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 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 to heaven

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 to heaven

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 to heaven

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 air

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 air

Take it out
Start again
Close it up
Be the one
You're beautiful
I couldn't take a bigger bite of you

This is what it is
I know you forget
Go ahead and wait
Lose your head
It's always there
It's full of air

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 air

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 torrent, feathering talk
I only hear teeth clicking about
And your voice bouncing on walls in our house

My belly is warm
And soon we'll 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
Yes, fun

I am not a part of the long and tiring walk
I only have fingers and sentiment
To mind where we keep all our sweet thoughts

So little gets done
So little
Yes, fun

Desert Fly

Red, rolling, wee desert fly
Shoot the breeze
Sun-blistered town
Gecko runs and dogs howl
Blue rocking-chair
Shadows hang
No one there
Where'd you go?
To my bed
'Tis I you 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

The violent face
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
All 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
All 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
What you say to me rings clear
I'm growing so big, so 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
And my holding-on's 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
The frosted 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
Your feet in 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 play after school
You go straight down to the water
And bury your bones 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

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

Over dinner
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

Cry Baby

(Performed live on John Peel's radio show on the 5th of December 2002.)

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 pictures
Can I have the one of us married
This work it won’t kill me
But I’m not stronger for it
I've just learned to wait it out

You are my lovely true love
But I know I can't change
You are my lovely true love
But I won't change

I won't cry, cry baby
I won't worry anymore
You and I, we are ideal

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 the whole 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...

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

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 rug I pulled you close
And rolled out of my hose

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

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 wanted 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