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Look At Me
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I dare you to move beyond the shallow, superficiality of "How are you today?" and "Some weather we're havin', huh?"
harmony labeff chicago lo
Artist picture
Harmony LaBeff, nicknamed the “lyrical assassin”, has a gift of phrasing and rhyming that intrigues the avid liner-note-lyric-reader and the casual listener ali
Yes, it's his real name. No, his parent's weren't hippies. Call it fate if you will but his mom would call it prophetic. His mother Brenda, born in Harmony, Minnesota, was always dreadfully embarrassed of her small town upbringing until the night she met a young rock-n-roller, on tour with rockabilly giant, Sleepy LaBeef, his father. His name was Harmony and after romancing, finding Jesus, and marrying, Brenda had her first son within that year--another Harmony LaBeff. One may think that the son of two generations of guitar-slinging, rock-n-roll singers, would inevitably embrace the blessings and burdens of the LaBeff legacy. But the fruition of his voice as a singer and writer was a tumultuous and uncertain growth out of soil rich in religion and rebellion. It was this convergence of contradictions that repelled and eventually reconciled Harmony to music making. The magic of his parents' meeting, and his mom’s Sunday school teaching nurtured Harmony’s belief in extraordinary imaginings. But music was not among them. Growing up in a fire and brimstone church and witnessing the slow-burning destruction of his parents' marriage on the altar of his father’s rock-and-roll lifestyle, weeded out any desire to adopt his dad‘s dream. Like many boys seeking affirmation and acceptance Harmony’s creative energies were focused on athletics and academics. However, his worst grades, “N’s” for "Needs Improvement," were in early music classes where he was often reprimanded for changing song lyrics to get laughs from his classmates. Harmony dreamt of being an NBA All-Star. But in an ironic twist, Harmony was diagnosed with a severe spinal curve at the age of 13 and shortly thereafter underwent a spinal fusion. His dreams of athletic stardom were dispelled as he was told to prepare for a future using his brain since he would never be fit for manual labor. Disappointed with life, Harmony entered the stormy years of high school holding back a hurricane of heartbreak. Then, on a visit to his dad's during his freshman year, Harmony found himself doing something he had never cared to do before--playing guitar. From that first lesson with his dad bloomed an insatiable need to learn more. He borrowed books, auditioned into jazz band, and learned from one of his dad’s band members who recognized Harmony's talent and need, and gave him his first acoustic guitar. This in turn opened the door for him to explore the then budding acoustic folk-rock music of Dave Matthews, the Goo Goo Dolls, Jars of Clay and Jewel. It was in this intimate tone and introspective delivery that Harmony discovered a means to unburden his soul. Yet the pressure of following in the footsteps of a performing father and grandfather, had kept most of Harmony's singing closeted. Still, Harmony dared to audition into his high school's select choir and it was there that he received his first formal vocal training. Soon after he was placing in regional and state solo performance competitions and in his senior year he won the school’s talent show with an original song. The ensuing response from his peers and teachers served as a catalyst that moved him from music as mere hobby to performing as a lifetime pursuit. Harmony went on to study voice and music at North Central University on both academic and musical scholarships and graduated with honors at the top of his class. While there, Harmony began the battle of making peace between the sacred and the secular and found that both the so-called meta-physical, and the seemingly mundane were abundant in meaning and worthy of music. It is both from and toward this resolution of tensions that Harmony has been driven to learn and create. Nicknamed the “lyrical assassin” by musician friends, Harmony has the gift of phrasing, timing, pacing and rhyming. His lyricism speaks to both the spiritual and the sensual in a manner that is never inaccessible. With the conviction of his mother’s Gospel-hymn singing and the spirit of his father’s roots-rock showmanship, Harmony's performance is pure passion. Reverberating grace and soul, Harmony’s voice leaves stillness in its wake like two well-worn wings bearing an almost angel. With growing acclaim in the Twin Cities, Harmony is prepared for a promising future. His style is an uncomplicated unity of the diverse sounds that shaped his musical history: call it alt-pop, folk-rock or acoustic hip-hop; he calls it singer-songwriter. You’ll know it’s Harmony.
Song Info
Genre
Pop Indie Pop
Charts
Peak #289
Peak in subgenre #40
Author
Harmony LaBeff/LaBeff, Jenz
Rights
2003
Uploaded
May 19, 2004
Track Files
MP3
MP3 3.7 MB 128 kbps 0:00
Story behind the song
I've done, you've done it, we've all done it: asked and not really cared
Lyrics
I know you don’t want to look at me as you are walking by I understand I often feel the same ‘Cuz I’m not that good at small talk and people think I’m shy So we walk with downcast eyes as though in shame And we know that we’re all alone there’s no one in this empty hall We’re naked and we want to run and hide So we try not to walk to tall, and fix our gazes on the wall Seeing nothing but we’re noticing it all So look at me smile and say “Hello and how are you today?” And I’ll say good and ask back, “How are you?” And you’ll say good and I’ll say good Just like all good people should But we’re both thinking, if you only knew If you only knew (It’s not true) Neither one of us could bare to be the first to open We know we could never say just what we mean ‘Cuz every time we try we’re choking, so we both continue hoping For a reason to avoid this ugly scene I guess that we don’t see the point ‘cuz hardly anybody cares Why should we even waste each other’s time? ‘Cuz the breath we waste in speaking, could be the last breath that we’re breathing And we’re screaming at each other like we’re mimes So look at me smile and say “Ain’t the weather nice today?” And I’ll nod yes and comment on the sky And you’ll agree and I’ll agree We’re both in perfect harmony We’re hurricanes who only show the eye Show the eye (It’s a lie) Don’t look at me smile and say “Hello and how are you today?” ‘Cuz I’ll ask, “Do you really want to know?” And if you do and if I do, and if the words we speak are true I wonder how this story’s gonna go How it goes (Who knows?) So look at me smile and say “Hello and how are you today?” And I’ll say good and ask back, “How are you?” And you’ll say good and I’ll say good Just like all good people should But we’re both thinking, if you only knew If you only knew
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