B i o g r a p h y (by Official Press)
Nina Nastasia's rare gift of a voice is an intimate, winged presence that is able to either freeze or melt your heart, that can powerfully soar and twist, or brush ultra-gently against you, suddenly summoning goose bumps. Mojo commented on its ability to "suck the air out of the room". Picking over themes of love, longing and loss, childhood, dreams and human dramas, her beautifully concise, hook-laden songwriting and the spare arrangements of her band have a certain gritty, rustic charm and intensity. Simultaneously tough and fragile, her songs crackle and smoulder with an intimate emotional honesty and a dark undertow. Now resident in New York City, Nina Nastasia was born and raised in Hollywood, CA. Having moved to New York on a whim, Nina has gradually carved out a career as a singer-songwriter there since the early 'nineties. In October 1999, Nina recorded the album 'Dogs', which would finally document this well-seeded life in music. That debut album came to exemplify her style - the delicate string arrangements; the restrained, understated beauty of her live band; the deceptive simplicity of her voice and poignant, life-wise lyrics. The recording necessitated that Nina and partner Kennan Gudjonsson establish their own vehicle for its advance, and the following year, 'Dogs' was released on micro-indie label Socialist Records. Sold largely at shows and coming in a lush, classic package - letterpress lyrics, hand-mounted photo - by the end of 2000, 'Dogs' had slipped out of print. The costly packaging and tiny infrastructure of Socialist put its re-release on indefinite delay as Nina prepared to record her second album, 'The Blackened Air', in 2001. But 'Dogs' had a special grassroots effect on Nina's career, as fans of the record would correspond across internet message boards and 'zines, discussing songs and soliciting copies of the rare edition. The album would also mark the beginning of a lasting peer-relationship with noted recording engineer Steve Albini, who said of the record in an interview for Mojo magazine: "There are cruel ironies in making albums for a living. In the process of making a record, you hear it so many times that the charms of even the best of them can wear off through over-exposure. On rare occasions, records I've worked on have withstood this scrutiny and ended up being personal favourites. Of these, a good handful are beautiful and sublime, and I listen to them for pleasure. Nina Nastasia's 'Dogs' is a record so simultaneously unassuming and grandiose that I can't really describe it, except in terms that would make it (and me) sound silly. Of the couple thousand records I've been involved with, this is one of my favourites, and one that I'm proud to be associated with." Veteran BBC DJ John Peel got hold of a copy of 'Dogs' and became similarly enamored with it. In an interview with Harper's and Queen, he called it "astonishing" and in Mojo said: "[Nina's] songs are very direct without being posy or too clever. There's an attractive air of melancholy without self-pity." He gave the then-unavailable record constant plays on his Radio 1 show, helping to garner an international demand for 'Dogs'. In April 2002, Nina released her well-received sophomore LP 'The Blackened Air' on Chicago indie label Touch and Go and began an extensive international touring career. 'The Blackened Air' was followed up in 2003 by its darker sister, 'Run to Ruin', again engineered by Albini and released on Touch & Go. In 2004 'Dogs' was finally re-released on Touch & Go, and Nina spent the next year touring across Europe, Russia and the Balkans, and starting work on new material. In that year, she invited friends Sayan Bapa and Kaigal-Ool Khovalyg, founding members of the Tuvan (Siberian) band Huun-Huur-Tu, to join her band for a special tour of the UK. The collaboration was met with much critical acclaim, and Nastasia has since made a side project of performing with Huun-Huur-Tu, most recently in Iceland. In 2006, Nina Nastasia recorded a new album, 'On Leaving' (again recorded by Steve Albini) and signed to a new label, Fat Cat. The move from Touch & Go implies "nothing scandalous," says Nina, "just moving, the way you move sometimes. This is a good move all around." Nina Nastasia's long-standing peer relationship with engineer Steve Albini and musical organizer Kennan Gudjonsson makes its fourth iteration here, and 'On Leaving' is realised as well by veteran members of Nina's band, Dylan Willemsa (viola), Jay Bellerose (drums), Steven Beck (piano) and Jim White (drums).
Dear Rose Oblivion Judy's in the Sandbox Underground A Dog's Life A Love Song Stormy Weather Smiley Roadkill Nobody Knew Her Too Much in Between Jimmy's Rose Tattoo The Long Walk All Your Life 4 Yrs
Run, All You I Go With Him This Is What It Is Oh, My Stars All for You So Little Desert Fly Ugly Face In the Graveyard Ocean Rosemary The Same Day Been So Long The Very Next Day Little Angel That's All There Is
Jim's Room Brad Haunts A Party Our Day Trip Counting Up Your Bones Dumb I am Why Don't You Stay Home One Old Woman Treehouse Song Lee Settling Song Bird Of Cuzco If We Go To The West
Dogs
*** Thanx a lot to Tony & Gary for these lyrics ***
Dear rose Dear rose, I misplaced Everything you gave me You gave me everything Everything And I do apologize And hope you'll think of me As someone who'd do anything Anything for you Oblivion I'm drifting down While you scream past my head Fire away, fly away I wonder what you said And I'm watching you Bare your teeth in a growl Throwing your weight Back and forth down the hall And I'm here in oblivion I don't feel anything When it's time to begin again I won't remember anything at all Could it be something that I said That's making you put poison pins in my bed And I would feel sorry if I could So fire away, fly away, if you think you should I'm in oblivion I'm in oblivion I'm in oblivion Oblivion, oblivion I'm dead Judy's in the sandbox Judy's in the sandbox With gravel in her shoes She's playing in the spotlight Melts sugar with a pose And everywhere that judy is Her lamb is sure to go He watches how she lifts her dress And spins into a spell Ha-a-hoo, he takes a breath and pulls her in And shuts her out, and waits to hold her hand Ha-a-hoo, he looks around and feels her curls Across his frozen cheek, too close to touch Judy's in the sandbox Baking cakes against the sun He walks across the playground As she scolds him with a frown She turns her back to tease And then she laughs beyond control He wipes his brow and steps inside To play within the rules Ha-a-hoo, he takes a breath and pulls her in And shuts her out, and waits to hold her hand Ha-a-hoo, he looks around and feels her curls Across his frozen cheek, too close to touch He takes a breath (look around, look around, he can hardly breathe) And pulls her in (look around, look around, he can hardly move) And shuts her out (look around, look around, feel him closing in) And weights to hold her hand... And weights to hold her in... La-da-da-da-da...
*** Thanx a lot to Ryan who corrected this one ***
Underground I'm awake I know 'cause I'm afraid Of every little thing That makes me think of you You're so serene Underneath the weeds You're watching me Trip in my saddle shoes Parachute me down To that cold, cold underground Save me Save me Quiet now It's time to say a prayer God is near They say he's watching you Parachute me down To that cold, cold underground Save me Parachute me down To that cold, cold underground Save me Save me I believe Shhh... I believe Shhh... I believe Shhh... I believe Shhh... Shhh... A dog's life I had a dream about a dog I was walking In an amusement park With people all around me We rode the roller coaster rides And he was laughing as we Jumped to the sky And then I saw that I looked just like him It's a dog's life I wanna lead a dog's life Run in the woods, dig a hole Just him & me He showed me all the various Scented treasures on the ground There was a little girl She was scared of me, and I was scared of her He let out a bark and she screamed Dropped her chocolate ice cream Suddenly this old man Chased us 'til we jumped the fence It's a dog's life I wanna lead a dog's life Under the couch, chew a bone Just him & me He ran across the street and barely missed a speeding car Suddenly this old man Grabbed him, from around the corner I hid behind a big trash can Wondered "what's become of him" I tried to stay But curiosity kills me It's a dog's life I wanna lead a dog's life Under a couch, chew a bone Just him & me It's a dog's life I wanna lead a dog's life Run in the woods, dig a hole Just him & me It's a dog's life, I wanna lead It's a dog's life, I wanna be It's a dog's life, I wanna lead
A love song Go get the dog Out on the hill He wants to lick The moon I made a wish Upon your head I only want to sleep and Dream of you, dream of you Lazy sky Your stars look tired Keep me bright Bright, bright, oh...
Stormy weather She comes running in "We're all on fire" She says so hysterically I'm in the shower She says, "save the water" I can be on best behaviour I'm not afraid of stormy weather Sunday afternoon We'll drive for hours After church with father Paul She photographs me In a bed of flowers I can be on best behaviour I'm not afraid of stormy weather She looks around for me Don't you know I'm always gonna be here She doesn't want to leave I'm afraid of stormy, stormy weather There's nothing I can do There's nothing you won't do She lies on her back Negotiating She looks like disaster There's no one to help her No machine can keep her I can be on best behaviour I'm not afraid of stormy weather She looks around for me Don't you know I'm always gonna be here She doesn't want to leave I'm afraid of stormy, stormy weather There's nothing I can do There's nothing you can do
Smiley You're on my side again You make me cry again Smiley You talk me round again Everything's left So untidy I'm not that strong Everything's easy Breezy You're not a bitch It's your job, tease me Push me Under your thumb Am I suffering From being tiny Keep it easy I'm not one to fight Close your mouth I'm not one to fight Go be a friend to me Keep yourself far from me Smiley Make it easy I'm not one to fight Close your mouth I'm not one fight
Roadkill I'm feeling myself against the ground Out on the highway laying down Buffalo rumble in the wind Sometimes in the wind Sometimes... Shame, shame on myself, can't take the heat I start to dream of shady trees And watch the headlights coming down on me Let yourself go I hear them say It's beautiful I'm not afraid This is "happy" ever after Oh, my!, my security Is running in circles over me But I don't think i'll stick around This time Let yourself go I hear them say It's beautiful I'm not afraid This is "happy" ever after Let yourself go I hear them say It's beautiful I'm not afraid This is "happy" ever after
Nobody knew her Bradley comes home from school He looks happier than any other day He won’t go out with me I don’t care if I never see his face Sometimes I want to get out of here Everyone’s talking about you behind the gym They’re sharing cigarettes Drinking beer out of coke cans They’re saying what a waste You must have been loaded Tearing down Pacific Coast Highway Bradley, Bradley I think you got away Bradley, Bradley I think you got away Someone found a blue Ford Twisted up and glass all around There was a girl with you Nobody knew her Your step dad was called in To say he recognized you Everyone knew you And said it was a waste Bradley, Bradley I think you got away Bradley, Bradley I think you got away Everyone’s back where they started No one wants to talk about it This desk says you were here
Too Much In Between My friend said That she saw you last That you talked awhile And it was good but sad And I can’t believe how long it's been I don’t know what to do about it Summertime We’re all drinking beers We can’t live without us We all work so hard And I can’t believe how long it's been I don’t know what to do about it Too much in between There’s too much in between Now and then I think about How we get along without you Too much in between There’s too much in between
*** Thanx a lot to Michel & Kennan for this one *** Jimmy's Rose Tattoo Jimmy Rose owns a tattoo parlor Three times a day Cooks a spoon of powder I wash the dishes piled in his tub If I wait too long he may never stand up He lies awake on an empty canvas And tilts his brush Watching brilliance drip circles on the floor And I lay his shirt on the bed I fall inside picture frames Breathing in his oil-paints He doesn’t see me He wanders in His mouth looks thin Like a child who stands there shaking I can feel his anger choke me Jimmy Rose works from twelve to five To pay off the doctor that he prescribes There’s kerosene in the wishing well And I throw a penny still holding on to his hand And I watch him drift, close his eyes I fall inside picture frames Breathing in his oil-paints He doesn’t see me He wanders in His mouth looks thin Like a child who stands there shaking I can feel his anger choke me Under the gun Under my clothes He's feeding me I’ll never know I’ll never know I’ll never know He wanders in His mouth looks thin Like a child who stands there shaking I can feel his anger choke me
*** Thanx a lot to Michel & Kennan for this one *** The Long Walk You've been working so hard No one can tell Why don't you try taking it easy You're covered with sweat And we're hardly there yet Don't be ashamed of yourself Just take it slow It's only me Lay your head back in your old easy-chair The day is done The harder you try to keep up with us You lose another breath Take it slow It's only me Your dogs are tired So let them alone They're almost done with their mushing You're working so hard No one can tell You've got so much to be proud of Lay your head back in your old easy-chair The day is done The harder you try to keep up with us You lose a breath Lay your head back in your old easy-chair The day is done The harder you try to keep up with us You lose another breath
*** Thanx a lot to Michel & Kennan for this one *** All Your Life Busted chin Seeing stars Glaring at your handlebars Your handlebars Why don't you Try again All your life You couldn't win You couldn't win She's never coming back She's never coming back And all this waiting Is bringing you down Heroin Makes you thin You're so high You can't look up You can't look up Why don't you Try again All your life You couldn't win You couldn't win She's never coming back She's never coming back And all this waiting Is bringing you down She's never coming back She's never coming back And all this waiting Is bringing you down
*** Thanx a lot to Michel & Kennan for this one *** 4 yrs It's time to state your name It's time to stake your claim But it's not everyone else's problem And it's not anyone else's fault You wanna feel okay You wanna think you've tried hard But it's not everyone else's problem And it's not anyone else's fault I know it's important To feel justified I know you thought everything Would be much easier It's time to show your face It's time to know yourself 'Cause it's not everyone else's problem And it's not anyone else's fault You wanna feel okay You wanna think you've tried hard I know it's important To feel justified I know you thought everything Would be much easier
The Blackened Air
*** Thanx a lot to Michel & Gary for these lyrics ***
Run, All You... Run, all you big dogs Chase me round the green grass Burn all your little houses Down to their shadows In howling flames For nights we stared Biting at the blackened air Quiet, all you smoke dogs Snarling at the willows Fighting in the leaves Tearing at the hollows Of little dead dogs I Go With Him That ball of fire That sits beside me He beats the earth And Jesus loves him His days are long His bones are broken I served him right I go with him The glooming's quiet And soon before him His body's warm And can't support us My body's young And here to please him I served him right I go with him That ball of fire That sits beside me He beats the earth And Jesus loves him His days are long His bones are broken I served him right I go with him This Is What It Is This is what it is You don't need to rest Sit around the clock Forget your head It's always there It's full of it This is how it is I don't need so much I got perfect pitch I am clear It's always there I'm full of it Take it out Start again Close it up Be the one You're beautiful I couldn't take a bigger bit of it This is what it is I know you forget Go ahead and wait Lose your head It's always there It's full of it This is what it is Take it out Start again Close it up Be the one You're beautiful I couldn't take a bigger bite of it This is where it goes I cannot pretend Get across the fence Don't you try and win It's always there It's full of it
Oh, My Stars Oh, my stars You should've seen it From the sky A piece of ice fell On the walk Where pigeons gather At the time They all departed Sinking slow The late sun found it I kept still I did not touch it Oh, my stars You should've seen it In the den While I sat reading I did not see The stranger watching My dad chased Him down the driveway He could have killed him He wished he killed him Sirens wailed Floodlights shined in All the rooms Of our house Oh, my stars You should've seen it Hard and blue White and brilliant All For You Lay down in that empty shed And I will make a lovely bed Half across the moon so bright Hangs a circle black as night I can see the stars above I can give it all up Up to you All for you Dirty hands and dirty feet And all and on our holding knees Hold me 'til I'm drunk and dead Or all the rain falls on my head I can see the stars above I can give it all up Up to you All for you I can see the stars above I can give it all up Up to you All for you All for you So Little I am not a part of all your tar and feathering talk I only hear teeth clicking about And your voice bouncing on walls in our house My belly is warm And soon will be taking you in And out of the wild, cold storm I don't want to shout back Or answer one question Without a plan or a counter-attack So little gets done So little is fun I am not a part of the long and tiring walk I only have fingers, an ass and a mouth To mind where we keep all our sweet thoughts So little gets done So little is fun Desert Fly Red, rolling, weed Desert fly Shoot the breeze Sun blistered town Gecko run, sand dogs howl Blue rocking-chair Shadows sing No one there Oh, where you go To my bed 'Tis I you'll wed Ugly Face Ugly face Don't ever make it again It's making me limp In a wider space I never know noticed The sharp turns that it takes Careless mouth Doesn't deserve all the rhymes That come tumbling out It should starve itself I want you I want you I want to strike you A violent pace Crashing into a chair Dropping glass everywhere It's an ugly face Don't ever make it again It's making me limp I want you I want you I want to strike you In a wider space I never noticed The sharp turns that it takes In The Graveyard Someone told me that I should visit you in the graveyard Pull out all the weeds But I'm still lonely and I'm not ready You scared me when you hid behind the trees All your clothes are gone Oh, your house is gone Someone told me that I should visit you in the graveyard Pull out all the weeds But I'm still lonely and I'm not ready You scared me when you hid behind the trees All your clothes are gone Oh, your house is gone Someone told me that I should visit you in the graveyard Pull out all the weeds But I'm still lonely and I'm not ready You scared me when you hid behind the trees Ocean You're leagues across a room The lighting's so dim I hardly see You're talking and waiting for me You're getting much smaller as you speak You're pulling out your hair For nothing you say to me rings clear I'm growing so big and dumb and blind I'm forty stories high Don't run away from me I tell you, my eyes are black as iron I'm stepping on houses, trees, and towns My crying makes everybody drown I died right in the ocean I died just like a whale I died right in the ocean Rosemary Rosemary, I've almost forgotten your name The tears on my face, they don't burn quite the same And I look in the mirror and your reflection's not there Just the daughter of a man and a cold, hard stare Rosemary, my desire to hold you is deep And it keeps me from living and it keeps me from sleep Am I holding on so tight that my fingers might bleed If I let go of you now, will you let go of me The Same Day The same day keeps happening A frost that breaks the evening pains And seeing I won't help myself You can't remember why you stayed I wish that I could throw you once Be the steed to break himself But that would take so many tries With all the days we've lost so far Been So Long It's been so long since we went for drinks Just to laugh and talk about how we're so lucky Our nights are tired and full of excuses You're crueler now and I never do listen We work so hard just to get things done Hoping we'll be happier years to come I don't know if we'll ever Be free like that first year we spent But I know I can't live without you I still love you I still love you The Very Next Day The very next day All the leaves came undone In the cool, fall sun We looked down from the roof Little Angel Hey, little angel It feels like summer You're feeding the water You care about nothing All the girls got a secret And they won't tell But your mother always sees you crying When you're by yourself You don't stay to play after school You go straight down to the water And bury your braids in the sand Everyone's looking at you Just a few more days lying Come January So play Play Hey, little angel You're not alone Your mother's in the yard watching Your little one That's All There Is My dreams have come and gone The world is spinning faster each day And I am not the one My future promised I'd be I'm not hiding anything I'm not trying to fool you at all You keep expecting everything We're not like our pictures on the wall There's nothing wrong with us We still belong But that's all there is So stop all your dreaming It makes me so sad Let's keep what we had Sunday's never last It seems like it's the only time you'll sleep And you can't help looking back At everything you promised we would see You go out almost every night Pretending you're like everyone we meet All I ever want is you All I ever want for you to see There's nothing wrong with us We still belong But that's all there is So stop all your dreaming It makes me so sad Let's keep what we had 'Cause that's all there is So stop all your dreaming It makes me so sad Let us keep what we had
Run to Ruin
*** Thanx a lot to Nina Nastasia Herself for these lyrics *** We never talked We never talked About the thing We witnessed What sadness came Our conversations Stayed safe From year to year Like a pact we'd made We never talked About that thing We witnessed What sadness came In the car You'd have brought it up But I went on About that job All the love I have left You won't know You won't know All the fear I have left You won't know You won't know I say that I will go Across the Freeway flow Against the Western row On plodding shoes I go To steal you out of tow On the phone I swear And so I will do so Up the access stair To cash my paycheck there And down again to fare The dirty city glare Through the motor squall To the South I bear Past the Chola wall Swift and not to stall Beyond the burning tires Among the towering spires I say that I will go And so I will do so Down the barren lanes Heed the boarded panes To the hard window There to sign below Alone there I will go And put the money down To take you back to town On the phone I swear Not to tell your dad Regrets Paying at the holloway It's 35 dollars a night Check in through a man named kim He's got a call and an angry wife And I can hear The spanish screams Of girlfriends in the other rooms Who are not like me And they say Make no regrets Don't slow down This time Upstairs in a plastic room Half-stare and watching Old cartoons I turn down the bed Waiting an hour or more For footsteps And an open door I take off my watch And I hope you come back safe this time From your copping spree In little mexico Underneath an l.a. traffic light And they say Make no regrets Don't slow down This time I feel you staring down at me You lean to burn a cigarrete And I roll up my sleeve And you say you'll never leave And i'll never get away as long as I keep still And I hold my breath And with the shame I fall down into sleep And they say Make no regrets Don't slow down This time You, her and me You, her You, her and me We, with the wheels Drive to the beach With no sleep We're racing to beat The sun as it rides to the top Of the palm trees Stay in the conversation While she's in the rear seat Maybe she's not listening to us The thoughts in her hands are distracting enough White summer dresses Over our heads We can't see Are you coming or going? She yodels at me Please stop the car I can't move my hands Or my feet You take her Out to the street Bawling, she asks you What's happening to me? I walk to a payphone Call for an ambulance Hate her like nobody Knows Superstar All the seasons go the same Outside the arcade, no change Rows and rows of cars a-fleeing Down the freeway come a-skidding To a halt To sit and cool While we watch Inside the booth I know, I know I know what you said Look at me, look at me I am a mess All this way to face a woman Posting in a tiny circle No more touching We're a yard apart In your seat You're done so quickly Outside, the sun Shines brightly I know, I know I know what you said Look at me, look at me I am a superstar I am a superstar I am a superstar I am a superstar I am a superstar I am a superstar I am a superstar I'm not ordinary Friend The body My blood for you My lover's bruise My clothes are scattered My skull is fractured One lock of your hair In my grip Tears on my lip Cut from my bit My gaze can not keep Freckled and green Whirling over chills Of my morning Why did you do it? Why did you? While I was pleasing? Will I be waiting? Giant caws blow Through the switches We are heirs Who's not a coward? All await The eyes to cloud For the will To leave the birches On teasing You should not tease And play tricks For a laugh Ha-ha-ha... Do you see her walking The bluff for a high? She will not know When to quit walking, or why A great sea beneath her Forbodes "you will die" She laughs at the thought For so far she has kept very dry She cries and she heaves That her sides, they may break Oh, the lapping that purples Her ragged red cheek "Be you coddled and cocky I'll have you for eats" Cries the great sea And drags her below by her feet And swallows her whole Down below For a treat Ha-ha-ha... While we talk While we talk Talking cake Crumbs move To the edges Of your mouth And fleck off Off in all Directions All I see Flying bits I begin Counting To go to, where to get lost I guide your horse In clothed falls Simple and fun
On Leaving
*** Thanx a lot to Him & Gary for these lyrics *** Jim's room In the back of the house In the room I used to sleep I woke up and smelled burning wires For a month I wasn't me A thief would wait for me outside And there were nights I would let him in No one ever found out I always wondered Francis, where you lived Standing proudly in the tub I never saw you in your clothes In the back of the house In the room right next to mine The only place she let you smoke There you spent most of your time Painting pictures of smoke Brad haunts a party You are dizzy still And we are due to drive That far in the dark On a frozen lane No use slowing down The party was a laugh How we lied about everything We don't get around Like we used to do Oh no, but tonight Will end too soon On a stretch past the houses Where the road lines go black With nowhere to get to Up a mile on the speedway Burnt out like a sun We hid from everyone We got high 'Cause you have to When they came along We had lots of fun But we left the light too soon And we don't get around Like we used to do Oh no Our day trip Let's not go to work this morning Let's not wait to leave the city We've got just enough money Let's see how far we can amble One day can make all the difference Rinse the red dirt in the water Can you stay with me and tell them you're sick I'll pack us a meal for our day trip We'll be safe out in the sun We'll split a bottle on a boat Two souls alone out on a lake It will be the perfect afternoon We can lose our clothes and have a swim Your free hand waving from the gate The metal shining at your waist You had so much more ambition Counting up your bones
My bones fall in My bones fall out You're cool as silk Beside my heart Your bones glide in A silent tear That mingles mirrow when you disappear A dance we weave beneath our skin I keep you in me where the breath had been I can hear them laugh and call me minnow Carrying on, coughing on my bones I'm counting up your bones I'm counting up your bones Inside of me, inside of me Inside of me, inside of me Your bones fall in Your bones fall out I'm cool as silk Beside your heart A dance we weave beneath our skin I keep you in me where the breath had been Why's a minnow Washing out the linen Tumbling and left to dry alone I'm counting up your bones I'm counting up your bones Dumb I am Dumb I am and a weak one too A simpleton my wool worn loose Whence all the filthy flies I free And there they go nothing I can do Dumb I am in a long day dream A simpleton with a memory A home prepared and a feast as well But all will spoil with the lies I tell Dumb I am and I have no kin A simpleton, envy my sin No mother to greet me with the sun No father to call when the working's done Dumb I am but a clever lot Making good with the deal I got With no one with a care for me Alone I go and okay I be Dumb-da-dumb, dumb-da-dumb, dumb-da-dumb Dumb-da-dumb, dumb-da-dumb Why don't you stay home It's high time to make a move Things might not get better There, I said it The last time you were feeling like this You left with a light coat and near froze to death Why don't you stay home where you're loved Where you'll never be hungry or lost - no stranger, we Not much I can think of We cut down the oak last year I know you can't stay very long But why do you run and run The children you won't recognize They're growing so fast I can't keep up, keep up Why don't you stay home where you're loved No danger here left to feel Why don't you stay home where you're loved Where you'll never be hungry or lost - no stranger, me One old woman Zann Ann Elizabeth Rochelle Let my doll go down deep in that old wishing well And I know that they'll never find it She'll make a big scene hoping no one will notice And I feel that when night falls I need it And here I waste and I hustle myself Why a little crime can make for a life this bad It escapes me But I know I'm not aloud to hold on too tightly to what has gone And down at my new home All of my family smiles in my face But I've lost all the seconds that lead up to this And I know that something will happen If I don't take charge it might all disappear And I feel that when night falls I need it And here I wait and I trouble myself Buy a little time from memories left alive If they'll let me But I know I'm not allowed to hold on too tightly to what has gone Oh, to what has gone... And I stand down in a brick hole Thinking, I thinking, I thinking, I thin But scary Zann calls down from the opening And tells me that I won't be thinking again... And I feel that when night falls I breathe it in Here I wait and I ready myself Why a little time can erase a life's worth, that just escapes me And I know I'm not allowed to hold on too tightly to what has gone Oh, to what has gone... Treehouse song Our address was in the sky Just a roof of woven reeds You and I On the highest front Of a very tall tree Months and months we'd stay up high Because all the climbing takes such time And we'd live on the blooms carried in by the breeze Every night I'd promise you We'd go down to see the friends we once knew But every night I'd make an excuse And I never came down from the roof I awoke and you had flown Just an impression of you next to me And the terrible sound of the clapping of leaves Every night I promise you We'd go down to see the friends we once knew But every night i'd make an excuse And I never came down from the roof. Lee I remember The hail of red clay rocks Lee, your lean, chucking arm The boys, the hill And the wild flights home from war The silent stairs we crept before your mom at the TV had a clue She never talked to me or to you But when we would have a game Up there she would shout your name And the record we'd hush She'd go away We'd dim the light in your room And we would play You were more like a girl every time We'd fall asleep to the tune as the walls spun round Light flashed, light stopped With you, Lee Under bed sheets A tent we had made there Were things as I remember Hard things for you as a man you left angry Oh Lee, how a child can whine I'm done telling lies to mine There's no deal in it all He needs to hear All the things we're pining for All that's carried far from sure Leave one bitter about what remains I'm not telling him now Just the same You were a dream when you painted your eyes Mighty you were like a sail on a heaving sky Settling song Summer headlights cut into the dawn We city kids ride the highway unbound Reeling like a pioneer's sons Counting all the coins that we'd won In our hands Running rooftops like the river boys do Kiss me once and you say I love you You make it cold in my heart With, "promise you'll never leave me behind" Sleepy-eyed you wait for tomorrow And I know that you'll marry some day And I can only lie down as your mistress 'Cause I gave you away Our innocence lost in the plan Better endings are what we have now Weary friends keeping good on a vow But there is a part of me Still telling me to go when the feelings arise Sleepy-eyed you wait for tomorrow And I know that you'll marry someday And I will lay myself down Lay myself down Our innocence lost in the plan Bird of cuzco Oh bird You must be starving From your flight so long The wind, the way it was blowing I feel lonely not to have come There the pounding of rain has flooded the den I can offer you my room, you can sleep in Oh, let me take care Oh, let me be near Do you Mean to be saying To me through a song Be pleased For everything's changing Be not angry I have returned How I tire of waking from the dream Are we wired to be always sad and wanting Oh, let me sing Oh, I love to sing I will lie here awhile in the dark Let me lie for a while just thinking in the dark Oh, leave me here Oh, let me see clear If we go to the west If we go to the west where I'm from We are new buds to anyone In the sun glories bloom We are young If I move to the north will you come Is it that you fear slowing down To a still Well, you will It will be If our love If our love has tired We are young
You Follow Me
*** Thanx a lot to Gary for these lyrics ***
I've been out walking I've been out walking The soil damp from rain Made me think of you Ben Godson Your flowers and your hens I imagine we were talking In summer in the yard With this dreaming I kept walking Through the evening's end I was unaware of darkness And unaware of signs I was unaware of loneliness Startled from a noise I woke to my surroundings And saw a man in front of me I turned and slowly walked away I knew we were the only ones here Not one car passed us on the street I ran and ran but soon fell weak Oh, what will come of me, father I was already a liar Now i’m done for sure, it seems I am transformed into Rain and dirt and weeds and leaves I am destroyed and still Walking to the place again I write down lists My name I know My family I see And one by one I count them all and say their names This I repeat I write down lists and read Our thoughts from week to week And keep things in their places And leave things leaving traces Doors close, rooms become much smaller How the training makes it harder To recall my layman name Half of me and all of them Someone else I have been and don’t recall Where or when "Odd", said the doe Odd that the doe, who looks like it wants to speak Is the same doe I saw in my yard last week Can I believe that it’s you I’d like to believe that it’s you Calling on me Why is the urge that roused me out of a dream Not then a sign every night beckoning my relief Should I believe that it’s you I’d laugh to believe that it’s you Hastening me Come on man, have a little faith Why be after what is plain See me everywhere I am I want to know that it’s you Am I to believe that it’s you Following me The day I would bury you I will say I don’t need you to know me I don’t want your help, your name, your wealth You have plenty of wine You can offer me a drink I’ll say i’m wise to you I know what you must think of me here Then we’ll barely speak I was young then and full of cheek I wanted to tell you again and again How much I blame you How hard this has been I always dreamed of the day I would bury you I never thought on the day i’d stop hating you On an alter you look smaller I am musing, coming closer Now my shadow over you I swore i’d stay afraid of you But you aren’t the same And I am not your enemy Though I lay the band you gave to me Here as I vowed I would today Our discussion (the matter of)
( Released before with Boom Bip feat. Nina Nastasia ) I know it makes you feel sad Then you look at me that way Your hands hold on the railing As we glide across the bay With everything uncertain It's easy to defend But we do not talk of feelings And with you I can't pretend I don't believe in power of love I don't believe in wisdom of stone I don't believe in a god or the mind And I'm not alone I listen to your breathing It's steady and it's slow We lie close to the ceiling I think of children in our home But the quiet in the quarters Stirs me from the thought I might leave tomorrow To feel the joy of a new start I don't believe in power of love I don't believe in wisdom of stone I don't believe in a god or the mind In the morning many sea birds On the icy wind arrive Never crowding their companions Against the blinding sky they dive I think about you sleeping How miss you'll miss the morning tide But my stomach is uneasy And I choose to stay outside I don't believe in power of love I don't believe in wisdom of stone I don't believe in a god or the mind I'm not alone
In the evening In the evening, nothing is a bother Everyone is partying Many glowing faces And no ones mind’s on leaving When sooner The two of us forsaking Had long discussed the matter And made an end in breaking I’d moved into this house alone My jacket like an awning Oh, and it was hailing But this evening, nothing here reminds me There the coat is hanging We’re talking and we’re laughing After we darken up our home You see my hands are trembling from an uneasy knowing Maybe a moth can live this way A false light always facing And cannot turn away There is no train There is no train to take you this late Was it a plan or a mistake I was aware but I didn’t say I let the last one roll on as you talked all along This is the way Everything changes Make one careful move It isn’t fate I made it so And at my place I’ll use the truth Unlike the way I came to you I come to know you Late night Such a late night I‘m going to drive you home A quiet ride There’s blood on the road And blood on your face I’m going to cry, cry Why didn’t you brake Did you even try Weather’s hard Hail and snow I’m drifting too Does it help you to know It’s your life to make a wreck We grew up together Did you forget I don’t understand Why don’t you talk to me The tracks you leave Where do they lead Where are you now That you’ve fallen asleep I may be the one To save you How will you love me How do I love you now In the light, in the light, in the light And in the evening, how In the night, in the night, in the night Love, if a dream is true I will try, I will try, I will try I love you - no, I do One day we will die, our eyes on spring We'll choose someone to love again We'll say we waited all our lives to Meet this one and start a family And when we're warm again, will be time Will be time, will be time How will you love me then Will you try, will you try, will you try I want to keep us here In the cold, in the cold, in the cold I love you - no, I do One day we'll die, our eyes on spring We'll choose someone to love again We'll say "Hey, you waited all this time To meet me now" And start a family I come after you Don't think you are exceptional Don't dream you're better than anyone else You're only feeling good A sober night would do you good Recall the day Don't think that I can't glean the truth I know you better than anyone else You're here because she's news And she won't even mention you We'll be back to do this again and again This is how I see love and what fools understand Don't shill yourself Let's not pretend Don't use the line exceptional Don't dream you've got it over anyone else You're only feeling good A sober night would do you good
Outlaster
Cry cry baby I won't cry, cry baby I won't worry anymore You and I, we are ideal I'm the sad, sad one You can have my sixth grade picture Can I have the one of us mooning This work it won't kill me But I'm not stronger for it I've just learned to wait it out You're my only true love And I know I can't change You're my only true love But I won't change I won't cry, cry baby I won't worry anymore You and I, we are ideal Moves Away A voice was setting the mind On leaving trouble behind Make it to the trees Where the soul agrees it's kind No mail or telephone calls No peely cracks in the walls Or the terror in the sky How long can you last Ask yourself the question When it's come to pass The last year frittered away Made for no shiny display Just a yen to simplify You're a Holy Man You're a holy man And you've ever been And the heaven blue Arrays the valley green And a golden sun In a day will go Once around the land Is all you need to know And all your geese are in a row But friend I fear the thing Is surely coming I hope you stay Holy You're a holy man At the ears of kings Who give audience To the droll and common things But friend I fear the thing Is surely on the wing I hope you stay Holy Be at ease with all Who abide in you Though a holy man Would be wholly wiser to Fear them approaching Whose feet are thundering And hope to stay Holy You Can Take Your Time Look around you've got a good thing You don't ever have to make the money You've got a little room to spread out And a table for some company You can take your time To work things out It'll be alright Just don't give up I know what you're thinking Hearing all the good news To say it would be shameful To keep it in means you lose You can take your time To work things out It'll be alright Just don't give up I wish I could remember The refrain that I had written Surely they were sage words To assure you you're forgiven I know where you're going Maybe you should reconsider You just take your time To work things out It'll be alright Just don't give up You just take your time To work things out Do you think I judge you Tell me how it looks to love you I am not a stranger I know you well And it's hard to tell You to take your time To work things out It'll be alright Just don't screw up You can take your time To work things out It'll be alright Just don't hang up You can take your time
This Familiar Way You nearly have me singing like the loon The wicked hour before the dawn arouses With early rays that draw across my bridal bed Always comes as a surprise Always intruding much too soon A grave alarm to pull us from the fever dream And if I would I'd live alone I never would and never will And so it is that I return to him Every day I tear a bit From myself and from the one I love And from the other one I love And with each tear another stitch There's always something new to fix Till blazing flames burn it all to pitch Through the wreckage, through the fall Will I meet you this familiar way Would I still keep you Could I suffer you to stay Through the blackened air and all Will I meet you this familiar way Will I still keep you You must not ask me today
What's Out There An empty space A new beginning Working made it Nothing saved A wall, a window A gnatty garden Turning hotly in the heat Creeping and green Wild and unseen If I could go back in time If I could be real mean Would I ever think to leave Is there anyone like me I'd put a mask on For the atmosphere out there Could kill me What you have won You want the air to be easy to breathe We had a plan A way to drown out the howling in the street Now everything I know Everything I know is Strange An idle table You need a friend to come to visit Ring a friend Oh window, window I want to smash you out A light above me A light above me And still I don't feel safe Oh window, window I have to smash you out And let in something mean Let in something
A Kind Of Courage Don't think about Best to ignore No one will miss you No one will know Just be slow about it Little by little you go It never pays to be dire Just the way these things go Don't think about it You're one of a million more of the same mind Who deserve all to fade No it's not fair Why should it be fair Who's first to get beaten down Look back in bliss Go and reminisce See what you've already done Like it or not No one is holding our hand We are always alone Go ahead after the fire All will be gone Look around It's not that bad No We do it for our family And more Away you run fast through the darkening door Don't rage against it Best to ignore You'll never miss you You'll never know
Wakes They've wrapped him in a sheet He could be anyone We say a psalm as we We would for anyone And I've been here before And I can't mend this living I cannot mend this You misunderstood If what you want from me Is to give thanks for this empty tenderness And I've got too much left in me To never wonder If there could be something else I cannot mend this I can't mend this I can't mend this I can't mend this I can't mend this I can't mend this living I can't mend this living I can't mend this living I can't mend this living I... One Way Out If you can tend The fire could burn forever Can't we For me there is one way And no denying One way out Miss me Mourn me Outlaster I idled so far my rigging froze Long night, green light above and below I will not stop sailing though ever in mind The words of my lover who died in his time Sailing, sailing slow Across a still ocean Dark and cold Sailing, sailing slow To rest in the ice of a passing floe At peace from drowning Far out he sings "What can forever but misery bring" Sailing, sailing slow Across a still ocean Dark and cold Sailing, sailing slow To rest in the ice of a passing floe Come closer Come closer No wonder waning, still on I wend A thousand years trailing forgotten friends All calling, all calling, reply, reply Faint light in the water Faint light in the sky Come closer Come closer
*** Thanx a lot to Gary for this one ***
Just stay in Bed I like it here in bed Don't push me out instead If you miss me I will pull down the sheets There's much we can do here Alone or together Whatever you please It will please me, I'm sure Right now I'm unhappy And happy feels sappy With you here beside me Something will rise And the evening will fly Fly into sunrise We're out of the shadows And maybe just maybe I won't want to hide But hiding is fine for me And if you push this into Something so bright That my eyes fail to see You will go down with me I can be still as a pond When the lily pads keep to Themselves no direction In hand you're always going And flowing like rivers that Crash over rocks and know Just how to land I like it here in bed Alone when I'm feeling dead Death is a terrible place To stay long But I can't control it The poison's a slow drip Dim is the day and there's Nothing to be done about it So if you miss me I will pull down the sheets And maybe, just maybe The dark will subside And the rise will feel fine You Were So Mad You were so mad You were so fearful Now I wish I had Let you fill my earful With how you feel small And how I'll never know What it is to wake up On foreign soil In your own town Where you all stay With loyal friends Who you feel safe You sing the songs You know by heart That keep you proud Of who you are But things change Oh as they should Now you have blown up Our change for good You set a blaze Inside our house You burned it down And smoked us out You really don't know What you've done How can I love you From now on We'll go our ways We'll fight, we'll hate For now until the end We'll ask ourselves What have we done You were so mad You were so fearful I only laughed I didn't hear you I saw you small But I can't dismiss you We'll go our ways We'll fight, we'll hate For now until the end We'll ask ourselves How we begin This is love Is this love It feels so bad Drawing blood until We both see black We're depleted But we stay on track Holding hands through Every violent blast I guess I'll just stay In hell with you If this is love Throw a punch or two And take a few Then rise above Soon we will work It like a dance Taking turns to lead and Follow to the dissonance Love is need No love unscathed Scarred and ill An endless pain Is this love Is this love Is this love We got off on The terrible times Killing joy is such A trivial crime Do we all get to The same goodnight We got there sooner Then shut out the light I guess I'll just stay In hell with you If this is love Throw a punch or two And take a few Then rise above Nothing is buried in the sand Not a jewel that keeps its Shimmer once you Get it in your hands Soon we will work It like a dance Taking turns to lead and Follow to the dissonance This is love This is love This is love This is love This is love Nature He's nothing like you Sometimes he seems A little strange and He's done bad things too The kind of things you Couldn't think of He's born to abuse The violence excites him He's wired that way Sometimes you get Ahead of it and sometimes You're in the thick Of all his anger and pain I've seen such rage It's embraced me Then squeezed all The blood from my brain It kills me the instant I feel it begin And like a doll I stand lifeless And let it pour in And I say stop Over and over Over and over Until it all fades I'm not like you I've learned to Teeter on the edge And I fall down And bruise Then make the climb Back to the edge Like I've never been blue I take it I've made it I'm wired that way I never seem To get ahead of it I'm always in the thick Of all his sorrow and blame I could never save you Just finally leave who I loved 'til the end Lazy Road The older we go we'll Take the road we know A lazy narrow path That gets us there And from by shore Follow me, dear, down The wide jagged side Come crawl over The rocks and take A swim against the tide Oh it's quiet at night Oh don't know if we'll die But oh the water is fine And I feel like I'm happy For the first time Through a sober dine At night we'll keep The fire going high To keep us warm And safe with light While all is still and fine To bed, to bed To roam, to roam I'm starving for the pain I don't want shelter From this rain There's danger in the fog And golden eyes Out in the bog Follow me, dear Down the wide jagged side Come crawl over the rocks And take a swim Against the tide Oh it's quiet at night Oh don't know if we'll die But oh the water is fine And I feel like I'm happy For the first time Ask Me You might think best To pack up your bags Stop all this sadness And leave me So that I can live The very life You can't give And what is it That you want From me A song, a song A lonely song For us to sing to sleep Well, you might ask me Why can't it be you To leave and start On your own a new But I can't, I can't I know what's next I keep you alive As best as I can do I love you I love you I love you I love you But we're closer To dying each day We're trying We're trying We're trying We're trying so hard Just to stop the decay But I'll be the one To choose life over illness To be born from This deadness and leave And I might think twice When the damage is done And oh what a price I will pay For freedom For freedom For freedom From all of the ways The ways we've gone wrong And I love you I love you I love you so much That I need you to Stand on your own So I, so I will finally run To save what is left of myself A song, a song A lonely song For me to sing to sleep A song, a song A lonely song For me to sing to sleep Blind as batsies I will go with you wherever Digging holes for buried Treasure, end the day With just our dirty feet Tomorrow is a new adventure Hearts of sorrow Hearts of pleasure I love you and I know You love me No matter when No matter how we live or die I've found a friend I'm going to take you where I fly Sometimes we get drunk And happy scrap and bleed Then come up sappy Once we find a quiet Place to sleep Then to the moon As high as can be No direction blind as batsies Throwing up whatever Once was sweet No matter when No matter how we live our lives I've found a friend I'm going to take you when I die Jump a cliff into cool water Slap down asses, belly, laughter An afternoon of finally Feeling clean Then to the bars For slurry chatter Idle hours until we're plastered Always finding reason To get mean We blow back and forth then Tumble home with broken bones I love you so I don't know how else to do it Slow with poison in our cesspit Never feel the quiet 'neath the sea But mind no matter we're Together, need not worry what The weather doing, what we Want to as we need No matter when No matter how we live our lives I've found a friend I'm going to take you when I die No matter when No matter how we live our lives I've found a friend I'm going to take you when I die We blow back and forth Then tumble home With broken bones I love you so The Two Of Us I can see myself I can see my life I can tell you Where I'm headed now Not just along for the ride Things go missing Then they come back late Now I don't have The time to give To a long-lived state of mind Why should I care What you think You just go do What you want to And if I sink, I sink It's hard to watch you be alone But that's on you Don't be telling me I'm wrong There are only choices And what comes Of them just comes I might be mean But I just got strong And no matter what You say I'll still I'll still move on You might hate yourself And fall down flat But I don't have it in me now To pull you up and back The two of us The two of us make one Deep in the shit trying To crawl out of this dung The stink of it Overwhelms the good We've done I can see myself I can see my life I can tell you Where I'm headed now Not just along for the ride Things go missing Then they come back late Now I don't have the time To give to a long-lived State of mind Go away Go away, go away No room to breathe I take and break The things you keep You slow me down You make me weak Go away, go away And leave me be You tell the tale So grim, so mean About my past And where I've been You don't know me Or what I think You're everywhere You never sleep There's only one way There's only one way To make me leave To give you peace Bury me Quiet and free Go away Go away, go away You're shaming me I loved you once Through all the grief Now hide yourself Don't stomp on me Go away, go away I'm tired and weak There's only one way There's only one way To make you leave To give you peace Bury me Quiet and free Go away Roundabout My love, let's never talk About the thing we know Will tear us up Let's leave this one behind Bury it deep and never pine The shadows On the roundabout Will leave you With a bitter thought The gloom beneath The trees will keep you Miles away from me Let's find a path That's far enough Straight ahead And not that rough No need to ever stray A quiet, peaceful way But who am I To wear this ring We want too much Of everything We'll take whatever comes Whatever painful End it brings You and I Will always be this way Together and apart we'll stay Love is loneliness Even the best Will find this true So come and kiss me 'Neath the moon No matter how The seasons turn The winter months are cold And who can know What's worth the try Walk into the roundabout Come out, come out From the fog and haze Trust There you go a lowly Slowly round the bend Just a dying daisy Falling with the wind I know you have someone That's looking for you You don't know your name So you don't know that's true Trust won't come easy There is music You should follow It will ease your mind Ride the river through the Holler in the blackest night Trust won't come easy There is nothing will answer you There is nothing to answer to There is nothing will answer you There is nothing to answer to Afterwards Now you're dead and gone No loneliness, just on my own Sometimes you walk Into my room And sit and brood Until I fall asleep Love is tiresome When you're older Grief and madness Make you colder You still won't let anyone But you hold on to me Until it's hard to breathe Breathe Leave me First tell me how to live You were the only one I gave all of myself I love you now More than I could I've thrown away the flaws Death redeems you when you're Underneath the earth It makes me wonder About the years that came before And all the things I feel I must ignore Breathe Keep me Please, let me be How I want to be I see you there Looking straight in me Judging me Loving me What I feel What I think What I want to give Oh how I want to live What I feel What I think What I want to give Oh how I want to live I want to live I am ready to live
Jolie Laide
Pacific Coast Highway Back to the west Where everyone's young We'll have nothing to do but get high And ride into the sun I've been away so long Swallowing coal and dung Spitting up useless things to keep But when I'm asleep And dreaming so deep It takes me back Back to their ways Keeping everything light Just don't make it safe I'm ready to die I'm lighting a fire and I'm calling it destiny There isn't a right and there isn't a wrong way for me I'm finding my way back Pacific coast highway is my way home Where is the bed The bed I once owned Filthy and red Beaten and torn A part of my seams I'm ready to fly I'm one with the world I'm one as I die Woe woe woe is me Woe woe woe is me Woe woe woe is me Pacific coast highway, my way home Pacific coast highway is my way home Pacific coast highway is my way home Pacific coast highway is my way home
Move Away Towns Come and see what we can do for each other Move from town to town and soon we'll discover What we'll give and what we'll take We can keep going on and on We're two of a kind and there is no other We'll trick them with bait and take all what they can offer And for an escape we'll take a swim in the water Clean ourselves before we say goodbye I'll never get tired living this way if I'm living with you Running from fires until we're in the clear, clear out of view I want to make sure that you love me as I, I love you Making our way and I don't care who you might love too Let's go to Nevada, maybe Summerlin North Lone Mountain, Nevada, and the desert shore Grifting through the night The days seem long but we know the places to run The fires burn strong whenever we're left on our own We've got something special here, something that moves us along I'll never be worried with you, we've got horses to ride I'll never get tired living this way if I'm living with you Running from fires until we're in the clear, clear out of view I want to make sure that you love me as I, I love you Making our way and I don't care who you might love too Let's go to Nevada, maybe Summerlin North Lone Mountain, Nevada, and the desert shore Grifting through the night Away Too Soon I fell asleep and woke up in the wrong broken bed I looked around and saw stains from my own bleeding head It's a shame you went away when you did I don't care now I don't care where I'm going now I don't know how but I would be here anyway I haven't you to blame I'm my own mess Passed out my buttons, undone on the wrong train Woke up with cuts on my lip during my loaded dreams I don't care now I don't know where I'm going now If I crawl back where I came from I could look up, see the skylight Maybe would try a new kind of high-life When I get there I look back, all I see is nowhere Too old to bear and too young to care I don't know how but I would be here anyway Why I Drink I say we're in For a long night stay Drinking us thin 'til we both fade away I'm fine to never think Dance until we sink Into a dreamy Scenic view Why, why, why Can't I swallow just a bit more Why, why, why Can't this pain crawl back in the floor I don't want to die Just yet I keep the shades shut For another sick day No one can fill this dark hole It just stays and stays This is why I drink Driving through the mud It's all I know How to do Why, why, why Can't I swallow just a bit more Why, why, why Can't this pain crawl back in the floor I don't want to die Just yet Death of Money We're driving so fast down the highway Going down through the dust of the city Into the shimmer of the urban lights We're doing fine, got the top down California wind through your dark hair Lean back, arms high, we've got no cares The radio plays everything we want to hear We’ve got everything but money, it won't slow us down at all (Old joy, wanting for nothing) We've got nothing (Old joy, wanting for nothing but good weather) But everything feels so unbridled and flowing We'll never slow down We're on a winning streak, we'll work it some way We've got everything between us here Do it my way and they won't even know We'll have to hide away until we're ready to go I feel like something's gonna happen and it's gonna be golden We’re never gonna get old (Old joy, wanting for nothing) We've got nothing (Old joy, wanting for nothing but good weather) But everything feels so unbridled and flowing We'll never slow down We're on a winning streak, we'll work it some way We've got everything between us My Darling I know you well I've got plenty to tell A reminder of all you'll regret I enjoy your pain I am no good saint I will throw you out into the cold wet bank My darling, you're a liar about everything My darling, don't think I won't take back my ring Your face feels cold And it's white as the snow That falls on your lashes so sweet I'll leave you here In the thicket, in despair Moaning with the wind My darling, take me back to the home where I live My darling, don't leave me alone in this ditch I enjoy your pain As I take back my ring And watch the final cloud of breath My darling God of Gamblers Tell me if I like it You've got a way of changing my own mind And then I say fuck it I'm just confused to think for myself now I know what you want From all of us here We're making you feel good It's all made up It's just made up It's just a thing to believe in We're always looking up at you You make us feel we know things too We want to be as close to you in every way We want to be as close to you in every way We lay down as prey Your poetry is true enough We're losing in your universe I don't mind telling you what's going on Still I'm locked in, everything else is gone I don't belong but I'm not strong To stop and think where to go and how We're always looking up at you You make us feel we know things too We want to be as close to you in every way I'd like to be outside and out of view Enlightened and infused with all you say and do And I don't care what's false or true I'm chasing some good Your poetry is true enough We're losing in your universe Isolation View Stick the needle Pull the crimson in Push the plunger See who wins this round And if you do lie back And you will spin The weather wraps you safe from all the others Outside you walk alone on top of the water Your isolation tank is like a bubble You touch and speak as if you were double You look down on yourself The view is skewed and lovely My isolated view My isolated view right here Blue As Blue You come around With a gun Blue as blue Coldest eyes As tears run free You've got a gift You hand to me Don't, don't keep it all just to yourself Don't you know I'm just like you It's you and me Just you and me Why do we pull the trigger to each other's chest Soon to be dead as we watch our last breath You ask what's wrong There's nothing wrong That we don't know It's all the same Round and round So very wrong Don't, don't keep it all just to yourself Don't you know I'm just like you It's you and me Just you and me I'm with the plan Let's take the shot It's time we go Onto the floor Straight through the moon Just don't let go Just like the dream We'll go away Just you and me If you keep close to me Then this is how we go Beyond what we can know Sometimes love just goes this way A passing thought A love that's lost Sometimes love Just goes this way A passing thought A love that's lost
Non Albums Tracks
*** Thanx a lot to Gary for these lyrics *** Albert's Song (Run To Ruin out-take. Broadcast on John Peel's radio show on the 3rd of May 2002.) There isn't a morning that I haven't tried To keep still, to keep still Once in a dream you stood close to my side And there I could hear you You said 'I will be leaving' The sky was so clear that it didn't look right We were rained in and grieving All of your anger and all of your pride To love you was not easy Was not easy I know the move serves to test my heart But your memory gets cruel and it's dark And I just want to keep still To think you're beside me Beautiful Day (Run To Ruin out-take. Broadcast on John Peel's radio show on the 3rd of May 2002.) Such a beautiful day Let's sleep it away When we're awake We're not in the same frame of mind When, when we're asleep Our union's complete No opposite sides No threatening goodbye It's heaven to me When we're asleep Don't open your eyes Keep madness outside It's all for the dogs Who fight in the yard I'm just a sheep Oh the dim The shouting, shouting Wears me thin 'Til we give out And go to bed And all is well Such a beautiful day Let's sleep it away Don't think all that much Don't work yourself into a fuss When, when we're asleep Our union's complete No opposite sides No threatening goodbye It's heaven to me When we're asleep Over dinner The shouting, shouting Wears me thin 'Til we give out And go to bed And all is well Over dinner The shouting, shouting Wears me thin 'Til we give out And go to bed And all is well Deck In Vegas (Performed live on John Peel's radio show on the 4th of August 2002.) I was sitting alone in the room, so I thought When suddenly there were triplets of you playing cards I remember the deck in Vegas And you would play all night And watch the sky hide from the light The sky was never so bright I remember the deck in Vegas And you would play all night And watch the sky hide from the light Every Time (Run To Ruin out-take. Broadcast on John Peel’s radio show on the 3rd of May 2002.) Every time it comes to this I wanna feel you break my wrist I wanna take your hands to my neck I wanna feel you make it snap Every time it comes to this I wanna feel it Feel it Every time it comes to this Don't wanna hear you dull my writhe Every time it comes to this I wanna feel it Feel it Every time it comes to this I wanna feel it Feel it Every time...
Handmade Card No presents this year No Christmas tree I love you my dear And Christmas will be Still a celebration A day to laugh and sing A day to watch the snow fall We don't need a thing I know your heart aches When the work is done No money comes in You fear we'll lose our home I love you my dear And Christmas can be Still a celebration A day to laugh and sing And if we had no money saved We'll be okay And if we had an empty house We'll still be safe And if we had only ourselves We'll be the wealthy ones I know Ho, ho, ho... I love you my dear Christmas will be Such a celebration A day to laugh and sing A day to watch the snow fall We don't need a thing Just hope for a new year And strength for what it brings And if we had no money saved We'll be okay And if we had an empty house We'll still be safe And if we had only ourselves We'll be the wealthy ones I know Ho, ho, ho... Heavenly Heartache (Performed live on John Peel's radio show on the 5th of December 2002.) The lights are down dim And the church bells ring hollow It's a good day for crying and remembering when The child is asleep by the sink in the basement There's a terrible laughter outside blowing in And old brothers Grim starts to fall off the pages Down from the shelf where the cat's tail began Oh, heavenly heartache Come carry me deep in the moving sky Sadness come wake me Let tragedy take me and steal my heart There's a wind from the north and it dives down the chimney It's a good day for drinking, I remember you then The piano's lost F-Sharp and G-Flat went with it The dog starts to howl when the prelude begins Oh, heavenly heartache Come carry me deep in the moving sky Sadness come wake me Let tragedy take me and steal my heart
How I Like a Fight (Performed live at Peel Acres, 10th of June 2004) How I like a fight How I like a hockey game Red against the white Boy to give us what we ask for Feel the body tight Feel the paddle blow and break her You will never see You will never see me Lie against the white Dry wool of a clean towel Spattered from the fight Hard water hung like ice How she likes to bleed How she likes to brace, she hates it Ice along the feet Boy you better give her something Something from me Give her some of me
I'monamotherfuckingboat (Outlaster, iTunes Bonus Track) The freeze is over No more to gain For the dead, for the dead Row, row, a-rowing The rush between What's ahead and what's ahead More of the same is certain From boiling earth to falling sky We then die Widow went high on a rabid pitch Doing it, doing it No going over the coming yet Or regret through this Where beauty all surrounds And where the drowning, it is wrong Row, row, row
One Turned In (You Can Take Your Time B-Side) Who's wasting heaps of time Collecting every record written of your troubled mind Who's wandering in a maze The hedges growing heady, heady in to turn a phrase You may not ever find out The why's, even the when's, or who you were then Are you checking out Evading daily meetings, daily do's and what you love To rifle through your past Try to get the answers there by digging up the dead You may not like who you meet What is left to say I know you're losing sleep, you're losing years You were, you are, and are we any wiser for it, not a bit Do you still believe that something's broken in your head And if you spend your life inside it things will change Tiny shapes scurry across Books against a wall, tossed
Our Gang (Cry, Cry, Baby B-Side) So much to recall and only half the picture revealed From all the reminiscing and perusing Of scraps and slides projected onto the spread Where are all the adults of the strange beginnings The ones who would inspire all the late-night meetings And wishful thinking of starting over again Not that it's a wonder, there's a reason for retelling our history And preserving what we would like to keep When it starts to decay Trimming doings undiscovered People meeting shady endings out of frame So much to recall and only half the picture revealed From the chitter-chatter of the clan Around, around around around, around around around It keeps revolving On and on until the shuffle fails And the carousel is stopped And the fan and lights shut off
The Poisoner (from Knox's album 2018 album "Chasescene") I loved you before But I just forgot how Can't stand the way that you look at me now And something's always the matter Crying and whining and clatter I come straight to bed Quiet as a mouse Chase you all over the goddamn house But you don't chase back You can't even check Wear this song around your neck And it's hopeless and it's sad It's the best you've ever had But it's not the last There'll be a few more Here's the next one at the door And she'll take you to places you wanted to go Tell you things you already know And I beg you to leave but you won't go It's easy to love what you don't know
Repulsion ('Black and White' compilation, free CD with issue #12 of Esopus magazine) Teatime in a dream on a busier street Just the brattle of heels steady and fleet From the dark in the distance with a heavier step He is suddenly on me, oozing sweat And off like a rabbit I quicken my stride Keep eyes on the way and don’t look behind To hardly awaken to the buzzing of flies And the smell of a man and a haunted home There he stands at the steps to my door And I want, want more
Untitled (Run To Ruin out-take. Broadcast by John Peel on 3th May 2002.) Hey you there Leaning alone on that stair Have I seen you before Out in front of someone else's door Does your boyfriend look like a hero Though he's only so on the wrong side of town Are you no longer a stranger To a life you once looked down upon Oh, you look like a doll Hardly saying nothing at all With your eyes to the ground Counting everything around Now your friends hardly know you They talk about you every once in a while And you wonder how much has happened Since the last time they stayed the same And you say... Please, I don't wanna lose myself to change Here, I can almost feel you close again And you're going home After eight or nine years And your daddy has died They say you never even tried And you have so many secrets Locked away in the back of your eyes And they've only made you weary And you've severed all of your ties But will you ever really go Will you ever really stay Are you frightened the most When you're left all alone Do you hear the voice of your daddy When the blackness of night hits the ground Is there something still in the distance That keeps you awake without a sound And you say... Please, I don't wanna lose myself to change Here, I can almost feel you close again Please, I don't wanna lose myself to change Here, I can almost feel you close again What She Doesn't Know ( What She Doesn't Know EP ) At first I stood to say goodnight And then my knees gave out And to the rock I pulled you close And rolled out of my clothes I couldn't think of what to say We disappeared for hours What she doesn't know Couldn't hurt her anyway What she doesn't know I don't tell you my heart hurts To make another plan To know I'd give up everything And know I never can I couldn't think of what to say We disappeared for hours What she doesn't know Couldn't hurt her anyway
Where We Go Where we go There is no-one about us There's a ruin of jagged rock Leaning over the ocean And regular In the dullness of summer Comes the urge to come apart Scatter over the water One love, one forever Never mending, never ending Worn down to the essential bare The toughest piece of it Dying to die Where we go There is nothing about us Just a ruin of jagged rock Leaning over the ocean
World Of Dirt (Performed live at The Crawdaddy, Dublin, 26th of July 2008) You can say that you're over it Then I say to you, "over what thing?" You can go where you have to But I can tell you, it's not where you go It won't matter where you settle It won't change you in the end You will struggle, you will struggle You can blame me, you can blame your friends I think you were the bad one Never stating your mind As if you ever had one Isn't this all to fight what you know? I can tell you believe it Find a way to purity But it's a world of dirt I know And it's not good to think alone And I don't want you to go I don't know what you're thinking When did I say I was clean It's a world of dirt I know It's a world of dirt I know It's a world of dirt I know It's a world of dirt I know And it's not good to think alone
Your Red Nose ( What She Doesn't Know EP ) I certainly think you’re the specialty Everyone wants some All of us here at the party are watching you fall in I'm not different from you I just want it to always be easy Everyone knows you don't answer your phone You just stay away Oh, I see it Oh, I see it You're high on the hill Losing all your detail in the distance Everyone wants just a flash of you Only for an instant It's always this thing Try not to look at it Never remember it Oh, I see it Oh, I see it It's wide open now