Simpler Times

A song about enjoying memories and the passage of time.

Backstory

I wrote these lyrics and the acoustic guitar part many years ago and had forgotten about them. It was probably written at the beginning of some springtime when nature tickles the nose with smells of hope, triggering distant memories of when everything was new and exciting.

Zooming back to the present, a reflection ensues on dealing with the responsibilities of “being an adult” and questioning the value of stopping to smell the roses – or in this case, stopping to write songs no one will ever listen to 🙂

The tune concludes that there is indeed value in doing things just for the joy of it. So, enjoy!

Production Notes

I was going for a “modern” singer-songwriter vibe with this tune. That resulted in leaving out a full drum kit and looking for a more bass-heavy rythym.

The rhythm is accented with a small djembe recorded with an AKG Perception condenser mic and run through some delays to round out the pulse and give it all a forward-moving feel.

Doubled and background vocals got the high-end rolled off, some extra reverb and a reverse delay for some distant, spooky interest.

The guitar solo is a Strat through a Vox AC30 close mic’d with an AKG D5.

Lyrics

There are seasons
When the scent of your neck smells like songs
From simpler times

There may be reasons
To dismiss those silly riffs as some thing grown ups
Should leave behind

Declarations of love
In one hundred year old books
I can never get enough

The hero always saves the day
If those heroes ever lived
Would they behave the same way 

They’d have their reasons
Everybody has their reasons

I got mine

There are weekdays
When the covers of your bed 
Carry all the whole world’s weight

There are bookends
Take just one away and all your stories
Go tumbling away

There are be reasons 

I got mine
I got mine
I got mine

There are seasons
When the scent of your neck smells like songs
From simpler times

There are reasons
To imbibe those luscious rhymes
As something precious
And fine