|
On the 13th of November 2002, I, with lots of help from some
friends, put on a show for a whole bunch of YAMs and a half-dozen NAVs (and
a couple of random people who refuse to be identified by acronyms). The show
was held at Dee's, Deb's, and Natalie's house, started around 7.45pm, and
ended around 10.00pm. A couple of people asked about lyrics and stuff, and
since I like to commemorate certain events with one-page websites (example),
I decided to do the same here.
CD Tracks
1.Conversations
2.Get It Right
3.Arkansas Traveller, Pt. 1
4.Band Intro
5.Hey Cow!
6.Waiting At The Gate
7.I Hung My Head (Sting)
8.Shelter From The
Storm / Happy Birthday
***Intermission***
9.Arkansas Traveller, Pt 2
10.North
11.Chapel42
12.Late in the Day
13.There And Back Again
14.40 (U2)
Encore
15.Today (Randy Sparks) /
Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen)
16.One (U2) (Not on CD)
17.Island of Love (Not
on CD)
The Program Sheet:
Conversations
There are a bunch of classic songs about friendship that have
been written in the past. 'Lean On Me', 'He Ain't Heavy', 'Bridge Over
Trouble Water' are songs that make you say to yourself: "Aaah...
Friendship!". I try to write a Friendship Song and I get... this. Oops.
|
Tell me about all of the things
you'd thought you'd figured out
And learned a little later on what you'd been wrong about
I need to laugh bout something
I need to smile bout something
Thought I'd told you once before there is no fatal line
You use them right in combination they'll fit right in each time
You need to laugh bout something
You need to smile bout something
See the pieces of a story falling from their place
We'd catch them if we were only freed up from the race
Of a world that's been our cradle and our cell
Since before there was history to tell
Once there was a girl I knew with whom I fell in love
Strange how their smiles fit round your daydreams like a glove
I need to laugh bout something
Now I need to smile bout something |
Tell me stories from your book, do
not withhold your peace
Fill this empty heart with smoke and bid the daylight cease
Within a perfect brew of clouds and flames
Let's make up songs about old lover games
You know between the two of us
We don't think we know or need to know that much
And what is our main concern
Sunday 1 o'clock it's hey man what's for lunch
You go up to the mountains
To get frozen to the bone
I look up and curse the sun
Leaving us on our own
When it's late and I come home and you're too asleep to speak
I announce I'm giving in with a shuffle and a creak
I need to laugh bout something
I need to smile bout something |
Get It Right
In this song, there are several intentional references
(though I'm sure I make plenty of unintentional ones) to songs by some of my
favorite artistes:
"Sangrias in a fancy restaurant..." - Lou Reed, 'Perfect Day'
"From a book of Italian poetry..." - Bob Dylan, 'Tangled Up
In Blue'
"There's an opera groove..." - U2, 'Ultaviolet (Light My
Way)'
As for the song itself, well it pretty much explains itself.
This is as close to pop as I've gotten, I think. All I need now are backup
dancers.
|
How many times have we stumbled
through this place before
Trainspotting posters on the walls
and beer bottles on the floor
And these ratty shoes... woah,
what's that you say?
If
it's where I live does that makes it all okay?
Hey some days it's hard to tell
just where you're at
And you know I'm the kind of guy
who likes it like that
Sangrias in a fancy restaurant, a
kiss and off you go
This night is yours to abide in so
take it slow
Well don't I know it hurt when you
remember when
She smiled into your eyes and took
your hand
And said "All this makes no sense,
look at where we are"
Oh, it's good to love
And it's good to fight
But you know you're not always
gonna get it right"
|
Stop, and wonder what it's all
about
Stop, something in the dark cries
out
In a language you've known since
the day you were born
From a book of Italian poetry all
ripped up and torn
Stop, something in the dark cries
out
In a quiet room
Like a broken light
With the ghosts of times you
didn't get it right
And now the evening's warmer than
a neon light
But all you want can't be had in
just one night
Fumbling words you ought to know
Coming over the radio
Saying the same thing over and
over and over and over again
Oh, it's good to love
Yeah, you need that light
But you know you don't need to get
it right
There's and opera groove growing
in your head
Ultraviolet light shining o'er
your bed |
Arkansas Traveller Pt. 1
(Traditional)
This is from an album by Jerry Garcia and David Grisman
called 'Not For Kids Only'. During rehearsal, Brent told a couple of awful
Knock Knock jokes. One can imagine the rest:
Bernard: "You should tell those jokes during the
concert!"
Kevin: "Yeah!!!!"
Brent: "Why don't we do the whole Arkansas Traveller
skit instead?"
Bernard, Kevin, and Brent: "Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Note: None of us were intoxicated at this time. Yet.
|
Hello there, stranger.
Well, hello there, stranger.
Does this here road go all the way
to Little Rock?
Well I've been sitting here all
day and it ain't gone nowhere yet.
Hello there stranger.
Well, hello there, stranger.
Your corns are looking awful
little and yeller.
I planted the little yeller
kind.
Hello there stranger.
Hiya there, stranger.
Your roof's leakin'? Why don't you
fix it?
Well, right now it's rainin'
too hard, and when the sun's out, why it don't leak!
Hello there stranger.
Well, hello there, stranger.
... hi.
|
Hey, Cow!
The game of 'Hey Cow!' is played like this: If you're driving
past a pasture of grazing cows, you stick your head out the window, yell
"HEY COW!!!" as loud as you can, and you get points for each cow that looks
up. The premise of this song is basically the same: grab a guitar and a
mike and holler as loud as you can to see how many people will look up to
see what all the fuss is about.
|
On my wall's a painting, I'm not sure what
it's of
There's a gentleman and lady, they might
be in love
But the closest thing I see in view's a
boy on the street
In the distance crowds of travellers with
nothing to eat
I'm sitting in the cold, burning toilet
paper in my shoes
And my tent has fallen over, and I'm
sufferin' the blues
I tell you man, if you'd ever been where
we'd just been
Tensleep'd be the most blessed sight you'd
have seen
I know a girl who's promised me a necklace
of beads
And I know a girl who judges me by my
words and my deeds
And I know a girl I'd marry, her name's
not Lorraine
I'm prayin' in the end affection's all
that remains
It's twenty-three below and I think I'll
stay inside
She's calls me on the two-way says let's
go for a ride
On what I say I'd be surprised if my hair
doesn't freeze
She walks my
way with alluring sway and a wink and a tease
|
I look ahead she's at my side, she kinda
likes me too
But if I drop the ball she says I'll hurt
her through and through
I don't know what I'm messing with, but I
beg to differ
I know you by name honey, I've known you a
year
I'm talking to my daddy, I'm mocking
Nietzche on my knees
Want can't somebody so smart see the
forest for the trees?
And how much of these lies do I buy into
in my life?
And how long will it take to cut through
them with a knife?
I'm starin' out the window across the
great moor
And I'm ponderin' my heart and why it's so
evil beyond cure
And I'm searching my quotations, and I'm
poring through my book
I look in the mirror ,tell myself "Don't
give me that look"
The radio's playin' 'Silvio', and the
sun's in a dive
The tide is comin' in, the evening's
finally arrived
I step out in the Tevos that I stole long
ago
I walk the shore til midnight in the
moon's weepy glow
|
Waiting At The Gate
Ah! Religion... going places I shouldn't go. This one is
written from the viewpoint of one of Jesus' disciples. Peter is the one I'm
referencing the most.
I try something really odd with this song... it may have not
been obvious (ok it wasn't, period), but I was attempting to sing this in
the style of a Frank Sinatra-Tin Pan Alley classic pop song. I didn't
succeed, but it was interesting to try.
"The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your
whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body
will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how
great is that darkness!" Matthew 6:22-23
|
Bernard: This next one's called 'Waiting At The Gate'
and Dee's gonna help me out!
Dee: oh, why *something* *something*...
he sunsets I am told take their time to unfold
Let their beauty fill the mold before they fade
Now people may by chance be accursed by circumstance
Yet not lose sight of the romance for which they're made
I was drifting in the lake
I was stumbling in the wake
Of a storm that had brought me to your door
You met me by the docks, made your home upon the rocks
Lived your life, ignored the clocks in the temple square
When there was no one there who'd look you in the eye
|
The rhythm of your words in my head were not heard
As all the lilies or the birds could understand
My concerns were not yours I'd have crawled upon all
fours
To be with you, to defend you til the end
Well I rose when she fell
At your feet so you could to tell
Of the hell that she had just come from
The teachers who looked on were confused, each and every
one
Said you would suffer for the many but not for some
But they themselves would not come to look you in the eye
You rose, you wouldn't fade
From every promise that you made
All was given, all forgiven from your heart
You met me by the shore, it wasn't hurting anymore
Like a finger on a trigger in my hand
And I'll lay down in that land, now you've looked me in
the eye
|
I Hung My Head (written
by Gordon Sumners)
...otherwise known as Sting. This song first appeared on his
Mercury Falling album. It's one of my favorite Sting albums (though it
flopped commercially, and produced only one single, 'Let Your Soul Be Your
Pilot', which I thought was the worst song on the entire album... go
figure). Last week, another one of my favorite artistes, Johnny Cash,
released a new album called 'The Man Comes Around', with a cover of Sting's
'I Hung My Head'. I was happy as heck to hear the news.
The song deals with a lot of themes: Sin, Death, Justice, and
Repentance... enough said. Great song, all round.
|
Early one morning with time to kill
I borrowed Jeb's rifle and sat on the hill
I saw a lone rider crossing the plain
I drew a bread on him to practice my aim
My brother's rifle went off in my hand
A shot rang out across the land
The horse he
kept running, the rider was dead
I hung my head, I hung my head
I set off running to wake from the dream
My brother's rifle went into the stream
I kept on running into the salt lands
And that's where they found me, my head in my hands
The sheriff he asked me why had I run
Then it came to me just what I had done
And all for no reason, just one piece of lead
I hung my head, I hung my head |
Here in the
courthouse, the whole town is there
I see the judge high up in his chair
"Explain to the courtroom what went through your mind
And we'll ask the jury what verdict they find"
I said "I felt the power of death over life
I orphaned his children, I widowed his wife
I beg their forgiveness, I wish I was dead"
I hung my head, I hung my head
Early one morning with time to kill
I see the gallows up on the hill
And out in the distance a trick of the brain
I see a lone rider crossing the plain
He's come to fetch me to see what they done
We'll ride together til Kingdom come
I pray for God's mercy for soon I'll be dead
I hung my head, I hung my head |
Shelter From The Storm /
Happy Birthday
I chose to do this song for one reason only: it's 10 verses
long, which gave Dee more than enough time to sneak out and prep Brent's
cake, and then spring his birthday surprise halfway through the song. The
lights went out at the end of the 5th verse and then we all started singing.
Brent was completely surprised. Dee brought out a cake with TWENTY NINE
count 'em TWENTY NINE candles. There was much joy and gift-giving, and there
was a card that said "Have a flocking good birthday". And as far as I was
concerned, I was so happy that it didn't matter how the rest of the evening
turned out.
|
Bernard:
Where's your rhythm egg?
Brent:
Sorry!
Twas in
another lifetime, one of toil and blood
When darkness was a virtue and the road was full of mud
I came in from the wilderness, a creature void of form.
"Come in," she said, "I'll give you shelter from the storm."
Not a word
was spoke between us, there was little risk involved
Nothing up to that point had even been resolved.
Try imagining a place where it's always safe and warm.
"Come in," she said, "I'll give you shelter from the storm."
I was burned
out from exhaustion, buried in the hail,
Poisoned in the bushes an' blown out on the trail,
Hunted like a crocodile, ravaged in the corn.
"Come in," she said, "I'll give you shelter from the storm."
Suddenly I
turned around and she was standin' there
With silver bracelets on her wrists and flowers in her hair.
She walked up to me so gracefully and took my crown of thorns.
"Come in," she said, "I'll give you shelter from the storm."
Suddenly I
turned around and she was standin' there
With silver bracelets on her wrists and flowers in her hair.
She walked up to me so gracefully and took my crown of thorns... |
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday dear Bre-e-e-ent!
Happy Birthday to you!
That's intermission folks!
|
Arkansas Traveller Pt. 2
(Traditional) (well, sort of)
... Of course, we still had the rest of the evening to do,
and so we proceeded by finishing the Arkansas Traveller skit. This was a
last-minute decision. It was literally made the minute before we did it. I
threw in a Knock-Knock joke for good measure.
|
Hello there, stranger.
Well, hello there, stranger.
I do believe you're not too far
from a fool.
Believe what?
I said I do believe you're not
very far from a fool.
That's right son, just this
here guitar and mandolin between us.
Hello there stranger.
Well, hi there, stranger.
Have you lived here all your life?
Not yet!
Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Dwayne.
Dwayne who?
Dwayne the tub, I'm dwowning!
Hello there stranger.
Hi there, stranger.
You're not very smart are you?
Nope, but I ain't lost! |
North
The Straits of Malacca was a major sea route for ships back
in the day (if my old Malay history textbook is anything to go by) and it
still is. Several centuries ago, it was at the city-port of Malacca that the
relationship between the Chinese and the Malays first began in earnest. I
used this as a starting point for a song about... errr... love. So there you
have it. Brent gave me the main chord progression for the verses of this
song (I came up with the chords for the chorus and bridge).
This song also has the dubious honor of containing the single
most awful pun I've ever put to paper. I'll labelled it as such for your
convenience.
|
There's a body of water West of
the Malay Peninsular
Centuries ago many ships sailed here to find Malacca
The Chinese came with spices silk and golden things
And princesses, they wed them to the local kings
I don't have gold to give
Or silk to hide your skin
Just the flavor of a song on tongue to
Lose your senses in
I played the sailor charting waters 'neath a Western sky
Was there a way I could resist the darkness in your eye
Won't you be my North
'Till I can take my eyes off you
Clever as my words believe they are far from arresting you
In any pose you find I'm twisted in, my mouth is struggling too
Much to make some sense of the thunder rolling through my skull
Play on dear Moira, set me drifting through the lull
In a storm of sound
The thrashing on my chest
Salt water in my eyes
No harbor to find rest
Been mentally jousting waves of doubt, oh why'd I come so far
Sumatran winds tear through my route so hard they'll leave a scar
Won't you be my North
'Till I can take my eyes off you |
You, with a commoner's laugh sown
into your hair
The horizon fades with your iridescent stare
When my childhood was a simple daily line for bread
I started lingering where angels will not tread
My friend, What's a day with one less laugh?
Lets think on it a little, don't go answering me too soon
It's not a sad day, it's just a sadder day
And you know I love a sadder day morning cartoon (*ouch!*)
My friend, once just a friend
Now I'm blinded in the false light of that lune
Won't you be my North
Cause I can't tear my eyes of you
Won't you be my North
'Till we find a North that's true |
In Douglas Adam's rather amusing book, 'The Hitchhiker's
Guide To The Galaxy', the supercomputer Deep Thought comes to the conclusion
that the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and
everything is '42'. There's a website at
http://www.chapel42.com/life called
Chapel42.
I did not write this song with that website in mind. In fact,
I'm not sure if I wrote this song with any one particular thing in mind. As
Amy White would say, "How postmodern of you, Bernard".
Chapel42
|
Woke one morning when the sun was up
My mind was water in a paper cup of holes
Beauty living on the edge of town
You're a mile from the border when you're
turned around and told
There's no one home
When a child has reached his fifteenth
year
He's learned to walk along a trail of fear
and love
Boardwalk burning in the mid-day sun
The sea, the sky, the earth, the video
arcade are one
Don't feel a sentimental fool right now
The roaring river's all his heart allows
to run
She said "I have a question to put to you"
She said "How" she said "Who" he said
"Forty-two years I've seen
"And I thought I'd know more than I did
back then
And I do and I'm more confused than I've
ever been"
You torch up
the night, torch up the night for me |
Dreamed a thought for the young at heart
The morning after's the hardest part to
make
Words that breed like apple cores
All that I have stolen's yours to take
What can we fake?
All the corner's are filled with
beggar-men
March's cover's making out with an
also-ran from tinseltown
You may be praying to the Lord there's
more than this
He may be talking back but more than
ritual is a thorny crown
You torch up the night, torch up the night
for me
You torch up the night, torch up the night
for me
I had a dream last night
You placed a lamp on my table
I'd gotten nothing right
I was a Cain, you were my Abel
And in your wilderness no man or beast
would touch me
They all ran and hid
Now I don't know if their hearts were good
or bad
I only know that's what they did
Woke one morning when the sun was up
My mind was
water in a paper cup of holes...
La ta da da
da da... |
Late In The Day
A short love song. This has a special place in my heart,
because it doesn't try to do too much, aside from express a simple longing.
I stuck it near the end of the set, to signify that I'm getting ready to
wind down. The "voice from Minnesota" is yet another reference to Dylan.
'Not Dark Yet' is one of my favorite Dylan songs, and can be found on his
'Time Out Of Mind' album.
|
There is a voice from Minnesota
Made a name in the Greenwich Village coffeehouses
Sang a song to break my heart
When I'm wasn't certain what a broken heart is
We were walking up the hill
Late in the day the bells filled the air
I hear there's better music downtown
I'll spend a couple of nights drinking coffee there
It's not dark yet he sang but it's getting there
Getting to where a man can barely see
Late in the day, beneath a lonesome tree |
I learned to be in love
Perhaps in Autumn but I can't be sure
Can't be certain now of many things
Can't be certain what I think of you so much for
It's been quiet here lately
So much so you hear the woodwork sigh
Oh why don't you call me baby
That's a performance in the park let's go see it tonite
I longed to take an evening walk, just us alone
And see the night town neon in your eyes
Late in the day, beneath the purple skies |
There And Back Again
Brent gave me the chord progression for the verses of this
song (as he did on North). I meant for this song to be autobiographical, but
my mind went places I'd never been before while I was writing this. I
decided if the images evoke the same feeling I'm trying to express, they'll
work. I think they did... I'm more satisfied with the words on this song
than I am with most of the others.
|
I was born to tell stories, or so my mother said,
I'm making up tales to cover for me when I'm dead,
Til now I'd given no resistance to the restless wind,
I woke up in the darkest parts of town, wondered where
else I'd been.
I took a plane to Boston to renew my soul,
But you need to be broken to begin with to be made whole,
The illusions and music lead me through the rain,
I was there for a little while, I was there and back
again.
Standing in the hallway, the signs were pretty clear,
A lot of other wanderers stop to linger here,
There's a record playing in the taproom across the
street,
I close my eyes and whistle to that beat. |
At this hour the moonlight crawls gently along the moor,
The way the candleflame dances you'd think that's what a
candle's for,
There's quite a while left in me to try and heal this
pain,
But I've gone that way before, I was there and back
again.
The seasons they are turning, the branches shed their
leaves,
I'll go down to the river where I'll be received,
Some things you learn as though they were a song,
You roughly know the tune, you get a few words wrong.
I'm in the apex of my youth, well that's how it feels,
The heat rises up before me and stings my heels,
The world has changed so much I think 'something in me
has surely died',
I put on my river-walking shoes and I go outside.
|
40 (written by U2)
'40' is the song that U2 used to end their concert from the
Live At Red Rocks video. It was either going to be this or Pete Yorn's 'Girl
Like You' that I was going to use to finish the set. I looked at the rest of
the songs and decided '40' fit in more easily at the end. Some day I'll do a
gig with more lovey-dovey songs in them... just not today.
The words of the song are taken mostly from Psalm 40. I'm not
sure where the chorus "How long to sing this song?" comes from. I heard
before that it was from another part of the OT, but I forget where.
On the CD it's obvious I'm not singing alone... I didn't pull
a backup choir out of thin air. I asked everyone who knew the song to sing
along with me.
|
This is one
by U2 and it's called '40'
I
waited
patiently for the Lord
He inclined and heard my cry
He lift me up out of the pit
Out of the mire and clay
I will sing, sing a new song
I will sing, sing a new song
How long to sing this song?
How long to sing this song?
How long...how long...how long...
How long...to sing this song
He set my feet upon a rock
And made my footsteps firm
Many will see
Many will see and hear
I will sing, sing a new song
I will sing, sing a new song
How long to sing this song?
How long to sing this song?
How long...how long...how long...
How long...to sing this song |
Today (written by Randy Sparks) /
Hallelujah (written by Leonard Cohen)
I honestly didn't think an encore would happen, because I
didn't know how it would happen. Usually an encore is when the guy leaves
the stage and the crowd keeps clapping. Obviously that wasn't going to
happen here. What did happen was (I think) Kevin and Dee said something
along the lines of "That's it?", and then people started saying things like
"Play another one!", "Encore!", and "I'm hungry, pass the Fritos!". I warned
everyone I was going to mess up badly because I didn't prep for an encore,
but if I did I would keep going like nothing happened. And I did mess up
badly a couple of times, and I did keep going like nothing happened.
I did actually have a rough idea of what I wanted to do with
the encore. Mostly it would be songs that I'd considered for the main set
but decided not to include for some reason or another. But I also played
with the idea of telling a story within the short space of that encore. I
began with a medley of 'Today' by Randy Sparks and 'Hallelujah' by Leonard
Cohen. The songs have similar intros, which is why I put them together. But
despite their musical similarities, they stand in stark contrast to one
another: The character in 'Today' is content to love, live, and rejoice in
the present; The character in 'Hallelujah' also desires love, but his
longings are smothered in hurt and regret from the past. Together, these
characters could very well be the same person, before and after a huge
fallout with a loved one.
A note about Hallelujah: I've heard four versions: Leonard
Cohen's, Jeff Buckley's, Rufus Wainwright's, and Bono's. Bono's is
interesting, but is done mostly as a rap. For the melody and inflections, I
used a combination of what Cohen, Buckley, and Wainwright chose to do on
their versions.
|
Bernard:
This is the song I was playing when Brent started going klikety-klak,
klikety-klak, klikety-klak-klak-klak...
Brent: It
didn't sound that bad.
(It sounded
worse)
Today,
while the blossoms still cling to the vine
I'll taste
your strawberries, I'll drink your sweet wine
*cHoKe*!
A million
tomorrows can all pass away
Less I forget
all the joy that is mine today
I'll be a
dandy and I'll be a rover
You'll know
who I am by the song that I sing
I'll feast at
your table, I'll sleep in your clover
Who cares what
tomorrow may bring
Today, while
the blossoms still cling to the vine
I'll taste
your strawberries, I'll drink your sweet wine
A million
tomorrows can all pass away
Less I forget
all the joy that is mine today |
|
I heard there was a secret chord
That David played and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
Well it goes like this: the fourth, the fifth
The minor fall and the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah...
Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to the kitchen chair
She broke your throne, she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah
Hallelujah...
Baby, I've been here before
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew you
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
But love is not some victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah...
|
There was a time when you let me know
What was going on below
But now you never show it to me do you
I remember when I moved in you
The holy dove, it was moving too
And every breath I drew was Hallelujah
Hallelujah...
Now I know there's a God above
But all I've ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew you
And it's not a cry that you hear at night
It's not some pilgrim who's seen the light
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah... |
One (written by U2)
'One' (which is from U2's 'Achtung Baby' album) has been my
all-time favorite song for close to seven years now. It's grown so comfy in
that position I've decided I'm not going to bother finding a replacement. If
one comes along, though, that's okay. To be honest, I never considered
playing this in the set, but after finishing 'Hallelujah', it felt like the
right song to sing.
The character at this point: he's known love, he's known
contentment, but he's just come out of a place where all that has been
dashed to bits and pieces. He's clinging to the old beliefs, but he's
realized he needs more than just contentment to face the realities he's come
up against. He knows he needs reconciliation, but he doesn't know how to get
there. 'One' is about two people trying to find reconciliation when they
haven't a clue what just happened. They aren't even sure who committed the
transgression... they only know it's all gone south, and that it should
never have turned out that way.
I tacked on a little ditty at the end of the song which you
won't find on the album version. Bono sang this part whenever he did the
song live, and the words change every time he sings it. I sang the words
that I've found to be my favorite. The "knockin at your door" part for me is
an echo of Jesus's words in Revelation 3:20: "Here I am! I stand at the door
and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and
eat with him, and he with me."
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Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same
Will it make it easier on you now
You got someone to blame
You say...
One love, one life
When it's one need in the night
One love, we get to share it
Leaves you baby if you don't care for it
Did I disappoint you
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without
Is it...
Too late
Tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We're one, but we're not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
One...
Have you come here for forgiveness
Have you come to raise the dead
Have you come here to play Jesus
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much, more than a lot
You gave me nothing, now it's all I got
We're one, but we're not the same
You know we hurt each other, let's do it again |
You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Of the higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can't be holding on
To what you got
When all you got is hurt
One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should
One life
With each other
Sisters
Brothers
One life
But we're not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
You see me comin' love
Hear me call
Hear me knockin', knockin at your door
You see comin' love
Hear me call
See me scratchin' when you make me crawl... |
Island of Love
I thought I'd end things on a hopeful note, so I decided to
finish off with what has to be the most gawd-awful title for a song I've
ever written. *I* cringe when I think about the title. Why won't I change it
you say? The long and short of it is I haven't figured out how yet. That's
the way the song came to me and I'm reluctant to mess with it. It's like
beating one of your kids because he/she was born ugly. It's just not right.
There's no indication here that the character's resolved any
of the things that came before. If anything, he's all too aware of the
"violence,... jealousy and hate" in his world. But he is remembering why he
does what he does. Simply said, he's struggling, but he is assured in the
purpose of his struggle. He ends with the acknowledgment that he is 'in good
company', taking comfort in the fact that he is not alone.
A note about the 'she' in this song: I'm not talking about a
girl. Bono once described the Spirit as being the most feminine member of
the Trinity. The Spirit guides, councils, and nourishes. The Spirit's
relationship with the church is almost motherly. U2's song 'Grace'
personifies God's grace as a woman who "takes the blame" and "covers the
shame". I tap into the same idea here; 'she' refers to the Spirit that
descended as a dove upon Jesus at the river.
|
When the daylight burns you
But you don't care anymore
You might look beyond your borders
And spy a distant shore
From afar it seems lonely
And of no apparent worth
An unprofitable venture
Is an island of love
Well she came to me in moonlight
With the darkness at its worse
And warmed me in her raiment
And satisfied my thirst
Even now its hard to receive the things
She was speaking of
But I still wait on her
On an island of love
The world is full of violence
Of jealousy and hate
You know this all, you've seen it too
The enemies at your gate
It was all laid down long before the
Coming of the dove
She descends to that river
From an island of love |
She's a gatherer of answers
She puts them down in song
And she writes them in her songbook
And she carries it along
And I've sung them on the streets
And from the balconies above
And I'll sing to the Master
From an island of love
The world is full of violence
Of jealousy and hate
You know this all, you've seen it too
The murderers at your gate
It was all laid down long before the
Coming of the dove
You stand in that river
On an island of love
When the wheels have quit turning
At the end of the game
Will this flame still be burning
Will my first love remain
The days have been troubled
The road's been rough
But I'm in good company
On an island of love
I'm in good company
On an island of love |
Unfortunately the last two songs from the encore didn't make
it onto the CD. Kevin's MD Recorder ran out of space right at the end of
'Hallelujah'.
Thanks to: Brent, for being born! Kevin, for the mandolin
skillz! Dee, for the all-round support!
Everyone else was thanked on the program sheet and CD sleeve
:p.
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