Songs

All Songs Written, Arranged and Produced by John O’Brien

The Spider's Love Web

The Spider’s Love Web

On a hot steamy night at the dance club, he is searching for a warm nocturnal with an attractive compliant woman. He finds her, or so he thought. She dances, her sexy well-built body pulsing to the thundering music and to the club’s gleaming flashing lights. She began to caress him in a tactile forward and stimulating manner — weaving her web. He reacted in a surprised but delighted way. He quickly concluded, naively, that she is the one for him tonight. They drunkenly stumble back to her table where she made an even stronger, bolder move on him, causing him, her spider prey, to fall helplessly into the web she wove. He concludes that it is time to take her home, sending off her to say goodnight to her girlfriend. Instead, she looks back at him, starring and laughing, and quickly leaves the club deserting him. Stunned and poisoned by the spider’s bite, he struggles…tangled and captured in her spider web. He tries, but he cannot form a thought or make a move. He stumbles through his thoughts knowing that there would be no love tonight. He sings that to himself uncontrolled and repeatedly, and there was not.

The Spider's Love Web Dance Mix

The Spider’s Love Web Dance Mix

Beach Party

In a small island native community, a ruckus beach party occurs every year when the seasons change. All the people that live there anticipate the next party with great expectation and gather for the happy celebration that always lasts all night. As night falls, they light bonfires and set torches in the sand. A rock band playing traditional surf rock songs brings them all to their feet. They all dance barefoot in the sand and sing and laugh drinking all night making romance in the dunes. As the morning comes, the sun pokes its bright rays above the horizon lighting up the white sands that shimmer like diamonds bringing the morning to life. They walk home together, holding hands, and love each other like never before.

Sweet Ballet

Two complete strangers catch each other’s eye on a beautiful afternoon while strolling through a park. They nervously approach each other, then proceed to walk together. They both begin to feel that inexplicable excitement about each other—that warm burn inside of nervous anticipation. That night they stay together and make wonderful love to each other – their Sweet Ballet. The song opens when they awake together to the sunrise. They spend that and the next day reveling in the love they are experiencing and how they have escaped “the world outside” — at least these two precious days. They dwell in the beach house for the whole weekend, never going outside, constantly and desirously loving each other for every minute. Finally, they realize that Monday morning has come and know they must go about their business and go their separate ways — at least for the day. They talk on the phone, and both find themselves thinking about each other and the beautiful love they have made…it is their Sweet Ballet! They have found love at first sight in a chance encounter. Forever after that, every day will be a Beautiful Day they will Toss Their Cares Away together.

Stop!!

A lonely man calls a Lady of the Night. He goes. The visit is strange, erotic. He gets hooked and needs her. He can’t stop. She is strange, wants to film their escapades. He vows to stop, but always goes back. He’s addicted not knowing what he should do. Once, while with her, he looks at a mirror and sees who he has become. Still lonely and loveless. He wants to get away, but she stops him. He needs to stop, he yells it at her, but he will not leave. “So good” she whispers, “don’t stop” she says. He stays.

That Girl is Trouble

Every once in a while, you see someone who really catches your interest. But there’s some little signal or a look about them that tells you that they could be real trouble. Your friends tell you to watch out and your gut tells you they’re probably right, but there’s something about them you just can’t resist so you go for it – all in! The song is about what happens then.

Take it Home

Regrettably, sometimes our lover turns against us and then taunts us so that we are hurting even more than we would be otherwise. If you’re hurt and you see your lover with someone you know and they are taunting you, all you want to do is for them to get out of your sight. This is a song about that and what you always want to say is just “Take it Home”!

Mother Ocean: Save the Earth for All

Mother Ocean: Save the Earth for All is a song about how we are unwittingly and perhaps unknowingly killing the one thing that sustains all of life on earth. The ocean is where life on earth began, spreading to seas, the land, and the air. The ocean sustains the environment on our earth so that we can all live. We must do everything we can to keep the oceans alive – the blood of our earth. This song is a plea to save our ocean and, in turn, “Save the Earth for All”.

Siboney

Siboney is a small beautiful beach village on the south shore of Cuba. Before the revolution it was populated by artists, composers, poets and writers. After the revolution, most of the artists left Siboney moving to Central and South America. Many songs and movies have been written and produced about Siboney recalling its romance and beauty — this is just the latest.

The Love You Need

The Ultimate Rebop

Every time I tried to get close to her emotionally, she would back away. Whenever I found myself giving up, she would come back to me and beg me with her stunning eyes looking into mine to “just give it some time”.

Phoenix

In the 1960s I traveled with a touring act named the Crystal Revelation. We were often just tired of traveling, but we knew what it felt like to suddenly come into a town and people on tour that you’d really to end up loving. That was Phoenix.

But You’re Gone

We’ve all had the feeling of falling hard for someone and thinking “hey this is it!” The boundless passion and warm, happy friendship are overwhelming, and then, here comes the letdown when they find their way back into their old life with their old lover and their old habits…she just left…GONE.

I Feel You Struggling

A tale of a very short-lived love and passion with a woman who was amazing to be with, but then found out she had had a fight with her lover, left him and then decided, without a word, to go back to him.

Every Time I See Your Face

This song is about being head over heels in love with somebody and the intense heat and emotion that you feel when in that state of mind. We decided to do this song as a duet because both men and women can feel this way.

Happy to Love

I wrote this song mostly about my son and his partner and the way that they love each other, help each other out, counsel each other when they need it and give each other everything that they can is inspiring. They just seem so happy to love.

Leaving in Your Own Time

They have an extramarital affair and fall in love, then starkly facing the inevitable question of whether they should leave the world they’re in and venture into a new world with each other or stay where they are.

California Wildfire

I was so struck by the death and destruction of Paradise, California that was reported widely on TV. It seemed like no matter where you were the images of that horror were in everyone’s face. It is also a call to action to fight the cause of these fires — climate change.

Hey Sweet

I lived with a woman who I ended up having an on-again off-again relationship with for about 10 years. The nickname I gave her was “Sweet”. After living with her for several years, I moved out. After a while she came and joined me, but it was not going to work out because we had grown so far apart.

By the Throat

My brother passed away from an opiate overdose. After he died, like others who go through this with a family member, I asked myself over and over again; what could I have done? Why did this happen? This song is my answer to that question. Please go get help.

Right to Be Here Now

Sometimes you can fall in love with somebody and you know you shouldn’t, but you can’t bring yourself to do anything but love that person. What they know is that they may not be in the right place with that person, but it’s right to be there wherever they are right then.

My Revelation

Not Enough

I was wandering through a flea market in Jamaica when I came across three Jamaican musicians with acoustic guitars drinking rum and laughing a lot. They were complaining about Americans that never seem to have enough and always want more. I began writing this song with them and finished it when I got back to my hotel. It’s one of my favorite songs.

Bruce Wands co-writer

Give Up Trying

I was in a relationship with a woman who was wonderful to be with, but every once in a while, she would, with a little smile, say something really demeaning and critical of me. The emotion I always had when that happened was that I wanted to walk away, but she was so nice the rest of the time that I didn’t. My internal conflict was intense. I wrote this song about her and those feelings.

I Miss You

I think this song’s emotions are familiar to many people who, after a long time in a loving relationship, find that the intense passion that was so meaningful, has gone away. It causes painful heartache and a desire to go back to the days when the emotion and passion would rise, and the feeling of love was overwhelming and intense. This song is about wanting those times back and hoping they do.

Summer Sun

I lived in the world-famous Hamptons on the East End of Long Island for about 10 years.It was startling how in the summer it became an international vacation spot with people from all over the world and a rich culture was there for the experience. Then, a week after the summer ended, all those people would suddenly disappear and go back to their homes. Suddenly, we were just in a lonely little beach community – all of us locals. The song is about those feelings of abandonment and anticipating a long winter ahead.

Bruce Wands co-writer

Innocence

I wrote this song because I wanted to say what all those people out for a night on the town seeking a rendezvous and a sexual encounter would say to each other if they were speaking the truth. The lyrics are meant to convey the real feelings of those people, as they look at each other and talk to each other, hoping for the best that night.

Where Are You Now

In going through a divorce, I began to question myself and the feelings that my own children had for me. The song is about the uncertainty and self-doubt of not knowing what your future holds with your children, and how much you absolutely love them. For me the feelings were unbearable, so I wrote this song to express those dreadful feelings.

Bruce Wands co-writer

Better Days

Everyone has had times in their life when everything seems to be falling into place and going well, but that haunting feeling that things could still go wrong hovers over your head. When that happens, I think people look to the people around them that they love and put their faith and just think about what these wonderful days are actually for – these are the better days.

Oklahoma Cowboy

This is about a true story. I was in Texas and decided that I wanted to hear some real Western music. I was loving it when suddenly, the place filled up with rowdy cowboys. The rodeo was in town just finishing for the night. A young man from Oklahoma, who performed in the rodeo that night, sat next to me at the bar, and in a very somber manner told me the story about how much he missed his girlfriend and felt out-of-place in Texas. It was heart rendering. This song is about that young man and his feelings. I hope he got back to his love.

Rock in the Sun

Everyone has times when they just throw their hands up and walk away from everything to just sit and contemplate what’s going on inside of themselves and in their lives. I was feeling like that and on a hotel balcony when looking around I saw a large white rock in the middle of a field. I went down an elevator and sat on that rock and thought about myself and my future. It brought this song into my mind and I wrote it then and there.

Hey Sweet

I lived with a woman, I nicknamed Sweet, who I ended up having an on-again off-again relationship with for almost 10 years. After living with her for several years, I moved out and went to live on a beach. After a while she came and joined me, but it was not going to work because we had really grown apart. I remembered where we lived previously where we had beautiful artwork and paintings in our house, and, for a time, we were so happy. The song is about missing her and missing that time and place and recognizing that sometimes you have to just give it up and move on.

Quiet Storm

Don’t You Think That It’s Crazy

It is crazy. This is a story anyone who has ever been in divorce court with children will understand and probably identify with. The only people in the courthouse who are nervous and upset are the mom and dad. The children are dumbfounded and depressed. For everyone else who’s there, it’s just another day at the office. It’s really bad – trust me.

The Stalker

A friend of mine went on a blind date with somebody recommended by another friend she met at a bar. She didn’t have a great time and the next time he asked she decided to let him know that she had another boyfriend, an excuse. He started following her around and she was pretty scared. She related the story to me and I wrote this song about him.

Lightnin’ Strikes

This is a rendition of the very famous song by Lou Christie which was very popular in 1966. It went gold in the UK and it number one in the US and number three in New Zealand. I really like the song decided to do a remake.

Whose Heart

This song was written initially by a good friend of mine, Billy Summerhayes, who passed away several years ago. I picked up the song and made some changes to it and decided that I would remake it in honor of Billy. The lyric is about wondering who was going to come into your life next and getting along in the emotional storm and rain of everyday life.

I Feel You Struggling

At first I started writing this song about my daughter who was having problems at the time and somehow it morphed into a song about a lover who had come into my life very quickly out of nowhere, needed a lot of support from me, made my day every day for about a month, and then quickly left and went back to her boyfriend. I still miss her to this day.

Harsh Comfort

At one time I was an aspiring screenplay writer and I was in a workshop sponsored by Francis Ford Coppola where we would swap scripts that we wrote and talk about them. I wrote one which I thought was good, until it was reviewed by a lot of people and I realized how hard it is to write a screenplay. In that workshop I met a woman who had written a beautiful screenplay called “Harsh Comfort” about the land deal in the southwest United States that had gone bad. This was supposed to be the title track, but the movie was never made.

I Can’t Live Without Your Love

In one of those moments when I was madly in love and wanted to do anything that I could for the person I loved, I decided to write a song that would capture those feelings. The thought of not being with her is what drove the lyric and the music. I still smile when I listen to it.

Misty Roses

This is a song that was written by Tim Hardin a songwriter who wrote many hits including “If I Were A Carpenter” and “Reason to Believe”. The simple jazz-influenced progression and melody always struck me as very beautiful and I thought it would be really nice song to cover – so I did.

The River

This song was written by Joni Mitchell and my recording of it originally was placed on an early Christmas CD that I did because I always felt that all was a Christmas song. The lyric is a good story about going to Los Angeles to make in the music business and finding out that not only is it hard, but there are aspects of it which are really awful. I love the guitar sounds though.

The Challenge

I wrote this song two days after September 11, 2001 when I watched the World Trade Center in New York City come down in a terrorist attack with my own two eyes when it happened. Living in New York at the time, I felt the whole world had changed and everybody around me was suddenly very scared and tender. I wrote this song, maybe for myself, as a plea to stay at peace and lose the anger which had unavoidably crept into all of us. The world is still scared so I think this song still has a message.

Lover

Don Juan couldn’t have said it better. The Lover says, “I’m my own man you are your own woman and we found something really good together, but I’m still out there and you’re still out there and we should get together when we want and get out there when we want.” It’s the philosophy that our bodies are a pleasure toy chest to be taken out when we feel like playing and put away when we don’t. I think every once in a while, we’ve all probably been there.

En Tu Tiempo

This is a bilingual production of a song on the “The Love You Need” album which is named “Leaving In Your Own Time”. It’s about an extramarital affair which starts out as an escape from two unsatisfying marriages but ends up with the straying couple falling in love with each other. The lyric represents the conversation that they have, discussion about expectations and unhappiness, and finally a mutual expectation of waiting patiently for the time when they can run away to happiness together.

Bourbon Street

For all those folks who have gone to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, this song will remind you about what you don’t remember! Starting in Ohio driving down to New Orleans, having some drinks, then opening up your wallet to get the limo, the white dress shoes, the great outfit, and then seeking out a beautiful woman to party with. That may be the singular purpose of Mardi Gras and if you’ve been there, you know exactly what the song is about.

Bruce Wands co-writer

john@johnobriensmusic.com