Good Times
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Lyrics:
Good times We got some good times I always knew what a loving family felt like Grew up on swing sets and acres full of sunshine Read-alouds, bedtime stories, and movie nights Tickle fights, Christmas lights Sometimes, looking back on my life I smile, cast my gaze up to the sky And I say, “Thank you, God, for joy that comes with every sunrise” Every game that we played in the living room Crafts and recipes we made in the afternoon Best friends, jump rope rhymes on the playground Whispering, giggling with my brother after lights-out Road trips full of junk food, songs, and staying up late My grandparents’ house was my favorite place My childhood was blessed and I’m grateful for all these good times My parents taught me to work hard and be kind Encouraged me to always follow my dreams and shine Said siblings are the friends you’ll have for your whole life So give ‘em time, they were right Sometimes, looking back on my life I smile, cast my gaze up to the sky And I say, “Thank you, God, for joy that comes with every sunrise” Every cookout with my cousins at my auntie’s house Playing 4-square in the neighborhood when friends are out Camping trips, making s'mores ‘round the RV Took so much pride in our amateur movies Amusement parks, skiing, sleepovers, adventure days Family memories and love that will never change As a teen I was blessed and I’m grateful for all these good times Hey And I love these days All these memories we’ve made Wouldn’t trade it for the world, no, no, no Every late night on my laptop getting homework done Taking trips to different states to cheer my brothers on Writing songs ‘bout my crushes and my feelings Babysitting, lunch with friends, and student teaching Cuddly pets, books, and family-centered holidays Our cross-country trip had me so amazed My college days were blessed and I’m grateful for all these good times Every bike ride with my friend up to the local school Summer days out on the beach or in my Nana’s pool Game nights, concerts, family reunions New job, hope I know what I’m doing Mission trips, volunteering, works that we create Inside jokes, worlds, and friendships that still remain My life is so blessed and I’m grateful for all these good times Good times Good times Good times Good times Oh-oh 
My grandparents have always been a huge part of my life. When I was little, they lived 1,000 miles away! This is a picture of me being super excited that they had just arrived at our house for a visit. It might have been a surprise; I don't remember. I think I'm around six here.
Good times - this was in 2009 when we were in the process of building our house!
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Copyright 2021
Lyrics and melody by Kelsey Gallant (2020) Produced by Kelsey Gallant and Cam Gallant at Blobfish Studios The Story Behind The Song:
This was another one in which my brother Cam assembled the music track first, and I made a "sketch track" to it. By "sketch track" (this is not a professional or technical term; it's just what Cam and I call it), I mean a vocal track in which I record a melody, usually with a few sporadic lyrics that may or may not feed into the final song. We've found that it's a lot easier to come up with a melody on the spot when you're not simultaneously trying to come up with lyrics. I LOVED the sketch track I made for this song. I didn't know what the song was going to be about, but I knew I wanted to keep the tune as close as possible to the original. I think I came up with the idea for the lyrics when Cam listened to the song and said, "It sounds like a good times song." I decided the song would be called "Good Times" and that it would be about my life. I'm pretty sure it took me a few weeks to finish writing the lyrics. I wrote them in small chunks at a time, always getting so excited when I filled in another line! It was hard because there was so much I wanted to include, and only a finite number of lines in the song. I brainstormed a list of topics to include for each section of the song, and then did my best to incorporate as many of those topics as possible. I think the last line I filled in was "joy that comes with every sunrise." I came up with that one morning when I'd stayed up all night working in the studio, and I looked out the window and saw the sunrise! The song was about 90% done by the end of summer 2020. (I'd started it in June 2020). I knew I wanted to make a slideshow for it and give it to my parents as a surprise, with them never having heard the song before. I thought about giving it to them for Christmas, but that just seemed so far away. Time passes quickly, though! The school year started up and I became busier (I'm a teacher). I had several other music projects in the works, and I decided to focus on a couple of those first, and leave Good Times for a Christmas release after all. I'm a procrastinator. I finished the almost-done version of the song and a non-lyric version of the slideshow by 7am Christmas morning. I did share it with my family that day, but I decided to polish it up a bit before releasing it. The most challenging part of this song was the harmonies. It took a while to get a consistent low and high harmony that sounded good and worked musically. I am satisfied with how they came out, though. I also like the fact that the harmonies in this song are authentically sung, rather than created using pitch correction software. This song is definitely one of my favorite songs I've ever produced. I am so grateful for my life and all the wonderful people who have been part of it. Click on the video above to hear my original sketch of "Good Times"!
In 2011, my family took an AMAZING 10-week trip across the United States in an RV. I have so many awesome memories from that trip! This is us at the Grand Canyon.
This is a picture of January 2020, when my brothers and I were all reading Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles series together. It was such a fun time period because we were all SO into the books and always wanting to know what was going to happen next!
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