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It Had A Snorkle Mug

from 8 Trackology by John Tabacco

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Words and Music © 1986 by John Tabacco
Published by It Iz What It Iz Music (SESAC)

I've always been aware of unfairness. I've felt it first hand as a child because of my last name or my curly hair or unwillingness to play games. I studied it in my later school days and eventually gave up thinking about it. The human race just keeps going through the changes no matter who's wrong or right. Sometimes it's a pleasant experience being here on Earth. Sometimes ehhh...Whatever, as my sister would always remind me, "It's an unfair world and ya gonna die someday". And who but a woman would know better? Life's been decent to me thus far so I can't complain much. However, unfairness didn't stop me from writing this tune.

Lyrically, the concepts were influenced by Mark Twain's book "WHAT IS MAN?" and I'm sure the movie "MASK" and "THE ELEPHANT MAN" had some bearing on it too. The "Snorkle" character is referred to on an AKAI song called "Lighting Seed" and the subject matter was later explored in the DiMauro / Tabacco collaboration, "LOOKS". My basic attitude is: anyone could be minding their own business, maybe doin' good deeds and such when all of a sudden Jack the Son Of Maxwell Silver Boston Strangler Hitler Queen could sneak up from behind and do you in for no reason. Where's ya god now old man? (Trying to create the perfect being I guess.)

Musically, this work was written in 1982 at Stony Brook University. It was resurrected in late 86. The drums were played live (one take) on 4 tracks. Then, using the Oberheim Dx drum machine I painstakingly overdubbed the kick, snare and toms on the remaining 4 tracks. It took many, patient hours. This technique gave the live drums more punch and separation while also retaining the live feel. When this was completed, I got a decent mix of all the drums, added an intuitive amount of reverb and treble and mixed it down to a VHS Super Hi-Fi machine. I then took that VHS mix and dumped it to 2 tracks on the Tascam 8 track machine. What I ended up with was 2 tracks of fairly decent sounding drums that followed my slow and fast tempos pretty accurately.

For me, the lyrics, singing, performance and recording represent one of the pinnacles of my 8-track obsession.
I graduated to another level with this number.

lyrics

IT HAD A SNORKEL MUG

It had a snorkel mug and a suppressed constitution
A child of someone else's by mistake
Every night it cried
Every hug denied in shameful view
Of somebody else's evil pleasure
The S & M review

Scared
Depressed
A restless mind
A need to find a cure
Perhaps a GOD
Anything would do
So it prayed

Well, on the edge it stood - dragged it's childhood from town to town
By means of someone's dice it came of age
And when it filled with pain
It was always TWAIN who pulled it through
Injustice only had a reason
When you had the time to choose

Torn
Alone
And living in a home somebody drew
There were four
And who suspected that the lives of countless more
would fall down the line
to such a LOSER.

I'm readin' different papers but the news appears the same
Somebody got slaughtered
No one special, just another actor on a shooting spree

AND THE MESSAGE GETS LOUDER
AS THE PICTURE GETS CLEARER TO SEE
STORMY WEATHER COULD SNAG YOU AND ME AT ANY TIME
ANY PLACE
AND FOR NO REASON
NO LOGICAL REASON

I'm changing different channels but the news appears the same
Somebody got butchered
By a clown who's neighbors say he was the friendly kind

AND THE MESSAGE GROWS LOUDER
AS THE MOTIVES BEGIN TO UNWIND
STORMY WEATHER COULD SNEAK UP BEHIND
HEY!!!

What does this mean to you?
(I think about it now and then)
What does this mean to you?
I can read the obvious and dig up some clues
But beyond the facts I read
There isn't much that I can do
There ain't much that I can do

I'm tuning in the station, now I'm laughin' quite a bit
Somebody got lucky (on parole) just accidentally won the lottery prize

AND THE MESSAGE GROWS LOUDER
AS THE BOGELS ARE PUT OUT TO SEA
STORMY WEATHER COULD PASS YOU AND ME
COMPLETELY

credits

from 8 Trackology, released September 22, 2014
JT : Vocals, Pearl Drums, DX Drum Machine overdub, Keyboards

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John Tabacco Stony Brook, New York

John Tabacco is a composer, singer-songwriter, producer, recording engineer, and visual artist.

Like an unfolding musical diary / puzzle, Tabacco’s music and art are constantly being re-worked, juxtaposed and intertwined.

For more info : www.johntabacco.net ... more

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