Signing with United Artists Publishing and a subsequent move to Los Angeles proved to everyone involved that record company promises can be as ethereal as vapor. After a multitude of unfulfilled promises, Faulkner came home, disillusioned, and the band broke up shortly thereafter. He immediately landed a job in a small recording studio with the intention of producing other bands and artists. While Faulkner was gaining production knowledge working in the studio, his boss, Stephen Arnold, asked him if he could write a jingle for a client, and then another… and another. Within a year Faulkner started his own production company. His reputation as an accomplished singer/songwriter turned commercial music composer quickly caught the attention of advertising executives coast-to-coast.
Since then Faulkner, a multi-CLIO winner, has created hundreds of national jingles and scores, including some of the most memorable commercial music on television and radio. Most notably, he composed and sang the wildly popular “I Want My Baby Back” for Chili’s, a jingle that has since found its way into motion pictures (Austin Powers) and over a dozen major network TV shows. He also created the multi-award winning music theme for Motel 6 and Tom Bodett, the longest running commercial campaign in the history of advertising (23 years, 5 CLIOs, and counting).
Yet Faulkner never abandoned his dream of one day producing his own music, so in 1990 he assembled one of the finest state-of-the-art recording facilities in Texas. His intention: to create his album. Based on his previous experience with the recording industry, it should come as no surprise that in his endeavor to develop his own unique sound, Faulkner relied not on a record company to create his first CD (1998), but on his own expertise, talent and vision to create Lost in the Land of Texico. Every song on the CD has now received national and international airplay.
In 2001, Windswept Publishing caught one of Faulkner’s performances in Nashville and signed him to his second publishing contract. During that time-period he created his second CD (2002), Raise The Roof. Faulkner enlisted the help of legendary New Orleans icon, Dr John, to assist on vocals in his earthy tribute to the blues, “Blues Across America”.
In October 2008, The Welcome Home Project heard one of Faulkner’s latest recordings entitled,
“Ten Thousand Miles Away”, and licensed it for their “Voices Of A Grateful Nation” CD set, a compilation of artists paying tribute to the brave men and women who fight for our freedom every day so far away.
Today Faulkner is working on his third CD, as well as submitting songs to other national recording artists for consideration.
First Man
Tom Faulkner Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Playing on family sand
There's a lowrider down in Espanyol
And he's tearing up the government's land
There's a string quartet recital
They're playing to the wealthy ears
There's a boy and his dog gone down by the river
So that's the way it goes
Living in the land the first man once did roam
So that's the way it goes
Living in the land the first man once called home
Well, there's a bigwig corporation
They're mining down the mountainside
There's a man making money by floating down a river
And he's giving all the folks a ride
There's this 15 dollar artist
She's painting people in the square
There's a guy building condos, everybody's angry
And he says, ?Man, I really don't care?
So that's the way it goes
Living in the land the first man once did roam
So that's the way it goes
Living in the land the first man once called home
Now this first man's basic blessing
Is just what this government gives
But he'll tell you that his only real reservation
Is really just where he lives
Now this first man's slowly vanishing
And too this land, they bred
But let's make no mistake about it
First man here was red
So that's the way it goes
Living in the land the first man once did roam
So that's the way it goes
Living in the land the first man once called home
Yeah, that's the way it goes
Living in the land the first man once called home
Oh, that's the way it goes and goes and goes and goes
Living in the land this first man, he thought he owned
The song "First Man" by Tom Faulkner depicts the various individuals and groups living in the land that the first man once called home. The lyrics paint a picture of conflicting interests and ways of life, from a farmer attending night school to a bigwig corporation mining down the mountainside. The reference to the first man being red highlights the fact that indigenous people were the original inhabitants of the land and are slowly disappearing.
Through these different examples, the song suggests that the land is being utilized in different ways, some of which are more sustainable than others. The wealthy ears at the string quartet recital contrast with the boy and his dog shooting down empty beers by the river, highlighting class and societal differences. The man making money by floating down the river is providing a service to the people, whereas the bigwig corporation is destroying the mountainside for profit.
Overall, the song seems to be making a statement about humanity's relationship with the land and how different groups utilize it for their own purposes. It raises questions about who is responsible for protecting the land, and what can be done to ensure a sustainable future for all.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a farmer into night school
A farmer is attending night school
Playing on family sand
The farmer is playing on the sand with his family
There's a lowrider down in Espanyol
There is a lowrider car in Espanyol
And he's tearing up the government's land
The lowrider is damaging the government's property
There's a string quartet recital
A string quartet is playing a concert
They're playing to the wealthy ears
The quartet is performing for a wealthy audience
There's a boy and his dog gone down by the river
A boy and his dog are by the river
And they're shooting down empty beers
The boy and his dog are drinking beer, but throwing the empty bottles
So that's the way it goes
This is how life is
Living in the land the first man once did roam
Living in the same land that the first man lived in
Well, there's a bigwig corporation
There is a large corporation
They're mining down the mountainside
The corporation is extracting minerals from the mountain
There's a man making money by floating down a river
Someone is earning money by offering river rides
And he's giving all the folks a ride
The man is providing rides to everyone
There's this 15 dollar artist
There is an artist who sells art for $15
She's painting people in the square
The artist is painting portraits of people in the public square
There's a guy building condos, everybody's angry
A man is constructing condos and people are upset about it
And he says, ?Man, I really don't care?
The man building the condos is indifferent to the complaints
Now this first man's basic blessing
The first man's fundamental benefit
Is just what this government gives
Comes solely from the government
But he'll tell you that his only real reservation
The first man has a single concern
Is really just where he lives
Which is his geographical location
Now this first man's slowly vanishing
The first man is disappearing gradually
And too this land, they bred
People have been born and raised on this land
But let's make no mistake about it
We should acknowledge the truth
First man here was red
The first man was a Native American
Yeah, that's the way it goes
Yes, that is life
Oh, that's the way it goes and goes and goes and goes
That is the way of life, always and forever
Living in the land this first man, he thought he owned
Living on a land once thought to belong to the first man
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind