Lyrics from The Best of Jay Brown

Lyrics from Best Of Jay Brown
Disc 1
Maybe a Song
What can we say, to make it real?
The things we know, the ways we feel
The strength we found, the hate we fear
The rising tide, of fallen tears
The coming dawn
Maybe a song, can make it real
A little truth, for all to feel
To build a bridge, across our fear
That what divides, may disappear
However long
Maybe a song, still holds the key
To work it out, and let it be
There is a bridge, beyond verse 3
That we can cross, in unity
And sing along
Another song to sing as one, on its refrain
Forget about which side you’re on, forget the game
Time changes everything but songs, remain the same
When darkness fades, and in the wings
A shining star, lights up the scene
Some act with grace, some just act mean
But what remains, of this day’s dream?
Maybe a song
2. All the Old Legends
There’s a song for the freeway
There’s a song for the heartbreak
There’s a song for the song’s sake
A song for the loss of the thrill
And there’s a song that you’re writin
There’s a song still in hidin
If you don’t try to find it
Probably nobody will
(Chorus #1) Don’t bar the door she ain’t goin nowhere
She’s seen better days but she smiles anyways
Sayin go on and go where the lonely go dear
Those swingin door might let a song through
All the old legends are leavin us here
They gave us their best then they laid down to rest
Rivers of whisky and buckets of beer
And the songs that we all sing along to
There’s a song for a dragon
And there’s a song to imagine
There’s a song out of fashion
That keeps getting better with age
There’s a song for Muskogee
There’s a song for the lonely
There’s a song tryin to show me
The key to that long lost refrain
(Chorus #2) The Muse is amused by her poet’s despair
He’s seen better days but he tries anyways
Sayin “I’ve got to go where the lonely go dear
Those swingin doors might let a song through
All the old legends are leavin us here
They gave us their best then they laid down to rest
Rivers of whisky and buckets of beer
And the songs that we all sing along to
There’s a song for the changes
Black birds and Brown Angels
Blues caught up in tangles
Ribbons that fall from the hair
Heart of gold tryin to stay free
Diamond shinin like crazy
Purple rain kind of and hazy
Fallin from heaven knows where
(Chorus #3) You give all you got till you get what you need
It all seems sublime when she whispers a rhyme
Sayin I’ll meet you down where the lonely go dear
Those swingin doors might let a song through
All the old legends are leavin us here
They gave us their best then they laid down to rest
Rivers of whisky and buckets of beer
And the songs that we all sing along to
3. Soul to Soul
I don’t have an enemy, not one enemy in all this world
Its just the ones I love who ever hurt me
Angels have been sent to me, been sent to me that’s for sure
Only angels can shake my faith when they shout me down
Falling tears are warm when souls are intertwining
When we steal away in pride they’re steely cold
Well no harm ever came from a little fightin
Just as long as we’re fightin soul to soul
Pain’s been a friend to me, been a friend, at least it stuck around
When all the chips are down it won’t desert me
The sweeter the memory the more the many tears come down
Only angels can know the souls that I long to hold
Its’ so warm to lay where souls are intertwining
But our fears can leave us cold as any hole
If loved sailed away we still could sail inside it
Just as long as we’re sailin soul to soul
4. Rainbow Children
Turned on the news today, then I wondered what I’d done that for
It’s another doozy of a day with the bombings and the guns and war
Then the president will have his say, and he’ll say it like he just turned 4
How did findin meanin get this hard?
I walked out to feel the day and to hear a little morning song
They sing it out as they jump and play and they never heard of singin wrong
There is something make you feel alright when every other little thing feels wrong
Rainbow Children, dancin in the yard
Rainbow Children, that is what they are
I started thinkin what the world could be if it didn’t have to be so tough
If hungry people had their needs for free and all the wealthy said enough’s enough
People say it isn’t nature’s way, but you’ll never see a greedy wolf
How did greedy people get this far?
If you take all their BS for true, well I guess that that’s the true you get
If they get you in their game you’re through and you’re losin any way you bet
Somethin true that I’ll bear witness to, a son and daughter sunny day duet
Rainbow Children, dancin in the yard
Rainbow Children, that is what they are
They have nothin to do with all this misery
They know it can be true that all the kids are free
They can nurture the truth for all they wish to be
There’s another loose tooth in this great mystery
Walked out to feel the day and to hear a little morning song
They sing it out as they jump and play and they never heard of singin wrong
There is something make you feel alright when every other little thing feels wrong
Rainbow Children, dancin in the yard
Rainbow Children, that is what they are
5. Nothing is Yours, Nothin is Mine
My brother and me on the seashore, Still in the age of wonder
Such colors we’d never seen before, and of them we made a plunder
We carried those sea stones back home, across seven states
But of all those magic colors, there was not a trace
You lasso the moon, you won’t see it shine
Nothing is yours, nothing is mine, nothing is yours, nothing is mine
You may be a bigshot billionaire, with your own jet airliner
Buyin up houses everywhere, full of expensive china
Losin your cool when they get, your order wrong
You know all the best attorneys, but not the best songs
Check out the birds, you won’t hear them whine
Nothing is yours, nothing is mine, nothing is yours, nothing is mine
My children and me will see as one, I know they’ll give me their blessing
Some good things are free like havin fun, jumpin in leaves and laughin
But some things you have to pay for, so we go to work
And there’ll be another day for, just goin bazerk
So sing like a bird, and feel like you’re flyin
Nothing is yours, nothing is mine, nothing is yours, nothing is mine
6. Goin There With You. (chords and lyrics)
C G
I don’t know, if we get to choose but I chose you
C G
Movin slow, that’s a thing I used to like to do, do do do do
F e- D C(addf#) G
Now its really flowin, not a chance of knowin where
F e- D C(addf#) G. D. C
Not sure where I’m goin, but I know I’m goin there
G. D C G D C G. D. C G. D. C. G
With you, there with you, with you, there with you…
C
I don’t know how I fit into the whole grand scheme
Let it flow, like the way you slip into my dream
Soon as I could catch ya knew I had to letcha be
I could walk on air-if I could getcha there with me
With me, there with me, with me, there with me…
D/f#. G e- F. Fmaj7 D. D7 G
There with you ooo, oh me oh my. Why wouldn’t I be over the moon?
D/f#. G e- F. Fmaj7 D. D7 G
There with me eee all in your eyes, My wonderful dream over too soon
C
I don’t know, if we get to choose but you chose me
Goes to show, had my share of serendipity de de de de
How my heart is growin I just wanna show and share
Where the love is flowin, I know I’ll be goin there
With you, there with you, with you, there with you…
7. Be Here Now
It’s the age of communication
But please don’t all talk at once
We had a lot more peace and quiet
Back when we communicated with grunts “huh”
Sweet silence once was golden
It’s a precious diamond now
And if you ever wanna hear it shine
Just try to Be Here Now
Why would you try
To carry ‘round the past so long?
It’s like you’ll only hear the same old song
And why would you cry
And worry ‘bout what might happen?
Ain’t no predictin’ where lightnin’ will be zappin’
And why would you lie
And try to say that what is isn’t?
Every moment is a gift
That’s why they call it the present
Be here now.
Well some of these politicians lately
They sure got a lot to learn
But I don’t guess they ever will
Cause they always fightin’ bout getting’ their turn
They say just get me elected
I promise I’ll getcha paid up somehow
But we’d all be a lot better off if they’d just
Be Here Now
Why do they try
To carry ‘round the past so long?
It’s like they’ll only hear the same old song
And why do they try
To make us worry ‘bout what might happen?
Ain’t no predictin’ where lightnin’ will be zappin’
And why do they lie
And try to say that what is isn’t?
Every moment is a gift
That’s why they call it the present
Be here now.
It’s been a long time since I seen you baby
And the mornin’s soon to come
So let’s get right to music makin’
No time to tune the drum
Mind as well get a little good lovin’ in
Just as much as time will allow
And I believe time will ‘low a little more
If we just Be Here Now
Why would we try
To carry ‘round the past so long?
Like we’ll only hear the same old song
And why would we cry
And worry ‘bout what might happen?
Ain’t no predictin’ where lightnin’ will be zappin’
And why would we lie
And try to say that what is isn’t?
Every moment is a gift
That’s why they call it the present
Be here now.
8. Dr. Sethi
Doctor Sethi
Your eyes and mine are fixed upon the same star
Though we watch from worlds apart
The sweetest sound to ever fill my humble home
Is humming still within your heart
I recall the tears you cried
The night your child became my bride
Seven times around the flame
We share a life, a love, a name
And though the years have moved her many miles
When you see her now
You see your smiling child
Doctor Sethi
You could have done what so many have done before
You could have locked your daughter’s door
But when I asked
With humble heart and hair a mess
Something made you tell me yes
This child, you said, is touched by God
I said I’d felt this all along
You asked will I provide for her
I said she’d be my pride in work
And though these calloused hands no riches hold
Each year a little more our garden grows
Doctor Sethi
So many times I stumble through my words to you
Hoping not to sound untrue
But after all
There’s only one thing that I want to say to you
Thank you
9. Meditations on Mom
The first smile I ever saw
Was a smile that held life’s sweetness
The promise of a poem
The kind of smile that holds your heart
And says you’re not alone
That smile has been a gift to me
As long as I’ve been around
It’s still the sweetest smile
I’ve ever found
The first eyes that looked in mine
Had a depth that can’t be measured
A heart that shines in teardrops
Eyes that look into troubled souls
With love that lets the fear stop
Those eyes have seen the best in me
As long as I’ve been around
Their still the gentlest eyes
I’ve ever found
The first song I ever heard
Was a lullaby with blue notes
Soothing as a gentle wind
Even if the memory fades
The melody will never end
That song has been like a seed in my soul
May it ever grow
It’s still the sweetest song
I’ll ever know
10. Carmella
Ray Charles was on the old stereo
In the distance a train was whinin’ low
I looked up and saw a smile sweet and mellow
I was dancin’ on the feet of Carmella
There were dumplins on the stove and in the air
A lot of time love and soul had gone in there
We couldn’t help but feel happy that day
Carmella had made it that way
And there were seven silly seventies girls
Each one a unique little world
And they all found their own lucky fella
Who never fell out of love
With Carmella
Down the stairs come our old Papa Jack
Heart of gold, dirty mouth, hair of black
Everything that he’d say’d make you grin
And Carmella would laugh like the wind.
We were longing to be there again
As we held on to each other’s hand
Water flowed underneath our umbrella
Seven roses at the feet of Carmella
We had all been a babe in her arms
Hel close to her heart like a charm
We couldn’t help but feel happy that day
Carmella had made it that way.
11. Crazy Time
Crazy Time. (Chords and Lyrics)
D A G D
Have you seen a brighter day to be outside or Is it just the way it seems?
A G D
Nothing’s in a hurry, kind of makes a blurry line between your days and dreams
G A D
What have you been feelin, where have you been healin, what have you found time to do?
G A D
Maybe I could be wrong, but I heard a bird song Tellin me to sing for you
G D A7 b- A G f#-
What a strange twist is this when distance is our power
e- D A
It’s unlike any war I’ve seen
G D A7 b- A G f#-
But what do you do when a kid wants to give you a flower
e- D A
In the middle of a quarantine?
e- f#- A G A D
And isn’t it a crazy time? Now we’ve seen everything on Prime
b- A G f#- e- D C G
Jack and Jill may be still goin up that hill, but now they go one at a time
A D
And isn’t it a crazy time?
We’re in this together, anyone can get it, anyone can spread it too
Like misinformation it don’t take vacations, but it don’t lie like leaders do
Kind of on our own here, up against our own fears, lookin for a chance to shine
This could be rehersal, maybe something worse will make us be our best next time
G D A7 b- A G f#-
What a strange twist is this when distance is our power
e- D A
It’s unlike any war I’ve seen
G D A7 b- A G f#-
But what do you do when a kid wants to give you a flower
e- D A
In the middle of a quarantine?
e- f#- A G A D
And isn’t it a crazy time? TP, THC and wine
b- A G f#- e- D C G
Stock up but don’t hoard don’t go over board, save some for the next in line
A D
And isn’t it a crazy time?
12. Anachronistic Man
Well I was born in the 1970s
And I been there all my life
All this new technology
Is lost on the likes of me
There’s nothing sounds so heavenly
As a song that’s born from strife
And every time I have the blues
There’s a smile inside of me
I have lived life like a hobo
And a poet vagabond
Made sure I had plenty of time
Just to lay around and wonder why
I have played some stages solo
Till I joined in a one-man-band
Got saved by a heavenly angel
And I didn’t even have to die
Anachronistic man
Somehow that’s who I am
Moving to some ancient rhythm
Looking for some long lost rhyme
Like a stranger in a strange land
I’m anachronistic man
A man who is old timey
May be ahead of his time
13. The Old Man in the Moon
I’ve seen a billion buildings
All tryin’ to scrape the sky
I have to hold my laugh in
To think they think they’re high
And I’ve seen nations who revered me
But they all ended way too soon
I see everything so clearly
For I’m the old man in the moon
And I’ve heard all of your love songs
And there’s three or four I dig
All the ones that sing about me
I guess I made it big
Ah but if you saw what I’ve seen
You’d sing a different tune
No one knows just what the night brings
Like the old man in the moon
And I’ve been through every window
And I never make a sound
And I guess no one ever will know
The times I been around
And you’ve caught me in your gravity
But I’m hip to all your doin’
A tawdry tragic comedy
For the old man in the moon
14. My Name is Truth
Please pardon me
I hate to beg your spare change, but I gotta eat
Seems hard to see
I still recall the strange days they called me elite
My name was spoken with reverence
Held in the highest regard
Leaders enlisted my leverage
Knowing I’d bestow rewards
You ask me my name so I’ll tell you
You knew me well in your youth
These days I don’t know what they call me
All the same my name is Truth, All the same my name is Truth
These days it seems
Positions of power are bought, with no thought for me
Was it a dream?
I still recall how they fought, and sought only me
Children were taught to respect me
A reverence for me was instilled
Now they don’t know where to find me
I don’t know if they ever will
You ask me my name so I’ll tell you
Just don’t expect any proof
These days I don’t know what they call me
All the same my name is Truth, All the same my name is Truth
You ask me my name so I’ll tell you
You knew me well in your youth
These days I don’t know what they call me
All the same my name is Truth, All the same my name is Truth
15. In This Life
In this life, you got to be so alive, in this life
There are those that survive in this life
Never knowing how to live
Always rather take than give
In this life, when you just look around in this life
When the old walls come down in this life
The truth will come to set it free
But first you’ve got to let it be
I can’t believe that you’d believe a ballot buyin billionair
Blastin out his battle cries and bankin on them building fear
Beatin down the bible belt and bettin that they’ll buy his prayer
“Please let me win”
In this life, have you no room for doubt in this life?
Have you figured it out in this life?
If you’re so sure of your belief, then why you always grit your teeth?
In this life, where the days fall like rain in this life
There’s no cause to complain in this life
Listen to the birds’ refrain, they don’t know the word complain.
I can’t believe that you’d believe a ballot buyin billionair
Blastin out his battle cries and bankin on them building fear
Beatin down the bible belt and bettin that they’ll buy his prayer
“Please let me win”
In this life, you got to be so alive in this life
There are those that survive in this life
Never knowing how to live
Always rather take than give.
16. Living Man
Well when I look at you, I don’t see a dying man
Oh no, I see a living man
Lord knows we cannot know, The mysterious master plan
But we can feel our way, And we can keep on living
You might be thinkin you’ve lost your destiny
But you still got time
The work of living and finding harmony
Doesn’t end with dyin
Well when the master spoke, He spoke in poetry
My Lord, Yes this is known to me
I believe the Holy Ghost, Is part of you and me
And the soul, Lives in eternity
You might be thinkin you’ve lost your destiny
But you still got time
The work of living and finding harmony
Doesn’t end with dyin
And when I look at you, I don’t see a dying man
Oh no, I see a living man
The pain and tears in life, Bring grace and growth within
My friend, I pray you keep on living
17. Broken Wing
Broken wing, what will you do?
When the skies seem stacked against you
And the pain is too intense for you
What was easy stuff is hard enough these days
Flyin’s changed from what it used to be
There’s so much beauty, so much agony
Not as graceful, but somehow now
Full of grace
When the storm grows in intensity
And the wind blows in uncertainty
Father Time just seems to kick ya’ passin’ by
All your plans held down with gravity
What you had fell to what had to be
Broken wing, what will you do?
You’ll fly
Disc 2
1. Chair Dancin Girl
I got a chair dancing girl yeah, she moves to the beat in her seat
You never seen such movin when the band gets a groove that’s sweet
You’d swear the chair’d start smokin from friction and steam and heat
Chair dancin, chair dancin, that’s what my baby does
Chair dancin, chair dancin, like a kid on a bumpy bus
I got a chair dancing girl yeah, she dances on 6 legs
She get a shimmy in her hip like a chicken on a soft boiled egg
When she can’t find a chair catch her dancing on a pony keg
Chair dancin, chair dancin, that’s what my baby does
Chair dancin, chair dancin, like a kid on a bumpy bus
I got a chair dancing girl yeah, she got me chair dancin too
I’m really cuttin a rug and I don’t even tie my shoe
Sometimes we get in synch and then 4 cheeks will move as 2
Chair dancin, chair dancin, that’s what my baby does
Chair dancin, chair dancin, like a kid on a bumpy bus
I got a chair dancing girl yeah! I got a chair dancing girl yeah! I got a chair dancing girl yeah!
2. Champaign Annie
We found ourselves in the middle of the painted desert
With the sun-baked rainbows jumpin’ at the sky
And we found ourselves in the middle of the land of grizzlies
Without a thing to do but wonder why
And now we find ourselves out on this old road
Creepin’ up on the same old sleepy town
And it’s all that I can do
To roll along with you
Champaign Annie, please don’t let me down
So many times I made you bear my burdens
Just to leave you standin’ in the rain
You’d smile your nervous smile
And you’d go the extra mile
And you never stopped to grumble or complain
Now every stretch of road is paved with questions
And every bend could spin this wagon round
And it’s all that I can do
To roll along with you
Champaign Annie please don’t let me down
You’ve always been the one to keep me movin’
You brought me out of many miles of pain
And I guess I never guessed
That you might need some rest
I guess I always thought you’d stay the same
No I never thought your backbone might be breakin’
And I might end up pushin’ you around
But it’s all that I can do
To roll along with you
Champaign Annie please don’t let me down
3. Where Time Goes. (Chords and Lyrics)
E
Well you can make enough, to make a little nest
A
You can make love even can make it last
E B7
You can make a bet, and hope the dice pass
E
But you can’t make time
You can make me beg and you can make me wait
You can make a move you can make the date
You can make hay so it don’t get late cause you can’t make time
(Bridge1) A E
You can’t make time, though you might can bend it some
F#7 (b5) B7
But you’re still gonna wind up old, and start out young
E A E
Make your case and make your break, make a face that’ll take the cake
B7 E
There’s a whole bunch on things you can make but you can’t make time
(Solo over verse)
You can make jokes, and make believe
…you can make like a tree and leave
…you can keep an ace up your sleeve but you can’t make time
You can make shine and you can raise cain
Some people say they can make it rain
You can make a whole lotta trouble and pain but you can’t make time
(Bridge2 ) A E
You can’t make time, though you might can bend it some
But it’s still just a one way ride, that you gonna bum
So make your case and make your break, make a face that’ll take the cake
There’s a whole bunch of things you can make, but you can’t make time
(Solo over verse)
(Bridge 3) A E
You can’t make time, though you might can bend it some
Well it may or may not run out but it’s gonna run
So You can make a guess but who can say, Where time goes when it slips away
But you can make the most out of every day, cause you can’t make time
Yeah you can make the most out of every day, cause you can’t make time
4. Back Roads Boogie
I got a little gal down Georgia way
She called me up just the other day
She said “sweet daddy I’m here all alone”
She might have said more but I done dropped the phone
I did the back roads boogie
Such an easy ride
Back roads boogie, boogie down the countryside
It’s rush hour traffic it’s a quarter past five
A farmer on a tractor lettin’ his little boy drive
I slam on the brakes and I stop with some screeches
I see a roadside stand I gotta stop and get some peaches
Doin’ the back roads boogie
Such an easy ride
Back roads boogie, boogie down the countryside
Out on the interstate you just can’t win
With all the big big-rigs pinning you in
But the back roads boogie is just my style
Open it up down the country miles
And do the back roads boogie
Such an easy ride
Back roads boogie, boogie down the countryside.
5. Full Moon
Full moon, on the rise,
With the sun, in your eyes
You've seen, lows and highs,
And on darkest of nights you have shown us your crooked smile
You're always the same, you're ever true
And you, always change, You're ever new
You shine, out of sight,
When some clouds, hide your light
Then out, of the blue,
You delight and surprise with our eyes wide and full of you
You're always the same, you're ever true
And you, always change, you're ever new
My love, never fades,
It just waxes and wanes
Some doubts, cloud your mind,
But in time you'll be sure you're adored by this heart of mine
I'm always the same, I'm ever true
And I always change, I'm ever new
6. Rhythm in the Wind
Rhythm in the wind it brings me back to you my friend
I feel you beside me
Rhythm in our song it seems with us you still belong
Always here to guide me
Rhythm in my day sometimes I feel I’m swept away
In this drum roll that time is
Rhythm in the night in darkened dreams I’ll have the sight
Your eyes smile in kindness
Bridge: I’ll, hold your melody, that you showed to me
Like a holy key to be with you, more than in my mind,
More like in the times I’d sing beside you
Rhythm from your hands the skin would sing at your command
Dancing in the thunder
Rhythm in my heart would jump as soon as you would start
Smiling at the wonder
Rhythm in my soul throughout the ages it will roll
Easy as your laughter
Rhythm of our lives the story’s end never arrives
With each closing chapter
(Bridge, then 1st verse)
7. Aditi. (instrumental)
8. Dhin Nanaki (Punjabi)
9. Like a Bird With a Broken Wing
Do you ever feel like you’re part of a puzzle
And yet you’re a puzzle yourself?
There ain’t no deal on hearts by the dozen
Ain’t no spare on the shelf
In my head I can hear, all your parts played so clear
Every song seems to miss you tonight
Even though you hang back, you play clear and direct
It seems wrong you’re not here on my right
There ain’t no way to play some of these songs
If you ain’t here to sing
But I guess we’ll keep tryin, at best we’ll be flyin
Like a bird with a broken wing
Every dream that we catch, is like sand in a net
But the band has the heart of the town
Like the strings that we stretch, ‘cross the body and neck
We’re bound as a part of a sound
There’s a hole where there should be your banjo
We could sure use that ring
But I guess we’ll keep tryin, at best we’ll be flyin
Like a bird with a broken wing
10. End of the World Blues
It was the day, they were callin’ for the end of the world
When the sky, was gonna fall on the wicked world
They said the good would be taken home
While us sinners would be left alone
And that’s just what happened on the day
For the end of the world
Well they said, that the signs couldn’t be more clear
Armageddon gettin’ closer in the rearview mirror
People quit their jobs and packed their grips
Gettin’ ready for the ‘pocalypse
The day came and went
But it still was the end of the world
She disappeared in the blink of an eye
What was weird was she didn’t say why
On the day, they were callin’ for the end of the world
When a fire, was gonna fall on the wicked world
They said the good would be taken away
While us sinners would be left to stay
And that’s just what happened on the day
For the end of the world
She disappeared in the blink of an eye
What was weird was she didn’t say why
On the day, they were callin’ for the end of the world
When a fire, was gonna fall on the wicked world
People profit from these prophesies
But it’s just another rapture tease
But the start of my heart’s decease
Was the end of the world
Yeah the start of my heart’s decease
Was the end of the world
11. Big Business
Gonna give all my business to the small business leave big business alone
The big corporations done warped the nation with carbon copies and clones
Mister Quick Fix turns cheap tricks into grist he grinds into greed
While Miss Mother Nature gets cold dissed while she holds all that we need
Gonna go back to the old time ways that never got goin’ back then
Try to live as if big business never been
The small business man does the best he can but he holds a hard heavy hand
Cause the rent collector’s got no respect for the sweat that his debts demand
Creativity tends to atrophy from complacency with the known
It takes soul power to be the small flower in the field where tall weeds have grown
Gonna go back to the old time ways that never got goin’ back then
Try to live as if big business never been
So let your TV be a novelty so it don’t sleep in your soul
It’s a big distraction it’s a small fraction that tries to seem like the whole
All the noise makers and the music fakers, the greedy takers and drones
Let ‘em have their business cause they’re sure gonna miss us
When we get our own
Gonna go back to the old time ways that never got goin’ back then
Try to live as if big business never been
12. The Great Reuniting
There’s been a great reuniting
On the banks of Galilee
‘Cross the river Jordan
They’re together again
Doc and Merle and Rosalie
The songs of the Blue Ridge Mountains
Like our souls they’ll never die
And the heavenly ring
Of that old steel string
Unbroken in the By and By
Were the old time founding fathers
There to greet you at the golden gate?
Were the Singin’ Brakeman
And Uncle Dave Macon
Among the angels there to celebrate
Troubles trials and tribulations
You had ‘em plenty in your pilgrim years
Now your life crown is won
And you’re back with your son
And you both see straight and clear
There’s been a great reuniting
Of a soulful family
On a high mountain wind
Carried to Beulah Land
Where their cares have been set free
Salt Creek will keep on runnin’
Deep River never will run dry
And those old mountain blues
Still proclaim the good news
That the soul will never die.
13. Talkin Sugar Mountain Blues
Well I was standing on an Appalachian peak
And them hills just seemed to roll on through the week
I felt high and I felt wholesome and my mind was overdosin
On a view that left me holy, mild and meek
Well I gazed south and I felt a rush of heavenly bliss
I gazed north and tears of joy I could not resist
I gazed west and I wished I had with me
Ma and Pa for this epiphany
But then I gazed east and godalmighty was I pissed
For there was no way my eyes could get around
This obtrusive, odd obstruction they had found
And in the middle of God’s great wonder
Plain as day and loud as thunder
Sugar Mountain resort stood there on sacred ground
You don’t hang Van Gogh in the bathroom
You don’t sing Handel’s Messiah Karaoke
You don’t put no frame round the sunshine
Sugar Mountain, you just don’t belong
Well I peered through my binoculated glasses
And I spied the sign on the front lawn where fresh cut grass is
It said “welcome to Sugar Mountain where the fun flows like a fountain
And we welcome all the upper social classes
Well there were limousines and slot machines
And putting greens and winey teens
And a hair saloon with some frizzy hairs
And a petting zoo with some grizzly bears
And indoor Jacuzzis and 3-D movies
And any time tellers and real-estate sellers
And the view from it was effervescent
But the view of it was less than pleasant
You don’t hang Van Gogh in the bathroom
You don’t sing Handel’s Messiah Karaoke
You don’t put no frame round the sunshine
Sugar Mountain, you just don’t belong
Well you can steal the beauty and then collect the pay
Let your fancy flow like the stream from a baday
But in time your walls will tumble and all your greenback dollars crumble
And the hill where you once stood will softly say…
You don’t hang Van Gogh in the bathroom
You don’t sing Heebie Jeebies Karaoke
You don’t put no frame round the sunshine
Sugar Mountain, you just don’t belong
14. Some Sweet Day
Well let us see the sunrise
From your eyes
Some sweet day, some sweet day
When we leave all fear behind
We will find you all the time
Let us see the sunrise
From your eyes
Some sweet day, some sweet day
Let us feel the cool breeze
Of sweet peace
Some sweet day
This old road is getting hotter
Takin us further from the Father
But let us feel the cool breeze
Of sweet peace
Some sweet day, some sweet day
Well let us take the cross down
Stand on solid ground
Some sweet day, some sweet day
So the next time there come a savior
We won’t show him such bad behavior
Let us take the cross down
Stand on solid ground
Some sweet day, some sweet day
Well let us see the sunrise
Through your eyes
Some sweet day
When we leave all fear behind us
We will see the tie that binds us
Let us see the sunrise
Through your eyes
Some sweet day, some sweet day
15. Trouble With the Mailman. (Chords and Lyrics)
E
I been havin trouble with the mailman
F#-
Never bring me nothin I can use
D A C#-
Bunch of wasted paper tryin to sell me something
B7 E
Reminders about my dues
E
I know there’s a letter in that mail bag
F#-
From my lovin darlin far away
D A C#-
All that I can do is dream its been delivered
B7 E
Imagine what it’ll say
A
“How you been my baby I been missin your touch
G
I just had to write you cause I love you so much
E A
I been too forlorn to call you now my tears are fallin for you
E A B7+
And they blurred some of my words I lerf yerf”
E
I been havin trouble with the mailman
F#-
What he’s got against me I can’t say
D A C#-
He won’t put the letter in my poor old mailbox
B7 E
From my darlin far away
16. Bye Bye Baby (trad/Jay Brown)
Oh it’s bye bye pretty baby, baby bye bye
Bye bye pretty baby, baby bye bye
If I never see you any more
May God bless you every where you go
And it’s bye bye pretty baby, baby bye bye
Oh it’s even the best of friends surely must part
Even the best of friends surely must part
If we just couldn’t stand to see the end
We never should have made a start
And it’s bye bye pretty baby, baby bye bye
It’s a long lonesome road and it never ends
It’s a long lonesome road and it never ends
It’s a long lonesome road, pretty mama and it never ends
But I know it sure is callin me back again
Oh it’s bye bye pretty baby, baby bye bye
Bye bye pretty baby, baby bye bye
If I never see you any more
May God bless you every where you go
And it’s bye bye pretty baby, baby bye bye
Disc 3
1. Dance Till We Drop
We’ll dance till we drop rules and reservations
We’ll dance till we drop heady hesitations
We’ll dance till we drop every non-elation
When we dance till we drop
We’ll dance till we drop spinal rigiditus
We’ll dance till we drop tryin to win uptightest
We’ll dance till we drop all that don’t delight us
When we dance till we drop
Get up and get down with me
Lock in with the tambourine
2. Troublesome Times
Troublesome times, anywhere you travel its troublesome times
Changes on changes, pavement on gravel, money on minds
The people shout more, the more they stop listenin
Who is gonna hear the whisperin pines?
Troublesome times, anywhere you travel its troublesome times
River of Time, have you been polluted by man unkind?
We build on your banks, but you just flow through it, leave it behind
The things that ought to change will hold on for ages
Things that ought to stay the same always change
River of Time, have you been polluted by man unkind?
Troublesome times, anywhere you travel its troublesome times
Hard to hear the chimes of freedom through the clamor
of angry closed minds
While we’re tossed on the storm out on this ocean
May you be strong, beware and be kind
Troublesome times, anywhere you travel its troublesome times
3. Revelry
Sometimes I don’t feel, this thumpin heart of mine
But I love you, I’ll prove it every time
Daydreams can feel more real, than dayjobs and deadlines
But I’d love to, daydream side by side
Sometimes I don’t feel, like talkin on the phone
But I love you, so I pick up and say hello
Yeah I know that’s the deal, and I know where I’m at home
And I’d love to, never let you go
Revelry, well I know it won’t be long
Till you drop in on me
Dancin free, like we don’t know right from wrong
But just what’s meant to be
Sometimes I don’t feel, like singin these old songs
But I’d love to, if you’ll just sing along
Some guys cheat and steal, just to have more empty homes
But I’d love to, have just this one with you
Revelry…
Sometimes don’t you feel, like we got swept away
In a river, that only flows one way
Riddles hold what’s real, like how did we end up here
But I love you, forever and today
4.Maybe it’s the Weather
Maybe it’s the weather but I been feelin overcast and grey
I don’t think I’m alone in
Lookin up and groanin
It’s just that it feels that way
Even if I never saw another golden sunlight ray
If I could see your dark eyes
I wouldn’t mind the dark skies
And you could kiss the clouds away
Maybe it’s the weather but I can’t get you off my mind tonight
The way the restless wind blows
Rain against my windows
Just shows me how I’ve been so dry
If a star was fallin I’d be callin it my guiding light
Clouds hang around and cover
Skies of star-crossed lovers
And I can’t see no stars tonight
Maybe it’s the weather but I don’t see me getting out today
I’ll hold up in my shelter
Remembering how it felt here
When I had you here to stay
Rain don’t last forever and the sun will shine again, they say
If I could hold you to me
It wouldn’t seem so gloomy
And you could kiss the clouds away
5. Stage By the Bar
I give thanks for the kindness of strangers
They open their mangers, put tips in my jar
Songs have their lines and their changes
Days have their dangers, nights have their charms
And the hours run circles round me
Flowers fade fast when they’re free
Stars come and go, on with the show
Love is the one trick I know
I give thanks for the road that I’ve traveled
The gold and the gravel, got me this far
Songs find a way to unravel, I’m back in the saddle
The stage by the bar (chorus)
6. Little Brother is Watchin
Little Brother is watchin, with a billion eyes
Anything you’d wanna hide
Could be busted open wide
Just over night
Little Brother is watchin
Catch you by surprise
You’d better act as though you mother
Sees the way you treat your brother
Cause she just might!
Broken web you been spinnin
Left a sticky mess
Cookin the books and getting burned
Well it looks as thought you learned
It from the best
You can think you are winnin
When your time is passed
And the truth you thought you’d crushed
Grew like weeds and spread like rust
It never rests
Little Brother is watchin
Every glass eye sees
Yeah the truth will set you free
But if you don’t turn the key
Enjoy your stripes
Little Brother is watchin
Fearsome fast and free
You’d better act as though your mother sees the way you treat your brother
Cause she just might
You better act as though your brother sees the way you treat your mother
Cause he just might
You better act as though you lover sees the way you treat another
Cause she just might
And he just might
And we just might!
7. Old Rebels
Old rebels the dust settles and then
There you are on your own, again
Lost battles with dark forces of greed
Who said that love is all you need?
Don’t turn the tv on
You’ll just loose all hope
Old tire on the rope swing’s gone
Now it’s just a rope
Old rebels this cold meddlesome world
Never gave you your just reward
Old rebels the storm settles you down
Feel your feet firm on shaky ground
Lost causes that you fought for the most
When never give up gave up the ghost
Songs on the radio
Fed the fire in your soul
Now they play songs you don’t know
That never rock or roll
Old rebels you raised hell for some peace
But what will it take till war retreats?
8. Good Old Young Love
That good old young love
We’re both catchin the same shootin stars above
Day dreamin, moon swoonin
Free feelin, soul soothing
Talkin bout good old young love
That good old young love
When the moment’s right we seem to feel a shove
Strange feelings, new teachings
Nights full of no sleepin
Talkin bout good old young love
The way you bake your cake you make mw wanna take
A piece of you or two
I wanna wake up with a new love every day
And that new love is you
That good old young love
Time runs so fast one day it will catch up
Fast fly the fleet fates
The heart is a clean slate
Growin old with good old young love
9. Down Spiral Blues
Things are goin’ from bad to worse
But I guess they’re getting’ better
Ever get the feelin’ the autopilot’s blown a fuse
Tried to get the message out
But nobody read my letter
Run here pretty mama
I got them down spiral blues
TV’s got a sales pitch on
Then they cut to the commercial
Ever get to wonderin’ just what happened to the news?
Tried to get the C-span on
But they must have missed rehearsal
Run here pretty mama
I got them down spiral blues
We been wearin’ the tread out
We could crash this turn
If the banks would just get the lead out
We’d all have cash to burn
Money’s an elite disease
But the dirty hands won’t spread it
Ever get the notion to occupy some hobo shoes?
Tried to patent love and peace
But someone already said it
Run here pretty mama
I got them down spiral blues
10. The Radio These Days
Well where is the love on the radio these days?
There’s mountains of music just wasting away
This country’s been blessed with a billion great songs
So why do they keep playing Bang a Gong?
We shouldn’t have to listen to Barracuda
5 times a day if we’re not in the mooda
And the same goes for Ratt, and White Snake and Poison
Take the tight pants off boys and put corduroys on
These days don’t it seem like the radio’s sole function
Is to decrease uniqueness while increasing production
But I don’t feel like workin, I feel more like dyin
Every day, when they play that some song by White Lion
And where is the love on the radio these days
Jimi Hendrix did more than just Purple Haze
And the DJ keeps sayin he was born to rock
But I bet he just says that when he’s on the clock
And where is the love on the radio now
Rock and Roll ain’t a brand on a corporate cash cow
But even if it was, and it just said “moo”
It still would sound better than the swill that they spew
And where is the love on this radio abyss
Only one place, and that’s public access
So send your contributions, to keep em around,
And thank em for being the saviors of sound
11. In Your Laughin Smile
I never knew you in your prime, but I can see it in my mind’s eye
Corduroy professor findin joy and pleasure in your work and play
You could be a wise guide and you could also be a wise guy
Spicin up your story risin for the glory of the day
That was another time and time’s moved on a while
But somehow I see it all in your laughin smile
In your laughin smile, in your laughin smile
Somehow I see it all in your laughin smile
Well once you cross the silver line sometimes the world can turn a blind eye
When you should get a medal for getting past the middle of this bumpy ride
You seen a lot of stardust fly before it burned out of the night sky
Seen a lot of livin with your lovin lady by your side
That was another time and time’s moved on a while
But somehow I see it all in your laughin smile
In your laughin smile, in your laughin smile
Somehow I see it all in your laughin smile
12. Not Made of Stone
Precious people in my life
I don’t want to see a world
Without you
I found out that my home
Is a feelin’
Than I get any time when I’m with you
Every day is a gift and a thief
Every loss is also a relief
Every dream that I’ve ever achieved
Has left me with one less dream
I know we’re not made of stone
Winds of time have no trouble
Sweeping through
And everything I’ll ever hold
Will be healing me
While it’s breaking this true heart in two
I know we’re not made of stone
But I don’t want to see a world
Without you
I found out that my home
Is a feelin’
That I get anywhere when I’m with you
13. Jack’s Song
Once there was a boy, he was wise beyond his years
Wiser than most old men that I’ve known
He was full of love for life, and death he did not fear
He always seemed to know where he was goin
He was just a boy, he had a smile so free
But he was something like the man from Galilee
Everywhere that he did go he preached the holy word
Praising God in pain as well as pleasure
Never one for judgment he was meek yet self assured
Always with his eye upon the treasure
He was just a boy, no whiskers on his chin
But he was something like the man born in Bethlehem
Like the morning sun he shined his light for just a while
Fading from our view to new horizons
Close your eyes and you will see his handsome holy smile
Hear his words of mirth and mysticism
He was just a boy, he loved to eat ice-cream
But he was something like the man called the Nazarean
Once there was a boy, he was a teacher to us all
Worthy of our tears and celebration
Bound together we shall be, all creatures great and small
Strengthened by the pain of separation
The child of a carpenter, and mother Mary
And he knew that he had not much time to tarry
14. Leaving Winter
Winter has come in with the wind
Frozen branches out on a limb
Christmas slipped off on a sleigh
Now it’s a new year today
Even the coldest mountain winter
Couldn’t freeze time at all
Your thoughts melt the ice in my mind
When with you I feel life is kind
Dark phantoms left from a curse
With your soft breath they’re dispersed
After the long cold mountain winter
You’ll hear a robin call
This winter’s just fine for snowmen
But me I’m down the line once again
The next drink of shine from this moon
Spring will be priming her tune
Even the coldest mountain winter
Couldn’t freeze time at all
Your smile has the warmth of sunshine
Dancin dresses on a clothesline
What of the ice and the snow?
Water for flowers to grow
After the long cold mountain winter
You’ll hear a robin call
15. One Windy Day
A boy and a dog
And a little green ball
Were playin one day on the beach
They were havin great fun
Runnin under the sun
Laughin and barkin in the sand
Till along came a breeze
Blew the ball out to sea
Too far for the boy and dog to reach
And the undertow was strong
So it wasn’t too long
The little ball was miles away from land
Well the little green ball seemed exceedingly small
If you saw it floating on the mighty sea
To the seagulls it seemed
Just a little speck of green
The fishes thought it was a bobber
But to one boy and girl
It seemed big as the world
The two little castaway fleas
Two lovebugs in June
On a fleas honeymoon
Lyin out by the pool of dog slobber
Well the little green ball floated on and on
And the fleas multiplied and prospered
Flocks of fleas of every color
Every class and every creed
Living in peaceful harmony
Days and nights drizzled down
As they floated around
Riding on waves and crosscurrents
And they never did fight
Or act out of spite
None of them would even harm a flea
Till there came the dark hour
When the weather turned sour
And many a flea lost his life at sea
That was when there appeared
The dark shadow of fear
And the fleas began pleas for security
But on how to provide it
The fleas were divided
Flea unity flew out the window
And though the weather had cleared
They still lived in fear
For uncertainty grows like the wind blows
Flealigion appeared
To fight off the fear
And the fleas began praying to Dog
Each Flealigion claimed
To know Dog’s name
And each one hated the other
Some fleas got mad
And had a jihad
For the glory of their Dog Chuallah
Other fleas got saved
And waged a crusade
For the glory of their Dog Jerover
Flea countries emerged with their flea flags flyin
Fighting for their place in the sun
The Chi-fleas fought the So-fleates
The Redcoats fought the Blues
The Euro-fleans fought The Aflea-kans
The Flea-rabs fought the Flews
The United Fleas fought in Fleat-nam
Nobody knows who won
The Flea Flux Flan fought in Birmingham
And they all fought eachother ‘fore it was all said and done.
But the country that won
The place in the sun
Was the one called United Fleas
Round the top of the ball
They put up a wall
But of course any flea could hop over it
And to make matters worse
Their leader was cursed
With the flip floppin fib flea affliction
He jabbered and jeered
And stirred up the fear
And he secretly worked for the Sofleates
Well no one ever saw
That little green ball
Since that one windy day on the beach
Didn’t bother the boy
He had other toys
And the dog never once missed the fleas
But it still floats along
Like some lonesome old song
With never a soul within ear’s reach
Just a planet of fleas
A drift on the sea
In the middle of ball war 3
16. Are You Gonna Be the One?
Sun burnin’ from the light of the moon
Table’s turnin’ on the old silver spoon
Fingers yearnin’ for the touch of a tune
To turn them on
Two voices in the same pair of shoes
New noises leave you too scared to choose
Some choices stick with you like tattoos
You burn them on
Are you gonna be the one
Are you gonna be the one
Are you gonna be the one
To break my heart?
Eye lashes out at old flame’s gleam
Time clashes with a beautiful dream
Light flashes on a free flowin’ stream
And then it’s gone
Your lips tremble from the things that you heard
My thoughts are nimble but I trip on the words
Just remember that the heart of o bird
Is in its song
Are you gonna be the one
Are you gonna be the one
Are you gonna be the one
To break my heart?
17. Glad You Did
Never seen your face before
I guess I’m gonna see it more
Never thought the time would come
I didn’t want you on the run
Never thought that I’d begin
To think of you with more than sin
Never thought that you could break
The spell of my first bad mistake
But you did, and I’m glad you did
Yes you did, and I’m glad you did
Never heard you sing out loud
But I bet that it would thrill my soul
Never really heard the lines
Or known the moments in the times
That fall between the notes I play
Till you showed me where they are one day
Never thought you’d like to guess
At wonders of the wilderness
But you did, and I’m glad you did
Yes you did, and I’m glad you did
Always thought you came across
As just another coin to toss
Always thought the world was blind
Everybody slipped my mind
The only thing to free my soul
If someone lost my self control
But you did, and I’m glad you did
Yes you did, and I’m glad you did

Lyrics from Empathy and Comedy
Nothing is Yours, Nothing is Mine
My brother and me on the seashore, Still in the age of wonder
Such colors we’d never seen before, and of them we made a plunder
We carried those sea stones back home, across seven states
But of all those magic colors, there was not a trace
You lasso the moon, you won’t see it shine
Nothing is yours, nothing is mine, nothing is yours, nothing is mine
You may be a bigshot billionaire, with your own jet airliner
Buyin up houses everywhere, full of expensive china
Losin your cool when they get, your order wrong
You know all the best attorneys, but not the best songs
Check out the birds, you won’t hear them whine
Nothing is yours, nothing is mine, nothing is yours, nothing is mine
My children and me will see as one, I know they’ll give me their blessing
Some good things are free like havin fun, jumpin in leaves and laughin
But some things you have to pay for, so we go to work
And there’ll be another day for, just goin bazerk
So sing like a bird, and feel like you’re flyin
Nothing is yours, nothing is mine, nothing is yours, nothing is mine
Revelry
Sometimes I don’t feel, this thumpin heart of mine
But I love you, I’ll prove it every time
Daydreams can feel more real, than dayjobs and deadlines
But I’d love to, daydream side by side
Sometimes I don’t feel, like talkin on the phone
But I love you, so I pick up and say hello
Yeah I know that’s the deal, and I know where I’m at home
And I’d love to, never let you go
Revelry, well I know it won’t be long
Till you drop in on me
Dancin free, like we don’t know right from wrong
But just what’s meant to be
Sometimes I don’t feel, like singin these old songs
But I’d love to, if you’ll just sing along
Some guys cheat and steal, just to have more empty homes
But I’d love to, have just this one with you
Revelry…
Sometimes don’t you feel, like we got swept away
In a river, that only flows one way
Riddles hold what’s real, like how did we end up here
But I love you, forever and today
Little Brother is Watching
Little Brother is watchin, with a billion eyes
Anything you’d wanna hide
Could be busted open wide
Just over night
Little Brother is watchin
Catch you by surprise
You’d better act as though you mother
Sees the way you treat your brother
Cause she just might!
Broken web you been spinnin
Left a sticky mess
Cookin the books and getting burned
Well it looks as thought you learned
It from the best
You can think you are winnin
When your time is passed
And the truth you thought you’d crushed
Grew like weeds and spread like rust
It never rests
Little Brother is watchin
Every glass eye sees
Yeah the truth will set you free
But if you don’t turn the key
Enjoy your stripes
Little Brother is watchin
Fearsome fast and free
You’d better act as though your mother sees the way you treat your brother
Cause she just might
You better act as though your brother sees the way you treat your mother
Cause he just might
You better act as though you lover sees the way you treat another
Cause she just might
And he just might
And we just might!
Empathy and Comedy
Empathy and comedy
May they fill the lives that come to be
All this sugar in the sand
Extracted by the ones who stand up
For this humanity
Comedy and empathy
That double bill is still a rarity
The pacifist who killed our pride
Made us laugh until we cried
The blessed hilarity
Empathy and comedy
Let them combat all this misery
All this screamin in the dust
Bringing things from bad to worse
These macho men and drama queens
But comedy and empathy
Let you laugh off all your apathy
And you’ll be grateful if you try it
To be gentle and a riot
With graceful delivery
Empathy and comedy
Maybe they can save democracy
When the news is rather bleak
And the ads they run for weeks
Just drain the economy
But comedy and empathy
May be the only freedoms that stay free
The silver lining of a laugh
Even if it’s all you have
Can stand up to tyranny
Hook and Line
What did they tell you today? Did you question what they say?
The ones who feel by the way, lost their soul connection
Any time you’re swept up in a crowd, you check out
Why not shine a light on every doubt? Bring it out
Open minds and hearts hold every key, and they’re free
Every war they start starts 2 or 3, history
Is the writing on the wall
When in Rome, rise and fall
What did they tell you to say? Are you sayin it today?
They’d buy and sell you away, with their repetition
From Iran to Land of Liberty, you can see
Always someone tryin to pull your stings, with their schemes
Maybe it’s the corporate machine, on your screen
Or recruiters for Sunni extremes, but it seems
Such a shame to take the bait
Hook and line, greed and hate
All the Old legends
There’s a song for the freeway
There’s a song for the heartbreak
There’s a song for the song’s sake
A song for the loss of the thrill
And there’s a song that you’re writin
There’s a song still in hidin
If you don’t try to find it
Probably nobody will
(Chorus #1) Don’t bar the door she ain’t goin nowhere
She’s seen better days but she smiles anyways
Sayin go on and go where the lonely go dear
Those swingin door might let a song through
All the old legends are leavin us here
They gave us their best then they laid down to rest
Rivers of whisky and buckets of beer
And the songs that we all sing along to
There’s a song for a dragon
And there’s a song to imagine
There’s a song out of fashion
That keeps getting better with age
There’s a song for Muskogee
There’s a song for the lonely
There’s a song tryin to show me
The key to that long lost refrain
(Chorus #2) The Muse is amused by her poet’s despair
He’s seen better days but he tries anyways
Sayin “I’ve got to go where the lonely go dear
Those swingin doors might let a song through
All the old legends are leavin us here
They gave us their best then they laid down to rest
Rivers of whisky and buckets of beer
And the songs that we all sing along to
There’s a song for the changes
Black birds and Brown Angels
Blues caught up in tangles
Ribbons that fall from the hair
Heart of gold tryin to stay free
Diamond shinin like crazy
Purple rain kind of and hazy
Fallin from heaven knows where
(Chorus #3) You give all you got till you get what you need
It all seems sublime when she whispers a rhyme
Sayin I’ll meet you down where the lonely go dear
Those swingin doors might let a song through
All the old legends are leavin us here
They gave us their best then they laid down to rest
Rivers of whisky and buckets of beer
And the songs that we all sing along to
Maybe It’s the Weather
Maybe it’s the weather but I been feelin overcast and grey
I don’t think I’m alone in
Lookin up and groanin
It’s just that it feels that way
Even if I never saw another golden sunlight ray
If I could see your dark eyes
I wouldn’t mind the dark skies
And you could kiss the clouds away
Maybe it’s the weather but I can’t get you off my mind tonight
The way the restless wind blows
Rain against my windows
Just shows me how I’ve been so dry
If a star was fallin I’d be callin it my guiding light
Clouds hang around and cover
Skies of star-crossed lovers
And I can’t see no stars tonight
Maybe it’s the weather but I don’t see me getting out today
I’ll hold up in my shelter
Remembering how it felt here
When I had you here to stay
Rain don’t last forever and the sun will shine again, they say
If I could hold you to me
It wouldn’t seem so gloomy
And you could kiss the clouds away
The Stage by the Bar
I give thanks for the kindness of strangers
They open their mangers, put tips in my jar
Songs have their lines and their changes
Days have their dangers, nights have their charms
And the hours run circles round me
Flowers fade fast when they’re free
Stars come and go, on with the show
Love is the one trick I know
I give thanks for the road that I’ve traveled
The gold and the gravel, got me this far
Songs find a way to unravel, I’m back in the saddle
The stage by the bar (chorus)
Rainbow Children
Turned on the news today, then I wondered what I’d done that for
It’s another doozy of a day with the bombins and the guns and war
Then the president will have his say, and he’ll say it like he just turned 4
How did findin meanin get this hard?
I walked out to feel the day and to hear a little morning song
They sing it out as they jump and play and they never heard of singin wrong
There is something make you feel alright when every other little thing feels wrong
Rainbow Children, dancin in the yard
I started thinkin what the world could be if it didn’t have to be so tough
If hungry people had their needs for free and all the wealthy said enough’s enough
People say it isn’t nature’s way, but you’ll never see a greedy wolf
How did greedy people get this far?
If you take all their BS for true, well I guess that that’s the true you get
If they get you in their game you’re through and you’re losin any way you bet
Somethin true that I’ll bear witness to, a son and daughter sunny day duet
Rainbow Children, dancin in the yard
Get Over That Wall
Alright I get it you like the way he gives ‘em all hell
I’ll give him credit he can give ‘em all hell pretty well
You think he’d slap your back and by you a beer
Call the waitress fat and bartender queer
And then you’d hang on every word that he said
To himself in a mirror
Well hey if that stuff makes you yell yehaw
What’s the use of tellin you that he’s all flaw
But before you cast your ballot better think how you’ll get over that wall
Alright I get it he’s sayin the stuff you’ve felt all along
Deck stacked against you and the cards you’ve been dealt are all wrong
So let the fascist guard your liberty
Huddled masses yearning to breath free
We’ll send their asses back from whence they came
Accept Norwegians and Swedes
Well hey if that stuff makes you yell yehaw
What’s the use of tellin you that he’s all flaw
But before you cast your ballot better think how you’ll get over that wall
What if we let it get a little more like daytime TV
What if we said piss on our future, and our history
Let Jerry Springer moderate the debates
Come out swingin for the United States
Instead of slingin all that mud let ‘em wrestle
In it for a change
Well hey if that stuff makes you yell yehaw
What’s the use of tellin you that he’s all flaw
But before you cast your ballot better think how you’ll get over that wall
My Name is Truth
Please pardon me
I hate to beg your spare change, but I gotta eat
Seems hard to see
I still recall the strange days they called me elite
My name was spoken with reverence
Held in the highest regard
Leaders enlisted my leverage
Knowing I’d bestow rewards
You ask me my name so I’ll tell you
You knew me well in your youth
These days I don’t know what they call me
All the same my name is Truth, All the same my name is Truth
These days it seems
Positions of power are bought, with no thought for me
Was it a dream?
I still recall how they fought, and sought only me
Children were taught to respect me
A reverence for me was instilled
Now they don’t know where to find me
I don’t know if they ever will
You ask me my name so I’ll tell you
Just don’t expect any proof
These days I don’t know what they call me
All the same my name is Truth, All the same my name is Truth
You ask me my name so I’ll tell you
You knew me well in your youth
These days I don’t know what they call me
All the same my name is Truth, All the same my name is Truth
Truth is a Pathless Land
You’ll be walkin on your own before long little child
Even while you’re holding my hand
Truth is a pathless land
I’ll be holding you in my heart and mind
In a way that you have yet to understand
Truth is a pathless land
All the beauty of the earth
And an ever-changing sky
Have filled my eyes
And I’ve tried to sing my songs
For the preciousness of time
But still she flies
And you’ll be walkin on your own before long little child
Even while you’re holding my hand
Truth is a pathless land
Lyrics From Can't Help But Wonder

(c)2016
Troublesome Times
Troublesome times, anywhere you travel its troublesome times
Changes on changes, pavement on gravel, money on minds
The people shout more, the more they stop listenin
Who is gonna hear the whisperin pines?
Troublesome times, anywhere you travel its troublesome times
River of Time, have you been polluted by man unkind?
We build on your banks, but you just flow through it, leave it behind
The things that ought to change will hold on for ages
Things that ought to stay the same always change
River of Time, have you been polluted by man unkind?
Troublesome times, anywhere you travel its troublesome times
Hard to hear the chimes of freedom through the clamor
of angry closed minds
While we’re tossed on the storm out on this ocean
May you be strong, beware and be kind
Troublesome times, anywhere you travel its troublesome times
Aint Much Changed
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
We still meet up, knock down a few cold ones
They built a new prison, between the two old ones
It ain’t much has changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Once a week, we meet in a group
We get together and, hula-hoop
It aint much changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Fat cats takin, all our money
Still cackling cause they, think its funny
It ain’t much has changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much has changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much has changed round here since you been gone
Same TV shows to bore us
Same re-runs, same Chuck Norris
It ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Few new wrinkles on the, same faces
Few new tattoos on some, strange places
It ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
Still stuck in the, same traffic
Still shocked by the, same static
It ain’t much changed round here since you been gone
The Old Man in the Moon
I’ve seen a billion buildings
All tryin’ to scrape the sky
I have to hold my laugh in
To think they think they’re high
And I’ve seen nations who revered me
But they all ended way too soon
I see everything so clearly
For I’m the old man in the moon
And I’ve heard all of your love songs
And there’s three or four I dig
All the ones that sing about me
I guess I made it big
Ah but if you saw what I’ve seen
You’d sing a different tune
No one knows just what the night brings
Like the old man in the moon
And I’ve been through every window
And I never make a sound
And I guess no one ever will know
The times I been around
And you’ve caught me in your gravity
But I’m hip to all your doin’
A tawdry tragic comedy
For the old man in the moon
Eyes of Love
Man of the woods, found a foundation
Strong as a soft open smile
In your hard hands, the best of creation
Beautiful woman and child
Sweet are the times, we share our hearts and minds
Seeing the eyes of love
When life’s unkind, we will come home to find
Welcoming eyes of love
Woman of heart, woman of wisdom,
Woman with healing hands
Where do I start, how can I tell you
That you may understand
You are the one, I’ll always look upon
Only with eyes of love
Sweet are the times, we share our hearts and minds
Seeing the eyes of love
Although the forest, is full of shadows
There is a light that shines through
On the young timbers, so that they can grow
I know that I can grow too
Because the light, is shining on me
Out of the eyes of love
You are the one, I’ll always look upon
Only with eyes of love
The Radio These Days
Well where is the love on the radio these days?
There’s mountains of music just wasting away
This country’s been blessed with a billion great songs
So why do they keep playing Bang a Gong?
We shouldn’t have to listen to Barracuda
5 times a day if we’re not in the mooda
And the same goes for Ratt, and White Snake and Poison
Take the tight pants off boys and put corduroys on
These days don’t it seem like the radio’s sole function
Is to decrease uniqueness while increasing production
But I don’t feel like workin, I feel more like dyin
Every day, when they play that some song by White Lion
And where is the love on the radio these days
Jimi Hendrix did more than just Purple Haze
And the DJ keeps sayin he was born to rock
But I bet he just says that when he’s on the clock
And where is the love on the radio now
Rock and Roll ain’t a brand on a corporate cash cow
But even if it was, and it just said “moo”
It still would sound better than the swill that they spew
And where is the love on this radio abyss
Only one place, and that’s public access
So send your contributions, to keep em around,
And thank em for being the saviors of sound
The Great Reuniting
There’s been a great reuniting
On the banks of Galilee
‘Cross the river Jordan
They’re together again
Doc and Merle and Rosalie
The songs of the Blue Ridge Mountains
Like our souls they’ll never die
And the heavenly ring
Of that old steel string
Unbroken in the By and By
Were the old time founding fathers
There to greet you at the golden gate?
Were the Singin’ Brakeman
And Uncle Dave Macon
Among the angels there to celebrate
Troubles trials and tribulations
You had ‘em plenty in your pilgrim years
Now your life crown is won
And you’re back with your son
And you both see straight and clear
There’s been a great reuniting
Of a soulful family
On a high mountain wind
Carried to Beulah Land
Where their cares have been set free
Salt Creek will keep on runnin’
Deep River never will run dry
And those old mountain blues
Still proclaim the good news
That the soul will never die.
Not Made of Stone Words and music by Jay Brown
Precious people in my life
I don’t want to see a world
Without you
I found out that my home
Is a feelin’
Than I get any time when I’m with you
Every day is a gift and a thief
Every loss is also a relief
Every dream that I’ve ever achieved
Has left me with one less dream
I know we’re not made of stone
Winds of time have no trouble
Sweeping through
And everything I’ll ever hold
Will be healing me
While it’s breaking this true heart in two
I know we’re not made of stone
But I don’t want to see a world
Without you
I found out that my home
Is a feelin’
That I get anywhere when I’m with you
Jack’s Song
Once there was a boy, he was wise beyond his years
Wiser than most old men that I’ve known
He was full of love for life, and death he did not fear
He always seemed to know where he was goin
He was just a boy, he had a smile so free
But he was something like the man from Galilee
Everywhere that he did go he preached the holy word
Praising God in pain as well as pleasure
Never one for judgment he was meek yet self assured
Always with his eye upon the treasure
He was just a boy, no whiskers on his chin
But he was something like the man born in Bethlehem
Like the morning sun he shined his light for just a while
Fading from our view to new horizons
Close your eyes and you will see his handsome holy smile
Hear his words of mirth and mysticism
He was just a boy, he loved to eat ice-cream
But he was something like the man called the Nazarean
Once there was a boy, he was a teacher to us all
Worthy of our tears and celebration
Bound together we shall be, all creatures great and small
Strengthened by the pain of separation
The child of a carpenter, and mother Mary
And he knew that he had not much time to tarry
Free Given Fruit
Soldiers slay each other in the battlefield beyond our door
Many use their bodies to destroy and bring more misery
In our hidden chamber there is nothing we are fighting for
Here we use our bodies for the pleasures that were meant to be
In times of no safety
Your soft sighs sustain me
The taste of free given fruit
Men of darkness taking what they want and leaving only pain
Like a hungry ghost upon the earth who’s never satisfied
When their time is finished they will see that it was all in vain
Never having known a woman’s passion with no fears to hide
These men have such hatred
Because they’ve not tasted
The taste of free given fruit
Dance Till We Drop
We’ll dance till we drop rules and reservations
We’ll dance till we drop heady hesitations
We’ll dance till we drop every non-elation
When we dance till we drop
We’ll dance till we drop spinal rigiditus
We’ll dance till we drop tryin to win uptightest
We’ll dance till we drop all that don’t delight us
When we dance till we drop
Get up and get down with me
Lock in with the tambourine