JPF Home Page Forums Lyric and MP3 Feedback MP3 Feedback Forum Beginning of the Harvest

Hello JPF!! I just finished doing the 50/90 Songwriting Challenge and thought I’d share this last one I worked on before it ended. Music came after the final bell over there. The challenge is a good way to give yourself a good, solid kick in the tush to write!!! In fact, I wrote this lyric as part of a “skirmish” where the aim is to take an hour to create a song/lyric from a prompt. I don't know how people do both music & lyrics in that time frame, but they do!

Nadia Cripps came along and composed music & piano track to the lyric as it was and Valerie Cox provided vocals. Two talented songwriters right there.

There may be some spots in the lyric to revise but the challenge for me was to write to a prompt!

Prompt was “harvest”.

https://www.soundclick.com/music/songInfo.cfm?songID=13935149

BEGINNING OF THE HARVEST

Well the leaves are turning
I see patches of orange
I’m ready for changes
My hopes are soaring

People will gather
For just moments in time
Soon families will visit
And laugh while they dine

[ch]
It’s the beginning of the harvest
And to reap what we sow
After all the plowing
Where does the time go
It’s the beginning of the harvest
We can reconnect
Make the days count
As our lives intersect

And there’s farmer’s markets
With their homegrown food
They’re selling their hard work
Linking neighborhoods

The feasts, songs and dishes
Taking cues from the past
They survive because we
Don’t let the storms last

[ch]
It’s the beginning of the harvest
And to reap what we sow
After all the plowing
Where does the time go
It’s the beginning of the harvest
We can reconnect
Make the days count
As our lives intersect

[br]
Traditions take hold
When we share what we know
I like how celebrations make
All our hearts glow

Repeat ch

Hi Kristi:

I am amazed at how you participants in the 50/90 challenge can turn out such wonderful collaborations. Glad to know Nadia is still creating melodies over across the pond. Really enjoyed my listen. Best of luck with it.

----Dave

Hi Kristi,

Such a descriptive lyric!

I like how you "bookend" most of the descriptive lines with personal ones, "I’m ready for changes/My hopes are soaring" at the end of V1 and at the end of the bridge "I like how celebrations make/All our hearts glow" --this is ingenious cuz without your feelings, all the descriptions are just lyrical reportage. "My hopes are soaring" seems to fuel all the descriptions that follow with joy.

And you found a great slant rhyme for orange!

Nadia's music lends this a timeless quality..like it could be from a celebration as early as the first Farmer's Markets (1730's?), or written yesterday, and Valerie delivers with much feeling as well.


Very pretty..

Mike

HI Kristi ...

How fortunate you were to get Nadia to provide the piano backing track. She is just so good.

This reminds me of a song I might hear when watching a movie of early British farmers bringing in the fall harvest. The music, rather than the lyric, give it that British sway for me. This would be perfect for a documentary about farming, also. Nice job with the lyric! I could write melodies one on top of the other for such a challenge, but not lyrics. I envy folks like you who can do that.

Wishing you the very best ...

Alan

This definitely reminds that there was a time, not so long ago, when people placed real value upon tangible and familial necessities of life... I was born in the wrong era lol

Hey Mike... "1844"? Seriously man, read your Bible! Lol...

Whoops, you're right..why was I thinking of the sulky plow? That's 1844, not your basic stick with an iron point which does date back considerably.

I was just getting a Puritan vibe from the music and so the 1730's makes more sense as it appears to be the origin of Farmer's Market's in the United States..

Post changed..thanks for the heads up..

Hi Dave,

Hey, nice to see you. In both the 50/90 and FAWM challenges, I've seen very prolific writers/musicians posting their songs/lyrics. People who participate come up with all kinds of fun ways for "lighting that creative candle" so to speak, either by yourself or with others. I pick which ways to motivate myself and it's really no pressure. It's like running a 5K...you're with a group but on your own!

Yes, both Val & Nadia are very actively creating music and a joy to work with!

Glad you enjoyed the song...thanks for listening!

Kristi

Hi Mike,

Thanks for that specific feedback on the lyric. Funny, I almost didn't have “I like" (celebrations) in the bridge! I stuck it in after writing the original line. Something made me go back and write it in there. Probably the only “edit” I've made. Glad it makes a difference!

A rhyme for orange....ha ha....yeah, that IS a toughie to rhyme! Woot.

Yes, Nadia’s piano does feel timeless, doesn’t it. And I hear a lot of emotion in Val's vocals too.

Appreciate your nice comments!

Kristi

Hi Alan,

Yes...I am lucky when Nadia wants to add music to one of my lyrics. I agree she is very good, very intuitive. Puts much feeling into her work.

It’s so interesting to hear your take away from the music. “The British sway.”..she’ll love to hear that I’m sure. Well, you know, I wish I could compose as easily as others do....! It’s so time consuming and you have to know things! Writing, you just pick up a pencil and then wrack your brain! Hmm...which is preferable...

Thanks for listening and your comments!

Kristi

Hi JAPOV (Tony),

Well it all came from the word “harvest”. I would never have written a lyric about harvests otherwise. What do I know of harvests? I had driven by a local farmer’s market around that time too, so my mind, I guess, had absorbed that! You just never know what’s in there til it gets pulled out! Oh, the joy of writing!

1844? Oh I see Mike’s post following...will have to see what’s what...

Thanks for listening and your comments!

Kristi

Hey Mike,

Oh wow...I’m getting a history lesson here. What the heck is a “sulky plow”? I really have no knowledge about Farmer’s Markets...lol...or where they come from. It's just a good thing, I think, that they're still around. Makes me think of a simpler way of life...

It’s so fun to see how you guys are interpreting the lyric and music too!

Kristi

Hey Kristi,

Nice lyrics for sure. I feel like I'm listening to a musical production song, almost a Steven Schwartz vibe. I'd love to hear a cello meandering along with this piano and possibly some other strings subtly coming into the song midway. Very nice with even more potential IMO.

steady-eddie

Hi again, Kristi,

Going along with Eddie's "music production" comment, I could also hear this sung in pre-teen grade school class rooms, as the melody is an easy range for a kid, or with a real children's choir, on a stage, in a Thanksgiving production.

Stupid anecdote to follow, LOL... I Googled "plow" --saw 1844, and then remembered a skit my buddy Earl Lundy used to do, over the music to Bowie's "Let's Dance" when I lived in NYC in the early Eighties..he would sing over "Let's Dance" and when it came to the line "trembling like a flower" he would sing "trembling like a plow horse" and then talk over the song, saying in a deejay voice, "that's right, a plow horse!" and then name some plow horse facts such as its date of origin. So when I Googled and saw 1844, I erroneously put no further thought into the origin of the plow, LOL..now every time I hear "Let's Dance" --it REALLY sounds like Bowie is saying "plow horse."



Mike

Kristi,

Nice write and a terrific vocal on this. This has a type of Holiday feel to it . . . almost a Christmas like vibe. There are a few spots that might need a bit of smoothing—sylllables connecting with the melody a bit more cohesively . . . but what a fine beginning—very, very solid as it stands.

Regards,

Deej

Hi Kristi

I love the lyrics here - paints a lovely vignette of a by-gone day.
And the piano is mesmerizing - nice chord progressions and tempo variations give it a live feel.
I think the vocals could use a few more takes - there are a few spots where prosody is slightly off - but the singer has a beautiful tibre to her voice.

Nice collab guys
Paul

Hi Eddie,

Oh....Stephen Schwartz...I looked him up to take a look at his work and he’s created many songs and productions that I really enjoy! “When You Believe” & “Colors of the Wind” just to mention two songs. I’m going to be humming “Colors” now for the next few days...it always gets stuck in my head!

I love the theater and it’s fun to hear what you’re “hearing” in musical terms with this song here. Appreciate the feedback!

Thanks for listening!

Kristi

Hi Mike,

Cool. That’s a great idea...it would be appropriate for school-age children or a choir or production I think! I hear the musical theater vibe comments a lot with songs I do with Nadia, so it’s not totally surprising to hear you & Eddie mention that. I know Nadia has created many pieces that I can hear on stage....she puts so much expression into those melodies...

Your friend sounds like a character and that anecdote is actually a lot of fun because, ya know, I went and listened to “Let’s Dance” to ensure the full effect of your “plow horse” story...And surprisingly...lol...I can totally hear it: “Flouw-wa” v.s. “plow horse”. There's a soft rhyme ready-to-go for whomever may need one! I’ve heard that song a 1000 times and now it will never be the same.

Thanks for your thoughts on production ideas and making me laugh!

Kristi

Hey Kristi, It's a great song and lyrics and vocals and music and there are no enough Thanksgiving songs out there to enjoy. Can you name one. This might be the first one in a long time to make it. I loved it.

Hi Deej,

Thanks for your nice comments. I don’t believe I’ve ever written anything holiday-related before. Those songs tend to be positive and I find it hard sometimes to write positively. I think for fear it will sound corny or something? So that’s always a challenge, yeah.

I appreciate your thoughts on the syllables...I often wonder how hard something is to sing as I do not sing and have to be mindful of that...

Thanks for listening!

Kristi

Hi Paul,

Thank you for your lovely comments. I agree, Nadia does have a wonderful way with a piano the way she mixes those notes together! And yes, Val’s vocal does have a beautiful timbre to it.

I appreciate your feedback. It’s enlightening to hear from other songwriters in this way as I always learn so much even just talking about songwriting.

Thanks for taking the time to listen and comment!

Kristi

Hi MFB,

No, I cannot name one Thanksgiving song! Hmm...what about Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin? But I don't think any of those songs have lyrics. Well, it’s just good to have something positive out there! It was a fun challenge.

I appreciate your very kind comments. Nadia & Val are very generous artists who create some great stuff...

Thanks for you kind comments!

Kristi

you are always welcome.

Hello and thank you to everyone for your kind comments, support, suggestions and sharing your thoughts.
It was truly wonderful, as always to collaborate with Kristi and Val on 'Beginning of the Harvest' and it's very interesting and educational to read your beautiful comments. Wishing everyone a very happy and productive Autumn. I'll be back with listening and commenting as soon as I can.
Nadia ~

Hi Old Friend, Nadia:

So good to know you are still hard at work creating... and probably still teaching music. Your talented presence is such a joy to a music website who needs good people like you to help keep things on an even keel. You and Kristi make a great team. Since the demise of our beloved SongRamp... I've often wondered about the folks over there and what they are doing to survive (musically) now. Do you still keep up with our friend, "The Cat Lady" out near Reno? Then there's Charlie Camp, the two Diane's and so many others who would fit in well here. Time waits for no one... but our music (one way or another) will last forever. Thanks for resurfacing and participating.

All the best, ----Dave

Hi Dave,

Thank you for your warm welcome. I can't say I'm hard at work creating, I just love creating. Yes, teaching piano and loving it. Thank you for your kind words. I enjoy collaborating. I miss SongRamp but the old site I've once found. I never found it the same once it changed. The same happened for me when MySpace changed. I just prefer the old versions of every site I've tried. The same goes for Soundclick which changed dramatically. I understand every site needs changing but personally I'm more comfortable with the way each of the sites once was. It's strange how the more modernized the site is the less I find the opportunity to be creative there. I find it more restricting and harder to find my ways around it. But maybe it's just me. I have to say I don't know who you mean by the "Can Lady" so I can't answer your question at this stage.
Enjoy a very beautiful Autumn.
Nadia