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Keep It To Yourself

from Irrelevant by Mailbox

/

about

I wrote "Keep it to Yourself" in 1994 and had hoped to record it for Elephino but didn't have it ready in time. In 2002, the Vermont band played it out a few times. I had worked on it again for Get Lost for which it was going to be the last track but I wrote "Stories" and this song got booted yet again. I finally recorded it in 2006 with more of a geek rock sound and released it through my podcast. For this album, I decided to rework those 2006 tracks and try for a more blues rock vibe.

One thing I always knew was that when I recorded the vocals I would capture them first thing in the morning so I could hit those deep notes. I thought I'd sound like Johnny Cash but it was more like Brad Roberts from Crash Test Dummies. So it has evolved, morphed, and finally settled into the arrangement here.

A pig figures out the meaning of life and learns an even more valuable lesson along the way.

lyrics

Trying to move, he was trying to prove
That he knew what he knew, like he was cutting it smooth
But the pigs in a poke just laughed at his joke
That he knew what he knew and the piggy was broke

And that's when he saw this muddied up scrawl:
"Make sense of it and Keep it to Yourself
Make sense of it and you won't bug anyone else"

But the piggy was fine, he had lots of time
And he did what he did 'cos it wasn't a crime

Yeah, piggy had class just letting time pass
And he did what he did, y'all can kiss his ass

Then the words came again - like porcine zen
"Make sense of it and Keep it to Yourself
Make sense of it and you won't bug anyone else"

He opened the door, hoofs to the floor
He thought what he thought, a smug and smirking boar
He just stared at their snouts up in the air
But this little piggy he didn't care

He made sense of it and kept it to himself
He made sense of it so he wouldn't bug anyone else.

credits

from Irrelevant, released April 20, 2009
written by Adam Rabin

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Adam Rabin Burlington

Where Prog Rock meets Geek Rock. Adam Rabin is a Vermont songwriter/multi-instrumentalist who has also played with Elephants of Scotland, Mailbox, and musical improv troupe She Thicc. You can also hear Adam’s music on the podcasts: Improvised Weapons, Improv Overdrive, What The Hell Are You Watching, and Vermont Favorites. ... more

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