aint in true. At least the pain brought you a song Rick. Know what change in the later years is like myself after loosing my wife of 55 years and our youngest Son in recent times...not much musical motivation came out of that obviously but will just keep on, as we all do, till it comes back..keep on Rick...the road is indeed sometimes rough.

this is so strong,  and beauteful....  bring my to tears .

Hey... never let a good hospital stay go to waste! It's amazing, where and how these songs can come.

Beautiful song, soulfoul vocals and moving lyrics.

hope you recovered Rick. 😉 love your song and I love your attitude to life . keep on playing man. Johnny

Wow, song really captures the rough road, nice work!

This is a great song Rick... albeit from tragedy. I like your heartfelt (clear) vocals and soulful harmonica. Man it takes a lot to break a femur... OUCH!!!

I broke a leg bone (femur) in May of 2022. I wrote the song as I lay in a hospital bed and sedated with a mild dose of morphine. About a week after the operation, a physio nurse had come into my room to go over some exercises. To be honest, she was quite pretty and she seemed a bit suggestive with respect to "if I would be up for some exercise".  Probably just the morphine but it got the lyrical part of my brain turning and from that came most of the verses.  I managed to type them into an email on my phone and send it to myself. I had to make some alterations but this is gave me a solid start.  The music came later, as did the final changes to the verses. The outro just came as an inspiration during the recording.  It might have sounded better if I had done the 3 parts about a dozen times but I left it the way it was on the first takes. 

There were a lot of small events which gave the final direction to this song, including an interesting road sign just south of High River, AB.

Rough Road  (a.k.a. The Broken Femur Blues)
==========

[INTRO]

Ya  it's a shame, too late in the game
To find any thunder in this lightning bolt.
It'd be a nice surprise, but by the look in your eyes
That’d be all she wrote.  Ya, it’s a long, rough road.

Still I remember . . . lying there in pain,
Unable to stand, my face in the dirt.
I just couldn't decide , was it really my pride
Or my hip that was hurt.   Ya, it’s a long, rough road.

[SOLO]

[BRIDGE]
They say there's no gain
Without a little pain
The plan was never to gain a lot.
Just sing me a song and then move on and be happy with what I got.

So I ended up . . . in an ambulance ride
And a surgeon ready to cut in.
Some x-rays pics and sister morphine doing her tricks
A lag bolt and steel pin . . . Ya, it’s a long, rough road.

I walked with 4 wheels then I walked with a cane (asking myself)
Will I ever be the same again?
Well it took me seven months to stand on my own.
If life was easy, it wouldn’t be such a long, rough road.

[OUTRO]
Without the pain . . . without the pain
Without the pain, it wouldn’t be such a long, rough road.

Words and Music copyright Rick Engler
Photo and Reproduction copyright Rick Engler
Mixed in Cuckos Reaper on a PC
Audio Input using a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 (3rd gen)
Vocals and Harmonica: Shure SM58
Acoustic Guitar: direct input using amp modelling VST
Keyboards: Casio with Addictive Keys VST

Rough Road

Rough Road (Original)

Somewhere I read that SoundCloud is the DIY of the music world.  Very true for most of us wannabe (famous) musicians.  For those who were lucky enough to spend years in an actual sound studio, maybe this is a slam dunk. For the rest of us, it's like being the Wright brothers before they fully understood science behind aerodynamics much less get a machine to fly.

I have learned a lot in 2018 thru 2019 while playing at small, local venues.  It's a lot easier to sit back in a "recording studio".  I do put that in quotes since, for me, this is just a couple of microphones connected to a DAW which is connected to a computer with some multi-track software and some free plugins to enhance the finished product.  I believe there are about 5 unique disciplines to learn which include: playing an instrument, singing, doing both together, using a microphone, connecting with the audience.  I have much more respect for stage performers now, especially solo artists. Now, if one adds the discipline of recording engineer, well then, you have a well rounded musical background. 

I do hope that you enjoy some of my tunes.  I'm always happy to hear from listeners who have something meaningful to share, even when it is not particularly flattering or in someway odd.  I'll even try to answer any questions you may have.  Remember that you are never too old nor too young to create and share your music and/or share your knowledge.

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