Series 1, Episode 38: Troubles Be Gone/ How to Get Through It

This episode is entitled

Troubles Be Gone – How to get through it…

I had had a rough day. The things that were supposed to happen, didn’t happen. The things that never were supposed to happen, happened. It happens to all of us. 

Yeah, life on planet Earth can be a roller coaster ride. I thought to myself, “Well, what do we do now“? How do we turn defeat into victory? Today, I’m going to introduce you to a surefire starter kit. It’s not a permanent solution, but it is, for most of us humans, a wondrous temporary solution. It requires little effort and is definitely fun and satisfying.

Recently I applied my solution and, as usual, it worked like a dream. It worked so well, that I decided to write a song about it. 

Join me as I demonstrate that solution right before your very eyes!

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:07

Welcome to Scattershot Symphony, the music of Peter Link. That's me. Hey y'all, this week being the 38th episode of this podcast, I prefer to let the music do the talking. However, if you need to know more about me, please visit Wikipedia.com, Peter Link. This episode is entitled Troubles Be Gone. How to get through it. I had had a rough day. The things that were supposed to happen didn't happen. The things that never were supposed to happen happened. It happens to all of us. Our troubles range from the package never arrived, but it will be here tomorrow. To yesterday, our house burned down, and I have no idea where we're gonna sleep tonight. Because the car went with it. Yeah. Life on planet Earth can be a roller coaster ride. I thought to myself, well, what do we do now? How do we turn defeat into victory? There are at least 10,000 books written on the subject. Go on to the New York Times best-selling book list, and you'll always find at least one of the how-to books in the top ten. Today, I'm going to add to all that good information with a surefire starter kit. It's not a permanent solution, but it is, for most of us humans, a wondrous, temporary solution. It requires a little effort and is definitely fun and satisfying. So, on my most recent rough day, I applied my solution. And as usual, it worked like a dream. It worked so well that I decided to write a song about it. The song was a blast to write. It started with the lyrics. I spent a day or so sorting through a variety of approaches, and finally came upon one that would tell my story and offer all of you listeners the wondrous solution. I started with the drums. I grew up a drummer. My dad, once a professional drummer, never had to tell me to go practice. Rather, both parents more often had to ask me to please stop practicing. Though my dad had built me a somewhat soundproof room up in the attic, my daily endeavors still shook the whole house. How they got through it all, I'll never know. So, for me, new songs often start with the drums. The groove. This song would need the happiest of grooves. My favorite drummer in the world is Steve Gad, who played with Steely Dan, James Taylor, Eric Clapton, Frank Sinatra, Bet Midler, Paul Simon, Aretha Franklin, Chick Korea, and the list goes on and on. So I wanted to go in Gad's direction. I came up with this. So next came the bass. I tell all my students that the bass is the bass. The B A S S is the B A S E. It is definitely part of the foundation of any song. I wanted it to be positive, aggressively joyful, and upbeat. As I built the rhythm section, drums, bass, keyboard, and guitar, the chord progression and melody began to fall into place. But first, let's add the bass. But she seems determined, even somewhat obstinate, about starring in this podcast. I guess one could even call her somewhat dogged in her efforts. Okay, okay, okay. I suppose I've held off long enough teasing you. I can actually feel each of you sitting on the edges of your chairs, frustratingly, waiting impatiently for my wondrous remedy. Troubles begone. How to get through it? Here, at last, is the great panacea. Ice cream. The name of our song is Ice Cream. The immediate answer to your problems. As the song says, Ice cream, ice cream, ice cream. Open up about a gallon of ice cream. Grab your biggest favorite spoon, give yourself a little elbow room, and dig in. And so, let's get on with the building of this ice cream someday. And add the flavor. I decided to give the song a funky flavor. So I went with the Rhodes keyboard to delineate and characterize the basic rhythm section and chord progression of the song. Here you go. On top of the drum and bass parts, we lay in the keyboard for just the right flavoring. Now, how about a little chocolate sauce? What better way to spice it up than with electric guitar? Not too much now, don't want it drowned. Let's just punctuate our treat here and there to round out our rhythm section. Give it a listen. Electric guitar for the sweetening. As if this conglomeration needed more sweetening. Actually, the term sweetening is the official term in music that implies things like strings, woodwinds, and brass. We're gonna make this baby so sweet that there won't be a sour note in the entire dessert. So let's add some more color with the synths and synth bells, and you can see the microphone. Somehow, ice cream just goes hand in hand with a brass band. Think a cool, old-fashioned summer evening walk in the park, a nickel double dip ice cream cone at the gazebo while the sun sets on your favorite brass band. And you don't have a care in the world. And the girl on your arm or the boy of your dreams says, Let's have another one. Ice cream. This brings us to the completion of our orchestrated track. So here we go. Okay, bring on the band. Four ladies. Some of the best I've ever worked with. First, top soprano, Luan Carter. Next, Soprano, Audrey Wheeler.

SPEAKER_03 20:36

Ice I scream. I scream.

SPEAKER_00 20:44

Alto, Jenny Burton. Jenny.

SPEAKER_03 20:48

Ice cream. Ice cream.

SPEAKER_00 20:51

Ice And Julia Wade, a lyric soprano singing Alto. Julia.

SPEAKER_06 21:01

Ice cream. Ice cream. Ice cream.

SPEAKER_00 21:09

Some of you more cultured listeners may have noticed in Julia's first song Ice Cream. A rub, an inharmonic, a dissonant. Julia is not singing out of tune. The rub is intended. To some, it may sound wrong. It's not. You're just not hearing her sing the full chord in this five-part harmonic moment. Each vocalist is recorded four to six times to make up this particular title or hook moment. Together, they sound like this. Ah, let's take it from the top.

SPEAKER_03 22:18

And that is coming back. Ice cream.

unknown 22:41

I scream.

SPEAKER_03 22:43

I scream.

SPEAKER_01 23:04

Perhaps you want to try accounting. To keep from knocking a bite.

SPEAKER_05 23:26

Ice cream. Ice cream. I scream.

SPEAKER_01 23:47

And all up with the bearishing of Jerry.

unknown 24:16

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_05 24:16

I think that's a good one. I scream. I scream. I scream.

SPEAKER_01 25:15

And everywhere you look, it's dark out. What do you do to keep from losing your cool?

SPEAKER_02 25:45

Open up another gallon of ice cream.

unknown 25:57

It's time to die.

SPEAKER_05 26:02

We're free.

SPEAKER_01 26:19

Just let your troubles be done.

unknown 26:27

I sleep. Like your legs.

SPEAKER_02 26:32

And tap it up with a little white free.

SPEAKER_04 28:34

What do you do when she walks out with her final words over her shoulder? And I ain't calling back. And I ain't coming back. And she takes the kiss and your favorite shirt. And your favorite devil of two. What do you do to keep me from losing your mind?

SPEAKER_05 29:01

And the ladies see I scream, I scream, I scream.

SPEAKER_04 29:14

What do you do when your boss smiles and says Pick up the check on the way out the door? We don't need you anymore. Perhaps you ought to try a counter Sorry, kid, but that's just where it's at What do you do to keep from knocking violence? Ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, Ice cream, open up the final gamma, Ice cream Grab your biggest favorite spoon Give yourself a little elbow Organize a meeting with the belly cherry Tap it all off with the very shield cherry Don't worry none about the cost Just pour on a little chocolate sauce And let your troubles be gone And let your troubles be gone If you don't wanna hunt me I What do you do in the eye of a storm When your roof is gone and there's more storm coming And your car to pop without nobody in it And your eye phones dead and your cats don't swim And your house goes bottom away What do you do to keep from on the same insane Ladies Ice cream Ice Cream Ice cream What do you do when the brown becomes a black cut And the lights don't go on again And the fridge don't cool at all And everywhere you look it's dark Staggering around in the night like a drunken fool What do you do to keep me from losing your cruise Ice screen Open up another gallon Ice screen Now no time for self-control Caution to the wind is handling dark With screen of your super buds jump No shot the shot I got Don't worry not about getting wet 1200 calories is where it's at Oh yeah Just let it troubles me If you don't want to be I see And tap it all up with a little bit free And this la la la la la Oh yeah It's a psychotropia It's a danger from your podcast to watch for our music and the entire staff for all your work in producing and promoting this podcast.

SPEAKER_00 35:06

A very special thanks also to Stuart Burford, our associate producer, for all your invaluable knowledge and great vibes. And lastly, a posthumous thanks to Ludwig von Beethoven for your opening four bars.

SPEAKER_06 35:31

This podcast is presented with loving care by the staff at Watchfire Music. If you liked what you heard, we got lots more where that came from. In the meantime, you can find the songs you just heard on Watchfire Music.com forward slash podcast. There, you can purchase the singles or albums and have access to all the lyrics. Also, there you will find all previous podcasts and future scheduling. Stay tuned.