Homeless Persons' Memorial Day Top 100 Songs
Song #48
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Matt Johnson
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Johnson and Appell play guitar, Ryan Bradley plays bass and Pat Leon plays drums.
"There it Went" was inspired by a very large homeless encampment that once existed on the banks of the Santa Ana River near Anaheim Stadium in Orange County, CA. Tents began sprouting up along the Santa Ana River Trail, known as a recreational jewel to local bicyclists, in late 2015. Some say that as many as 1200 homeless persons inhabited the encampment at its peak making it the largest homeless encampment in the U.S. at that time. County officials cleared the encampment in 2018. Thousands of commuters stuck in rush hour each day on California State Route 57, including Johnson and Appell were witness to the growing numbers of homeless persons living there in a short amount of time. To see people living in such circumstances saddened Johnson and Appell, so they wrote "There it Went. This masterpiece from Johnson and Appell clearly identifies the location of the homeless encampment without specific mention of any name in the song. Johnson invokes memories of the Santa Ana Riverbed encampment twice. In the first verse he sings of being wet and shivering "along the lonely rivers edge", and again in the third verse he sings that the life he knew was swept away "into this concrete riverbed."
It could be argued that "There it Went" described life in any one of hundreds of other homeless encampment near a river and certainly there are many in California that spring up along various flood channels across the state, but those of us who were there and experienced the Santa Ana River Trail encampments can testify that this song captures the essence of what was the Santa Ana River Trail. There is another connection to homelessness that challenges another member of this musical group. The father of bass player, Ryan Bradley, has struggled with a history of issues related to substance abuse and is currently in the grips of homelessness. Our prayers go to Ryan and his father.
There is one more incredible thing about this music video, and that is photographic artwork from renowned photo artist and homeless advocate, David Freeman. David has traveled to the four corners of the world to photograph persons experiencing homelessness. Through the lens of David's camera he is able to capture an entire story and share that story with the rest of the world frame by frame. Visit the website of David Freeman to experience his incredible artwork.
This is really great music that I'm sure you will want to hear more of, so here are a couple of links to Matt Johnsons website and Matt Johnsons YouTube channel.
"There it Went" was inspired by a very large homeless encampment that once existed on the banks of the Santa Ana River near Anaheim Stadium in Orange County, CA. Tents began sprouting up along the Santa Ana River Trail, known as a recreational jewel to local bicyclists, in late 2015. Some say that as many as 1200 homeless persons inhabited the encampment at its peak making it the largest homeless encampment in the U.S. at that time. County officials cleared the encampment in 2018. Thousands of commuters stuck in rush hour each day on California State Route 57, including Johnson and Appell were witness to the growing numbers of homeless persons living there in a short amount of time. To see people living in such circumstances saddened Johnson and Appell, so they wrote "There it Went. This masterpiece from Johnson and Appell clearly identifies the location of the homeless encampment without specific mention of any name in the song. Johnson invokes memories of the Santa Ana Riverbed encampment twice. In the first verse he sings of being wet and shivering "along the lonely rivers edge", and again in the third verse he sings that the life he knew was swept away "into this concrete riverbed."
It could be argued that "There it Went" described life in any one of hundreds of other homeless encampment near a river and certainly there are many in California that spring up along various flood channels across the state, but those of us who were there and experienced the Santa Ana River Trail encampments can testify that this song captures the essence of what was the Santa Ana River Trail. There is another connection to homelessness that challenges another member of this musical group. The father of bass player, Ryan Bradley, has struggled with a history of issues related to substance abuse and is currently in the grips of homelessness. Our prayers go to Ryan and his father.
There is one more incredible thing about this music video, and that is photographic artwork from renowned photo artist and homeless advocate, David Freeman. David has traveled to the four corners of the world to photograph persons experiencing homelessness. Through the lens of David's camera he is able to capture an entire story and share that story with the rest of the world frame by frame. Visit the website of David Freeman to experience his incredible artwork.
This is really great music that I'm sure you will want to hear more of, so here are a couple of links to Matt Johnsons website and Matt Johnsons YouTube channel.
"There It Went"
Lyrics
All I’ve got is what you see
A cardboard bed that sometimes gives me sleep
Beside the fire
I’m shivering wet
Along this lonely rivers edge
Thought I could handle life
But there it went
Look inside
See my soul
It’s there somewhere
Behind my wrinkled coat
Unwashed hair
A beard unkempt
Sleepless nights inside my tent
Thought I could handle life
But there it went
A few bad months
That’s all it took
To leave me here alone
Foundations shook
The life I knew
Was swept away
Into this concrete riverbed
Thought I could handle life
But there it went
I served my country
With gun in hand
I risked my life to save this precious land
I never dreamed
I’d wind up dead
Without a home where I can lay my head
Thought I could handle life
But there it went
I’m not alone
As you can see
So many others living just like me
Cold and hungry
We’re barley fed
The tides have turned our sun has set
Thought I could handle life
But there it went
Thought I could handle life
But there it went
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