On Wednesday, March 27, more updates were made to the tentatively-titled “Call Me Doctor”. Cory was present, and worked his usual magic.

Jeff kept on plugging away at his parts, and things are definitely taking shape on that front. It’s always fascinating to watch Jeff writing in parallel to you. He sort of plods around for a while, makes tentative gestures, scowls, and then he puts the guitar down. He’ll listen to the entire song without playing a single note. And, just when you think he’s completely disinterested in the song or feeling utterly uninspired, he’ll just pull something absolutely amazing out. I’ve long since given up on trying to do anything other than let him work at his own pace; the results are always worth it.

Dave once again filled in quite admirably on drums, and I wrote some scratch vocals to help give it form and structure for arranging purposes. It’s all pretty mutable at this point, but I’m feeling good about it. As Jeff put it, it’s getting close to being close.

Also, Voda is embarking on a bit of a gear-acquisition spree. More on that later.

On March 21, Dave and Jeff I wrote the skeleton of a new song, the working title of which is “Call Me ‘Doctor’”. It’s an upbeat, rocking song. So far, no lyrics have been written, and there’s still a fair bit of work to be done. But we’ve got chord changes, some lead guitar parts, and a basic sense of rhythm and arrangement. Not bad for a Wednesday night.

Bonus points to Dave for filling in on drums for the session, and for making the remark that it’s the kind of song where you extend the intro or the bridge so that you can name the people in the band during a show. “Ladies and Gentlemen, on Bass Guitar…a man who needs no introduction…Cory Cocomazzi!”

Chances are, the title will be changed. There was a bit of discussion about using the titles of Ginn & Company grammar school literature textbooks as song titles. Mystery Sneaker? Helicopters and Gingerbread? Jeff thought it was all a bit Pavement. Upon further reflection, I thought it a bit Guided By Voices. Dave brought up “All of these things sink”, a rather oblique Lemonheads reference. Either way, I like the idea, but something tells me I’m not going to get my way on this one. “Yes, Andrew, it’s all very nice that you’ve found a niche…childhood is a lie…but are you taking it too far?” Jeff says. As if such a thing were possible!