I’m back with another cover, this time an acoustic rendition of “You Were Good” from the Damage record.

Listen to the bands original recording here:

Now, take a listen to mine:

I’m a big fan of the original record, I really like the overall vibe of it, but I often find myself thinking that it would’ve been nicer to hear it even more stripped down, production wise.

I like the whole vintage-old-radio feel of it and the bridge/solo part is epic, great tones that really lend themself to the song, especially after those droning notes that sort of just sit in the background and kick off the song, but again, I wish we could’ve heard a more natural vocal line at bare minimum here.

So that’s the route I decided to go with mine. After humming over whether I should try a more upbeat full-band recording, I envisioned it instead being performed by a duo acoustically, with a lead guitarist and no backing vocals.

Jim’s vocal sounds great in this track but given the nature of the lyrics I also opted to be a bit more emotive with the lines. I start out with a quiet, breathy vocal, gaining a bit more courage and frustration in the second verse (presumably thinking about my cheating ex(s), and by the end I again fall into a bit more of a breathy-vocal, feeling rejected and almost having difficult finishing it as the lead guitar makes its exit.

When I tracked this I knew I could’ve performed the rhythm and lead a lot tighter but, again, given the general mood and feeling I wanted to showcase here, it seemed more fitting to have it a little looser, almost sloppy.

Now that you know why I recorded it this way, let’s dive into those lyrics:

This first verse is a great way to stab yourself in the heart within the first 30 seconds of the track and it hits me about that way every time.

I’ve talked about the feelings these types of songs bring out in me and the way I look at it through my own life and experience and that first verse is one I hold with me most days as I think about what it means to have a committed partner to navigate your own world with.

It really is one of those things that you don’t quite know what you’re looking for until you know what you’re looking for, and sometimes you only figure that out when something you never expected or never wanted to happen… happens.

This chorus speaks a lot to the way I tend to view other people and the things I’m told by them. I almost always ere on the side of people being truthful, almost to a fault, and this has led to some at bare minimum disappointing outcomes.

But I have to imagine that defaulting to this way of thinking is better than the alternative, constantly doubting and being skeptical of what is said or done, even if it tends to result in me feeling foolish or “had” a lot of the time.

I have to imagine this scenario is based in truth even if this particular experience wasn’t the principal songwriters because I think many of us have seen or experiences a similar situation.

At least, I can say I have.

Again because I ere on the side of generally people are or will be honest, because at their core most people want to be and just may struggle with coming to there own terms, eventually it becomes apparent if they’re hiding something from you. Or, eventually there is enough evidence to give you just even skepticism to bury your initial perception of them and trust that gut intuition we all have.

I can’t say with absolute certainty that any of my own partners have every cheated on me, but I can say they’ve cast enough doubt at times that it wouldn’t in any way surprise me.

And that’s sad but baby, here we are.

It can be hard to let go of your idyllic scenarios or desire of those you love and it might never be something that goes away. Some people just have something that you see in them that is too difficult to both place and shake away no matter how much at times you might want to forget it all and let it all wash away.

While it’s important not to get lost in those utopian fantasies, I think it’s equally as healthy to dive into them and channel them into something creative. Obviously there’s something there that internally your mind and heart are drawn to and I find it best not to neglect that – it’s the best way to protect your heart.

A Little More

I had half a mind to change the arrangement of this song quite a bit if I’d gone ahead with a full-band cover, which, I very well still may (and will), where I want to reduce the amount of choruses and focus more on the verses. I think it’ll be cool. I was having trouble determining where to take the drums for it so I scrapped that idea early and I’m just going to let it permeate in the back of my mind for a while until I’m ready to come back to it.