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Nearly a week after Rich Cronin died of leukemia, the LFO singer's final song, "It Only Gets Better," has been released by New York radio station Z100. Recorded last year after a brief LFO reunion tour, the upbeat tune is reminiscent of the boy band's past hits "Summer Girls" and "Girl On TV," but the lyrics discuss Cronin's health struggles and how they altered his view of the world.
LFO Singer Rich Cronin, 35, Dies of Cancer
"I was obsessed with this chase for wealth/'Til the doctor said, 'Rich, it's about your health. Your blood's messed up, it don't look good./I couldn't stop time, but I wished I could," Cronin sings over acoustic chords and soft percussion. The singer later reflects on "pushing tears out of my bloodshot eyes" and how he wants to "find an out from this endless pain," but the song concludes on a positive note, with Cronin "sitting on a cloud" and seeing "a better place."
According to Z100, "It Only Gets Better" was recorded in Cronin's home studio with co-writer and producer Joe Clapp. Scott Appel, Cronin's former publicist, says that the singer "wasn't in good health" when he reached out to Clapp with the idea for the song last year.
Cronin, whose funeral mass was held yesterday (Sept. 13) in Kingston, Ma., passed away at the age of 35 last Wednesday (Sept. 8) after being diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia in 2005. The singer's label, Orange Freeze Entertainment, may be releasing more of Cronin's songs in an effort to support the Rich Cronin Hope Foundation for Leukemia, which Cronin helped establish in 2005.
Yeah, check my style for real
Still dropping rhymes without a record deal
I used to think I was meant to be on top
But they looked the other way when the record flopped
I messed up, due to much self-pity
Became the biggest lush in the whole damn city
I was obsessed with this chase for wealth
Till the doctor said, "Rich, it's about your health.
Your blood's messed up, it don't look good."
I couldn't stop time, but I wished I could
Let it all just fade awayEverything just starts to fade
Every day like today
Just one think I'd like to say
It only gets better
I'm sitting on a cloud and I'm looking down
Wish I could tell the world that it only gets better, it onlygets better, yeah
I was a dead man walking down the green mile
Forgot how to laugh, couldn't even fake a smile
Pushing tears out my bloodshot eyes
Cut myself with needles just to prove I'm alive
I told myself this can't be real
I can't believe I'm feeling all these things I feel
I need an out from this endless pain
It really don't seem like it's meant to change
But here I am, it's a brand new day
Taking back everything they took away, c'mon
Let it all just fade away
Everything just starts to fade
Every day like today
Just one think I'd like to say
It only gets better
I'm sitting on a cloud and I'm looking down
Wish I could tell the world that it only gets better, it only gets better, yeah
Now I know for sure, there's gotta be a better way
Livin' a better life, no strife, the time is gonna be alright
Just breakin' away, we're makin' a way, in fact I see a better day
If I could tell the world, I'd only have one thing to say
We're gonna be alright tonight, there's such a better place,that's right
Just breakin' away, we're makin' a way, in fact I see a better day
I'm sitting on a cloud and I'm looking down
Wish I could tell the world that it only gets better, it only gets better
I'm sitting on a cloud and I'm looking down
Wish I could tell the world that it only gets better, it only gets better,
Yeah
credits
released September 9, 2015
Rich Cronin, Joe Clapp. Produced by Joe Clapp
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