Thursday, June 16, 2011

God Bless...

America!

I just got some great news! I'm going to be opening for "America" on the Main Stage at the Britt Festival! I wore out their first album back in high school! This is their 40th anniversary tour and should be a blast. The Britt Festival is the premiere music festival here in Southwest Oregon. It's in nearby Jacksonville. (I live in Ashland.) Beautiful outdoor setting, great sound system, great people to work with. I'm really excited about this show.

I'm also going to be opening for Bill Maher on August 26th, 2011, but not on the Main Stage. For that show I'll be on the new Table Rock City Stage which is a new stage they just built this year to showcase local talent before the Main Stage action starts.

The "America" show is Friday, August 24th, 2011. Get tickets here if you're within range of this venue: http://www.brittfest.org/performances My friend Jeff Kloetzel is playing that night on the Table Rock Stage, so come early if you can and catch his set.

Thanks for your support!

GB

Sunday, June 12, 2011

New Video

Your Face

I wanted to let you know about the new video that I just put together with the help of my friend and videographer Doug Cochran. It was quite an undertaking and I'm very proud of it. It started innocently enough while I was watching a free animation show at Southern Oregon University that my friend Steven Meyerson was putting on. Suddenly, out of the blue, it occurred to me that my song "Your Face" would make a great video if it was accompanied by appropriate footage of dogs from youtube that matched the lyrics.

I was so inspired to do this that I immediately began the somewhat difficult process of finding the videos, figuring out which ones would work in which places, and then getting permission from each youtube member to use a portion of their work in mine. This took a little while as some of the youtube members had videos with tons of hits and evidently stopped paying attention to their youtube message boxes since they got many, many messages...one member informed me that it would cost me $1200 to use a clip from their video...one member worked in finance and didn't like my "Jump You Fuckers" song and so refused permission..and some just ignored my requests. But I found replacements for the ones I couldn't get permission to use and eventually lined everything up so Doug and I could assemble and edit it on one evenings work.

Have I mentioned that I am one scarily organized dude?

I tried to embed the video here but for some reason when I did the video ended up cropped off so about a third of it was not visible. So I'm just including the links here. I hope you like it and if you do, I hope you'll forward the link to any like minded people who you think will like it too.

The song is from my album "Without The Moon" and is, like all of my music, available for downloading free or with a donation at my site: www.GeneBurnett.com It's also available a little easier and faster at CD Baby and iTunes, but it'll cost you a buck.


Take care, be well and thanks for your support.

GB

Friday, June 10, 2011

My Recording Process


Step By Step...

For my latest album "Too Busy To Worry", I thought I would break down the whole process of recording and putting together one of my albums into steps and then I decided to add commentaries as I went, describing how each step actually played out as I completed the album. So here it is...


1. Write The Songs. The first step for me is to write the songs. I usually have up to 20 or so lyric ideas in progress at any given moment. I write at least a little almost every day. Sometimes I just add a word or two, maybe a line, sometimes several. Each idea is a stack of pieces of scrap paper clipped together. When one of these stacks of lyrics is getting close to where I think it is almost "done", I start working with the guitar to find the best chords and rhythm to accompany it. Sometimes I write lyrics and music together, but usually I write most of the lyrics first. I might have a basic musical idea or rhythm while I'm writing the lyrics, but not always. Once it is starting to really come together, I write out the lyrics in a notebook. When it's done, I type the lyrics into my computer and print a hard copy that goes into another notebook. At this point I start to perform the song in public which usually changes or tweaks it a bit. When I have about 15 or so songs that are ready, I stop actively focusing on writing and begin to focus on recording what I've got so far.

For this latest project, "Too Busy To Worry", I felt I had enough songs ready around mid April, 2011. I've been having a major wave of songwriting inspiration since about 2006 or so. It seemed to peak in 2009 when I recorded 6 CD's worth of music. I did 4 in 2008 and 3 in 2010, and so far this is the first project of 2011. So I'm slowing down a bit...which is fine by me. I probably forget over half of my songs as I go, so I'm very grateful for recording technology. If the well goes dry, I can always re-learn the one's that got away. This project, like the last two, felt like a particularly good and strong collection of tunes. It was nice to start this blog post and see the project as a connected flow before me and to add these comments as I went to color in some of the details.


2. List The Songs In Album Order.The next step for me is to write a list of the songs in the order they will appear on the album in my notebook. This helps me see the album as a total project. I write the songs in order in a column on the left side of a page and then I have columns on the right that say: Recorded, Mixed, and Mastered. As I complete each stage in the studio, I check off these columns for each song.

I did this on Monday night, April 18th. I consider my albums to be more like song catalogs than old style "albums" that I expect someone to listen to straight through. Not only are singles replacing the album concept, but mine are usually 15 or 16 songs, in this case 16, and very few people will sit and listen to a 70+ minute album. Nevertheless, just in case, I start with what I think are the 4 or 5 strongest tunes and then order the rest in a way that I think would be the best order to listen to them all in, if one were so inclined.


3. Check And Print The Lyrics. The next step for me is to review the lyrics on my computer to see if I've either made any mistakes typing them in, or if any of the lyrics have changed since I first entered them. Once they're all set, I print new copies of any that have changed for my Master Lyrics Notebook. I also print another hard copy of each lyric to bring to the studio. My Master Lyrics Notebook is huge, so bringing just a folder of the lyrics for the project at hand is much easier to deal with. I never perform with lyric sheets but in the studio, I use them to save money by making sure I don't forget any words and have to start over.

I did this on April 19, 2011 in the late afternoon.


4. Create Word doc's and .pdf's. At this point, I usually create a word doc and a .pdf of the lyrics for the project. This is for my web man when the time comes to post the lyrics on my site. Since I'm already involved with lyrics, checking and printing, it's convenient to do the doc's and .pdf's at this point. On my site there will be a readable, printable .pdf, but not a downloadable one. I let people know that if they want their own copy of the lyrics, I will email them a word doc. or .pdf of their own. This is why I make and store a word doc. as well as a pdf.

I did this on April 19, 2011 in the early evening.


5. Create Email Drafts For Web And Design Work. At this point, I create an email draft that contains a list of the song titles, numbered and in order. One copy of this list will go to my friend Ben Grunde who helps me with graphics and printing when the time comes to design the album inserts. Ben's copy will also include album credits, the title, etc...all the info we'll be wanting to include in the design. I don't send it to him yet however, because I need to record, mix and master the songs before I can get the track length info that I need to include in the printing. I also start a draft that will eventually go to my web man, Datta Groover. This will also include a list of the song titles, but will also include a brief description of the album to include with the web posting of the album on my site and a pdf. of the lyrics to post there as well.

I did this on April 19, 2011 in the early evening.


6. Find Or Take Pictures For The Album Cover. I think about the title or album concept and look at my existing pictures to see if any of them will work. If not I go out and take the picture I want to be the cover. In any case, I'll usually have 2-4 shots ready for the email I'll eventually send to Ben Grunde who helps me with graphics and printing. At this point the pictures go into the email draft that I created in step 5.

In this case I had it narrowed down to one picture on April 19th, which I attached to the email draft that I sent to Ben eventually. Then I changed my mind in the first week of May and thought another picture might be better. So I attached both to the email draft, thinking I'd make the final choice later.


7. Practice And Perform The Songs. Now I practice and perform the songs as much as I can to work out any bugs and get used to each song's tempo and feel. I steer all my live sets toward these new songs and try to make sure I play most of them at every show. I pay particular attention to the songs that are the newest. The older ones I've already performed several times at this point, but the newer ones, I want to be sure are well broken in before I record them. I do this until I'm satisfied that the songs are all in good shape and ready to record.

I started doing this in earnest the night of April 19, at an Open Mike that I co-host here in Ashland. As of the 22nd, things were going great. I worked out the bugs in some of the newer tunes and the older ones were sounding good. Suddenly, on the evening of the 22nd, a brand new song appeared and almost wrote itself. I wasn't planning on writing at all until this project was finished but sometimes things like this just happen. My plan is to include it on this album and see if it fits. I was planning on re-recording an older song called, "No Such Thing" that I've modified a bit since my original recording of it back in 2006. If the new one doesn't fit, I may just do NST on my next album. Just to be optimistic, I entered the new song lyrics into my computer and updated my album song list, the word doc and pdf and email drafts that I created above. As of the 23rd, the songs were feeling pretty good. I had a bit of a cold, perhaps made worse by hay fever, so the task was to sense the best time voice-wise to book studio time and begin recording...


8. Book Studio Time And Record The Songs. When the songs are ready, I book studio time with my friend Tom Freeman at Freeman Sound Studios and I record the songs. In the first session, I often manage to get at least one take of all the songs. I'll leave the studio with a rough mix CD of the songs to listen to. If I feel that any of them is not as good as I'd like, I book another session and re-record them. All my recordings are just me and guitar. I love this phase of the process. I think one of the reasons I love recording so much is that it is the one time I get to sing in a silent room and know I'm being heard, not just by Tom, but by the microphone itself.

I felt pretty good about the songs and the quality of my voice to record them around the first week of May. So I called Tom Freeman and booked the first recording session for Wednesday May 18th and a second one on Thursday May 19th. This gave me some more time to work out any additional bugs in the songs. My hope was to record at least one take of all 17 songs at the first session and then either re-record any songs I didn't like the following night or if all went well, start mixing (Step 9). I did end up getting takes of all 17 songs on the evening of the 18th...I listened to them on Thursday the 19th and while they weren't perfect, they were close enough that I could live with all of them. A small side step in the process is that when I actually record the songs, I usually notice small errors in the lyric sheets that got past me in previous checks, which I indeed did this time as well. So I went back to my master lyric files, as well as to the word doc's and pdf's that I made earlier and made the appropriate corrections.


9. Mix The Songs. When I'm satisfied with the recordings, the next step is to mix them. This is where Tom and I set the balance between the vocals and guitar, as well as add the right amount of effects like reverb and EQ to the overall sound.

I went back into the studio with Tom on Thursday night, May 19th to start in on the mixing. I was thinking and hoping we might be able to mix all the tunes in one night and we did it! Aside from the usual mixing we had to "fix" a few songs. On one tune, I sang the lyric incorrectly. It was just one word and we had minimal bleed through from the guitar tracks so I was able to sing just that one line and Tom punched it into the master. On a couple of songs, we had one chorus that was weak, so we substituted a copied piece from a chorus that was fine and pasted it right in. The digital recording world is really amazing that way. I don't know anything about it really. This is why I hire Tom to do this stuff. He's very good at it and it saves me money, aggravation, and time to have him at the helm of the tech end of this process.


10. Master The Songs. This is where we set up the final Master copy of the album that I'll leave the studio with. We set the order of the songs, how much space there will be between the songs, add more compression if needed and make sure the overall volume is consistent.

I went back again to Tom's on Friday, May 20th to do the mastering and this went smoothly with no hassles whatsoever. Three days from beginning recording to having master CD's in my hand. This was a personal record! The entire cost of recording, mixing and mastering was $349.


11. Check The Master. I leave the studio with a master CD copy of the album but I need to check it to make sure there are no digital glitches and that everything is OK. I usually make a digital copy of the master and check that. I lay down with headphones on and give the whole album a careful listen. If all is well, I store the master and will use the copy to make further copies from.

I did this on Saturday, May 21rst and everything sounded great! Once I've checked the CD Master, I know the song lengths so I added those to the email that I sent to Ben Grunde who helps me with the design work.


12. Burn The First Batch Of Copies. At this point, I will usually burn the first batch of copies, usually about 30. I don't have any graphics yet, so I will just store this first batch of 30 on a spool, ready for assembly when the time comes.

This, I also did on Saturday, May 21rst. Since it requires next to no attention, I find it nice to burn discs while doing other tasks, like getting the email off to Ben with all the info that will need to go on the album graphics. It's also nice to have the first batch of discs all burned and ready to go when I get the paper inserts printed.


13. Design the Album Graphics. Now I get together with my friend Ben Grunde and we design the album graphics. I usually have a basic idea and a photo or two to consider for the cover. I keep my album design very simple so this doesn't take too long, usually a couple of hours. We do a design for the jewel case insert, for the tray card, and for a label that goes on the CD itself.

This too, I did on Saturday, May 21rst...it went fairly smoothly and took a couple of hours.


14. Print The Album Inserts And Labels. At this point Ben will print enough inserts for the first batch of 30 or so albums. He's a busy man, so it might take a week or so until I have the copies in hand.

After doing the design work, I told Ben I needed 30 copies as soon as he could get around to printing them. I never know how long this will take so I always leave myself some tasks to do at this time. No sense killing myself to do them earlier if I'm going to have this little lull anyway. So, with printing pending, I proceeded to Step 15.


15. Compose The Email Album Announcement. While I'm waiting for the printing to be done, I then compose an email announcement that I'll send out to all of my contacts when the album is done and posted on my web site. I announce the album as well as include a lyric sample and comment about each song.

I composed the email on Tuesday, May 24th and tweaked it a bit on Wednesday, the 25th. I considered it done at that point, but planned to give it one more look when the time came to send it out...On Wednesday, I also filled out the CD Baby application on line where I saved it, planning to pay for it when I had the actual CD in hand ready to mail it to them. (More about CD Baby below in Step 17.) At that point, I just had to wait for the printing.


16. Assemble The First Batch Of Albums. Once I have the printing in hand, it's a pretty easy job to assemble the first batch of albums. I've already burned the CD's themselves with my CD duplicator. All I have to do is put the inserts into the jewel cases, the labels on the CD's, the CD's in the jewel cases, the completed albums into sealable plastic CD envelopes and add a price sticker.

Ben brought over the printing on Friday, May 27th, and I assembled 20 of the 30 I had already burned. I also paid $59 for listing the album on CD Baby and packed up a copy of the CD to mail to them. I also filled out an application to copyright the album as a "Sound Recording" with the Copyright Office of The Library Of Congress and packed up two copies, the application and a check for $65 to send to them. I also packed up a few copies to send to my Mom and a few close friends that I always send hard copies to. Eventually, all the songs will be available for downloading free on my site, but not at this point.


17. Send Copies To My Web Man and CD Baby. The first copies go to my web man, Datta Groover so he can post them on my site. I also send a copy out to CD Baby, a great company in Portland that for a minimal fee, sets up a page to sell the album. I don't bother with the option to have them sell the actual hard copy CD's. I only have them set it up for digital distribution. This means that not only will they sell digital downloads of the songs on their site, but also it will go out on iTunes and many other digital e-retailers of music. They collect the money, take their cut, and send me checks.

Our Post Office is closed on Saturdays and since Monday was Memorial Day, I had to wait until Tuesday to mail copies to CD Baby, the government and friends. As it happened my web man, Datta Groover who lives in Fort Collins, CO was visiting and doing some work here in Oregon. He arrived in Ashland on Wednesday, June 1rst and I met up with him that evening and gave him his copy in person rather than ship it. I also sent him the email I had drafted earlier with the information I wanted listed on my site along with the album. Now, I had to wait until he got the songs up on the site before I could move to Step 18. In the meantime I got emails from CD Baby asking me to OK the album for digital distribution as well as the layout of the page they set up for it on their site. Everything looked fine so I did that on Saturday, June 4th.


18. Meta-Tag The Songs. Once Datta lets me know the songs are posted on my site, I then "meta-tag" them. This means I attach a jpg. of the album cover as well as album info like artist, song title, etc.. to each mp3 of each song on the album. This enables people who download songs from my site to more easily integrate the songs into their music collections.

On Wednesday, June 8th, Datta notified me that the album was up on www.GeneBurnett.com so I could meta-tag the songs. This involved downloading the mp3's to my computer, adding the album graphics and information and then uploading them back to the site. I did this on Thursday, June 9th, but when I went to check the songs before uploading them back to the site, I found that many of them had digital glitches in them and would have to be re-done. This kind of thing happens all the time in the digital world and considering how smoothly everything else had gone on this project, it didn't even phase me. I sent Datta an email letting him know about the glitches and waited for his reply, hopefully telling me that he had re-loaded the songs and they were good to go. I got an email on Friday, June 10th, letting me know that the songs were up and ready to be tagged with no glitches this time. The process took about an hour then it was ready to go. I sent Datta an email letting him know the songs were tagged and up on the site and he sent me one back right away letting me know that he'd pulled the trigger and the album was "live" on line. The only thing left to do at that point was to tell the world about "Too Busy To Worry".


19. Send Out The Album Announcements. When all the songs are posted on my site and meta-tagged, I then send out the announcement to all my email contacts that the album is done and posted and available for downloading free or with a donation at my site, www.GeneBurnett.com I also post a similar announcement on facebook and on my blog, The Unforced Life.

Also on Friday, June 10th, I sent out the email announcement I'd previously composed (Step 15). I decided it would be a good idea to link each song title in the email to that particular song on my site, so I added those links before I sent it out. I also posted the same announcement as a "note" on facebook and as a blog post on The Unforced Life. I also posted this step by step process description on The Unforced Life as a separate entry and on facebook as a separate note.


20. Bring The Album To My Shows. At this point the album is officially complete and I bring it to my shows along with my others and make it available for sale.

I actually had been bringing copies of "Too Busy To Worry" to a few shows already, but I didn't make a big deal out of it. Once it was on line and the announcements sent out, then I was a bit more aggressive in promoting it at my shows.


21. Start Writing Again! Throughout the above process, I might do a little bit of writing here and there, but I deliberately don't focus on new ideas until the album is done. But now, with the album behind me, I feel free to focus again on developing and completing songs.

To listen to the finished product, please visit: www.GeneBurnett.com

New Album!

Too Busy To Worry


I have a new album out called "Too Busy To Worry", featuring 17 songs, 16 new ones and 1 older song re-recorded. This will be the 25th album that I've posted on my site www.GeneBurnett.com , where they are all available for downloading free or with a donation. Please visit and listen to or download as much music as you wish. Donations are strictly optional. At this point in my life, I would rather be heard than rich. And besides, there is so much music available these days, I'm amazed and happy any time anyone takes the time to listen to any of what I do.

So here are the song titles and a lyric sample from each one. I'm also linking each song title to that individual song, in case you want to listen to just that song. Please find the "Musical Recordings" page on my site to listen to or download the entire album.

1. All Wisdom Does Not Agree

This song is about accepting the various contradictions and paradoxes of life and finding some kind of ongoing balance between extremes...

When it suits me I’m an atheist—When it doesn’t I am not

It’s God that’s in the details and the Devil that is not

I don’t believe in omens but I’ll take ‘em if I get ‘em

I don’t believe in hunches but I’m inclined to bet ‘em

All wisdom does not agree



This is a song about facing the consequences of past actions....

My ship has come in—The others I sank

Did it myself—No one to thank

And now I am crying—All the way to the bank

I’ve got a big gun—But it’s just shooting blanks


Chorus:

I see why you left me—I would have left too

And never come back—If I were you

But miracles can happen—I hope that they do

I’m not holding my breath—I’m already blue



This is another of my "loser" songs. I guess it's my version of "Deacon Blue" by Steely Dan...

I finally got the tits to be a pop star

But I’m 30 years too late and the wrong sex

I’m just a fat guy with a six-string and a tip jar

Writing songs that even I forget


Chorus:

I’m a no hit wonder—I’m an amateur detective

On the trail of something I can barely see

When it comes to ambition—I have lost my perspective

Am I next to nothing or is nothing next to me?



I wrote this after reading a post-election facebook post by my friend Jeremy Hickman. Between his job, his music, marriage, and twin baby girls, he found himself focused on the same things the day after the election as the day before. My own facebook post that day read: "Before election: Chop wood~Carry water. After election: Chop wood~Carry water.", so I could relate!

I got bills to pay

Mouths to feed

Songs to sing

Friends to see

I’d love to stop and argue

But I’m in too big a hurry

I’m too busy to worry



Another love song for the missus...

I love to do the dishes

I love to sweep the floors

The garbage is my mission

I always check the doors

I might be going crazy

But I am never bored

I’m so married



I think this is one of my prettier and more commercial melodies, and the lyrics are heartfelt, but alas my muse has made sure this one won't be getting much airplay. (Not that any of my other "cleaner" songs do either!)

When you go away

I know I’ll be OK

I can fill my days just fine

But I want you to stay

Stay here in my way

I don’t want to be right all the time


Chorus:

So…Fuck me up—Throw me off

Slow me down—Turn me on

Crack me up—Brush me off

Just be anything but gone

Fuck me up



Almost there...

Sometimes I must close the store

Shut the shades and lock the door

Be right back I always say

I am not that far away

I might slide and slip around

When you try to pin me down

I might be hard to reach today

But I am not that far away


Chorus:

Not that far away

Not that far away

Give me one more day

I am not that far away



This one was sort of an experiment. I had one lyric idea, but two equally promising musical ideas, so I used both musical ideas with the same lyrics in the same song. It's about being unwilling to be a temporary fix for someone who's on the rebound.

It would have been a piece of cake

To let you love me

You were hurt and didn’t want to feel the pain

There’s nothing I would have had to fake

To let you love me

The way you showed up crying in the rain

But I saw your attraction

Was just a distraction

Just a small fraction

Of what you had inside

I wanted a happy home

You wanted a stepping stone

A temporary Romeo

To keep you safe and dry



This one, on the other hand, is about being perfectly willing to be a temporary fix for someone who's on the rebound!

Chorus:

Let me be your stepping stone

Let me be your good to go

You don’t need a “rent to own”

Let me be your methadone

Something easy—Something nice

All the fun at half the price

Half the virtue—All the vice

Let me be your loaded dice



This song is a slow country-ish dirge about accepting that everything comes to nothing, but still being willing to play...

My plates are all full and they’re all spinning

I try to keep ‘em going but gravity’s winning

If there’s a Devil he must be grinning

‘Cause sooner or later they’re all gonna fall

Back to the ground where they always have been

Where losers don’t lose and winners don’t win

It’s a journey to nowhere that never begins

But as long as I’m here—Well—deal me in



Sometimes I really get tired of the narcissism and self importance of myself and my fellow singer-songwriters...

Who are you trying to fool?

Worrying about who might be better than who

Dylan kicked all our asses in 1962

Why don’t you just shut up and play?

Life is tough—Is that really news?

Plenty of people got it tougher than you

You’re not famous yet? Well boo hoo hoo

Why don’t you just shut up and play?


Chorus:

Shut up and play—The sky is falling

Shut up and play—It always will be

Shut up and play—The sky is falling

Shut up and play—It always will be



This one's about giving up self-pity and listening to Nature...

I am standing by the water

Looking at the water

Wishing I was water—So free

I am standing by the rocks

Looking at the rocks

Thinking that the rocks are me

And a leaf floats by

Like a butterfly

And testifies to me:


Chorus:

Only a fool could be bored on this Earth

Nothing’s lost ‘til you call off the search

And nothing that matters is out of your reach

You’re not the prisoner you thought you were

Or the center of the Universe

You’re a big fish but you are not the Sea

So jump into the world and explore it

Nothing’s lost ‘til you stop looking for it

Nothing’s lost



This song makes no sense at all. It's just a bunch of Pop-Country song clichés thrown together. While I love what I think of as authentic Country music, I really don't like most modern Pop-Country music at all. I started off wanting to parody those kinds of songs, but now I see why people write them. They sure are fun to sing!

Country boy pick-up that ain’t a dog

Mama always told me this here guitar

Number one Hell yes Saturday night

Shotgun God bless ain’t you a sight

America freedom kickin’ your ass

Honky tonk Hell no you got class


Chorus:

Everybody wants to be a cowboy

But sunsets they don’t lie

Everybody wants to be a cowboy

Train tracks neon signs



I've been shooting short videos featuring 360 walk around views of people's heads, which I then post on facebook. No idea why this idea caught my fancy, but I stopped arguing with my muse a long time ago. After shooting and posting a number of these videos, I told my friend and musical hero Robbie Lindauer that I might end up using them in a music video someday. He said: Well the song should be called "This Is Your Head". So, of course, I had to write it...

This is where you live

This is where you die

This is where you tell the truth

This is where you lie

This is where you hate

This is where you love

This is where your body fits you like a glove


Chorus:

It’s everything you’ve heard

It’s everything you’ve said

It’s everything in the world

This is your head



Inspired in part by a line in my brother Allison Burnett's novel, "Undiscovered Gyrl", this one has existential as well as humorous implications...

I’m gonna give myself a call

And say we have to talk

I’m gonna take me out to dinner

Take me for a walk

I’m gonna let myself down easy

I don’t want to break my heart

I’ll just say I need some space

A little time apart

I’m gonna dump myself (X4)



This is an older song from my 2006 album "Plan B". I noticed that over time, I had changed the way I played and sang it, so this is a new version.

I meant it when I said it—All those years ago

When I pledged my love to you and no one else

I said “Your lonely days are gone—Darling, from now on

There’s no such thing as ‘all by yourself’ ”


There’s no such thing as “all by yourself”

There’s no such thing as “all by yourself”

I’ll be with you everywhere—I’ll always be there

There’s no such thing as “all by yourself”


17. Can't Help Feeling Beautiful


I thought I was going to set writing aside and work on recording the 16 songs above, but suddenly this one appeared out of no where. Inspired again by my friend Robbie Lindauer, who is sometimes pretty hard on himself. I got to thinking...and I thought, "You know if the things we don't like about ourselves, the things we are ashamed of, were really true, it would not be a big deal. We'd just accept them as facts and move on. But there seems to be this underlying sense of our own beauty, or potential for beauty, that makes these self-criticisms painful, since on some level we know they are not true...


Chorus A:

I can’t help feeling beautiful

I can’t help feeling beautiful

I can’t help feeling beautiful

Though I try and I try and I hide and I lie but…


Chorus B:

I can’t help feeling beautiful

I can’t help feeling beautiful

I can’t help feeling beautiful

I just do


Thanks for your support!

GB