Arko's High School Music (highlights)

2nd Try at Drifting By

This is basically the slow Year 8 version of Drifting By, rather than the fast Year 7 version... one interesting fact about the Bb minor bit ("Yes it's my life, not your life") at the end though, is that it was written in a fit of pique (towards the end of Year 8) after a nasty row with my mother!!

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Lyrics:

I see my life staring through the window

I ask myself why is this so

Those people place all their blame on me

And so I say to them why don’t you let me be

Yes, it’s my life, not your life, it’s in my hands and

You can’t kill off the soul in me

‘cause I won’t let that be

The Inevitable End of the Road

This (from early 1997) has always been one of my favourites, and has always been one of my big 'social' songs... the music from the second part of the verses came from noodling around on a friend's keyboard, and my use of a 'tritone' chord change in the first part of the verses is because I'd just learnt about tri-tones from my Music Theory teacher... the words of the choruses are from 1997, but the verse words are newer!

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Take a step back

Let it sink in

As the man in the cloak

Commits the cardinal sin

Sunlight grows dimmer

Ebbs away

As decent folk find themselves

With ever less to say

Ooh, ooh

The rulers have no justice

Ooh, ooh

The money rules their minds

Ooh, ooh

Oppression is the mantra

Ooh, ooh

For those who'd stifle humankind

People like lemmings

Stepping in file

Not knowing their life’s fading

All the while

No place in hearts

For those trodden upon

As all they thought they stood for

Had simply been and gone

Ooh, ooh

The rulers serve the wealthy

Ooh, ooh

Their hearts are rotting fast

Ooh, ooh

And when they need an answer

Ooh, ooh

They'll only look back to the past

"Untitled Love Song"

I remember the afternoon that I wrote this one crystal clear... it was probably around Feb 1997 (early Year 9), I'd come back from school (I think my last line for the day was probably science), and I came up with this, with the synthesiser, and Band-in-a-Box (on the computer)... the reason it starts with a diminished chord, is that my original intention was to do the chords like one of my friends, who used those kinds of chords, but it quickly devolved into 'bog-standard Arko chords'!!

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Lyrics:

What did I do wrong?

What can’t I see?

Every day seems so long

‘cause she won’t talk to me

What could I have done?

Was I too unkind?

I must do something

Before I lose my mind

Baking in Love's Soufflé (high school version)

This would be from around March or April 1997... the lyrics are probably self-explanatory, but my main memory of this one is that I woke up at about midnight (with some kind of idea going through my head), and I probably wandered over to the computer to try and record the idea!!

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Lyrics:

My mind is putty in her hands

With her face

She gives commands

And try as I might to look away

From her face

My eyes won't stray

Then as I stare at her lips

The power's at her fingertips

But she'd say

Why should I love you?

You're just a sore to my eye

And why should I miss your

Friendship since all of that was a lie?

More frustration does arise

As I gaze

Into her eyes

But in her eyes I see only glass

She doesn't care

What comes to pass

Smile

A few interesting things about this one... I think it dates from March 97... the keyboard part is a small fragment I had lying around from Year 8, and when I was coming up with the opening notes, what I was going for (I guess successfully or not!), was something like Paul McCartney... the saxophone part at the end was also a small fragment I had lying around, and the lyrics actually were partly based on a 'Smile Card' that a friend had given me (I think it had some of the lines like "You're a special person and someone's thinking of you")!!

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Lyrics:

I opened my eyes and saw all the smiling people all around

I put on a smile too and knew that I felt proud, yes I felt proud

When in doubt, don't stop, don't wait

Just keep your head high, don't hesitate

You'll get through, you always do

And your life will seem to be born anew

So wear a smile and see all the people near you start smiling too

‘cause you're a special person and someone's thinking of you, yeah someone's thinking of you

Someone’s thinking of you

Thinking of you

Thinking of you

Thinking of you…

Saw My Life

My main recollection of how this came about is that once, I was on the bus on the way back from school, and I had a sudden "flash", where (as the title would suggest) I "saw my life" (!).... so, the song was probably done one afternoon after school, but I think the music is arguably a knockoff of the Beatles' "Sun King"?!

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Lyrics:

I was awoken

I saw my life

My bird had spoken

It saw my life

Round, round

Round it goes

Round, round

Round it flows

Laid out there before me

There was my life

And its secret told me

You are your life

Round, round

Round it goes

Round, round

Round it knows

Thought of Nothing (high school version)

This one is probably from around April or May 1997... I don't remember that much about doing the actual 'midi' part of it (on the computer), but I definitely remember that I was sort of 'inspired' to do this after listening to I'm Only Sleeping by the Beatles... also, the bridge to this ("And though my mind may look for you" etc) I came up with on a harmonium, while visiting my grandparents in Brisbane!

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Lyrics:

Thoughts of nothing floating round my head, round my head

Even though you never know if I might be dead

Though there’s a small chance I may curl up and cry

Please don’t ask those questions why

I think I’ll just sleep instead

Lifelong love is loving’s first great lie, love’s first lie

But you see you’ll never be to know if you don’t try

There’s just one small risk that you’ll have to take

The one that’ll put your heart at stake

‘cause I don’t want to be the lonely guy!

And though my mind may look for you

It will find that you’re not there, you’re not there

So laying back in solitude, know that it’s to be free, as can be

Woman's Song

This song was written at a camp run by one of my choir directors, for a music theatre production, although I was not the only author of this song (the middle section of music was written by another man at the camp, Liam Waterford, and the lyrics by a woman at the camp named Katherine)...

I have fairly vivid memories of how I came up with the two bits of the song that I wrote (that is the first and last parts): the first I wrote on the flute, and the idea I was going for with the chords, was to have them fairly gentle the first time, then a bit more 'strident the second...

As for the last part of the song, I guess I've long considered it one of the best things I've done, but I'm pretty sure it occurred to me while I was sitting on a bed at the camp!

(An interesting fact about this song is that the woman who wrote the words, who actually also sang it in the music theatre production, came back to me and asked if she could omit one of the notes, as it was a bit difficult for her to get, to which I readily agreed!!)

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Lyrics:

We were in love

But then that parrot came along

With that mad hypnotic song, now you’re gone

I never thought I would be jealous of a bird

But it’s not just any bird, have you heard

So give me some attention

And show me your emotion

Convince me you’re devoted

Or I’m gone

Don’t like to make an ultimatum

But it’s too late for debating

Tell that parrot that you hate him

Or I’m gone

You’re enchanted by that bird

I don’t know why, haven’t you heard

It’s just a song?

You’re captivated by that voice

I don’t know why, now make your choice

Before I’m gone

Before I’m gone

Before I’m gone

You're Only 1 of 5 Billion (high school version)

This song was written about the same time as 'Tell the Truth' (that is, in the immediate aftermath of our overseas school trip)... in fact, the music for the G major part of this was actually written on that trip, but the Bb major bit came afterwards... again, the lyrics are based on some of the events of the trip, but I've always considered this to be one of my best songs!

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Lyrics:

No-one will look you in the eye

You might have noticed they don’t care

Now tell me it isn’t fair

All the big breaks have passed you by

Your plans and hopes drift out of sight

They tell you to say good night

So you say well it must matter to you what happens to me

I’ve got potential for you all

Can’t you see that I’m unique in this world

I’ll do good for you ere I fall

Just like the other five billion

Struggle on slowly through it all

All those times you’ve been shown the door

How does the world look from the floor?

And when you feel you’ve served your time

You’ll fade away to nothingness

I’m afraid they just couldn’t care less

Yes I’ve got plans for this world and plans for my life

I want to get somewhere in the end

I don’t want to have my house in the slums or be left with no friends

Someone’s got to care

Someone’s got to care

Well it matters to me

Yes someone must care

Why should we ‘cause: You’re only one of five billion

Tell the Truth

This song was written in the immediate aftermath of a tumultuous school overseas trip (to Indonesia)... it's funny, because these lyrics in some ways are a very 'alternate reality' take on some of the events of the trip!!

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Lyrics:

Somewhere locked deep inside your mind are dark things

That you just can't tell anyone

Those things are best kept secret, so

Don't listen to them, when they say

Tell the truth boy, spit it out

We all want to know what goes on in your head, yeah

Come on tell us, we wanna find out

You'll never regret any of the things that you said, yeah

Tell the truth boy, spit it out

We all want to know what goes on in your head, yeah

Come on tell us, we wanna find out

You'll never regret any of the things that you said, yeah

No One Cares v1

In mid to late 1997, me and a friend I knew from choir (who was really into musicals, and aspired to be professional lyricist), wrote this whole Christmas musical together (he wrote the words and me the music)... it never got performed, but this is one of my favourite pieces from it!

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Lyrics:

You hear stories of unity, the spirit of Christmas

But people don’t love people anymore

Once families were together

But it didn’t last forever

The world’s cold, and I’m lonely, unlike before

No one cares about love

That love they don’t have, that love is everlasting

No One Cares v2

This, as the title would suggest, is another version of the song 'No-One Cares'... again, even though I think this particular version was never used in the musical me and my friend wrote, it's one of my personal favourites!

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Lyrics:

You hear stories of unity, the spirit of Christmas

That spirit we just haven’t got

No one cares about love, no one cares about unity

Their spirits break and fade

That love they don’t have, that love is everlasting

We Have Everything

Once again, this is another of my favourites from the Christmas play my friend and I wrote... this music actually was used in the play... the middle part is some dialogue from the play, which is meant to happen while the music plays :-) (Another bit of trivia, this is one of the few pieces from the play which both my friend and I really liked!)

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Lyrics:

We got you that bike this year

We got you that paint set

We got you everything on that list

But now they’re gone, we must move on, we must move on

As father, son and mother, all that’s left for us now is each other

We’re unified by our love for each other

All that’s left for us now is each other (all that’s left for us now is each other)

We’re unified by our love for each other (we’re unified by our love for each other)

All that’s left for us now is each other (all that’s left for us now is each other)

Are you Santa?

I was

What?

No-one needs me anymore. Christmas is only commercials. greed. money

It was

It is. innocent child

No it’s not. look at us - scared. the bombs scare us. they brought us all together

Perhaps you were just too comfortable. Forgot how much it meant to have people

We did forget. But we learnt. Don't give up Santa. We all believe in you

All that’s left for us now is each other

We’re unified by our love for each other

All that’s left for us now is each other

I have everything now, I have you

V nnnnnn (A Melancholic Song)

I don't have many memories of this one... it would date from late 1997, and I have a vague memory of coming up with the middle part ("For a while I thought"...) on the piano? I'm also not sure if all the lyrics are from 1997, or if they might have crept in sometime later...

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Lyrics:

You thought you knew someone who was as sad as me

Well let me tell you I’m sad as sad can be

You thought you knew someone who was as sad as me

Well let me tell you I’m sad as sad can be

For a while I thought that you were my friend, that you were my friend

For a while I thought that you were my friend, that you were my friend, until the end

You thought you knew someone who was as sad as me

Well let me tell you I’m sad as sad can be

You thought you knew someone who was as sad as me

Well let me tell you I’m sad as sad can be

Still There Remains (high school version)

I think this song was written in the winter of 1997, and the 'pain' referred to in the first line is about some of those same experiences referred to in Tell the Truth and You're Only 1 of 5 Billion... (an interesting fact is that the vamping you'll hear on this song, is the original playing from 1997!)... also, the chord change you hear in the line "It never really mattered at all", is actually a mistake that crept in when I was playing it on the piano once, but I liked it so much that I kept it in the song!

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Lyrics:

For all the pain I’ve had in my life (in my life)

Still there remains some love tonight (be my light)

It never seemed to matter at all

It never really mattered at all

So here you’re standing by my side

It’s such a shame my friends

Such a shame my friends

Yes it’s a shame my friends

For us all

Stale Cheese (high school version)

As I think l've noted in my comments on the "Collection" version of this song, this song came about from playing a "chord sequence" on the keyboard (as I thought that this might be a good way to come up with a song)... the lyrics are from 2014 (it was an instrumental prior to that), but for anyone who knows Canberra, an interesting fun fact is that the middle bit of music ("The plaster is peeling off the walls..." etc), occurred to me while I was walking with my Mum through Woden Plaza (in about Sep '97)!

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Lyrics:

The other day there I was, wondering when the phone might start to ring

A whispering voice telling me “don’t sit there in the cold, shivering”

The plaster is peeling off the walls

You tell me your news and my heart falls

My only lifeline to the world, your shimmering mirage but I clutch at straws

The vultures will wheel but I’m going mad

The only love that I ever had

You tell me the afterlife really ain’t that bad

And now I find out all along, you were so changed I didn’t know your face

The voice that I thought I heard, actually just a little bird

The answers that I thought I knew, slowly drew me back to you

And now you that are so carefree, there is no more place for me in

Stale cheese

Stale cheese

Stale cheese

Stale cheese

The Elephant Song

I don't remember an awful lot about this one, but the friend (Dan Gerritsen) who asked me to write a song from these lyrics, I think had written them with one of his friends at a ski trip (or something)... the other thing I remember about this is that I used to think of it on early morning walks with my parents (before school)! (I think I was going for a bit of a "big band" arrangement for this one!!)

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Lyrics:

I was walking down the street, on a bright sunny day

I saw an elephant

With big grey skin and big white tusks

It was an elephant

Now this elephant was blockin’ my way

So I pulled out my gun and started to say

Get out of my way, or I’ll blow you away, OK?

Elephant, elephant, blocking my way

Elephant, elephant, please go away

Elephant, elephant, blocking my way

Please go away!

An Untitled Instrumental

My main memory of this, is that for perhaps around a whole day, in around November 1997, I sat down at the piano, and 'slogged away' (as it were!)... this is what resulted at the end of the day (some of the arrangement is newer)!

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"Gonna be late for tea"

My main memory of this (probably from about Nov' 97 or so), is that this is something I quickly played on the piano, while I was waiting to go out somewhere (I've fleshed out the arrangement a bit more recently)!!

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Lyrics:

I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be late for tea

I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be late for tea