D… D F C G
The selfish, they’re all standing in line
Faithing and hoping to buy themselves time.
Me, I figure as each breath goes by,
F G D
I only own my mind.
The north is to south what the clock is to time.
There’s east and there’s west and there’s everywhere life.
I know I was born, and I know that I’ll die,
The in between is mine.
F G D
I am mine…
D G Am D
And the feeling, it gets left behind.
All the innocence lost at one time.
Significant, behind the eyes,
D Cadd9
There’s no need to hide…
Cadd9 D
We’re safe tonight.
[D – F – C – G (x2)]
The ocean is full cause everyone’s crying.
The full moon is looking for friends at hightide.
The sorrow grows bigger when the sorrow’s denied.
I only know my mind.
I am mine…
And the feeling, it gets left behind.
All the innocence lost at one time.
Significant, behind the eyes,
There’s no need to hide…
We’re safe tonight.
SOLO:
D – F – C – G (repeat)
D…
And the meaning, it gets left behind.
All the innocence broken with lies.
Significance, between the lines.
(We may need to hide)…
And the meanings that get left behind.
All the innocents lost at one time.
We’re all different behind the eyes…
There’s no need to hide.
Outro:
G – Am – D (x3)
G – Am
** These chords and lyrics are interpretations and transcriptions, respectively, and are the sole property of the copyright holder(s). They are posted on this website free of charge for no profit for the purpose of study and commentary, as allowed for under the “fair use” provision of U.S. copyright law, and should only be used for such personal and/or academic work. **
And the award for most spirited contribution to a Laptop Session goes to…
Jim Fusco!
Yes, that’s right, for my FINAL video of 2008, I called in the big guns (plural) — not only Jim, but also Dana. The video that resulted is a one take, gather ’round the ol’ laptop spontaneously kind of video. At its core, this is what the Laptop Sessions are all about — recording a performance as if you were just sitting around the house with us. Break out a guitar, tune it, and start strumming. That’s what we do here. And that’s what we’ll continue to do in 2009!
For tonight, I chose “Feliz Navidad” in honor of the quickly approaching new year. Jose Feliciano recorded this song in 1970 and when it was released on CD in 2001 it quickly became one of the most played and recorded Christmas songs, according to ASCAP. Now, it has been added to the massive “session-a-day” catalog at the Laptop Sessions music blog, soon to be 366 music videos strong from this year alone!
Tonight was a lot of fun. Not only did I get to go to my English department Christmas party, but I also got there on time and without getting lost, thanks to the GPS that Jim and Mike got me for Christmas! I’ve been saying for years that I don’t really need one, that it wouldn’t get used, and epecially with the iPhone, that a GPS seems unnecessary. Well, not so. This was extremely easy to use and it was more fun than it should have been to drive to Hamden and back. Anyone who knows me will understand how great this is, as it combines my dorkiness with technology AND my dorkiness for loving to drive places!
Anyway, the party was extremely relaxing and fun (I am grateful for an amazing department of people to work with), and when I got home, I went out for some late night Burger King and Jim and I kicked back to watch some YouTube Videos. First, he showed me the little kid screaming as he opened his Nintendo 64. “NINTENDO SIXTY-FOOOOOUUUUUURRRRR!!.” So funny. (YouTube search: kid opening nintendo 64)
Then, I showed him a video I just came across today. It’s Jeff Tweedy, front man for Wilco, playing an acoustic show and talking to the crowd in between songs. About midway into the video, he explains “the game” to the crowd. Essentially, the game is to name a band — Three Dog Night, for instance — and then to consider the bowel movement that might have inspired the band name. There are so many good ones! Just think — Green Day, the Rolling Stones, String Cheese Incident, etc… The list goes on. (YouTube search: Jeff Tweedy banter and the game)
When we were done and Dana had arrived, we were all fighting unconsciousness. At least I was. And I think Jim a bit too. So, Jim suggested I record my video before we went our separate ways (tangent: anyone remember that American Dad episode with screaming “Debbie and I went our separate WAAAYS!). Even I didn’t need more than a quick glance at the chord sheet for this song before I joined them in the other room to record what is probably one of the most fun sessions I’ve done. It won’t win any awards, but I hope you enjoy the energy and the simplicity of the message.
Truly, I wish you a happy new year and the best of happiness, health, and success in 2009. Thank you for all your support, for watching our videos, and I hope you’ll continue to come back next year. With any luck, our numbers will continue to grow!
2008 was a great year for music; there were lots of great albums. There were also disappointments, but those were weighed out by the good songs and albums that were released. Personally, it was a year of up and downs for me. Musically, I found one of my new favorite bands, Wilco. In other aspects, I’m certainly hopeful that 2009 will be a better year — that I will catch up with my grading and do well on my BEST portfolio, that I will record my album with Jim (hint, hint, nudge, nudge 🙂 ), and that I will deal with some personal issues that need to be dealt with, oh, I don’t know… months ago!
But for now, I will comfort myself with the knowledge that Jeff’s video will be here tomorrow — our VERY LAST SESSION OF 2008!! Don’t miss it!
Am F
If you feel you wanna fight me,
C G
There’s a chain around your mind.
When something is holding you tightly,
What is real is so hard to find.
Losing babies to genocide,
Oh, where’s the meaning in that plight.
Can’t you see that we’ve really bought into
Every word they proclaimed and every lie, oh…
CHORUS 1:
Am C C F F C
If we could only get out of our heads, out of our heads,
G
And into our hearts…
If we could only get out of our heads, out of our heads,
And into our hearts…
Someone’s feeding on your anger.
Someone’s been whispering in your ear.
You’ve seen his face before;
You’ve been played before.
These aren’t the words you need to hear.
Through the dawn of darkness blindly,
You have blood upon your hands.
All the world will treat you kindly,
But only the heart will understand, oh understand…
CHORUS 2:
If we could only get out of our heads, out of our heads,
And into our hearts….
Children of Abraham, lay down your fears, swallow your
tears, and look to your heart.
(repeat CHORUS 2)
Every man is his own prophet,
Oh, every prophet just a man.
I say, all the women stand up, say yes to themselves;
Teach your children best you can.
Let every man bow to the best in himself;
We’re not killing any more.
We’re the wisest ones, everybody listen,
‘Cause you can’t fight this feeling any more, oh, any more…
CHORUS 2 (repeat)
End on:
Am
Ohhhh….
** These chords and lyrics are interpretations and transcriptions, respectively, and are the sole property of the copyright holder(s). They are posted on this website free of charge for no profit for the purpose of study and commentary, as allowed for under the “fair use” provision of U.S. copyright law, and should only be used for such personal and/or academic work. **
Hello and welcome to a special Christmas Eve edition of your best bet for excellence in cover musicianship on the web — the Laptop Sessions home page!
For tonight’s video, I had initially planned on recording my original Christmas song “Moment.” I have written two original Christmas songs in the past, and I already recorded the other (“Christmas Cards”) last year. Thus, I began practicing “Moment.” And I wish I had taken the time to record it earlier, because I really do like that song. I take issue with some of the lyrics now, as I find them much too cheesy at points, but the overall feel of the song is one that I love.
Then, a song started coming to me. And I’ll break my general silence on my songwriting process here, as there is such an amalgamation of influences and ideas that came together to forge this song. First, you should know that I am purposely tipping my hat to the classic Christmas tune “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” with the beginning of my chorus lines. Also, I used a chord pattern that Jim and I found to be recurrent in a lot of our favorite Christmas songs. It’s a cycle of sorts with barre chords, starting with a major, going down two frets to a minor, then the lower minor on the same fret, and finally jumping back up to a higher fret. Then, the same pattern is repeated.
In terms of what the words mean, I started off writing about my feelings about a very important person — my girlfriend of three years — who I’m no longer with. I haven’t really resolved the situation, so there’s a lot on my mind and I think the emotion got this song started.
Then, I began to think about Christmas in general. The past few years, I’ve really missed being able to spend the Christmas Eve festivities with my close friends. Thus, the song shifted to be about reclaiming my Christmas traditions with my friends.
As the lyrics progressed and I changed lines, the song shifted again to be about my grandmother, who passed away a little over a year ago. This is only my second Christmas without her, and I can’t understate how big a part she has always been of my Christmas. As a kid, she and my grandfather would come over on Christmas Eve and we would have a really relaxing, enjoyable night — nights that I will forever remember with great fondness. As a young man and up until last year, Christmas became an increasingly more important opportunity to spend quality time with her. I don’t quite have the words right now in this format to describe what those days were like or what our relationship was like, and that’s what I tried to accomplish in the song.
Thus, I dedicate this song to my Grandma Moore, a person that I am truly better off for having known and grown up with. I’m going to miss her a lot tomorrow, but writing this song really did help me to express some of that emotion.
As a final sidenote, I spent tonight at the second annual Fusco-Moore Experience Christmas Eve party. I didn’t attend last year, but I figured I should probably attend this year, as my name is in the title and all… According to Jim, the real reason I attended was because I didn’t have anything better to do. Now, this may be true, but… Seriously, though, tonight was really relaxing and fun, the food was amazing, I’m somehow still full from the multi-course meal, and thankfully, Jim’s mom cleaned the dishes. It was a Christmas miracle, as far as I was concerned, that I didn’t have to clean them. I always expect to, and there was more than double our average amount of dirty dishes tonight! Thank you again, Mrs. Fusco!!
Jim, Mike, and I are planning a little get-together we’ll call “Mas Christmas” — or, for those of you who do not habla espanol, “More Christmas.” I’m definitely looking forward to that!
For now, I’m off to get ready for Christmas morning. It will be a full day, capped off by an all-new episode of TNA Impact! at 9pm in the Fusco Theatre. And YOU will have an exciting new yuletide Jeff Copperthite video to look forward to…
