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Hanging By A Thread

from What's Trending by Leo Sidran

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about

“Hanging By A Thread” was written after a good friend of mine suffered a nearly fatal accident. She survived and is doing fine now but the experience unlocked an awareness in me that we are all hanging by a thin thread between life and death. The trick of living, it seems, is to proceed with enthusiasm and intention in spite of this reality, or maybe because of it.

Interestingly, as I listen to the song now, it feels like an environmentalist plea - even the imagery in the lyrics speaks to the natural phenomena on Earth (“hanging by a thread watching the waters rise, living on borrowed time” for example). And although it wasn’t written with the climate in mind, it certainly applies.

I recorded the song while I was on tour in Madrid. My friend Jorge Drexler loaned me his studio for a day and I quickly performed the piano, guitar, cajon, marimba and vocals in an afternoon, and added the synth bass in bed at my hotel that evening. Michael Hearst then added sweetening orchestration, playing theremin, saw and assorted sound effects. Sol sings the later verses as a duet with me, and my niece, Zelta sings a siren call on the bridge.

Having my daughter and niece participate on the track heightened the message of fragility, mortality, and continuity of the song for me.

lyrics

Hanging by a thread
Watching the water rise
Living on borrowed time
Not knowing where it ends

Hanging by a thread
Above a great divide
Acting like we can fly
And that it’s not pretend
Oh but then again
We know we’re just hanging by a thread

Hanging by a thread
That remains unseen
That sews the seam
Between the heart and head

Hanging by a thread
Is the price to pay
For another day
Without a net

And though we might forget
We’re here but we’re just hanging by a thread

Hanging by a thread
Beats the alternative
We get away with it
Until one day it ends

Hanging by a thread
For just a little while
And though keep a smile
And it remains unsaid
All that lies ahead
Is hanging by a little thread

We’re here but we’re just hanging by a thread
We’re hanging by a thread

credits

from What's Trending, released March 10, 2023

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Leo Sidran Brooklyn, New York

“Vocally he suggests an amalgam of his father Ben with a hint of Donald Fagen. His fluid laidback style is reminiscent of Bob Dorough. Musically and lyrically his compositions are smart, sharp, and sparklingly original.”
— Jazz Times

I'm a multi instrumentalist musician, producer, arranger, composer, recording artist, and podcast host based in Brooklyn.

More about Leo: www.leosidran.com ... more

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