We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Big Town Winding Down

from I LIKE THE STREET by Johnny J Blair "Singer at Large"

/

about

A spoken word piece, inspired by a dream I had, laid over a live music bed from an improvisational concert in New York City (@ Cafe Khufu).

lyrics

BIG TOWN WINDING DOWN

Big town winding down
Big town winding down
Fascinating rhythm, sight and sound
Big town winding down

In a dream he trudged
a once bleak landscape
of grimy, brittle monoliths
burnt toast buildings scraped against vacant skies
Then he turned a hardboiled corner,
to discover you don’t have to believe those lies
With each step, the monoliths lost their abstraction
And their oppression
Welcoming him in warm waves of urban love
In a big town winding down

Darkness gave way to splashes and streaks of sepia, blue, purple and yellow
Like unraveling creatures from an Escher,
City streets opened, flattened, shining machines rolled up
Lights, voices, and noises sculpted the air
Skyscrapers showed their genders and whispered stories
With each energized step he saw, heard, smelled and touched people rushing past—faces in joy, in awe, in laughter, in commerce, and in melancholy
In a city that never slept, he felt rest
He felt the big town winding down

The intemperate blur of metropolis became his set,
The Asphalt Ballet
starring warm flesh and blood
made in the image of God
He woke from that dream all alone but feeling like someone had been watching him, waiting for the right time to give him a gift
Grace tumbling out of the skies
Wiping every tear from your eyes
Grace rising out of the ground
In every sight and sound
In a big town winding down

copyright 2011 Johnny J. Blair Word2Soul Music BMI

credits

from I LIKE THE STREET, released November 23, 2020
JJB: bass, production, vocal
Richie Devletian: guitar
Scott Francis: mixing
Felipe Torres: percussion & recording
...and since it was based on an improvisation, all the musicians get a songwriting credit.

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Johnny J Blair "Singer at Large" image

Johnny J Blair "Singer at Large" San Francisco, California

"Johnny is a virtuoso"--Brian Wilson
"Pop music with a conscience.”--Goldmine
“the Harry Houdini of rock and roll.”-- Spotlight. Listen to Johnny's fast-paced mix of old school soul, psychedelia, punk/new wave, & classic pop/rock. Singer-songwriter in his own right, he was also a sideman for Davy Jones and The Monkees + performed with David Cassidy, Al Stewart, Buddy & Julie Miller, & others. ... more

contact / help

Contact Johnny J Blair "Singer at Large"

Streaming and
Download help

Shipping and returns

Report this track or account

Johnny J Blair "Singer at Large" recommends:

If you like Johnny J Blair "Singer at Large", you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Featuring interviews with LA music scene pillar Kamasi Washington, and new London-based duo Mrcy.

listen now