This is a crude recording I made on my Olympus of I Said Please directly after writing it, as I have a tendency to forget how I play things after I've written them. I believe I was thinking about what an oddly upbeat song The Beatles' Help! is for being a genuine lyrical cry for help?

(Written and Recorded July 28, 2012.)

I SAID PLEASE
Music and lyrics by Melissa Sue Hoover

VERSE 1
I got a good man.
I got a good life.
There’s just one thing,
I’m not a good wife.

VERSE 2
I speak out ‘a turn.
I mean what I say,
But I tell a hard truth,
Every single day.

VERSE 3
I don’t waste a laugh,
On an ignorant joke,
Aw, maybe that’s,
What’s wrong with folks?

VERSE 4
I sleep on the couch,
Instead ‘a hoppin’ in the sack.
But, I don’t mind. 
‘cause it’s better for my back.

CHORUS
I got ‘bout a hundred problems but a man ain’t one;
There’s just some monkeys on my back.
On dark days I gotta have a little fun,
To make up for the light I lack. 
You tell me I’m fine, it’ll be alright, and you got what I need,
So, won’t ya help me, please?
Won’t ya help me, please?

VERSE 5
I don’t go to church.
I just stay in bed and pray.
I don’t pay no mind,
To what the naysayers say.

VERSE 6
I don’t sort my clothes,
‘Cause I like my whites off.
But I cover my mouth,
Every time I cough. 

VERSE 7
Dinner is late,
My temper is short.
I chew my mood,
And eat your retort.

VERSE 8
I cook and I bake.
I clean and I sew.
But when I’m blue, I don’t do,
Any one of those. 

CHORUS

I Said Please (demo)

This is the first song that I ever wrote. Patiently waiting, I was. This recording has extra harmonies by myself and my sister, Kate Veneziano. 

(Written October 9, 2006. Recorded February 11, 2017 by Travis McCoy.)

Come Home?
Music and lyrics by Melissa Sue Hoover

VERSE 1
And I don’t know why I even care,
But I can never sleep when you’re not there.
And I’ve been lying here for so long,
But it’s wrong you’re not home.

VERSE 2
I can’t stand when you’re not there,
Breathing heated kisses into my hair.
The days are long; the nights are longer, still.
So, when will you come home? 

BRIDGE
And I let my mind drift,
Back to those I’ve been with,
But we both know you are the best.
But my mind it can’t stop.
Dwelling on things I dream up,
Man, I need a little rest. 

VERSE 3
Your smiling face helps me everyday,
Still, I can’t wait ‘til you’re here to stay. 
‘Til that day, I’ll be sighing, still,
So, when will you come home? 

(Oct. 9, 2006)

Come Home?

No mud; no lotus. It's the ugly duckling of flowers.

(Written November 2009. Recorded March 23, 2018 by Travis McCoy.)

Lotus

Verses and chorus by Hilary Ann VanDyke, bridge and music by me. This was my first ever collaboration, I reckon. Hilary gave me some words and this is what happened. 

(Written December 2007. Recorded March 10, 2018 by Travis McCoy.)

Hilbugger Ditty (The Noisy Chicken Blues)

This song was a collaboration between Patrick Condon and I; he co-wrote this with me and was playing the mandolin on this at the time, although this recording lacks any mandolin. It all started over a nice, ol' hot cuppa tea...and then some more tea. 

(Written November 2009 by Melissa Sue Hoover and Patrick Condon. Recorded March 23, 2018 by Travis McCoy.)

OLD HOT LOVERS
Music and Lyrics by Melissa Sue Hoover and Patrick Condon

VERSE 1 
Old, hot Morty got his good teeth in,
Me-oh-my, that’s a hell of a grin!
Red suspenders, got his good shoes on,
Gonna cut a rug well into dawn.
Tie up the hound, start up the truck.
Headin’ to town to try his luck.
Old, hot Morty’s got it, alright!
Old, hot Morty’s gettin’ laid tonight!

VERSE 2
Old, hot Martha got her good dress on,
Gussyin’ up, puttin’ on her charms.
Red lipstick, got her good nylons,
Gonna cut a rug well into dawn.
Let out the cat, start up the car,
Square dance tonight at her cousin’s bar.
Old, hot Martha’s got it, alright!
Old, hot Martha’s findin’ love tonight!

VERSE 3
Old, hot Morty’s got his usual drink,
Bourbon whiskey with a splash from the sink.
Redhead lover; got his radar on.
Gonna cut a rug well into dawn.
Chugs his drink, slams it down,
Just in time for the hoedown.
Old, hot Morty’s got it alright,
Old, hot Morty’s getting’ laid tonight!

VERSE 4
Old, hot Martha got her favorite treat,
Splash of grenadine makes vodka sweet.
Redheaded gal, got her dance shoes on,
Gonna cut a rug well into dawn. 
Sips her drink, sits it down,
Feels a tap and spins around,
Old, hot Martha’s got it, alright!
Old, hot Martha’s findin’ love tonight!

VERSE 5
Old, hot Morty’s got a hell of a jig!
Old, hot Martha nearly lost her wig!
Redheaded lovers, gettin’ it on,
Gonna cut a rug well into dawn.
Unleash the hound to chase the cat,
Old, hot lovers know where it’s at!

VERSE 6
Old, hot Morty’s got it, alright!
Old, hot Morty got laid tonight!
Old, hot Martha’s got it, alright!
Old, hot Martha found love tonight!
Unleash the hound to chase that cat!
Old, hot lovers is where it’s at! 

(November 18, 2009)

Old Hot Lovers

Old, Hot Lovers

This is a pretty good demonstration of this elusive song, I think I got most of the verses, and the chorus/bridge thinger. This song remained unfinished for years until I added the last two verses and chorus, like 10 years later. It's wordy af and needs tightened up majorly as far as delivery, but I think it's a song?

(Written 2008/2018. Recorded on the mighty Olympus September 21, 2018.)

TO BE OR NOT
Music and lyrics by Melissa Sue Hoover

VERSE 1
Jesus wears good sandals; he travels many lands.
If a place offends him he shakes off the sands. 
He loved all the people; he found life in truth, 
Because he studied ancient Asian teachings in his youth. 

VERSE 2
He’ll pluck out your eyeball; he’ll cut off your hand. 
But no brother can tell a metaphor like he can. 
He passed along his teachings; he tried to guide the herd. 
Disbelieved because he was a lowly carpenter.

PRECHORUS
Paul took all his fables and sold them to the man,
And added in a bunch of shit that no one understands. 

CHORUS
But what’s in a religion? Which word is the word?
Everyone’s an empty cage if they let out the bird.
God is just a concept, sin is just a word.
Time is an illusion and static, all we’ve heard.
So pick up good vibrations and sing in harmony. 
Everyone has had to deal with what it means To Be. 

VERSE 3
Buddha’s in the dumpster eating salted soup.
The middle path tends to make most people fly the coop. 
Buddha’s got his Bible but doesn’t read a word.
Every page is someone else’s story that he’s heard. 

VERSE 4
He fasts when he’s not binging; he has no need to purge.
He meditates in gardens and sings a solemn dirge. 
He passed along his teachings; he helped to guide the herd. 
He sat silently in thought through storms that he weathered. 

PRECHORUS 2
Monks take vows of silence; they live by Holy plans.
But that’s not much of a life as the layman understands. 

CHORUS

BRIDGE
So everybody get together.
Quit fighting for awhile. 
Maybe we can get the good stuff,
Flowing like the Nile. 
The question is to be or not,
Not how we all got here. 
Look inside your heart for love,
And move on through your fear. 

VERSE 5
Mother Earth is crying out for you to love her land.
Her children offend her; they’re shitting in her hand. 
She loves all her people, that’s the honest truth. 
As far as how you feel for her, the pudding is the proof. 

VERSE 6
She’ll live on without you; she’ll cut off her hand. 
She’ll chew herself out of your trap and leave you in the sand. 
She cycles through her teachings; she tries to guide her herd. 
Disbelieved because no one can predict the weather. 

PRECHORUS 3
Man took all her acres but man can set her free. 
She is the only thing we truly need…to…be. 

LAST CHORUS 	
So nature is religion and Love is the word. 
Everyone’s an empty cage if they let out the bird.
God is just a concept, sin is just a word.
Time is an illusion and static, all we’ve heard.
So pick up good vibrations and sing in harmony. 
Everyone has had to deal with what it means To Be.

To Be Or Not

To Be Or Not (demo)

"We are shaped and fashioned by what we love." - Goethe

This song emerged from a picky piece I had been playing around with and a set of lyrics that I had written around the same time. They weren't meant to go together, but I discovered that they fit together perfectly, like they were intended to all along. I had played the picky piece sans vocals during a wedding, so since it remained untitled for years, I just began referring to it as The Wedding Song. Admittedly, it took me awhile to get the words just like I wanted them, but I gave the chorus a good reworking around 2018 and finally called the thing by its name.

(Written 2008/2018. Recorded September 22, 2018 by Travis McCoy.)

Missie Sue