Day 22: 7 Steps (with Todd Hawkins)

 

Day 22: 7 Steps (with Todd Hawkins)

Part of my song-a-day writing project for January 2024

Lyrics:

There's something wrong
I can smell it in the air
I can hear it in your groans
I can see you're in despair

Your breath is short
You got shallow aspirations
What's causing you to choke?
Do you need more respiration?

Don't panic; What happened?
Let's review your situation
We'll find you some relief
Some new alleviation
These 7 steps will help you
To ease your aggravation

Check the scene
Is it safe for us to be here?
Is there any risk
Or are we out of danger?

Are you hot? Are you cold?
Are you numb or are you dizzy?
We can always call for help
And hope they're not too busy

Don't panic; What happened?
Let's review your situation
We'll find you some relief
Some new alleviation
These 7 steps will help you
To ease your aggravation

Now you can breathe again
Now you can be free again
Now you can relax

Don't panic; What happened?
Let's review your situation
We'll find you some relief
Some new alleviation
These 7 steps will help you
To ease your aggravation

Now you can breathe again
Now you can be free again
Now you can relax

***

Details: Todd came over with an electric guitar and amp and said he was in the mood for grunge or some straight-forward rock and roll. He also mentioned that he just took a CPR class. Anyway, that was enough to get us started.

I'm a big fan of what I call "jargon songs". I like to look at a glossary on a certain topic, pick out all the terms that have double meanings, then try to construct a song with them. Todd and I have written three other songs together, and we've tried this technique before. So we looked up CPR and First Aid terms, as well as the steps you follow when performing CPR (that's where we got 7 steps). We decided to keep the specifics of the emergency hidden-- was this a physical or an emotional crisis?

It was fun working with an electric guitar, and I always enjoy writing with Todd. Though that last couple songs seem to send me into the upper registers-- it's tough for me to hit those notes!