Although the underlying backing track is a gentle bossa nova, there’s an undercurrent of tension and despair from the David Gilmour-esque riffs of an electric guitar and vocals that pierce through the darkness of the night as we are privy to a tormented inner dialogue.
The setting is a light rail station in the East Bay where connections are made and missed and our protagonist is left stranded for an indeterminate nocturnal duration. With a refrain that directly quotes the title drop to a movie about WWII, a sense of conflict is unmistakable.
On this E.G. Phillips composition, the vocals are handled by Grace Renaud, a vocal coach and minister of music. She is currently the music director at St. Paulus Lutheran Church as well as pianist and cantor at Grace Cathedral. Ms. Renaud has also served as the interim music director of the Queer Chorus of San Francisco and directed Soul Shine, a jazz combo accompanied by a choir of 25+ volunteers and professionals.
lyrics
VERSE 1:
I’m across the Bay, like I’ve been before
Stuck at MacArthur Station at this ridiculous hour
It’s a frigid little purgatory surrounded by the highway
Waiting on this open air platform after missing a connecting train
Once again the one connection on which I’m forced to rely
Is the one I can’t rely on at all
Well, as you know, I always thought we tried
To go A Bridge Too Far
VERSE 2:
My days glide by as I knock about
In markets unripe and rotten and a garden of my doubts
Yes, I know my trajectory is not one that will sustain
I may not be right in the head but I don’t need you in my brain
Your solutions are no better than only getting by
Don't plug holes, just refill the reservoir
Well, as you know, I always thought we tried
To go A Bridge Too Far
VERSE 3:
A mad man rants, my signal’s failed
The whole damn world’s determined to go off the rails
There’s no shelter to be had from the constant traffic stream
If we took part in a Turing test
I couldn’t tell you from the machine
We could talk in a language that’s plain and forthright
But that would require us both to disarm
Well, as you know, I always thought we tried
To go A Bridge Too Far
OUTRO:
Well, as you know, I always thought we tried
To go A Bridge Too Far
Well, as you know, I always thought we tried
To go A Bridge Too Far
credits
from Outlaw the Dead,
track released August 9, 2023
Grace Renaud — vocals
Christopher Fortier — guitars, electric bass
Kevin Seal — keys
Chris McGrew — percussion
Recorded at Wally's HydeOut in Hyde Street Studio C, San Francisco
Recorded by Gary Hobish
Mixed by Chris McGrew and Jaimeson Durr
Mastered by Gary Hobish, A. Hammer Mastering
E.G. Phillips is a San Francisco based songwriter who creates lyric driven songs with his own special blend of whimsy and cinematic imagery which he uses to give a wry take on dealing with the longings of the heart and the madness of existence.
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