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XERO
I began writing songs with Chris when he heard some of the experimental tapes I’d been doing with Ray Yoder. We quickly discovered that he could write lyrics as fast as I could come up with melodies and a partnership was born. By the time I headed off to SIU we were already envisioning rock operas with films showed behind our performances. Many of these songs were parts of larger collections or works. All material
copyright © 1971 - 2007, Eyesongs ASCAP |
Chris Lee - guitar & vocals, Me |
ANDI
(Wrege)
Studio: SIU dorm room
& SIU Electronic Music Lab, Carbondale, IL
This was one of the first tunes I’d ever written during high school.
It was about a troubled little girl named Andi, thus the title. The words
were written years later by Chris, who was trying between his laughter,
to write something commercial at my request.
HONEYMOON
ON MARS
(Lee
- Wrege)
Studio: 819 Huntington
Rd., Louisville, KY. & SIU Electronic Music Lab, Carbondale, IL
The
title song of one of Chris’ feature length film ideas. The concept evolved
over several years and encompassed a whole suite of tunes. It was tough
getting Chris away from science fiction-like topics.
KEYS
TO THE KINGDOM
(Wrege
- Lee)
Studio: Condo, Yorba
Linda, CA
Written
through the mails. (At least it wasn’t science fiction...I think.)
PLEASE
DON’T TEASE THE TIGER
(Wrege
- Lee)
Studio: SIU Apartment
During
a Spring break Chris and Steve Stone came to Carbondale. Our sole purpose
was to sequester ourselves in the apartment and do nothing else but write
and record an album of songs (working title: “Cheeseburgers from Atlantis”).
This was one of them that we always felt would make a nice children’s
cartoon.
QUEEN
MAB
(Lee)
Studio: SIU dorm
room & SIU Electronic Music Lab, Carbondale, IL
Chris wrote
this one entirely. I just tried to make it sound good by layering a bunch
of things on top of his original guitar part. It’s based on “A Midsummer
Night’s Dream.”
BARON
SATURDAY
(Wrege
- Lee)
Studio: Condo, Yorba
Linda, CA
I really
don’t have the slightest clue what the lyrics are about but they fit a
little shuffle I was working on.
PURPLE
PERIL
(Wrege
- Lee)
Studio: SIU Apartment
One of
the songs from the Cheeseburger from Atlantis Sessions. There’s some complex
guitar work in it that Steve Stone and I worked pretty hard to get right.
MADAME
MIDNIGHT
(Lee)
Studio: 819 Huntington
Rd., Louisville, KY
You might
remember hearing us playing this over and over one afternoon (or more)
in the basement. This is a Chris tune.
HARP
OF HERCULES
(Wrege
- Lee)
Studio: Condo, Yorba
Linda, CA
The background
vocals sound a bit tortured due to my habit of singing into a stack of
towels in a closet so that the neighbors wouldn’t hear. I always thought
the melody had merit so we recycled parts of this tune later.
SPANISH
FLY
(Wrege
- Lee)
Studio: SIU Apartment
& SIU Electronic Music Lab, Carbondale, IL
One
of the Cheeseburger Session songs. Many years later Chris was to bemoan
the fact he didn’t finish the lyrics (the last verse would reveal that
the mysterious powder mentioned was a placebo).
DON’T
TRUST THE SUN
(Wrege
- Lee)
Studio: SIU Apartment,
Basement, Boulder, CO
Parts of
this tune were hanging around since I went to Carbondale and we finished
it off during the Cheeseburger Sessions.
GOING
CRAZY
(Wrege)
Studio: 819 Huntington
Rd., Louisville, KY
One of
my piano songs with Steve and Chris playing along. We never did anything
with it beyond recording it in our basement on Huntington.
(Wrege - Lee)
Studio: SIU Apartment & SIU Electronic Music Lab, Carbondale, IL
Spellbound represents some of Chris’ best love song lyrics. This was finished off when I used to drag my TEAC four-track over to the SIU Electronic Music Lab on weekends and record parts there using Professor Bottje’s reverb and good microphones.