copyright 2007 Jon Braman
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1. hot shock intro
2. the weather
3. time has come
4. tip top
5. wildcats and sun kings
6. don’t look back
7. ride on
8. one two three
9. guru
10. climatastrophunk
11. hot shock outro
12. re re revolution
13. remedy
vocals and ukulele: jon braman
recording, production: jon braman
recording
this track was recorded in the kitchen in DC. I think it was the morning
the guy from the citypaper came to take a picture of me. I thought
maybe he’d like to see the home recording in action. Turns out the
stairwell had better light.nothing much fancy here, except I chopped the
song in half and cut most of the hook.
lyrics
keep listening – you’ll get ’em!
cliff notes
sometimes it’s even confusing to me to be a student of both ani and
biggie. Dar Williams and ghostface killah. But you find inspiration
where you find it. And everyone has something else to give. I’ve grafted
some biggie rhythms pretty directly in this tune from ‘kick in the
door’ he says ‘trips to cairo layin with your bitch’ I say, “beanstalks,
rippin’ up sidewalks, writing with bright chalk”. words are like little
clues, isotopes for me. in ‘everyday struggle’ biggie talks about his
man ‘two techs’ ‘they call him two techs he likes to tote two techs, and
when he starts to bust he likes to ask who’s next?’ in unbelievable he
says ‘just because I joke and smoke a lot, don’t mean I don’t tote the
glock’ so I take the word ‘tote’ in my opening salute.
Second
verse: there were two fig trees in mt pleasant – the dc neighborhood
where we lived for two years. That first year, I really would sit in the
window and write and play looking out the window in the mornings before
teaching in the afternoon. It was a nice view, up mt. pleasant street.
Past the corner store and toward the little triangle brick square which
would morph from yuppy farmers’ to old timer hangout to community health
fair weekend salsa dancing stage over the course of 24 hours. Fresh
figs right off the tree are really good. At the after school program
sometimes we would play freestyle games banging on Frisbees or with
sticks. Tiffany (names changed to protect the innocent) was the best by
far. All her raps would start out “my names Tiffany. I go to school. I’m
six. Mister Jon’s 25. he’s old.” The first time I rapped for the kids
everyone was quieter than I’d ever seen them. Seated with wide eyes on
me. All except Antonio – a kindergarterner at the time known to be
humming to himself frequently – sometimes Outkast songs – as soon as I
opened my mouth and started rapping he just started rolling on the floor
hysterically laughing. he laughed for 4 minutes straight and seemed to
regard me as loose–cannon for a few weeks after that.
vocals, ukuleles, mbira, shakers, arrangement: Jon Braman production, programmed beats + bass, optigon, tambo: Tim Bright drums: drums by chicken background vocals: Lisette Braman, Arthur Lewis, Malik Starx
recording
Recorded this one with Tim Bright in Brooklyn – really an awesome
experience. Tim is a serious producer, knows his sounds. a really fun
collaboration. I did sketch of the whole thing on garage band at home
and gave it to him and we worked from that to put together the
arrangement. Tim had the brilliant idea to bring in ‘chicken’ on live
drums during the bridges. Tim took care of the beat programming – not
much repeation there if you listen carefully. That high hat is freakin
out. The mbira (thumb) I’m playing is one my dad made from a little kit.
I love that thing. I had way to much fun with all the little uke fills
and harmonizing the uh uh uhs. Tim was fabulous at comping it all
together and giving it a big sound. You need a fucking big sounds to
deal with fucking GLOBAL climate change. Big enough? Recording is not
easy, geez, I am utterly humbled by the whole process. I listened to a
lot of lil’ wayne winter 2007 and just couldn’t help slowing down the
beat during the verses. It creates a lot of space for the double time
rapping. Lisette and Arthur are singing in the background– along with me
about 5 times. Plus malik as hype man. The most fun recording it was
singing the super high falsetto in the background in the last bridge
(that’s me!).i realized afterwords that my deeply ingrained mental model
for that singing was bobby mcferrin’s version of good lovin/.
Cliff notes
By the way, this song is 100% serious. There’s nothing funny about it.
We’re seriously in for it, unless we can get together. In more ways than
one. No reason to be bored in this world, there’s so much good work to
be done. Making connections across the barriers has to be the way –
technology with need. Innovation with money. People with power.
So yeah, Katrina is old news, but it’s not the past, in many ways it’s the future. Our current economy is built to funnel pollution, dangerous places to live, and now natural disasters toward the communities which historically have had the least power to stop this stuff. From garbage transfer stations and diesal fumes to hurricanes, droughts and desertification. And people are starting to wake up to the racism inherent in these systems and what pushing for environmental Justice along with sustainability would actually mean. Poor people, people who’ve been disenfranchised in the current econompolitcal system, Must benefit from a switch to sustainable economies – it’s inevitable justice but it als owon’t work without demanding that now community, be a safety valve for crap that our livelihoods reject.
The third verse is actually about a really inspiring immigration rally ethan and I went to spring 2006 on the mall. It was packed! We were two fo the few gringos and the only people who seemed to have missed the memo about wearing all white tee–shirts. Oh well. It was a great feeling. as a famous native American sidekick once said when they were found surrounded by less friendly natives, and the cowby said, ‘we’re in trouble’: ‘who’s we white man.’
lyrics
what the fuck is wrong with the weather baby
what the hell is wrong with the sky
I think if we all stand together maybe
we might just be abl to get by
when it got it got so hot in february
no one understood why she thought it was scary
saying it’s all good, we’ll still have blue raspberries
anyway how could they have known that the very
water from your sink won’t flow if it don’t snow on the mountain top and
there’ll be a cop
saying, back to the bank if you want to get a drink, thank you mam,
wam bam uncle sam what a sham hurricane you got no plan, keep saying
we’ll adapt well it’s crap cause you can’t evac–uate the whole map and
if you hap–pen to be black brown or poor, be sure, you’ll adapt some
more uh uh uhu hhuhuh
what the fuck is wrong with the weather baby
what the hell is wrong with the sky
I think if we all stand together maybe
we might just be abel to get by
byyyyyyy to get byyyyyyyy to get byyyyyyyyyyy yyyyyyyy o o o
what the fuck is wrong with the TV mama
looks like those boys are having fun
how’d that man make it look so easy honey
casue I know you can’ thave no war without blood
well Iraq the facts don’t even make the back page, but the rage
dominates the stage, little kids coming of age instead of car keys and
parties getting hand grenades. Truth it hids behind suicide, push the
news aside and you can ride on the wave of hate fear sweeping the land
the date is near when baby although I know you hate to hear it we may
finally have something real to fear uhuh uh uh
what the fuck is wrong with the weather baby
what the hell is wrong with the sky
I think if we all stand together maybe
we might just be abel to get by
byyyyyyy to get byyyyyyyy to get byyyyyyyyyyy yyyyyyyy o o o
mama how could that paper get it so wrong
you saw all those people there
everybody brought his mom dad dog and neighbor along but right here it
says no body cares
when we went we went down to the rally and saw all the people pouring
out the alley it felt like for once at last we had the power
but it only lasted for about an hour uh huh uhuhuhuh shoobe doo bop dwe
what the fuck is wrong with the weather baby
what the hell is wrong with the sky
I think if we all stand together maybe
we might just be abel to get by
byyyyyyy to get byyyyyyyy to get byyyyyyyyyyy yyyyyyyy o o o
byyyyyyy to get byyyyyyyy to get byyyyyyyyyyy yyyyyyyy o o o
well we done a lot of bad shit but never
anything like fuckin up the weather
if we don’t get together it’s gonna be a bad day, huh? wanna take my
kids out walking in the hills trees, instead of talking about a billion
refugees, katrina’d by the rising seas the fuck is wrong, people?
Please?
Recording
vocals and ukulele: jon braman
production, guitar, percussion, shaker, vocals: Miche Fambro
bass: Mark Foster
recording
This one we did at Miche’s. Here’s how it worked. One night when we
working on ’ride on’ – Mark foster who plays a lot with Miche came in
and heard a bit of the track and dug it. So Miche found a time when MArk
could come by and we got a few takes of the three of us on time has
come, live on vocals, uke, guitar percussion, and bass. We did a few
take and I tried to stay out of the way on the uke because mark and
miche just nailed this sort of 70’s funk groove that I couldn’t touch.
Then they laid down the latin thing,..and later me and miche came back
and added the vocal fun on top. First of all – all of the percussion
hear is miche banging on his acoustic classical guitar. You have to
check out Miche’s music which
involves him drumming singing and playing his virtusosic hazz folks soul
flamenco guiatar simultaneously. Amazing. World class musician. Plus,
he’s about the most patient generous guy and thoughtfully brilliant guy
you could possibly imagine – this album would not have happened without
his nurture.
Cliff notes
First of all. You guys know a blue–footed boobie is a bird right? Second
of all, which president was it who had a sign on his desk that said
‘the buck stops here.’ Third of all I didn’t actually write the first
phrase of the second verse. When we were living on the big island, when
our friends cary and ethan and meri were visiting, we went to see the
lava at night flow into the ocean. You can actually get really close –
though there are signs everywhere telling you death is imminent. Like
you get so close the ground 9recently dried glass wave sharp lava) is
hot, if you piss in a crack steam comes up. Anyway it’s like seeing the
earth be born. And cary over hears this woman say to her friend named
bob. ‘Bob, it’s a big old blob of lava.’ Whereever you are lady, thank
you. You’re a genius. And cary’s a genius for capturing it in his ear
recorder. I’m not sure exactly what I’m trying to say about Mr. Obama’s
mother but I mean it sincerely, in a good way. It’s a toast. Also, Miche
is making the chicken noise. Most fun recording moment: Miche and I
improvising and scatting together over the latin end part. Improvising
side by side with Miche is the kind of thing that could make you forget
what time it is.
lyrics
The time has come Take a stand Drop your fears Be a man Swallow your pride Swallow your gum The time has come
vocals and ukulele: jon braman
vocals and production: arthur lewis
beatbox and shaker: shockwave
recording
You all know this is one of the oriingal first uke hip hop songs written
that summer canvassing in Hartford. Recorded at Arthur’s in sunny side.
Shock wave on beat box and shaker. We’d record the basic
uke/vocals/beatbox track first and then layer the rest over it. Arthur’s
vocals came in at the last minute and really pulled it together. Damn.
Recording with Arthur and shockwave is like a dream. Those guys are just
so good. Arthur’s pivoting in this chair between the recording controls
and keyboard. I go out for a snack and come back he’s recorded his own
vocals 5 times over with these ‘mm mm ‘ ‘oowee’ things athat just fit in
so perfectly. and it was pretty sunny in that room as well. Shadows of
passing pigeouns flitting past on the walls.
Cliff notes
I really do drive my grandparents old white station wagon. Although not
really any more now that we’re in ny. I swear the last verse keeps
happening to me. Losing your identity to yourself thing. Look out! But
seriously. The whole logic of capitlism is built on people making
‘rational’ choices. I’m not knocking it – far from it – but we have to
be ourselves I would imagine to be rationally being ourselves. There are
other problems and other opportunities. Now that green is green. Let’s
get it. I have to admit I’m always worried when I sing the line about
‘fat face’ that someone a bit round in the audience is gonna feel like
I’m talking about their fat face. No offense, seriously, i’m talking
about the metaphorical fat face of the rat race, not you!
lyrics
Tip top of the world, talkin’ bout my girl/ I like to call her the
captain, cause she’s wrapped in/ a shroud of mystery and I have not seen
her yet/ but I bet, before the mornin’ bird gets up on the horizon/
I’ll feel just like a pup again and say the word that flies in/ the big
ole fat face of the rat race and place my self in danger crazy for a
stranger.
Hook:
Then I’ll fall in love
Again and again and again and again
Then I rise above when I fall in love
Again and again and again and again and again
Then I call your bluff cause enough’s enough then I fall in love
(repeat)
I make my escape on the quiet side, you’ll never know what you missed/
while you’re driving away not thinking about that time we could have
kissed/ but didn’t/ cause I was too timid or you balked/ at the shine
upon my face or was it the way that I talked/ to ya, do ya remember the
night we met?/ and the need for love was hanging from your lips just
like a cigarette/ but, I declined to light it and since you did not
invite it/ what we might have been united just became another might have
been/ you’ve got to play to win/ but in the shape I’m in, I’d rather
make my get away and then/ cruise around the city in my grandma’s
station–wagon and yes, that’s right, I’m braggin/ cause my family be
draggin/ a capacity for love more then five generations deep/ and the
company I keep be ensuring it will seep/ into the ground, knowing/ like
water we be flowing/ from one life to the next, the only muscle that I
flex/ is my heart, I’m a part of a history so brilliant/ you wanna ride
with me you better be one in a million/ but if what it takes is what
you’ve got, then come on over honey, let’s give it a shot.
(hook)
I started burning bridges too late/ at my gate stood six undercover
lovers and a head of state/ I said “wait just a minute while I finish my
dinner.” They said “hey, check out this ticket, it might be a winner.”
and I said, “I don’t think so, but I’ll have a look,” And then I knew
I’d fallen for the oldest trick in the book/ cause they took off with my
only photo ID/ oh no, then how I could I plead/ innocent when they took
me/ down to the station for impersonating myself/ pulled a big book off
the top of the shelf and said, “mm hm hmm.” And “ well, well well, you
got twelve months to become someone else/” and I said, “aw aw! How can I
be anybody but me, ain’t it a democracy? And don’t that mean that my
sincerity is a matter of our national security?” and they said
“hippie–dippy college student sitting on a bench, don’t you think that
it would be more prudent if you didn’t mention/ the constitution or the
bill of rights, cause don’t you know that retribution is what gets you
through the night? Or like Robin hood, you’re gonna get your ass–kicked.
If you keep on fighting the good fight even though you know that
plastic baggies rule the world, the tragedy of pearls of wisdom is deep
down you only care about girls.
back to top
ukulele, vocals, trumpet, keyboard: jon braman
vocals: lisette braman
drums, bongos, production: brendan mccourt
vocals: lisette braman
bass: brad moore
recording
Brendan and me and Lisette (and Brad on bass) recorded this at his place
in falls church over many (many) little evning session squeezed in
winter spring 2007. Brendan is a great guy, and he’s always scheming and
he has patience. Patience people. He doesn’t over play, but he does it
just right. Makes it groove in subtle ways. He took this little fall
start ‘all’ lisette sang and turned it backwards or something in the
middle of that first verse. Ghostly, huh? the bongos he put on there and
they just sounded so metallic and rolling, kind of like the farm.
Cliff notes
Hmmmm. Fiction, pure fiction. Though inspired by a real farm(er). Some
people talk the talk. Other’s walk the walk. Live on the edge of the
world and really try to do it. Dare to actually be sustainable. Self
sufficient. Solar power. Grow your food. Compost the waste. recycle
everything. Carry those glass milking jars carefully. Their valuable.
But 100% isn’t easy. My teachers mentors and I salute. Humbly. Because
the sacrifices are real. And so are the joys. That’s all I have to say.
Thank you!
back to top
vocals, ukulele, mandolin: jon braman vocals: lisette braman mixing: greg borenstein
lyrics
Hook: vocals, ukulele: jon braman
guitar, percussion, production: Miche Fambro
vocals: ally way
The first verse is a story about my two grandfathers, Louis (Popu) Schaeffer and Don (Grandpa Don) Braman – both of them put together. The second verse is more about me.
back to top
vocals, ukulele, trumpet: jon braman
drums, percussion, production: brendan mccourt
bass: brad moore
lyrics
They say “trust your gut” but I got two/ now what, what in the world am I supposed to do?/ poverty on my left, jealousy on my right/ since you broke up with me baby girl ain’t no reason to fight/ well might don’t make right but right ain’t that strong/ unless you got some kinda survival kit like a song/ well long, tall sally was an alley–cat, short fat betty wasn’t ready to be where it’s at, where I am/ stuck in the middle, with a fiddle, playing little ditties to be something pretty in this ugly city/ if the committee decided right here tonight to re–divide up all the wealth in the name of the health of the united neighborhoods, could it save the day, pave the way to some revolutionary harmony?/ well I can’t say, buddy, but how ‘bout you?/ if you were the man of the hour in power tell me what would you do?/ with all this violence, disease, bad luck and pollution/ would you give me five bucks if I had a solution?/ well that ain’t much to pay for eternal salvation but conartists grow like clovers in this overstuffed nation/ and so do the young gems out the dung heap/ people time and time again who stand up and take the leap to say:vocals, ukulele, bass, percussion, production, etc: jon braman
vocals: lisette braman
lyrics
vocals, ukulele: jon braman
bass, production: nima gonvalu
vocals, ukulele: jon braman
back to top
vocals, ukulele, slide uke: jon braman
production, vocals, organ: arthur lewis
beatbox, sound fx: shockwave
lyrics
Hook:
I wanted a mess I wanted a ruin I wanted a re re revolution
I didn’t know what I was doing I knew I could make it sing
I wanted my health, a little bit of wealth, maybe a house house by the ocean
Peace release at least a peace of you’re your everything.
Well, I had to go to school/ for three thousand years/ and graduate to
the cheers of all my friends and my peers/ to hear these sweet street
beats b–bouncing in my ears/ to take away all of my fears so now
wherever I roam, I’m headed home. It’s not a physical place/ it’s just
the way your eyes look when they’re filled with grace/ it takes one to
write a song, two to do the tango, three to pass it on and the world to
let it grow/ so.I read a tome/ I history book/ and it said, everybody
looked the way we look before they took their last breath/ and I confess
I got a little bit stressed, depressed, vexed, perplexed and upset/
cause you can bet your bottom dollar/ a lot of pops were yellin,
“holla!” when they saw the fall of Rome/ oops I meant to say New York/
so come on and dip your fork into this big apple pie/ it’s made from
red, white and blue berries and some terror in the sky/ I heard you cry,
“why oh why do they hate us?” you want to sit and debate US? come on,
man, wake up!/ in a world that’s so degraded, look, somebody’s cup is
overflowing/ knowing, everything we prize, we got because we
mind–controlled, we sold, we colonized/ with French fries and coke, I
know it sounds like a joke, who woulda thought we coulda broke the
atmosphere with this smoke? But we did, quid pro quo, bro/ I could say
it’s just as well if the U, S of A is on a crash–course with hell, but
like my daddy always say, nobody but time can tell/ and I knew too many
folks to close to where those towers fell.
hook
Yeah yeah y yeah yeah yeah
Let me take you back behind enemy lines/ where I was sittin in a trench/
counting up uncounted votes and trying not to note the stench/ of the
poor rotting corpses of idealist lost to the cause/ they got tossed to
the struggle/ cris–crossed by the rubble/ I hate to burst your bubble – I
was thirsty for trouble/ when I, went out one evening, moonlight
shining in my face/ to meet my main man Jakey and the usual meeting
place/ well jake was looking shaky/ I wondered if he could do what it
would take/ but I determined not to break the plans I held inside my
briefcase/ the place was crowded so we went to the snack bar/ made sure
to sit back far/ so nobody could track our/ deliberations which were of a
somewhat subversive nature/ to reverse the legislature, there wasn’t a
minute to hesitate, you know what I mean? But jakey was green, he hadn’t
seen the things I’d seen/ was just his luck, got stuck between a rock
and an organizer/ wiser men would have seen the crash and burn, maybe
turned the other cheek/ but every worm’s an early riser, jakey turned to
me to speak, he said, “I’m scared.” I said, “It’s about time, it’s
something we all go through. But it goes away in about a day if you
drink lots of orange juice –” He said, “Fuck you! I’m being real! It’s
just that I don’t really feel so grand, taking a stand, day after day,
head in the sand, with my own brand of propaganda, not even trying to
understand why everyone looks at me as a nuisance, but I don’t know what
to do, since I built my whole identity on the idea that serenity came
from doing what’s right and fighting the good fight, whatever the cost,
who’s go the heart to start a battle knowing you’ve already lost?”
Hook:
I said, “jakey take a load off, you’re makin’ my head hurt/ it’s gonna
get better but first it’s gonna get worse, reverse your expectations,
man/ cause if revolution didn’t hurt/ how would you know that it was
working?/ so Jakey put your face, put your face in the dirt/ cause it’s
amazing the earth, the blazing sky and the birds, the symphonies and the
words, are all we’ve got so we’ve got to give it a shot/ there’s not
time to rest, the best dressed is pressed the limit/ put your chest down
in it/ and take a breath of the death/ that’s the system breaking down
so when you’re making the rounds. That’s what you’re working to take
down/ that’s why the earth quaking makes a beautiful sound/ when you’ve
been fucking around as long as I’ve been around/ and you found your
personal life is quite a reasonable price/ not much of a sacrifice/ for
sort of an afterlife/ so your kids and grandkids, they’re gonna remember
what you did/ take a wiff down low/ then raise your head to the sky/
and if you know what I know then swear to fight till you die.boo chicka
da dap dada boo dwoo..
Yeah yeah yeah y yeah.
vocals, ukulele, cutting and looping: jon braman
vocals, percussion, dying elephants: cary clarke
vocals, sousaphone, other wierdness?: ethan chessin
production and percussion: chris andersen
lyrics
(intro) My buddy, my man, my partner, my dude, my homey, my first compadre, no kind of emotion or reason or logic can explain the way that we linked it we locked it –– My buddy my brother my brah, I’ll never be lonely if I can call ya and talk some weird nonsensical shit that nobody else gets, this is it and I wanna say...