• Remembering "The Forgotten Place": How a new song came into being, part one.

On 12/19/2008, Dave Tutin sent out the following email to regular readers of his blog:

Ever thought you'd like to write a song? Now you have the chance. I just posted at davetutin.typepad.com a verse that has been kicking around in my head for months. Where the rest of the song will go I, as yet, have no idea. It's called The Forgotten Place. So send me your ideas. If I use any of the verses, or chorus or bridge, submitted I will copyright the song as a co-compositionin your name(s) and mine. I can't promise you'll make any money. But you'll be able to say "I wrote a song".
- Dave

To me, that email was like crack to a crack ho. I could not resist. I clicked into Dave's blog and read the verse referenced in the email, which was:

There's a need that burns
Like a forest fire
Scattering the casualties
of my desire

From Hong Kong to London
From Bangkok to Rome
From New York to Rio
To a forgotten place called home

Yup, pretty goddamn great. I immediately set to work, seeing step one as "completing" the lyric. Inspiration came fast, and I penned the following over the next few days:

But nothing grows
Come rain or drought
Because all the seeds I've scattered
Are just seeds of doubt
In Singapore cafés
Under Tuscan domes
In hotels and airplanes
All forgotten like that place called home

(FROM TUTIN POEM)

There are some Jigsaw cities
where I may rest a while
Knowing I am safe
within the suburb of your smile

But the need still burns
Until it all lights on fire
And scatters one more casualty
Of my desire

And I go back to London
I go back to Rome
I go back to Rio
But I can never go back home

I was pretty pleased with myself. I thought I had extended the story of the lyric in a good way, added some twists, found a cool poem of Dave's that fit nicely for a middle 8. After I sent off my creation to Dave, though, I got a reply that was not exactly universal praise. But, my scribblings had given him a few ideas and he had produced this:

There's a need that burns
Like a forest fire
Scattering the casualties
of my desire

In love and loss
In flood or drought
All the seeds I've scattered
Were just seeds of doubt

From Hong Kong to London
From Bangkok to Rome
From New York to Rio
To a forgotten place called home

Sparks and wind
And a fire starts
The ecstasy of every
Collision of hearts

From Berlin to Cape Town
From Bangkok to Rome
From Singapore to Paris
To a forgotten place called home

But the need still burns
And that wall of flame
Stops you from returning
The way you came

With their mother's ghost
Still between the sheets
My imaginary children
Walk the streets

From Hong Kong to London
From Bangkok to Rome
From New York City
To a forgotten place called home

I read those words and, well, I was just blown away. The last verse especially. Off I went and came up with the music of what would end up being version one of five, or even more depending on how you count.. I don't consider myself overly arrogant or cocky, but I thought my first pass was great, and yet, there was a small, tight knot in my stomach. Stay tuned for what Dave had to say, as well as The Wife's opinion.

In the meantime, what's yours? What do you like about this version, not like, wish were different, etc?

CAVEAT: I'M PLAYING EVERYTHING AND SINGING, SO DON'T GET TOO HUNG UP ON THE PERFORMANCE!