June 24, 2008
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
The Thursday of Pregnancy Week 5, Simon wrote a song about the baby, and by that Friday night, he had it recorded. I love the recorded version--of course I do--but the best version I heard was the first one, when he stood in the doorway with the guitar across his chest and started singing without even telling me to prepare myself for what I was about to receive. It is perfect now, with the vocal harmony and the backup instruments and the pucculo bridge (all Simon), but it was perfect then too--just my man and a guitar (and maybe a tear or two in his eye), standing in the doorway of our home sharing the song he'd written about our baby.
Ladies and gentlemen, prepare yourselves for what you are about to receive:
"The Stranger," aka "The Baby Song" (4.2 mb).
Posted by Leah at June 24, 2008 03:49 PMThat is SO SO SO great.
And the title of the post was a good book too.
Well done.
Posted by: Emily at June 24, 2008 04:20 PMAwesome, awesome, awesome.
I'm all a'crying.
Can our babies be in a band together?
Posted by: Helen Jane at June 24, 2008 04:37 PMWhat an amazing gift! Very well done, indeed.
Posted by: Mandee at June 24, 2008 04:38 PMI love it!
Posted by: SAJ at June 24, 2008 06:12 PMWow! I was crying right off the bat and then at the end with the baby noises and the welcome home baby! oh dear god- its no wonder your all mushy in full of love. You two are going to be amazing parents!
Posted by: Christina at June 24, 2008 06:17 PMholy cow, that's sweet!
Posted by: C at June 24, 2008 06:39 PMVery neat! What a fun idea and amazing inspiration. So thrilled for you guys. I love the line "He represents all of my hopes and fears", precious.
Posted by: Elizabeth at June 24, 2008 06:56 PMCan you please make a slideshow of all your pregnancy belly shots and then a few (non-vaginal) shots of the birth and after the birth and photos of your squishy newborn and set them all to this song so I can cry even harder?
Nicely done, Simon. You guys are going to be the best mom and dad ever.
That is truly awesome.
Posted by: whoorl at June 24, 2008 07:27 PMThat is pretty darn sweet.
Posted by: water sign at June 24, 2008 07:46 PMOMG. Genius, indeed!!!!
Posted by: Brooke at June 24, 2008 08:45 PMSo cute! Is Simon just sure it's a boy :)?
Posted by: Nicole at June 24, 2008 09:50 PMOkay, the "Welcome home baby" tipped me over from tears-prickling-my-eyes to full-fledged weeping. What a keeper you've got.
Posted by: Nothing But Bonfires at June 24, 2008 11:30 PMMandolin overdubs? Awesome. Y'all rock.
Posted by: Catherine at June 25, 2008 01:07 AMThat is just so awesome!!
And I have got to say it reminds me of some of my family...Simon would so love to jam out with them because they do the same genre of music!! I will track down their info from my cousin (the particular way I worded this before did not make it past the "spam filter") and send it to you. I just love it :)
It's only 10am and I've already got my FDA-recommended dosage of heartbreakingly adorable. So sweet.
Posted by: jive turkey at June 25, 2008 07:04 AMI am all weepy over here. That was perfect.
You two are just awesome.
Posted by: Angella at June 25, 2008 07:06 AMWow Leah... I just found out last night that I am pregnant and I've been so apprehensive since.. This song made me shed some of my fear! Thank you and Simon so much! :)
Posted by: Jessica at June 25, 2008 07:15 AMGreat song, great gift! I'm going to be whistling that tune all day long.
Posted by: Veronica at June 25, 2008 07:39 AMIt made me cry when I first heard it in your kitchen back in early May and it made me cry this time, too.
Well done, Simon.
Posted by: Emily at June 25, 2008 08:26 AMPure greatness.
But don't worry ... sometimes you roll the dice and your creation is the best of the both of you. Crooked ears skip a few generations, I've been told.
Posted by: Texas T-bone at June 25, 2008 09:50 AMHow wonderful! I think that is just too sweet.
Posted by: Kate @ Life As I Live It at June 25, 2008 10:02 AMI. Love. This.
I also love my husband, but things like this make me wish, just a teensy bit, that I'd stayed with the musician. C'est la vie.
It's beautiful; what a treasure.
Posted by: Brooke at June 25, 2008 10:13 AMthat man of your's is multi-talented. :)
Posted by: sonnie at June 25, 2008 10:55 AMThe song makes me smile. It is so cute. Your baby will most likely inherit the "way with words" you both have (lucky baby!).
Posted by: Green Eyes at June 25, 2008 12:46 PMAlright, so I tried posting the "info" on my cousins, but the spam filter hates me putting that stuff in your comments section :P
If you are actually interested in knowing, than you can email me and I'll send it to you that way. I won't be offended if you aren't, I do realize this is the internet :)
So sweet. My Mom wrote a song for my sister and I (nothing like Simon's!!), and we still sing it. What a wonderful gift for the baby, and YOU!
Posted by: JennyL at June 25, 2008 02:20 PMThat may very well be the best song I've heard in a long time.
Posted by: Dani at June 25, 2008 03:24 PMY'all are so wonderful. I have chills. Seriously. This baby is one lucky little dude(ette) :-)
Posted by: Mrs. Flinger at June 25, 2008 04:45 PMHaha, your husband is awesome. Love the song!
Posted by: Mrs. F at June 25, 2008 05:03 PMLove this. So, so much.
Posted by: Jenny, Bloggess at June 25, 2008 05:16 PMThat is incredibly sweet!
Posted by: sizzle at June 25, 2008 07:02 PMSo sweet. So sweet.
Posted by: HRH at June 25, 2008 08:24 PMAwwwwww!
*sob*
Adorable! Makes me want to get pregnant all over again! You two are going to have the happiest baby ever.
Posted by: Heather at June 26, 2008 02:26 AMWow. That's so great! You guys are awesome! Congrats.
Posted by: NotAMeanGirl at June 26, 2008 08:14 AMI need this on my iPod!
Simon, you're making all other dads-to-be look pretty bad now.
Posted by: MammaLoves at June 26, 2008 08:19 AMChills. This totally gave me 'em. Wow, you have one totally sweet hubby!! The lyrics are completely precious. Soundtrack worthy!!
Posted by: Gwen Bell at June 26, 2008 09:14 AMSimon is an excellent whistler.
Also, the baby gurgles on Isn't She Lovely have always warmed the cockles of my heart. Instant happy tears.
Well done.
Posted by: Alyce at June 26, 2008 10:24 AMI was going to say the same thing - MAN, Simon is a good whistler! Loved all of it to pieces. He's so cute. Thanks so much for sharing it with us.
Posted by: Jennie at June 26, 2008 04:23 PMThat gave me goosebumps. Amazing.
Posted by: Karen at June 26, 2008 05:44 PMAlliclaus was grooving to the song and probably wondering why I was so teary. It's really beautiful, though I'm sure I don't need to tell you that.
Posted by: Bethiclaus at June 27, 2008 03:18 PMWell done sir, well done.
Posted by: will at June 28, 2008 11:11 AMFeatured on Good Mom/Bad mom on the Chronicle: http://tinyurl.com/6lwlue
What a keeper. And crooked teeth are a sign of vast intelligence and inner beauty. Our so mom tells me.
Posted by: always home and uncool at June 29, 2008 01:11 PMYou know, I'm so glad that two of the coolest people ever went ahead and got to the babymakin'. This is wonderful, wonderful, wonderful, and I swear if my heart were still cold and dead this would've been the cure.
And I'm with HJ on this one - bring on the baby bands!
Posted by: angie at June 29, 2008 05:48 PMI absolutely love this. What a man :)
Posted by: The Over-Thinker at July 1, 2008 02:53 PMOh My... that's just adorable!
Posted by: reddirtroad at July 1, 2008 10:54 PMSo talented! I absolutely LOVED it! When will we be hearing it on the radio, please?
Posted by: m at July 3, 2008 10:16 AMHow great is that!
Posted by: Jemima at July 10, 2008 12:57 PM
