D G
Who says I can’t get stoned,
Em A
Turn off the lights and the telephone?
Bm E
Me in my house alone —
G A D
Who says I can’t get stoned?
Who says I can’t be free
From all of the things that I used to be?
Rewrite my history —
Who says I can’t be free?
D G D A
It’s been a long night in New York City;
A G D A
It’s been a long night in Baton Rouge.
G D F#m Bm
I don’t remember you looking any better,
Bm E A
But then again I don’t remember you…
Who says I can’t get stoned,
Call up a girl that I used to know?
Fake love for an hour or so —
Who says I can’t get stoned?
Who says I can’t take time,
Meet all the girls in the county line?
Wait on fate to send a sign —
Who says I can’t take time?
It’s been a long night in New York City;
It’s been a long night in Austin too.
I don’t remember you looking any better,
But then again I don’t remember you…
INSTRUMENTAL
Who says I can’t get stoned,
Plan a trip to Japan alone?
Doesn’t matter if I even go —
Who says I can’t get stoned?
It’s been a long night in New York City;
It’s been a long time since twenty-two.
I don’t remember you looking any better,
But then again I don’t remember, don’t remember you…
Outro: D
** 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 very special Monday edition of the Laptop Sessions! What makes tonight so special, you might ask? Well, for the first time in months, I’m bringing you a cover song music video of a song that has yet to be released. No worries, though — if you like this song, then you’ll be able to buy it in stores tomorrow.
The song I’m bringing you tonight is “Who Says,” the first single from the forthcoming 2009 John Mayer studio album Battle Studies. There’s a little bit of a story behind this one, so here goes…
I first learned about this album when I happened upon Mayer’s video blog established to document the recording sessions. The first video was a tour of his newly designed and built home recording studio. Do I even need to describe it? Believe me, it’s drool-inducing. Although a couple of the entries were only jams or just a bit weird, I ended up searching YouTube for some of the new songs. As I expected, most were available as live concert performances that someone videotaped and uploaded. I listened to a couple, including “Who Says,” and I started to get excited about this release.
I have a general rule against hearing too much of an album before it comes out. After all, it’s more than half the fun of buying a new album to be able to get in the car, put it on the CD player, and discover the music for the first time. Sometimes this is an exciting, expectation-defying journey (a la last week’s Echo & the Bunnymen album The Fountain). Other times, it can be just as disappointing an experience as one can have (i.e. U2’s No Line on the Horizon deluxe edition CD).
I should also comment on my recent opinion of Mayer.
As I wrote in my review of Where the Light Is, I am a big fan of Mayer’s first three releases — the independently released EP Inside Wants Out, his debut Room For Squares, and his follow-up Heavier Things. And yet, just as he gained “credibility,” I lost interest. Yes, his third album Continuum offers some interesting guitar parts and melodies, but I resented the idea that he needed to become a blues afficionado in order to be accepted by those outside his stereotypical audience of young girls. In my mind, this was a step backward in his songwriting. Did no one notice or appreciate the effort he put into the album design for the first two albums, or the backing vocals in “Your Body is a Wonderland” that echo the chorus lyrics of “My Stupid Mouth”? There was so much care taken with those releases that the minimalism of his last release was disappointing. From the title of Heavier Things alone, one could imply that Mayer was interested in tackling more “important issues” and being taken more seriously.
But, even in Heavier Things, he retained his sense of what was important — interpersonal relations, perspective, ambition, etc. On Continuum, political and social issues apppeared as the subjects for his songs, which always seemed out of place to me.
Anyone who knows me knows that I have an intense sense of loyalty, sometimes to my own detriment. But I had told myself I wouldn’t buy future Mayer releases to spare myself further disappointment, as I did with Where the Light Is. That being said, I can’t deny that this single “Who Says” sounds more to me like the John Mayer that I enjoyed listening to on earlier works. It’s simple, catchy, and tackles the same desires that my favorite John Mayer songs always did — namely, the desire for freedom from personal and social expectations (think: “No Such Thing,” “Not Myself,” “Bigger Than My Body,” and others). I don’t read the reference to marijuana as a literal desire to get high, but rather as a symbol for what society or one’s friends and family members think you shouldn’t do because “it’s not like you.”
So, I’ll give the album a try.
And you better believe there will be a review forthcoming.
Until then, I hope you enjoy my video tonight. I’m not sure what came over me, but I made this one a real production. I tacked on a purposely goofy intro and follow-up documentary that I hope you laugh at — either because it’s funny or because you’re laughing AT me, as long as the result is the same!
And I know that I have other news and ideas on my mind that I wanted to share tonight, but I can’t remember what they are. So, for now, I hope you enjoy this video and hurry back tomorrow for an all-new Jim Fusco Tuesday, then later this week when I post another music review.
Welcome to a special Tuesday edition of The Laptop Sessions. This song is so popular among FMP, we’re giving you THREE editions of it! We’re calling it “So You Say You Lost Your Tuesday”.
Ok, that’s not fully true. Turns out Jim & I had recorded this song on video, and rather than one of us getting to post it, we decided to ask Chris if he’d join in and all of us post.
This is a short and great song from the awesome Gene Clark. While the recorded version sounds somewhat different, this version is based off of his acoustic sessions’ recordings.
I wanted to cover this song because I always liked the version Jim did on his album “That’s all…”, which was released in 2003. Gene Clark has been one of my favorites since Jim introduced me to him and Byrds’ music.
We hope you enjoy the hat trick!
Look for our next edition of “Original Wednesday” as Jim plays a song from my album Greenlight!
Editor’s Note: Unfortunately, Jeff’s acoustic cover song music videos are no longer on YouTube, but we decided to keep his cover song blog posts up. We figured these music blog entries would be good for posterity’s sake and because Jeff always gave such insightful posts each Session. We hope to see Jeff’s impressive catalog of acoustic rock songs here on the Laptop Sessions cover songs and original music blog again in the future. But, for now, please make sure to check-out hundreds of other acoustic cover songs from all of your favorite bands here on the Laptop Sessions music blog!
Wow, “Tuesday Afternoon” posted on a Tuesday afternoon! Okay, well, a Tuesday evening, but still. I swear I didn’t even plan it and even just realized as I was beginning to type my post. But, it fits so well!
I love this song and the Moody Blues, of course. “Tuesday Afternoon” is the afternoon section of the Moodies’ first album with their second lineup (after the addition of Justin Hayward and John Lodge and the subtraction of Denny Laine and Clint Warwick). The album is “Days of Future Passed” and stands as one of the classics. It has reached classic status because it’s one of the first true concept albums. It also is the first real fusion of a rock band with a classical orchestra. It’s almost surreal listening to the album. This album alone (not to mention the ten great albums they did AFTER this one) should’ve given them a one-way ticket into the Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame. It’s so stupid that they’re not in. I heard that the Hall doesn’t consider them a “rock” group. Are you serious? Have they ever even heard “Story in Your Eyes”? Or, I don’t know, “I’m Just a Singer in A Rock’n’Roll Band”???? That doesn’t give it away? My God, and they’re discounting the fact that the Moody Blues had some of the best musicians ever in Justin Hayward on guitar, John Lodge on bass, Graeme Edge on drums, Mike Pinder on piano and mellotron (which he truly pioneered as an instrument rather than just an effects machine), and Ray Thomas, who played a brilliant flute. This issue always makes me so angry. The Hall of Fame uses the same argument for not letting Chicago in. Are you freakin’ serious? Those guys had more hits than Muhammed Ali! I just don’t get it.
Anyway, this song falls in the mid-point of the album, as the album takes the listener on a trip throughout an entire day. I love that concept. It’s so original. Of course, the album ends with one of the all-time great songs in “Nights in White Satin”, but “Tuesday Afternoon” was a big hit in its own right. In fact, I even heard it today while waiting in line at Subway for lunch.
By the way, in case anyone’s being keeping track, I got a new job. It’s great: a nice atmosphere, professional collegues (what a change from my last job), and I’m getting paid 33% more than I ever have. It took me three long months to land it, and I know I won’t let anything screw it up this time around. I have a nice outlook now, especially because it’s good to be a part of a company that’s actually hiring in these economic times. That’s a good sign for me…and for getting my loved ones Christmas presents, too! I’m looking forward to a nice holiday season now.
I hope you enjoy this video as another Tuesday afternoon passes us by. I’ll be back on Friday for yet another acoustic cover song from the Beach Boys, whom I haven’t covered in a very long time. This song is from a composer, though, that I haven’t covered yet! So, I’ll keep you guessing on that one for a couple days and to pacify you in the meantime, I present Chris and Jeff tomorrow and Thumpin’ Thursday (TM). I’ll also be back (hopefully sooner than Friday) to announce yet another big milestone, so stay tuned!
