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brad yoder



Last Updated: 12/21/2009

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Status: Single
City: PITTSBURGH
State: PENNSYLVANIA
Country: US
Signup Date: 11/15/2004

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Wednesday, December 09, 2009 
hey, friends--
these are preliminary mixes, but you can listen to pretty "advanced" versions of both "Excellent Trouble," and "Leave Like This," both of which will be on "Excellent Trouble," the CD I'll release in early 2010. 
Other songs on this one include:
I will only let you down                        lovely trap
keep it to yourself                               love is all I have for you
I'm so glad you're over me                  again
someone to be lonely with                    how it ends
horses                                                at the table
some strange algorithm                       card tricks

For those keeping score that's 2 songs about break-ups/divorce (lovely trap, I'm so glad you're over me), a song about a hospitalization for mental illness (horses), a song about a friend's suicide (leave like this)--generally, a darker collection, but also with some brighter moments, too.  I think you'll like it.   I actually put "real strings" (a great string quartet, recorded in a church in Squirrel Hill back in October) on 4 songs.            

 
5:05 AM 
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Saturday, January 31, 2009 


Recorded by David Jose, 8/2007.

Brad Yoder on iLike - Add iLike to your MySpace

video by David Jose, 8/2007

3:35 PM 
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Sunday, October 14, 2007 
On my usual one song/month clip, this is October, and here's song 10 for 2007:

1. something good could come your way,
(but) would you miss it in the middle of your day?*1
something free, you didn't pay for something good..

2.  something light, won't weigh you down,
something brighter than their shiny dimestore crowns,*2
but you might.. not know you've found.. something good*3
CH: call it what you like, maybe it's just superstition,
nothing but a child's ambition,
(you) gave up on it long ago,
is it even right to hope that in a world this broken
we could find the smallest token
of something better than we know?

3.  something true is rare indeed,
something solid as the ground beneath your feet,
we want it all.. when all we need.. is something good,
CH: call it what you like, maybe it's all superstition,
nothing but a child's ambition,
(you) gave up on it years ago,
is it even right to hope that in a world this broken
we could find the smallest token?
closer than you'll ever know..

3b.  something true is rare indeed,
something solid as the ground beneath your feet,
surrounding you.. reminding me.. of something good,
we want it all.. when all we need.. is something good...

------------------
I'm pretty happy with this one--might have edged out "ee cummings" as my favorite new song of '07?

Here are some alternate lines:
Verse one's 2nd line was:
*1  would you even notice it amid the fray
but "fray" I use plenty enough, and seems a little unnecessarily fancy here.  I also tried
would you notice in the middle of your day
that's a little plainer, which could be good?

verse 2 started out as "dimestore rhinestone crowns"
that's a mouthful!  So, it's 2 out of these 3:
shiny/dimestore/rhinestone...
Probably either "shiny dimestore" or "shiny rhinestone crowns"
the next line was "you might not know that what you've found.."
I got the "might" into the "sweet spot" (to line up with light/bright)

the very end was "surrounding you, surrounding me"--that's weaker, though.
It's sad/pretty, but the chorus really kicks in nicely!
I played it 3 times last night in Cleveland.  :]
11:04 AM 
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Thursday, May 24, 2007 

Category: Life
Last Thursday (5/17), my friend Lee Eshleman  took his own life.
Lee was a beautiful human being, incredibly gifted (in visual arts, drama and writing), stunningly hilarious, and someone who never truly recognized how thoroughly, uniquely amazing he was.  He struggled with bi-polar disorder for most of his adult life.  He leaves behind a family, a work partner (Ted), and hundreds of friends and acquaintances who are trying to grasp what it means that he's no longer around.  I also find myself swearing under my breath a lot.
I was down in Virginia playing shows, but got the news before I went down.
I drove back to Pittsburgh Sunday evening, then went back down on Monday to be a the memorial service, where I also played (soprano) saxophone.
Many people told me that they appreciated the playing--I couldn't help but think how much I'd've preferred to play horrendously at a less awful occasion. 
Anyway, I wrote a song (because I don't have anything else to do, and I can't seem to really deal with my emotions in any of the more straightforward avenues.)   The text is below
This is going to suck for a long time, and it sucks a lot more for some other people than for me.

----------------------------------------------------------
LEAVE LIKE THIS

I know you saw no way out, but you didn't have to leave like this,
your soul consumed with pain and doubt, but you didn't have to leave like this,
  you didn't have to leave us wondering
  what we could've done, if anything?
I know you were suffering, but you didn't have to leave,
 didn't have to leave like this..

you shone bright as any light, why'd you have to leave like this?
I see you when I close my eyes, why'd you have to leave like this?
  why'd you have to leave us mystified?
  we didn't even get to say goodbye,
how can so much life just die?  you didn't have to leave,
  didn't have to leave like this,
    I'm passing through a little town
    where they tore the burned-out courthouse down,
    now all that's there is barren ground,
    but I still hear the bells ring out..

trade all colors in for black..
we love the one we can't get back..  *
  I know you could've laughed again,
  it's not alright, I won't pretend,
I know this sickness killed you, friend, but you didn't have to leave,
  didn't have to leave like,
  didn't have to leave us wondering
  what we could've done, if anything?
I know you were suffering, but you didn't have to leave,
  didn't have to leave like this..
    I'm passing through a little town
    where they tore the burned-out courthouse down,
    now all that's there is barren ground,
    but I still hear the bells right out...

* or "erase this song; here, take it back.."  <--less expected,
but "we love the one we can't get back" is simpler and more direct

--------------------------------------
The little town is Berkeley Springs, WV, which I drove past going down for the Memorial on Monday (5/21/07), and on the way back to Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
This huge courthouse building is just completely gone, and right now there is absolutely nothing on the lot except bare red dirt.  It reminded me of trying to grasp the "goneness" of Lee, which seems so oxymoronic (how could someone that present, impossible to miss, be suddenly totally absent?)

If my friend's death is any indication:
--if someone's determined to end their lives, and you ask them "are you a danger to yourself right now?" they may well lie.
--if you encounter someone who you think might be depressed enough to end it all, help them to make a plan not to be alone.  That might've kept Lee alive another day.
Here's a page about suicide prevention. 

12:32 AM 
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Tuesday, February 20, 2007 
So, I've been in a bit of a slump on the new song front.  I typically finish something new about once a month, but like last year, I wrote nothing new in January of aught-seven. 
Now it's Feb. 20th, and here's the first one for '07  that seems mostly finished. 
I think I'll be counter-intuitive, and call it "Icicles"  ("Valentine's Day" would be the obvious title.)   You can weigh in on the title question.
It was started last Wednesday, aka Valentine's day.  I guess that's obvious. 


ICICLES
"Valentine's Day is easier,"
the grocery guy confides in me,
"if you have a Valentine,"
as I sample the strawberries I'll never buy,
but free is a price we all can afford to pay..

on Valentine's Day there's ice outside
and every branch is glistening,
for me these barren trees outshine
a million roses sacrificed to prove our love,
but that's not a price that roses should have to pay,
  I believe underneath
  all the static and the fray,
  there's a light that would shine,
  if we got out of the way,
  if we got out of the way..

this Valentine's Day is simplified,
there are no gifts I have to buy,
but I would gather icicles
from under trees and traffic signs,
and send them out to warmer climes
where winter's in short supply,
  cold, but I'm wide awake,
  bent, but we didn't break,
free is a price we all can afford,
clear as the ice encrusting this world,
free is a price we all can afford to pay...

---------------------
I'm also debating "under trees and traffic signs" versus "under eaves..."  Yup.
6:44 PM 
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Sunday, November 19, 2006 
okay, somewhat miraculously, my new CD is finally done, and it both:
--sounds pretty darn great...  and
--looks so cool, that a couple people have bought it just because of the packaging.  (and it's tough to get people to buy CDs these days)
I know, I'm gushing, but I'm really proud of this one.  Hey, it only took 4 years to complete...  :]
Anyway, you can order one from my  website, or buy one at a live show; other options soon.  Makes a lovely holiday gift & such...Songs on this one are:  Elliott, 1 Excuse, Convenience Store, Immortal, School Together, Famous, New Pill, Superhero, Guardian Angel, Lazarus, Any Day, Sign, WWJD? & Till the Colors.
2:47 AM 
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Thursday, November 02, 2006 
me at coffeeshop:  "I'm here to drop off a t-shirt--the owner bought one the last time i played here, but he needs a bigger size."
barista-guy:  "hey, great ghoul-nails, dude!"
me:  "oh, they're for playing guitar.  they're always like that."
barista-guy:  "oh, I thought they were for Halloween."

What can I say--they look scary, but they sound good.  It's a trade-off.
happy halloween!  :]
5:40 AM 
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Monday, October 02, 2006 
So, I drove 2.5 hours to Canton, OH last night, mostly to play for Samantha, Katie, 2 friends of Samantha's who stayed for set #1, and the nice barristas behind the counter.  Big thanks to Sam and Katie, for making me feel a lot less pointless!  I made $25, which I think should cover my gas costs, thanks to lower prices.  (I wondered if I'd ever see gas under $2/gallon again--the answer is "yes, in Ohio.")  I also drank a lot of great tea, and one large smoothie.
And, on the drive home, I made good progress on the new song lyric, which I've continued tweaking today.

SECRET POWERS
we're all mortal, that's pretty clear,
with lots to live for, and everything to fear
 but I marvel.. at all your secret powers
  I have watched the way you stop time for hours
  you fly over, quietly, with a grace I don't possess..

we're on short time, still we pretend
that our time won't come to an end,
  that's why I marvel.. at all your secret powers
  you unravel the mystery of moments as they travel
  through your hands, you spin them into gold,
     maybe it's inside us all (if we dig deeper),
     maybe we'll surprise them all (out of nowhere),
     maybe we don't have to fall (any farther),
     maybe we could land right here..

I'm sure you have good and bad days,
still I cannot help be amazed,
  and marvel.. at all your secret powers
  as I watch the way you stop time for hours
  you fly over all you love, and it's lovely to behold,
     maybe it's inside us all (if we dig deeper),
     maybe we'll surprise them all (out of nowhere),
     maybe we don't have to fall (any farther),
     maybe we could land right here..
                              ..all your secret powers..
                              ..you stop time for hours,
  you take moments as they pass,
  and spin them into gold..
all your secret powers, all your secret powers...
(you take moments, and spin them into gold...)


--------------------------------------------------------
It's sort of Ben Lee-esque--positive and a little sad.
I'll probably play it tomorrow night in Sq. Hill.
Tomorrow, I play sax at a funeral (Amazing Grace, at the end of the prelude.)  A former volunteer tutor.  In lieu of flowers, the family has asked for gifts to the tutoring program I coordinate (where he volunteered), which is really generous.  He was 74.

 

3:43 AM 
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Saturday, June 03, 2006 
So, I got a friend request from a nice person in IL.  I'm not sure if she knows my music from somewhere, or just found it on MySpace.  (UPDATE:  she was a camper in 1997, while I was a counselor teaching French in the woods of Minnesota.  Really!  Je m'appellait Thibault...) 
Anyway, one of her photos has a cool caption which says: "this night was trouble... but excellent trouble... "  I really liked "Excellent Trouble" as a turn of phrase, and thought it might make a good song title/idea.  About 24 hours later:

Excellent Trouble
hey, you, let's find some excellent trouble,
I think it's high time we rose from this rubble,
we two should become partners in crime,
turn on a dime, leave them all guessing
tonight, let's earn a bad reputaion,
and fight to shake up this sad situation,
we might inspire the next generation
to keep asking why, to never say die,
  excellent trouble, there for the making
  we'll burst a few bubbles, right there for the breaking,
  a loose coalition of lovers and skeptics,
  poets and vagabounds, beggers and mystics,
  excellent trouble, only the finest,
  we'll color flourescently outside the lines,
  and when, dour-faced, they ask us why we can't stop smiling,
  it's just that it's all so unbearably beautiful..

hey, you, have you been searching for courage,
all through dressers and boxes in storage?
unsure where you left what you are made of,
among letters and yearbooks and sweaters and such,
what if everything we have discarded
is just ballast we drop as we gradually lift
up out of gravity's sway, birds don't obey,
why hesitate when there's
  excellent trouble, there for the making
  we'll burst a few bubbles, they're there for the breaking,
  a loose coalition of lovers and skeptics,
  poets and heretics, prophets and mystics,
  excellent trouble, only the finest,
  we'll color flourescently outside the lines,
  and when, dour-faced, they ask us why we can't stop crying,
  it's just that it's all so unspeakably beautiful..
    my only wish is to honor this gift
    to practice my part and the jaywalker's art,
  so when, dour-faced, they ask us why we can't stop smiling,
  it's just that you're all so unbearably beautiful...

----------------------------------------------------
I'm liking this one.  :]  I usually like the new ones, of course...
7:01 PM 
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Thursday, April 06, 2006 
hi...
I just finished a new song, which I'm liking a lot. Here's the lyric:

1. oh, the local band, they had a special sound,
they used to pick me up when I was feeling down,
now it makes me sad, I'll never understand
  why something always breaks up the local band..
    (catchy "bah-buh-dah-buh" sort of part here)
2.  turned on the radio just the other day,
and I heard that song that they used to play,
it really took me back, I was their biggest fan,
  but something always breaks up the local band,
CH:  they spent a bunch of money on a shiny little record
and the songs were righteous, like a lighthouse they all shone,
they played a lot of shows and they smoked a little dope,
  they were young and hopeful, how could anything go wrong?
    (catchy "bah-buh-dah-buh" part)
3. they ruled the local scene, pack out the little bars,
they won the paper's poll, they were the local stars,
and when the bands battled, they were crowned champions,
  and everybody swore, we'd say "we knew them when"
CH:  they spent the drummer's uncle's money on a shiny little record
and the songs were righteous, like a lighthouse they all shone,
they smoked a lot of dope and they played a lot of shows,
   they were young and hopeful, how could anything go wrong?
BR: a couple labels called, they didn't hear a hit,
and then the bassist moved, the lead guitarist quit,
the eager substitutes were never quite the same,
they had a different sound, they even tried a different name..
    (catchy "bah-buh-dah-buh" part)
4. now every year or so there's a reunion show,
they bring their people out, they make a little dough,
but with the wives and kids it's hard to hit the road,
  it's hard to quit the job that bought the motorboat,
1. yeah, the local band, they had a special sound,
they used to pick me up when I was feeling down,
after all these years I think I understand,
  something always breaks up the local band...
CH: & (catchy "bah-buh-dah-buh" part
going on at the same time.  Really. )

I think that everyone knows of a cool band in their area that looked like it was going to break big, but then didn't quite.  So hopefully the kids can relate to this one.  :]
1:27 PM 
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