Good song too. I guess from the thirties. I am not a huge blues fan, but the occasional song I'll really like.
At first I thought: how nice, a cheerful blues song. Then of course I noticed the lyrics: "it Christmas, but it's raining in my heart..." :)
I find it interesting and humorous that there is a whole genre and class of music which is all about how life sucks and you're so sad.
I once wrote this:
The Good Times Blues
I've got the blues
I've got the blues
my kitten's run away for the seaside
my raincoat's got holes in its memory
my drainpipe is filled with illegal elves
living off my leftover birthday pie
I've got the good times blues
I've got the blues
I've got the blues
my wife is the prettiest in town
my kids are already famous
my wallet is fatter than the mayor's cat
my body is stronger than steel
tomorrow I move into heaven
today they will fix the stove
I live off licorice and candied nuts
I sleep on the red tile floor
angels come visit me in the bath
devils send me postcards from hell
I smile like an imp at pretty girls
I am never quite feeling well
We'll wait until Thursday
to tell you the good news
we always know what is good for you
which colors and what hues
I've got the good times blues
I've got the blues
I've got the blues
You can't be having these troubles
it is just not nice
you seem to be not understanding
that times are not the same
we all can be living off candy
if only the boss will let us
you just have to smile real nice
and shave your hair in the back
I dance on the limbs of trees in the yard
I howl at the moon during day
I gently lift kids off a donkey's back
and tell them the truth of the day
I've got the blues
I've got the blues
I've got the good times blues
stobblehouse 2000
"my drainpipe is filled with illegal elves
ReplyDeleteliving off my leftover birthday pie"
Question: Is this about those unprincipled rank opportunists who grab your images, repackage them, and put them back out there under their own banners? (It seems like that...)
- Just wondering.
- Ray
This is a radical enterpretation, well done.
ReplyDeleteBut actually this was written back in those days when that situation was mostly reversed. :)
How's this for mournful lyrics?
ReplyDeleteIt's from one of those nasal and twangy "drugstore cowboy" style songs made popular in the U.S.A. by guys who should have got a real job...
"I've got tears in my ears from lyin' on my back in my bed as I cried over you..."
- Ray
This is a great lyric haha
ReplyDeleteI'd like to hear a song with it. :D
Thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteSomebody was working on one, but I don't think he ever finished it.
That really blows. Don't quit your day job as a purveyor of bland pornography.
ReplyDeleteHa, shows what you know. I've just had an offer for publishing this poem in book form, with Simon and Schuster. They think it will outsell Harry Potter, and they will start it off with a $10,000,000 advertising campaign.
ReplyDeleteSo, got a melody for it yet?
ReplyDeleteBlues songs all have the same chord progression. And the "melody" is basically just spoken words with certain key syllables coinciding with chord changes.
ReplyDeleteHere is Hugh Laurie parodying a blues song: Too Long Johnny.
Well, that explains the "melody" I have for this.
ReplyDeleteOnce at a friend's birthday party I improvised a blues song to two guitars. Big hit, much fun.
The song is called "Christmas Blues" and was first recorded by the group Canned Heat in the 1969. The story is told about 2/3 the way down this page.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cannedheatmusic.com/biography.html
You can hear a clip of the song here:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000032HI
"I find it interesting and humorous that there is a whole genre and class of music which is all about how life sucks and you're so sad."
It's about acknowledging mistakes and misfortunes, getting out of denial. Hopefully this leads to learning, and/or shaking off the bad luck, and moving on. But it is certainly possible to get trapped in the Blues lifestyle.
Quite right.
ReplyDeleteI think we all have a bit of love affair with our Bad Luck, and we'd do better to snap out of that.
There is a photography book that is related to the blues that I really like. It's called Juke Joint, and it's by Birney Imes. It definitely helps me understand the songs and place them in a culture. And the photos are awesome.
ReplyDeleteIf I recall correctly, the Blues was born among the American slaves.
ReplyDeleteThis explains a lot: when you can do little else about your hapless life, at least you can sing to get it out of your system.