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Matthew Darbro - an ongoing conversation about my music

Don't Hurt

Don't Hurt by M Darbro  
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2002

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Posted December 2, 2009
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I Wax Psychological

The idea behind Don't Hurt is that I want to see you there. I want to have fellowship with you. I want to celebrate with you. I don't want depression and sadness and confusion and bitterness and pain and hurt to kill it off for you. (and for me)

The truly ironical thing about this song is that when I wrote it, I had very little if any friends, outside my wife. We had just moved away from Santa Rosa, and I had no community at all. Rachel worked the days I was off, and I worked the days she was off. In so many ways this was a song to myself. It was some desperate attempt to create a party, get off the island I was on, and overcome depression I was feeling. I can tell I am musing psychological. . . sorry.

I suppose hurt may have not been the exact word I was looking for to convey the idea, but it kind of works for me. I love the little beep I got mid way thru the song. I started to ramp it up and I was going to end the song after the crescendo, but then I thought, I can take it to a new place. If you are careful and listen after the beep in the middle of the song, you can hear my daughter Gabbi, age one, saying Dad.

In those days I would work 3 days and Rachel would work 2-3 days (sometimes on Saturdays) and we would split who would watch Gabbi. When I worked Rachel did all the stuff a Mom would do around the house. When Rachel worked, unfortunately, I would do all the stuff a Dad would do around the house. . . 

Like write music with your daughter.

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Posted December 2, 2009
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Lyric Highlight

So I am leaving this message

Out on your machine
And I don't know when this thing
Is going to beep and end

But
Don't hurt

Don't Hurt 2002

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Posted December 2, 2009
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A Desperate Message On An Answering Machine

The idea behind Don't Hurt was leaving a message on an answering machine hoping a friend will come to a church event.

I always actually hated answering machines. I hated cell phones until I got my iPhone, because I, for what ever reason, hate answering the telephone. So actually, if you think logically, I should like answering machines. . . But I don't because I have this irrational fear of what messages it will contain when I walk into the house. 

I have received some really terrible news by way of the answering machine over the years, perhaps that is where this irrational fear comes from. I guess I did like it when I could use the answering machine to screen the calls back in the 90's before caller ID. . . But that only really shows my general anxiety of telephone calls. 

I think I am a visual person. I fancy myself someone who can read body language and when I am detached from the visual aspect of the communication, I fret. I wonder. I am worried. I am anxious.

All of this has little to nothing to do with Don't Hurt. I wrote this song in 2002, in Manhattan Beach. It feels like Manhattan Beach to me. It is part of the collection Non Dimenticar. That collection was special to me because I wrote the entire album on Reason and Samplitude, while a number of friends had told me Reason was only a toy, including an old studio rat who use to mix for Sesame Street. I like the result of Don't Hurt. It is a bit dated, and it kinda does sound like I was writing with a "toy" but now, almost 8 years later, it still retains a bit of charm for me. Perhaps it was the Manhattan Beach vibe.

Perhaps it was me conquering my fears of the answering machine.

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Posted December 2, 2009
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Cowboy Chords

Cowboy Chords by M Darbro  
(download)

2009

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Filed under  //   Cowboy Chords   Darbro   Music   to the pip  
Posted November 28, 2009
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Olivia

My daughter Olivia came in just as I was finishing tracking the last vocal for the song and begged me to let her sing. 

I did have this boring ending that was absolutely screaming for something. . . 

Gabbi is the artist, Olivia is the performer and loves to get in the studio with me and sing.

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Filed under  //   Cowboy Chords   Olivia  
Posted November 28, 2009
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Inspiration For Cowboy Chords

To The Pip was inspired by a home group bible study that I was going to in 2009. It was a sweet sweet time where my wife and I saw many couples get married off. We were studying the book of Colossians, and we would completely descend upon Scott and his family every tuesday night.

During that season of our lives, Rachel and I took the kids to Hawaii. Scott and his wife drove us up to the airport and dropped us off at LAX. I got a chance to catch up with Scott and we talked a bit about music. Now if anyone knows Scott, they know he can completely shred it up on the guitar. I meant, he teaches it. I confessed that I really was quite rusty on the guitar and I had no "mad chord skills."

I was expecting one of two things. . .
1 an uncomfortable silence
2 an awwhh man it can't be that bad

Instead, I got 

that's great man come on and bring your cowboy chords. . . 

I thought about that exchange the entire time I was in Hawaii, and I ended up writing a song with those basic chords there at the root.

Cowboy Chords

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Filed under  //   Cowboy Chords   Scott Cunningham   to the pip  
Posted November 28, 2009
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Art By Gabbi

This is the beginning of the song Cowboy Chords. My daughter Gabbi has this passion for art.

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Filed under  //   Art By Gabbi   Cowboy Chords   Video  
Posted November 28, 2009
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You Take Me Far

You Take Me Far by M Darbro  
(download)

2007

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Filed under  //   Darbro   Music   Wonder  
Posted November 23, 2009
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My Perfect Late Fall Song

I didn't mean it to be like this, but this has become my perfect late fall song. It just fits into the season for me so well. It gets dark so early these days and I would drive home in the dark in the late fall listening to this song. You Take Me Far is found on the Wonder collection. 

I know there are tons of great late fall songs that are like much better to listen to than this but as far as songs that I had any hand in, this is my fav for late fall. I do hope you like it. The middle section is a throwback from my Philo days. I play this game with this pretend band, and one of the pretend characters was Philo. In my mind, he is a blondish guy in his mid 30's with a beard and a guitar. He doesn't come out near enough in my music. . . 

I do think this is the latest time I have been inspired to travel down the Philo road. 

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Filed under  //   Autumn   Band   Wonder   You Take Me Far  
Posted November 23, 2009
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