starts at 5:00)

The rain came down gently as I hit record for this episode. I have a corrugated iron roof on my studio. I don’t mind that, as it keeps me in touch with nature… I get to hear the odd parrot squark - or the wind …or the rain. It’s pretty relaxing, isn’t it.

What’s that got to do with songwriting, I hear you ask? I find the quiet - and the occasional sound of nature - allows me to rediscover the sense of peace required to create.  You tune in naturally to the essence, the true self…the ‘honest’ voice that you write with.

On this episode, I take you outside at sunset in the Australian outdoors to look for bats (!). Very peaceful, indeed.

Some people find bats creepy. I generally don’t. But thinking about what a lot of people think about bats brought Alien Song to mind..as it’s kind of creepy.

I’ve written a lot of different sorts of songs over the years. This song is definitely not a piano/vocal ballad. The piano and vocal is actually is in the mix, but it’s presented here with the band Pete Pascoe and The Patient Hum….it’s a guitar driven rock song.

Alien Song was composed by the whole band. It came as a surprise to us when it starting taking shape. I’ll talk you through how it happened. Neil Sims started a guitar riff and away we went.

The lyrics were 90% stream of consciousness. I just started winging lyrics as I talked and sung & a story started to develop. As I sang ( and played piano and bass keys left hand), I shut my eyes and saw myself in a movie.

So the lyrics are that of a commentator, sometimes with a sort of birds-eye view, looking down. Other ‘camera angles’ would be close ups, some scenes viewed as the main character viewed the scene, etc.

Yes, I can see the whole music video for this song. Although the album The Roughest Cut (which has Alien Song on it & which is streaming now) was released a couple of years ago now, I never made the video. I think I still will one day.

I’ll include the green alien I drew and painted when I was 17, as an exchange student in Cheyenne Wyoming,. now that was a great experience.

I stayed with a wonderful family. From a creative point of view, I think the overall effect was: it sort of tipped me on my head and really set me free to follow this creative path - and this is what happened to the character in this particular song.  He heads west (because he thought it might be for best) and he has some life changing experiences during his travels.

These Wyoming connections are very timely indeed - my host sister from my American family is coming to visit this week! Looking forward to this. I love how art and life are so entwined.

That’s the beauty of art and music. You begin with something real and present it as something completely new - with the same essence.

The essence of the self…listeners are letting me know they are getting to know the artist, the composer as well as find out more about the songs and that’s all part of podcasting. In this episode I think that is perhaps Alien Song has revealed a bit more of me - in a story. Everyone loves a good story.

Ok, I hope you enjoy the song and story on this week's episode. I did enjoy rediscovering alien song.

Got a cuppa? Sit back and have a listen…here we go…

Episode# 133:  I Wonder   (Song starts at  4:34)

I finished a nice gig outside this week with the song featured on this week's podcast episode.

I Wonder, song #689, came up as I flicked the pages of my repertoire book. A very generous fellow, who I’d noticed was sitting listening and relaxing had just come up to the piano, gave me a nice tip and said “one more song please?“

I include some audio again on this episode. This time I made a quick recording when I got back into the car after his gig- to try and catch the sense of…. satisfaction. That's what I get from performing my songs live for people. It’s blissful - especially playing outdoors…

Bliss would be a good word to use to describe how it feels to be lost in the middle of composing a song like 'I Wonder'.

With this song, the words and music came at the same time. Sometimes I’ll just have "blah blah mumble mumble" for a line, but if I don’t dismiss this (and lose the energy and flow), a strong clear image might come to me for the next line….like “like a crystal slipper from a scene of a movie” - which was the first phrase that gave me an idea as to where the song lyrics were heading.

Quite often it's not a linear process, as the words and music come into being. It’s a mystery… almost like how Michelangelo said "Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to release it"

It’s a bit like that, it’s almost like listening to a conversation in the next room, you feel like you’re being delivered a movie, snippets of scenes at a time. And it’s up to you as an editor as to how you put it all together...which elements you choose to emphasise, which then leads on to other decisions about where the song may go…

There’s lots of information here, about how I write a song, sure, but also on offer is the essence of a songwriter, me as a person, I guess.

While I analyse the lyrics, I find deeper meanings.  A sense of myself, my thoughts and feelings come through.

It’s all good fun. No it’s not, it’s great fun. There's plenty of humour here again on this episode.

Enjoy.

Episode #132: Sand In My Socks   (Song starts at 8:22)

For this episode, I have included some audio from the actual songwriting session of this song: Paul Dredge on his acoustic guitar, me ‘winging’ a melody, then us harmonising together. So you’ll get to really hear how this song came together.

I wrote the lyrics first: ‘Got sand in my socks, reminds me of yesterdays walk by the ocean, my shocked soul is soothed by the water’s talk’ … sounds pretty cruisey, right?

Yes. To get into that state of mind, I got myself down to the beach. I’ve included a recording of me, talking at the beach, observing the scene. Even more relaxing, right? But…

Before we go to the beach, I take you shopping with me - a couple of humorous observations about how things in the city can really wind you up if you let them..

And that’s the crux of sand in my socks. It’s about feeling the sand between your toes which reminds you of the feeling of walking beside the ocean, leaving the city behind - the mediation, the battery charging.

I love recording the music & I love sharing the ‘behind the scenes’ sort of stories.

'Sand In My Socks' is track number 1 from our new album, 'The Untrodden Track' (streaming now). It’s a medium tempo easy shuffle. Sounds like a walk on the beach, doesn’t it? In fact, the music is a great fit for the lyrics - free, toe-tapping and uplifting.

On the songwriting session audio, You get to hear the laughter, the easy friendship that Paul Dredge and I have. It’s a vibe we bring into our music together. The co-composing is a very easy & natural process for us.

Paul gave the song a really nice mood with his acoustic guitar. As I ‘wing’ a melody over the top of the guitar, you can almost hear Paul thinking ahead, instinctively going for the next chord.

Instinct would be the key word here. Yes, we both have a handle on music theory, and we enjoy singing and playing our instruments. But overall, you just go with ‘feeling’ in the moment.

As we compose, we are drawing on the theory, for sure, but we also drawing on thousands of gigs we have done together. There is nothing quite like performing ‘live’ with someone to get things like vocal harmony locking in together. This sort of ‘flying time’ together is invaluable. You learn about how the other person plays his instrument, see how they fit together.

When you have this sort of history together, it feels relaxed and exciting when you’re about to compose some music.

This gives the process energy before we start. There’s a sort of energy, an electricity you can feel and away you go - and it gets better and better.

My blog is: www.petepascoe.wordpress.com  you can read more / read the lyrics / view my art here.

I hope you enjoy hearing Paul and I compose this song, the conversation and the observations.

Here we go….

Episode#131:  The Flow   (Song starts at 3:28 )

So where does a song come from?

Well, it comes from…being in the flow. The morning I wrote the lyrics, I’d just woken up and I was still half asleep. Snippets of dreams were floating around.

So it’s a creative sort of flow I’m alluding to here.

But the dreams were not what I wrote about. I looked around the room and started with:

‘When you pull the curtains back and the gentle morning light is shining, true…’ and from that line, which was really a simple statement, it lead to the last line of what became the chorus : 'and there’s no one can avoid the flow’.

I went on, finished off the lyrics and sent them off to Paul Dredge in New Zealand. Paul wrote the music to the verse. Then he stopped and sent it back to me.

I then came up with the chorus and sent it back to Paul and he came up with the bridge.

I’ve included a phone conversation with Paul that I recorded this week. I thought it’d be nice to get some of Paul’s thoughts on the episode. You’ll hear it’s a very easy relationship that we are lucky enough to have.

It’s incredibly rewarding to compose a song. It’s even more rewarding to co write a song with someone. Paul and I have written a good few together now.

The flow can be found on our 5th album, 'The Untrodden Track'. If you like the sound of this song, there’s a whole album of songs like this, with this sound waiting for you.

On this episode I recount an old memory that popped up recently (you can find an extended written version on my blog this week) it was a surreal sort of memory of imaginary crocodiles which was triggered by a photograph…back when I was a very young child.

This sense of childlike play is an essential ingredient with song writing, I think. You just throw caution to the wind, keep in mind your music theory (which is like an underlying supportive net) and just have fun.

The Flow has a nice vibe.. I hope you enjoy it and I hope you enjoy hearing about how the song came together.

By the way, the folkrock album 'The Untrodden Track' is streaming now on all the usual platforms. You can also hear it on bandcamp, where you can read the lyrics as you listen. (incidentally, you can purchase the album / send a digital copy a a gift on bandcamp),

My blog is: www.petepascoe.wordpress.com  you can read more / read the lyrics / view art here.

Episode#129:  The Long Haul    (Song starts at 5:05)

It’s been a long time since I wrote the song Secret Lullabies. I use the riff as my theme music for these episodes. That particular song was song number 3. The long haul is song number 614. I wrote it in 2014. Yes, there’s been a few years & a fair bit of water under the bridge. It’s been a long haul.

What inspired this song?… yep, you guessed, it: a feeling. And the feeling was: I’d realised I was in for the long haul for the relationship I found myself in.

I like to add lines of character. ‘Old dog, new trick’ is, I believe, exactly that - a good way to start a song. Something that catches the ear. Unexpected, perhaps a bit humorous - nothing wrong with that.

So with a song, you’ve only got about 3mins each word counts. And so it moves on. ‘You can count on me ….for the weekend…. In about 20 years’. Yes, the songwriter is initially pulling his lovers leg - and then he’s finally admitting it. Ok I’m in for the long haul.

I think it was a nice concept for a song. I felt it needed some of the leg pulling, to come across as real, not gushy, something worth listening to.

And it was written with the idea that perhaps someone (like me, back then) who found the words didn’t come easy, might be able to play this song to someone whom they thought might be ‘the one’.

It’s a nice feeling, just cruising out, playing an instrumental section of a song you’ve written. There’s time for reflection, it’s good fun… as a painter, you get to present the painting once, really. With a song, each time you perform it, you might find something else in there to feature. It might be melodic phrase, a particular group of chords that you just feature a bit more.

It’s also nice to write a song about a subject that you feel so strongly about, but by talking about old dogs, the wind blowing, the dawn, the story can be delivered in a relaxing, yet entertaining manner, without getting too worked up about it all.

This isn’t a power ballad. I’m not that sort of writer - or singer. I’m more your understated sort of gentle presentation sort of songwriter, generally speaking. Well, there’s a variety check out 14 albums here: www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com - 7 of these albums are streaming on other platforms like Spotify, etc.

In amongst talking about the song, you’ll get to hear about a old house I lived in; owls, possums, carting a table home with car and no trailer; my cats waking me up way too early, etc. all sorts of things pop into my mind as I talk. It’s all pretty relaxed.

I do like having a yarn and I do like letting the song lead the way as I record each episode. It’s all off the cuff - no notes or prep. So its relaxed and fun.

It’s also fun for me to read through the lyrics, analyse where they’ve come from, the underlying meaning, what may make the odd line comes across a little stronger than some others, etc.

The music always amazes me, where it comes from, how it comes through,. At the end of this episode, to demonstrate this, I describe the scene I was part of, fishing at sunset the other night. The feeling that I felt that evening, I talk myself into that state again and allow it to sort of move my fingers on the piano keys and improvise a piano piece - which could easily become a song.

I hope you enjoy this episode, if you do, and you’re new here, there’s plenty more episodes…120 odd waiting for you.

Then there’s the 14 albums ( currently ) online, videos, lots of paintings, cartoons, etc.

I’d love you to sign up to my email list. You won’t miss a thing that way. [email protected]

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoy this episode.

Pete

Episode#129: You’re Going To Be OK    (Song starts at 3:06)

Welcome to another episode, I hope you’re having a great day wherever you are n the world.

I am, living here on the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne Australia - it’s a busy day, plenty on.

I mention this because no matter how busy I get, I have a sort of a pact with myself that whenever a feeling that a song may be coming through, I’ll stop whatever I’m up to, go to the piano and see what’s on offer.

I had the feeling a song was ‘coming through’ the day I wrote the lyrics for ‘You’re Going To Be Ok’. The image of ‘running along a beach, pretending for a moment you’re a bird’ came to mind as I picked up my pen. ‘Fair enough’, I thought. I’ve learned not to edit what comes through, initially, just go with the flow and see where it takes me. Often it’s not evident for a few lines, or even halfway through the song as to what a song might be about.

The words came quickly, as they do for me. The same with the music - for myself - and for Paul Dredge, the co-songwriter of what turned out to be track number 6, the first single of our new folk rock album 'The Untrodden Track'.

On this episode I look at the way 'You’re going To Be Ok' came together. I’ve included snippets of recordings to illustrate the process, isolating my parts and Paul’s and then showing how they came together.

In a nutshell, I came up with the lyrics. Then I composed the music to the verse and mid-section. I stopped there and, as planned, didn’t continue, because I’d earmarked this particular lyric for a co-write with Paul.

I sent the lyrics and an mp3 of the verse and chorus (piano / vocal) to Paul. He then came up with the chorus guitar and vocal, and sent that back to me. One Sunday evening the bridge came through and it seemed to me the song was going to work.

It was great to be able to write and arrange this song by sending wavs back and forth via Dropbox on the internet. I cover some of this on the episode.

It is such good fun. The instruments are arranged in a way that’s best for the song. It seems an obvious thing to point out, but with songwriting, it’s really about finding Melody and chords and instrumentation that gets across the feeling and the message of the song, best (rather than any tacky /flash playing or complicated chord changes for the sake of it, which can get in the road of the song)..

You’ll hear how the harmonies were added in the chorus, how the song takes shape.

The whole album, The Untrodden Track (streaming now - including on www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com - where you can stream it for free, and download tracks, read lyrics, read about the album., and hear another 13 albums) was recorded in this manner, bouncing tracks back and forth between Australia and New Zealand, where Paul lives.

It works for us, I think, partly -or mostly - because we’ve played thousands of gigs together. We’re on the same page, in many respects..

Ok if you’d like to get more of an insight into our songwriting relationship, sit back. Grab a cuppa and have a listen to see how You’re Going To Be Ok came together.

Enjoy.

Episode #128:   Goodbye To Say Hello   (Song starts at 4:46)

Welcome to another episode. Where does a song come from? It’s something I’m fascinated by.

This has lead me to producing 120-something episodes.

That amazes me. I wasn’t sure I’d get past my first one.

But all we need is a start. And away we go. Isn’t that like just being human… we make a start and…. we make it up.

The great songwriter Jimmy Webb inspired the style of song that this is. I’d been to his concert here in Melbourne, back in the year 2000. I remember he was talking about Simon and Garfunkel.

This lead me to thinking about how relationships can be so strong, so passionate. I thought more specifically about events and people in my life, how they come and go.

So I just started writing from that honest place within, the words just rolled out line after line and then I hit on the chorus goodbye to say hello.

It came to me that with forgiveness and understanding, a relationship that has come to a crisis point, feeling like it’s the end, perhaps that’s when a new start can happen.. and a friendship or relationship can become something even stronger -  if both parties choose to make it happen.

Ahh, the rich tapestry of life. The artistic path has all sorts of twists and turns. It’s important to keep up with friendships. It can be a lonely path, otherwise.

The bonus is: you come up with art and music that gives you and others and pleasure.

I’d like to record this song one day soon. I’m glad I stumbled across it in my song book for this episode.

The music comes together pretty quickly for me. The feeling guides the choice of key, the fingers play on the key and a melody is sung.

It amazes me when this happens. It’s an absolute joy.

It was a pleasure to sing this demo while recording this episode.

I hope you enjoy Goodbye To Say Hello - and hearing about how it came together.

It’s a complicated business, but it’s instinctive for me and that’s what makes it fun…

Here we go enjoy

Here’s the links I mention:

Blog with the lyrics and music and art www.petepascoe.wordpress.com. 

www.petepascoe.com 

Lots of music: www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com.

YouTube : Pete Pascoe Art and Music

'The Untrodden Track' album ( Pascoe / Dredge)