Recording and Mixing Dates: Recorded and Mixed January 19, 2016

 

Genesis: The song came to me quite quickly on March 28, 2010. For some time I had been thinking about a song built upon “the tell”: the way good poker players can spot non-verbal cues and patterns in their opponents and use these to their advantage. I wanted to generalize the “tell” to everyday interactions.   On that March afternoon I picked up a guitar and started strumming G and C chords. I got the back-and-forth changes clicking, moved to a D chord, and then came up with the refrain that ends each verse. I recorded a demo to my iPhone voice memo app, hence my certainty in dating the origin of the song. In the course of playing the tune, I sang “dummy lyrics,” placeholders that captured the melody. As sometimes happens, a number of these words, including the refrain, survived the more formal lyric-writing process.

I put the song aside (a familiar tell for me) until November 4, 2014. On that day I completed the four verses. As I prepared to arrange and record the song this week, I revised several lines.

I decided to go for a smooth sound this week using acoustic instruments. Everything clicked immediately. I have already realized that recording on a regular basis has speeded up my workflow considerably.

Production: Acoustic bass, brush drums, dobro, National wood-body resonator guitar, mandolin.

THE TELL

You’re one of those people

Who wears her heart on her sleeve

I can see what you’re thinking

And what you believe

You know that I’m different

I play it close to the vest

But gamblers will tell you

I’m like all the rest

REFRAIN:

You want to know what I’m feeling

You want to know me so well

Better look for The Tell

Look for The Tell

 

So act like a card shark

Note all that you see

Start looking for patterns

Till you lock down the key

It could be a gesture

A look or a cough

It might be bravado

That’s a little bit off

REFRAIN

Yes, I’ve got a story

That’s never been told

I keep it within me

I never let it unfold

It’s a story about winning

A story about loss

A story about a river

That I’ll never cross

REFRAIN

Take a look at me, baby

It’s all there to see

It’s been hiding in plain sight

‘Neath a flashing marquee

In time you should find it

And figure me out

But even at that point

You’re gonna harbor some doubt

REFRAIN

Copyright 2016 Fred Grittner All Rights Reserved