The fourth and final video recording we have from the Greene Turtle set is a improvisational performance of Swimming with Sharks. I’d written the words to this about a week before the show, reflecting on a very difficult work project I’d recently completed over the winter. During our set, Jeremy switched into jamming on this chord progression and I immediately thought the words might work with the progression so I just started singing along to it.

I really don’t know what to say about these past months
So much time spent bringing Frankenstein to life only to realize that I was the mad scientist.
I just need a little lightning the next time I flip the switch.
I keep getting phone call after phone call and putting everyone on hold.
I just need a little more time before it’s perfect.
Of course I’ve eaten.
A cereal bar and some caffeine will put me right again.
I can’t worry about tomorrow. I just gotta make it through today.
Cause
We’re all dancing the steps and I’ve gotta stay one step ahead.
I can see the sharks in the water
Swimming ceaselessly with their suits and ties on
Get in. The water’s just fine.
So what’s the next step genius?
All that planning and bleeding leads to more planning.
Maybe I’ll just put a toe in the water.
Check the temperature and see how warm Hell is.
Such a thin line between soul selling and buying. You never know who’s the dealer.
You trade the time for money. And the money for more.
There’s always more on the shelf.
They’re having a sale today.
So maybe I’ll just take a lap or two. I can swim with the sharks and survive.
Do I want to?

Swimming with Sharks by chilljam is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at chilljam.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://chilljam.com.

Imagine – A cover of the John Lennon song by chilljam.com
Following the Beatles cover from last week, we’re releasing our cover of John Lennon’s song, Imagine this week. This song was played during the same outdoor session as last week’s version of Strawberry Fields Forever, but Imagine was played earlier on in the session. Actually, you can hear the wood crackling quite a bit in the background of this recording as it was still pretty wet at the time and hadn’t yet settled in for the quiet burn.

This song was a bit of a surprise to me. Jeremy just started playing the keyboard line, mostly to warm up and just jam on it by himself a bit as the rest of us were still setting up. I thought it’d be fun to try so I looked up the lyrics real quick on my iPhone and just started singing it. I probably hadn’t heard the song in 10 years but it felt pretty natural singing the lines, which just goes to show how amazing Lennon’s songwriting is.

Original song written by John Lennon.

Imagine by Chilljam is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at chilljam.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://chilljam.com.