A song about people in war zones, while we watch...
Helplessly, or...(?)

A dirty white dress
(C) HWBerkhout, aug. 3, 2025, Key: C

Solo
Verse 1
I walk through a destructed land,
and a city torn apart.
The dead and wounded are everywhere,
no tree still stands in heart.

Chorus
I could only stare, as tears filled my eyes
I see a child in a devastated street
She wears a torn, dirty white dress 
And no shoes at her feet

Solo
Verse 2
No color left to witness,
just ashes, black and grey.
I hear the moans of fallen souls,
their sounds won’t drift away.

Chorus
I could only stare in disbelief
I see a child in a devastated street
She wears a torn, dirty white dress 
And no shoes at her feet

Verse 3
What kind of world I live in?
Where assholes pretend to be what we need
Why do we follow these sick minds?
Is fear-or apathy-in the lead?

Solo +
Look what they've done,
look what they've done
This world is completely mad!

Chorus
I could only stare, as tears filled my eyes
I see a child in a devastated street
She wears a torn, dirty white dress 
And no shoes at her feet

I could only stare in disbelief
I see a child in a devastated street
She wears a torn, dirty white dress 
And no shoes at her feet
And she's weeping, in her torn, dirty white dress...

Dirty white dress

Karmacopia (Hippies' Triumph) - 2016.

The Moon Wears a Leather Jacket

© 2025 All Rights Reserved Trad Arr B. Merritt, J. Merritt & P. Fulham
Black Dust Blues (Public Domain worldwide) was written and performed by Ma Rainey in 1927. She was a remarkable woman and artist and worth your time to read about.
Janice Merritt: vocal and arrangement
Peter Fulham: guitar and arrangement 
Bud Merritt: lyric tweaks, arrangement, mix, mastering and photo

It was last year, when my troubles began
Lawd it’s been a hard year since this hex on me began
It was all cause a woman said I took her man

She sent me a letter, said she′s gonna turn me round
She said I was evil and she's gonna run me into the ground
She′s gonna fix me so I won't chase her man around

The next day I found black dust round my door
I was out that morning, black dust was all round my door
Soon I was feeling so bad, worse than I ever had before

I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t sleep, had trouble with my feet
In the middle of the night I could hear my own heart beat
It was cold outside but all I was feeling was heat 

Black dust in my window, black dust on my porch mat
I tried to get dressed up but black dust was even in my hat
I didn’t care nothing bout her man, no, I ain’t like that 

I got my own, don’t want her man
I ain’t      like     that

Black Dust Blues

We wake in the morning taking our places
And march to the beat of the drum
Perpetual motion somehow erases
All that we ache to become

And, oh, so we go
But one day the calm will come
Until then I’m holding out for love

Watching it sideways it all seems so shaken
The way that our world ought to be
One of these days our hearts will awaken 
And then we may finally see

That, oh, heaven knows
How the dark will be undone
Until then, I’m holding out for love

Feel this heart inside 
and know it’s always meant to shine
No matter what the world demands
Love and fate have better plans
It’s hard to see now
With eyes closed and head down

But, oh, heaven knows
How one day your kingdom comes
Until then, I’m holding out for love.

(C)2025 Dj Lekich
 
Lyrics and Music by Dj Lekich

Holding Out For Love

R.W. Davis: Lyrics
DC Ron: Music, arrangement, mix, master, vocals, harmonies, BGVs
Image by Freepik

The Trainwreck That's My Life

Right Behind

Cast of Characters:
Cgmaness – @hiddenhands-760647700 – Chris – acoustic guitar, drums, lyrics, vocals, and composition
J.J. Terrell-- @j-j-terrell—JJ-- organ and piano
Entheogenic Psychonaught (Josh Clary)– @josh-clary-1 – four string fretless bass
This song started all the way back in October, when Chris came up with lyrics and a vocal melody to go over his acoustic guitar composition. He also added the drum beat that carries it along, and contrasts Josh's bass part, which he added next. JJ came along shortly after and added his twinkling piano and ambiance thickening organ.
We had all these parts down, but for some reason this sat on the shelf for a few months. Finally we decided to dust it off. Chris mixed it for us expertly, as always, and we decided to put a ribbon on it.
This is an example of Chris's brilliant songwriting, shared with a couple of other musicians who are mutual admirers of his work. This is also a trio within the Eclectic Collective family, as we sometimes do side projects with different iterations of the group. We all hope you enjoy listening to this as much as we enjoyed creating it.

Original lyrics by cgmaness:

Let the night tuck you under,
When you feel you can't go on.
When you want to be happy,
I will be what you want...
And, it's you that makes me happy.
When I'm down on my bad sign.
Washing out all the tie-dye from the blue sky.

Let the Night (The Eclectic Collective)

Early Fall

We all have been there and done this. At a boring meeting or class, semi-watching TV, listening to your spouse, etc. you start to daydream. Your mind wonders far away from where it should be, hence the title.

I am playing the lead guitar and via my breath and keyboard controllers the Swam flute (Bansuri) and the vocal.  Band-in-a-Box is supplying the balance of the tracks using my sound sources.

Far Away Places

Test of the LA Scoring Strings First Chair Violin (legato phrasing)
Backing tracks from Band in a Box
Edited in Reaper
Effects from EZ Mix 2

LA Scoring String First Chair - Legato Violin Test

dcuny