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B i o g r a p h y
(by Michael Hill)
On
her third Nonesuch release, Saltbreakers, singer-songwriter Laura Veirs remains
tantalized by the mysteries and marvels of the natural world, filling her work
with images, both precise and poetic, of the ocean and the stars. But she digs
even deeper this time into the vagaries of human nature, transforming the
turbulence of her own life, as well as her concerns about the hair-trigger state
of the world at large, into a collection of songs distinguished as much by their
emotional urgency as by their often astonishing musical inventiveness.
"Lyrically I drew more from my personal life on this record than with anything
I've done in the past," says Veirs. She aims to convey the feeling, if not the
specific circumstances, of an intense period in her personal life: the end of a
long-term relationship, and the unexpected start of a new one, coupled with a
move from Seattle to Portland. She recalls this recent time as "a real emotional
pendulum. I was swinging from joy to despair and back again. I was bouncing off
the walls." She channeled her restless energy into writing material that mirrors
those dramatically swinging moods; it shifts from brooding to euphoric to the
hauntingly contemplative.
"I needed to say something truthful," admits Veirs. "I wasn't afraid to look at
my dark side." And she doesn't waste any time doing that, opening Saltbreakers
with the lines, "Sorry I was cruel/I was protecting myself/Drifting along with
my swords out flying/Tattering my own sails/then I tattered yours too." "It was
nice to be direct," she admits. "But I still like to leave the songs open enough
so that listeners can create their own images, their own ideas. On my early
records, I was much more direct. It was all narrative. Then I went into a lot
more obscure and poetic place. Now I've created a nice balance between those
things." Veirs recorded the album in Seattle, with band-mate Tucker Martine (The
Decemberists, Bill Frisell) once again producing and mixing. Though she now
calls her group Saltbreakers, it's actually comprised of her longtime
compatriots, formerly known as the Tortured Souls -- guitarist/bassist Karl
Blau, keyboardist Steve Moore and drummer Martine. The name change was a
practical decision: "I didn't want to talk about that Tortured Souls thing
anymore. It just got old," Veirs, who also plays guitar, explains with a laugh,
remembering lots of bad jokes about the moniker. Over the last three years, the
band has traveled the world in support of Veirs' previous Nonesuch albums,
Carbon Glacier (2004) and Year of Meteors (2005), assiduously cultivating an
international fan base. Veirs continues to praise the musicians' strong
interrelationship: "The band has gotten really close. We've become like a real
family. It's felt like that for a long time, but it's even more so now. Before
we made this record, I demo-ed the tracks at home using Garageband. Then we went
on a short west coast tour and played the new material. One of the big pay-offs
of the way we work was then being able to go into the studio and just play the
songs."
The title track of Saltbreakers also marks the debut of her fellow players as
backing vocalists; they gamely follow Veirs' lead, negotiating her twisting
trains of thought and idiosyncratic cadences while managing to make it all sound
relaxed and conversational. The lyrics to "Saltbreakers," inspired by A.S.
Byatt's novel Possession, evokes the romantic intensity of the source material,
but Veirs' group gives the song a disarmingly buoyant, R&B-like feel. As Veirs
recalls, "Karl has sung with me before, but this was the first time for the
entire group. They did it all live, clapping in a room together. There was a lot
of laughing. I had to make up the last verse on the spot because we realized
that we needed something more, the song wasn't ready to end. I like seeing the
process unfolding in the studio like that. That's the fun of recording as a
group." Salt became a unifying theme for the album – the salt in tears, the salt
in ocean waves, the salt left behind by perspiration after, as Veirs puts it, "a
long sweaty night of the soul," the point at which opening track "Pink Light"
begins. "The idea felt visceral," says Veirs, "so I ran with it." The sea and
waves – or saltbreakers, as Veirs likes to call them – are a leitmotif: "I have
a lot of dreams about whales, and the sea itself is so mysterious, ineffable,
infinite. You can never know completely what's going on under the surface. That
really intrigues me. The sea is both nurturing and destructive: it can be safe
and luscious and comforting or a real tyrant. Waves, of course, can wash things
away, absolve you, clear the beach of detritus, or they can bring a bunch of
stuff back in."
On "Ocean Night Song," in which guest star Eyvind Kang's viola is transformed
into a ghostly undersea wail, Veirs envisions her soul floating into the deep to
join the whales already swimming there. These "herds of the sea" – a phrase that
echoes Herman Melville's Moby Dick, a touchstone for Veirs -- pass by again on
the gentle, jangly "Cast a Hook in Me" as the narrator of the song is willingly
seduced by a merman. Veirs has lately been drawn to the work of Nobel
Prize-winning Portuguese novelist Jose Saramago, whose apocalyptic novel
Blindness helped to shape "Don't Lose Yourself." She actively sought Saramago's
permission to adapt his images of a society upturned by an epidemic of
hysterical blindness. "Don't Lose Yourself" transforms social commentary, and a
little bit of personal confession, into a sort of magical realism, while
"Phantom Mountain" features a startling, fuzzed-out guitars and rock and roll
drum-kit sound. Says Veirs, "We like to push different boundaries. We play loud
and get noisy. I like some edge, along with some beauty, in my work." Perhaps
the most beautiful moment on Saltbreakers, the one sure to entrance both
dedicated fans and the uninitiated, is "To the Country," a call-and-response
collaboration between Veirs and the eight-voice Cedar Hill Choir, whose almost
otherworldly white gospel singing was triple-tracked by Martine. He recorded
them in the studio at Johnny and June Carter Cash's cabin in Hendersonville,
Tennessee, where, Veirs recounts, "You could feel the energy in that room. There
are pictures of family -- mothers, fathers, grandmothers, grandfathers -- and a
mantle that all the famous people who have recorded or visited there, like Bob
Dylan, have signed. We were really excited to be asked to sign it too." Fellow
Nonesuch artist Bill Frisell plays guitar on the track, which, despite the
studio setting, owes more to the spare, hypnotic music of Mali, which Veirs has
been exploring, than to American country music.
Choirs seem to suit Veirs' material. A 45-member chorus of middle school
students from Cognac, France, calling itself The Young Rapture Choir, created
their own arrangements of Veirs' repertoire. Martine recorded them in concert
last year and Veirs has released a limited-edition disc on her own Raven
Marching Band imprint. More recently, a teacher from Spain sent Veirs 30
individual notes from his students, each of them thanking her for making the
fantastical, gravity-defying video for "Galaxies," from Year of Meteors. Perhaps
they're responding to an element of child-like wonder in her work. A fairy
tale-like quality is certain there, but older, more knowing ears will find
something even more engrossing in these songs: the sound of a real life
unfolding between the crashing sea and the twinkling stars.
|
Laura Veirs
Green Cowgirl
You're a horse of course
And you're racing by
I'm swinging these strings to get you
But you're far too sly
Copy paste is bad
for the health
This red mahogany
Is the saddle that you've thrown off
I'm alone in the dust
You kicked up trying not to cough
'Cause I'm a green cowgirl
Trying to lasso you in
With these six strings
I'm all caught up in
I scream words to beckon you
But no words can capture you
I'm choking on nothing
My words are too thin and too few
All this crying and still
No song inside can capture the white
I can't see through the blue of me
Under this lone desert sky
'Cause I'm a green cowgirl
Trying to lasso you in
With these six strings
I'm all caught up in
I'm all caught up in
I'm all caught up in
Maybe I should try to tie up something new
You're too wild
But I know you're the host
With the most crazy brain child
Crazy brain child
'Cause I'm a green cowgirl
Trying to lasso you in
With these six strings
I'm all caught up
I'm a green cowgirl
Trying to lasso you in
With these six strings
I'm all caught up in
Dirty Sheep
The sky's a dirty sheep
And someone's got to shear it
This life is a messy table
And someone's got to clear it
There's a heavy, heavy hand
Weighing down the black sheep clouds
Everything is like lead
I wanna see the sun
Copy paste
is bad for the health
Bust out your log
And bust out your dog
Politics on the sidewalk
Scalding color sidewalk chalk
Beneath your sweet sixteen candy bar
He took you away in his car
Talk was cheap
So you make fifty bucks for doing much more than talking
What the fuck
Bust out your log
And bust out your dog
There's a heavy, heavy hand
Weighing down the black sheep clouds
And everything is like lead
I wanna see the sun
Bust out your log
And bust out your log
Blackboard Pie
Well, I come back home from seeing my man
With gritty brown hands and eyes of tin
I said, "Baby, we ought to make us a plan"
He said, "Come on and eat my blackberry jam"
Ever love a lass, make sure she plays the drums
Don't fall for her guitars, no matter how hard she strums
Guitarist as a breed are all really bums
They'll unwrap you and chew you like a piece of gum
Copy paste
is bad for the health
There goes white and there goes black
The shadows trip across my dusty pack
I'm listening to the wheels of the steel rail track
Go clickity-clack, clickity-clack
I like boys dark like Alder side
I like girls solid with twinkles in their eyes
When I get home I'm making blackbird pies
Until then I'll listen to these railroad ties
There goes white and there goes black
The shadows trip across my dusty pack
I'm listening to the wheels of the steel rail track
Go clickity-clack, clickity-clack
Tangerine
Tangerine
You're ripe on the tree
And then you fall
But don't we all
My sweet tangerine
And I don't want to be there
When you fall
And do we have just this one chance
That's all
Tangerine
My favorite color next to green
Beautiful scene
So fleeting it seems
And I don't want to be there
When you fall
And do we have just this one chance
That's all
Tangerine falling
Out of the sky
Tangerine calling
Why
Tangerine
So luscious sweet
In a world so mean
When you go, you'll
Be everything but green
Copy paste
is bad for the health
And I don't want to be there
When you fall
And do we have just this one chance
That's all
Marianas Trench
I've got nothing to say
But hey you're lost beautifully
I've got nothing to say
But hey you're lost beautifully
Copy paste
is bad for the health
And the waves keep turning silently
This scene goes by unseen
And the waves keep turning silently
This scene goes by unseen
The water's clear, but you can't drink it
Thirsting for a fresh water mind
Have you chosen that current
Or are you in a riptide
I came to swim with you
Said, "Can I join you for the ride"
The sea got saltier when we cried
And the waves keep turning silently
This scene goes by unseen
And the waves keep turning silently
This scene goes by unseen
I Miss You
I miss you, it's true
But there's nothing that I can do
Except play for you this tune
Sound waves through the ocean blue
What does your heart feel
What do your eyes see
I see a gorgeous woman
Looking right at me
I want to know her
You're so far away
She's right here
I'm forgetting your face
You're so far from this place
I miss you, it's true
But there's nothing that I can do
Except play for you this tune
Sound waves through the ocean blue
Just let me be here
I need some time alone
Away from negotiations
On the telephone
I deeply miss you
But I deeply want you
And I have to tell you
And I want her too
I want her too
Copy paste
is bad for the health
And I miss you, it's true
But there's nothing that I can do
Except play for you this tune
Sound waves through the ocean blue
Outside Bud's
Jazz Records
It's kind of hard to play guitar in my car
I can only stretch myself out so far
Closed off from a louring
And the sad old man in his dripping tears and shame
Hey now, now
Hey now
Hey now, now
Hey now
Copy paste
is bad for the health
The women pass stare at their reflections in the plate glass windows
The suits throw Diet Pepsi cans in the trash
And I know it's time to buy another record
Stan gets to let me forgot for just a minute
Hey now, now
Hey now
Hey now, now
Hey now
He's done everything he can
He's really not a man
Hey now, now
Hey now
Hey now, now
Hey now
American Way
Driving to my driveway mailbox
Time to send my taxes
I'm on a peace keeping mission
To kick other countries' asses
Twenty two billion pentagon dollars
Unaccounted for last year
They're making twelve more lovely stealth bombers
I fund an institution of fear
I fund an institution of fear
It's the American way
It's the American way
It's the American way
Copy paste
is bad for the health
I watch shoot 'em up movies on TV everyday
I don't have to think, I can let my eyes glaze
It's my constitutional right to sit here in a daze
I got six cans of Easy Cheese on the shelf
I'm happy and I'm okay, I'm okay
It's the American way
It's the American way
Toe
I don't know why I cannot cry
And I don't know why
So I'll not try
Copy paste
is bad for the health
I know that you
Truly have you
I must have let you go
If my heart was my toe
I'll try not to show
That you'll just stub the hell out of it
And you'll just stub the hell out of it
And I don't know why I cannot cry
And I don't know why
So I'll not try
Look Out The Window
My grandma, she painted white gold pictures
And my grandpa, he went insane
And my grandpa, he frittered his money away
And my grandma, she looked like a movie star
And if I spend my whole life
Looking down at the flaws in the dirt
And the cracks in the wood
And the ants crawling under the door
Look out the window
Squeeze through the bars in your head
And stop acting so dead
Copy paste
is bad for the health
My grandma, they called her a mealy mouth 'cause she talked too loud
And my grandpa, he organized people on their Ohio farms
And my grandpa, he had working man's arms
And my grandma, she smoked a pack a day to end her suffering
Look out the window
Squeeze through the bars in your head
And stop acting so dead
Motorcycle Man
You had to go off, Mr. Motorcycle Man, into the blacktop sunrise
Waterproof guitar strapped to your back
A dewy look in your blue eyes
You said it's so rock n' roll, I said I know
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I only knew you for one short night
But that was enough to hook me in
You said food and music is all you need and I agreed
But now you're gone and it's the end
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
Copy paste
is bad for the health
It seems so easy
To just ride yourself away
It seems so easy
To just let the music play and get the hell out of the way
So easy
For the sapphire on fire
To be rough around the edges and so wild
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
I wish you were my friend
Star Panties
Wonder Woman wears star panties
I wish upon a falling star panty
That you'll see you Wonder Woman are
And surely I will
And surely I will
And surely I will
And surely I will
Copy paste
is bad for the health
In a candle's glow you lay there
Oh I know that stare
You're thinking someday I will fill these star panties
And surely I will
And surely I will
And surely I will
And surely I will
Star panties
You're wearing stars
You're wearing star panties
You're wearing stars
Hummingbird
Hummingbird, I heard the word you're leaving
Hummingbird, you have to go
Hummingbird, I know you're grieving
Oh hummingbird
'Cause your songs and my songs are everyone's songs
Until all the songs have been sung
And your songs are so lovely and undone
So lovely and undone
Copy paste
is bad for the health
Hummingbird, I'm still a blossom left for you
Hummingbird, don't go away
Hummingbird, you're much too fragile for this world
Hummingbird, you cannot stay
You cannot stay
You cannot stay
You cannot stay
'Cause your songs and my songs are everyone's songs
Until all the songs have been sung
And your songs are so lovely and undone
So lovely and undone
The triumphs & travails of orphan mae
Jailhouse fire
Did you see that lady there
They stripped her to her underwear
She took it one step further and stripped to bare
Through the rising flames
And smoke she laughed as all the police choked
And then she danced in the government pyre
The jailhouse is on fire
The jailhouse is on fire
She grabbed a guard and stole his keys unlocked the cells
And set us free and we ran and caught our pants
On the old barbed wire
We hit the dirt, we hit the road
we jumped the fence
We kissed a toad and we hollared at the ladies
In the churchyard choir
The jailhouse is on fire
The jailhouse is on fire
I hopped a train and headed west free woman
Now just like the rest all the hobos on the line called me a liar
The train it choked and spewed and spat and coal smoke billowed thick
And black and she was everywhere and rising higher
She set the jailhouse on fire
She set the jailhouse on fire
She set the jailhouse on fire
Up the river
Billy was a young man gone astray
Bottle at his lips all night and day
Mama said they're gonna send you up the river someday
Mama said they're gonna send you up the river someday
Whiskey ate big holes in Billy's head
Summer's day he shot spud murphy dead
He said i'm headed up the river as he watched the blood pour red
Yeah headed up the river as he watched the blood pour red
Mama asked Lord Jesus what to do
At the door came knocking boys in blue
We're gonna send him up the river and make him pay his dues ma'am
We're gonna send him up the river and make him pay his dues
And so she watched him round that riverbend go
Billy felt a chill pass 'cross him cold
They sent him up the river to turn a young man old
Yeah They sent him up the river to turn a young man old
John henry lives
Hear the whistle blow far off
In the still night without stars
See the tracks laid flat with a hammer's might
They're the spike driver's scars
They're the spike driver's scars
By the railroad ties there a hammer lies it's all painted in red
It's all painted in red, it's all painted in red
By the railroad ties there a hammer lies it's all painted in red
It's all painted in red, it's all painted in red
The west springs up from the spike driver's blues
And the captain's new shiny shoes take to him this hat
And hammer and tell him i'm gone i'm gone i'm gone i'm gone i'm gone
By the railroad ties there a hammer lies it's all painted in red
It's all painted in red, it's all painted in red
By the railroad ties there a hammer lies it's all painted in red
It's all painted in red, it's all painted in red
It's all painted in red, it's all
painted in red, it's all painted in red
It's all painted in red, it's all painted in red, it's all painted in red
Black-eyed susan
Twenty days walking so lonely and talking to myself and the rocks and sand
Got me to thinking 'bout going and drinking in a tavern with a clean-shaven man
Just when i thought all souls had been bought by the devil here long ago
There did i see when i knelt to my knee i little texas flower grow
Black-eyed susan by the roadside blooming all yellow like sunshine red like wine
Flower like you in a desert this cruel my my you're a rare rare find
Well my newfound friend gave my heart a mend i sang her songs of my wayward ways
As day turned to night in the crystal moonlight i confirmed her unwavering gaze
As the days unraveled i stayed in the gravel and susan kept her eye on me
With my eye on her i felt my heart all astir with the joy of camaraderie
Black-eyed susan by the roadside blooming all yellow like sunshine red like wine
Flower like you in a desert this cruel my my you're a rare rare find
Orphan mae
I don't know where i come from but i know it's a place here on earth
Somewhere in a desert near a mountain was the place of my birth
If you could tell me i would cry if you could tell me
I would fly there if you could tell me my oh my my oh my
Somewhere out there in the blossoms of the cactus
I lost my mare walked up a ridge and at the top
I saw her running off i don't know where
If you could tell me i would cry if you could tell me
I would fly there if you could tell me my oh my my oh my
The naked sun she burns me down she turns my flesh to this dark brown
Won't someone please give me a place to go i assure you i don't ever ever know
If you could tell me i would cry if you could tell me
I would fly there if you could tell me my oh my my oh my
Blue ink
I'm falling off the barstool mama in this old ghost town saloon
Where sunlight moves like sadness across the room
Oh my sweet mama if you could only see me
Now drunk as a skunk falling out of this rundown lacy gown
This blue ink this blue ink this blue ink
Across the page i write to you
I'm sitting in these thorny cowboy boots
And scabby knees wondering why i left you mama
Just to do as i please no hat has a brim
Wide enough to block out the blazing sun
I met the devil on the road but i had no legs to run
This blue ink this blue ink this blue ink
Across the page i write to you
Silver ran off two towns ago i been walking alone
I been walking slow my eyes are dry from the desert wind
I know i ain't coming home to you again
I'll take off into the deep blue sky
When i'm dead and gone and the buzzards fly this blue ink across the page
I write to you mama if you love me you're the only one who do
Montague road
The yellow wind sends brambles through the dust
The tractor wheels won't turn for all the rust the corn has died
And dried upon the stalk her lips are cracked it hurts to talk it hurts to talk
Through december
Birds were falling from the sky all leaves had turned to brown
The heartless cold froze everything and took my poor red down
Poor old red she's dead and gone her eyes
I do remember at least i have this old guitar
To get me through december through december
Her eyes were dark as winter's night both
Ssomehow young and old i loved her most
The day she died her hair was colored gold
Poor old red she's dead and gone her eyes
I do remember at least i have this old guitar
To get me through december through december
Old man winter at my door the sky heavy with snow all's cold
But my heart poor red it's hard to let you go
Poor old red she's dead and gone her eyes
I do remember at least i have this old guitar
To get me through december through december
Raven marching band
The sky's a raven marching band black blizzard blowing across the land
Come darling take my hand i'm whiskey poured into the sand
Star blossoms bloom the night falling now burning fire bright
Come darling take my hand i'm whiskey poured into the sand
The silver tracks lie long and straight perfect means for my escape
Come darling take my hand i'm whiskey poured into the sand
Movin' along
Light of the morning day
Sadly it will not stay
This perfect pink for too long couple of hours from now
All the sunflowers will frown and turn
For the sun is too strong
I'll be movin' along yeah i'll be movin' along
I'll head for those distant hills
Find some good land to till a river to sing me a song
When winter snows blow in
I'll pack up my bags again guess i'll be movin' along
I'll be movin' along yeah i'll be movin' along
Troubled By The Fire
Lost at Seaflower Cove
Oh the dirty wordless fingers come again
Where the mermaid singers
Oh when I need them
Oh how I need them
Pretty words doled up on silver platters
Chanting sea shanties the words that matter
Oh how they shatter me
Tattooed sailor man pull that net from the sea
Is there something good inside there for me
Something for me
No more rusty strings not these deadened things
Bedroom
Eyes
Been traveling all too long this bear-cat trail
But the love in me's grown stronger than this steel rail
That I ride back to your bedroom eyes
Been gone so long baby I wrote you this love song
My heart the engineer now she's running strong
Taking me back to your bedroom eyes
Bedroom eyes, bedroom eyes
Brighter than this starlit summer sky
My cheek against this blackened boxcar dear
It's dirty and it's cold but the coast is clear
I'm coming home back to your bedroom eyes
Bedroom eyes, bedroom eyes
Brighter than this starlit summer sky
The Ballad
of John Vogelin
I survived the desperate toll dark depression takes
I may not break even but babe I'll never break
Golden coins and smiles no they cannot tip my scales
Cuz this land, this love will never be for sale
Brass hats and soldier boys whiskey on your breath
Drop your holy missiles you can take my body dead
Send me all your lightning storms your thunderheads and hail
Cuz this land, this love will never be for sale
(Yodeling)
Wild eyes they watch on me through the velvet night
Fire on the mountain you can burn me where I lie
Even though I'm dead now as an old and rusty nail
This land, this love will never be for sale
Song My
Friends Taught Me
Struggling like a fly against the glass
It's not clear why I can't blast
Straight through
Behind all the brightest smiles
Twist the tortured, tortured souls who
I'll never, never know
Who I'll try and try to know
You show me smoke and mirror eyes
And behind a shining lamp hides
A shining lamp hides
Cannon
Fodder
I will not have a child, I will be wild
And not produce meat for your slaughter
No more cannon fodder
Company whip cracks at the break of dawn
Back break work the whole day long
They're coming for my daughter
Innocent cannon fodder
Every war is brutal, stupid, expensive and mean
If you take her, you also take me
Hiding by the water
Innocent cannon fodder
Tiger
Tattoos
I see you there, your purple hair
And the rosy cheeks that I adore
Tiger tattoos, my how they suit you
I hope you'll let me see a little more
Will you come down, down to the river
And take a swim, a swim with me
Will you come down, down and deliver
And let me wash those earthly burdens free
Sweet baby blues and steel-toed black shoes
The breeze is blowing through the door
The time has come, let's have some real fun
I hope you'll let me see a little more
Will you come down, down to the river
And take a swim, a swim with me
Will you come down, down and deliver
And let me wash those earthly burdens free
Ohio
Clouds
Roll Ohio clouds oh roll on in
Wash the cigarettes the smell from grandma's skin
Clear the dank and dusty kitchenettes
The bourbon bottles resting empty on the chest
Empty on the chest
Grandpa's on the outside of the fence
He's calling to his son again he's on the outside never in
So roll Ohio clouds oh roll on by
We gotsta get rid of that guy
He's gonna blacken up the sky
Daddy's old transistor radio
Is crackling by the window I just can't make it out
Stories passing through I know they're mine
American treasure find
I just can't make them out
What they're all about...
Devil's
Hootenanny
I was walking through the snow
When I saw a distant glow
Of a farmhouse nestled down beneath the trees
With a guitar on my back
I thought it sure can't hurt to ask
If I could stay the night
And sing a pretty song for free
I walked up to the house
And then I knocked hard on the door
That old dark piece of wood
She fell right in there on the floor
And as she did a fire burst out on all sides
I wondered what the hell was going on inside
Then the music that I heard
It was bizarre, it was absurd
Like no banjo fiddle bass I'd ever seen
I stepped into a room of flames
Shook my head and looked again
It was the kind of company to make you scream
It was a devil's hootenanny
An old-time fire band
A drunken whiskey choir singing
Round me you understand
And then they said, "We've been searching near and far
For a thing like you to sing and play guitar"
Well I opened up my case
And all the blood rushed to my face
I sang a fragile note, picked a minor tune
Well those devils yelled and clapped
And all their asses they did slap
Before too long we were arm and arm beneath the moon
Cuz that old house burnt on down
There were cinders on the ground
I snuggled up inside, closed my eyes
I was sleeping sound
And I dreamt of summer nights down by the sea
With a devil's banjo playing on my knee
Midnight
Singer
Oh midnight singer
Outside my window
Oh how your songs
Come in strange and low
And in my bed I lay silent
Hoping you'd stay
Hoping you'd go
Oh midnight singer
Just outside my door
Oh how your song
Waves on the shore
Making a sound oh then silent
Making a sound once more
Oh midnight singer
Sing inside my heart
Oh mysterious like no other song
And in my bed I lay silent
Hearing a rhythm then gone
Carbon Glacier
Ether sings
My wooden vibrating mouth
Sing me your lover's song
Come with me we'll head up north
Where the rivers run icy and strong
The empty theater is lying cold
In the shadows of the past
A church group enters to touch the molding
With a burst of song and a simple repast
Guitars can't help but sing
Can't help but ring
A tiny little flute is whistling in the lips
Of a stranger on the corner
A tiny little girl ties flowers to her wrists
And the bees come round to adorn her
All the time spent dreaming is never lost
Dreams come back through the bells of trumpeting horns
Souls lost into the ether of death
Come back wise in the eyes and the arms of newborns
Hearts can't help but sing
Can't help but ring
Icebound
stream
Watch, i can flash across the sky
A lightning bolt from up on high
And i can crash into myself
Now a flower blooms in reverse
And a song takes back a verse
A photograph fades to white
I can hold a thunderhead in my heart
And in my bed i can dream a winter's gale
And wake up drenched
A stormy pale, a stormy pale
A battered heath on the shore
Will make her keep and wait for more
But underneath her icebound stream
The water pours, the water pours
I can hold a thunderhead in my heart
Rapture
With photographs
And magnetic tape
We capture
Pretty animals in cages
Pretty flowers in vases
Enraptured
And doesn't the tree
Write great poetry?
Doing itself so well
Do you blame monet?
His gardens in giverny
He captured
And lovely basho
His plunking ponds and toads
Enraptured
The fate of kurt cobain
Junk coursing through his veins
And young virginia woolf
Death came and hung her coat
Love of color, sound and words
Is it a blessing or a curse?
Enraptured
Lonely
angel dust
The rose is not afraid to blossom
Though it knows its pedals must fall
And with its pedals fall seeds into soil
Why toil to contain it all?
Why toil at all?
Ice crystals form from flakes of heaven
Fall down weightless to the earth
To them it's worth the falling
Through atmospheres a-dawning
And open arms a-calling
To collect and protect all the raining
Insane from above
The lonely angel dust
The only angel does
The cloud
room
Music in the air
Plucked from the centuries
Presented in the form
Of a song by you to me
Seagull in the air
Floating on the updraft
See me on the ground
Think i just heard her laugh
Up in the air
Up there, up there, in the air
Twelve floors up
In the camlin hotel
Man at the piano
Plays songs for the clientele
Notes mingle out from his mouth
With the alcohol
Floating up to the stars
And circling through them all
Up in the air
Topographic lines
Come close together
Imagine the peaks
And the stormy weather
Trees fade to white
And boulders just might
Make an appearance
If the sun shines just right
Up in the air
Wind is
blowing stars
Clear as ice, oh clear as ice
Dripping down from a rock
Spring will come and so will fall
All my enemies have finally fled
They've finally fled and gone
Take your pick, oh take your pick
And dig into the earth
You'll find a muted pearl its worth
It will never self-disclose
It's your job to dig and polish you know
All the colors spin, all the colors spin
Blackness from a pitcher pours
Stars come blowing through the door
Your eyes they mirror pools of ink
Your heart and mind combine to drink
From the puzzle's trough
But the troubles can be solved
Take jumps in wintry lakes
Feel the water's skin and face
Huddle up close nice and tight
We might absorb enough moonlight
Your kiss adorns a neighbor strange
Who's one of us again, again
The wind is blowing stars my friend
The wind is blowing stars!
Shadow
blues
There's a shadow beneath the sea
There's a shadow between you and me
I've learned that love is scared of light
Thousand seeds from a flower
Blowing through the night
Your blackened kiss on my cheek
Your blackened kiss runs river deep
A stranded fish dear, i'm on the sand
Blue water from a pool
Up to the clouds i'll land
Though i am dark 'bout the whys of wanting
Though i am dark, i'm still a child
Gonna dig a coal mine, climb down deep inside
Where my shadow's got one place to go
One place to hide
Snow
camping
I saw the violet turn to night
I saw the water turn to ice
A thousand snowflakes hovered 'round me
The world aglow
I heard a distant songbird singing
A song the words i used to know
And as the melody went ringing
I felt my bones on the rocks below
The weighted trees of my only home
With brother sleeping right beside me
The blankets pulled up to his chin
The makeshift snow cave settled slightly
But held us in and sheltered us
Like mom and dad, they always helped us
Chimney
sweeping man
I'm a chimney sweeping man
You see the black lines
On the backs of my hands
I planted all the gardens
I sent off all the hand-typed letters
To the empty shells on high
How i want to make things better
Maybe you thought i'd be president
With my cheshire grin, high iq
And charming baby blues
Well i'm a lowland forest resident
With lime in the outhouse
And black grime for tattoos
I try to make things better
I try to make things mine
I write a lot of letters
To pass the time
I pulled three hundred rocks
From the land to build my house
I walk quiet through the forest
Like a tiny quiet forest mouse
I'm a chimney sweeping man
You see the black lines
On the backs of my hands
Salvage a
smile
Dead eye from the wood of life
Hold the ropes and the rigging lines
Red-eye a.m. Here i lie
Shipwreck passing underneath
What of the sailor and her spinning wheel?
What was she thinking being
Swallowed by the water whole?
Red on the left, green on the right
You can see me coming in the morning light
Brass and glass and rusted iron
Sextant here for the heavenly bodies
Compass here but the needle's shot
Magnetic deviation screws me up
Break the glass from your hanging lanterns
Break the sea with your blackened anchors
And you might end up a floating junk pile
But you can always scramble to salvage a smile
Riptide
Riptide pulls me out into the open sea
My toes dangle for a place to stand and be
Oh starry night come and chart a course
Or send me a boat with an anchor set
I'll pull myself ashore
Left with essence
Of the moon and stars and night
There's no other route
I cannot take self to flight
I'll float here with the shrimp and brine
And on my cheeks and hair
The salt will always shine
And with this phosphorescence map
A sailor's chart a mermaid's hand
Something i'll find
Oh starry night come and chart a course
Year of Meteors
*** Thanx a lot to Laura & her label
for these lyrics ***
Fire Snakes
Mermaids
Shimmer in the waves
Wanted to share a word
Course they only waved
Left me alone
With the blood in my mouth
To paw and to pray
To tear at the fray for a thundercloud
To dress up your wounds
Wash off the salt
Freshen the blooms
At your sea-rusted altar
Caldera's edge
We'll hold hands and wait
Mudflows are greyhounds
Exploding from gates
With hot ash and hot rocks
They'll crash and they'll mosh
Till the trees are all flat
And we all collapse from the chase
Then I'll dress up your wounds
Wash off the salt
Freshen the blooms
At your mud-crusted altar
Galaxies
When you sing, when you sing
The stars fill up my eyes
Galaxies pour down my cheeks
Galaxies, they flood the street
Galaxies
When we dance, when we dance
Eels and sea grass float on by
I'm 10,000 leagues beneath the sea
10,000 leagues beneath the green
10,000 leagues
When we kiss, when we kiss
Bears and boulders vibrate through the air
Gravity is dead you see
No gravity
All I need is beating red
No gravity...
Secret
Someones
I'm climbing up the stairs
I'm circling the waves
The broken ceiling paint
The broken windowpane
O a smile would melt
Me to an asphalt strip
Where all would travel
Where all would tread and trip
Where all the rolling rollers roll
And all the secret someones go
And all the roving rovers ramble
Down my back, down my track...
The horizon disappears
Like a windswept trail
Gone from wind and rain
Blurred like a charcoal stain
Smearing your face
Your shins are skinned again
You can soak up my heat
Sweat your beaded jewels to the street
Where all the rolling rollers roll...
Hey hey hey hey
Tell me, did you make it to the show?
Tell me, what did you make of the drummer's hair?
Tell me, about the atmosphere
Tell me, about the faces that greeted you there
Where all the rolling rollers roll...
Magnetized
Slain
By your zirconium smile
I was slain
By your olivine eyes
Slain
I was lying in piles
Hoping shovels would cast me
Furnaces burn everlasting
Black tattoos of you onto me
Furnaces burn everlasting
Black tattoos
Burn
Brand my memory
Black
A tattoo of you
Wash
Me with your mouth
Brackish bright water from your eyes
I'll homing pigeon fly
To hover by your window white and shy
Homing pigeon fly
To hover by
Spill
My ashes to the wind
Ghosts
Can gather what they've found
Now
We can struggle in the web
We can struggle
With white spider stars coming down
And night blowing black from the ground...
Parisian
Dream
Your painting
Scratched lines of blue and gold
You open me up
Was folding into myself
A deck of cards
Face down empty on the shelf
Your song with
Emphasis on one and two
Then I couldn't keep time
You took me into a dream
Exploding soundtrack
That I treasure as mine...
I was bent over
My chest and invisible line
Sinking
But then the light
The lamp that I held
In my blistered hands
You the fuel and
Me the fool for not noticing
This Chinese junk we're on
With strapping strong
You cast free the lines
Let's float here
Together clearly we better
Slip out to the brine!
Rialto
Check out the skylark
Riding and singing alongside
Salt cool breeze coming from the West
Ships and their lawlessness
Running wild and the waves
Wearing their bright blue summer best
Here come the sailors
Marching two by two by two
They pressed their pants
And shined their shoes
Aren't they strapping and deranged?
Too long at sea makes your eyes strange
Makes 'em strain
For the vision of your youth
Dripping castles in the sand
I could still go there
But my mind would be too loud
Sun on water
Bright colors drowning me out...
Now they're standing on the beach
In a wild colored wind
Sunrays stream
Ah the pretty boys gleam
Watching distant buoys toss
Water rolling on the rocks
Smoothing down the broken things
I could still go there
But my mind would be too loud
Sun on water
Bright colors drowning me out...
Through the
Glow
Flat stone skipping the surface sink
Into the golden deep
Crawl inside like a honeybee
Creep into the heart
Give me snow and give me salt
Troubles cracks and creaks
Watch 'em tumble to the sea
Come back 'round you see
Can you hear the cliffside's heart
Bubbling red and deep?
When you're slow not stop and start
You can burn a memory
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh...
Gather with me like the gathering clouds
Smooth the twisted lines
Float above the quilted plains
Up to the stars we'll strain
I can hear the sparkling dark
Calling me to swim
Through the sound waves
Through the glow
Into the undertow
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh...
Cool Water
Cool water...
I want to fly like a scroll unfolding
Float to a stone ledge
Wait for a moment 'fore spilling
Words to a hedge
And going away
Like a poem closed in a dresser drawer
You could say that's what they're for
You want to melt like bullion in a golden flow
And roll on down the hills
Back to the cracks
Back to the deep
Where you can harden and get your fill
Of cool water in surround sound...
Oh my mackinaw feels too tight
My frozen jaw begs for the break of night
Songbirds and sounds of dawning light...
Spelunking
The tiny midnight caravan
Made its way across the black hills
As I watched from a distance
The slow-going glow
Their wandering you know
Made me pine
For the lamplight
Where you lie
If I took you darling
To the caverns of my heart
Would you light the lamp dear?
Would you light the lamp dear?
And see fish without eyes
Bats with their heads
Hanging down towards the ground
Would you still come around
Come around?
I believe in you
In your honesty and your eyes
Even when I'm sloshing
In the muck of my demise
A large part of me
Is always and forever tied
To the lamplight
Of your eyes, of your eyes
Black Gold
Blues
Bird of prey
Gonna float away
To a feather cloud formation
I'm gonna dig
For pretty and strange
Gonna open me up
A black gold vein
Arrow on fire
Flash the night
Gonna fade away
To the trees and caves
Salt-salt lamp
Romance the spark
And you'll shine shine shine
Up up the wild deep dark
A sliver, a crack of light
Is all you need to see...
Ten black stars
At my windowpane
That's ten pretty stars
Circle in my veins
Old barbed wire
Gonna fight and sting
Just ten little stars
Gonna make me sing
A sliver, a crack of light
Is all you need to see...
Where
Gravity is Dead
Where gravity is dead
And the airplanes fly around
Above the roaming bees
And the buzzing town
Above the tattered flags
And the rotten show posters
Above the clubs and microphones
Above the jealous mouths
That's where you've found yourself
Riding into the sun
On a raft made for one
Red painted radio
Towers sing you songs
Not, not that something's wrong
You've got 'em in your head
But doesn't it get lonely
Riding up there to the sun
On a single raft for one
Don't you wish for someone
To pull you on a string
Down from atmospheres
Down into a clearing
To kiss and box your ears?
That's where you've found yourself
Riding into the sun
On a raft made for one
Lake
Swimming
Lake swimming
Shucking free our deadened selves
Like snakes and corn do
Our bodies tore off swimming suits
And all the old notions
The cold ocean far away
Enter the sun
Marching like a matador
Flashing her yellow velvet suit
Throwing a red cape on the sky
Old butterfly
I'll dance with you
Though our wings may crumble
We can float like ash
Broken but the edges still shine
Lake swimming
Shucking free our deadened selves
Like snakes and corn do
Our bodies tore off swimming suits
And all the old notions
The cold ocean far away
Saltbreakers
Pink Light
Sorry I was cruel
I was protecting myself
Drifting along with my swords out flying
Tattering my own cells then I tattered yours, too
Took you and rocked you around me like a spell
Oh, how now the cold seeps in, oh
Oh, how now I cast you into the wind
Wracked by winter, I'm cupping my coals in the sand
Growing like a starlight 'cross the garden of night, I'll think
Bones look lonely, memories surround me
Good times, skeletons are kicking at the ground
Oh, how the night drags on, oh
But I think I see a pink light and the coming of dawn
Oh, how the night drags on, oh
But in the fading of the constellations, I am growing strong
In the fading of the constellations, I am growing strong
In the fading of the constellations, I am growing strong
Ocean night song
A handful of dream dust for my pirate
He can hear the pacific singing
The sea meets the light in his salt water eyes
Icy pictures of the water are captured in his frame
The paddles of night are unfolding
A mermaid's map floats by on the rolling green
Japanese fishing float carries my soul out to the whales
And out to the deep
I wonder 'bout the herds of the sea
If they will hurt or if they will help me
Swimming with my fallen blossoms
I drink from the source above (x4)
A handful of dream dust for my pirate
He can hear the pacific singing
*** Thanx a lot to Carly
for this one ***
Don't lose
yourself
I felt my vocal chords weakening
I felt my concave thoughts
I felt my voluntary blindness
For staring straight into the sun
The romantic air of your eye patch
Called me across the room
I clung there and I danced with your silent
Admired your divine tattoos
We slept in the shadow of a cedar tree
We made love on the rising tide
We smelled the perfume of the waxing moon
We dreamt of all friendships kind
We touched the blood of the black cat
We pet the mammoth day of tears
In the flickering light we were laughing
"Necessity conquers fear !"
Don't lose yourself
Don't let yourself be lost
Don't lose yourself
Don't let yourself be lost
Dreaming we were stares in black stillness
Dreaming of the death of the sun
Waking to a world of white windiness
Painted eyes of the holy ones
The death of the word was upon us
And the discipline of the wind
We see less and less all the time, dear
Just look at this mess we are in
Don't lose yourself
Don't let yourself be lost
Don't lose yourself
Don't let yourself be lost
Staring at the entrance
I prayed for your wounds to close
Tiger ointment and cosmic collision
And the crucifixion of the rose
Don't lose yourself, don't lose yourself...
Don't lose yourself
Don't let yourself be lost
Don't lose yourself
Don't let yourself be lost...
*** Thanx a lot to Isabelle
for this one ***
Drink deep
Now the raging of the forest fires end
And all the mammals fled
I smell in the charred darkness
A little green, a little red
When you sing your song
Your voice washed over the sea
Glacial land of
Beautiful blue light came o'er me
Came o'er me
Drink deep, my love
For the water is gasping for your mouth
Gasping for your mouth
Drink deep, my love
For the water is gasping for your mouth
I remember in the burning
A secret magic expense
A flame universe of bright gold and white
I treasured the whole fest
But it was too hard to touch
I flew out with the cinders in a mighty black rush
Drink deep, my love
For the water is gasping for your mouth
Gasping for your mouth
Drink deep, my love
For the water is gasping for your mouth
And the fire closed his eyes
Tipped his flame hat and slipped through the dire rye
We wandered romantic
We scattered dark branches
With the singing green stars as our guide
With the singing green stars as our guide
Drink deep, my love
For the water is gasping for your mouth
Gasping for your mouth
Drink deep, my love
For the water is gasping for your mouth (x2)
*** Thanx a lot to Carly
for this one ***
Wandering kind
A strange July, storm came down
From the north and pulled out the salt
And it tore out the leaves
From the pear tree and my canopy
In the twigs and the bugs of sow
I knew somehow I was free
I held a stone above my bones
I was shaking
In the blue stained glass church
You gathered up my heart
Sauntered together all the tiny shattered parts
I said, 'all I can see in front of me is the armpit of a crow'
You closed the ring and opened the door
And ran into the summer yard
'Cause the sun's been known to shine
On our wandering kind
Yeah, the sun's been known to shine
On our wandering kind
(to shine)
Clogging on her wooden board
The tattooed girl took up her swords
And plunged them down deep into the earth
A twinkling tie filled up her eyes
And poured out to the lawn
A made a raft of the scraps from her skirt
And sailed 'til dawn
'Cause the sun's been known to shine
On our wandering kind
(to shine)
Yeah, the sun's been known to shine
On our wandering kind
(to shine)
Our wandering kind
*** Thanx a lot to Carly
for this one ***
Nightingale
Nightingale sing
Though it's blacker than the bog
Nightingale sing to me
I need to hear your song
Nightingale come
And perch upon my tree
A terrifying light's
Been flashing over me
I would not bear to rest
I would not dare to dream
Till the nightingale came
And sang a song for me
She'll sing above the blasts
And the clothing singed by fire
She'll sing above the black smoke
Rising from the funeral pyre
Her heart a field in bloom
Her heart a sacred snow
Her heart a mirror blinding
All the greedy as they go
I would not bear to rest
I would not dare to dream
Till the nightingale came
And sang a song for me
I cannot help but want
To sodder all the parts
Sodder back together
All the shattered hearts
Nightingale come
And perch upon my tree
The terrifying night's
Been crashing over me
I would not bear to rest
I would not dare to dream
Till the nightingale came
And sang a song for me
I would not bear to rest
I would not dare to dream
Till the Nightingale came
And sang a song for me
*** Thanx a lot to John
for this one ***
Saltbreakers
Serpent tails and flying fish
Sup up all the wishes
That you sent to the stars
Chinese dragons incandescent
Mirrors in the waves
I want to put them in jars
With my-y-y saltbreakers
Ringing all the underwater
Underwater, underwater bells
Saltbreakers
Look inside a space
Look inside a space and you can tell
Saltbreakers
What you need to sow
What you need to know by any means
You will not burn me up
Though I've dreamed nightly of your face
And walk the streets of my life
With your singing in my silent brain
You cannot burn me up
I'm a falling leaf who keeps her green
And don't forget I've got my
Trusty bag of oh-oh-oh
Saltbreakers
Flashing in the night
Flashing all around my arms
Saltbreakers
Throwing me down
Turning on the fireflies
Saltbreakers
The ebb and the flood
Clearing all the channels of your heart
Bleached by the dark
Oceans of clouds
Rainstorms of ash
Stars on the ground
All around my-y-y saltbreakers
Floating like a butterfly
Stinging like a bumblebee
Saltbreakers
Dashing alright, splashing
O and slumbering
Saltbreakers
Mirror to the serpentine stars
*** Thanx a lot to Alice
for this one ***
To The Country
Don't recognise my face
Everybody knows your game
Feel like I'm running in place
Everything's changed, everything's changed
I'm gonna move to the country
She's gonna move
So I can see the stars
Heavenly stars, the heavenly stars, the heavenly stars
She's gonna move
Heavenly stars, the heavenly stars, the heavenly stars
I dove into the night
Bathed in the beautiful blue light
Sheltered inside a bat cave
Me and my baby had a conversation
Gonna move to the country
She's gonna move
So I can see the stars
Heavenly stars, the heavenly stars, the heavenly stars
I'm gonna move to the country
She's gonna move
So I can see the stars
Heavenly stars, the heavenly stars, the heavenly stars
Cast A Hook In Me
Breathe life to the street from the mouth
Those ruby red lips have much to give
Pull life from the land with your capable hands
Those life loving beautiful broken hands
Oh, I'll stand with you and marvel
At the cosmos pink and bright
All the pages flipping backwards
Til time is gone and wrong is right
Rivers running up the hills and to the sky and down to the sea
Where a merman with a twinkle casts a hook in me
Sing me a salty blue song, I'll be gone
With watery cheeks down flowered lanes
Tattered sails on a ramshackle ship, I'll go pale
Staring straight in the face looming tempest waves
Otherwise I'll wither and die here
On this reach of rubble rambling
With two years filled up with sand, dear
In a broken daze I'll be scrambling
Like rivers running up the hills and to the sky and down to the sea
Where a merman with a twinkle casts a hook in me
Summer sky falling into the sea, taking part of me
See the bones on the sand in the light
All the heards of the sea rushing by, pay no mind
To the dancing reflections gone wild
And at night a fractured star fell
And pierced right through the thick of me
I cried out in pain and joy, yes
I'm not dead, not numb, not withering
Like a falling leaf who keeps her green
I'm turning bright in the sea
Where a merman with a twinkle casts a hook in me
Phantom Mountain
At the top of
Phantom Mountain
I saw the turquoise
Brilliant burning sea
The sweat on my shoulders
The silvery haze
Swords of lightning
Hawks and Gulf Stream
Made me crazy, crazy
I could not tell the truth
I could not tell the truth
From the mirage, from the mirage
Yellow butterfly
On the rocky path below
Fluttering lifeless
In the shimmering glow
Of the Phantom Mountain
Took her heartache
Took her beautiful face
To a distant place
I could not tell the truth
I could not tell the truth
From the mirage, from the mirage
I could not tell the truth
I could not tell the truth
From the mirage, from the mirage
*** Thanx a lot to Alice
for this one ***
Black butterfly
Goodbye black butterfly
You can take those perfect wings
Into outer space
'Cos there's no place left in this blood
For your restless fluttering
Your sleepless ways
Black butterfly flutter me by
Kick a little bitter into the night
Spark of the stars leaving on my heart
Trying to be good by you
Alright, alright
Salt breeze rose city sunset
The bats are swinging 'round me
Like drunken ships
Ever, evergreen bows above me tower
Singin' quiet stories 'bout forgiveness
Black butterfly flutter me by
Kick a little bitter into the night
Spark of the stars leaving on my heart
Trying to be good by you
Alright, alright
Alright, alright (x4)
Alright, alright
*** Thanx a lot to Carly
for this one ***
Wrecking
Looting the destroyed
Vessels of the sea
I wondered if the waves
Had taken all of me
All of me back
Down to the black
Down to the where the worms reign silent and green
Silent
We can do some wrecking here
Til a little color
Comes into your face
We can do some wrecking here
And find something to love
In this broken place
This broken place
And the king is a hand
And slaps you like a wave
And shackles you down
Bound like an anchored chain in the sand
Sends your ships to the rocks
Sends the keys to the lock of the chain
On your heart
To the mouth of a serpent
And his scaly glass shards
He's holding all the cards
And waiting in the waves
With the poker face
And no trail to trace
No trail to trace
We can do some wrecking here
Til a little color comes into your face
We can do some wrecking here
And find something to love
In this broken place
This broken place
*** Thanx a lot to Carly
for this one ***
July Flame
*** Thanx a lot to Sean
for this one ***
I Can See Your
Tracks
Oh, I can see your tracks
But I won't follow them
I'll just hope for rain
Or some kind of crazy wind
To erase them and chase them into oblivion
Oh, I can smell the smoke
From your fire, babe
But I'll leave you alone
And sleep in this lonely cave
And pray for a storm to scrub this dirt away
Oh, I can hear the snakes
Creeping cross the scene
I'm quaking in my boots
But you won't hear me scream
You're halfway down to New Orleans
You're halfway down to New Orleans
July Flame
July flame
Firey kite
Will o the wisp
Lead me through the night
July flame
Sweet summer peach
High up in the branch
Just out of reach
Can I call you mine
Can I call you mine
Can I call you mine
Can I call you mine
July flame
I'm seeing fireworks
They're so beautiful
Tell me why it hurts
July flame
Ashes of a secret heart
Falling in my lemonade
Unslakeable thirsting in the back yard
Can I call you mine
Can I call you mine
Can I call you mine
Can I call you mine...
Sun is King
Even the most shimmering rain
Empties out the sky and comes to an end
We all know that the sun is king
There's no messing with our orbiting
So why is he standing in his own backyard
Crying at his fallen down house of cards
Did you see the ice in his eye
Did you see the dagger caught in his smile
Innocent as a summer flower
With a serpent coiled under his collar
So why is he standing in his own backyard
Crying at his fallen down house of cards
So why is he standing in his own backyard
Crying at his fallen down house of cards
Where Are You
Driving
You tangled up in the gnarled tree
You do as you damn well please
You torn and faded by the elements
Starting straight through me
You in suspended animation
You green-gone firefly
That storm brewing at your temple
Never seems to die
Oh where are you driving son
To meet another one
Where you driving dear
To meet some other year
Your briny eyes a hall of mirrors
Your mouth a rose parade clown
Must be a trick of the light
I'm spinning all around
Through clouds of dandelion
Seeds sailing out on the wind
Hoping you'll be the one to
Plant yourself of in
Oh where you driving song
To meet another one
Where you driving dear
To meet some other year
Life is Good
Blues
Life is good when you dance all night
And the world transmits electric power
The messages you sent to Mars
Came from your crown of flowers
Have you danced away the hours
Have you danced away the hours
Life is good when the band is smoking out
The drummer drums
Like it's the last chance that he got
Boats light up the river like a string of flame
Life is good
When you know he feels the same thing
When you know he feels the same thing
Going soft like the dawn
And tender green
Like the shoots of spring
Unfurling on the lawn
Over dell, over dale
Over sea swell, over sea swale
You never play the Devil's dawn
'Cause you know he'd do the same thing
'Cause you know he'd do the same thing
Silo Song
Dreaming of a silver silo burning in the light
Venus de Milo soldered in the side
Thought I caught her smile
Am I going, am I going up in smoke
Am I going, am I going up in smoke
Dreaming of birds of prey at battle
On a burning saddle, a rider lost in flames
What of all the games she played with beauty and love
Have I gone up in smoke
Have I come up, have I come up in smoke
Have I come up, have I come up in smoke
Venus de Milo calls
Venus de Milo falls
Little Deschutes
It sure is hard to dance across
The room when you've got
One foot on the floor
And one foot outside the door
I want nothing more
Than to dance with you
The peace I've known, floating along
The deep green river with you and a song
Is something like the peace I hope
To make with you my whole life long
I want nothing more
Than to float with you
Paddling through the hail storm
Clothes ravaged, the leaves all torn
A part of me was born
Why care about yesterday's haze
When the stars above are all ablaze
Why car about the coming dawn
When the moon pours now searchlight strong
I want nothing more
Than to dance with you
I want nothing more
Than to float with you
Summer is the
Champion
Honey wax
Melt it down
Make your heart
Molten somehow
Turn the fields of stone to magma
Swinging out
On the breeze
I hear you singing
You're coming home
I can see you now
Summer is the champion
Let's get dizzy in the grass
Makers and melters, oh my, honey wax
Thought I needed
Rodent teeth
Tough iron filings
Diamonds cut
Bright steely shining
All the trouble that I've seen
Came on their wings
I threw them away
To rust in the rain
(Don't search 'em out)
Summer is the champion
Let's get dizzy in the grass
Makers and melters, oh my, honey wax
Summer is the champion
Let's get dizzy in the grass
Makers and melters, oh my, honey wax
Summer is the champion
Let's get dizzy in the grass
Makers and melters, oh your, honey wax
When You
Give Your Heart
Since you lay my burdens
Since you lay my burdens
Since you lay my burdens down
All the troubles I been
Dragging down this trail
Seep into the thirsty ground
Since you turned your light
Upon my darkened dale
The pollinators flex their wings
And take into the air
Spin their emeraldine
Webs across the swales and prairies
And my stampeding buffalo
Stops in her tracks and watches the snow
Falling through the old oak tree
When you give your heart to me
This is my song of love
Gathered from stuff above
The wires, feathers and clouds
This is a song for you
A spring comes bubbling through
The place whenever you're around
And my stampeding buffalo
Stops in her tracks and watches the snow
Falling through the old oak tree
When you give your heart to me
Sleeper
in the Valley
In a green hallow where a river sings
Tiny valley where the blue bells ring
There's a young soldier under the clouds
His mouth is open and the light rains down
And the light rains down
And the crows come round
To the two red holes
In his right side, oh
In his right side, oh
Sleeping in the sun his hand on his breast
Nape of his neck in the blue watercress
He's just a kid and he never knew
He would be the sleeper in the valley so soon
So soon, so soon
And the crows they swoon
At the two red holes
In his right side, oh
Wide-Eyed, Legless
Down among the dead the wide-eyed
And the legless only half ahead
Half a mouth to laugh in the porthole
With the mold and faded epitaphs
Will you evermore tie up my hair with velvet bows
Will you evermore pull out the splinters from my toes
I don't think so
Out in the hornet rain the swarming stingers
Pumping poison through my veins
Lying on the star-cross lovers map
Take the beating, lash, lash for lash
Will we evermore kiss on the boardwalk's fading rail
In the light of the waves and the comet's waning tail
I don't think so
No more looking back, looking back
Looking back, faded epitaphs
Carol
Kaye
She can really play it
She can really lay it down
"Smile," "Good Vibrations"
"Help Me Rhonda," "Homeward Bound"
It would be so cool to be like Carol, Carol Kaye
Maybe I can meet her, maybe shake her hand one day
"Songs of Innocence"
"Natural Man," "Feelin' Alright"
"I'm a Believer"
"Come together," "In the Heat of the Night"
"Mission Impossible," oh she's "Out of this World"
Ten thousand sessions from an
Everett, Washington girl
Not a household name but she's been in your head all day
It would be so cool to be like Carol, Carol Kaye
Make
Something Good
I wanted to make something sweet
The blood inside the maple tree
The sunlight trapped inside the wood
Make something good
I wanted to make something strong
An organ pipe in a cathedral
That stays in tune through a thousand blooms
Make something good
It's gonna take a long, long time
But we're gonna make something so fine
I wanted to make something pure
An emerald field from steer manure
A wild-eyed child in a moonlit room
Make something good
I wanted to make something built to last
A bottled ship with a golden mast
And through the squall the course stays true
Make something good
Make something good
It's gonna take a long, long time
But we're gonna make something so fine
Tumble Bee
Little Lap-Dog
Lullaby
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Mama's gonna buy you a little lap-dog
Mama's gonna buy you a little lap-dog
Mama's gonna buy you a little lap-dog
Gonna put him in your lap when she comes off
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Gonna sing when she comes off
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Come up horsey, hey hey
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Gonna sing when she comes off
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Mama's gonna buy you a little blue bird
Gonna sing, hey hey
Prairie
Lullaby
Shadows slowly creeping
Down the prairie trail
Everything is sleeping
Ah, but the nightingale
Moon will soon be climbing
In the purple sky
Night winds all a-humming
This tender lullaby
Cares of the day have fled
My little sleepyhead
The stars are in the sky
Time that the prayers were said
My little sleepyhead
To a prairie lullaby
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Saddle up your pony
The sandman's here
To guide you down the trail of dreams
Tumble in bed my tired
My little sleepyhead
To a prairie lullaby
Cares of the day have fled
My little sleepyhead
The stars are in the sky
Time that the prayers were said
My little sleepyhead
To a prairie lullaby
Saddle up your pony
The sandman's here
To guide you down the trail of dreams
Tumble in bed my tired
My little sleepyhead
To a prairie lullaby
Jack, can
I ride
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
I asked my momma for fifty cents
To see the elephant jump the fence
He jumped so high that he reached the sky
Couldn't get back till next July
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
I asked my momma for five cents more
To see the elephant climb the door
He jumped so low that he stubbed his toe
That was the end of the elephant show
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
???
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Jack, can I ride, oh, oh
Tumblebee
Tumble, tumble into my a-a-arms
Fumble, fumble can't keep the g-g-grip
Trouble, trouble baba on l-l-lips
Humble, humble now that you're g-g-gone
You can't keep this bum-bum-bum-bum, bum-bum-bumble bee
'Cause she'll sting me as she lo-lo-longs to be free
Tumble, tumble bee in my a-a-arms
Double, double E with B s-s-start
Stumblin', stumblin' through the last w-w-week
Mumblin', mumblin' in my s-s-s-sleep
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
I can't keep this bum-bum-bum-bum, bum-bum-bumble bee
'Cause she'll sting me as she lo-lo-longs to be free
She longs to be free
She longs to be free
She longs to be free
She longs to be free
King Kong
Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O
Froggie went a courting and he did ride
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
With a sword and a pistol by his side
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Ki-mo-ke-mo ki-mo-ke
Way down yonder in a hollow tree
An owl and a bat and a bumble bee
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
He rode 'til he came to miss mousie's door
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
And there he knelt upon the floor
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Ki-mo-ke-mo ki-mo-ke
Way down yonder in a hollow tree
An owl and a bat and a bumble bee
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
He took miss mouse upon his knee
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
And he said little mouse will you marry me
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Ki-mo-ke-mo ki-mo-ke
Way down yonder in a hollow tree
An owl and a bat and a bumble bee
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Miss mouse had suitors three or four
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
And there they came right in the door
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Ki-mo-ke-mo ki-mo-ke
Way down yonder in a hollow tree
An owl and a bat and a bumble bee
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Mr. frog brought the suitors to the floor
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
With the sword and the pistol he showed all four
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Ki-mo-ke-mo ki-mo-ke
Way down yonder in a hollow tree
An owl and a bat and a bumble bee
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Now they live far off in a hollow tree
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Where they now have wealth and children three
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
Ki-mo-ke-mo ki-mo-ke
Way down yonder in a hollow tree
An owl and a bat and a bumble bee
King kong kitchie kitchie ki-me-o
All The
Pretty Little Horses
Hush a bye, don't you cry
Go to sleep you little baby
When you awake, you will have cake
And all the pretty little horses
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Black and bay, dapple and gray
Coach and six little horses
Hush a bye, don't you cry
Go to sleep you little baby
Way down yonder, down in the meadow
There's a poor little lamby
The bees and the butterflies peckin' out its eyes
The poor little thing cried mammy
Hush a bye, don't you cry
Go to sleepy little baby
When you awake, you will have cake
And all the pretty little horses
The Fox
The Fox went out on a chilly night
And then he prayed for the moon to give him light
He had many a mile to go that night
Before he reached the town-o, town-o, town-o
Many a mile to go that night
'Fore he reached the town-o
He ran till he came to the farmers pen
The ducks and the geese were kept therein
He said a couple of you are gonna grease my chin
Before I leave this town-o, town-o, town-o
A couple of you are gonna grease my chin
Before I leave this town-o
He grabbed the great goose by the neck
And he threw a duck across his back
He didn't mind the quack, quack, quack
And the legs all danglin' down-o, down-o, down-o
He didn't mind the quack, quack, quack
And the legs all danglin' down-o
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Old mother Flipper Flopper jumped out of bed
Out of the window she popped her head
Cryin' John, John the great goose is gone
And the Fox is on the town-o, town-o, town-o
John, John the great goose is gone
And the Fox is on the town-o
He ran till he came to his nice warm den
And there were the little ones 8, 9, 10
Cryin', "Dad, dad, you better go back again
'Cause it must be a mighty fine town-o, town-o, town-o
Dad, dad, you better go back again
'Cause it must be a mighty fine town-o
The Fox and his Wife, without any strife
They cut up the goose with a fork and a knife
They never had such a supper in their life
And the little ones chewed on the bones-o, bones-o, bones-o
They never had such a supper in their life
And the little ones chewed on the bones
Jump Down,
Spin Around
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a bale of cotton
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a bale a day
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a bale of cotton
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a bale a day
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a bale of cotton
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a bale a day
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a bale of cotton
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a bale a day
I saw 'skeeter on my head
Blinked his eye and I killed him dead
Gotta jump down, spin around and weed a patch o'turnip
Gotta jump down, spin around and weed a patch a day
Gotta weed a patch o' turnip
Gotta jump down, spin around and weed a patch o'turnip
Gotta jump down, spin around and weed a patch a day
I saw a gal in calico
She tripped and fell, and she didn't say hello
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Gotta jump down, cook a mess o'greens
Gotta jump down, spin around and cook a pot a day
Gotta jump down, cook a mess o'greens
Gotta jump down, spin around and cook a pot a day...
I got a pig who's nice and greasy
All you ladies shake it easy
Gotta jump down, spin around and tote a pail o' water,
Gotta jump down, spin around and tote a pail a day
Gotta jump down, spin around and tote a pail o' water
Gotta jump down, spin around and tote a pail a day
...
I don't know but I've been told,
A gopher really don't live in a hole
Gotta jump down, spin around and sweat a pail o' water,
Gotta jump down, spin around and sweat a pail a day
Gotta jump down, spin around and sweat a pail o' water
Gotta jump down, spin around and sweat a pail a day
...
Why, Oh
Why
( Woody Guthrie )
Why, oh why, oh why oh, why
Why, oh why, oh why
Because because because because
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Why can't a bird eat an elephant
Why, oh why, oh why
'Cause an elephant's got a pretty hard skin
Goodby goodbye goodbye
Why can't a mouse eat a streetcar
Why, oh why, oh why
'Cause a mouse's stomach could never hold a streetcar
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Why does a horn make music
Why, oh why, oh why
'Cause the horn-blower blows it
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Why does a cow drink water
Tell me why and why
Because the cow gets thirsty just like you or me
Goodye goodbye goodbye
Why, oh why, oh why oh, why
Why, oh why, oh why
Because because because because
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Why won't you answer my questions
Why, oh why, oh why
'Cause I don't know the answers
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Why's there no pennies for ice cream
Why, oh why, oh why
You put all the pennies in the telephone, dear
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Why can't a rabbit chase an eagle
Tell me why, oh why
Because because
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Why ain't my grandpa my grandma
Why, oh why, oh why
Same reason your dad's not your mommy
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Why couldn't the wind blow backwards
Why, oh why, oh why
'Cause it might backfire and hurt somebody
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Why, oh why, oh why oh, why
Why, oh why, oh why, oh why
Because because because because
Goodbye goodbye goodbye
Soldier's
Joy
( Jimmy Driftwood )
Continental soldiers on a bivouac
Were playin' stud poker in a mountain shack
Every vigilante laid down his hand
When the captain of the guard gave a sharp command
So Jimmy get your fiddle out and rosin up your bow
Sally tune your banjer up we're gonna have a show
Billy pass the jug around to Coffer and McCoy
We're gonna have a tune called Soldier's Joy
The girls in Boston are dancing tonight
And the goldurn redcoats are a-holdin' 'em tight
When we get there we will show them how
But that ain't a-doin' us no good now
So Jimmy get your fiddle out and rosin up your bow
Sally tune your banjer up we're gonna have a show
Billy pass the jug around to Coffer and McCoy
We're gonna have a tune called Soldier's Joy
There goes General Washington
He's got his horse in a sweeping run
The barefoot boys are a-beggin' to fight
We're gonna cross the Delaware river tonight
So Jimmy get your fiddle out and rosin up your bow
Sally tune your banjer up we're gonna have a show
Billy pass the jug around to Coffer and McCoy
We're gonna have a tune called Soldier's Joy
Old Burgoyne in the wilderness
Got his army in an awful mess
The farmers got mad at the British and the huns
And captured ten thousand of them son-of-a-guns
So Jimmy get your fiddle out and rosin up your bow
Sally tune your banjer up we're gonna have a show
Billy pass the jug around to Coffer and McCoy
We're gonna have a tune called Soldier's Joy
General Washington and Roe Shambeaux
Drinking their wine in the campfire's glow
Big Ben Morgan came a-gallopin in
Said we got Cornwallace in the old cow pen
So Jimmy get your fiddle out and rosin up your bow
Sally tune your banjer up we're gonna have a show
Billy pass the jug around to Coffer and McCoy
We're gonna have a tune called Soldier's Joy
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Wake up buddy, have you heard the news
Grandma Britain's got an awful bruise
The redcoats cried and cursed your town
While the band played "The World's Turned Upside Down"
So Jimmy get your fiddle out and rosin up your bow
Sally tune your banjer up we're gonna have a show
Billy pass the jug around to Coffer and McCoy
We're gonna have a tune called Soldier's Joy
We're gonna have a tune called Soldier's Joy
Jamaica
Farewell
( Erving Burgess )
Down the way where the nights are gay
And the sun shines brightly on the mountain top
I took a trip on a sailing ship
And when I reached Jamaica I made a stop
Well I'm sad to say, I'm on my way
Won't be back for many a day
My heart is down, my head is turning around
I had to leave all my friends in Kingston town
Sounds of laughter everywhere
And the dancers swaying to and fro
I must declare that my heart is there
Though I've been from Maine to Mexico
Rob from always on the run is so bad and copy paste is a
sin
Well I'm sad to say, I'm on my way
Won't be back for many a day
My heart is down, my head is turning around
I had to leave all my friends in Kingston town
Down at the market you can hear
Ladies cry out while on their head they bear
Ackie rice, salt fish is nice
And the rum is fine every time of year
Well I'm sad to say, I'm on my way
Won't be back for many a day
My heart is down, my head is turning around
I had to leave all my friends in Kingston town
Well I'm sad to say, I'm on my way
Won't be back for many a day
My heart is down, my head is turning around
I had to leave all my friends in Kingston town
Warp And Weft
Sun Song
First rays of light are coming through
Been several months since I saw that much blue
Water a-rushing in the banks
Freed from the ice it has the...
We've got the sun, the sun to thank...
Matches inside your golden hair
Catch all the light I'd fight to the death I swear
As all the other mothers would, the land
Stalked by winter, solace in a small warm hand
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Early morning riser to the east
Shadows fall behind me shiner never sleep
'Til that day I'll bask in everything
That you paint the arrows and the wheat
We've got the sun, the sun to thank...
Matches inside your golden hair
Catch all the light I'd fight to the death I swear
As all the other mothers would, the land
Stalked by winter, solace in a small warm hand
America
How can it be so cold out here in America
Everybody's packing heat in America
Training their barrels on the city streets of America
America, America
The cart has come unhitched from the horse in America
Down the hill and off the course of America
Founding fathers roll in their graves in America
America, America
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Wind is blowing through the trees of America
New kind of wilderness for me in America
Every madman finds his piece in America
America, America
America, America...
Finister
Saw the Angels
Here's to real emotions
Here's to tears I've cried
Your wheels are now in motion
I tried to stop you I tried
Finister saw the angels
Flying day and night
Finister saw the angels
Oh why can't I
Oh hand of love come guide me
Hold my trumpet high in the sky
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Are you going back to Georgia
Or back to Tennessee
I'll be rooting for you
And you for me
Born in Alabama
He built a paradise
Finister saw the angels
Flying day and night
Oh hand of love come guide me
Hold my trumpet high in the sky
Oh hand of love come guide me
Hold my trumpet high in the sky
Dorothy of the
Island
Dorothy of the island
Dove down, dove down deep
Silenced all the brave world
And now she sleeps
Her two sons left behind above
Living in a cabin with their dad
Who loves them
Motherless children have a hard time
When their mother is dead
Motherless children have a hard time
When their mother is dead
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Dorothy of the island
Fell into a well inside her head
Maybe it was something in her blood
That poisoned her instead
The truth is she could not be saved
The hermits in the city mark a grave
Motherless children have a hard time
When their mother is dead
Motherless children have a hard time
When their mother is dead
I've known the cold, the loneliness, the walking snowy lips of blue
Surely nothing like the chill that Dorothy of the island knew
So let us pull the curtains wide
And watch the pouring of the morning light
So let us pull the curtains wide
And watch the pouring of the mourning light
Motherless children have a hard time
When their mother is dead
Motherless children have a hard time
When their mother is dead
Motherless children have a hard time
When their mother is dead
Motherless children have a hard time
When their mother is dead
Motherless children have a hard time
Motherless children have a hard time
Shape
Shifter
Shape shifter
Thousands in the air
Moving as one
Magic flock the reaches
I'm speechless on the ground
Black blizzard round a cold, grey sand
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Winter's on the way
I think we'll gonna make it out
If we stick together now
If we stick together now
Too many times we fight
Turning day into night
Kicking that fire right out
But the colors underneath they burn
I turn to you and find
I love the very one I spurned
Winter's on the way
I think we'll gonna make it out
If we stick together now
If we stick together now
Winter's on the way
I think we'll gonna make it out
If we stick together now
If we stick together now
Shape shifter
Thousands in the air
Moving as one
Say Darlin
Say
Oh where did you get them high top shoes
And the dress that you wear so fine
I got my shoes from a railroad man
And the dress from a driver in the mine
And the dress from a driver in the mine
Starch and iron, it be my trade
While you get drunk and lie in the shade
I'll sing my song of golden twing
I'll cross that bridge and the town will be mine
I'll cross that bridge and the town will be mine
I played cards in France
I played cards in Spain
And I bet you ten dollars
That I'll beat you at your game
I'll cross that bridge and the town will be mine
I'll cross that bridge and the town will be mine
I'll cross that bridge and the town will be mine
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Say, darlin', say, say darlin' say say darlin' say
Say, darlin', say, say darlin' say say darlin' say
Say, darlin', say, say darlin' say say darlin' say
Say, darlin', say, say darlin' say say darlin' say
That Alice
Born in Detroit
And she studied in France
She played the harp
She played it jazz
John Coltrane she became his wife
They made a lot of music before he died
That Alice made a palace
For us to hear
That Alice made a palace
For our ears
She moved to California
Became a Swamini
Living in a place near Malibu Beach
I never had a chance to see her play
I listen to her records and I feel the grace
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
That Alice made a palace
For us to hear
That Alice made a palace
For our ears
She made a million journeys in your mind
I can feel it the way that you keep time
I wonder if she's watching up above the clouds
What happened to her spirit is it still in the ground
???
That Alice made a palace
For us to hear
That Alice made a palace
For our ears
That Alice
That Alice
That Alice
That Alice
Sadako
Folding Cranes
Sadako is folding cranes
The color spills from the bed
Golden paper fold one thousand
Gods will grant you a wish
One mile from Misasa Bridge
The atom bomb explodes
She is blown out of the window
She is two years old
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
This is our cry
This is our prayer
This is our cry
Ten years later swollen purple
??? cold black eyes
Family huddles round the bed
Her last meal of tea on rice
This is our cry
This is our prayer
This is our cry
Ten
Bridges
Dancing always brings joy
Dancing always brings joy
Tear after tear will fall from you boy
But dancing brings joy
Who is not a little worried
One or two dreams that they dug and buried
When the sky turns black put the wind at your back
Who ain't worried
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Memories a plenty I cannot shake
And all that I have seems far away
Memories a plenty I cannot shake
And all that I have seems far away
Walking across ten bridges
People the souls of the place I live in
In all of their eyes I see an ocean wide
Walking across ten bridges
Memories a plenty I cannot shake
And all that I have seems far away
Memories a plenty I cannot shake
And all that I have seems far away
Memories a plenty
Memories a plenty
White
Cherry
Abundant life
That's this life
Lush life
That's this life
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Did you see the cherry trees
Take to bloom when water freeze
Arms open to the wind white
Tremble in black ice
I moved one city south
Just one street away
I saw something deep down
Never ever seem to go away
Even in the lean times
I take pleasure in the wind chimes
And in moments of excess
I try not to over do it
Abundant life
That's this life
Lush life
That's this life
Case/Lang/Veirs
Atomic Number
I'm not the freckled maid
I'm not the fair-haired girl
I'm not a pail of milk for you to spoil
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
Why are the wholesome things
The ones we make obscene
Latin words across my heart
Symbols of infinity
Elements so pure
Atomic number
I am the spark
Of this machine
Purring like the city bus
Why are the wholesome things
The ones we make obscene
Well, if your mercy's lost
I have enough for us
Latin words across my heart
Symbols of infinity
Elements so pure
Atomic number
Latin words across my heart
Symbols of infinity
Elements so pure
Atomic number
My atomic number
My atomic number
My atomic number
Honey And Smoke
I watch as they dance with you
I watch as they sing to you
I watch as they pour
Honey in your ear
Like moths with their tattered wings
Swing back into your flame again
But, dear, can't you see
There's nothing for you here
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
'Cause I know
(I know, I know, I know, I know)
It's all honey and smoke
They don't really love you
Like I do
Unaware
Of just how beautiful you are
From within
Uncontainable
Exquisite to the detail
It hypnotizes people
Robs them of their social graces
Swarming to your glow
Fanning with phrases
I know
(I know, I know, I know, I know)
It's all honey and smoke
They don't really love you
Like I do
And I know
(I know, I know, I know, I know)
It's all honey and smoke
They don't really love you
Like I do
I watch as they sing to you
I watch as they dance with you
I watch as they pour
Honey in your ear
Just honey in your ear
Just honey in your ear
Song For Judee
You wrote 'The Kiss' and it is beautiful
I can listen again and again
You never really got a break
From the car wrecks and the pain
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
You loved the sons of the pioneers
And the Hollywood cowboy stars
You were just trying
To put a hand to where we are
Where we are
Where we are
Living in a 55 cadillac
Five people sleep in shifts
Robbing liquor stores and going back
With the cash and rolling in it
You loved the sons of the pioneers
And the Hollywood cowboy stars
You were just trying
To put a hand to where we are
You never talked about your past
About the drugs and walking the streets
They found you with a needle in your arm
Beloved books strewn 'round at your feet
You loved the sons of the pioneers
And the Hollywood cowboy stars
You were just trying
To put a hand to where we are
You loved the sons of the pioneers
And the Hollywood cowboy stars
You were just trying
To put a hand to where we are
Where we are
Where we are
Where we are
Blue Fires
Why does the heart of the flame burn blue
Why do January cherries bloom
Why do blue fires burn in me
Yet not in you
How can the prairie flocks keep their courses true
And navigate the stars as they do
How can blue fires burn in me
Yet not in you
Yet not in you
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
You tell me you're here
But your words are like fumes
They just disappear
Now all of the heat's
Rushing out of the room
The hottest part of this flame burns blue
The January cherries bloom
But not in you
Yet not in you
Delirium
I kissed you in the morning
But only in my mind's eye
The sunlight rolls along your sleeping dunes (sleeping dunes)
The smell upon your skin is fireworks (fireworks)
Delirium, delirium
Kaleidoscoping in
Could you love me too
In my delirium
The lions of the lamps coming filing in
Pacing through the still around the bed
Halos of their royal breathing
Break like waves across the ceiling
In your dreams, do you know
I'm the only thing between you
And this heartbreak feeling
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
Delirium, delirium
Kaleidoscoping in
Could you love me too
In my delirium
Is it still the morning
We left no trail of time
You're camouflaged so fate can't
Take you from my (take you from my)
Delirium, delirium
Kaleidoscoping in
Could you love me too
Could you love me too
In my delirium
Greens Of June
Just in a moment
Everything's changed
My dark disposition
Has been rearranged
Oh what was I thinking
Out there on the ledge
Your steady eyes pull me
Straight back from the edge
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
And all the greens of June (all the greens of June)
And all the greens of June
Come blowing through the door
They make me wanna live (they make me wanna live)
They make me wanna live
Like I never have before
From the oriental rug
You meet my gaze
And all my desperation
Retreats into the haze
The lilacs in the vase
Still got their life
Quiet witnesses
Perfume the light
And all the greens of June (all the greens of June)
And all the greens of June
Come blowing through the door
They make me wanna live (they make me wanna live)
They make me wanna live
Like I never have before
Just in a moment
Everything's changed
My dark disposition
Has been rearranged
Behind The Armory
Flies in amber sand in soap
Air trapped in the glass
Tongue tied I cut and run
Fleeing ever faster
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
Behind the armory
I will never let you see
Behind the armory
Still I want you to love me
Sleeping giant Joan of Arc
Fold me in your grace
From the garbage to the stars
Make new constellations
Behind the armory
Still I want you to love me
Still I want you to love me
Through the vines and the street
Slants the light and the heat
As narrow as the archer's window grows
But it's a rare stone
In a century's thrown to me
Through the vines from the street
Slants the light and the heat
Narrow as the archer's window grows
Behind the armory
I will never let you see
Behind the armory
Still I want you to love me
Still I want you to love me
Best Kept Secret
In December I was lost in
Darkness that I couldn't shake
I called you in California
And you answered right away
You answered right away
You picked up right away
You were working at the table
That your father made
You were gonna teach guitar
To half the kids across L.A.
All across L.A.
Half the kids across L.A.
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
You're the best kept secret in Silverlake
I talked about my misery
You called it pain of pain
How we let it pile on
Until we go insane
'Til we go insane
Until we go insane
You're the best kept secret in Silverlake
Oh you can sing and you can really play
You're the real thing
Your heart's in the right place
When we hung up I was lifted
Turned my head up to the rain
Shortest day of winter
But the light found me again
Found me again
The light came rolling in
Yeah, you're the best kept secret in Silverlake
Oh you can sing and you can really play
You're the real thing
Your heart's in the right place
You're the best kept secret in Silverlake
You're the best kept secret in Silverlake
You're the best kept secret in Silverlake
You're the best kept secret in Silverlake
1,000 Miles Away
I'm out in the cold
I gaze through your window
The music's on
I'm watching you sway
Just yesterday
In February's dark
We watched the stars
Explode until day break
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
How can you stand right there
And be a thousand miles away
A thousand miles away
I saw a light in your eyes
It was the animal kind
All fierce and bright
Now every color fades
I'm out in the snow
In your golden glow
I feel no heat
From my feet up to my face
How can you stand right there
And be a thousand miles away
A thousand miles away
Supermoon
Supermoon
Where all the diamond deals are made
We never used to live this long
We're pioneers, my dear, press on, move along
And if my smile seems painted on once in a while
I can count on you to notice and to take me out
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
Would you like to start a river
And ride it like a painted carousel
Our life savings aren't enough
We'll have to lobby hard and make it up
Make it up
Supermoon
We never used to live this long
We're pioneers, my dear
Pioneers, we're pressing on, move along
And if my smile
Seems straight as the Tropic of Cancer, it's because
Nature isn't magic, it's just a mystery to us
Would you like to start a river
And ride it like a painted carousel
Our life savings aren't enough
We'll have to lobby hard and make it up
And make it up
Tell me if you feel it and we'll mine it to reveal it
From the dams up to the turbines
Tell me if you feel it and we'll mine it to reveal it
From the dams up to the turbines
We're running much too hard to meter
Would you like to start a river
And ride it like a painted carousel
Would you like to start a river
And ride it like a painted carousel
Would you like to start a river
And ride it like a painted carousel
I Want To Be Here
I just want
I wanna be here with you
Not bracing for what comes next
I've got some new words
I can see sideways
If there's a limit
It hasn't found me yet
My friend is an artist
Doesn't fit in
Lost a front tooth
Can't keep a job
But the things you make
Are so beautiful
They bring me joy
Don't you ever stop
The hungry fools
Who rule the world can't catch us
Surely they can't ruin everything
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
I just want
I wanna be here with you
Not bracing for what comes next
The hungry fools
Who rule the world can't catch us
Surely they can't ruin everything
I just want
I wanna be here with you
Not bracing for what comes next
I've got some new words
I can see sideways
If there's a limit
It hasn't found me yet
Down I-5
Driving down I-5
I don't ever want to die
'Cause I'd no more get to see
All this beauty passing by me
Laundry on the line
Truckers passing on the right
Every color on the wind
You know you're living if you've sinned
Down I-5
Down I-5
Shoulder's burning in the window
I should roll it up, I know
I pass the signs that promise hell
They don't know me at all
Some are born to sweet delight and
Some are born to endless night
Born to endless night
But for now all is well
I see the horses on the hill
I smell the cut grass on the air
I feel the wind hot in my hair
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
Down I-5
Down I-5
Some are born to sweet delight and
Some are born to endless night
Born to endless night
I've tasted both they are the same
Into each other turn again
Driving down I-5
I don't ever want to die
'Cause I'd no more get to see
All this beauty passing by me
Why Do We Fight
I can meet you in the ring
Where the sweat and punches fly
I can meet you in the ring
Where one of us is bound to cry
Why do we fight
Why do we fight
Why do we fight
How can a love so pure and true
Have me falling through the ropes
(Falling, falling, falling, falling)
Can a love make me so cruel
To lose my faith, to lose my hope
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
Why do we fight (fight)
Why do we fight (fight)
Why do we fight (fight)
Let's face up to the fact
That face down on the mat
Won't solve this or anybody else's fight
It's not hard to figure out
There's no victory in doubt
Why do we fight
Why do we fight
Why do we fight
Georgia Stars
We took a trip, my Georgia and me
Up through the wild strawberries
Up past the river running loud
We pitched a tent above the clouds
Georgia, Georgia
Can you hear me calling in the grave
Alone in fields all frozen
Tiger eyes, you stop and gaze
At the stars going blue
My Georgia, I still love you
At the stars going blue
My Georgia, I still love you
Great bear, dog, bull, flying fish
Scorpion, peacock, make your wish
Pleiades Sisters, seven on high
Singing in the heaven's silver light
Always copy, always paste, shame on robots
Ah-ha-ha you showed me the stars
Ah-ha-ha wherever you are
Georgia, Georgia
Can you hear me calling in the grave
Alone in fields all frozen
Tiger eyes, you stop and gaze
At the stars going blue
My Georgia, I still love you
At the stars going blue
My Georgia, I still love you
Ah-ha-ha you showed me the stars
Ah-ha-ha wherever you are
Ah-ha-ha you showed me the stars
Ah-ha-ha wherever you are
Ah-ha-ha you showed me the stars
Ah-ha-ha wherever you are
Ah-ha-ha you showed me the stars
Ah-ha-ha wherever you are
The Lookout
Margaret Sands
Scuttling claws have cleaned her hands
Rising and falling
In the whirlpool sand
You, you who turn the wheel
Your eyes of green and steel
Consider Margaret Sands
How the gulls cry
How the sunlight fans
Gliding ‘bove the bones
Of Margaret Sands
Now she's married to the swell
She's swaying in the shells
A whisper in the waves
How I listen as I sail
Straight-backed and pale
Her opalescent gaze
How the gulls cry
How the sunlight fans
Gliding ‘bove the bones
Of Margaret Sands
Now she's married to the swell
And she's swaying in the shells
Everybody Needs
You
I've seen you standing
Many times before
Your hands in the starlight
Your feet on the floor
Everybody needs you
Everybody needs you
Out in the yard
The kids pull your sleeves
Your turquoise beams
Light up the gutter leaves
Everybody needs you
Everybody needs you
Two koi fish
Turn in the sky
One's in your brain
The other's in your thigh
Everybody needs you
Everybody needs you
Everybody needs you
Everybody needs you
Seven Falls
Raised under rays of gold
And under sapphire skies
Out in the sandy loam
I found a way to make you cry
How can a child of the sun be so cold?
Up past the Seven Falls
Beyond a moody peak
I dove into the lake and called
An icy command for you to join me
How can a child of the sun be so cold?
So cold
Like a planet with no sun floats in the black
I'm old now
And I try to be kind but still sometimes
I'm as cold as that
Catamount, ivywild
Many moons I've roamed
Dusty trails of summer
And my heart consumed with snow
How can a child of the sun be so cold?
So cold
Like a caveman they found on the frozen flats
I'm old now
And I try to be kind but still sometimes
I'm as cold as that
Mountains of the
Moon
Cold mountain water
Jade merchant's daughter
Mountains of the moon
Electra, bow and bend to me
Hi ho the carrion crow
Fol de rol de riddle
Hi ho the carrion crow
Bow and bend to me
Hey, Tom Banjo, hey a laurel
More than laurel you may sow
More than laurel you may sow
Hey, the laurel, hey the city in the rain
Hey, hey, hey, the wild wheat
Waving in the wind
Here's a feast of solitude
Fiddler grim and tall
All the dancing kings and wives
Assembled in the hall
Lost is the long and loneliest town
Fairy sybil flying
All along the
All along the mountains of the moon
Hey, Tom Banjo, it's time to matter
The Earth will see you on through this time
The Earth will see you on through this time
Down by the water
Marsh king's daughter did you know
Clothed in tatters always will be
Tom, where did you go
Mountains of the moon
Electra, mountains of the moon
All along the
All along the mountains of the moon
Hi ho the carrion crow
Fol de rol de riddle
Hi ho the carrion crow
Bow and bend to me
Bend to me
Watch Fire
(Feat. Sufjan Stevens)
Just beyond the circle of light
I'll keep the watch
I'll keep the watch fire
What's in the gloom
And the thorns and briars
I'll keep the watch
I'll keep the watch fire
There's no mistaking
The wolf for the wind
He's been here before
And he'll be here again
In my dream I ground my jaw
I'll keep the watch
I'll keep the watch fire
I'll be your good man outside the law
I'll keep the watch
I'll keep the watch fire
There's no mistaking
The wolf for the wind
He's been here before
And he'll be here again
Underneath this dome of red
I'll keep the watch
I'll keep the watch fire
White dog circling overhead
I'll keep the watch
I'll keep the watch fire
There's no mistaking
The wolf for the wind
He's been here before
And he'll be here again
There's no mistaking
The wolf for the wind
He's been here before
And he'll be here again
Heavy Petals
Oh, heavy petals free your head
Legions of pasture call from the bed
Oh, heavy petals just like me
Tenderest rage that no one can see
Step on the gas to go nowhere
Believe me when I say I love you bare
Fear, fear not falling into space
Ground control is not your dwelling place
Painted winds will come and we will fall
Through sunlight unserious we'll call
Painted winds will come and we will fall
Through sunlight unserious we'll call
Oh, heavy petals just like me
Tenderest rage that no one can see
The Lookout
I can't read these people
I can't read their eyes
But man alive I'm glad
That I have you
You my lookout on the ground
Making music
From the broken shit you've found
But man alive I'm glad
That I have you
Sitting back home on the old stained couch
(Sitting back home on the old stained couch)
Two tired out old dog bones
And the moon is coming out
What if I had never stumbled into you
What if you had never stumbled into me
The world as we know it simply wouldn't be
Simply wouldn't be
I can't read these people
I can't read their eyes
But man alive I'm glad
That I have you
The Meadow
We went to the meadow
No walls, no ads, no black balloons
Waving from the chain link fence
No bricks, no windows
Except for the two gold
Ones you showed me my friend
We went to the meadow
And we knew it wouldn't last
It was beautiful
We went to the meadow
No fear, no confusion
Just a sliver of the moon
Cheering us from out in the blue
No hate, just spring's young light green leaves
Showing us what life can do
We went to the meadow
We went to the meadow
And we knew it wouldn't last
It was beautiful
We knew it wouldn't last
It was beautiful
We went to the meadow
We went to the meadow
The Canyon
We were just passing through your town
Sleeping on the boards of your old house
Candles lit four inside our dreams
And the desert dome all cold and green
I'm here now but my time will come
To be blowing through
I'm here now but my time will come
To be blowing through the canyon
It was a seven hour drive down the glittering 8
Rattlesnake passage straight to LA
He waved goodbye from his broken down fence
And I thought for sure I'd see him again
I'm here now but my time will come
To be blowing through
I'm here now but my time will come
To be blowing through the canyon
Lightning Rod
Huge currents and voltages
Potential for fire, for fire yes (potential!)
You take the heat on the rooftops
You make it sweet oh please don't stop
Protector and a messenger
Don't throw in the towl before (protector!)
You've done what you're called to do
You'll never be done if I know you
Drawing fire
Fire from the clouds
Drawing fire
Fire from the clouds
Ben Franklin could have been killed
With key and kite up on that hill (electric!)
Devotional experiments
In spirit you are much like him (experiments!)
A writer, a scientist
You sing your song as a servant (science!)
To gods whose voices speak through you
From somewhere in that troubled blue (devotion!)
Drawing fire
Fire from the clouds
Drawing fire
Fire from the clouds
Drawing fire
When It Grows
Darkest
When you're out in the sticks
And you're all but lost
The sun is dead
In a world of frost
Follow Polaris
On the Northern route
When it grows darkest
The stars come out
They've beaten you down
And you can't get up
Stolen your horses
And they smashed your cup
Look up above
There can be no doubt
When it grows darkest
The stars come out
You harness the light
The lookout glows
Gather the children
And hold them close
And teach of love
And peace devout
When it grows darkest
The stars come out
Zozobra
Friday night we ditched our glooms
And watched the sparks
Shooting from his arms
A body a-flame a howling wave
Goodbye
And the people's hopes
Rose with the fire
Saturday we shared happiness
Matching turquoise rings
Signatures stamped in silver
Someone was playing "Heart of Gold"
And the people's hopes
Rose with the fire
And the people's hopes
Rose with the fire
And the people's hopes
Rose with the fire
MY ECHO
Freedom Feeling
I don't know where I am going
But I've got you by my side
Your heart made of silk is flowing
With bells and lilies, bees and rhymes
Searching for that freedom feeling
For you, for you, for you, for me
Stumbling through the reeds a-reeling
I find
It's been here the whole time
In my mind
In my mind
I thought I saw the statue crying
But maybe it was just my eyes
Blurring in the rain, I'm sighing
For all the dreams deferred and I'm
Searching for that freedom feeling
For you, for you, for you, for me
Bumbling through the weeds a-wheeling
I find
It's been here the whole time
In my mind
In my mind
I find
It's been here the whole time
In my mind
Another Space And Time
In another space and time
California's not burning
And the seas don't rise
I'll meet you there and I
Will remember the day
That the internet died
We found peace of mind
Peace of mind
We found peace of mind
Peace of mind
What do the gurus say
If you're able to do nothing
You'll be doing okay
I'll try it tomorrow, not today
I'll be like Old Survivor
Taking in the light as I sway
As I sway, as I sway
Growing quiet in my crown
Now, now, now
Growing quiet in my crown
Now, now, now
In another space and time
Space and time
Space and time
Space and time
In another space and time
When California's not burning
And the seas don't rise, rise
I'll meet you there and I
Space and time
Will remember the day
That the internet died
We found peace of mind
Peace of mind
We found peace of mind
Peace of mind
Peace of mind
We found peace of mind
Peace of mind
Space and time
Space and time
Space and time
Turquoise Walls
When I thought that I might lose you
Oh I trembled like a leaf
Tattered by the wind
And torn by the September storm
I tossed and turned and threw
The blankets off, oh I could not sleep
Thinking you were keeping
Someone else's pillow warm
Oh and the hours dragged by
And I heard that whistle call
I didn't know what to do
I just stared at the turquoise walls
(Turquoise walls)
The warmth, the beauty of your eyes
It crushes me to think
That you could give that love
To someone else
Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde
Oh I felt so crazy inside
Brewing on the bed
The worst version of myself
Oh and the hours dragged by
And I heard that whistle call
I didn't know what to do
I just stared at the turquoise walls
(Turquoise walls)
I texted you some cryptic shit
And was soon consumed with regret
The horse on the Lurie
Painting came alive
(Turquoise walls)
And it told me to stop worrying
"Girl, girl, don't lose your head
(Turquoise walls)
Have you considered that
Maybe his phone just died"
Oh and the hours dragged by
And I heard that distant call
I didn't know what to do
I just stared at the turquoise walls
(Turquoise walls)
Oh and the hours dragged by
And I heard that distant call
(Turquoise walls)
I didn't know what to do
I just stared at the turquoise walls
Memaloose Island
Driving with you back from Pendleton
Late September, when death was all around us
Crackling oak leaves on a path of silver
Sunlight painting the wide blue river
Oh, I was glad to be alive
Oh, I was glad to be alive
I nudged a long pine needle with my boot
Watched the pink and rust-colored boxcars move
Heard a voice from the sepulcher of Victor Trevitt
"Life is the exception, don't you forget it"
Oh, I was glad to be alive
Oh, I was glad to be alive
Back on the road, 'neath the dark sparrows
Like the debut novel you were traveling to expose
Something new in me, bright and wonderful, was born
Life the tiger-ocean eyes of the kids we left at home
The tiger-ocean eyes
Oh, I was glad to be alive
Oh, I was glad to be alive
Oh, I was glad to be alive
Oh, I was glad to be alive
End Times
When I think of the end times, you come to mind
When I think of the end times, you come to mind
As the wall of water comes
And we tumble through the flood
I'll be dreaming of your skin
Lit from within when we were young
As the forest fires burn
And our shoes melt away
I'll feel the cooling April winds
Of your song inside my brain
As the Earth cracks in two
And we fall out into space
I'll be thinking of your hands
And all the times they held my face
When I think of the end times, you come to mind
When I think of the end times, you come to mind
As I sail out into orbit
Disintegrating flash of white
I'll sing for you as I'm turning
Turning into future old light
When I think of the end times, you come to mind
When I think of the end times, you come to mind
Burn Too Bright
The eyes of the child looked out your head
And the microphone smiled when the light turned red
Everyone there wanted to hold you tight
But you looked so unconcerned when you burned too bright
Burned too bright, bright, bright, bright, bright
Burned too bright, bright, bright, bright, bright
By the shrine you made in your studio
In the selenium glade and the candles yellow
Who were you running from, it was yourself
Alright, maybe you burned a little too bright
Burned too bright, bright, bright, bright, bright
Burned too bright, bright, bright, bright, bright
I wonder if your soul is still dispossessed
Are you wandering, are you rolling
Or have you found a place to rest
Burned too bright, bright, bright, bright, bright
Burned too bright, bright, bright, bright, bright
Burned too bright, bright, bright, bright, bright
Burned too bright, bright, bright, bright, bright
Brick Layer
I am a very good brick layer
I am very skilled
I can also work with the stones
That I dug from the hill
But one tender look is all it takes
For them to crumble back to the ground
From whence they came
Outside the doors of the show
Juana Molina songs
Every word that I spoke
Mortar in the walls
But one tender look is all it takes
For them to crumble back to the ground
From whence they came
How can a sweet afternoon
Become a brick-hard night
I'm still learning the rules
Of how to treat somebody right
I am a very good brick layer
I am very skilled
I can also work with the stones
That I dug from the hill
That I dug from the hill
That I dug from the hill
That I dug from the hill
All The Things
Flickering lamp, green flame
Distant whine of the whining trains
Petrichor morning, luminescent wave
Buried vein of gold, I'll never see your face
All the things I cannot hold I cannot save
All the things I cannot hold I cannot save
Fallen ginkgo leaf, tattered moth wing
Crushed grass, lone tumbleweed
Dark sunrise, broken pink vase
Deep electric eel, silver sand in space
All the things I cannot hold I cannot save
All the things I cannot hold I cannot save
You are everywhere, shadow in the eaves
Fleet-footed messenger of oceanic feeling
You are my medicine to soothe the lonely
My poet's bread to fuel a memory
All the things I cannot hold I cannot save
All the things I cannot hold I cannot save
I Sing To The Tall Man
I sing to the tall man in the red kitchen
Who cannot sleep, who gave me everything
I sing to the tall man whose bright, dark eyes
And scarred chin remind me we are living
Come and rest awhile in my song
Nothing's wrong
Come and rest awhile in my song
I sing to the tall man who moves the faders
Candlelit hands make the speakers dance
I sing to the tall man who's sometimes lonely
Hears rat laughter and hymns up in the rafters
Come along and rest in my song
Nothing's wrong
Come along and rest in my song
Come and rest awhile in my song
Nothing's wrong
Come and rest awhile in my song
Come and rest awhile in my song
Nothing's wrong
Come and rest awhile in my song
Vapor Trails
(Featuring Jim James)
Watching the sky this morning
Three planes flying across the blue
And a couple of birds up in the heaven tree
Everyone loves a 360 view
Hey, you're a vapor trail
And you burn white hot
You're here for a moment
And then you're gone
Lovers before us and lovers forever
Building their castles and tearing them down
Tears keep spilling like you broke the lever
Gonna build up stronger next time around
Hey, you're a vapor trail
And you burn white hot
You're here for a moment
And then you're gone
Going through our ephemera
Backstage passes to MMJ
Outside the sky keeps changing forever
Reminds me a lot of you and me
Hey, you're a vapor trail
And you burn white hot
You're here for a moment
And then you're gone
Watching the sky this morning
Three planes flying across the blue
And a couple of birds up in the heaven tree
Everyone loves a 360 view
Hey, you're a vapor trail
And you burn white hot
You're here for a moment
And then you're gone
Hey, you're a vapor trail
And you burn white hot
You're here for a moment
And then you're gone
Found Light
Autumn Song
Well, summer has gone
(Well, summer has gone)
And the light grows long
(And the light grows long)
I see a ladder and a door
(I see a ladder and a door)
And a buck moon waxing
(And a buck moon waxing)
And waning it goes
(And waning it goes)
I make a list of the moons
(I make a list of the moons)
I make a list oh
(I make a list oh)
Of ways to be free
(Of ways to be free)
Of ways to let go
(Of ways to let go)
Of ways to be loved
(Of ways to be loved)
The things I now know ah
(The things I now know ah)
Night stitches day
(Night stitches day)
And day stitches night
(And day stitches night)
Thought stitches thought
(Thought stitches thought)'
'Til you've lived alright
('Til you've lived alright)
Leaves come falling
(Leaves come falling)
Through the bronze daylight
(Through the bronze daylight)
Reminders calling
(Reminders calling)
You're gonna change alright
(You're gonna change alright)
Your ways to be free
(Your ways to be free)
Your ways to let go
(Your ways to let go)
Your ways to be loved
(Your ways to be loved)
The things you know
(The things you know)
Your ways to be free
(Your ways to be free)
Your ways to let go
(Your ways to let go)
Your ways to be loved
(Your ways to be loved)
The things you now know ah
(The things you now know ah)
Ring Song
Fast forwarding clouds and my plough
Time among the hurried
Goes sundial slow and neon now
Lady I unburied
Stars they fall and stars they rise
Fading and growing
Shy in the day, wild in the night
I'm here doom scrolling
I pawned my wedding ring
At the Silver Lining
I felt sad
I also felt a weight go flying
The one I loved, a peregrine
Pinpoint in the sky
I miss the days with sandy legs
Into the Aegean we dived
Maybe you'll hear me on the radio
Maybe I'll see you in a dream
Maybe next time I'll wake up
When the hall of mirrors gleams
I pawned my wedding ring
At the Silver Lining
I felt bad
I also felt a weight go flying
Seaside Haiku
Somewhere beyond
These cold winds from Japan
Vermillion suns
Churn the black and gold sand
I drop my glove
And it rolls in the waves
I'll give a lot
But not too much away
In a yellow coat
She scoops up the sky
Five seagulls laugh
At her flying green kite
She's been burned, too
So she understands
She'll give a lot
But not all that she can
I thought loneliness my lot, it's true
I walk the beach alone, I'm not blue
Blue is the sky and the fiery flame
I've learned from pain
Give but don't give too much
Of yourself away
Give but don't give too much...
Naked Hymn
Touch-starved palms
On a cursive chest
Black socks on
The only thing left
Touch has a memory
Touch has a memory
Touch has a memory
Sun and the gods
In the candle glass
Pine-scenting
All the air that passes
Between our lips
I lean to kiss
Your pomegranate fingertips
Touch has a memory
Touch has a memory
Touch has a memory
Sappho's choir
Inside my mouth
Praiseful after
Years of drought
By candlelight
I release
What's let go of me
Touch has a memory
(Touch has a memory)
Touch has a memory
(Touch has a memory)
Touch has a memory
(Touch has a memory)
Touch has a memory
(Touch has a memory)
Touch has a memory
(Touch has a memory)
Touch has a memory
(Touch has a memory)
My Lantern
Diamond eyes burning bright
In the sun, in the park you are
Wonderful you are
My lantern in the dark
Feet on the street
Fists in the sky
I watch your poetry arc
You give me hope, you are
My lantern in the dark
My lantern
My lantern
As night stitches night
With a thousand question marks
You bring me peace, you are
My lantern in the dark
And the whole world's blue
Roving like a dead-eyed shark
Restless as the sea, you are
My lantern in the dark
My lantern
My lantern
Diamond eyes burning bright
In the sun, in the park you are
Wonderful you are
My lantern in the dark
My lantern
My lantern
Signal
I feel like smoke
I'm curling and I'm rising
Dispersing into the sky
You can't touch me
I'm a wisp of the sun
I'm a burning leaf
I'm purple and green and I'm
Sending you a signal
Though I don't know where you are
I know you're out there somewhere
Beneath the Persian blue stars
I know you're somewhere turning
Into your best self
I'm over here yearning
Passing the time best as I know how
Now we mingle in a dream
A phantom dancing scene
Are you waiting on the wind
Or in a bird's folded wing
I'm sending you a signal
Though I don't know who you are
I know you're out there somewhere
Beneath the worshipping blue stars
Blue stars, blue stars
Can’t
Help But Sing
Slow-ringing bells
In the high hollow tree
Swallows a-flying
O'er the rolling green
Sheets are all twisted
And I toss in my sleep
I toss in my sleep
And my bitter, cold heart
Can't help but sing
Can't help but sing, sing
Put a saddle on the horse
And there's a light in spring
You can't see a star
'Til it's there to be seen
I move along the water
To the open sea
To the open sea
And my bitter, cold heart
Can't help but sing
Can't help but sing, sing
Sing, sing
Can't help but sing
Can't help but sing
Can't help but sing
Eucalyptus
On my morning run today
I passed a eucalyptus tree
Reminded me of California
My life way before I knew you
Eucalyptus smells sweet
And with its grey-green leaves, it's beautiful
And like you
It'll drop its branches suddenly
You crushed me
And those next to me
Who loved me love me
You crushed me
And those next to me
Who loved me love me
I met a Turkish man who sells rugs
He seemed very gentle like he knew love
I met a Brazilian who taught me to dance
He made me feel my second chance
You crushed me
And those next to me
Who loved me love me
You crushed me
And those next to me
Who loved me love me
On my morning run today
I passed a eucalyptus tree
Reminded me of California
My life way before I knew you
New Arms
Three birds fly in the sky like a face
No sounds, no stars
The moon is a dime, a flashing bright place
I wanna feel new arms
Around me
Around me
A voice is coming from the horizon
Moving like a train
What is that voice, the sky says, "It's life"
The moon says, "It's pain"
You found me
You found me
A flower, a flower
You gave me your charms
I don't need charms
I need to forget this chainmail in the lake
And make room for new arms
(Make room for new arms)
To surround me
Surround me...
Sword Song
Skeleton in black armor
Comes riding on a white horse
Boat floats down the river
Can't find its course
I'm turning my sword
Into a flower
My sword into a flower
Death is about the ending
And also the beginning
Black flag with a white rose
I'm waiting in a cold wind
Unfolding each hour
In sun, in showers
I'm turning my sword
Into a flower
My sword, my sword
Time Will Show You
Orange patterns on the wall
Magnolias down the hall
Silent planets roaming
See what time is showing
Peel back the layers of you
Pink, black, yellow, blue
Find the old girl you were
Back in that bold summer
It's gonna be OK
Wait, time will show you
Tears pool like oceans now
Fill up the tub, you drown
Spill onto the sidewalk
Tears and then the flow drops
Strong hands touch you again
You get fucked and fuck and then
Better men you'd never meet
Spoon you in Airbnbs
It's gonna be OK
Wait, time will show you
Plough of the spheres digs you out
You a hummingbird now
You hover the periphery
The hyacinth rich and sweet
You can see the old bitter crop
Off in the distance ah
You invested in illusions and you stop
You invested in illusions
It's gonna be OK
Wait, time will show you
It's gonna be OK
Wait, time will show you
Time will show you
Time will show you
T & O
You lose your head
You lose your head
You lose your head
Everybody does and everybody will
But don't forget
Don't forget
I love you still
A thousand takes
A thousand takes
A thousand takes
Tape it stops and turns and goes again
Mysteries
Listen, dear
You hear a soul at stake
Sunbeams of the house, you are
The sunbeams of the house
Sunbeams of the house, you are
The sunbeams of the house
Don't forget
Don't forget
Don't forget
That I really love you and I always will
Don't forget
Don't forget
I love you still
Winter Windows
First one with eyes
Color of the oceans
Second with eyes
The skies in motion
I used to watch them
Watch you light up every room
Now it's up to me
The lighting I can do
The lighting I can do
The lighting I can do
The lighting I can do
The lighting I can do
Burn a candle
Lori and the kids
Winter windows
The sky, a snakeskin
Purple clouds now
Vibrate the yard
I am puzzling out
Our two lives apart
I used to watch them
Watch you light up every room
Now it's up to me
The lighting I can do
The lighting I can do, do
The lighting I can do, do
The lighting I can do, do
The lighting I can do
PHONE ORPHANS
Creatures Of A Day
Creatures of a day
Born to fade
All things from the sea and ground
From dawning times till now
I know the challenge is
To live with open lids
Behold all the pain around
And let it in somehow
I know the challenge is
Going on empty
You still gotta give
Dig deep and you find a gold vein
You didn't know you were holding
Creatures of a day
Born to fade
All things from the sea and the ground
From dawning times till now
If You Could Hold
Someone
If you could hold someone right now
Who would it be, who would it be
If you could hold someone right now
Who would it be, who would it be
The answer is you for me
For me
You with the mysterious faded black
Letters on your hand
And the two lions on your chest
Flanking your dad
And light going every way it can
It can
If you could hold someone right now
Who would it be, who would it be
If you could hold someone right now
Who would it be, who would it be
The answer is you for me
For me
For me
For me
Rocks Of Time
Held a crying baby in the dead of the night
Back was breaking, my arms on fire
Brother came and said, "You rest a while"
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
Back in those days how the hours dragged by
The sun was a yellow slug in the sky
And in a flash six years passed by
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
Spring kept pushing up the green grass high
And up through the cracks in my pen lines
Love to a lover with puzzle piece eyes
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
I married a man in sands of white
Palm trees swaying in the tropical light
My feet were wet and my tears came bright
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
Saw a broken woman whose man and child
Swept away in a wave gone wild
The hands of fate drew a cruel, cruel line
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
My body kept burning up my tingling spine
My hair gone silver as the old starlight
My mask fell away, look into my eyes
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
Held a crying baby in the dead of the night
My back was breaking and my arms were on fire
Then brother came and said, "You rest a while"
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
Down on the rocks of time
Tree Climber
Oh tree climber
Never stop relaxing in the highest boughs
Eyes just like the ocean
Sailing on the motion of a leafy prow
And for a moment you find
Peace of mind
For a moment you find
Up in your crow's, your crow's nest
Looking past the forest, what do you see
Is it Jesus clouds shot through with arrows
Or green hills and sparrows to infinity
For a moment you find
Peace of mind
For a moment you find
Peace of mind
For a moment you find
Peace of mind
For a moment you find
Up Is A Nice Place
To Be
Up is a nice place to be
On the ceiling or high in a tree
Climbing or flying around
Floating on fragments of sound
Up in the rarefied air
You can see everything twice as clear
And you can learn how to fly
You find your own special high
But you're nowhere
When you're on all alone
Better by far
Making trips with somebody you love
And not on your own
No need anymore to get high
That let's-make-it-look in your eye
I'm up when you're here with me
Up is a nice place to be
But you're nowhere
When you're all alone
Better by far
Making trips with somebody you love
And not on your own
Up is a nice place to be
On the ceiling or high in a tree
Climbing or flying around
Floating on fragments of sound
Climbing or flying around
Floating on fragments of sound
The Archers
Over the green night
The arrows leave tracks of warm lillies
The keel of the moon breaks purple clouds
And the quivers fill with dew
Oh like love, the archers are blind
Oh like love, the archers are blind
Over the green night
The arrows leave tracks of warm lillies
The keel of the moon breaks purple clouds
And the quivers fill with dew
Oh like love, the archers are blind
Oh like love, the archers are blind
Oh like love, the archers are blind
Oh like love, the archers are blind
Smoke Song
Ancient skywriter, I watch you now
Curling from the neighbor's roof
Up above your mother the orange flame
Who makes comfortable the winter room
I want to ride your way
In my mind
I want to ride your way
Pale ghost of the sun set free by flint
Rising from the cigarette
Of the writer in the eves you sup the light
Blue snake turning pirouettes
I want to ride your way
In my mind
I want to ride your way
Used to signal danger, a whale drifted ashore
Messages upward streaming
Black, white and green, dry grasses and leaves
The names in your rings are singing
I want to ride your way
In my mind
I want to ride your way
In my mind
I want to ride your way
I want to ride your way
Valentine
Oh dear Valentine
Before your mind went
You were always fixing
All things broken, all things bent
Jacking up the house
Where the foundation was going
And showing your young son
All the worlds you were knowing
Till the voices crowded out your mind
I know you did your best, Valentine
Three kids and a wife
And a job with the State
Until the earth within
Began to crumble and to shake
Around every corner
A lurking danger
In the eyes of a family
You grew to be a stranger
As the voices crowded out your mind
I know you did your best, Valentine
Your kids are doing just fine
Your legacy is life, Valentine
Valentine
Valentine
Valentine
Swan Dive
I'll climb
To the high dive
And I'll swan dive
I'll become the blues
When I swan dive
Swan dive
Now you try
Feels like flying
You're a flash of light
Then you become the blues
Then you become the blues
When you swan dive
When you swan dive
When you swan dive
You become the blues
You become the blues
Next One, Maybe
Black and red-flowered strap 'cross your neck
My, how your heart has songs in it
When will you shine your light on me
If not in this life, the next one, maybe
I might fit perfectly in your arms
Just like that road-weary old guitar
When will you shine your light on me
If not in this life, the next one, maybe
Your soul comes out on gilded wings
From some dusty place behind the strings
Black and red-flowered strap 'cross your neck
My, how your mouth has songs in it
When will you shine your light on me
If not in this life, the next one, maybe
If not in this life, the next one, maybe
If not in this life, the next one, maybe
Beautiful Dreams
Good night, darling
I wish you beautiful dreams
While the waking world burns
You find relief in sleep
Rest your head now
In your beautiful dreams
You said your dead dad
Came to you the other night
And he told you to sing
Now you're starting to sing
While the whole world burns
Your beautiful dreams
But they keep coming
Your beautiful dreams
And you keep humming
Your beautiful dreams
Your guitar strumming
Your beautiful dreams
Your drumsticks drumming
Your beautiful dreams
Good night, darling
I wish you beautiful dreams
Non Albums Tracks
***
Thanx a lot to
Jose for these
lyrics ***
Between The Bars
(Elliott Smith cover)
Drink up baby, stay up all night
With the things you could do
You won't but you might
The potential you'll be
That you'll never see
The promises you'll only make
Drink up with me now
And forget all about
The pressure of days
Do what I say
And I'll make you okay
And drive them away
The images stuck in your head
People you've been before
That you don't want around anymore
They push, shove, won't bend to your will
I'll keep them still
Drink up baby, look at the stars
I'll kiss you again between the bars
Where I'm seeing you there
With your hands in the air
Waiting to finally be caught
Drink up one more time
And I'll make you mine
Keep you apart
Deep in my heart
Separate from the rest
Where I like you the best
And keep the things you forgot
People you've been before
That you don't want around anymore
They push, shove, won't bend to your will
I'll keep them still
Freight Train
(Elizabeth Cotten cover / Two Beers Veirs EP)
Freight train, freight train, run so fast
Freight train, freight train, run so fast
Please don't tell what train I'm on
They won't know what route I've gone
When I am dead and in my grave
No more good times here I crave
Place the stones at my head and feet
And tell them all that I've gone to sleep
When I die, Lord, bury me deep
Way down on old Chestnut street
So I can hear old Number nine
As she goes rolling by
When I die, Lord, bury me deep
Way down on old Chestnut street
Place the stones at my head and feet
And tell them all that I've gone to sleep
I Was A Fool
Oh I was a fool
I was a fool
Was I really loving you
In October and May
Every night and every day
I was a fool
Oh you can't change the way the wind blows
You can try, but everybody worth their salt knows
You can't mess with the breeze
It just does what it pleases
I was a fool
Down on my knees
I was a fool
Never again
I was a fool
And I'll try
To live my life free
Oh I was a fool
I was a fool
Was I really, really loving you
In October and May
Every night and every day
I was a fool
I was a fool
I was a fool
I was a fool
Mama, You've
Been On My Mind
( A Tribute to Bob Dylan's 'Bringing It All Back Home' LP )
Perhaps it's the color of the sun cut flat
And coverin' the crossroads I'm standing at
Or maybe it's the weather or something like that
But mama you been on my mind
I don't mean trouble please don't put me down don't get upset
I am not pleadin' or sayin' "I can't forget you"
I do not pace the floor bowed down and bent but yet
Mama you been on my mind
Even though my mind is hazy and my thoughts they might be narrow
Where you been don't bother me
Or bring me down in sorrow
I don't even mind where you're wakin' up tomorrow
But mama you just on my mind
I'm not asking you to say words like yes or no
Please understand me, I have no place I'm calling you to go
Just whisperin' to myself so I can pretend that I don't know
Mama you been on my mind
When you wake up in the morning
Baby, look inside your mirror
You know I won't be next to you
You know I won't be near
I'm just curious to know if you can see yourself as clear
As someone who's got you on his mind
Spike Drive Blues
(Mississippi John Hurt cover / Two Beers Veirs EP)
This is the hammer that killed John Henry
But it won't kill me
No, it won't kill me
No, it won't kill me
Take this hammer and hand it to the captain
And tell him I'm gone
Won't you tell him I'm gone
Won't you tell him I'm gone
John Henry, he left his hammer
Laying inside the road
Laying inside the road
Laying inside the road
John Henry, he left his hammer
All painted in red
All painted in red
All painted in red
John Henry, he left his hammer
Laying inside the road
Won't you tell him I'm gone
Won't you tell him I'm gone
John Henry, he left his hammer
All painted in red
All painted in red
All painted in red
Spring Song
( Hello I Must Be Going OST , 2012 )
I'm finally melting in the sun
Spring time is helping, hear the hum
Oh the pulse I thought was frozen's coming back
Neath the surface I can feel it
Coming bright, yes coming fast
Out in the clearing here with you
Buds all are bursting green and new
All the planets never seen inside the black
Into focus now they come
They're rolling bright
They're rolling fast
I'm always on the run and I hate copy paste for god's sake
Winter was crushing
Now the water's rushing in the stream
Water's welling up in me
Warm blue ribbons to the sea
In the washes I can clear my muddy tracks
From the banks i'm diving in
I'm coming bright
I'm coming fast
Winter was crushing
Now the water's rushing in the stream
Winter was crushing
Now the water's rushing in the stream
The Coo Coo Bird
(Clarence Ashley cover / Two Beers Veirs EP)
Oh the cuckoo, she's a fine bird
Don't she warble as she flies
She don't never holler coo coo
Till the fourth of July
Oh the cuckoo, she's a fine bird
Don't I wish she was mine
She won't never drink water
She always drink wine
Don't you kill her, little cuckoo
She won't do you no harm
She will eat up all the ground worms that destroy that farm
Oh the cuckoo, she's a wise bird
Goes down south and fall
She goes down to old ???
Where the snow never falls
Oh the cuckoo, she's a wise bird
Built her nest in the pines
She goes high up in the timbers
Where the snakes never climb
Oh the cuckoo, she's a fine bird
Don't she warble as she flies
She don't never holler coo coo
Till the fourth of July
The Ocean
( Laura Veirs & Mount Analog / Led Zeppelin Cover, From the Land of the Ice
and Snow LP )
Singing in the sunshine, laughing in the rain
Hitting on the moonshine, rocking in the grain
Got no time to pack my bags, my foots outside the door
Got a date, I can't be late, for the high hopes hailla ball
Singing to an ocean, I can hear the ocean's roar
Play for free, play for me and play a whole lot more
Singing about good things and the sun that lights the day
Singing on the mountains, has the ocean lost it's way
Sitting round singing songs 'til the night turns into day
Used to sing on the mountains but the mountains washed away
Now I'm singing all my songs to the girl who won my heart
She is only three years old and it's a real fine way to start
Wilwood
Flower
(Irving & Webster cover / Two Beers Veirs EP)
Oh I'll twine with my mingles and raven black hair
With the roses so red and the lilies so fair
And the mirtles so bright with the emerald dew
The pale and the leader whose eyes look like blue
Oh I will dance, I will sing and my laugh shall be gay
I will charm every heart, in his crown I will sway
When I woke from dreaming all my idols was clay
All portions of love have flown all away
Oh he taught me to love him and promised to love
And to cherish me over all others above
How my heart now is wondering, no misery can tell
He's left me no warning, no words of farewell
Oh he taught me to love him and call me his flower
That was blooming to cheer him through life's dreary hour
Oh how long to see him, oh I regret the dark hour
He's gone and neglected his pale wildwood flower
