Music & Lyrics by Joe Joe – Vocals, Guitars, Bass, Drums
The Perfect Time – Explained
Lyrics by Joe
[Verse 1] I always hear the same old words It’s so absurd I can’t believe my ears And when it’s all been said and done You’ll be the one Standing with me here
[Pre-chorus 1] Sing me this song when I am feeling blue Can’t let it show Cause everybody knows
[Chorus 1] I can hardly wait It’s the perfect time Let’s hurry up so we can stand in line Whisper in my ear Tell me I’ll be fine You’ll be fine
[Verse 2] A week goes by in just a day I wish that I could say I’m satisfied with everything that I’ve done So much to do, so little time It’s just so hard to find Peace of mind for having fun
[Pre-chorus 2] Sing me this song and I will think of you Remind me how it goes Cause everybody knows
[Chorus 2] I can hardly wait It’s the perfect time Let’s hurry first and then we’ll take our time Whisper in my ear Tell me I’ll be fine You’ll be fine You’ll be fine…
[Bridge] Running at full speed Don’t forget to breathe Hold on to your heart Here comes the hardest part I will not let go Of the dream I’ve had From so long ago Come on and give me your worst I’ll gladly accept So tomorrow There’s no chance of regret
[Breakdown]
[Chorus 3] I can hardly wait It’s the perfect time Whisper in my ear Tell me I’ll be fine You’ll be fine
I can hardly wait It’s the perfect time Let’s hurry up so we can stand in line Whisper in my ear Tell me I’ll be fine You’ll be fine You’ll be fine
Music & Lyrics by Joe Linda – Vocals Joe – Vocals, Keyboard, Bass, Drums, Trumpets Mike Pinto – Guitar (www.MikePintoGuitar.com)
Awoke In The Springtime – Explained
Lyrics by Joe
[Verse 1] Awoke in the springtime Covered in sunshine Never have I felt so fine The winter’s now over I can’t believe I feel this good It’s been a long long time
[Pre-chorus 1] Turn off your mind And everything becomes clear Search and you’ll find The reasons for being here And you know, you know
[Chorus 1] I can hear the music play Never ending summer days Life is but a dream they say So dream on When I feel the evening breeze It puts my soul at ease And I can finally breathe The weight is gone The best days are always so simple Reminding us somehow All that we have Is now
[Verse 2] Awoke in the springtime Chance of a lifetime Remember to enjoy the ride My instincts take over It’s no surprise I feel this good Adapt with every stride
[Pre-chorus 2] Turn off your mind And everything disappears Search and you’ll find The reasons that brought here Cause you know, you know
[Chorus 2] I can hear the music play Never ending summer days Life is but a dream they say So dream on When I feel the evening breeze It puts my soul at ease And I can finally breathe The weight is gone The best days have always been simple Reminding us somehow All that we have All we can change Is now, now it…
[Bridge] Feels like a lucid dream My senses wide awake An endless movie of real life That only I can make
[Trumpet Solo]
[Pre-chorus 1] Turn off your mind And everything becomes clear Search and you’ll find The reasons for being here And you know, you know
[Chorus 1] I can hear the music play Never ending summer days Life is but a dream they say So dream on When I feel the evening breeze It puts my soul at ease And I can finally breathe The weight is gone The best days are always so simple Reminding us somehow All that we have… Is now
Music & Lyrics by Joe Linda – Vocals Joe – Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Drums Yogi Lonich – Guitar Solos (www.YogiMusic.com)
There’s More To Life – Explained
Lyrics by Joe
[Verse1] I’ve been thinkin’ ’bout the lies Stuck inside my head Total bullshit in disguise Early on we’re fed And now I feel the pain Deep within my soul An inner dissonance Finally takes its toll
[Verse 2] Wasn’t given any choice Surrendered out of fear What’s the purpose of a voice If others cannot hear? And no-one ever asked If I thought the rules were fair Never gave consent Yet somehow I still needed theirs
Your life’s a script But one you didn’t write Gotta improvise To take the spotlight
I’ve been thinkin’ ’bout the lies Forced inside my head It’s time to realize
[Chorus] There’s more to life There’s more to life than what we’re told There’s more to life There’s more to life than growing old There’s more to life There’s more to life than what we’re told There’s more to life There’s more to life
[Bridge] Frustration in my veins When conditioning remains Our potential goes to waste And it seems like such a shame Extinguishing the flame within And people are to blame It’s always the same
[Guitar Solo]
[Chorus-2X] There’s more to life There’s more to life than what we’re told There’s more to life There’s more to life than growing old
[Breakdown-2X] There’s more to life There’s more to life than what we’re told There’s more to life There’s more to life than growing old
[Chorus] There’s more to life There’s more to life than what we’re told There’s more to life There’s more to life than growing old There’s more to life There’s more to life than what we’re told There’s more to life There’s more to life
Music by Joe Lyrics by Joe & Linda Linda – Vocals Joe – Vocals, Piano, Bass, Drums
Giving It Up – Explained
Lyrics by Joe & Linda
[Verse 1] I’m giving it up now I quit my job today I told them I won’t stay I told them that the world is waiting
For me to go Beyond the places I know Only then will I grow I don’t wanna wait until it’s too late for me
[Chorus 1] Today I wanna travel the world with you, with you Learn a new language and write a book or two, or two Fight next to Greenpeace, Amnesty, and Médecins sans frontières Green and blue highlights in my hair
[Verse 2] My time is now My dreams are meant to be I am young healthy and free If I don’t go now I might never
Go at all The chances are too small The writings on the wall Cause in twenty years who knows who I’ll be
[Chorus 2] Tomorrow I’ll buy my first home with you, with you Work in my garden and plant a new tree or two, or two Donate to Greenpeace, Amnesty, and Médecins sans frontières Grey and white highlights in my hair…
[Bridge] Time is passing too fast No moment will last No guarantee you’ll stay For another day Ooh….
All we have is now And our dreams So it seems Who needs retirement If your time’s well spent? Ooh….
[Verse 3] I’m giving it up now I quit my job today I told them I won’t pay Cause I can’t afford to waste my time
Music by Joe Lyrics by Joe & Linda Linda – Vocals Joe – Vocals, Piano, Bass, Drums
Someday – Explained
Lyrics by Joe & Linda
[Verse 1] I know I will find you No matter how long it takes ’til you’re here in my life I know I would kiss you If only you would knock on my door tonight
[Pre-chorus 1] What would I do For you If only you were here? Where would we go? I wanna know I can’t wait to meet you, dear
[Chorus] Someday I will love you, just love you Someday I will hold you, I will hold you in my arms
[Verse 2] How long must I wait here? Another day gone and you’re still not by my side I dream of you next to me And then I awake by mistake and you’re nowhere in sight
[Pre-chorus 2] My dreams will come true For you Belong here in my arms I miss you so And I know I would never let you go
[Chorus] Someday I will love you, just love you Someday I will hold you, I will hold you in my arms
[Bridge] With wide open eyes My hope never dies I know you’re out there Because I feel You are real Butterflies everywhere
[Chorus-2X] Someday I will love you, just love you Someday I will hold you, I will hold you in my arms
On July 13th we played in Klein Schneen which is a small village in the municipality Friedland. When we left Ninas apartment in Bielefeld we knew that we would only need two hours to Klein Schneen and that there will be some time before our hosts were expecting us. So we stopped in Kassel on the way and had a second breakfast in a little café and did a bit of computer work.
When we arrived at our hosts Annette and Christian, we saw that their front yard was a bee paradise. So many different, beautiful flowers! We went to the front door and found the most peculiar door bell. We had to turn a little key which would ring (similar to a bike bell) inside the house. It was the kind of bell you would expect with a 300 year old timbered house like this one. When no one answered the door, we had the idea to check the back yard of the house. Since this concert would take place outside (not open air because of the weather forecast but in a roofed area in the garden) we knew there had to be a back yard. We walked around the block to find a garage with a poster advertising our concert. Even our new logo was on it! This had to be the right place. When we entered the back yard the most beautiful oasis opened up in front of us with flowers, bees, butterflies, trees, and plenty of little cute sitting areas. When we discovered the performing area we suddenly heard Annette and Christian talking. They were in the garden preparing for the concert which was why they didn’t hear us ringing the door bell. They said we could park in front of their garage (in which they had their own VW bus just like ours!). So we went back to Elliot and reparked.
While we were setting up in the nicely decorated performing area, Annette and Christian prepared lunch. We ate the BEST lasagne Joe has ever had and I foolishly declared to finish the whole bowl of dessert by the end of the day (which I couldn’t). We also ate a salad made from freshly picked lettuce from their garden. It was just the perfect lunch but we had to hold ourselves back. You can’t sing if your stomach is too full.
Annette and Christian are wonderful free spirits. We could relate to them in so many ways. How they see life, how they manage their daily life basically as freelancers, and their love for nature and their garden. For me they live in a little paradise. Also because the whole area is in the countryside without being completely off the grid. One of their neighbors has two rams in his garden and another has sheep. It’s a very calm and down-to-earth area.
We couldn’t really be surprised (and still we were) about the loveliness of the audience that arrived that evening. Even though Annette and Christian only invited a few people (with an invitation letter and the permission to bring other people that might be interested) it seemed almost the whole village attended. Two elderly women couldn’t come because they were invited to a birthday party that same evening. But they prepared a special dessert and sent a donation for us. On the envelope it simply said “to the musicians”. It was the sweetest thing that happened to us this tour! We could tell how our concert was a big event in the village and everyone was so excited to come and be part of it. They were super appreciative and interested. It warmed our hearts.
Another observation we made that was very refreshing to see: There were around 10 kids in the audience from the age of not even 1 to 15 years old and none of them were playing with any electronic devices. They were focused on the concert the whole time (even though all our music is in English and they probably didn’t understand everything). We were impressed. It seems so healthy for kids to grow up in a smaller town where there’s space to run around with less distraction from technology and social pressure to look or act a certain way. Some of them even came after the concert to ask for autographs. The whole concert experience was just awesome!
After the concert we devoured the leftovers of Annette’s delicious lasagna and there was still some of the dessert left (that I had promised to finish). Eventually we had to take it with us in a plastic container, but at least I tried 😉
In the evening, Annette and Christian’s garden turned into a romantic fairyland with little lights and candles everywhere. We talked to some of the guests who were all very open minded and interested in our story. They told us that Annette and Christian are their role models when it comes to living a free and independent life. That was exactly the impression we had from Annette and Christian as well.
Unfortunately we didn’t have much time the next morning because we had to be in Bad Salzuflen by 1pm. Annette offered to show us around in the village but we had to leave too soon. But there was time for a nice breakfast with Annette and Christian in the very place we performed the night before. The family from next door stopped by and gave us a basket of freshly picked berries from their garden. What a wonderful and kind gift! We discovered that Christian likes to work with wood and saw some of his carvings all around the property. We also learned that Annette makes pottery. When we left she gave us two beautiful pots (also to eat the dessert we took with us 😀 )! What warm, wonderful, kind, sweet people they both are!
Thank you Annette and Christian! We had an amazing time with you and look forward to seeing you again soon! All the best for you!
We stopped for lunch and to do a bit of our online/email work at a Vapiano in Bielefeld. We were happy to have found a parking spot right in front of the restaurant and our next host Nina wrote that she secured us a spot in front of her apartment as well. But when we left to drive to Nina’s it started pouring rain! We were worried if that might affect the number of guests that would attend the concert. We wrote Nina that we were 4 minutes away and when we arrived she was waiting for us with an umbrella to remove her car from the spot she reserved for us. We decided to leave the instruments in the car until the rain stopped and went upstairs to have a look at the space we’d be performing in.
Nina has a beautiful apartment which she has decorated very tastefully. When we arrived three friends were already preparing for the concert. One of them was Dami from Australia! We really had an international audience this tour 🙂 The girls prepared cheese with grapes, sandwiches, vegetables, and dips. Nina generously bought rum especially for Joe so he could have a rum’n’coke. While we were waiting for the rain to stop (or at least to become less intense) we sat down, drank a bit, and got to know Nina and her friends better.
Nina just signed up to SofaConcerts because she was taking part in a raffle to win a concert. When I wrote her and proposed a concert with us she was thrilled and immediately accepted. It’s a bit of an honor to be someones first house concert artist. We want people to like it even more so they stick with it and have other concerts to support all the wonderful artists out there. Nina’s living room is small, but cozy. Fortunately, when we finally brought our instruments in and set up it turned out to be just enough space for us. Nina also didn’t invite a large amount of people. She knew the capacity of the room very well and so it turned out to be the perfect crowd for this occasion. The concert evolved into a little party where people were standing up and dancing in the back of the room. It was really a high-energy atmosphere.
After the concert we had very interesting conversations that we often have after concerts because guests love the idea of traveling around and being a freelance musician but they suspect a downside to it. It’s always the fear of losing “security” that keeps people from living freely and doing what they love. Often people approach us and say that they envy what we’re doing and wish they had the same courage. Joe always tells them that security is more of an illusion and that there are actually no guarantees in life. In actuality, everyone can lose their job or even their life the very next day. So if we don’t know what tomorrow will bring we should strive to make sure that today is one of the best days of our life. People we talk to understand that concept but are often so deeply conditioned by the system that it would require a large amount of will power, inspiration, courage, and time to break out of their routines to finally start doing the things they’re really passionate about, in short: to truly live.
The next day Nina organized some rolls and we had a wonderful breakfast together. She was truly an amazing host, taking care of our needs before we even realized we had them. Thank you Nina, we hope to see you again soon!
We arrived in Bielefeld earlier than expected and had time to visit the Café Welthaus. I always appreciate these kinds of cafés that sell fair trade coffee and we even bought a homemade, vegan pizza. Super nice! This rest-stop gave us time to check out other locations and festivals in Bielefeld that could potentially be playing opportunities for us. Of course we also left some flyers there. You never know what comes from that 🙂
We found our host Jenny on CouchSurfing and her profile already seemed super interesting. She has traveled a lot with the help of CouchSurfing and now wants to give these great opportunities back to that community. She’s currently doing an apprenticeship to become a carpenter! How cool is that?! We could see her passion for working with wood right when we entered her room. She designed her own “flying bed” that is hanging from the ceiling, built herself a desk, and decorated her whole balcony with wood (oh, and she drew a map of the Lord of the Rings universe on her wall!).
She lives together with three roommates who are also carpenters (or on their way there) and their whole flat is a playground for their creative, wood ideas. First we went inside to see the performance space and get to know our hosts a bit before we brought all the instruments in. Upon meeting everyone, we quickly got caught up in conversations. When we came back to our car 10 minutes later we had a ticket from the meter maid. Samuel (one of the flatmates) gave us a resident permit for the parking space but it seemed like we got there 4 minutes too late. But we wouldn’t let a paper on our windshield ruin the day for us. We took our instruments upstairs and faced the next dilemma. The plan was to play outside on their huge terrace; I could tell that Joe really, really liked that idea. We went outside on the terrace and discussed where we could set everything up. The problem was that the weather forecast predicted a 60% chance of rain around 8pm, one hour after we would start our first set. There was a marquee on the terrace that would protect our instruments from the rain but was also hanging so low that nobody would see anything that was higher than our belly buttons. Plus, while our instruments would be dry the audience would had to stand in the rain. So the question was if we risk the 60% chance of getting wet outside or if we “played” it save and set up in their spacious living room. We decided to play the concert inside and at 7:30pm when it started to rain (not dripping, but pouring) in the middle of our set, it proved to be the right decision.
The concert was very energetic and filled with a fun vibe. Several more carpenters, students, parents, free spirits who love to travel, and even four students from the UK showed up. We could even work in a blues-scale-improvisation session for Jenny. She really did well and her friends supported her by clapping along. It was an awesome experience for everyone. After the concert we had great conversations with Jenny and her friends. She told us about her plans to travel the world and we exchanged philosophies and travel experiences. They have a huge world map on their wall where each traveler who passes by can mark a city they’ve been to with a little flag. We pinned our flag into Chicago.
The next day we finally had the time to sleep in since our next gig would only be 7 minutes away. We took our time to shower, get dressed, and have breakfast and decided to visit an animal park that Jenny recommended to us. It was a free park and it was very nice for us to take these few hours off just to walk around a nice landscape. On our way back to the car we met a couple from Gütersloh. We were curious because they were speaking English with their kids and the Dad didn’t seem to have any accent. Turns out he was from Iowa and his wife from Italy! It was cool to see another international couple. We gave them our flyer and got into the car. Onto concert #2 in Bielefeld!
Thank you Jenny and her flatmates for your hospitality and enthusiasm towards our concert in your home! You were great hosts and we’d love to see you again soon!
Joe & Linda 