Phosphorescent Music

The Full Moon Project #8 - Meridian, MS
Originally performed by Raymond Byron Raposa
Listen: found.ee/MeridianMS

I was recording a bass guitar
On what I thought would be this month's song
When I felt my phone vibrate
It had been interrupting me all day
And I was annoyed

I finished the song
And went to silence the goddam thing
But the message was there on the screen
And it knocked the wind right out of me

I don't want to be writing any of these words
So I'm gonna keep it short here
But suffice it to say that
Losing an old running buddy is tough and sad

Me and Ray did a hell of a lot
Of traveling together in those early days
Him as Castanets,
Me as Phosphorescent
But also quickly playing in each others' band -
Somebody needed drums or bass or guitar for a tour
We'd just do it - whatever it took to make it work

Several times around the US
3 or 4 times around Europe
This was still a pretty scrappy time for us all
Lots of sleeping on strange floors and couches
Lots of barely getting by
Often not, in fact, getting by
But lots of fun and sweat and love and life

And I wanna say this out loud on record
Cuz I think I forget it too sometimes
In all the give and take of these things

Ray was truly generous
And truly a good friend
Of course he was thorny as shit too
But not on purpose
Any purposeful moves were honest
And open and kind

After that message came in
I spent the day thinkin on you buddyboy
And talking to you
And sending out my love to you
And Ray I hope you could hear it
Before you got too far gone from here
And still I hope you can hear it
Wherever you are now

I fired up the microphones about midnight
And sang this song of yours

Warmth, light and godspeed my friend
Love, M
*********
Voice, Guitar: Matthew Houck
Produced by Matthew Houck
At Spirit Sounds, Nashville TN
Mixing: Mike Fahey at Starbird Sound

#phosphorescent #thefullmoonproject #SturgeonMoon#rayraposa #raymondbyron #meridianms

2 years ago (edited) | [YT] | 1