Avulekile Amasango

The students of ALApella sang this Xhosa song for the memorial of Mr. Sani, the Nigerian teacher who sadly passed away in the summer of 2009. "Avulekile amasango" means "the gates are open."



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Can't Hurry Love

Each term, I have the students do presentations for biology class. This term, they presented on science news articles. To kick it off, I did two sample presentations, one normal one about new potential evidence of life on Mars, and one creative one for the article "Game Theory Explains Why You Can't Hurry Love" (see the original article here). I decided to write a song, a science-teacher-version of the old Supremes classic.

When Valentines came along and passions were raging, I decided to do a quick recording and send it out to the kids as a fatherly reminder :)



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Verse 1
Let’s set up our equations
Try to model this thing called love
Let men be good or bad in the lady’s view
If she chooses well, she’ll make a gain
But a bad one will lead to a loss
The man wins either way
He just wants to know what the equations say . . .
And what do they say?

Chorus
You can’t hurry love
The Supremes they got it right so long ago
The equations show
That when the lady waits
She’ll find a guy worth her time
Can’t hurry love

Verse 2
In a stable equilibrium
Where the guys and girls both win
A good man sticks around for a long courtship
This lets the lady screen her man
And see if he’s up to par
Sure, time is lost, but it’s worth it
Just to find the perfect match
And why is that?

Bridge
So take my advice and take your time
Don’t argue with the math

idea

I have some of my favorite poems up on my wall, poems from Hopkins and Eliot and the like, and one called "idea" by my friend Ben. One night in the dorm, I was sitting at the desk playing my guitar and looking at the poems, and I began putting a tune to "idea." This is what came out.

Words by Ben (originally posted here). Music by David.



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i have an idea -
let's put the top down and drive to a place where
we've never been before and lay

in grass and leaves that aren't yet
dead, they still have colors -
red, yellow, orange, and brown.
autumn, please don't count your dead before
winter's darkness buries them.

until then, i have an idea -
let's grow our hair and shout our secrets from
the bottom of thick-trunked trees

whose bark is cold to the touch when
we climb into its carousel of
twisting arms and forgotten fingers that
we give names to and make remembered as the
southern wind bends them in its shivery chill.

i have an idea -
let's drink steamy coffee and tangle limbs when
you can't hear me whisper words

of love into your untrained ear
that never senses growing weeds where
travelers stop to catch a breath and wrap their hands
and brush their cheeks and cover up when
no one cares to build a fire.

hey, i have an idea -
let's gather jackets and vests and scarves
and pack our bags for a trip where

we don't know where we're going until
the train stops screeching in the central
station of some great city with soft-white windows,
like bearded men with newspaper sleeves,
who ride coattails through fluorescent streets.

i have an idea -
let's learn to dance before december arrives
so we can foxtrot through the wintertime.

Deserted Kingdom

This song is based on a journal I wrote at Trinity Forum Academy about a walk through Central Park after a Tim Keller sermon on how the Gospel story is the true tale that all other stories point to (I've got it up on my blog here). I originally conceived it as a song, which I started writing at the Academy but never finished - I finally finished the lyrics on a long flight from Asia. This a demo recording I did on GarageBand.

Words and music by David



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Verse 1
Down the forgotten grand stair
Empty stone courtyards, snow in the air
The wind rips across the expanses where we walk alone.
Gargoyles stare out, empty of will
From towering fountains, now silent and still
There's a majesty but also a sadness
To this deserted kingdom of stone

Chorus 1
It's as if a bright living scene
Full of sounds of the people so busy existing
One moment was there, and the next, found itself suddenly turned
To a painting that pleases the eye,
But it's silent and frozen and none of the people
Remain, and the question that hangs is whether they'll ever return

Verse 2
We pass to the underground hall
More whispers of grandeur escape from the walls
Where faded frescoes and intricate patterns astound
Here played the band, here the dancers twirled
As music enfolded this light-flooded world
But now the darkness has captured the hall
And only our echoes resound

Chorus 2
And I'm lost in the tale of this place
What spell locks the realm in the silence of winter?
What caused it to fall from a height so great I cannot discern?
And I long for a day yet to come
When the wrong is set right and this land is restored
And the glory now veiled is revealed when a king of old shall return.

Bridge
Then we step from the borders of Central Park
Out into the turmoil of the streets of New York
And we stumble through puddles and piles of lead snow
Lights and horns blaring in cacophonous show
And the story is lost, just another ideal
Dropped on the way. This is fact. This is real.
It's all silver-gray buildings piled up to the sky
And flashes of yellow as the taxis dart by
And the pulsating colors standing on high
Screaming, "Buy! Buy! Buy!"

Verse 3
Why does this story stir me so deep,
Great heroes and realms in an enchanted sleep?
Oh why do I yearn for this tale to be true?
For the king of old to return?

Chorus 3
Could it be that the legends are real?
Could the resonance point to a tale still unfolding?
Is ours a land that can only be saved by a love that's unearned?
Is it true there's a new reign at hand?
Did a foretaste come in a prince who was slain?
Will the trees really clap and rejoice when the king of old does return?

I still long for a day yet to come
When all wrongs are set right and this land is restored,
And in hope I will patiently wait for the king of old to return.

By the Mark

This was the first song that Martha and I performed together, for Music 181, a folk-music class at Stanford. It is not a hymn per se, but it was written in the music tradition of folk spirituals. The first recording is from our original performance with Music 181 at Stanford. The second version is a live take recorded on Martha's laptop.

Words and Music by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings.

Live at Stanford, 6.5.06


Live


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Verse 1
When I cross over
I will shout and sing
I will know my savior
By the mark where the nails have been

Chorus
By the mark where the nails have been
By the sign upon his precious skin
I will know my savior when I come to him
By the mark where the nails have been

Verse 2
A man of riches
May claim a crown of jewels
But the king of heaven
Can be told from the prince of fools

Verse 3
On Calvary Mountain
Where they made him suffer so
All my sin was paid for
A long, long time ago

Amazing Grace

After playing together with Music 181, Martha and I decided to meet weekly to continue playing. This is one of the first songs we played together, a new tune of "Amazing Grace," written by Martha several years earlier. We recorded both a multi-track and a live version on Martha's laptop.

Words by John Newton, 1779 and John Rees (verse 4), 1790. Music by Martha.

Multi-track


Live


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Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils, and snares
I have already come;
’Tis grace that brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we first begun.

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.

Jesus, Lover of My Soul

This is a new arrangement based on an old tune for this song called Aberystwyth, written by Joseph Parry. We recorded both a multi-track and a live version on Martha's laptop.

Words by Charles Wesley, 1740. Music by Joseph Parry, 1879. Arranged by Martha and David.

Multi-Track


Live


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Jesus, lover of my soul, let me to Thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high.
Hide me, O my Savior, hide, ’til the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide; O receive my soul at last.

Other refuge have I none, hangs my helpless soul on Thee;
Leave, ah, leave me not alone, still support and comfort me.
All my trust on Thee is stayed, all my help from Thee I bring;
Cover my defenseless head In the shadow of Thy wing.

Thou, O Christ, are all I want, more than all in Thee I find;
Raise the fallen, cheer the faint, heal the sick, and lead the blind.
Just and holy is Thy Name, I am all unrighteousness;
False and full of sin I am; Thou art full of truth and grace.

Plenteous grace with Thee is found, grace to cover all my sin;
Let the healing streams abound; make and keep me pure within.
Thou of life the fountain art, freely let me take of Thee;
Spring Thou up within my heart; rise to all eternity.

O Sacred Head Now Wounded

Martha's vision for this song was to combine Bach's beautiful arrangement with modern motifs. Our friend and fine singer Kristen joined us for this song. The live take has a slower, pensive atmosphere, while the multi-track version is slightly faster.

Words by Bernard of Clairvaux, 1091-1153. Translated by James W. Alexander, 1830. Music by Hans Leo Hassler, 1601. Arranged by Johann Sebastian Bach, 1729. This arrangement by Martha, David, and Kristen.

Live


Multi-track


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O sacred Head, now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded with thorns, Thine only crown;
O sacred Head, what glory what bliss ’til now was Thine
Yet though despised and gory I joy to call Thee mine .

What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered, was all for sinners’ gain;
Mine, mine was the transgression, but Thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ’Tis I deserve Thy place;
Look on me with Thy favor, vouchsafe me to Thy grace.

The joy can never be spoken, above all joys beside,
When in Thy body broken I thus with safety hide.
My Lord of Life, desiring thy glory now to see,
Beside Thy cross expiring, I’d breathe my soul to Thee.

What language shall I borrow to praise Thee, heavenly friend,
For this my dying sorrow, Thy pity without end?
Lord make me Thine forever, nor let me faithless prove
Oh let me never, never abuse such dying love

Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross

This song was arranged for our friend Frank, who lives with AIDS. Frank loves to sing this song - now we can play along with him! The first version of this song is a live recording, when the Stanford RUF worship band played it as an offertory at Grace Presbyterian Church. The second is a live take recorded on Martha's laptop.

Text by Fanny J. Crosby, 1820-1915. Music by William H. Doane, 1832-1915. Arranged by David and Martha.

Live at Grace Pres, 5.20.07


Live


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Verse 1
Jesus, keep me near the cross;
There a precious fountain,
Free to all, a healing stream,
Flows from Calvary's mountain.

Chorus
In the cross, in the cross, be my glory ever,
Till my raptured soul shall find rest beyond the river.

Verse 2
Near the cross, a trembling soul,
Love and mercy found me;
There the bright and morning star
Sheds its beams around me.

Verse 3
Near the cross! O Lamb of God,
Bring its scenes before me;
Help me walk from day to day
With its shadow o'er me.

Verse 4
Near the cross I'll watch and wait,
Hoping, trusting ever,
Till I reach the golden strand
Just beyond the river.

The Best Baja Class Ever (A Song for Aaron E. Hirsh)

Written to commemorate the 2006 Stanford seminar at Bahia de Los Angeles which was undoubtedly the best Baja class ever.

Words and music by David. Harmony vocals by Kristen.



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Verse 1
The stars aligned over the Baja seas,
And the animals, they aimed to please.
First the fin whales gorged to their hearts’ delight.
The sea lions gave an acrobatic display,
And a whole pod of dolphins came over to play
But what we next saw dropped Veronica’s jaw
And left the whole crew in a silenced awe
As false killer whales and pilots filled our sight.

Chorus
2006 was a mighty fine year
Though the winds did blow and things were unclear
In days to come, they’ll want to take a look
Woh, to a time when
Whales abound and folks songs sound
And the best class ever was in town.
Aaron E. Hirsh please let us into your book.

Verse 2
Remember that day when we first arrived
And we marveled at a lone cloud stuck in the sky
But that was before the coming of the hurricane
Well, the winds picked up and waves got rough
And Dmitri was thinking we’d all had enough
But we took it in stride, took the cots inside
Didn’t let it stop our hiking or our kayak ride
And enjoyed the shower in the freshly falling rain.

Bridge
But hey, it’s about the people and the things that we did there
We were . . .
Mountain climbin’, stingray defyin’
Cetacian spottin’, snack time alottin’
Backflip turnin’, lighting fast learnin’
Frisbee tossin’, octopus crossin’
We’re smart, cool, fun, rockin’
Everybody is a talkin’
Aaron, how can you keep us from your book?

Journal Blues - Holiday in Nashville

Back in Nashville for the holiday
My pal Eric Chu has come out my way
We see old friends and play some soccer
Then watch a new flick about the Dreamsicle rockers
Pour some water in Katie's hair and she's gone . . .

Singin' ooh la la
These are pieces of life
Ooh la la
These are glimpses . . .

Journal Blues - Cetacian Extravaganza

It was our cetacian extravaganza
And you've gotta wonder, "What's the chance of
finding first false killers than a pilot sample
To compare as easy as a textbook example?"
Dolphins launch, and we just watch in awe . . .

Singin' ooh la la
These are pieces of life
Ooh la la
These are glimpses . . .

Journal Blues - The "Hurricane"

The hurricane supposedly came
But all it brought was a pleasant rain
We took a lazy day around the station
And made a brief visit to the town museum
I sit through the dream while the sky-born streams fly down . . .

Singin' ooh la la
These are pieces of life
Ooh la la
These are glimpses . . .

Charismatic Megafauna (The Dugong Song)

The song that started the songwriting Australian adventure. As the green activist group for a mock-town meeting on Stradbroke Island, we felt it would be appropriate to write a ballad lamenting the dugong fatalities that would result from a (hypothetically) proposed resort.

Music by David. Words by David, Ryan, Lia, Gen, and Jessie. Harmonica duet by Matt and Ryan. Background vocals by the OSP Australia Singers. This version was recorded live on a single mic in Brisbane, Australia.



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Verse 1
Where there's a way
Into Moreton Bay
Enters the dugong
About whom I sing this song

Chorus
Dugong, oh dugong
Charismatic Megafauna
Dugong, oh dugong oooh

Verse 2
Mom and her calf
Eating all the seagrass
It's a scene of tranquility
Isn't this where you wanna be

Verse 3
Enters the speedboat
Churnin' up the sands below
He's not looking at what's ahead
And soon the mother's dead

Verse 4
Now the baby swims alone
What's become of his peaceful home?
Will you look at this tragedy?
It's a sight that the tourists would pay to see.

Dascyllus Aruanus (Humbug of the Sea)

Words and music by David. Originally written on February 13, 2006 for a species list presentation at Heron Island. This version was recorded live on a single mic in Brisbane, Australia.



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Verse 1
Let’s take a walk down the family tree of my species
Phylum Chordata, Subphylum Vertebrata
Class Osteichthyes, sub class Actinopterygii
And we come to our friend, the Three-striped Damselfish

Chorus
Dascyllus aruanus, the humbug of the sea
With your three black stripes and your bright white tail
And your love of territory

Verse 2
The Dascyllus is a damsel-fish, a particle feeder like the rest
Known as the Humbug Dascyllus or the Three-striped Damsel
It was found in coral near the wall and all throughout the harbor
Easy to spot with three wide black stripes and a shining bright-white tail

Verse 3
When it comes to reproduction, the story’s not too hard
Eggs laid upon the ground with later fertilization
In three days the larvae hatch and rise to live up with the plankton
Then four weeks later, the Dascyllus settles down

Verse 4
The defining characteristic of the Dascyllus
Is found in its territorial nature
It restricts its movements to one home-base coral colony
If it sees another three-striped damsel, it’ll kick him out

Lamington (The Leech Kingdom)

Written in Australia in February 2006 to commemorate the adventures in Lamington rainforest.

Words and music by David. Harmony vocals by Kristen. The original version was recorded live on a single mic in Brisbane, Australia. Version 2 was recorded by our friend Lilly at the Knoll at Stanford, with harmony vocals added in later using GarageBand.

Version 2:


Original Version:


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Verse 1
Call me Mike Pole; I’ll be your guide to fire and trees
With a leech in my eye, I can’t pause to cry, just push on down the trail
Meet tutor Conrad, who wrestles snakes and tastes like sexy,
And Rob, plant demigod, will sing us all to sleep
Now we’re all here, let the activities begin

Commence the transects, with piles of leaves of entire margins
“What species is this?” “Let’s say they’re the same” and on the story goes
Old fire boundaries, where Eucalyptus meets the booyong
And tests to give the studious a pang of fear
But the sunset blaze reminds us why we’re here

Chorus
Lamington, Lamington,
O take me away to your leech kingdom
Lamington, O Lamington
With Mike Pole as our guide
We’ll wander far and wide
From the day’s first rays ‘til the fire of the setting sun
In Lamington

Verse 2
Up the Caldera, singing songs of pop and Broadway
“Silence please, respect the trees, they’re older than you know.”
Across the stream, waterfalls one after another,
The beauty’s too much, can’t take it in – all rush and foam and roar
But the winner is the summit’s view of cloud.

Then the leech attacks, grabbing hard to socks and ankles
And Ryan’s found a new lover to leave a hickie on his neck
The rain comes down, and the trail’s a mass of fog and mudslides
Slip and slide, keep pushing on, it’s only five miles more
If you run you’ll make it back for Happy Hour

Verse 3
What amazing fauna, from paddymelons to shining glow worms,
Blue lobster-looking things that put up quite a fight
Conrad’s the master, from possums to his leaf-tailed geckos
Emily, watch out for snakes, they care not for your shoe
Now the commodore is calling to the frogs

(Spoken: This next verse is a description of the duckbill platypus based on personal observations by our very own Courtney and Kat)

Then they awoke, but there was nothing to be seen.

Mangrove Love Song (When Your Branch Broke)

Originally written on February 26, 2006 as part of a class presentation on mangrove distribution in creeks on the Daintree River in Australia. We decided a country dirge was appropriate for the subject.

Words and music by David, Matt, and Kristen. Harmonica and Norm Duke bridge by Matt. Harmony vocals by Kristen. Soul vocals by Chris. Background vocals by the OSP Australia Singers. This version was recorded live on a single mic in Brisbane, Australia.



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Verse 1
The first time I saw your buttress flare,
The sweet music of mosquitoes hung in the air.
I breathed in your fragrant pits of mud
Felt your rough bark and smooth young bud
Tasted the salt you excrete from your pore
I knew I had to come back for some more
It all began on that warm summer day
A love that flourished in the rain’s cool spray

Chorus
When your branch broke, you broke my heart
And I landed in the mud and was back at the start
I saw my bleeding soul in your oozing red sap
How did I ever fall into your trap?

Verse 2
Thinking back on the days of estuarine delight
Those pneumatophores, they just felt so right
Your propogules were always on my mind
How could I have been so blind?
I couldn’t see through your tangled web of roots
Your slippery branches didn’t hold up my boots
Did you think of how it’d make me feel
Leaving me to be to be crocs’ next meal?

Bridge (spoken)
Well mangroves, I’ve known a few in my day. Rhizophora, she was the first, she was nice, but those prop roots wandered off way too soon. Sonneratia, well her apples turned out to be a whole lotta sour and not a lotta sweet. Bruguiera, oh sweet Brugy, those knee roots had a mind of their own. And now Xylocarpus, I thought you were the one, till I found myself face down in the mud and with one o your cannonballs laying by my side. So my advice to all you guys out there, they may seem great at first, but stay away from them mangroves, cuz you’ll only get hurt . . . big time. I been hurt before, and I’ll be hurt again, cuz I’m in too deep. But take the advice of me, Norm Duke, a hard core mangrove addict, they’ll love you, they’ll leave you, and they’ll ruin you.

Island Fever (Paradise Found?)

Written in Australia in commemoration of the time spent on Heron Island, a veritable paradise.

Words and music by David. Harmony vocals by Kristen. Background vocals by the OSP Australia Singers. This version was recorded live on a single mic in Brisbane, Australia.



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Well they say Heron Island is paradise found
White sands and clear waters of blue
But two weeks at a place fifteen minutes around
And it starts to do something to you
Well the island is nice but I’m sure you’ll agree
You begin to feel trapped by the encircling sea
And all I can think is I have to get free!
And we all have island fever!

I’m coated with salt and a layer of grit
With a gift from the Noddy on top
And I can’t even sleep to escape all of it
‘Cause those Shearwaters won’t bloody stop
Don’t try to take milk, ‘cause you know that she sees
And you’ll only get seconds if you beg on your knees
Now the fury is on for the thief of the cheese
And we all have island fever!

Well the work wakes us up and goes late through the night
As we research our topics of choice
Running transects and braving the coral’s sharp bite,
When it’s over we all will rejoice
All those green algae cells soon will be my demise
Coral bleaches and dies but I can’t sympathize
If I do one more count then I’ll gouge out my eyes
And we all have island fever!

O why do we care about coral and the like
When Ove tells us they’re not going to stay?
Rising CO2 levels and temperature spikes
Mean the end of the world’s on its way
Well, the coral is fine and the water is clear
But with this global warming they’ll soon disappear
All that’s good in the world… will be gone by next year
And we all have island fever!

And the worst of it is being packed like sardines
All into a tiny bunk room
What friendship will last still remains to be seen
But this island spells impending doom
Well I’m sick of the mess and the smell and the fuss
And I need some escape from this crowd we call “us”
And right after this we’re all stuck on a bus
And we all have island fever!

Well the island is nice but I’m sure you’ll agree
You begin to feel trapped by the encircling sea
And all I can think is I have to get free!
And we all have island fever!

Yes, we all have island fever!

City Lights (Memories of Sydney)

Written in memory of the time spent in Sydney with OSP Australia 2006.

Words and music by David. Harmony by Kristen. The original version was recorded live on a single mic in Brisbane, Australia. Version 2 was recorded by Lilly at the Knoll at Stanford.

Version 2:


Original Version:


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Verse 1
Now our journey moves to an end
Back down the coast we travel
From our nights in the wilderness
We find ourselves dropped down
In a whole new world
Brilliant visions wash in flood through my sight
It’s the city lights

Verse 2
This town’s excitement hangs in the air
So full of life, so vibrant
Down the shining streets I walk on
Until the buildings end
At the sparkling gem
Black sky meets arching sails of bright white
O the city lights

Chorus
These city lights
Oh-oh
Swirling around, I’m awash in the sight
These city lights
Oh-oh
Beckon me into the night
These city lights

Verse 3
It’s a town that sleep never finds
The late-night crowd still wanders
On my own I set out through the night
Down to the harbor where
I can sit and stare
Dark water shines with glimmers so bright
It’s the city lights

Predator Song (The Croc Came Out of the Water)

Words and music by David. Harmony vocals by Kristen. Featuring our professor Bill Casey on the blues guitar solo. This version was recorded live on a single mic in Brisbane, Australia.



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Verse 1
We were just students bent on havin’ some fun
Off to Down Under for three months in the sun
We traveled up the coast to the forest and sea
Taking in the flora the fauna with glee
But hiding in the shadows something waited for us
And we didn’t see it coming

Chorus
And the croc came out of the water
The shark and the jelly moved in formation
The leech was jumping from the stinger tree
While the noddy made its bombing run
All the predators are coming after us

Verse 2
From shark attacks at Straddie to the Lamington leech
Stingers waiting for us when we went to the beach
Crocs are in the rivers where go for a swim
Threats from everywhere, the situation looked grim
We knew what we were up against but proudly we said
That we wouldn’t let it stop us

Bridge
We’ve been leeched, been jellied, been shat on
Fallen into the Daintree while the crocs looked on
But whatever comes we’ll keep pressing on
Singing this our predator song