⸻ 🎼 “I Need the Antidote (Aging – Frailty)” ⸻ [Intro | electric piano (Rhodes) | low organ pad | distant room tone] Gray morning through a plate-glass window My name on a band around my wrist I search the mirror for who I used to be But I don’t look like that anymore Oh ⸻ [Verse 1 | Rhodes + upright bass | soft brushed kit] I used to run with the wind in my lungs Used to laugh ‘til the daylight was gone Open skies, no end in my stride Now I measure my steps to get by Hands that lifted the weight of a life Shake when I’m reaching for water tonight All that strength I wore like a crown Feels like something I laid down ⸻ [Pre-Chorus | organ swell | subtle build] Faces come and go, I lose their names I hold a thread and it slips away Every breath feels borrowed now And I don’t know how ⸻ [Chorus | fuller but restrained | soulful lift] I need the antidote All of this time keeps taking from me I need the antidote Give me back something I used to be I need the antidote Ooh ooh I need the antidote Ooh ooh I need the antidote ⸻ [Chant Chorus 1 | stripped | bass pulse] Down and out I’m out when I’m down and out I can’t stand, I can’t stand Down and out I’m out when I’m down and out I need help, need a hand ⸻ [Instrumental Break | short Rhodes riff | muted trumpet answer | transition] ⸻ [Verse 2 | minimal | Rhodes + soft bass] I wait for a knock that never comes Or a voice that I almost know I watch the day from a borrowed chair Where the hours move too slow Food on a tray that I barely touch Water I forget to drink I close my eyes and I see myself Stronger than I can think ⸻ [Pre-Chorus 2 | stronger swell] I don’t recognize the man I see In the glass looking back at me Every line is a mile of years Every silence full of fears ⸻ [Chorus 2 | deeper delivery] I need the antidote All of this time keeps taking from me I need the antidote Give me back something I used to be I need the antidote Ooh ooh I need the antidote Ooh ooh I need the antidote ⸻ [Chant Chorus 2 | progression] Down and out I’m out when I’m down and out I was strong, I remember Down and out I’m out when I’m down and out Now I fade, I surrender ⸻ [Instrumental Solo 1 | tenor sax lead | slow, expressive | organ support] ⸻ [Bridge / Verse 3 | drop drums | piano + organ] What was it all for, all of those days Building a life that just drifts away I held the world in these hands at one time Now I can’t even hold onto mine If there’s a voice on the other side Tell me I’m more than this slow goodbye Tell me there’s something left of me Past what I see ⸻ [Instrumental Solo 2 | guitar (clean, slight grit) + sax harmony | restrained] ⸻ [Final Chorus | widest but controlled] I need the antidote Time doesn’t stop for the ones it’s breaking I need the antidote All that I was, all that it’s taking I need the antidote Ooh ooh I need the antidote Ooh ooh I need the antidote ⸻ [Outro Chant | shortened | fading] Down and out I’m out when I’m down and out I remember, I remember Down and out I’m out when I’m down and out But I’m not there, not forever ⸻ [Final Line | close, quiet] I need the antidote ⸻
