Paint My Day
I wrote “Paint My Day” during the WTO protests in Seattle in November of 1999. I attended the protests with Heidi Love It may have been our romantic plateau. Nothing says I love you like getting tear gassed together while opposing the corporate takeover of the planet.
When I was a young actor my acting coach W. Morgan Sheppard assigned us Shakespearean sonnets. I fell in love with mine, the one that begins “The sin of self love possesses all my eye”. This sonnet ends with the line “Painting my age with beauty of thy days”.
The Brian Wilson referred to in the song is the one from The Beach Boys but it’s also supposed to remind us of Brian Wilson the peace activist who lost his legs in a protest against shipping arms to El Salvador in 1987 when a train he and other activists were blocking didn’t stop.
It is a blessing to be able to walk in the rain, to protest with people you love, and to cherish the memory of such impassioned times.
Lyrics
Paint My Day
I
can’t seem
to get
enough
of this crummy
weather
and
whether or not
you’re comin’ I’m takin’
a walk
in the rain
Well,
you can say that
I’m extreme but
it’s my wet and
wakin’ dream
and you can…
Paint my day in
shades of gray
You can rain on my parade
But I can see you need your ultraviolets
and I guess if
I tried real hard I could feel your pain
Oh yeah
Well
You can move back to
California
if you need the sun
but you can…
Paint my day
in shades of gray
You can rain on my parade
in shades of
gray
And…
I appreciate the sun for
it’s effect on everyone
but me…
On everyone but me
Brian Wilson’s
hiding in the bathroom
while all of his
well-tanned brothers just
surf their lives away
Oh no
Well
You can move back to
California
if you need the sun
but you can…
Paint my day in
shades of gray
You can rain on my parade in shades of
Rain on my parade in shades of
Rain on my parade
in shades of gray
And…
Fa-la-la
Everyone
Fa-la-la-la
loves the sun
Fa-la-la-la
Everyone but me
Credits
Written by Andras Jones
Andras Jones – Vocal & Acoustic Guitar
Ford Pier – Bass Guitar, French Horn
Veda Hille – Organ
Peggy Lee – Cello
Barry Mirochnik – Drums
Arranged by Ford Pier
Recorded by Marc L’esperance
Mixed by Sheldon Gomberg
Production assistance by Marshall Thompson
Purchase
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