NaSoWriMo 2016!  Plus, I've added an extra dimension - I wrote the names of 15 different instruments on scraps of paper, and every day I pull one from the hat to add as a construct with the daily prompt.  It definitely keeps things interesting!


NaSoWriMo 2016

in front of crowds it stands to state it's case
each word a hollow promise filled with fear
for if they knew the truth behind it's face
it's only hope for life would disappear
a life built by delusions gold and grand
skyscrapers of the self in shining steel
but as the dirt below turns into sand
our mother earth begins her final meal
impossible to see without eyes closed
impossible to hear from any sound
our wisdom lies beneath the statue posed
our wisdom grows from seeds below the ground
the ides of march have come but are not gone
to bring the waves that crash into the dawn

prompt:  Write a sad song.  A song that makes you cry...a song that makes your heart hurt...a song you want to listen to over and over...

(I cheated a bit on this one too.... pulled this from a song I wrote in march... sometimes you just can't write an entire song every day!) :)

Ides Of March - Day 23 of NaSoWriMo

short demo for a dance song I'm working on

Prompt:  Write a song about someone (or something) you love in this world.  


"Geminized"  - Day 14 of NaSoWriMo

prompt:  The prompt for day five is to write a song that is inspired by the musical theater genre.

this is a song sung by a character who has reached the end of his rope with anxiety, and decides he needs to escape.  

"It Could Happen" - Day 5 of NaSoWriMo

prompt:  Today's prompt is "Secrets." Everyone has had one. Let's explore what it means keep things from others and have things kept from us.

"Wanderin' On" - Day 6 of NaSDoWriMo

Prompt:  write a song using an instrument you find. It could be spoons it could be a family members band instrument.

I decided to raid my daughter's instrument box, sit on the rug, and let loose.   

Kid's Corner - Day 7 of NaSoWriMo

Prompt:  Today's prompt is "Science." 
Write a song that is inspired by or uses science in some way.



Abduction - Day 9 of NaSoWriMo

NaSoWriMo Prompt:  Space! The final frontier.

Props to Don Cherry on this one- i decided to rock the pocket trumpet on this'n!



Traces of Space are Embracing My Face  - Day 10 of NaSoWriMo

Prompt:  Write a song about a friend or enemy. Maybe your best friend or worst enemy. You know the one!

Sorry about about the Spanish (both in writing and in pronunciation) - I don't speak the language :)

Lyrics:

debo dejarte ahora
la ciudad en las montañas
ya no puedo vivir aqui
yo no puedo sobrevivir en este lugar
esta ciudad de los demonios

han robado mi alma
y ahora estoy vacia
yo estoy deseando y vaciar
con sin hogar

no pertenezco aqui
voy a ahogar y morir
si me quedo

usted me engaño
con su sonrisa malvada
se me han tentado
con tus mentiras

no hay lugar para ti
en mi corazon





La Ciudad De Los Demonios - Day 11 of NaSoWriMo

Today's prompt is "humor."

Lyrics:

fresh on my feet on the Peruvian streets
up in the market with mysterious meats
the smell of coconut and sweat in the air
just a bolillo who don't know what to wear

a rainbow parrot and a sinister crow
talkin' to each other sayin words I don't know
the shaman told me everything would be cool
if I just stuck with her and followed the rules

an ayahuasca woman brewin' her tea
with leaves and branches from the chacruna tree
but then i lost her at the medicine shop
and that's when all this yagé started to drop

Chorus:
I'm just a bolillo, on the streets of Trujillo
no soy mas que el pan blanco, ay dios mio
i'm just a bolillo, on the streets of Trujillo,
no soy mas que el pan blanco en Trujillo
solo un trozo de pan blanco en Trujillo

las niñitas dance la marinera
un anciano reading "paz e guerra"
banana phones and eucalyptus tattoos
some oxen bones dropped in porcupine stew

old mother hubbard in some blue flower shoes
her dog, un perro sin pelo de Peru
we're standing outside of la carniceria
i cross the street into the panaderia

the baker hands me some pink sugar galletas
they hit my tongue just like strawberry paletas
he shakes my hand, says I'm his favorite bolillo
no soy mas que el pan blanco, dios mio




Bolillo - Day 12 of NaSoWriMo

Lyrics:

Well he came from the big apple with the city in his blood
she was raised in the Carolinas with her boots all caked with mud
He was takin' him  a vacation to get away from the bally-hoo
when he saw her at the end of the bar and his heart fell with a thud

she'd never met a fella who talked so fast and clean
he was the dapperest dan in all the land that she had ever seen
well they drank and talked and flirted all night until the morning sunshine
they'd fallen in love by the stars up above and it all felt like a dream

Chorus
love just has a way of sneaking up on you sometimes
swoops right in and steals your heart away
ain't never makes a lick of sense, no reason or no rhyme
you'll never know if it will go or stay, cause love just has a way

we'll the two love birds they found a little cabin in the woods
they had their ups and had their downs and did the very best they could
made themselves a home all nestled in the wildwood forest 
came from different worlds, but their love unfurled into a life that sure was good

Prompt:  Write a song about vacation. Who doesn't love a good vacation?

a cowboy love song to be sung around the fire

Love Just Has A Way - Day 13 of NaSoWriMo

prompt:  no prompt, just an original blues song I wrote to fill in for the 15th day.  

(I guess the fact that I wrote it a couple weeks before May is technically cheating, but sometimes you just ain't got time! and I did essentially write and record everything in one day, so at least there's that)

Maggie Valley - Day 15 of NaSoWriMo

Lyrics:

i've been hit, right in the heart
i got hit, right from the start
she won't quit, and i'm breaking apart
i've been hit, right in the heart

every time she's in the room
she kills the sun and she steals the moon
she talks with daggers in her eyes
she walks with swagger, i'm hyptonized, no lie

she take my air and she takes my soul
and she don't cause cause she's rock and roll
she's a silver bullet from a golden gun
she holds the power, i'm holdin' none, dead and done


This one goes out to you Jimi, Noel, and Mitch! 

prompt:  Today's prompt is to write a song about an inanimate object. It could be anything from your iPhone to the kitchen sink.  

(I actually did a slightly different angle and went with a related prompt: write a love song to an inanimate object ... you may have noticed that I often just use prompts as jumping off points ) :)



I've Been Hit - Day 16 of NaSoWriMo

prompt:   no prompt for this one, but I did get a strange call today from a place called Blue Island, IL, and I thought - there's a place called that?  in Illinois?  Let's create a little soundtrack for it :)

Blue Island, Illinois - Day 17 of NaSoWriMo

prompt:  Write a song that features some sort of nonverbal vocalization (like ooh, ah, or lalala...or anything else that moves you).

I was feeling low-energy and uninspired today- but nothing like a little singing to raise the spirits.  I also hadn't played the trumpet in a VERY long while, so it felt good to put some air through the horn for this one  :)

Into The Clouds - Day 18 of NaSoWriMo

prompt: Write a song featuring sounds from an electronic device (Gameboy, cell phone, etc.).

I pulled "a capella" from the hat, so I decided to go with a @JamieLidell inspired number in homage to one of my former homes, NYC.    And get this... the song is exactly a minute long!

Lyrics:

I got a new york minute
just a new york minute
get on the top and let's spin it
you know we in it to win it

New York Minute - Day 19 of NaSoWriMo

prompt:  Write a song in which the "speaker" is your favorite character from a movie.


Down The Lane - Day 20 of NaSoWriMo

prompt:  Write a song that has pauses or moments of silence in it. 

a little something funky and ridiculous... like polyester pants.  

Polyester Pants -  Day 21 of NaSoWriMo

sun beatin’ down, about a hundred degrees
all over town, people beggin’ please, 
please, please, please, I’m down on my knees, 
I need somebody help me lose
these summer blues down in Baton Rouge

got the fans turned on, just as fast as they’ll go
when will the heat get gone, ain’t nobody know, that’s of sho
we need somebody to help us lose
these summer blues down in Baton Rouge

feels like a dutch oven, and we the jambalaya
people pushin’ and a shovin’ to turn the AC up a little higher
higher and higher, everybody’s feelin' on fire
seem like ain’t nobody can lose
these summer blues down in Baton Rouge

prompt:  The prompt for today is use your body. That's right armpit, farting sounds, raspberries, or just good old ham bone. Make that body work! 



Down In Baton Rouge - Day 22 of NaSoWriMo

lyrics (not in order)

á Karavas, en el ladio oeste
á las afueras de la ciudad
á Karavas en el lado oeste
tu cantarás con el corazón
tu bailaras con el corazón
á Karavas a las afueras de la ciudad

prompt:  Today's prompt is write a song that has something to do with a location. It could be recorded on location, it could be about your favorite ice cream stand. 

Karavas Place was a cool little Greek diner in NYC.  In the late hours of the night, my friends and I stumbled upon an amazing band of old cuban musicians killing it their little stage.  I often would have my horn, and they let me sit in (and gave me shots of rum!) they would just keep me up on stage and we would jam into the wee hours.  I played with them a handful of times, and it was some absolutely magical NYC shit.  I will never forget it.  




prompt: 

Á Karavas - Day 24 of NaSoWriMo

prompt:  Write a song influenced by one of your favorite artists/bands/songwriters/poets.

This one is influenced by the great guitarist/composer Francisco Tárrega, who revolutionized classical guitar playing in the 19th century.  His compositions and playing are truly amazing, and steeped in the music of Spain.  This song was specifically inspired by the fact that he ran away from home as a child three different times to Valencia.  

The Road To Valencia - Day 25 of NaSoWriMo

Jamison Sevits is a songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist living in Nashville.  Thanks for listening!