Most things in life can be changed with effort – whether that’s the concerted effort of a passionate group of people, or the determined effort of an individual. But there remain some things that are beyond the scope of our powers to change. Assuming that we have the wisdom to discern the difference, there’s only one logical approach to things we truly cannot change, and that’s to try and find the positive within them.
This song is about that:
This song was particularly satisfying to write. Much like “Remember How to Smile“, I wrote the acoustic guitar riff months before I had an idea for the rest of the song. I had written pretty much the entire instrumental part at least 6 weeks before there were any lyrics. Once, at a bi-weekly jam session that I attended, I started with the riff and had a friend of mine improvise some lyrics. The hook she came up with was “raining sunshine”, which I liked as a phrase, but couldn’t really connect to anything.
A while later I was lying in bed, talking to my girlfriend about how it was a good thing I like the sound of the rain, because living in Vancouver means we get a heck of a lot of it. I recalled the fragment of the lyric from the jam session, and started playing around with the idea that some things we take for granted might actually delight other people who have less experience with them. A few hours with the pen and notebook later, and I had this song.
Instrument tracking took a couple of days, vocal tracking took an afternoon. This is the first song I’ve recorded with my new electric guitar Stephanie. The solo/duet in the middle is actually a ‘conversation’ between Stephanie and Shannon (my first electric guitar), but because I used different effects on each guitar, the difference in sound quality between the two is largely imperceptible. If you played them side-by-side, however, you’d notice the difference immediately.
One last thing about this tune: the debut performance was on a friend’s houseboat in Seattle. She was kind enough to invite me down to perform at a musical salon series that she has from time to time. Great fun, and a challenging experience – a small room with an attentive audience. So, thanks Sandra! And thanks to Marianne as well for thinking of me.
There is video from that debut performance, but the only people who get to see it are Patreon sponsors. If you’re not familiar with Patreon, it’s a service wherein you can support the artists you love by pledging a small amount of money for every time they produce something. So, to take me as an example, every time I record and release one of these songs, my Patreon sponsors pay anywhere between $1-$12. There are rewards for each amount pledged – $1 sponsors get their name in the liner notes of the next EP I release; $5 donors get a physical and digital copy of that EP, and so on. All the money I get from Patreon sponsors will go toward recording at a professional studio, so the more sponsors I get, the faster I will be able to get the rewards out. If you want more information, please check out my page there.
Lyrics:
Well it was raining outside and I was trying to stay dry,
Getting angry as I waited for the clouds to pass by,
When from under my umbrella I just happened to spy a man dancing in the street
Maybe 10 feet from where I was huddled,
He was laughing and clapping and jumping in puddles
And the smile on his face told me all of his troubles were just the drops beneath his feet
Well he must have seen me stare, because he told me “hey, don’t be scared”
And I don’t think that I was prepared for what he said to me, he said:
“I come from a land where it hardly ever rains.
There’s wind and there’s sand and not much in between.
But now I can stand in this beam of liquid sunshine”
He said “where I’m from water’s hard to find,
And you’re looking at me like I’m out of my mind,
But every time that it rains is a time that reminds me to be thankful for what I have.”
I said “I just don’t get it: what’s so great about being wet?”
And I don’t think I ever will forget what he said in reply, he said:
“Why waste your time on things you cannot change?
Those clouds in the sky won’t be dried up by your rage.
So you can see why I like to soak up liquid sunshine.”
(Instrumental break, reprise)
Well it was raining outside and I was trying to stay dry,
Getting angry at the clouds ’til I realized
That that funny little man was exactly right. So I went dancing in the sun.
Crommunist 
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