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The Past is Never Over

from FLARE by Pat Wictor

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The song started with inspiration from William Faulkner’s famous quote, “The past is never dead - it isn’t even past.” Henry Ford and George Santayana make uncredited cameos in the verses too. We can be better and do better, if we’re willing to take a clear-eyed look at where we’ve come from.

lyrics

11. The Past Is Never Over (P. Wictor)

America is a choir
And each wants to sing their own part
Some days, it’s beautiful music
Some days, it just falls apart

“History is bunk,” said the man
And most people just sang along
Forgetting the past for a fresh start
Free to sing their own songs

How to make music that sounds all new
When so many songs came before?
All we can use is what people do
And write a few notes of our own

We’re all composers, without having chosen
All of the notes in our songs
The past is never over
The past is never over
It’s been here all along

To not just repeat what’s been done
Composers must know the craft
Avoid the mistakes others have made
And find new ways of using the past

How to make music that sounds all new
When so many songs came before?
All we can use is what people do
And write a few notes of our own

We’re all composers, without having chosen
All of the notes in our songs
The past is never over
The past is never over
It’s been here all along

Oligarchs pulling strings from their office towers
(We hear that song, and we heard it before)
Klansmen in suits in the capitols of power
(We hear that song, and we heard it before)

Women fighting once again for basic rights
(We hear that song, and we heard it before)
Workers fighting once again to unionize
(We hear that song, and we heard it before)

We’re all composers, without having chosen
All of the notes in our songs
The past is never over
The past is never over
It’s been here all along

credits

from FLARE, released August 31, 2022
PW: vocals, lap slide guitar
Gretchen Schultz: vocals
John Conahan: organ, keyboards
Chico Huff: bass
Matt Scarano: drums

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Pat Wictor Brooklyn, New York

Grounded in rural blues and gospel traditions, Pat Wictor's lean, poetic songs and expressive guitar playing are seasoned with jazz, pop, improvisational surprise, and philosophy. He first gained attention as an acoustic lap slide guitarist, and a sought-after collaborator and session musician. His evolving projects push his own musical boundaries ever outward ... more

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