1. |
I Have Been A Sailor
03:41
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I have been a sailor for many a long year
There's salt water in my veins
Used to be a whaler off the bleached bone shores
Through the freezing Nantucket rain
The freezing Nantucket rain
I have run through storms with waves so high
I thought every breath was my last
With the wind so strong it tore up the sails
And smashed the matchstick mizen mast
Smashed the matchstick mizen mast
Still I live for days when the anchor weighs
And the sea whispers low
"If you sail on me I'll set you free
Just a sure as the north winds blow"
Just a sure as the north winds blow"
I have been drunk in bars under the stars
In a town near Abeline
Sat up all night as the Northern lights
Turned the skyways green
They turned the skyways green
I killed a Bristol man with my bare hands
Caught him stealing from the crew
Watched my young man drown
In some harbour town
There was nothing I could do
There was nothing I could do
So if you meet an old man at the sailor's rest
And he's sitting, staring out to sea
Buy him a drink and hear his tales
For that old man might be me
That old man might be me
I still remember days when the anchor weighed
And the sea whispered low
"If you sail on me I'll set you free
Just a sure as the north winds blow"
Just a sure as the north winds blow"
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2. |
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All the fun of the fair
Let me lead you there
I'll show you things that only kings
And jesters would ever share
We're coming to your town
So lay your money down
The carney's here like every year
Just spin that wheel around
We're a band of seekers, dreamers and runners
From the world that comes to stare
Drifters, riskers, scene stealers and shifters
We've been to everywhere
High wire walkers and machine gun talkers
It's hard to tell what is real
Jugglers, barkers, fire eaters and cheaters
Butterflies dead on the wheel
Step up, step up and bring your friends
There's something for everyone
Bearded ladies and 2 headed babies
Attractions second to none
See the tatooed man
His skin is a battle plan
For wars he fought that came to nought
As through the years he ran
Tomorrow we're moving on
So remember when we've gone
That all we leave is a memory
And cheap prizes that you won
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3. |
Two Places
04:47
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On the roads not taken
And all the highways forsaken
Walk a thousand souls
You never knew
In the steel grey morning
As your mind is turning
Spare them all
A thought or two
'Cause you can't be 2 places
At one time
You've got to roll through every town
On the line
Can't turn holy water into wine
Wine
From the sands of Carolina
To the rich earth of Minnesota
Lie a million seeds
That never grew
In the bright blue skyways
And the soft green byeways
There are birds and thoughts
That never flew
Let it all go
You will never know
How close you came
To winning the game
Fire on the run
Doesn't fool anyone
You're not fooling anyone
You're not fooling anyone
All the lost people passing
Never know what they're missing
One of them is waiting
Do you know who?
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4. |
Smoke & Bone
04:53
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South Dakota Wednesday morning
Empty hours dawn is calling
You're weighing heavy on my mind
We said some things that needed saying
But something got broken
Got left behind
I can't take what you're saying
The words you use are too unkind
I can't see where you're walking
Am I going crazy or running blind
Cause you're the daughter of smoke and bone
A liar, deciever, unbeliever and reaper
Of every bad seed you've ever sown
And every soul you've ever owned
God help you
If we ever meet again
I'll be first to wipe
Away your stain
Out on the plains the grass is moving
Like wind on water across the waves
In the dark a child is crying
Salt tears for the mother
He couldn't find
We built a house, kept out the demons
You burned it down to save your pride
Now I'm standing in the ruins
Watching my life slowly unwind
Cause you're the daughter of smoke and bone
A liar, deciever, unbeliever and reaper
Of every bad seed you've ever sown
And every soul you've ever owned
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5. |
Carousel
04:41
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Woke up in a hotel room
I was fifty stories high
A stranger in a stranger place
A prisoner of the sky
Somewhere in the streets below
There's a dreamer heading home
Past neon signs and party girls
Who never sleep alone
Met a stranger on the way
So subtle and refined
He it read from the holy book
"Those who seek will surely find"
Now I'm riding on the carousel
That takes me back in time
To a place before imagining
Where the madness made me blind
See how I'm shining
Like a kingfishers wing
Kalaidescope of colours
That changes everything
Blue for all the days
That I'll never see
I guess that's what happens
When the time slips between
Sometimes this world is cruel
It's easy to lose sight
Fate plays us all for fools
Who knows what's wrong or right
Your place is in the sunshine
May your shadows never fall
Though my footsteps will echo
Down your empty, silent halls
I know I had to let you go
You're not mine to keep
A bird in a golden cage
Only flies in it's dreams
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6. |
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The waitress is watching me
From the corner of the diner
On the juke box the music shifts from major
To minor
And it occurrs to me
Nothing in this world is how it seems
They say the rain falls just as heavy
On the rightous as the damned
There's too many people drowning
Walking through this land
It's clear to me
That nothing in this world
Is how it seems
There's blood on the poet's stage
The thief has paid the judges's wage
Fingers clenched in helpless rage
Just looking for the answer
Beauty is a gilded cage
Words pouring off a burning page
There's no time to re-arrange
No room for empty laughter
Your past is burning brighter
But your futures going dim
They told you it would end like this
You didn't listen to them
So you can see that
Nothing in this world
Is how it seems
We're all scratching in the dirt
For something shinier and newer
But time is no joker
And the days are growing fewer
Listen to me
Nothing in this world
Is how it seems
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7. |
Apple Blossom Fair
04:28
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Did I see you
At the Apple Blossom Fair?
A trace of your perfume
Lingered in the air
I asked the man on the tarot stand
But he just stood and stared
What were you buying
At the Apple Blossom Fair?
A coat of finest linen
The kind a child would wear?
I asked the man on the candy stand
He didn't seem to care
Do you remember
When we danced at the fair?
In front of the old men
Playing cards in the square
That was in the springtime
When apple blossom fell
All the secrets you whispered
I will never tell
Who were you courting
At the Apple Blossom Fair?
A handsome young man
On a fine chestnut mare?
I asked the man on the mirror stand
But he wasn't really there
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8. |
I Have Taken To Walking
03:43
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I have taken to walking these back roads in the sun
Watching from the river as my mind comes undone
And in a far off country
My true love sings our song
I have taken to calling out the names on the graveyard stones
They breathe again for a moment no longer just dirt and bones
And every name has a story
Every soul strives to be born
I'll lift my face to the sky
Look for me in the morning
I will be lifted by and by
I can feel the world turning
I can feel the world turning
I have taken words you gave me as you gently slipped away
I whisper will you save me before the ending of the day
But I'm not the man you made me
From the cold, idle clay
I have taken to waking to the sound of no one there
Just the distant roll of thunder, rain's promise in the air
And far outside my window
The futures silent stare
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9. |
Madeline
03:56
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Madeline
You mean more to me than anything
A sweeter song I will never sing
I will give you everything
Oh Oh Madeline
Unravelling
A day that's stolen, spirraling
You can't know what the future brings
You ride a wave that's vanishing
Oh Oh Madeline
I can hear you you laughing
I can you see you watching
Over this world
On angels wings flying
On a cobalt sea floating
Over this world
Travelling
On a road thats left you wondering
Is this really happening
A fool in the dark stumbling
Oh Oh Madeline
Balancing
A tightrope walking manequin
You can't look down without falling
Just one slip, and there's nothing
Oh Oh Madeline
Madeline
You mean more to me than anything
Madeline, Oh oh Madeline
Oh Oh Madeline
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10. |
Black Station Wagon
04:12
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My friends warned me but I didn't listen
They said your old lady's been messin around
With a guy in a black station wagon
He lives on the wrong side of town
He lives on the wrong side of town
They were seen in a bar on Tuesday
On Wednesday in the back of his car
By Thursday they were sat on his back porch
It was the weekend that pushed me too far
It was the weekend that pushed me too far
He drove a black station wagon
He had a black evil heart
And when I saw them together
Man it tore me apart
Yeah it tore me apart
Fresh turned earth in a wood in Wisconsin
Posters and appeals on TV
A couple that's just gone missing
It has nothing to do with me
It has nothing to do with me
May be they're on a beach in Belize
Or crusing the Mediterranean
I for one will be very surprised
If they ever show up again
So take heed all you sneakers and cheaters
One day you will have to pay
What seems like fun on a Monday
Could turn out a different way
Yeah it could turn out a different way
He drove a black station wagon
He had a black evil heart
They don't spend too much time together
Being dead it keeps them apart
Being dead it keeps them apart.
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11. |
It's A Beautiful World
02:54
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It's a beautiful world
Such a beautiful world
With beautiful girls
The sunlight streaming through their hair
So walk in the sun
Take a walk in the sun
Watch the river run
Share your days with everyone
There's no such thing as rain
There's no such thing as pain
There's no war or suffering
It's a beautiful world
Such a beautiful world
With beautiful girls
The sunlight streaming through their hair
All the girls are smiling
Today's there's no denying
That life can be like dreams
So walk in the sun
Take a walk in the sun
Watch the river run
Share your days with everyone
It's a beautiful world
Lots of pretty girls
Don't throw it away
It's a beautiful world today
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12. |
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The bleachers are all standing empty
There’s a strange silence in the air
Somebody said they'd heard sirens sounding
I was too wasted to care
There's a red coupe on the driveway
Shutters are drawn against the sun
I heard a rumour on the radio
The ending had just begun
Something Wicked this way comes
It's there in a million lies
The tatooed man's been watching the skies
Waiting for the stars to align
My brother was born as a free man
Back in 1965
The last thing he said as he held out his hand
Don’t let them take me alive
The wires are humming in the July heat
Highways are rammed interstate
10 million people are moving
Something tells me it's too late
In my hotel room the shadows are talking
Back and forth in rhyme
I love to listen to the words they use
But you know I'm running out of time
The neon sign's still swinging
Screaming and banging in the night
The tubes are dead no green, yellow or red
No liquid, luminous light.
The roads now empty slick with rain
Stop lights like blood on the street
The night wind stirs the dust in my veins
Can you hear the marching feet
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13. |
Already Tomorrow
03:28
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Half empty coffee cup
Just a trace of your makeup
And the long playing record's
Still spinning
Dust on the wooden floor
Summer through an open door
Somewhere a country song
Is playing
There's no time
It's already tomorrow
So send me a sign
To follow
There's no time
And there's none to borrow
It's a bitter wine
To swallow
How long must I wait
A stumbling fool at your gate
I'm lost and I'm cold
Just a blind man on the road
The clock is ticking down
The hours keep coming round
It's been that way
Since forever
The past is cracked and dry
Broken windows, empty sky
But a child still laughs
In my memory
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14. |
Strange Affliction
03:24
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I wonder if the wind,
Should tell of the places,
And times it has seen.
Would it know what to do?
About all the broken hearts,
It has blown through.
He steals through your dreams,
He knows all the secrets,
Of where you have been.
He knows what to do,
About all the emptiness,
You hold on to.
Strange affliction again,
Honey just follow the wind.
Lay your weary head down,
Upon your pillow, your eiderdown.
Sometimes it takes a stranger
To tell you you're drowning
And point out the danger
Of zero and counting
There isn’t much time,
For you to unburden,
What’s on your mind.
He can sense you are lost,
He knows the feeling,
He knows the cost.
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15. |
Darkness Is Your Friend
04:05
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Voices are the backbeat,
Of the sounds inside your head.
Scattering the memories,
Of things said, and unsaid.
You threw love to the four winds,
To watch it fly away.
Now redemption is a hell beyond,
The thoughts of yesterday.
You’re on a journey,
So remember to forget.
Heading out of bounds,
Beyond all feelings or regret.
Cold and hollow sentiment,
Will get you in the end.
When shadows are your comfort,
And darkness is your friend.
Head down to the river,
Will it wash the pain away?
Drowning all the memories,
Of what was done that day.
Can you summon up a reason?
To watch the setting sun.
Yes, redemption is a hell beyond,
What can never be undone.
Mind on an open sea,
With no sign of harbour.
Endlessly moving,
With no kind of succour.
The whispers in the morning,
Do they tell you what to think?
About the whys and wherefores,
For the pain of everything.
You just slip into a new day,
Like the one that went before.
And redemption is a hell beyond,
What can only be, no more.
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