"Mama Ain't Talkin'" (Eric Paslay/Ben Cooper)

Here's a song I wrote with the extremely talented Eric Paslay (he's singing).

 

MAMA AIN’T TALKIN’                                                                               9-28-10

(COOPER/PASLAY)

MOON THROUGH THE TREES, QUIET AS A MOUSE

TWO WILD DREAMERS RUNNING SOUTH

CAREFUL AS CAN BE NOT TO LEAVE A TRACE

BACK ROAD NOBODY SEES THE GET AWAY

DON’T YOU KNOW OIL AND WATER DON’T MIX

THE BOY’S AS TOUGH AS NAILS BUT NOT HER DADDY’S PICK

HE SAID, NO YOU WON’T, SHE SAID YES, I WILL

SHE JUST FLEW THE COUP IN A COUPE DEVILLE

DADDY’S GONNA TURN THIS LITTLE TOWN UPSIDE DOWN

EVERY INCH AND MILE UNTIL HIS DAUGHTER’S FOUND

HE’S ASKING EVERYBODY, NOBODY HEARD A SOUND

SOMEBODY KNOWS THE TRUTH BUT MAMA AIN’T TALKIN’

FROWN ON HIS FACE, BADGE IN HIS HAND

GLEAM IN HIS EYE ‘CAUSE HE THINKS HE’S THE MAN

TELLS HIS WIFE WHAT TO DO, TELLS HIS DAUGHTER WHAT TO BE

THEY’RE FINALLY MAKING A STAND AND HE CAN’T EVEN SEE

OH, MAMA WAKES UP EVERY MORNING

WITH A BIG SMILE ON HER FACE

SHE KNOWS HER DAUGHTER’S HAPPY

JUST NINETY-TWO MILES AWAY

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Writing Tools - Diamond on the 1

I talked a couple months ago about the recording process and how studio musicians have a way of notating chord and melody changes using the Nashville Number System. I’ve always been fascinated by how quickly they are able to learn and make changes to one song after another in a three-hour session. 

The system has somewhat been passed down from player to player over the years, leaving few textbook explanations outside the studio. To learn the language, you’d most likely have to get to know one of these professionals—until now.

My friend and fellow songwriter Jonathan Riggs has just made it much easier to communicate with session players during the recording process. In his new booklet, Diamond on the 1, Riggs gives a simple yet thorough overview of the Nashville Number System. As a professional, I’ve found my copy to be very helpful, even in the writing process. This is a booklet worth keeping in your gig bag.

A “diamond on the one” would mean that you play a chord on the first beat of the measure, for the entirety of the measure. The intro to The Beatles’ “A Hard Day’s Night” would be a diamond on the one (even though the song’s first measure begins with a strange number of beats). There’s plenty more to explain, but I’ll leave that to Riggs and his booklet.

Keep writing (and learning),

Ben

PS - Here is an example from my most recent session: