I can’t remember how this song popped out of me (except that I was definitely awake at the time!) but it’s one of those tunes that came quickly and seemed to form itself. I love the title word and back in 2006 when I wrote this there was a local band named Sweetheart that may’ve played a role in inspiring me to blurt it out over a country-ish C-chord. The chord progression progressed of its own accord, and words clung to the obvious melody fairly easily to construct the verses (with a little help from my friends the Beatles, borrowing phrases like “Two of us” and “Love you more”).
For me, the magic moment was later that day when I played what I had for Brandy: after the first two verses I spontaneously jumped to the relative minor and sang, quite literally, “And when you’re sitting in front of me…” – and next thing we knew I had a full song, and the feeling that indeed “everything will be … Alright.”
The first time I played it for Eric, he said, “That’s a Top Drawers song!” and so it became. The boys in that band added sweet back-ups and a full band arrangement that really brought out the dynamics, especially the percussive rhythm of that chorus. We’ve performed this one many times, and it’s being released on the second Drawers album which (due to a series of delays) will be coming out after this one. Awkward timing perhaps, but again, I had to have this song on my personal love album – I mean, I literally wrote the chorus with Brandy sitting right in front of me – inspiration doesn’t get much more direct than that! Of course, I made sure the EastVangelicals version would be different, a slower, more intimate take on the song that with the Top Drawers jumps out as a rockin’ power-pop number.
Tomorrow’s track 7 from Suite: Dreams just might be my personal favourite, dreamsong. Catch you then, lovers and dreamers!