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Recombobulation

by Todd Phipps

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1.
Cooped up, wiggin’ out ‘Bout to go out of my head Take care of this, get after that The things I do to make my bread The road is callin’, and I’m a-itchin’ To get right up on out of here I need to run, and have some fun I know I know which way to steer You hit the point where you think you’re just about done Nothin’ left to do but up and run I’m hittin’ the road right now Find the joy I’m lookin’ for Don’t you throw up no obstacles I’m makin’ my beeline for the door Daily grind until quittin’ time Gives a temporary reprieve Head home to clear my head But it’s not enough to fully relieve The humdrum of the day to day Makes cobwebs inside of my skull Corporate rigmarole leaves ya drained Can turn ya to a hollow hull You hit the point where you think you’re just about done Nothin’ left to do but up and run I’m hittin’ the road right now Find the joy I’m lookin’ for Don’t you throw up no obstacles I’m makin’ my beeline for the door There is but one cure for this frustration Gotta have a really long vacation! <solo> Making plans, I gotta split Freedom’s close enough to taste It’s never a mistake, to recreate Don’t let your life go to waste Late night, it’s alright I think I’ll have a glass of wine Before I fill out those online forms I hope the boss OK’s my vacation time You hit the point where you think you’re just about done Nothin’ left to do but up and run I’m hittin’ the road right now Find the joy I’m lookin’ for Don’t you throw up no obstacles I’m makin’ my beeline for the door
2.
Shot down - Knocked off balance Something came from behind and kicked ya Spun around then you hit the floor Beat down - can’t catch a break You’re feelin’ someone’s out to trip you up The stress is reaching down right to the core Oh yeah - fresh wounds Old scabs it makes no difference The pain is often difficult to bear You bleed - inside Though the people around don’t see it Every waking moment you know it’s there But there’s a light that shines within you Nothing and nobody can put out Look inside and tap it The inexhaustible One will fill your tank so you can Be all about that life Get in the groove hoppin’ on the good foot like JB told ya Nobody else but you gotta make your way you got to be All about that life Keep pushin’ on, a brighter day is comin’ for ya Life and love and groove is here to stay Get up - on your feet Ignorance and hate won’t win the day You’ve got something greater deep inside Get down - get on the one The funk and soul can motivate ya Life force music powerin’ up this ride Reach out - extend a hand To your brothers and your sisters You know it’s gonna come right back to you Lift up - everyone Love and light will make a difference Shine just like a beacon of the truth Cos’ there’s a light that shines within you Nothing and nobody can put out Look inside and tap it The inexhaustible One will fill your tank so you can Be all about that life Get in the groove hoppin’ on the good foot like JB told ya Nobody else but you gotta make your way you got to be All about that life Keep pushin’ on, a brighter day is comin’ for ya Life and love and groove is here to stay Rays of a new sunrise See things with renewed eyes Clouds parting, day is breaking You’re free to grab that prize <solo> Shot down - but you get up Turn around and face the music Nothing gonna keep you down too long Beat down - it’s never enough For some of those who cannot see your path They’ll never understand your song Oh yeah - the path is clear All you got to do is walk it Love and light will always see you through Stand tall - Towering high Never let the bastards get you down You know deep down just what to do Cos’ there’s a light that shines within you Nothing and nobody can put out Look inside and tap it The inexhaustible One will fill your tank so you can Be all about that life Get in the groove hoppin’ on the good foot like JB told ya Nobody else but you gotta make your way you got to be All about that life Keep pushin’ on, a brighter day is comin’ for ya Life and love and groove is here to stay
3.
Ensnared 04:32
There goes The clock Again It won’t let Me catch My breath Weekend over Week begins Its passage Forces my Steps Relentless Deathless Pace It rules My waking Hours Caught in Its web It never Rests It’s here It’s now Can’t run Can’t hide Can’t get Away Not enough Hours in a day I can’t break free Out of my mind Ensnared in the Tentacles of time Hours turn To minutes And yet The minutes Feel like Days Days are A blur I plod on Through the Work day haze Tempus won’t Stop fugiting Except when I’m on The clock The hands Keep chasing Me back Into the Temporal stocks Can’t run Can’t hide Can’t get away Not enough Hours in a day I can’t break free Out of my mind Ensnared in the Tentacles of time
4.
I’m discombobulated It’s grounds to be frustrated I could be so elated But I’m feeling really negated Security xray scatter Won’t tell you what’s the matter I’m flippin’ like a hatter Queues are bad for the bladder I need you (to recombobulate me) I want you (to recombobulate me) I need you (to recombobulate me) Won’t somebody recombobulate me I needed a vacation From my current situation But first must make oblation To electromagnetic sensation I need you (to recombobulate me) I want you (to recombobulate me) I need you (to recombobulate me) Won’t somebody recombobulate me How can I be leaving Milwaukee Saw a sign said welcome to Cleveland Hoping for a relaxing weekend Once I get strapped in the tube tin Wheels up and we’ll be rockin’ Getting out of frozen Wisconsin I need you (to recombobulate me) I want you (to recombobulate me) I need you (to recombobulate me) Won’t somebody recombobulate me
5.
In the darkness of my living room Sounds and images Bearing passing resemblance to what used to be Reality Under the surface disquiet You try to appease my unease Just relax you tell me, it doesn’t mean Anything Art becomes an instrument of control Art becomes an instrument of control Memorex dreams suffuse my waking thoughts Don’t even try to resist, it’s all for naught Music becomes a utility Who cares if it comes from machines Siren songs to fuel the desired Apathy It’s what they need Art becomes an instrument of control Art becomes an instrument of control Slowly resisting fitting into the mold Last stand of an independent soul <solo> Art becomes an instrument of control Art becomes an instrument of control Art becomes an instrument of control Art becomes an instrument of control
6.
Let's Go! 03:07
Alarm clock tossed me out of bed Shake the cobwebs from my head Damn I gotta get some caffeine Almost fell going down the stairs Felt like I was trampled by a herd of bears Just the usual routine Got dressed shoes on my feet Fixed myself up something to eat Energy finally starting to build Got another song to write Shit keepin’ me up at night Sometimes I just feel like grist for the mill Sometimes you got to push Yourself through all the BS But it’s worth it in the end, lift your voice and scream… Let’s Go! Seize the day, carpe diem you know the way This life ain’t gonna live itself Let’s Go! Chase your dreams, blaze that trail reach for the brass ring Draw that water from that well… Out the door and hit the road Sunrise has a happy glow Gonna see what lies in store Got a fire down in my gut Though I still feel like I’m in a rut I know there’s gotta be something more They say you can’t actually be what you really are But I’m gonna try anyway…gleich geht’s los! Let’s Go! Seize the day, carpe diem it’s the only way This life ain’t gonna live itself Let’s Go! Chase your dreams, forge your path, reach for the brass ring Draw that water from that well… (B-3 solo over verse) You might say I’ve flipped my wig But I’ve just booked another gig Sometimes this life actually doesn’t suck Tryin’ to be a responsible adult With my soul in a catapult Sometimes wants to hurl me into the muck Sometimes life’s a pain in the ass But I really can’t complain At least I’m still here…let’s grab a beer! Let’s Go! Seize the day, carpe diem you know the way This life ain’t gonna live itself Let’s Go! Chase your dreams, blaze your trail, reach for the brass ring Draw that water from that well… Let’s Go! Seize the day, carpe diem it’s the only way This life ain’t gonna live itself Let’s Go! Chase your dreams, forge your path, reach for the brass ring Draw that water from that well… Let’s Go!
7.
Jenny works a bar in her one horse town Tryin’ to get by on the wage she knocks down For a while she was doing alright But it all went south the other night Boss started moving in The tension chilled her skin He ignored her rebuff She’s finally had enough And now it’s time to take her chances To free herself from his advances Even though you feel you might be jumping the gun Sometimes it’s best to cut your losses and run And may the glow from the bridges you burn Light your way Let it light your way Robbie’s at the gas station just down the street He’s workin’ the pumps despite the withering heat Not many full service joints like this anymore But he’s not real certain just what he stays here for He’s in love with Jenny and he’d love to get out of this place Afraid to make a change, to take a leap of faith Don’t wanna be stuck here forever He finally says it’s now or never Even though you feel you might be jumping the gun Sometimes it’s best to cut your losses and run And may the glow from the bridges you burn Light your way Let it light your way For Jenny and Robbie there was no other choice They had to make their own way, find their own voice They had to cut those ties, to really feel alive Before despair became their eternal anthem B-3 solo Even though you feel you might be jumping the gun Sometimes it’s best to cut your losses and run And may the glow from the bridges you burn Light your way Let it light your way
8.
Firepit 02:43
Weekend’s finally here Time to let loose some cheer Come everybody gather round Wisconsin winter cold It’s gettin’ kind of old But the antidote’s right here on the ground The firepit’s roaring and the moon is bright Go and round up some more wood I’ll bring the whiskey, you bring the beer And let’s raise a glass to our good ol’ neighborhood <solo> Good neighbors all around Stereo playin’ that happy sound Crisp snow crunchin’ under our feet Toss on another log Cue up another song Finally some respite from the week The firepit’s roaring and the moon is bright Go and round up some more wood I’ll bring the whiskey, you bring the beer And let’s raise a glass to our good ol’ neighborhood The firepit’s roaring and the moon is bright Go and round up some more wood I’ll bring the whiskey, you bring the beer And let’s raise a glass to our good ol’ neighborhood Let’s raise a glass to our good ol’ neighborhood
9.
Shortwave 04:48
Lying in my bed at night The dial lights up my room My thoughts and dreams are gettin’ carried away On the waves of the smell of warm glowing tubes Voices and music coming from afar Paint a vision of far off lands Surf the waves of magnetic destinations With the tuning knob in my hand Shortwave A window to the world had opened Shortwave Turned on my grandpa’s radio and listened To distant worlds and wondrous places Happy songs from smiling faces Shortwave carry me away I heard pontiffs and teachers Dispatches from the globe A plethora of tongues and accents and secret code modulations From places I could never go Signals skippin’ ‘cross the ionosphere Long wire aerial buzzin’ with the waves The beautiful and the strange, and the sometimes amusing And random hawkers of someone’s wacky craze Shortwave I heard the lightning crackle before the thunder Shortwave A window to a world of wonder And tinfoil hats and snake oil sellers Exotic music and crazy preachers Shortwave carry me away <Bridge/solo> Shortwave A portal to a world of magic Shortwave Received the glorious mundane and tragic Well I was never gonna rattle the rafters With the 4” speaker in my Hallicrafters but Shortwave carried me away….
10.
You’re on every TV Adorn every screen From barbershop walls To army canteens It’s hard to escape your paternalistic gaze Your followers - just like moths to the flame We know that you’re lying Day after day You know it too, yet You keep doin’ it anyway The ratings are too good, the cash keeps flowing like The deathless procession Of grifters on parade Grifters on parade Breathtaking hubris Endless stream of lies Behind a “respectable” facade Of suits and bowties You’re “just asking questions” Ya look puzzled like a dog But all you’re generating is obfuscatory fog Fear of the other Fear of ourselves It’s all part and parcel of The bullshit you sell You demonize anyone who isn’t like you And your deathless procession Of grifters on parade Grifters on parade
11.
From a fetid foreboding place Dark waves of mystery - erasing history Don’t want the truth to ever see the light of day “Ignorance is strength - We’ll go to any length You will only learn the things that we allow You must fulfill your role - for our nation’s soul Don’t question what we do, never ask why or how We’re never letting go - we are in control” Dark forces rule this world But we must resist - for this earth where we dwell Push all malevolence Back to the parapets To the parapets of Hell Deluded man with power His soldiers in the mud - spilling innocent blood Sends waves of orcs to die For his avarice - it’s a dementor’s kiss He can not gain an inch An errand of fools - destroying all his tools And yet he does not flinch He’ll take this to his grave - he’s too far gone to save Dark forces rule this world But we must resist - for this earth where we dwell Push all malevolence Back to the parapets To the parapets of Hell Cling to the faith that there’s still good In this world of sadness Unite as one, stand for what’s right Negate the madness Dark forces rule this world But we must resist - for this earth where we dwell Push all malevolence Back to the parapets To the parapets of Hell
12.
Wandering the streets at night And through tunnels underground Across wide open fields Guided by a friendly light Searching for new sounds My heart is light with cheer Will I ever pass this way again? Will I ever pass this way again? Stillness of a quiet lake Majestic rocks on the hill Autumn’s savor in the air Find a different path to take Wind through the trees brings a chill Earth’s beauty is everywhere Will I ever pass this way again? Will I ever pass this way again? <synth solo> Will I ever pass this way again? Will I ever pass this way again?

about

I've been wanting to put out an album of songs I've been writing over the past 3 years, so I finally did it. Genre-wise I bounce around in a few directions, enjoying the process of creating music. I often don't have a specific genre in mind when I start writing a song...I let it go where the muse leads. These mostly spring from my February Album Writing Month participation. Ensnared was from 2021. Let's Go, Firepit, and Shortwave were from 2022. The remaining tracks are from 2023.

A theme that kinda pops up here periodically is going on vacation, getting away from the grind, getting....recombobulated! :D

I hope you enjoy listening...and there will be more to come down the road! Thank you for checking this out!

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released March 12, 2023

Todd Phipps: Rhythm programming, bass, acoustic and electric guitars, Hammond B-3 and M-102 organs, Rhodes Stage 73, Wurlitzer 200, piano, synthesizers, vocals.

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Todd Phipps Mount Horeb, Wisconsin

I'm a Hammond organ player and multi-instrumentalist from Mount Horeb, Wisconsin. I play in multiple rock, blues, and funk projects in the Madison WI area and occasionally produce some of my own music, which you will find here. Enjoy and thank you for listening! ... more

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