Midlife Resurrection

Midlife Resurrection by Doug Ward This album represents my return to music after more than 25 years. So many musicians put away their instruments as the need to get on with life (work, family, etc) overwhelms their capacity to play and create. I was one of those musicians. But I was fortunate enough to resurrect my interest in my late 40's and get back to my passion. My first album is accordingly themed around midlife and the song subjects include awakening, endings, anger, wisdom, despair, hope, and some fun. I hope you enjoy the album, or at least some of it. Doug. Here are some of the stories behind the songs: Midlife Resurrection (Rock) This is the inspiration behind the album. We all work hard trying to succeed, raise a family, put some money away and so on. And then one day we wake up and find that our youth has gone. And it's not that you regret what you did and what you have, but what you didn't do. No more! Midlife is not too late to resurrect your youth, chase your dreams and have some fun. Can't Get The Words To Come Out (Rock 'n Roll) I could not get a second song together - couldn't even get it started, and it was getting really frustrating. One night I translated my frustration into words ... Shut Up And Listen (Folk) This started out as personal frustration at people who won't listen to ideas beyond their simple comprehension. But as I wrote I realized that not listening, or choosing not to listen, is a worldwide epidemic, motivated by selfishness. So although this song starts out all about "me", it's really about all of us and our helplessness in the face of stupidity and greed. Empty Day (A little Alternative, definitely depressed) Some days I reach a state of blankness, having passed through hope, attempt, disappointment, anger, disillusionment and then cynicism. There is so much f**ked up in this world, and so much is fixable, but never will be fixed because of greed and ignorance. Everywhere in the world, in every facet of life - greed and corruption feed on the ignorant. And no-one will stop it, for the same reasons. Whether we're talking about the deep problems of Africa, or just trying to improve something at work, everything that is not ignorant is self-serving and/or corrupt. And so, as I get older, I sink deeper and deeper into this emptiness. Was A Time (Acoustic) Midlife is often a time when marriages break up, sometimes because they were not in good shape in the first place, sometimes for no good reason at all. It is always a sad event! Tiffany (Lounge Punk) We replaced the fan above the stairs with a Tiffany light. I like the light !!! Waves Crashing On A Cabo Shore (Reggae) In March 2008 my wife and I spent a week in Los Cabos, Mexico - a beautiful place where the desert meets a deep blue sea. It was full of whales while we were there, already beginning their seasonal migration back to the north. I penned the words to this in twenty minutes one warm night listening to the sounds of the ocean. I added a reggae theme later; the island sound just seemed appropriate to the mood. A Nefarious Affair (Ballad) At a barbecue with friends, someone referred to the sordid dealings of yet another politician as "a nefarious affair". Sounded like a good title for a song about a midlife love affair. Ain't Got The Blues (Blues) My voice teacher questioned whether I should be playing blues songs because I seemed to him to have too good a life, not fitting of the blues. This is my response. Before I Get Too Old (Rock) This is the song that started it. A friend of mine helped me get my first public playing appearance in years, playing a short gig together at a local bar. After the gig while we were having a beer he said to me, in reference to the amount of time I spent practising instead of performing, "Doug, you've got to get out of the basement". This became the working title of my first new song in twenty-five years, and quickly became a metaphor for getting out of the rut of middle-aged life and back to my youthful pursuits, "before I get too old"!