A playlist full of tracks created by the writers, musicians and producers of our music community, "The MusiCollective" - this is the January 2022 edition, which means we've concluded a full year of monthly playlists already! Go us!

A huge congratulations to everyone involved in this. We have a mix of complete recording newbies, seasoned pros and everything in between. All as incredible as each other. 

The MusiCollective is a community of people that get behind each others' projects, for example by helping with songwriting, arrangements, recording and production. It is a continuation of TGS Records (@tgs-records) which started as a lockdown project and has been snowballing new members in ever since. If you'd like to join us, get in touch by emailing themusicollective21@gmail.com or filling in this short form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScgUPAkshXrqaB3yjG3Npa5lZVMs2uqxgzYX77DeZb8HHCYpA/viewform?usp=sf_link

TMC Records - January 2022 playlist

One of the songs that came out of my 1-month songwriting challenge to write a verse or chorus a day (the lyrics are from days 22-25). I'd been binge-listening to "Champagne Problems" by Taylor Swift and wanted to write a simple 4-chord song with a kind of sentimental vibe.

This is part of my second "album", https://soundcloud.com/jenni-grossmann/sets/when-the-curtain-falls

Verse 1
I remember a time when a flick of your wrist could make all clouds drift away
But now the sun’s been hiding out for days
The truth of the matter is
Maybe it’s better this way
What do you say

Chorus x 2
It was all fun and games until it wasn’t
We hit the bottom of the barrel and you know it’s
Never gonna be the same
Why don’t we call it a day / Yea, let's just call it a day

Verse 2
I remember a time when a word from your lips could let the world slip back into place
But now I haven’t heard from you for days
And the truth of the matter is maybe it’s better this way
What do you say?

Chorus x 2
It was all fun and games until it wasn’t
We hit the bottom of the barrel and you know it’s
Never gonna be the same
Why don’t we call it a day / Yea, let's just call it a day

Verse 3
I remember a time when the touch of your hand could wipe all my fears away
But now you don’t understand anything and I think
The truth of the matter is maybe it’s better this way
What do you say?

Chorus x 2
It was all fun and games until it wasn’t
We hit the bottom of the barrel and you know it’s
Never gonna be the same
Why don’t we call it a day / Yea, let's just call it a day

When The Curtain Falls

Fun And Games

Escape

A song about the tragicomic side of somewhat circular romance. I started this a while ago and finally finished it the other week as part of a self-imposed songwriting challenge, and then threw everything at it that I had in the folk department, including an out-of-key tin whistle.

This is part of my second "album", https://soundcloud.com/jenni-grossmann/sets/when-the-curtain-falls

Verse 1
The spark at the start
Is my favourite part
Once the fire is growing
And the flames brightly glowing 
I stare at the ember and I try to remember
The state of the art but I’m lost in the dark
In the end it is always the same 
The flames turn to ashes and here comes the rain

Chorus
So I like this guy, but this guy likes that girl
And that girl likes that guy,
But that guy likes me,
But I’m too blind to see
What kind of sick joke is this honestly?

Verse 2
The attraction is there,
Rainbows and butterflies everywhere
We’re playing ping pong with glances
While weighing up chances
You kick off with some banter
Crap, you probably meant her
Not me, you never do
Cos I’m nothing to you,
In the end the rainbow is just rain,
And my bubbles of hope just get flushed down the drain.

Chorus
So I like this guy, but this guy likes that girl
And that girl likes that guy,
But that guy likes me,
But I’m too blind to see
What kind of sick joke is this honestly?

Bridge
And every bloody time I think I might
Finally be pulling ahead in the race
And I wanna open the door
But it’s not long before
The tailwind turns to slam it back in my face.

Chorus
So I like this guy, but this guy likes that girl
And that girl likes that guy,
But that guy likes me,
But we’re all too blind to see
What kind of sick joke is this honestly?

Outro
In the end it is all just a game,
It started out great, but now it’s shit, what a shame.

The Spark

Buttercup blues

This is the third of our five Christmas covers recorded collaboratively with the musicians of The MusiCollective (TMC) as part of this year’s festive song advent calendar. We’re well into December now, so to crank up the Christmas mood we’re releasing a new track every Sunday leading up to Christmas, and the final one on Christmas Day. We got 38 people on this track spanning all levels of singing and recording experience, brought together by the powers of BandLab, relentless nudging (sorry!) and the mixing magic of our Christmas elves. Very special shoutout to Elliot who has taken the sound quality of this one to the next level with his production skills – not an easy task given the large number of contributions to fit in. The result was well worth the effort – well done, everyone, and Happy Xmas (soon to come anyway)! 

Oh, and full disclosure: we’ve taken the liberty to rewrite the “The yellow and red ones” line, which seemed a bit outdated, to a possibly less racially loaded and more inclusive “For all of the colours” (beautifully sung by Lucy). And while we’re at it – if you cannot hear yourself distinctively on the track, trust that you are in there and blending nicely into the choir Dolby surround sound – we’ll make sure you get a solo line on one of the other tracks if you haven’t already had one 😊

There's also a festive music video to go with this where you can see everyone's faces fly and bounce around on the screen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaGpyW1K2ak&list=PLd8JtUs4dXc5DdwlHiBl_o_8I3ThtWeTn&index=4

Here’s our singers and the rough time stamps when they come in / are most audible:
0:01 – Lucia (@missluciesblues), Pete (@user-340515103)
0:03 – Pete (@user-340515103)
0:13 – Jon (@user-855543074)
0:22 – Lucia (@missluciesblues), David P
0:31 – Alex D, Sophia (@user-898796305)
0:42 – Mark (@user-927129270), Tomás (@tomas_romeiro), Sharon, José, Sonia
1:01 – Chloe (@kloee-b)
1:03 – (War is Over) Sayanti (@gsayanti), Mark (@user-927129270), Jean (@user-449069773)
1:11 – Jenni (@jenni-grossmann), Alex D
1:21 – Sinéad (@sinead-davoren), David P
1:23 – (War is Over) Brittney (@pisgah-official), Jean (@user-449069773), Ilana (@ilana-529025203)?
1:30 – Lucy (@lucoline), Alex D
1:40 – Sam (@sam-robinson-885906690), José, Andrew T (@dusty-cornishman and @someone_else_ahead), Sharon
2:00 – Elliot (@user-560151090), Jenni (@jenni-grossmann)
2:02 – (War is Over) Doug (@doru_uk and @someone_else_ahead), Sandrine, Ilana (@ilana-529025203)
2:10 – Michael W, May
2:20 – Ash (@ashish-matthew), May
2:22 – (War is Over) Naresh (@nareshtatu), Jenni (@jenni-grossmann), Jean (@user-449069773)
2:29 – Thierry, Maggie
2:40 – José, Richard S (@user-141402509), Nick (@eleanor-collides), Ilana (@ilana-529025203)
3:00 – Delta (@deltaoconnor), Theyab, Tomás (@tomas_romeiro), Brian, Jean (@user-449069773)
3:20 – Will, Sharon, Maggie
3:39 – “Happy Christmas” from everyone in various languages
3:58 – Harvey ("Bah Humbug")

Production & mixing: Elliot, Doug
Bass: Kerry
Drum track and string section: James
Piano, guitar, violin, guide tracks: Jenni

Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (John & Yoko) - TMC cover 2021

A someone theatrical song about mistakes, regret and the simultaneous shame and temptation / relief of sharing those feelings with someone else. Or the darkness within. Or something like that anyway. 

It's not actually based on any one specific personal experience, more on that sensation of realising that you haven't been entirely morally flawless in your actions - I wrote the choruses 1-2 years ago and only added the verses much later when I realised it doesn't have to be based on my own life but could also be about a fictional situation or relationship. So it turned into a duet - many thanks to @doru_uk for joining me on this one!

This is part of my second "album", https://soundcloud.com/jenni-grossmann/sets/when-the-curtain-falls

Verse 1
You’re turning your head
Cos I’ve gone and let you down … again.
I know you’re closing your eyes
You’re wondering how many times
we can go round until/before you’re reaching the end.

Pre-chorus
I wanna take your hand so you don’t/before you slip away, 
and let you open up that dark side of me, maybe you’d understand, 
and show me that dark side of you, if you dig deep enough 
maybe you and I are the same.

Chorus 1
Welcome to my gallery of shame
Where all the low lights of my life I’ve tried to bury deep inside are on eternal display.
So stay with me, they’re gonna come back to life
And they will haunt me when you’re gone and I am left here on my own and I can’t hide from the scorn in their eyes.

Verse 2
I’m closing my eyes
You churn out beautiful alibis - again.
You know I could pretend it’s alright
But all the secrets and lies make every crack that opens harder to mend.

Pre-chorus
But then you take my hand, before I slip away, and I fall into that dark side of you, somehow I understand, you crawl into that dark side of me, if we dig deep enough we’ll never come back out of this hole.

Chorus
Welcome to my horror show
Where all the things that I regret the things I never should’ve said are always with me when the curtain falls.
And here comes my parade of mistakes
They’re dancing up and down the stage and singing right into my face
My bittersweet serenade of disgrace.

Bridge
I try to pull you up - I can’t help dragging you down
Into this hall of mirrors on the walls all around.
If we could both stop our spiralling into the ground, one of these corridors could be the way out.

Chorus
Welcome to my gallery of shame
Where all the low lights of my life I’ve tried to bury deep inside are on eternal display.
So stay with me, they’re gonna come back to life
And they will haunt me when you’re gone and I am left here on my own and I can’t hide from the scorn in their eyes.

Welcome to my horror show
Where all the things that I regret the things I never should’ve said are always with me when the curtain falls
And here comes my parade of mistakes
They’re dancing up and down the stage and singing right into my face.

Gallery Of Shame (feat. Doru)

My first full-length LP, but certainly not the last. 

Thanks so much to James Norris for producing this and contributing some beautiful lead guitar, bass, and string parts. And thanks to Kerry Norris for contributing some very cool bass lines!

Spinning

This song was inspired by someone I used to be close friends with as a teenager. Its about growing up, feeling like an outsider, wondering if that person still thinks about you. 

Massive loves to @jenni-grossmann for her beautiful violin and harmonies, once again she has managed to lift my song to the next level!

-------------------------------------------------------
You had me believing we were broken
So we painted our faces and grew our hair
Adolescence spelled out in eyeliner
There's no shortcuts through there

Would you still sing my name
If no-one ever listened?
Still write down how it felt
If no-one ever reads?

All the same kind of nothing
But our nothings don't function the same
Soft and lost and lonely
Long, dark and sustained 

Would you still sing my name
If no-one ever listened?
Still write down how it felt
If no-one ever reads?

But to make yourself feel nothing
To not feel anything
Oh what a waste
What a waste

Would you still sing my name
If no-one ever listened?
Still write down how it felt
If no-one ever reads?

Broken (feat. Jenni Grossmann)

Words, music, performance and production ℗ Ell Freeman 2022.

That's how it starts 
Just a tender patch  
That you dare not scratch 
Though it stings and smarts 

But as the days go past 
Even the softest touch  
Still hurts so much   
That's when it starts  

A fleeting feeling 
That whispers in your head 
No healing  
Just fearing 
The day you wake up dead 

Give me just one more chance
Give me just one more chance

With the gathering moss
Your thoughts turn sad
With the pain of loss
For what you never had

While your daily chore 
Helps to numb the sore 
Slow but sure 
You begin to withdraw 

But there’s that nagging feeling
That screams inside your head
If you don’t start living 
One day you’ll wake up dead

Give me just one more chance
Give me just one more chance

One more chance 
One more chance 

That’s how it starts
That’s how it starts
That’s how it starts, I know 
That’s how it starts, I know because
This is how it ends.

Tender Patch

Walk In Your Shoes (prod. Ell Freeman)

Will they, or won’t they? What did you take from it?
Do say, or don’t say, but get it out the way. 
Maybe, just maybe, you keep me hanging on, 
Don’t take this the wrong way, but even we can see it, clear as day…

But it’s the same thing that happens every day, 
All the time they’re edging closer, then they back away,
Just a little step from going all the way,
Will they or won’t they? 

Will they or won’t they? You aren’t the only one
My way or the highway, the same as anyone
More luck than yesterday? Nothing to come undone
Who labelled us this way? Our time has just begun…

They’re drawn closer together, then they pull away, 
They’re thinking the same things, but feeling scared to say,
But they’re both afraid to take a step away, 
Will they or won’t they? 

Will they or won’t they, at the same time,
Walk through the doorway, I’m getting sick and tired
Will they or won’t they, no there’s nothing else
Prices we won’t pay, [or will we?]

But it’s the same thing that happens every day, 
All the time they’re edging closer, then they back away,
Just a little step from going all the way,
Will they or won’t they?

Will They Or Won't They

Chorus

And you knew there were no roads only a maze
Of all that you were not and could and should have been
They looked for you in the café, cemetery and church
They could not find you and we still have not found you yet

Verse 1

Death is forever and we sing to you with words
That moan and remember
A sad breeze
(Viento del oeste)

Verse 2

Let it be known that you have never truly died
You are the west wind
The shadow of our tears
(Sombra de lagrimas)

Verse 3

We have a thirst for newborn souls and laughter
Thirsty for new songs
That go to the soul
(Conciencia profunda)

Prechorus 1

Behind your eyes
Hermetic song
Breaks open seedlings
(Almanecer de flores)

Chorus repeat

Solo

Verse 4

You said things that go away never return
We respectfully disagree
Sing your restless wait
(Deseo anhelo)

Prechorus 2

Light that blinds
Arc of cry
Impossible to silence

Chorus repeat

Viento del Oeste

A collection of songs recorded at Silver Pine Studios with Eric Molyneux and Rachel Smith. Most of the songs feature the cigar box guitars made by OddBox Guitars

Cry For The Horses

Acoustic guitar track from Lucoline, Lucy Butler's new project (the singer from Sheabou)

Time can heal a hundred wounds

The MusiCollective is a community of musicians that get behind each others' projects, for example by helping with songwriting, arrangements, recording and production. It is a continuation of TGS Records (https://soundcloud.com/tgs-records) which started as a lockdown project and has been snowballing new members in ever since. If you'd like to join us, get in touch by emailing themusicollective21@gmail.com or filling in this short form: https://forms.gle/yhyjNKzWGidVCZgN9

Out of my head :: my soundtrack.

www.stonyhills.band

Tender Patch

ell freeman

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