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City on a Hill
I had been thinking for a year or two about writing an album of songs about Woodstock and Mussoorie, and I'd had the first two lines of a song in my mind for all that time. You may recognise the parody: "Stands the clock tower still at three, And are there momos still for tea?". It probably says a lot about me that those lines caused me endless amusement. So sad.
Anyway, with the announcement of the first Worldwide Woodstock Day on 24th October 2009, I thought it was time I gave it some serious thought, so starting in the August, I wrote and recorded furiously for two months. Here's the notes about the songs. All the songs can be played and downloaded from bandcamp.
Lovers' Lane
I was walking along the Eyebrow path past Eyebrow Cottage a few Sundays ago, when issuing from Mrs. Singh's house came the unmistakeable sounds of Gene Vincent. I was struck by the wonderful incongruity of hearing 50's American pop on a Mussoorie hillside. Somehow that's typical Woodstock. So, apart from inspiring the first song I wrote, it gave me the idea of writing songs which reflected different eras, as well as different aspects of Woodstock. Lovers' Lane, by the way, is the secluded path behind the high school girls' dorm at Midlands. Say no more.
Coming Home
I like this one. It's a folk ballad which talks about returning to the place of your childhood to perhaps understand why you are the way you are. We're using this song for the soundtrack of a slide show for people who are getting together for Worldwide Woodstock Day.
Those Times
Forward to the smoochy Seventies. A ballad about the ghosts of a remembered childhood. Elton John, anybody?
The Clock Tower
Unashamed nostalgia. Wai wais (for those young enough to remember them), cheap umbrellas held against the monsoon rains, the soft fall of snow.. Not a dry eye in the house.
I depend on you
A bit of a cheat. This is the first song I wrote when I came to Woodstock seven years ago, but it fits the theme. It's a Christian song which uses imagery from the mountain to talk about the walk of faith. It's sort of Bollywood meets Pink Floyd meets The Smiths. Aficionados might recognise the drum samples.
Nostalgia (it's not what it used to be)
Kids today.. They just don't get it. Not like in my day.. A song in the tradition of those humorous singer-songwriters.
The Drums! The Drums!
On special occasions the Woodstock employees get out their Garhwali dress and drum and dance their way into the Quad. I recorded one of these parades, and added some music and words.
Too Old to Walk the Hills
Late Sixties rock 'n' metal. Homage to Cream and all those other pioneers. I realised after I finished the song that I can hear a bit of "Tales of Brave Ulysses" from Cream's Disraeli Gears album - an influence not to be ashamed of. Love that guitar hero wah wah at the end.
Go Tigers
Woodstock's amazing new gym was opened while I was in the middle of this project, and a DJ from Mumbai was imported to help us celebrate. It struck me that we could do with some loud and upbeat anthems to get the audience going at big matches, so this is the first attempt; faux-90's dance music.
Walking to Bear Hill
Dot and I went with the grade 5 students for their first post-monsoon hike. I realised how many "days to remember" I have experienced at Woodstock. This is just one of them. I like the way Sufjan Stevens mixes brass with guitars, so I had a go at that (synth only, I'm afraid, but I might be able to work on that later).
A Warm Day
A mellow jazz kind of song reflecting on the way walking in the hills on a warm day puts things into perspective.
City on a Hill
Not everything in the garden is rosy. Woodstock's Latin motto is generally translated as "No palms of victory without the dust of struggle". This rock song expresses the hope that Woodstock will always be "a city set on a hill", giving light to the world, as it says in Matthew 6.