Song Share | Raining In LA

I wrote a song a few years ago called “Morning Sun,” which I've been advised never to reveal is about a cat rather than a lost love. Following the same line of advise, I suppose I should leave you thinking there's a steamy date-night story behind "Raining In LA." There is not. It’s an imaginary love story inspired by the glass in cement.

Eek! What?! Cement?!

The song began taking shape while walking the twinkling sidewalks of downtown Los Angeles with a group of friends. It was drizzling and none of us had umbrellas, so everyone's hair had a little twinkle, too. All that sparkle gave me butterflies, and on my ride home, the first line of the song wrote itself: Hey...it's a beautiful night. Even the pavement is sparkling...or are we floating through the sky...

I had to work for the rest of the song! Originally, I wrote it with an up-tempo, big band sound in mind. I decided to slow it down because 1) I couldn't replicate what I heard in my head as a one-woman band; and 2) don't all songs sound better slow?

The happiest accident to come from reducing the tempo is how the relaxed pace highlights the playfulness of the ellipsis in the line, "Your coat looks nice...hanging up by the door." I hope you giggle at this ellipsis at least twice: once out of delight and once because you giggled at an ellipsis.

Another effect of slowing down the song was that the bridge, which originally had lyrics, didn't sound quite right slow. So, I scratched the words in that section and added raindrops instead. Hear them?!

Please join me in swooning over sparkling sidewalks as you listen to "Raining In LA." Or, perhaps the musical raindrops will evoke a steamy memory of your own.

Written and Performed by Abigail Jones

Mixed and Mastered by Tyler Bauer (Instagram: @tylerbauerofficial)

A Lullaby for New Nephews

"Nighttime Falling"

By Abigail Jones

Nighttime falling

Hear my calling

Bid my baby boy to sleep

Fill his dreams with gentle whispers

When he wakes your song he’ll sing

 

Moonbeams golden

Come and hold him

Keep my baby boy asleep

Fill his dreams with sweet embraces

When he wakes your song he’ll sing

 

Starlight so bright

On your long flight

Find my baby boy asleep

Fill his dreams with perfect wisdom

When he wakes your song he’ll sing

 

Morning sunrise

Won’t you be kind

When you wake my boy from sleep

Carry all his dreams to daylight

And his life a song will be

~ For Nicholas and Donovan ~

New Song

"BRIGHT RED LIPS"

BY ABIGAIL JONES

VERSE

Velvet to the look and touch

Silky smooth where velvet's rough

Boutique colors with designer names

Contour lines make a perfect frame

CHORUS

My bright red lips don't mean a thing

Ruby Wine just makes me want to sing

My bright red lips don't mean a thing

VERSE 2

Leather that reaches to my thigh

Elevation three inches high

Putting my curves into my stride

The feeling of kicking them off at night

CHORUS

My high-heel boots don't mean a thing

A walk that talks just makes me want to sing

My high-heel boots don't mean a thing

INSTRUMENTAL BREAK

CHORUS

My bright red lips don't mean a thing

Crimson Kiss just makes me want to sing

 My bright red lips don't mean a thing

          BRIDGE

          Doo-da-n-di-da Doo-n-da-n-di-da-n-doo

          Doo-da-n-di-da Don't you wanna sing me a tune?

          Doo-da-n-di-da Doo-n-da-n-di-da-n-doo

          Doo-da-n-di-da Don't you wanna sing me a tune?

CHORUS +

Bright red lips don't mean a thing

That Diva Passion is sure to make you want to sing

But bright red lips don't mean a thing

My bright red lips don't mean a thing

Sending "Carol Packages"

This December two of my friends, Patricia and Michelle, and I had the idea to go caroling on FaceTime--or "send carol packages," as our friend Nolan said. We surprised family and friends with FaceTime calls and sung them a Christmas song I wrote a couple years ago with three-part harmony.  We decided to turn it into a drive of sorts and posted this on Facebook:

Surprise your favorite friend or lover with a Holiday Gram by making a $10 donation to one of our favorite non-profits below:
American Federation of Suicide Prevention http://afsp.donordrive.com/index.cfm…
Dream Flag Project http://www.dreamflags.org
Muttville: http://www.muttville.org
We can send a live telegram until 9pm pst tonight or send a video gram this week. Message us with the phone number or email of who you want us to call.

The video we sent people we didn't get to sing to live is above.

Amor

HER

Love, who does your hair?

HIM

When I was a boy, my grandmother. Now, my mother. Someday, my wife.

HER

Let’s not use words like wife. I just want to love you.

HIM

Then we will speak only of amor, Amor.

HER

I only need the lines of your thigh and the valley of your spine.

HIM

Then we will speak of brazos and bocas.

HER

I like that—brazos and bocas.

HIM

Then I will keep you in my brazos until morning.

HER

No, not morning.

HIM

Then tonight?

HER

Esta noche?

HIM

Claro. Esta noche I will hold you tight.

HER

Shh…

HIM

What is it, Amor?

HER

Only brazos.

HIM

Of course. Solomente brazos. And bocas?

HER

And bocas.

HIM

Y besos?

HER

Y besos.

HIM

Then, come. I have un beso for you.

HER

Now?

HIM

 Always.

HER

Love...please.

HIM

Amor...si, ahora! I only need the space between your lips.

HER

Mi boca...

HIM

Si.

HER

For un beso...

HIM

Si. And perhaps un otro.

HER

Un otro beso?

HIM

Y quisas un otro.

HER

Quisas un otro beso...I like that.

HIM

Then, quisas mis brazos. Y quisas tu boca. Y quisas muchos besos. Cualquier cosa para ti, mi amor.

HER

Thank you, Love. Cualquier cosa para ti.

New Song

“I Will Meet My Heaven”

by Abigail Jones

 

I been livin’ the sweet life

Or so it seems

Everything in my life

Has a sugar coating

But when dark clouds roll in

And the rain’s pourin’ down

I find that livin’ the sweet life

Ain’t as good as it sounds

CHORUS
So when I die, bury me shallow
Bury me on the water’s edge
When that muddy water finds me
I will meet my heaven there

Well I’ve always loved spring

‘Cause that’s when I met you

The breeze was so sweet

And our kiss was so new

But, you know, seasons they change

‘Cause that’s what seasons do

I just wish I had known

You’d want me to change, too.

CHORUS

I went down to the river

‘Cause I wanted to know

Why her waters run wild

Why she churns as she flows

But I saw my reflection

And a tear wet my cheek

It ain’t the river that’s ragin’

It’s something deep within me

CHORUS + ALTRO

*Recording to be posted shortly.

Below is an article I wrote for the Fulbright blog on my experience in Macedonia. Read the published article here: http://blog.fulbrightonline.org/dreams-and-friendship-in-macedonia/

I arrived in Resen, Macedonia in a cab I paid too much for. I stood on the side of the road and called my host teacher from my new cell phone. I had only spoken to Maja twice, but I recognized the smile in her voice through the windshield of her red Volkswagon. My two under-twenty-five-kilo suitcases filled the backseat. I reached for a seatbelt that wasn’t there. Maja’s mother, Sonja, met us in their front yard and gave me the kind of hug I remember when I am asked to summarize my year in Macedonia.

My official Fulbright assignment was to assist in high school English classes. In the fall, I taught with Maja at the high school in Resen. My assignment moved to a music high school in Bitola for the spring. Throughout the year, I also spent two or three days a week at a junior high school in a village outside of Bitola, helping facilitate the pilot of an embassy-sponsored project called the Dreams and Friendship Exchange—a virtual exchange program that promotes English language learning and interethnic, intercultural understanding through partnering students in Macedonia and America.

I remember climbing a small mountain to get to the military-building-turned-high-school where I taught in a bathroom-turned-classroom. I remember the predictably unpredictable commute to Bitola. The bus driver might stop the bus to chat with a friend. The police might stop the car and question the passengers. The cab driver might choose a more lucrative opportunity. I would find another way home.

As part of the Dreams and Friendship Exchange, participants in Macedonia and Florida explored monthly themes. We began the year discussing topics like My School, My Community and My Country, and moved towards more abstract concepts like My Rights and My Dreams. Each theme was paired with a Langston Hughes poem to inspire conversation, critical thinking and creativity. During the course of the month, students interacted via a private social media site and online classes. The group in Macedonia also created video podcasts documenting their process. My time was mostly spent developing and executingcollaborative projects and maintaining the Dreams and Friendship blog.

I remember Class 9A writing a poem about sushi for their friends in Florida. Students from 7B investigated the powerful musicality of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s rhetoric. I remember the inspired Blues songs—“Have Me a Boat,” “Baby I Know English,” “Lawd, I’m Proud of Myself.” Viktorija and Marija discovered they are poets. Dimitri engaged his desire to act and direct.

Since I had planned to study virtual exchanges as part of my grant, participating in the Dreams and Friendship Exchange was a tailor-made opportunity. I was fortunate to learn about program structure and logistics. I faced the challenges of coordinating between two different educational systems. Most importantly, I observed the effectiveness of connecting students through creative collaboration.

Arjan lit up at the opportunity to share his cultural traditions with his peers from different backgrounds. He translated the entire Dreams and Friendship Celebration into Albanian. At the celebration, we presented our work from the year to the students’ families and the Bitola community. We were honored to have Ambassador Jess Baily attend. In the context of recent unrest in the northern part of the country, he concluded his comments, “I can’t think of a better way to end the week than to be among you, among dreams and among friendship.”

Through my work as Fulbright ETA, I learned virtual exchanges are a viable and exciting way to promote mutual understanding. They can be simple, yet powerful. Moving forward, I will continue to build the skills and seek out professional experiences that will eventually allow me to produce a virtual exchange connecting children around the world through music. My Fulbright experience validated this long-time goal and gave it the taste of attainability. This sense of the possible is among my most cherished souvenirs.

Maja and I waited outside Goran’s apartment in Skopje at 2 a.m. We loaded my two slightly-over-twenty-five-kilo suitcases into the trunk. I got into the backseat with Macey, and we drove away. Maja and I had found Macey Ela Musich Ivkovska Jones in a dumpster on our way home from school. As we carried her away, the people who lived in the house nearby said with astonishment, “That cat is going to America.”

It Takes Two: The Important Role of Ferry Pass Middle School in the Dreams and Friendship Exchange

Students at Krste Petkov Misirkov in Bistrica, Macedonia connect virtually with students at Ferry Pass Middle School in Pensacola, Florida.

After hours of bonding over Lava Monster victories and defeats and the traumas of school lunch meat, friends in 1980s schoolyards across America often found themselves engaged in a debate: Who would be the “BE-FRI” and who would be the “ST-END” half of the trendy “BEST FRIEND” heart dangle rings? Thirty years later, a two-piece heart puzzle is still a respectable reminder that friendship requires two halves that willingly coming together to create something wonderful.

Over the last eight months, students at Krste Petkov Misirkov in Bistrica, Macedonia have partnered with students at Ferry Pass Middle School in Pensacola, Florida for the Dreams and Friendship Exchange. Like any friendship, the transatlantic relationship requires a willing and consistent commitment from both parties — and both have more than risen to the occasion. Students meet virtually once a month, they contribute to online conversations, they prepare cultural presentations, and they occasionally collaborate on creative projects. In their already over-committed teaching schedules, both Julijana Georgievska in Macedonia and Catherine Bauer in Florida somehow manage to find a way to make Dreams and Friendship happen for their students.

Given that the Dreams and Friendship Exchange was developed to encourage interethnic understanding and collaboration within classrooms in Macedonia, much of the project takes place locally. The connection with Ferry Pass, however, remains a key and invaluable component of the project, and one to be grateful for, especially considering their involvement is completely voluntary.

Ferry Pass’ remarkable commitment can be attributed to Bauer, who is at the helm of the Florida class. Bauer shares lessons and trades ideas with Georgievska. She helps facilitate monthly virtual meetings that include literature analyses and cultural sharing. At the beginning of the project, she set up an online forum where students can communicate with each other. For all of this, she receives no grant money, no technical support, and no other incentives. She does it because she wants to and because she is the kind of teacher who wants the experience for her students.

“I like to think that because of this project my students will be more likely to travel abroad to learn or to teach,” Bauer says. “I hope they are more likely to be open to other cultures and languages. I hope they will have some sense of global perspective…I hope they have learned more about themselves, [and] I hope they realize that they have helped others learn.”

Bauer’s forty-five sixth grade students have plenty to be proud of about the connection they have made with the students in Macedonia. From their presence at virtual meetings to creating a Prezi presentation to share American culture, they have been active and generous partners in the exchange.

Most recently, the students at Ferry Pass have shown their leadership as veterans of the Dream Flag Project, which Krste Petkov Misirkov is participating in for the first time. The Dream Flag Project is an annual poetry and art project inspired by the poetry of Langston Hughes and the tradition of Buddhist prayer flags in which students around the world write their dreams on cloth flags and join each other in sending their dreams into the world through the flags’ public display. Ferry Pass has ten years of experience with the project, which Bauer coordinates for the school. In April’s online meeting, her students shared some examples of flags they had made this year, as well as their contagious enthusiasm for the project, inspiring the students in Macedonia as they began to create their own dream flags.

The students in Florida are not only eager to share; they also are avid learners. Isabella S. in Florida says, “I enjoyed getting to know [the students in Macedonia] through the virtual exchange and learning new things about another culture and their traditions.”

Jayla W. adds, “I learned to explore and venture out to the unknown.”

The metaphor of exploration is fitting. The international exchange extends the exploration of diversity that is at the center of the Dreams and Friendship Exchange from a local to a global context and gives students in both countries knowledge of cultures and ethnicities that are outside their daily experiences. The hope is that the global exchange is like stretching a rubber band beyond its normal limit. After extending past what is usual, students’ daily “stretches” may not seem as big as they may have before. From Georgievska’s perspective, that is exactly the effect the Dreams and Friendship Exchange has had.

“The connection with Ferry Pass…has been a great way for us to learn how to make cultural differences an advantage and not an obstacle to making new friendships.” Georgievska says.

Bauer agrees that the experience of the Dreams and Friendship Exchange has been inspirational and that an important connection has been made. “[It has] added meaning and purpose to the students’ learning. We feel a great responsibility and bond to our learning exchange,” Bauer explains.

So, as the project comes to a close with the end of the academic year, Bauer and Georgievska may have only one thing to debate: Who will be the “BE-FRI” and who will be the “ST-END” half of this friendship?

 

* Read this article on the official blog of the Dreams and Friendship Exchange here. To learn more about the Dreams and Friendship Exchange, please read our initial blog.

* The views expressed on this site do not represent the views of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State, or any of its partner organizations. They are the observations and reflections of someone who likes good stories.

Writing the Blues

Blues Poetry Inspired by Langston Hughes' "Homesick Blues"

“I tried to write poems like the songs they sang on Seventh Street,” Langston Hughes wrote in his autobiography, The Big Sea. “Their songs…had the pulse beat of the people who keep on going.”

Inspired by the blues music of the Harlem Renaissance, Hughes took its structure, sounds, and sentiments and put it on the page as poetry — blues poetry. One of the resulting poems is “Homesick Blues,” which expresses his longing for the South and a desire to go home. In the poem, Hughes writes in a southern dialect, heightening the sense nostalgia and giving readers a concrete way to look through the poet’s eyes.

Studying the Blues

In February, students at Krste Petkov Miskov studied “Homesick Blues” as part of the Dreams and Friendship topic, My Language. We discussed Hughes’ use of dialect and its effect. We also learned about blues music and how Hughes imitated the music he was hearing around him in the structure, diction, and subject matter of “Homesick Blues.”

We began our research by noticing that each stanza of “Homesick Blues” has six lines that follow the same pattern: A-B-A-B-C-D. In other words, the first two lines repeat an idea and the last two lines finish the thought. We also observed that lines B and D always rhymed. This structure, we discussed, is the same as the typical three-line blues stanza, but instead of writing three long lines, Hughes split each line in half, perhaps to suggest a certain musicality like where to put a pause or place emphasis.

Next, we listened to some blues, both old and new(er)— Bessie Smith, Arthur Crudup, Albert Collins, Muddy Waters, B.B. King, and Stevie Ray Vaughn. In a few songs, we discovered the ubiquitousness of the three line blues stanza for ourselves. We also noted common language conventions, like dropping the g in words that end with –ing, and made a list of the words and phrases we heard a lot, like Lawd, yes, yeah, you know, well, etc., noting their usage as fillers that often show up at the beginning of a line.

As we listened, we talked about how the blues often, but not always, expresses sad — or “blue” — feelings. We came up with this list of common blues themes based on our listening selection:

  1. Pride
  2. Good/Hard times
  3. Trouble with love
  4. Traveling
  5. Weather/Natural disasters

After our research, we were excited to find that “Homesick Blues,” with its southern dialect, traveling theme, and sad tone, fit neatly into our findings.

Writing the Blues

To begin the process of writing our own blues poems, groups of students came up with a title for each of the five common blues themes. Here are some of the titles students came up with:

Love Is Trouble

Going Back Home

I’m Gonna Party

Lawd, I’m Proud of Myself

Traveling with My Honey

Sweet Party with Ace and Pajto

Love Me Baby Again

Come Back Good Times

Sweet Sunny Days

Finally, students were given the challenge to chose one of their titles and write one to three stanzas of a blues poem. Here are a few of the gems:

Have Me a Boat

by Filip B. and Teodora H.

I have me a boat/Yeah, it’s beautiful an’ mine/Yeah, I have me a boat/Yes, it’s beautiful an’ mine/It’s like a stripe of rainbow/Like a cloud in the sky.

It sparkles like a star/Like the sun in the sky/Yes, It sparkles like a star/Like the sun in the sky/I got me a boat/Everyone wants my boat, to buy

My boat is the best/An’ the story ends here/Yeah, my boat is the best/And the story ends here/I really love my boat because/It’s gonna take me somewhere

~•~

Baby, I Know English

by Andrej F.

Hey, baby, I know English/It’s so easy I know/Hey, baby, I know English/It’s so easy I know/Got so many words/You got to take it slow

Hey, baby, I know English/It’s so easy I know/Hey, baby, I know English/It’s so easy I know/It has so many words/It’s so easy you should know

~•~

My Family Is the Best

by Mihail T., Nikola N., Filip T., and Besim B.

My family is the best/Yes, they love me so/My family is the best/You know, they love me so/They love me to the moon and back/Yeah, my family is the best and I know

They care about me/The love me so/Yeah, they care about me/Yeah, they love me so/They send me a warm kiss/They love me to the moon and back and I know

~•~

I’m Gonna Help Ma Brother

by Andrej B.

I’m gonna help ma brother/Who walks the streets deep in night/Yeah, I’m gonna help ma brother/Who walks the streets in the night/He sings and dances for money/Just to do his family right

The good Lawd will bless you/If you help our brothers out/You know, the good Lawd will bless you/You gotta help our brothers out/Because one day they can help us/Sweet Lawd, without a doubt

We’re all people livin’ on Earth/Who can help brothers without luck/I said, we’re all people who can help on Earth/Help brothers who ain’t got luck/If you can make one person happy/Who can’t give a brother a buck

 

 

* Read this article on the official blog of the Dreams and Friendship Exchange here. To learn more about the Dreams and Friendship Exchange, please read our initial blog.

* The views expressed on this site do not represent the views of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State, or any of its partner organizations. They are the observations and reflections of someone who likes good stories.