Tangletown

Confluence of recent readings (specifically “Feeding Ghosts” by Tessa Hulls; “Survival is a Promise” by Alexis Pauline Gumbs), watching several melancholy films (“Aviici, I’m Tim”, “My Sailor, My Love”), streaming “The Kominsky Method” and a recent death in our family, fueled by all-too short periods of daylight, has me in a reflective mood and delivered up this song. Not depressed per se, but embracing the idea of being confused, saddened, muddled, conflicted, etc AND being okay with those feelings as you sort through the facts or “ghosts” or whatever is the cause. The “tangletown” metaphor was one I had jotted down in the red notebook this past summer and I decided to put it to work as a filter to sort through the facts, dreams, “ghosts” or whatever are the cause of this tangled state of mind.

Musically, I wanted to create the same kind of tension. The repeating verse chords (IV, I, V) were conceived to mirror that unsettled sensation combined with a continued forward motion and circular rhythm pattern. As a counterpoint, the resolve to the tonic at the end of the bridge and final refrain on “tangletown” are intended to convey “hope”.

Okay enough of this songwriter gibberish. How did the song hit you? Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Thanks for listening.

Mark

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Tangletown

Walk through these streets, leaves under my feet
Head’s foggy and it’s starting to pour
Better turn things around, get out of this town
I can’t stay here anymore

But it’s Thanksgiving day and I need a place to pray
To ponder the life that I’ve lived
But the words in my mouth, can’t find a way out
May not be much more to say

Show me some proof
Clouds never move
Roof over my head
But there’s ghosts in these rooms

Talked to myself
Stumbled around
What good’s a map?
in Tangletown

Make my way home, still feeling alone
Climb the stairs and crawl into bed
Sleep softly my lover, stay under the covers
The warmth of your breath fills the air

If you lean into me with your heart on your sleeve
Let me know where it hurts
Can it be, this is where it all leads?
Should I be somewhere else?

Thanks for coming around
Keep your head down
You’re walking the streets
of Tangletown

INSTRUMENTAL

Then a memory takes hold I want to control
My hands have a mind of their own
So I toss and I turn it, I cannot return it
Fingers turn blue from the cold

Show me some proof
Clouds never move
Roof over my head
But there’s ghosts in these rooms

jot this one down
take one look around
you’re never alone,
in Tangletown
Tangletown
Get yourself home [walking the streets] From Tangletown

Words and Music (c) 2025 Mark Ippolito