About the Throwaway Song of the Week
The Throwaway Song of the Week was a 52-week long weekly song project that I finished on May 31, 2016. The goal was to get out 52 songs of any kind, sometimes (but not always) on trivial topics, and maybe not life-changing melodies and chord progressions. I once read that you’ll write 50 terrible songs before you write one good one. Well, there you go!
Best of the Throwaway Song of the Week:
Lyrics
IF YOU WANT ME
You’re not the only person in this room
But it feels like you are to me
You’re so attractive, I don’t know what to do
And I’m not the only one who can see
Each time your head turns my way my heart jumps into my throat
Do I have a billionth of a chance? Man, you’ve gotta let me know
If you want me, then just say so
‘Cause I’ve been waiting for this whole night
And I’m so happy that we’re finally getting to talk
But I didn’t know it’d be this great
We think so alike and it came as a shock
How are you this perfect? Oh, unhappy fate
‘Cause now I feel invested in seeing this thing grow
And I guess that means I should pretend I want to take it slow
If you want me, please just say so
‘Cause I’ve been waiting for this whole night
And if you want me, you can have me
‘Cause I’ve been waiting for my whole life for you
THE DAY I GOT TWO NEW LEFT SHOES
I’m the furthest thing from proud of this
But life’s sometimes like that so let’s talk about it
I stayed all day at a rough but lackluster stage
At a music festival awaiting a band I won’t name
It’s not the kind of thing I’d recommend that you do
But I’ll forever remember that day I got two new left shoes
But we all know what you want isn’t always what you get
In the end I wanted out amid that insufferable mess
When they pulled me up, I lost both my shoes in the crowd
I didn’t know what to do but cry in the space I was allowed
But a little boy brought me comfort and a pair of shoes that he’d seen
And despite the imperfect fit, everything stopped troubling me
And so if your problem feels insurmountable, just try not to feel so alone
Generous, resourceful help will arrive if you’ll embrace imperfect outcomes
And so when you’re sitting there in tears, don’t feel like hope is just no use
The proof is there in that day I got two new left shoes
PROBABLY BETTER
I thought I might go out tonight
But what if someone sets off a bomb?
What if someone comes in with a gun or with a knife?
What if someone blows my head off?
I think I’ll just stay here in the comforting din
Of a world that I well know, of my predictable home
I feel so much safer when I don’t take risks
Who knows what could happen out there?
You’re dreaming of all of these magical triumphs
Don’t you know that the world is unfair?
It’s probably better if we keep to ourselves, better if we stay inside
You could gain everything or lose it all
It’s probably better to lock up and hide
I thought I might go talk to him
But what if he just laughs in my face?
I’m worried he’ll ask me what the hell was I thinking
And tell everyone how bold I was that day
I think I’ll just stay single while I can keep my pride
We have no secrets to tell when we’re alone with ourselves
I thought I might chase after my dreams
After all you can’t escape ridicule
Most of my bullies introduced themselves to me
And killers break into bedrooms too
I think I’ll venture out this time and probably be just fine
If my pride can take a hit, then maybe I’ll stumble on that perfect state of bliss
ALONE
When I hear that lover’s croon
It always cuts me so deep
As I gaze up alone at the moon
And alone, I go to sleep
Because these feelings seem to complete people’s souls
These feelings that I fear I’ll never really have
There’s this void in me where there’s a welling up in most
And when they hold each other I can’t help but feel sad
And he can’t help falling in love with you
And when I think about it, it stings
I really don’t know what I’m supposed to do
They tell me you can’t force these things
THE WRONG SIDE OF THE POND
I want to be in England, where the history’s really old
And where they’ve got a cooler record of not doing what they’re told
Their streets and parks are a better backdrop for my all-day walks
I like the spelling of the words there and I like the way they talk
I’ve never felt this way before
Who knew you could about a place?
This isn’t the place where I was born
But it’s the one that puts a smile on my face
I see beauty in its flaws, I’m restless, ready to do anything
It isn’t easy to be content when you’re on the wrong side of the pond
I’m on the wrong side of the pond
They’d move here to New Jersey in a second if they could
They say that they don’t feel at home in England like they should
They like the company of the boardwalk’s ghosts when they walk along
But don’t make the mistake of thinking this love is only for a song
I’m not saying I hate where I’m from; it has its own perks and its charms
But this is the place where I really belong
And if you won’t see the harmlessness in letting us trade homes
Then you’d better watch your borders for the day that we do it on our own
INSOMNIAC LULLABY
I just can’t seem to quiet my mind
Things that I’m fine with in the day, now the nagging dread won’t go away
How far away is death and will I ever be the best?
I’ll think I’m drifting off, then it eludes me
My eyes are open wide
And I wish you were here to sing me a lullaby
I’d trade 50 years just to sink into your arms tonight
‘Cause I can’t sleep again, so would you sing me a lullaby?
And I just can’t seem to place my head right
There’s no position I can keep that doesn’t put a limb to sleep
And every time I shift the clock seems to mock me as it ticks
I’ll think I’m drifting off, then finally
The next thing I know I’m waking up
OVERACHIEVERS
Hey kid, you play that music loud
‘Cause this is only temporary
When those losers call you teacher’s pet
I know that they don’t see the half of it
But that doesn’t matter
Hey kid, you keep up that good work
‘Cause this is only temporary
But your habits of excellence today
Will take you so far, someday you’ll see
And then their words won’t matter
‘Cause you and me, we are the overachievers
The ones who break the curve
And when they hate us, when they put us down
It’s because deep down they know what we’re worth
‘Cause overachievers, we win in the end
Hey kid, keep making those choices with care
‘Cause this is only temporary
When priorities come from someone else
Yeah, you might get the job, the car, the house
But not the things that matter
Hey kid, you go on, keep on learning
‘Cause that’ll last to the day you die
And when you’ve learned to master what you study hard
Then you can master whatever you’re working toward
And then their words won’t matter
So you keep on striving to do the impossible, to do even better than your best
Right now it seems like it’s all you have
A few years from now you’ll realize that it’s everything
‘Cause overachievers, we win in the end
I DON’T HAVE ALL DAY (I JUST HAVE ALL MY LIFE)
Sometimes I feel like time’s too slow
Why am I not at the place I want to go?
I can see my future and it seems to glow
But back in the present is thankless hard work
Will I ever make it? I can never be sure
But then I remember the fun’s in what we endure
When they say “I haven’t got all day”
As I learn and grow I’ve seen that it’s true
My true time’s all my life
Sometimes you’re just asking too soon
Baby you’re my dream
In your eyes, I see what I want to be
If we were together, it’d be perfect it would seem
But it was still too early when we met
We weren’t ready to give those things we wanted to get
But it’s not quite time to write off our romantic chances yet
I don’t have all day, I just have all my life
INSIDE MY HEAD
Inside my head is a constant party
That makes the world seem so lovely
There’s beautiful music and poetry and imagery
Of a better world
And for my own work they plant a seed
Don’t you wish that you could be inside my head?
Inside my head is an unintentional parody
Of everyone I wish I could be
From the most pretentious genius to the simplest city slicker
I guess I’m somewhere in between
Don’t you wish that you could be inside my head?
Inside my head I’m mixed up
I don’t know where this life will lead
Oh no, you don’t want to be inside my head
Inside my head, I have fun
No matter what it’s like out there
‘Cause everything is perfect and everything is beautiful as far as my eye can really see
And I know that’s not true from everywhere
And so don’t you wish that you could be inside my head?
WHAT’S WRONG?
What’s wrong with this world?
I’m so sick of hearing congratulations
For wealth and beauty and sport
When you leave the tabloid on the table
I won’t give it so much as a glance
This is our world, not yours
Your walls are artificial but your insecurity is real
Who’s who in this world?
You have it all, the power and the resources
But we’re not really wanting either
We don’t need your propaganda
To tell us that we’re in control
And that is why I feel fine
In spite of everything that you did
All your destruction and horror, well
We may have both made mistakes, but I can change
And so it is that peace still has a chance
What’s good in this world
Is just the very basics now, but that is all that we need
Some green and blue in a mass of chaos
And a feeling that’ll never be distilled into a name
And I don’t think you’ll ever feel it
And that is the most profound shame
IF I RULED THE WORLD
If I ruled the world, I’d abolish all the laws and start again
‘Cause most of them don’t make an ounce of sense
If I started with just one then it would be
Make way every day at noon for singing and dancing in the streets
If I ruled the world it would be a lot better
But I’m just your average dreamer
If I ruled the world, the only rule would really be to have respect
And if you don’t obey we’ll spare you the whip
It’s the empirical psychologists who’d decide
‘Cause they’ll have learned to turn you bad guys into the good guys
Okay, maybe I don’t really know how to rule the world
But at least I wouldn’t rule with bigotry or take all the powers for myself
IF I COULD HAVE YOU
The crush, it hit me hard
I’ll never forget that first drop in my gut
And from the moment that it started
The only thing I really wanted was your love
But it’s a driving force
I’m one step closer to greatness every day
I’m on an endlessly progressing course
On the miserable chance you’ll even look my way
If I could have you then I don’t know what I would do
‘Cause I can see it now
If you held me and swore you’d never let me go
I’d lay my other worries down
I’d say let’s stay forever and ignore the world below
And then how could I progress?
I don’t think anything could make me even care
If I thought my life was absolutely at its best
Why would I need anything beyond your loving stare?
Not getting what you want, it builds character too
You’ve bored a hole in my heart, but I know I’ll get through
DO DO DO
When I was young
I hung on your every word
But at night in my room I would do what I could
To learn to do the things that you did
I started out with these ambitions from the first time I could talk
But it took me many years to gain the faith I’d win ’em all
And I don’t think I could give up now I’ve got it in my sights
And I’m working on it every single night
‘Cause I want to be a star
I want to shine as bright as you
I used to think I’d grow out of these dreams for an easier thing to do
But as I aged, they only grew