Remix of our track "Some Kind Of Return".
The original can be listened to here:
https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/some-kind-of-return

Oh, to find the answer to it 
Some way to make the pieces fit 
Clear space and freedom 
Clear space, enough to think 
Why does the girl not take control 
Is there any answer to it 
Why does the girl not take control 
Is there any answer 

I had a feeling that you’d been lost 
You took some time to return 
And in the place that you’d been gone 
Was there any answer there 

You took it to the mountains 
Took it to the ocean 
And you flung it on the breeze 
Why does the girl not take control 
She found the one 
That she’d looked long for 
Made the pieces fit 
Gave the answer yes 
She’d never even dared to dream he could exist 
And when she found herself at his door 
She gave away the rest.

Some Kind Of Return (Clear Space Mix)

Smile

Smile (Demo Version)

The lyrics for this song were inspired by another song Gina did - https://soundcloud.com/gina-graham/paper-planes
And thusly she mused - What if you made up with a friend (after a fight?) by throwing them a paper plane .... no words used....And it could be done out of the blue, unexpected. I think it would get a smile. 
And “yes” is often a good answer that can bring a smile also.

If you reeeeallly like Smile, you can download it here: https://catcameback.bandcamp.com/album/smile

There's also a remix we've added to Soundcloud as of July 24: https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/smile-zen-heartbeat-mix

You can see our lyric video for "Smile" here: https://youtu.be/V2vHPK48cN4

Do do do do do ....
I’m going to make
Someone smile today 
It’ll be in a very simple way 
Oh so light
And no mistake 
I’m going to make 
Someone smile today 

Do do do do do ...
I’m going to make 
Someone smile today 
I’m going to tell 
Someone yes today
I’m going to be 
Someone’s high today 

Bolder than bright blue days 
Into your world
Clearer than a cool night
I’m still your girl 
Warmer than sun baked earth
Look in your eyes

You’ll be my heart pounding

Keep Me Forever

Here's a sneak preview of new music we've been working on. This is "Speakeasy" from our upcoming EP which is tentatively titled "9000 Things To See".
There's a also a video for it you can see here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSPE-ubsnrE

9000 Things To See

Want Me Forever?

Speakeasy Ditty

A few months back we recorded a song called "Smile" and one comment  about it stuck out in particular - that it was a meditation in song. While I was making this remix it occurred to me that it was sounding very contemplative and zen like, so without further ado here is our meditation on a meditation! 
You can hear the original version here: https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/smile 
Or if you really like it, it's also here on Bandcamp: https://catcameback.bandcamp.com/album/smile

Smile (Zen Heartbeat Mix)

For your viewing pleasure, there's also a video you can watch here: https://youtu.be/2q5D_e7MJrc

This one had a weird ride to the finish line. This song began when Graeme tried and failed miserably to play a piece by Erik Satie on the piano. Failed to play Satie but did get a demo out of it originally called "Three Fishermen".
Gina wrote lyrics and added her wonderful vocals before Graeme decided to re-write the music to the first half of the song. But we got there in the end! 
Says Gina about the song - The lyrics were inspired by Australian well-known artist, Julia Stone, her song, "Dance" and its Official Video. "My Colours" is about the simple effect of one person upon another and the joy created thereby.

My Colours

A bit of a departure for us but a pretty one. Gina says about it - This song was inspired simply by being outdoors in my backyard at the closing of a summer day. At such times it is easier to find a peacefulness while forgetting the troubles of time and various entanglements, opposing vectors and misunderstandings which are often on the plates of those who live.

Lyrics:

Before the light fades completely
While the tiny creatures sing their praise
While the soft light lingers
And the winged ones call goodnight
A chance to re-create
The simple life

And all our different chords and changes
Minors and majors
Should fit in 
Not be lost but loved
If I’m made of backwards misfitting pieces
It was you who placed them so
I never wanted to be the part
You don’t want to know

The steps I now walk
The places I enter
My moves and meanings
The waves that I cause
The lines that I write
The days I make better
I give them to you figment of my fondest mind (x3)

The Simple Life

The number of ways to express loss? I think it must be infinite. The acuteness of pain and desperation is quite something and it cries out to be made beautiful. This is a breakup song. 
Note from Graeme - can I be the first to say - how good is Gina's singing on this? 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

I'm sure it’s unhealthy
To live at the edge
Of a gaping hole like this
My favourite things 
Keep on falling in
I can’t hold them back

When you first left
I could camouflage it
With substitutes
But they don’t stand up
They don’t stand the test
I just saw right through them all

Please believe that anything
I ever said or did in any way
Was never ever ever 
Meant to smite you 
And please believe that anything
I ever said or did in any way 
Was never ever ever ever meant to spite you
Nothing was meant to go against the grain
Nothing was meant to cause you 
Grief or pain
The only thing I wanted 
For the wonder that was us
Was to delight you

Sometimes someone needs to know it’s all or nothing
Sometimes someone steps out of the crowd
Rises high above them
She can see him for miles
I’ll be yours forever
If that’s allowed
Will you hear me now
I say I’m sorry
I think I know exactly how it hurts
Can we talk it out 
You gotta know I’m sorry

Camouflage

A song in which we channel our inner Portishead........

I guess it was just my own world
After all
Having you as the other part
Was nothing more
And nothing less than illusion

Oh you really fooled me good
Oh so good
Good, as in pleasantly 
And good as in sublimely
Good as in nothing wanting
As in I thought you were just too good to be true

CHORUS
Who was the one
Who always said forever and ever
Don’t forget
Who was the one who always said
We were a perfect fit
Who was the one 
Who had no doubt 
The future lay right ahead of us
Who was the one who said
That we were all that we needed
Don’t forget (x3)
It was I all along

Having you as the other part
Was nothing more
And nothing less than illusion

Oh you really fooled me good
Oh so good
Good, as in completely
And good as in oh so very cleverly
And good as in I was good and gone for you 
As in you had me hook line and sinker good

Repeat CHORUS

Oh you fooled me good
Oh so good
As in your disguise was crafted with care
But I had no idea 
They made those costumes
In such a slim fit

Slim Fit

Graeme says.....This started off as a vaguely pleasant but unremarkable little instrumental demo which I'd filed away wondering what, if anything could be done to bring it up to scratch....... Luckily, along came Gina who breathed some new life into it and it ended up becoming this chilled out little pop song....
Gina says....This song is a ramble about life going off into other directions than you had originally planned and then finding that you need to re-start with that original plan because the side-track ended up a dead end.....

I lost my reason for coming
While I was talking to you 
I didn't know that someone
Could be so real
I lost my reason for coming 
While I was talking to you 
Never dreamed that someone
Could give me that feel
mmmmm
And you were travelling right
In the same direction as me
And you were so real 
And you gave me that feel
So I went forward with you
Down along your streets
Anywhere with you
Perfect place to be mmmm

And now I'm trying 
And I won't stop
I got my heart set
On turning this around
Turning this around once again

But now I'm stepping on sparks
It's a one way game
There were always two sides to be sure
Oh you took care to only show me one
Until flipping
Lands the other side up 
And I'm down.
So down

So yeah I'm back at the front door
Trying to recall
My reason for coming
Yeah I'm back at the front door
Wish I could recall
My reason for coming

But there's that feel and so real
Just like when I was talking to you.

Keep me forever

Sidetracked Dream

Another song that took a lot of twists and turns before it became the finished piece here. The original music was a piano piece backed by the ticking of a grandfather clock called "Time & The Beautiful Cold". Somehow we ended up with a piece of music completely & utterly different - dark and moody -  a sort of electronic music tone poem. I think the only part that survived vaguely intact to the final mix was the "take me everywhere" part in the middle but if you listen really closely at about the 0:56 second mark you can faintly hear some tambourine via headphone bleed from the original demo 🤪
My oldest son told me this is his favourite Cat Came Back song 😼

I don’t wanna talk about
Everything that kept going wrong
It was always going to end

You were never outside of a circle
You were never shaded out or in
You were never coloured over
Someone else’s hues
In the clearing 
Taking steps
Begin again, begin again

Take me everywhere with you
I’ll take the jungle paths 
Take me everywhere with you
I’ll take the jungle paths 
Right by your side

And we never have to wait for answers
With an empty cup
And the footpath staring back
And we never have to be left standing
With a tired gaze
Just a world to look through
And we never have to long for holding
Or a place to rest 
Where everything sleeps

And we never have to be left wanting
the one to love
Given always to keep

Take me every where with you
Take me everywhere with you
Take me everywhere with you
Begin again, begin again
Begin again, begin again

Begin Again

Please!!! check out the video conceived and created by our Canadian friend Francois Cormier - https://youtu.be/9mdyKK6TEWQ 

Also his truly fantastic collection of music here - https://soundcloud.com/francois-john-cormier

Disintegrator Fairy was something we jokingly considered as a band name for about 2 seconds way back when. But at a later date Gina still had the concept in her head and it inspired these lyrics....

I’m not going to beg of you
Plead with you
Or cry to you
I’m not going to give in to the wall
Or bruise my hands against it
I’m not going to shout that you might hear
And I’m not going to undo your cool

Oh they say our demise
Was hardwired from the start
But it’s all atoms, bad energy 
As far as I can see
And I won’t concede defeat
By this force of make-believe
Oh I’m going to be your disintegrator fairy

Built it out of logic 
So fine and so strong
But just let me 
Within your proximity
Like a warm breeze
Down, down brick by brick
Then all at once it’s gone
No need to shout that you might hear
And I won’t undo your cool

I’ll be your disintegrator fairy
I’ll take it down
So easy down down
I’ll take it down
Oh they say our demise
Was hardwired from the start
But it’s all atoms, bad energy 
As far as I can see
And I won’t concede defeat
By this force of make-believe
Oh I’m going to be your disintegrator fairy

Disintegrator Fairy

After a weird period of writer's block / distractions / major and minor inconveniences of everyday life / lethargy / half written stubbornly unfinished songs - it looks like the gears on the musical machine might be ever so slowly grinding their way into motion for us again (we hope!!) as a few new things seem to be tentatively rolling off the production line....
This is the first new thing we've written in a while and I joked to Gina that it sounds like it belongs on a horror movie soundtrack - ironic in that the original demo was a cute little piano thing that morphed into this......

Lyrics:

I’ve got a special knife
Laser precise
I’ve got a special knife
And practically painless
Just needs a little trust
To cut out the dark parts
I’ll use it on you if you let me close enough

I won’t hurt you 
I won’t hurt you 
I won’t hurt you though you may feel some pain
I won’t hurt you 
I won’t hurt you 
I won’t hurt you though you may feel some pain

Cut out the dark parts and let you out
Cut out the dark parts and let you out

I’ve got a special knife
Laser precise
I’ve got a special knife
And practically painless
Just needs a little trust
To cut out the dark parts
I’ll use it on you if you let me close.

Knife / The Temperature

Knife

Here's a very tentative new thing. 
This piano version is more stately and atmospheric while the alternate demo version is more fun and probably catchier. Both versions have their charms - we'd be really interested to hear which version people prefer!

You can hear the very different demo version here ---->> https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/clay-boombox-demo-version

You won’t hear me ask you if it’s right
I know what it’s like the other side
You won’t see me kiss the day goodnight
I will meet you only in the light

No more losing ground
Not for us
Not this time around
Take in everyone
That we can

She was trying to guide it to her dream
The clay was unaccustomed to her hands
She had yet to find the surest way
To make perfection from the falling clay

She was just trying to make good things come true
With parts and pieces bending upside down
He just knew he’s found the surest way
To keep from getting caught in falling clay

Clay (Piano Version)

Here's the demo mix that the final version came from - a bit different! 
And if you haven't heard the more dignified version 🤪 ---- you can hear it here ----->  https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/clay-piano-version.

We're also just finishing up mixing a couple of brand new songs which we really like, and the next one we'll be posting after this one is a candidate for my (Graeme's) favourite CCB song so far and Gina really shines on it......stay tuned!!


You won’t hear me ask you if it’s right
I know what it’s like the other side
You won’t see me kiss the day goodnight
I will meet you only in the light

No more losing ground
Not for us
Not this time around
Take in everyone
That we can

She was trying to guide it to her dream
The clay was unaccustomed to her hands
She had yet to find the surest way
To make perfection from the falling clay

She was just trying to make good things come true
With parts and pieces bending upside down
He just knew he’s found the surest way
To keep from getting caught in falling clay

It's Only Time

Clay (Boombox Version)

I was going through old files on my computer and found this - looks like the master copy is lost and all we have is this lossy MP3 but we might as well wack it up onto Soundcloud for posterity.....just me on pokey rudimentary piano, Gina on gorgeous vocals and the drummer we use while our demos are still in the very early phase of the creative process, the ubiquitous Mr. G.Arage-Band.....who is always upset 😡 when we replace his parts in the final versions of the songs........🤣
This version has different chords to what we ended up using in the finished version.
If you want to hear the "official" version you can find it here ----> https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/smile
And if you really want more, you can find the cute remix which we quite like here --->  https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/smile-zen-heartbeat-mix

Smile (Simple Piano Version)

This new song came together as both of us found ourselves laid out at exactly the same time with very similar ailments - severe nerve pain which completely wiped us both out for weeks. Both of us on the mend now though, thank goodness, that kind of pain SUCKS.....
Gina is the star of the show here (as always!). 
She says this song is about how memories can be so strong that present time perceptions of things like air temperature and even humidity get perceived in terms of the memory attached to it.....

And I'd be remiss to neglect how coincidentally topical the title is given the weather we've had here in Sydney and in The Blue Mountains since the back end of last year. In my little town up in the Mountains we've had 113 days of nearly constant rain over the last few months, while many areas in our state of New South Wales and Queensland above us have been hit by multiple "once in a generation floods" in just a matter of a few weeks....

I know the temperature
Of the morning air
By the joy of proximity
And time with no time
I know the air

I know the steps of spring
By the order
Of the blooms
I gave to you 
I know the softest violet hue
I know the signs

I know the time 
By the beauty now
I gave to you then
I know the time

I know the colour blue
By the gums outline
I know the clouds
By magnitudes and height
I know the horizon far
By the way I think of home

I know these kinds of things
By my love
When I fly to you
When I fly to you
When I fly to you
When I fly to you
When I fly to you

The Temperature

Just keep calm
While I untie the knots
I'll get them looser bit by bit
And I won't stop

Please don't struggle now
Take a breath 
Count to ten
I'll be steady till the end
It just takes time

Take a walk around the block
Drive your good son to the shops
Check your mailbox
Watch TV
Photograph nice things for free
It's only time

I'm working at the broken things
The parts that bear my name
I"m working at the tangled parts
No fear, no blame
Let me absorb your fears
Take your worries
Your frights
Heavy traffic, parking spots 
Or lack thereof

Find a new toy, online shops
Paint little cars, kept in a box
Blend the morning, coffee three
Then make her walk naturally

It's only time
It's only time
It's only time

Its Only Time

Ok so strictly speaking this is not a Cat Came Back song.....but....I wrote this today while I was trying to work on a new CCB song and it was too much fun to just leave it sitting on my computer gathering virtual dust...
The CCB song I was working on wasn't happening so in frustration I erased 99.9% of what was there and intended to start again. What happened instead was this bass heavy jam thing.
Time flew past and when I later emerged from my music room night had fallen and I went out into to lounge room where was my wife was camped out watching the second Matrix movie. What are we going to do about dinner? I asked. She shrugged her shoulders. Well, I said, there's some vegetarian Pad Thai in the freezer, we could make do with that I suppose??
And so I sat with the wife eating Pad Thai and watching the Matrix. Now she's gone to bed and I'm here uploading this to Soundcloud and thinking about grabbing a beer....

Pad Thai & Keanu Reeves

Is anyone still out there?
Well hello there if you are taking some of your valuable time to read this! As the lyrics to this (probably)final song say, its been a long while……
The last time I checked into Soundcloud was maybe last December, wow…. 
I packed up for a holiday in Hawaii, ran the Honolulu Marathon, watched a volcano erupt, cast my dog’s ashes into a lava field and drank a tropical island's worth of cocktails while watching the sunset with my wife. And then returned a few weeks later decidedly unenthused about the Cat and my collaborator.
Gina had been making noises about returning to an on again / off again musical partner. That wasn’t unexpected and was actually a bit of a relief as I hadn’t been enjoying this for a while. Our last few songs had been tortuous to finish, including this one which was finally finished I think way back in October 2022.
Cat Came Back was always a lot like an arranged marriage - nothing at all in common but we kind of made it work 3 minutes at a time. But by late last year, it had become very hard work. And as you fellow Soundclouders know, outside of personal satisfaction, the rewards for all of that hard work are not very large. So, if the personal satisfaction is gone, there’s not a lot left to motivate oneself. 
In addition to that, there were a few rather large elephants in the room regarding my collaborator that I won't go into but nevertheless constantly weighed very heavily on my mind throughout our time together and I was finding these increasingly difficult to continue to ignore for the sake of making music together.
So anyway, when I returned a perhaps brief hiatus accidentally turned into this - silence for what, 7-8 months? Haven’t picked up an instrument in all that time and they currently sit in my garage gathering dust. Took up Chess, what a rabbit hole that is! Continued running. Listening as always to a lot of old jazz. Continued seemingly never ending renovations to my house. Spent a lot of time with my lifelong friend, William Styron’s Black Dog, as a matter of fact he's here sitting right by my side now. 
So what now? I sat down a few days back and listened to a few things that were unfinished as of late last year. Maybe its time to start again. Find a new collaborator or two? Anyone know anyone who might be a match?
In the meantime I’ll dip my toe in and check out what some of my favourite Soundclouders have been up to while I was away. I'm sure I've missed out on some really great stuff.

Minor Exotica (Turned To Black)

Was digging into the vaults searching for something interesting for a new music project I'm hoping will see the light of day later in the year.
Came across this instrumental demo I recorded back in the days when we were putting 9000 Things To See together.
This piece ended up becoming the song Begin Again although its probably not very recognisable in this original demo form. 
I think the only thing that survived and made it into the final song was the bassline, which truth be told I was too lazy to record again after all the re-writes the song went through!
If you want to compare this to how it finally turned out - you can hear the final song here:

https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/begin-again

Instrumental Demo - "Time & The Beautiful Cold"

Would you like lyrics while you listen? Here's the lyric video:
https://youtu.be/0KmTErPJZbo

The music for this song came out of the keyboard after getting home at around 2am one night. Lyrically Gina says this is a few thoughts from the moon or what it might think if it did think at all....
Fancy a remix? Listen to the chill mix here:
https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/2am-morning-after-remix

From The Other Side

Fancy hearing a remix? You can listen to the chill out version here:
https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/every-good-thing-take-a-breather-remix?in=cat-came-back/sets/remixes-volume-1

Every Good Thing

A bit of a musical fairy tale - the story of never giving up in trying to reach someone who has locked themselves in.
If you'd like to find a comfy chair, grab a hot chocolate and read this fairytale along with the music you can find the lyric video here:
https://youtu.be/IBP5G8FODIc

The Other Side

View the music video for this song here: https://youtu.be/KtnPv1_OBbI

A Different July

Makers Of A Storm

Unwind You

A chilled out remix of our track "Every Good Thing".
You can hear the original here -
https://soundcloud.com/cat-came-back/every-good-thing

Every Good Thing (Take A Breather Remix)

The Cat is currently sleeping while I look for a singer....
If you're interested in being part of Cat Came Back V2.0......drop me a line.....

Cat Came Back (up to 2023) were:
Gina Graham - vocals 
Graeme Mc Pherson - bass, keyboards, samples, beats, production. 
Music written by Graeme, words by Gina.

Our music can also be found on most of the popular streaming platforms but I can't guarantee it will always be there or even here on Soundcloud for that matter.... 
So if you really liked anything you heard here and want to keep it, please visit our Bandcamp page. Or if not ours, support someone else's music you've heard here - it's a tangible gesture that will make their day. 
There's a link below to my personal Bandcamp purchases and recommendations, many of which were artists I discovered here on Soundcloud.

Thanks for listening, Graeme.

Cat Came Back

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