One of the Most Beautiful Songs Ever Written…

On Saturday night, I was feeling a bit melancholy.

As I have written before, September is the time of year where I tend to assess my year’s progress.

It comes from years of being at school, and years and years of running a store at the University of British Columbia.

So, when the lyrics to this song came into my head, I tweeted them, and as I got responses, I knew I had to write about it.

The Tweet was:

“There’s not a word yet for old friends who just met… Close to my soul & yet so far away. I hope I go back there, someday” Great Gonzo #quote

I believe it is one of the most wistful, evocative and beautifully written lyrics, that I’ve ever encountered.

Despite being performed by puppets, the voice acting and wistful tone of Dave Goelz’s voice (the actor who plays the Great Gonzo) is for me, the highlight of The Muppet Movie. (The 1979 movie from which this song originates.)

The song was written by Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher.

The lyrics are:

This looks familiar, vaguely familiar,
Almost unreal, yet, it’s too soon to feel yet.
Close to my soul, and yet so far away.
I’m going to go back there someday.

Sun rises, night falls, sometimes the sky calls.
Is that a song there, and do I belong there?
I’ve never been there, but I know the way.
I’m going to go back there someday.

Come and go with me, it’s more fun to share,
We’ll both be completely at home in midair.
We’re flyin’, not walkin’, on featherless wings.
We can hold onto love like invisible strings.

There’s not a word yet for old friends who’ve just met.
Part heaven, part space, or have I found my place?
You can just visit, but I plan to stay.
I’m going to go back there someday.
I’m going to go back there someday.

There you have it, one of the most beautiful songs ever written.

For anyone in transition, or reviewing the moments… this is, I believe, the perfect song.

And, whether performed by a blue guy with a hook beak… or by a human… worthy of pulling out of the closet, and itself, reviewing.

Hope you enjoyed it !

What songs take YOU to a different place ?

I Miss My Mom…

A friend of mine, Earl Taylor wrote this song, about how he missed his Mom.

On Mother’s Day, it seems quite appropriate to Post it, as I miss my Mum, too.

To all the children, who still have their Parents, enjoy a wonderful Mother’s Day.

I Miss My Mom – Song By Earl Taylor

My Mum

Joy Gray

You Are Not Alone…

Earlier this week, Raul Pacheco, a friend from Twitter, wrote a brilliant post about depression on his Blog, prompted by the children of Marie Osmond and Walter Koenig committing suicide… relating it to his own fight with depression, and the need to remove stigma from the issues of Mental Health.

Reading his post, gave me motivation to write this post, about my song, You Are Not Alone, and the reasons I had for writing it.

In the time since I wrote this song, I realized that the issues of Disordered Eating, stigma and silence, also apply to those suffering from mental illnesses… “You are not alone, I stand by your side, with so many others, who hide, as you hide.”

I also decided that any money this song makes would go to supporting Eating Disorder charities.

Regardless, I hoped it would serve as an inspiration and reminder that many issues that seem so large and insurmountable, are more easily faced with a friend… if a discussion can just begin.

I will also, in an upcoming post, talk about my own battle with depression.

I was inspired to write the song, when I met the man who founded the group Parents Awareness of Eating Disorders.  (Which, sadly, has since dissolved.)

When I met him, he had his daughter with him… and she was back to a pattern of eating normally, after suffering from an Eating Disorder.  He spoke passionately and openly, about how helpless he had felt, and how lucky he was that his daughter had been strong enough to come to him, and tell him what was happening.  Together they had found a path back for her…  but he knew that many others were not as strong, and as a result, not all had happy endings to their stories.

I tried to take those feelings, and write a song of support and encouragement.

It is a song about the view many people with Eating Disorders have… that they are alone, and isolated.  That no one knows what they are going through, or what they are feeling.   I wrote this song to remind them that others also have the same feelings and issues, and to create an awareness of the support and community that are available to help them, if they can just reach out.

The lyrics for this song were kindly posted by Isabella Mori, on her Blog, for Eating Disorders Awareness Week, in early February.

You Are Not Alone

Music & Lyrics By Bob Gray   © October 22, 2003

 There is a light, beyond the darkness

There is pain, inside us all.

Sometimes we trip, on the roads we travel

As we reach up, sometimes we fall

And though sometimes, I know you’re lonely

With all my heart, I need you to know… 

Chorus:

You are not alone…  I stand by your side.

With so many others, who hide, as you hide.

With all my heart, I hope you will hear me

You are not alone…  You are not alone…

 

There is a peace, that you can get to

It will be hard, but you’ll be fine.

I’ll walk with you, in case you stumble

Reach out your hand, I’ll give you mine

And though sometimes, you may be frightened

With all my heart, I want you to know…

Repeat Chorus:

 Bridge:  

But, beyond the hurt…  Beyond frustration…

Beyond the mountains, we all must climb

There is the dawn, of a new tomorrow

The dawn of hope… I hope we find…

 Repeat Chorus: