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Notes from a Waitress

by Belle Plaine

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  • Belle Plaine's first full-length nine song CD comes in a two column 100% recycled paper board sleeve printed with vegetable based ink adorned with beautiful imagery and song lyrics. It also includes a 10 page lyric booklet.

    Includes unlimited streaming of Notes from a Waitress via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
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    edition of 3000 

      $10 CAD

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
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1.
Sweet Tart 02:39
SWEET TART Hankewich/Sauer I pin my hair up baby. Flowers, baubles, Maybe you’d like me for your girl? Oh, we could dance real slowly. Sugar, we’re the only two in the world. And as the night is falling Arm in arm we’re strolling home. I kiss your lips so sweetly, Show you all my secrets Til the moonlight’s gone. I’ll be your sweet tart, baby. I’ll be your sweet tart, baby. I’ll be your sweet tart, baby. All the fun’s at home. And if the weather gets colder I’ll cuddle up closer. Let your loving keep me warm. Or if the evening is a scorcher Bourbon on the porch. You can bet you’ll always know I won’t be coy or shy. Angel, I could never deny That I’m your sweet tart, baby. And all the fun’s at home. Don’t want no long stemmed roses Waiting on my doorstep. Chocolate, gems or all the rest. I’ll sing for you a new song. I’ll put your favourite dress on. Life could be so easy, Throw your worries to the breeze And kiss my neck.
2.
NOTES FROM A WAITRESS (THANKS BULGAKOV) Hankewich/Sauer Fried eggs over-easy, Long stretch of work days. Strain a smile for good measure Or coins cast aside. Well, I avoid working weekends And the cook’s wandering hands. But one or the other sneaks up on me Gets me from behind. Scrape the plates, order’s up. Dirty ashtrays, coffee cups. A bleached out apron and free grub, Set aside a plate for the bums. Well, there’s no interesting detail ‘Bout my day that I can reveal. I’m smarter than this job demands And it’s taking up all my time. I count the cash. I wipe the table. Write up the daily special. Soup of the day, try soup of the week. Round here it’s all second grade fresh. Ask the kitchen hand if just once He’d mop the floor, sweep up the crumbs. See I got a wink from table six And a free drink when I’m off. Ring the bell, stab the bill on the spike. Curse the dishwasher’s name with a venomous spite. The son of a bitch he called in sick For the second time this week. Pay-outs over time, Xs and Zs. Extra shift to make the rent. Countdown hours and watch the clock. Slam the door and key the lock. Put a pen to the crossword When the regulars have been served. I run out for a cigarette Soon as I can buy the time. And the owner, well that’s a tough one. I’m sure he’s an alright guy. His wife seems sweet with two kids to feed, But that’s not what’s on my mind. I’m busted out flat broken. I’ve taken to smoking. And it’s a lucky draw the cook’s a generous sod Cause I can’t afford my own. And it pains me to imagine These could be my best years yet. Cause I’d hazard to bet Like your dollars and cents They’re really just misspent. Oh, I’d hazard to bet Like your dollars and cents They’re really, oh, just misspent.
3.
Maybe Winter 02:10
MAYBE WINTER Hankewich/Sauer Maybe winter won’t be so long this year. I got a new place, put on fresh face. Maybe winter won’t be so long this year. Maybe winter won’t be so cold this time. Seeing as I’m stuck here, I got some new ideas. Maybe winter won’t be so long this year. Oh, the winter wind how she chills my bones. Makes me feel so tired and alone. There must be people keeping warm, Wrapped by the television in lover’s arms. Oh, maybe winter won’t be so long this year.
4.
Port Angeles 03:06
PORT ANGELES Hankewich/Sauer There’s still a flicker left in Port Angeles, Across the water the lights shine on through. And on a quiet night you can hear the engines On the ocean swaying under the moon. He was a blind cook’s son from the east coast. She fell in deeper than she knew. Oh, there’s some things you see approaching, But life just doesn’t always turn out The way you wanted it to.
5.
Vegas 04:28
VEGAS Hankewich Took a shine to your style Before I even knew you. Took a drive down to Vegas For three days of girls and lights. I thought I knew That these all night diners Only bring out the worst of surprises. There’s an edge to your smile And in spite I look right through you. If my cards come out right And chance pays out To this poisoned gin soaked fool. And the best of one liners Won’t get me through all of my nights here. He said “It’s a tough crowd tonight And they won’t even fake a listen. This town’s for working girls. Dried up queens whose chance has missed them.” And the waitress sees What these neon lights are doing to me. And it’s nice, but it ain’t no Cadillac. And it’s nice, but it ain’t no Cadillac. And with one good stroke of luck Oh, I’ll be on the road by sun up. Took a shine to your style Before I even knew you. Took a drive down to Vegas For three days of girls and lights. I thought I knew.
6.
Waikiki 03:22
WAIKIKI Hankewich/Sauer Oh Waikiki, what’s left for me? Your buildings dwarf your palm trees. Pigeons patter on the roof, America has stolen your truth. I want to know what’s underneath This holiday town. I want to know the air I breathe Ain’t polluted from the ground. Well, nature isn’t what it was, Yet folks like me still are drawn To fantasies of waters clear And images on souvenirs. I want to see a hula girl Shake it for all she’s got. I want some authenticity To justify this stop. But there’s a little truth Of which I’m aware. I took a plane to get me here. I ain’t no better than the rest, Just another casualty at best. Oh so Waikiki, please forgive me. I’ll try to tread lightly. It’s just a stopover, Just a couple of nights. I’ll be off again on tomorrow’s flight.
7.
Old Love 02:37
OLD LOVE Hankewich/Sauer Our meeting was a thing of chance. A train station inspired romance. A song for me, a song for you. Old love, old love Remember when our love was new. No time to take a second look With my heart surely on the hook. Cast the role of cupid’s fool. Old love, old love Remember when our love was new.
8.
Legendary 03:04
LEGENDARY Hankewich It’s legendary how this Imaginary scenario plays out. When the winds of the coast blow The scent of the roses Into our dreams when we sleep. Remember warm summer nights. Walks through the tide Under a canopy of silver stars. How sweet just to be Alone with our dreams. May the day never come when we part. It’s legendary how this Imaginary scenario plays out. But wasn’t it a ride with you by my side? Oh darling, what we once were. Oh darling, what we once were.
9.
TO THE BEST OF OUR MEMORIES Hankewich My regrets to you, but I must break the news. We’re at the end of the attraction. But I hope you’ll admit When you look back on it, The price was well worth the action. In regards to what’s passed Let’s all raise a glass And toast to the best of our memories. Only oceans decide the turning of the tide And so goes life for each person. So you see it’s nonsense For you dear to take offense When I say for us it’s time for curtains. All things that will be must end naturally Well, it simply stands to reason. So like a bird on a wing Or how the breeze brings the spring, We’ve just come to the end of our season. Oh, my regrets to you, But I must break the news. We’re at the end of the attraction. But I hope you’ll admit When you look back on it, The price was well worth the action. Why speculate, dispute or debate? Just toast to the best. Why second guess? Just toast to the best of our memories.

about

“If Patsy Cline and Blossom Dearie had a love child she would sing like Belle Plaine. Belleʼs voice is old timey and jazzy. It has twang, crystal bells and swing. You listen to this voice, and all of a sudden your cheatinʼ heart has a very dry martini in hand, and youʼre hearing something both timeless and brand new.”

- Kelley Jo Burke, host of CBCʼs SoundXchange

Belle Plaine’s first full-length album, Notes from a Waitress, is a throwback to the vocal jazz of the 1960s. Think Peggy Lee. Julie London. Smart lyrics paired with a smokin’ band.

The theme for Notes from a Waitress originated while Belle Plaine was overseas. Each song reads as a travelogue from different locales, and the listener pockets them one by one, like souvenirs from a globetrotting journey.

The title track was written while working as a waitress in Sydney, Australia. It was a dodgy restaurant with cockroaches, overly friendly cooks and the nocturnal visits of rodents. “It’s a mystery anyone ate there, let alone why it was so busy,” she says. The song is a memento of her time in the service industry, and the tempo reflects the hectic pace of the popular haunt.

Midway through the album is the atmospheric “Vegas”. After she found an abandoned page of handwritten poetry in the street, Belle worked the few legible lines into a fictitious tour of the famous desert city. The ghostly mood of the song is set by the eerie tones of a vintage Premier vibraphone.

The album’s opener “Sweet Tart” is about as catchy they come. “It was supposed to be cheeky. A snarky response to unwanted advances. The irritating irony is that it’s really who I am as a girlfriend: a tarted up version of a 1950s housewife,”
she explains.

A number of the tracks were brought to life by collaborations with pianist Jeremy Sauer. The co-writing process often found them both at the piano: Belle singing lyrics and melodies from ragged notebooks, and Jeremy composing the complex chord changes that support the tunes.

Belle chose producer/engineer Doug Organ (Colleen Brown, Ann Vriend) of Edmontone Studio to produce the album. She recruited a band of fellow Grant MacEwan alumni for the studio recording. The result of their combined efforts is nine original songs that add to the tradition of the classic jazz standards.

credits

released January 27, 2012

Belle Plaine - Vocals
Jeremy Sauer - Piano
Peter Belec - Electric Guitar
Dan Churchill - Bass
Fred Brenton - Drums
Doug Hoyer - Ukulele
Bob Tildesley - Trumpet
Doug Organ - Vibraphone

Produced by Doug Organ
Engineered & Mixed by Doug Organ at Edmontone Studio
Mastered by Michael Fossenkemper at Turtle Tone Studios

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about

Belle Plaine regina, Saskatchewan

Belle Plaine is a small town prairie kid who grew up to be a sure-shot hunter, amateur gardener, wannabe horsewoman and a singer/songwriter who blurs the lines between folk, jazz and classic country. She has released three albums, and toured widely across Canada and the US. ... more

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