New Single: Sunrise State of Mind

I was inspired one day by the sunrise and started wondering how long I could hold that feeling throughout the day, no matter what happened.

Truth is, it's often hard to hold onto. By mid-morning, I was standing in line for an errand, frustrated by traffic and looking at a full schedule instead of heading to the beach. So I kept going back and forth between two simple chords and imagining the mindset I’d rather be inside. Could I set aside the everyday annoyances that really don’t matter all that much? Could I keep my sunrise frame of mind for a whole day or even another hour?

I have learned, yet again, that when I stop deciding in advance how the day is supposed to go, there's more room for the good feeling to stick around.

Can I suspend my frame of mind a bit longer?

Can we drop back into the joy we felt a moment ago, or is it gone forever?

As I finished the song, I thought about a time recently when everything got canceled in the best way possible. It felt like permission to reboot the day and a good way into the song…

Everything got canceled
It's time to play
It's my favorite kind of day to celebrate

And this line speaks to my determination:

And even if the sun tries to set
I know I'll still find my sunrise state of mind

Working with Adam James

This song was produced by Adam James, a producer from the UK who wrote to me and wanted to work together. Adam has more of a pop approach than I typically go with on my own, and I learned a lot from working with yet another new producer. Adam was a gracious supporter and encouraging voice throughout this process. I learned to let the drum groove be simple, steady, and just propel the story.

I sent him some piano and drum recordings, which he integrated into the production along with my vocals. Adam played bass, guitars, keyboards, and synths.

Listen
Sunrise State of Mind is out on Spotify, Apple Music, Bandcamp, and wherever you stream music.

I hope this song inspires you all to hang onto your sunrise state of mind a bit longer.

Lyrics

Today opened up

Let’s start again

There’s a sparkle in your eyes that makes me grin

Let’s start again, Let’s start again

Everything got canceled

It’s time to play

It’s my favorite kind of day to celebrate

I've got a sunrise state of mind, and it’s time to shine

Today’s an open book  

Let’s read the page

There’s a poem in the air 

What does it say? Oh what does it say?

There’s a line about light, rising in the east

Breaking shadows in the west now

And even if the sun tries to set

I know I’ll still find my sunrise state of mind

I’ve got a sunrise state of mind

I’ve got a sunrise state of mind, and it’s time to shine 

I don’t want things to change anymore

I don’t want things to change

You know we found our sun and we’re heading for the door

I don’t want to change anymore

I’ve got a sunrise state of mind

I’ve got a sunrise state of mind, and it’s time to shine

We are waking up

We are waking up

We are waking up to ourselves

We are waking up to ourselves

Got a sunrise state of mind

I’ve got a sunrise state of mind, and it’s time to shine

It’s time to shine, It’s time to shine

Credits:

Written by Dave Hill Jr.
Vocals, piano, drums: Dave Hill Jr.
Produced by Adam James
Bass, guitars, keyboards, synths: Adam James
Mixed by: Adam James
Mastered by: Adam James