Hi Jeff - I also wish I knew exactly what it is about songs that is so endlessly fascinating or soothing or rousing.  People never say, "Listen honey, that's our poem" or "Darling, they're reading our essay".

Somehow, a few words along with a melody can be a powerful thing.  As songwriters, we all try to come up with magical combo of words and tune that is more than the sum of it's parts.  I love the way little kids can easily learn a song, but remembering the same number of words without a melody is impossible for them.

Nice lyrics - would love to hear you croon this one . . .

I can echo your sentiments, daddycool.  We have tried to raise our kids to be responsible for their actions and to have independent minds - part of that is to keep it simple . . . learn how to make your own fun and don't mope around wishing for junk you can do without.

Thinking about our kid's friends - there are some who have not enough guidance (single-parent households) and some who have way too much (smothering parents).  What amazes me is the resiliance of youth - kids from seemingly very dysfunctional households can still grow up to be great people.

Hi huoyuanjia - This is a really excellent cover version - I love when an artist can reinterpret a song so differently.  Here is a different version of Mat Weddle's cover of 'Hey Ya':

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJ8f5NXtgpk
This video shows his hands more clearly.  If you look under the chordie index for Outkast there are several versions of the song listed there.  One of them has the chords along with the lyrics - however, I think the chord placement could be improved . . .

It is a 4-chord song.  Get the changes between the basic chords down before you try to put in the pretty little transition embellishments that Mr. Weddle employs.

Hi Boxer - congratulations on taking the dive into recording your creations.  Most desktop mics are OK for just speaking voice - they are condenser mics which means they hear everything surrounding them - and the range of quality sound is limited.  To get started, a basic desktop mic might be just the thing.

I decided to go one step further when I took the plunge into home recording.  I got a Snowball mic by a company named Blue.  This mic plugs right into the computer (USB) and requires no external power.  It has 3 settings (cardiod for up-close, limited for loud sources, and condenser for full room recording).  I like it - I use the 'up-close' setting mostly and am very pleased with the results.  It cost about $100 US.

As far as software, there is Audacity - an open-source package that can be downloaded for free (just Google it).  If you are using a Macintosh computer there is also GarageBand which is very versatile.  Hope this helps - James

I had an experience similar to bud_wiser's back 30 years ago when I was living in a highrise apartment building in Chicago.  Very late one winter night I took some garbage down the hall to the garbage chute.  Was wearing only my woolen socks and long underwear.  The door locked automatically behind me.

Sat for a couple of hours in the stairwell shivering.  All my neighbors were recent immigrants and nobody else spoke English.  The building supe demanded bribes for everything and I had no cash.  Eventually decided to run three blocks to where a friend lived.

The streets and alley's were covered in grimy nasty city snow.  The cold wind roared off of Lake Michigan.  I nearly froze my gonads off sprinting down the streets and through the alleys and crouching behind dumpsters as traffic came near.  Slipped on some ice and fell.  My feet got gouged up pretty good.

Made it to my friend's place and then had to throw snowballs at his window until he finally woke up and let me in.  Crashed on his couch.  He lent me some shoes and clothes and a couple of bucks (to give the building supe) in the morning.  He also laughed at me - can't blame him.

I still have that set of long underwear and now I laugh a bit whenever I put them on.

Hi All and thanks for your kind comments!  I have sort of decided that if Life was truly fair, I would have been a whole lot more careful and kind all through my life . . . it's not that I am a bad person, but I can think back and recall some occasions when I could have been a more honorable person.  If life was really fair, I would have deserved some serious consequences for my actions.

Selso, keep at it and you'll be cranking out the hits!  Just try writing a little bit every day (especially when you don't really feel like it).  This one started with just a scribble on a scrap when I heard a little kid complaining, "It's not fair!"  The scrap got stuffed into my notebook and stayed there until I found it again the other day and decided to ponder it some more . . . I'm glad I jotted the phrase down way back a few months ago.  Songwriting (like anything else that takes practice) is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.

The only reason wood is used to make instruments is that it grows on trees so it is relatively abundant.  Wood as a building material for precision devices (such as musical instruments) has many inherent disadvantages.

As mentioned above, it is prone to shrink, expand, warp, and decay with changes of temp and humidity.  Also, it is not consistent in it's density - minute differences in grain can greatly affect strength and quality.

I believe the real future of instrument design and manufacturing (not just guitars, but also other strings, brass, and woodwind instruments) lies in using materials that are stronger, more consistent, and more stable than wood.  For instance, graphite composites offer great advantages - they are extremely strong, lightweight, and unaffected by humidity and temperature.

One company currently using this material for guitars is Rainsong.
http://www.rainsong.com/
I would hope that other instrument builders would follow their lead, think creatively, and begin to explore graphite and other materials.

Ultimately, an instrument is just a device that helps to create sound vibrations - personally, I am far more interested in the sound it creates than in the instrument itself.  Ultimatley, an instrument is just a tool to make sound.

My suspicion is that with more research and development, graphite (or something similar) can be used to create violins that sound better than Stradivarius's, guitars and mandolins and ukuleles (etc) that sound better than anything currently available, and super high performance wind instruments.

Roger, this is a delightful song - just like you, I got hooked on the chordie forum one day and it is now an important part of my day.  Had been using the site for a while to find songs until one day I happened to see something on the forum that sparked my interest.

It is sites like this that make the internet a valuable resource for information and making connections.  Love the recording - someday I hope I'll get good enough and patient with the gear to make polished recordings such as your productions.  James

Hi boxer!  I took the liberty of editing the voodoo codes to make it all purdy like.

'Tis a lovely/sad song . . . I, too would love to hear you play and sing it.
If you get it recorded, Roger Guppy can put it up in the Friends of Chordie MySpace page.
James

Very nicely said, last_rebel!  Some beautifully-turned phrases in the lyric.  I'm imagining the tune being sort of a dramatic waltz thing.  Looking forward to seeing the chords.  James

Worked for me also - perhaps rmead is going to their songbook by clicking the 'back' button on the browser (rather than clicking the 'my songbook' button on chordie)?