Wednesday, December 08, 2010

Failed Exercises in Diplomacy, Musical Version

Below is a short little song that grew out of a loose, informal jam. The riff can safely be played for ten minutes or more, provided the audience doesn't grow weary of the lead guitar designed to be played over it. When it came time to write lyrics, however, I had to take an entirely different perspective. For a time, I considered adding additional verses or musical flourishes that would take it over two minutes in length. However, I've come to accept now that the overall length is going to be slight and that there will never be a conventional chorus or bridge. I suppose I said what needed to be said in five short verses.

And as I was writing it, I was thinking about times in high school where I had to give people rides to school or other places. Often I would have to spend twenty minutes or so in the car with someone who annoyed me greatly. The emotional discomfort of those times has carried over to today. Nowadays, I associate the words of the song with those instances all of us have to be around someone whose viewpoints, political or otherwise, make us squirm. We often say similar things under our breath and certainly think them.

And as for the line about, "I don't need your God", I feel this way often times when being confronted with a version of faith or belief that I find morally repugnant. It need not even be religious. People often make their God anything but a divine presence.




I don't need your love
I don't need your games
All I need is to make sure
I don't go up in flames


I don't need your God
I don't want your pain
All I want is you to swear
You won't drive me insane

Don't know where you are
Don't know where you been
All I know is that it's best
You don't come back again

I don't care who you know
I don't care who you hate
I don't care one bit about you
I'll pick you up at 8

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