My favorite self-written song yet, I think. I love the guitar accompaniment, which is saying a lot since usually I bore myself with my unoriginal strumming. Based on actual events :)
My alarm clock rings, And the birdie sings, I roll out of bed And do the same old morning things.
Get into the car, Can’t believe I’ve made it quite this far, I’m not gonna shoot an ace, but I can hope to Come in under par.
I’m just getting through the day So I can get to the night, When I’m with you, got nothing to do, That’s when I feel all right,
My problems seem to slip away, And somehow it’s okay When I crawl into bed with you I know I’ll wake up brand new.
Yea, I’m a mess, Could be worse, I guess At least I’m coming home Please baby, strip me of this stress.
I drink a glass of wine, While you tell me I’ll be fine. Eventually things will change But I’d appreciate a sign.
CHORUS
You’re next to me, you keep me sane, You’re the reason I’m still on this train No telling what tomorrow brings (Like dreams come true or diamond rings) When I wake up to the song that the birdie sings:
This is probably the most mellow song I've written so far. Not to be confused by Ben Harper's "By My Side" though that is one of my favorites. I may still play around with the lyrics a little.
I still remember that night, When you reached out your hand You said come with me. I hesitated and you reached out even farther You said come with me. You told me don’t worry, ‘cause I’ll be By your side, By your side.
I could have gone anywhere, Done anything that I wanted But I’m here with you. I could have left anytime, escaped with no warning But I’m here with you. And that’s where I wanna be: By your side, By your side.
Because it doesn’t feel the same way without you, Well, I’m guessing, ‘cause I haven’t tried. And my hands would get cold if you took yours away, So don’t. Promise you’ll stay, By my side.
You had a smile on your face When you reached for my hand And said stay with me. You had a ring, got down on one knee And said stay with me. Was there ever a doubt I would be By your side, By your side.
CHORUS
By your side is where I’ll be Where there’s you, there’s always me. By your side.
The idea for this song popped into my head last week, so I went ahead and wrote it. The title refers to the "glass is half-full vs. half-empty" outlook on life. Although I can't say I always see life from the half-full perspective, I'm trying :)
Yellow sunshine, clear blue skies. After all the rain, what a nice surprise. Open blinds and windows up, Pour out the water in my half-empty cup.
‘Cause I’m more of a half-full girl, you see, Don’t know why I let those showers get to me, But now I’m trading in my umbrella for a pair of shades I’m gonna need ‘em ‘cause the future’s bringing brighter days
I’m ready for this life, and what it’s got in store for me. Don’t want to fall asleep and miss one single thing. I’m ready for the feeling that my time has come, But for now, all I’m gonna do is sing.
Drink my coffee, feel that high. Watch the storm clouds keep on rolling by. Count my blessings one by one, And thank the Lord for all that He has done.
Like making me this half-full girl you see, Who won’t let the small things in life get to me. ‘Cause I’ve traded in my umbrella for a pair of shades I’m gonna need ‘em ‘cause the future’s bringing brighter days
I’m ready for this life, and what it’s got in store for me. Don’t want to fall asleep and miss one single thing. I’m ready for the feeling that my time has come, But for now, all I’m gonna do is sing.
I’m gonna sing for my supper, Gonna sing for my rent. Gonna sing to have the life for which I know that I was meant. I’m gonna sing until I’ve run out Of the words and melodies Because this life’s the only one I’ve got, and this day is mine to seize
I’ll always be a half-full girl, you see, I’ll never let those showers get to me, ‘Cause I’ve traded in my umbrella for a pair of shades And I need ‘em each and every single day
I’m ready for this life, and what it’s got in store for me. Don’t want to fall asleep and miss one single thing. I’m ready for the feeling that my time has come, But for now, all I’m gonna do is sing. But for now, all I’m gonna do is sing.
So, I just discovered the coolest music-sharing site ever. Seriously, like, EVER. Well, ok, I didn't discover it. Actually, Allison Weiss (who is kind of my hero) found it first and tweeted about it today, and it seemed worth checking out. The site is called Bandcamp and it allows you to upload your music, which people can then listen to and download either for free or for a price set by you. It takes care of the technical stuff and transactions for you, yet doesn't take a cut of your sales. It also allows you to personalize your page's design, colors, and background. Click on "music" in the menu at the top of this page to see what I mean. And while you're there, you may as well download my album, My First Try. You have no excuse not to: it's free, guys.
This picture may lead you to believe that I was performing in the fancy cheese section of a grocery store, but in actuality, I was performing in the fancy cheese section of the Corkscrew Wine Emporium. The Corkscrew hosts a wine tasting every Friday, and I got to provide the entertainment this week! I had an absolute blast - new venue, new friends, and new songs.
I also took this as an opportunity to experiment with recording myself live (at the suggestion of my friend and fellow musician Joe Frawley), and it turned out ok. Not great, just ok. I learned a lot about microphone placement, but I'm still scratching my head at GarageBand. I recorded the entire set as one track and had no problems separating and independently saving the first 14 songs, but after that, GB kept telling me that the file type wasn't supported when I tried to save the last 9 songs. If you have any advice or insight, let me know!
Anyway, I thought I'd share the recordings that did turn out, so here they are (in alphabetical rather than performance order). Feel free to listen...and keep in mind, this was my first try :)
"Half-Full Girl" and "By Your Side" are my two newest. I literally wrote them two days before the gig, so they are far from perfect. But let me know what you think!
