This song—another one of the spontaneous two-minute songs drawn from life which I’ve been writing lately—was written for my wife Neal, who seriously enjoys doing laundry. She was singing in the bedroom as she sorted clothes on Saturday afternoon and I thought there needed to be a song about that.
I could have included a reprise of the dirty pants lyric here but it was a bit too obvious.
The song’s rhythm part is driven by a mandocello, a relatively uncelebrated and definitely underused 8-string bass-register instrument. It’s basically a really big mandolin, tuned like a cello. You’ll be hearing more of this very resonant instrument in the future.
The bluesy high end here is played, somewhat counterintuitively, on a mandolin, and there’s a banjo and a Fender Precision Bass (the only electric instrument) rounding out the mix.
The gold tone banjo belonged to my late friend Paul Sturm, who studied with and was deeply devoted to Louise March, Gurdjieff’s personal secretary and the masterful translator of Beelzebub’s Tales To His Grandson into German.
Photo: Paul, a few weeks before his death.
Paul died two years ago of multiple myeloma. The last time we ever had dinner with him he regaled us with tales of working with her “back in the day” at the Rochester Folk Art Guild.
This song is dedicated not just to Neal but to Paul’s memory, since it’s the first time his banjo has been used in a recording since he died.
God bless you, Paul. Help keep those shifts in heaven clean, and keep singing while you do it.
I'm gonna take everything downstairs, that's right I'm gonna take everything down those stairs, that's right gather round my children listen what I say 'bout the happiness and joy of the laundry day You gotta take that bag down stairs that's right, oh yeah You gotta take that bag downstairs, that's right gather round my children gather round tonight If you do your laundry everything will be all right You gotta take that bag downstairs Shooby dooby doowop Shooby dooby doowop Shooby dooby doowop oooh [more ad-libtaking bags downstairs stuff] gather round my children listen what I say 'bout the happiness and joy of the laundry day shooby dooby doo wop etc.
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