A bit of harmless fluff. No time to do a proper piano part, so lots of big block chords.
Self-expression's great and all, but I sometimes daydream about what it would have been like back in Tin Pan Alley's heyday - turning up to work and just banging out pleasant trifles for other people to sing. They probably saw it as a grind, like every job, but looking back from this gig economy hunger games thing we've built for ourselves, it seems like a pretty romantic way to earn a living.
(I don't have the necessary extra testicle, but the spoken word section is obviously ripping off that bit in every Ink Spots song where the deep-voiced guy pops by for a verse or two to dispense some "wisdom".)
you could have been someone i love
you could have been someone i love
we could have been living the dream
peaches and cream, ain't it obscene?
you could have been someone i love
we could have been dancing on air
we could have been ginger and fred
a me and a you could have been two
we missed our cue, what do you do?
we could have been sonny and cher
modern life is empty, i'm always half-terrified
would it magically fix it all to have someone by my side?
[spoken]
now sweet child i know you're hurting
so i'm gonna be just as clear as i can
you're less of a woman, you're barely a man
if you don't have someone you love
you could have been someone i love
we could have been evidence of
living the dream, part of a team
you know the theme, ain't it a scream?
you could have been someone i love
could have been wed, breakfast in bed
middle-aged spread, fall over dead
you could have been someone i love
@oldlostjohn Mar 2022
I must echo the previous comment, I made the same association. And whatever one thinks about Tin Pan Alley stuff, I think I prefer yours to the originals.
@miltz Mar 2022
Not sure why, but I pictured someone lip syncing this in a David Lynch-type scene.
As with Tin Pan Alley, I admire the ability to do stuff like this more than I like it as a listener. Well done, just not for me.
@sailingmagpie Mar 2022
That's always my favourite bit in an Ink Spots song, see also the low bits in The Temptations stuff.
You've totally nailed that classic pop production line feel. I can imagine this turning up on every crooners album in 1956!
@tinear Feb 2022
I sometimes think FAWM is a bit like what Tin Pan Alley would've been like - trying to churn out the hits. There's always a bucket load of quality in your writing though, whatever the speed they come out.
@eas3637 Feb 2022
Fantastic! Great instrumentation in support of your truly delightful lyrics. I love the rhyme scheme where you go for the 4x rhyme in the final two lines. And brilliant to end with the sly turnaround at the end "middle-aged spread, fall over dead."
@jessi14 Feb 2022
Oh, this is pretty, enchanting and magical!
@lcad Feb 2022
Love the bass and the easy jazz feel on this. I think the blocky chords fit great.
@tukayandryan Feb 2022
I really enjoyed this. Lovely vocal delivery, gentle yet rich. Love the bass in this. Some really lovely instrumentation. Like the vintage feel on the spoken word part.