based on the craigslist post, "we were married for three days in 1989, and I saw you on the subway" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/nyc/4301059953.html

lyrics by olivia, melody & performance by hannah

find more songs here: missedconnections021.tumblr.com/

lyrics:

you came to the city
midwestern and pretty
i was a poet but hardly
smoking at night, our friends made a terrible bet

which one of us would be first
to go and get married
under the state of new york
		
i asked you the question
with no hesitation
the next day we were husband and wife	
we drank our way home, from town hall to 
washington square

you had your hand in my shirt
half-drunk and married
under the state of new york

we got embarrassed
no word to the family
three days, then it was annulled
but i slept in your bed until summer grew cold

over the years we lost touch	
i had to leave you
there in the state of new york

now twenty years later
i wait at the station
and take a look up from the post
you’re there on the l train, just for a moment, then gone

i really thought it would work
married for three days
under the state of new york

married for three days

based on the craigslist post, "all the things i should have said this week" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/sea/89261944.html?lang=en&cc=gb

lyrics by hannah fredsgaard, melody & performance by olivia rafferty

all the things i should have said
i really like your smile 
cute tuesday guy on number two
a little down the aisle 

all the things i should have said
this coffee saved my day
you cracked me up with silly jokes 
“espresso diva”-way

all the things
all the things
all the things
all the things

and all the things i should have said
screw you, you made me late
you blew by on lake city way
and you didn’t see me wait

all the things i should have said 
just skip the ponytail
i see your bald spot on the head
and it doesn’t serve you well

all the things
all the things
all the things

and all the things i should have said 
my dog is well behaved
she’s welcome on the city bus
you haven’t even shaved 

all the things i should have said
i’m sorry for your loss
i saw you in the waiting room
the seating straight across

all the things
all the things
all the things
all the things
all the things
all the things
all the things
all the things

all the things i should have said
i love you, it is true
you never know when it’s too late
is it too late with you?

all the things i should have said

based on the craigslist post, "Red Coat girl with her pants rolled up. I was walking my brown dog."
https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/bal/1049846786.html

lyrics by olivia rafferty, melody & performance by hannah fredsgaard

we could fall in love
and buy a cottage by the ocean up in ireland

we could have some babies
in our cottage, and get a rescue dog

you could start a charity
i could take up teaching at a college

your charity would help the birds
that fly around the fields beside our town

we could fall in love
we could fall in love
we could fall in love if you knew me

it’s been a lot of years
let’s move back to the states when i get published

i’ll sell a lot of books
and an ngo replaces your non-profit

all the children gone 
now we live in our old house in garden district

they come with the grandkids
on holidays and christmas for their visits

we could fall in love
we could fall in love
we could fall in love if you knew me

and when I’m old and grey
i’ll be tragically run down on my birthday

you’ll run up to the streetcar
that i’m under and you’ll hold my hand

i’ll say darling I have loved you
from the moment i first saw you in that red coat

you turned around and said
“hey don’t i know you?” and we carried on from there

we could fall in love
we could fall in love
we could fall in love, if you knew me

to the girl in the red coat

based on the craigslist post, "Amelie? Not worth the trouble! (from an amelie)" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/sfo/8794045.html?lang=en&cc=gb

lyrics by hannah fredsgaard, melody & performance by olivia rafferty

she sees a heart, thumping wildly 
in the chest of a man 
who flees minutes later 
with a cut in his hand

copies keys with a jigsaw
in her chic kitchenette 
if you entrust her with money
she will rip lafayette  

who is she?
who is she?
who is amelie?

she casts a glance at her lover 
crossing over the tracks
draws his portrait on paper
cause she knows they will match

has a habit of stealing
when she visits his house
she’ll blab her innocent sweet talk
she just wants a browse

who is she?
who is she?
who is amelie?

and she will spend hours indulging
in the works of chagall 
in pursuit of the blue bird
no, she is rather banal

i am all too familiar 
with this girl amelie
if you happen to meet her
you’ll be worse off than me

i have given you warning
she is totally nuts
my name is miss amelie 
there are many like us

who is she?
who is she?
who is amelie?

who is amelie?

based on the craigslist post, "Free dead piano. With impeccable karma."  https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/pdx/4637076213.html

lyrics by olivia rafferty, melody & performance by hannah fredsgaard

did you know pianos die?
80 years, like human life
this one here, it passed away
when Granny died the other day

she was kind & she was free
watercolours on receipts
editing the daily paper
living next to alligators

granny left her body like a door
and this piano’s no piano anymore

a little town upon a swamp
born & died where she grew up
granny had the greatest karma
kept it in her brown piano

granny left her body like a door
and this piano’s no piano anymore

come and take it, if you like
give these keys another life
plant a garden in the hammers
start a fire, melt the pedals

it’s growing cold behind my garage door
this piano’s no piano anymore

free dead piano

based on the craigslist post, "To the girl with the scar on her cheek........" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/nyc/5764718.html?lang=en&cc=gb

lyrics by hannah fredsgaard, melody & performance by olivia rafferty

i was wearing
i was wearing
i was wearing blue sneakers
speaking in tongues
clearing my lungs with a cigarette
 
you were buying
you were buying
you were buying doritos
orange ones
with cheese on, in a multipack
 
i’m sorry that i cut your cheek
i hope that it is quick to heal
i hope that it’s quick to heal
a rush of blood, a dirty deal
 
you were just a kind stranger
trying to help
balance the shelf with the cans on
 
if it makes
if it makes
if it makes you feel better
i am ashamed
caught and detained in a lock-up

i’m sorry that i cut your cheek
i hope that it is quick to heal
i hope that it’s quick to heal
a rush of blood, a dirty deal
 
maybe next time don’t linger		
don’t stare me down
like i’m a clown in a circus
 
if you are the kind stranger
then please explain
my cocaine in your pocket
thought i saw it
 
i’m sorry that i cut your cheek
i hope that it is quick to heal
i hope that it’s quick to heal
a rush of blood, a rush of blood

i’m sorry that i cut your cheek
i hope that it is quick to heal
i hope that it’s quick to heal
a rush of blood, a dirty deal
a rush of blood, a dirty deal
a rush of blood, a dirty deal

to the girl with the scar on her cheek

based on the craigslist post, "Astronaut Needed" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/clg/1373376861.html

lyrics by olivia rafferty, melody & performance by hannah fredsgaard

if you’re a dreamer
if you’re unafraid of heights
five foot eleven
tired of terrestrial sights 
 
i’ve built a rocket
on my weekend afternoons
to go to titan
to see the largest moon
 
i can get you there
but you can’t come home
i can get you there
but you can’t come home
i can get you there
 
i would have seen it
the giant planet made of gold
the rings of Saturn
i’m afraid I’m growing old
 
too old to be there
so i need an astronaut
to ride the spaceship
sitting by my flowerpots
 
i can get you there
but you can’t come home
i can get you there
but you can’t come home
i can get you there
 
i will be watching
all the radios and clocks
i will be cheering
when you land upon the rocks
 
i can get you there
but you can’t come home...

astronaut needed

based on the craigslist post, "Fall In Love With Me/The All Mixed Up" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/slc/5800480894.html?lang=en&cc=gb

lyrics by hannah fredsgaard, melody & performance by olivia rafferty

i was looking for cassettes
blanks to overwrite
they cost a dollar usually
or less if money’s tight
 
side a is named ‘the all mixed up’
a smiths’ song played in c
labelled on the tape itself
‘fall in love with me’
 
i found your sonic diary
i started on side b
i fell for you entirely
that tape was meant for me
 
‘yo la tengo’ blaring out
as a parting gift
i love that sentimental stuff
it helps the thoughts to drift
 
the song that really draws me in
is ‘no idea’ by mars
i keep rewinding endlessly
while staring at the stars
 
i found your sonic diary
i started on side b
i fell for you entirely
that tape was meant for me
 
i wonder how your life played out
and who received the tape
did they share your music taste?
or was it make or break?
 
do you want the mixtape back?
i feel it’s only right
i promise it’s in good hands now
i’m listening as i write
 
i found your sonic diary
i started on side b
i fell for you entirely
that tape was meant for me
 
you might not exist at all
and maybe that’s okay
you’re still my proudest thrift store find
i love you anyway
 
i found your sonic diary
i started on side b
i fell for you entirely
that tape was meant for me

sonic diary

based on the craigslist post, "A letter to my dead girlfriend" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/chi/1437101323.html

lyrics by olivia rafferty, melody & performance by hannah fredsgaard

i cry
your hair tie in my hand
i thought i could keep it together
but i can’t
 
i saw
your mum in wicker park
she’s coping a little bit better
than i thought
 
i reach to find the cold side
of the bed
you loved me for a while
and i’m okay with that
 
your friends
are moving on in life
steve is proposing to ellen
tomorrow night
 
the girls
came by the other day
took your old clothes in the closet
all away
 
i reach to find the cold side
of the bed
but you loved me for a while
and i’m okay with that
 
i reach to find the cold side
of the bed
but you loved me for a while
and i’m okay with that
 
i keep
that paris photograph
for when i need a reminder
of your laugh

i reach to find the cold side
of the bed
but you loved me for a while
and i’m okay with that
 
i reach to find the cold side
of the bed
but i loved you for a while
and i’m okay with that
 
i loved you for a while
and i’m okay

it's been a rough year, darling

based on the craigslist post, "Horse in a hotel" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/aus/3194092962.html

lyrics by olivia rafferty, melody & performance by hannah fredsgaard

we heard hoof steps in the dining room
a whinny in the lift
we had to double check that we weren’t dreaming

my friend told me there was something up
somebody’s secret plan
we had to know ‘cause seeing is believing

so we walked down to the swimming pool
on the basement floor
to see a stallion, silver like a new bell

and we’re not hallucinating though
we had a couple pills
somebody snuck a horse into the hotel

it was standing by the loungers with
a look so dignified
by the decor of a golden seashell

and we’re not hallucinating though
i felt a little weird cause
somebody snuck a horse into the hotel

oh why couldn’t it be me, I thought
it’s such a great idea
what mastermind could execute this bombshell

so if you’re the secret handler
i want to shake your hand
whoever snuck this horse into the hotel

horse in a hotel

based on the craigslist post, "I met you in the rain on the last day of 1972" https://www.craigslist.org/about/best/bos/5237173491.html?lang=en&cc=gb

lyrics:

i cast a coin
into the well
and wish i could explain
you saved my life that afternoon
i met you in the rain
 
the morning of
a new year's eve
when no one’s feeling sane
a charcoal sky was opening
i met you in the rain
 
i trudged into
the grey deluge
to shower off my shame
it drenched me in a flash before
 
i looped around
the symph’ny hall
beyond the fenway lane
you sat under the balcony
 
your brown hair kissed
your freckled face
a bottle of champagne
i couldn’t tell if you had cried
cause i met you in the rain
 
we laughed a lot
perhaps because
what else could we attain
the counter at the five and dime
i met you in the rain

you told me that
you didn’t love
that banker and his chain
confessed that you would leave him now

the union ended
just as fast
and sudden as it came
one moment here, one moment gone
 
sometimes i smell
that killing smoke
the motor from the plane
i question why i should deserve
to meet you in the rain

i’m older now
i’ve seen the world
the beauty and the pain
i’ve made my peace with loneliness
i met you in the rain

i met you in the rain

A songwriting project by Hannah Fredsgaard-Jones and Olivia Rafferty, based off of Craigslist classifieds.

Hannah and Olivia met at Findlay Napier and Boo Hewerdine’s Bird on the Wire songwriting workshop in March, 2021.

After the course ended they did a lyric swap exercise, collaboratively writing songs based on Craigslist classifieds. For each song, one person wrote the lyrics and the other wrote the melody.

The small exercise resulted in two songs which had such charm, they decided to keep writing and start a larger project. “Missed Connections” is the result.

Starting in April 2021, two songs a week will be shared, based off of posts from Best of Craigslist.

Missed Connections

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