Cody Dickinson
Luther Dickinson: We tour constantly, so we did the basic tracks in like 10 days, and then off and on, whenever we'd get home we'd go back in the studio. We finished the record in January [2003] but then the distribution changed, and we went back and sang some stuff and remixed about half of the record - that was cool, because it turned out a lot better for it. We knew basically it would be our most self-indulgent record. However, it wasn't completely planned - we recorded 36 songs and picked from the best. This was kind of like our country-boy-moved-to-the-city record.
Eyes
(Dickinson/Chew/Duwayne Burnside/Carwyn Ellis/James Mathus)
Luther Dickinson: Eyes was a huge collaboration for the whole band that I kind of rounded up and organized.
Ain’t never been to Heaven
But I’ve been told angels in Heaven got sweet jelly rolls
Can’t take my eyes off you…
Well it must’ve been the devil came between you and I
You were a ramblin’ woman with a ramblin’ mind
Can’t take my eyes off you…
Can’t take my eyes off you, baby
Can’t take my eyes off you, girl
(can’t keep my eyes off you)
Can’t take my eyes off you, baby
(can’t take my eyes off you, eyes off you)
Waitin on my wings we’ll be side by side
Riding two white horses when the eagle bird flies
Can’t take my eyes off you…
Can’t keep my eyes off you, baby
Can’t keep my eyes off you, girl
Can’t keep my eyes off you, baby
Meet Me In The City
(Junior Kimbrough)
Meet me over in the city
We’ll make everything alright now girl don’t
We’ll get together oh yes we will girl
Oh yes we will
We’ll make everything alright now honey don’t, oh honey don’t
So please, please don’t leave me right now girl, right now, no
You got me baby, you got me girl
You got me where you want me baby yeah yeah yeah
You know you are satisfied girl
Now there’s one more thing I wanna say right now
Don’t leave me girl
So please, please don’t leave me right now girl, right now, no
Sometime I think I will babe
Yet I’ll give my m-m-mind a change
And tell me don’t leave right now
I’m still backin’ you baby
Please, please don’t leave me right now girl, right now, no
Conan
(Luther and Cody Dickinson)
Luther Dickinson: Conan and Kids These Daze, were collaborations between Cody and me for the first time.
Ain’t but that one thing be my downfallin’
Ain’t but that one thing been a long time comin’
It’s gonna be the downfall of me
Ain’t but that one thing to ease my worried mind
Ain’t but that one thing just to pass the time
It’s gonna be the downfall of me
It’s gonna be the downfall of me
(Alternate live lyrics:
Ain’t but that one thing to ease my worried mind
Ain’t but that one thing just to pass the time
I've done it all, done it all the same
Just to pass the time, pass the time away
It ain't no more woman xxxxxxxx keep me satisfied
Just get through sellin' it while lonesome on the side)
I’ve done it all, done it all the same
Ain’t but that one thing drive my blues away
It’s gonna be the downfall of me
It’s gonna be the downfall of me
Ain’t but that one thing and I ain’t long to get it
A dog and man and he’s bound to fetch it
It’s gonna be the downfall of me
You’re gonna be the downfall of me
You’re gonna be the downfall of me
You’re gonna be the downfall of me
Ain’t but that one thing be my downfallin’
Ain’t but that one thing been a long time comin’
You’re gonna be the downfall of me
For all to see the downfall of me
All Along
(Dickinson/Chew/Burnside)
Cody Dickinson: A couple of the tunes I came up with for this CD really lent themselves to that kind of blown out productions with serious arrangements and stuff. So I composed the part on a computer using Digital Performer. I would get the various sounds and write the parts. So its not like I brought in an arranger and said ‘Here, put some strings on this song!’ I wrote these parts so it’s part of the whole picture for me. I had a partner J.D. Westmoreland, who plays in Deltagrass, a band from Memphis. He went to University of Memphis and studied music composition and conducting. He helped me voice the parts. Helped me transcribe it to paper. Then I brought in John C. Stubbefield from Lucero and he helped me find some young musicians from the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. And I brought them in and it was really fun. It was amazing to sit their in a room and hear them play my music. It sounded great. They were fantastic.
I never had a clue
I trusted you
I can’t believe you’ve done this to me
Never had a clue untrue
All along, all along, all along, all along
You wasted so much of my time
Can’t get it off my mind
Put all my faith in you
I don’t know what to do
Shoulda known you were doin’ me wrong
All along, all along, all along, all along, all along
Underneath the dreams that fall apart
Are nightmares and broken hearts
Why didn’t you just let me go
Everybody knows I’m all alone, all alone, all alone, all alone
From now on I’ll be on my own
I’ll think of you every time I hear this song
I should o’ known you were doin’ me wrong
All along, all along, all along, all along, all along
Otay
(Cody Dickinson/Duwayne Burnside)
Cody Dickinson: Well, for example, those lyrics--Duwayne Burnside is another addition to the group since our last record. And phrases like "cut me in or cut it out," or "sticks to me like a dirty shirt"--those are lines from "Otay"--those are things that I got from him, which a lot of it he got from his dad, R. L., and they're blues catch phrases in a pop environment.
(love)
Love and music (Love and music does it)
Feels so good, ain’t nothin’ to it
Feels good, it’s good enough for me
Oblivious obviously
We stuck together me and my friends
When we start something around the bend
Tell me what you’re all about
Cut me in or cut it out
It’s all good, otay
Hurry up, don’t be late
Show must go on, but it can wait
What do you know?
Whatever you say
It’s all good, otay
Girl, you know I’m gonna miss you
Cant’ take it, I can’t fake it anymore
So let’s not press the issue
You give me something so good it hurts
Sticks to me like a dirty shirt
We’ll be together through thick and thin
So fuckin’ give it to me, here it comes again
Show me what you’re all about
Cut me in or cut it out
It’s all good, otay
When push comes to shove
At the end of the day
As a matter of fact, you don’t say
What do you know?
Whatever you say
It’s all you, otay
Tell me what you’re all about
Cut me in or cut it out
It’s all good, otay
When push comes to shove
At the end of the day
As a matter of fact, you don’t say
What do you know?
We just want to play
It’s all good, otay
Otay!
Kids These Daze
(Luther, Cody, and Jim Dickinson)
Cody Dickinson:I’m song I’m real proud of because its mine and Luther’s first collaboration. To think how long we’ve been making music together and we’ve never written a song together, it’s funny. But that’s the first one. That’s basically Luther’s tune. He came up with the music and the lyrical concept and I helped out with the lyrics. And I sing background vocals on it. It’s funny because there’s no doubt that my songwriting has influenced Luther and I think it shows on that tune. Once Luther started that song and I realized he was serious about it, that’s when I started helping him out on it as much as I could. It became a really good collaboration and it came a long way.
Kids these days have got it made
Hookin’ up to go to the all late show
She’s fuckin’ hot in the parking lot
Kids these days
(comin’ on strong, give it up
stay out long, don’t mess it up)
Turn on the town, shake ‘em on down
We’re young and loud
Turn up the sound, jump up and down
We’re young and loud
Singin’ in the crowd, like Charlie Brown
We’re young and loud
(Turn on the town, jump up and down
turn up the sound, jump up and down)
Kids these days have got it made
Always out of town, foolin’ round
Sleepin’ in the van is the best they can
Kids these days
(Barely getting by, you know straight up,
stay out long, don’t mess it up)
Turn on the town, shake ‘em on down
We’re young and loud (you know straight up)
Turn up the sound, jump up and down
We’re young and loud (live it up)
Singin’ in the crowd, like Charlie Brown
We’re young and loud
Live it up, live it up
Keep spinnin’ spinnin’ spinnin’ spinnin’ round and round
Keep spinnin’ spinnin’ spinnin’ spinnin’ round and round
Can’t knock us out of orbit
Can’t pull us to the ground
Keep spinnin’ spinnin’ spinnin’ spinnin’ round and round
Never coming down
Kids these days got their ways
Won’t listen to a word you say
Call me Pierre cause I don’t care
Kids these days
(Barely getting by, you know straight up,
stay out long, don’t mess it up)
Turn on the town, shake ‘em on down
We’re young and loud (you know straight up)
Turn up the sound, jump up and down
We’re young and loud (round and round)
Singin’ in the crowd, like Charlie Brown
We’re young and loud (never comin’ down)
Pass it round, never comin’ down
We’re young and loud
(get up and down, jump up and down)
One To Grow On
(Cody Dickinson)
Luther Dickinson: With Polaris, we really just went all out. We brought in some string players to play on one of the tracks, and we had Noel Gallagher (of Oasis) sing on a track, and we really experimented, with the whole key being just to have fun with it.
Don’t let ‘em make up your mind for ya
Cause they’re gonna try to run you through the ringer
Before you realize you been hung out to dry
Now, they don’t know that I’m started to learn
You don’t have to be down where the devil stays
For the bottom of your feet to burn
Here’s one to grow on
Too much, never enough
Cold shoulder to cry on
Let your feelings show
Leave some room to grow
Until I go the distance between right and wrong
The road I’ve traveled beyond and long
Too much makes me want to give it all away
Give me something to ease the pain
All washed up, going down the drain
Hung out to dry, left out in the rain
Muster up the courage if I can’t find the strength
I’m gonna shoot like a star on the horizon
When the moon sets the sun rises
Living the life I love, loving the life I live
Really makes me want to away
Loving the life you live, living the life you love
You make the most of everyday
Too much, too much, too much, too much
Too much, never enough
Too much, too much, never enough
Here’s one to grow on
Never In All My Days
(Luther Dickinson)
It’s just the one thing, Baby
I wanna say to you
It’s just the one thing, Mama
Never in all my days, never in all my days
Never in all my days have I loved a woman so hard to please
One last thing, Darlin’
I wanna ask of you
It’s just the one thing, Baby
Before we’re through
Why you wanna be that way? Why you wanna be that way?
Never in all my days have I loved a woman so hard to please
One last thing, Honey
Before we move on
Try comin’ back to Daddy
When you’re full grown
Never in all my days, never in all my days
Never in all my days have I loved a woman so hard to please
Bad Bad Pain
(Duwayne Burnside)
Luther Dickinson:“Duwayne was with us for Polaris and really helped bring Polaris to life.”
When I was comin’ up, had a bad, bad pain
I just didn’t realize, hard to explain
I’m tellin’ all you people cannot see what the blues goin’ on inside of me
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx, thought it would ease my pain
As time went by, things weren’t the same
I’m telling all you people (open your eyes) cannot see (realize) what the blues goin’ on inside of me
(inside of me)
I’m telling all you people (open your eyes) cannot see (realize) what the blues goin’ on inside of me
Polaris
(Cody Dickinson)
Luther Dickinson: Cody was really a driving force on many of the songs off the record. Having Cody there sort of took the load off when it came to writing. It was great because we could and do encourage and challenge each other. Now when we're out on the road we write together.
Cody Dickinson: Polaris came a long way. I was writing that song while we were making the record. I wrote the music on piano at Ardent [Studio in Memphis] when I was mixing Lucero’s Tennessee. We were working in the control room and in the cutting room, there’s a nice grand piano. And I’d go in there from time to time and play piano just to clear my head. And I started to write that music there. Then I realized I could make it the title track, so I just jumped on it. And the lyrics there, they have a very definite meaning to me. There’s a bit of irony in what I’m trying to say. It’s about people that I meet on tour. Being an entertainer, we meet a staggering number of people. Some become good friends and some you just don’t like at all. First impressions really become an art in what I do. That’s what that song’s about. It’s about the people that come and go and the people that stick with you. And in another way, it’s just about a girl. Polaris could just be a girls name, in a very simple straightforward way.
Close your eyes, make the world disappear
Dance with me, we’re the only ones here
Can’t believe it’s time to leave, I don’t want to be alone
Never say you should have known
Good-time girl, fair-weather friend
You rode in on a whirlwind
So good to see you again
Good-time girl, fair-weather friend
Fare thee well, my friend
The sun is burning the world is turning
Stars falling from the sky
Sometimes in the summer I wonder why
Flowers and trees turn brown and grow green
Somethings I’ll never know
I know that somethings are not what they seem
Good-time girl, fair-weather friend
You been ridin' a whirlwind
So good to see you again
Good-time girl, fair-weather friend
Fair-weather friend
Turn me on all night long
Girl, you are so intense
I look in your eyes I can read your mind
But you still don’t make any sense
(alternate lyrics:
throw your pearls to the swine
they get convered in it
don't be surprised if your well runs dry
when you thought it would never quit)
Good-time girls, fair-weather friends
You rode out on a whirlwind
Where did you go, where have you been?
Good-time girls, fair-weather friends
You are, you are
You are a fair-weathered friend
So good to see you again
Fare thee well, my friend
Time For The Sun To Rise
(Earl King Johnson)
Cody Dickinson:I did a lot of recording of vocals on tour, in various hotel rooms and even in the van. Like Sun Rise and some of Otay those performances were in our Ford van parked outside the club before the show."
Sunrise, why must you go so soon?
Sunrise, you don’t soothe me like the moon.
Last night as I lie sleeping I had a dream of a place untold
Where you never see people weeping
There’s no war or greed for gold
It’s a place where love can unfold
But by the time my dream is in drive, it’s time for that old sun to rise
Sunrise, always catch me by surprise
Sunrise, on the horizon beneath the sky
I’m always returning to Loveland
It’s a name I heard some fella say
It was there I found me a lovin’ hand
But each time I just couldn’t stay
And that lady I met fades away
By the time I find my prize, it’s time for the sun to rise
Sunrise, sunrise
I’m always returning to reality from a place of love and peace
There is one thing for sure that ain’t no fantasy
Is the place I want to be
And my girl waits there for me
By the time I find my prize, it’s time for the sun to rise
Sunrise, sunrise
Be So Glad
(Dickinson/Chew/Duwayne and Cody Burnside)
I’ll be so glad when the sun goes down (when the sun goes down)
I’ll be so glad when the sun goes down (when the sun goes down)
There’s a rainbow around my shoulder, ain’t gonna rain on me (ain’t gonna rain on me)
There’s a rainbow around my shoulder, ain’t gonna rain on me (ain’t gonna rain on me)
And I’ll be so glad when the sun goes down
[be so glad when the sun goes down, when the sun goes down]
I ain’t all that sleepy but I wanna lie down (I wanna lie down)
I ain’t all that sleepy but I wanna lie down (I wanna lie down)
I wanna lay down now baby, I wanna lie down (I wann lie down)
I ain’t all that sleepy but I wanna lie down
Well I’ll be so glad when the sun goes down
[be so glad when the sun goes down, when the sun goes down]
Oh when the moon begins to shine
Rain like silver, shine like gold
Rap: yeah right, but I’ll try my best
[B-U-R-N-S-I-D-E wanna be
xxxxxxxxxx
help my bub, but don’t you know why I wanna be so glad when the sun goes down
make a livin’ when I was out
The North Mississippi Allstars would I really be claiming it in
Don’t you know I’m really banging this thing in gated to win
Represent by David Malone up in the Parchman right now it really be his home
But now you know when we come back on the set
Don’t you know we be banging I’ll be so glad when the sun goes down
Cause my head be ringing, huh, It’s kinda how when you are hit on the prison yard
Beating and making a living for these fucking guards]
Well I made you a livin’ when I was free
I’m in a world of trouble you wanna write to me
Well I’ll be so glad when the sun goes down
[be so glad when the sun goes down, when the sun goes down]
[now what?]
Goin' Home
(Dickinson/Chew/Burnside)
Instrumental
Luther Dickinson: You never really know when a song is going to come to you, maybe during sound check, or maybe on the bus… you never can tell. We never try and force our songs in one direction or another. For Polaris, the majority of those songs came when I was on the road. But really, everything you do influences your writing. Sometimes, when you are a little sleep deprived, your barriers come down a little, and the feelings can just escape, and those feelings can become great songs.