1. |
Luke the Drifter
05:33
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Came home after the moon trip
Didn’t have a lot to say
Guess my mind was shot pretty good since seein the Milky Way
And my gal was kinda wonderin which way it was gonna go
And so was I by the way
And I was not ready to enlist another soul in my research
That guy’s got no taste, the guy in the corner, he’s John Birch
And I heard that you bin callin, and I ain’t pickin up the phone
You came to me in a dream one time and said leave me alone
Oh life ain’t tragic mostly
Life is magic somely
And I found myself writin long poetic lines with awesome rhymes
And maybe you’re thinkin Dylan, but to me it’s just that shit
Alexander Pope was runnin, and hey
Don’t blame me for a crooked nose
That my vocal passage blows a certain way
I am God’s only son
No mistakin this time around
And how much is it worth
To finally get some sleep
Without heroin or Valerian, or Tylenol PM
And I figured I might just put my Mexican money where my mouth is
Go two hands on the forehand and backhand
Like Monica Seles, Pancho Segura, Marion Bartoli
To name some
Oh life ain’t magic mostly
Life is tragic somely
Maybe we’re one too many cats
Maybe one of us should be a dog
Maybe I just wanna wake up under a hollow log
Maybe I’m Luke the Drifter
And my nature is to drift
Maybe I got one masterpiece in me, like Johnny Swift
Yeah but if I never get there
I’ll be all right with that
Tomorrow sundown could be nothin left of me but my hat
Hello Johnny
Hello Johnny
Johnny let me be the first to welcome you in here
Not sure if there’s a bar, but I bet it’s easy to smuggle in beer
Someone’s makin shortbread
Nothing ever smelled so good
Johnny boy I think you’re gonna like this neighborhood
I do not want to live my life from regret
Either way, stay or go, go or stay
Just do one or the other
With one of your eyes I fell in love, the other eye’s my friend
Guess that’s just how we’ll let this particular story end
I played catch with some kid today on the other side of the fence
Ain’t seen his face don’t know his name, the best part was the silence
Oh life ain’t tragic mostly
Life is magic somely
Life is life Ali
Frazier….
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2. |
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Tonight I feel so far away, so far away from you
What did you do tonight
I'm drivin my truck up and down the coast
From north of Seattle to the Mexico line
Right now, I’m in San Bernardino
All day long it was 95 degrees
But at least tonight I get to hear
The golden voice of Vin Scully
I've been stuck in this goin no place desk job
For too many months, it’s time to move on
If I quit and tried to just do my paintings
I wonder if I could come up with the rent
I still root for the Yankees back east
Never did take to these local teams
But at least tonight I get to hear
The golden voice of Vin Scully
Ooh, I do my share, I knock about
Ooh, is anything gonna work out
Sometimes I’m almost out of range
I head south of the valley
And pick up the game
Pull off the road, step out of the van
Lean against the hood still hot from the drive
Trees fade out in the black of the night
Some days it don’t hardly seem worth the fight
But at least tonight I get to hear
The golden voice of Vin Scully
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3. |
Party By Myself
03:20
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Six in the morning in my room at the Cecil
Ninety four fifty a week stretches me out a little
Six in the morning, it’s dope and Magnum, it’s
Borrow me two bucks so I can get to work again
I’m having a party tonight
Party by myself
Lunch wagon left, I stayed at my desk
I said I wasn’t hungry, nobody questioned me
I bought three 40 ounce Magnums and the cigarettes I craved all day
And I visit my dope man at Sixth and Broadway
I’m having a party tonight
Party by myself
Lock the door the word could get around
I got beer and cigarettes
I got a ninth floor view of Main Street
And a working TV set
Six in the evening in my room at the Cecil
Captain Kirk don’t care about my breath or ’bout my bloodshot eyes
My beer is my friend and my rock is my friend
And my friends are why I’m getting up tomorrow again
I'm having a party tonight
Party by myself
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4. |
Holy House
02:32
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Went down to the Holy House, doesn’t really matter which one
Cathedral, Temple, coulda been a Mosque, coulda been the local fish house
And I got down on my knees and I said the name of God
And I prayed
I prayed, Lord, I prayed, Lord
I closed my eyes and I prayed
I got down on my knees and I said the name of God
And I prayed
Jesus Mary Margaret, Krishna Vishnu Shanti
Allah Akbar Baruch Adonai
Heal me heal me heal me
Help to make me strong
And help me heal the world in my way
Then the bells started ringin, they rang with all their might
They rang for the sorrowful, rang for the weak of heart
Them bells, them bells, them bells rang on and on
Them bells, they rang for me
Jesus Mary Margaret, Krishna Vishnu Shanti
Allah Akbar Baruch Adonai
Heal me heal me heal me
Help to make me strong
And help me heal the world in my way
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5. |
Rainin in Madrid
03:22
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Now that our economy is going to the dogs
Maybe we’ll have flamenco music like they’ve always done in Spain
Maybe we’ll have a champion like Rafael Nadal
Full of passion and the need to prove himself time and again
And maybe Hollywood starts making movies that the world can love
Sad and bittersweet and full of pain
It’s raining in Madrid, tonight
It’s snowing in my head and I’m waiting on my friends
And a sign from the gods to come out and play now that our
Economy is going to the dogs
Now that our economy is going to the dogs
Maybe we’ll sing and dance and make love like they’ve always done in Spain
Maybe we’ll be like the folks in Argentina
Who know how to laugh and take their showers in the rain
And maybe Hollywood starts making movies that the world can love
Sad and bittersweet and full of pain
It’s raining in Madrid, tonight
It’s snowing in my head and I’m waiting on my friends
And a sign from the gods to come out and play now that our
Economy is going to the dogs
Faint dead away
What can I say
Hip, hip hooray
Tomorrow, today
Now that our economy is going to the dogs
Maybe we’ll skip the science and the math and all become painters
Maybe we’ll write poems like Federico Garcia Lorca
Throw away our TVs and our cars and dress like Quakers
And maybe Hollywood starts making movies that the world can love
Sad and bittersweet and full of pain
It’s raining in Madrid, tonight
It’s snowing in my head and I’m waiting on my friends
And a sign from the gods to come out and play now that our
Economy is going to the dogs
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6. |
I'm Not From Around Here
01:55
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Does green mean stop or go, is plastic good to eat
Should I put a hat on my head or on my feet
Tell me why a birthday comes only once a year
I’m not from around here
What do chickens dream about when they lay their eggs at night
Why do tears and laughter sound so much alike
Why are there so many different kinds of beer
I’m not from around here
Who receives on Christmas Eve, what’s reason and what’s rhyme
Show me, tell me, ring my bell, we haven’t got much time
How do windshield wipers know when it starts to rain
How do the commuters know when it’s time to leave the train
What is hate, what’s boredom, what’s jealousy, what’s fear
I’m not from around here
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7. |
Carried Away
03:37
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Well I never had a Ford before, but I got one now, yeah
Never had a red two-door, got one now, yeah
Four on the floor, three on the tree
Maybe you can bust it but you can’t catch me unless
You really want to
Well I never had a girl before, but I got one now, yeah
Somebody to hold my hand, ’n understand, yeah
Pine nuts, shank nuts, any nuts’ll do
Go to sleep darlin I don’t think you’ll sleep long
I’m gonna want you
And sometimes it’s just another day
And sometimes you don’t know what to say
Carried away, carried away
Wake up, go to sleep, Little Bo Peep
I think you lost your sheep, I think you found me
Let’s find a little down time
Well I never was a king before, but I am one now, yeah
Never solid to the core, I am now, yeah
Down to the river and take a drink
Tell me a riddle, we’ll pass the brink
Maybe someday, we’ll meet up again
And sometimes it’s just another day
And sometimes you don’t know what to say
Carried away, carried away
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8. |
Don't Get Mad, Get Even
03:59
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Another chanteuse on local radio
Another caboose on the hit parade-io
Says bye bye, bye bye
Another top ten list you ain’t on
Another day your name ain’t LeBron
Pack it in, why try
Pick your chin up off the ground, you ain’t leavin
Don’t get mad my friend, get even
Sometimes it’s a sparkling town
Sometimes backslaps all around
Sometimes it knocks you down, why is that
Sometimes, same things charge you up
Pull you down, drain your cup
Sometimes it all just sucks you dry
I hear you saying things that you can’t be believing
Don’t get mad my friend, get even
The house across the street that I been meaning now to photograph
For a year
I really like the way the roof it slants and dives and shoots around
Mostly I make it disappear
I’ll meet you down by the old canal
Bring your guitar, I’ll bring a ball
We’ll shoot free throws, make up songs the kids will sing
This time next year we’ll be kings
Do a lot of interviews, wear a lot of bling
Go to rehab, kick that cocaine in your cereal thing
There’s things you ain’t even begun achieving
Don’t get mad my friend, get even
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9. |
Swing Set
02:36
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The way you learned to kick a ball was a great, great day
I still can smell perfume as you held me while I played
The swing set, the swing set
Oh, your hazel eyes your hazel eyes
Why do I recall the first time you drank from a cup
Why do I recall the pine trees where you held me up
The swing set, the swing set
Oh, your hazel eyes your hazel eyes
Why can’t I remember first time you drove a car
Somewhere I lost sight of you, can’t think where you are
The swing set, the swing set
Oh, your hazel eyes your hazel eyes
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10. |
Capetown
02:52
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And I found a girl in Capetown, I was with her three days straight
She showed up right on time, not too soon and not too late
And all that I remember was we barely left the room
And I’m sure somewhere the sun came up and went back down again
And I open up my window, and the world is upside down
Oh, Capetown
And all I had was time and I drank me a few beers
And I Googled people that I hadn’t seen in twenty years
And to my great surprise, when I typed in your name I learned
You were working in a chemical plant in Johannesburg
And I’m hanging out in Capetown, and it ain’t too far away
Maybe I’ll see you sometime in a Johannesburg café
Lots of folks live on the streets here and there’s more all the time
But the water, she’s beautiful, and there’s plenty of good cheap wine
And if you crane your neck too far, there’s a hand around your throat
And you’ll wind up staring with your pockets clean from the bottom of a boat
When Gandhi came his eyes were blue, when he left his eyes were brown
Oh, Capetown
And I would gladly run off to the corners of the earth
But I find myself in Capetown by an accident of birth, yeah
I would gladly run off to the corners of the sky
But I find myself in Capetown, don’t matter why
Oh, Capetown
Fallin I am fallin off the great table of space
It’s all I can do to get up, splash water on my face
Capetown is my refuge, Capetown is my dare
If I can’t make it in Capetown, never make it anywhere
All right then, enough of this ramblin, gonna take a look around
Oh, Capetown
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11. |
Haarlem
02:27
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Walking the streets of Haarlem
Not that one, the other one
The one with two A’s
The Dutch one, Haarlem
Walking the streets of Haarlem
The one with two A’s, the Dutch one
I might go to the sauna
Hang out with naked men and women
Take showers, swim in hot pools
Sit in hot rooms with naked men and women
Naked and non-sexual
Naked and non-sexual
I like it, I think it’s good for me
I don’t do it enough so I’ll probably go
To the sauna, in Haarlem, the Dutch one
Will I see you in the street tonight
And when I see you, will I know you?
Walking the streets of Haarlem
I think of Van Goghs like Vincent
He shot himself in a field, sometime, someplace, and
Walking the streets of Haarlem
I think of Van Goghs like Theo
He made a film, something critical
Of the Koran, and they shot him
I guess sometimes it’s tough, it’s tough to be Dutch
But walking the streets of Haarlem
The one with two A’s, the Dutch one
It seems pretty good, right now
Will I see you in the street tonight
And when I see you, will I know you?
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12. |
Mexican Vacation
05:50
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Three years before the surface of the earth was uninhabitable
By human beings, I took a train
To New York City, through the black hills of Ohio and the
Pennsylvania hills of acid rain
In those days folks were digging, always digging through the limestone,
And the coal and granite and magnesium
For the tunnels and the caves, subterranean rivulets
For the moles that we eventually became
Slavery was everywhere, it was simply necessary
Otherwise the planet was a grave
And sure I guess inevitably, it became a status thing
Some people they just had to have a slave
People were still bitter ’bout the forced sterilization
Of all but ten percent of the population
But in a funny way the pressure of the hunt was off and so
I took my little Mexican vacation
Underneath my seat was a flotation device
In case the train could not avoid the flood
Sixteen trains that summer had already gotten stuck
Where the Atlantic meets the Indiana mud
One half of the people on the train were policemen
As mandated by the senate of the world
But still I somehow met and got to know and jumped the train
With a runaway slavery girl
Oh, sha la la
Shake it, shake it
Runaway slavery girl
Oh, sha la la
Shake your behind
Runaway slavery girl
Everyone had long forgotten ’bout football
And baseball and basketball and rice
The airports were shut and the cars had gone to rust
And the hemispheres had both sunk twice
The sky was purple and we hit the ground running
Our will was strong, our love was made to order
And all we really wanted to do was make it
To the Mexican-Canadian border
We rambled through the hills, Pocahontas, Buffalo Bill
Sometimes I found some work carbon dating
And with nothing but our love and the shirts on our back
And our biologically useless mating
But she rarely had my dinner served
And finally she got on my nerves
And with nothing much left above ground in this world
Sometimes you gotta look after yourself, yeah
One cold night in Philadelphia
I turned in my runaway slavery girl
Sometimes it’s hot
Sometimes it’s cold
Sometimes it’s anybody’s guess
Sometimes you do what you have to
This was one of those times I guess
And now that we’re all underground
I sometimes wonder if she found
Her way or not, or if she’s still a slave
But still and all there’s worse you know
Anyway it wasn’t personal
Just something ’bout those West Virginia waves
Three years or maybe more like two and a half
Before the earth was uninhabitable, I jumped aboard a train
To New York City, through the black hills of Wisconsin and the
Pennsylvania hills of acid rain
Folks were still adjusting to the preparatory chemicals
Administered through widespread inhalation
And so I settled back, nestled in and shut my eyes
For my final little Mexican vacation
Oh, sha la la
Shake it, shake it
Runaway slavery girl
Oh, sha la la
Shake your behind
Runaway slavery girl
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13. |
Home
03:44
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Now the sun is out the day is clear and I’m on my way
Way up in the sky the planes pass by and they’re on their way
Come what may
The waiting is over baby
There’s been times all I could do was cry now I’m on my way
Couldn’t conjure up a lullaby, now I’m on my way
Day by day
There ain’t nothing more to say that
Home, I’m on my way back home
Finally going home
This was worth the wait
Yeah I’m on my way back home
To you
All my confidence was almost gone it was almost gone
Like a vagabond out on the lawn I was almost gone
Time to move along
Our time it looked like done
Home, I’m on my way back home
Finally going home
This was worth the wait
Yeah I’m on my way back home
To you
They say we hurt the ones we love the most well I guess it’s true
It’s the only way you find out who’s gonna stick it through
Thick and thin, lose or win
It’s how you get someplace and
Home, well that’s just where you are
Ain’t some building, ain’t the car
Wish upon a star and you’ll be home
Home, I’m on my way back home
Finally going home
This was worth the wait
Yeah I’m on my way back home
To you
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14. |
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Back from my trip around the universe
They need me to be quarantined but first
Before all your questions, let me just expound
Love makes all the other worlds go ’round
Love makes all the other worlds go ’round
I started with our solar system, then turned right
Navigating by candlelight
And everywhere I went, the same old story found
Love makes all the other worlds go ’round
Love makes all the other worlds go ’round
This world spins ’round from love, heard it in the past
But poetry and science completes the tale at last
So when you look up at a starry sky
And loneliness engulfs you, darkness fills your eye
No matter where you turn, to the heavens or just downtown
Love makes all the other worlds go ’round
Love makes all the other worlds go ’round
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15. |
These Living Dreams
03:02
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Subtle change in the air
Trees are different
Something different, can’t describe
Birds are whistling
Something that they used to sing
Way back, who knows when
Or maybe you’re just looking at me
Like you used to look at me again
Maybe I am a ghost
And I’m the only one that hasn’t
Been informed, long ago
That I’m some long-dead protoplasm
But something calls me back tonight
To the land of living men
Or maybe you’re just looking at me
Like you used to look at me again
These living dreams
I sing
These living dreams
I sing
Subtle change, like the clouds
Soft clouds floating by
Little breeze takes me along
My soul can’t help but fly
Out across the mountains where
The sunrise never ends
Or maybe you’re just looking at me
Like you used to look at me
Maybe you’re just looking at me
Like you used to look at me again
These living dreams
I sing
These living dreams
I sing
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Dan Bern Silver City, New Mexico
Undefinable by genre, crossing over and through folk, rock, singer-songwriter, and kids music, Dan Bern is a rare, and true
renaissance artist, a captivating live performer with a multi-generational following. He has written thousands of songs, released dozens of albums, and played shows –from coffee shops to Carnegie Hall.
Dan’s songs have appeared in numerous films and TV shows.
... more
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