It's so beautiful and sad: thank you Linda 🌹!!

Paradise #2 (Featuring Iranova)

December Snow

Splinter 
lyrics by McTown Music's David L. Graham
Piano/synths and vocal melody by Kate Stanton
Acoustic and electric guitar, bass by Garry Kirby 
#FAWM2023 #Collab
Splinter 
lyrics by McTown 
music by Kate & Gm7 

VERSE 1 
I'm just a splinter on the family tree 
Daddy heard I was coming 
So he had to leave 
They say he headed south for some kinda job 
And I guess he stayed for something 
But who cares? 
I'm not God. 

CHORUS 
yea, mama lasted as long as granny'd let her 
Then the state said they could do it better 
Put me in a home where I wouldn't be alone 
And God knows...I wasn't 
God knows I wasn't alone 
God knows....God knows 

VERSE 2 
I was a learner in the family ways 
Learned to fake behaving 
Devil knows I prayed 
I skipped school easy but learned all my lessons 
Preacher tried to save me 
But said God 
had a Son 

CHORUS 
yea, mama lasted as long as granny'd let her 
Then the state said they could do it better 
Put me in a home where I wouldn't be alone 
And God knows...I wasn't 
God knows I wasn't alone 
God knows....God knows 

BRIDGE 
Well, I learned about love and about hate 
Forgiveness and hope 
Some of that had to wait 
I'm just a splinter, a splinter 

OUTRO 
I'm just a splinter on the family tree 
but God knows 
God knows....God knows

Splinter (Feat. Gm7 and McTown)

“The Way” started with a piano melody and kept unfurling as I healed from the loss of a few loved ones last year…which was capped off with my beautiful family dogs both passing. The lyrics to this song took on their loss, but the whole thing is really an open entry from my own grief process through to happiness again.

Written, performed and produced by Jason Langvee
Mixed & Mastered by Uezurii (https://audius.co/uezuriiwav)

The Way

Original lyrics and vocal performance by the enchanting Iranova @ira-lovessweet

[ d o w n l o a d a b l e ]

Original
Music made in Garageband

Lyrics:

Sitting here, searching my mind in the dark
Trying to find a dignified way out...

I am trying to leave you
But its harder than i thought
I feel so sorry for you..
You say you need me
Beg me not to go
But i have to find out who i am....

But its hard
I feel so bad
I will not hurt you, or make you sad...

I am trying to leave you
But its harder than i thought
I feel so sorry for you
You say you need me
Beg me not to go
But i have to find out who i am...

I must be strong
Decide what i want to do
Even if it might end in me hurting you...

I am trying to leave you
But its harder than i thought
I feel so sorry for you...
You say you need me
Beg me not to go
But i have to find out who i am...

I need to find my way
I need to heal my heart
I know i have to take this fight...

I am trying to leave you
But its harder than i thought
I feel so sorry for you...
You say you need me
Beg me not to go
But i have to find out who i am...

I am trying to leave you
But its harder than i thought
I feel so sorry for you...
You say you need me
Beg me not to go
But i have to find out who i am....

Ohhhhh..........

Trying To Leave You (original)

Lyrics:
It is always on the lurk
...merciless, so merciless
Interfering everywhere
...heedless, so heedless
Has to judges everything
...soulless, so soulless
Influences you all the time
...shameless, so shameless

Riot in the head,
makes you crazy and mad
Jumble in the brain,
gives you harm and pain

Listen, careful, realize, that's all just your monkey mind
Shows wrong way and it makes your soul blind
Wake up, heedful, feel it all, that's all just your monkey mind
Let it go and peace will you find

It kills silence and leisure
...peaceless, so peaceless
Always chattering to you
...ruthless, so ruthless
Jumping wild from thought to thought
...restless, so restless
Doesn't let you sleep at night
...shameless, so shameless

Riot in the head,
makes you crazy and mad
Jumble in the brain,
gives you harm and pain

Listen, careful, realize, that's all just your monkey mind
Shows wrong way and it makes your soul blind
Wake up, heedful, feel it all, that's all just your monkey mind
Let it go and peace will you find

Riot in the head,
makes you crazy and mad
Jumble in the brain,
gives you harm and pain

Listen, careful, realize, that's all just your monkey mind
Shows wrong way and it makes your soul blind
Wake up, heedful, feel it all, that's all just your monkey mind
Let it go and peace will you find

***************************************************

Created and conducted 2024 by Kapellmeister Krause

Monkey Mind

Happy Friday to my SC friends. Today’s musical offering is very special to me because it signifies a breaking away from my old patterns. Long story short… old Justin was pretty set in his music making/production routines (solo work belongs on solo albums. Collab work belongs on collab albums. And never the two shall meet). 

But new Justin is proving to be surprisingly more flexible in his thinking; an interesting (I might even go as far as to say… shocking) result of my new paradigm. And while it might seem like a ‘nothing burger’ to most people… the way my brain is wired, this is a huge change… and one I am grateful for.

So today I happily offer my first collab song, also intended for my first hybrid album. The song is called ‘Life In Twilight’… and my guest artist is our dear friend, Carlos Vivanco (https://soundcloud.com/carlosvivanco-1, https://carlosvivanco1.bandcamp.com), offering up the lovely Alto Sax and Guitar you hear in this piece

If you haven’t already crossed paths with Carlos, you are missing out. He is one of the most prolific people I have encountered in my travels. He plays about 30+ instruments, each with impressive skill. And if the instrument doesn’t exist... he creates it himself. And 'musician' is just one aspect of his inspiring and adventurous life. He is a great example of a person who discovered his passions early, and is now living a beautiful life pursuing those passions. We need more people like him in this world, reminding us of what is truly important.

On a personal level, the stuff Carlos has taught me over the years has helped me ease into this new sober life with tremendous grace. The music theory and instrumental lessons have helped make my sonic worlds more sophisticated (and therefore more rewarding to craft). And the moving and breathing meditations (Chi energy exercises) have proven fundamental to my mental/spiritual well being too. Needless to say, he has been a major influence in my evolving life; and I will be forever grateful. 

Carlos, I am honored beyond words that you are the guest artist on my first hybrid album. It signifies a great new direction for me. I’m excited to be on this path, and I’m glad you agreed to join me. 

To everyone else, we hope you enjoy “Life In Twilight”, the first of two new songs with Carlos that will ultimately wrap up my upcoming album “What Color Is Your Paradox?” 

(And yes... this is the last song I still had in the archives from my little break; originally finished on 1/20/2024. It's all going to be new content from here on out). :)

Paradox?

Life In Twilight | Carlos Vivanco & GrevusAnjl

Cast of Characters:
One Man Verity Show-- @one-man-verity-show – Scotty -- guitar
mistermark-- @user-432503709 -- Mark – percussion and triangle 
cgmaness-- @user-419254289-15129531 – Chris – guitar
TexMex Shaman–@texmex-shaman –Stephen– guitar, production, and mix
J.J. Terrell–@j-j-terrell –electric piano
K2 and the Three [and the Four]--@k2andthe3, @k2-kara -–Ken–drums
Entheogenic Psychonaught (Josh Clary)–@josh-clary-1 –- five string fretless bass, seed idea
Composition-- The Eclectic Collective
This song started with Josh coming up with a bassline and the arrangement. He started it as a project for the Eclectic Collective, so they were all immediately involved. Ken first laid down his rock solid groove of a drum beat to complete the rhythm section. Scotty was first after that, adding some melodic/rhythmic guitar magic to the mix. Stephen then blew the doors off of it when he added his melodic, dirty guitar to it. JJ was up next with his funky electric piano to fill it in. Chris then came in and added the trippy, swirling, psychedelic guitars. Mark also came along towards the end and added some really cool, but subtle percussion, and if you listen for it, a triangle in there, too.
  Of course every good song needs a good producer. Stephen was able to wrangle this into a good mix, thankfully. He also very cleverly came up with and added the psychedelic break in there between the first and second verses. Chris also added some really cool vocals to that part, too.
  This one was a lot of fun to make, and was our second song with Scotty, with whom we really enjoy making music. Josh named it such because he wanted the spirit of welcoming lots of musicians to come through. We hope you enjoy listening to this song as much as we enjoyed making it.

Come On In (Eclectic Collective)

Sometimes

ANYPLACE ANYWHERE ANYTIME

The golden ages of the past
Seem distant now, seem distant now
And all the things we said back then
Keep coming around, keep coming around

CHORUS
So, in my life, i dont know what we're coming to
So, in the world i don't know what its coming to 

Its a strange combination
Higher tech but a lesser nation
We now have hot showers and all mod cons
But we step over people on the way to proms

Chorus

Our politicians seem so pointless now, so pointless now
The lifeblood has been sucked out of the here and now

381. the older i get, the more leftwing i become (harding).mp3

Lyrics, guitar and vocal by Linda Straub

Goodbye


I sold your treasured car today
like you, it could no longer stay.
You don't need it up in heaven,
as on angel wings, you flew away.

I sat a moment in the car lot,
and tried my best not to cry.
it was the last piece I had of you,
and so I bid you both goodbye.

I looked out the showroom window,
and at your shining baby, I sat and stared.
I couldn't keep myself from crying,
as I pictured you standing beside it there. 

Honey, you don't need your car in heaven,
now you have angel wings to fly;
and so I sit here in this car lot,
and bid you both this last goodbye.


Honey, you don't need your car in heaven,
now you have angel wings to fly;
and so I sit here in this car lot,
and bid you both this last goodbye.

Bye babe.



Goodbye (Original)-

This song tells my story, one that begins in heartbreak but is carried forward by strength and love. It’s about losing the two people who meant the world to me—first my mother, a year and a half ago, and then my father, just over a month ago. The pain of those losses hit me harder than I could have ever imagined. It was like the ground beneath me had shattered, leaving me to stumble through life, unsure of how to carry on.

I remember those early days after my mother passed. Every corner of the house echoed with her absence, every memory a sharp reminder of what I had lost. She was my guide, my safe haven, and suddenly, she was gone. But even in her absence, her words stayed with me: *“Keep going forward and always look ahead.”* At the time, they felt impossible to follow. How could I move forward when every step felt heavier than the last?

Then, just as I was starting to stand again, I lost my father. That blow felt like it would break me. My father was my rock, the one who gave me strength even when I couldn’t find it in myself. Losing him so soon after my mother felt cruel, like life was testing how much one heart could bear. I wanted to crumble, to give in to the weight of it all.

But I didn’t. I couldn’t. I felt like I had no choice but to hold myself together, even when I was falling apart inside. I became so good at pretending everything was fine—smiling when I wanted to cry, saying “I’m okay” when the truth was far from it. I thought if I looked strong on the outside, maybe the pain wouldn’t show. But inside, I was crumbling. That’s why the title *DONT PRETEND* is so important to me. It’s a reminder that hiding behind a mask of strength only makes the pain heavier to bear.

Somewhere deep inside, I felt both of them urging me on. My mother’s voice, soft and steady, reminding me to keep moving forward. My father’s presence, strong and unwavering, giving me the courage to do so. And then there was the thought—the one that has kept me going through the darkest nights—that they’re together again. I imagine them side by side, holding hands, smiling in a place where pain and loss don’t exist. That image gives me a bittersweet kind of peace, a sense that love truly does endure beyond the bounds of this life.

I miss them more than words could ever capture. Some days, the ache in my heart feels unbearable, like a wound that will never fully heal. But alongside the pain, there’s love—so much love. And it’s that love that drives me, that helps me stand tall even when I feel like falling apart. I carry them with me in everything I do, in every choice I make.

I hold on to the hope that, when my time comes, I’ll see them again. I’ll run to them, and we’ll be together once more, in a place where the sorrow of separation no longer exists. Until then, I’ll keep walking forward, step by step, guided by their love, the strength they gave me, and the truth that I no longer need to pretend.

DONT PRETEND (WITH MY STORY)

Song about playing quantum leap in your own life while the ice is melting and the waves are coming.

Here I am


I am drawn to folk, blues, soft rock, and country music, new and old. I love songs that tell a story, especially the Irish, English, and Scottish ballads of long ago because their stories are often timeless, and most everyone at any time can relate to. 
 
I also am a pastel painter and find being able to express universal emotions through my art, as well as writing lyrics and putting them to music that I can sing and play on my guitar or ukelele so rewarding and comforting.

Memories of people, places, and events throughout my life influence the songs I write.





Goodbye (Original)-

Linda Straub

Recent comments

TPE Jones (3 BAR Music)

TPE Jones (3 BAR Music)

IMRE LODBROG

Illos

Related tracks