AMY'S SONG

remember when the valley used to be a valley

before the tide came in

malibu is our atlantis now

and those that remain had to ride a big wave

funny how we never thought

of dying young or getting caught

life was pretty good

but it's so much better now

at the shoreline

the san fernando shoreline

i love to watch the lemmings do their thing

i used to up an' sing

still do it all the time

we never needed anybody's graces

in places where our faces

were the starshine in double time

funny how we never thought

of dying young or getting caught

life was pretty good

but it's so much better now

at the shoreline

the san fernando shoreline

i'll write a book

you can make a film

jimmy, grab your guitar

and i'll pour the zin

at the shoreline

the san fernando shoreline

when it's time to let it go

i hope you understand

come on out to santa fe

ride it out til the end

we'll be high in our castle of sand

come back when we can

oh san fernando

to see you again

and those that remain

those that remain

and those that remain

at the shoreline

the san fernando shoreline

c. astrid young

vocals: astrid

background vocals: kim koren

piano/B3: astrid

12-string: astrid

other guitars: eric mcfadden

bass: malachi delorenzo

drums: victor delorenzo

studios:

central audio, toronto

sly-fi chapel, trenton

napier park recording, dundas ontario

robot recording, san francisco

the past office, milwaukee

engineers:

rob sanzo, brent bodrug, steve foster, travis kasperbauer, malachi delorenzo

i wrote this song the day my friend amy yessian passed from this world. she was light to me. the world is still grieving her, but her spirit goes on. 

it's dedicated to those that remain.

music & lyrics: astrid young © SOCAN

vocals: astrid

background vocals: kim koren

piano/B3: astrid

12-string: astrid

other guitars: eric mcfadden

bass: malachi delorenzo

drums: victor delorenzo

studios:

central audio, toronto ontario

sly-fi chapel, trenton ontario

napier park recording, dundas ontario

robot recording, san francisco

the past office, milwaukee

engineers:

rob sanzo, brent bodrug, steve foster, travis kasperbauer, 

malachi delorenzo

mixed by: malachi delorenzo

produced by victor delorenzo

mastered by: joao carvalho

i wrote this song the day my friend amy yessian passed from this world. she was light to me. the world is still grieving her, but her spirit goes on. these are some things we talked about, laughed about, got up to, and all that ... amy was probably the most enthusiastic music lover i've ever known, outside of other musicians. she had an infectious smile, laugh and a heart that was both embracing and embraceable ... you could not know amy without loving her, that's for sure. she battled cancer for years, fought to stay because she loved life, and she loved jimmy. the only grace in her passing is that she is not in pain anymore. there is no justice in a world that could take her from us, and i still think of her every single day. i know i'm not the only one. 

so ... it took a while to make this song work. the guts of it were there, but the original interpretation that we tracked just wasn't quite right ... dan cornelius played on the original track, but the edit ended up (in my opinion) too bouncy and maybe a little less dramatic than maybe it should have been ... so i recut the drums with Ray Farrugia, and it was a better interpretation, but the overall sound was trashy and harsh - big room, too much room, too much cymbals, there was nothing i could do in an edit that could change it, so we were back to square one. victor laid a track down at Travis' during those sessions, but it was a bit meandering and lacked focus overall ... funny that such a simple and straightforward song can give you such trouble! so what saved it in the end: i went back to Brent's studio and did a piano track on this old upright honky-tonk piano, (one take y'all, no edits), and then i sent the whole mess to Victor and Malachi, who then recut a new drum track, laid down a new bass track (it was near impossible to nail a good bass track without the right drums) and there it was, just like it had been waiting for us to find it. so i want to say thank you to everyone who attempted to make this track, but did not end up on the final: dan cornelius and ray farrugia on drums, and also mike costantino, joe gore and travis on bass. it was all a necessary part of the process for sure. there's also an incredibly epic background vocal arrangement that kim koren and i spent a great deal of time on, but hey, just maybe it's what we DIDN'T put in there that makes it so special! 

You will never be forgotten, my sweetest friend.