FAWM: "Back to the Beginning"

Back to the Beginning

1 week ago by @danvaillancourt · @cloudboy

Liner Notes

Michael Aquino: Vocals, Trumpet, Requinto, Melody/Chords Dan Vaillancourt: Lyrics, Cello, Percussion, Mixing, Photo

Dan Says: Michael gave me the prompt on day 1 to write a set of lyrics based on those old metal slides and merry-go-rounds from the playgrounds that we had growing up.

The reason that I love to collaborate with Michael is that not only do we share an affinity for wordplay and phrasing... he also shares my love of sonic exploration.

He send me his tracks of vocals and requinto... and I added a pizzicato and an effected bowed part (through my pedal board) on my electric cello that I got last week. Then, I added a few tracks of percussion and he whipped out a trumpet part! Mix, mix, mix and here we are. Most fun in headphones.

Michael Says: Dan has an amazing way of developing vividly clear scenes and images in his lyric writing - which I love cause it gets me into the zone quickly. It just felt like the nostalgia was calling for the requinto which sits higher than a guitar. I sent it off to Dan and he masterfully came up with the cello and percussive lines that are tight and playful. The sound reminded me a bit of a Neutral Milk Hotel tune and thought...hmmmm...trumpet at the end? Dan polished this off with mixing skills. I'm thankful to be able to have these experiences in FAWM.

#requinto #cello #story #folk #trumpet #upbeat

Lyrics

Back to the Beginning February 1, 2026

V1: So we go, back to the beginning And then we climb, one step at a time Up up up up up up, the tallest height A pause at the top and down we slide Hotter than hades, in the summer sun Or slick as ice, snowy wintertime fun

CHORUS: We’d stay until our mother called At the top of her lungs, to come back home. Dinner at the table. Bath before bed. Wash, rinse, repeat. Do it all again. A loop on replay. Day after day after day.

V2: Merrily, we go round and around Round after round, until we’ve found We are laughing on the ground… again My friends and I, try and try To stand… hand in hand. Up up up up up up and down.

-chorus-

V3: Painted over… and over again Revealing colors: blue, yellow, red Thousands of hands. Thousands of feet. Wear away the layers to see beneath The time we jumped. The time we fell Dust, rust, laughter. The stories we tell.

Ending: We’d stay until our mother called At the top of her lungs, to come back home. Dinner at the table. Bath before bed. Wash, rinse, repeat. We’d do it all again... Now, that was years ago… But today. Rewind. Replay. We climb. Back to the beginning… Up… Up… Up… …One step at a time.

Comments

@frozenlonesome 2d

Great song. I’m old enough to have been a free range kid. Especially at the cottage where we spent our summers. Kicked out and told to come back for lunch. Spent way too much time on these metal slides.

Lyrically and musically sweet. No notes. I enjoyed it from the start to the finish!

@angelinapowersuit 2d

Chorus lyrics. . . just so sweet and sentimental and familiar. I'm digging your unusual rhythm, gives it a quirkiness and grandness and joyfulness. Michael, your voice sound SO good. The mixing is excellent, everything is layered and spaced out so beautifully. But I love that the vocals are up front and the lyrics so clearly come through. Love this!

@fearlessflight2014 5d

That electric cello is the coolest sonic texture, the whole song has an otherworldliness that evokes childhood imagination. And then the trumpet’s entrance is the icing on an awesome cake!!

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thank you Liz! I got the electric cello and giving it a whirl to see if I can figure it out. This was a fun one to use it on! I have always really enjoyed your upright bass playing, so your kind words mean a lot. 🙏

@treerose 5d

That. was. AMAZING! I would 100% pay to download this song.

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thanks Emily! This was a lot of fun!

@ambroise 6d

I'm getting Nietzsche's eternal return from the lyrics. I knew trumpett could be this majestic, good job with that. Didn't expect that a requinto could be so solemn. This sounds like a baroque danse from some royal court. Maybe one where step go backward?

@beacon 6d

I love the different type of step progressions in the verses vs. the chorus. The chorus is really good, and who can't relate to the playground?

@wynia 1w

This is really cool! I love how it's slightly wobbly in its progression, with the kinda harmonic-esque rough bowed cello as a tasty treat. Of course mad props for adding the trumpet+harmon mute (it's a harmon, right?). This was really, really good, loved every bit of it!

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thank you Sarah! Thanks for the kind words on the cello… (especially since you know a REAL cellist! 😉) I’m just figuring this thing out but it is a lot of fun! 😊🙏

@cloudboy will have to answer the mute question. 🎺

@eric 1w

Great collaboration, filled with sonic surprises and interesting chords progressions. A visual feast in the lyrics and we'll delivered vocals. You should be proud of this one for sure!

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thanks Eric! Let me know if you ever want to do another collab. Always happy to write a set of lyrics for you to put music to like we did a few years ago (I really liked that Apple song)… or whatever!

@bethdesombre 1w

This is glorious! Such an excellent representation of those playgrounds of my youth (and the prosody -- "up up up . . . a pause"!). I love "The time we jumped. The time we fell/ Dust, rust, laughter/The stories we tell" and so many other simple but perfect lines. And the ending bringing it back to the beginning.

@danvaillancourt 1d

Beth! Thank you for the lovely comment. 🙏🛝

@nancycunning 1w

The music and the words catch that feeling of living in a world of other kids full of sights and sounds and no grown-ups. A kind of living all the way in the body away from words and warnings.

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thank you Nancy. Every era has good and bad aspects but I miss that world of exploration, outdoor play and the trust to make it back home for dinner. Ha. 😊🎶🛝

@davidtaro 1w

Loads to love here. In no particular order, the way the deliberate plod of the bass plays against the staccato melody; the way the bass line has a merry-go-round quality as it ascends and descends; the subtle harmonies that are adding a tonne; the sound design overall, which is playful and creative; and the way the emotion rises to a crescendo at the end. Great collabing chaps.

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thanks David! This was a fun one. All the bass line parts are played on my new electric cello, pizzicato. 😉🛝🎶

@deena 1w

What a treat this is. Every sound is gorgeous and sweet. And the lyrics take me back to my childhood too (Did you rub the slide with waxed paper to make sliding faster? That's part of my memory...)

@cloudboy 1w

NO! I never did. I would imagine that you would fly!

@danvaillancourt 1d

Not on a regular basis but we had all the metal equipment at my elementary school and I vaguely half-remember someone trying this one summer at the school playground.

I occasionally find a playground with the old metal equipment while on road trips… I should just travel with wax paper… just in case! 🛝🙌🎶

@kenjku 1w

What a fun tune. Great arrangements. Everything seems to work very well together. Chorus hits nicely. I really enjoy the bass kicking in at the end too. Nice work!

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thank you! 🎶

@pumpkinhead 1w

Amazing song. I love these songs about everyday life that show us how valuable our days are. Very nice and interesting arrangement and the melody is superb. Top 5 so far this year Thanks 🙏

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thank you so much! Wow, top 5!! 🙏

@mattlitzinger 1w

This sounds beautiful. Love the bass part and the delivery of the lyrics. Well done!

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thank you Matt! The bass part on this is a pizzicato part on electric cello! Just to make it a little more fun. 🎶

@odilongreen 1w

This feels like such a complete slice of life; the detail is so well-articulated, the imagery and story so clear, it's like I'm there, and I'm a young child again. It's pretty darn magical. Of course, the outstanding instrumentation helps too; nothing seems flashy or there to "show off," but rather all the sounds work so well in the context of the lyrics and the song and the nostalgic vibe. Really spectacular!

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thank you so much for the detailed comment. Any day that we can get to the point of “pretty darn magical” is a good day for sure. 🛝🎶🙏

@alyxanderjames 1w

This is a gorgeous little bit of nostalgia! What a great collab, the layers of all the instruments and vocals fit so comfortably with the evocative lyrics.

@danvaillancourt 1d

Thank you so much!