Tag: Harrisburg PA

Half Hearted

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Written by Ric Albano Song Length: 4:52
Listen to the Song: Purchase the MP3:
[audio:HalfHearted.mp3]
Lyrics
That will take a while
Until they do what they’re supposed to do
Although it’s not our style, we’ll burn all that we’re opposed to
Then fly by night towards the glow of the light

But that may take some time
To recoup everything that it’s worth
We will exhaust our prime, in futility we’ll scour the earth
Descend from the limelight towards that peril-ess dream
Rescind from the golden book towards the “gold star” magazine

And go half the way, half the way
That is just as far as we’ll dare to
We’ll go half the way, half the way
Any further, we’re just too scared to

But that may take some time
Just to figure the whole thing out
Which molehills to climb, which television to do without
We’ll drive over paved roads on the Oracle’s grave
As we find a few more things to complain about

We’ll go half the way, half the way
And build a house of granularity
We’ll go half the way, half the way
Just one shot a mediocrity

But oh how good it feels to walk in those old shoes
And know it’s our prerogative to live the way that we choose
The way we choose

But who will help us now as we’re losing who we are?
And our well is quickly drying and our memories can’t be jarred?
We’ll curse at the light as it dissolves into night

But who will save us now, since we’ve turned our backs before?
And we’ve danced upon your gloom clouds?
And we’ve pissed upon your shores?
We cursed at your light, complained it’s glow was too bright

But can’t you help me now?
Won’t you help me now?

Composition © 2007 Ric Albano
Publication © 2009, 2011 Cygnus Wave Music

Song Info
Composed on December 7, 2007
Recorded starting on December 30, 2008
at Cygnus Wave Studios
Produced and Engineered by Ric Albano
Mixed and Mastered in 2009
at Cygnus Wave Studios
Original Release: September 9, 2009
on Imaginary Lines 33

Performers
Ric Albano
Piano, Keyboards, Bass, Vocals

Listener Guide
Grade

Analysis: A song about facing death after living a life not well lived.

Song Trivia
This song was actually co-written by Ric Albano’s then 10-year-old son Jacob, but Ric didn’t feel it was appropriate to but his son’s name on a song that contained the lyric “pissed upon your shore”. So he he “bought out” Jacob’s share of the songwriting credit with a new video game.

To offer your own analysis of Half Hearted, please leave a comment in the box below.

Deuce

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Written by Ric Albano Song Length: 5:29
Listen to the Song: Purchase the MP3:
[audio:Deuce.mp3]
Lyrics
I still remember how she chased me around
The first time that I walked across her floor
And I ran and I ran but she persisted behind
Until I could not run no more

Cool and serene she did preen but on a dime she turned mean
Catch the double-headed tiger by the tail
Disregarding albatross, she charged forward, fingers crossed
It was a plan destined to fail

But what more could she expect from angels with linguine necks…
Who would never dare to tell her what to do?
Give a zealous girl such power and sooner or later it turns sour
As darker demons are let loose, between reposeful sips of juice

Every once in a while you can see through her smile
That some innocence remains there too
But then where is the justice for Sinclair Soul?
What was the man supposed to do?
What was the man supposed to do?

She often spoke of irksome days when she would bounce from shore to shore
On an everlasting quest to find some truth
Until that afternoon in May when she opened up that door
And felt reality’s sharp tooth

Now all that she could do to keep her head on fire
Is to conjure up a bigger dose
And then she’ll doll up her walls and draw her plans in the sands
Until the tide gets much too close, the wrath of some deep-sea ghost

Every once in a while you catch a sense of her style
Like a new species signing up for the zoo
Until Old Man Soul could burn his hands on her wire
What was the man supposed to do?
What was the man supposed to do?
Born to be a poor, pathetic fool, just what is a man supposed to do?

Composition © 2006 Ric Albano
Publication © 2009, 2011 Cygnus Wave Music

Song Info
Composed on August 25, 2006
Recorded starting on August 10, 2009
at Saturation Acres (II), DuPont, PA
Produced by Ric Albano
Engineered by Bret Alexander
Mixed and Mastered in 2009
at Cygnus Wave Studios
Original Release: September 9, 2009
on Imaginary Lines 33

Performers
Ric Albano
Keyboards, Bass Guitar, Vocals
Erik Trabert
Electric Guitars
Ron Simasek
Drums and Percussion

Listener Guide
Grade

Analysis: A driving, 1970s style song with wild drums, and early synth lead and a later majestic guitar lead through the coda, “Deuce” is a cool jam song which makes Imaginary Lines feel like a real band.

Song Trivia
This song was entitled “Deuce” simply becaue it was originally intended to be the closing song on Imaginary Lines II.

Please offer your own analysis of Deuce by leaving a comment in the box below.

Naked

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Written by Ric Albano Song Length: 4:35
Listen to the Song: Purchase the MP3:
[audio:Naked.mp3]
Lyrics
Sally, please give me one more chance, I swear that it will be OK
And I will quietly fade into oblivion, once we’ve exhausted this one final day
We’ll play until dark in our amusement park
Sipping from our final glass of fleeting youth
String together songs about our rights and our “wrongs”
And reinterpret them as the Gospel truth

To this no return, so I continued to burn
I was the feeble fool at the public swimming pool, who’d shown up naked
A barren fraud, whose own resolve is at odds and cannot fake it
But she had bound to evade
With every second of silence she kept slicing away
At my plastic shield on this tempered battlefield, humiliated

Sally, please you have got to believe that I’m legitimate
I’m not the type of lion who resorts to the roar just to intimidate
But I’d give it all up and drink from your “happy soup” cup,
If that’s what you’ll serve me
So shoot me some vibes and let me know if I’ve arrived and you deserve me

Still no reply – no confirm, no deny
Like some pilgrim dolt whose land is swallowed whole
Right after he’s staked it
I was peerless fool, wearing non-matching shoes,
But otherwise naked
And she continued to sing, her song of silence was now deafening
To this pathetic pawn evicted from her lawn
Right after he’s raked it

Yes, she continued to sing, her song of silence was deafening
To this squalid joke, externally gone for broke, internally naked

Composition © 2006 Ric Albano
Publication © 2007, 2009, 2011 Cygnus Wave Music

Song Info
Composed on April 18, 2006
Recorded starting on August 13, 2007
at Saturation Acres, Danville, PA
Produced by Ric Albano
Engineered by Bret Alexander
Mixed and Mastered in 2009
at Cygnus Wave Studios
Original Release: December 27, 2007
on Imaginary Lines II
This Release: September 9, 2009
on Imaginary Lines 33

Performers
Ric Albano
Piano, Keyboards, Bass, Vocals
Ron Simasek
Drums and Percussion

Listener Guide
Grade

Analysis: An attempt at pure pop with cleaver lyrics and double-entendres, much like the style of the 1970s. However, there are some issues with instrumentation, especially the looped drum track and absence of guitar.

Song Trivia
“Naked” was the nickname given to the original version of Imaginary Lines II after most of its songs were further enhanced and remixed for Imaginary Lines 33.

Please offer your own analysis of Naked by leaving a comment in the box below.

Here On the Beach

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Written by Ric Albano Song Length: 3:00
Listen to the Song: Purchase the MP3:
[audio:HereOnTheBeach.mp3]
Lyrics
Don’t be afraid this peril is likely to fade
But I’ll stay if you want me to
‘Cause here on the beach all options are within our reach
I will stay if you ask me to

Hanging around, suspended above the ground, patiently waiting our turn
Chipping away at the stones of yesterday, hoarding all we can learn

We’ve done our subdue now it’s time to commence
With the quintessential pursuit, what we long to do

Living the dream, coining lucid themes
Getting a turn at the dance
Climbing the tower, will I aptly manage the power?
I sure would welcome the chance

So here on the beach the everlasting song is just within our reach
‘Cause our day is sure coming soon, I will stay if you ask me to

Composition © 2006 Ric Albano
Publication © 2007, 2009, 2011 Cygnus Wave Music

Song Info
Composed on April 20, 2006
Recorded starting on April 13, 2007
at Saturation Acres, Danville, PA
Produced by Ric Albano
Engineered by Bret Alexander
Mixed and Mastered in 2007
at Cygnus Wave Studios
Original Release: December 27, 2007
on Imaginary Lines II

Performers
Ric Albano
Piano, Keyboards, Bass, Percussion, Vocals
Ron Simasek
Drums

Listener Guide
Grade

Analysis: The song takes a calm, romantic approach, loosely based on the sound of Phil Spector.

Song Trivia
This song was originally intended to be the last section of a four part, 16 minute “Ocean Suite”, following “He Was the Ocean” (later renamed “The Old Man In the Sea”), “Twilight of Innocence”, and “Dawning of Decadence”. This song was the only part completed in time for Imaginary Lines II.

Please offer your own analysis of Believe by leaving a comment in the box below.

Twilight of Innocence

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Written by Ric Albano Song Length: 7:02
Listen to the Song: Purchase the MP3:
[audio:TwilightOfInnocence.mp3]
Lyrics
Early on a Friday in May, dancing on a crest of a wave
I could feel the sudden crashing of cold water rush upon my shore
In the twilight of innocence, with curiosity pushed to turbulence
I’m bewildered by your passive hints
That soon you may not need me anymore

I shouldn’t anything distract me from anything
That’s going on this perfect day of leisure and play
These truly are the best of times, dream-scaped array
For five years we have built these stories brick day by day
Don’t let this end, don’t let it end

You may be the follower but you’ve got your own great mind
Open up your eyes and cherish
Everything that you will surely find
In a year or twelve you may not remember this quite the way that I do
But I’ll always remember you

You shouldn’t let anything distract you from everything
That’s going on this perfect day of bliss and fun
These truly are the best of times, cannot be out-done
Please don’t allow the trite to ever grow into distraction
To what you’ve got, you’ve got a lot

We left the beach as the dark patches advanced to hide the sun
Ran to the verge so we could witness this meteorological phenomenon
Caught two rainbows in a jaunty dance beneath the haunting clouds
In turn they tapped the gray water on either side
Like Heaven’s arms outstretched and grasping at the tide
Seagulls a-blaze in the bent light, a truly mystical sight
The night arrived with such harmony, embroiled forever in my memory

Later on the beach that day, I wondered just what you would say
If you could reflect back on this time right now along with us four
It is such a system we possess, the turning over of the vines
Although the world is a bit of a mess
Perhaps your judgement will be better than mine

Would you tell me that everything is a segue to everything?
That’s going on, that’s in our song
It’s what you’ve got, ready or not!

Heaven’s ambience is the crashing of the tide
Fades and echoes to the past as we commence our return ride
The day expired with such harmony, embroiled forever in my memory

It’s what I see when I retreat into the halls of my memory

Composition © 2004 Ric Albano
Publication © 2009, 2011 Cygnus Wave Music

Song Info
Composed on May 19, 1997
Recorded starting on September 10, 2004
at Silver Spring Subterranean
Produced & Engineered by Ric Albano
Mixed and Mastered in 2009
at Cygnus Wave Studios
Original Release: September 9, 2009
on Imaginary Lines 33

Performers
Ric Albano
Piano, Keyboards, Bass, Percussion, Vocals
Erik Trabert
Guitars

Listener Guide
Grade

Analysis: A song approached in a very unique fashion, with lyrics written in one afternoon on the beach in Virginia and music composed over several years on a living room piano. The song suffers from a bit from rough recording and untimely ending, as it originally went directly t the follow-up “Dawning of Decadence”. Still it posseses a unique charm.

Song Trivia
“Twilight of Innocence” is the oldest song in the Imaginary Lines collection both in composition date (05/19/97) and recording date (09/10/04), yet it was not officially released until the most recent Imaginary Lines album in 2009.
This song was originally intended to be the second part of a four part, 16 minute “Ocean Suite”, along with “The Old Man In the Sea”, “Dawning of Decadence”, and “Here On the Beach”. All but “Dawning of Decadence” were included as individual tracks on Imaginary Lines 33.
This is the only song on Imaginary Lines 33 written in the 20th century.

Please offer your own analysis of Twilight of Innocence by leaving a comment in the box below.