Fran Williams threw three Lines on JPF about bottles. Before I could think of anything she deleted them. I dashed this off anyway!

"All Bottled Up" copyright July 22, 2019 by Gary E. Andrews

(Verse I)

I remember Momma,
sayin', "He was my bottle baby!"
I listened to her talk,
about how I was so crazy!
She said, "I know it's because,
I didn't breastfeed him enough!"
Now I think it's all her fault,
I'm All Bottled Up!

(Chorus)

I keep my feelings to myself!
I don't talk to no one else!
No one knows what's on my mind!
I'm All Bottled Up, all the time!
All Bottled Up!
All Bottled Up!

(Verse II)

I talk to bartenders,
about beer and the baseball game.
I don't tell 'em nothin',
about the things that cause me shame!
I always wear sunglasses,
I keep my windows covered up!
Yes I think it's Momma's fault,
I'm All Bottled Up!

I keep my feelings to myself!
I don't talk to no one else!
No one knows what's on my mind!
I'm All Bottled Up, all the time!
All Bottled Up!
All Bottled Up!

(Bridge)

Nurse Ratchett and the Doctor,
made a recommendation.
They said I could feel better,
if I took their medication.
I took one pill and don't you know
I saw the devil in my coffee up.
I ain't lettin' no Doctor,
get me All Bottled Up!

I keep my feelings to myself!
I don't talk to no one else!
No one knows what's on my mind!
I'm All Bottled Up, all the time!
No one knows what's on my mind!
I'm All Bottled Up, all the time!
All Bottled Up!
All Bottled Up!

Unlucky in sleep at 5:17, lucky enough to trade the night for the half moon in my window and this erotic Lyric of lust and love, in D, G, A. 

"She Brought Me" 
copyright May 25, 2019 by Gary E. Andrews

(Verse I)
Ain't it like her,

to wake me just in time

to see her go.
She's a biker.

She rides away,

smilin', and slow.
I'll run across the hill,

just to say goodbye,
To get that one last kiss, 

To hear her say,

"I'll see you tonight."

(Verse II)
Ain't it like her,

to leave me 
with breakfast and a note.

I'm a hitchhiker,

tryin' to catch a ride

on her boat.
I'll wade across the creek,

to look her in the eye,

just to hear her speak,

To tell me

"Everything's al-right."

(Chorus)
She's got this in control,

Body and soul!
She Brought Me 

From the darkness,

to the light!

(Verse III)
Ain't it like her,

to snuggle into me

in the night.

I can't fight her,

when she's startin' somethin'

we both know we'll like.
She sits up on my chest,

pulls off her blue dress,

The half moon in the window

shines its light.

(Chorus/Coda)

She's got this in control,

Body and soul!
She Brought Me
from the darkness,

to the light!
She's got this in control,

Body and soul!
She Brought Me

from the darkness,

to the light!

I heard music to it as i made the slight changes sounds great its a good 1

"She Brought Me" 
copyright May 25, 2019 by Gary E. Andrews

(Verse I)
Ain't it KINDA like her,

to wake me 

JUST to see her go.
She's a biker.

She rides away,

UNCARING', and slow.
I'll run across the hill,

just to say goodbye,
To get that one last kiss, 

To hear her say THIS,

"I'll see you FOR SURE tonight."

(Verse II)
Ain't it KINDA like her,

to leave me 
with breakfast and a note.

I'm a hitchhiker,

tryin' to catch a ride

on her boat.
I'll wade across the creek,

JUST to look her in the eye,

just to hear her speak,

To tell me

IT'LL BE al-right."

(Chorus)
She's got this in control,

Body and HER soul!
She Brought Me 

From the darkness,

to the light! now everything's gonna be alright

(Verse III)
Ain't it KINDA like her,

to PASSION me

WAY inTO the night.

I can't fight her,

when she's startin' somethin'

we both know we'll like.
She sits up on my chest,

pulls off her blue dress,

The half moon in the window

shines its light.

(Chorus/Coda)

She's got this in control,

Body and HER soul!
She Brought Me
from the darkness,

to the light!
She's got this in control,

Body and HER soul!
She Brought Me

from the darkness,

to the light!now everything's gonna be alright

Gary, I think the way you post all your lyrics to one thread might be confusing people. It's easier to comment if a thread concerns a single lyric or song. I'd really like to hear this last one. Do you have a recording?

Just tell 'em to post their points of confusion here.
All questions will be cheerfully answered! 
No recording. 

Over The River Tonight 2:49 You can hear it at www.garyeandrews.com . 
1. Over The River Tonight
© January 11, 1979 by Gary E. Andrews
All Rights Reserved for the Globe

Chords
E O221OO
G#m X66444
Bm XO4432
A X77655

Gbm X44222
A XO222O
Am XO221O

(Verse I)
Put on a hat! Take off your coat!
Babe let's you and I rent a boat!
I'll row us, To the Kentucky si-hi-hide.
We'll wait for the sun to desert us!
We'll burn a bit but it won't hurt us!
We'll wait for the silver moon to ri-hise,
(Chorus Refrain)
Over The River Toni-hi-hi-i-i-i-ight.

(Verse II)
We'll build up the fire, Put on a log!
We'll take along your spaniel dog!
He will keep us company tonight!
If I'm a bit slow movin' in,
Won't you invite me with a grin?
Spread your blanket.
Show me where to li-hie,
Over The River Tonight.

(Bridge)
Beneath the trees, The stars, The hills,
Jumpin' fish and whip-poor-wills!
Have you ever seen the river, In moonli-ight?
I hope everything goes alright,
My boat floats and we don't fight.
I guess I'll let my conscience be my guide,
Over The River Toni-hi-hi--i--i--i-ight.

(Instrumental Bridge, about four bars)

I said, I hope everything goes alright.
My boat floats and we don't fight!
I guess I'll let my conscience be my guide,
Over The River Toni-hi-hi--i--i--i-ight!

(Verse 3)
You can wear my coat, Lay in my lap!
I suppose your momma would make a flap,
If she knew what you were gonna do to-ni-hi-a-hight!
We'll philosophize, sit and chat,
About what makes a ring around the moon like that!
We'll be talkin' 'til the first twili-hight,

(Coda)
Lettin' the time turn the page.
Lettin' the moon set the sta-age,
Over the river, Over The River Toni-hi-hi--i--i-a--i--i-i--i-i--i-ight.
Hi-hi-hi-i--i-i-a-i-i-i-ight (doop doop doop doo)

More Info...
"Over The River Tonight" Copyright January 11, 1979
All Rights Reserved For The Globe

If I had been in the music business in 1979 when I wrote this, this would have been the Song I would be known for. It's an uptempo love Song, and those are rare.

Songwriter Laura Wood called it "the perfect country song."

I carried a guitar in the car, even in the cold Ohio winter in those days, and sat in my car by the Ohio River. This Song came to me there in York Park, 'neath the majestic sycamores. Those old trees, Mother Nature's own, with lines only she could think of, textures, colors, shades of color. In winter they ice up in the winds coming off the river. May they live forever and a day. May I be smart enough to go and enjoy them.
This is one of the Songs you can hear on my website, one of only two I ad libbed for the fluke recording session I had that were in my first "Out of the Woodwork" copyright collection.

What were we talking about? Oh yeah. This is my 'Signature Song,' "Over The River Tonight."'

It could be the Song that takes YOU to the top of the market if you're the one to introduce it to the public. Contact me at: garyeandrews@yahoo.com Or through the Contact link on my website.

Take It For A Ride 3:45 You can hear it at www.garyeandrews.com .
© December 13, 1976 by Gary E. Andrews
All Rights Reserved for the Globe

Chords
Cadd9 ? X32O33
Em O22OOO
? XO2O1O

C/G (C with G bass) 332010
Gadd9? 5? 320033

(Verse I)

Ba-by, May-be, It's just a passin' blue,
But I love you more, Than ever before, Tonight.
Ba-by, Ba-by, You know, it gets to me too,
Darlin' I promise you, It'll be alright,
Long as I've got that summer breeze,
Blowin' up the creek at night,
The whip-poor-will a' callin' through the stillness,
Hick-ry trees bathed in moonlight,
I'll be content, To sit right here,
With you right by my side,
To hitch this front porch to the moon,
(Chorus Refrain)

And Take It For A Ride!

(Verse II)

Dar-lin, Don't you, Let it hurt your pretty head.
You know you can bet, That I won't forget, Tonight,
Long as I've got your sweet perfume,
To recall in my mind,
The solitude I get up in your room,
Your gentle touch to sooth me all night,
I'll be content, To lay right here,
With you right by my side,
To hitch this front porch to the moon,
And take it, take it, Take It For A Ride!

(Bridge, vocalized, without words)

(Verse III, Reprise of Verse I)

Long as I've got that summer breeze,
Blowin' up the creek at night,
The whip-poor-will a' callin' through the stillness,
Hick-ry trees bathed in moonlight,
I'll be content, To be right here,
With you right by my side,
To hitch this front porch to the moon,
And take it, take it, Take It For A Ride!

More Info...
"Take It For A Ride" Copyright 1976 by Gary E. Andrews.
All Rights Reserved For The Globe

The arrangement I play now cuts the 'scat singing' portion, only going a few bars through it, then finishing with the 3rd Verse.

I got "Take It For A Ride" going one night and got stuck. The Rhyme-Scheme and guitar work established in Verse I were hard to duplicate for the 2nd Verse. I was getting frustrated, killing the creative flow.

Now, you can force your way through a block like that, but you'll probably write something mediocre, uninspired.

I got "Leavin' You" started, what I later called a "Sister Song."
It bogged down the same way and I went back to "Take It For A RIde" and got a little more of it.
It bogged down and I went back to "Leavin' You."

By the end of the night both Songs were pretty much complete.

This 'Sister Song' technique has worked for me on other occasions too, keeping my interest up and the frustration down, letting me enjoy the crafting aspects of the creative process, where you have to study and think, as opposed to the magical gift of ad lib, letting words and Melodies and guitar parts just work.

You can hear this Song on my site www.garyeandrews.com from my first "Out of the Woodwork" copyright collection that I did in my fluke recording session.

YOU could have a hit with this rare, uptempo love song. Email: garyeandrews@yahoo.com

Here's an essay on this "Sister Song" technique:

In Songwriting I'm generally strumming or picking something and a line comes to me. That first Line usually Hooks me. I'm the first listener. I have to be Hooked just like I hope others will be.
I had a guitar riff going and went into strumming. This Line came to me:

"Baby, Maybe, It's just a passin' blue, But I love you more, than ever before, tonight."

I sure was curious about her, bein' as how I loved her more than ever before, and tonight, which was right now. That immediacy of the moment the Singer-Character was speaking in, speaking directly to her, The Love Interest-Character, the Rhythm and Rhyme, Hooked me like a fish. I had to know more. But the Rhyme-Scheme, simple as it is, was hard to match for the next Line. I kept going over it, as is my technique, re-singing what I had, enhancing my familiarity with execution of the guitar part, polishing the prosody,the vocal execution, getting the feel...and getting frustrated. 'Baby, Maybe, blue, more, before, tonight.' Man!
So I started strumming some of those same chords in a different tempo, and darned if I didn't get Hooked on another Line:

"Get out o' the way! I'm goin' home! That's what she said and now she's gone."

Well, I sure in hell had to find out what she was mad about! And whether I was glad or sad that she was gone. She kept talkin:

"I can't stand ya when you're stoned! The hottest nights you're never home! That's why I'm Leavin' You, Takin' my heart and Leavin' you, Behind tonight. I'm Leavin' you. Ya want me to stay and believe in you but even you know how hard that is to do. That's why I'm leavin'. That's why I'm Leavin' You."

Well, now I needed to Repeat that Musical Movement of that first Verse, with new Lyric advancing the story, and leading back into that Chorus with that early Hook, 'Leavin' You.'

But I got frustrated on that too. I still wasn't in the story, feelin' what the Singer-Character was feelin', knowin' what she was mad about and what else he or she might say. I wasn't on the Rhythm and Rhyme of it yet either. So I went back to the first Song. I got another Line!

"Baby, Maybe, It's just a passin' blue, But I love you more, than ever before, tonight. Baby, Baby, You know it gets to me too, And darlin' I promise you, It'll be alright."

That completed the first half of a Musical Movement and timing called for a change of dynamics. To repeat it a 3rd time would have been monotonous. I got it:

"Long as I've got that summer breeze, Blowin' up the creek at night, The whip-poor-will a'callin' through the stillness, Hick'ry trees, Bathed in moonlight, I'll be content, To sit right here, With you right by my side, To hitch this front porch to the moon, and Take It, For A Ride!"

I went into the guitar riff and turned and was ready for a repeat of the whole thing with new Lyrics to advance the story...and that Rhyme-Scheme frustrated me. Instead of letting it kill the creative flow I went back to the 2nd Song, the 'Sister Song,' a fraternal twin, born at the same time, but different. That 'Sister Song,' technique that occurred naturally has been a tool I've used many times since. I don't always consciously think it, but it just happens. Rather than let a challenge I can't meet stop me, or worse, force writing something just to Rhyme and go forward, I often drift into something else, a Sister Song that keeps that rewarding (instant gratification) flow going.

"Darlin', Don't you, Let it hurt your pretty head. You know you can bet, That I won't forget tonight. Darlin', Darlin, You know I meant just what I said. Into this darkness, I hope we can shed some light. Long as I got that summer breeze..."

Lyrically, they're stories. They need a beginning, a middle, an end. They need Characters, a setting, and interaction, and something the first listener, me, can identify with, imagine myself as the male lead. (I often rewrite my songs for a female point of view to enable that part of the market to buy them too.)

Melodically, they're Movements. They have to have 'enough' Repetition to give them Structure, and 'enough' Change to keep them from being monotonous. The Lyric dictates Melody, to some degree, voices emphasizing some words, going up in pitch or intensity when emotion goes up, plaintive if there's a complaint, pleading if they're begging, shouting if they're angry, all expressed with notes, altering the pitch, the duration. Listen to people talk. You can hear the music. You can hear the story. You can imagine how it should have gone, could have gone, and you've got a Song.

She's Comin Home With Me" 3:03       Hear it on www.garyeandrews.com
1. Over The River Tonight
© May 8, 2003 by Gary E. Andrews
All Rights Reserved for the Globe

Chords 
C/G (C with G bass) 332010 
Em7 O22O3O 
Am XO221O 

A suspended OO223O 
F X33211 
G 32OOO3 

(Verse I) 
Everybody's watchin'! She doesn't disappoint. 
She licks her lips like she's rollin' a joint. 
I want it to be over, But it goes on and on. 
I can't wait for every-one to be gone, 
But the, Lonely strangers and hangers on, 
They laugh to them-selves and, Well, Hang on. 
She wraps 'em 'round her finger. 
They fall at her feet. 
She's a magiful woman. 
She gener-ates heat! Every night I wonder, That 

(Chorus Refrain) 
She-'s Comin' Ho--me With Me.

(Verse II) 
Everybody's laughin'. They call, "Last call!" 
Patty starts 'em movin' toward the back of the hall. 
I can only follow, Stayin' close to the wall, 
Makin' for the lobby, And the Tax-i stalls. 
There's little danger, She could trip and fall, 
With the crowd crushed a-gainst her, Gaping in awe. 
She turns in the doorway, Gives 'em one last treat! 
When this beautiful girl, Waves and winks at me, 
Everybody wonders, Why She's Comin' Home With Me. 

(Bridge) 
"Hey Patty," I said, one night in bed, 
"do ya' ever worry this could go to your head?" 
She put her feet to the ceiling, stood on her head, said,

"They'll forget all a-bout me, Soon after I'm dead. 
Why waste your worry over what might never be? 
Why get in a hurry? Can't we just wait and see? 
Be-sides, I'm just happy knowin', 
You're Comin' Home With Me." 

(Verse III) 
Everybody's millin', A-bout in the crowd. 
They don't want it to be over, But it is, Now. 
Patty's in the Taxi. She's waitin' for me. 
As I close the door, She slides a-cross the seat. 
Her head on my shoulder, She drifts off to sleep. 
The driver knows the ways of New- York City streets, 
To the Plaza Hotel, And fresh, white sheets. 
I'm strummin' in the alley, To let Pat-ty sleep. 
She'll wake up in the mornin', Here-- at home with me. 
(Tag) 
She's Comin' Home with me. 
She's Comin' Home With Me.

More Info...
She's Comin' Home With Me Copyright May 8, 2003 by Gary E. Andrews. 
All Rights Reserved For The Globe 

From my 38-song "Out Of The Woodwork V" copyright collection.

I see this elegant woman, Patty, very earthy, earth-tone clothes, umber, tans and dark, rich reds and black, with long, honeyed brown hair, long skirt, long-sleeve vest-jacket, standing on a stage, talking with the fans still filling the hall as the band packs up behind her. 

(I see Cyndi Lauper playing the role, in a wig. I've had a crush on her since her splendid songs of "She's So Unusual"). 

Fans flop on the edge of the stage to sit at her feet, enthralled at her raconteurial iterations. 

The lights come up. From the bar along the wall at stage left, "They call last call" Patty wades into the center of the crowd, moving toward the lobby at the back of the theatre/bar. 

"She turns in the doorway," waves to "me," the guitar player, the Singer-Character 'me' in the Song. Guitar case in hand he is working through the crowd up the stage-right aisle. They wonder what he wonders, "why She's Comin' Home With Me." When she speaks, he stops a moment, looks back at her. He sees what the fans see in her. 

It ends at sunrise with 'me' playing for reporters in the alley at the Plaza Hotel, so as not to disturb Patty. Patty looks out an upstairs window and drops a brogan boot to clang on the trashcan next to the one the guitar player is sitting on, teasing, "You alleycats get out of the alley! People are tryin' to sleep up here!" (See Cyndi?) 

She invites them all up for breakfast. The reporters hustle off, leaving the guitar player and Patty to share a look, a grin, prompting him to gather his boot and follow the reporters. The End. 

YOU could record this. YOU could get Cyndi for the video! You're just that amazing!

"Yippee Yi Yo" puts the western back in country & western, the story of an unlikely cowboy who meets cowgirl and helps her drive her cattle out of Texas, probably to the railhead in Kansas. Then finds out he can't get paid unless he goes to San Jose, California. Lots of conflict in the movie in my head! Makes me want to write the screenplay! One of the several trails they used was "The Goodnight Loving Trail". My story would just absolutely have to use that! The Song was inspired by Glen Close in the movie "Mazzy". She's an aspiring actress who comes home one day excited about a movie role she has gotten and says, "They've got a real cowboy to train me and everything!" Funny where inspirations can come from. www.garyeandrews.com

Yippee Yi Yo 3:45
1. Over The River Tonight
© March 20, 2000 by Gary E. Andrews
All Rights Reserved for the Globe

Chords 
G 32OOO3 
? XOO21O (Don't know the name of the chord!)
C X32O1O 
? XO3213 
? X32O13 

(Verse 1) 
She said she was lookin' for a cowboy. 
She asked me if I could play that part. 
She said, "If you're gonna play it, Play it now boy." 
I decided to start, 

(Chorus Refrain) 
Singin' Yippie Yi, Yippie Yi, Yippie Yi Yo.

Yippie Yi, Yippie Ki Yi, Yippie Yi Yo oo-oo-oo. 

(Verse 2) 
She said she was havin' a sweet dream, 
then woke up with a broken hear-art. 
She said, "If you're gonna meet me, Meet me halfway." 
I said, "I met ya halfway from the start." 

(Bridge) 
We drove those doggies : out of Texas. 
She swore she'd pay me in Santa Fe. 
She said, "Is it a problem, us bein' opposite sexes?" 
I told 'er, "We'll find out on the way, 
Singin' Yippie Yi, Yippie Yi, Yippie Yi Yo. 
Yippie Yi, Yippie Ki Yi, Yippie Yi Yo-oo-oo-oo.

(Verse 3) 
Then it just seems we drifted a-par-art.

I wondered if I'd ever, See her a-gain. 
I wondered if she knew, She took my hear-art. 
Then, one day in Sacramento, 
She stepped out of a van, 
Singin' Yippie Yi, Yippie Yi, Yippie Yi Yo. 
Yippie Yi, Yippie Ki Yi, Yippie Yi Yo oo-oo-oo. 
We drove those doggies:
(Double dots : indicate to go back to where you first saw them.)

I'm tinkering with the "She May Not Be An Angel" Lyric this morning. Here's a rewrite from the female Point-Of-View. And I wondered if the Singer-Character should be less philosophical, telling others what 'you' should and shouldn't do, and 'own' it. Just exploring some options to see if something is more effective in hooking listener interest. This was a post praising nurses, as the next best thing to an angel. It seems to work except at the Coda, where the 'He Ain't No Angel" seems to work for simplicity's sake. I'm just exploring possibilities.

"He May Not Be An Angel (He's The Next Best Thing)"
copyright May 9, 2020 by Gary E. Andrews.
Chords:
C/G 332O1O
C7 X323O1O
F X33211
G7 32OOO1

He's got an edge about him,
if you rub him the wrong way.
I don't ever doubt him,
when he says what he'll say.
I leave him when he's quiet!
I give him time to think!
He May Not Be An Angel,
but he's The Next Best Thing.

I wake him in the mornin',
with a gentle nudge.
I leave him if he mumbles.
He ain't gonna budge!
Go fix him a breakfast.
Give him his first drink.
He May Not Be An Angel!
He's The Next Best Thing.

He gave me days of sunshine,
long nights with the Moon.
He helped me write the best lines,
in my favorite tunes.
He says more with a smile,
and his funny wink.
He May Not Be An Angel,
He May Not Be An Angel,
He May Not Be An Angel.
He's The Next Best Thing.

Son House said, "There ain't but one kind o' blues and that's between a male and a female that love each other."

"One Kind 'O Blues" Copyright May 19, 2020 by Gary E. Andrews.
G7 320001
C7 032310
D7 xx0212

(Verse I)

They ain't but One Kind O' Blues, and baby I got 'em!
They ain't but One Kind O' Blues, and baby I got 'em!'

I cain't get over you! Ain't nothin' I can do! I got 'em!
They ain't but One Kind O' Blues, and baby I got 'em!

(Verse II)

Ain't but one thing to do, and that's to get out!
Ain't but one thing to do, and that's to get out!
This is a one-way road, runnin' high down to low!
I gotta get out!
They ain't but One Kind O' Blues, and baby I got 'em!

(Bridge)

I'm out on the street, lookin' down at my feet! I'm walkin'!
Ain't no one here but me, so there ain't no need, for talkin'!
They ain't but One Kind O' Blues, One Kind O' Blues, and baby I got 'em!

(Verse III)

It's a terrible pain, Ooo! Oh! Baby I'm hurtin'!
It's a terrible pain! Ooo! Oh! Baby I'm hurtin'!
Ain't nothin' but rain clouds! No need to look out! I close the curtain!
They ain't but One Kind O' Blues, One Kind O' Blues, and baby I got 'em!
(Coda)
They ain't but One Kind O' Blues, One Kind O' Blues, and baby I got 'em!
They ain't but One Kind O' Blues, One Kind O' Blues, and baby I got 'em!

Son House said: "There ain't but one kind of blues and that's between a male and a female that's in love."

May 31, 2020: "Your Very Thin Line", which I just stumbled across while cleaning (LOL) I mean...moving s--t around. I wrote it in 2009. It crossed my mind a few days ago. I remembered the Singer-Character standing outside that door in the Chelsea Hotel. I couldn't remember it, long, poetic as much as Lyrical. Damned fool that I am I forgot to write down the chord progression I sang it to. Here comes G C D to the rescue. 
"Your Very Thin Line" copyright 2009 by Gary E. Andrews, All Rights Reserved.

(Verse I)
I stare at your door in the Chelsea Hotel.
It's seen more than its share.
I study the floor, as I ring your doorbell,
wondering who else has been there.
I'm aware your business, is now none of mine.
I'm a visitor to another place and time.
Will I cross your threshold, or hang in your hall,
with writing on the wall, no evidence at all?
I wonder! I ponder! I try to divine,
what is on your mind.
Where to be...Where to be,
as I wait by Your Very Thin Line.

(Verse II)
You open on up. You usher me on in.
You give me a half-hearted hug.
I stand hat in hand, for your papers to sign,
admiring my old Persian rug.
I'm a wayfaring stranger, in your stranger land,
trying to get back to, the home I left again.
You've got what I came for. Now I'm back out your door,
in the streets of New York. I'm no longer sore.
I wonder! I ponder! I try to divine,
the nature of my crime,
as I sign on Your Very Thin Line.

(Bridge)
There's a thin line between, what you say and what you mean,
and what you say you meant, "Last time!"
The disdain in your eyes, wipes away your smile,
leaves your mouth a Very Thin Line.

(Verse III)
Later that night at the Hollywood Bar,
I'm waiting for a young friend of mine,
I hear your laugh, look and there you are,
having a hell of a time.
I slip out the back door, up the alley to the street,
just in time to intercept my friend.
I kiss her puzzled face. She says, "What a place to meet!"
I wonder! I ponder! I try to divine,
what pleasures we find,
on our side of Your Very Thin Line.
Our side of Your Very Thin Line.

(It's ragged. Rhyme goes all to hell. I may tinker, tailor, 'craft' my inspiration; or, I may leave well enough alone. Hard Rhyme seems to set expectation for more of the same, even Imperfect Rhyme, which makes no Rhyme stand out like a sore thumb. Then again, maybe a little 'disturbance' in a Lyric isn't such a bad thing. This strikes me as one of the long wordplay Lyrics I typically write after a fallow period of not writing. I remember writing it, but never played it much, laid it aside and moved on.)
(I tinkered. Still having trouble letting 'Where to be...Where to be...' go now that I've envisioned the video where he's at the door to ring the bell, then across the hall, away from the door, back to the wall, then a third shot in the middle of the hall. I thought to put 'What to do...What to do' in VII. Now thinking Rubato, that irregularity can work. It's a Singer-Songwriter style, which enables more Poetic License. Besides, by Repeating the pattern, in VII it might call for a third Repeat in VIII, and that seems excessive. Ah well, such is tinkering.)

(Whittling down to get a more singable Song, with a shorter timespan.)

"Your Very Thin Line" copyright 2009 by Gary E. Andrews, All Rights Reserved.

(Verse I)
I stare at your door in the Chelsea Hotel.
It's seen more than its share.
I study the floor, as I ring your doorbell,
wondering who else has walked there.
I'm aware your business, is now none of mine.
I'm a visitor to another place and time.
I wonder! I ponder! I try to divine,
as I wait by Your Very Thin Line.

(Verse II)
You open on up. You usher me on in.
You give me a half-hearted hug.
I stand hat in hand, for your papers to sign,
admire my old Persian rug.
I'm a wayfaring stranger, in your stranger land,
trying to get back to, the home I left again.
I wonder! I ponder! I try to divine,
as I sign on Your Very Thin Line.

(Bridge)
There's a thin line between, what you say and what you mean,
and what you say you meant, last time.
The disdain in your eyes, quite belies your smile,
leaves your mouth a Very Thin Line.

(Verse III)
Later that night at the Hollywood Bar,
I'm waiting for a young friend of mine,
I hear your laugh, look and there you are,
having a hell of a time.
I slip out the back door, up the alley to the street,
just in time to intercept my friend.
I kiss her puzzled face. She says, "What a place to meet!"
I say, "There's been a change of plans!"
I wonder! I ponder! I try to divine,
on our side of Your Very Thin Line.
Our side of Your Very Thin Line.

A Song Is A 'Communication'.
Even an instrumental composition attempts to 'communicate' the 'feel' or 'emotion' implied in the music.
A Lyric is comprised of words with meanings, so the Singer 'sends' those words.
To fully qualify as a 'communication' the words have to be 'received'.

That Latin prefix, 'com', means 'with', implying the 'sender' and the 'receiver'. We communicate 'with' one another.

If the words are 'sent' but not 'received' the 'sender' didn't 'communicate with' the intended 'receiver'.

The Lyric has to be intelligible, not too obscure, although obscurity can work to some degree. Obscurity in poetry differs in that the reader can re-read. A Lyric has to communicate the first time, as heard.

The Lyric has to be enunciated, so the word meaning is not sacrificed to the Note execution.
A voice has to take on the characteristics you would find in an instrument executing Notes but retaining the characteristics of a Human voice 'communicating' word meanings.

If the Singer fails to 'send' to effectively communicate a single word the 'receiver' may assume what the word is by the context, and by the Rhyme if it is a Rhyme-Word. If not, missing that word, or a couple words, may keep the Line from communicating.
Failure of a Line to communicate may keep the Stanza (Verse or Chorus, e.g.) from communicating.
Soon the whole Song may fail to communicate because of the 'values' of those missed words.

Listeners can focus their attention, study a little harder, 'listen up', pay attention, replay, but ideally, you want to 'send' so they have no option but to 'receive', and receive the first time they hear it.
Your product has Hook Factor, something that hooked you, The First Listener, and should hook other listeners, and keep them hooked as you 'communicate' your Lyric. If you lose them at any point, especially early in the Song, you may not get them back.

I suspect Bob Dylan's enunciation, a subject of like/dislike discussion for many years, is a product of his listening to the playback and realizing some words weren't being received, and so he re-cut the recordings and sent those words more deliberately.

It may be difficult for a singer to evaluate the 'sending' qualities. They KNOW the words.

I suspect sometimes it is a matter of a singer sustaining a note until it 'slides' into the next note, something an instrument might do, and even spoken might have that effect. But each word must be given its space, and not 'sounded' in a manner too different from how it would be spoken.

Note Dolly Parton's classic, "I Will Always Love You". That title Line is sung pretty much the same way as it would be spoken. The word "I" gets a multi-note delivery, and "you" is sustained a bit. But basically, the Line is 'sent' as it would be spoken, and is easily 'received' the first time you hear it. It communicates.

Strother Martin, a character actor, in the movie "Cool Hand Luke", delivers a 'catch-phrase',
"What we have here is a failure to communicate."
Don't have a failure to communicate.

The first Line came to me, then the second, and it sounded like the Singer-Character and Love-Interest Character had something to explain, to each other, so I tried to let them.
I don't 'like' the Song, but I thought it was worth 'fabricating', or 'crafting' it to see if I could tell their story, or let them tell it. C/G F G7 G Am

"In A Funny Way" copyright June 24, 2020 by Gary E. Andrews.

(Verse I)
I've been hiding Long Beach.
You've been hiding L. A.
You've been out of my reach.
I've been out of your way.
You woke me up today,
just to say,
"I love you,"
(Chorus Refrain)
In A Funny Way.

(Verse II)
I was dancing with Long Beach.
I saw you kissing L. A.
You know when you both cheat,
there's not much more to say.
You called me up today,
just to say,
"I love you," In A Funny Way.

(Bridge)
In A Funny Way,
things are working out.
At the end of the day,
isn't that what it's all about?
In a tragic comedy,
somebody has to say,
"I love you", In A Funny Way.

(Verse III)
I've been living with Long Beach.
You've been loving L. A.
Life has lessons to teach.
Love has prices to pay.
When my phone rang today,
I heard you say,
"I still love you," In A Funny Way.
"I still love you," In A Funny Way.
"I still love you," In A Funny Way.