California native songbird, Megan Brickwood crossed my path in 2021 leading me to share my discovery with you. You know me, I’m just a girl who loves to share new music discoveries. Just imagine how flattered I was when Megan reached out to me a few days ago after her Internet search found that archived post featuring her? I was honored. She was kind and gracious thanking me for the spotlight. In her email, she wrote about her new EP that released earlier this year and naturally, being Curious as a Cathy, I had to learn more. Come on, what kind of friend would I be if I kept this to myself? I invite you to turn your ear now to listen to the title track, Fifth Mile.
Megan says this about how Fifth Mile evolved into musical piece for one enjoyment.
One night I decided to try out the CGCFCE tuning and this picking pattern started taking shape. Once that was written, the story for the song just opened up and the song kind of wrote itself from there. The lyric structure of the song is pretty simple – when I see it written out I realize just how spare the lyrics are – and for someone who is generally a pretty wordy songwriter it was kind of a treat to write this dreamy, abstract tune and really just dig into the vibe and feel of it. I think that the production honored that intention so well, and I think as the title track it’s a good representation of a running theme in the EP, which is giving permission to oneself to dream and go off into the unknown….throwing caution to the wind. This track really embraces that on a number of levels.”
Megan’s sophomore EP, Fifth Mile has three other tracks. Let’s listen to and learn the inspiration behind each one.
The first song title listed on her Fifth Mile YouTube playlist is the first song Megan says she wrote in an open tuning pattern DADGAD. It completely captured her imagination. The idea to write a song popped into her head while on a walk around Trinity River. Her environment fueled her creativity as she soaked in the lonely and melancholy of her surroundings. Once back at her home studio in Los Angeles, she used the tuning pattern that sparked it all composing what she initially envisioned as “Colors in the Stream” but it was after she finished the song that she realized that what she she wrote was Trinity River Blues.
The second song is Hey Little Darling. Megan explains this song is special to her because it’s kind of like a letter to her younger self in which she tells herself to not be afraid to talking the chance she wants the most and to not let time slip away without really living. This is something we all can relate to and wished that we could tell our younger self. She says it also serves to remind herself now to not lose heart but keep taking those chances no matter what. I think these are wise words for anyone.
The third track on this album is You’ll Never Find A Girl Like Me and while I don’t have the details on what prompted her to write it. I think you’ll enjoy the melody as much as I did.
I don’t know about tuning patterns or how to makes lyrics and music work together but one thing I do know is if music moves me then that’s all that matters. Megan’s vocal style and music arrangement embodies that folk rock vibes from the 70s I heard in my teen years flooding my senses with feelings and memories. It’s refreshing to see young talent nurturing this genre like Megan. I hope success follows her in her musical story telling journey. You can keep up with Megan Brickwood to lear of new releases on her Website.
Many of y’all have toned down social media sharing, including myself. But, if you want to tell your friends about Megan Brickwood then you know what to do with the share buttons. 😉
You’re the best and most loyal friends ever! Thank you for taking time to stop by to read today’s unplanned post. I’ll be back with Monday’s Music Moves Me where you’ll find me boogieing on the dance floor. If you have music to share or you’re a music lover then this is the party for you, so come join the fun. This is CAAC signing off, have a tunetastic day!