by John Hanlon | Sep 14, 2017 | Uncategorized |
As some of you know, my songwriting traverses a range of genres. I don’t fit neatly into any particular box as much as some have tried. ‘Protest Singer’ was a category often applied to me in the early days along with folk singer and, in the case of...
by John Hanlon | Sep 3, 2017 | Uncategorized |
I’m often asked which of my songs I like most. In some senses this is like asking a parent which of their children they like most. Truth is I can’t be that specific and even if I were the answer would likely change from time to time. What I can say is that...
by John Hanlon | Aug 28, 2017 | Uncategorized |
Not everything I say is true. This is not to say I’m a liar merely that much of what I write is pure imagination. Sometimes ‘inspired by real events’ as they say in the movies, but rarely, if ever, the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I look for...
by John Hanlon | Aug 21, 2017 | Uncategorized |
The question I get asked most often is: How do you write a song? The answer is that I have no idea. Furthermore, I’d go so far as to say that, if you entertain any ambitions of songwriting success, I’m the last person you should ask. My songs fit no...
by John Hanlon | Aug 14, 2017 | Uncategorized |
Back in the early 80s, not long after I’d walked away from the proverbial limelight, I wrote a song entitled ‘Don’t Go Forgetting Me’. The protagonist was an old dude who sat in the park with only a newspaper and memories to keep him warm. At...
by John Hanlon | Aug 3, 2017 | Uncategorized |
Where would songwriters be without love? Falling in and out of love, making up, breaking up, muses real and imagined — mostly the latter — the possibilities are endless. This week I’m showcasing one song about love lost and another about love found that I literally...
by John Hanlon | Jul 17, 2017 | Uncategorized |
For me life has been a moving experience. Six different schools in four different countries before I reached my teens pretty much set the tone. However, if pressed I’d say that ‘home’ for our family was Howick, Auckland, New Zealand.This once sleepy...
by John Hanlon | Jul 10, 2017 | Uncategorized |
‘Dance like no one is watching.’ Easy to say but hard to do if, like me, you’re the kind that gives Dad Dancing a bad name. I blame years of confinement to an all boys boarding school for rendering me inept in any interaction with the fairer sex especially dancing. I...
by John Hanlon | Jul 6, 2017 | Uncategorized |
I know you’ll find this hard to believe but sometimes I get grumpy. To be fair, I think that it’s impatience more than grouchiness. And often this impatience is directed at myself. I decide I’m boring. Uninspiring. Stuck in a rut. Consequently, to borrow an...
by John Hanlon | Jul 3, 2017 | Uncategorized |
The song I’m putting up this week has the capacity to offend those who don’t understand the words. However, I’m not going to rationalise my intent. I’ll simply post the lyrics for you to ponder. I sincerely hope you hear what I’m saying and that it resonates...
