A spring song... It's from the album 'From here to Heaven.'

Girl On A Swing

From an upcoming country album, produced by Niels Poulsen.

Trouble in the Playground

About 'Man/Home'

In the first half of March, 2018, I took part in a walking seminar with scholars, artists and activists from around the world on Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa, facilitated by Professor Nick Shepherd from the School of Culture and Society at Aarhus University. 

One of the sites we visited during our seminar was the ruins of Red Hill Village from where people had been forcibly removed during the Apartheid era. Architect Ilze Wolff introduced us to the history of the site, and most of the melody and words to 'Man/Home' came to me immediately after, just before leaving the site again. I sang some words into the audio recording app on my phone, and most of what was on that original memo ended up in the finished song. I later added the guitar parts and a few more words and gave the song its current structure, but it basically all arrived that late, sunny afternoon under the South African skies. 

It is written in the first person, and I envision it giving voice to a previous inhabitant of Red Hill Village during the forced removals. I believe the last people were removed in the 1970s, and some people still come back to commemorate the lives they used to live here, and the people they used to know from here, all these years later.

Being open to the creative process I think we may sometimes channel an unlimited range of stories, sentiments and undercurrents not presently visible or audible. Maybe 'Man/Home' is an example of such channeling. It felt, indeed, like an instance of the song singing me. It was only later, after revisiting those first audio notes and applying some songwriting decisions, that I felt I became a singer of this song.

Man/Home

Mercy

A song I wrote for my wife. It came out in 2002 (US) and 2003 (Denmark) on the album 'East of November.'

Borrowed And Blue

Album opener from the Christmas record 'Building Memories'... Check the whole thing out here: http://www.songcrafter.dk/shop/item.asp?id=4

Finally It's Christmas

Heart full of Polaroids

What is 
the matter with me
The more I look at you 
The more there is to see
Won’t let my loved ones
Ever go unnoticed
So in my heart I keep
You all safe with me

What is
What is it you see
When you’re just five years old
And you’re looking at a Christmas tree
In my mind I’ll take our picture
And I will try to capture
You and me
Indefinitely

Because I want a Heart Full Of Polaroids
I want a Heart Full Of Polaroids
I want a Heart Full Of Polaroids 
of you and me
Locked in this chest for posterity

Goodnight
Sleep tight little one
Tomorrow is Christmas 
And you shall not want
I thank heaven we are safe here
You can dream of Santa and the reindeer 
And I can close my eyes a while
Still you make me smile

Because I have a Heart Full Of Polaroids
I have a Heart Full Of Polaroids
I have a Heart Full Of Polaroids 
of you and me
of you and me...

Oh, I have a Heart Full Of Polaroids
I have a Heart Full Of Polaroids
I have a Heart Full Of Polaroids
of you and me

Locked in this chest for posterity


Heart Full Of Polaroids

Building Memories

Shine on, shine on
Christmas Star
Shine on, shine on
Shed your light from afar

Today we played in the snow
Oh, how the sleigh would just go and go
I don’t need much to call my own
Just don’t want to go through living life alone

Needing memories, memories
Today we built memories

Shine on, shine on
Christmas Star
Shine on, shine on
Shed your light from afar

Tonight we all gather around the fire
Sparrow peeking in from its frozen wire
We don’t need much to call our own
Just don’t want to go through living life alone

Needing memories, memories
Tonight we built memories

Shine on, shine on
Christmas Star
Shine on, shine on
Shed your light from afar
Shed your light
Christmas Star

Today we played in the snow
Oh, how the sleigh would just go and go...


Martin Hoybye