Eponymous 4

About this track

Most of the songs on Imprint are pretty dark, and I wanted to include something that cleansed the palette. I found sketches for this song dating back to 1999, just a scribble of some chords and the description “Elevator”, as in “elevator music”.

They sounded pretty appropriate for Imprint, so I turned that progression into a complete song in 2005. This time, it’s lyrics set to the chorus, not the first line, that determined the theme of the song. (“I thought that I was the type to pass on my own mistakes.”)

My nephew was a few weeks old when I met him in 2003, and I was surprised to find his reactions to the world around him fascinating. It reminded me of a “children’s book for adults” that Andrew Vachss wrote, titled Another Chance to Get It Right. So in essence, this song is a lullaby.

The lyrics are sentimental to a point surprising even for me.

I really hate the vocals I recorded for this song. I did a lot of takes, and all of them were crap. The one featured here is less painful than the others. I don’t do well with long notes.

The abrupt drum beat that ends this track is actually the start of the next track.

Lyrics

In the moment we first met
How could I anticipate what I felt?
Everything I knew before
Just didn't seem to work

All you did was be yourself
It worked like a magic charm (perfectly)
Nothing I knew till that point
Seemed relevant at all

I thought that I was the kind
To pass on my own mistakes
You give me one more chance
A chance to get it right

In those moments since we met
You engage me with your charm (perfectly)
I just hope that I provide
A path you want to take

'Cos I don't think I'm the kind
To pass on my own mistakes
You give me one more chance
A chance to get it right

I may not have known the value
Of giving selflessly
But you are the reason I would
Do so much more

In the moment we first met
How could I anticipate what I'd feel?
Everything I knew before
Everything I know right now
I just hope that it's enough
For me to get it right

You are one more chance
A chance to get it right