Red I. Miller Shoes

[Deleted]

Well, hey, nobody has posted a song in quite awhile, so I figured I'd throw a new one up. This is a song I've written for a new album (probably an EP) I'm working on that is made up of songs inspired by a transcript of an oral history of a Terre Haute "madam" that was done as part of a history project in the 1980s. I've spoken of it before in these spaces.

At one point in the interview, the interviewer asked the former madam what problems would arise in her business. She launched into the story of Alice Goodnight, a prostitute who attracted the attention of a guy from Paris, Ill. (about half-an-hour drive to the west) and he had a business and was married but fell for Alice. The former madam said the guy bought her her first pair of I. Miller shoes, and she'd walk around the tavern showing them off.

Israel Miller was a well known shoemaker to Broadway and the New York theater world. Then he took his shoes nationwide, and some of his print ads from the '50s were eye-catching because they were created by a young graphic designer named Andy Warhol. I imagine the song taking place in the late '50s.

Anyway, in the song, Alice already has her shoes. (The former madam never mentioned a color, but I made them red.) I was originally going to write it as a murder ballad, which you wouldn't discover until the last line. But I got it written and as I sat there digesting it, I decided I had a habit of killing off too many people so I re-wrote the last line. I think it works, but I guess the marketplace will be the ultimate judge.

I was worried about the number of "p" words but decided, "the hell with worrying."

Any thoughts are welcome.


RED I. MILLER SHOES
© 2013 by David Hanners

Pete came from Paris, the one in Illinois
Owned a business and a wife, two daughters and a boy
But he had a weakness, like his life had blown a fuse
He fell for Alice Goodnight in her red I. Miller shoes

Climbed in his Plymouth Fury after dinner and left home
Fled through failing light east to Terre Haute
Hit the red-light district with a plan to beat his blues
There he fell for Alice Goodnight in her red I. Miller shoes

Alice came from nothing and it’s where she would return
Every dollar that she had was ten dollars she had earned
Spent it on kimonos, Seven Winds perfume and booze
And of course that pair of red I. Miller shoes

Some men fall in love and promise the moon
Pete was no exception; no, he was not immune
There are temptations some men can’t refuse
Pete’s was Alice Goodnight in her red I. Miller shoes

Pete lost perspective, spent too much time away
His wife grew suspicious so she followed him one day
Caught him in the one sin she could not excuse
With her alimony bought some red I. Miller shoes

[Deleted]

I'm getting the impression that
1) people don't drop by the songwriting forum anymore; or
2) the song sucked so bad people thought it best not to say anything; or
3) the song was so perfect that nobody could think of any way to improve it.

I'll go with 3.

[Cornflake]

I'll go with number 1. The song doesn't suck, David. It's very well written. Lately, though, I've become convinced that many songs with stories are just too hard to follow. Nuances get lost when you're listening in a live-music venue. To be honest, if I heard this on a Wednesday night at my favorite venue, I'd think "it's probably pretty good but I don't want to work that hard."

[Deleted]

I can see what you're saying, but I'd like to think there are some audiences out there who'd sit through stories. John Prine has found them. Not that I'll ever be John Prine (although we're both from Illinois) but I've just never been able to write a sing-along anthem. I'd like to, or at least write a Taylor Swift-Ian breakup song. I'm happily married, though.

[Cornflake]

If you have a line like "there's a hole in Daddy's arm where the money goes," listeners may work a little harder to get the story, and they'll like the song even if they don't quite get the story. A very good local songwriter, Linda Bilque, does something similar. Her stories aren't all that accessible and I seldom get them in one listening. But she'll use a chorus that is so simple and engaging that the verses could be about footwear and you'd tolerate them just to get to that chorus again.

[billhammond]

Jul 1, 2013 9:54:29 GMT -5 Cornflake said:

If you have a line like "there's a hole in Daddy's arm where the money goes," listeners may work a little harder to get the story, and they'll like the song even if they don't quite get the story. A very good local songwriter, Linda Bilque, does something similar. Her stories aren't all that accessible and I seldom get them in one listening. But she'll use a chorus that is so simple and engaging that the verses could be about footwear and you'd tolerate them just to get to that chorus again.

[Deleted]

I clocked her song at 3:11, give or take a second or two. Most of mine come in around there or even shorter. The recording of "Red I. Miller Shoes" clocks in at 2:59 (including an instrumental break) and even an eight-verse song like "My Gal Sal" is only 2:40. I would hope that a listener can pay attention for less than three minutes. I don't think that's asking too much. Or am I wrong?

[Cornflake]

That one's a good example, Bill. She's one of the very few songwriters around here who has a following (and I'm in it). When she plays that song, many people in the audience will be singing along as soon as she reaches the chorus.

David, I don't think the amount of time is the real issue. How long I listen to a songwriter I haven't heard before seems to depend on how hard I'm having to work and how much benefit I'm getting in return. I've always made it a practice to mix songs that require close attention with songs that don't, so as to avoid making the audience work too hard for too long.