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Download mr. president

  • mr. president video (large, 9 meg)
  • mr. president video (small, 5 meg)
  • mr. president audio (large, 9 meg)
  • mr. president audio (small, 6 meg)


    • Notes: mr. president

    Song history: The song had been rattling around in my head for months. Every now and then, I picked up my guitar and cranked it out. Then one Sunday evening in mid-September when Kerry was at a low point in the polls, I couldn't stand it any longer. I had to do something. I found and downloaded a fun little drum synth program called hammerhead and quickly laid down a pleasing drum track--not bad for my first time ever using drum synth software. Next, I started hunting down freeware multitrack recording software. After trying out a number of (mostly annoying) shareware and freeware programs, I settled on Quartz Audiomaster Freeware, a 4-track (stereo audio) recorder. About 20 year ago, I recorded music on 4-track reel-to-reel tape decks; but, this was long before the advent of pc-based systems. I practiced using the software for a couple of hours before retiring to bed. I blew off work on Monday, soldered up some adapter cables for the 1/8" input to my sound card, and went to work.

    I first recorded the drums, bass and rhythm guitar on three tracks, and mixed the whole thing down to one stereo track. Next, I recorded a track of vocals with some processing (chorus and a little distortion), and a second less-processed track (chorus only). Finally, I laid down the two guitar solos, using only distortion. At about 1 am the next morning, I produced a rough-mix. The next day (after work), I re-recorded one of the audio tracks, and did a little editing of the guitar solos. After a few hours of playing around with the mix and some effects (reverb built into Quartz and a flanger in my "on board" sound card), I settled on this relatively processed, dirty sounding mix. The final mix was recorded to stereo on the AvRack application produced by Realtek that came with my motherboard.

    Here is the equipment list:

  • Rhythm guitar--Fender Stratocaster (1980 vintage) using the stock (center) pick-up played through a 1970s vintage HH Electric combo amp with built-in distortion (presence)
  • Lead guitar--Same Fender Strat, with a hot humbucker bridge pickup, played through a distortion box
  • Bass guitar--Peavey T-40 using the stock (front) pick-up, played clean through a Mu-Tron volume pedal
  • Microphone--Radio Shack F85-1804 Dynamic
  • Effects box (Lead guitar and vocal)--Ibanez DUE300 multieffects box
  • Recorder hardware--Realtek ALC650 built into my Via KT3V motherboard w/ AMD Athlon 2500+, 1.0 GB RAM, XP Professional

    • Video history: I asked Eric Blumrich if he would put the song on his terrific web site. He responded that he rarely put audio-only productions on his site, but that he would include the song in his next issue of BushFlash radio. Cool. Nevertheless, after getting his email, I decided to blow-off another day of work and produce a video. I immediately began scanning the web for visual material.

    Four hours later, I had a nice collection of video, still images, and a couple of images of my own making (lyric fragments). The images roughly followed the theme of each verse:

  • The (missing) WMD that the Bush administration used in their frenzied march to war
  • The 1000 (and counting) dead U.S. soldiers, and images of the flag-draped coffins suppressed by the Bush administration
  • The 13,000+ dead Iraqi civilians, and a hint of the grief and misery of living in a war zone
  • The $200 billion squandered on Bush's Folly, and a hint of the economic harm caused (and coming)
  • The unbelievable (re)election spin, and suggestions of what Bush really stands for
  • A recap: there were no WMD. Many people died because of the illegal actions of a vain and arrogant administration

    • The old footage is the famous "Duck and Cover" video of the 1950s. It reminded me of the fear-mongering antics of Ashcroft and Ridge with their color-coded terrorist alert system.

    Microsoft XP comes with Windows Movie Maker. I had only briefly played with this program before, but after reading a few help pages, I found it pretty easy to work with. I finished the final movie at 3 a.m. the next morning.


    Lyrics: mr. president


    And there were none of them weapons
    That justified your war
    And there were none of them weapons
    That justified your war
    Tell me mr. president
    What are we fighting for?


    And there are one-thousand brothers and sisters
    Who won’t be coming home no more
    And there are one-thousand brothers and sisters
    Who won’t be coming home no more
    Tell me mr. president
    Tell me, what did they all die for


    And there are thirteen thousand Iraqi
    Who have perished for your war
    And there are thirteen thousand Iraqi
    Who have perished for your war
    Tell me mr. president
    What did they do to die for your war?


    And there were two hundred billion
    Dollars burned up in your war
    Yes there were two hundred billion
    Dollars burned up for your war
    Tell me mr president
    How much more?


    And now it time for reelection
    And you are asking for four more
    And now it time for reelection
    And you are asking for four more
    Tell me mr president
    What is it that you really stand for?


    And there are one-thousand brothers and sisters
    Who won’t come home no more
    And there are one-thousand brothers and sisters
    Who won’t come home no more
    Tell me mr. president
    Tell me, what did they all die for

    (c) 2004 Darryl J. Holman

    Email: Darryl J. Holman




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