Songs named after people

I've never been a fan of songs that have girls' names in them, like a little black book of music. Shit like this...



...irritates the shit out of me. No joke. Die, Darryl Hall. You can live, John Oates, but only because you have a super-sweet mustache.

Ben Folds coined the term "emotionally lewd," with regard to using I and Me too much in his songwriting, and although I do that a lot in my music, I've never even been tempted to get so personal with a song that it uses someone's name. If you come right out and say it's for a specific girl, how are you going to be able to lie to other girls so they think it's about them? And if you can't lie, how the hell can you get laid?

I'm (mostly) kidding.

Thing is, the Guys and I have finished writing one hell of a song, and because a certain person has been on my mind a great deal lately, she made it into the song. Into the chorus, even. Can you believe it? How... emotionally... lewd!

Thing about it is, it's not even someone I care about that much. Maybe that's the key; you write about the disconnect with the person instead of writing about the actual person. Surely, people will hear this new "Jenny Song" and think, "He's so complicated... I can't believe he's used her name in that song! Do you think she knows? Who do you think Jenny is?"

I'm probably over-thinking it. Fact is, nobody talks much about my lyrics... which disappoints me, truly. Almost every song brings back a vivid memory, where I can remember the exact time of day that led me to write those specific words.

Anyway, the person I should have written about is Ashley. Thing is, if you write a song about someone that you really do care about, you can't take back anything. With Jenny, I wouldn't take it back because it's all true. With Ashley, I might want to... if things don't work out... which things never do.

I spoke with Ashley tonight. She's one of my best friends, and someone that I feel a very deep connection with. We can not talk for a month, then see or talk to each other and pick up where we left off immediately. And the thing about it is, I don't see her that often. And I miss her.

In this way, she's completely opposite of the woman in the "Jenny Song." Jenny, as sweet and wonderful and pretty and smart and funny as any woman I've ever met, never left me wanting more; more time, more nights together, just one minute here and there... But with Ashley, there's a whole different energy involved. Part of that comes from being friends for so long, almost 10 years at this point.

Unfortunately, that train has likely sailed. We've had our moments, when things went right or hard drugs were involved. And each time, left me wanting more, and her wanting less.

Love is hard. Falling completely head over heels for someone who doesn't feel the same way is probably the toughest thing I've ever had to endure.

But now I know what it's like to be on the other side, on Ashley's side. Because of Jenny. Jenny, who the song is about. Who was (is?) head over heels for me... is playing the role of me, head over heels for Ashley.

What a twisted web we weave.