Write You a Letter Tomorrow
Background: Every once in a while, I’ll get on some internal tangent about songs. Normally, these are things regular people would be able to pick out, like, say songs with colors in the title (see my Color Me Impressed blog entry, also named after a Replacements lyric), but other times, it takes a form like this one: What are some songs that are about letters people write? We could’ve gone an easy route and stuck to relationship songs like “Boots of Spanish Leather” or “The Letter,” but then I thought it would be a fun twist to talk about songs where the narrator is asking another person or a concept personified, for something.
Note: The name of this blog has two cool Memphis connections. It’s the opening line to The Replacements’ “Can’t Hardly Wait”, which was recorded in Ardent Studios, and the line “Write you a letter tomorrow” is a reference to “The Letter”, with lead vocals by Memphis’ own Alex Chilton, who Paul Westerberg idolized.
“Dear Abby” by John Prine
Lyrically: Although the advice column “Dear Abby” was successful enough to be nationally syndicated, there’s something very midwestern about the whole thing (and it started off in Chicago). Of course people would write in asking for marriage advice, advice on parenting, and all kinds of things. But, as only John Prine could, he decided to write a letter to Abby in song form, which ended up sounding more like something from a Dr. Seuss book than something that needed professional attention. And that’s exactly the charm of it. He starts off by saying “My feet are too long, my hair’s falling out and my rights are all wrong.” He then signs the letter “Bewildered”. The chorus sees Abby getting back to him saying, “Bewildered, Bewildered, you have no complaint, you is what you is and you ain’t what you ain’t. So listen up, Buster, and listen good. Stop wishin’ for bad luck and knockin’ on wood.” To add to the humor of it all, he signs each letter a different way each time. The first time it’s Bewildered, the second time, it’s Unhappy, and finally, Just Married. But even though his pseudonym changes, her advice is the same each time.
Melodically: The song was recorded in the key of Bb major, but was played with a capo on the 4th fret and the verses and chorus use the same chords: G, C, G, G, and D throughout the whole song which is a I, IV, I, V progression. The only instrument in the song is an acoustic guitar. Fun fact about this tune and its parent album: This song was recorded live at State University of New York, which is a terrific choice, because it’s based around punchlines, so it’s great to have people reacting to it in real time. It therefore has a similar vibe to “Flushed From the Bathroom of Your Heart” by Johnny Cash, recorded live at Folsom Prison. It’s impossible to know who came up with this great idea, but the record was produced by Arif Mardin, who was absolutely on fire in the early 70s with his production (having recorded Eric Clapton and the Bee Gees around this time as well).
Structurally: The song uses all verses, of which there are three. I’ve mentioned this before, but you always want to save your best point for last. In this case, everything for the narrator is a crisis, so by the time he gets to the big thing (getting his girlfriend pregnant, so they have to get married), it’s humorous to us as the listeners that he would’ve freaked out about the other stuff, but it’s impossible for him to keep it in perspective. So in an example song, we see it as sequenced from smallest deal to biggest deal, but the narrator sees it as all one big deal, like the Boy Who Cried Wolf. It’s just terrific.
You can listen to “Dear Abby” below.
It’s also worth noting that Dear Abby was so popular that it moved Ann Landers’ advice column from the Chicago Tribune to another local paper. When reached for comment, this is what the Tribune had to say about it.
2. “Dear Landlord” by Bob Dylan
Lyrically: “Dear Landlord” is a Dylan song from the excellent John Wesley Harding, and although it’s after his break from the folkies, it’s somewhat of a protest song, albeit a different type of protest song.
In this one, the narrator is going after one specific person, that being his landlord, and in doing that, addressing an overall unjust system. He begs the landlord in the first verse to not “Put a price on (his) soul” promising that as soon as he can, he’ll give the landlord all he can to make things right. There’s an especially cool line in the second verse where he says to the landlord, “I know you’ve suffered much, but in that you’re not unique.’ I’ve listened to enough Dylan to know when he’s being sarcastic, and it doesn’t sound all that sarcastic, but there is some thought that the song may be directed at Albert Grossman, who was Dylan’s landlord and manager at the time. Dylan would later discover that Grossman was taking 50% of Dylan’s income, and it would take him about 20 years to fully recover. On an album about outlaws, this behavior (and Dylan standing up for himself while still recognizing the hold this landlord had over him) fits oddly perfectly with that theme. The idea, of course, is fighting against “The Man” and using a landlord as a visual for someone who has unearned power over their tenants, or in a larger sense, the lion on top of the hill, who’s looking down on its constituents, the latter of whom are powerless to do anything about it. Interestingly, it was his first piano-based blues song since “Ballad of a Thin Man” and goes after the same type of person: Someone who thrives off of kicking down the little guy.
Melodically/Structurally: The song features piano, bass, and drums. There are three verses, and each one uses C, E7, Am, Am/G, followed by F, Em, Dm, F, and F7. With the song written in C major, this is a I, III, vi, IV, iii, ii, IV pattern. This is followed by Bb, C, Dm, C, Gm/Bb, F/A, Gm, Dm, F, and G, which is a VIIb, I, ii, I, v, IV, v, ii, IV, V pattern. Like many of the songs that we’ve looked at, you will notice that each section of chords we broke down ends on either the IV or V, creating tension and uncertainty for both people involved. We never know how the landlord responds, and this is important. In “Boots of Spanish Leather,” it’s a conversation between two people, a back and forth, until eventually, one person stops responding. In this one, it’s all the narrator and we never actually hear from the landlord. So ending on those chords of tension and uneasiness is a terrific choice.
You can listen to “Dear Landlord” below.
3. “Dear Mr. Fantasy” by Traffic
Lyrically: I really need to get in the habit of writing these blogs immediately after I come up with the idea, because “Dear Mr. Fantasy” was actually the genesis of the whole letter writing format (although this is Traffic, not Genesis). In this particular song, the narrator’s plea isn’t necessarily for advice, but it’s for a song, because he and everyone around him are in a bad mood. After imploring Mr. Fantasy to “Play us a tune,” he elaborates, saying, “Play guitar, sing a song, make it snappy.” Interestingly, the other lyrical part to this song says that the title guy might be sad himself, but he’s always been a respite for the narrator and his people. It’s lyrically a very simple plea but a very powerful song.
Melodically: The song uses A, Asus4, and G, followed by D, and A, which is a I, VIIb, IV, I pattern, since the song is written in A major. I couldn’t tell you exactly what it is that makes this song work, in terms of chord progression matching the lyrics, but even though the narrator in the song never actually gets a response from Mr. Fantasy, something just sounds right when it ends on the I chord.
Instrumentally, the song uses guitar, bass, mellotron, sitar, tambura, Hammond organ, drums, and other percussion (including maracas played by Jimmy Miller, who was also heavily involved with the Rolling Stones).
You can listen to “Dear Mr. Fantasy” below.
4. “Dear Agony” by Breaking Benjamin
Lyrically: I always like to have my last song in any given blog take the concept to a new place. “Dear Agony” accomplishes this goal in two ways. Most obviously is the fact that this is addressed to a thing, not a person. But it’s also not apparent that it’s a “Letter” or addressed to anyone other than the listeners until the chorus kicks in.
When I was writing my blog about seasonal depression, I came across a song by Bright Eyes that was a little too dark for the blog, even given the topic. This particular song, though the narrator is feeling overwhelmed with life and wants a way out, his address to the agony he’s facing constantly says “I’m going to fight you until you’re gone” (or to quote Yo La Tengo’s debut album, “I’m not afraid of you and I’ll beat your ass.” Mainly, though we can see the narrator throughout the whole song just confused and asking agony why it won’t leave him alone.
It’s always really cool when my students are fans of bands like The Smiths, because it lets me know that even though it predates them by about 30 years, the songs about overcoming intense agony are universal to the human experience, and that’s the power of this song, even though it’s slightly more modern.
Melodically: The song is written in Eb major. On the guitar with the capo on the third fret, the intro uses (relative to the capo) Am, C, Em, and F, a vi, I, iii, IVb pattern. The verses use C, Am, F, G, a Ib, vi, IVb, Vb pattern, before ending on the Am, the vi chord.
The chorus uses C, Am/B, Am, G, F, a I, vi, Vb, IVb pattern, followed by Em, Dm, and G, a iii, ii, Vb pattern, and Am, G, F, G, C, G, and F, which is a vi, Vb, IVb, I, V, IVb, Vb, Ib, Vb, IVb pattern. The bridge (which is about to be added to my list of favorites), uses Am, G, F, G, Am, G, F, G, C, Am, F, and G, which is a vi, Vb, IVb, Vb, vi, Vb, IVb, Vb, Ib, vi, IVb, Vb pattern. The use of the IV and V chords to end each phrase (some end on the IV and some end on the V) provides tension, while also forcing the narrator to carry on, and that matches the lyrics perfectly. Instrumentally, the song uses guitar, bass, and drums.
You can listen to “Dear Agony” below.
