Out of all the thousands of songs that inspire my writing, the ones that repeatedly rise to the top come from one band. As a result, several have consistently been the top 3 Muse songs that influenced my work.
Muse
Over ten years ago when I lived in Los Angeles, the local radio station WKROQ was one of the few that gave this band any love. Since hearing them, I’ve not only been a fan of Muse, I’ve also rabidly consumed every lyric their lead vocalist, and resident mad man/genius, pens.
I could rant about Matthew Bellamy’s brilliance, the band’s amazing live performances, etc. etc. but that’s another post. Right now I’d like to talk about their impact on my writing and share with you the the top 3 Muse songs that helped shape my book.
Top 3 Muse Songs
Invincible
– This song is the biggest musical thread in the fabric of Blood To Blood. It is a rally cry disguised as a love song. Absolutely brilliant. “Whatever they say, your soul’s unbreakable.”
Unintended
-This love song is one of their most haunting songs. It is the inspiration for a couple of romantic scenes in the book.
Map of The Problematique
– This song changed my writing. Seriously. In part, it was responsible for introducing a level of darkness into the lives of my characters, particularly Justin McCarthy.
There are many more Muse songs that inspired the tone of Blood To Blood. An honorable mention goes to “Bliss” “Cave” and of course “Time Is Running Out.”
Comments Off on Donna Summer: All You Need Is The Voice
“The voice to me is the greatest gift… You need no other instrument, all you have to do is sing…and it’s there.” ~ Donna Summer
When I saw this quote from the late, great Ms. Donna Summer I thought it was a perfect, concise summary of how Angel Brown feels about singing.
Early in Blood To Blood, Angel says singing was her waking dream… “the only thing I could see myself doing forever.” Throughout her struggles she holds on to the only thing she has – her voice. Even when it turns against her.
Like Donna Summer, a classically trained singer who made a name for herself in the Top 40, Angel embraces the music of the soul even as she belts out bubblegum pop.
RIP Donna Summer, and mad love to all true singers who dare to live their dream.
Comments Off on Weekly Word: What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger
A clay pot sitting in the sun will always be a clay pot. It has to go though the white heat of the furnace to become porcelain. ~ Mildred White Struven
The process of transformation
Blood To Blood’s heroine, Angel Brown, goes through epic struggle in order to pursue her dream of becoming a singer.
As I wrote about her struggles I thought of my own life challenges and the conflict my friends were experiencing. There is no way you can go through life without encountering what Iyanla Vanzant refers to as “The Valley.” During those dark times, you discover what your soul is truly made of.
The dichotomy is amazing: on one hand you don’t want to experience the pain (who does?), and on the other hand the pain, heartache and hard knocks are exactly what makes you stronger, more brilliant and takes you to a level you otherwise wouldn’t be.
Kelly Clarkson says it nicely in her song “Stronger”:
What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, stronger Just me, myself and I What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger Stand a little taller Doesn’t mean I’m lonely when I’m alone
The fire of transformation happened to Angel, me and I’m sure you can tell a story or two about your own personal trials.
Just remember once you get on the other side of the tunnel, show your gratitude and say thank you to that hardship for helping you become the butterfly you are today.
One music act that has influenced my art (writing and visual) consistently is Cocteau Twins, a Scottish 80s goth band. I first got into them through a roommate and almost immediately fell in love with their sound. Although no Cocteau Twins tunes appear on
For those of you that don’t know, there were no twins in the group. The lead vocalist, Elizabeth Fraser, is probably best known as the voice on Massive Attacks’ classic “Teardrop.”
They disbanded some time in the late 90s, and I always thought it was a crime that a band with a sound this ethereal never got the recognition it deserved. Many would agree, the music is timeless and atmospheric.
My go-to albums are the darker ones where Elizabeth doesn’t bother to sing real words but somehow the lyrics are packed with life-changing meaning.
Treasure is my breathless favorite and features a number of songs that are on the playlist to the follow-up to Blood To Blood
“Ivo” – 3:53
“Lorelei” – 3:43
“Beatrix” – 3:11
“Persephone” – 4:20
“Pandora (for Cindy)” – 5:35
“Amelia” – 3:31
“Aloysius” – 3:26
“Cicely” – 3:29
“Otterley” – 4:04
“Donimo” – 6:19
My Top 3 from this album…
1. “Donimo” always leaves me wanting more. This one song has inspired a number of scenes involving angels:
2. “Pandora” I cried when I first heard this. Sometimes I still do:
3. “Lorelei” – Rather happy but just as ethereal
Very Honorable Mentions:
“Pearly Dewdrops Drops” What human words can describe this song? Surely this is the sound of something Higher.
“Musette and Drums” Sheer brilliance. Best with headphones at the moment when darkness softly devours the last of the daylight:
Comments Off on My Muses: Death Cab For Cutie “I Will Possess Your Heart”
Death Cab, like Radiohead, is one of those bands that I play all the time to the point that I wonder if it’s healthy for my son.
To give you an example, one day we were driving along the countryside in Dekalb county (Georgia, Atlanta area). It was a bright and sunny day, and as always iTunes was piping through the stereo. Death Cab’s “I Will Possess Your Heart” was playing. And my 5 year-old was singing it verbatim.
I realized that this must have been the thousandth time he’d heard this tune, and for a moment I wondered if it was normal, after all it’s a pretty intense song.
But then again, what is normal? I recalled the dark and hyper-sexualized songs I’d grown up listening to and never caught the real meaning until I was in college (some even later, like Frankie Goes to Hollywood “Relax” I had absolutely no idea that was about reaching orgasm until the new millennium, but I’d never seen this banned version of the video either, eewww!). I figured he’d be fine as long as I continued to balance out the Death Cab with Backyardigans, The Wiggles, The Muppets and less dark, more family-friendly bands like Coldplay and U2.
This particular tune has a play count of over 300 in my iTunes. That was after my computer crashed and wiped out my play counts. It’s right up there with the most popular songs from my Blood To Blood playlist, but ironically it’s not on that playlist. Nonetheless, I crafted a good amount of Justin’s interior monologue while listening to it:
I imagined Justin saying these lyrics, or something like them, in his head whenever he spent any time with Angel:
How I wish you could see the potential, the potential of you and me. It’s like a book elegantly bound but, in a language that you can’t read. Just yet.
You gotta spend some time, Love. You gotta spend some time with me. And I know that you’ll find, love I will possess your heart. You gotta spend some time, Love. You gotta spend some time with me. And I know that you’ll find, love I will possess your heart.
There are days when outside your window I see my reflection as I slowly pass, and I long for this mirrored perspective when we’ll be lovers, lovers at last.
You gotta spend some time, Love. You gotta spend some time with me. And I know that you’ll find, love I will possess your heart. You gotta spend some time, Love. You gotta spend some time with me. And I know that you’ll find, love I will possess your heart. I will possess your heart. I will possess your heart.
You reject my… advances… and desperate pleas… I won’t let you… let me down… so easily. So easily.
You gotta spend some time, Love. You gotta spend some time with me. And I know that you’ll find, love I will possess your heart. You gotta spend some time, Love. You gotta spend some time with me. And I know that you’ll find, love I will possess your heart. You gotta spend some time, Love. You gotta spend some time with me. And I know that you’ll find, love I will possess your heart. I will possess your heart. I will possess your heart.
That’s *so* Justin. Wow. Now that I’m thinking of him again, I need to run and write some more of the Justin story I’ve been working on.
My trusty Blood To Blood YouTube Playlist includes tunes scooped directly from my iPod playlist, and served up via YouTube. These are the videos to some of the artists listed in the official Blood To Blood playlist. One of these days maybe I’ll be able to pipe everything directly from iTunes, but in the meantime, this little playlist feature on YouTube is kinda cool.
Anyway, I played these artists and their songs hundreds of times while writing Blood To Blood. Many of them are connected to specific scenes from the book. Hole’s “Violet” for example is for when Angel feels her new powers for the first time as she runs through the Maine woods with her family.
Robin Thicke is the inspiration for one of my favorite, and most obsessed over, characters: Sawyer Creed.
Two of Thicke’s songs were the inspiration for an entire novel and its heroine Angel Brown:
“Angel” (Why, oh why wasn’t an official video made of this?)
“Can You Believe” (I love when he says “If somebody’s watching, you would never know.”)
Check out the beautiful lyrics to “Can You Believe”:
Nothing can make you high Or put fire in your eyes Or give you a chance to fly When you need the wings When all that youve got is doubt And nothing can stop you from feeling down But oh I know, I know exactly how you feel
But can you believe now When youre on your knees now Begging and pleading now Can you believe When all that youve got is doubt And no one to pull you out When your heart is slowin down Can you believe
See the person I love the most Is so far away tonight And no other medicine or promise is Gonna heal me up right But I got to believe That her and me Will be together Cause thats all I got And Oh, I know When youre down at the bottom Can you believe
Can you believe when all hope seems gone When your mother and father cant keep you safe from harm Can you forgive in your heart Can you ask for forgiveness When nobody else believes can you believe Can you believe in yourself
If nobodys watchin You will never know If somebodys watchin You will never know If nobodys watchin You will never know If somebodys watchin You will never know If nobodys watchin You will never know If somebodys watchin You will never know
In fact, his entire album The Evolution of Robin Thicke played in nonstop rotation during the writing and editing of my book.
Thank you, thank you, thank you Robin Thicke for being my muse.
I am heartbroken to learn of the passing of my friend, the one and only musical genius, Quincy Jones. Quincy touched my world as both a cherished mentor and as also as someone I looked up to for his deep impact on virtually every form of American music.
