Hi Noel!
You got me in the first bar when I realised you were using the ‘boom-boom’ (beats 1 &, 3 &) of the bass. I’ve always loved songs at this tempo range that use that bass style - I think because I am an acoustic rhythm guitarist, it suits two quick down muted half-strums on the E and A strings to mimic the bass. Anyways, I digress …

A good rhythm feel to this song at a nice slow pedestrian pace (= calming) and the synth vocal almost glides over the top of this. The banjo was a pleasant surprise - I’ve used that RT myself - and I love its syncopated feel. The fiddle was also a surprise, and it gave the song a ‘back to basics’ feel - which I also think is what happiness is - the uncomplicated, tech-free, simplicity of ordinary things. I was also surprised by the chord movement returning to the root chord at the end of a verse 2, verse 3, instrumental, and verse 4 - but not verse 1 which ended on the V chord to tension/release to verse 2. However that might say more about my chord proclivities than yours.

Is happiness green? Certainly, the colour green reminds people of things that bring joy, and predominantly things of nature, and often used as a colour metaphor for growth. In fact, I think if you removed all plant life in the broadest sense (those using chlorophyll and photosynthesis) and animals or insects that camouflage amongst plants, we might have very little green colour on Earth, so in that sense, green should give everyone happiness because we have it.

Well done, Noel! I love it.

Andrew

Regards,
Andrew D
Adelaide, Sth Aust
Soundcloud: https://on.soundcloud.com/SQE4btVvNVkLq74e9
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