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about

The chorus for this tune was written in May 1995. I originally played it rock-n-roll style screaming the lyrics in D major.

Three years later when I revisited the song my playing had mellowed out and my voice had changed. The verses were written Fall 1998 and the key dropped first to C major and when that wasn't low enough I moved it to B-flat. Each time the key changed the chords were voiced differently and the feel of the song changed. I have version in both D and C major on a tape somewhere.

"La A'morita" is a hacienda style building on East Lake in Seattle. It's a beautiful place with a red tile roof practically under I-5. You can see it on the right side of the road as you drive south on I-5 just before the Harvard Exit. I haven't look in a while but I hope it's still there. I used to swing by when I needed space and sit in my car listening to the highway cars overhead. I love that spot.

The rest of the song is like a walk or a drive down Pine Street during the wet Seattle fall. I was threatening to leave Seattle for a while, but I always found it difficult to actually leave.

I think a person needs proper closure to say goodbye to anyone / anything, and that takes time and intention. For me the drive metaphor is about taking something slowly and understanding it, as opposed to flying across the country and not really comprehending where you end up. Or how much distance you actually covered. Or what you missed.

On the Birds Falling version I mixed a hearty sneeze into the song after the line "electric leaves drop like sneezes."

lyrics

I want to drive
I don't want to
Fly this time

Down on La Amorita
Parked under the highway roar
Passing kisses with a bottle of tequila
Down so low they roll so slowly

In madrona yellow under an umbrella
Electric leaves drop like sneezes
And on my mind on my way down Pine
How will I say goodbye?

I want to drive
I don't want to
Fly this time

But I'm still young and I'm not done getting drunk
I see you see me all too clearly
Are the dogs across the street
Hungry are they smelling me?
I'm afraid I'm paranoid

Somewhere up there up sixteen stairs
She's crashed out from the tube on the couch
I think I might drive home now but I can't decide
Where'm I gonna sleep tonight
If I can't drive?

I want to drive
I don't want to
Fly this time

Next time I'm walking in another direction

I want to drive
I don't want to
Fly this time

credits

from Birds Falling from the Sky, released July 21, 2021
Tom Gilhuley - Outro Vocals

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Harmonica Pocket Port Townsend, Washington

Acoustic & chill, The Harmonica Pocket will win you over with laid-back originals and playful re-workings of songs you love.

Recorded on a tiny island in the Pacific Northwest using solar electricity, their albums feature ukuleles and guitars strummed over tight vocal harmonies and delicate fingerplucked melodies. Horn sections swell and tiny musical secrets are woven into the corners of the mix. ... more

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