The Subterraineans: Short and Sweet (demo)

Short and Sweet by The Subterraineans. EP: Demo SHORT AND SWEET Somehow it just doesn’t suit me Oh I try but it just won’t fit Some way a promise of another day Means nothing, nothing to me Hold on – I’ve been here before Waiting here – looking for an open door Go to sleep – it’s just another empty day Go around – and do it again Time – time on my shoulder Death – awaits round the corner Life, life, give me life Oh dear Lord there’s got to be another way I’ve done no wrong yet somehow I pay The truth – it doesn’t seem to play no part I can’t moan though nothing is right Fight – running up another hill It’s tight – a little more than before Expense – is all there ever seems to be Push and shove – just for a little bit more Time – time on my shoulder Death – awaits round the corner Life, life, give me life Because life is short and sweet It’s short and sweet ★ Music and lyrics by Dean Trotter. This arrangement by The Subterraineans. Performers: Dean Trotter – vocals, electric guitar, 12-string acoustic guitar George Davies – electric lead guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals, EDP Wasp Jerry Peirce – bass Graham Barbe – drums Recorded, mixed and produced by George Davies at 31 Cowick Lane, Exeter, 1986. This EP was first released on 7th January 1987. Cassette salvage performed 2008. Audio remastered at Wud Records Studios 2023. Cover painting by Unknown. Graphics by Sam James and Blueprint Studios. Copyright ℗ 1986 Explicit Music. Copyright © 1987 Wud Records. Fun Facts: * Short and Sweet is in the key of A minor. * We believe it was composed in the first few months of 1986. * It was part of the set of The Addled Eggs before that band morphed into The Subterraineans. * The acoustic rhythm guitar was played on Senga’s Yamaha steel string. * The 12-string was an Ibanez acoustic with a cutaway. * Dean’s rhythm guitar was performed on a black Squier Stratocaster plugged into a Sound City head and an unknown cabinet. * George’s lead guitar was played on an Ibanez Roadstar plugged in to a five-channel HH P.A. head with a pair of dual concentric HH P.A. cabs. * Effects used include a Boss HM2 distortion, a Boss GE7 graphic and a Guyatone Analog Delay. * George added the Wasp to fatten out the bottom end a little. * It was one of the first Subterraineans songs that Jerry learned to play on the bass. * Dean would say “It’s got to go in… and out… in, and out.” * Fortunately George knew what he meant and was able to translate this to Jerry. * Short and Sweet was recorded using a Tascam 244 portastudio. * A pair of Aria mics were used to record everything – an AM 60D and an AM 20D. * For more info about these two mics, click here: http://www.muzines.co.uk/articles/aria-professional-microphones/5925 * The song was mixed to cassette on a Realistic SCT-60 twin cassette recorder. * The serial number for the cassette machine is 05200319. * Due to many years of cassette deterioration, the quality of this recording is not great. * We have managed to improve a little on what remained. * After this song was uploaded to SoundCloud, it was discovered by a band called The Eldar. * They honoured The Subterraineans with a beautiful cover version of this song. * Here is a link: https://soundcloud.com/theeldarstar * Short and Sweet is an incredible and epic song that had the power to profoundly affect people who heard it live. Sadly Dean took his own life by suicide at the Clifton suspension bridge, Bristol, in 1994. He was just 29 years old. In Short and Sweet, Dean sings “Give me life” – we hope by keeping his songs in the public domain we are able to do that, just a little. Rest in peace, Dean. See also: https://www.wudrecords.co.uk/artists/the-subterraineans/ https://www.wudrecords.co.uk/artists/the-subterraineans/demo/ https://wudrecords.bandcamp.com/track/short-and-sweet https://www.explicitmusic.co.uk/lyrics-information/the-subterraineans/the-subterraineans-lyrics/short-and-sweet https://linktr.ee/wudrecords