"CROSSES BY THE ROADSIDE"...

NEW SONG: I haven’t been able to say that in a long time. The lyrics are presently undergoing peer review (I always submit the lyrics first), and we’ll see what the critics think; I think it’s pretty good, but I’ve learned not to trust my own judgment about these things.

Hight (tentatively) “Crosses by the Roadside.” It’s a good tearjerker of a lost-love song—in this case, the love is lost apparently because somebody died—that poses the question whether it may be worse to be left alive. Serious song—and I wasn’t intending it to be serious when I started.

Does raise—again—the question where inspiration comes from. I know in general there’s a close connection between Inspiration and Pain; that’s why I try (to the extent I can) not to have too comfortable a life—I don’t want that inspiration to go away. But why this song? I didn’t have anybody die, or even leave; I have a friend who may be dying, but he certainly shows no signs of being about to yet. True, there are the crosses around, rather a lot of them—US 101 once won an award as one of the most dangerous roads in the United States.

I did hear complaints from other songwriters that a lot of people seem to be writing sad songs right close to this Thanksgiving, so what I did may be a symptom of a general malaise. At a time when we’re all supposed to be feeling thankful and hopeful, a lot of folks just don’t have a lot to feel thankful or hopeful about. And the feeling of loss may stem from that definite impression that the past was better. And it’s gone now.

So maybe I’ve got a song that’s maybe a bit better than average. What can I do with it? This has happened a couple of times before; I’ve come up with something that—my opinion, of course—just might have Hit Potential, and I’ve had nowhere to take it. Yes, I can perform it in public, and get the usual oohs and aahs, and it can get played a lot on the OMD Websites like Soundclick and Whitby Shores, and maybe a few performing musicians like me will add it to their repertoires, and of course it can go on a CD, and copies of the CD will sell. But that’s all relatively small potatoes. Is it possible to do better?

Maybe. I did get connected with one Nashville music publisher who had offered on one of the writers’ sites I subscribe to do do free reviews of people’s songs, and I did send him one; I haven’t heard back from him (not surprising—these guys are busy), and that’s an excuse to contact him, and ask if he’d give a listen to “Crosses by the Roadside.” He may be my best shot. I am on the mailing list of one other publisher (in California), but as I’ve noted before, she doesn’t accept unsolicited material. The best I can do there is e-mail her and ask—and maybe not expect a response. I’ve got a few other contacts in Nashville, but they’re mostly folks trying to break into the business, just like me.

(And it’s possible there may NOT be the Hit Potential. Didn’t Randy Travis have a big hit a few years ago with a song about three crosses? Did he manage to sew up the market with it, to the point where nobody can do songs about dead people crosses? I did have somebody suggest that. I don’t know, and will have to find out.)

I did record it—minimalist, with just rhythm and lead guitar (both played by me). It fell together in just a few takes, so I assume that’s how it was meant to be. I’ll plan on performing it with the Friday Night Group to see how a crowd reacts.

Joe