Released in June 2024, this single came from listening to a lot of John Lennon’s solo material, hence the word ‘derivative’ in the subtitle.
Anyway, it was a very quick turn-around from conception to finished song. The longest part of the writing of this song was the long list things that I won’t listen to. This section of the song outlines the abandonment of critical thinking, surrendering our minds and hearts to a single, and dubious, source of information. Here are those lyrics, with some annotations.
I won't listen to music (it’s a lie, of course I will!)
I won't listen to logic (logic goes out the window when we decide to only listen to one point of view)
I won't listen to podcasts (where we are exposed to an unlimited supply of points of view)
I won't listen to my past (As Winston Churchill said, ‘Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it”)
I won't listen to Masters (Ian Masters, of the popular Background Briefing podcast, an antidote to the tsunami of lies from Fox (so-called) News, and the 7both sides-ism’ of the MSM)
I won't listen to evangelists (whether they’re evangelising religion, wealth or wellness… no thank you)
I won't listen to Hartmann (Thom Hartmann, another podcast - see the Ian Masters annotation )
I won't listen to sports broadcasts (actually, I don’t anyway, but many of my closest friends’ fave thing is to listen to test cricket on the radio - inconceivable!)
I won't listen to Triple R (closing one’s ears to community radio)
I won't listen to ABC (closing one’s ears to the national broadcaster)
I won't listen to Double J (closing one’s ears to the national broadcaster’s ‘community’ station)
I won't listen to PBS (closing one’s ears to more community radio)
I won't listen to B-sides (often I would spin my B-sides more than the actual single - there’s always a treasure there)
I won't listen to my head (don’t trust your own opinions)
I won't listen to my heart (don’t trust your own feelings)
I won't listen to reason (the result of abandoning critical thinking)
I won't listen to anyone but you, I'll only listen to you, dear listener.