Julia 

Disclaimer: All the tracks from "We Were Dead From The Start" are base on the book 1984 by George Orwell. "Memories being the first song, I explain why I wrote this album on that post. It'll help to read these posts in order of album appearance.

I have a love/hate relationship with Julia. This was actually the first 1984 song I wrote, and I almost immediately discarded it. I just hated it. But, after a session with some musicians where we were arranging some songs, I threw this song out there. Peter, my piano player, immediately changed the key, and instead of a guitar led ballad, turned it into a bouncy piano led pop song. It was catchy, fun, and I figured it would make an interesting deep track. The problem is that people loved it. If I were to release a single, this would be it. The popular songs are never the ones you expect.

Julia is pretty simple. The main character of 1984 is Winston Smith. The love interest is Julia. I wanted to write their love affair as a tragic romance. Like Romeo and Juliet, only not so melodramatic. In the book, Winston sees this woman, and hates her. He hates her for being devoted to the Party, for being young, for being beautiful (although it's pointed out that she isn't a traditionally pretty girl, but I suppose when you've tried to banish sexual desire, you'll also banish the ability to be pretty). Most importantly though, Winston hates Julia because he can't have her. That is, until one day she slips him a not confessing her love for him. Thus begins a passionate love affair doomed to end in the deaths of both Winston and Julia. The album takes it's name from the chorus: "We were dead from the start, but I was certain you had my heart."

I tried to make references throughout to the specifics of the story. "I never gave a second look before. I couldn't want more," clearly represents Winston's inability to pursue a relationship. "With the look you had when we met eye took me by surprise," explains the chance meeting where she confesses her love. After that, I wanted to write a song that sounded like a love song, but upon listening to the lyrics you realize it's more of a "Damn the world, this will kill us but we're gonna do it anyways" kind of song. And there's a trumpet solo. Who doesn't love trumpet solos?

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