The Man Who Painted His Door Red [MAIN Records]

British garage pop, character song, 1960s pop rock

///*****///

[Intro – raw jangly guitar riff, tambourine, handclaps, tight live drums]
La la la, la la la
La la la, la la la

[Verse 1 – dry English male vocal, cheeky storytelling]
Number twenty-three looked just like twenty-four
Same little garden, same old brown doors
Same lace curtains, same dull views
Same old faces with the same sad truths

Then Mr. Bell came out at dawn
With a paint tin swinging with his slippers on
By breakfast time, the whole street said
“Have you seen? He’s painted his door red”

[Chorus – catchy group harmonies, bright garage-pop hook]
He painted his door red
On that proper little street
Neighbors would peek through their curtains
Just to watch his cheeky feat

He painted his door red
And they all said, “Has he gone mad?”
But every boring house around him
Just started looking sad

[Verse 2 – tighter drums, sung and spoken, dynamic vocals, melodic bass moving forward]
Mrs. Green exclaimed, “What has he done”
The local Bobby said, "You better watch it son"
The postman laughed, said "That looks like fun"
The interloper snorted, “The paint's gonna run”

His wife said, “Arthur, think of the town”
He said, “My dear, I’m tired of all the brown”
She just shook her head,  at what he said
As he smiled at his door painted red

[Chorus – bigger harmonies, handclaps stronger]
He painted his door red
On that proper little street
Neighbors would peek through their curtains
Just to watch his cheeky feat

He painted his door red
And they all said, “Has he gone mad?”
But every boring house around him
Just started looking sad

[Bridge – music-hall feel, half-time claps, sarcastic vocal]
Well, you can polish your brass knobs
You can trim your little hedges
You can clip your little lawns
And square off all the edges

But a man gets tired of blending in
And being told you must fit in
Some times to bring this to an end
You just gotta start a brand new trend

[Short Guitar Solo – raw 1965 garage tone, melodic, slightly scrappy]

[Verse 3 – building energy, social commentary sharper]
By Monday, there were meetings
By Tuesday, there were rules
By Wednesday, the word got out
That Mr. Bell was on the news

By Friday, Mrs. Green had changed
Her gate from black to blue
And by the time the weekend came
The whole street looked brand new

[Final Chorus – full band, stacked harmonies, tambourine]
He painted his door red
On that proper little street
Now the neighbors all gather
To applaud his little feat

He painted his door red
And they all said, "Cheers to you mate”
But every old dull house around him
Went from lifeless to something great

[Outro – repeated hook, loose group vocals, live-room ending]
La la la, la la la
That street that looked so  lame
La la la, la la la
Never looked the same....a gain

[End – final guitar stab, tambourine hit]

2789/7500

///*****/// [Intro – raw jangly guitar riff, tambourine, handclaps, tight live drums] La la la, la la la La la la, la la la [Verse 1 – dry English male vocal, cheeky storytelling] Number twenty-three looked just like twenty-four Same little garden, same old brown doors Same lace curtains, same dull views Same old faces with the same sad truths Then Mr. Bell came out at dawn With a paint tin swinging with his slippers on By breakfast time, the whole street said “Have you seen? He’s painted his door red” [Chorus – catchy group harmonies, bright garage-pop hook] He painted his door red On that proper little street Neighbors would peek through their curtains Just to watch his cheeky feat He painted his door red And they all said, “Has he gone mad?” But every boring house around him Just started looking sad [Verse 2 – tighter drums, sung and spoken, dynamic vocals, melodic bass moving forward] Mrs. Green exclaimed, “What has he done” The local Bobby said, "You better watch it son" The postman laughed, said "That looks like fun" The interloper snorted, “The paint's gonna run” His wife said, “Arthur, think of the town” He said, “My dear, I’m tired of all the brown” She just shook her head, at what he said As he smiled at his door painted red [Chorus – bigger harmonies, handclaps stronger] He painted his door red On that proper little street Neighbors would peek through their curtains Just to watch his cheeky feat He painted his door red And they all said, “Has he gone mad?” But every boring house around him Just started looking sad [Bridge – music-hall feel, half-time claps, sarcastic vocal] Well, you can polish your brass knobs You can trim your little hedges You can clip your little lawns And square off all the edges But a man gets tired of blending in And being told you must fit in Some times to bring this to an end You just gotta start a brand new trend [Short Guitar Solo – raw 1965 garage tone, melodic, slightly scrappy] [Verse 3 – building energy, social commentary sharper] By Monday, there were meetings By Tuesday, there were rules By Wednesday, the word got out That Mr. Bell was on the news By Friday, Mrs. Green had changed Her gate from black to blue And by the time the weekend came The whole street looked brand new [Final Chorus – full band, stacked harmonies, tambourine] He painted his door red On that proper little street Now the neighbors all gather To applaud his little feat He painted his door red And they all said, "Cheers to you mate” But every old dull house around him Went from lifeless to something great [Outro – repeated hook, loose group vocals, live-room ending] La la la, la la la That street that looked so lame La la la, la la la Never looked the same....a gain [End – final guitar stab, tambourine hit]

0/500