5090 by FAWM: "It's Hard to Start a Fire in the Rain"

It's Hard to Start a Fire in the Rain

6 weeks ago by @florian · @stephenwordsmith · @beacon

Liner Notes

#inthestyleof #mimic

In an earlier 50/90, @beacon posted the challenge to mimic another Fawmer. I decided to mimic Ken's own bardic style, with his beautiful projected vocals and minimal acoustic accompaniment - the sort of song you'd imagine hearing at a fireplace in a medieval tavern.

After some failed attempts, which I buried behind my Easy Shed™️, Stephen's graceful lyrics "It's Hard to Start a Fire in the Rain", and his open invitation to perform own versions, seemed to be a new chance at meeting this challenge. So early this 50/90, I started playing with ideas how this could sound.

The topic of mimicking other Fawmers lately came up again in the forum https://fiftyninety.fawm.org/forums/2708#c66802, making me decide to now take the time to finish and share this. I cannot compete with Ken's voice, and have a different range and timbre, but it was a lot of fun to make, and hopefully also a little fun to listen to. 😉

You're hearing me, accompanied by a virtual guitar. No post-processing, except for one or two volume corrections and a little reverb.

Lyrics

There's nothing but the nothingness before the silver spark
That summons the illusions to illuminate the dark
The blood is cold, the spirit low, the mind a weathered plain
And it's hard to start a fire in the rain, in the rain
It's hard to start a fire in the rain

No matter how we wend the way, the first step's always trying
So armed with willing sticks of wood and will of well-wrought iron
And versed so well in what it takes to rub without refrain
But it's hard to start a fire in the rain, in the rain
It's hard to start a fire in the rain

The trickle through your fingertips of thoughts that hold too long
The shush of records broken on the promise of a song
The flicker of a line that leaps and falters just as fast
The sputter of a first light that could never hope to last

So once again we set our soul into the sparks that fly
To burden them with bursts of life, to burn alive and die
To help us find the fortitude to fall and rise again
For it's hard to start a fire in the rain, in the rain
It's hard to start a fire in the rain

Comments

@helenseviltwinMod 1d

Yes, like @catmisgivings says, it sounds like a piece from a musical where the character is assessing their life choices and trying to decide what to do next. Lovely rendition.

@jamkar 1w

Finely sung vocals do honor to Stephen’s wistful lyrics. Really enjoyed my listen. I just wish it was raining here.

@danvaillancourt 4w

This is the kind of fun intertwining of styles, collabs and inspiration that makes FAWM so special. Nice work all around.

@catmisgivings 6w

my immediate impression was how theatrical this sounds -- It could be a lost interlude from Phantom! Then i started reading the liner notes and, yeah, it's bardic all right. i can definitely hear the @beacon influence although you've made it your own!

@beacon 6w

Well, this was unexpected! @florian did a great job here, and while I might have been a bit of an inspiration, I think he really took it to his own creative place. While the vocals might have some more "trained vocalist" styling to them, I'm getting a bit more Kurt Weil and cabaret vibes to this, which is really well done!

@stephenwordsmith 6w

I'm a big fan of your dramatic delivery - both in your expressiveness and the way the vocal wavers like a tongue of flame in the bridge. Michael Crawford would have been proud.

The spartan piano accompaniment was a very astute choice, and the little warm layering halfway through the bridge is such a beautiful note. Love it.

@newukenewyork 6w

I do think your vocal interpretation really works here! Nice idea for how to approach this one. I like that spare accompaniment, too, and how you attack the bridge.

@sph 6w

Oh, and now add @beacon and some bass voices singing long Ooohs as backing in the last verse. I would love to hear tjis 😀

@coolparadisoMod 6w

well done, very clever on both counts. its all in the timing getting Kens style and you nailed it! its very good just as an interpretation as well. kudos

@gwynjones 6w

Very theatrical and timeless...your enunciation is perfect and takes the poetry of the lyric into the realms of classicism...

@billwhite51 6w

this is brilliant. you have the perfect voice to parody this style. i dont hear it so much as mimicking ken's voice, but more like satirizing this whole period of song making. and stephen's lyrics, classical as they are, make for an apt target. i can image someone like lenny bruce incorporating something akin to him into one of his bits.