Paper Dreams - 02/06/22 02:16 AM
Hi, all:
I’ve been pretty absent from the board for various reasons—hoping to catch up on things over the next couple of weeks. Anyway, I haven’t really been working on much new, so decided to give this song a go. I wrote it a few years ago, but never geared up to do a full version of it because I had two main reservations about doing so:
First, I knew it would be a long song, in the end running 5:30 or so. I generally don’t like going beyond 4:30 at the very most, but there’s no way around that on this song. Which is to say, there’s nothing I want to cut. I could probably save 15-20 seconds on the arrangement, but in for a penny, in for a pound. My hope is that there are enough changes in the elements to keep the ear interested, but . . .
Second, the bridge. I had a very distinct idea on how I wanted that to sound, but always knew I could never pull it off. So, in this effort, I came up with the what my small talents could muster, and hope it works well enough.
So, despite those reservations, here’s how it came out . . . at worst worth the effort I hope. Thanks for the listen and feedback.
Here’s the song:
PAPER DREAMS
Here are the lyrics:
Momma told me when I was young
She said, Don’t ever be afraid to chase the sun
You never know the heights you can go until you try
And she could play and sing like angels do
She taught me every note and every chord she knew
She told me I could be a big star if I’d like
Momma had her own dreams, too
But she gave them up when Daddy asked her to
She passed when I was nine
But every dream she had and her ’52 Gibson guitar
Well, I made them mine
Swore on her soul I’d be a country star
Played every high school dance and every local bar
I said, I’m gonna hit the bigs like no one else
Daddy said, All your hopes and schemes
You know they won’t amount to more than paper dreams
Well, I guess I’m gonna find out for myself
And so I’ll try to chase down the sun
And I’ll fly to heights no one’s gone
With every breath I can breathe
With every drop I can bleed
I’m never giving up ‘cause I believe
In these paper dreams.
I met a man down on Music Row
He said, I seen every wannabe here come and go
You better pack it up and run back home, boy, while you can
I said, You may have seen a million wannabes
But you ain’t never ever seen the likes of me
And, well, even if I should, I know I can’t
And so I’ll try to chase down the sun
And I’ll fly to heights no one’s gone
With this light in my eyes
And my heart on my sleeve
I’ll give it all I got ‘cause I believe
In these paper dreams
Ain’t no luck, you gotta make your own breaks
I’m gonna do everything it takes
I’m gonna wake up every morning with the dawning sun
Sweat the frets until I get down everything I’ve done
Work the bar every night at the Patterson
While writing lyrics on the back of a napkin
Post my tunes to YouTube and the music sites
Playing in the parks and at every open mic
Knock on closing doors, sell myself and more
Anything and everything it takes to score
And so I’ll try to chase down the sun
And I’ll fly to heights no one’s gone
With every breath I can breathe
With every drop I can bleed
I’m never gonna stop ‘cause I believe
In these paper dreams.
And some day when I make it big
I’m gonna head on back to the place he still lives
And say, What do you think of me now
Hey, what do you think of me now
Hey, Dad, what do you think of me
And here’s the band:
RealTracks 1036: Bass, Electric, NorthernRockBallad
RealTracks 3184: Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm GrungeSlowQuinn
RealTracks 832: Guitar, Electric, Rhythm AltCountry
RealTracks 1828: Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm PopModernGroove Ev16 075
RealTracks 1601: Mandolin, Rhythm Pop16Melodic Ev 065
RealTracks 3505: Guitar, Electric, Soloist NashvilleRadioBalladDanny Ev16 075
RealDrums: ModernPopBallad16ths
RealDrums: Pop Country 16ths
I’ve been pretty absent from the board for various reasons—hoping to catch up on things over the next couple of weeks. Anyway, I haven’t really been working on much new, so decided to give this song a go. I wrote it a few years ago, but never geared up to do a full version of it because I had two main reservations about doing so:
First, I knew it would be a long song, in the end running 5:30 or so. I generally don’t like going beyond 4:30 at the very most, but there’s no way around that on this song. Which is to say, there’s nothing I want to cut. I could probably save 15-20 seconds on the arrangement, but in for a penny, in for a pound. My hope is that there are enough changes in the elements to keep the ear interested, but . . .
Second, the bridge. I had a very distinct idea on how I wanted that to sound, but always knew I could never pull it off. So, in this effort, I came up with the what my small talents could muster, and hope it works well enough.
So, despite those reservations, here’s how it came out . . . at worst worth the effort I hope. Thanks for the listen and feedback.
Here’s the song:
PAPER DREAMS
Here are the lyrics:
Momma told me when I was young
She said, Don’t ever be afraid to chase the sun
You never know the heights you can go until you try
And she could play and sing like angels do
She taught me every note and every chord she knew
She told me I could be a big star if I’d like
Momma had her own dreams, too
But she gave them up when Daddy asked her to
She passed when I was nine
But every dream she had and her ’52 Gibson guitar
Well, I made them mine
Swore on her soul I’d be a country star
Played every high school dance and every local bar
I said, I’m gonna hit the bigs like no one else
Daddy said, All your hopes and schemes
You know they won’t amount to more than paper dreams
Well, I guess I’m gonna find out for myself
And so I’ll try to chase down the sun
And I’ll fly to heights no one’s gone
With every breath I can breathe
With every drop I can bleed
I’m never giving up ‘cause I believe
In these paper dreams.
I met a man down on Music Row
He said, I seen every wannabe here come and go
You better pack it up and run back home, boy, while you can
I said, You may have seen a million wannabes
But you ain’t never ever seen the likes of me
And, well, even if I should, I know I can’t
And so I’ll try to chase down the sun
And I’ll fly to heights no one’s gone
With this light in my eyes
And my heart on my sleeve
I’ll give it all I got ‘cause I believe
In these paper dreams
Ain’t no luck, you gotta make your own breaks
I’m gonna do everything it takes
I’m gonna wake up every morning with the dawning sun
Sweat the frets until I get down everything I’ve done
Work the bar every night at the Patterson
While writing lyrics on the back of a napkin
Post my tunes to YouTube and the music sites
Playing in the parks and at every open mic
Knock on closing doors, sell myself and more
Anything and everything it takes to score
And so I’ll try to chase down the sun
And I’ll fly to heights no one’s gone
With every breath I can breathe
With every drop I can bleed
I’m never gonna stop ‘cause I believe
In these paper dreams.
And some day when I make it big
I’m gonna head on back to the place he still lives
And say, What do you think of me now
Hey, what do you think of me now
Hey, Dad, what do you think of me
And here’s the band:
RealTracks 1036: Bass, Electric, NorthernRockBallad
RealTracks 3184: Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm GrungeSlowQuinn
RealTracks 832: Guitar, Electric, Rhythm AltCountry
RealTracks 1828: Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm PopModernGroove Ev16 075
RealTracks 1601: Mandolin, Rhythm Pop16Melodic Ev 065
RealTracks 3505: Guitar, Electric, Soloist NashvilleRadioBalladDanny Ev16 075
RealDrums: ModernPopBallad16ths
RealDrums: Pop Country 16ths
And this is GREAT!