"Second Version" (December 28, 1989)
The last LOOB related-recording of the 80's! Gives me chills and catches me by surprise.
"It's All Right" (version 1 - 1987)
This is the very first thing Ted recorded on his 4-track, and finds the future LOOB warhorse in an embryonic state. We actually didn't start doing this song until Frank joined the band in 1990.
"I Paint" (1987) - Once in a while, we'd love a Hubie song so much, we'd try our hand at finishing one of his songs! At the time, he was working and going to school....and he often didn't have all the lyrics done. Which is quite natural! The best way is to let the song marinate as long as possible and let the words fall as they will! But back then, we were impatient! A chance comment as evidenced on the Fall '87 rehearsal tape finds that neither Hubie nor I can even remember "I Paint", much less play it.... the song had already fallen by the wayside....just a few months after we had started rehearsing it! Hearing that comment jogs my mind now that this demo "resuscitated" "I Paint", and we started doing it again in early 1988. I'm not sure how many of these words were written beforehand! I think Ted was just jamming with the chords and the song....but, with some pruning, it became the last verse (sung by Hubie) of "I Paint". Listening to this now, I so wish we had done this song with Frank, or Lawrence & Stevie! I love Ted's harmony on the chorus on this, which was different from the way we sang it in LOOB (which you can hear....here!).
"It's All Right" (version 2) (1987)
Now the song as we know it is in place.
"...think with your mind....." (1987)
The first appearance of the chord progression that eventually wound up in "Dog Days". Psychedelic! Ted is using the Rockman for all the electric guitar parts on these early 1987-88 demos.
"Something You Can Believe In" (1987)
"Something You Can Believe In" was done either in the trio era - but when we weren't recording the rehearsals. Or else we did it during the Howie era. I can't quite remember. I think we did it with Howie. Ted in full Husker Du mode!
"New World Today" (1987)
We had done this during the Ward era; we had already stopped doing it by the time Ted made this demo for posterity. Always loved this song and was bummed we couldn't do a serious job on it (at that time, we didn't do a serious job on ANY song, as you can hear pre-Suffolk Office tapes!). Whenever I play this demo, I sing the great harmony line/melody that Hubie or Ward (or Hubie AND Ward) used to sing on the chorus.
"Rise" (1987)
The first version of this beautiful song that wound up attached to Hubie's "Inside The Rain" (prompting Hubie to dub it "Rain Into Rise"!) "Rise.....into life". Beautiful. A very LOOB lyric, though maybe not so much the LOOB of '87! We started doing this pretty soon after it was written, and though it turned into an Irish parody at times, we developed a gorgeous middle part ("closer to thee...") that was spinetingling to sing! As I said, it was resurrected at the end of 1990, when we attached it to the Hubie song. For some reason, that medley did not carry over to the Lawrence/Steve lineup.
"This Isn't Like Me" (1987)
Are you seeing a pattern here? All these songs are from 1987! Most of the LOOB Ted songs came from these early demos, even though he was writing great stuff (see the first volume of Ted songs) all the way through. Anyways, here again are those chords that wound up as the break for "Dog Days". Like "Rise" we started doing "This Isn't Like Me" soon after it was written, and this may even be a demo done after we had started playing it. This was during the period where alot of Ted songs were about psychos! Again, I think alot of these words/melodies are improvised but he landed on something I loved: "Friends that I thought were mine all left me when my troubles started". I loved that lyric, but I really loved the melody he sang. So years later, when "Dog Days" needed a break, that's the part I zeroed in on. Again - like Hubie - Ted was not precious about his songs that he wouldn't try stuff, throw stuff out, bring stuff in.....and so "Dog Days" really became a perfect song, with those great verses - and this wild break!
"Dog Days" (circa 1988-1989)
I can't speak for Hubie, but this song was so much fun to sing the harmony. And as you can hear, Ted has it all worked out on this first demo! As you can hear, this is not the break that we ended up with! (see the song before this one!) Often in demos, you don't have the whole song done, so when you get to those unfinished parts, you try a "hail mary" and sometimes you arrive at great stuff! So this break is just Ted trying something out off the top of his head. Ironically, what would end up in this section IS exactly that, one of those "hail mary" moments, but from the old "This Isn't Like Me" demo!
"Four Walls" (included on the first volume)
One of my all time favorite Ted songs, and demos, and as relevant today as ever.
"Bum On The 4th Floor"
I always thought this song was really fun, but neither Hubie nor Frank took to it. However, we did end up doing two other songs from the same batch, "Castles And Planes" and "Windstorm". All three of these songs were demoed the same day, March 7, 1990.
"Windstorm" (1990)
We played this in acoustic sets and it sounded pretty much like this demo.
"Castles And Planes" (1990)
Here's a song LOOB did a good job on! Always loved the verses, which Ted resurrected for the coda of "Another Million".
After I left the band, Ted scored a "hit" with "Ironlung", which I understand was a mainstay in LOOB sets for the remainder of his tenure! That's the one that goes..."sitting on a park bench!....snot running down his nose!...." oh wait, that's "Aqualung", different song altogether, nevermind.
Download here:
http://www.mediafire.com/download/hfe2hc6g9whjd4v/Ted+demos%2C+LOOB+songs+1987-1990.zip
Dropbox link (will only be active for a week or so)
https://www.dropbox.com/s/yqwee8tpgxamy9a/Ted%20demos%2C%20LOOB%20songs%201987-1990.zip?dl=0
