The Regular Friday Post
Rando Lyric: Sit on the bed, look at the sky
Last week’s rando lyrics: The lyric, “I want a front row pew” is from the song "Cosmic Empire”. Written and performed by George Harrison, it was recorded in May of 1970. It was released as track 50 on the 2021 version of the album “All Things Must Pass” (50th Aniversary) [Super Deluxe], and also on the 1994 bootleg album of the recording sessions “Beware of ABKCO!”. Produced by George Harrison.
This from Wikipedia details the musicians on the track(s)*: “According to authors Chip Madinger and Mark Easter:[10] :
George Harrison – vocals, acoustic guitar (tracks 1–3, 5–9, 12–15), electric guitar (4, 10–11), dialogue
unnamed session musician – bass guitar (4)”
* Ed. I’m making the assumption both songs above are different “takes” from the same sessions, but I could be wrong about that - it’s a mystery though, since only the “Take 1” version is identified as such. When I play them pretty much together without the booth/console discussion from the ABKCO version, the “Day 2 Demo/Take 1” version sounds more “finished” to me, but that may not be the best indicator since the “Take 1” may be the same version, but with post “mastering”, where the ABKCO version likely had no post recording mixing/mastering applied. Hard to say, though I do like the booth/console discussion in the ABKCO version.
From Wikipedia: "Theologian Dale Allison describes "Cosmic Empire" as a "happy song" that "obviously expresses a religious worldview and sets forth a religious goal" although the lyrics are "cryptic".[27] Unterberger describes it as "buoyant, jaunty" and says that it demonstrates Harrison's sense of humour.[24] At the start of the performance, Harrison announces that he envisions the song "full of chorus voices".[5]
See: Wikipedia “Beware of ABKCO!” Link: "Beware Of ABKCO!"
Welcome to The Regular Friday post!
Today’s “A Song To Play” is “Cosmic Empire” - because why wouldn’t I want to feature a George Harrison song?!?!? I’m a Beatles fan and have my favorites to play from all of them, both as the Fab Four and individually. I have always had a bit of a soft spot for Mr. Harrison though - I think he was (somewhat) unfairly underrated by John and Paul, or at least overshadowed. All history now, of course. This is a cool song, and a fun, pretty painless song to play for just about any skill level. Play through a couple of times, there are a few sorta quick chord changes, but overall, it’s pretty manageable.
If you’re enjoying our content, please let your friends and musician acquaintances know about us!!! Thanks for supporting this free newsletter!
Some Stuff:
Some Links (Ed. - limited to timely links this week from Music Business Worldwide)
More AI Training On Copyrighted Material
Pushback On AI Training On Copyrighted Material
Ed. If copyrights are to have meaning the bargain has to be upheld. Copyright holders, whether the artist or a label, can’t prevent anyone from using their work, but they have an absolute right to be compensated for that use for profit.
A Song To Play:
4/4 common time, a brisk 136 beats per minute, in the Key of E Major. Fun song to play, even in common time it has a bit of a lilting feel to it. The chord changes are kinda quick at first, but when you get the rhythm and the non-diatonic Major 7 (DMaj) in a I, VII, IV, ii- chord structure with an FMaj chord sometimes and the F#m other times, it’s pure gold, fun, and rolls along brilliantly. Play it, and …
…have fun!!
Chordify Link:
Lyrics Credit: Genius Link: Cosmic Empire (Day 2 Demo/Take 1)
[Intro]
I'm waiting in the queue
To go the Cosmic Empire
I want a front row pew
Down at the Cosmic Empire
An omnipresent view
Down at the Cosmic Empire
[Verse 1]
They'll want to
Come shining clear
It feeds light there
Where one worlds
All disappear
It shines bright there
[Chorus]
Down at the Cosmic Empire
Down at the Cosmic Empire
Down at the Cosmic Empire
[Verse 2]
To where all souls are filled with joy
Can't resist there
Spirit no one can destroy
You'll find bliss there
[Chorus]
Down at thе Cosmic Empire
Down at the Cosmic Empire
Down at thе Cosmic Empire
The “ME!” Section…..
What I’m Listening2: - “Some George“ - 25 playable songs (Note - you may have to go to Ultimate Guitar or Chordify - subscriptions required, but worth it - to find chord charts for them)!
Shameless Self Promotion Section:
My song is out! Link: “>Long Road Back<”click on this link for streaming options, then scroll down for links (or just click on these links) to Amazon, Apple, Pandora, iTunes and even Spotify
If you’re enjoying our content, please let your friends and musician acquaintances know about us!!! Thanks for supporting this free newsletter!
Disclaimer Section
This Substack is free, I receive no compensation of any kind from companies or products I mention (except when you click on one of the links above for my song - then I might make 0.003 cents - yes 3/1000ths of a cent… just sayin…). Some linked or quoted material may be copyrighted by others, and I credit them. I rely on the “Fair Use” doctrine for educational purposes (Link: Fair Use). *I do not use AI for any of the text that’s found here, things I link to (such as some images) might…
-Michael Acoustic
Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support this newsletter.
Thank You To Our New Subscribers and Followers!!
This Week’s Conversation With Mika, The Cat:
It looks like she’s devouring my hand, but in reality she’s just getting a tiny bit of cream cheese from my bagel…
Me: “Tasty, eh?”
Mika: “Another morsel, please! Also, stop speaking Canadian…”
Cheers and keep playing!!
Michael Acoustic
“It’s never really final - you just run out of things you can bear to change…”
Always great to spend time with George.