1. |
Song for Django (demo)
04:34
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SONG FOR DJANGO
Django was amazing
when he showed up for the gig
just before the downbeat
he'd come waltzing in
cigarette dangling
as his fingers made their way
up and down the Champs Elysee
Took you 'round the world
broke your heart and stole your girl
sang a song nobody else could sing
and all you had before
you don't need it anymore
all you need
is just one perfect thing
Django had a monkey
No place they wouldn't go
Hotels didn't like it
but it was Django
One of the wise ones
who knew the only goal:
To walk out of the fire with your soul
Took you 'round the world
broke your heart and stole your girl
left you with the sorrows of a king
and everything you knew
and all you thought was true
you'd trade it all
for just one perfect thing
trade it all
for just one perfect thing
ah, you never see it coming
ah, but you always see it go
I wish
I didn't know
Django was amazing
if he showed up for the gig
just before the downbeat
he'd come dancing in
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2. |
Forever
03:56
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FOREVER
I hope your dreams come true
at least a chosen few
The ones
you wanted after all
I hope your head is high
no matter how they try
to make you feel
so small
I hope you dance each day
in some peculiar way
past the others
marching single file
And I hope
you live forever
for awhile
I hope the river flows
the way you want to go
I hope
the wind blows from behind
and all the mighty trees
are waving in the breeze
to say a sweet hello
as you go by
I hope the sky can see
the majesty
of everything beneath it
running wild
And I hope
you live forever
for awhile
************************
I hope you will be kind
and there I know you’ll find
your answer
whatever it should be
I hope your dreams come true
You know, I really do
And when they do
I hope you see
And maybe time will teach us
not to hurry
But know each step
of every mile
And I hope
we live forever
for awhile
Yeah, I hope we live forever
for awhile
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3. |
Schlitz (live)
03:46
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SCHLITZ
Well, I don’t know but I used to hear
A man’s as good as his favorite beer
My favorite beer... was Schittz
It was the beer that made Milwaukee famous
When you’re out of Schlitz you’re out of beer
Reach for all the gusto you can find
You only go around once in life
And I had a friend when I was fifteen
with a mustache for a fake ID
One weekend at Atlantic City with his folks
The Boardwalk was shining bright
as we set out that summer night
with a quart of Schlitz between us and our hopes
And he met a girl and they made out
on somebody’s porch while I kept a lookout
learning all I could from across the street
With a headache and a bottle at my feet
And we snuck home as the sun came up
And I didn’t feel great but I didn’t throw up
And either way, I knew that they were right
You only go around once in life
You only go around once in life
I don’t know but I used to hear
A man’s as good as his favorite beer
I don’t really have a favorite now
Used to be there were just a few
You made your choice and then you knew
And somehow that was comforting somehow
Schlitz was the beer that made Milwaukee famous
You had to reach for all the gusto you could grab
Well, I’m still reaching
‘cause they probably were right
You only go around once in life
You only go around once in life
Schlitz was the beer that made Milwaukee famous
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4. |
The Wish
05:43
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THE WISH
My fairy godmother
Is a different girl
Black shirt, white tie, velvet gloves
Graying curls
She smokes those long, dark cigarettes
That burn like tar and licorice
Stands by the beggerman’s fountain
Drops a coin, says, “Make a wish
Make a wish, kid
Make a wish, kid”
Dream
Just for a day
Take me alive
Take me away
This isn’t the first time
She’s called out my name
But I lost my nerve and she faded away
Like a dying flame
And now she’s come from years away
Where I left my dreams behind
She says, “Baby, there’s an easy way
And you ain’t got much time
Make a wish, kid
Make a wish, kid
Then you’re mine.”
Refrain
I asked, “What’s the difference--
A wish or a prayer?
I’ve searched high and low, but I stopped long ago
Now I no longer care
But sometimes on the darkest nights
I still see my lover’s eyes
Now I wish to be free from that pitiful dream
That touches me sometimes…”
My fairy godmother
She made no reply
Then finally she spoke as I stood in the smoke
Of her flickering eyes
“If you’re prepared to walk this earth
Without the smallest dream
Ain’t nothin’ hell could show you
You ain’t already seen
Make a wish, kid
Make a wish, kid
This ones on me.”
Refrain
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5. |
Arielle
03:40
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ARIELLE
You pace the world in circles
Looking for a heart that’s really true
You down a couple strong ones
And now anyone would do
Hanging around at the Café Du Nord
With those people all so professionally bored
It’s scary. Ordinary.
Arielle, you’re so much better
than your puny poser friends
Arielle, I’d like to see you take
the whole damn thing again
Arielle, no you’re not falling
you’re just scared to death and stalling
I can tell
I used to hear you playing
At that club on Lincoln Way
You had a way of singing
What my heart refused to say
Now all you do is run from the beauty
You were born to share
Is that enough now?
Should I shut up now?
Arielle, you’re so much smarter
than the stupid things you do
Arielle, I wish just one time
I could climb inside of you
And spend an hour livin’
with the things that you’ve been given
Yes, it’s true. What will you do?
Hanging around at the Tip Top Room
Breathing the smoke and the gloom and doom
It’s crazy. Please amaze me.
Arielle, you’re gonna find it
in a place you always knew
Arielle, you’re gonna see yourself
and finally know it’s true
The you’re gonna rise
and pull us all across the skies
upon your song.
Don’t be long. Don’t be long.
Arielle
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6. |
Ship in a Bottle
04:24
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SHIP IN A BOTTLE
Carry me home to the love that I know
Is waiting for me at the end of the sea
And I’ve packed my belongings and said my goodbyes
The ship in the bottle is ready to ride the waves
Johnny Walker Red
Is a blue-talking sailor
All the words he said
You’ll apologize later
Drinks from your glass
as he climbs up the mast
And points to the gathering stars
That’s where you learn
Which way to turn
chorus
Jose Cuervo Gold
Is a shipwreck survivor
Left him with the soul
Of a mad taxi driver
Run through the light with him
Stay out all night with him
Crashing the rocks on the waves
Ask your bartender
What to remember
Mickey’s Bigmouth Ale
Yeah, we all know what that means
Hoist her tattered sail
Your ocean is wide and green
And served in a barrel, the pride of O’Farrell St.
Pouring you out in the foam
Finally a friend
Finally a home
chorus
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7. |
Mermaid
06:07
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MERMAID
Some people hold a seashell to their ear
and say they think they hear the ocean
Jenny held a seashell to her lips
and that's what set this tale in motion
She made a wish
to be a fish
half a fish and half a girl
She longed to be a mermaid
and swim around the world
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny
while you brave the ocean wild
Your parents walk along the shore
calling for... their baby child
In the North Atlantic Ocean
Jenny heard the singing of the whales
The water was so beautiful
but cold where she had skin instead of scales
She made a wish
to be a fish
half a fish and half a girl
And now she was a mermaid
swimming 'round the world
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny
You’re so far very away
You don’t hear your parents crying
Do you... hear them pray?
Jenny'd been at sea for just a week
but now it felt like many years
She found the salty water in her eyes
was not the ocean but her tears
She'd made a wish
to be a fish
half a fish and half a girl
Now she was just alone
and half-way 'round the world
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny
Oh, what will you do?
Your parents have gone home now
with only... tears for you
A mighty storm pushed her westward
tossing Jenny on a rocky shore
As she dragged across the sand
she saw a shell she knew she'd seen before
She'd made a wish
to be a fish
Now she wished her wish was gone
And soon she was a girl again
Back where she belongs
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny
You went halfway 'round the world
Just to find you love your home
And love... to be a girl
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8. |
5:00 at the Satellite
04:28
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5:00 AT THE SATELLITE
Murphy collects his waitresses
like coins or stamps or bruises
does his best reconnaissance
on three hours sleep
says you judge a man
by the company he chooses
says you judge a woman
by the hours she keeps
Early morning... late night
5:00 at the Satellite
Chelsea takes your order
like some angel out of nowhere
smiles as if she knows you
and you just don’t know
She wants to be in love
if she could find a way to go there
Wants to be in bed
a couple hours ago
Early morning... late night
5:00 at the Satellite
And love comes raining down
when no one’s looking
and no one sees it
pouring from the skies
And when you step outside
the streets are shining
Colored light reflects
into your eyes
And I’m collecting anecdotes
I’ll tell ‘em if you let me
I’ll say it’s for my novel
and it could be true
I measure my disasters
by the laughs that they could get me
chasing off the past again
with someone new
5:00 at the Satellite
And love comes raining down
when no one’s looking
and no one sees it
pouring from the skies
And when you step outside
the streets are shining
Colored light reflects
into your eyes
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9. |
Yoga Class
03:57
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YOGA CLASS
There's been some damage to my "chi"
That's what the Master said to me
He wore a stoneground turtleneck and sandles made of rice
He was immeasurably old and insufferably nice
He said my chakras are a junkyard full of undiscarded rage
Then he mumbled something sankrit
and he waved around some sage
There's just one thing
to save my ass: Yoga class
He sent me down to a tiny shop in Hinditown
I bought the forty dollar mat, I passed on the robe
They handed me a crumpled list of ashrams and healthclubs
Where I could learn the ancient ways
And get that gnarly chi replaced. Yeah! Yeah!
I seek the ancient Eastern wisdom
I seek the quiet of the mind
I know my present lifestyle is dumb
Time to get up on the path
Time to kick some yoga ass Yeah! Yeah!
An airy loft above the street
is where these yoga people meet
Music softly twinkles, a gentle serenade
I find a spot beside a guy I think I beat up in fifth grade
The teacher prances in, a perky blond named Julie
She looks like vanna white but smells like b.o. and patchouli
She's the one! To get it done! Yoga class
(more)
Fish pose and plow pose and lotus pose and locust pose
I'm twisting and I'm stretching and it hurts like **** hell
A girl with hairy armpits smiles whipers "namaste"
Scrunched into a shoulder stand
I flip her off the best I can
yeah! yeah!
The class is drawing to a close
I'm laid out in the final pose
Deep in relaxation, I find my peace at last
Time has lost all meaning as I float upon the mat
Awakened hours later in a dim and empty room
by a tiny, ancient janitor who pokes me with his broom
he says my karma is a cesspool full of vile tumescent waste
and then he levitates right out the door
a smile upon his face
for in my hand
a three-week pass:
Yoga class
I seek the ancient Eastern wisdom
I seek to be the greater man
I know this Master truly is one
and he knows of what he speaks
Get back to me in three weeks!
Yeah! yeah!
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10. |
Wherever I'm Gone
03:53
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WHEREVER I’M GONE
There’s a goddess of lucky coincidence
in a bar called The Wine Dark Sea
and she’s up on the ceiling fan
drinking a black-and-tan
waiting around for the moment to be
She’s got eyes like the deepest of sorrows
and a smile like the safest of harbors
and each step she takes toward the gallows
the angels all gather to guard her
And soon I will sing
and the price of my song
her I will bring
wherever I’m gone
There’s a goddess of unhappy circumstance
and I’m hoping to get her to fly
but she clings like a glove
to the worst things I love
and I’ve known her too long just to tell her goodbye
She’s got hands like the tail on a monkey
and a heart like an old Checker taxi
and she calls me her beautiful junkie
but I need her love to relax me
And soon I will sing
and the price of my song
her I will leave
wherever I’m gone
There’s an agent of cosmic deliverences
and you haven’t much room to complain
if all your ambitions, she found ‘em positions
down at the bus stop, but out of the rain
and she talks like a verse from the Bible
but she sings like a dirty old kettle
and she’s planning my latest revival
but we got an old score to settle
And now I will sing
but in spite of my song
she’ll go where she goes
wherever I’m gone
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Ira Marlowe Berkeley, California
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