OPINIONS PLEASE!!

[matthoggard]

This is lyrics only right now, I wouldve posted them in the lyric lovers but hardly anyone gives critiques there.This is the first draft of the lyrics. I have the basic chord progressions mapped out and am working out a melody. Im letting my co-writer run with it for awhile.Im thinking of those country listings that call for small town and family values.Another day in the life of a country man© 2008 Matt Hoggard, Mark CalhounTempo: upbeat, 120-130bpm.Every day in some small townThere's a little cafe they gather aroundRight on the corner of main street USAThey talk about the drought and the heatWhos bailin hay, whos cuttin wheat.only God knows if they'll ever get some rain.Chorus:They help each other when they can.Always there to lend a handIts another day in the life of a country man.If your building fence im not for hireYoull get me for free and Ill bring the wire.Another day in the life of a country manTheir pickup trucks are the tools of the tradeYes by God theyre American madeThey built this town with their own two handsThey drive Chevy's and Ford's and yes even DodgeThey're livin by the grace of Godonly God knows how much they love this landChorus:They help each other when they canAlways there with a helping handIts another day in the life of a country man.If your building fence Im not for hireYoull get me for free and brother Ill bring the wireAnother day in the life of a country man.Most make their livin right off the landSome spend their days as an oil rig handThere aint no nine to five'rs out thereThey dont quit till the job is doneThey work dawn to dusk it aint much funBut for each other there's always time to spare.Bridge: (pending)Chorus:Thanks,M~

[flood]

Matt,I hear a beer commercial in this. A very good one. I love the scenes you build, and you capture them very well.I would consider making an alternate version of this and sending it to the ad agency that handles Coors (not sure, but for some reason I think it is McCann Erickson), possibly with a title like "Coors Country" or something similarly patriotic.Probably would have to lose the mention of brand name autos for such a project, but companies are increasingly teaming up and paying for placement in one another's ads.Just my take, and I doubt you had an advertising market in mind, but that's what first occurred to me.I grew up in a small Nebraska town driven by farming and hard labor. You capture the vibe very nicely. If you are looking for a possible change in verses now or in the future, you could touch on the mania that surrounds the Friday night high school football games, the buses and car caravaans that travel the open roads during autumn, headed from game to game. That may open a new dimension in terms of marketablility as well, covering the movies like Friday Night Lights and so on.I like it very much, indeed.

[flood]

One other thought. This is EPIC. In the way I see things anyway.I recall being a child and an old farmer got sick where I grew up. He was a one-man operation, his son had been killed in a terrible farm accident the prior winter. Now he was hospitalized, himself.He needed to get his crops in and had about a 2 week time period to do so. His neighbors, all farmers, were also bringing their crops in.But, at night, after they had worked a 14 hour day, maybe more, they would mount big spotlights on their grain trucks to light the fields of the sick farmer. They worked an extra 5-6 hours every night until they had brought in their own crops AND the crops of the hospitalized neighbor.THAT is good neighbors. And it is a memory I hadn't thought of for years till I read your lyric. I hope you will share the finished version with us. It has the potential to be very powerful.

[cameron]

Matt,This is a very good concept and well done. I see where a few tweaks could be made, such as removing the "yes" from "they drive Chevy's and Ford's and yes even Dodge" but mostly it's all minor stuff, and once it's put to music this could change anyway. Nice job!Cameron

[matthoggard]

Flood, your story of the sick farmer is a large part of the idea of this song. While I grew up in Oklahoma City, Most of my fmaily is from small Agricultural communities around the state.I often hear stories of this same type. Neighbors coming to the rescue in times of need. I was also thinking of the "Friday night lights" thing. Football is also very rampant around here. Cam, your right on with the "yes" things. Its just one of those words that comes out when jotting down ideas. Good call!This was the first real draft. Once melodies and chords are put together it will change some. I appreciate the ideas guys Cam I like your lyrics alot and have respect for your opinion. Flood even though your a "Husker" and Im a "Sooner", Ill take your ideas to note. No matter where we are from, I think values and life are very similar.M~

[damagebyfriction]

Oh Yeah I can picture myself right there in the scene, well told. Nice desciptive song. I am from a small town and can feel the warmth for sure. Not sure if Dodge would be a fan but hay thats alright.Thanks for sharing. Sandi

[billg]

Hey Matt, I would drop the brand name trucks only because it seems redundant to me to return to that theme after the great line "Their pickup trucks are the tools of the tradeYes by God theyre American made" . . . it would be okay if the brand names trucks followed that line but you interrupted the thought with the "built . . . own two hands" line. Good lyrics though, I think it perfectly paints the picture you were going for.

[zoom]

Hey Matt!I think you have a really good story going! Great descriptions here. I'd just watch some of the redundancies you have in some of your lines. (2nd verse "...God, only God..." and 2nd chorus of help/helping. Also, on the third verse it might be nice to return to the "Only God knows..." phrase if you find one -- though that would really depend on how it's phrased with the music, but could be a nice anchor for the verse/prechorus.I really like the building fence lines in the chorus, and if you wanted I'm sure you could substitute other acts of kindness here too for the following choruses. Not sure what jobs to put here though, just a thought on how you might be able to expand it a bit if you wanted.These are all little things though, as the lyrics stand pretty well on their own. Nice work!

[flood]

Matt,I spent a bit of time thinking about this lyric today, believe it or not. In spite of my busy day, this kept returning to me, and I kept mulling it over. Perhaps OVERthinking, but there ya go.Probably because you and I came from the same place, roughly speaking. (Go HUSKERS! Come on, you can give us one can;t you? It has been almost a decade since we saw greatness!).Anyway, that second verse rings a little hollow, with all those mentions of God. No doubt, God is a driving force-perhaps THE driving force-in that neck of the woods. But in my experience it is something that is assumed, not necessarily hammered home three times in one verse.Perhaps you can change one of the God usages to the pronoun to blunt the hammer a bit:They're livin by the grace of Godonly HE knows how much they love this landThere is a potential "sexism" angle there I suppose, but I would imagine most of the core audience for this song wouldn't mind it as much as some other audiences. Right or wrong, it is a pronoun they are accustomed to, in many cases.Just a thought. As religious as the farmers and cowboys and their mates were while I was there, none of em wore it quite so bluntly on their sleeves.Still, after a lot of thought on this, I love it even more.Can't wait to hear the final version.

[matthoggard]

Yeah, you guys are right on. Zoom mentioned it also.I agree with cutting out the redundancies. You make a great point flood. While God is definately the backbone of most small town lives they dont spend all their time preaching it.Yall have given me some good thoughts to run with here. My co-writer is a great melody guy so Im waiting to hear what he develops for a melody.I really appreciate all of your time to look at this thing.M~