In yet another installment of my occasional “Talking About Songwriting” blog, let’s take a look at “What’s Wrong,” another track from our recently-released CD, “I Heard You Twice the First Time.”
The basis for “What’s Wrong” came to me while I was in the shower. I typically wake up most days with an “earworm;” a song – or just a portion of one – usually from my distant past. It usually stays with me for the better part of a day. This one was an early Beatles’ rockabilly-ish number, “Slow Down.” Of course, all I could remember was the intro lyric: “Come on pretty baby, what’s wrong with me?” That lyric rattled around in my head all day, but I forgot about it a couple days later.
A couple of weeks later, I was fooling around with the guitar and banging-out some barre chords, and started playing the basic rhythm from Slow Down, but was misremembering the lyrics, and that first line came out, “Come on pretty baby, what’s wrong with you?” Of course, I really didn’t remember any of the other lyrics, so I was free to “invent” a new story line, one that revolved around a scene that we’ve all encountered at one time or another, one in which we’ve obviously upset our love interest, but aren’t quite sure why… and they’re not telling, either! And that was pretty much all I needed.
A couple of verses – and a bridge – later, and I had sketched it out. A few days later, I grabbed an acoustic and shot a quick video of myself playing it all the way through, to document it, with the intention of looking at it later and fine-tuning the lyrics and the overall structure. It was a couple of months later that I actually got around to revisiting it, tightening up the structure, and getting it ready for the studio. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Here it is… hope you like it!
What’s Wrong
@2016 by David Z Orban, all rights reserved. BMI
Come on, pretty baby, what’s a-wrong with you?
You know I love every little thing you do…
I love you each and every single night and day…
Tell me, what did I do, to make you treat me this way?
What’s wrong?
Won’t you tell me what’s wrong?
Come on, baby, what’s wrong?
Oh, won’t you tell me what’s wrong?
You know, I can’t make it better if I don’t know what to do…
Come on little girl, the rest is up to you
SOLO
I’ve known you pretty baby, since I don’t know when…
And since we’ve been together, you’ve been more than a friend
The good times keep getting better, and our future’s looking bright…
So why don’t you please tell me why you’re tryin’ to pick a fight?
What’s wrong?
Won’t you tell me what’s wrong?
Come on, baby, what’s wrong?
Oh, won’t you tell me what’s wrong?
You know, I can’t make it better if I don’t know what to do…
Come on little girl, the rest is up to you
SOLO
Well, you can’t make an omelet without breaking some eggs…
And it’s hard for me to argue, when I’m looking at your legs
I don’t know what I did, and I don’t remember when…
But if you let me slide this time, I sure won’t do it again!
What’s wrong?
Won’t you tell me what’s wrong?
You know, I can’t make it better if I don’t know what to do…
Come on little girl, the rest is up to you
What’s wrong?
Won’t you tell me what’s wrong?
Come on, baby, what’s wrong?
Oh, won’t you tell me what’s wrong?
You know, I can’t make it better if I don’t know what to do…
Come on little girl, the rest is up to you