Every year, a new TVD album appears online. It makes me wonder how? It's like nature's cycle man. Groovy. It comes and it goes. The Vanished Dutchman comes back.
The title "
Sagitario"
Well, it's a nice spanish word for the zodiac sign Sagittarius, which is used so many times already in the age of aquarius sixties. Just too pretentious to use.
Sa
GITARio...
Well and it is my sign. Let's find more about that:
(original source
astrology-zodiac signs:)
"Strengths: Generous, idealistic, great sense of humor
Weaknesses: Promises more than can deliver, very impatient, will say anything no matter how undiplomatic
Sagittarius likes: Freedom, travel, philosophy, being outdoors
Sagittarius dislikes: Clingy people, being constrained, off-the-wall theories, details
Curious and energetic, Sagittarius is one of the biggest travelers
among all zodiac signs. Their open mind and philosophical view motivates
them to wander around the world in search of the meaning of life.
Sagittarius is extrovert, optimistic and enthusiastic, and likes
changes. Sagittarius-born are able to transform their thoughts into
concrete actions and they will do anything to achieve their goals.
Like the other fire signs, Sagittarius needs to be constantly in
touch with the world to experience as much as possible. The ruling
planet of Sagittarius is Jupiter, the largest planet of the zodiac.
Their enthusiasm has no bounds, and therefore people born under the
Sagittarius sign possess a great sense of humor and an intense
curiosity.
Freedom is their greatest treasure, because only then they can freely
travel and explore different cultures and philosophies. Because of
their honesty, Sagittarius-born are often impatient and tactless when
they need to say or do something, so it's important to learn to express
themselves in a tolerant and socially acceptable way."
Do I believe in this concept? Well I don't think that it matters, it's still fascinating and colourful anyway as I do recognise a few sly streaks.
The process:
1979: I wrote my first lyrics during english classes, but I wanted more. Next to being active as a drummer, I wanted to write my own songs. My then- royal girlfriend sold me her cheap guitar. Cheap didn't matter: the songs dripped from my fingers. I "ate" all the chord progessions I could find (from the
Beatles chordbook). I pressed record on any old taperecorder and played...and recorded. Up to often three cassettes a year. From 1998 on I burned cd's. And from 2005 I do it the digital way.
Since then I never looked back, only just a once.
Now I've got better equipment, more flexible tools to work with, better guitars and chops. About time I've grown up!
Still, it amazes me how I can keep it up (!?)
Are you ready for some upbeat songs? Turn them up! Feed me back!
Private Scene
The toilet is my only private scene. To have some real fun, why not start off with an upbeat song? This joyous song hit me, so I hit back. Five minutes of blood, sweat and cheers. While it took little time to write, but arrangment-wise it was an adventure in rhythm patterns and melodies. To my surprise , lyrically it's sort of a sequel to "Unscrew Yourself". Topic: privacy.
Promo video
Happy Pills
Dancable and uplifting ditty, a spontanious funky guitar motive seems to make "fastwriting" almost a sport. Recorded on the spot. F-U-N. Topic: no pills needed.
Promo video
Chameleon Girlfriend
This last, unexpected smooth one is my favourite. Almost did it in a minute. Topic: inspired by a story from the NY times and a few chameleons in my social environment. O, how they adapt.
Hey, there's a little J.J.Cale influence there in the voice.
Speed Turtle
Funny breaks, funny harmonies. Topic: Wake up call. True story. Policeman stopped my car at 4 a.m., because I was driving....too slow, like a turtle. I was listening out loud to the latest mastering of these songs and I guess I forgot to drive fast! Ouch!
Blink
Energentic burst on the piano stirred my blood. Topic: Silicon Valley; what does it to people in general... and are we really human anyway anymore? It brought up a lot of energetic stuff musically and irony. You see, everything can be an inspiration. Listen to that baseline intertwined with that piano motive. Groove.
Roll Into A Ball
Seventies soulful jazzfeel on the Fender Rhodes. I love a shuffle halftime, hanging into a slow groove. Topic: esapism. Artist wants to hide, rolls into a ball. Ken ditches Barbie.
Convenient
Grew up in seventies where black influenced white music a lot: Blue-eyed Soul it was called. Crossover it became. Here's my smooth version of it.
Surprise!
Older song I couldn't finish lyrically at first. Surprise! Is it a surprise that Donald became the Prez?. Topic: trumped. "Look in the mirror Donny!" his wife says. No, it's not meant to be a political song. That temperamental latin flavor certainly helps to keep things on the edge.
Blame Me For The Fun
Slapstick time. Topic: I guess you can spot a bit of the goofy Laurel & Hardy theme (I've watched all those movies and sketches again in recent times) in here. Big fan. Laughs. LOL. Tribute.
Now We Are Talking
One of the first songs I wrote for this album. Give me a spanish guitar and the exotixc sounds of Brazil flow through my fingers. Relaxed, but a challenge to sing (bossa-nova) melodically.
Itch
This took a long time to finish, while it started out simple. A lot of ideas (breaks) in one song is a challenge. As I liked all the melodic contrasts and dynamics, it made its way into this album.
Sagitario
An older idea, which has grown on me since. In case anyone has enough of my voice (I'm not surprised), the last one is an instrumental, a melancholic and melodic one in latin fashion. It started out as a vocal piece, which I think still has potential too, so who knows...
That's my story so far...what's yours?
Keep on rocking!
Well that's it, I'm gonna vanish again...
