From the album "Cairn" (2024)
Featuring Pete Toigo on bass.

The Final Wager

Steer me in the right direction and I'll go
And I won't stop until I find
A bridge across the wind, passage through the rain
A workaround to buy us some more time

The final wager
We'll run the table
And love will win at last

Sort me out so I can be the kind of guy
That you would proudly call your own
The stupid things I do will not embarrass you
And you will never be alone

The final wager
We'll run the table
And love will win at last

Wind me up and I will walk the straightest line
A gauntlet of our enemies around
But just one look at me, they'll part like the red sea
And we will walk across the ground

The final wager
We'll run the table
And love will win at last

The Final Wager

This is 2023

Progressive Dream 23.10.23

ProgressiveDream

Mostly just me playing about, but there's a bit of Charlie Villiers' guitar in there too, notably giving the outro a little touch of class.

~Lyrics~
We were sitting in your back garden 
Clouds were drifting across the sky 
You turned to me and smiled
I think you had a tear in your eye
And then taking my hand you whispered,
“When I get this high,
I sometimes get the feeling I might be just about to die!”

Then with a shrug of your shoulders 
You told us about the butterflies
That there’s no way of them knowing
That their wings look like eyes
And if you consider the caterpillar
It’ll come as no surprise
Just how very little we all know about our lives

[Chorus]
Baby you kill me, all night long
Baby you’re killing it all night…

Later on that evening
the sun was streaming through the trees
You have to just surrender to life
At moments like these
We were kicking through the fallen leaves
In the pale winter sun
And though I tried to hide it, I always knew this day would come

I recall the very moment 
You didn’t even hesitate
It was written in the heavens
And written all over your face
But the storm is in the distance
The sky is a luminous pink
You can lead me like a horse to water…

[Chorus]
🎸 🤩

Baby You Kill Me

It was amazing to get to work on this. Thank you Nine Inch Nails for making the original track re-mixable, and Neons Gone Mad for including me in this fun collaboration. You're all legends!

The original Nine Inch Nails track, licensed through Creative Commons, is here: https://archive.org/details/nineinchnails_ghosts_I_IV

After seeing Neons Gone Mad's video with positive vibes of newspaper headlines through the ages that they had found, I decided to try to sing along to those. This was done in one take, and they were kind enough to produce it for me. They also made a new video edit to go with it, this one's in colour. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DioOmT4R6sk (here's the original: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enuwv6CKCtw)

Masha Solo on Bandcamp: https://masha-solo.bandcamp.com

Neons Gone Mad on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3B39xtrJfUJK0C1RQhmLGG

Neons Gone Mad on Bandcamp: https://profoddfellow.bandcamp.com/

Song art by Masha using a combination of video stills from NGM's video and a self portrait in the middle. The lyrics are found newspaper headlines collected by Craig Conley @prof-oddfellow

Lyrics:
Thus we can rewrite
Here goes something
Seek better times
that never were
You can bypass
Wit's end
No weekends are lost (it says here!);
You are not second class
You don't have to take it anymore
Something will always be there.
"You can take it with you"
Next year will be ours
Not impossible to get money
Facing the Future without fear
Evil spirits scared away
So far so good
Seek better times
That never were
You'll Do All Right
You Still Have Time...
Wow! You look great!
Everything's Great
You Get Your Wish!
Future Is Bright
Little Things Count
Your Lucky Star
is on the way!
We'll See This Through!
Here goes something
Everything's going to be all right
and every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Bizarre OK for over 30
There is a solution for every problem
Something wonderful happened
How a weirdo and a ghost can change your entire life
Nothing falls to pit bottom due to earth's motion
The devil can't make you do it!
There's still time to withdraw
You can change your personality from dull to dynamite
You are not as old as you think
Something Nice About Tomorrow
The better day coming to-morrow
Danger period is about over
There are two handles to every tomorrow
Not all good things have to end

Collaborations

Let's Undo: Nine Inch Nails with Neons Gone Mad and Masha Solo

This was a minor hit by David Soul (1943-2024) somewhat 40 odd years ago.  In fact I covered this a couple of years back but I was not happy with the vocals and the recording was put aside.  Lately I decided to give it another try and reworked the whole thing with an altered arrangement.  Just see what you think about it.
Thanks for stopping by.

[CREDITS]
Composition - Tony Macaulay
Vocals / Arrangement / Programming - Michael C. Lynn
E. Guitar (solo & fill-ins) – Shannon Forest @Band_in_a_Box
Baritone Guitar – Brent Mason @Band_in_a_Box

[LYRICS]
They say maybe dreams are only movies of the mind
 Still I've lived a few
 I'm not a star
 Though in some ways I've made it
 But all these nights away is gonna lose me you
 Thought a lot about it in these back stage rooms
 And I'd leave it all, if you want me to

 #CHORUS#
Some nights, God knows I'll miss the music
 I'll miss the crowds that call my name
 I'd find contentment now
 If I thought you'd just hang' on
 Playing to an audience of one
 
Some nights, God knows it won't be easy
 I'll feel the lights I'll hear the sound
 I'll find a piece in me
 Cuddled up when the evening's done
 Sometimes playing to my audience of one

 
The endless driving, midnight arriving
 The sleeping when you can
 Still worth it somehow just for that lift
 you get when you walk on
 But just to call you up some nights between the shows
 To say "Good-night I miss you" ain't enough I know
 So I'd leave it all if you tell me so
 

I'll find a piece in me
 Cuddled up when the evening's done
 Playing to my audience of one
 Sometimes playing to my audience of one.

Repeat CHORUS

Covers

Playing to An Audience of One   (Cover)

If You Only Had A Minute

UnBoxed August 2024

[ d o w n l o a d a b l e ]

Her Pleasures

ANARS ! Le sentier obscur

a work in progress!
This song is 80% drama and 20% piano

Lyrics/vocals: Annie Stone
Piano: Russ Stone

Slow Blues in B minor

Sven Bennick