Feb 2022 downtempo german singer-songwriter guy-with-guitar demo
Ugh, this was a tough one.
Just had to get it out to finally let go of a poem that I'd really liked but had bad thoughts attached to it.
Backstory:
I had an affair once (I was single, she was in a relationship) and wrote this poem for her.
One (half) of the lines ("wie Geschenke nur in unseren Armen verpackt" / "were, like gifts, wrapped only in each others arms") was the inspiration for this song, taken from the song "Tango im Treibsand" (Tango in quick sand) by the great "Käpt'n Peng und die Tentakel von Delphi" (Capt'n Bang and the Tentacles of Delphi).
Originally, there was one more verse:
«Sind, wie frischgebohr'nen Fohlen, uns die Beine eingeknickt,
hast du mir mein Herz gestohlen, es mir aus der Brust gepflückt.»
(where, like fresh-born foals, our legs have collapsed,
where you stole my heart, plucked it right from my chest.), but I scrapped that because of reasons.
First time recording my voice, through a shitty internal laptop mic, but I think (hope?) it's not a complete disaster.
Es war nicht mehr zu vermeiden, darum haben wir uns ausgezogen,
uns're unbekleideten Gerüche in uns aufgesogen.
Um uns danach unbescheiden aneinander auszutoben.
Dich umarmend, ohne Kleider, fühlte ich mich aufgehoben.
Die Chemie war augenscheinlich; deine Nacktheit, ungelogen,
eine reine Augenweide. Meine Zweifel schnell verflogen.
Und wir turnten, uns verrenkend, auf dem Drahtseil einen Akt.
Waren, wie Geschenke, nur in uns'ren Armen verpackt.
Wussten uns gut abzulenken, auf dem Boden, beide nackt,
Schlossen, zwischen Stuhl und Bänken, schweissgebadet einen Pakt.
Herzschlag rasend, kaum zu senken, unser Puls im gleichen Takt.
Konnten nicht mehr denken, bei all diesem Körperkontakt.
In des Kaisers neuen Kleidern, mondbeleuchtet, ach wie schick,
zeigtest du mir unverhohlen, mit den Fingern Zaubertricks.
Kurze Pause, Atem holen, nur für einen Augenblick
haben wir uns ganz verstohlen auf dem Boden einmal zugenickt.
----------
It could no longer be avoided, that's why we undressed each other,
soaking up our unclothed scents.
To let off steam immodestly with each other afterwards.
Embracing you, without any clothes, I felt at ease.
The chemistry was obvious; your nakedness, honestly,
a pure feast for the eyes. My doubts quickly vanished.
And so, contorting ourselves, we did an act [wordplay on the german word for nude painting] on the tightrope.
Were, like gifts, wrapped only in each others arms.
We knew how to distract ourselves well, on the floor, naked,
Between chairs and benches, bathed in sweat, we made a pact.
Heartbeat racing, hard to lower, our pulse in the same tact.
Could no longer think, with all this physical contact.
In the emperor's new clothes, moonlit, oh how chic,
you unashamedly showed me, with your fingers, magic tricks.
Short pause, catching our breath, just for a short moment
we nodded to each other once, very furtively, there on the floor.
@franniezest Mar 2022
This sounds stunning. Vocals came out great
And wow so steamy !!! ;) great song!
@prsongsmith Feb 2022
The contrast between the sweaty, naked ecstasy of the lyrics and the ancient-sounding melody and arrangement is very effective -- well done. Thank you for including the English translation and for pointing out the wordplay! It makes me want to learn German so I can appreciate the subtleties of your poetry. (And thank you for your kind comments on "Take Away (What Remains)"!)