fans for life the first time I heard the
term my sound engineer JP whispered it
in my ear as I was walking past him on
my way back from a very quick
meet-and-greet with someone who in an
alternate universe could easily have
been my mother I’m very lonely in a very
cold Valentine’s Day in western
Pennsylvania in 2004 having never heard
the phrase before I gave pause I looked
at JP curiously an emotion toward the
happy family on the barricade fans for
life chief because you’re them and
they’re you that’s the whole point now
against all rock and roll odds
I remember this with complete clarity
and for whatever reason at that moment I
couldn’t stand the word fan I mean that
makes no sense I mean I’m a huge fan of
Pearl Jam I love the New York Rangers
and Saturday Night Live and I most
definitely consider myself a Howard
Stern Show super fan but at that moment
it didn’t make any sense I mean we
couldn’t have fans we were just a couple
of guys who got together after school we
wrote songs about our friends and played
him in the basement you know so we’d
have something to do we weren’t looking
for fans we were merely telling our
story in real time so I left JP in a
huff out of the tunnel out of the arena
and went to the dressing room and a
complete rock-and-roll cliche inner
turmoil mom and I sat with the band and
said guys can we make sure we never
refer to our audience as fans rather our
listeners now as I’m saying it to you
right now
it sounds pompous as hell I mean
honestly it’s the complete opposite of
everything we stood for I mean to
identify and label somebody as a
listener not even giving them the option
to be a fan it makes no sense it’s
ridiculous but I promise you it was that
extreme reluctance to chase the approval
of others that allowed us to continue
doing what we
been doing up until that point that was
telling our story in real time we were
forming a connection with the people
that would eventually become our fans
for life It was as if our circle of
friends was growing bigger and bigger
and our job was to document that now in
all our jobs all our lives our careers
were expected to make connections you
know one of the beautiful things about
being a human being is to connect with
someone else
but I believe that the only way to make
lifelong connections I mean friends for
life fans for life is to have real
communication in real time I wrote this
first song sitting on the trunk of my 84
Honda Civic in Frank Newby’s driveway
she had three tinted windows a beanbag
ashtray I asked my friends to carve
their name in the roof when they got in
with their keys it was me
Frank Newby Mike Caputo there was a
solid group out in the field laughing
under the Maryland moon and I started
making up some chords making up some
words I would later play this song a few
years after a few years went by for my
Caputo’s funeral after we lost him in a
tragic accident that would shape our
there are few things Paul in this world
anymore and home is one of the few we
have a drink outside maybe running out
if I saw a couple men in blue but to me
so damn easy to see that my people on my
people at home well I’ve been away but
now I’m back today and there ain’t a
place to rather go
[Music]
see faces that remember
[Music]
when I’m chilling outside wish to be
able to know I feel home
let’s just be
home
reality when all I need is something
–
see now some before
[Music]
we’ve got nothing to do
they just the crack of your smile makes
me save for a while from home there’s
nothing above in the end I will only
to be true and a thousand years
thousand more tears I will
my original crew to me nor us that I
rather be
[Music]
on these long talk drives on these roads
every night my heart heading back home
see the face remember
to feel home when I’m chilling out
I wish to be
is reality Woodall we need something
real homey it’s the only reality that I
know wanna need something real go on
back home
[Music]
but I’m thinking you it takes me right
[Music]
[Music]
I feel home you send my bones send my
blood when I think of you I know the
only place to go I go home
thank you let’s take it back a little
bit further about 25 years or so don’t
look too deeply into the math here I’m
not a scientist I’m not a mathematician
I’m writing a story it’s uh maybe I can
highlight a few of the reasons why
growing such an aversion to the reach
for people’s approval and I didn’t start
out that way by the sixth grade I was
running for office I was revamping the
school store I was dragging my dad the
baseball card shows selling among other
things cards stolen from my brothers I
was charging my friends five dollars a
head to come to the house and watch the
Tyson Spinks fight on pay-per-view in my
basement
my mom made Celeste cheese pizzas it was
Janan times were good 91 seconds later
Spinks is on the ground and people want
their money back
so I needed something bigger I started a
sports magazine and it was comprised
completely of articles plagiarized from
Sports Illustrated and Beckett monthly I
called it sports monthly and again no
connection no communication no fans it
became Tyre tiring to live somebody
else’s story you know how can we expect
people to relate to us if we don’t give
them anything real to relate to how can
I live in a constant state of reaching
and expect anyone to reach back you know
it’s the runner and the chaser in other
words live your life live your own story
talk about your life people will believe
you people will believe in you this next
song is about real communication in real
I see you don’t know cries you got a
10-mile stare in your eyes tonight time
it fair like it used to be oh you
brought dressed up nowhere to go
lost our way about half way home why do
I hurt the ones forget to close
[Music]
Oh
you know
we pray the same way
bring it back to one bring it back to
long barakaatuh
and what used to be the ground in love
and some memories why do I
to say
two different way
to spring it back – thank you talk about
your life write what you know
put yourself out there I mean they all
sound great you know it’s it’s a lot
harder to do it’s easier said than done
I mean all of this is as we got further
away out of college and deeper into
marriages and families of our own it
became somehow even more personal to
tell our story in real time you know I
mean I got to realize I’m talking about
my life
that means I’m talking about their lives
– it’s a lot to ask for them to come
along for the ride I’m inviting a whole
audience for better or worse till death
do you part
through bad business through scary scary
health through it all you know is it
worth it
JP you would say it’s the whole point
chief I’d like to end with a song that’s
about pushing through once the most
difficult you got to move forward it’s
my dad told me politicians never learn
the go-to move to one of others as you’d
have them do to you but you go around
and round it you go
food on the table running card tuck my
kids in at night the American Dream in
my mom’s an angel cigarette smoke like a
halo around her hair sun is shining
but you go around and round it
our goal soon he go round and round it
you go
you play my legs then let me walk you
then ask me if my line once your true
can you do you go round and round it you
go
soon
you seal my lips
[Music]
okay
then ask me if my my-y you true can you
do you go
[Music]
my kid he asked me daddy when you coming
home to me from work if I’m being honest
so I go around and round it over and
under he goes through you go around and
from him go over and under she goes
we go around and round it we go over and under we go