Singled Out: James Clark Hangover's It's Alright Now

James Clark Hangover (punk veteran David Clark) tells us about his song "It's Alright Now" from his latest album "There's A Wolf On My Street". Here is the story:

There's a lot going on in the song and I don't necessarily mean musically. The title is lifted directly from the Rolling Stones' Jumpin Jack Flash. I assume most of the best choruses are gone so I recycle. I used to try and make songs hard to listen to: weird changes and wordy, dense, unintelligible lyrics. A few ago it became clear to me that vague yet familiar lyrics and digestible arrangements are what make songs memorable. There's a reason why choruses are choruses. There's a reason Beatles songs are arranged a certain way. Yet for most of my career I'd simply walked in the opposite direction of logic. Duh! Maybe it's the Taurus in me? Anyway, I decided to re-think everything. I now start with the chorus and work from there. The hook is the reason the song exists. The chorus is the point. In this song, the first verse is about a fellow that I see in my neighbourhood. He looks like he's got nothing and he always has a smile. The second verse is about Chris Cornell. He's got it all and he's suicidal. At this juncture, Led Zeppelin arrives to remind us that there are two paths and it's not too late to change. The music itself came about when I decided to write something with a lick as a sonic hook. The two note bit before the chords of each verse are like aural Doritos. Irresistible! The bridge is an homage to Kurt Cobain and the chorus is STP. At least that's the way I see it.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more about the album here

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