Much of my early years I had tons of energy. Like most people my age, I got up early and stayed up through the evening. Unlike most, I got a bit extreme with this and as I started working I seemed to be able to handle the after hour and evening shifts quite well. Staying awake for 24 to 48 hours at a time was almost normal. I obviously was not! As most of the household was quiet and recharging their internal batteries, I would pull out my 12 string guitar. In the very late and dark hours, I would reflect on the day(s) past and go over experiences I or friends had. The fullness of the 12 strings (when I could afford to replace the old strings with new ones…) for me is just an amazingly soothing and inspiring environment. The guitar noodling started to reflect a mood and the experiences would turn into words, phrases or thoughts that I would repeat and refine until they started to gel into lyrics.
I would use this method over and over. Alone at night, lights out and everyone quiet or sleeping. Even now, decades later, this is still my favorite time to reflect and create. If you can, find your own time and environment that you can settle into quickly. If you cannot find the time – MAKE it. It does not have to be hours at a time. Rarely do we write a masterpiece or complete a painting or poem in an hour or so. The important thing is to set aside time – even little bits – and noodle, sketch, sing, or even think. Build your stage for creativity and perform there as often as you can. The masterpieces will create themselves…
Quiet Nights – An original tune I wrote based on this idea.
MidiMike 
This houndy sleeps, like 18 hours a day. I don’t know how you do it. Mind you, I wake up with poems in me head so I guess it works for me 🙂
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You are not the only one! I have many friends and family members that need what I consider to be a lot of sleep. If I go to bed early – I wake up earlier. If I do sleep close to eight hours I feel groggy and disoriented! I told you I was not normal. But if you can create in your sleep,,,,,,, you are doing something right!
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how true, although occasionally something just pours out perfectly, like a bolt of lighting…
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Good point. Every once in a while I get hit by that bolt of lightning too. To be fair, it probably comes to us in that form because we have set up our stage and practiced or noodled here and there. Then when the atmosphere is just right – – – BAM! Thank you for the comment!
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Quiet nights … lovely thanks. I’ve never “recovered” from having been raised on a dairy farm with the early morning milking. I still rise at a ridiculous time (between 4.30 and 5). Everyone else is asleep. I feel like I’m getting extra time for free!
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Among musicians, weird sleep habits are prevalent. It it less common to capture the experience in a music composition. I never heard this story until now. It kind of sets you up for the next song “I Dig The Dark.”
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this recording is pristine.
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Thank you. Sometimes it just works. You would think with just a guitar and singer I should be able to make all my recordings at this level, but even setting things up the same way the results can be illusive!
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What about me? I remember you coming to me with this great tune, but you needed help with the lyrics, I was proud of this one.
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Nine hours is what I crave. If I get 9 hrs fairly solid sleep, I don’t need to nap, and I’m energetic & creative all day. It’s rare that life lets me get that much. But when it does, and when I do, I’m rollin.’
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I really have no idea what that is like LOL! I simply cannot sleep longer than about 6 – 7 hours. Every once in a while I will sleep in and get an extra ‘recharge’ but that is fairly rare. Good for you, even though life does not often give you that option!
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