On the Road
(Exclusive only to the CB Song Club — not on YouTube)
Lyrics:
在路上 (zài lùshàng) - On the road 我走一走 (wǒ zǒu yī zǒu) - I walk a bit 在路上 (zài lùshàng) - On the road 我看到大楼 (wǒ kàn dào dàlóu) - I see tall buildings 在路上 (zài lùshàng) - On the road 车水马龙 (chē shuǐ mǎ lóng) - There are many cars and people 在路上 (zài lùshàng) - On the road 我看到所有 (wǒ kàn dào suǒyǒu) - I see everything.
Mid-production sample:
This song is still incomplete — a lot of work is still needed. I’ve been struggling finding the right balance with it. Some songs come very easy, and other times I get a little stuck.
This song had me on a 3-hour goose chase for a single sound to about 3am one night. I knew it needed more “body” to the sound, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. In the end, I found the background arpeggio synth which did the trick. Sometimes I just need to step back, and the answer then appears.
The lyrics came to me in a spontaneous fashion while not even thinking about music. In such situations, I’m not sure how things come to mind, but I’ve learned to run with it when it just “flows.”
I think the song would fit with my other ‘prepositions song’ as a follow up, or if teachers wanted to teach Chinese idioms, in this case — ‘车水马龙’.
On another level, I’d say the song is melancholic but has tinges of hope. Looking back on 2022, it was personally a year of great joy and also a bit of despair. I think that is what’s coming through…