FAWM: "Letter to Myself"

Letter to Myself

2025 by @raspberry33

Skirmish: Letter to your future sel... (@rinwolf)

Liner Notes

#skirmish #guywithpiano #acousticonetake #demo #future Well, this will be my final skirmish of 2025! Think of it as the bonus cut after the CD ends - this is a raw demo, one take with only a couple of edits. I took a little different approach to the prompt - instead of writing a letter to my future self, my future self is reading that letter 20 or so years later. All the things we couldn't predict. And woven in there is the idea that much of our digital legacy may be uninterpretable in the future. But I think music will survive, the way it did in folk ballads sung by troubadours before there were wax cylinders and vinyl.

Lyrics

VERSE 1: Here’s a letter I sent to myself Written 20 years ago Where I tried to predict what would happen next Who can tell? Who could possibly know

I didn’t know then if there’d still be paper Or computers that understand DOS Maybe music’s the best way to future-proof The thoughts I don’t want to toss

CHORUS: Ink fades, and paper crumbles Only music and love offer legacy Can I write lyrics that people will sing To a memorable melody? When everything else disappears.

VERSE 2: Very few things last forever Temples and stone carvings rot Churches catch fire; cities are bulldozed You leave this world with what you brought

Digital signals won’t talk to each other Vinyl’s a much better bet Low tech is sometimes the better option Leave music or else they’ll forget

CHORUS

VERSE 3: Are there physical newspapers still in the driveway And how many people can read? Do you now need a neural link – to think Or have we been told – “there’s no need”?

Do musicians still perform in cafes? Have stadium concerts been banned? Are there troubadours who sing subversive ballads To the people who still understand?

CHORUS:

OUTRO: I’m not sure if you can read this But maybe you’ll hum the tune

Comments

@musicsongwriter 2025

I didn't have ideas for the prompt. You nailed it. Very beautiful and thoughtful song. Moving and personal, sincere and nostalgic. Love it. Gorgeous, expressive vocals and the piano expressing fate.

@jessica14 2025

Love the approach that your future self looks back! The spoken word style cool

@jeremykazoo 2025

This had me thinking very deeply about our changing world.

@dotsandlines 2025

Fahrenheit 451 for the songwriter rather than the novelist. Considering how old some songs are that people still sing, I think there's precedent that at least some of the music of today will stick around.

@sheilerk 2025

What a thought! This is amazing, it's a protest song without any actual protestation, and I hope not too prescient. An excellent lyric and a great vocal delivery. The simple piano backing makes it even more powerful. Glad I got to hear this one.