Words and Music Archives - Tony Funderburk

Poetry in motion Back in the 80’s music took a sharp, electronic turn. Synthesizers were ubiquitous in top 40. And even drums were digitized. A lot of it was cheesy. But there were plenty of songs I enjoyed, too. One of them popped into my head, early this morning. And I think it was because of one short line in it. “ She’s poetry in motion .”   I’ve always loved that...

Hmm…can music change your mood? Spoiler, and short answer…no. Apparently a lot of people use that search phase, can music change your mood, on Google. Because Google serves up a lot of results for the question. But it’s really simple. Music cannot truly change your mood. And I’m not just saying this to start an argument, by the way.   If you ask, can music change your mood,...

Morning Lullaby What? Whoever heard of a morning lullaby? And who wants to go to sleep in the morning anyway? No, it’s not actually like that at all. You know me. I get these silly notions in my head, and I’m just liable to write ’em down. And most of the time it’s just excuses to stay in touch with you and let you in on some of the things I’ve been working on. Or wha...

Sing along songs for little buckaroos Way back in history…all the way back to the early 2000’s…there lived a seasoned songwriter. And he wrote whole collections of sing along songs for kids. Parents from far and near would buy those songs on little pieces of round plastic called CD’s. And their kids loved ’em. The songwriter sang lots of sing along songs, personalized...

Be careful…wishes might come true I talked about this about five years ago. But it’s still just as true as ever. You might be wishing for things to happen. Or not happen. And you might be wishing and hoping for things you’d be much better without. So, it’s mighty important to be careful with your wishes. And when I say careful, I mean full of care. A woman I know, who will...

An old song with a musical interlude Way, way back in my songwriting life, sometimes I’d worked on something “more than just a song.” And now, when I go through my old notebooks, I see how little I remember about those pieces. Like the words I’m gonna share to a song I composed in 1981. It even included a musical interlude. It sounds funny to me now. But I even wrote a note...

Oh well, what can you do? When I was much younger, I wrote more songs with more questions in them. It hadn’t occurred to me before. But I was looking at some lyric files, today, and I saw that pattern form in the old lyrics. And the ironic thing is, it wasn’t because I didn’t have the answers. Because many times I actually did. In fact, they were as close as my next breath. So, e...

Yes, music does me good. And you? Whenever I’ve gone through a rough patch in life. Anytime I’ve spent hours, days, or even weeks alone. And basically during any part of life’s up’s and down’s, music was there. And I love knowing it’s always there. Because music does me good. Can I get an amen? Music does me good, but not just any music. And that’s true fo...

Warning: Flirt Alert They used to be called philanderers. Or maybe you’ve heard ’em called a   Casanova , a  Don Juan , or  Lothario. And more recently you might’ve heard terms like  ladies’ man , playboy , or stud. Way back when, you could’ve heard:   skirt-chaser , tomcat, and  wolf . Whichever name you choose, they all fall under my warning of flirt alert.   I know...

Analog zone of my own OK, here’s my phone. Now, let’s see. Settings: General: software update. No, not in there. OK, Settings: Wi-Fi. And it’s not in there. Where would it be? Control center? No. Accessibility? No. And it’s not even under Emergency SOS. Well…I’ll toss this question out to all my fellow iPhone users. Where is the analog zone setting for our devic...

Music and math – it all adds up Way back in my school choir days I remember how much I enjoyed when we started learning about music dynamics. Because dynamics give music so much more emotion and depth. And in this digital age, a lot of those nuances are represented by numbers. So, you could say (in fact, I AM saying) music and math go together like logic and emotions.   Music and math show u...

Music is dead – yeah, right I was about to do a little research on the Wizard of Google. So, I clicked into the search bar and started typing “music is…” And before I could type anything else, Google delivered up some “suggestions.” One of the main ones was “music is dead.” Of course, I couldn’t resist finding out why that would be a suggestion...

Music is communication of choice by your friendly neighborhood RhymeTender To say music is communication is a bit like saying water is wet. Of course it is! But it’s not simple yada yada communication. Because music is the way people share words, ideas, and emotions on a deep level. Even if they don’t speak the same language. Name something else that can do that. Music is the preferred...

I love the music and memory connection My friend, Brian, and I were talking about starting to sing in front of a group of people and realizing you don’t remember the first words. He told me this happened to him recently. But he was impressed by how the music started, and when it came time to sing the first word, he just remembered. And I surprised him by sharing how my music and memory conne...

Talk about a very good feeling Imagine yourself in God’s shoes for a minute. Back at the time of creation. Those very first six days when He created Heaven and Earth. And everything in them. You’re looking down at it all and how perfect it is. Can you imagine? Wouldn’t it give you a very good feeling like never before? Well, that’s what God said about it. Creating a beautif...

Heart throb of the 80s Yeah, I played music for a living back in the 80’s. A bit before that, and a long time after that, too. But those 80’s were a ton of fun. Straight ahead beats. Bright colors and pastels. Pushing up the sleeves on sports jackets. Big hair…on both guys and girls. And back then, the term “heart throb” was still being used a lot. Do an image search...

Is positive reinforcement always positive? Earlier today we were out running errands. And at a traffic light we saw a lady and her dog stop to wait for the green. She looked down at the cute little dude, and he did a perfect dog sit. Then, he looked up at her expectantly, and Elgielene and I both said, “Oh, he’s about to get some positive reinforcement (aka a treat). And sure ’nu...

I captured some moments in time I’ve mentioned before how I spent a year of prolific songwriting in Nashville. It was back in 1992-93. And I was under the mistaken impression that record companies were always looking for something new. No, this isn’t sour grapes. Because I know I’m basically not a country and western singer/songwriter. And the nice folks in the land of the Grand...

Who’s singing songs of love? Most recording artists aren’t singing songs of love anymore. Because most of them don’t even know what true love is anymore. And that’s sad. But not surprising. After all…where in the world can they learn about true love? Certainly not in schools. And unfortunately, probably not even in the homes where they grow up. Because, there, they wa...

Someday One Day Today is a mighty big day here in the FunderBungalow. Elgielene and I celebrate 30 years of marriage. Yes, to each other. I know some of my knucklehead friends who’d scarcely miss a chance to take a jab there. And I’m sharing the lyrics to a song I wrote to Elgielene for our one year anniversary. Rhyme and Reason Podcastlisteners will hear a nearly 30 year old recording...

A twist on love and reason Here we are about to finish up the first week of February in 2020. And all you gotta do is go to the grocery store and you’ll know what the next “holiday” is. Yeah, Valentine’s Day. We’re in the month of love and roses and chocolate. Love and roses is one thing. But love and reason? Well, that’s a little winged, bow-carrying angel of a...

The thrills are alive with the Sound of Music You might recall (then again you might not because it was a long time ago.) back in 1965 there was a movie musical called “The Sound of Music.” It starred Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. And several famous songs popped out of it. But I don’t actually wanna talk about the movie. “So, why’d you bring it up, Tony?&#822...

A sleepy-eyed bon fide wee hours wanderer At 2:45 this morning I bumbled out of bed, as I do most every morning, and made my way into the kitchen. An issue I’ve been dealing with, for the past couple of years, typically won’t let me sleep more than about four hours at a time. But starting on the first day of this year, I decided to put my sleepy-eyed hours to good use. Writing regular...

Another hit from the extraordinary playlist in life Right at this minute I can’t think of where I saw it. But recently, somewhere on my computer, or my tablet, or my phone, an ad popped up at the top. It was a link to a show, of some kind, called “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.” It didn’t interest me enough to click through. But it did find an empty spot in my memory...

Once there was a Satellite song… I’m a bit vague on what the news story was. After all, it was 30 years ago. But I remember something in the news on TV about something in space. And I had been working on a song that needed a three syllable word for my main focus. (It’s a weird thing that goes on in my head during the creation process. Don’t ask.) Anyway…as I listened...