working man’s son

What inspired the song? 

My relationship with my dad who passed away three years ago. I was trying to capture the emotional tension between gratitude and guilt that comes with being a working man’s son. You hope that you’ve made your dad proud and that you’ve honored the sacrifices he made to get you where you are in life, but you also feel heartbreak at the thought of the dreams your father gave up in order for you to be able to pursue your own. There’s beauty and tragedy in that dynamic. 

Is there a significance behind the song title?

It’s lenticular. It means at once intense pride on one hand, and burden and sorrow on the other. 

What is one key point that makes this song unique?

It’s neither exclusively a tribute song or a grieving song. It’s not simplistic. It’s complex. 

Do you have an interesting story about the songwriting or recording process? 

I began writing this song out of what they call “anticipatory grief,” when I started to realize I was going to lose my dad - more than a year before he died. So it began simply as a tribute song and was originally entitled, “Forever My Father.” It was saying that, we wrote this tory together, and not even death can take that away. We were here. We built this relationship. That will be true for all eternity - forever. But then I began to realize that this is true of every father and son. And from there I wanted to look at something that was more unique to the two of us, and I found it in the tension between my dad’s dreams and my own, and in the way I made up for my dad’s inability to pursue his own dreams by pursuing many of them for him — learning to fly, building a business, winning, etc. 

Favorite lyrics?

“I’ve got medals and trophies, I’ve got ribbons of blue, I didn’t win them for me, Dad. I won them for you.” 

Core Themes

I try to write about the human condition and mix gigantic themes with small everyday details. 

What were the certain stylistic/production choices you made and why? 

I originally wanted this to be a slow, very intimate piano ballad. We tried that ten different ways and it was dragging. Once I decided to pick up the tempo and raise the key to about the top of my voice, the existing arrangement came together. 

How does this song make you feel?

Proud. Complete. 

Please highlight any noteworthy collaborators. 

Mary Gauthier is one of my songwriting coaches and she really pressed me to keep digging deeper. Peter Davis played a bunch of the instruments - djembe, cajon, shruit box, electric guitars and bass - the sessions with Peter really helped the song self-actualize. 

Is there anything else you’d like to share that we didn’t cover?

Wish my dad could hear it. 

What are three adjectives that you'd use to describe the moods of the song?

Melancholy, inspirational, powerful.