I revisited a song that I wrote a while back based on a little inspiration from Hope Waits. She had posted a picture of herself in blue sepiatones, and was recently lamenting loneliness in the city of Hollywood. A few other tidbits may have a tie into reality, but the song flows as a fictional story. This lady I don't know if I want to meet, but Hope Waits... anytime with her incredible gutsy vocals with a style of Billie Holiday but mixed heavily with Bonnie Raitt.

Funny thing happens when you revisit a song after three years, you re-write a line or two, change a few chords, and maybe make it better. Song writing isn't a science, and it isn't a contest; it's a passion to tell a short story in 3-4 minutes. Why stick your head in a book for days... here you go... here's atleast a chapeter with pictures no less of the beautiful Hope Waits The songwriting tidbits follow later...


She fixated on a venomous moment
Surrounded by a harried world.
Just sits alone with her personal torment.
A bottle of Jack numbs the senses
Maybe she’ll go dress up with pearls tonight
Hit the bars and take some chances.


The lady in blue has a life to choose.
The lady in blue stuck in Hollywood.
The lady in blue turns to look away
The lady in blue will find a way.

Her tall and slender frame turns heads
She’s learned to ignore them easily
But with this she’s added a hard edge.
An armor of cold disdain for true love
She can crush those who come weakly
Leaving her left with the just the stuff.


The lady in blue has a life to choose.
The lady in blue stuck in Hollywood.
The lady in blue turns to look away
The lady in blue will find a way.

A trickle of hope is never really gone
She was raised with grace and joy
But left it behind to write her song
The lady bumps into life in the dark
Will she choose to notice or be coy?
And in the end she’s just make a choice.

Lady in Blue by Dave Schipper © 2007/10 Rose Riversongs Photos from myspace.com/hopewaits

Verse one recounts Sabrina Kufner's whiskey inspired video I watched about that time, and Hope's studio pictures with beautiful pearls.

Chorus tries to pick up on her lament, did she choose right to move to LA for her beautiful New Orleans home... just to make her mark. Well if she didn't, the producer of Norah Jones first record wouldn't have found her, and I would have never had heard her... choices.

Oh the second verse is my imagination. Remember I am a shy guy who aspired to every beautiful girl in high school... thus I have scar tissue around my heart, what a joy it beats so strongly.

The third verse is why I'm writing the blog... Hope has a large family and while I know a few from other blogs, she definitely has a sister name Joy and Grace... Ha... so that's my inside joke but it does fit the story line either way. She did notice me and someday we'll have a good laugh and hug when she travels to meet the future in-laws in Michigan.... can't wait.



a quick video for me to remember it...

Pick a different instrument...

Tonight during the rainstorm I had a chance to pick up the acoustic guitar and find the chords that belonged to the lead below... I like it, and while you think I should like them all... that's not the case.

Ok I had to clean it up, and it goes pretty fast so I added a partial verse for to stretch the ending and then go back to the chorus. I did get rid of TEXT... just didn't like singing it.. it was weird to me and years from now. Wait to hear will still be in the vocabulary, who knows about texting. I hope it's gone next year. Queer was added and Nerd stayed... HA... slang that I think will stick. no video this time... sorry.

It is Finished

Every night I wait to hear
And I cling to every word
Replies that leave me feelin’ queer
Just feeling like a nerd

Then there is a glimpse of hope
A new life again after death
Only to find a new tight rope
We have drawn our last breath

It is finished, we are through
I beg forgiveness to the Lord
For you know not what you do
In the guise of loving true

Today I found my Damascus path
And my eyes were suddenly clear
Words you said too gift wrapped
I see there were just cavalier

Today I see I was on your strings
Trained to stay somewhere near
So say goodbye to your plaything
You’ve lost a treasure dear

It is finished, we are through
I beg forgiveness to the Lord
For you know not what you do
In the guise of loving true

It is finished and time to rise
Take a hold again of my life
Our love was nothing to despise
But it was severed by your lies.


By Dave Schipper © 2010 Rose Riversongs




First posted Draft



Yes I've heard this but have done it rarely. Yes I've written Angel in Disguise on the piano and Gypsy Soul was started on the mandolin. Tonight I felt tired of writing happy songs and I had this overwhelming passion to create a song inspired by Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah.

Ok, so true to his tweaking of King David's Bathsheba story, I thought about the road to Damascus and thought why not find a moment when true love was found NOT to be true. Wow... then I had the words "It is finished" run through my head. Kim will read this so I do tread on blasphemy, but she knows I'm a true believer. Who knows that God isn't inspiring me to use the words to open up the Bible to new ears. I digress but these things do flow through your mind.

So know I had a parts of the puzzle, I was determined it would not sound like another song I've written. So I plugged in Dustin's electric guitar, turned the patch to "METAL STACK", and then words and melody collided. I started with It is Finished... knew it was the chorus immediately. Remember the Chorus has to be the best part of the song, though if the rest is weak it'll be forgotten quickly. Then down my Damascus, but unlike Paul my revelation was that I was blinded by love.

What I love about it so far is that it can swing either voice, but I'm not crazy that I took the plunge to use Text. Such a modern phrase. I might stick with some and offend others. Now for the treat... I recorded the rift so that I can go back to work tomorrow without trying to remember it. It promises to be a busy week so I might now re-visit this for a while. Now I'll remember it later. The video starts with the chorus's melody line.

Finally yes some might find tangents in Dustin's current love life, but truly if it's in there so are many other pieces and parts from other love lives that I've ran into over the last 52 years.

It is Finished

Every night I wait for a text
And I cling to every word
Replies that leave me so perplex
Just feeling like a nerd

Then there is a glimpse of hope
A new life again after death
Only to find a new tight rope
We have drawn our last breath

It is finished, we are through
I beg forgiveness to the Lord
For you know not what you do
In the guise of loving true

Today I found my Damascus path
And my eyes were suddenly clear
Words you said too gift wrapped
I see there were just chevalier

Today I see I was on your strings
Trained to stay somewhere near
So say goodbye to your plaything
You’ve lost a treasure dear

It is finished, we are through
I beg forgiveness to the Lord
For you know not what you do
In the guise of loving true

By Dave Schipper © 2010 Rose Riversongs

What song writing isn't....

But this hits home... and it's pretty funny.

Share your gift with friends

ok lose any thought you ever have of being gifted... if you have a talented it might have been seeded in you by a higher being, so get over it. Today I was sent a beautiful poem written by a friend of the band, Justin Bodin. It needed work to make it a lyric, but it didn't need alot, and it didn't need to force a ryhme where his words were fine.

Roll with the punches and give it a shot... boy I was happy things flowed quickly. Love must have been in the lines. I'll take credit for the melody, but any word tweaks I did... were really to enhance Justin's words. Enjoy Angels...



Chorus
When the Angels come out
In the moonlight they sing
To the Heaven’s above
And they praise the Lord

When the Angels get together
Around the stars
They dance on the moon
All night long


When you opened the kingdom of heaven to me
For everyone to see
You gave us a new life and happiness
For others to see you.

Chorus

When we walk hand in hand with Angels on earth
All people created by God
We sing with the power of heavens above
For others to see you.

By Justin Bodin

Play with some numbers in your song...

So this year I turn 52 on May 2nd... or 5/2/10. So does that make it a golden oldie birthday?

It's also at stage in life that if I add 20 more years and then die, it will be the same age that my dad died. Since Dustin is also turning 20 this year, it was pretty much a cosmic of play of numbers that brought this next lyric together. Frankly, I can't see myself putting a melody to this. Any songwriter out there, here's an opportunity to for cowriting.

There is a line from a song that I wish I wrote, "I'm too old to die young" at this moment I don't remember who to give credit to for the line. I wove it into the last verse. My take is that if I'm too old to die young, that I'm currently at a stage that It's a shame that he died early. Well isn't that precious.

And all you people out there, don't worry I've got my faith right, I got a smile on my face, and I've lived a good life.... and don't even try to tell me that Five, Fifteen and Fifty would work in the song too ... HA.... 102 now wouldn't that be something.

Back at sixteen
Life was a fog of friends and hormones
Everything obscene
Looking back I was such a moron.

At twenty one
I knew that I was a young stud
Never outdone
Just a pauper with royal blood

I pray
Two, Ten or Twenty Lord?
No wait,
Don’t tell me what’s in store.
Just push
Me in some direction
And hope
I make the right selection.

Then at thirty
A couple more years of being dinks
Life was pretty
Though time moved at the speed of blinks

No fear forty
It was all the Legos money could buy
That and tree forts
I even learned what it was to tythe.

I pray
Two, Ten or Twenty Lord?
No wait,
Don’t tell me what’s in store.
Just push
Me in some direction
And hope
I make the right selection.

Fifty two and
I’m too old to die young they say.
So what’s the plan?
To put a smile on my face everyday.

And with God’s grace
Make a home where love resides
‘Cuz just in case
They end up saying, it’s a shame he died

By Dave Schipper © 2010 Rose Riversongs

Blood and violence can be a good story song.

Let's be honest... I'm not going to tell you how to write a gang song but let's dig deep into the ballad format of the folk tradition. We all knew Bonnie and Clyde were going to get it, and so this thinking slips in occassionally when I get a chance to write. This song came to me while playing the chord progression from "All along the Watchtower" Yes the guitar players will hear the same chords in the "Across" verses; but pacing is such never really to be stolen but more borrowed... hey just ask Bob... he's done the same thing.

Now back to the story and progression. Across the river was the first words that came to me, and I'll always recommend the same discipline that goes into novel... write a story that makes sense with all the writing gadgets they use in 300 pages, but you have just a mere few verses. Foreshadowing is always fun. Finding local landmarks to solidify reality gives the song texture. Tying lyrics together with themes or patterns make the song writing interesting... if it's better who knows but it's definitely gotcha if you read them later after you love them.

Now the inspiration... just my imagination of what it must have been like 100 years ago on the St James River... with guys who don't have any morals, but locals who do.



Across the river to the house of ill repute
Marked the ghostly traveled evil trade route.
They were legends they were men
Their blood would flow from that gambling den.

When the midnight fell across Pace isle
Curses melted this frail woman child.
Laughter and smoke filled the air so vile
Rot in hell you damn pedophile.

Across the river came boat sleek and dark
Filled with men from the local city Clark.
Dressed in black and dressed to kill
In just moments, their wishes were filled.

As the door opened and they walked in
The was no shattering this crowd’s din
Their way was clear to the backdoor
And seconds to settling the score.

Across the river the shots cried out
The law handed to this pathetic lout
The dark angels showed no mercy around
The blood flowed on this evil ground.

When the midnight passed across Pace isle
Solemn embraced this frail woman child
Silence and smoke fill the air so vile.
Rot in hell those damn pedophiles.

Dave Schipper © 2009 Rose Riversongs