The History of Haj
(thanks to John Joyce!)
The version (of Hajimemashite) on Tashi Station's demo "album", named "Haji", is pretty much unchanged. It was recorded in the fall of 1997 in Mike Nolan's house (he also co-wrote "Uncommon" with BB, also used to be in Reverend Funk with BB in 1995). But the point where the song ends now (for example, at the point where it goes back into Much Obliged on SFOW), instead this old version goes into a hard/soft jam that really has the old-skool UM sound to it (even though it predates UM). It's a grinding riff that alternates with a little bit of bass stuff by Pony, so it keeps going hard-hard-hard-soft, hard-hard-hard-soft...etc.. Then that part leads into a softer, delicate part, all composed, built around some guitar work. Each of these sections is only a minute or so, not extended. Then it goes back into a kind of raging part, with lots of Bayliss noodling on a raging jam [can you tell i'm typing this as the tape plays in the other room?]. This jam is about 45 seconds or a minute, then interestingly, it gets into this ascending / descending section that I think BB and Pony actually teased on NYE 2002. Then that part ends, and the song is over.
But there was another even longer old version that Tashi did. This, the longest of the 3 versions, is from a Fall 1997 live tape that I have, and starts with BB's intro before any music, "This is our traditional cold-weather number..."
It opens with kind of a relaxed, loping section, then Pony comes in, followed by BB each time, leading me to believe that BB is translating Pony's Japanese, but then again someone posted something recently that the word does not mean "In the beginning" in Japanese. Regardless, Pony and BB more or less speak (then yell) these lines:
Pony:
Hajimemashite /
[Another line in Japanese]
BB:
In the beginning,
all that was, was the one,
and that one was, the one as well.
Pony:
[2 lines in Japanese]
BB:
There was nothing but good harmony
until the bad people came and they did their bad things, you know!
refrain:
(BB) I don't know your name!
(P) I don't know!
(BB) I can't talk to you!
(P) I am mean!
(BB) I can't scream at all!
(P) Yeah
back to the first loping part:
Pony:
[2 lines in Japanese]
BB:
Yeah, so was there was good thought, uhh, good stuff, and the bad people
came, just, that was ahhh, a refresher...
Yes, the bad people are still here, you know they don't like it!
Refrain:
(BB) I don't know your name!
(P) [a line in a foreign language..]
(BB) I can't talk to you!
(P) No hable espagnol!
(BB) I can't speak at all!
(P) [a line in a foreign language..]
(BB) I don't know!
(P) I don't know!
(BB) I can't talk to you!
(P) I know you don't like this number!
(BB) I can't speak at all!
(P) That's alright...
(BB) Pony!!!!!!
back to the loping part musically, just for a bit, and then:
BB: The bad people are back, I'm sorry...
Refrain:
(BB) I don't know the words!
(P) [a line in an unknown foreign language..]
(BB) I can't talk to you!
(P) I can't understand you...
(BB) I can't speak at all!
(P) [a line in an unknown foreign language..]
(BB) I don't know!
(P) I don't know!
(BB) He doesn't know...
(P) That's a big fucking fire... [this gig was outside, at a campus bonfire
of some sort]
(BB) Whoah!!! Yeah it is!...
Then it goes back into a raging jam, not to say that the jam is so good it's raging, but it was raging according to Tashi Station 1997 standards. Then this jam changes key(?) and eases back, and on into the beginning of the song as we know it today.
So then the song goes on as we know it, and then, once it ends, you can pick up the action back with the description above of the instrumental ending that was done in 1997. Here's a chart of the different sections, and where they occur:
Today's version: Hajimemashite
1997 Tashi Station Demo version: Hajimemashite > Extra music with some other music
1997 Tashi Statio Live version: Extra music with spoken lyrics > Hajimemashite > Extra music with some other music (and a few lyrics similar to those in part 1)
