dear reader,
here is the 6th and final track off of my EP, “curls of smoke”—it’s entitled Ring Tailed Roarer.
i remember being downtown in the san jose, california library sitting on the floor in between rows of books. i was flipping through a book of american folklore terms, transcribing words into my notebook that i found interesting or inspiring. a ring tailed roarer was described as a person with a lexicon of tall tales, someone that spins webs of lies through their storytelling, and notably, one that loved to fight anyone who’d call their bluff. i had a few character’s within my orbit at the time that were aspiring raconteurs—depending on their audience i noticed exaggerations became generously sprinkled in their recounting.
this song was my process of sifting through the realization that most stories lack whole truth. the art of the raconteur is to tell stories, by any means necessary.
while revisiting this song, i googled ring-tailed roarer only to find the musician the last knife fighter released a song called, “ring tailed roarer blues” in 2019. that’s songwriting in a nutshell! give it a listen after mine, it’s fun to compare sentiments.
anyway friends,
thank you for following along on this fun experiment of a casual re-release.
xoxo riddy
LYRICS for RING TAILED ROARER:
SHE WAS A RING TAILED ROARER, WROTE ALL THE STARS IN THE SKY
RODE HER HORSE INTO A DUST STORM AND SHE SWORE IT DIDN’T MAKE HER EYES CRY
YOUR STORIES DOUSED IN KEROSENE DON’T SET FIRE TO MY EYES, EXPLOSIONS I DID SEE AS YOUR MOUTH SLIPPED OUT FAR CRIES
MILK THISTLE PISTOL TO MY LIVER LIKE A GUN, YOUR BOOZY WALK AND CHARMING TALK I CAN SEE BRIGHT AS THE SUN
AND IT’S FUN TO WATCH A RACONTEUR RACK THEIR WELL ALL DRY, THEY WILL SHRIVEL IN DROUGHT ABOUT THEIR OWN AND START TO LIVE A NEW LIE
SHE WAS A RING TAILED ROARER, WROTE ALL THE STARS IN THE SKY
RODE HER HORSE INTO A DUST STORM AND SHE SWORE IT DIDN’T MAKE HER EYES CRY
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