TALISMAN
TALISMAN singer Jeff Scott Soto was very kind to provide us with insights on the lyrics and songwriting of the brand new album "7" to be released on October 20th on Frontiers Records. Enjoy the read !
Falling
Wrote this one about someone who is supposed to be there for you through thick & thin, like a marriage partner or a lover, but when the chips are down, they just leave you out to dry. This happened to me with someone I worked with in my career.
Nowhere Fast
This also was about someone I thought I could trust & just stabbed me in the back when I turned for a second. I try to write my lyrics in a way that could be adapted to several scenarios, most of them sound like boy/girl situations but they are mostly about other personal experiences, whether they're mine or someone I know of.
Rhyme & Reason
This is the opposite of the 1st 2, it shows the love & trust of one to another can exist without rhyme or reason, just because...
End Of The Line
This is part 2 of 'Falling', this person had a very deep affect on me enough to make me want to write about them...I go to my grave on who its about though :)
The 1 I'm Living 4
I wrote this about the fantasy & idea of love at 1st sight...I got the idea from my son & his experiences with love & dating, as we get older, we realise the reality of relationships & just how much is necessary in successful ones but as youngsters, we dive straight in with the fantasy 'it will last forever'.
On My Way
This one is about my dealings with record labels & how they insist you do things 'they're way' instead of expressing creative control. It can also be about a controlling lover in a relationship...you choose which you like it to be about!
Forevermore
This I wrote about the 15 year anniversary of Freddie Mercury's death. There are a few Queen title references in the song that make it obvious but it is my tribute to one of the greatest artist's of pop music. RIP Freddie
Succumb To My Desire
I decided to get down & dirty with this one lyrically, it could be Colour My XTC Part II, especially in the talking section where I rip straight from the lyrics of the old tune.
Shed A Tear Goodbye
This song musically was written by Jamie, our drummer, who asked me to specifically write the lyrics about what he was recently going through in his personal life. Since we've all been there before & knowing his personal details, I knew exactly how to treat it...it's about a relationship one takes for granted yet doesn't see it coming when the other finally calls it quits. One of those 'don't know what you got till it's gone' songs.
Troubled Waters
This too is the result of 2 people finding less in common as the years go on. Very often people change like hair styles or fashion leaving relationships or even friendships doomed.
Back To The Feeling
This is about a time I recently went through where I was very close to finally giving up in the music biz. I started losing the incentive to continue & through some inspiring recent contacts & writing partners, found a new confidence to not only continue but to do so with a fervor that had no room for failure...seemed to work :)