This week my new single is set to release, let’s talk about it.
Everything transforms into something beautiful, so true especially when it comes to old home recordings. The initial recording came back to life from an old unearthed demo that I tracked before the pandemic lockdown. It was a project that I was calling “Spirit Animal Tattoo“ for a while, problem is, none of those songs were ever completed. Reminder to self: complete that shit in 2024. I forgot about the recording for sometime, then rediscovered it as I was moving music to a new recording computer. I noticed two muted, unnamed tracks that ended up being my friend Mike Pritchard’s brilliant keyboard takes. The rest, shall we say was history. Lyrics wrote themselves.
Our ability to find beauty in the world around us is a gift. It's the very definition of art, and at the core of thinking that translates tragedy, pain, and loss into something that helps us grow. 'Everything' is a nod to this gift, written for those who see riches where others would only see nothing and the creator in every single one of us.
Let us begin with the lyrics…
With the ocean in my eyes, feet in the sandOne last step and it’s goodbye to dry landFeel the cold water flow, when I’ve never felt more alone
Everything transforms into something beautifulSay everything transforms into something beautifulSay everything transforms into something beautiful
Full moon fades out in the west, it’s time to take a deep breathGet down beneath the wave out the other sideGet ready for the very next set, hear my heart beating out my chest
Everything transforms into something beautifulSay everything transforms into something beautifulSay everything transforms into something beautiful
See the fire of the sun fill the evening skyWhen we get together guaranteed good timesGot a good thing going, there’s no denyingBaby do your thing, I’ll do mineBaby do your thing, I’ll do mineBaby do your thing, I’ll do mine
Surrounded by the sun and the oceanAin’t nothing like right here & right nowTuned in to right here & right nowFeel so high right here besides youI don’t ever want to come back down
Deep dark eyes to the skies, strong wings above the sandOne last leap and it’s goodbye to the sea and sandLet your voice be a whispered prayer, let your love always be there
Let everything transform into something beautifulSay everything transforms into something beautifulSay everything transforms into something beautiful
Lord, I’ve see how you’ve grown, how you’ve never felt more at homeIn skin all your own, yet so much like your momI watched since you’re a baby girlYou mean everything in this world
Everything transforms into something beautifulSay everything transforms into something beautifulSay everything transforms into something beautiful
There you have it, there’s not really that much to talk about beyond the simplicity of a man writing and singing about what inspires him in life. The ocean, my wife, my kids. It’s my prayer and homage to the surf lifestyle, and to raising warm loving human beings as children.
When writing the song, I had just recently returned from a trip to see family for the holidays. Pennsylvania is where I was born and raised, and it’s a whirlwind every time I go back. Gotta love Philadelphia. I seen that city’s ups and downs over the years, and from what I see, it’s as good as it’s ever been. Not to say that there are not huge swaths of PA that have fallen into neglect with zero prospects or opportunity, just saying it’s not as rough as I remember it being as a kid in the 70s and 80s.
One of the perks of visiting home, is the muse like connection I have to the cities on the eastern seaboard. When you come from a mill town in PA, all eyes are on Philly, NYC, and Washington DC. If my story is a reflection of my surroundings, then the cityscapes we’re talking about are Philadelphia, New York City, Bar Harbor, and San Diego. I was drawn to these cities like a moth to a flame, they represented high adventure to me. They were everything I wasn’t, due to the fact that I was raised a farm boy. Cities tamed my wildness for a time, their museums, cathedrals, urban architecture, and transit systems set my imagination on fire. From a rural background, going to NYC was the spiritual equivalent to climbing Mount Everest.
While my roots are country, America’s cities have housed my dreams and ambitions. Here in lies my path to a life in art and music. Probably the first steps were on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Followed by a walk through the living heart and the planetarium at the Benjamin Franklin Museum.
Might as well take a turn and talk a bit about the album cover graphics:
Performing the new song for the first time to a local crowd in South Carlsbad, CA at the Camp Store.
A big part of my music is the first time I perform a new song to my friends and family. The album and single release art is from a show at my local venue, The Camp Store in Carlsbad, CA on the first night I publicly played the song. This is a still from the video recording. It means so much to me, the local surfers, our community who all shares our lives around such a spectacular beach.
In my official music video, I’ve synched surf footage from the trips I’ve been on with friends, to coaster rides looking at local surf breaks to the boys and I first playing this new song. I hope you like it when it comes out this Friday June 14th.
About the RamMark "The Ram" O'Donnell is an independent American composer and visual artist based out of Carlsbad, CA. He can be seen performing Southern California rock under the stage name, the Ram with a cast of local musicians.
For more information about the Ram and his music, go to www.TheRamMusic.comTo view the song on all streaming platforms:https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/theram2/everything
Song MetadataEverythingThe RamUPC: 198094753176ISRC: QZMEN2456414Release date: June 14, 2024ASCAP Work ID: 916553332ASCAP Singer Songwriter IPI Number: 375350750ASCAP Publisher IPI Number: 375351159
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