Masquerade is a special song for me, that is, if it was possible that one song could mean any more than the others to a songwriter.  Every song holds something special and unique in a songwriter’s heart, because the song itself is an extension and a direct reflection of that heart.  Conceptually, as if in a dreamy video, the singer is walking through the reality of what is life today, and looking around and commenting on what he sees – without complete clarity or understanding himself – but no one seems to notice him, hear him or even know that he is there.  He is a detached presence trying to get everyone’s attention and wake them up to how they’re living, but they keep going about their normal lives.  The song is about the contrast of good versus evil, beauty versus emptiness, kind hearts versus cold hearts, awareness versus unknowing, love versus pretense, truth versus masquerade and what’s possible versus the status quo.  It starts slow and passionately and slowly builds in intensity.  During Verse II there is a sharp, dramatic and momentary pause or hesitation after the word “stop” – before immediately beginning again with continued intensity.

Someone not from our world – say a visionary angel who came to our world to enlighten us – could rightly ask us to justify why we live and have structured a society the way we have.   Why have we placed the emphasis on ourselves and not on others?  Since we live for such a short relative time span, why don’t we concentrate our priorities on values instead of possessions?  When love is the most precious element of the universe, and is universally free and in unlimited supply, why isn’t the foundation of our society constructed with such a wondrous substance?  Why do we hold currency and precious metals as a currency of exchange – instead of kindness, tenderness and love?

When we finally experience Heaven, we will truly understand what it means to love, to be loved, to cherish and to hold dear the things of the heart.  In our human experience we can’t understand the vast potential of possibility that could exist here on Earth – if we only but tried.  One thing I’m very sure about though – if I was to start over with the Tinker Toys and Lincoln Logs on the living room carpet in order to build a new society completely from scratch – it wouldn’t look anything like ours does today.  Here I’m talking about the social fabric and not the political structure.  For humans, nothing can replace democracy, but even that can be improved upon.  The emphasis in my new world would be on truth, on values, on cherishing time as a precious commodity, and heartbeats as a measure of units.  Value would come from hearts that are true, and our treasure would be the love we share and give away.

Perhaps dreaming of things unknown, but long hoped for isn’t a prestigious job title in our society today – but sign me up – because it’s the job that I want and the job that I strive for.  I would rather be a volunteer in a self-defined imaginary position, than to accept something less.  Because time is fleeting and short – and this just may be the very last job title that I ever hold – even if no one reads it or recognizes the value in it.  It really doesn’t matter in the end, because it’s the job title that I’ve given myself – “Dreamer of All Things Possible, but Unknown to the World.”  Welcome to my world – there’s room for everyone!

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‘Masquerade’ is another song from my first recorded set of songs, and you can tell how my voice wavers a lot from my nerves ~ especially in the first half of the song before settling down a bit in the second half of the song. In the coming days I’ll post one song a day from all 19 sets of songs that I recorded back in the mid-1990’s ~ enjoy! ♡ 🙂 Mark

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Masquerade

“You Get What You Pray For” – Collected Works Volume XIII, Copyright 1992, Mark D. Jones, All Rights Reserved

Verse I:

Am

Everywhere I look around

  G

I see the sights and hear the sounds

    D                                  A

Of life, as I pass along my way

Am

Things I see and things I hear

      G

Are often cloudy never clear

D                                   A

Where, is the truth in life today

      Am

The world has turned itself upside

G

Down the things we’ve lost can’t be

D                        A

Found, it’s only a masquerade

      D        A

It’s only, a masquerade  (x2)

Chorus:

C                          G

Where, has beauty gone

D                                   A

Where, have kind hearts gone

C                   G

Why, is life so cold

D                    A

Why, does evil hold

      C                          G

The hearts, of so many men

   D              A

I pray, Lord Amen

       C                      G

That love, will fill the world

        D                      A

That love, will fill the world

      G                       A

That love, will fill the world

Verse II:

Am

Can’t you see the things I see

G

Can’t you feel the things I feel

D                                      A

As I look around me every day

Am

Why does the world have to go on this

G

Way why don’t we stop –  and

D                                 A

Say, we’ve had enough today

Am

Let’s, build a world based on

G

Love, build a world we can be proud

D                      A

Of, instead, of a masquerade

D                  A

Instead, of a masquerade  (x2)