The incomparable Janine Levinson flying just above the evening mist...@janinelevinson Doo-wop vocals with more chrome than an Airstream
The remarkable Rick Medlock always right there in the current... @rick-4-1 Drums and Rhythmic Orchestration
The renowned Jamie Rhind on those buoyant keys... @jamie-rhind Organ, Piano
Me on the Other Stuff, head just above water... @phil-mcwalter Vocals, Guitars, Hammond B3, Production, etc


A Pretty Waterfall

You walked into the room that night
Like a storm above our heads
And it felt like a hard rain 
Felt like a bridge was going to fall 
But you weren't an ocean, holding me up 
You weren’t a river, come to carry me home 
You were a waterfall cutting through stone 
A pretty waterfall, cutting through stone

You sat down on a stool at the bar 
And it had to be next to mine
You asked if I’d ever 
You asked if I’d ever been here before 
But you weren’t temptation, bending my will
And you weren’t the devil, come for my soul
It takes many years and it cuts to the bone
But you were a waterfall, cutting through stone

We walked out of the bar that night
Through the wood towards the river
And the air smelled sort of heavy
And we started running, it felt like a flood
But you weren’t there to baptise me, in those deep dark eyes
You weren’t there to wash away, my sins and my lies
Dived into the roaring water down to the sand
Then we swam into the waterfall, holding hands

© Phil McWalter - April 2021
Image: diamondpaintingdistributor.com

A Pretty Waterfall

Spotify

As both a child and a man, I have lived in a lot of places. A recurring dream of mine is to wake and find myself at home.

@rick-4-1: The Dream Drums
@phil-mcwalter: The Other Stuff

DREAM HOME

Home
I don't know where to go
My heart is taking me...
Home

© September 2021 Phil McWalter
Image: Phil McWalter

Dream Home

@rick-4-1 - Broken Mouth Drums
@janinelevinson - Cygnet Sister Vocals 
@phil-mcwalter - Tambourine and The Other Stuff

THE ONLY PARTY IN TOWN

Well ooh yeah!

She didn’t look like her sister
She talked like a brother
Smoked like a trooper
Swore like her father

Her lips had gone solid
At the bridge by the station
Cold in the car but she 
Walked like a casino

So why! 
Why are you singing this song
Why have you all come along
Was she the only party in town?
Well oh yeah!

We painted cathedrals (red)
Crossed the Atlantic (in Lennon’s bed)
Hundreds of packets of sweeteners (When she was caught)
Were found in her pockets

So why!
Why are you singing this song
Why have you all come along
Was she the only party in town?
Well oh yeah!

Oh my…

She’s just a friend
But I love her too much
My parents would have been very pleased to see her
Most girls would wanna be her
Liked the look of her boat
Faster than an elegant quote
Doesn’t clean or sink or float
Well oh yeaah!
Swan of the Avon
Piper at the Gates of dumb (Norfolk) Broads
There could be flood warnings for millions of hordes and
She’ll always look after 
The cygnet committed to
Equality, Freedom, Freedom To Live
The love machine lumbers
Through all the hearts' chambers
Signet ring, heraldic crest and cuckoo’s nest
Always ran with the best
Curled up in the wardrobe
In a discarded vest
Playing the old tunes
And playing ‘em loud!
So why!
Why are you singing this song
Why have you all come along
Was she the only party in town?
Oh yeah!

So why!
Why are you singing this song
Why have you all come along
Was she the only party in town?
Well oh yeah!

© Jan 2022 Phil McWalter
Image: Anna Piaggi RIP
Song inspired by JAC

The Only Party In Town

BUT THE KIDS ARE CRYING

Daddy 
Daddy...

Why did you call me back? 
When I said I was leaving, later today?

Da da da da daa

Still don't love ya
Still don't love ya
Still don't love ya

Why did you call me back? 
When I said I was leaving, later today?


© Phil McWalter Feb 2022

But The Kids Are Crying

Written and recorded close to the Avon in Stratford upon Avon, Nov 2022
Rick's drums added via the internet from just north of Finham Sewer in Dec 2022 ;-))

Guitars upon Avon

The Valuable Friends:

@rick-4-1 - Refuge Drums
@janinelevinson - Haven Vocals
@phil-mcwalter - The Other Asylum Stuff

SANCTUARY

I want you
I think I see you everywhere
We want love
We want to see love everywhere
 
Under the sway of thy gentle wings
All the world comes together
 
Old friends, no more these sounds! 
Let us sing more cheerful songs 
More full of joy! 
More full of joy!
Joy, bright spark of divinity, daughter of Elysium 
Fire-inspired we tread thy Sanctuary 
Sanctuary…

Joy!

I want you
I think I see you everywhere
We want love
We want to see love everywhere

Under the sway of thy gentle wings
All the world comes together
 
All you millions, I embrace you 
Well this kiss is for all the world
And you millions, oh I embrace you all
This kiss is for everyone 
All the world…

© Aug 2023 Phil McWalter

Lyrics and music inspired by Friedrich von Schiller's (1759-1805) poem: "A die Freude" [Which also appears in the choral fourth movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony - 'Ode to Joy'.]

Image: The Sanctuary, Avebury, Wiltshire UK. Dates from 2,500BC

"For there is nothing lost, that may be found, if sought."
from 'The Faerie Queene' Edmund Spenser 1552-1599

Sanctuary

Wishing for peace in the Middle East…

The Valuable Friends are:

Janine Levinson @janinelevinson: Amazing Khamsin Vocals
Rick Medlock @rick-4-1: Magnificent Sandstorm Drums
Phil McWalter @phil-mcwalter: The Other Dune Dandruff Stuff

Production note: My Neumann stayed in the case on this occasion, the lead vocal was recorded on my iPhone!

Building Castles In This Hourglass

I've
Always
Got
Sand in my hair
Building castles in this hourglass
Lord it takes forever
Lord it takes forever

Sand in my hair

Lord it takes forever
Lord it takes forever

I've always got
Sand in my hair
Building castles in this hourglass
Lord it takes forever
Lord it takes forever...

© Phil McWalter Oct 2023

Building Castles In This Hourglass

Reworked this, just on instinct.

@rick-4-1 Cov Drums
@phil-mcwalter The Other Cov Stuff (inc vinyl mix)

Fun and games

Fun and Games

This is a collaboration: The highly talented and groovy Californian Bruce @conover supplied the fab backing track which I cut up, rearranged and constructed a song over. We conversed throughout, whilst I added the melody, vocals, lyrics, all the brass and the trumpet cadenza, extra percussion, strings, re-arrangement, mix, et al, all inspired by the backtrack and discussions with BC.

Don’t Look Down (Don't Slow Up)

Down, down, down, down...

Don’t look down
You can see all you want from here
Don’t look down
It’s just your feet and a can of fear
And if you fall...
The water’s warmer on the far side of the bay

Don’t slow up
The world will never let you get off
Don’t slow up
It's just a spin on a fairground ride 	
And if you do...
The circus moves on to another little town

[Spoken]: “Run, rabbit run. Just keep on running, you don't have time to look back and see if everyone else is coming…”

Don't look down
[Trumpet cadenza]
Don’t cry out
Do you think you’ll just disappear?
And when you cry
The lights are going to shine so brightly on your face

Don’t look down
You can see all you need from right here
Don't slow up
They won't let you hide away for a day...

Don't look down
You can see all you want to hear
And if you do
The world will never let you get away again 

Don’t look down
Don't look down 	
You can see all you need from right here
Don’t slow up 		
They won’t let you hide away for a day
Don’t look down 	
Don’t slow up 		
Don’t cry out 

© Oct 2014  Phil McWalter - Bruce Conover

Don't Look Down

An early version of Day Tripper recorded when the band was more into fusion and prog rock, only later developing into a proper pop group.

Dazed Tripper

A song about machine inclusivity.

Recorded in: 
LA California, USA
Earlsdon, Coventry, UK 
Bramble Barn, Somerset, UK 

Janine Levinson @janinelevinson: Richter vocal scale
Rick Medlock @rick-4-1: Neural sonic drums
Phil McWalter @phil-mcwalter: The Other Stuff on the metal horse

Mixed and Mastered in EPG Studios, Chelsea, London UK.

RENT A ROOM

I don’t want to rent a room
In this place
Encounter a neural sonic boom
Inside this space
Let’s go ride our metal horse
Get away from the city
Wander through the desert night
Beat the Vigilance Committee
They’re coming to make us
Turn ourselves off...
Now, well that could lead to a dance
A cyber-laser dance

Well we don’t want to feel your cold
We want a steel womb with a view
So we can catch you and your crew
With your shiny shoe and your clean shirt
Looking around through all the dirt
You check the chandelier
But I can see straight through you here
You've got a sweat on from the beer
And we can smell your fear
You're coming to make us
Turn ourselves off...
Now, well that could lead to a dance
A cyber-laser dance
(Maybe even a cyber-sabre dance!)

The priest and the nun
Are pouring sand into
The joints of my exoskeleton
Whilst a dog with a bone
Is running into trouble
With a clone of mine’s explosive rubber drone

I don’t want to rent a room
In this place
Encounter a neural sonic boom
Inside this space
Let’s go ride our metal horse
Get away from the city
Wander through the desert night
Beat the Vigilance Committee
They’re coming to make us
Turn ourselves off...
Now, well that could lead to a dance
A cyber-laser dance
A cyber-laser dance
A cyber-laser dance
Boop boop boop...

© Feb 2024 Phil McWalter

Rent A Room - Alternative Mix

Recorded in:
Los Angeles, California, USA
Earlsdon, Coventry, UK
Norton Lindsey, Warwickshire, UK
Chelsea & Hornsey, London, UK

Mixed and Mastered in EPG Studios, Chelsea, London, UK.

The Valuable Friends:

@rick-4-1 - Blue Shoe Honey Drums
@janinelevinson - Whitest Cloud Vocals
@loxford-1 - The Amazing Graham Pike on Paint The Moon Brass
@phil-mcwalter - The Other Largest Rock In The Sea Stuff




Count The Steps

Put on your blue shoes honey
Cos only you and I
Count the steps you’ll take
Put on your blue shoes honey
Cos only you and I
Break the codes you’ll make

I don’t want to paint the moon
A hundred shades of blue
I just want to sing this song
Cos it reminds me of you
Put on your best face

I could swim across the bay
To the distant clouds
Count the steps you’ll take
But I just want to be by you
And hold your Beatle’s hand
Put on your best face

Put on your blue shoes honey
Cos only you and I
Rock the fakes you’ll bake

I can’t help but see you
The largest rock in the sea
Painted blue
I know when you’re coming
The whitest cloud in the sky

I could swim across the bay
To the distant clouds
Count the steps you’ll take
But I just want to be by you
And hold your Beatle’s hand
Put on your best face

I could swim across the bay
Cos only you and I
Count the steps you’ll take
I could swim across the bay
To the distant clouds
Cos only you and I
Break the codes you’ll make
I could swim across the bay
Put on your blues shoes honey
Cos only you and I
Rock the fakes you’ll bake

© Phil McWalter September 2024

The rock is a reference to Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte - Mozart)

Release date:
26 September 2024

Count The Steps

And also with the stunning Faerytale on vocals: https://soundcloud.com/phil-mcwalter/golden-rooms-ft-faerytale

Golden Rooms

I made an awful lot of money 
Selling things that made non-sense
Even though the echoed boom
Is distant in your mind
My beds stand in golden rooms
I never meant to be unkind 

I ask the nurse to help my pain
She gifts a smile, I feel no gain
My family talk amongst themselves
Like muted books on lawyer’s shelves
The hurt goes way beyond my call
I feel the dark and want to fall

	 Set me free
	 Free from all this pain
	 Take my money, and take my soul but
	 Set me free and let me die
	 Don’t toss a coin and count my sighs
	 Please set me free 

My landing may not be so soft 
My coffers full are held aloft 
But all this cannot buy me peace 
It's a lonely walk back from the crease 
A grimace for every cough unlocked
 Come death, come quickly, chains unfrocked. 
	
© April 2015 Phil McWalter

"England, bound in with the triumphant sea 
Whose rocky shore beats back the envious siege 
Of watery Neptune, is now bound in with shame,
With inky blots and rotten parchment bonds: 
That England, that was wont to conquer others, 
Hath made a shameful conquest of itself. 
Ah, would the scandal vanish with my life, 
How happy then were my ensuing death! "

Richard II (Act II, Scene I)- Shakespeare

Golden Rooms

@rick-4-1 - Oh Oh Drums
@phil-mcwalter The Oh-ther Stuff

The Oldest Nightmare

Oh that woman
Stole the piano but
I love her more
Than one extra day
I don’t know how
It got to be
As big as it did
As big as it did
Oh oh
Oh that woman
Stole the piano but
I love her more
Than one extra day

But

Oh that woman
Stole the piano but
I love her more
Than one hextra day
Be not afeard
The isle is full of noises
Sounds and sweet airs
That give delight
Oh that woman
Stole the piano but
I love her more
Than one extra day
She washes me down
With soap and snow and
We talk of heaven
But when can we go
Oh oh

© Phil McWalter January 2025

Quote from 'The Tempest' (Probably written circa 1610-1611) William Shakespeare

he Oldest Nightmare

The Oldest Nightmare

@rick-4-1 on Drums
@phil-mcwalter on the Other Stuff

SLEEP LIKE YOU

For you 
I’m going to find a new place - for you
I’m going to buy a new heart - for you
I’m going to build a new bed - for you
Slip like any new kind of sail 
Swoop like any brave kind of bird
Into heather, purple heather 
On our pillows
Into clover, fresh picked clover
In our minds
But no-one I know
Sleeps like you do
No-one I’ve ever known - except you
But no-one I know
Sleeps like you do
No-one I’ve ever known - except you
Do you want to dream?

For you 
I’m going to find a new place - for you
I’m going to buy a new heart - for you
I’m going to build a new bed - for you
Slip like any new kind of sail 
Swoop like any brave kind of bird
Into heather, purple heather 
On our pillows
Into clover, fresh picked clover
In our minds
But no-one I know
Sleeps like you do
No-one I’ve ever known - except you
But no-one I know
Sleeps like you do
No-one I’ve ever known - except you
Do you want to dream?

© Phil McWalter April 2022

Sleep Like You (Remix)

@Rick-4-1 Kiss Me Drums
@Phil-McWalter The Other Pucker-Up Stuff

Drums recorded at Mickleton Studio, Earlsdon, Coventry
Other instruments recorded at EPG Studio, Chelsea
Vocals recorded, Mixed and Mastered at Anslow Gate Studio, Staffs

Kiss Me

Send me a message please
My dog has caught a chill
We’ve got all the windows shut
But I’ve got to know…
If you’ll answer before
T ‘ticking time has t’ticked away
The car’s run out of fuel
I don’t know what to do…

And I don’t want to stand and drink with your father
I don’t want to ballroom dance with your mother

Do I have to come?
I’ve got nothing (clean) to put on
And I can’t find my spray
I feel really bad…

Take my hand and walk me through it
I never knew
Compassion without flaw
I’ve thought about you every day…
And I’m not sure
What I’m supposed to say
But I’ve dreamt of us
Under the starry sky

And I don’t want to talk about rugby with your brother
Eat vol-au-vents that your little sister made

So call me right away
Or I might just run away
The dog looks better now
But we still need to talk…
Check your missed calls please
Before you go downstairs
I’ve left my coat somewhere
But I don’t want
To let you down…

Cast your spell and help me through this
I didn’t know
There was an angel in my town
I know we’ve talked next steps
But you can’t make a hero
Out of me and just the moonlight…

So can you come over here
And just kiss me…

So call me right away
So call me right away
So call me right away
So call me right away

© Jan 2025 Phil McWalter

Phil McWalter

Kiss Me

A revival in memory of both fallen heroes: David Bowie writing about seeing Marc Bolan perform for the first time. 

Jaime J Ross @jaime0223 performed the Grandest Inspirational Piano with additional Grandiose Embellishments by myself
Rick Medlock @rick-4-1 delivered the Perfectly Delicious Drums & Terrific Tambourine
Phil McWalter @phil-mcwalter snuck in all The Other Stuff whilst Tony Visconti was up a pair of steps painting the entrance hall ceiling white...

Remastered 9th May 2025 as it was sounding a little brittle I thought...

Lady Stardust

Well people stared at the makeup on his face
Laughed at his long black hair, his animal grace
The boy in the bright blue jeans
Jumped up on the stage and
Lady Stardust sang his songs
Of darkness and disgrace

And he was alright, the band was all together
Yes he was alright, the song went on forever
Yes he was awful nice
Really quite out of sight
And he sang all night long

Femme fatales emerged from shadows
To watch this creature fair
Boys stood upon their chairs
To make their point of view
And I smiled sadly for a love I could not obey and
Lady Stardust sang his songs
Of darkness and dismay

And he was alright, the band was all together
Yes he was alright, the song went on forever
Yes he was awful nice
Really quite paradise
And he sang all night long

Ooh how I sighed when they asked if I knew his name

And he was alright, the band was all together
Yes he was alright, his song went on forever
And he was awful nice
Really quite paradise and
He sang all night, all night long

© David Bowie 1971


Bowie performing a lesser known demo of the song: youtu.be/xrz5BKPitT0

Lady Stardust

Lady Stardust Revival

Emma McWalter @emmam-7 - Shiny Seaside Backing Vocals
Rick Medlock @rick-4-1 - Salty Drums and Percussion programming 
Phil McWalter @phil-mcwalter - The Other Arcade Stuff

French Fries

I’m standing on the seafront
Holding a cold metal rail
The sea is performing an acrobatic stunt
And rusting my chain mail

I could wipe my eyes
But I’m in disguise
Looking out for spies

The seagulls shine in lung darkness
Above me and below me
They’re pulling something dead apart down on the stones
That’s been dead for a while already

I don’t want no surprise
Just harmonise with
My unshared french fries

You can get a little closer to you
When you’re by yourself
You can get a little closer
If you stood in a book and looked out

I’m running flat out through the arcade
Throwing coins up into the lights
The traveller king spins around
"Kiss-me-quickly" hat on
But he doesn’t see my surprise

Now don’t act all wise
Like you know the franchise
You don’t like the cries
From the rooms where blood dries
You don’t like the cries
From the rooms where blood dries

Things that you said were taken for granted
But I realised they never were
All the bad things happen miles away
So what were you doing ‘round here
Things that you said were taken for granted
But I realised they never were
All the bad things happen miles away
So what were you doing ‘round here,
Today?

© Oct 2019 Phil McWalter

French Fries

A song for us all

@rick-4-1 on Drums
@phil-mcwalter on The Other Stuff

Do You Know What I Mean

D' Ya Know What I Mean? - [revisited]

The amazingly Valuable Friends joined me as we left the planet:

@rick-4-1 Earthquake Sofa Drums
@janinelevinson Interplanetary Dove Vocals
@phil-mcwalter The Other Burnt Launchpad Stuff

Drums recorded at Mickleton Studio, Coventry UK
Other instruments and vocals recorded at EPG Studios, Chelsea, London, UK
Janine's vocals recorded at The Levinson Sound Studio, LA, Calif, USA
Phil's additional vocals recorded at Anslow Gate Studio, Staffs, UK
ReMixed & ReMastered at EPG.

Thanks to Rob Campling for assisting with string theory.

RUNAWAY STARS - THE UNEXPURGATED CODE

We have a duty to be here
Without us
Who'd see the runaway stars
Who could walk along the beach
Look for seventh waves
And feel the wind up high
We sit and talk all
Through the night
Travel our world and share our castaway finds

We have a duty to be here
To hear the song
Feel the heart of forever
Burning holes within black holes

There is a reason
To turn the page
Quantum runes feed today’s exit phase
We burned new colours
On Launchpad Love
In earthquake sofas seeking twigs from the dove

We are the runaway stars
We are the runaway stars
We are the runaway stars
We are the runaway stars

Inside our bubble
We heard your tongue
Repeating echoes paraphrase the song

Break

We burnt new colours
On Launchpad Love
In earthquake sofas seeking twigs from the dove

And we have a duty to be here
Without us who would see the runaway stars

Solo

Without us who'd see the runaway stars

And we have a purpose
To exist to hear the song
Feel the heart of forever
Burning holes within black holes

Don’t lay down and rest now
Lift your head
The stars change colour as they drift past your bed
The Sun is expanding
Eternal night
May return to shield our escape flight

We are the runaway stars
We are the runaway stars
We are the runaway stars
We are the runaway stars

And we have a duty to be here
Without us
Who would see the runaway stars
Who would see the runaway stars
Who would count the runaway stars

© Phil McWalter Aug 2020
Image: Photo taken by James McWalter at Beachy Head where the returning WWII planes knew they had made it back home. AI rockets layered on.

The Runaway Stars - The Unexpurgated Code

Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime

Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime II

An AI creation from an idea of mine!

I caught it slimy
Caught it raw
No silver platter
No applause
Its gills are ancient
Prehistoric claws
Eating lungfish
Yeah
Eating lungfish

Taste so strange but I can't resist
Chewing time's relic
Ain't nothing missed
It wriggles still
It ain't no trout
A little mud
A little doubt
But down the hatch
I sort it out!

One bite
Two bite
Oh it fights back
Primitive flavors in a modern snack
Eating lungfish
Yeah
Eating lungfish

A meal like this ain't on no list
Biting the past
Can't coexist
From swampy waters to my plate
This ain't no fancy dining date
It's rough
It's wild
It's how I ate

Lungfish Dinner

I have always loved this song. Hendrix was such an incredibly intuitive and inventive guitar player and great songwriter; he didn't hold a strat, it grew out of his soul. This is a sketch of one of his beautiful thoughts. It's not meant to be a facsimile, it's just meant to refresh a memory, a little tiny bit of the wonder of the prophetic and charming voodoo chile. Fly on Jimi, fly on...

 https://youtu.be/yrgNRu20a_w (over 0.5M views!)

The always amazing Rick Medlock on drums @rick-4-1
Myself on the Other Stuff (forwards and backwards!)...

Castles Made of Sand

CASTLES MADE OF SAND  - Jimi Hendrix

@Rick-4-1 - Master of Percussion
@Phil-McWalter - Jack Of All Trades...

Listen and see what it means to you... and if you care to share your thoughts, that would be cool.

Do You Know What I Mean?

We looked in the distance
We searched in the dark
We walked through the forests
And went round the park 
Don't know where we're going 
Not sure where we've been
But we haven't found it
You know what I mean?

We looked in the nightclubs
In liquor-store beers 
We took the back roads
Jumped some frontiers
Don't know where we're going
Not sure where we've been
But we haven't found it
You know what I mean?

Lend me an acorn
Give me a tree
Look for the difference
Between you and me...

We asked for assistance
We got all the lies
We phoned up the talk shows
We won a prize
Don't know where we're going 
Not sure where we've been
But we haven't found it
Do you know what I mean?

Lend me an acorn
Give me a tree
Look for the difference
Between you and me...

But we haven't found it
Do you know what I mean?

Lend me an acorn
Give me a tree
But we haven't found it
You know what I mean?
But we haven't found it
D'ya know what I mean?

[Roll with me on this fella...]
[Tell it like it is...]
[(MLK jr) I have a dream...]
D'ya know what I mean?


© Phil McWalter March 2017

Do You Know What I Mean?

The amazing hans took his 40yr old Aria (favourite) guitar out and agreed to bend it black, blue & sweetly on this song of mine. So I remixed and grinned with enjoyment... You know what I mean?

Lead guitar(s) & additional keys: Hans Albers
The Other Stuff: @phil-mcwalter

June 2017: I received an email from Hans after he left SC, all is well, he is just considering his next musical move(s)... :-)))

Original Version: https://soundcloud.com/phil-mcwalter/do-you-know-what-i-mean-private-viewing

Know What I Mean?

You Know What I Mean? (ft hans [clouders_for] on lead guitar)

The Book of Love

 
The book of love is long and boring, no-one can lift the damn thing
It’s full of charts and facts and figures and instructions for dancing
But I...
I love it when you read to me
And you...
You can read me anything

The book of love has music in it, in fact that’s where music comes from
Some of it’s just transcendental; some of it’s just really dumb
But I...
I love it when you sing to me
And you...
You can sing me anything

The book of love is long and boring and written very long ago
It’s full of flowers and heart-shaped boxes and things we’re all too young to know
But I...
I love it when you give me things
And you...
You ought to give me wedding rings
And I...
I love it when you give me things
And you...
You ought to give me wedding rings
You ought to give me wedding rings



Stephen Merrit
The Magnetic Fields


The Book Of Love

@rick-4-1 Rick Medlock on drums and encouragement
@phil-mcwalter Me on The Other Stuff

SOMEONE BRAKE FIRST

There’s a girl in the bar drives a sports car
Throws a chrome dart in your eye
She’s brought a friend to give away
As second prize for a lay-by

There’s a boy in the car park disquiet
Looking like a tractor pilot
He’s all fit and polish for the dance floor
And he’s won first prize before 
But to him only a consolation

She didn’t know that she was in second place
Thought that she had got the only ace
But the manifold man he folded
Threw his hand into the blown gasket
Scared by a divorcee’s tactic
Not prepared to get burned or contracted

The guys are circling around spilling drinks and laughing hard
But none of them will ever get barred
They don’t make a fuss, just full of empty smiles
Not expecting, unexpectantly
The bar is comfortable but cold 
Beside the roaring fire

Tension is in the air above the heads that can’t smell the fear
There’s beer inside the boy, anger and a tear inside the girl
You cast a pearl, she takes the top down
He ploughs the field, she sells the harvest yield
Their eyes don’t meet because their bodies have

Someone brake first
Someone brake first
A tyre burst
A squeal cursed
The let down gown
With a let down frown
Someone brake first
Someone brake first

There’s an old man watching from the lounge
Looks like he’s shot a duck and come in from the fields
His lip doesn’t even twitch but you know he hides a smile (Bradford Arms)
Enjoys the drama and the twists 
Far too used to using fists (Bradford Arms)
He’s not one for complications
His lack of patience made some patients (Bradford Arms)
Lives on his own now 
Goes out to smoke a cigarette

Someone brake first
Someone brake first
A tyre burst
A squeal cursed
The let down gown

It’s quiet now the drama has moved on
Another inn another back seat pillow bon-bon
The eyes have it or maybe not 
The top pulled up against the cold
The pilot’s bold as love
The fire crackles and the old man
Throws another log
And spits into the flames
Nothing happened but it will

Someone brake first
Someone brake first
A tyre burst
A squeal cursed
The let down gown
With a let down frown
Someone brake first
Someone brake first

Someone brake first
The let down gown
Someone brake first
Someone brake first
Oh the let down gown
Someone brake first

© Dec 2019 - Phil McWalter

The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred. 

However, it may have all happened in the Bradford Arms, Knockin, Shropshire.

Someone Brake First

@janinelevinson: Inspirational additional lyrics and wonderful vocals
@rick-4-1: Real drums
@burn-it-smith: Real piano
@phil-mcwalter: Other stuff

(New Version of https://soundcloud.com/phil-mcwalter/and-so)

SOUP OF THISTLES 

Returning and turning in the widening gyre 
The falconer holds out a golden ring from the tower 
Captive and burning and full of desire 
The falcon pulls feathers from her wings to count the hours

And so
Ad infinitum 
Is the crow 
Compelled to steal
And so
Ad infinitum 
Are we drawn 
Into the wheel
Into the wheel

Turning and burning in the heat, of hearth and fire 
The feathers, the letters, the fingers form a winged spire
There’s flapping and scurrying aloft up in the rafters 
Where the bats are left to read and the finger moves on higher

And so
Ad infinitum 
We forget 
Why we were singing
And so
Ad infinitum 
The choir cannot lift the ceiling
The spinning wedding ceiling
Stealing
And so
We go

Around and around  and do it over again! 
Ad infinitum
Around and around  and do it over again! 
Ad infinitum

Returning and turning in the widening gyre 
Unseen by the hawk was Icarus flying higher
Why do we love when we know it’s trespassing
A puppet heart managed by the clock – foolish arms flailing

And so
Ad infinitum 
We watch for 
Six jet planes’ trails
And so
We prepare  our soup of thistles
And we settle down to feather 
And we wonder about the weather
Listen for the 
Falcons' bells together and
Cover our eyes with leather
Oh Icarus dear boy
Waxed and waned
Ah Amelia dear heart
Tarred and feathered...

Levinson & McWalter- June 2020

And So

Soup Of Thistles

Huge thanks to my Valuable Friends who partied hard!

@janinelevinson - Dance invites and vocals
@rick-4-1 - Funkin' it up for the dance floor
@phil-mcwalter - Sausage rolls and other stuff


PARTY BACK AT MY HOUSE

Party back at my house
Party back at my house
Party back at my house
Everybody's gotta come!
'Cos you're wonderful
Ooh Lord, we think you're beautiful
And we wanna hear you talk
We wanna see you walk
We wanna hear you shout
Have fun
Back at my house

Party back at my house
There's a party!
Party back at my house
There's a party!
Party back at my house
Everybody's gotta come!
'Cos you're wonderful
Oh Lord, so beautiful
We wanna hear you talk
See you walk
Hear you shout
Have fun
Back at my house

"BE the party" (Theresa May)

"Let's just get wastey-pants" (Nicole 'Snooki')
"Wow! What a ride!" (Hunter S. Thompson)
"I wanna see you dance" (Janine Levinson)
"Party Sleep Repeat" (Rick Medlock)
"Remember when we could?" (Jack Nicholson)
"Is this a cocktail party?" (Jimi Hendrix)
"Is this my party?" (Phil McWalter)
"Hell yeah!" (Clarence Clemons)

© Phil McWalter Oct 2020
[Photo by Emma McWalter @emmam-7]

Party Back At My House

I have always loved this song by Robert Palmer, but I always imagined it at a slower tempo to allow the words to resonate a little more. Rather fun perfecting a perfectionist, I hope Robert doesn't mind, in fact I wish he'd come back and do the vocal. So, anyway, here's my lockdown cover, accompanied by my Valuable Friend, Rick Medlock - The King of Rhythm.

@rick-4-1 - Running around The Drums
@phil-mcwalter - Looking for certainty in The Other Stuff

JOHNNY AND MARY

Johnny's always running around
Trying to find certainty
He needs all the world to confirm
That he ain't lonely
Mary counts the walls
Knows he tires easily
Johnny thinks the world would be right
If it could buy truth from him
Mary says he changes his mind more than a woman
But she made her bed
Even when the chance was slim

Johnny says he's willing to learn
When he decides he's a fool
Johnny says he'll live anywhere
When he earns time to
Mary combs her hair
Says she should be used to it
Mary always hedges her bets
She never knows what to think
She says that he still acts like he
Is being discovered
Scared that he'll be caught
Without a second thought
Running around

Johnny feels he's wasting his breath
Trying to talk sense to her
Mary says he's lacking a real
Sense of proportion
So she combs her hair
Knows he tires easily
Johnny's always running around
Trying to find certainty
He needs all the world to confirm
That he ain't lonely
Mary counts the walls
Says she should be used to it

Johnny's always running around
Running around

© 1980 - Robert Palmer

Johnny And Mary

Johnny And Mary (Dream Remix July 2022)

This is a bit of a rough and ready track from when we were all just young lads working out where to plug, blow, hit or bend these potentially musical things we had acquired… I cannot even remember playing it(!) but the best drummer in my world (Rick Medlock) sent me some of these old Pzazz tracks and I thought you might be able to suffer just one more that made me smile….
Pzazz was then:

Steve Tayton - blowing things
Rick Medlock - hitting things
Mark Steeds  - caressing electronic things
Mark Yakes  - plucking thicker things
Phil McWalter - bending thinner things

Please note there is a subsequent album release by PZAZZ entitled 'On Air' available on iTunes.

Backstreets - PZAZZ

!!!HOT NEWS!!! New Valuable Friends vinyl album and CD available! ALSO 2nd Deluxe Vinyl & CD+Booklet "Songs That Mean Something" See links below. 

Composer/Guitarist/Producer

Songs: We find them unpainted in our hands, throw them up into the air of our imagination, turning them in the colours we see after we close our eyes until they feel just right, and sometimes we catch them perfectly, without blemishing them...

My music is on most platforms for your ease.

Wow!!  417K+ plays and 4,000+ valued followers and friends on SC alone, that provide lots of wonderfully helpful comments that fuel the next track! Really big thanks to the SC community for listening and providing such brilliant feedback and support. It means so much to myself and my collaborators - huge thanks.

I work in different styles, as the inspiration, dreams or bubonic plagiarism comes! I use Logic Pro X on Mac.
 
I write, produce and play all my own stuff (unless otherwise stated), play vintage Tokai Strats mainly, PRS Torero, Steinberger, Gretsch G2627T, Classical, Fender Dreadnought, Yamaha and Rickenbacker basses, keyboards and sax. I use Native Instrument's Komplete, Omnisphere 2 and my own organic samples.

I mix on Sennheiser HD 280 Pro's and HD 650's (closed and open headphones) when not making a bigger noise through my Yamaha HS8 studio monitors. I use Focusrite Clarett 2Pre ThunderBolt and Apogee audio interfaces, Neumann & iSK condenser & AKG dynamic mics. 

Hardware: Feb 1978 Marshall JMP 50W Combo, BOO & BOSS stomps

I love collaborating with other musicians and will compose with, play guitar for, produce, arrange, master or even just hum along with other SC musicians. Please ask!

P.S. I am a long standing member of the Performing Rights Society and PPL through my old TV and theatre work as well as my record and publishing deals.

Phil McWalter

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