Recalling the energy of so many incredible female artists on this one, Niki! It's absolutely delicious to listen, too, and you're spoiling us with the longer run. These harmonies are so, so good. Loving this bluesy, folksy vibe this week. <3

Yes! I agree with Erin and Danielle- Really digging the harmonies on this. The mutes on the strumming is also really nice,

Powerful, beautiful. Heavy as cast iron, urgent as love.

Glorious - the rhythm and the harmonies push this one into the stratosphere. Love that flowing melody on the "change" in the chorus.

You are a master of dynamics Niki! You always have this ability to hold back, but here you also lay it on with the multitude of voices which makes the message in the lyrics so much more powerful. Just ingenious!

scared

WEEK 7
Nik Newark DRUM N FIFE 
CAPO 2
Am
We all recall that moment back in time
when Nik Newark saved our lives
well hold your horses for a moment shut the gate
the songs of nik are rising up again 

his poetry it warms the coldest heart
his falsetto brings you to tears and tears you apart
he ll write an epic song just for you
                           G
on drum 'n' fife mouth trumpet or kazoo

** there’s more to life than drum 'n' fife that’s true
         G
but relentlessly he chases down each perfect tune
Am
whatever genre tempo theme pursued
                                            G
what cannot Nik Newark do

some things in life hit hard and take their toll
we need the art that serves and calms the soul
on these days oh so much more than we've ever known
no one can live by bread alone

his poetry it warms the coldest heart
his falsetto brings you to tears and tears you apart
on drum and fife on triangle and spoon
he ll write an epic song for you

NNDNF SAW 7 - 19:2:21, 8.33 am

"What Else You Got" (#438, 210218)

 * Co-written with Dan Rivers * 

Packed it all up in a rental van
Guitar a girl and a half assed plan
Heard that it's a 10 year town
Better start makin' the rounds

Fifty cold calls 'til they let me in
Tiny office and a guy named Slim
Thought my first song had a pretty good shot
Then he said, "what else ya' got"

I got mouths to feed I got bills to pay
A dog and a wife and an H.O.A.
I got high blood pressure one bad knee
And a Volvo leakin' antifreeze
To top it all off one verse and Slim said stop 
What else you got 

Hot take from my Uber driver
What I needed was a great co-writer
Said he was Tim McGraw's third cousin
Hell he'd written almost a dozen

We wrote a track just right for Garth
Got as far as the driveway guards
Sang it through the intercom
A voice came back, "what else you got"

I got outta' state plates and two flat tires
And a radio tuned with needle nose pliers
I got bootleg cable and uh, Obamacare
And holes in all my underwear
Dann Huff told me son you're really good, NOT
What else ya' got

I got to thinkin' how hard could it be
To start a publishin' company
Get the writers all lined up around the block
Just so I can tell 'em what else ya' got

I got smoker's cough I got whiskey shits
And a mother in law that just won't quit
I got plumber's crack I got athlete's foot
And I'm still a long way from Brentwood
There goes the mansion, the Rolex and the yacht
What else ya' got

Look out Music Row I'm comin' in hot
What else ya' got

Week 08a - What Else You Got (210218)

"Run Down" (#439, 210219)

 * Words by Jerry Frohlich, music by James Tristan Redding * 

Another town another show
Didn't seem that long ago
A one night stand and off I go

Run down I hit the road again

Haunted by the highway sound
I close my eyes the lights go down

Echos distant in my mind
The days are long and the nights are longer
As I stare out the darkened window

Run down I hit the road hit again

I feel the eyes of all the fans
They all watch me as I stand
On stage again

And as we drive away
I feel so empty
But left them wanting more

Run down I hit the road again
The band, my friends

Run down I hit the road again
Yeah rock the night away

Run down I hit the road again
Another town another show

Run down I hit the road again

Week 08b - Run Down (210219)

The Words I Heard

Where the Buses don't Run

Week 8 #songaweek2021. 
by Julia Tindall Bloom, Laurie & David Easterling © 2/24/2021, Saint Paul, MN, and Oak Ridge, TN. 
Photo is a fairy house my daughter built on the banks of the Mississippi River summer 2019.

Please change your mind 
Don’t leave me behind
I was desperate to say
But I left it unsaid
The words wailed in my head
You’re leaving today  

May you never be sad enough to give up
Or too busy to explore the unknown
Remember no matter how far you go
You can always make your way home

I’ve been waiting so long 
To sing my own song
Can’t stay in this place
Stretch my wings and try
To see where I can fly
Cast off my old ways

May you never be sad enough to give up
Or too busy to explore the unknown
Remember no matter how far you go
You can always make your way home

The road is always there
Time may not be fair
The same road that leads away
Leads back home someday

May you never be sad enough to give up
Or too busy to explore the unknown
Remember no matter how far you go
You can always make your way home

Make Your Way Home (cowrite with Laurie and David Easterling)

On every corner
On every street
It’s where they eat and pray and wait
And where they sleep

In rags in bunches 
Cardboard boxes
They lie in wait beneath the pain 
Of a life discarded

And we’re just people
We walk on by
Our children asking questions
With tears filling their eyes
 What going on here ma 
cant we try to make it change

change
please please
change

In every playground
In every school
The innocent unsuspecting one 
is called a fool

The weight of terror
The sting of lies
Each word that hits a broken shell
Who’s lost the will for life

And we’re just people
We walk on by
Our children asking questions
With tears in their eyes
 What going on here dad can we try to make it change

And in the darkness
Beneath the glow
Of neon skies and bad mens lies
Of pain she’d never knowm

Her dream a vapor
A faded hope
There’s nowhere here to run
There’s no safe place to go

And were the people
Won’t even try
To answer all the questions
That fall from our children’s eyes

What’s going on here
Can’t we make a change
Please can’t we can’t we try

change please - week 8 2021 SAW

Copyright Erin Wolf 2021
Instruments featured: guitar, mandolin

Week 8 SAW Prompt: Change please
*Note about the song: A bittersweet, yet hopeful song about break-ups and new horizons written whilst on a serious Adyn Townes kick.*

how long after you left
did you try to leave
were you trying to grow
or were you running away

was it all too close
all too soon
not enough space
was the air smothering you
with the smoke from 
a love still burning
a love still burning

you wanted change
needed change, please
then the world stopped
you were stuck 
bound in a haze

did your dreams shift then
or did you hold your peace
waiting for the light to shine
through the darkness
bringing release
bringing release

and change, did she 
come in the night
like a thief, taking your heart
in her flight
she's not what you expected
or what you came for
but will you give change a 
chance for something more

and change, did she
come in the night
like a thief taking your heart
in her flight
she's not what you expected
or what you came for
but will you give change a 
chance for something more
something more

how long after you left
did you try to leave
were you trying to grow
or were you running away

Change, Please

Photo from https://www.piqsels.com/en/public-domain-photo-jbapq/download under CC0 https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/.

You Could Turn Back, But Why Would You Want To - Song a Week 2021, Week 9

I wrote this when I was living in London England about my mood at the time. 
Recorded with producer Mark Keefner in LA years later.
The late Jimmy Griffin from the group Bread was a big fan of this song!

change please - week 8 2021 SAW

niki s

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Claes

Claes

Charlatan, PE

JamesTristanRedding

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