641https://e3d11129fc23b90f22d9444f95676f0e.s3.amazonaws.com/file/music/2014/04/SampleMusic55622.mp3The Red Queen's Race1 The Red Queen's RacePlays: 10
The Red Queen's Race is a metaphor for striving ever harder for diminishing reward. It derives from Lewis Carrol's "Alice Through The Looking Glass," wherein the Red Queen's hapless subjects find themselves in a hopeless race across a field whose edges are continuously expanding away from them. The first verse considers the ultimate futility of the pursuit of material gain, the second relates insincerity to emotional insecurity and the third addresses a spiritual bankrupcy resulting from self-delusion and ego. (Which reminds us - we really should remember Dick Cheney in our prayers some day...) Musically, the song uses a common reggae rhythm called the "one-drop" and balances a straightforward tonic-subdominant (I-IV) verse against a chorus tug-of-war between the relative minor submediant (VI) and the major subdominant (IV) again. What could be simpler? The modulating passage to the bridge afforded an irresistable opportunity to step squarely into Beatle territory and we shamelesly surrendered to the temptation. After all, who knows when such a chance might next arise? Kyle played bass (cunningly changing the riff in the third verse) did the drums and guitars and also found time to press all the computer buttons that mysteriously cause the music to be recorded and then played back. In the old days that would have been enough to get you burned at the stake as a witch. I was only allowed to do a tiny bit of guitar and ONE bass note. On the other hand, I also got to do ALL the keyboards and sing ALL the vocal parts and even pretend to be the Beach Boys AND Bob Marley. No animals were harmed during the making of this recording but 54 cigarettes were smoked so, under Scottish Law, we are now criminals for smoking in our workplace. We salute and praise our glorious ex-Fuhrer, Herr Jack McConnell, First Minister of the Schottisch Reich who introduced this fascist legislation shortly before becoming the first Labour party leader ever to lose a Scottish Parliament election (despite massive voter fraud which deprived nearly 10% of the electorate of their votes.) JahLove; ~GerryMATW
The Red Queen's Race (by Gerry Coogan & Kyle Robertson)
Emaj7 Oh, you've been waiting on your money even though it's all been spent before it comes through now,Amaj7 It's a Red Queen's Race, you're running in a Red Queen's RaceEmaj7 And no matter what you get, you always seem to want some more, yes you do now,Amaj7 It's always the case, there's always something better to chaseC#m A And you can tell everybody C#m Ayou'll never get out of this placeC#m AAnd you can run all you wanna, C#m A you'll never get up to the paceEmaj7 Amaj7Of the Red Queen's Race.Emaj7 Do you tell them that you love them and they're great just to hear them say you're all right, yeah?Amaj7So you lie a bit, no use in you denying it.Emaj7 And you give her all you've got just to make her stay another day and a night, yeah.Amaj7While you're trying it, you know you can't rely on it.C#m A You're always waiting for something,C#m A But you've never been in the right placeC#m AAnd you've been chasing and running, C#m Atrying to keep up to the pace D/E E D/E E D/E E of the Red Queen's RaceD/E E C Em You know, you've got to give yourself a chance!C/G Am C Em C/G Am Reach out, come on, be ready if you get your chance.Emaj7 You're looking at a vapour in the desert and you're telling me that it's real, yeah,Amaj7Comprehending it, as if you're not pretending it.Emaj7You're on the trail of the Holy Grail, you think you've found the Key to the Seal now,Amaj7At the end of it, I hope you don't depend on it.C#m A 'Cause I believe you've been hiding,C#m AThere's something you don't wanna faceC#m AAnd you keep slippin' and slidin',C#m AFalling all over the place Emaj F#m7 G#m7 F#m7 E in the Red Queen's Race.C#m A And you can tell everybody C#m Ayou never get out of this placeC#m AAnd you can run all you wanna, C#m Ayou never get up to the pace Emaj F#m7 G#m7 F#m7 E Of the Red Queen's Race.C#m A You're always waiting for something,C#m ABut you've never been in the right placeC#m AAnd you've been chasing and running, C#m A EAtrying to keep up to the pace Emaj F#m7 G#m7 F#m7 E of the Red Queen's RaceC#m A And you can tell everybody C#m Ayou'll never get out of this placeC#m AAnd you can run all you wanna, C#m Ayou'll never keep up to the paceEmaj F#m7 G#m7 F#m7 E Of the Red Queen's Race.