Andrew Nielson (MC Lars), a roommate of Pat's at Stanford, has written a song, which he wanted to share. It's part of his latest album This Gigantic Robot Kills, which has been well reviewed thanks in large part to "Twenty-Three," the song he wrote for Pat. Check out this review, which Andrew sent to me: http://changetherecord.net/2009/01/18/mc-lars-this-gigantic-robot-kills-2/
The album is available on Amazon, but "Twenty-Three" can be downloaded at this link courtesy of Andrew:
http://mclars.com/mp3s/albums/2009%20-%20tgrk/08%20Twenty-Three.mp3
"Twenty-Three" is a lovely tribute, beautifully written and produced. Andrew has dignified the life and death of Pat in an intimate and eloquent way. Please join me in co
ngratulating him for his artistry, and join me also in supporting him by purchasing the album on Amazon.All my gratitude, Andrew,
Pat's mom
Pat at Stanford
"Twenty-Three"
lyrics by MC Lars
music by James Bourne
I don't sleep, because sleep is the cousin of death
Down the hall, there's a kid that I know
He's kind of quirky so I say hello
He's so sarcastic but he's always right
Working on those problem sets late into the night
Mad magazines sit piled by his bed
A million brilliant thoughts going all through his head
We bike to class in the autumn rain
He tells me that he's fine but I know he's in pain
Pat I miss you dude it's so hard to say goodbye
In Europe last winter you were tired of the lie
Monoxide in the bathroom but the door was locked
We were always there for you, you could have called and talked
I felt guilty and alone and so sick when I discovered
You did it in Berlin, you'd just talked to your mother
I guess it was too much, depression disillusion
Maybe suicide's an answer, but it wasn't the solution
CHORUS:
And I wish that you hadn't done it
Could have won it and moved on from it
And we could have grown old together
But instead you'll always be 23.... 23.
We sat together one night on El Camino
On the bench by the bus stop hiding from El Nino
You told me your secret I just sat there in shock
You couldn't tell your parents, you couldn't break that lock
Cognitive dissonance, trapped in your shell
Depression and regression made your life a living hell
The pain was too intense, the fence too strong to break
So you went to Germany, it was too much to take
You came back broken hearted distracted by the dream
The worlds collided now, college wasn't what it seemed
You went to back to Berlin to find yourself once more
They broke down the door and found you lying on the floor
I took the Amtrak up the coast, your mom met me at the station
I went to see your house and photos of your graduation
We drove to your grave, no tombstone where you lay
Your freshmen yearbook's by your bed and your room's in disarray
CHORUS
(vocal samples recorded spring 2003)
Lars: Ladies and gentlemen, I want you to meet a good friend of mine, this is Patrick Wood!
Pat: What's up Lars?
Lars: What's up Pat?
Pat: How you doing man?
Lars: Good. What do you think of me having my recording equipment take up three quarters of our small room in the Kimball dorm?
Pat: It's no problem man, I love you.
Lars: I love you too Pat.
Pat: Thanks Lars.
Lars: Pat Wood! Hey that's you.
Pat: (Sarcastic laughter)
CHORUS:
And I wish that you hadn't done it
Could have won it and moved on from it
Now we'll never grow old together
But you're in my memory, 23... 23.
Suicide sucks.
lyrics by MC Lars
music by James Bourne
I don't sleep, because sleep is the cousin of death
Down the hall, there's a kid that I know
He's kind of quirky so I say hello
He's so sarcastic but he's always right
Working on those problem sets late into the night
Mad magazines sit piled by his bed
A million brilliant thoughts going all through his head
We bike to class in the autumn rain
He tells me that he's fine but I know he's in pain
Pat I miss you dude it's so hard to say goodbye
In Europe last winter you were tired of the lie
Monoxide in the bathroom but the door was locked
We were always there for you, you could have called and talked
I felt guilty and alone and so sick when I discovered
You did it in Berlin, you'd just talked to your mother
I guess it was too much, depression disillusion
Maybe suicide's an answer, but it wasn't the solution
CHORUS:
And I wish that you hadn't done it
Could have won it and moved on from it
And we could have grown old together
But instead you'll always be 23.... 23.
We sat together one night on El Camino
On the bench by the bus stop hiding from El Nino
You told me your secret I just sat there in shock
You couldn't tell your parents, you couldn't break that lock
Cognitive dissonance, trapped in your shell
Depression and regression made your life a living hell
The pain was too intense, the fence too strong to break
So you went to Germany, it was too much to take
You came back broken hearted distracted by the dream
The worlds collided now, college wasn't what it seemed
You went to back to Berlin to find yourself once more
They broke down the door and found you lying on the floor
I took the Amtrak up the coast, your mom met me at the station
I went to see your house and photos of your graduation
We drove to your grave, no tombstone where you lay
Your freshmen yearbook's by your bed and your room's in disarray
CHORUS
(vocal samples recorded spring 2003)
Lars: Ladies and gentlemen, I want you to meet a good friend of mine, this is Patrick Wood!
Pat: What's up Lars?
Lars: What's up Pat?
Pat: How you doing man?
Lars: Good. What do you think of me having my recording equipment take up three quarters of our small room in the Kimball dorm?
Pat: It's no problem man, I love you.
Lars: I love you too Pat.
Pat: Thanks Lars.
Lars: Pat Wood! Hey that's you.
Pat: (Sarcastic laughter)
CHORUS:
And I wish that you hadn't done it
Could have won it and moved on from it
Now we'll never grow old together
But you're in my memory, 23... 23.
Suicide sucks.
10 comments:
Wow. After hearing Pat's voice so many times on Lars' CD, I got so used to it.
Hearing it here in this song, made me cry.
I've never met Pat, nor Lars. Though, Lars is a huge inspiration to me, and this song has truly reached out and touched me.
This song made me bawl my eyes out, because I've been in Pat's situation, at my worst when I was 23.
Nobody should have to go through that.
I just wanted to let you know that looking up the lyrics to this song led me here.
It really is an amazing song.
This touches me in so many ways.
I cry every single time, without fail.
I'm a survivor of an incomplete suicide attempt... I was 26, less than a week after my birthday.
I can only picture what Pat's friends and family must have gone through. I lose it every time I hear the song, picturing my friends and family going through the same.
Lars sums it up simply, but fully, in the final line, "Suicide sucks."
I just heard this song for the first time, sitting in my car waiting for my daughter. It moved me beyond words and I could not get it out of my head.
I searched the Internet for information on the song and found this site.
I pray for Pat's mom, family and friends. It's hard to lose someone you love.
This song takes the emotions of losing someone like that and expresses them in the proper way. I lost one of my best friends to suicide- he was 14. I found this song shortly after his death- my friend had reccommended another song on the album. I played it for our group of friends- we're all extremely close- and it reduced all of us to tears- even the 18-year-olds in the room who I'd never seen cry before.
Kudos for MC Lars for being able to put those emotions together so well, and my respects to Pat's family- I know how hard it is to go through something like that.
wow...powerful
wow...powerful
he's lucky i bet no one will care whe n i kill myself especally not enoug to make a song for me
God, what a beautiful song. It puts Eminem´s Stan to shame. It is so incredibly touching hearing Pat´s voice on the track. I don´t know these guys but you don´t have to to hear the person in the voice. He really sounds like what a friend used to refer to as "one of the good ones." My sincerest condolences to Pat´s mom and Lars.
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