Song and a Chat

Episode #227: The Prettiest Picture  (Song starts at 5:14) I wrote this song for my mother (Mum), back in 1987 {!). I remember like it was yesterday. It was Mother's Day, in the morning and I'd remembered. I like to give some sort of an original gift, so I thought I'll paint mum a picture. Yes, I thought I would come up with something suitable in a couple of hours, rock around to Mum's house in the afternoon and deliver it. Unfortunately the painting just didn't come together. It wasn't up to scratch at all. So, plan b: I sat down, pen in hand and wrote some lyrics. Here's a song for mum Just written to say how much you mean to me. So it sounds like a letter, initially. What came out eventually was: this song was the prettiest picture I could paint, which became the ‘punchline' of the lyrics. Then I sat at the piano, wrote the music, recorded a demo and delivered the tape a couple of hours later. This was song #23. Looking back, 1987 was a formative year for me, as a composer. I found I could really do it. And as an artist, too, I also realised I could sing well enough to be more confident about my vocals. Recording myself was a good idea.. It's also a great idea to write lyrics down. Put them together, in some sort of tangible form. I recommend an A4 book. Lyrics, chords and hints of melody (in lower case above each syllable), plus some rhythmical notes, too. I find I just need to start all of these old songs, and the whole arrangements come back to me in a flash. In fact, when I wrote it, I imagined straight away it would go equally well on the guitar. As usual, this episode became a bit of an observation on life. My mum passed away last year, so I guess I was quite reflective as I winged proceedings (as I do, on this podcast - there are no notes to follow, no script). One of the things that came to light is: sometimes ‘creatives' are viewed as almost a different species. Yes, we have specialised skills that can be honed, but I think to be human is to create. Everyone creates. We have choice as to how to feel, how we react (act). I figure we may as well do good things in this life. That's why I've put a mountain of art and music, writing and spoken word online, these last 200 odd weeks. I've archived my work and I hope it's entertaining and helping people. Feedback, to date, would indicate this has the case, which is great. Speaking of archiving, I think I better do some more backing up. The digital domain isn't exactly stable at times. My music computer might have done it's last bit of recording with this episode. Some very bizarre noises were happening. The upshot is: this recording is in mono. I got there, just. Finishing it took some thinking outside the square. So I'm going to take a break for a few weeks. I'll be back rejuvenated, with a recording system that's operating in the NY. See you then. In the mean time, if you'd like to hear more like this, There's another 226 episodes you can listen to retrospectively. Producing this podcast has been so rewarding, often surprising, in so many ways. Thanks for reading this and I hope you enjoy hearing how the words and music came together for   'The Prettiest Picture I could Paint', ( this one's for you, Margaret, delivery #2.). Enjoy,

Episode #226: The Smallest Of Dreams   (Song starts at 3:47) I found a quite extensive amount of audio of me composing this one. So I've included some of it on this episode. As I listened back to the process of the smallest of dreams coming together, I found it fascinating. Often songs come together quickly for me. This one was different. Each time I picked the song up, and gently sung it through, it seemed a new bit revealed itself each time. Even if what I was playing didn't seem to be heading in the right direction, something would kick in and give me just enough to keep going. The smallest of dreams started out life as a snippet of a waltz piece on the piano, played in a completely different key. This was the moment where I recorded what I'd come up with. It was little more than just a couple of bars of not much, but it had a certain feeling about it. Over the years, I've learned to recognise potential in a piece of music. From there it was like kneading a piece of clay, keeping a sense of humour and being true to the feeling that came through when I recorded the initial piece of piano playing. ‘As we play see the day make the way for the smallest of dreams'. It seems the creative process of producing art and music and writing is a parallel to life itself. Play is a key element to composing. Just being free to see where the melody or chords will take you. It's the same, as we go through our weeks: just remembering to have fun and keep moving. If we go along steadily and not rush, it seems little extra bits seem to come to us just at the right time. And that's how it is with song writing, it's about being on the breathe, being aware, asking questions , keeping moving and rolling with the new phrases - both musical and lyrical  - and you see where it takes you. Ok here we go. This is a very gentle ballad. With a nice 3 4 lilt. It's the last song on the new album River Walking by myself and Paul Dredge, (streaming now). You can hear the actual album track on this episode. The lyrics are on my blog www.petepascoe.wordpress.com , plus links to more of my music and art. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I enjoyed producing it,

Episode #225: One More Cup  (Song starts at 4:27) As usual, I thoroughly enjoyed producing this episode. Earlier this evening, I had a feeling I had some recordings of myself composing One More Cup - somewhere on one of my hard drives… By some sort of miracle, I managed to locate the snippets of audio. I put them all together on a timeline and as I recorded this episode, I listened to each new section in turn, much as the listener would do, discovering what I got up to. I found it at times surprising, fascinating and humorous. These 3 things I would say are a 3 of the essential components required to compose. The sense of mystery, the intense focus, due to the passion and a sense of humour to keep the wheels on and rolling when you hit a bung note or take a wrong musical turn. I wrote the lyrics sitting in a cafe. It's the way I start my Mondays and Tuesdays: long black in a mug, considering my days ahead. Across the road, I see the school where I'm employed as a contractor, teaching 24 piano lessons in 2 days - each week. You can appreciate my need to take a moment to mentally prepare. Some days I'll sit and type a blog post. Or perhaps a letter to Paul Dredge, my co-songwriter in New Zealand. or, as on this particular day, I may pick up a pen and starting writing lyrics, sometimes describing the scene around me. These lyrics are  an account of the songwriter (publicly) going off into dreamland and returning. The morning rush is in full swing but not for me -  I sit here quiet in the shade.. Bliss. What is also bliss is this: listening back to the finished version of the song, One More Cup is track number 10 on the album River Walking, written and recorded with my great friend and co songwriter, Paul Dredge , from New Zealand (where I'm originally from). The arrangement of the musical instruments on the finished recording start to tell a story of their own really, so I've included some of the production work (isolated parts) on this episode . So join me for a cuppa maybe, as you listen to this episode. I had one in hand as I was speaking, in between playing the piano to demonstrate the odd section. It's such a pleasure to be recording these episodes, particularly working through the songs on our most recent album. I'm glad I had the foresight to record the songwriting process for One More Cup. I hope you enjoy hearing about the process…and listening to the finished version. More about One More Cup / the album and lyrics here: www.petepascoe.wordpress.com Here we go. Join me for one more cup.

Episode #224: Old Horse Grey  (Song starts at 3:45 ) There's a state of mind you get into when you're doing something creative like writing a song lyric, composing the accompanying music & arranging the instruments during the recording process. You're right in the moment. Honouring what you've already created, you're asking constant questions to guide you to what's next. The questions come from feeling. And the answers just seem to appear and fall into place like they were meant to be. Welcome to the art of songwriting. It's a reflection of life itself, by it's very nature: we ask questions as we go through our lives. Taking responsibility for our actions thus far, we ask “What's next?” And the answer?  what will be. The oldest answer has always been:  to just be in the now. And let what will be, be. In the country I find it easy to find that pace - just walking. Like an old horse. No rush. The old horse grey lyrics were inspired by the horse that, until recently, lived in the paddock across the road from our house. The school children called out to him, fed him apples as they walked to school. It really struck a chord with me: when I was a primary school kid, there were 2 horses in the paddock opposite our house. One was brown, and one was grey. I chose to call the song Old Horse Grey, as it was about my childhood as well. Also it sounded more poetic than ‘old brown horse' (the horse across the road here in 2024 in Australia was brown). Anyway, the time came when he passed away. We all miss him. There's a few lines about the passing of time in the song - and this:  the noise of trucks, the spread of the city. Old horse grey, he shakes his head as if he knows… 'Old Horse Grey' is song #9 on the new album 'River Walking'. I wrote the lyrics (or most of them) and sent off to Paul Dredge, my co songwriting buddy, knowing that Paul would come up with just the right country feel for the song, I didn't tell him this. I just knew. Then Paul stopped and left the chorus (or is it the bridge?) for me. I ended up steering it though to the end, adding more lyrics. You can hear this process on this episode. I have included the audio of Paul's initial sketched start, and my answers. You'll also, of course, hear the finished album track. I've written about the song in this week's blog post. www.petepascoe.wordpress.com  -  and I've included the lyrics as usual. The end result is a song which Paul and I are really happy with. It's a mellow listen. Also in this episode, I have included a wee funny story about a bit of horse riding I did as a child, in NZ. That's the great thing about song writing, so many layers are in there, it's like looking through a photo album, listening back to a song I've written the lyrics for. It was a real pleasure to write this one with Paul. I hope you enjoy listening to how Old Horse Grey came to be. Here we go…

Episode #223: Changing Times (Song starts at 4:18 ) The featured song on this episode is song #7 on the album 'River Walking', by Paul Dredge and myself. At the time of recording this episode, the album has not long been out and I'm working my way through the songs. I've actually skipped one in the sequence the song 'Gone Too Soon' is song #6 on the album. I've already recorded an episode featuring this song (do a search on the platform you listen to your podcasts to and you'll find it - or follow the link below). I'm an album man, generally, when I listen to music. I like to really immerse myself into the vibe of an album. So I think a lot about how I decide on the song order. In this case, it made sense to me to place 'Changing Times' after 'Gone To Soon', which has a gentle groove. The blues with a swing beat of changing times (which Paul came up with) kicks in nicely and the album cruises on in yet another music style. Good fun. Changing Times started one morning at the cafe where I can often be found, first thing in the morning, opposite the school where I teach piano on Mondays and Tuesdays. I take a breath, have a coffee and consider how things are going. Most often I'll write a blog post. And sometimes I'll write lyrics. On this particular day, I sat ‘outside by the roadside…a little uncomfortably close. Summer Breeze was (Is) on the radio inside, out here I sniff(ed) the air as it blows'… These were the words I started off with. Paul received my lyrics while on holiday (in fact, I think it was the same holiday that Paul came up with the start of River Walking). You can hear the audio on this episode which I received back from Paul. He'd written the verse and chorus with a bluesy cool groove. I then wrote the bridge. (which you can also listen to - so you get to hear the to and fro of our international writing style). Blues tends to write itself, once you've made the decision to go down that path. It's fun. Paul said “The lyrics just said blues to him”. And I agree. It was fun to add the bridge, and that was that. Arranging the song was next. I've shown how we did this by including some isolated tracks of the instruments. We both lobe this process. The lyrics are about how suddenly you realise you've reached a crossroads - and it's time to make some decisions and make some changes. This was a a couple of years ago, when I wrote the lyrics. I realised I'd been doing way too much, each week, for way too long. Passionate as I was (still am) about the arts, I needed to reel in my work load a bit, Fast forward a couple of years …and I've sort of slowed and down,,,and sort of not. I've chosen to go down a few different artistic paths over the years. I'm enjoying string my art and music - and the processes. You can read about it all on my blog  www.petepascoe.wordpress.com  where you can find the link to the 'Gone Too Soon' episode -  and read the lyrics of the song featured on each podcast episode…) Ok, Changing Times, here we go - rollin' !

Episode #222: River Walking  (Song starts at 4.22) This song is the title track of the album by the same name, by Paul Dredge and myself. It was fun looking back to see how 'River Walking' came together. Although it was written in sections, by 2 people, in a sort of a call and answer style (which we do, as we've lived in different countries for some time). We send the sections online back and forth. I think the finished song sounds like it was written by one person. It's an example of how much on the same page you can be with someone. There was a lot already in place, looking back to when we first met at the first gig: the harmonies, the arranging skills - the music fell into place quickly together. Then there were years where we refined our music together - particularly at a 5 night per week piano bar where we performed as a duo. There was nowhere to hide, our voices and the 2 instruments were right there… no drums to hide behind. So It was an potentially an intense performance space, in some respects, but the only way you're going to make a piano bar restaurant work is for the entertainers have to be relaxed. And we certainly were. But it took a lot out of us, performing so much, even though we both loved it. To switch off, we'd walk by the river, or maybe fish.  The Manawatu river rolls quietly along the rural plains, beside Palmerston North and onward to the coast. We discovered pretty quickly that the sound of the river, the breeze in the trees, the bird calls had a profound effect on our nerves, our breathing… It became a regular event, like a ritual, looking back. A very  peaceful, restorative thing to do, walking by the river. Fast forward to now. I find a lot of peace where I live. I'm lucky enough to have some studio space where I paint, compose, write lyrics. I live near the Port Phillip bay,(Mornington Peninsula, Vic, Australia). I wrote the lyrics, to describe how it feels, being out in nature, unwinding. I then sent a sheet of lyrics that were really in need of an edit. But I knew Paul was about to go on holiday, which is when he often writes songs, so I felt the need to get some lyrics to him. Paul came up with a couple of verses, and the bridge…he then sent me an mp3. To carry on with. You can hear Paul's ‘initial sketch' recording on this episode. He recorded it at the camp ground. It's really great to receive these from Paul. In the studio, I have it  playing in my headphones. I  have tracks recording and as Paul's part stops, I kick in on the piano and voice, carry the arrangement and wing a melody for the next section. In this case it was the chorus. So you'll get to hear how it happened this time. And you'll hear where it finished up: the album version. 5th song on the album 'River Walking', I think it's pretty much right on target, for the sort of folkrock music vibe that we seem to be most comfortable producing together. There sure is some variety of styles on the album. We are stoked with it. Ok want to hear more? Hear we go, come 'River Walking' with us.

Episode #221: Electric Cow.  (Song starts at 4:52) I would say the main take away from this particular episode is perhaps this: no matter how strange, how silly, how childlike a creative idea that pops into your head is, I would suggest it's really important not to dismiss it. In fact, I would say these are perhaps some of the most important sparks of ideas. The unedited & unbridled joy of creativity - the sort of domain that comes so naturally to us as children. I think perhaps that voice, that state, is something we tend to lose as the years go by. We're taught not to be silly, to focus on ‘what's real' (which brings to mind: anything that is manmade that we would consider ‘real' in todays world didn't exist, once upon a time - it started in someone's mind. Imagination is the key). A great way to unlock this ability that cam come so naturally to us (and I really do think most of us have the ability, we have to - to be human is to create. So I choose to create beautiful things or funny things. Life might as well be beautiful and it sure as heck may as well be fun. Having this sort of state of mind was instrumental to bringing Electric Cow in to being. A decade ago. I was biking home from teaching 17 private piano lessons (big day, eh? You do what you have to to get by financially. I'm teaching 22 in 2 days each week, these days & that's plenty. And it's a privilege. One of the things I say often to my students before we start is: are you ready to have some fun? Ready to make some mistakes …because that's where some of the most interesting most important moments in art, science, you name it, happen). Anyway...on my bike, this whole verse electric cow, electric cow, what the hey do I need an electric cow for?came through loud and clear. Now, I could have dismissed this as rubbish. But I didn't. I'm so pleased I didn't dismiss it. In fact, the next 4 or 5 verses came though as I was biking. I went over them in my mind and whenI got home, my family saw the look on my face. I marched though the house to my studio, wrote out the whacky words and quickly found the chords f f g, FF g. And that was that. Speaking of teaching, today I taught an hour's cartoon drawing with 20 children, sharing creative ideas about how to get into a free creative state. This appears to be something I'm really into. On this episode I have included audio of the demo, and the recorded parts of the final arrangement. This is because sometimes the production, the recording can be part of the composition, and I think this is perhaps true to a degree with this song. It's all good fun, I guess it has to be with a title like electric cow… Electric Cow is the 4th song on the new album by myself and Paul Dredge: River walking - streaming now! I hope you enjoy hearing how another song came together.

Episode #220: A Quiet Moment   (Song starts at 3:31) This episode features the song 'A Quiet Moment', composed by Paul Dredge and myself. It's a song about reflecting back on the history of a friendship, so it's a quite a personal document, in a way. On that intimate sort of a note, you'll get to listen to some audio of Paul and I composing and arranging the vocals for this song. So you get hear some of the actual process of a song coming together. The style of ‘2 voices to the fore' appeals to Paul and I. It's something that comes to us easily. We were inspired by the Finn Brothers (NZ), Simon and Garfunkel, the Everly brothers. I think 'A Quiet Moment' is a very nice album track. Its the 3rd song on our new album 'River Walking' (folkrock, streaming now)  - great to unwind with listening with headphones on - or in the car perhaps). It's a really good example of Paul and I almost in a live performance mode with the singing when the chorus hits, after a more conversational verses. Listening to the audio of us composing together, you can hear us sort of kneading the song into shape, almost like 2 potters working on a piece of clay as it becomes art. I'm glad we took the time to bring this song together. We've had it in the vault for a few years. Once we decided it needed to fleshed out and lengthened with a guitar solo it was ready. Sometimes you have to be patient. Songs seem to have a mind of their own sometimes as to when they are released out into the world. The guitar solo was a good idea …it lead into a high lead line over the 2nd chorus that really added to the drama l - and made the recording, I think. Paul wasn't expecting to do this ...he got to the end of the solo and just ‘winged it into - and along with -  the vocals on the chorus. This sort of thing is what we really enjoy when we record. The magic of being completely in the moment, in performance mode, responding intuitively with the right notes and lines to embellish what's already been recorded, without taking over, or getting in the way. I'm glad I took a quiet moment to write the lyrics in the first place. OK, join us in the songwriting session…this is one of those songs where we were in the room together. Paul had a quick read of the lyrics and kicked in on the guitar with some chords, playing with muted strings. I like winging the vocals over the top so away we went. Hope you enjoy some more music and chat. The River Walking album is brand new, recorded in 2 countries Australia and NZ . It's streaming on all the usual platforms - also available for steaming and downloading from www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com Enjoy 'A Quiet Moment' with us.

Episode #219:  I've Loved Life  (Song starts at 6:52) On this episode, I've featured a song which is track number 2 on the album 'River Walking', which I've written and recorded with Paul Dredge. The gist of the meaning of I've Loved Life is: there's lots of ups and downs - that's the way it is. But we've got the choice to try to enjoy ourselves along the way. I think we might as well. The rough bits are going be there anyway. The world seems to reflect back what put out there. You take the ups with the downs, the smiles with the frowns. I've loved life and it's loved me... I relate a relate a couple of anecdotes, which I found in an old diary entry, which I'd written around the time I wrote I've Loved Life. The ups and downs of being an Artist … I've been so lost.  And still I've found lots of hurt but much love all around I been under the stars, worries run rife There's what I think is a misconception / misunderstanding that you have to be poor and starving to produce serious art and music. I don't think you do. I do think you need to live honestly, be true to yourself, etc - but you don't need to be broke ( I think perhaps that idea has contributed to the idea art and music doesn't really have financial worth…..streaming, anyone? Anyhow… I've had Money and I've gone broke I've loved life, song #664, was fun to write. The Lyrics came quickly, (I enjoy analysing the lyrics) the music pretty much wrote itself - it's a very ‘up' happy country rock song.  I think you can hear this in the finished track, which I'm very pleased about. It sounds like a live band having fun. There's an art to getting to this point, when you're starting with piano vocal and click track.. I've included a snippet of the demo I sent to Paul (in New Zealand) so you can hear how the arrangement came together: Paul did his thing, sent back drums, bass, guitar and harmonica. I re-recorded the piano, sang it again and there it was, finished in no time. The recording sounds like a live band having fun. Which is great. This was the plan. I've performed this song a few times live since it wrote it, this gave me a chance to work on the phrasing of the lyrics, which is a good thing. If you'd like to read more about this song after you've listened to this episode, visit www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com (my blog - search  I've Loved Life). I'm going to feature a few songs off the album here. The album 'River Walking' can be found on all the usual platforms (It's under my artist name Pete Pascoe on Spotify and Bandcamp, Apple music etc..) We are stoked with the album. Released under the folk rock genre, it encompasses country rock, rock - a fair bit of variety… Enjoy! I've loved life,. Rollin'!

Episode #218: All Through The Years     (Song starts at 4:05) I'm really enjoying recording these episodes (obviously I wouldn't be doing it if I wasn't). It's my online weekly gig. The song 'All Through The Years' ( #541) was written in 2007. To be honest I haven't thought about it too much through the years. Ha..so many songs, you get busy. Keep composing. So it's been sitting in my purple book til now. Handwritten  in my handwriting - a code most people wouldn't be able to decipher. Until now. Anyway, I've given this song a bit of a run through occasionally perhaps. I never felt comfortable with the chorus for some reason. Thought it too simple in terms of the small amount of different chords used. Now I  can see that that might actually be a strength. Tonight - and it is tonight, here in Melbourne, I set up a gentle tempo with a click track and just played and sang it through, winging parts here and there, imagining other instruments carrying sections. The outcome is: I'm pleased I've rediscovered 'All Through The Years'. And I'm glad I chose to record an episode about it. The song started as a ‘words first' effort. One of my children had a bad dream, so I got up to settle her, calm her down. It's a special time when you go back in the room as a parent, just to make sure they've gone to sleep again, taking care not to boot a child's toy on the ground in the dark, you creep in watch for a moment in the moonlight, see their peaceful face as they softly breathe. You might whisper an ‘I love you / Goodnight' and retrace your steps back out the door. On this occasion, I didn't go straight back to bed. I went into the lounge, picked up and pen and paper and wrote the words. Then I went to bed (jumping on the piano at 2am wouldn't have made me overly popular with anyone in our household). 6 months later, I found the lyrics, found the same mood (important) and just played through a few chords. The music seems to match the lyrics and a melody  came to me as I floated my voice over the top and away I went. It's a magic feeling - still magic after all these years...Paul Dredge and I have just released another folkrock album, by the way. Streaming on the the usual services. River Walking. I bring it up because it's an example of songs taken to the next stage. Arranged and recorded. So much fun. I'd like to do something with All Through The Years, now that I've finally recorded a demo ( didn't take me long: 20 odd years after the song was composed. Oh well). I also mention my blog www.petepascoe.wordpress.com you can read the lyrics there and check out more of my music and art each week, including some writing about the first song on the River Walking album, Waiting. I hope you enjoy hearing a little bit about how this song came together, as I sit and demonstrate parts on the piano singing away in between the chat, Ok here we go. All through the years, ‘Rollin!''.

Episode #217: Sunset Swim (Song starts at 5:27) Going back to March 1997, my girlfriend (now my wife) and I had just arrived from New Zealand to settle into the big city of Melbourne, Australia. This was the first song I wrote since we'd left NZ. As the title suggests, this song is inspired by a sunset we experienced in an incredibly beautiful place called Sprits Bay, in the far north of New Zealand. I feel we were so lucky to have stayed there when we did. There  was an old camp (just a couple of cold showers and a toilet), a long long golden beach, no cars, no shops, miles away from any flight paths. We lived by the tides, catching our dinner from the beach in the morning and then off the rocks in the after noon and evenings. When you do this for 2 weeks, your brain is somewhere else. You are really lost in nature. imagine it: not going to the shop, not getting petrol, not putting the radio on. Just the sound of the waves day and night. Anyway, one evening we had a swim in a spectacular sunset, I say ‘in' the sunset because the ocean was as red as the sky and you couldn't really tell where the sky finished and sky began. Bliss. Contrast that, then, with the big city 2 months later: tangled tongues, everyone out to convince someone else they need to buy something, do something, experience this, that - the trams, the cars…yes, it was somewhat of a shock. When the day came we finally had found somewhere to live, got jobs (which all happened on the same day , after a few weeks). We had $10 left to our names after we'd paid the bond. We had a a couple of pots and pans, some crockery, a mattress - all very romantic and somewhat intense. So the first time I had a couple of hours to myself, with my keyboard set up, I pulled out the words I'd written and decided to to write a song, And what I wrote was a rocking sort of an up pop song. Because I'd come ‘across the ditch', as they say, from NZ, to start all over again: find a new band and see where it would take us. I was determined to create the band, asap. At 30, I felt like my was racing by, to a degree. Here we are in 2024, and I'm still a driven artist, songwriter, musician and painter. This podcast is part of the big picture, the backstory to some songs. If you will. It's been such good fun exploring the songwriting process by looking at how my songs were composed, what inspired them. But more than that it's been fantastic to hear back from listeners that my podcast and blog has inspired them to get creative (again) , getting into songwriting and recording, etc. Each week it's my ‘online gig'. Thanks for tuning in for this episode. It's such good fun to produce these episodes. I fly by the seat of my pants, there is no script. It's creative, energised, relaxed …I'm basically entertaining, I guess. That's what I do. Ok here we go. Join us in the great outdoors….and the in the studio. Great to be in nature and it's great to be in the studio writing songs about it. Sunset swim....rolling! Here's where you can find the lyrics www.petepascoe.wordpress.com  (search for Sunset Swim).There's links to lots of my music and art here. Enjoy.

Episode #216: Autumn Evenings (Song starts at 5:33) It was a pleasure to rediscover song #261, Autumn Evenings for this episode. I wrote it in 1993. Here we are now, in 2023 - I've written about 800 songs now. At the market this week, people were asking me how on earth I managed to do this (not to mention the 1000s of cartoons & hundreds of seascapes). I've found having a peaceful space it really helps me to create. I make sure I'm in the mood before I even pick up the brush, the pen, or let my hands near the keys of the piano. Because emotion gives you the push, the momentum and focus - in fact, almost everything you need. The other thing you need is to have some sort of art ‘down'. For me I can let my fingers just play on the keys of my piano and they seem to find endless combinations of notes that really appeal to me. The opening chords of autumn evenings are emotive to me. They take me right back to the day I wrote the lyrics for this one. I was sitting in my old van, having taken a drive to see the view over Lake Taupo, NZ (quite incredible: a vast inland lake with the volcanic back drop of 3 huge mountains). Beautiful. And the power of the beauty of your surroundings has a big say on what we create in our lives. So I choose to lead a peaceful life. It's a life of some solitude…more than I thought might have been the case. You can't pick the future, I never dreamt I'd become a seascape painter, for instance. Back in 1993, I was a piano man, spending some time by myself. Sitting in the van, I let my thoughts drift back to the sunset of the evening before. And then, looking south, beyond the mountains, in my mind, to a person, well, ok,  a love interest, who was never to far from my thoughts. She popped into my mind and that gave me the idea to bring her into the song about the sunset of the previous evening And with just a few lines, it all came together. The idea of somehow sharing watching the sunset, although we were in two different parts of the country…in a sense we'd be together. Ha-  the desperate sensitive mind of the artist, eh. Oh well, you sort of let it out now and then… actually there's not too much of it ( ‘it' being overly romantic mush) in the song.. for that reason, I think it works well. Singing and playing the song for this episode was fun (I've no idea when the last time I played it was - years ago). Flying by the seat of my pants, I made a couple of changes in the moment. This is an example of what I get up to, when I'm in the mood: I get into ‘performance mode' and sing and play one song after the other. And as I go along, I make little changes. Changes I wouldn't have been  able to make if I wasn't in the performance mode. Because those changes might not make artistic sense - and it's all about the art. Ok..I hope you enjoy this half hour chat as I sit at the piano  - and the song, of course, too. I'll also take you to the arts market on this episode (some audio I recorded at my stall). I've written another 9 songs this week. It's so nice when they come tumbling out. Plenty on my blog  including the lyrics of this song and this weeks painting, go here: www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com. and search for autumn evenings. Enjoy.

Episode #215: Righto (Song starts at 4:10) It struck me tonight as I recorded this episode, how grateful I am to be doing this. It is such a buzz, letting the song lead the way as I look at the creative process of how a song comes together. Don't worry, you don't need to have any musical theory up your sleeve to enjoy the show. I believe the creative domain is an inclusive one. The more the merrier. Ok Righto, song #262 was written in 1993. The recording you'll hear on this episode became the title track for the album Righto. You can find it here www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com We wrote it in a beautiful place called the Bay of Islands - we being Paul Dredge and myself. We had a van, we were on the road, on holiday - and we were making some music, as usual. Paul had an old ovation guitar. It had a broken neck from memory. Someone had glued back together. He picked up for next to nothing so it became his ‘on the road' knock about instrument. I'd written the words first. There's a very up sort of vibe about this song. Before I'd finished saying to Paul “I have in mind, a some sort of Dave Dobbyn ish ‘up' song”, away he went, strumming away with serious energy on his guitar. Going with moment - when energy flows like this, you go with it - I opened my mouth an winged the melody. And very quickly we had another new song. Being Grateful became a bit of theme on this episode. I'm extremely for grateful for the longevity of the song writing relationship and friendship I have with Paul dredge. We are putting the finishing touches to our next album right now, in 2024. Righto was written 30 odd years ago. That amazes me. What amazes me about this demo is the very up, fresh energy. Much like the country I wrote the lyrics about : New Zealand. The lyrics are a series of observations about what made the country I was born and raised in a great place to be. This song is not a piano vocal ballad. It wouldn't exist if it weren't for Paul. But then it wouldn't exist if I hadn't sung it …or written the lyrics in the first place. It's great thing to write songs with someone. Well, in my experience, it is. Paul and I have a very easy going manner when it comes to creating a song together. It comes from, I think, perhaps, hours and hours of flying hours, spent gigging.Thousands of gigs. Which we loved. So we've carried on writing songs and recording them together after all these years. It's something we both love. Arranging songs is such fun. And we mage it, even though we are in different countries. Righto is an interesting one. You wouldn't put much piano on it. So in the studio, I played sparsely, the odd sort of a piano lick, around Paul's harmonica and a few chords in the choruses. So it's good to be aware of what to leave out. It's the same with sing writing: often, less is more. This song doesn't have a bridge. It didn't need one. It would have just got in the way of the straight forward presentation. Ok , hope you enjoy hearing about how Righto came together. Very grateful to have you reading this, and having a listen . Enjoy. You can find the lyrics here www.petepascoe.wordpress.com search for righto. Pete

Episode #214:  Trust To Receive.   (Song starts at 7:12) Hi there &  welcome to another episode. Here we are, looking at another song again, in a ‘songwriter speaks' style  - inclusive, casual fun, entertaining.… this time it's Trust To Receive, song #105. Composed in 1989! Again this week, this song popped into my mind. I knew it was in the ‘green book' (my 1st old book of handwritten songs)…as an experiment, I held the book upside down and back to front, flicked the pages once - and it opened, sure enough - on Trust To Receive. Amazing, to me. Go figure. I take it as a 'nod that I'm heading in the right direction' when this sort of coincidence happens. Then I opened the cupboard, dug up the cassette (which I knew the song was on, in this case). And it was all but teed up - just the end of a nice song by my co-songwriting buddy, Paul Dredge, to listen to (I'm loving producing this podcast. I'm rediscovering more music each week).   The cassette was a recording of an album Paul and I wrote and recorded way back in the the early 1990s. And here I am, in 2024, finishing our 6th ‘proper' album which will be steaming shortly. Determination would be the key. The demo you'll hear was recorded on a 4 track machine. It's fair to say I was really just finding my way as a song writer, with 105 songs under my belt. There's something about Trust To Receive that I really like. It's different. Sort of a reggae influenced song - unusual for a pianist to write this sort of song, but immediately you can hear I was hearing in my head more than just the piano and voice, as I wrote this one. The whole band arrangement came along as I wrote the music to the lyrics for the first verse. From there, it really is about following the feeling, the story, if you like. Each musical phrase is related to the preceding and the one that follows. Just like each line of the lyrics. I can't tell you where this snap shot of series of images came from: 'silent stare, a motionless vigil.'… a dream? Set against a cold city, a feminine character emerges. Obviously having been through some trials, the narrator sees beauty, sees fragility but also senses underlying strength ..potential. Trust is required for love to be received and that's the message of the song. I would say for the both the character in the song - and the narrator (and of course the listener). It was fun to listen back to this old demo. What would I go back and do differently? …well, pretty much everything. But it remains a document of it's day. It captured a feeling, a groove, with the gear I had. And if I hadn't recorded that, the song would've disappeared. I'm glad I recorded it and I'm glad I thought to feature it this week. I hope you enjoy hearing a bit about how Trust To Receive came together, On this episode I'll also take you for a walk down to the beach, as I take photos to use for references for a seascape painting which is going to an exhibition this week. I'm busy….. 2 new albums so close to being finished now. I really enjoyed doing some mixing last week (lots to listen to online streaming on the usual platform. blog: www.petepascoe.wordpress.com Ok, on with the show…hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed recording this episode. ‘Trust To Receive, rollin'!…'

Episode #213: Revolving Door  (Song starts at 5:42) I'd completely forgotten about song #453, from 1999, Revolving Door. Well, it isn't 1999 now! The years have certainly whizzed by. The great thing about being a songwriter (or doing any creative activity) is, it gets you ‘in the moment' - the moment where your sense of self is put a side somehow. You are so focussed on your art, you've let go completely. In that moment you're inspired. A song becomes a document of a series of moments like this, it's a magic, slightly altered state to be in, if you will. That sort of energy seems to come down through the years, listening back to a recording like the demo you'll hear on this episode, which I recorded in 2000. It's only piano vocal, but you'll feel the energy I was feeling at the time, I was hearing guitars, bass, drums, orchestra, the whole works. That's what often happens when I play the piano. An arrangement begins to take shape, right from the beginning of the writing process, for me. So what's 'Revolving Door' about ? My girlfriend at the time (now my lovely wife),  was a Gemini. The twins is the astrological star sign childlike and playful one minute, measured older, wiser view the next. A certain style of jewellery and clothing one day, the next a total different style. It's fun, it's ‘up' and keeps things interesting. So this was my initial idea fro writing a song. And then the lyrics move on to asking a question of the listener …how many people speak through you? Explores the idea that we all change and grow and evolve constantly. The energy of the lyrics inspired me to cut loose on the piano. The result is a song that's written to be performed by a full band. It'd would require a few different guitar parts to create the arrangement I hear in my head. The bridge monetarily becomes reflective but soon explode with a 'thunderstorm of anger' and then back into the song, which becomes ‘a summer holiday'. It's a happy thing to find an old demo like this. This one sounds like a real celebration of love, of life - and it is. It's fun to think back to what I was up at the time I wrote it….I was a pianoman, here in Melbourne. We'd recently moved over from New Zealand. There were sacrifices to make. It was hard. It still is, at times. But it's also a joy. As a song writer, you've got to keep moving on. On my podcast I encourage listeners to do something creative regularly - or carry on on this path if they're already underway. I'm keeping on moving on all these years later, painting and writing songs, blogging podcasting, gigging, doing markets (where I sell my art), working on sheet music and video courses behind the scenes - and 5 new albums. So plenty happening, I've put a lot of my art and music online you can find it via my blog ( lots of links here on 200 odd posts, which you can browse through, it'll take you to al sorts of platforms to listen to musicians and view my art) www.petepascoe.wordpress.com Enjoy.

Episode #212: New World Dawning  (Song starts at 6:22) I really enjoyed writing song #207, New World Dawning, back in 1992. The lines ‘I never thought I'd cry tears You can buy at the chemist' Were never going to shake the foundations of anyone's world, but that was my opening gambit (I was talking about the saline solution I used with my contact lenses). Undeterred, I carried on. The words came and they lead on to an expansive sort of a world view. A world that felt like it was yet to exist: a world of golden opportunities, communication and love - that's one description of this world. Perhaps that was an artists vision. I was inspired at the time and I still am today. You are what you listen to, what you eat, etc. I see at the top of my page in the songbook, there's a wee sentence scrawled…'it's amazing what a Crowded House video can do', so thank you Neil Finn, and the guys, you really inspired me. The demo was recorded in 1996. I remember the afternoon. It was a spur of the moment decision to record one of my piano vocal sessions. What I did  - and still do - is this: I flick open my songbooks (all handwritten, the 800) ..and I find myself in a very free performance mode. I play random songs one after the other, and I keep my ears open for new hooks, harmonies, and lines, as I sing and play. I make mental notes and sometimes quickly note a key line.or new melody to sing for a line. I think as songwriter, you need to be open to editing and rewriting again and again. A song isn't cast in stone - even when it's recorded you can always record a new version. So New World comes from an honest place, I think. After walking home from the piano bar, in the early hours of the morning, back in 1992, I opened the door at home. I was living in a converted garage. A single room abode, I gratefully climbed into my waterbed, enjoying the warmth.And I picked up my pen (my habit, my ritual) and began writing. And I'm pleased I did. What made me write all these songs ? ( and there's also stacks of unused pages of lyrics and poems somewhere around here) Passion. I loved it. And I still do. That's why I still write. In my studio tonight when I went to record a podcast episode, New World Dawning came to mind. I put my hand in a box of cassettes of random recordings and put the cassette I pulled out on the tape deck. And there it was, all cued up ready to roll. That amazes me. Because it's not the first time it's happened for these episodes. I take note of these things. I find coincidences like this all very mystical and reassuring. I do operate on another planet a lot. It's who I am - I'm an out and out artist. Perhaps this is the new world dawning…the time of the arts… Anyhow, I hope you enjoy this demo - and and the chat about how the song came to be. I enjoyed recording the episode, as always. If you want to hear more , you can stream lots of my music on the usual platforms (eg Spotify) I have a music website: www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com (You can my hear my music; with Paul Dredge; and with the Patient Hum band). Folk rock, rock , solo piano and singer songwriter. I love the variety. On that note you'll see on my blog I'm also a cartoonist and seascape painter. I'm working on tuition videos to present everything I've learned and am still learning. See www.petepascoe.wordpress.com If you'd like to get onboard on my email list, I'd love that (via www.petepascoe.com) I'm into sharing creative uplifting art and music. And I encourage others to get creative. Here we go. A new world dawning…rolling!

Episode #211:  Got Away On Me Again  (song starts at 4:02). Welcome to another episode. Picture me sitting at my piano, with the microphone on. Before me I have my songbooks. I've picked out a song Got Away On Me Again (Song # 663, written in 2017). Yes, I have a song to sing, which is nice to be able to present and talk about. I've written quite a few over the years. It's nice to have them up my sleeve. The real pleasure has been the time spent creating them. There's a line in the this song. Time, time, time's got away on me again. It's funny, after last week's song, written in my twenties, the same theme has popped up again. Although with this song, it's more just an observation, rather than sort of fretting about the years passing by a too quickly. I really think one way to alleviate the worries of getting older is to immerse ourselves totally in some sort of artistic process. If I ever feel a sense of regret about anything in my life, one things for sure: I've never regretted time spent writing songs, painting pictures or writing lyrics, etc. This week I performed Got Away On Me live this week at the Mornington Winter Music Festival, here on the Mornington peninsula, part of greater Melbourne, Australia. I included a snippet of this live performance on this episode. On the street, it's incredibly noisy. There's an art to performing in that sort of an environment . What happens is: you're nipping in and out of ‘the zone', as such. People walking by smile and nod and you reciprocate, perhaps say thanks for a dollar tossed into the briefcase with the CDs and sign. The cars, crows, the seagulls all catch your ear. When I'm songwriting , I've been extremely lucky to have a very peaceful environment, for the most part. I think that's really important …not essential, but it sure helps if you can really focus on what you're doing without any distractions. Fairly obvious, right? The thing is, the longer I'm in the moment, the deeper in I get. It's definitely a shift in consciousness. You're gone. It's such a pleasure to be a songwriter. If you're thinking about getting into it, I say: go for it. Got Away On Me Again is about catching those moments in your hands…sure the years are passing by, but they're always going to be doing that. So we may as well be free and do things that we love doing - as much as possible. Personal freedom is the key, And how do we create time to do this in our busy lives? I think by committing to a definitive amount of time each week. It doesn't have to be a lot of time, even 10mins. But if you do that you can up the ante to 20mins..and so on. Pretty soon, hopefully you'll be looking back on 6 months where it's become a habit, and you're enjoying it som much, it's something you really don't want to let go of. That's where I find myself: 200 odd podcast episodes, 200 odd blog posts, 800 songs, a dozen albums  (soon to be 17). Looking forward to releasing some albums shorty. And finishing those video courses… yep time got away on me again. I hope you enjoy having listen to this song …and the chat Here we go, rollin'! Lyrics here (+ links to more art and music): www.petepascoe.wordpress.com

Episode #210: Forever  (Song starts at 4:20) I went outside tonight, just before I recorded this episode. The stars are incredible aren't they? Infinite. Makes you realise how insignificant we are, really. I like to think we all count. We all made up part of the universe. Those sorts of big thoughts are the sorts of things I was thinking when I wrote Forever, song#85. It was 1988. I had a gig at the ski fields in New Zealand. I was playing the piano and singing in the evenings. Apart from this, my time was my own. So I skied. And when it rained I wrote songs, When you're up the mountain, your mind can really wander. It was a moody place. Often serene, some days the wind was really howling. Also what was inspiring me was Crowded House's 2nd album, Temple Of Low Men. I listened to it every night as I went to sleep. So 80s music was the style I was listening to. Also what had a big say on how Forever came together, style wise was: everything night after the gig , I'd walk back to my room, feet crunching on the frosty gravel. Under my was my Roland D50 synth. Before I listened to the Crowded House album, I'd pick up my pen and write a page or 2 of lyrics. The next day, I'd fire up the synth. And randomly select a patch (a different sound). It's quite different to composing on the piano, writing on the synth. A breath of fresh air. And it suited the style I was writing. I enjoyed recording the demo for this episode. I fired up the drum machine for a bit of fun. It was nice to finally record the demo, it's been a wee while since 1988. The lyrics are about sitting back in the evening, considering the bigger picture, how the years are nipping by. ( the pinch of the years) and the the little dreams that eat away. Endless evenings of different plans. What's this all about? For me, it's about the fact that I'm a very driven person when it comes to the arts. Something made me write 800 songs, and I'm still going. I'm loving recoding them - I'm working on wrapping up another 5 albums presently, The 6th folk rock album, with Paul Dredge is finally done. Whoo! It's is nice to complete a creative project. But then what happens? The next thing suddenly becomes the new focus, us creative people need to keep moving on. It's never about the destination. It's about the process. I wonder whether I'll record Forever one day? Perhaps. It strikes me as a sort of an album track. Ive been toying with recording an 80s sort of a synth driven album. I imagine Forever might fit on that sort of an album . It's good to have variety in my life. I've composed all sorts of songs from quiet piano solo pieces to rock songs. I paint and sell seascapes, cartoons of animals and teach piano. I enjoy making the videos for my music. And I'm working on video courses for the piano, seascapes and cartoon drawing Today was one of those days where I felt like my plans were getting away on me. So made a new plan, came up with a timeline, some deadlines. We'll see how it goes. Anyhow, I was still in a bit of a reflective mind when I came in to my studio tonight to record this episode. Forever had been floating around in my mind these last few weeks. I flicked open the 1st book and there it was, song #85. There are 154 songs in the first book Look at yourself in the mirror is there a stranger staring back? The years pass by and it seems some days you have a realisation you've got a bit older. It's not something you think of each day (well, I don't). It just catches up on you now and then. Ok come back in time with me to 1988. It was a most enjoyable gig, the ski gig.  I'm glad I wrote songs like Forever. Here we go (lyrics here: www.petepascoe.wordpress.com (The Bounce/Forever)

Episode #209:  A Certain Kind Of  (Song starts at 4:41 ) This song, #213, is in a different style to the piano vocal ones that have made up the bulk of the songs featured on this podcast. It was written in 1992 by myself and with Paul Dredge on guitar. So it's a guitar + voices song. Writing with Paul, when we are in the same room, is great fun. Having had a brief chat about the lyrics, what sort of mood style might suit, Paul will start playing a riff or some chords on his acoustic guitar. I have the prewritten lyrics draft in hand. It's completely liberating for me to wing a melody over the top of what Paul is playing. I have no idea what chords he's playing (I don't play guitar). His fingers moving easily on the fretboard, his eyes are shut for the most part. Me, I'm alternatively looking into space, or projecting some sort of energy back to Paul as we write together. He'll look up now and then and we just click together. There's been a fair few songs written like this by us now. We are about to release our 6th folk rock album. Our last one was called The Untrodden Track (It's streaming on all the usual platforms). Being able to write songs so easily and quickly together is something we certainly don't take for granted. It's a joy. The words include Tip toeing on broken glass. It was an emotional time for me when I write the lyrics (a love interest, things not running all that smoothly). t's a good idea as a song writer to keep an eye on yourself in terms of maybe keeping a diary. You can then. glean some truths, what's true to you. When you do this sort of work on the self, I think you're more likely to write songs that ring true. Because they come from a place of some clarity. That's the idea, anyway. You may choose to tuck of that truth into some arty sort of lyric writing, obtuse, if you will.. there's some interesting lines in this song that's for sure: communicating in a chamber One of the great things about emotional upheavals is they can be great experiences to draw on to put into art. Affairs of the heart. When Paul and I write, we are completely on the same page. We communicate without talking as we improvise our parts. You have to listen very closely to what the other person is doing, when you're in the moment, composing together. A Certain Kind Of was one of 17 songs we recorded and mixed in 3 days (!), our first time in a real studio. With Earl Pollard on drums and Michelle Pickett on vocal harmonies, it all came together really well. Everything was one take - including the vocals. All sung live together, with some tight harmonies. Performing music like this in the studio is a blast. I was as high as kite at the time of - and for days after - the recording sessions. It was like we managed to produce the paintings which I always imagined we could, after having working drawings and sketches for so long. Composing and recording is still where it's at for me after all these years. I'm putting the finishing touches to 5 albums at the moment, in different genres  - and I intend to release them all this year. This podcast is such good fun, creatively, it's a great release for me to me to be doing what amounts to a songwriter speaks sort of online gig each week. It's nice to be sharing the music, the stories, some songs writing ideas. By the way, you certainly don't need any musical theory up your sleeve to enjoy this podcast. It's inclusive, each week, while I'm inviting you into my songs (which at times are very personal), once they are complete , recorded even a demo, means they are outside of me, so I'm comfortable sharing. Each listener is going to hear the song differently. Some will hear the beat, others the melody, others the mood, others the lyrics. Arranging a song is great fun as well. So it's a multifaceted thing, this song writing..there's the lyrics, the music to compose, the demo to record, the finished arrangement. The live performance.

Episode #208: Country Gentleman Jack (song starts at 4:30) Back in 1993, I was the piano man at Wairakei resort, in New Zealand's north island, near Taupo - beautiful place. Outside of my regular entertainment in the restaurant hours, I wrote songs like this one: Country Gentleman Jack, song #319. As part of the contract, I was also hired to play piano vocal music for conventions. One particular calm winters evening, I found myself in the scene, playing away, equal parts lost in the music and also keeping an eye the patrons, making sure what I'm doing suited the moment. It's an art. I happened to glance up mid song and noticed an older chap at the bar. He seemed like a fish out of water, amongst all the city types, the suits and Shiraz and scotches, He really looked like he was from the country with his quiet expression and quiet beer. So much so, it looked like he'd beamed in from another age. He wasn't awkward though, he nodded with social grace, a gentleman. But I could see he wasn't exactly tied up in any conversations with everyone. Perhaps he was watching the piano man for a moment and that's what caused me to look up. I took a break, wandered over to the bar and without great emphasis quietly said gidday. Code for ‘you know I'm from the country, too, or part of me is. I think I can see you might be feeling a bit uncomfortable there…' So we wandered outside for a yarn. Just this week at the market someone asked me what's the best thing about making a living from my art and music. I replied with just a slight breath in and out, the people. It's what is all about. Like any calling, any business, any life we are all designed to cross paths with people, exchange information, learn stuff (or not) and carry on. Some people really stay in your mind. Jack was one of those characters that pretty much ended up writing a song for me. Writing the lyrics was easy. Back in my hotel room, in a somewhat reflective mood, it was just a matter of letting my mind flick back through scenes of the evening. Some of the lines were were pretty much just reporting. What I thought Jack might be thinking, his actions, where we went, outside into the crisp evening to catch some air. And this: The look on his face when it came to when we had to go back into the room. Unfamiliar ground, for Jack. For me, it was back to the piano. At the end of the bracket, I couldn't see Jack in the crowd. So I wandered back outside. It really was a stunning place, in the country. The stars were always crystal clear, bright and close. As I walked out the door, a truck trundled by. It was Jack. He wound down the window , smiled and wished me luck. And with that he trundled up the driveway and headed off down the highway, into the night, leaving the bright shiny scene behind him...and none too soon, I suspect. So the lyrics came together quickly for me, as they often do. We had some common ground. I'd spent a lot of my childhood school holidays on farms, with my dad, hunting and fishing. You learn the ropes. There is no rush in the country. Unless stock ( the animals) need urgent attention - or the rain was about to hit with the hay on the ground... Then it's all go. Other than that there's all the time in the world. Because you're in touch with the land , the seasons, the language of the weather ...etc. it appeals to me. So it was a chance for me to dip into these sorts of feelings and experiences- while relating a tale like a country yarn (and it's a cardinal sin to rush a country person's yarn). It's connection, self worth, reflection. It's a rite not to be dismissed. To catch some of those feelings in the words was fun. When I sat at the piano the next day, I had a gentle smile on my face. I knew I had a story, some feeling, all of which was a natural fit for me. When the words feel that way, it seems the music flows easily. And that's just what happened. There were quite a few words...as you can see on my blog www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com.

Episode #207: Better Late Than Never    (Song starts at 4:30) This song (#659), came about back in 2017.  I was on my way to work and there was a bit of difficulty getting there, due to the public transport not exactly running smoothly. I was off to teach piano for the day ( I've been a piano teacher now for probably about 15 years. I teach as a contractor in a primary school. I teach 24 private lessons in 2 fairly intense days (I'm working steadily on video courses. More on this later). Anyway, on this particular cold winters morning, the bus had been late and then the train was really late. When it did finally arrive, a lady turned to me and said “Better late than never”. Indeed, I thought: Aha that'll be a good phrase to write a song around. So that's what I did at the school. As luck would have it, my first student was absent. I wrote this one ‘backwards', from the main phrase It's funny, I remember a teacher passing by my door…”What are you doing there Peter?” “Writing a song,.”     “Hmm,” she said a little doubtfully. And said “Oh well, fortune favours those with determination”, …haha thanks very much.. And Aha .. another line was given to me:  “fortunes favours those as determined as can be”. I find once I've written one section of lyrics, it naturally flows on to the next. When the flow stops momentarily, I'll often cast my mind over what I've already written and this often inspires the next angle. It's fascinating to me how much I can remember about how a song like this was written. I think it's because I'm so passionate about it. You know, how you remember getting up in the middle of the night to watch say World Cup soccer… the anticipation, the alarm going off, putting the heater on, all the details around the actual event remain in your mind. Having lead a creative for so long, I now have the pleasure of being able to be cast my mind back and recall so many happy memories. And I wonder what lies ahead. Who knows.. all you've got is now - and right now, I'm listening back to this episode, reviewing it as I write this. It's such good fun. And I'm finding I'm loving recording these episodes. It's an weekly online gig for me. Thanks so much for those of you who are tuning in regularly, if that's what you're doing. If you're new here, I hope these show      notes have piqued your curiosity and you go on to have a listen. If you  like what you hear, we'll there's another previous 200 odd episodes waiting for you, It's a relaxed listen, because it's recorded and produced that way.  it's all just ‘winged' -  there is no script. I let the song lead the way. II've discovered approaching each episode like this is a good idea, as it's a fun way to explore what is an extremely complicated process. Apparently. For me, I write and compose quickly an instinctively. It's just the way I roll. And I paint and draw the same way,,, If you'd like to hear and see more, here's my blog www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com . Lots of links to art and music here. Please do sign up to my email list, I'd love that. Weekly art and music would be heading your way in an email. There's plenty more coming up. Ok, on with the show. Picture me, sitting at my piano in my studio, with the mic in font of me. And away we go “ Welcome to another episode of Song and A Chat…”

Episode #206:  Whirlpool (Song starts at 5:20) I enjoyed recording a demo for this episode. It's such good fun when I do this. It occurs to me as I write these show notes, it's been a great way to archive some old songs (and of course putting them together with a show that gives them a context. A context? Con : more than one. Text: story. That's one of the things that makes a song interesting and engaging. That over used word the ‘back story'… I guess that's actually a step on from the song itself. The lyrics, bring so many memories to the surface for me. They become picture and movies. In a sense, I'm putting music to movies, then. But that's only one way of looking at it. There are so many things to have under your belt, so many things to look out for as you compose. Yet you're free, free as a free thing. You're on the breath. It feels like a short holiday. Thinking about writing a song feels like when you are anticipating of a short holiday. Pretty good, eh? And when you are composing, you're definitely ‘away' somewhere. That's how it feels to write a song like Whirlpool. This song was written in NZ. In 1987, when I was away at the ski fields for a few months. It was a great gig: Lighting the fire In the old fire place in the restaurant in the early evening, then sitting at my keyboard and singing as the guests arrived. I had the best sound in the house. A huge speaker right behind me. Sound is everything when it comes to confidence for live performance. The same when you're recording music - and it really helps to have a nice peaceful environment when you're composing. There's nothing like someone coming in and tapping me on the shoulder when I'm composing. I just about jump out of my skin …because I'm really on another planet. Well, part of me is. It's the coolest feeling, and it's like I'm engaged in some sort of exchange, some connection that offers fleeting moments of possibilities. It's then up to me, with my limitations as a human being to interpret and present the best version of what I'm sensing or hearing in the moment. Anyway, back in the day, in 1987 I was in my early 20s. I felt like my life was racing me by and I really needed to get cracking, Which is funny, looking back from 2024. ‘There's plenty of time, man!'  that's what I'd like to say to that young fellow. After those gigs, I'd carry one of my keyboards through the freezing frosty night, back to my room. I'd put pen to paper and quickly write a page of lyrics. The next morning, I'd plug in my relatively new synth (a Roland D50)  and randomly select a patch …(a sound) to compose within away I'd go. Singing and playing. Again, it was so much fun. So, this song started with the lyrics first, where I observed my thoughts spinning like a whirlpool. Playing with an orchestra strings sound, I sang along with the chords and the song we quickly took shape. And there in my old green song book it's lived, awaiting its moment. So here's Whirlpool, song #79, from 1987. I hope you enjoy this episode, once again exploring the songwriting process, with anecdotes and also some new improvised music, enjoy. www.petepascoe.wordpress.com is my blog. Lots of links to more of my music and art there. 12 albums streaming presently. Sign up to my email list on my website. www.petepascoe.com And of course, if you're new here, there's another 205 episodes to catch up on - in no particular order (that's 205 songs + a 100 hours of anecdotes, life observations and songwriting stuff).

Episode #205:  Piece This Star Together (Song starts at 4.45) I find it endlessly fascinating, thinking about where a song might come from. 'Piece This Star Together' came from something my grandfather, Harry, said. My mum passed it on to me, when I was a youngster (bit of wisdom, I think): ‘We've all got a little piece of the star within us all and we've just got to piece this star together'. It resonated in me and it remained in me. Years later, in Melbourne, Australia in 1998, the phrase/ concept popped into my mind, and I thought ‘Aha ! I'll write a song about this'. It became song #437. Having fun is such a key to getting into the creative zone. As I record these episodes, I find my ‘entertainer self' switches on. An ‘up' sort of a vibe happens. To be creative, you have to believe you can. The key is to have fun and see where the moment takes you. This is ‘being in the moment'. This is the sort of feeling I had as I let my hands wander on the keys in 1998, As I looked a the lyrics of 'Piece This Star' and composed the music. I had in mind a sort of ‘up' acoustic guitar driven band song. It can be a tricky thing to come up with on the piano, but if I get a feeling to go down a certain track along the creative way, I don't block the idea. I'm glad I didn't block it. 'Piece This Star Together' is an up, happy song. The demo on this episode was 1 of 14 songs, which I recorded with Paul Dredge and Earl Pollard, in Earl's garage, in NZ one afternoon in 1999. We recorded the songs back to back, using minimal gear. It was such good fun. We'd never rehearsed these songs together. This demo remains the one and only take. I'm glad we recorded it. I will release the 14 songs as an ‘archive' sort of album. (I did a small release of 100 CDs back in 1999, but it ‘wasn't quite there', so a few years ago I re-recorded the vocals - there were too many squawks from my mother's budgies in the original recording. Not that there's anything wrong with budgies, but they have their place. They can be noisy birds at times! Perhaps, more to the point, your mother's kitchen may not be quite the place to record vocals for an album! I'm an optimistic sort of bloke. In my 20s I was hoping to make a positive difference by releasing my art and music into the world. That basic plan hasn't changed. My art and music has helped me so much along the way. In fact it has turned out to be the way. This podcast is a great vehicle to give some songs a bit of air, it's an opportunity to talk about how a song might come together - but more than that, it's turning out to be a lot about: how ideas all seem to come out at once, some seemingly unrelated, but if we I've them a voice, a chance, often they'll turn out to be interrelated and suddenly you discover and underlying theme or purpose and away you go. The creative process is a mysterious like that. It's doesn't necessarily unfold on a timeline as you'd expect. On this episode you'll hear me winging the beginning of a song, I didn't block the feeling. It seemed right. I've listened back and I think there's definitely something there, something to knead like a piece of dough, a bit more, nudge it gently into shape. It'll be a song - I can tell - if I give it a bit more time and energy. I can talk. Let's face it (there is now more than 100 hours of me talking about creativity, the art of song writing, the art of being human on this podcast), but sometimes the best way to illustrate a process or a concept is to just demonstrate it. So having my piano at my finger tips as I chat really works for me. Ok, here we go: another fully ‘winged' episode. I never have any show notes and before I push the record button, I have no idea about what I'm going to focus on. The song leads the way. As I've mentioned, the entertainer within me comes to the party. Each episode is a half hour performance, like an online ‘songwriter speaks' sort of gig, Ok, let's have look at how 'Piece This Star ' came together (and ...

Episode #204:  The Setting Sun. (Song starts at 4:12) In the studio, I opened the songbook book and thought ‘Hey, why haven't I featured Setting Sun on on an episode yet? It's been sitting there since 2013'. So here we go. I thought I'd have a sing and play through the song, but I did a quick search of my hard drive and found an old piano vocal demo. It's got lots of energy. A snapshot of a moment in time. That's what makes demos great. So where does a song come from? Looking at my song book, I see the songs immediately before and after Setting Sun are quite serious  in a sort of a social conscience/ political style. I must've been reading the news paper too much (something I don't do much)…there's a line in the song: This news ain't news …and it's driving me to tears. So there's been some bad news happening for some time. But there's been good stuff as well. Setting sun is about acknowledging the situation and needing/choosing to rebuild - rebuilding society, connection, all the good stuff. It's also about going too fast. ‘Been on the run like an Apple stealing boy…'. Speaking of apples, they must've been still on my mind on because late in this episode as I relate an anecdote about an airborne apple (perhaps it was me that threw the apple)..I particularly enjoy sharing some of the memories that pop into my mind as I talk about the songs. This song is also about (potentially) evolving ‘ I'm on the brink of new dimension….(with a dose of reality): : or maybe having a drink ( perhaps not the most helpful coping mechanism), and did I mention….the setting sun. The setting sun is a fairly cliched (cliched for a reason) image of a rather gloomy view of humanity. But I'm an optimist. I believe we can turn things around. People see the world as a storm of threats. If you've been watching the news, we'll you'd  be entitled to think that was the case. I think the reality is: there's a lot of good stuff going on in the world too, it just doesn't make the news very often. To draw attention to all these ‘heavy' things, I've chosen to deliver ‘the news' in an up sort of rocking song. Then, unexpectedly, the chorus drops back into halftime feel to acknowledge the gravity of the situation, and the same for a reflective quiet end, allowing time for reflection on what might be. This is the power of music and words. Wrapping the heavy news in a somewhat lighter manner makes it more palatable, allowing for the message to get across - like it's inside some sort of Trojan horse, I suppose. I haven't set out to do this consciously. It was more of an automatic decision…my optimistic self appears to be tied closely to my entertainer self: art and music can entertain and inform… Speaking of which, that's exactly what I'm setting out to do each week on this podcast…and my weekly blog: lots of good news here folks: art and music on offer here each week. www.petepascoe.wordpress.com . Enjoy. And I hope you enjoy this episode's song and chat as much as I've enjoyed putting it together. Here we go: Setting Sun.

Episode #203: Count On Love     (Song starts at 3:42) Welcome to a very relaxed episode. Thanks for tuning in, by the way…it's great that this podcast is being listened by people all around the world. Music is the international language isn't, it - or perhaps it's love? Song #617, Count On Love, started out life as a piano solo piece. You can hear the original piece on my album 'Peace' (1 hour of peaceful piano solo pieces). Somewhat bizarrely (and rather unromantically), it was one of 3 pieces I wrote back to back in about 30mins, to use to teach piano. After a while, it felt like this one was perhaps worth taking a bit further and the phrase ‘count on love' came to me as I started humming and sounding out syllables as I played through the piece. And all the lyrics came out as fast as I could write them down. That was the way this song came together. The flow was happening the afternoon I sat at my old upright piano and let my hands find the opening riff and away I went - and it was the same when the lyrics eventually came through. Flow would be the word. On a whim, I picked up an old diary before I recorded this episode. I flicked open on the page where I was mourning letting go of an old piano - the one I wrote 'Count On Love' on. We songwriters are a sentimental bunch. I'd have a few pianos now, if I had the choice. But then, I'm glad I've passed them on. I hope someone else is still enjoying playing them today. Also in the Diary, I'd written at the same time about we had to move house unexpectedly, so there was a sense of melancholy about my mood. 'Count On Love' was written about that time, so maybe that's what was coming through. (I relate some memories from that time on this episode...I need not have worried as it turns out… the house we moved into had a nice room for a studio - and we are still there after 7 pretty much peaceful years). Which brings me to this: with the arts, I think it really helps to be living the lifestyle to produce art and music with feeling. I can't help but have what I'm feeling coming through my work. The gist of the lyrics is: whenever you're feeling lost, you can always count on love. I was thinking of the cosmic sort of love that flows all a round and within us, the healing, creative force that whispers to us constantly, the voice that seems to suggests paths to take. Perhaps by composing and consequently tuning in to this domain so much, this has the effect of honing the ‘muscle'. For want of a better word. There's nothing like just doing it. Again and again It's not something I take for granted. Far from it. It's a total mystery. It feels great to compose. Sometimes it just feels like you're being carried along on a breeze. This sort of mood seems to pervade this episode. I hope you enjoy this one as I gently explore this gentle song with words and with my fingers on the keys. I particularly enjoy listening to my album 'Peace'. It just seems to flow along the way 'Count On Love'. It's one of 4 piano solo albums I have currently streaming. I always find some peace when I play piano. It's great to be sharing so much here on this podcast. If you'd like to read about more music, my art, here's my weekly blog www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com  Video courses coming up! Ok here we go. Ready for another song and some chat? Rollin'!

Episode #202:  Sideways From A Paper Bag   (Song starts at 3:55) On this episode I'm going to take you back in time, with a demo recorded in the year 2000. Quite a bizarre title, isn't it. Something I've noticed on this podcast is that as lyricist, if I'm not really too sure what to write about, I'll look around and see what's happening around me. My eyes will generally focus on a object and I'll just go ahead a describe it. This seems to have the effect of grounding the song in something real. And away I go. In this case I saw a poster sticking out of paper bag, with a face on it. The face seemed to be asking me: “What are you doing? How are your plans going?” Back in those days, in 1998, when I composed this one (song #450), I was generally a words first, music second sort of a song writer. My girlfriend (now my wife) and I arrived in Melbourne in 1997, having set out from New Zealand, making a new start. I really wanted a new band, but I didn't have one yet. I didn't let that stop me. Sideways was written specifically for a band - a band that was going to sound something like Crowded House, Neil Finn's great band. There's a line in the song ‘You are what you listen to'. Well, I've listened to a lot of Crowded House, loved the songs, loved the production. Check the recordings out if you're not sure what I'm talking about. Have a listen to the production ( Mitchell Froom on the 1st 3 albums) and hear great band arrangements, - and Neil Finns brilliant song writing). Neil's songwriting and recordings and live performances had a marked effect on me, a youngster - also from NZ - trying to make my way in the world with my music. In those days, moving across to Melbourne was a rite of passage. (the day my band played at The Espy, an iconic hotel in St Kilda, was a fine day. I'd seen the poster of Split Enz (billed as NZ's greatest rock n roll band, which I'm not sure they would've been too happy about, with their wild stage makeup, costumes, art rock sort of performances) of their first appearance there back in the day. Anyway, we finally got to play there - and it felt good - we also made the top 10 out of 100 bands in a competition, so we got to play The Espy a few times, in the end. That band is now called Pete Pascoe and The Patient Hum. We've been going a while now, our 3rd album is nearly finished. At the time of writing Sideways, I'd just been introduced to Ants Reed. He's the rhythm guitarist in our band today…so even when it feels like things are really happening, …I think they are. If you put stuff out, maybe consider slowing down a bit and let the universe deliver a response to what your putting out. Because I believe it does. The lines ‘Trying to do too much soon, you'll never see tomorrow trying to fly to the moon' sort of sum it up. Steady progress is the key, on which I've been focussing: doing all I can to progress with my music and art, here in Melbourne, Australia. See the blog (lyrics, art and more music - 202 posts) : www.petepascoe.wordpress.com Looking forward to releasing more new music soon…and gigs to that'll be fun. I hope you enjoy this episode. It's all good fun here. Here we go…Sideways From A Paper Bag..  Rollin' !

Episode #201: Sleeping On A Wish (Song starts at  4:08) I'm in a fairly relaxed state of mind. I've been holidaying, camping beside a stream In Bright, Vic, Australia. The sound of the stream is what I've brought back with me, it just sort of permeates the whole being, the sounds of the stream and birds. So when I came into my studio, I thought to myself I'm not going to do a rock n roll song…I'm in a cruisey mood. 'Sleeping On A Wish' came from a phrase my daughter said to me when she was very, very young. It's a nice time, having a wee conversation with your child just before you put the light out. Sometimes there's a very honest lovely unexpected conversation. It's from the heart - it's beautiful. “Sleeping on a wish” ….I said to my daughter "I think I'm going to write a song with that”...she said “You do that, Dad”. So I did. All you need is a start. A start comes from feeling, that's what I make sure of. It's art. It's got to come from the true part of the self. I went to my studio and wrote the words. Then came the music, the whole song flowed. Each section followed easily, naturally. Like a Goodnight story. I really enjoyed recording the demo for this song, as part of this episode. 'Sleeping On A Wish' is song # 604, written in 2014. Here we are in 2024 and it's seeing the light of day. It nearly ended up on a children's album, which I recorded back then and inexplicably never released. Hmmm maybe it's nearly time to revisit those songs and put them out there. I believe I will enjoy recording this song properly one day. Who knows, maybe the demo I just recorded will will become the starting point. The great thing about digital recording is: the demo can become the real thing. This has been an extremely relaxed episode for me to record once again - I even recite the lyrics as poetry. Why not, I like to have fun and play as I wing these spoken word half hour episodes. I'm very comfortable sitting at my piano as I chat, there is no script. I've discovered by accident, really: since I'm exploring a creative exercise, it's made sense to have fun and just play as I go. I've  included a recording of the birds and stream from my holiday, here. It made sense, as this is what got me in the mood to look at 'Sleeping On A Wish'. I hope you enjoy this episode, as I talk about how this song came into being, demonstrating on the piano as I go along. Here we go, rolling !

Episode #200 :  One Thing We Know. (Song starts at 4:26) Welcome to episode #200! It's such a great feeling, because I honestly wasn't sure I'd get past episode #1. It's become like a ‘Songwriter Speaks' sort of an online gig for me - something I really look forward to each week. Whether you've been here from the start with me, or a new arrival, or perhaps you pop in from time to time, regardless, thanks so much for tuning in. I hope you're enjoying this podcast as much as I am. I wrote this song back in 2009. I was at a school where I was a piano teacher, as a contractor. In between lessons, I found myself thinking about my own young family - and I was thinking about the school kids racing around outside at lunchtime. The feeling came to me really strongly to write some words. I can't believe you're growing so fast, eyes on the future , you're free from the past Loving your life is the thing you do best, doing what's right and forgetting the rest Those are the words I started out with. I recorded a piano vocal version as part of this episode., which was fun. At the end I've included a produced version which appeared as track #4 on my self-recorded album The Man In Blue (2014). As usual, on this episode, I let the song lead the way - and the little mistakes: sometimes just playing and having fun allows me to get near to the mystery that songwriting is. And a mystery it is - the creative force, whatever you want to call it, the muse… As I compose, a gentle give and take sort a process seems to happen. I stay ‘on the breath', certainly not over-thinking things, but my logical self is across all the theory. My hands are on the keys, and my voice floats above the chords on the piano. The feeling never ceases to amaze me. To demonstrate this process, I end up improvising the beginning of a new piece on this episode. One Thing We Know, song #552,  came together easily, once again.  It's concise and is an easily understood song. Of all the things I've talked about on this podcast, perhaps the main thing has been the idea of making the commitment to catch the little bits and pieces as they come through, writing it down in a note book and and away you g, .creating and composing. Personal freedom would be the key. If I hadn't made that commitment years ago I wouldn't have 800 songs up my sleeve here in 2024. Thanks so much for having read. I hope you enjoy the 200th show. Here's the blog which I mention www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com. The last 200 posts will give you an idea of not only what I've been up to these last 200 weeks, ( painting, drawing, composing, writing, etc), but it shows what I've been up to in my life on this artists path. It's a joy. Ok here we go.  One thing we know….episode#200 - Rollin' !

Episode #199: Song For August   (Song starts at 3:08) Welcome to another song - and another 30 mins of observations, humour, with a particular focus on songwriting. For this episode, as it happens, I found a couple of different of versions of Song #396, Song For August, using the same lyrics. Both done in 1994. One was written on the piano by myself. The version we went with ( and quite rightly) is the one Paul Dredge and myself wrote on guitar (Paul) and voice (me). This was one of 12 songs which Paul and I decided to record one weekend, years later in Melbourne Australia. We were joined my the marvellous Earl Pollard. We'll always miss his great drumming, as sadly he's no longer with us. It was another person passing over that gave me the motivation to write these lyrics. His death had a profound effect on me. Not long after I found myself out on the road by myself. I was a bit thin, struggling a bit really. Hanging on in there was the only choice to make. But sometimes it's a rough road, isn't. There's a line in the song ‘standing on my own two feet'. It's about surviving then, hanging in there against the odds, perhaps. The lyrics came quite quickly, as they tend to. When it came to writing the song with Paul on guitar, the song pretty much came in one take - definitely one fast burst of continuous creativity. I include the demo, which was recorded immediately after we wrote it, so basically we wrote it then recorded it in no time. Great fun, when you've got two minds, two artists working together, communicating without speaking, trusting each other, it really is gold. Towards the end of this episode, I decided to compare the two different versions of the song. It's fascinating , vocal phrasing. Groups of words seem to really dictate the rhythmical aspect of a phrase, for sure… I hope you enjoy hearing how this song came about. It was good fun, finding these old demos and bringing this episode together. If you do find someone to write with, and it goes well, hang on to that relationship. Paul and I have just about wrapped up what will be our 6th folk rock album. You can find 'Song For August' on our album (appropriately named) Lost In Time ( the recording session was in 2012, I think (18 years after we wrote the song!) The album is currently only on Bandcamp. www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com. The whole album was recorded and mixed in two studio sessions, somewhat crazily, but that's all the time we had. I still have the masters for this album, I think it's nearly time to revisit some of the recordings and make a few changes here and there - just a few. So with songs, I think it's really important not to be afraid to discard parts, even whole versions of songs as we did in this case. I'm wondering whether I just plain forgot I wrote the song on the piano piano fist. Regardless, I'm glad it was forgotten. There's something about the song Paul and I wrote, the number one thing would be feeling, there's lots of that here…see what you think, Here we go, Song For August.

Episode #198:  Only Love Is Real   (Song starts at 4:29) This one, Song #660, popped up in amongst a dozen or so songs I had a sing and play through, earlier today. I thought ‘Aha!' this would be a good one to have a look at for the podcast. It's a seemingly simple song. A ‘big day' was the topic of my blog this week. And it was a big day, the day I took the hand of the person who turned out to be my wife… 'When you took my hand, helped me to understand Worked out how I felt, The turning of the wheel, Only love is real ' At the time it felt momentous. Ii felt like everything that had seemed so important, everything that had a hold on me, just sort of fell away. 'When you caught my eye, we gave this dance a try…' I've been thinking a lot and reading a lot through the years. The title of this song is also about how: before the Big Bang, all the way through since, underlying all, is love. We perceive only a fraction of whats going on. And that's just fine. I think it's good to keep your feet on the ground, have fun and enjoy yourself along the way. I tell my piano students, having a laugh is a not a bad idea when we make a mistake - it keeps the door of creativity open, keeps the energy flowing. We'd be a grumpy old lot otherwise, wouldn't we? The great thing about a song is: it goes on. It comes through, on the ether (love) and as a song writer, you do your best to interpret and represent what is coming through, to the best of your ability. Then you arrange and record it and send it out into the world. On this podcast you get the experience of listening to a song for the first time. I love doing that, I'm a real album person. The first thing I used to do was turn the album cover over and read the lyrics, while listening to the songs. I get lost in a song that way. Sure you can have background music on, why not? But I'm talking about listening closely, here. It's so good for us. I'm always doing it.. I'm also a painter. I enjoy painting in my studio and also I particularly like to paint 'en plein air' ( French for on the spot out in nature). I get lost in the scene when I'm painting. I lose the sense of self. The separation to nature is no longer there and I'm part of the scene. It happens when I go fly fishing on a river. And it happens when I write a song, It can also happen when you hold the hand of someone …you realise the potential of what may be ahead, it can be a transformational moment And love is what can be expressed. In this song, the lyrics are reflective, looking back, acknowledging how good it is, how amazing it is. There is also the bridge….a chance for another view point, in this case it's an acknowledgement that there may be a listener (in the future, perhaps) who isn't exactly on top of the world and is not in love with someone, not in a relationship. So there's a line there that basically is saying: ‘hang on… things will improve..The new dawn will come'. This is the way I roll. I like to offer help - there's an uplifting aspect to my lyrics and I'm very happy about that. And apparently my piano playing does the same thing, so I'm happy about that too. I also happen to like talking, particularly ‘off the cuff' - there's no script & I have no idea what I'm about to say as I record these 30 minute episodes. A bit of humour keeps it real. And only love is real. Here we go. I hope you enjoy this episode…

Episode #197:   Let Her Know    (Song starts at 5:19) Song #156, Let Her Know, was composed in 1990. Back then, I was starting to think that's a reasonable amount of songs. The demo on this episode was recorded a decade later. And here we are in 2024. Wow. 34 years later, I find myself with 800 songs. It was fun, as always, listening to the demo, playing parts of 'Let Her Know', talking about where it came from, how it came together, what inspired the song. What inspired the song were a series of episodes that obviously happened years ago. But the thing about art is: in brings memories to the surface, very strongly - so strongly, it feels like yesterday. The arts are a means to exercise the grey matter, there's no doubt about that! But more than that, it really gives us an opportunity to explore more of ourselves than is perhaps immediately apparent. You can go deep within, rediscovering old memories. Each song is a complete surprise to me during the composing process. As you wade in and make a start, so much happens. You establish the mood. In no time, a band is playing in my mind - perhaps an orchestra, backing vocals, everything including the kitchen sink. That amazes me. And yet it all comes down to the honest feeling, the feeling that caused me to pick up a pen and write an A4 page of lyrics. Then the morning comes, when the mood hits me, I remember the words. I grab a coffee and a pen and take a seat at the piano. For me it's like a performance, writing a song, I'm in my skin, in the room with the piano of course, but part of me has gone somewhere else - many places: I'm on stage in an imagined future, I'm back in time, recalling those strong feelings, how the events unfolded. It's like a start stop movie, for me. It has the effect of making you feel really alive, your mind goes over and over a scene, replaying what happened, and you provide the sound track to the movie in your head. At least, that's how it is for me. It's the most natural process for me. It's a total joy, there's no struggle, no frustration, and for that I feel incredibly grateful. Let her know is about a young fellow struggling with something: he's met someone that's hit him right between the eyes. Should he let her know? What would happen? How would that feel? What subsequent events would that set in motion? Putting big feelings like this into music is a great move. It gets it off your shoulders and it might turn out to be exactly what someone needs to hear somewhere down the track - even 34 years later! I have a seascape exhibition on presently (I'm also an artist). Outcomes will be what they'll be… will I sell the paintings? I don't know. I hope so! But what counts for me at least is: each painting is an expression of joy. It wasn't a fight to get the paint to flow, to mix the right colours - the colours I could see in my mind (like the sounds I hear). It's so like the songwriting process. I hope you enjoy this weeks episode, recording them is a real pleasure  each week - an online performance of spoken word and music, with plenty of humour and entertainment. I'm glad I took the time to write some words down and then added a music accompaniment as I winged the melody. Back in 1990. It's such a great feeling, and it's also incredibly good fun and endlessly fascination to be exploring the creative process of songwriting here on this podcast. Here we go again:  Let Her Know. Enjoy!

Episode #196: Home Straight  (Song starts at  2:40) This episode's song would be a ‘protest song' about the way we are not looking after the world & how out of touch with nature we have become. Every now and then a song like this sneaks up on me. When it happens, I just go with the flow. It's a great way to let off some steam. It's also a very creative & effective way of dealing with some big feelings. The trick is, it doesn't hurt anyone. It's a great place to put anger, the arts - because we can harness all that sometimes explosive energy and release it very quickly, rather than doing something pointless and destructive like booting a washing basket or something, you end up creating a piece of art. The handy thing is, the resulting piece of art/music can then be a very positive thing to have brought into the world. It might be song with legs - a song that might resonate with others who've felt the same big feelings about a certain issue. In this case, what inspired me to put pen to paper initially was this: those of you that have been following my podcast know that I get out in nature to reset. Particularly, I find being by the water does it for me. Yes, I'm a fisherman, but a successful trip out for me might be 2 caught and released wee ones. It's really about observing nature. More than that, I've discovered it's about being connected to the bigger picture. A feeling of connectedness and optimism and energy are often the things I return home with - the catch - hey, maybe that's an idea for a song. That's how creativity works. Once you makes a start, you're in the flow and one creative idea leads to another. Anyway back to what inspired this song, I looked up from my favourite fishing spot to see what appeared to be an oil rig of some description in the Port Phillip Bay (here in Melbourne, Australia). Alarm bells. But then it turns out apparently it was just ‘resting there', hmm… That got me on to thinking about all the ways we are not doing great things to this beautiful world we live in. All the lyrics just came through my pen, a strong meter helped. It gave me the momentum & helped with the flow, the phrasing. In no time at all I'd filled 2 A4 pages with verses and choruses. When it came to writing the music a couple of days later, it was the feeling that came through the words that reignited the energy, the passion to get the job done. The melody and chords and song structure all came with a rush, very naturally. I had to force myself to stop and jot down my ideas then carry on, back in the flow. The result is: song #628 fits me like a glove. In terms of the vocal range, the style ( the words are very ‘me'), the melody has natural highs and lows, the chords and the bass line all make sense. I think that's the best sort of song: the most ‘natural'. You can chip away and construct from bits and pieces , but quite often, the end result can be a song that sounds a little contrived. In my experience, these songs can be frustrating to record, as the energy doesn't seem to flow. It's an endlessly fascinating process to be talking about each week. I've just been away camping at the beach for a week. It was bliss, just letting the somewhat unseasonable sort of changeable weather roll around me (and ‘through' me, it seemed, eg: the night I tried 2 casts in a howling 70km wind that got up from nowhere). I include a couple of minutes of chat, which I recorded back home at my local beach the other night. On the spur of the moment, I added some piano music as I listened back to it. I find it very relaxing to listen to these podcast episodes. I have a Seascape exhibition opening shortly, so I've been up til 3am painting. I like to review my work, so as I painted, I listened to 3 randomly selected podcast episodes in a row: Crossroads, In The Scheme Of Things and I wish. I found them to be interesting, and informative, funny and entertaining. If you find you've enjoyed this episode,

Episode #195: White Angels  (Song starts at 5:51) On this episode we are looking at the 2nd song I wrote after I arrived in Melbourne in 1997. I'd already written 385 songs in New Zealand before this one. I came to Melbourne as it was a rite of passage, of sorts, for kiwi songwriters to jump the ditch. I was here to set up camp, to be here for some time, to continue on - or perhaps more accurately start again - on my creative path. I needed to find some more band players, and I really wanted to get cracking again, here, in a new country. Songwriting is something has pretty much always ticked along for me. In 1997 once I'd settled in to life in the city, I picked up a newspaper and there was a headline that really hit me between the eyes: 17 young people had overdosed in 3/4 hour in Melbourne's cbd. It struck me what an awful time that must have been for those involved - the young people themselves, their families, the ambulance drivers. A scene unfolded in my minds eye and I didn't shut it down. It became a movie. This in turn inspired the lyrics. Improvising music to words (or while watching images) is something that I find comes to easily to me. I think it's because all the emotion is already there. I've always had the ability to ‘roll a film' in my mind. I think we all do, don't we? (I draw cartoon animals. So if I think of say, a llama playing saxophone, there he is, moving around, eyes shut wailing away..hmm, maybe I shouldn't mention that publicly.) Anyway, as I read the newspaper article, a really strong feeling took hold of me and the words streamed off my pen. When it came time for the music, a gospel sounding riff came through my finger tips on the piano keys. It set up the first verse and there I was: well underway, again, with another song. Over the intervening years, I think I was perhaps a little bit hard on myself, in terms of whether I thought this song was good enough to release. Us artists can be too tough on ourselves. Sometimes nothing we've produced ever seems good enough, which is strange, really. Pieces of art & songs, are all like stepping stones along the way for the artist. I think: if the art or music is of a certain standard (it ‘passes the muster'), put it out there and move on. That's what I've been doing with this podcast - and my blog: 195 weeks of sharing what I'm up to, some of the how to. I'm looking to share and help people along the way. Encouraging people along a creative path is the idea. Because it can't help to be a healing path. You learn about yourself - like the line in white angels: 'the past clears, the path clears and today is much less blurred.' As I've recorded these episodes, I've realised even more just how powerful it is to write a song. A song brings back so many memories. It's got be good for your brain to be used like that. The very same song is going to have different connotations, bring to mind different memories, for different people. That's powerful. The listener has an emotional response and again, this can also be a healing thing. So feels really, really good to be a songwriter. It's nice to be sharing some of my processes here on this podcast. In this case, I've rediscovered a sort of a gospel ballad. I'm so pleased I wrote it - and I'm pleased that I recorded the demo back in 2000. I have played this song in restaurants as a piano solo piece, but I've never sung it live. I hope you enjoy another song and chat, here we go, More here: Lyrics, links to music and art www.petepascoe.wordpress.com

Episode #194: Parachutes    (Song starts at 4:40) Back in 1993, I had a residency as a pianist at a resort in Wairakei, near Taupo, in New Zealand. To rejuvenate myself - and lift my spirits - while I know I was very lucky to have this sort of gig, being a pianoman has it's ups and downs. During the daytime, I'd often get out into nature. I'd play golf or go trout fishing. I wrote the words for song #303, Parachutes, as I sat in my old van Hercules one late morning. I'd taken a drive to a vantage point where I knew there was a fantastic view of Lake Taupo, with the volcanic plateau as a back drop. It was a pristine early winter's morning of blue sky and water. It had a been a big night, the night before. After some persuasion (a conversation in a bar after the gig), I'd finally been convinced to go parachuting the next day. I woke in the morning with a bad hangover and a sinking feeling of doom - which was quickly alleviated by a phone call “ It's too breezy, we'll have to skip it this morning”. I got away with it. As I wrote the lyrics, the winter breeze had chosen to be kind - kind to me, by blowing early, then calming down for some other parachutists, who were now hanging against the distant storm clouds in the distance. Although I wouldn't have minded their view, I certainly wasn't wishing I was up there. Comfortable in my van, I imagined their view. It reminded me how free I was. Young, single, on the road - the future was wide open. I was missing my co-songwriter buddy, Paul Dredge. He'd recently left - onto other things -  so I was licking my wounds a bit, determined to carry on. So when it came to writing the music, back in the incredibly peaceful Kuratau, where I was based at the time, I had a go at writing an ‘up' sort of song that Paul and I might have written together, with Paul on guitar. Fast forward to 2023, I found my self recording a demo midway through this episode. Something was missing, and then it hit me. Another voice! So I went back and recorded another vocal part (in the style of Finn brothers, Every brothers, etc) and I think Parachutes finally came together. Paul and I still enjoy singing together like this. Another year is coming to close. It's been a goodie for me: I've chosen to spend lots of time creating music and art. It's a timeless time. I'm in another world. I leave all my worries, all the ‘goings on' behind and I'm completely in the zone when I write words, music and paint pictures. Paul and I are close to finishing our 6th Folk Rock album . The rock band PP and the Patient Hum are closing in on another one. You can find my music here: www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com  (also streaming on the usual platforms). Looking forward producing to a stack more music and ain 2024. Ok join me in Hercules the van, over looking the lake, back in 1993: Church bells are ringing from somewhere afar Times gliding by, day by day, I'm biding time and I gaze At the parachutes in the sky… Enjoy. Lyrics and more art and music here on my blog www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com 

Episode #193: Soul Yo-Yo     (Song starts at 5:08) Ever wondered about all the personal ups and downs we have and how - in some of the more extreme moments - we seem to bring to light aspects of ourselves we perhaps don't regularly access? I wonder why we wait for those times of crises to express and act on more of our potential? That was the inspiration for the words of song #43 Soul Yo-Yo, Written in 1998. ‘We're barely in touch with our souls, closest to them in our pain' When I arrived in Melbourne (from NZ, back in 1997), it was quite an adjustment to make, living in the big city. The normal ensuing ups and downs of settling into somewhere new resulted in me writing a lot in a diary - some of which, in turn, found it's way into lyrics for my songs as I found my way along. I was lucky. I found gigs relatively straightaway and, after a while, I started a stall at the arts market selling my CDs and art (which I still do today). In between gigs and markets, sometimes life in the city was quite challenging. Seeing people who were homeless as I took the tram to a gig (where I entertained in the shiny environment, performing for clientele with plenty of money to buy dinner) played on my mind. Also, I missed the easily accessible NZ outdoors, where I was used to heading for several times a week to help cope with city life: ‘The country feeds my soul'. Looking at the bigger picture, the lyrics touch on the idea of perhaps doing a bit of work on the self regularly: ‘It's soul money in the bank' I was without a band at the time & I was in the process of trying to find some players for a rock band (And I did - Pete Pascoe and the Patient Hum - I'm busy finishing our 3rd album, presently). So I wrote Soul Yo-Yo for a non existent band, planning to present it sometime in the future (it's in the genre of a lively crowded house song). I was determined to be making progress in some way. By doing this, I was sort of laying down stepping stones for a possible future. An exercise in self belief, determination - in effect, acting in faith, that it would all come together, somehow. The demo on this episode was recorded back in 2000. I'd gone into a studio with my electric piano and my voice, and recorded the current group of song (I'd completely forgotten about this recording session until I put my hand in a box of old recordings and pulled out a CD…this is song number 5 row 14 recorded ‘on the trot' one afternoon). On the recording, you can hear a younger me, playing and singing in a style that would suit a band arrangement. I think perhaps I'll present this one to the band in the new year and see how it goes. If it doesn't suit us, I'll might put it on a sort of ‘80s synth rock' album, which I have brewing. With this sort of back story as a kind of a backdrop, I hope you enjoy the show, listening as I analyse the lyrics and look at how the music came together for 'Soul Yo-Yo'. The creative process of songwriting is such a joy. Exploring 'Soul Yo-Yo' has brought more of that to the surface again on this episode. It's such good fun to be producing the episodes for this podcast. It's my online ‘songwriter speaks' sort of a presentation. So here's another song, several interrelated stories and concepts - all delivered with a liberal dose of humour and with some piano accompaniment. Enjoy (and by the way, if you're new here, welcome! If you enjoy this episode, there's another 192 listen to!) Blog: www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com

Episode #192: When I Was Young  (Song starts at 4:52  ) When I Was Young is song #554, composed in 2010. I remember it was a fun piece to write. Lyrically, as the title suggests, it's an older me, looking back at my youth. It's a reflective lyric. It's about hanging on to the childhood optimism, the magic that can be found in life. I strive to hang on to those sorts of feelings. I think because I'm so involved in the arts, it's kept me awake, alive, optimistic and passionate about life. The music came together quickly. The words (which came first) dictated the rhythmical aspect of each vocal phrase, to a degree. I float a vocal melody above the improvised chords and each section leads naturally into the next. It's like opening a series of presents. It's an incredibly enjoyable thing to do, composing. Actually, that doesn't cut it. It's a total joy. I chose to compose quite ‘up' music to go with these lyrics. I've got a tendency to do that reasonably often. I think it comes from my history of being a live performer. The quieter songs have their place, for sure. But there's nothing quite like having some more up songs up your sleeve when you're under the pump on the gig. Speaking of gigs, on this episode, I take you back in time when I was cutting my teeth on my first gigs, playing piano in restaurants. I was learning so much by creating arrangements in the moment. I was playing songs by great song writers. I had books of sheet music: Great Songs of the 70s and the Beatles complete. They got me through, to begin with. Back when I was growing up on a small Pacific island like New Zealand, the music coming from the USA and England was ‘the business'. That's what everyone listened to. It took courage and a lot of self belief to have a go at songwriting. Great NZ songwriters like Neil and Tim Finn and Dave Dobbyn showed us we could -  thanks so much to those wonderful artists. I'm so pleased I did have a go at song writing, and I'm pleased I haven't stopped. I have 5 albums nearing completion at the moment and I have another 20 new songs waiting to be written into my song books. If you're thinking about getting into songwriting, I say: go for it! And when you start, don't stop. This podcast is about rediscovering older songs and finding out where they came from, how they came to be - the composition process. I'm not going to presume to be able to tell you how to write a song, but I'm endeavouring to describe and demonstrate the way I do it. it's fun sitting at my piano each week. The moment the mic is ready and I hit record, I go into performance mode. The podcasting is something I'm really enjoying. The initial songwriting often happens in a burst of activity for me. They seem to come through very quickly for me. So when I feel the urge, I put everything aside for a moment and see what comes through. Once the songs are written, I open my songbooks, and perform a few, maybe on a rainy day, when the mood strikes me. Often I randomly pick songs that seems to fit together. I get lost in the performance and 2 hours later I've come up with a song list for a couple of new albums. And this: I'd constantly edit and arrange the songs. Just like those days of arranging in the moment as I performed on those restaurants all those years ago. It really was a great training ground in so many ways.. Join me now as I take you though some of my processes again this week - And I talk about whatever else comes to mind along the way. It all a bit of fun. It's a creative way to share a creative process. Picture me on an intimate stage. You're my audience - thank you!  Here we go… The lyrics for this song (plus paintings and more music) are on my blog www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com. (perhaps open another window and read them as I sing the song).

Episode #191:  Goodnight  (Song starts at 4:20) Here's another half an hour of music and gentle chat. This isn't a left brained sort of dry presentation eg: “ and here we have the verse, you'll note… blah blah”. No, it's more relaxed. I'm on stage - in my mind. Well, I'm sitting at my piano, in my a studio in Melbourne, Australia, and you are my audience and I'm here to entertain and inform you. So I'm an entertainer. I enjoy relating events from my past that help paint the picture of where the song of the episode came to mind. On that note, this week, I delivered a large seascape painting to the Bayside Art Show in Brighton, Melbourne. As I sat in the car park and observed the scene, lots of memories came back to me.Back when I wrote 'Goodnight', I was a busy chap, as I am still now. I'd been part of another exhibition here… I ended up winning the People's Choice award, as it turned out, in the morning, I painted a plein air seascape and framed it. Then I painted a picture of the statue (a feminine figure in a pond just to my right), and I painted the church behind me. All 3 paintings sold in an auction on the day. I did a cartoon session with kids. I also did a gig & I played my songs in the garden. Big day, eh? 'Goodnight', the song, is about that moment where you finally rest your head on the pillow when you've had a big day. It might have been an extremely busy, satisfying day… like the day of that exhibition (I went out like a light when I finally hit the hay that evening), or a completely different sort of day. The main message that came across as the lyrics came through, was ‘Goodnight', you know you're loved'. That very reassuring statement came through loud and clear. And I think it's true. It's just the way it is. The words came first. When I compose this way, I do find it very easy to add the music afterwards. Words bring pictures to mind, the pictures become a movie and then it becomes clear to me what sort of music is required. With the limitations of my abilities, such as they are, I perform my version of what I've an hear in my mind as I play. All I need is the start. Then a riff happens, then perhaps a section that builds. In this case, when that happened, I could hear the band arrangement clearly in my head, so I knew then what sort of animal I was dealing with. A mellow dynamic dreamy ‘end of album' sort of a song, which it ended up becoming: the final track on the album 'The Man In Blue'. I loved wiring and recording this album. The version on this podcast episode is the recording from the album. It was my first effort at recording a full band album with acoustic drums and everything, it was fun. It was so much fun I'm still recording today, I'd be in the studio 7 days a week if I could. That's partly what this podcast is about, I have 800 songs, so it's nice to bring them out into the light online, sure some are on albums already (like 'Goodnight'). But other aren't and may never be. And still others, because I've rediscovered and added bits to on an episode, They are now ready to record. Anyway, on this episode…you'll get to hear how the song came together. It's fun playing the piano, singing and talking through each section as they happened, If you like this episode there another 190 to listened to when you feel like it. I enjoy listening back these episodes and reviewing my work in the car. I end up just really relaxing and enjoying the 30minutes each time. I hope you do too. The lyrics for this song (and the paintings and more music) are on my blog www.petepascoe.Wordpress.com each week too. The Man In Blue is streaming now on all the usual platforms, including my Bandcamp website www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com You might like to check out my video for 'At What Cost', track 2 of the album on my YouTube channel Pete Pascoe Art and Music. For now, it's Goodnight from me. I hope you enjoy this episode.

Episode #190: Driving Home Blues     (Song starts at 3:00) I'm really enjoying producing these episodes - it's a live online gig, really. That's what it feels like. Thanks so much to those of you who are tuning in regularly. If you're new here: I'm looking to shine a light on some aspects of how I compose a song. I'm certainly not to looking take away the mystery - as if I could do that. The mystery is half of what makes song writing intriguing. In 1991, when I wrote song #190, 'Driving Home Blues', I was working in a piano bar with Paul Dredge, my song writing buddy and great friend. We played 5 nights per week for 3 years at this residency. We learned so much. We are still writing and recording today - our 6th album is nearing completion. I was single at the time. A brief stormy sort of a relationship had snuck up on me. It made me feel stuff. It made me grow up in a hurry. I had to toughen up, look after myself. Then it was all over before it started. At the time I decided to go out and buy a sheet music book, of Bob Dylan's songs, with the purpose of analysing Bobs songs - his Melodies and chords, etc. Paul, and I were already playing lots of Bob Dylan (and Neil young). We'd worked out there songs by ear, but something made me buy this book and study the notation. After 30mins browsing the book, I was sort of in the mood. I thought: “I'll have a go at writing a Bob Dylan sort of song” and I wrote 'These Bills Blues' (featured on an earlier episode)….  and then about 5 nights later I wrote 'Driving Home Blues'. Writing ‘in the style of' isn't something I'd done before or since, to be honest. But I'm glad I gave it a go. We can learn so much by following in the steps of the masters. So it's not plagiarism, nothing like that. It  was more noticing how few chords you could work with, how few words you sometimes need. And how simple a melody can be for it to work. Both Bob Dylan and Neil Young have at times written some very, very clever simple songs that say so much, which ultimately was enhanced by the way they were so brilliantly sung and produced. As a piano player, you tend at times to use a lot of chords. So this was something that pushed me in a slightly different direction, and it's something I never forgot. I'm not afraid to write simple songs. On that note, I've never been afraid when composing. You can't be afraid of making mistakes. Being aware, now I think that's super important, being aware…( eg how original is this song I'm writing?)… a sense of honesty and originality. It can take a while to find your own style. It's a such a pleasure to be writing songs, still, after all these years. Because I've been so busy doing this podcast and my blog, teaching 24 kids piano each week, painting seascapes and cartoons, - and selling them - it's all been ‘go' around here, for years. I've written 800 songs, have 12 albums out & have 5 albums nearing completion - plus I'm working on tuition videos (music and art). These video courses have taken me far longer than I thought it might. Oh well. It's important not to be to hard on yourself if you're on the creative path. It's like a river sometimes you're in a holding pool, other times you're in the rapids and away you go. When writing the music, it seems like you can somehow ‘hear' the beginning of the next phrase ‘ahead of time'. It is fascinating, and it's fun to be in the flow, like this. I'm grateful I took the time to sit down and write Driving Home Blues. I could've just sat round licking my wounds. Instead, I got stuff off my chest and into my diary. Then I used those feelings and experiences to push me on and turn a murky feeling into a piece of art. Here we go. I hope you enjoy hearing new music ..and another chat. Thanks for having a read, I hope you enjoy the listen. If so, there's another 180 odd episodes waiting for you. They're not in an particular order, although I've enjoyed the way this podcast continues to evolve.

Episode #189: Finding This City.  (Song starts at 3:42  ) Hi there, this episode was a fun one to put together. To start with, Finding This City came into my mind as I went into my studio. I went over to a large box of old cassettes and selected one completely randomly. Amazingly, the tape that said Peter '94, was teed up and ready to play the uptempo rocker that is: 'Finding This City'. That sort of thing really appeals to me. It feels very close to the sort of magic feeling that can happen when I pick up a pen to write lyrics, or when I let my hands just play some bits and pieces on the keys of the piano. That's what I was doing back in 1994. I'll put you in the picture: I was new to a city called Hamilton, in New Zealand's North Island. I had a lot of hair, in my mid 20s. I had an old van that smoked like ‘billy-o' but it got me around the country from gig to gig. A few things hadn't exactly gone to plan musically - and personally - at this stage. But a new chapter beckoned in Hamilton and I was determined to carry on and create some new opportunities. I met up with an old friend, Mr Grant Hislop, again. He offered me a couple of weeks employment, recording voice overs for radio commercials (which I'd never done). It was a big step up from home recording on 4 tracks. But I took on the challenge. I learned on the fly, recording these radio ads. And over the course of 5 nights, working from 9pm til dawn, I put together an album of demos. It was initially all done on the keyboard (drums and bass included) except for the guitar. ‘Brendon', a guitarist, heard me recording one night around midnight. About then I'd been thinking ‘Man, I wish I had a guitarist for these songs' and lo and behold, Brendon knocked on the door and introduced himself. 6 hours later, as the sun came up, we were putting the finishing touches to the last song. So, lots of energy - the energy of a driven artist in his mid 20s. Fast forward now, to 2023. And the energy still flows. I'm starting to figure out I better let those 3am finishes go. Especially when I do 3 in a row. I've worked extremely hard on my song writing over the years. It's my passion.  It's easy -  I've never sat down and just slogged away for hours. It's never been that way. For that, I'm extremely grateful. It's a total joy. Im Working on 5 albums presently, in various genres. I'll let you know when they're up and streaming. So it does take a lot of hours and work to write songs. I think it's worth every minute. I recommend it, for sure. In fact, if you're thinking about getting busy on a creative path, I say go for it. It's such a rich life to be living in so many respects. I get energy by walking in the outdoors, by water. It's pretty easy to explain, I guess. It literally fills the well, gives me what I need to carry on. This is song number 323 out of 800. Sandwiched between two mellow songs, Balcony and Post The Picture…gentle songs I've already featured on this podcast. Also, I mention a chap I met in a restaurant one night..which ended up being a song, I Wish (also on this podcast). Ok, It was fun rediscovering this song. Here we go…let's find this city. Enjoy.

Episode #188: Weather Girl    (Song starts at 3:48) Back in the day, when I wrote this one, there used to be a weather girl on TV after the news. She used to have a stick and point out the highs and the lows on a weather map. Also back in the day I was getting to know a young lady. It was a little bit of an up and down time. I wasn't sure quite how a lunch date was going to go, from day to day. I guess looking back, we just weren't cut out to be together too easily. I found all the ups and downs and mood changes a handful. So I came up with the idea for a song: a weather girl  - with all the highs and the lows. In August, 1991, when I wrote this one, I was living in New Zealand. Maybe it's to do with living on a small pacific island, looking back, the subject weather always came up quickly in conversation: “Nice day today..” “Yes, but it's going to rain later this week” , etc. Perhaps in the old days, with lots of living being done outdoors and near the ocean, one used to have a closer eye once weather. As a kid, I remember when I stayed with my Dad, the silence required when the news came on…and then even more so when the weather report came on. He used to be a farmer… Other New Zealanders have written a song about the weather. Neil Finns Weather With You, Dave Dobbyns Outlook For Tuesday are great examples. As I chat about where the song came from, I relate an account of me cycling into the winter weather …and so on. Yep, weather had quite an effect on us New Zealanders. Anyway. Weather Girl turned out to be a nice gentle gentle pop song. It was a pleasure to record a version as part of this podcast episode. I think I'll take it further and produce a finished version of it. I wrote the words first, as I often did then. These days words and music often comes through at the same time. I've started to become quite a handy secretary - it's part of the songwriting gig: catching the words and the music as they come through together. It's like the phrases are instantly recorded in my mind and I'm able to rewind and play the section in my mind as I play and sing along, writing the words and the melody. The natural rhythms of the syllables of the words really dictate proceedings when it comes to the phrasing of the melody. And likewise, natural seems to be the key, keeping in the flow, when I let my fingers wander on the keys. I keep all the theory in mind and just play. It really is like having all the colours at hand and combining them as I paint a picture. With the words already written, it's like the picture is half done. Well, there's plenty of other elements, bass melody, rhythm, etc. but the main thing is there: the feeling. A bit of background /behind the scenes news: I have 5 albums coming along nicely, presently. Including the first ‘songs from the podcast ‘ album, #1. It's all coming together well. I am juggling a lot of other things on a weekly basis:  24 piano students in 2 days, arts markets, seascape painting, producing prints, my blog, and this podcast. I also have a YouTube channel, but I've been a bit quiet there lately. More coming soon. I hope you enjoy this episodes song, 'Weather Girl'. It's a warm sounding wee song. It was fun having a look at how this song came together. Here we go. I hope you enjoy another song and some relaxed chat.

Episode #187: Not Here At All       (Song starts at 4:42 ) People ask me: “why do you do a podcast, Peter?” and I just say well I really, really enjoy it. Life is to be enjoyed. Plus, I'm really enjoying rediscovering songs which I've written a while ago - like this episode's song, 'Not Here At All'. It was written in the year 2000. It's fun to sit behind my piano and entertain as I speak. I did it for a living for years. This has more of a songwriter speaks sort of angle. It's fun and informative, is the idea. So what inspired this song? You know when you're talking to someone, having a nice conversation and you suddenly realise the person you're talking to has drifted away? This happened to me. So, ignoring passing moment of frustration, I thought: ‘Aha, here's a song lyric idea. So I made a mental note. I think at times we are all perhaps guilty of formulating our answer, rather than just purely listening. There's an art to truly listening. In fact I  find that sort of focus is precisely what it takes to compose a song, You're listening - intently, but not like a rabbit on alert, it's more like you're listening to a conversation for interesting snippets that sound original, I say listening, because even though I'm the one making all the noise on the piano and singing, you sort almost listen and you can almost hear the next bit just before you need it. It certainly is a fascinating process. Getting back now, to ‘not really listening', the lyrics move on and settle on the theme I wonder if one day we'll hear the call ..sort of a mystical awakening, through listening and observing on a deeper level, I suppose. So from someone not listening , that brought me to: are we listening on a whole other level? We all have the potential to wake up, start living in the moment, be gentle with each other and get along. I like to think we will. I bought a paper the other day. Talk about a grim document. Yes, it may be factual, but it was so imbalanced in its views and presentation. So much good stuff is going on in the world. It just doesn't make the news. So that's why I create my own news. Like this broadcast: analysing the creative process by demonstrating and asking a series of questions, of myself, of the songs. I keep the humour close to the surface. For me I find that keeps the creative process moving on. I obviously love writing song. I'm really enjoying sharing them in this manner. If you enjoy this week's episode - and you're new here - thanks for dropping by. There's another 180 odd episodes waiting for you, I do intend to repurpose some of the content at some point ( including finishing the piano/vocal versions of the unreleased ones in upcoming albums).  For now, I'm satisfied with the form it's in. I'm receiving some great feedback, so it's nice to be making connections like this. Positive, entertaining creative communication is what I'm . And there's plenty more on the way, including video courses for the piano playing, cartoon drawing, pairing seascapes + and lots more music on the way (5 ambles nearly finished in different genres).. All we have is here and now. Life's a series of moments. I want to look back on a series of excellent moments. Each 30 minute podcast episode has been that for me. After all these episodes, it's still a surprising and fun process for me. Here we go…some new music, some chat and piano. Enjoy! Here's the blog www.petepascoe.wordpress.com (links to more music and art and writing).

Episode #186: Song For You.  (Song starts at 3:38) This is a love song. Just words and a simple tune. It can be a powerful combination. Written in 2000, song #475 sums up the grateful feeling I'd found by deciding to commit to my girlfriend who became my wife. Lucky me. It's been an incredibly enjoyable process - our relationship - and rediscovering songs over these last 180 odd weeks. I let the song lead the way for each episode and endeavour to try and keep out of the way of the emerging story. I like to walk in nature (on this episode, there's a brief recording of me talking as I go out on twilight walk). I like to see detail. And conversely, the big picture, too. Just nothing in particular. I let the scene  just wash over me -and through me, somehow. And that is the feeling that I try to take with me into the studio. I keep my mind as clear as possible and away I go, fingers on the keys, composing. I honestly can't remember the last time I played and sang ‘Song For You'. There's something about recording the take of me rediscovering the song that seems to work for these episodes. I'm big on trying to catch feeling and a bit of magic, in the studio (instead of looking try an catch the perfect take, where you risk losing the feeling and story). It's all about the story - both the songs and the podcast episode. That's what makes it interesting and not just some dry sort of dialogue about how I compose. I'm very pleased I've found this song again, I must record it sometime. It's a romantic honest sort of a ballad. There's a line in the song…cos you call me home with your warm warm heart and like a gentle wind you set me free.  That suits me. You need a certain sort of freedom to be a songwriter. And you need to feel supported. It sure helps. Because it's huge commitment, being on this creative path. All the ups and downs that it entails…ditto with a relationship - all of those things are crucial: Freedom, support, commitment. Perhaps that helps illustrate how writing song feels like I'm writing with something outside/within myself. The muse.. I wrote the words first. After I'd written 4 verses, and read back through them, I realised this would be a simple love song. That's when I came up with the line with my words and a simple tune, which became the hook. I'm pleased with the way the music has come up for this song - it's a good fit with the lyrics.. Between a nice couple of bookends start and finish, there's a pleasant melody and chords that roll along, with just enough interesting changes to catch the ear and keep it interesting. It flows along nicely. It's incredibly good for you to compose, you use so many different parts of brain. I don't just knock out a song for the heck of it, I'm a firm believer that any song, any style of art that is worthwhile has to start with feeling. Which this song did… I hope you enjoy this gentle episode. It's an absolute pleasure to be presenting a song and a chat each week. I include an anecdote about one of the first time we ventured into the true outback of Victoria, Australia - and we sure found it… Here's my blog www.petepascoe.wordpress.com and here's my bandcamp www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com

Episode #185: Lonely Tune (Chase Those Blues Away).  (Song starts at 3:20) It's been a nice few days. Yesterday was a cracking ‘blue sky day'. I was sitting outside and I decided to go inside and sit at the piano and sing a song. I picked up the old purple book, flicked it open and there it was: Lonely Tune. I thought ‘why not…' I enjoyed singing it so much I thought I'd choose it for this week's episode. It was also relaxing and fun to record it as I recorded the episode. Where did Lonely Tune come from? I remember I played a song to a friend. They said “well, it sounds a bit…lonely". So I took the constructive criticism on the chin, picked up my pen and turned the ‘lonely' idea into a lyric. The first verse talks about how it can be tough going: When night falls, you're lonely and it's all….hard. The second verse was an opportunity to address all those lines and flip things around to the positive. Here's some examples: Vs 1: When day turns to night.    Vs2: when nay turns to might Vs 1: When starlight fills the sky.    Vs2: When Aha replaces why? Vs1:When you can't bear the wait.   Vs2: When you enjoy the wait. It was fun fro go back through and bring a positive sort of twist to the lines from the first verse. There are two sort of approaches to life: half empty vs half full It's interesting how a quiet, somewhat sad song can lift your spirits. With the music, the melody unfolded quite naturally, along with the improvised chords, as I played the piano. I gave the lyrics a gentle lilt - In fact it just happened. A sort of quiet jazz ballad feel kicked in. It happens to me now and then. I certainly wouldn't say it's something I specialise in, but when it comes along, I don't block that voice. That's what makes songwriting so enjoyable for me: I aim to enjoy myself. I improvise, listening for whatever is next. Being right ‘in the moment' is the key - both with the pen in hand for the lyrics, my fingers on the keys and voice ready for the music. As I write, as well as enjoying the relaxing performance aspect, I keep an ear out for the story as it reveals itself. It's fascinating how the various sentences come together, where they come from, what they end up leading to. It's all a mystery, to be honest, after all these years. I've composed about 800 songs now. This one is song #573, from 2011. It's a joy to be writing songs. I've remembered: the song that my friend thought was ‘lonely' was Lone Tree (from the Tasman Bridge album)…maybe I'll feature it in a podcast episode soon. As the weeks go by, I enjoy grabbing ideas and phrases and turning them into something new. Songwriting (and art in general) is great like that. It can be a very healing process. Speaking of art, I'm working on another seascape painting. If you'd like to see it, check out my blog www.petepascoe.wordpress.com. There are also some ‘work in progress' pics. Eventually, I'll finish my video courses I'm working on (piano, seascape painting, cartoon drawing,. etc). All in good time. For now, it's nice to be sharing lots of positive art and music online each week - including this podcast, it's such a pleasure to be doing this. I hope you enjoy 'Lonely Tune' - and the chat.

Episode #184: Strange Town     (Song starts at 4:41 & 26:00 ) If it's your first time here, thanks for dropping by. You've picked an interesting one - this is a bit of a wild and whacky episode. I've picked on an old song from 1987. I was a ‘piano man' back then, Paul Dredge ( co-writer / long time buddy ) and I were performing as a duo in the evenings, presenting dining music. But we were ready to rock out… in some sort of inner David Byrne (from Talking Heads), style - a zany sort of rock (Now it's 2023, I still feel the same way - maybe that 80s synth rock album needs to be prioritised..) Back in 1998, we borrowed some 4 tracking (early multi tracking) recording gear. And away we went. We picked song #38 (I've now gone on to composed 800+). You'll get to hear the piano vocal version I recorded as part of this episode  - and you'll also hear the old 4 tracked version as well. It's pretty lively, I can't quite believe where we got to, given it was our first effort at producing a multi tracked recording of a song. When you consider the lyrics..'oh steel blue eyes, see painted city scapes', they sound pretty mellow, right? Well, there are no rules when it comes to creating music. That's part of the joy. You have total freedom. It's like going on a holiday, when there are no firm plans. You roll with what ever comes along. To be honest, the 4 tracked version from April '98 is pretty rough and ready. We had no idea how to make the borrowed gear ‘go'. But we were determined to do it - and we were going to have some fun. So am I embarrassed to share this in 2023?. The answer is: not even close. What you'll hear are two enthusiastic, inspired young people. And what we caught on tape really has some merit still, today, I think. I composed the music for this song on the piano (lyrics were written first). As the song took shape, I started to hear a band arrangement in my mind straight away. This became the vision I started with when we recorded. Poor old Paul… he was in charge of the drum machine. I was thumping out a guide track on the old acoustic piano, calling out to Paul speed up & slow down the tempo, repeatedly. To Paul's credit he didn't block me and we carried on. I glad we recorded it the way we did it. There is nothing quite like realising a vision, something you have in mind. Here's my blog with the lyrics, etc www.petepascoe.wordpress.com . Here we go.. ‘from TV to office, rat race to numbness ‘, ..leave it all behind for a while - it's time for a song and some chat - including the 80s synth rock guitar band recording -  all fun here.

Episode #183: Brilliant Sunshine   (Song starts at 4:43) I started this song as I was travelling to piano teaching one morning. I was sitting at the bus stop on the busy road. The sun was so hot and bright I could barely read the words on my page. That is literally what the first few sentences of the lyrics say. So pretty much, no matter where you are, or what you're up to, it can be done. We all have the choice to focus on something creative to lift out mood. I could've been sitting at that bus stop stewing about the fact that my previous train was canceled & I was a bit tired - I could've got scratchy about it all. Instead, I picked a pen and got something off my shoulders by starting with some real things that are happening around me. Then I reflected on the images and feelings. And I came up with something new, a step on: some art. It feels good to do this in the moment, and then it feels doubly good to look back and think hey I've got great memories of feeling good because I chose to focus and get creative. On that note, I could be licking my wounds because of the last few years of Covid and the consequent pretty much non-recovery of the arts (as yet), here in Melbourne. Instead I'm looking back at 3 years of a heap of music and art, chat and writing on the internet which I've produced. It feels good. Putting music to these lyrics felt really good too. The demo version on this episode is piano/vocal. I can really hear a full band arrangement - including and extended guitar solo ending. That'd be fun. I'll take you down to the beach again this week. This time I'm doing a spot of fishing. I'm glad I did. I've had a couple of weeks break from teaching (school holidays here) so I'm amongst the usual painting, podcast recording and blog writing, I made a point of taking some time out. In this city of a million stories, here's another one. Mine. I also then turn it around at the end of the singing with …let me hear your story. Because it's not all about me. As a lyricist, I'm inviting the listener to choose to do some work, go through some similar thought processes by following along with my lyrics, and then reflecting on how those ideas might pertain to themselves. That's sometimes what happens with art. It offers a tangible place for some sort of reflection and personal transformation/ growth to take place. Or - at the very least - perhaps the listener might think: ‘Hey, that songs got a nice beat. It's lifted my mood'. The lyrics might not even be delved into to any degree - and that's fine. That's the beauty of songwriting, I think it's an inclusive domain - both for the listener and for the songwriters. That's why I'm sharing how I write a song. I'm not telling anyone how to write a song.. on these episodes, I'm just sharing some ideas about how I do it. I'm finding sitting at the piano as I chat is working well, because I can demonstrate something musically, easily. Then go back to the chat. Or I can take off on musical tangents….eg a new bridge for a song like last episode, or perhaps an improvised piece, as I did towards the end of this week's episode. I hope you some new music. Perhaps Paul Dredge and I might include this one on a folk rock album. We are 9 songs into our new folk rock album. You'll hear more about that (here) soon. To keep up with my art and music ( and two read the lyrics of the songs on this podcast, check out my blog. www.petepascoe.wordpress.com there are a 180 odd posts there now, including lots of cartoons, seascape paintings, creative ideas, photos and links to lots more music. This podcast is such a pleasure to produce. Thanks for the great feedback, folks. Here we go… enjoy ( the) brilliant sunshine.

Episode #182: Hit The Sun   (Song starts at 6:00) Where did 'Hit The Sun' come from? Well, as soon as I read through the lyrics, like a poem, it took me right back to the day I composed it. It was a beautiful Spring day. I went outside to hang out some washing ( my cat followed me, waiting for his customary ride in the washing basket, back inside). Then I sat on the front porch and started writing about what was around me. Lines like: ‘Ice blue sky, pastel neon sphere, riding high ….Black birds fly, concrete lies grey and old and pitted'. Then I went back inside, sat at the piano and composed the music. It's very satisfying thing to write a song. I make the time to write when those ‘moments' come along.I've learned to sense them. It's a feeling that comes over me, a gentle nudge, to pick up the pen and paper or to sit at the piano and let my hands fall on the keys. When I write the words, I work one sentence at a time, this leads naturally on to the next as the story unfolds. When I pause, I'll read back through the last couple of lines. Sometimes, while thinking of a word to rhyme the last word of a sentence, a new series of images and thoughts come to mind - and away I go again. With the music, it's largely the same process. When I pause, I go back and play a few lines to get back in the flow, so whatever I write next fits with what's just been written. Sometimes it comes with a rush. Other times it's a bit more stop/start, as I experiment with different chords and melody ideas for a line. When it just feels right, away I go again. In terms of images and feelings, One song can be like a photo album to me. You don't get many words in a song lyric, so you've got to pack a lot in - layers are the key. Otherwise you can get wordy pretty quickly. So I find myself in 2023 with 800 songs, which Is like 800 photo albums. It's nice to be sharing them here on this podcast, offering insight into what the lyrics are about, what I was thinking. But often it doesn't matter too much what the lyricist had in mind. The words can bring different ideas to the listener. The song might come to mean something completely different to what the composer originally had in mind - and that's all good. So a song has legs, that's the beauty of art. It carries on of its own accord, it has momentum. After all these years, I ‘winged' a new bridge for this song as I recorded this episode. A song is wide open until it's recorded (and you can always reinterpret it again later on). I hope you enjoy this gentle song, it's an old demo, recorded in 1991, in the piano bar, after hours. I'm glad I picked up a pen on that beautiful spring day all those years ago. It was fun to take a look at it on this episode. On reflection, 'Hit The Sun' is a strange sort of name, really. I was thinking about hitting the beach I suppose. Can you hit the sun? Written in 1987, this is song #57. Spring sure is here. I include a recording of me, down at the beach. So you can join me beside the waves on this episode. I get out into nature to fill the well. It's an essential part of the creative process. Taking time out and forgetting all about it from time to time. You can find the lyrics (and the skiing frog I mention on this episode ) on my blog www.petepascoe.wordpress.com This has links to www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com where I have 12 albums solo and recorded with others. Plus there's my YouTube channel Pete Pascoe Art and Music. Enjoy.

Episode #181: Gone Too Soon  (Song starts at 4:12) Here's one from 2014: song # 620, 'Gone Too Soon' It was inspired by a neighbour who lived across the street from us. She always had just the right amount of time to chat. She wasn't one of those you'd have to duck and run from, (through the fear of losing 15mins). Nope. She was positive & interested in what you were up to, bright in the eye and in voice and spirits. Consequently, I chose to write this song for her in an up sort of manner, which I think is a reflection of her character. The version on this episode is somewhere between a ballad and something more (Piano vocals). If it were played in a band, you could push it along with a bit more energy and groove. It's interesting to me how these sort of songs about mortality all seem to be coming to the surface for me right now. Perhaps it's like when you buy a certain brand of car with the right colour and then you start seeing them everywhere…or maybe it's something I write about more than I perhaps imagined. It's not a subject I'm going to shirk away from. It's as much part of life as anything. And lives need to be celebrated - the good bits carried on with. I think that's a great way to help make sense of someone close to you passing away. I think a song like this can be a comfort someone. It was for me this week. I'm glad I found it in my songbook. This was another ‘words first, music second' sort of song. When I composed the music, it was fun singing along to the chords that came through as I sat at the piano. The opening line of the song is: Summers come early, it's that time of year… the temperatures rising with the early birds tune. It's a great way to wake up, listening to the dawn chorus. Speaking of birds, I sat outside having breakfast a the table in my back yard. It was so peaceful…except for the lorikeets ( mall Australian parrot) I include a snippet of audio, so you'll join me at the table. Then we see where the song 'Gone Too Soon' is going to take us. I'm looking forward to recording this one properly one day. ‘Why wait for tomorrow? do it today'. Is another line in the song. I can still hear my neighbour saying this. I'm glad it's in this song.. her voice, in a sense. As I look at how the song came together, sitting at the piano with the mic, I really enjoy demonstrating the changes, the bits of melodies and talking about the way they came through. All you need is the feeling and a start, really - and away you go. And away we go…so here's another song & lots of chat. I hope you enjoy this episode. You can read the lyrics on my blog: www.petepascoe.wordpress.com, plus there's links to more music and my art. Enjoy.

Episode #180: Crossroads  (Song starts at 4:04) I wrote crossroads, Song #119, in 1989. When I saw the title of the song in my old green songbook, I remembered it was based on an old memory. Reading through the first verse, a vivid scene sort of played out in my mind, like recalling a dream: I was I about 3 or 4. My mother and I had gone to visit an old lady. We sat in her lounge, and cups of tea were served (not for me). My eyes wandered along the old mantelpiece, past the old ticking clock which occasionally chimed. My gaze fixed on a toy car sitting there. got to play with these cars as the adults talked. The old lady kindly gave me the car to take home. All the details are clear as if it were yesterday. That's the power of art. It can convey so much. The first verse was about the old lady and her room. So for the 2nd verse, I moved on to an (imagined) old man carrying his bags home. That's when the word crossroads came through my pen, and I thought Aha - that's what this song is about. The 3rd verse was like an imagined scene from the distant future: the bright sun sinking behind the darkened sign posts, the road disappearing into the fast approaching night. Yep, the cross roads. This was a ‘words first , music second' song.  It's often a surprise to me, when I analyse the chords and melodies of these older songs. They quite often appear to break all the rules of theory, the harmonic changes, the way the melody dips to unexpected slightly unsettling notes and then back to more expected ones. Shooting from the hip like this with the words and music  (which both come through very quickly) is fun and natural for me. I think the result is something almost disarmingly real at times. It's based on something real, then it becomes something more, ultimately returning to the image of the dark unknown of the crossroads. Which road is right? And creatively speaking, which road is right? You just go with instinct. I let the fingers fall on the keys and the I float your voice up to wherever the feeling takes me. It's like being in a woken dream, writing a song. It was fun to rediscover this one, as I ‘winged' the version on this episode. I improvised a piano instrumental section on the fly. It was definitely the feeling from that afternoon that came to me all those years later. Join me now and we'll find out where crossroads came from . Perhaps you've got a cup of tea handy? A mantlepiece? …. Here's my blog. www.petepascoe.wordpress.com You can read the lyrics there + there's lots more music and art to be found here. Enjoy.

Episode #179: Can't Sing You A Song   (Song starts at 3:38) I had a bit of fun with the demo on this episode. Earlier today, I was supposed to be recording some piano for a song. The session got cancelled at the last minute. Turns out I was really in the mood to record, so what started out as a piano/vocal take ended up having the kitchen sink thrown in ( strings, guitars, bass, Rhodes - all done on the keyboards. Good fun. Can't Sing You A Song is a different style for me. Every now and then I write something left of field. I never block ‘the voice'. Songs do come along that I can't ever see myself singing - perhaps this is one of them (on the other hand, now the demo has been completed, maybe it could end up on a solo album of mine). It was fun to compose in this sort of groove based song. It did write it on the piano, but after just a few bars,I realised the sort of song it was going to be. So I kept the beat firmly in mind and I phrased the vocals accordingly, emphasising certain syllables. Also, I didn't introduce any unusual chord changes, in fact I did some repetition 2 chords, three times in a row, this would generally suit a guitar/ band more than just the piano. So I wrote this song with a certain intention - that was suggested very early on. I didn't fight it. I wrote the words first, then the music just flowed easily, around the feel and the chords that came through. The gist of the lyrics is: I can't sing you a song or paint a picture without the feeling being there in the first place. And the song is saying: I can show you I'm having fun - and I hope you do, too - but it's not my place to tell you how: Can't make you laugh, it's not up to me But I'll show you a path where there's loving free Everyone's on their own journey, so it'd be wrong of the lyricist to try and twist the listeners arm. This song is about love, first and foremost - the idea that we've really just started on this next phase of humanity: connectedness as a species, to proceed. We've analysed things so much over the centuries and as a result, we've dis - integrated. So I think art and music are the key…laughter, connectedness and healing and that's what this song is about. It's a happy song. As a songwriter There's a real joy when the full circle happens and an audience responds positively . On the episode, I didn't end up talking about how I produced the demo too much. To create an arrangement like the demo (full band sort of sound), I started with a basic piano track and guide vocal, recorded to the drum beat. Then I added bass on the keys, muted the original piano and replayed a more precise simplified piano part, leaving room for the other instruments (recorded in this order): Rhodes piano, guitar pad L, guitar pad R , nylon string guitar, lead vocal, 2 backing vocals and then the strings, which I added afterwards to bring it all together. I thought the strings would suit the song. So this is the very first demo. Eventually, the parts would be recorded on real instruments, dropping elements in to give the arrangement some space. Perhaps the tempo is a bit quick. If it were just a bit slower, there'd be more groove and that would also make it easier to get a few of those lyrics out. I describe how I came to play the blues in a piano bar. Then it occurs to me this song might work in that sort of style , so I demonstrate that, on the spur of the moment. Picking a style and arranging a song..it's actually a big part of the process. But most often I think it helps to have the song finished in it's own right. If you're recording it, you're going to be listening to it a lot.  Also, as this song says, there has to be feeling and message in my art and music. Our days are few, when also said and done - and we need to have fun along the way. Here we go…let's find out where and how can't sing you a song came from…

Episode #178:  Inside   (Song starts at 4:21) This episode's song is #630, written in August, 2015. It was one of those ‘words first, music second' sort of songs. It's interesting this song should float to the surface for this episode…this week I had a bit of a wobbly moment, we all have them: I was wondering how much would it really have changed things, had I stayed in NZ  (at 30 I moved to Melbourne and started again). Self doubt was the feeling that caused me to pick up a pen in 2015. A couple of things happen when you're in the creative flow. The worries fall away, any murky worrying feelings seem to lift. On this occasion, an answer appeared on the ether, ‘inside'. So the answer can be found within - that's been said many times. I was just thinking of the great movie Shawshank Redemption, how the small rock pick was hidden inside the bible. Brilliant ..freedom lies within. I'm not one to jump on a soapbox and speak my mind to one and all. I'm far more inclined to drop big themes into my lyrics in a more laidback manner. Which is why, for these words, I thought I'd pick a key that would suit a quietly finger picked guitar. Mid way through, t sort of came the full circle, back to piano, when I improvised a far more keyboard sort of a bridge, with counter bass. Notes with strong harmonies…perhaps they'll be vocal harmonies Most often the chords come to me intuitively. I was doing my usual thing, when I came to the point where the chorus needed to happen. I'm very pleased I stopped and checked my ‘relative chords', which I'd written down before I started the music. The chord G# minor had net been used yet. So I stopped and matched a melody note with the chord and put the sung note right on the first count of the bar. It's all a learning curve, life. We are all going to have our doubts, this song is suggesting the listener might consider go ing within to find some answers. When I was a youngster, I took a less trodden path. A creative one. And I'm pleased I did. I'm still on it. If I'd taken a more expected path, (There's a line in the song:) ‘would the lone cry of nature still call to me?' Leading a creative lifestyle, being fully reliant on the arts to make a living, sure has its uncertain moments. It keeps you on your toes. You're effectively ‘living in faith', I would say. So I find peace when I go out in nature - and when I go within. So that's the quiet message in this song… you know, so if you're in pain, life's not going great for a moment, go for walk at the beach or sit down and just breathe easily, freedom awaits… I hope you enjoy this episode. I certainly enjoyed recording my thoughts and I had fun rediscovering ‘Inside', as I recorded the piano vocal demo. Here's my blog: www.petepascoe.wordpress.com you can read the lyrics here, plus there's lots of art  -and  way more music, each week…. Enjoy!

Episode #177: Evening Hours   (Song starts at 3:34 &16:22) 'Evening hours' starts out with a slightly unsettling discordant bell (sounds like the end something) set against a quiet piano riff. This particular introduction has always brought to mind a potential rough story and an opening scene in a play or possibly a movie or stage show, for me. The bell represents ‘the end' (also the start) and the arpeggio is like a child music box dancer - ‘the beginning'. A music box is also something that may be equally enjoyed by a young person or an older person…perhaps it's a keepsake, a childhood memory. And now this older person can't quite believe the years have passed by - but passed by they have and now it's time…. Yes, 'Evening Hours' is a deep song, about the end of life. We don't talk about death much here in ‘the West', at least. I think we need to. Perhaps a song is a good place to start. It's not a morbid song, to me. Spooky, sure, but there's a couple of uplifting lines that say ‘Why not reach a highlight here tonight?'. Life is to be lived, regardless of one's age. This song was really determined to get a voice tonight, when I came out to my studio to record another episode. It popped into my mind as a contender and that's generally the moment I go “ok, let's do it”… I picked up an old cassette from the stack and there it was, the title track from an old 4 tracked home recorded album by Paul Dredge and myself. I recognised the art work on the cassette. Beneath it was another cassette. The 3rd song in my handwriting on the inner jacket that caught my eye straight away was …'Evening Hours'. I thought: ‘Ok, it's a sign'.. ha. Evening hours was written in 1987. It's song number 18. Now in 2023, as I find myself writing about the song, I've written 800. Bizarre. It's great yo be rediscovering the old songs - and sharing them - on the podcast. I've chosen to include both versions of the song. You get to hear the piano vocal version. And then the other more involved arrangement. I wanted to show what I hear in my head as I play ‘ just ‘ the piano and sing. I was using very basic gear in 1989 and 1991 when these 2 versions were recorded. We are so lucky in this day and age to have wonderful recording gear at our fingertips in our homes. I say: go for it, make the most of it and see what you come up with - if you're so inclined. Recording is so much like the songwriting process. One happy accident leads to the next. I think the opening riff was due to me pacing my left hand in the wrong position on the piano keys, for instance. What composing Evening Hours did for me was: it made me feel like i could do this thing. I could write songs with feeling and mystery and I could record a version of something that was in my mind. 1987 was a big year for me. It was when I began writing at least a song a week, which I then continued to do for many years. It's like discovering you can draw. I've been lucky to do be doing that in my life as well. I hope you enjoy this episode. You can touch on deep themes with music and somehow ‘get away with it'. I think that's perhaps what's happened with 'Evening Hours'. I'd sure like to perform it one day on a stage. It'd have to be the right setting! And I'd like to record it properly. That'd be fun. You can find the lyrics, more music  - and art here on my blog  www.petepascoe.worpress.com. I have 12 albums online (solo, and with others), www.petepascoe.com  Here we go….