Home Straight
Episode #196: Home Straight\xa0 (Song starts at\xa0 2:40)\nThis episode\u2019s song would be a \u2018protest song\u2019 about the way we are not looking after the world & how out of touch with nature we have become.\nEvery now and then a song like this sneaks up on me. When it happens, I just go with the flow. It\u2019s a great way to let off some steam. It\u2019s also a very creative & effective way of dealing with some big feelings.\nThe trick is, it doesn\u2019t hurt anyone. It\u2019s a great place to put anger, the arts - because we can harness all that sometimes explosive energy and release it very quickly, rather than doing something pointless and destructive like booting a washing basket or something, you end up creating a piece of art.\nThe handy thing is, the resulting piece of art/music can then be a very positive thing to have brought into the world. It might be song with legs - a song that might resonate with others who\u2019ve felt the same big feelings about a certain issue.\nIn this case, what inspired me to put pen to paper initially was this: those of you that have been following my podcast know that I get out in nature to reset. Particularly, I find being by the water does it for me.\nYes, I\u2019m a fisherman, but a successful trip out for me might be 2 caught and released wee ones. It\u2019s really about observing nature. More than that, I\u2019ve discovered it\u2019s about being connected to the bigger picture. A feeling of connectedness and optimism and energy are often the things I return home with - the catch - hey, maybe that\u2019s an idea for a song.\nThat\u2019s how creativity works. Once you makes a start, you\u2019re in the flow and one creative idea leads to another.\nAnyway back to what inspired this song, I looked up from my favourite fishing spot to see what appeared to be an oil rig of some description in the Port Phillip Bay (here in Melbourne, Australia). Alarm bells. But then it turns out apparently it was just \u2018resting there\u2019, hmm\u2026\nThat got me on to thinking about all the ways we are not doing great things to this beautiful world we live in.\nAll the lyrics just came through my pen, a strong meter helped. It gave me the momentum & helped with the flow, the phrasing. In no time at all I\u2019d filled 2 A4 pages with verses and choruses.\nWhen it came to writing the music a couple of days later, it was the feeling that came through the words that reignited the energy, the passion to get the job done.\nThe melody and chords and song structure all came with a rush, very naturally. I had to force myself to stop and jot down my ideas then carry on, back in the flow.\nThe result is: song #628 fits me like a glove. In terms of the vocal range, the style ( the words are very \u2018me\u2019), the melody has natural highs and lows, the chords and the bass line all make sense.\nI think that\u2019s the best sort of song: the most \u2018natural\u2019. You can chip away and construct from bits and pieces , but quite often, the end result can be a song that sounds a little contrived. In my experience, these songs can be frustrating to record, as the energy doesn\u2019t seem to flow.\nIt\u2019s an endlessly fascinating process to be talking about each week.\nI\u2019ve just been away camping at the beach for a week. It was bliss, just letting the somewhat unseasonable sort of changeable weather roll around me (and \u2018through\u2019 me, it seemed, eg: the night I tried 2 casts in a howling 70km wind that got up from nowhere).\nI include a couple of minutes of chat, which I recorded back home at my local beach the other night. On the spur of the moment, I added some piano music as I listened back to it.\nI find it very relaxing to listen to these podcast episodes. I have a Seascape exhibition opening shortly, so I\u2019ve been up til 3am painting. I like to review my work, so as I painted, I listened to 3 randomly selected podcast episodes in a row: Crossroads, In The Scheme Of Things and I wish. I found them to be interesting, and informative, funny and entertaining.\nIf you find you\u2019ve enjoyed this episode,