Let Her Know
Episode #197: \xa0 Let Her Know\xa0 \xa0 (Song starts at 5:19)\nSong #156, Let Her Know, was composed in 1990. Back then, I was starting to think that\u2019s a reasonable amount of songs.\nThe demo on this episode was recorded a decade later. And here we are in 2024. Wow. 34 years later, I find myself with 800 songs. It was fun, as always, listening to the demo, playing parts of 'Let Her Know', talking about where it came from, how it came together, what inspired the song.\nWhat inspired the song were a series of episodes that obviously happened years ago. But the thing about art is: in brings memories to the surface, very strongly - so strongly, it feels like yesterday.\nThe arts are a means to exercise the grey matter, there\u2019s no doubt about that! But more than that, it really gives us an opportunity to explore more of ourselves than is perhaps immediately apparent. You can go deep within, rediscovering old memories.\nEach song is a complete surprise to me during the composing process. As you wade in and make a start, so much happens. You establish the mood. In no time, a band is playing in my mind - perhaps an orchestra, backing vocals, everything including the kitchen sink. That amazes me.\nAnd yet it all comes down to the honest feeling, the feeling that caused me to pick up a pen and write an A4 page of lyrics.\nThen the morning comes, when the mood hits me, I remember the words. I grab a coffee and a pen and take a seat at the piano.\nFor me it\u2019s like a performance, writing a song, I\u2019m in my skin, in the room with the piano of course, but part of me has gone somewhere else - many places: I\u2019m on stage in an imagined future, I\u2019m back in\xa0time, recalling those strong feelings, how the events unfolded. It\u2019s like a start stop movie, for me.\nIt has the effect of making you feel really alive, your mind goes over and over a scene, replaying what happened, and you provide the sound track to the movie in your head.\nAt least, that\u2019s how it is for me. It\u2019s the most natural process for me. It\u2019s a total joy, there\u2019s no struggle, no frustration, and for that I feel incredibly grateful.\nLet her know is about a young fellow struggling with something: he\u2019s met someone that\u2019s hit him right between the eyes. Should he let her know? What would happen? How would that feel? What subsequent events would that set in motion?\nPutting big feelings like this into music is a great move. It gets it off your shoulders and it might turn out to be exactly what someone needs to hear somewhere down the track - even 34 years later!\nI have a seascape exhibition on presently (I\u2019m also an artist). Outcomes will be what they\u2019ll be\u2026 will I sell the paintings? I don\u2019t know. I hope so!\nBut what counts for me at least is: each painting is an expression of joy. It wasn\u2019t a fight to get the paint to flow, to mix the right colours - the colours I could see in my mind (like the sounds I hear).\nIt\u2019s so like the songwriting process.\nI hope you enjoy this weeks episode, recording them is a real pleasure\xa0 each week - an online performance of spoken word and music, with plenty of humour and entertainment.\nI\u2019m glad I took the time to write some words down and then added a music accompaniment as I winged the melody. Back in 1990. It's such a great feeling, and it\u2019s also incredibly good fun and endlessly fascination to be exploring the creative process of songwriting here on this podcast.\nHere we go again:\xa0 Let Her Know. Enjoy!