As you know, almost all of the songs we write tell stories. We want to share those stories with you.  Just as we did for our first two records (see the stories behind the songs on our first CD 13 and the songs on our second CD Again), we’ll post the story behind each song on our new CD now more than ever here for you to read. The plan is to feature one song each week for the next few weeks.

Here is the story behind Learn by Falling as related by Allen Kitselman.

The song “Learn by Falling”

The song Learn by Falling was written at the end of the last century just after my band Genghis Angus had done two years of touring supporting our last, and best record, “12 Days”. It was an interesting and difficult time.  You see, the time had come to hang up the “lets make money playing music for a living” holster after giving it a real shot. The money was gone. Management and the record label decided to pull the plug. They also decided to stop working with the band.

Anyway this song was written as a, “Screw you! We’re going to keep on going!” song way back when.

A few months later, Kim Jensen, the person we had worked with as Genghis Angus management took her own life, and despite my original, “I’m forging ahead!” attitude, that event knocked me for a loop. [ed: Listen to the Bitter Liberals song 13 years from our first record which is about this sad event. Read the story behind 13 years.]

Kim was a very dear friend who had sacrificed another good business deal to work with us as a band and who did her best, giving it her all. She eventually had to cut her losses, and in the kind of retrospect that only comes with many years, I can see that now. Kim’s death killed the music business for me. I quit the business entirely, and Genghis Angus dissolved.

Fast forward 13 years and a fateful knock on the door from fellow Bitter Liberal Gary McGraw. After meeting me and playing music together at a party, he came to my house the following Monday directly from work and told me we had to play music together. He pulled me out of the wilderness.  We went on to form the Bitter Liberals shortly thereafter.

The resurrection of this song seems appropriate now. The Bitter Liberals have rekindled my love of making music. The strong kinship bond between players is back!  We’re Bitter Liberals.

Perhaps the song has a new meaning now.

FAYA.

Allen Kitselman

Here is a live recording of both Karma and Learn by Falling recorded 1.11.19 at the Bright Box Winchester and performed back to back.

Support our original music by buying a copy of our new record.

Read the lyrics to Learn by Falling.
Learn the story behind Waiting on Time.
Learn the story behind The Last Hurrah.