1. |
Upon the Mystery
03:42
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My life is small, but it’s not broken
so I leave my grievances unspoken
and try think about all the little things
that make it feel alright
But then some wayward sentimental feeling
can blow right in and leave me reeling
I’ll be damned if I can tell you where it comes from
then where it even goes
Freewill, luck, and fate
I like to think about them, but I always lose my place
I’m still just trying to get solid on a way to be
I’m leaning hard upon the mystery
I knew a man once who came unfurled
trying to make some sense of this old world
sometimes he’d come down to the bar
and we’d drink after the show
Once he told me
“all those songs you were just singing
all they are is just beginnings
But, the verses and that chorus
that’s no guarantee for what’ll happen in the end”
I’m still here thinking about what he said
It seemed so pure and heaven sent
but I guess he was just trying to share with me
his point of view upon the mystery
Sometimes I wake up only to find
I’m unsure on my feet and in my mind
and the song that I was singing
it’s not the same song I was singing yesterday
I’ve got no secret I can tell you brother
except lay one foot down in front of the other
and try to think about all those little things
that make it feel alright
‘Cause, Yesterday it all made sense
now it beats me where all that sense went
on one hand I’m content to just let it be
but on the other hand I’m sitting high up
on the mystery
The view is pretty, but it’s sure not plain to see
I’m leaning hard upon the mystery
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2. |
Waiting For the Rain
04:23
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i passed a man on the street today
he was all alone, but he had a lot to say
I guess he must have lost his way
along the line
I looked at him, but not to stare
just so he’d see that I saw that we were both there
seems like I see him everywhere I go
these days
It’s hard times in this town of mine
you’d have to be asleep not to feel the change
all those wildflowers in among the grass
waiting for the rain
I walked farther down the road
to a part of town where we used to go
just to let the good times roll
back in the day
All the joints were boarded up
They tried to hold on
but I guess they had to give up
I sure hope they get some better luck next time
It’s hard times in this town of mine
it’s not the end, it’s just a shame
all those those green pastures where we used to
run and play
waiting for the rain
I met a friend that I had not seen
since before this time where we all have been
we both used to try to make the scene
back in the day
She told me that she was moving on
couldn’t make ends meet, and would soon be gone
headed east to sing her song
in another place
It’s hard times in this town of mine
the good seeds can’t afford a place to stay
so they just dry up, and blow away
waiting for the rain
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3. |
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It’s hard to dance like nobody’s watching
when everybody’s watching
It’s hard to live and let live
when nobody’s living like me
it’s hard to get inside
when the whole world is bent on keeping you out
I may not be much, but I’m all that I think about
I read somewhere that the sun sets and rises eternally
I thought about it
but I just couldn’t see how it applies to me
When I wake up in the morning
that old sun’s just sitting there
I’m the one running ‘round all day going everywhere
man, I swear
I was the host of a post about inequality
I waited for my friends
to love, like, and agree with me
but no one cared, no one shared
no one noticed my selflessness
Just goes to show there ain’t no use
in trying to help the lower class
Prides a sin, but I must admit, sometimes I can’t
help but be proud that I’ve made it
as a self-made man
I claimed my god-given place
in this meritocracy
I only wish mom and dad had lived
long enough to see
they left it all to me.
When I die
I hope that I am remembered for humility
an uncommon wit and natural ability
but in death, I won’t hold my breath
for I can see
It’s gonna be a long time
before this world appreciates a guy like me
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4. |
Make This Day
03:06
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I woke up scared just for being alive
told myself it would be alright
I didn’t believe a word I said
just went back inside my head
half a mile felt like a world away
all up hill on a rainy day
no time for the things to do
the debts are many, but the dollars few
I remembered what my old man said
he said “when that black cloud gets in my head
that’s when I’ve got to rise and shine
and try to make the day a friend of mine”
Chorus
I’m gonna make this day a friend of mine
be alive while I do my time
without that, there ain’t nothing left
it’s a rocky road, but I’ll get there yet
It’s day by day, and step by step
you never know how many you’ve got left
they won’t always start out fine
I try to make this day a friend of mine
He said “I’ve got something to tell you son
and I know it’s easier said than done
it’s lessons learned the hard, hard way
hit and miss, day to day
but you ought to know that it’s in your blood
I would have kept it if I could
from them to me from me to you
the family tree’s been painted blue
but when my sun sinks in the west
I hope you’ll know that I did my best
I may have been the lonesome kind
but I tried like hell to make it shine”
chorus
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5. |
My Name is LIe
03:06
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My name is Lie,
and they say that I
come from some far distant shore
I started out as sin
but now they let me in
they don’t call me a lie any more
don’t call me Lie no more
There was a time
I used to be a crime
said I was the tongue of the devil
but, I got a hold of truth
ripped it free from proof
until it seemed
like I was right there on the level
right there on the level
Chorus
Now I live here,
with my mistress Fear
we spend our days
just blurring up the view
I don’t know when
they’re gonna put me in my hole again
but until then
I know just what to do
In the days of old,
I used to move slow
Carried by a whisper and a wink
The low road I’d take,
moving like a snake
Had to take my time
to get into the thoughts you think
into the thought you think
Oh, how I did feel,
when you made the deal
and put it there for all the world to see
you made a thousand friends
but every one got sent
a siren song
that led them right to me
Led them right to me
Chorus
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6. |
Delia
04:44
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Delia was a gambler,
she gambled all around
she was a gambling girl,
she would lay her money down
she’s all I’ve got is gone
Delia’s dear old mamma
took a trip out west
when she returned
little Delia had gone to rest
she’s all I’ve got is gone
Delia’s mamma cried
Delia’s mamma moaned
wouldn’t have been so bad
if that poor girl had died at home
she’s all I’ve got is gone
Curtis looking high
Curtis looking low
shot poor Delia down, good people
with his fateful forty-four
she’s all I’ve got is gone
High up on the housetop
trying to run away from his sins
police and the rounders
all looking out for him
she’s all I’ve got is gone
The judge said to Curtis
What’s this noise about?
It’s all about those rounders, judge
they’re all trying to cut me out
she’s all I’ve got is gone
Curtis said to the judge
what might be my fine?
judge said, poor boy
you got ninety-nine
she’s all I’ve got is gone
call your rubber-tired taxis
and your double-seated hacks
they took poor Delia to the graveyard
and she’s never coming back
she’s all I’ve got is gone
Delia, Delia, how can it be
I’m thinking about those brown eyes
now I ain’t
never gonna see
she’s all I’ve got is gone
Delia, Delia, how can it be
you went down that long road
but I’m coming baby
wait for me
she’s all I’ve got is gone
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7. |
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Spring has come and it’s plain to see
pink flower blooming on a crabapple tree
blackfly are humming all around my ears
but the song of life is all that I can hear
Oh my baby, I love you
it’s been a long, dark year, but we saw it through
The cold winds blew and we had our fights
but we hold on until we make it right
We held on tight, what can I say?
It tried to take its toll on this thing that we got
But I’d be damned if I’d ever let you slip away
Chorus
Because there ain’t no brighter light
than a love that survives the darkest night
it shines like a fiery thing
it sounds like the song of life
on the first day of spring
Oh my baby, it won’t be long
we’ll be half cut dancing to a country song
in the backyard, where all the neighbors can see
It never made much difference to you or me
For every time, there’s a reason
hell, we did a lot of growing in that ice-cold season
when the snow came down and the ground got hard
we kept the fire burning in our backyard
Oh we were Dancing in the snow on Christmas Eve
When you can make it shine on a long winter’s night
When the storm’s coming down
it’s bound to make you believe
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8. |
Ode to Champ
03:10
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Well, I’ll tell you a something
and you know I’m not braggin’
but I’ve got me a 96 Corolla wagon
It’s one part jalopy and bit of a scamp
some might call it a “beater”
but I call him Champ
He’s that light golden colour
that they call champagne
standard transmission
and he don’t break the bank
he’s got a funky old stereo
that only plays tapes
I’ve got one of Tom Petty
that sounds especially great
He took me fishing for brook trout
on the Great Northern Highway
we got stuck in a windstorm
on the Burlington Skyway
he’ll push through the snow
and the rain, and the ice
ya he might be an old car
but isn’t he nice?
Well, you need a mechanic
and mine’s Derek Guan
he keeps Champ rolling
on the road that he’s on
The way I know this banjo
he knows old Toyotas
he’ll tell it to you straight
and he will not exploit ya
You might think me loopy
for singing a song
to a beat-up old car
that might not be long
For this world, but that’s the reason
that I’m singing this song
So he knows that I appreciate
all the stuff that we’ve done
So, if you’ve got an old car
that don’t let you down
takes you all ‘or the country
and all round the town
why not change up the oil
and fill up the tank
It’s the least you can do
a nice way to say thanks
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9. |
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Hop, skip, and a jump start
shine your love-light on my heart
oh baby, make me come alive
you’ve always been my lucky muse
now won’t you give me something I can use
just one spark and I will derive
I’m looking for a song about love
think about it in a way no one else thought of
gotta be a simple song
the kind that makes folks want to sing along
ain’t it a hell of a way to spend your time
staring at your belly button
trying to make it rhyme
But I’m up for the fight
cause ya just never know
when you might get it right
ya know that I’m, every time
I’m gonna try to make it rhyme
Got a Stetson hat from a second hand store
got an old paperback from Louis L'Amour
I’m sipping whiskey straight from the bottle
any fool can tell that I’m an old soul
in the modern world just trying to make it roll
anachronistically full throttle
Oh, now I’m looking for a cowboy tale
I’m riding my pony on the dusty trail
a city slicker in a western show
but I got a pretty good yo-delay-he-ho
ain’t it a hell of a way to spend your time
playing make believe, and trying to make it rhyme
But I’m up for the fight
cause you just never know
when you might get it right
ya know that I’m, every time
I’m gonna try to make it rhyme
I’ve been picking this guitar more than I ought a
but you can’t catch a fish unless your lines in the water
I’m the old man and the C chord
the big fish come to those who wait
but, it’s hard to know if ya got the right bait
won’t you send me a sign Lord
‘Cause I’ve been float’n round this old lake
since early in the morning, for heaven’s sake
where the hell can this all end
I’m writing a song about writing a song, again
ain’t it a hell of a way to spend your time,
trolling ‘round waiting for one more line
But I’m up for the fight
cause you just never know
when you might get it right
ya know that I’m, every time
I’m gonna try to make it rhyme
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10. |
Where the Light Begins
04:24
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Patiently waiting for the morning sky
ever since the sun went down
you’ve all but grown out of wondering why
it’s a restless peace you’ve found
You’ve learned not to be afraid
of this deal you never made
a deals a deal, after all
and when you get your side
it’s a deal that lets you fly
fly until it’s time to fall
Then you’re right back here
looking for the dawn again
where the darkness ends
and the light begins
but, you know there’s no use
to curse the night
because it seems like only darkness
that can give that light
The long shadow of the evening shade
always catches up somehow
no use in running, so you just put away
that precious thing for now
And there’s something that they say
that might make it go away
it doesn’t need to be so dark so long
but you’ve got a voice inside
that rings with doubt and pride
and it wonders where the song comes from
So now you’re right back here
looking for the dawn again
where the darkness ends
and the light begins
but, you know there’s no use
to curse the night
because it seems like only darkness
that can give that light
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