If one says to these people that their judgement is not their own, that it has been suggested to them, they will be offended. It is like this in most cases, for most people. Almost all of them receive their ideas ready made, and follow popular opinion all their lives. They speak in the style of their times and dress according to fashion, not from any principle, but in order to act like others. Servile imitators who say yes or no according to suggestion. They believe themselves to be self-determining. Is this not folly? An incurable folly, for men are sure that they are not caught up in the mania for imitation. It is a general folly, for the whole empire is caught up in this madness. It would therefore be in vain to try to put men back on the way to spontaneous personal action, emanating from the self, from their own instinct. Alas! Noble music leaves villagers indifferent, whereas trivial song easily makes them swoon. Likewise, elavated thoughts do not enter minds stuffed with common ideas. The noise of earthenware drums drowns out the sound of a bronze bell.
- Chuang Tzu. 4th century BC
CDs Available
I now have 3 CDs of my home demos available free of charge to any of my myspace friends. Just send me a message, with your address, saying what you want and I'll post one or both out to you. Or just ask me to bring a CD along to a gig.
1. 'Ask The Summer ep' has 'Follow Your Heart' 'Light Pollution' and 'Solicit Summer' all recorded at home in 2005 and produced by Thewildheartedoutsider.
2. 'Brittle Pop ep' is an 8-track ep of lo-fi rough demos including 'Fragile' 'I Want Your Sweet Mouth' and 'Voices' all of which have appeared on my myspace player at one time or other. The 'f' word appears once or twice in this collection and at least one of the songs closely resembles the punk rock genre so you have been warned.
3. 'Alles Klar' I've made this one available again due to the popular demand of 2 of my mates. This was previously available as a cassette single in the early 90s but this is its first CD release. It includes 'Alles Klar' 'Love And Learn' 'Mystery Girl' and a live rehearsal version of 'Alles Klar'. The single was recorded under the band name Bronze Bell with my friend, Simon Pratt who is photographed in one of the photo albums. Again, it's all pretty lo-fi and the live version of 'Alles Klar' is a definite rough gem. Well, when I say 'gem' it's more of a rock really. Of course, one man's rock is the next man's smooth, flat stone for skimming across a lake. 'Love And Learn' and 'Mystery Girl' have both appeared previously on the myspace player.
The Songs On The Player
Alles Klar
I recorded this song around 1993 with my friend Simon Pratt who plays guitar and drums. I play acoustic and bass synth. I recorded the song as a birthday present for my German cousin, Georg, who was staying with us in England at the time. I was a little unsure how he would take the song but he said, 'Eddie, Es Ist Stark!' on hearing it. The song is an attempt to deal with the racism towards Germans that still lingers in Britain. The times when I grew up that I heard my father mutter anti-German ideas were numerous and he was married to one! I used my German family and (I hope) some humour in the song to illustrate the point that we are all the same. I've long held the belief that all human beings are basically the same. There are cultural differences, of course; big and beautiful cultural differences but there is no difference in our aspirations and desires. The lives we lead, excepting economic differences, are very similar. We live, die, love, laugh, cry, make art and, if we are lucky we eat too. I hate prejudice in all its forms and I believe it to be a primitive response to others that those who claim to be civilised should not engage in. Some would point to the Second World War as an excuse for their prejudice against Germans. Nobody should forget the wars that shaped this modern world and, in particular, the Holocaust but most of the soldiers I've met on both sides describe a mutual respect. The time to forgive and forget the prejudices came and went a long time ago. RIP Andreas Mürau and Daniel Cholewa who feature on the CD single's sleeve and were two of the drinking buddies described in the song.
My Way Of Thinking (Car Park Song)
This track was recorded sometime in the early 80s live in our kitchen in Chatsworth Avenue, Liverpool immediately after writing it. The song was recorded using an old cassette recorder so don't expect anything hi-fi. It was written with Steve Moore who also plays the lead acoustic and came along with the first two lines of the song to which I put the vocal melody and simple chord sequence. We then finished the lyric by writing a line or two each in turn, me playing John Lennon to Steve's Paul McCartney. The lyric means nothing to me but I think it did to Steve (the part of the title in brackets was his) and my bittersweet lines were partly motivated by attempting to do the opposite of what I thought Steve wanted. A song from a simpler time and place. I love it. Words and music by Eddie Cooney and Steve Moore.
I Want Your Sweet Mouth
Written and recorded in 1992, I Want Your Sweet Mouth is a love song written for my wife, Chris. No complex meaning, just an expression of love. 1992 was a good year. We were planning a baby, having a good time and were happy. This demo was recorded on a cheap Amstrad 4-track. I used a toy microphone to record all of the Brittle demos and Paul's amplifier was a little old thing held together with cellotape. Consequently most of the tracks we recorded are really poor quality but the best of the songs are amongst the best I've written. We recorded over 40 tracks all together but unfortunately most of them are too poor to put out. I like this one a lot. Not exactly hi-fi but bright and full of the fun and love that went into the playing. The song was written and recorded in an hour or so. Paul played me the chords, I wrote the words and vocal melody and we recorded a rough version. Then Paul added the lead guitar and I added the vocal harmony. Voila! Words and music by Eddie Cooney and Paul Mahabir
Fragile
When my wife and I first married we didn't want kids. We gradually changed our minds after moving out of the city. Life seemed to have more potential away from the scallies and hassle. The world changed from one into which we didn't want to bring children into something that offered a better way of life. I remember the first nervous conversation we had about having kids. It was an early summer evening and we were sitting outside appreciating our new life. We wanted to share it with a family. Chris got pregnant straight away and we excitedly told everyone. We bought clothes and chose the name Celia for our daughter. We couldn't agree about a boy's name. Then the worst happened and Chris miscarried. The most awful time in my life was the night I thought my wife was dying. Our wonderful GP, Dr Ray, came out in the early hours and Chris was rushed to hospital. The next day the baby had gone and there was an empty space that filled with grief. After Chris came home we tried to make sense of it all. Maybe we'd have been more cautious about being so joyful if we'd known that one in five pregnancies miscarry. We wanted to be left alone for a while but then the phone calls started. How people found out I have no idea and of course talking to friends and family is all part of the process but it all became too much. We received calls from people we barely knew and hadn't seen for years. Someone came to visit when we were lying in bed crying and trying to work out what had happened. 'Fragile' tells the tale of those feelings. Paul Mahabir plays guitars on this demo. I suppose the demo is unfinished because the song was written just as this band split and we had ideas of developing the solo and adding keys but I like the bareness of this recording. Anything else would have diluted the grief. Words by Eddie Cooney. Music by Paul Mahabir and Eddie Cooney.
Follow Your Heart
A friend of mine was contemplating an affair. He kept asking me what he should do. I think his plea was kind of rhetorical but I felt obliged to give him an answer. My answer was the first line of the chorus. I thought it would make a good line in a song and wrote it down on the back of a beer mat. I found the beer mat in my pocket the next day and the song poured out of me. I love the muse. Follow Your Heart is another demo. It was produced by Thewildheartedoutsider who also plays keyboards. It was part of the beginnings of a new project for which I only recorded four demos and gave up on. Words & music by Eddie Cooney.
Light Pollution
When I was young I used to lie on the grass and look at the stars. It was a form of escape. Escape from domestic violence, from adolescent worry. I could get lost in the stars. So much space, so much emptiness. Last year I was trying to think things through. It was a nice early summer and I remembered my childhood habit. OK, I admit it... I'd been to the pub and had a few beers but sometimes that lift that alcohol gives helps you to do silly things maybe you should do more often. As I turned and walked into our drive my senses were filled with the scent of night scented stock, my second favourite flower after the poppy. In an instant my heart was lifted and I decided to engage in a little heavenly contemplation. When I lay down on the grass I couldn't see the sky as clearly as I remembered it. The stars seemed dimmer than those of my youth. Then I realised that light from street lamps and the local town spoilt the view. This became a metaphor for the way I was feeling. The next day, as the evening sun lingered and with my daughter Holly and her friend playing in the garden, I wrote the song. I love to write outside. There's an energy given by the thought that somebody may be listening. Light Pollution is produced by Thewildheartedoutsider who also plays keyboards. Words and music by Eddie Cooney.
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