Photo by Linda Xu on Unsplash
Vocals: SynthesizerV (Ninezero)
Backing: Band in a Box

I've Been Down

I love reggae (mostly), so the stakes were high, and made even more precarious by a case of lyrics block. Nothing original here to write about writer's block.

Running out of options

© 2016-2025 All Rights Reserved Bud Merritt & floyd jane
Janice Merritt: lead & harmony vocals
floyd jane: lyrics, arrangement & melody
Bud Merritt: lyrics, mix, mastering & photo
No AI was used in the production

Ways Of Forgetting

we never worried much... about borderlines
stepping over them together.. in perfect time
I went along.. helping burn.. every bridge we ever crossed
you'd laugh and say "don't worry about what we've lost"

but I'm sick of tv, old songs, ...of who i've been 
a half finished book next to a fifth of gin     
a sad story or drink won't erase our last goodbye 
old ways of forgetting don't work                   
no matter how i try  

I danced across the strange landscape you painted
but following blind left me jaded
wasting away in your imagined playground
now I've gotta try ‘n turn my life around

but I'm sick of tv, old songs, ...of who i've been
a half finished book next to a fifth of gin     
a sad story or drink won't erase our last goodbye 
old ways of forgetting don't work                   
no matter how i try    

Ways Of Forgetting

Rock in Dm, 95 bpm

Round and round
(c) HWBerkhout, 2025, sept.

Verse 1
Round and round it goes, I know
Round and round, where the shadows grow
I know that time is weaving rainbows
And I watch them fade or glow

And round and round they come and go
A preacher speaks, but the winds already know
With my feet on the ground I walk
I never listen when the wise men talk

Round and round it goes, I know
When we first met, so many years ago
I know, now our train moves heavy and slow
But I won’t hop off and go

Chorus
Round and round it goes
I chase the echoes where the rivers flow
Don’t know how I know it
But I don’t want to lose my love, not a bit

Oh, round and round it goes
It doesn’t break me, though it hurts my back
When you tried to change me, inside my head
I knew how to stay on my track

Verse 2
Round and round it goes, I know
I’ve watched the seasons turning as they flow
But then you whispered gently, this is what I need to say
You’ve got to leave, find your own way

Oh, these are the circles this song is about
Life can’t exist without
But then they cause us pain, oh, why won’t they go?
I gotta know, gotta know

Chorus
And round and round we go
That’s the truth all dreamers know
I wish you hold me, darling, say you were wrong
Remember our bond when we were still young

Oh, round and round we go
But now I see, we wrote our names in melting snow
We gotta go, we gotta go
Oh, love, we gotta go

Round and Round

Pretender

REASON TO LIVE 

 

by David Snyder 

 

V1 

 

Sit in my car 

look at the sky 

I'm being followed 

and I don't know why 

I know I've committed  

a couple of crimes 

which one was it now 

what did I do this time 

 

PC 

 

and all of the religion 

in this midnight world 

can't save me now 

that I've lost my girl 

 

Ch  

 

Cause she 

was my reason to live 

and she was my reason to forgive 

and now that my girl is gone 

I will drive all night staring into these lights 

and by morning 

It will still all be wrong 

 

V2 

 

I don't remember  

being born 

I don't remember 

growing old 

but I do remember  

those times I was hurt 

and I do remember  

a lifetime of cold 

 

PC 

 

and all of the religion 

in this midnight world 

can't save me now 

that I've lost my girl 

 

Ch  

 

Cause she 

was my reason to live 

and she was my reason to forgive 

and now that my girl is gone 

I will drive all night staring into these lights 

and by morning 

It will still all be wrong 

 

Cause she was my reason to live 

And she was my reason 

My only reason 

To forgive 

 

 

All music and lyrics copyright 2025 by David Snyder 

 

David Snyder: Guitar and vocals, additional instrumentation, mixing, mastering, production

REASON TO LIVE

   When The Night Calls


          In the quiet , I reflect and see
          Every moment,  shapes  a   part of me
         Like a phoenix, I’ll rise from  ash
         turning pain into strength  get a piece of that            

         When the night falls...
         I rise,     stronger than  before...
          Each    struggle, I’ll keep wanting more...

         Life's a struggle, days weigh me down
          A heavy burden, I start to drown                  
        Through the storms, I search for light
          From now on   I will stand and fight 

        When the night calls...
        I rise, I swear I'll try...                     
       When the night calls...
         I’ll rise, through every lie... 

        Every heartbeat feels like a war
       A marching rhythm but I'm wanting more
      To lay my weapons down and sleep
      And find a solace I can keep.

      When the night calls...
      I rise, I swear I'll try...    

    In the silence, my strength is found
    A whisper of hope, breaking through the sound
   Though the road is long, I'll pave my way
   With every step, I won't fade away

     When the night falls...
      I rise,     I swear I'll try...
     Again and again, I'll keep reaching high...
   
     In the shadows, scars tell my tale
     Each one a lesson, I won't let them derail
     Through the heartache, I’m building my flame
     Facing the fears, I'll never be the same

     When the night calls...
     I'll rise, I swear I'll try.
     Again and again I'll keep reaching high

When The Night Calls

R.W. Davis: Lyrics
Me: Music, arrangement, vocals, harmonies, BGVs, mix, master

Was She the One

JUST PUTTING IT OUT THERE 

INTRO 
 
VERSE 1 
They’re  firing  at  UFOs  over  Yemen.  ( Don’t  think  so.)       
Someone's sending messages into space. ( Ain't nothin' new)           
It’s  the  most  terrifying  time  to  be  alive…mmm.. 
Putting  it  out  there.  Just  putting  it  out  there. 
I’m  put…ting  it  out  there. 
 
VERSE 2 
Duelling  on  the  Whitehouse  lawn  at  dawn. ( on  Live  feed.) 
Havoc on  the  senate  floor,  outlawing  law. ( In  God  we  trust )                                   
“Men  and  Women  are  not  the  same”,  evil  speaks,  it  feels  no  shame…mmm.. 
Putting  it  out  there.  Just  putting  it  out  there. 
I’m  put…ting  it  out  there. 
 
CHORUS 
…..just  putting  it  out  there,  why  should  I  care. 
…..just  putting  it  out  there,  the  latest  nightmare. 

SOLO over VERSE 

VERSE 3  
Could  you  love  someone  so  much  your  heart  did  break?  ( Yeah,  me  too.) 
Did  you  ever  know  a  narcissist  you  couldn’t  resist?  ( Had  no  time  for  you.) 
Did  they  play  you  for  a  fool  and  treat  you  cruel? …mmm.. 
Putting  it  out  there.  Just  putting  it  out  there. 
I’m  put…ting  it  out  there. 
 
CHORUS 
…..just  putting  it  out  there,  why  should  I  care. 
…..just  putting  it  out  there,  the  latest  nightmare. 

OUTRO

Just Putting It Out There

A sentimental and sweet song in Bossa Nova style about appreciating the love of your life. Features the sweet voice of Diana Randall.



You

© 2011 Alan D. David, BMI / Diana Randall, BMI
(v1)
You, light up my stars at night
You, make everything so right
I don’t know what I’d do
If you ever went away

(v2)
You, lift my spirits high
You can always make me sigh
I pray to God each night
That you’ll always want to stay

CHORUS
If you ever said goodbye
I don’t know what I’d do
There would be nothing left
Of me without you

Instrumental Verse

(v3)
You, are the life of me
You set my spirit free
Without you I’d never be
The woman I’ve become

(v4)
You, you’ll never know how much
You can thrill me with your touch
It’s like magic when we kiss
When our hearts melt into one

Repeat Chorus

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Just having a little fun last Sunday.
I am playing the lead guitar and via my breath and keyboard controllers the Swam Tenor Sax.  Band-in-a-Box is supplying the balance of the tracks using my sound sources.

Sunday's Groove

I've been a guitarist since the age of 15 and writing songs since then, albeit more prolifically since 2000. I prefer strong melodies and to borrow chords to move outside of the diatonic. Usually, the song mix contains my vocals, guitars and sometimes bass, with drums, keys and other instruments auto-generated. The tracks uploaded in my Soundcloud are attempts to 'illustrate' the idea and sound I imagined when writing the songs. At best, the quality of recordings are demo quality. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear!

Running out of options

Andrew of the antipodes