Written for the New Unofficial Online Writers Guild
After a misbegotten road trip to Muleshoe, I made up a song about our friends there. I titled it “Ruby, the Belle of Muleshoe.” It was a travelogue of the worst road trip of my life. It related the sorry tale. Being harassed by police in TexAss. The the drunken visit in Muleshoe. And how we had to slip away after midnight when the going away party got too unruly. Ruby started distributing those drugs that keep you thin. But in those days, they were amphetamines, and after boozing, there were some unsuspected consequences.
Consequences of Songwriting
I got kicked out of two church sponsored coffeehouses for singing the song. At the third, I bleeped out the good parts, and that was even more suggestive than the original version with the looks and gestures I added. Afterward, someone asked me if half of that stuff was true. I told him, “Well, it happened as I said. You see, I can tell you the truth, or I could come up with a carefully crafted lie which wouldn’t be nearly as much fun.” He wasn’t amused.
In those days, I practiced on the roof of the apartment house we lived in. My buddy and I were up there one night, tinkering with the lyrics to the song, when a neighbor’s dog started howling. It was like he was telling us, ” I sing to the moon, like my brother the wolf does.” For the heck of it we joined his chorus until the neighbor told us to shut the F&$@ up. We decided to incorporate that into the song. The howling added something.
So what gives with this recollection? Well I’ve been praticing guitar again, and I’ve found the words to some of the other songs I wrote, but not those to “Ruby, the Belle of Muleshoe.”Looking at the lyrics of some of my other stuff this may not be a tragedy. But I might be fun to see if it could still get me booted out of a joint.
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But would Max howl with you?!
If he really dislikes it he likes his you know what.
I want to hear them and if not that, read them. As for howling, my dog — a Siberian husky — Cheyenne, used to howl while the Evil X (who imagined he was a singer songwriter when all he was was a freeloading abusive asshole) was trying to record one of his abysmal songs. Cheyenne — who was outside — heard him and started howling along with him. When her howling showed up in his recording, he got so mad I thought he was going to kill the dog. He hadn’t heard her with his earphones on. I put her in the car and took her for a ride. At the time I was listening to Eminem. The song playing was “Bagpipes from Baghdad” one of Cheyenne’s favorite songs. As Eminem sang, she reclined on the package shelf in the back seat and howled along with it. I loved it.
A dog with likes and dislikes in music. Mostly I get cats watching as I play.
Cheyenne was on target with her critique of the evil X. “Dude, you’re off key. Here…”
I had a girlfriend who I was with for about two years, I think she was my Evil X, except I didn’t marry her. People like them are forever oblivious to their being off key, but the are attractive people who lead you in, and are very deceptive.
I didn’t marry the Evil X. I think that X means “crossed out” or something. You are absolutely right about them being very deceptive. I was with him just under 3 years. When I ejected him? That was poetry. 😀
We go on better for leaving them, and warned about the glossie exteriors that hide true horrors. I called her up one day amd broke it off. She was terribly angry. Mot because we were done, but because I had been the one to break it off. “I’ve always been the one who dumped my boyfriends.” Kinda made my day.
That’s hilarious. I just went with the classic, “I hate you. I wish you were dead. Get the F(%$ out of my house.” He didn’t believe I meant it! But he left, finally. 🤣
Ahhh… that feeling of satisfaction when it’s over.
Nice post thanks for sharing
I’d love to have a look at those lyrics 😉 Very nicely done.
I have seriously considered running them through the shredder.
Noooooooooooolk