Go Say! ^[1]
Music and lyrics by Ryan Gaughan, track 12 on "Happy History" album, © 2008 Among Criminals

I come in peace to your home;
My one-track mind is now a two-way road.
No watchful eye, just wishful words;
I'll kill my pride with what I’ve learned.
A wise man knows he knows nothing at all;
And pride’s the last straw that will make you fall.
Content is peace; pleasure is greed: ^[2]
I’ll turn my head to what I need.

Refrain:
Go say, go say!  You’ll find your way,
Go say, go say!  You’ll find your way,
Go say, go say!  You’ll find your way,
Go say, go say!  You’ll find your own way home.

Put some color back into your home.
Don’t let them cut you down or stunt your growth.
Then take these stories overseas:
You’ve got to learn before you teach.
Go say, go say!  You’ll find your way,
Go say, go say!  You’ll find your way,
Go say, go say!  You’ll find your way.
Go say, go say!  You’ll find your own way home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

^[1] As brought to light by a fan ^[3] of Among Criminals' music (and message) ~ "Go Say!" might well suggest an interesting play on words. Given an affinity for the Spanish language ~ it was initially thought that the song's title (and refrain) "Go Say!" might well be used in reference (inference and deference) to the Spanish word "goce" pronounced "GO-say" (link without) ~ translated as "possession or enjoyment" (link without).

^[2] As composed, the lyrics composing the seventh line of first octave stanza of "Go Say!" propose that "Content is peace" rather than "Enjoyment, peace" ~ and further contend that "pleasure is greed" rather than "possession, greed" ~ the power of suggestion is great ... <sup>[4]

[3]</sup> First encountering Among Criminals when the Philly-based band first toured the New England region in 2007 (thrice making the Waterside community of Newburyport a port of call that summer and fall) ~ the following spring of 2008, Among Criminals played an all ages concert held at this supporter's "establishment" ~ as the band launched its first nationwide tour which coincided with release of its second LP album, "Happy History."

GOOD TIDINGS (& GREAT SOUND WAVES): Said "fan" being an aficionado of the Spanish language and culture (as a former teacher of same) ~ his role in the Waterside community should be duly (and dually) noted. Namely, Reverend Ross Varney serves as Pastor of the Belleville Congregational Church here in the Waterside community of Newburyport ~ and is a musician in his own right. Here in this port of call and beyond, Reverend Varney (who urges he be called "Ross") is well known for his avids pursuits of all avocations in life, his calling as a man of the cloth ~ and other ways and means to do good. In a perfect ply and application of both the ministerial and musical/minstrel roles, Ross released his debut album "Heart Sounds" in the summer of 2009 ~ having taken a sabbatical to record ten of his original songs about faith, hope and love. With (high) regards and respect to this accomplishment ~ please refer to the local media coverage archived at this link without ~ which also provides sound files of four tracks from the album. As the article conveys, his congregation hears his sermons expressed in spoken words, lyrics and melody. On those occasions that his flock (parishioners) and members of the community flock to his service or concert, one of his command performances always inspires the collective commandment to "love one another."

^[4] It is difficult to "go say" for sure what the song's composer Ryan Gaughan (or his Muse) truly intended. Howbeit, since the title of the instrumental song from the first LP album "Kill the Myth" © 2007 Among Criminals ("Delictivo," which is the Spanish word for "criminal") ~ it might well have been so. Comity can bear witness to more than one conversation on the subject ~ one of which transpiring with the aforementioned fan and the composer in March 2008 ~ after a local performance here in port before the band's first nationwide tour. Then and there, the composer himself indicated that the graphics and lyrics on the CD cover and insert (then in final production) opted for the English "Go say!" rather than any Spanish nuance or influence. (Aside from music's Latin-rock infusion, of course.) On its face, there would be no confusion. However, as with most poets and musicians, Ryan oft opts to remain vague about the back story of his compositions and sources of inspiration ~ leaving a whit of mystery to sort out in the mix. So shall leave it at that, with no trepidation that using either interpretation, "Go Say! Goce!" will help promote good (great, and greater) "community in the work." Thus and so, shall use them interchangeably to progress change.<sup>[5]

[5]</sup> While "Go Say!" would remain unsung as the band performed live and toured nationally during 2008 through 2010 ~ the opportunity to hear the music and message of "Go Say!" resonate here in port at the Waterside community "Gam & Jam" loomed large during the afternoon of the Full Sturgeon moon on Sunday, August 22, 2010. Unfortunate as it was that the jam/concert of the Waterside "Gam & Jam" would be canceled due to the weather ~ Among Criminals stopped in port on their way home to Philly to join the ongoing conversation ("gam") ~ so we were still able to fine tune plans in motion.

To gather further momentum for those plans, Ryan Gaughan gave permission for express use of the "Go Say!" track from "Happy History" ~ in order to gain traction (and attraction) for good works here in the Waterside community of Newburyport and beyond. Particularly since plans in motion were to be forwarded in (pro)Motion of Comity during the forthcoming Labor Day festival and upcoming meetings of the minds with the new school superintendent. Please refer to Virtual Wolfe Tavern thread (link within). And the following footnote ^[6] (and those to follow thereafter) for the follow-through.

^[6] As a consequence of the above (foot)noted conversation in March 2008 ~ which took place at the turn of the old-style calendar year "The Year of Golden Opportunities" (March 25, 2007 - March 24, 2008) ~ Comity was prompted to SMILE about the Spanish definition and translation for "goce." With the good intentions to weave this content (and context) into the broadcloth of the "fabric of community" during the old-style calendar year ~ as a ways and means to create a learning environment for lifelong learners ~ particularly to revisit an innovative approach to engaging the entire community.

This was to unfold with the turn of the old-style calendar Julian (civic) year "The Year of Charting New Courses" (March 25, 2009 - March 24, 2010). With this in mind, in March of 2009, "Go Say!" was plied as one of a medley of favorite proems for the forthcoming old-style Julian (civic) calendar year ~ and part and parcel of Comity's submission for the Newburyport Favorite Poem Project ~ with the foreword (and forward thinking) of Whitman's "One Thought Ever at the Fore" (link within). In the process of this progress, a continual search to ensure no other instance of the acronym (GOCE) or prevalence of that term ~ had come to know of another reference for a project which would ultimately launch in the spring of 2009 (link within). <sup>[7]

[7]</sup> On March 17, 2009, the European Space Agency (ESA) launched a satellite called GOCE ^[8] which is a "backronym" for Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer (link without). Since its launch, the satellite has been mapping the Earth's gravitational fields in unprecedented detail. Though its predicted mission cycle was approximately 20 months, GOCE has enough fuel to last until the end of 2012, more than doubling the expected mission life (link without).

Planning and construction of the GOCE spacecraft involved 45 European companies, 13 managing scientists; the launch site in Russia, mission control in Germany, data ground stations in Sweden and Norway, and the observation center and high level processing facilities in Italy. An impressive accomplishment given the nominal €350 million budget (including launcher and operations) ~ duly noting that € 350 million Euros is equivalent to approximately $ 719, 222,788 in U.S. Dollars. (See more facts and figures at this link without.) ^[9]

^[8] Thales Alenia Space is a primary industrial partner of ESA the GOCE project; that company has a total of of 7,200 employees located its 11 industrial sites in France, Italy, Spain and Belgium, all involved in facets of the project. The project's "backronym" GOCE was such a fine fit since (as noted above) the Spanish word goce (pronounced, "go-say or go-see") is defined (in English) as "possession." However, since the data collected would be analyzed and reported out of the center located in Italy ~ (while goce is not an Italian word) ~ the Italian pronunciation (GO-chee) had been so frequently used during verbal communication ~ then widely used by European narrators and translators on video presentations ~ the whim & wisdom of that "play on word" has been rather "lost in translation." (See and hear at Youtube at this link without.)

^[9] The National Geographic article published April 6, 2011 found at this link without compares ESA's satellite GOCE to the NASA twin satellites launched on March 17, 2002 (exactly seven years before GOCE launch). The NASA project ~ known by the acronym GRACE which stands for Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (link without) ~ produces movie images at a lower resolution than the GOCE high-resolution still shots. The article describes the two projects as complementary ~ which is the widely held sense of scientists analyzing the data (link without).

During all facets of the GRACE project, NASA worked with a multi-national team, primarily from the United States and Germany, along with the University of Texas (link without). An article published by NASA's ASK (Academy Sharing Knowledge) found at this link without offers an insightful perspective (and retrospective). In June of 2010, the team signed an agreement to extend the GRACE project until the end of its prospective orbit-life, which is expected to be the year 2015 (link without). Upon learning of this, Comity's first thought was this further GRACE bodes well for gaining knowledge with this and future projects ...

With this and other matters and things in mind during this "The Year of Resolution" (March 25, 2011 - March 24, 2012) ~ we remark myriad milestones in history (local, regional, national and global) and "history in the making" ~ including several milestones for the Apollo missions. So doing, "we do of our further grace, certain knowledge and mere motion" ~ celebrate and cerebrate the possession (and enjoyment) of gaining knowledge and wisdom (in the past, present and future tense).