Ross Childress, probably most widely known as the lead guitarist in the multi-platinum selling group Collective Soul from 1994 to 2001, has since been working on a number of projects that have culminated in Starfish and Coffee.
In the early 2000's, Ross worked with Trevor Hurst of Econoline Crush on his solo album "Wanderlust," together producing and writing over 40 songs. Four of those songs are included in this album, with the track "Not Broken" included in both projects.
More recently, after being casually asked by a member of a band he was then producing in Atlanta to be a part of a musical charity event, Ross found that his noncommittal reply had been taken as a definite "Yes." Ross recalls he was playing golf a few days later with friends Bo Bentley and Thomas Michael and they asking, "Did you know you're playing that charity show?" and he being like, "No." Yet between shots they were laughing, "Well, you're on all the posters." In true Ross fashion, he replied, "Oh My… Well, can you guys play with me?"
"We all grew up together," says Bo. "So, we already knew the friendship thing was there. But when Ross was accidentally booked to play that show, we figured, 'Heck let's give it a shot.' Ross didn't even know if he wanted to pursue that life anymore, but when we hit that stage, it was fun for all of us. It's what we knew a band was supposed to be: Fun!"
Ross adds, "I never wanted to put a solo album out. But I also didn't want to put a band together from a rolodex of people that had toured and professionally done this before. That would have been artificial and contrived to me."
With Bo and Thomas, the Ross Childress Experience was born, and ended up rocking that benefit plus several other shows throughout Georgia and Florida.
Andrew Carter, another lifelong friend, attended one of those early shows and noticed that they could really use a stronger second vocal. "I mentioned this to Ross later, thinking he would find someone from his book of people, yet one day to my surprise, he called and asked if I would care to practice with them and see if we could work some songs out. So I went to that practice and we sounded pretty good. Some time after that I found myself at Ross' house having photos taken. A few days later I asked if I was in the band and Ross said 'Well, you're in all the photos so I guess so!' The rest is history."
And the Ross Childress Experience morphed into Starfish and Coffee.
"How Starfish and Coffee came together as a band is about as natural and organic as it can happen and I'm very happy about it," says Ross. No auditions, and with egos in check, it just works.
Their debut album was recorded live in a small cabin in the middle of Chattahoochee National Forest.
However, it didn't start out that way. "We loaded up the van with the pro tools rig and all our instruments and a thousand other instruments we found along the way and set out to record in a cabin," laughs Andrew, thinking they were just going to finish the four or five remaining songs on the album.
Ross adds in, "Yeah, we had recorded eight songs in various studios and headed to a cabin on top of a mountain in Clayton, GA to finish the rest of the songs that was to be our debut cd. But once we started in Clayton, I realized the flow of the cd was going to be sonically all over the place, so we scrapped all the previous recordings and re-recorded every song in that cabin."
That original eight day recording session ended up stretching out across three months.
"Ahhh, Clayton. What can I say?" reminisces Bo. "Beautiful mountains, grassy fields, horses, no cell phone service, no tv, no land line phone — surrounded by 360 degrees of the Chattahoochee National Forest. Complete seclusion from the rest of the world. We took over the cabin in a big way. A control room was set up in one of the bedrooms. Drums, amps and guitars (and 2 more beds) in the other bedroom, the house was pure chaos. We were sleeping with guitars and living on frozen burritos."
"My favorite part of doing this album was the fact that it is as indie as it gets!! Everything that we did up there was done by the four of us. We had to turn a small cabin into a recording studio, which wasn't easy. We moved around beds, tables, couches, massive spiders you name it!! I had so much fun doing it that way, and now that it's done, I wouldn't have had it any other way," confides Thomas.
Continues Andrew, "Yeah, no one's cell phone received signal and that equaled no distractions! We set up shop that was set in the most beautiful scenery I have seen in years. It was far, far...........far away from the mechanized world and with all that time and space applied to all of our talents and drive, we recorded an album we could all be proud of."
So what does Starfish and Coffee sound like?
"That's always a slippery slope of a trick question. It's a Rock/Pop thing. I enjoy melody. Whatever descriptions or comparisons people put on us is their interpretation. I'm not one to start any rumors," laughs Ross.
In any case, Starfish and Coffee is the genesis of all of these talents.
Sirens
Starfish And Coffee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sorry I don't hear you would you speak up dear
I thought you might just keep your big mouth shut
Smashing models lately at the toy affair
Sorry to destroy you but I just don't care
'Cause that's the kind of guy I really am
I don't know it's always here
I am always waiting for sirens no one hears
Should be something simple that just disappears
No one even notices that it's not here
But that's not how this makes me feel today
Pretend you know so little hope that no ones sees
Conflict in the middle where the anarchy
Collides into your medicated state
Something sordid something weird
I don't know it's always here
I am always waiting for sirens no one hears
Something sordid something weird
I don't know it's always here
I am always waiting for sirens no one hears
No one hears the sirens
No one hears the sirens
Pretend you know so little hope that no ones sees
Conflict in the middle where the anarchy
Collides into your medicated state
Something sordid something weird
I don't know it's always here
I am always waiting for sirens no one hears
Something sordid something weird
I don't know it's always here
I am always waiting for sirens no one hears
No one hears the sirens
No one hears the sirens
No one hears the sirens
No one hears the sirens
In "Sirens," Starfish And Coffee offers up a commentary on societal apathy and numbness to the suffering of others. The song opens with the singer feeling dismissed and unheard by others, perhaps highlighting the way that people can be self-absorbed and not give the attention that others deserve.
The following lines offer a biting commentary on society's tendency to consume and discard, as the singer describes "smashing models lately at the toy affair" and not caring about the destruction they cause. This attitude is further emphasized with the line "that's the kind of guy I really am," suggesting that this is not an isolated incident, but a deeper personality trait.
The chorus of the song features the repeated phrase "something sordid something weird, I don't know it's always here, I am always waiting for sirens no one hears." This can be interpreted as a sense of foreboding or unease that the singer feels, as they recognize the unsettling and disturbing elements of society that no one else seems to notice. The use of the word "sirens" could be a reference to warning signals or emergency alerts that people often ignore due to complacency or desensitization.
Overall, "Sirens" presents a bleak view of society, with an emphasis on the dangers of apathy and indifference towards others.
Line by Line Meaning
Threw me just a little oh was that sincere
You did something that affected me, but I'm not sure if you actually meant it or if it was just a small gesture.
Sorry I don't hear you would you speak up dear
I'm not sorry for not hearing you, but maybe you should speak louder or more clearly.
I thought you might just keep your big mouth shut
I expected you to stay quiet and not say anything at all.
Smashing models lately at the toy affair
I've been breaking or destroying things at the toy store.
Sorry to destroy you but I just don't care
I'm not sorry for destroying things and I don't care about the consequences.
'Cause that's the kind of guy I really am
I behave this way because it's who I am.
Something sordid something weird
There's something dark or unpleasant that I can't quite put my finger on.
I don't know it's always here
This feeling or presence is always with me, but I can't explain what it is.
I am always waiting for sirens no one hears
I'm constantly on edge or in anticipation of something dangerous or alarming happening, but no one else seems to notice or hear it.
Should be something simple that just disappears
This feeling or situation should be easy to deal with and go away on its own.
No one even notices that it's not here
No one seems to realize that something is missing or out of place.
But that's not how this makes me feel today
Despite how things should be or seem, I have a strong emotional reaction to this situation right now.
Pretend you know so little hope that no ones sees
You act like you're clueless and hope that no one will notice or call you out on it.
Conflict in the middle where the anarchy
There's chaos and disorder in the middle of a conflict or struggle.
Collides into your medicated state
This chaos or conflict disrupts your state of mind or ability to cope, even with the help of medication.
No one hears the sirens
No one notices or responds to the warning signs or danger.
Contributed by Cooper E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
David Pumpkins Jr.
Prince: I'm the Artist Formerly Known as Prince.
Bobo: And I'm the Bear Currently Known as Not Amused. Now, your name again, please.
Prince: My name has no sound. It's unpronounceable.
Bobo: Look fella, this kind of monkey business might have kept you out of the draft, but you ain't gonna fool me.
This exchange was purple and gold!
Prince: Just check the list, fool!
Bobo: Pretty mouthy for a guy with no name.
Danielle Ferguson
We lost an ...
1. ANGEL , a
2. KING , a
3. PRINCE , a
4. MUSICAL THEROPIST , a
WAIT A MINUTE... LET ME STOP SAYING THAT WE "LOST"💜 PRINCE 🙏. ....
BULL💩!!!!!!!
HE'S STILL HERE !!!....
NOT ONLY DID HE ROCK US TO HIS GRAVE, HE'S SO MUCH STILL HERE, THAT HE IS GONNA ROCK A COUPLE FEW MORE GENERATIONS TO THEIR GRAVES!!!!
UNTIL WE ALL ARE "FREE"
☮️&💜
D.F.
Shanika Stevens
This even shows that Prince is not above making fun of himself RIP Prince
Art Full
@Hellwyck Why du think I’m angry !!?? My replies were responding to a Troll by the name of Broughtworst who has deleted his/hers comments. What are U talking about this particular song is not about Prince. Have you even bothered to listen to the lyrics.
Btw Prince did not change his name to “shit” as you put it. He did not change his name he just stopped calling himself PRINCE!! Go educate yourself
Hellwyck
@Art Full Don't get angry, they're not being trolls - he was being love BECAUSE he was making fun of the whole "I changed my name to shit on my record company" situation.
Art Full
Broughtworst I have no idea if she was autistic or not and tbh I just believe Susannah Melvoine. Everyone is on the spectrum somewhere, I know people who have Asperger and show no signs because they’ve been able to keep it hidden. They suffer in silence until adulthood and are often diagnosed later in life. I guess that last, in the sixties kids didn’t get diagnosed and went through School without any support. I guess this is Susannah’s feelings about her classmate. It makes no difference, it’s just meant to be a sweet song about an eccentric child who communicated differently to her peers and who everyone ignored except Susannah.
Art Full
Broughtworst the record Starfish and Coffee is about an autistic girl in Susannah Melvoin’s class at School. Back in the day kids weren’t diagnosed as they are nowadays and it’s most likely she had a form of autism. The girl liked numbers and when asked what she had for breakfast replied Starfish and pee. Everyone ignored this child except for Susannah, she found her endearing. Prince renamed this as Starfishand coffee. It’s just a nice song about a girl Susannah liked, no big deal.
Art Full
M Danii save your tears troll..smh Who are you insane people
Locktwiste72
Only Prince can turn a menu into a Top 40 Hit
Hellwyck
@Will Hunt #vpnsarentajoke-youare
The Spooky Electric
@FLYAWAYSIM Starfish and Coffee wasn’t for his wife, it was Susannah Melvoin, Wendy’s twin sister, who had a autistic child in her class at school, and the tale is about her, ‘Cynthia’. Cynthia was bullied by other kids except Susannah who befriended her.
Art Full
Wanda Manning Hey Wanda😄😂😂thanks and great to see you.
Yes is a cute song, according to Susannah Melvoine all the other kids at School ignored this girl but Susannah made friends with her💜💜