Everything I Long For is an album by Canadian singer-songwriter Hayden

Hayden (musician)

Paul Hayden Desser who records as Hayden, is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Thornhill, Ontario.His early works are a largely eclectic mix of genres from grunge rock to alt country, as demonstrated by his first full album, Everything I Long For, released in 1995. Since then his work has become...

. It was initially released in Canada on Hardwood Records

Hardwood Records

Hardwood Records is a Canadian independent record label, owned and operated by singer-songwriter Hayden. Originally formed to distribute his own albums, the label also currently releases albums by Cuff the Duke and Basia Bulat....

. It was later re-released in 1996 (with slightly modified cover art) on Sonic Unyon

Sonic Unyon

Sonic Unyon Recording Company is an independent record label based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The retail store is located on Wilson Street near James Street North)...

, and internationally on Outpost Recordings/Geffen Records

Geffen Records

Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...

. A 12" vinyl version was also released in 1996 on Hardwood/Genius Records.

The song "Assignment in Space with Rip Foster" is an alternative title to the children's novel Rip Foster Rides the Gray Planet

Rip Foster Rides the Gray Planet

Rip Foster Rides the Gray Planet is a Young adult fiction, science fiction novel written by Harold L. Goodwin under the pseudonym Blake Savage. The novel was originally published by Racine in hardcover in 1952 and reprinted in the United Kingdom later in the same year as Rip Foster Rides the Grey...

by Harold L. Goodwin

Harold L. Goodwin

Harold Leland Goodwin was an American writer.-Biography and writing career:Harold Leland Goodwin was a Government official and the author of forty-three books, including the Rick Brant Science-Adventure Series....

. Assignment in Space with Rip Foster is also attributed in the liner notes

Liner notes

Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...

 of Hayden's debut album, In September, as the recording studio where he recorded part of that album.

Bad as They Seem

The song "Bad as They Seem" was released as a single, and the music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

 received some play on MuchMusic

MuchMusic

MuchMusic is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media. MuchMusic is dedicated to music-related programs, pop and youth culture.-History:...

 and MTV's 120 Minutes

120 Minutes

120 Minutes is a television show in the United States dedicated to alternative music, originally airing on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then on MTV's sister channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003....

. The lyrics are from the point of view of a young twenty-something man in a hopeless situation: working a dead-end job ("where [he worked] at fourteen"), still living at his parents' home ("until [he's] at least forty-three"), infatuated with a 16-year-old "girl of [his] dreams", and possibly infatuated with the girl's mother, as well. The man wishes for a life where he can go out and meet someone to be his "better half". The hopeless and depressing nature of the song is reiterated with each verse, which states that "things are as bad as they seem". The third verse of the song ("Job of my dreams…") is absent from the album's reissues.

In the music video, the 16-year-old girl is wearing a t-shirt for Smoother, a rock band contemporary to Hayden at the time of this release, who were also on the Sonic Unyon

Sonic Unyon

Sonic Unyon Recording Company is an independent record label based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The retail store is located on Wilson Street near James Street North)...

 label.

At the time of writing the song, Hayden was in his early twenties. While touring to promote his 2008 album In Field & Town

In Field & Town

In Field & Town is the seventh full-length album by Canadian singer-songwriter Hayden, released January 15, 2008 on Hardwood Records and Universal Music Canada.-Track listing:# "In Field & Town"# "More Than Alive"# "The Van Song"...

, at the age of 36, Hayden modified the lyrics, changing "Girl of my dreams […] She is only sixteen" to "Girl of my dreams […] She is only twenty-three".

Track listing

All songs written by Paul Hayden Desser.

1. "Bad as They Seem" – 3:31
2. "In September" – 2:38
3. "We Don't Mind" – 4:35
4. "Tragedy" – 3:57
5. "Stem" – 1:47
6. "Skates" – 7:18
7. "I'm to Blame" – 2:25
8. "Assignment in Space with Rip Foster" – 2:37
9. "Driveway" – 4:20
10. "Hardly" – 4:13
11. "You Were Loved" – 2:48
12. "When This Is Over" – 4:00
13. "My Parent's House" – 4:35
14. "Lounging" – 4:27

Original track listing

This is the track listing of the original 1995 Hardwood Records release, which is now out of print.

1. "Bad as They Seem" – 4:34^†
2. "In September" – 2:38
3. "We Don't Mind" – 4:35
4. "Tragedy" – 3:57
5. "Stem" – 1:47
6. "Skates" – 7:18
7. "I'm to Blame" – 2:25
8. "Assignment in Space with Rip Foster" – 2:37
9. "Driveway" – 4:20
10. "Hardly" – 4:13
11. "You Were Loved" – 2:48
12. "When This Is Over" – 4:00
13. "Bunkbed" – 4:14
14. "I Almost Cried" – 3:33
15. "My Parent's House" – 4:35
16. "Lounging" – 4:27
0. Kraft Dinner & Poledo
   Poledo
   Poledo was a Canadian alternative rock band, active in the 1990s. Consisting of vocalist and bassist Joshua Malinsky, vocalist and guitarist Mitch Roth and drummer Dave Capogna, the band formed in 1994 and released two independent cassettes, Buzz Muffin and Let Up, before signing to Sonic Unyon...
   
   's Club Sandwich (hidden track
   Hidden track
   In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...
   
   )

† As mentioned above, the original "Bad as They Seem" has one verse more than on subsequent releases

Personnel

• Hayden
  Hayden (musician)
  Paul Hayden Desser who records as Hayden, is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Thornhill, Ontario.His early works are a largely eclectic mix of genres from grunge rock to alt country, as demonstrated by his first full album, Everything I Long For, released in 1995. Since then his work has become...
  
   – vocals, guitar (acoustic and electric), harmonica, piano, accordion
  • producer (all tracks), mixing (all tracks)
• Joao Carvalho – drums on "Bad as They Seem", "Skates", "Driveway", "When This Is Over"; bass on "Bad as They Seem"
  • producer (tracks 1, 6, 9, 12), mixing (1, 3–14), mastering (all tracks)
• Bryan Richards – drums on "In September"
• Guy Cannotplayit – cello on "Hardly"
• Blaine Johnson – mixing (track 2)

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format	Catalog
Canada	1995	Hardwood Hardwood Records Hardwood Records is a Canadian independent record label, owned and operated by singer-songwriter Hayden. Originally formed to distribute his own albums, the label also currently releases albums by Cuff the Duke and Basia Bulat....	CD
International	1996	Outpost/Geffen Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:... /Universal	CD
United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...  and Canada	1996	Hardwood/Genius	12" vinyl