An Ancient Tune (How to Rip Off Leonard Cohen)

I tend to remember where I first heard one of Adam's songs.  (And he almost never tells us that he's working on a song, but rather springs it on us full-blown.)  In the case of the title piece from  'Ancient Tune', we were at a little social gathering at the home of friend and parishioner June Craver.  June had asked him to play some music, and so he did.  One of the pieces was 'An Ancient Tune' (or it's acoustic guitar version, I should say), and I loved it immediately.

This was the tune that I was referring to when I mentioned Simon and Garfunkle in an earlier post.  Can't exactly say what it is, but the feel is the same to me (especially Paul Simon's later solo work).

One of the memorable experiences for me was being a part of this recording with my trumpet, the one instrument at which I'm halfway decent.  Adam handwrote the part (in three part harmony, if I'm not mistaken), and then coached me to play each part perfectly and record it two times each (that six perfect performances).  As you can imagine, that took a while!!  But Adam was incredibly patient (though I was also incredibly cheap to hire as a performer!).

Also, at some later time, his sister Sarahbeth contributed a vocal harmony part.  And the nice thing about a recording like this is that while it's just vibrations in the air (or bits in a digital file), it's like a picture in that it's also as permanent as anything can be in this life, short of something built in stone.

I'm not sure that I understand the message of this song, but I've always liked the biblical quote, "it's better to be poor in the body than poor in the soul."  That's a tough choice, no doubt, but, as they say, it's in 'the Good Book'. 

But mostly I just like the upbeat feel of the song, the metaphors, and, of course, the trumpet part (LOL)!

Lyrics:

Honey, You make it hard for me when we’re apart it’s just hard to be
Money, you run just as fast as you can, yeah you’re leaping out of my hand, out of my hand

Taxi, take me out of this world, All I want is me and my girl, me and my girl
My feet are feeling sore
and the subway is hotter than ever before,
Hallelujah that’s part of an ancient tune

Heartache, you are the worst of them all, somehow I’m always willing to fall, wiling to fall
It’s funny, knowing I’ll be dead in the ground, that won’t silence the sound
Somewhere down in Lincolns tomb
He strokes his beard as he listens to the
Hallelujah of an ancient tune

Hallelu, Hallelu, hallelu, Hallelujah

Judy, Don’t come to hear me play in the band, it’s music that you won’t understand, you won’t understand
Timmy, I know you worry about the money you owe, it’s better to be poor of the body then poor of the soul
One day when we all have a break

We’ll take the kids down to Waccamaw Lake

We’ll rent a canoe and sing that ancient tune



Sister Sarahbeth and Adam at Topsail Beach

 One day when this world’s gone

I’ll be looking for a song to hum

Hallelujah It’ll come as an ancient tune

One day honey you and I

will earn the keys to a better life, but not too soon

Hallelu, Hallelu, hallelu, Hallelujah

I’ll never know, where I’m gonna go, I’ll never know