"The Party is Over"

"The Party is Over" from my album "Black Swan"

The Party is Over

Rule #1 never be #2

I’m so far down your list it’s a joke

I try to say goodbye but I choke

The party’s over

The one I crashed

The house got trashed

And I got smashed

Sang crimson and clover

Over and over

And now the party is over

Don’t take it personally

How else would I take it?

It’s easier to catch a liar than a thief

I hung on your every word

as if they held the wisdom of a prophet

You stole my heart from me

The party’s over...

Someone’s going to have to clean up this mess

Jewelry missing

Cigarette burns on the rug

Panties twisted in the sheets at the bottom of the bed

Theres a pounding in my head

Burnout, my little super nova

The party is over

Art by Rita Andrade

The inspiration for my songs comes from many sources; art, poetry, other people's music, overheard conversations, and real-life experiences past and present.

I wrote this song while living in Lisbon, Portugal for 3 months during the pandemic. Lisbon is my home away from home in Europe.

Last night I watched a travel video, walking through Montmartre in Paris, dated July 20, 2020. The outdoor cafes were busy, the shops open, the portrait painters painting portraits. It wasn't like that in the USA. If you passed someone on the street here, they would jump out of your way in fear of catching Covid.

I need a lot of alone time to work on my music, but I was "losing it" after months of being alone through the summer of that year. Americans were not allowed in Europe. One night, a friend researched it and found out I could travel there if I was a student. I signed up immediately for Portuguese language school and booked my flight. It was four hours a day in a classroom of beginner Portuguese language students. The Portuguese speak very fast with their mouths closed. It's as if they know you already know what they are going to say so why bother articulating? Americans do the same thing depending on what USA accent they are using. Brazilian Portuguese is somewhat easier to understand.

Lisbon was quiet but mostly open. It's a beautiful walking city and I went out nightly. There was a feeling that these might be the end times. Millions of people were dying worldwide. The future was uncertain, reminding us of how important it is to be fully present and live in the moment.

I would stay up all night writing songs. The streetcar passed in front of my building. It starts each morning at 6 am and that was my alarm clock. Usually, I was still awake and didn't need waking up. Directly across the street was a well-known coffee and croissant place called "Dear Breakfast." I would go there to review my night's writing, over coffee, and get myself ready for school.

How do I write my songs? First I write down the title, then my name, and then your name. It felt like the party might be over. Fortunately, for me, at least, it was not. I feel like the song came alive when I found a groove to keep the storyline moving. My musical friends, Peter Gallway, Michael Ruff, and David Schwartz brought their rich musicality to the "painting" and it came alive.

I have written many songs in Spanish. Living in Los Angeles, there is probably more Spanish spoken than English. You hear it and see it written everywhere every day there. I doubt if I will ever write lyrics in Portuguese. I'm not sure exactly why. It may be that the language is so specific to the culture that I feel that I don't have the authentic right to use it in my music. I did make friends with many Brazilian musicians living in Lisbon. It began with an introduction by my New York friend, Brian Cullman. He is part of a group project called "Rua das Pretas." Their bass player, Walter Areia plays on my song called "Candy Cigarettes" on my "Black Swan" album. The leader of the group is a charismatic musician from Rio de Janeiro, Pierre Aderne. He has an everchanging cast of talented singers and players around him at all times. Before the pandemic, they had weekly shows in a beautiful mansion in the Príncipe Real neighborhood of Lisbon. I was a guest several times and those nights were amongst the most magical nights of my life.

Music has taken me all over the world. I'm very lucky and very grateful.