Did I have to google what compunction means? Yes. Am I ashamed? Possibly. Will it stop me from doing it again? Probably not. Am I sloppily eluding to the definition of the word by creating this hypothetical internal struggle? Mind your business.
For new readers: Every other week I put a song up on my website and share the bones that the tune is built upon. (Notebook pages, voice memos, lyrics, chords, etc.) The project is one to archive and be a tool to other budding songwriters. It’s my favorite project that I do and I do it all with the hopes that 100 year old Ben will be able to look back at all the things I made, and regardless of where they took him, smile and nod.
The full musing is at https://www.bengagemusic.com/musings/done-it-again but I want to share a bit of it on Substack as well. These will come out every other week and as a separate newsletter, so you can manage how much you’d like to see. I’ll just include the video, chords, and lyrics here. Feel free to rip it to shreds! I want to get better always, and *feedback is important.
*Feedback has turned into this moment where we are given praise or a pat on the back. I want feedback to be an honest evaluation of what’s happening, good or bad. And then the bad can be fixed/tweaked when the feedback brings to light a shortcoming. Art is subjective up to a point, beyond that it’s a conversation worth having.
Live Video
Song Structure
Capo 1
Intro: E / A
Verse: E / E7 / A / E / B7 / A / E
Chorus: A / E / B7 / A / A / E
Lyrics
I’ve done it again, a heart broke in two
It seems that it’s all that I know how to do
Could’ve kept walking, stayed out of her light
Left her to find someone better that night
If I had a wish, I’d go back to when
Before I’d done it again
I’ve done it again, stayed when I should
Have packed up my things, and gone while I could
But comforts a cage, hard to break free
So I sit and I welcome in more misery
Lord if I could, I’d go back to when
Before I’d done it again
From my head to my toes
I’m a mess all way round
You’ll find more mistakes
As you're traveling down
To the core of my being, you wont like what you're seeing
I’m a villain, a monster, a broken amen
I’m a fool who’s done it again
I’ve done it again, drunk what I swore
I’d leave on the shelf and not touch anymore
But the burn in my chest was the least of the pain
When I dialed your number and cried out your name
If I had the nerve, I’d go back to when
Before I’d done it again
I’ve done it again, opened my mouth
Took what I was thinking and let it all out
Watching it go, fly through the air
To ruin the day of the one standing there
If I could unsay, I’d go back to when
Before I’d done it again
From my head to my toes
I’m a mess all way round
You’ll find more mistakes
As you're traveling down
To the core of my being, you wont like what you're seeing
I’m a villain, a monster, a broken amen
I’m a fool who’s done it again
I’ve done it again, unlatched my case
Put down in verse all the things that I hate
How all I did, and how all I do
Turns into a way that I’m hurting you
If words would allow, I’d go back to when
Before I’d done it again
If the past had a door, I’d go back to before
Before I’d done it again
As a guy learning to play/exploring guitar playing, I am intrigued by the bass notes and your rhythm. I find myself in the same song/rhythm structure. Thanks for showing something different.