They say the self is the most critical. In this case, the self is barely tolerant of the dangerously low songwriting level that went into day 50. It’s been like 3 years since I started this and 7 months since the last song because this one is a giant sack of crap. It doesn’t make any sense and the chords and lyrics don’t even kind of go together. So I made this one a techno autotune fun one. Only I don’t have fun when I listen to it. I remember watching fireworks in New York when I made it though, so that’s neat!

Also I have no recording of the song from the day off, so I made up a new version as close to the real, kind of.

I’ve never done heroin but I may have this day and blacked out.

50. Fireworks

G -> 7 -> 5 -> 3/5/6 -> G3 - G -> G3 etc. (This is what I wrote for chords. Actually.)

Fireworks, light up the lake now,

The moon’s gone, gone up in smoke,

I stood up, to go find my car,

and ran into a bear.

The bear roared, stood on his hind legs and growled,

I stood still, stood still waiting to run.

But he sat down, watching the night and the show.

I backed off, dropping my car keys on the ground.

But the bear sat, watching and waiting to move.

I made it back, back inside my home,

And the bear left, it was the end of the show.

What’s up Brendan,

Here is your song 49, which is arguably about bullying. This was an “I’m tired” song and on a ukulele, so I only used one finger to go up and down the C chord. Felt like giving it a better shot during a point in studying I didn’t want to do anymore!

This song is interesting, as I never considered myself bullied, but always felt affronted at adults telling me what to do - which may have been the deciding factor in my high-school expulsion.

**49. tired of being afraid

I’m tired of being afraid, ok?

No kids, or bullies, gonna find me afraid

I’m big, I’m smart and kind, they say

The kids don’t know me at all, they say

I’m lost, in a field, of distaste, its very real

I take what I need to survive this street,

Theres a kid, two blocks down, thinks cause he’s bigger than me he can push me around

But I know, and he knows, that I know, he’s the joke

C(chr to 0)

48.Gotta be a lotta feel a story

C G D G

I wrote this song thinking about how fun it is to have a ukulele and 2 cups of coffee. Lyrics were no matter.

I tend to start off every song like this just gibberishing until I find something that makes sense and I go with that, but here I omitted that step and never wrote anything more than “gotta be a lotta feel a story” which you may hear at one point. This song may warrant a re-record down the road, along with some others I’ve come to enjoy, who knows!

Feels good to upload songs again - it’s been like 3 years since I started this damn thing!

Good. Now that’s better, isn’t it?

Please start reading this all over again in Morgan Freeman’s voice.

Now there was a time, where I was writing some musical numbers, oh nothing special, just to pass the time. And it was about 8 o'clock I believe when I fell upon some chords that made a tune that reminded me of my childhood in Tennessee. And I took my father’s ukelele, and put it on my knee, and strung a Db6 to a Cmaj6. Now I was too young to understand the significance of those chords back then, and I’ll be damned if I do now.

47. goin insane

Db6 C6

Let’s walk back to the park

And burn the night away

These things I’m feeling

Driving me totally insane

Now I pass the time

And feel the night away

Gonna spend the night

Trying for the same

I’m speaking to myself,

Trying to understand my ways,

And if nothing else,

Ill go insane

Going home,

Its way too late

On ym phone

Going insane

Adim Gmaj7

Gm C

Remember that post like 8 months ago where I was like if I put a ukele song on I gave up? Lol. Fuck.

The ‘love song’. It’s an important tool in any artists repertoire. Kiss’s disco ballads, Prince’s entire catalogue and Sting’s songs about voyeurism and rape are revered in today’s day and age - where would popular culture be without them?

Some scoff at the apparent simplicity in writing the love song, throw a few G’s D’s C’s and an F for the refrain, add Sting singing about hiding in the bushes masturbating or stalking kids and you’ve got a hit.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against love songs, just Sting’s, which equate love to bukkake.

Here’s another love song I wrote! Enjoy!

46. Crazy bout you

You never take the last piece, you never make me fall asleep,

G G D D

Crazy about you!

C D C D (G)

And tea time? Why that sounds totally fine, I’ll make some food and sit with you

Crazy about you!

And oh! What would you say, to going for a walk and sitting by the lake?

And oh! We could even roller blade, its faster than walking anyway.

F C G

I’ll drive you home, cause I usually don’t, and while you sleep, have good dreams!

Song 45! Rather than work on the 30% assignment due in two days I haven’t started, or the thesis presentation on Friday, or any number of helpful things I could do, I decided to record for the first time in 6-8 odd months.

This was originally a ukulele song, but I thought I’d give it the ol’ college try on the guitar. Realized I tuned the ukulele a half step down the entire trip/recordings, which explains a lot. I just thought I sucked at playing along to old recordings. Nope. 23 year-old me was an idiot. The 25 year-old me is constantly making up for past mistakes.

It was raining on my trip, I wanted none of it, so I basically copied the chord structure of the Mr. bear song (unintentionally, I just noticed tonight) and lulled the clouds away. The recording went quite well! Couldn’t find my harmonica so I busted out the whistlin’.

**45. Go away rain

Hey thunder, please go away, I was hoping for a rain free day, hmm.

But I want you to know, its nothing personal, I really just don’t want to stay inside.

And I know how you feel, but sometimes thats the deal, oh rain, please go away.

F (0100) G C Am

Oh but now you came,

And darkened up the day,

It really isn’t just the same,

With you ©.

Em Fm

I see now you’re moving on, I think I was right all along,

We enjoyed your stay, but its better this way,

Cause now, here comes the sun!

Something about the realization that no matter what your writing style is “kid folk pop” gets you cynical about writing songs. And posting them! Ha!

Here’s song 44, it was the second song I wrote in New York, also this happened a year and a half ago now. I have these crazy plans of actually putting everything up this year.

So there’s this lodge covered in dead animals, so I wrote about them - and I’m giving you the original recording cause I don’t have a ukulele anymore to make a new one. And the new one I did make with real instruments sounded like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF8fPkV9HNc.

Enjoy! I like this one quite a bit too.

*44. Mr. Bear

I walked through automatic doors, into a room with great decor

And sat down at the fireplace

Theres a carving of a ten foot bear, it’s pretty groovy, and pretty rare,

But I want to go see my room.

F G7 C (A)

Hey Mr. Bear, can you look at me? I’m sitting in your chair, I don’t think you can see!

Hey Mr. Bear, your little cubs alright, he’s very small you’re very tall, and up all night!

F G C

Two beds and a lot of room, good floor but a crappy view,

Theres a bible on my desk.

I walk down to find the bar, thank god it isn’t very far,

I went and got myself a brew. YES

Hey Mr. Bear, can you look at me? I’m sitting in your chair, I don’t think you can see!

Hey Mr. Bear, your little cubs alright, he’s very small you’re very tall, and up all night!

Hey Mr. Moose, up there on the wall, looking at the guests come in you’re the biggest thing I ever saw!

Hey Mr. Bear, I’m going to go to sleep, keep on guarding the front door, and keep on being neat!

Part of the challenge left me in New York for ten days, so I snatched up my sisters ukelele and wrote them on that instead! Good fun change-up from guitar, I got better as the days went on coming up with new progressions and the like.

SO I found myself in Target getting food when I realized that there were 12 packs of Canadian for 10$? WHAT.

Anyway, here’s the song, the hallway I recorded it in made my voice sound sexy-as-hell-deep so that was a bonus.

#43, Buy Beer in New York

On the road now

Driving slow yeah

Goin to the usa

New York interstates

Tol booth freeway

American license plates

G C G C G C F

OH YEAH

D

And eating out and hotels,

And getting lots of discounts

At crazy American stores

Molson Canadian

When you buy in Canada

You get 12 for 24$

But did you know in target

I found in the market

You get 12 for 10$

For those keeping track here

Thats 85c pert beer

What the hell is wrong with the goddamn lcbo

gcgcgcf

Oh no

It cant be

It just aint fair

I can barely breathe

Dm Fm Em D

So buy beer

In New York

In target stores

At least in New York

You’ll never be bored

Just really drunk

For cheap!

This song is called ‘Dogs Sun Beer and Wine", and its a continuation of an earlier projection that I’d eventually panic and write a song that just shouts dogs, sun, beer and wine over and over. Well, the 42nd song brought such a thing, as I was busy all day preparing for a trip to New York which left me bedding around 4am, in which I wrote down the chords D G B A and those four words.

The good news is, I figured out for the most part how my recording software actually works, so its shouldn’t be quiet and shouldn’t suck as bad and there’s no singing until the very end! Yahoo!

Living with three sisters can be no good, especially when they shout and yell at each other about important things like “those are my socks”, and “I can’t get this bag open”. Day 41 was particularly irritating and here is what I fired out as a result! What fun.

I left the recording the day of because I haven’t recorded in months and figured I should get these down, and this track encapsulates the spirit of the songs, hushed-in-the-basement-while-everyone-argues theme.

Just Try, #41

Isn’t it hard talk it out, isn’t it hard to keep it down, isn’t it hard to not be loud, you want to scream you want to shout

Isn’t it hard to get along, isn’t it hard to carry on, isn’t it hard to be at peace, even when you want to scream

But, it’s not too hard to think about, everything you scream about, take a minute to calm down, have a tea and go sit down

G B C D

Oh hey, its not hard, to try and get along with everyone

Just try, and you might, find it works.

F G C D

That’s all, the advice, I can give, to live, in peace, with others, even your brothers, recapz