M E L I S S A Key of G
These are letters I like to say - M E L I S S A
These are notes I like to play……
Letters that sparkle. Notes that jingle
Make a little song in my heart
There’s a song in my heart today - M E L I S S A
I wish…
I took this bus trip from Forth Worth, Texas to Wheeling, West Virginia and on the way home I jumped off in Cincinnati and bought a ticket to Nashville... Lots of stuff happen when you are on a bus and in bus stations for over 60 hours.
Here…
There is nothing like the presence of a horse. The quiet understanding. The gentle strength.
Woodlake, California...1961. I had a horse. She was my friend.
There were times in my teens when Babe was the only being that did not judge me…
REMEMBERING BABE: I had NOT heard this one! I'm glad I insisted!!! Gotta be among the best of... my favs... I don't have to tell you, this is poetry. And your delivery... refreshingly original. In "stand up" readings, or "slam" poetry, there is a "style" of cadence that hearkens back to the Beats, and most poets fall into it, and it always annoyed the hell out of me. This is DRAMATIC ACTING, folks, c'mon! I
like the slow, unhurried, thoughtful way you spoke as the poem's Voice; how you mixed up the rhythm, unexpected hesitations, and rapid rushes. And esp the long pauses in unexpected places, as tho the Voice was thinking about the exact right word to use next to express what he wanted to say.
I've been trying to work on my delivery for my planned re-entry (after covid) into the local poetry reading community. It is terrible... isolation in quarantine can do that! So I've been practicing w/ video and putting music behind me for good measure.Anyway, I found some good tips here. Thank you. 🙂 I really love R.BABE The ending works really well, something that's sometimes difficult. Gwyn Henry
I wrote this at my dad's urging. He likes it. We sing it together. I have YouTube Video of it up.
EULOGY
He grew up in Clinton, Oklahoma
Red dirt back yard, Gramma's place
Honey suckle in a dust bowl
Life as hard as limestone lace…
".. you had me right off the bat--"Red Dirt" for me, classic Ok City area!; plus "honeysuckle dustbowl" (so beautiful) and "limestone lace" --each image is 2 completly different things contrasted to make a third. Lovely. Oklahoma evocative! " Gwyn Henry
(I Almost Washed the ) DISHES
I almost washed the dishes
I almost ran the water
Maybe tomorrow
Maybe Saturday
What does it matter to me
I almost washed the dishes..
(C) 2020 Royal T Music
NO NEW LOVE
Ain't no new love like an old love in this town
Ain't no new love like an old love to take and turn my heart around
Stop it on a dime when you said that you'd be mine
Ain't no new love like an old love in my heart
Ain't no…
I had forgotten what a damn fine album this is! But... ??? 2005? Really? OMG... has it really been that long? Kinda makes the line... "Ain't no fool like an old fool" fit me even better than it did... sigh
FIREFLIES. capo @ 2
F walk down
We (C) spoke of them as (C/B) sweethearts
There (Am) in the Southern (F) sky
(C) Saturn, just a (G) twinkle, bold (F) Jupiter near (G) by
I (Am) guess we didn't (Am/G) notice
as they (Am/F)drifted a…
Pete Thompson on percussion and Angie Thompson on bass. Produced with Pete 123112
HAIRCUT
They sent me a letter. A ticket to ride
Portland to Frisco on that Big Overnight
Brand new clothes. New pants and new shirt
Brand new boots to kick…
Sweet, sweet, sweet, (except for the war and killing part). My fav lines: "...with those sulfurous clicks/
Little red rolls with black spots of bang" Never described better! That's exactly what they were. Gwyn Henry
capo @ 3
Am walk down...
When I was a child we'd drive 200 miles
to Grandma's in the Spring
I'd hop out of the car, run to the back yard.
Grandma had a swing
But the times have changed...
When I became a dad I took all the rope I had…
CATTAILS AND BUTTERFLIES capo @ 4 in C
C G repeat
There was a field around the corner
And a stream flowed cross the field
There were cat tails in the summer time
And monarch butterflies
And tadpoles sprouting wings
E…
DIRTY LAUNDRY Key C
I got a call from Russell. He had to move his junk
He’d filled his car. He’d filled his trunk
Big black bags of something. I said, “What’s with these?”
He said, “It’s dirty laundry.” I said, “That’s crazy.”
So, he…
HOME
(Am D) or (F C)
VERSE 1.
Where the (G) windmill sings to the mocking bird
And the (CM7) prairie wind, without a word
(Am) Whispers thru tall (D) grass, I’ll be (G) home
(F C G) or (Am D)
VERSE 2.
Where the butter cups and…
HOME
(Am D) or (F C)
VERSE 1.
Where the (G) windmill sings to the mocking bird
And the (CM7) prairie wind, without a word
(Am) Whispers thru tall (D) grass, I’ll be (G) home
(F C G) or (Am D)
VERSE 2.
Where the butter cups and…
DIRTY LAUNDRY Key C
I got a call from Russell. He had to move his junk
He’d filled his car. He’d filled his trunk
Big black bags of something. I said, “What’s with these?”
He said, “It’s dirty laundry.” I said, “That’s crazy.”
So, he…
HOME
(Am D) or (F C)
VERSE 1.
Where the (G) windmill sings to the mocking bird
And the (CM7) prairie wind, without a word
(Am) Whispers thru tall (D) grass, I’ll be (G) home
(F C G) or (Am D)
VERSE 2.
Where the butter cups and…
"Mending the web that the horsefly tore..." .what a line..what an image... I love that...really love that image...delicate and hopefull....and magical... Matthew
I wrote this at my dad's urging. He likes it. We sing it together. I have YouTube Video of it up.
EULOGY
He grew up in Clinton, Oklahoma
Red dirt back yard, Gramma's place
Honey suckle in a dust bowl
Life as hard as limestone lace…
HOME
(Am D) or (F C)
VERSE 1.
Where the (G) windmill sings to the mocking bird
And the (CM7) prairie wind, without a word
(Am) Whispers thru tall (D) grass, I’ll be (G) home
(F C G) or (Am D)
VERSE 2.
Where the butter cups and…
PLEASE DON'T TELL ME ANY MORE
capo @ 3 in G
James Michael Taylor 09 26/7 14
VERSE ONE - You said you knew the story would upset me G
That you'd resolved to kept it to yourself G D
You said you knew how hard it would…
Remember that song, PLEASE DON'T TELL ME ANY MORE? You wrote. "What a hateful, miserable person that big mouth is." Well, Big Mouth, yes, and oblivious, but he's one among us and non of us think of him as hateful. People say things in a flash, not having a clue to how it's going to land.
The banjo, bass and guitar on this song
was played by Michael Jeffrey. This is one song off the record we did together back in 1975/6 on his 4 track machine. Michael and Barbara Anne Taylor sing harmony.
I LIVE WITH REBECCA
I live with…
My Rebecca married a buddy who was killed in a car wreck. Had a beautiful daughter who died in her teens. Such sadness I have lost touch with her. She and I met ay Abilene Christian College in 1964. One day we met at a park and she read THE LITTLE PRINCE to me.
The banjo, bass and guitar on this song
was played by Michael Jeffrey. This is one song off the record we did together back in 1975/6 on his 4 track machine. Michael and Barbara Anne Taylor sing harmony.
I LIVE WITH REBECCA
I live with…
The banjo, bass and guitar on this song
was played by Michael Jeffrey. This is one song off the record we did together back in 1975/6 on his 4 track machine. Michael and Barbara Anne Taylor sing harmony.
I LIVE WITH REBECCA
I live with…
Very interesting. I was there with my girlfriend Rebecca Portillo. Your song made that trip extra special. She lived in Las Cruces NM and I lived in Columbia, Mo attending UMC. We eventually went out separate ways. So your song turned out to be prophetic. Thank you for using your gift of music and sharing it. Phil Estes
The banjo, bass and guitar on this song
was played by Michael Jeffrey. This is one song off the record we did together back in 1975/6 on his 4 track machine. Michael and Barbara Anne Taylor sing harmony.
I LIVE WITH REBECCA
I live with…
Any chance you played in a bar in El Paso August 1978? That’s where I heard “I live with Rebecca.” Bought an album there with this song, actually because of this song. Peace - Phil Estes
NEW DAY Key Am
In the morning when she gets me up
Pours some wake up in my coffee cup
She opens the window, lets the new day in
She says, “Open your heart and embrace it.
Take that frown and erase it.
I whistle a happy song…”
So…
capo @ 3
Am walk down...
When I was a child we'd drive 200 miles
to Grandma's in the Spring
I'd hop out of the car, run to the back yard.
Grandma had a swing
But the times have changed...
When I became a dad I took all the rope I had…
Marcie Brooks
Oh, I LOVE this! The fact that your camera placement, while swaying and playing, made me feel like I was actually swinging to the song. GENIUS!
OWIE! in G
When I get an owie
I want to tell somebody
When I get an owie
I feel so alone
When I get an owie
I want to show somebody
When I get an owie
I run strait to mom
When I get an owie
It's better if it's bloody...
capo @ 3
Am walk down...
When I was a child we'd drive 200 miles
to Grandma's in the Spring
I'd hop out of the car, run to the back yard.
Grandma had a swing
But the times have changed...
When I became a dad I took all the rope I had…
Brent Woods
Oh it brought back memories of a swing when I visited my Grandmother ! Bitter Sweet Memories of times gone by.! Thanks for bringing that back to me !
capo @ 3
Am walk down...
When I was a child we'd drive 200 miles
to Grandma's in the Spring
I'd hop out of the car, run to the back yard.
Grandma had a swing
But the times have changed...
When I became a dad I took all the rope I had…
capo @ 3
Am walk down...
When I was a child we'd drive 200 miles
to Grandma's in the Spring
I'd hop out of the car, run to the back yard.
Grandma had a swing
But the times have changed...
When I became a dad I took all the rope I had…
capo @ 3
Am walk down...
When I was a child we'd drive 200 miles
to Grandma's in the Spring
I'd hop out of the car, run to the back yard.
Grandma had a swing
But the times have changed...
When I became a dad I took all the rope I had…
capo @ 3
Am walk down...
When I was a child we'd drive 200 miles
to Grandma's in the Spring
I'd hop out of the car, run to the back yard.
Grandma had a swing
But the times have changed...
When I became a dad I took all the rope I had…
Refuge into the imagination:
Is it crazy?
Is it survival?
Is desire to survive crazy?
THERE SHE WAS Key - G 102811
G
She'd been gone for three years now so he'd been on the road
Playing every truck stop bar and every song he…
Yes. The listener knows from the beginning that she is gone, but the sadness becomes haunting when the harmony was t his ear.
Enter
You sent
I see.
Enter
You sent
My sadness begins when I sing, "She's been gone for three years..."
Refuge into the imagination:
Is it crazy?
Is it survival?
Is desire to survive crazy?
THERE SHE WAS Key - G 102811
G
She'd been gone for three years now so he'd been on the road
Playing every truck stop bar and every song he…
When does THERE SHE WAS begin to engage the listener and what about it makes the listener sad?
Enter
Lazarus
Lazarus Knight
To me, iy was when he heard her harmony in his ear.
Refuge into the imagination:
Is it crazy?
Is it survival?
Is desire to survive crazy?
THERE SHE WAS Key - G 102811
G
She'd been gone for three years now so he'd been on the road
Playing every truck stop bar and every song he…
Saw a black man on TV one night. His name was John Ferguson. This is his story. He's not a songwriter.
DAMNED IF I DO - G
I got thrown in jail for killing a guy
Then I went crazy, waiting to die
So, now they can't kill me
Because I'm…
Comments on James Michael Taylor's stuff
I've heard a lot of your songs, but never this one that I can recall. Very powerful and touching lyrics. Ashley
😌🥰
Why did you puke? Sorry, in a song fully of details I guess I want another detail.
REMEMBERING BABE: I had NOT heard this one! I'm glad I insisted!!! Gotta be among the best of... my favs... I don't have to tell you, this is poetry. And your delivery... refreshingly original. In "stand up" readings, or "slam" poetry, there is a "style" of cadence that hearkens back to the Beats, and most poets fall into it, and it always annoyed the hell out of me. This is DRAMATIC ACTING, folks, c'mon! I like the slow, unhurried, thoughtful way you spoke as the poem's Voice; how you mixed up the rhythm, unexpected hesitations, and rapid rushes. And esp the long pauses in unexpected places, as tho the Voice was thinking about the exact right word to use next to express what he wanted to say. I've been trying to work on my delivery for my planned re-entry (after covid) into the local poetry reading community. It is terrible... isolation in quarantine can do that! So I've been practicing w/ video and putting music behind me for good measure.Anyway, I found some good tips here. Thank you. 🙂 I really love R.BABE The ending works really well, something that's sometimes difficult. Gwyn Henry
".. you had me right off the bat--"Red Dirt" for me, classic Ok City area!; plus "honeysuckle dustbowl" (so beautiful) and "limestone lace" --each image is 2 completly different things contrasted to make a third. Lovely. Oklahoma evocative! " Gwyn Henry
Love it. Always enjoy your work. Thank you.
I had forgotten what a damn fine album this is! But... ??? 2005? Really? OMG... has it really been that long? Kinda makes the line... "Ain't no fool like an old fool" fit me even better than it did... sigh
Beautiful - Laurie Calinan
Sweet, sweet, sweet, (except for the war and killing part). My fav lines: "...with those sulfurous clicks/ Little red rolls with black spots of bang" Never described better! That's exactly what they were. Gwyn Henry
beautiful, james
Yeah, cool track.
Beautiful - Laurie Callinan
Yep :)
I'll comment on this one :) ... mighty fine song.
Short and sweet!
Colleen Dillon (73.94.253.184) Love this entirely!
The harmonies on this are so awesome!
"Mending the web that the horsefly tore..." .what a line..what an image... I love that...really love that image...delicate and hopefull....and magical... Matthew
Beautiful beautiful song!! Kat Landrove
i like it, but i'd like to visualize a little more of this place. thanks, james for sharing these!!!
Comments made by James Michael Taylor
Remember that song, PLEASE DON'T TELL ME ANY MORE? You wrote. "What a hateful, miserable person that big mouth is." Well, Big Mouth, yes, and oblivious, but he's one among us and non of us think of him as hateful. People say things in a flash, not having a clue to how it's going to land.
My Rebecca married a buddy who was killed in a car wreck. Had a beautiful daughter who died in her teens. Such sadness I have lost touch with her. She and I met ay Abilene Christian College in 1964. One day we met at a park and she read THE LITTLE PRINCE to me.
Becky Byrd Spicer That’s a sweet song, vocals and strings.
Very interesting. I was there with my girlfriend Rebecca Portillo. Your song made that trip extra special. She lived in Las Cruces NM and I lived in Columbia, Mo attending UMC. We eventually went out separate ways. So your song turned out to be prophetic. Thank you for using your gift of music and sharing it. Phil Estes
Any chance you played in a bar in El Paso August 1978? That’s where I heard “I live with Rebecca.” Bought an album there with this song, actually because of this song. Peace - Phil Estes
Robert White Beautiful Song James Michael Taylor! Thanks for sharing! 🤗
Kat Angel James Michael Taylor Delightful!
Kat Angel Good wake up song. I can see the teacher playing this song for the kids at the start of their school day and they all sing along.
Cathy Maxwell · 1:51 that's a great HAPPY song!!!
Marcie Brooks Oh, I LOVE this! The fact that your camera placement, while swaying and playing, made me feel like I was actually swinging to the song. GENIUS!
Laurie Callinan James Michael Taylor thats great… we are alone till we share
Brent Woods Oh it brought back memories of a swing when I visited my Grandmother ! Bitter Sweet Memories of times gone by.! Thanks for bringing that back to me !
Allen Hurt I love it my friend, very well thought out and i love the way you pick throught it. Keep up the great buddy
Kat Angel Heartfelt, you told the story so well...I was there
Brent Woods This one got Me ! I'm humming it now ! Man oh Man . . . Greatness !
Brent Woods James Michael Taylor my Friends. One of the Greats and I'm proud to say . . . Friend !
Yes. The listener knows from the beginning that she is gone, but the sadness becomes haunting when the harmony was t his ear. Enter You sent I see. Enter You sent My sadness begins when I sing, "She's been gone for three years..."
When does THERE SHE WAS begin to engage the listener and what about it makes the listener sad? Enter Lazarus Lazarus Knight To me, iy was when he heard her harmony in his ear.
Made me cry. - Laz
"Damn. advise from a murderer." Steve Theskin