You Are Me, I Am You

"There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats." — Albert Schweitzer

There are those who are born into great talent, and who excel and achieve making it to the "big time" with nary an effort. They're just made to be musicians and to share what they do with a world full of eager, listening ears. And through the ages there have been a great many brilliant musical minds who have graced us with their notes and vibes and riffs—beautiful melodies and driving rhythms. The soulful Janis Joplin comes to mind. The genius of Jimi Hendrix is certainly among them. And there are countless others; Michael Jackson, Prince, Elvis Presley, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Chris Cornell, and Kurt Cobain.

There really is not enough room to include everyone.

To that end what I always have said about music in general, whether the music comes from greats or just a guy who decided to start a small band in his garage—to a guy like me who just does it for fun—it does not really matter in the end what the style is. People gravitate to all kinds of sounds, to all kinds of rhythms, to all kinds of melodies.

I do not put myself in any league with any of these greats to be sure. I only illustrate that even among some of the greats there are those who might argue against the talent. No matter.

Musicians, and people in general, do what they do, listen to what they like, and really the brilliance and greatness of the world we live in today is that we get to hear it all. The good, the bad, the great, and the phenomenal.

And we get to share it as well. All of it. The best of it and the worst of it.

Interestingly enough to me is that a site like Bandcamp and Jango tend to be great places for one to share and "try things out." My best received songs have actually been songs I thought would never get any attention at all.

Here is my latest attempt. I hope you like it. It's not great. It's not intended to be. It's just me, the hobby I do, and as I said, I get to share it and let you decide whether it is a thumbs up or a thumbs down.

You Are Me, I Am You by Jim Bauer

YOU ARE ME, I AM YOU
by Jim Bauer
Released May 26, 2017
https://jimbauer.bandcamp.com/track/you-are-me-i-am-you
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CAPO II
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Verse1:
Am                Dm                                                Am
Sittin' on the front porch, and I'm talking to the old man
                            F                                  G                                  Am
He hands me the torch, says walk in my shoes and you'll be all right
                       Dm                                                Am
Said he'd had dark days, and you're gonna have them too
                                 F                              G                                     Am
Take the bull by the horns, says just be a man, do what you gotta do
               Dm                              Am
He was a wise man, I could see was true
                               F                  G                  Am
He said I'm you're dad, you are me, and I am you

Bridge:
F           G          Dm Am   F                        G                    Dm    Am   F
Feeling now that I   re — gret, the days we lost what we might have said

Chorus:
C                G    Dm Am               C    C/B  G
But there's on — ly now, we can make it   up
C                 G    Dm Am                 C     C/B  G
There's still time to fill, to fill this emp — ty   cup
C        G   Dm Am                    C   C/B G
Yesterday is gone, no sense in looking back
C          G    Dm Am              C    C/B  G
Oh, the time is now, to get it back on   track

Verse2:
Am                Dm                                                Am
Sittin' on the front porch, and I'm talking to the old man
                         F                      G                              Am
Says what I've done, no I ain't proud, but it's who I am
                     F                            Am
Said dad it's okay, got me some demons too
                        F                 G                  Am
Said I'm your son, you are me, and I am you
                   F                     G                        Am
You're my dad, I'm you're son, and we are one

BRIDGE AND CHORUSES REPEAT

 

Lyrics of All You Are by Jim Bauer

All You Are

Words and music by: Jim Bauer

Recorded: August 2016

Released: August 2016

Album: Released as a single

Lyrics:

           All that you are

           All that you fear inside

           Lurks in a place you can't hide

           All that you bare

           Burdens of sorrow you yield

           There's nothing to touch that is real

           Hold onto your life

           And there'll be tears to fall

           Like you've lost an old friend

           Wait for the pain to fade away

           If you fall, this won't be the end

           All you are is what you are

           There is nothing I'm to fear

           If I don't run, if I stand

           I won't fade away

           All that you are

           All that you wanted to be

           Lurks in a place you can't see

           All that you are

           The burdens of sorrow you yield

           Nothing to touch that is real

           Hold onto your life

           And there'll be tears to fall

           Like you've lost an old friend

           Wait for the pain to fade away

           If you fall, this won't be the end

           All you are is what you are

           There is nothing I'm to fear

           If I don't run, if I stand

           I won't fade away (x2 to fade out)

Jim Bauer on Jango Music

Buy "All You Are" on iTunes

Stream "All You Are" on Apple iTunes Music

Buy the album "Pink Flamingoes" by Jim Bauer (iTunes)

Stream the album "Pink Flamingoes" by Jim Bauer (Apple iTunes Music)

Official Music Video, "All You Are" on YouTube:

Jim Bauer does a cover of the 1980's hit song by Peter Gabriel, "Sledgehammer." Recorded August 2016.

"All You Are" by Jim Bauer available at the following music outlets: iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Play, Deezer, Groove, Rhapsody, eMusic, Simfy Africa, iHeartRadio, MediaNet, VerveLife, Tidal, Gracenote, Shazam, 7Digital, Juke, Slacker, Guvera, KKBox, Akazoo, Anghami, Spinlet, Neurotic Media, Yandex, Target Music, ClaroMusica, Zvooq, Saavn, 8tracks, NMusic, Q.Sic, Cur, Musicload, and Kuack

Kurt Vile's Pretty Pimpin

Kurt Vile is someone entirely new to me in the music world, and until I heard his song Life Like This, I had never heard of him before. After a few listens that song began to grow on me a bit, and then I became curious.

What else has he got?

And then I found one of the other songs from his latest album, b'lieve i'm goin down, this one called Pretty Pimpin, that I simply thought was a great example of indie sound, uniqueness, and a groove I can definitely get into.

Without sounding corny, the song is pretty pimpin.

It is played with a very simple, but groovy and hooky fingerstyle pattern, and I think this song, unlike Life Like This is a much better example of his musical talent and genius. I like Life Like This for its sheer simplicity of form and arrangement, but Pretty Pimpin, to my mind, is better, and I am not sure why this one didn't make it to the airwaves before the other one did.

Or perhaps it did and I just wasn't paying attention. After all, like I said, I had never heard of Kurt Vile before.

Having dabbled a bit in the indie scene myself, writing my own music, I like music that is not overly mainstream, not overly structured, and that is more like a piece of abstract art that one must see the message of with a discerning, yet keen eye to the underlying message. Kurt Vile manages to keep the song moving along nicely, and you never miss that the verses are really the chorus, it lacks a real bridge, and disobeys the "laws" of what defines great music. Pretty Pimpin stands well on its own as a solid track, and one that can be listened to over and over again, each time finding something new you did not hear before, and always appreciating every subsequent listen more than the former.

It may not be a masterpiece, but the song still fucking rocks!

 

 



Introduction To The Alternative And Indie Music Corner Blog

Perhaps it is that I was a child of the 80's that my taste in music has forever been a bit eclectic. Even when writing my own music, my style definitely defies the norm, and is more than a bit outside of the mainstream. The 80's at the time could have easily been defined as "mainstream," but certainly for its time it was a style of music that had its own place in time, and of course had its own distinct sounds. Like mullets and multi-colored outfits, the 80's are unmistakably obvious—you know it when you see it, and you know it when you hear it.

From very early on in my childhood I was interested in creating something all my own. Some of my friends probably thought I was a bit of an oddball, spending hours at a time in my own fantasy world of bright lights and adoring fans. I was always singing something, and 90% of the time it was something I made up. Knitting needles and hairbrushes were given new purpose as microphones, and my band was made up of vocalized percussion sets with lyrics of course mixed in.

One of my favorite bands at the time was The Talking Heads. There was something about that sound and certainly their style of music that just drew me in. I was hooked. And of course there was that first video I saw of them, with David Byrne dancing in a typical unusual style against a blue backdrop to Once In A Lifetime. To this day I still enjoy throwing in some Talking Heads music.

The thing is that there is so much great music out there if only you take the time to find it. I like my music interesting and different, rather than simply being spoon fed what is popular or who some radio marketing guy decides should be. And of course nowadays with the Internet, YouTube, Jango, and satellite radio, it's easier than ever to find those bands, signed or not, and hear some very interesting musical talent. Back in its day MySpace was actually a good place to seek out some really interesting and eclectic stuff you'd probably never have otherwise have ever had the opportunity to find. And many bands today actually get their start simply by getting noticed through channels that for artists in the past would have been impossible. Even Justin Bieber, regardless of what you think of him, would never have been discovered had it not been for things he posted on YouTube. If it would have happened anyway, and considering his undeniable talent I think it would have, it would not have been until much later on, and the work to get noticed would have been much harder.

How many great musicians, do you wonder, did we never get to hear from simply because the path to being heard had only one course? How many simply gave up and got jobs in factories or office buildings?

This page is devoted to my view of music. Here I wish to share what I find to be interesting and fresh, both from signed and unsigned bands alike. Here it is about sharing covers, great original new stuff, my own covers and originals, and anything else I think is worth sharing here. I hope you will enjoy whatever journey we wind up on, and if you have any suggestions for me for bands to check out do feel free to comment any time. Or if you would like me to check out your own stuff, I'd be more than happy to see what you've got.

The most important take away here should be that music is about sharing. It is about fun. It is about being different and embracing that. It is about tossing aside the mainstream and making way for enjoying what makes each artist unique and different. It is about letting the fans and the listeners decide who and what ultimately makes the airwaves, and what defines our own "mainstream."