04. Your Mama Danced The Night Away
NSFWLiner Notes
#guywithpiano #grief #loss #ballad
This song is dedicated to my wonderful niece, who I thought deserved a song more than most. Long story short, early on in Covid my mother and I ended up having to raise her. In the span of a year or so she lost both of her parents to addiction, leaving us to pick up the pieces with a little girl who was never equipped to understand any of it.
She's amazing and smart and silly and full of all of the anger and rage and sadness that you'd expect an orphan to have. Somedays she can be seven handfuls. Others she can be an angel full of more empathy than most people will ever muster.
After about two years I had to leave and get going with my own life. It broke my heart, but both my mother and I were in stable enough spots to make the change and if I didn't leave, I wouldn't be with my partner, and so...yeah. It was hard.
My niece is doing well these days. She's in therapy, she's doing gymnastics just like her mama did when she was little, and I try to see them as much as I can, when I can. My mother is in her 60's and having to raise ANOTHER kid, and while I know she's making the best of it, I wish she could have had a peaceful retirement after herself losing so much. It's unfair. And yet, my niece is where she belongs, because this is the place where she can have the best future.
Anyways, to cut to the chase, that little girl deserved a song about her and I wrote her one. I hope she can return to this as she gets older to feel a little better about the shit hand she was dealt.
Thanks for listening if you do.
Lyrics
Verse 1: You were barely in the world, Before the world fell apart, And though the feeble and the foolish Gave you quite the head start,
You were raised around a sickness, So in the back of our minds It was a matter of time.
I wonder what you will remember; Your grandfather on the couch. Your mother pacing in the bedroom. Hiding by the heater in the old house.
Your daddy with your dog, Who bit me and left a scar On the day that you were born.
Pre-Chorus 1: It seems so hard to know, But when all is said and done, We are the ones to show you Where you come from.
Chorus: Your mama danced the night away With you cradled in her arms. You will always be her baby, And she will always be your mom.
Yeah, I think you oughtta know, So I put it in a song, You were just a little girl, You were never in the wrong.
She's in everything you do, Through the darkest of your days, And you know that you can keep her Like a picture in a frame.
Take her out when it's not easy, For as long as you will live You deserve to have a life. You deserve to be a kid.
Verse 2: Your grandmother and your auntie, They're doing all they can To keep filling you with love, And I hope you understand
That all the anger and confusion The sadness in your heart, It don't change who you are.
You're stronger than you know, And you're way funnier than me. I hated moving out on you, But we're where we gotta be.
I hold onto every message That we recorded on the phone, It reminds me of home.
Pre-C 2: It seems so hard to breathe, But when we're closer to the end, You'll be the one who carries all that we left.
Your mama danced the night away With you cradled in her arms. You will always be her baby, And she will always be your mom.
Yeah, I think you oughtta know, So I put it in a song, You were just a little girl, You were never in the wrong.
She's in everything you do, Through the darkest of your days, And you know that you can keep her Like a picture in a frame.
Take her out when it's not easy, For as long as you will live You deserve to have a life. You deserve to be a kid.
Comments
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#tit4tat is a journey of discovery I'm finding and I'm so glad it led me here. Thank you for writing your story, and song for your neice - they are hearthurting and heartwarming in equal measure - very, very moving. The anger, confusion, sadness and compassion in this beautiful child, and all the feelings you have for her, and experience through the many facets of loss and grief in your family's story - you have captured these so well in this extraordinary song. The recording at the end - what spoke to me most there was the respect you gave her in asking her permission to do this - another layer of the love so evident in this song. Overall awesome that you are using your talent and craft with words and music in such expressive and sensitive ways. And as a gift for her. Thank you for stopping by to comment on a couple of my little pieces, Raÿguns? a little different from this 😄 #tit4tat
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@onemilefinal the vocals are indeed doubled, I like doing them that way for the texture and imperfections between the takes, and sometimes I'll have the left and right takes hit different notes for a pseudo-harmony thing. No idea what I'm doing, and sometimes it works lol
As for production, that's super kind of you to say! The drums aren't real, they are done via the drum option on my piano, so it's way quicker than recording actual ones lol. I have a good feel for my DAW as well so the "production" to me is just the process of writing the song, I'm not gopd at stripped back stuff, lol. Even with vocals I usually slap on effects before I even record the take, because I know what I want. I appreciate the kind words!
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Dang dude this song is impressive for so many reasons. First, there's clearly a lot of production put into this, which I kinda can't understand how you pulled off during FAWM lol.
I really like the vocal effect too. Did you actually double the vocal, or is that stereo effect some kind of delay?
Great lyrics and imagery. This couldn't have been an easy song to write, but hopefully it's been a cathartic and positive experience for you. Really great work!
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This is very cool and not weird at all (crying). The voicemails are such an amazing touch. So far this is a really thoughtful album you've made.
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Very touching and deep. Beautiful vocal in all the right ways. Meaningful lyrics I can feel it.
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Having listened then failed to leave a comment yesterday, I'm back for another attempt. What a wonderful song.
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"It was a matter of time" woof. This hits hard! She's lucky to have adults like you in her life! All the lyrics here are heart wrenching, "You deserve to have a life / You deserve to be a kid" is like a hug and a sucker punch rolled into one. The voicemails were so sweet 🥲 Really moving, amazing work. I hope the best for her, and all of you!
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Such a sad story (and I know there are so many in the world, which makes it all the harder). The song is gorgeous and flowing, and your vocals, the shimmery piano and the backing washes the ethereal effect are just perfect for the message of sorrow and hope. It's all just stunning and beautiful. Truly a lovely, powerful track, and genuinely affecting. (The vm messages at the end are the perfect touch of realness; just riveting.)
@overflow Thank you so much, I couldn't have written a script better than her response. So funny, and I felt like I needed this thing to end on a semi-positive note lol. Kids are so wonderful, they can cut through all the bs. "I know you're sad, but you can just write songs about other people!" Love her so much. Thanks for the listen.
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Devastating and beautiful. You had me crying, and then the whole thing opened up and I was laugh-crying. The message from your niece is priceless. I loved the preschool song motif that underlies it all.
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This is a wonderful song for your niece Brandon. Sorry for all the loss you and your family have gone through. We don’t get to choose what happens, only how we deal with it. Your niece is fortunate to have your mom and you in her life. Thanks for sharing and I hope she enjoys your song as much as I did.
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another song that hits me hard in the heart. you express so many truths pertaining to the grief experienced by a child. my daughter lost her mother just two days before her 8th birthday. she been handling it surprisingly well, but i am afraid she is repressing a lot. here are a couple of songs about this https://billwhite.bandcamp.com/track/orphans-of-the-storm://billwhite.bandcamp.com/track/when-angelica-stopped-believing-in-santa-claus
i really love the parts where your niece is talking,