Feb 2022 collab guy-with-ukulele baritone-ukulele ukulele fuc acoustic-one-take
Ken: I was lucky enough to be asked by @coolparadiso if I wanted to do a 2nd collab in turning some of his lyrics to music, and the only appropriate answer was yes! We were originally planning on my setting up the melody and chord structure, and John doing some arranging magic behind the it for me to then put a big vocal on top, but it's the end of FAWM and we can work on that later. Thanks again John!
If I Were A God
Lyrics © 2022 John Nicholson (coolparadiso music)
Music © 2022 Ken Mattsson (BeaconBeats Music)
Verse 1
[D] Infinity in front of me
[G] Infinity behind
I'm [A] stuck right in the middle
[D] In this daily grind
[G] But it's better [D] I guess
[G] Than the [A] other
[G] Finger cocked and [D] poised
[G] Over the red [A] buzzer
[A7] But
Chorus
[D] Once I had an epiphany
It [G] felt just like [A] freedom
[G] Decided If I [D] were a god
I’d [A] go and ban [D] religion
Verse 2
[D] I may be just be a pawn
[G] Never in the frame
But [A] so the masters tell me
That [D] they can win the game
I [G] won’t wait to be [D] taken
[G] I will make a [A] stand
[G] Who can I [D] rely on
[G] To hold out a helping [A] hand
[A7] But
Chorus
[D] Once I had an epiphany
It [G] felt just like [A] freedom
[G] Decided If I [D] were a god
I’d [A] go and ban [D] religion
Bridge
[Bm] Never feel defeated
[F#m] Only then you lose
Re[Em]member at this late hour
You’re still free to [A7] choose
[A7] But
Chorus
[D] Once I had an epiphany
It [G] felt just like [A] freedom
[G] Decided If I [D] were a god
I’d [A] go and ban [D] religion
Decided If I were a god
I’d go and ban religion
@andygetch Mar 2022
A powerful uplifting message in the lyric and I can certainly hear that in the singing and playing. I hope this song gets to where it needs to go!
@berty38 Mar 2022
The lyrics describe well some of the dangers of religion. Then the music has a nice contrast because it sounds a bit like the kind of traditional folk melody that could be a religious song. Cool collaboration!
@sherrylynnlee Mar 2022
Brilliant! I'm agnostic and I think if there are all-loving gods as some religions claim, they probably want to ban religions too :)
@tageule Mar 2022
Great lyrics, beautifully performed. I especially love the moment the chorus starts (which is pure gold, anyway).
@fearlessflight2014 Mar 2022
Beautifully sung and beautifully written. A really thought provoking lyric. Great collab guys!
@darcistrutt Mar 2022
Banning religion doesn't sound like a bad idea. I like the melody over these words. I like the bridge lines especially.
#tit4tat
@danvaillancourt Mar 2022
Nice work on this collab. Great uke and vocal to bring this lyric to life. It'll be fun to hear more instruments on it also if you get around to it after FAWM. Catchy folky chorus!
@sheilerk Mar 2022
I’m with ya on this. Great lyric and wonderful vocals and uke playing. If we’re all made in the image of god, why would we need religion. I could get all philosophical about this and go on and on, but I’ll just say I really liked listen to it!
@cleanshoes Feb 2022
I love this chorus. What a potent sentiment! The simple folk accompaniment is lovely, but I hope you two do get to revisit this, because I can't wait to hear it with a big arrangement!
@ambroise Feb 2022
Voice and ukulele just so simple and straightforward. Should have used that for some of my songs ! That'll be for next year.
Fun and clever lyrics, those ones. Made me think of "If there's a god" by Theo Hakola. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMiR3NY67w8)
@nancyrost Feb 2022
That's a great chorus. I really like the understatement of the vocal, very effective in this context. And really, the uke-and-voice treatment has a fitting humility to it that I'm very fond of.
@tamsnumber4 Feb 2022
If I were a God, I'd ban religion.......awesome
Nice uke, vocal and melody for this, the idea for this song and hook are great, really nice collab!!!
@andrea Feb 2022
Really nice collaboration on this. I love the musical treatment for the lyrics, and Ken's voice is so smooth and lovely. I really like the message in the bridge. I enjoyed this song very much.
@kahlo2013 Feb 2022
Awesome collaboration! Love the gentle finger-picking and gorgeous vocals! The lyrics are fantastic. I like the chorus a lot and your verses develop the message well. Great hook
@nahlej381 Feb 2022
Very cool collab y’all! Solid performance as usual plus perfectly written. Loved it.
@liz561 Feb 2022
Nice picking Ken! and kudos to @coolparadiso for great lyrics! Bridge is very effective.
@elesimo Feb 2022
Really beautiful lyrics and music. Love the emotion in your voice, Ken!
@ductapeguy Feb 2022
This works very well as a quiet uke tune. It would indeed work equally well as a full-production show stopper. That's a great collab.
@billwhite51 Feb 2022
excellent job of bringing johns lyric into al field where dowland's english ballads ally with ireland's rebel songs.
@adambeiter Feb 2022
Love this collab! The lyrics on the chorus are especially poignant, it kind of reminds me of sentiments expressed in Kurt Vonnegut's novels regarding organized religion. And btw, thanks for including the chords, that's very thoughtful of you! Maybe I should start doing that with my song, haha! But seriously, great work and thanks for sharing!