My 2011 Progress Report...

As another year races to an end, I have been undertaking a tradition that I started a couple of years back.  Let me explain...

To pay the bills, I work an office job of sorts that takes up 45 plus hours per week;  so any music projects usually take the back burner for me.  I try very hard to not give up creating music, which is something that I love to do.  So, at the end of each year, I like to look back and take inventory of what I've accomplished musically during the past 365 days.   I'm pretty pleased to report that in 2011 I've written or co-written 50 new songs! 

It's been a productive year for me creatively.  I wrote the music to a western musical, ELIZABETHTOWN, with book and lyrics by my long time collaborator, Andy Brown.  The musical is based on a song by the same name that I wrote several years ago.  Also, Andy and I are working together on a children's musical called "ADVENTURES IN THE CLOSET" with book and lyrics by Andy.  I've finished a good portion of the music for that show. 

Besides these theater projects, Andy and I have co-written several stand alone songs- all of which can be found on this blog.  Andy's lyrics are always inspiring, and his work this year has been his best yet.  I look forward to creating more songs with him in 2012!  We also hope to record the music from the two shows this year- that's a major project on my "to do" list.

This past summer, I started a new and productive collaboration with Hawaiian composer/songwriter, Matt Glickstein.  In this situation, I have supplied lyrics and Matt has created the music.  It's been a fun and challenging new experience for me.  Matt is a really wonderful musician and creative melodist.  We have written a dozen stand-alone songs and, along with John Mistric,  have just started a theater project called "Beneath the Surface" that is based on the Gacy murders of the late 70's.  I'll post more about this project on the blog in the coming weeks. 

Besides the new songs I've written this year, I've also had a number of older one's brought to life in demo form by my talented friend, Mr. Jon Statham.  These include: "The Garden", "Yours",  "Don't", "42 Years", and "Casting Pearls".   Mat Glickstein has also provided music to two of my older lyrics that were without melody: "Hope for the Hopeless" and "This Cage".   Also, a couple of months ago, I made semi-finals with two songs ("The Garden" and "Nicholas") in the International Song Contest based in England, and in September, I launched a website for my music: http://www.spragginsmusic.com.

In short, I'm very pleased that, despite working so very many hours, I was able to keep up with a hobby that brings me happiness- creating songs!   I think that I learn more and more about the craft every year, and I am more pleased with my output as time goes by.   Having a passion for creating art and being able to do it everday helps to make the dificult parts of life bearable.  I'm thankful for my collaborators and for all of you who have supported me, listened to my music, and who have shared your thoughts on my work.  Thanks for putting up with me!

I have a number of projects and ideas in the works, and look forward to a productive 2012!

-J.

New Songs/Music written in 2011:
(most are posted on this blog or at http://tindeck.com/users/jasonaspraggins)

“8213 Summerdale" - for piano- (music by Spraggin) nov.
“A Hundred Miles from Boulder” (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins) june
“A New Beginning” from BENEATH THE SURFACE (music by Glickstein/ music by Spraggins) dec.
“A Piece of Fiction” (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) jan.
“A Pound of Flesh” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) march
“Blood Money/In Search of a New Life” from E’TOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) april
“Buried Secrets” from BENEATH THE SURFACE (lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“Do What I Want” from ADVENTURES IN THE CLOSET (music by Spraggins/lyrics by Brown) sep.
“Dumb and Stupid” from BENEATH THE SURFACE (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“Elizabethtown Overture” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music and arrangement by Spraggins) may
“Fluhma, Fluhma, Fluhma” from ADVENTURES IN THE CLOSET (Spraggins/Brown) july
“Garfield County” (music by Spraggins/lyrics by Brown) oct.
“Ghosts” (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins) june
“Heart of an Angel” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) march
“Hell on Earth” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) may
“I Don’t Really Know You” from BENEATH THE SURFACE (lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“If I’d Only” from ADVENTURES IN THE CLOSET (Spraggins/ Brown) sep.
“Imaginary Friends” (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins)  july
“In Search of a New Life” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown)  april
“It Isn’t Easy” from ADVENTURES IN THE CLOSET (music by Spraggins/lyrics by Brown) july
“John Wayne Gacy (The Yard Party)" from BENEATH THE SURFACE (lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“Kindle the Memory” from ADVENTURES IN THE CLOSET (Spraggins/Brown) july
“Lady Luck” (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) oct.
“Look Beneath” from BENEATH THE SURFACE (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“Luke 8:24 "(for J.C. Clark)- (music by Spraggins)  june
“Marshall Law” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) march
“Off the Page” (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown)  june
“Pannin’ for Justice” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) feb.
“Peace with the Past” (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins)  july
“Pissin’ in the Wind” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) march
“Scratch My Back” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) march
“Shake the Hand of the Devil” (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins) june
“The Boys of the Night/On the Hunt” from BENEATH THE SURFACE (lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“The Bus Stop” (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown)  nov.
“The City of Sand” (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins)  august
“The Desert of God” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown)  feb.
“The Flickering Flame” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins)  march
“The Jazzman’s Lullaby” (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins)  june
“The Mask” from BENEATH THE SURFACE (lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“The Midnight Madam” (music by Glickstein/ lyrics by Spraggins) sep.
“The Victim" from BENEATH THE SURFACE (lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“The Windows Mite” (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) nov.
“Theme Three” (main title) from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins)  march
“Theme Two” (Caroline’s Theme) from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins) jan.
“This Old Feeling” (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) may
“Tighten up the Noose” from BENEATH THE SURFACE (lyrics by Spraggins) dec.
“We’ll Put the Cream in Teamwork” from ADVENTURES IN THE CLOSET Spraggins/Brown) july
“Winter Waltz” for piano (music by Spraggins) dec.
“You Put the Sin in Senatobia” from ELIZABETHTOWN (music by Spraggins/ lyrics by Brown) may
“Yours” (music by Spraggins/lyrics by Brown) jan.

"Show Me the Place" - Leonard Cohen

After a very long wait, Leonard Cohen has released a new song.  It's beautiful and is just what I needed to hear today.  I love this man and his writing.  The world will be a darker place when Leonard Cohen is gone.   He's always calmed my heart like no other.
His new album comes out in January.  Enjoy...

"Hope for the Hopeless" - demo

Music by Matt Glickstein

Lyrics by Jason Spraggins

Performed by Matt Glickstein

8213 Summerdale (Buried Secrets)

After reading a couple of books ("The Last Victim" and "Defending a Monster") on the John Wayne Gacy case, I decided to write an instrumental piano piece inspired by the story of the serial killer and his victims. The story of John Wayne Gacy (The Killer Clown) is a chilling one that reminds us that we must be cautious and must not take everything at face value. My heart goes out to the remaining family of his young victims.

"42 Years"- Vocal Demo

Overture from "Elizabethtown: A Musical Western"

The Midnight Madam

THE MIDNIGHT MADAM  

Verse:

She lives by night near city lights

and stalks the streets 'til morning.

She'll sense your sin, invite you in,

then leave without a warning.

She plays with dreams and owns the scene;

her heart will make you suffer.

She haunts the tortured minds of men

who gave their souls to touch her.

Verse:

Her past has placed within her eyes

vast oceans filled with sorrows.

Her loss of love has led her down

a path you dare not follow.

Beware the beauty of her smile;

don't fall for desire.

Her game of wills is all too real.

She'll trap you in her fire.

Chorus:

Her needs like pins will pierce the skin.

Her kiss will kill you slowly.

She'll weave a web of lies, of lust,

eclipsing all things holy.

You'll be possessed,

a ghost among the living.

You'll curse the Midnight Madam's name,

and time won't be forgiving.

Verse:

We're only here on borrowed time;

the sands are quickly falling.

Don't side-step God and try to be

the answer to her calling.

Temptation lives in many forms-

is drawn to thrist and hunger.

Don't share the midnight madam's cup;

her curse will pull you under.

(repeat chorus)

-J.S. 9/21/11

Living in the Musical Past/ A Musical Revolution

     I've been feeling sort of disconnected with the modern music scene for sometime.  This probably isn't so surprising for those of you who know me.  I'm a sixty year old soul in a thirty year old body.  That being said, for most of my life I've been able to find music scenes that inspire me and that reminded me that there is nothing greater in the world than music.  I love classical music, show music, early rock, classic rock, even a great deal of 90's rock (R.E.M. for instance).  It was somewhere in the early 2000's that I started to lose my appetite for new popular music.  Don't get me wrong, there are still gems out there (Ryan Adams, Rufus Wainwright, Old Crow Medicine Show, Teddy Thompson, Conor Oberst, Ray Lamontange), but they are few and far between.  I find most of the new pop music I hear to be redundant, uninspired, simple-minded, offensive, and meaningless (don't even get me started on modern country).  That sort of thing just doesn't float my boat. 

     I keep waiting for the day when a new artist will record an album that I can't stop playing- an album that replaces the decades old albums that have a constant place on my play list.  I can't wait for that sort of album to go mainstream and run the pop tarts off the scene.  I'm looking for someone who inspires me, makes me addicted to his/her art, who writes songs that make me think the world, with all its troubles, is worthwhile because something so powerful and pleasing can come from it.  I watched the wonderful movie "Almost Famous" again recently.  There are scenes in the that movie that can bring me to tears- scenes that illustrate the overwhelming power of music to change feelings, minds, relationships, and lives.  It can erase anger and hurt.  It can break down walls and heal wounds.

     I'm not a great songwriter or performer.  For me, it's been something that I only dabble in because I don't like what the real music scene is offering me.  But I am a great fan of music-  the kind of fan that lives in the past because nothing new inspires me the way the old guys and gals do/did.  That's not because people like them don't exist; it's because a mindless society and music business represses true talented poets and troubadours in favor of commercialized, generic fluff!  There was a time when the most talented musicians were the mainstream artists.   Now, they are pushed to the outskirts, and it's difficult for fans to discover them because of  the light weights who have stolen pop culture and who litter the airwaves with auto-tuned voices, electronic music, and sickening images.

     I read a blog post by Paco from American Roots Radio recently that echoed the same sentiments.  I'll place a link to it on the end of this post.  He calls for a musical revolution.  I join him by calling for the same.  I remember being a little boy and sitting in the floor in front of my daddy's stereo.  I would have over-sized head phones on and be listening to his albums.  I would sit like that for hours, looking at album art, memorizing lyrics and melodies, and imagining I was a rock star.  I will never forget discovering songs like "Hey Jude", "Daniel", "Like a Rolling Stone", "Song for You", "Bat Out of Hell", "Piano Man", and artists like James Taylor, Eric Clapton, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Fleetwood Mac, The Who, Queen, Rod Stewart, and Leonard Cohen.  These were important moments in my life!  My God, it was magic- just me and the music.  It hurts me that my youngest siblings don't have experiences like that.  Instead, they have YouTube, it's over-hyped stars, and music married to images that refuse to give your imagination an inch of room to explore. 

     At the end of the movie "Almost Famous", a young boy and music fan, William, asks Russell (a rock guitarist) what he loves most about music.  Russell smiles and says, "for starters....everything".   I know how he feels.  That movie is set in the early to mid-seventies- a time when rock was still fairly young and was really starting to stretch its legs and expand itself.  Every one was on fire for a new art form that was about raw emotion, self-expression, and experimentation.  It was O.K. to be different- in fact, it was almost against the culture to be "cookie-cutter."

      Unfortunately, I'm not old enough to "remember when rock was young" from first hand experience, but thanks to my dad, an avid music fan, my discovery of music was largely of material from that fruitful and innovative time.  At that point in history, there was a musical revolution.  It's time for another one!  It's time to reclaim popular music for artists and not businessmen and shallow opportunists.  We need Dylans, Joplins, Claptons, Lennons, and the like.  We need melodists like Elton, storytellers like Jimmy Webb, poets like Cohen, voices like Campbell and Cash, and souls like Ray Charles.  We need a musical army to take back the scene.  Until that happens, I'll keep listening to my faithful old albums and living in the glorious musical past. 

As Billy Joel sings...

I told you my reasons for the whole revival
Now I'm going outside to have an ice cold beer in the shade
Oh, I'm going to listen to my 45's
Ain't it wonderful to be alive
When the rock 'n' roll plays,
When the memory stays, yeah
I'm keeping the faith!

Check out Paco's blog on the same subject:   http://www.berniejtaupin.com/arr-news.bt?n_id=459646

The City of Sand (rough draft)

"The City of Sand"

VERSE:
It's the third day of darkness in this city of sand.
The shadow of vengeance covers the land.
Our King's in the temple with his cloister of priests,
under siege by a people he will not release.

VERSE:
Since the man with the staff has turned our river red
and his nameless God has caused plagues to spread,
the slaves cry for freedom, and they fill the streets.
It's the will of our Pharaoh that they must defeat.

CHORUS:
Oh great and mighty King, won't you open your eyes
before more fire rains down from the skies?

Wise and fearless Pharaoh, meet their demands,
or we'll see our kingdom crumble  in their hands

and sink into the sands.

VERSE:
Still the prophet and his God have planned a final curse;
the first born of Egypt will suffer worst.
Oh, hear us great Pharaoh; it is out of your hands;

there's a God waging war on the city of sand.

BRIDGE:

The prophet of the people has ignited a storm.
His mad and hungry armies continue to swarm.
Frightened by their numbers, you once killed their sons.
Now I fear their retribution has only begun.

REPEAT CHORUS


Lyrics by Jason Spraggins
Music by Matt Glickstein

My New Website

I have launched a new website for my musical projects.   You can visit it at this link...


www.spragginsmusic.com

"The Garden" vocal demo

"Yours" vocal demo

Lyrics by Andy Brown
Music by Jason Spraggins

Performed by Jon Statham

Peace with the Past

"PEACE WITH THE PAST"

Verse:

There is nothing more I can give to you;

there is nothing more I can say.

I can't heal your wounds- can't ease your pain.

And if you choose to leave, I won't stand in your way.

Chorus:

I can't be

your candle on a dark night.

I can't find a way

to lead you toward the sunlight.

Your solitude will last

'til you're at peace with the past.

Verse:

I can forgive, but I can't forget..

I must find a peace and let it be.

Many questions don't have answers.

Time may heal, but love won't come free.


(Repeat Chorus)


Bridge:
You're lost inside your memories-
bitter, cold, and isolate.
Only you can break the walls
of this prison you've created.

(Repeat Chorus)

Lyrics by Jason Spraggins and Matt Glickstein

Music by Matt Glickstein

Imaginary Friends

"Imaginary Friends"

Verse: 

I've noticed a far away look in your eyes

and heard the cold echoes that sound like goodbyes.

I've clung to your coattails and begged you to stay.

I've helplessly watched as you've drifted away.

Verse: 

I've looked to the sky, and I've asked for a sign.

I've stood at the sea between your world and mine.

And though there are moments when waters may part,

time is relentlessly breaking my heart.

Chorus:

 We're Imaginary Friends-

Who needed each other but don't anymore.

Just Imaginary Friends-

We're turning our backs, and we're closing a door.

Verse:

The day was still young when we met in this dream-

A dream that's now older, that tears at the seams.

A world on my own, I can hardly conceive.

We both deserve more than this forced make-believe.

(Repeat Chorus)

Bridge:
We're watching our fairy tale come to and end.
What could have been is now lost to the wind.

We know the truth, and cannot pretend

to hold on to a life...

Final Chorus:

As Imaginary Friends

I'll pack up my mem'ries and then walk away.

Just imaginary Friends

I'll love your forever, but I cannot stay.

Imaginary Friends.
Just Imaginary Friends.


 Jason Spraggins/Matt Glickstein
 7/14/11

Casting Pearls (vocal demo)

Here is a demo of a song that I wrote in 2010.  

"Shake the Hand of the Devil"

Shake the Hand of the Devil

(Robert Johnson's Blues)

Verse:
He was barely seventeen 
when his wife, Virginia, died.
He set out on a dirt road
and hoped to hitch a ride.
 A Guitar strapped across his back
that he could hardly play,
he'd have lived and died a farmhand, 
'stead, he chose to run away.

Verse:
Mississippi Delta heat,
it ain't easy to cut through.
He walked and watched the sun 
fall slowly out of view.
He stepped up to a crossroads,
 took his guitar in hands,
 his clumsy fingers, picked a song 
that echoed 'cross the land.


Chorus:
Robert Johnson saw the Devil coming
through the foggy night.
It was half past twelve ,the Devil said,
"I’ll help you see the light.
I'll make you an offer 
 you can't refuse,
but you'll shake the hand of the Devil
if you want to play the blues."

Verse:
"What's your wish?" the Devil asked 
with a gap-toothed, rotten grin.
Robert passed him the guitar
and felt the sting of sin.
The Devil laughed and tuned the strings
as the young man watched in fear.
He took back his guitar,
he was a bluesman without peer.


Repeat Chorus

Bridge:
As Robert shook the Devil's hand, 
he feared he'd crossed a line.
"The Blues are yours,"  the Devil sneered,
"but your soul is mine."

Repeat Chorus


Lyrics by Jason Spraggins
Music by Matt Glickstein

"A Hundred Miles from Boulder"

"A Hundred Miles from Boulder "

Short Chorus:

He's a hundred miles from Boulder,

He's given up his chains.

Yesterday's being washed away

by the Colorado rain.

Verse 1:

When he left his home in Georgia,

he'd done all that he could do.

He would never be the man

to fill his father's shoes.

So at twenty-five, he's left it all behind.

Somewhere deep inside,

there is a man he has to find.

Chorus:

He's a hundred miles from Boulder,

He's given up his chains.

Yesterday's being washed away

by the Colorado rain.

He breathes the cool, clean western air,

feels the wind blow through his hair.

He's a hundred miles from Boulder,

but his heart's already there.

Verse 2:

He has always longed for freedom-

He has always wanted more.

He's been tied to the ground

but has wings that need to soar.

So at three A.M., he's driving through the night

He will learn to live,

climb a mountain, and take flight.

Repeat Chorus

Bridge:

The life he lives tomorrow

will be his- and his alone.

With this change, he just might free

the sword lodged in the stone.

Repeat Short Chorus

Lyrics by Jason Spraggins- 6/28/11
Music by Matt Glickstein

The Jazzman's Lullaby

This is a lyric that I originally wrote in perfect meter.  However, as the music was being composed, I had to make some changes that disrupted the original meter.  This is the altered version that was set to music...

.

"The Jazzman's Lullaby"

His cigarette is burning,

and his glass has just been filled.

He looks down from the stage 

into a storm that must be stilled.

Though tired and drunk on whiskey,

he breathes a smokey sigh,

picks up his guitar,

and starts playing the jazzman's lullaby.

(short instrumental break)

He strums the chords of longing

and sings words of despair.

The melody's so peaceful;
it's calming the air.

Look into his drunken eyes;

his spell can't be denied.

Every soul is enchanted 

by the jazzman's lullaby

(short instrumental break)

The night is growing older,

and his song's near its end.

He has captured their minds;

their hearts are his to mend.

He knows the drink will kill him;

he's not afraid to die.

He takes a sip and starts again

into his jazzman's lullaby

(Instrumental break)


Lyrics by Jason Spraggins
Music by Matt Glickstein

"Ghosts"

Ghosts

Verse:

The shadows hang on empty walls
throughout this quiet place.

There's nothing here but loneliness
to fill the hallowed space.

Still carelessly the seconds pass
and steal time from my heart,

And though I'm master of this house,
I cannot play the part.

Chorus:

The ghosts of all our memories
 are living with me still.
This house I once called home
 now holds a pain I cannot kill.

I'm haunted by the life we shared,
but I'm a willing host.

I've given up on might- have- beens
 but can't give up these ghosts. 

Verse:

I'm left alone- a servant to
the past you left behind.

I search through thoughts and longings
for my missing peace of mind.

And though I may forgive the way
you left without a trace,

The broken mirrors of my mind
will still reflect your face.

(Repeat Chorus)

Verse:

The cold wind's blowing through the cracks
 appearing in the walls.

It's getting late and time won't wait;
too soon, this house will fall.

I've built a prison of regret
and things that cannot be.

I must let go of you
 if I'm to set these spirits free.

(Repeat Chorus)

I've given up on might-have-beens,
but I can't give up...
No I can't give up...
These ghosts.

Lyrics by Jason Spraggins

June 21, 2011
Music by Matt Glickstein

"Don't" (new vocal demo)

My New Site

Check it out:
http://readingmusic101.blogspot.com/

"Yours" performed by Andy Brown

"Yours" 
Lyrics by Andy Brown
Music by Jason Spraggins

My YouTube Channel

I've opened a new YouTube channel so that I can post my songs with some images to go along with them.
Give it a look....

http://www.youtube.com/user/SpragginsMusic

Brian.

   It's hard for me to believe, but I lost a dear friend five years ago today.   He was just shy of his 30th birthday (a bit younger than I am now).  I still think of him often.  I've never met anyone like Brian, and I suspect I never will.   I can't remember a time when I didn't look up to him.  He was the most gifted musician I've known, and he had intellect to match.  He came a long way and accomplished so much in a short amount of time.  The world needs people like him.  He gave without thought or expectation, he didn't judge, and he ALWAYS smiled.   I miss him still.

Allen Toussaint: "Southern Nights"

An American treasure singing a classic with just his piano.  Sweet and Peaceful.  Does it get any better?