Bitter Jealousy is another oldie I’m pulling from the vault. I co-wrote the words and music on this one, again in California. This time though, I co-wrote was with friend Dan Divanian. If memory serves, this was his first attempt at writing a song. Not bad for starters.
Musically, it has a fixed minor verse form, a pre-chorus and delayed but extended chorus. It plays kinda long and, since the focus was on telling an entire story with a beginning, middle and end, it might feel a bit repetitive by its conclusion. I’m proud of how it makes you wait for the major chorus until 2 and a half minutes in. It’s like a reward for putting up with a lot of story exposition.
The story was one Dan told me that I translated into lyrics. It was a specific situation he went through but I could tell right away that the situation is a common one. It takes a lot to make a love connection between two people. Sometimes, it’s the right time and the wrong place. For the two teenagers in this song, it’s the right people but the wrong time. In hindsight, I feel like the song is also about realizing you are about to miss out on something you took for granted.
I should add that the stuff about drugs was legit all made up. The song kind of had a brooding Sacramento vibe to it and the Weezer song “Hashpipe” had recently been released so I threw it in there. It wasn’t something I actually did. If you listen to the demo recording I did from way back in 2001, you’ll hear a sweet melodic intro riff that I don’t bother with in the video and you’ll hear me talk about freebasing coke or something else equally unbelievable.
Lastly, here are the words and chords to the song so you can all sing along.
Bm A F#m
Maybe it was the way you looked that night
Bm A F#m
Your hair tied high and your eyes burning bright
G A Bm
I never saw you that way before
Bm A F#m
Maybe it was the way I felt that night
Bm A F#m
I had a beer, a few rum and cokes and a puff of my hashpipe
G A Bm A F#m
I never saw you that way before
G A F#m G-F#m-Em
But I saw you that night and I saw more
G A Bm
I saw you that night and I saw more
For two years I owned a piece of your heart
In all that time, I never allowed it to start
Because I never saw you that way before
I don’t know what it is now
That’s got me turned around somehow
I’d never seen you that way before
But I saw you that night and I saw more
G A D
I saw you that night and I saw more
D A
So you say you’ve got a new boyfriend
D A
What’s his name? Does he treat you well?
D A
God, I wish I were him tonight
D A
God, I wish I were him tonight
D A
Tonight
D A
Tonight
D A
Tonight
G-F#m-Em G A
That’s okay. I’m better off without you
Strange to say, you’re probably better off without me too
Because we never saw each other that way
If we’d agreed we could have seen the best of me
But all I’m left with is my bitter jealousy
Because we never saw each other that way
But I saw you that night and I wanted to stay
I saw you that night and wanted to stay
So you say you’ve got a new boyfriend
What’s his name? Does he treat you well?
God, I wish I were him tonight
God, I wish I were him tonight
