songs, songwriting

Mehr Mond über Mainz

SpringtOifel live in concert in Leipzig in December 2005.Als ich im Januar an dieser Stelle den von Sebastian Linke (Text) und mir (Musik) unter anderem beim letztjährigen Rio Reiser Songpreis eingereichten Song “Mond über Mainz” vorgestellt habe, habe ich ja bereits erwähnt, daß Sebastian als Schlagzeuger der Mainzer Oi!-Punk Formation “SpringtOifel” (Wikipedia.de) immer einen schönen deutschsprachigen Text aus dem Ärmel oder der Schublade schütteln kann.

Was ich aber im Januar noch nicht angedeutet habe, ist, daß die ursprüngliche Motivation für den Song nicht zuletzt das überaus spannende kreative Experiment eines Crossovers meiner als “adult contemporary” einzuordnenden Komposition mit der rauen Oi!-Punk Inspiration der SpringtOifel war.

Das höchst interessante und hörenswerte Ergebnis dieser Kombination – eine Ska Version des Songs – kann man dann auf dem demnächst erscheinenden Album der SpringtOifel – “Engelstrompeten & Teufelsposaunen” – verkosten. Als Vorgeschmack aber bieten die SpringtOifel “Mond über Mainz” und drei weitere Songs (allerdings nicht vollständig) als mp3 auf ihrer Webseite zum Anhören und Herunterladen an.

Update: Hier gibt’s den Mond auf myspace zu hören.

Und meine Version gibt es zum Vergleich gleich hinterher –

Viel Spass!

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songs, songwriting

Mond über Mainz

Nachdem ich gerade ein Podcasting Plugin gegen ein anderes ausgetauscht habe, und ich mich im Moment des Eindrucks nicht erwehren kann, daß es funktioniert, kommt hier ein neuer Song. Ein deutscher diesmal, allerdings ist der Text nicht von mir, sondern von meinem Freund Sebastian Linke, der nicht nur Filmemacher, sondern auch Schlagzeuger der Mainzer Oi!-Punk Formation “SpringtOifel” (Wikipedia.de) ist. Daher hat er auch fast immer einen deutschen Text in der Schublade, aus der er letztes Frühjahr den zu “Mond über Mainz” zog.

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songs, songwriting

Still – Titelsong für “Pilù oder das andere Leben”

Pil oder das andere LebenSo, jetzt hat almostadiary.de auch einen, mittels des WordPress Plugins “Podpress” realisierten, Podcast. Kaum jemand unter Ihnen, verehrte Leser, dürfte wissen, daß ich schon lange bevor Steve Jobs und sein mp3-player die Welt eroberten Podcasts hergestellt habe: Schon als Teenager habe ich nicht nur einfache Mixtapes hergestellt, sondern diese auch moderiert. Aber die technischen Möglichkeiten sind heute natürlich ganz andere.

Ich werde zwei Feeds anbieten: Einen almostadiary-Feed, der sowohl meine Songs als auch alle anderen zukünftigen Podcasts auf almostadiary enthält, sowie einen tapsmusic-Feed, der ausschließlich meine Songs beinhalten wird. Beide werden demnächst wohl auch bei iTunes angemeldet und sind dann auch über den iTunes Music Store zu beziehen.

So, und jetzt zur ersten Episode im almostadiary-podcast, einem Song mit dem Titel “Still“.

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German Politics, photoblogging

She never looked better.

Angela Merkel looks better on.Certainly not after the results were announced. Not even the little moustache someone painted above her upper lip seem to bother her. Stuff like that doesn’t bother people who have already discounted a clear-cut victory. However – losing bothers them. A lot. Return to this picture to see what I’m talking about when you’re watching the news these days.

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songs, songwriting

My Wicked Ways, Pt. 2

My Wicked Ways is actually one of the first songs I’ve ever written – back in 1993. Back then I did not write lyrics for the song, so I added those last year when I listened to some of my “earlier” stuff. That’s the reason for the “Pt. 2” in the title.

My Wicked Ways is actually not too wicked a song. It’s a light ballad and you can get the VST based demo as mp3 (128kbit, enclosed). Words, music and vocals by Tobias Schwarz, 1993-2005.

[audio:http://almostadiary.de/download-manager.php?id=3]

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songs, songwriting

Dr Deaver (2004)

Dr Deaver is a song with less autobiographic lyrics than some may think.

Actually, I think it was a friend who suggested writing a song about a chapter headline he had read in a British sex education booklet for teenagers. The headline was: “Am I wrong to be turned on by porn?”

While not printed under Queen Victoria, the booklet wasn’t in line with recent progressive trends in sexual education and so the chapter about pornography was – while somehow understanding from a medical perspective – not too enthusiastic about such material’s potential for genital arousal. It was extremely funny to read and so I did indeed decide to write a song about “a guy’s lifelong relationship with certain visual stimuli.”

Dr Deaver wasn’t the author of the booklet chapter, but the name somehow appeared in my mind while I was sitting at the piano. So here he is, with an answer for everything you always wanted to know about porn but never dared to ask. Enjoy – but not too much…

You can get the VST based demo as mp3 (128kbit, enclosed). Words, music and vocals by Tobias Schwarz, 2004-2005.

I wonder how long it will take for google to send people here because of the frequent use of “porn” in this entry… oh wait, I did not use “free”… (oops, now I did).

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songs, songwriting

New Year’s Resolution (you’re ugly inside) (2003)

New Year’s Resolution is another song that I wrote a while ago and now decided to put online – beware, there are a couple more of them. I wrote the first version in early 2003 and now arranged it with more electric guitars and a “twist of Keane”-piano in the background. I think it makes an interesting combination and that the sound – while obviously only a demo – supports the rather dark lyrics well. As usual, you can get the VST based, home-produced demo as mp3 (128kbit, enclosed). Words, music and vocals by Tobias Schwarz, 2003-2005.

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songs, songwriting

Fool Cruel Gone One (fcgo)

FCGO is an older song. I wrote it in the Summer of 2002 and occasionally revisited it thereafter, mostly because I wasn’t too happy with the lyrics. I started with four random words and two rhymes – Fool Cruel, Gone One. So that was a bit of an experiment… Now I quite like them, so you can decide for yourselves. FCGO is currently arranged with more audible electric guitars than most other songs I published here and so the song has a nice drive. Feel free to listen to the VST based demo as mp3 (128kbit, enclosed). Words, music and vocals by Tobias Schwarz, © 2002-2005.

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songs, songwriting

You Save My Life (2005)

A very light and romantic tune I wrote for the wedding of two good friends last weekend. As usual, home-recorded VST based demo available as mp3 (128kbit, enclosed) and. Words, music and vocals by Tobias Schwarz, © 2005.

Lyrics –

(1)
You save my life
With everything you do
You do it every morning
When I look at you
‘Cos in your eyes
Is where I find
The answer to all questions
Weighing on my mind

(Chorus)
You’ll be there for me
Whenever I need you
I’ll be there for you
Whenever you call
You hold my head
When I had too much to drink
You’re my best friend
When I need a shrink
I know that you’re the one for me

(2)
You give me faith
‘Cos your love is strong
You make me feel at home
When the road will be long
You lead my way
Wherever we may go
You do it every evening
When we let our love grow

(Chorus)

(Primary Bridge)
Like Romeo and Juliette
But we’re gonna live instead
‘Cos our love’s never gonna fail
We’ll always hear the nightingale

(Chorus x 2)

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Fußball, Mainz, songs, songwriting

Carnival Junkies

Back in 2004, my home team Mainz 05 was finally promoted to the first division of the German Bundesliga after having been beaten on the last day twice in a row. First by asingle point, then by a single goal. It was a tragedy not many teams would have been able to digest, let alone beat the odds and be promoted the third time around.

But Mainz 05 is a special club in more ways than one. It’s a club that, above all, celebrates playing the game. But, then again, maybe that’s not too surprising for a football team based in a town with even more carnival tradition than Rio (sorry Roberta ; – I agree that the Cariocas have come up with something unique – but we’re just a little older over here).

So when Mrs. T., one of my fellow authors at www.fistfulofeuros.net, and native to Ireland, decided to honor the lads’ promotion with an English poem in 2004, I came up with the idea to write an English song based on the poetry –

“Climb wither though couldst not before
Now freed at last from gravity’s restraints
To the Empyrean on eagle’s wings
O thou heroic FSV Mainz”

However, even disregarding the “eagle” thing (Eintracht Frankfurt, a regional competitor uses the bird as logo), I just could not come up with a decent hook using these words, and eventually, I put the idea to rest for a while.

So it wasn’t until I read in the supporter’s web forum ““www.kigges.de” that fans were trying to translate some German songs and looking for suitable English material a bit more specific than the classic from “Caroussel” now that Mainz have been chosen to play in the UEFA cup qualifiers based on fair-play criteria that I decided to give the idea another go. I eventually decided against using Mrs T.’s poem, rewrote the lyrics, and suddenly everything fell into the right place – or so I think.

Now the song is called “Carnival Junkies”, a title that is not just a summary of much of what I think the team and their supporters are about, but also an hommage to the Californian singer/songwriter Cindy Alexander, who has written a song called “Carnival Junky” back in 2001 (I think).

For the time being, it’s a VST based, home-produced, demo and available as mp3 (128kbit, enclosed). Words, music and vocals by Tobias Schwarz, 2004-2005. Note that I have not been able to stand to sing due to a leg injury… Please contact me about ideas for commodification, should you have any. Enjoy!

Lyrics –

(Intro)
05 05 05 05 (x4)

(Verse 1)
Feels like we’re at home
In red in white we
Face the floodlight
You’ll never walk alone
In bust or boom,
Glory or gloom.

Don’t know why we
Feel that way
It’s been like that
Since our first day.

(Chorus)
Mainzer!
We’re Carnival junkies
who know how to play ball
We’ll never falter
We will stand tall (05)
Not for the money or for the fame
We just want to
play the game (05)
We’re Carnival junkies
Always up for a fight
You’ll feel the fire we will ignite (05)
For all the money and all the fame
We’ll stay the same
And win the game (05)

(Interlude)
05 05 05 05

(Verse 2)
We held our heads high
When we were down cause
We knew all the time
They may laugh in our face
We’d try again
We’d win the race.

Don’t know why we
Feel that way
It’s been like that
Since our first day.

(Chorus)

(Primary Bridge)
We’ll be singing when we’re winning
When the cups are coming home
When you ask what really matters
We’ll tell you it’s in our soul
We tasted our share of sand
We’ve been down there before
However tough, we will get up
You’ll know it when we score!

(Chorus x2)

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