1. |
The New Year
02:30
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Hey man, how ya’ been?
We heard about the accident
We knew you’d be back
(We) kept your old seat warm.
What’s that new song you sing
Flooded with scandalous flings?
Oblige us with a jingle, simple and plain.
We’re filling our cups the best we can
‘Til they overflow with our grandest plans.
We’re a jovial bunch and know the trap of the inspired.
The quickest to break the cipher, leaves you second to the writer.
Pints are full with no place to go
Just take a look out the window.
Our bellies are warm, and it looks like snow.
How ’bout Christmas imagery?
Another smash of a timpani
A carol, a toast to the new year.
To the new year! To the new year! To the new year!
There are better challenges than noise
Or blank canvases hung on white walls.
We’re a jovial bunch and know the trap of the inspired.
The quickest to break the cipher, leaves you second to the writer.
We’re filling our cups the best we can
‘Til they overflow with our grandest plans.
We’re a jovial bunch and know the trap of the inspired.
The quickest to break the cipher, leaves you second to the writer.
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2. |
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Sorry, didn’t catch you’re name?
Could you repeat it like you actually have a tongue the cat didn’t take?
How did you spend your day?
‘Cause I was out on the street, stamping my feet to feel warm.
It was the middle February.
But you’re no fool, and I’m just a phony
So don’t ask me to light your cigarette.
Did you see that wedding?
A bride and her marine with no face?
He lost it in the king’s flame.
You probably missed the ceremony.
While you watched TV and prayed to your king
And his perfect court.
But you’re no fool, and I’m just a phony
So don’t ask me to light your cigarette.
It’s the American way
To cheer the bombs like it’s a football game (go man, go).
“We’re going out to get ‘em, before they get us.”
I’ve heard the line a million times
It still don’t mean much.
But you’re no fool, and I’m just a phony
So don’t ask me to light your cigarette.
Yeah you’re so cool, and I’m just a phony
So don’t ask me to light your cigarette.
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3. |
Seize It Quick
06:07
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When you were a child you spied and no one knew.
Under porches you hid while folks looked on confused.
You bled from your shins, memories and scars can prove.
And ran for your life when the coast was clear and true.
This wood, this glass, this home has stories much like your own
They’re hidden in the stone, she whispers what she knows.
When the decades had passed they laid brick upon brick of lore
With no eyes just doors, she thinks cars are waves breaking on shore.
Remember our apartment filled with smoke down in The Corridor
When Jimmy barbecued outside our window.
Jeff slept in the alley rather than knock on our door.
You said the radiator pings were ghosts under the floor.
Alright, OK. The clock will tick, the flash bulb will flick.
We’ll seize it quick, today. Let’s weather the wood.
These walls would sing if they could.
The cracks and chips and bends and warps, it’s her attitude
She’s not brand new, she sees everything through.
As loud as we could we sang Nina Simone.
Television competed with outside our window.
The neighbors above moved chairs at 3 in the morn.
And I loved you more than ever before.
Alright, OK. The slivers will prick, branches grow thick.
We’ll seize it quick, today. Let’s weather the wood.
These walls would sing if they could.
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4. |
A Herring Overhead
02:51
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She said, “I saw a coyote off the road.
“Traffic slowed on I-94.
“They’ve increased around here sharply.
“And did you know Gervin attended up the road?
“Right here, EMU. Right here, Ypsilanti.”
Collins chimed, “Wasn’t that before your time?”
“Gotta preserve our history.
Don’t worry John, I’ll keep hush about your story.”
I said, “Come on! Come on! Let’s order another drink.”
A herring overhead, the Huron beneath my feet.
Mind the open windows. A discreet whisper ’til we’re off the street.
We might even head to a show, “How ’bout Friday, are you free?”
“No but Saturday… Saturday looks good to me.”
“Monday?”
“You know I gotta work all week.”
“Friday?”
“I gotta catch up on some sleep.
But Saturday I’ll meet you right here in Ypsi’.”
That’s beside the point of our trip here.
One by one we left to a Bronx cheer.
Set to follow the Mistress of Fun,
“Terribly sorry, gotta run.”
No matter we’ll soon return to Sherzer’s scopes
Laugh at lame jokes, share plans and hopes.
Under stars we’ll find time to talk about
Brick walks, the Tridge, and the Depot Clock.
A herring overhead, the Huron beneath my feet.
Mind the open windows. A discreet whisper ’til we’re off the street.
We might even head to a show, “How ’bout Friday, are you free?”
“No but Saturday… Saturday looks good to me.”
“Monday?”
“You know I gotta work all week.”
“Friday?”
“I gotta catch up on some sleep.
But Saturday I’ll meet you right here in Ypsi’.”
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5. |
Don't Look Now
04:27
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Sometimes,
I have a tough time speaking with this foot in my mouth
The truth was the goal and the first victim
Animals, we’re all animals with lying calls.
Hey! Don’t look now! It’s just me with posies in my pocket
Stop me before I fall down.
It’s my time,
To live with regret. A resolution to what’s in store way ahead
I’ve been digging so long, to imagine stopping now
Is like leaning on a car, on a hill, on the way down.
Hey! Why look down? I’ll keep climbing these stairs, I need the fresh air
Hope I don’t fall now.
I’m coming around,
To your side of it. One step closer but evaded yet
Hold on to what I’ve sold, though it’s old and broke
We can keep on fixing, twisting, bending, and mending more.
Yeah, I might let you down. I’ll keep hanging around, you might as well enjoy the sound
Of my voice in your town.
I’ll never bend,
But I might be broken.
You can ask in words I’ll pretend not to get.
You’ll see that look in my eye like I’m playing in Holden’s rye.
Wave your hands in front of my face and have me repeat you’re lines.
“Hey, I promise not to lie.
I swear I’ll stay down and wound around your side. I’ll make the most of our time.”
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6. |
Labrador
04:37
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I had a dream that God didn’t swap Isaac with a lamb
When old Abraham came down with his hand
The poor boys head rolled across the land.
It was a gruesome scene
you were swallowed by the sea
The women wore black on their faces to hide wet cheeks.
They cried, “Oooh.”
They dredged up your body. You’d been gone three days.
Visitors stormed from far away
Torn up to find old Dave had been nabbed by the Labrador waves
Little Davey was especially changed
He went from a boy to a man just as the wake was arranged.
The casket was beautiful
Oh, she was beautiful
The flowers were beautiful
It was beautiful…
We cried, “Oooh.”
You sat up to stares, asked why we were there.
I didn’t believe it
I still don’t believe it, no.
Mama nearly had a stroke, pointed her finger and spoke
She said, “This old heart needs your love.
My little Davey needs your love.
You know this whole damn town needs your love.
The Labrador sea, needs your love
My, my (it all) needs your love.
Right now…”
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7. |
Call Me the Fool
04:47
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From when your lucent eyes said, “Hi,
How ’bout we take a ride?”
To when your weepy mouth quivered dry.
“Make it? Yeah, we just might”
Hold me near ’til we’re old and dear
‘Cause you won’t feel the same tomorrow night.
It’s a shame, but if this time was bottled up
You and I wouldn’t have a drink in sight.
Lay your hand upon my wrist
Or squeeze above the knee and writhe with bliss.
The dog barks as I give chase
I’ll trace about your frame with a shape of grace.
It’s no mystery to me,
The sun only shines when it watches your face.
Don’t call me the fool when I say I’m the lucky one
I may not wear my heart like you, that doesn’t mean it’s not open
It’s still falling hard and it’s still apt to break
But it doesn’t care about remarks. It won’t hesitate on mistakes.
Away from you in a hotel room
The return trip is never too soon.
You’re watching bees fly to blooms
Your mind lies to how well I am without you.
Press the receiver against your lips
‘Cause I’m more apt to hear their subtle tune.
And if our bottle was filled up
It’s a shame to drink it without you.
If I forget to check in
That doesn’t mean you’ve lost out to my friends.
In my mind I play your day.
Every breath you take leaves me one more away
From you and our clumsy fears
And our slow pace.
I would call you the fool if you said you’re the lucky one
I may not wear my heart like you, that doesn’t mean it’s not open
It’s still falling hard and it’s still apt to break
But it doesn’t care about remarks. It won’t hesitate on mistakes.
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8. |
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Follow your fools errand to fools gold
Chart your path
One thousand paces in, will you notice only your dog is in the fight?
You wear a personality like a disguise.
The newspaper’s front page headline
You can’t ignore it. No, not this time.
Thinking, we’re above the trends again?
When we are just fading footsteps in an empty lot.
Like a kid dressed in blood to look tough
I’m holding out from hands out-of-touch.
This town is gonna take all I’ve got and more, I’m sure.
I’m trying to believe what I read and what you tell me
But this city isn’t looking to you or me.
The newspaper’s front page headline
You can’t ignore it. No, not this time.
Thinking, we’re above the trends again?
When we are just fading footsteps in an empty lot.
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9. |
Your Laugh
05:21
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“Your laugh, your skin
Your eyes are smiling.
Your lipstick wiped, smeared, blurred, and thin.
I want to know your name
I want to speak it soft.
I want you to never be the one you’re not.”
“I want you to know,
it’s going to be me and you walking out that door
I can wait until we’re all alone. It’s fine, until you’re sure.
You can dance and drift in time.
Each and every day, each and every night.
Despite the passing lights
I’m fine, It’s alright.”
Count his pictures, collect the history
It’s not how far they rip, it’s the memory.
She waits, he sins
“Shut it off, she’s calling”
Earnestness has passed, he’s limited.
Laugh it out, the same old game
Yeah so cliche.
“I fell in love once, twice. I might today.”
“I want you to know,
it’s going to be me and you walking out that door
I can wait until we’re all alone. It’s fine, until you’re sure.
You can dance and drift in time.
Each and every day, each and every night.
Despite the passing lights
I’m fine, It’s alright.”
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10. |
Cheating At Grief
03:32
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“Your dad was in an accident… He fell asleep… I’m at the scene.
Dreamed about his restless head laying calmly in bed.”
While you… You rush in rain, slip on wet leaves
There’s too much to see or believe.
If the call was faked I should be on my guard.
The embers fly in hot, black, and charred.
“Are you sure you don’t want to talk? It’s good to get it out.”
Cathartic tears pathetic pouts won’t help these secrets of doubt.
Happy times, memorable moments,
flash bulbs, and incandescent eyes.
You say I should talk or the cliche, “Go for a walk…”
Speaking in past tense for one pence. A moment.
The pipes are calling, from glen to mountain.
While cheating at grief, wallowing eyes from a thief’s ducks.
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