Free Download: Water Phoenix (demo)

I knew what I wanted from this song as I wrote it. I knew what I was writing about, and how the song would be structured, more or less. But I was still surprised by the melody that came from the lyrics. Sometimes I can sit and just hear the melody that is meant to be there when I read the lyrics, other times I have to work on it quite a bit to get something that works. But for this, there were melody ideas there as I was writing the lyrics, so when I sat at the piano, the whole song was waiting for me to find the piano part.

The demo is just an idea of what it’ll be like – I think this is going to be a very richly arranged song when it is finished, and I hope that the person it is about likes the song. It’s quickly become one of my own personal favourites to sing.

[audio:http://www.misterebby.com/previewtracks/phoenix.mp3]
Water Phoenix (demo) (right click and save to download)

Hipstamatic photo of the liffey

Silly Stories, Part 5: A Story For Amanda: Greta The Grinder

Amanda’ coffee grinder is often a cause for concern. So, recently I was in her café one one of those afternoons when the grinder stopped working, and she had to get another. It inspired this addition to my silly children’s stories for adults, which as you are aware, is ~amazing art~

________________________________

Greta the grinder moaned and groaned
For she was far too fond of complaining.
Some days she just stopped,
As some form of silent protesting.

Eventually, however, her protests grew too many
And the people began to grumble,
in need of some fresh coffee,
As their stomachs began to rumble.

So it happened that Greta the grinder
found herself sitting unused
As Garbo the Grinder sat right beside her
Munching and purring all afternoon.

And Greta no longer mumbled and grumbled,
But sat silently on the counter,
And watched the people be re-caffeinated,
Until the garbage man took her.

The end.
______________________________

Part 5 of an irregular series.

IMG_0222

Free Download: Is This What They Call Romance? (demo)

This song grew from wanting to write a really upbeat little pop song. The chorus of it is something that would run around my head after I went swimming. No idea why, but the lyrics were basically sketched out while sitting in a sauna.

The verses were bits and pieces from various places. Little ideas or leftovers from other songs, so in a way the song itself is a bit of a composite of a few different things.

The piano riff sticks in my head, and was the first part of the song to be written, in terms of the music. Once I’d sat with that for a while the rest of the song just fell into place and I had this little boppy little piano pop song that is great fun for me to play.

[audio:http://www.misterebby.com/previewtracks/romance.mp3]
Is This What They Call Romance? (demo) (right-click and save to download)

IMG_0238

Little mention in the Drogheda Independent.

Nice little blurb in the local Drogheda paper promoting the gig tonight.
drogheda independent

Sessions get under way in Punt Bar

FANTASTIC LINE-UP OF ACTS
Wednesday January 20 2010

THE Purple Sessions kick off 2010 with a great lineup this coming Friday, January 22nd, upstairs in the Punt Bar, Drogheda.

This month the sessions are bringing to Drogheda a fine selection of artists to entertain the purple sessions audience the line up includes

[…]

Mister Ebby is a piano playing songwriter from Galway who writes quirky indie pop songs. He grew up in a very musical household – two of his brothers are musicians too: Kevin Brett, and Izzy Plastic and The Manicans. He has also played together with Anna Lee under the name Husband/Wife, as well as with The Molls and with Jazz singer Alex Hahn.

via Sessions get under way in Punt Bar – News, frontpage – Drogheda-Independent.ie.

Drogheda

Upcoming gig: Drogheda, Jan 22nd

the purple sessions - jan 22I’ll be playing the Purple Sessions in Drogheda’s The Punt Bar on January 22nd along with Hugh Patrick, Stephen J Smith, Heirs To Nothing and Bobby Noonan. Have a whole bunch of new songs that I’ve not had a chance to play live yet, so when the offer came through my MySpace I thought why not? Where better to try out a few new songs than at nice acoustic sessions night somewhere I don’t live?

If you’re in the general area, it’s a free admissions gig, and sounds like a wonderful monthly showcase of Irish songwriting talent.