We were honored with a position on the Periodic Table of Geek Musicians tonight. It’s not only a place in history, it’s also a way to generate funds for one of Dave Leigh’s charity endeavors, Rite Care. I’ll let him talk about it.
***
I’m Dave Leigh, aka the vocal half of the songwriting team Dr. Lindyke. While not programming or writing songs, I also spend a portion of my free time supporting a charity called Rite Care Centers for Childhood Language Disabilities. Rite Care provides speech and language therapy to pre-school children without regard to race, creed, or the family’s inability to pay. It’s funded entirely by members of the Scottish Rite through various fund-raising projects (not all of which are as harebrained as this one).
***
So there are two BYD items up on the site if you’re interested in helping out Rite Care –
Click to get the hat - All the profits go towards Rite Care
Or you can choose this lovely T-shirt
The 1st Boffo Yux Dudes release on a T-shirt. Click here to buy one.
Thanks to Dave for including us in his worthy endeavor, and I’m hoping more artists will be joining us soon!
I ‘ve been working on a new project with Allan Morgan and Pat Montello for Niveous’s Gift of Music 2011 benefit, and I was getting a little frustrated. We actually made a deadline for once, but it was extended out a week, so I couldn’t share it quite yet with the public. We had a lot of fun with it, and I was excited to do something with Pat again after many years. But I didn’t have any outside people to bounce it off of.
Yesterday I was in the Artifiction chatroom, and saw Dr. Lindyke working on his new song – so I tossed him a link to check it out to get an opinion. I didn’t have the audio feed at first, but could see him contemplating, then snickering, then rolling in conniptions back and forth in his chair. Made me feel good that it hit the mark.
I think we nailed it.
I’ll post the links to Gift of Music 2011 when it goes live – hopefully later this week. Here’s where you can check out the previous year’s entries – there are a lot of ‘Song Fight’ alumni involved who we’ve met through the SpinTunes and Masters of Song Fu contests.
Yes, I did. I may be crazy, but I’ve started the BYD365 Comedy Experiment. I’m hoping to average at least a bit a day for the whole year. It started under the radar last week, and I’ve been slowly stockpiling posts.
Drop on over there and subscribe to the RSS feed. I’ll be raiding the archives and posting new material there uberfrequently. (Is that a word?)
Do you think Batman will notice I replaced his bust?
I wanted to share a few Alfred Hitchcock Christmas Tips with you as the holidays approach. Hopefully they’ll cheer you up in this crazy time during the last shopping days.
[E, A, Gbm, A]
We all know that Life Day is a special day for celebration
You can go and show the Wookiees how much you appreciate them
[B, A, Dbm, B]
[Abm, A, Abm, B]
But there is another creature that you really shouldn’t visit
Don’t go to the forest moon of Endor if you’re fond of living
[E, A, B, A]
[E, A, Abm, B]
Ewoks will eat you even if it is the holidays
Ewoks will eat you, they don’t really care at all
(They’re crazy and hungry)
If you go out looking for a little of that cheerful spirit
And you’re walking past an Ewok village, trust me, don’t go near it
The only spirits that you’ll find are… your dead loved ones stood behind you
Watching from an awkward line as teddy bear cooks tenderize you
Ewoks will eat you even if it is the holidays
Ewoks will eat you, they don’t really care at all
(They’re crazy and hungry)
Should the forest tempt you
Charter a flight up to see Chewbacca
May the Force be with you
If you end up on an Ewok’s wok, yeah
You can tell them you’re a god, but you will likely be rejected
Unless you’ve got a golden body or a skirt, you’ll be ingested
There’s a possibility that… you will end up slowly turning
Tied to a rotisserie as fuzzy short freaks watch you burning
Ewoks will eat you even if it is the holidays
Ewoks will eat you, they don’t really care at all
(They’re crazy)
Ewoks will eat you even if it is the holidays
Ewoks will eat you, they don’t really care at all
(They’re crazy and hungry)
Another song that hasn’t received the accolades it should – this ditty by Pop Machine entitled ‘Big Red’. I thought crossing the country CB genre with the holidays would be an interesting mix. Scott Mercer belts out the vocals better than C.W. McCall, and the theme of saving Christmas reverberates for all to enjoy, with Al, Scott and Dave providing the melodic symphony behind him.
Pop Machine doing their best Shields & Yarnell Impression
Click HERE to reach Allan Morgan’s amazing 365 Music Project – and
I’ve noticed a bunch of songs about the holidays my friends have accumulated over the years, and thought it might be the time to start sharing the wealth. So I’m going to try and blog a bunch of them until Christmas, in the hope you get a chuckle, snicker, or feel good about yourself in the holiday spirit.
If you also want to purchase the (where available) spreading the cheer to the original artist, which is a bonus.
It’s an upbeat ditty about a cephalopod that brings toys to kids where Santa can’t quite reach. The chorus keeps bouncing around in my brain, and makes me happy. Enjoy!
Did you know there was an LP cover contest as well? (Thanks Dave)
I’m writing this review before coordinating my vote with Allan Morgan – since we together only get one vote, I’m only 50% of the official tally. But here goes my quick impressions of the 4th Round songs. The first 4 are in the running to win, the rest are shadows by previous contestants. Boffo Yux Dudes did three shadows this round – I’ll post them up later.
Zarni De Wet – The Bleeding Effect ( Assassin’s Creed)
Zarni takes this piano ballad about a schizophrenic killer and shoots out a mood of death and destruction. It’s not quite clear if the song is from the unstable Desmond’s point of view or Subject 16’s – perhaps both – but it’s still powerful stuff.
Mitchell Adam Johnson – In Another Castle (Super Mario Bros)
Mitchell writes from the view of a princess that keeps putting herself in danger, so she’ll feel the thrill of being rescued. Good use of video sound fx and samples of the game. Nice touch with ‘If you didn’t show, I’d die’ literally and figuratively.
Rebecca Brickley – Where I Am (Carmen SanDiego)
Rebecca turned this jazzy number into a humorous tweak on the game ‘Where in the World is Carmen SanDiego’. I can almost see Rockapella doing backup for her on this one. Witty lyrics make this one a winner. Enjoyed the Get/Silhouette rhymes and the baiting of the Chief to find her. Teasing or a challenge there? Actually, Both.
Chris Cogott – In Bright Falls (Alan Wake)
Chris brings a Surf guitar and 60’s beat to the tale of A. Wake and his quest to find sanity and his lost wife in Bright Falls. I had to research the game – he did a great job with the details. Enjoyed the musical tags and Beatles hooks to the song, including the Paperback Writer homage at the end.
Charlie McCarron – The Pac-Man Duet A fun romp where Pac and Ms. Pac Man sing about meeting together. I like how Charlie and Nicole’s voices work well together in this one. Wish it was a little longer, but the ghosts had other plans.
Mark Humble – I’m Q*Bert, Babe Mark slipped into a soulful vibe with his one. I expected Barry White to sneak up on the speakers. Loved the SFX mixed in to the storyline, as well as rhyming Pizza with Nietzsche. Total win.
Brian Gray – Hard To Get (Shadow) (Donkey Kong)
Upbeat, bouncy and fun. I liked the swing feel and harmonies, along with the witty wordplay. Having the large simian use the princess as bait to catch the Mario of his dreams was a clever hook. Turning it into a homoerotic Shakespeare themed love story was a level above the rest.
JoAnn Abbott – Go For The Eyes (Boo from Baldur’s Gate)
Joann (and Caleb) waltz into this song about Baldur’s Gate and Minsc’s Miniature Giant Space Hampster (™), Boo. The title refers to the favorite attack of said rodent. I liked the witty storyline and baroque feel.
David Ritter – Pitfall! (Shadow) (Pitfall)
David brings up the original Atari 2600 game Pitfall and runs with it through dangers and swinging vines. Turning it into a slow ballad with guitar and piano was an interesting choice for an action game.
Caleb Hines – The Writing On The Wall (Portal)
Caleb’s take on Portal with Joann singing lead . Interesting take on the game, with lots of insider hints and a nod to JoCo. I’d have my cake and eat it too… if it wasn’t a lie to begin with. Nice job on this one.
Governing Dynamics – One Four One (Roach) (Shadow) Gary “Roach” Sanderson from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
Travis sets a mood for this song with droning grunge guitar and drums about a black ops team that deals with the struggle of war, and relentless killing all around him. He hit the right notes in getting the tone of the game across. War is hell, but this is magic.
Inverse T. Clown – I’m Tops (Shadow) (TopMan from MegaMan)
ITC takes the wimpiest boss from the classic game and imbues him with an ego the size of New Jersey. Bouncy synth and 8 Bit Drums keep the tune rolling until it’s inevitable demise. I liked the fact he refuses to admit ‘Top Man’ is for his weapons instead of an elite status in his own mind.
I saw a lot of thought and planning in this round of songs – didn’t expect the depth and levels in such simple games, but people found them and brought them out. I’ll post the BYD songs here later this week, but you can listen to them and vote at the Spintunes site. Enjoy!
Boffoyuxdudes's Weblog 
You must be logged in to post a comment.