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The Thin Man Dreams

from Signs Of Life by Neil Porter

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    This package contains the "Signs Of Life" CD with a double sided insert. There are 13 songs on the CD including three previously unreleased tracks which are not available anywhere else.

    Also includes: immediate download of 15 track album in your choice of 320k mp3, FLAC, or just about any other format you could possibly desire and; a complete PDF booklet of song lyrics, song notes and song art.

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about

Thin Man Dreams was written for a friend, Rob, who I’d started out playing music with when I was at university, and with whom I lost contact as we got older. We always had mutual friends and kept up with what each other was doing in a round about kind of way as we got older. Rob died at the start of 2005.

We used to practice at his place in Oatley, on the banks of a little inlet on Sydney’s George’s River – usually involving partners, friends of the band, various stimulants and inevitable cups of tea. These rehearsals (we only ever did a few gigs) were a part of my personal “dreamtime” – young and free and playing some pretty nice music with good people.

Rob was one of the good guys - he didn't really fit in all the time, but he was a gentle, talented soul. This is tribute to his life and the great days we used to spend playing music at his place in Oatley, Sydney when we were young. Not quite a band, but a lot more than a jam.

I wrote this in a few days after I first heard about Rob’s death. This is one of the first songs I wrote that I was really happy with – at the time it was a big step up in production, singing and playing for me. The new version for this year’s MJRF has been completely re-done, except I kept the original BPM. I’m quite happy with how this turned out. Despite a little drumming by Mike Watkins appearing in the video, the music here is all me (drums are midi). And yes, the electric guitar is my Tele – couldn’t find a Gibson ES335 for the video unfortunately.

YouTube video available here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnZV8NK8sMA

The video, apart from little bits of me singing and playing, is made up of photos from those days – the people we were close to, band members and places we hung out. I discovered that while making a video sounds pretty easy, when you actually start doing it, it can be quite a complex set of tasks. I used iMovie HD to record the live video and Final Cut Express to build the final clip.

Rob, if you’re seeing this in some supernatural way, I reckon we could have done a great version of this mate – maybe we have ☺

lyrics

The Thin Man Dreams
© 2005 Neil Porter

Heading down the Oatley stairs
The thin man waits, enjoys a cup of tea
Hanging out in rattan chairs
Musicians smoking, talking aimlessly

Mid summer sun has left the small
Verandah as the band begins to play
The thin man takes his Gibson
And it shimmers in the middle of the day

A gentle man
He stayed serene
A subtle hand
The thin man in a dream

The thin man closes happy eyes
He smiles and lets the rhythm have its way
He weaves a tingling tapestry
Floats unsuspected notes above the fray

Session over, vibe is up
The thin man’s smile's engraved upon his face
As he prepares another cup a happy thin man
Glides about the place

A gentle man
He stayed serene
A subtle hand
The thin man in a dream

Heading up the Oatley stairs
The thin man waves, enjoys a cup of tea

credits

from Signs Of Life, released April 19, 2010
Neil Porter - guitars, bass, keys, drums, vocals and production

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Neil Porter Pambula Beach, Australia

Singer songwriter from Pambula Beach in Australia.

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