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Birdland Reappraised

by Soloman Smith

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1.
Blue Note Lament 04:07
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Blue Note Lament Got caught in the syncopate the counterpoint you had to race An added 13th and added 9th won’t diminish or augment a life Cool can be hot and hot can be cool You blows who you is it’s all you got Cool can be hot and hot can be cool And each can be both just pray you don’t get lost Amen Amen Amen Cold sweats the narcotic dreams hallucinating and spiralling Running a rhythm around and around chasing down the good to escape the bad A single note can be a beautiful thing don't have to freestyle it to make it sing Listen out for the space in between that’s where the magic begin beguine You don’t play life it plays you You don’t orchestrate a truth you feel is you Let your heart beat a rhythm that funds it’s time And your mind wander round a melody that’s kind Paid the price for the choices you made the man upstairs felt you had to be saved Left a legacy notes in grace that Be Bop thing it kinda found it’s place
2.
Ad Lib Infinitum 04:24
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Ad Lib Infinitum Waiting for the punchline without hope funny ha ha you’re making me choke Up there in the limelight all aglow smothered in grease paint you thin I don’t know You’re a laugh a minute well worth the queue come on tell me what’s your next bold move Splitting my sides here I’m falling apart you got me in the aisle come on let’s dance Ad Lib Ad Lib infinitum you gotta know the tune to improvise it Ad Lib Ad lib infinitum how you gonna do it if you don’t know the key Charlie Parker would turn in his grave .. Weigh the situation up and quantify it get your lines straight make sure you time them A different spin on the same old tune you’re out of time and you aint hitting the groove You’re like a 2 bit hack feeding off the scraps jumpin' on the wagon just to join the band Ain’t got no clue how the hell’d we chose you we should be eating steak were stirring stew You’re a freak show freak in your own freak show star attraction you’re a Single O Life of the party in your home shop nose photo with a kid to increase the vote Snake in the grass twisting and a squirming keen to take the coin I don’t see you working It’s all about the principle the public good we ain’t stupid made out of wood Blow your horn make some noise you got know posture and you got no poise You’re all bluster filibuster you’re swagger don’t match your strut Shooting from the hip on your social devices wont get you any accolades or Nobel prizes I’ve heard your melodies your jokes before I can spot a bum note without a score Democracy don’t make me laugh we bow now to the oligarchs You see money talks a bigger talk than any politicians walk
3.
A Promised Land 05:54
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A Promised Land Hopes and fears filled the hearts of those who crossed the border that night A chance for new beginnings a fortune to be made So they waved goodbye to old friends as their shadows died Heading for a Promised Land and a dream that they’d been sold (Singing) Chorus Thank God and thank Uncle Sam Thank God and thank Uncle Sam Thank God and thank Uncle Sam for a Promised Land No one told them of the hardships persecution they would face They’d be shunned by the white man held in contempt and disdain And for everyone whose luck would change a 100 set to fail Heading for a Promised land and a dream that they’d been sold (Singing) Bringing in the crops from dawn till dusk didn’t get paid that much but at least some found a job And barrios grew up on the bad side of town and white folks frowned Told their children to stay away so the prejudice gets passed to another day (Singing) Bridge Its a land of freedom a land of hope a land that makes a grown man cry And where kids are free to grow Each night the talk would talk to those who’d failed couldn’t get across The hardships of exile and traditions they had lost So they gave thanks to the virgin mother and they put their trust in God And as lights went out in the barrios no one cursed their lot (Singing) (Some place to call a home a Promised Land)
4.
Flip Floppin' 04:09
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Flip Floppin' Are you gonna make your mind up finally hold a sign up Chose a side to be on Male a vile decision brave the inderision Wave your banner high and strong Life is full of lessons highly strung with tensions Pitfalls for you to fall in Halfway round the circle hopeful of reversal Won’t get you there in the end You’re flip floppin' you keep flip floppin' flip floppin' around You’re flip floppin’ you keep flip floppin' flip floppin' around One way then another with your head up in the clouds You’re flip floppin' flip floppin' around Sitting in the fence keeping the pretence Of trying to weigh the pros and cons Won’t get you to the answer there will be tears and laughter A price for all those out of tune songs You’re missing out on feelings highs and lows and reelings Things that make it what it is It’s no good fighting leanings denying meanings That lead you to a truth that’s you Spinning like a sixpence dizzy with resistance Where on earth will it land and which cup holds the peanut Sure as hell it’s one of them one out of the three of them There’s a world at your window don’t pull the blind just sit there Take a breath and step right in Obstacles and hurdles to be tackled to be learnt from Take a pause and then move on Mental note yourself don’t leave your hopes and dreams high up on that shelf Reach right up and grab them take in both hands and dust yourself down
5.
Split Note Thelonius 03:57
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Split Note Thelonious Piano don’t got no wrong notes It’s how you hit the keys And how you express feelings lets me in and lets me see I know there’s love inside of you so come on let me in Come on let me hear you play come on please indulge Play it how you feel it free form heart and soul Play it like Thelonious play it split note Play it how you feel it free from heart and soul Play it like Thelonious play it split note Piano don’t got no wrong note piano don’t got no wrong note This world’s all contradictions things that somehow don’t sit right But you ain’t dumb don’t think you are you’re a different brand of star Say your piece and make your point say what’s on your mind How we gonna make the key change if the band is out of time Diversity and difference embrace and celebrate Because when you look real close up hell we all made up the same Normal just ain’t normal no it’s never been the same It’s cool to dig just who you are have a little faith Major Minor played together cause a clash could relate better .. Don’t get lost inside the black don’t get lost in the dark Find your rhythm find your groove and light me up freestyle That little spark that difference is what makes you who you are Because you ain’t wired the same way doesn’t mean that you can’t dance
6.
Birdland Reappraised 04:42
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Birdland Reappraised I’m somewhere in the middle of a prologue and the end Putting my slant on it here I’m slippin' Freud again The motion of this life I freeze frame I suspend Wondering who'll write the epilogue in past tense Could it be I missed the point the memo it’s intent Surely there is more to this than paying rent Still looking for that Birdland wanna hear that lullaby Look up on an open sky wanna see them fly Putting my slant on it here I’m slippin' Freud again Me I chose not to be boxed I chose to celebrate Multi facet multi colour no black no white no grey And if culturally we’re different deep down we’re just the same This world is big enough to give each their own space Putting my slant on it here I’m slippin' Freud again Hush now not a word not a word hush now not a word not a word And if wealth breeds inequality and fuels a widening gap Them why is it our measurement for happiness and health Our bud to end this human race well why's it such a craze Let’s just lose some labels here and sing not in my name Surely being part of something that should be our aim It’s our responsibility to reflect and to change Putting my slant on it here I’m slippin' Freud again
7.
Einstein 04:08
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Einstein Question what you think and feel the reasons you are given Shape an image in your eye test the theory with perception vision And if you doubt the rationale the aim if the ambition Ask what your heart might say weigh it up against your head's resistance Look far look wide dream a dream and visualise Time in space it bends you know you can be the universe be the whole Look far look wide dream a dream and visualise Live this life with an open mind you could be a genius if you try Relativity let it roll relativity let it roll Hey Einstein go with flow Be the universe be the whole be the universe be the whole Don’t go resisting or confine your ability to dream inspire See a puzzle as your prize an opportunity to be surprised Let creativity outweigh the safety from knowledge others crave Trust your instinct play the game to your fellow man attach no blame Embrace everything you see Mother Nature put it there specifically Politics, religion, art and science they’re all branches from the very same tree If you took a little time to look it’s right there underneath your nose
8.
Paradoxes Paradigms 04:28
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Paradoxes Paradigms Need to find my equilibrium my level find my way This world keeps going round and round and I’m dizzier by the day I’m trying to make some choices trying to make some sense I need to find some reasons for this air I’m breathing in And if life’s a bowl of cherries guess that I should pick one Close my eyes and count to ten dream now and then Sky above me land below a canvas blank and waiting Five senses I can mix rich colours I’ll be painting Paradoxes Paradigms gotta find my space my time Live a life that’s serpentine beware of straight lines Find my rhythm find my groove get synchronised I’m a universe or maybe one small slice When things get muddled up confused they leave ne feeling bruised I struggle with arguments understanding come on through Words can be my battlefield they’re my danger ground And most days you will find me at the lost and found Bridge Turning tables changing chairs trying to shed some light How come when things get difficult it’s easier to fly Than to face it up and tough it out when deep down you know that’s right Guess I’ll live it with its ying its yang wont let that pass me by Everything in context it has a place a time Pure and simple plain and true that should see me through Knowing I’m but one small slice of this universe this life
9.
No Shim Sham 04:56
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No Shim Sham Ain’t no Shim Sham ain’t no Lindy Hop It’s greater than the sum and it’s all you got It can melt you in a moment burn you it’s so hot It can you with your emotions it can wire you to the spot It can lead you by the heart spin your head your mind Hold you in its sway skip and turn you alternate It’s tangible it’s everything it’s here now and it’s real It’s your faith yeh it’s the truth and believing without proof 5678 count yourself in find yourself a rhythm a place to begin Life is a dancefloor take a spin it ain’t no Sham and it ain’t no Shim Ain’t no sham and it ain’t no Shim ain’t no Sham and it ain’t no Shim Life is a dancefloor take a spin it ain’t no Sham and it ain’t no Shim Paradoxical nonsensical it’s a window it’s a wall It’s a mountain you can climb it’s a spiral in freefall It can take your breath away capture you freeze frame It can lift you and embrace you and your feelings rearrange You can trip the light fantastic fall flat on your face You can pirouette with beauty you can glide through time and space Leave a footprint a memory a journey to retrace The story of a life well lived one who danced with style and grace Round and round and round again it’s a puzzle steps to trace It’s holding out and trusting and just living in the day Its losing yourself in it it’s that waltz from birth to grave It’s going with it’s best it’s time it’s flow anticipate
10.
Licorice Stick 04:34
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Licorice Stick Benny play that licorice stick Benny make it sing Licorice got the sweetest taste man you the king of swing And if we're gonna die here let’s just do our thing Black and white it never is it ain’t down to skin Benny play that licorice stick Benny make it sing Licorice got the sweetest taste you the king of swing Black and white it never is it ain’t down to skin Make a stand for what you think let your actions speak Stand up for a cause that’s right talent man that’s deep The way you look the way you dress the thoughts ideas you keep Shouldn’t cloud your judgement warp your reality Face down all that bigotry find your feet let’s dance Colour creed shouldn’t miss a beat hell we all should get the chance Jim Crow makes a big noise he don’t play no tune that fits And segregating poeple gets ‘em scared and gets ‘em frit Ain’t got no voice no freedom no basic human rights We gotta see past colour hold a prism to the light The rationale for stupid it don’t got no bass no swing You’ve heard the reasons that they give man rhythm ain’t their thing History records the power of such simple acts If a man got music in him it don’t matter where he’s sat A plain and simple gesture means more than words can say Black and white together speak louder in a tuneful way So lay if on the off beat let them hear the tune Play that melody my friend make it sing sing sing
11.
A Spiritual Refrain 04:33
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A Spiritual Refrain In this life you get one chance so make the most I say At the dawning of the day let this be your refrain Hold your hand out to a Mother Father a brother Sister too A boy a girl a baby child that’s what you should do There’s so much hatred in this world don’t let that be your way With all your love and all your strength let this be what you say In everything you do in life let kindness be your way Treat everyone as equal treat them just the same Trust in the Lord and yourself and follow righteously And when temptation comes your way let this be your refrain And when the light it dims it fades and darkness it descends Be thankful for the day that’s gone and reaching evening’s end (Hold out your hands, hold them out Hold out your hands gotta hold them out)
12.
Dreaming In B Flat 02:45
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Dreaming in B Flat So you’re in a bar between 4th and 5th Smoke filled anticipating The chink of a glass a murmur a whisper Word is he’s gonna be late And questions questions in your head You’re trying not to pre conceive Hoping he’ll bring his game You wanna hear that hear that High Priest preach B flat’s where it’s at So if music talks then let it talk tonight You hope he’s got something to say Bird, Dizzy, Art, Bud, Coltrane The walls are heavy with their names B flat's where it’s at There’s no such thing as a wrong note If you’re prepared to listen Maybe it’s the notes that he won’t play That hold the meaning Had you figured that had you figured that? So get lost in the rhythm lost in the bass The dissonant chord the jagged phrase Straight no chaser down he goes Dim the lights send them low B flat’s where it’s at

about

Soloman Smith is a singer songwriter based in Cambridgeshire UK.
His songs (on guitar and mandocello) are of the moment and cover a range of subjects and genres. Influenced by folk, soul, blues, jazz, funk, country and more his style isn't easy to pin down.
That said, running through his songs is a coolness and groove that is hard to resist.
Solo or in combination with others he has spent a lifetime playing shows in the UK and has appeared on national and local radio/media.
His music is available on all major platforms.

credits

released April 1, 2021

Released on Confidential Records
Published by Maori Music

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Soloman Smith Cambridge, UK

Soloman Smith writes & performs songs about the 'human condition'. His lyrics are laced with a wry intelligence and a sense of humour & his subject matter is as broad as his influences. Musically, his songs are flavoured with folk roots, jazz, swing, blues, funk, soul & underpinned with a 'coolness and groove' from his love of all things jazz and swing. ... more

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