"Lucky 13" - original by Ted

[Ted]

Lucky 13

Ted Johnson ©2008
Ted: Bass, Acoustic Guitar, Voice, Drum programming (MBR)

Recorded on Micro BR

"Get yer little butt upstairs, and look at the TV.
I think you're gonna see some history made tonight."
It may be hard for you to believe, but there were only four channels.
And every single station showed the same old man quitting his job.

Put your hand on your heart.
We now resume your regularly-scheduled country.
This was not a test.
Put your hand on your heart.
We now resume your regularly-scheduled country.
What a perfect mess.

I was the kind of kid who would refuse to say the Pledge of Allegiance;
Exercising rights, just sitting' there, taking a stand.
Another kid just about my age was livin' in Hawaii.
Make a mental note, I'm gonna mention him later on.

But let me tell you now about the way that I defended my country:
I'd be in an African bar and taking no disrespect.
The story's not as good as your grandpa shootin' down Germans, is it?
But I'd buy a round of German beer, and nobody ever died.

(Chorus)

When I turned lucky 13,
Everything I knew about politics I got from Mad Magazine.
But you're a lot smarter than me.
Don't let it get to your head, 'cause you're not in charge yet.

So get your little butt in here and look at the laptop.
I think you're gonna see some history made tonight.
It's that Hawaiian kid talking about "a more perfect union."
That sucker just bought our lemon, but everything's going to be alright.

(Chorus)

The groove for this song had been sitting in my "music sketches" folder for a few years before I created the words and melody. I wrote this for my stepson, who was 13 when Obama was elected, just as I was 13 when Nixon resigned. The first line, in quotes, is my dad talking to me. The rest is me talking to my stepson.

I was sure that I uploaded this song here in 2008, but apparently not. I think about this song a lot, because don't agree with it anymore. There's sort of a optimistic fatalism to it – the idea things always get better after they been bad for awhile. "It's always darkest before the dawn," and that kind of feel-good bullshit. Sit on your hands and watch it unfold. There's no call to action here. Fuck the guy who wrote this song. Maybe I'll rewrite the lyrics.

[cuthbert]

Cool, funky, thought-provoking song.

I'm not going to disagree with your current stand. But I also think people need the release valve of a significant "corrective" event at the appropriate time, even if/when it turns out that there was no subsequent change in the order which was then expected.

I think the timeline for real societal change is often much longer than we expect. Sometimes even longer than our own lifetimes or multiple generations. And it's difficult even to measure success because a not-very-much-later reversal can tear it all down. So yes, I still think it's important to do the right thing in the moment when it's needed, but we can't count on the problem to have been permanently solved. It requires constant watching and correction when necessary.

So in that sense, I also agree with your current stand.

[StephenM]

great song.  I really like the groove, the acoustic guitar and the bass.  The drums fit nicely.  This song grooves along and at first I was thinking it was going to be halloween fest entry. 

Interesting lyrical view point.  I voted the other day and realized I knew next to nothing about any of the people on the ballot... then i realized why the system will never improve.  It's a crap shoot hoping that it changes for the better...
but I would say if one goes back and pays attention even 50 or more years ago nothing has really changed.  Politicians promising to fix everything blah blah blah...
yeah... I think I'll have another cheeseburger. 
good stuff... we needs lots of view points... keeps things more toward center in the long run..

[bruno]

Excellent bouncing rhythm on the acoustic - bouncing along nicely. Thought provoking lyrics.
B

[Ted]

I would say if one goes back and pays attention even 50 or more years ago nothing has really changed. 

Speaking only of the USA, and notwithstanding the anti-democratic features of the US Constitution, I would say that 50 years ago (58 to be precise) is about when the current version of the anti-democratic project began. So nothing has changed, sort of: The constant is the creeping success of the anti-democratic faction American society. I'm treading carefully, because I don't want to trigger a contentious thread. Let's leave it at that.

we can't count on the problem to have been permanently solved. It requires constant watching and correction when necessary.

Right. My current stand isn't negative fatalism "the country is inevitably going to shit" – the opposite of the positive fatalism expressed in the song. My current stand is neither kind of fatalism – it's indeterminism: What will happen in the future depends on our choices – the aggregate of millions of choices. The country doesn't run on auto-pilot, in the direction of justice and progress (as the song might imply). Being informed, and in the fight matters.

This is ultimately a patriotic song, written by someone who believes in liberal democracy and "justice for all," – and until recently thought the vast majority of my fellow Americans did as well. (Here's a definition of liberal democracy, for anyone who might confuse the term with liberalism as the word is used in today's vernacular.)

Here are some proposed tweaks to the lyrics. I hesitate to use the word "fight," because some will take that to mean violence, but songwriting is hard sometimes, and we have to speak metaphorically – and also rhyme. 

"Get yer little butt upstairs, and look at the TV.
I think you're gonna see some history made tonight."
It may be hard for you to believe, but there were only four channels.
And every single station showed the same old man quitting his job.

Put your hand on your heart.
We now resume your regularly-scheduled country.
This was not a test.
Put your hand on your heart. Put your heart in the fight.
We now resume your regularly-scheduled country.
What a perfect mess.

I was the kind of kid who would refuse to say the Pledge of Allegiance;
Exercising rights, just sitting' there, taking a stand.
Another kid just about my age was livin' in Hawaii.
Make a mental note, I'm gonna mention him later on.

But let me tell you now about the way that I defended my country:
I'd be in an African bar and taking no disrespect.
The story's not as good as your grandpa shootin' down Germans, is it?
But I'd buy a round of German beer, and nobody ever died.

(Chorus)

When I turned lucky 13,
Everything I knew about politics I got from Mad Magazine.
But you're a lot smarter than me.
Don't let it get to your head, 'cause you're not in charge yet.

So get your little butt in here and look at the laptop.
I think you're gonna see some history made tonight.
It's that Hawaiian kid talking about "a more perfect union."
That sucker just bought our lemon, but everything's going to be alright that doesn't end the fight.

(Chorus)

I just noticed that the only time the verses rhyme is the last verse: tonight and alright (or alternatively fight)

[Ray Brookes]

Cool song,Ted with very interesting lyrics. Love the sound of that acoustic guitar and a nice groove with the bass & drums.

[Ted]

I was sure that I uploaded this song here in 2008, but apparently not.

I turns out that I did, in fact, upload this to the site in 2008 – maybe the first song I ever uploaded here. But I uploaded it to a topic to share how I work out my drum arrangements. At the time, I didn't think the song was ready. Since then, I've come to understand that songs are at once never and always ready.

What I uploaded this month is the same recording: Drum Arrangement Worksheet

[Lurker]

I really like the sound of the acoustic guitar over those drums and bass. The vocal melody is excellent.

As for the lyrics, I like that a parent is calling a kid to pay attention to what's going on in their country. I share some disillusionment with the trend in politics. I still vote though.

Unfortunately, many people find it easiest to blame someone else for their own misfortunes without taking stock of what's going right. Then, when someone stands up and points a finger, these same people are quick to follow. Then the big money starts funding the finger pointers because they divert attention from the real problems. This has been going on for a very long time. More parents need to teach their children to see through the bullshit. I try.

Sorry for the proselytizing. I got carried away. Good song.

[StephenM]

I really like the sound of the acoustic guitar over those drums and bass. The vocal melody is excellent.

As for the lyrics, I like that a parent is calling a kid to pay attention to what's going on in their country. I share some disillusionment with the trend in politics. I still vote though.

Unfortunately, many people find it easiest to blame someone else for their own misfortunes without taking stock of what's going right. Then, when someone stands up and points a finger, these same people are quick to follow. Then the big money starts funding the finger pointers because they divert attention from the real problems. This has been going on for a very long time. More parents need to teach their children to see through the bullshit. I try.

Sorry for the proselytizing. I got carried away. Good song.

WHAT HE SAID   finger pointing upward!!!!

[TPB]

I was going through my back up drive the other day and was amazed how many songs I did not post for reason or another I loved the drums and on this song something I always struggle with
Tim