County Ball-March 9th, 2019
Some Passe, Poor, Long winded sort
Seven Year Dream
For a Change
How Some Things Fall
Chardonnay
Again, To Kansas
Through the Shades
Apart
In the time of romans
I’ll Not Rise Again
Reynosa
When It’s Rained
The Peso Tapes-Aug 10th, 2018
For the ladies of lima
They said that I’d meet her on the stone streets of Lima
Laying lucid I’d dream
But here I am pleadin’ hardly left bleedin’
But still holding out for a drink
Now they whisper sweetly, so Sugar don’t greet me
Solemn with less words of praise
‘Cause round here words a quicker and the tension’s made thicker
By keeping me held on by a string
Oh, don’t they always leave
As sure as an Autumn breeze
And I can’t always believe
That the morning will be cool from the dew
I think it might be just because of you
The truth remains wholly worthless in matrimony
Divorced from the feeling of free
Wide eyed and seekin’ Peru kept me thinkin’
That drinkin’s good for those my age
And oh, don’t it always leave
I’m warmer once the Winter flees
And I can’t always believe
That the mornin’ will cry for the moon
Maybe that’s just the wolf lookin’ for you
Baby that’s just the wolf lookin’ for you
Lima won’t leave us lost in some green lust
Of how Summer should be
It just keeps on thrivin’ while I’ll park here from drivin’
My mind farther South in these rains
their giver, our chase
I got it back when, I got it back when I was young
Tarred were the platters, we scarred what matters with rum
Some tend to measure their rungs
Lover don’t listen, mother don’t miss your sons
These childlike things
Beat your heart and hear it ring
Can’t you hear it ring?
These fiscal fathers pissed your proverbs away
Do they build their or do they starve their states?
Heartfelt ledgers and weights
Can we just sit around and wait?
As an anchor to time is a bait
Should we just waste this?
Should we chase this with rum?
My darlin’ I’m done
The Wrong Way
Canada holds my arms, but Tennessee’s where I gave my heart
To you again
The dogwood trees in the morn and I could’ve sworn I saw you standin’ in the corner room
Dew on the leaves and I’m sayin’, “Please don’t leave”
“But I can’t stay”
And I’ve been travelin’ too long the wrong way
See, I’ve been a brother to land and these old hands don’t work like they used to
Yeah, I’ve been through and through
Summer in the mornin’
The Winter and the seasons they all don’t change
And the sailors comin’ too close to the Siren songs they sang
I feel like a starvin’ cat on a fence they all call a stray
Yeah, I’ve been travelin’ too long the wrong way
The truckers in the evening feel alone
Their only connection is that on the radio
Abused little lady quietly wades through the surrounding colored shades
For the man that she loves
And she don’t know where to go, but she knows she can’t stay
And I’ve been travelin’ too long the wrong way
Thoughts of Edisto
There’s a boy, so overjoyed to cast and be coy with lovely laces
On a whim she held on to him and hummed to a hymn of better places
In time those quarters and dimes could’ve cornered our lives, so we changed our paces
As it goes, the tide rolls in slow, but under this boat they ebb and flow with no traces
See, Turpentine don’t taste like bitter vine, so wound we’ll waste
Left blackened by the Blues we threw it out and started new
Lust and loaned, laid all on a loan, we left it half grown and lacking graces
As it goes, I’ve had better than most, but barely can boast no lacerations
See, Turpentine don’t taste like bitter vine, so wound we’ll waste
Left blackened by the Blues we threw it out and started new
There’s a boy, so over joyed to cast and be coy with lovely laces
My Chardonnay Instead
There’s no way home when you’re dead, you’re gone
So son you’d be better reelin’ it in some
That casual dining led to fishnet songs and times when life
Just couldn’t’ve been kinder
Sometimes it might be fine
When those late night diners pull their blinds
Somedays I feel well
Others I wake up whispering, “Hell”
If all of our bidding was on the quick foot horse
Whose hooves were whippin’ it and winnin’
Then we’d douse your dowry as if the days weren’t short and we
Honey, we weren’t grinnin’
Some weeks we’d make a fuss
When those late night corner stores closed their doors to us
Then we’d dance and went wild
Sipped some Chardonnay and smiled
You see my Mary came to me
Strong arms out on Charleston Harbor in the rain
These hard days I stay wrapped in sheets completely
Stripped and fed
Some Sundays I weep
Too drunk to whimper or speak
Of unstaged images of our skin
And how you gave them politely back as a friend
So I’ll sip some Chardonnay instead
A Pagan pledged to thee
They say you’ll find her on some four way
Dreamin’ up some stories
Some soft silhouetted scenes
Still half-loose from last nights drinks
Will she say something nice to me?
So kind and clean
Will she see me in some glory
Or will she ignore me?
Pass ways with no wave
Say goodbye like the tide to the waves
So picture a pleasant day in your Spring
Hold on so long as she don’t speak
Find your eyes fixed on a frame
That once hung above a chair and held her name
They say you’re in some doorways
As you are on jewelry
Some saintly casted Queen
Left to rust with the rest of us on this beach
As vacant as the air we breathe
She’s just a pagan pledged to thee
As vacant as the air I breathe
She’s just a pagan pledged to thee
As vacant as the air we breathe
She’s just a pagan pledged to thee
Are we vacant as the air we breathe?
Are we just pagans pledged to thee?
Sculpted by His Hands
They say you’ll find it diggin’ in dumpsters
That’s the way that a strong man’ll dance
Still he thinks it’s livin’ amongst us
Could it be by Henley’s bridge?
Dreamin’ of that long hair
Down here it’s flowin’ in waves
Ways they ain’t seen
Ways it ain’t been in such a long time ‘round here
Read aloud they could’ve lost their count
No smooth sailin’ when you’re skippin’ out on the town
On which words did she choke?
What damn demon awoke?
And how from here will they go?
How hard a verse should he quote?
Still no words of praise
Please leave those for our babes
‘Cause they’ll grow old and grey
And need warm memories
For him but not me
I guess we all will see
Rock the cradle kind and softly
Make sure them lambs are awfully calm
Their wool in the Winter kept us breathing that’s true
Honey how can they trust in us if I can’t trust in you?
Mud marked their floors
Kin, martyrs, and more came right through the door
Screamin’,
“Help me Lord.
Help me now Lord-Lo with those hands.
See I was corrupted by Twelve bored hands.
Assaulted by Twelve bored hands.
Sculpt me now Lord-Lo with those hands.
Wring me out Lord with those hands.
See I wrung you Lord with my hands.
Try to wring you Lord with my hands.
See I lost you now Lord with your hands.
I was corrupted by some hands.
So, sculpt me now Lord with your hands.
Bring me out Lord with your hands.”
“I’ll wring you out boy by my hands.”
Again To Kansas
I was down in Kansas and I was down in a well
And of both them places, the hole’s better than her Hell
Low was the sunset and long the dogs did whine
Tellin’ of their troubles, but none the likes of mine
So, settle your prospects and settle in time
Swing low and forfeit to Kansas & the Pines
Cover your callus and cover your crime
Like a lady her malice and man his brine
Go and tell all the people with fences built to fend
That a Hell whole of trouble leaves your arms mighty thin
So, settle your prospects and settle in time
Swing low and forfeit to Kansas & the Pines
Once I saw her standin’ and once I saw her kneel
In a garden of roses and to the back of another’s heel
They say that wind carries a message to the door of the friend in need
But I’ve begun to question whether this kin can carry me
So, settle your prospects and settle in time
Swing low and forfeit to Kansas & the Pines
So, settle your prospects and settle in time
Swing low and forfeit to Kansas & the Pines
The Organs of Gabriel
There’s a time and a place where my heart never paces
There are days that’ll change and go
Until then my old friend we can hum to the heavens
Hopin’ now we can hear Angels cry
There’s are times, not some place
Where I’ll sit in his graces
See their eyes, hear their tunes and know why
As for now my dear friend, let us wait and not chase it
Hopin’ soon we can hear Gabriel croon
Warm Regards,-May 25th, 2017
Warm Regards,
Water stained and rusted, I trusted Toledo more than some
Called out to keep hold, my grip slipped then went cold and numb
Was it where I came from, my name don’t roll off the tongue
Will we please, feel so free
To untether these hands of pleasure
With a thought, but no might
I may just lay here tonight
Father told me said, “Son stop your gloating, you ain’t gold.
Still you’ll pray to it, still you’re made to be sold.”
It ain’t where we came from, it’s how-high in the tree we’re hung
Will we please, feel so good
To cry, “I did it all, I did what I could.”
With no thought, but some might
I may pray, “God make it right”
Now in Toledo they propose it’s better taken straight
Like words of promise, these ladies in long dresses bait
Is it where they came from or from where-it-is they aim?
Will he please, let it fall
Like John’s hammer on the dry wall
So without thought and without might
I may watch God break into fight
With all my thought and all my might
May I please watch God break into fight
Leave it there, oh leave it there
Take your burdens to the Lord and leave it there
Take your burdens to the Lord and leave it there
Rags & Roses
Get down from that high up lorry
Get down from that rocking chair
Hold your hands and ask for glory
Hold your hands tight in prayer
Don’t tell me that no one told you
Don’t tell me that no one came
Don’t offer me another story
Don’t offer me another stay
Babe, don’t it get lonely?
When age turns into wear
Like wine, bottle and buried
Is drank by the boar or the bear
Don’t break my heart and hold it
Clenched tightly in your jaws
Let it pound like a hound dog’s sonnet
The dirt marked by their paws
Let bleed these veins of promise
Let bleed ‘till we go pale
Set off on the first of August
Set course for shores of Hell
Babe, don’t it get lonely?
When age turns into wear
Like wine, bottle and buried
Is drank by the boar or the bear
Shed all your rags and roses
Shed all your golden teeth
Show me improper motion
Let go your decency
Shake, shake like you want it
Shake, show me your wares
Shake, shake like you own it
Shake, shake while I stare
Shake, shake while I stare
Shake, shake while I stare
Northbound
I tried to tell you time and time that I would ride on the line away,
Hard pressed to stay
Darlin’ don’t wanna let you go, I don’t wanna live life all alone
So wrap me up in these chains
And I’ll ride this train of mine until my heart is fine
Winter lies behind the door, the sweat is freezin’ up in my pores,
Like the tears in your eyes
Darlin’ I don’t wanna see you cry, I’ll be back maybe July
But you’ve heard this all before
And I’ll ride this train to Hell or until my heart is well
I’m gonna go where the pine trees grow and where the weather suits my clothes
Oh the North
Canada ain’t that far when, count the miles by hairs on your arms
Or the pains in your heart
And I’ll ride this train Northbound or until my heart is found
And I’ll ride this train Northbound or until my heart is found
Lost & Lorn
Oh, oh lonesome me
Will you come, come here still
‘Cause it’s not right
To chase a new land
And leave me a man
In deepening shade
It’s a thickening storm
It’s a hell done wrong
Leave me lost and lorn
Say, say darlin’ wait
Won’t you warm, warm my hands
‘Cause it’s damn cold
With you out of sight
And no more my plight
Can loving heal
It’s a thickening storm
It’s a hell done wrong
Leave me lost and lorn
‘Cause it’s damn cold
‘Cause it’s damn cold
‘Cause it’s damn cold
Through the Shades
Forty-four more hours and she’ll be yours
Lain like flowers, she’ll be dour on the floor
One less wind did I defy
Thrown from my chest, I was blown West to her boundary line
Go down, go down
Let’s go pound on her door
To have sing solemn and softly like before
Go down, go down
Let’s go pound on her door
To have her sing solemn and softly like before
What have I come to be?
And what’ll she have now for to grieve?
Still on my oath I’ll have her tied
To my feet, but I’d rather greet her as my bride
Go down, go down
Let’s go pound on her door
To have sing solemn and softly like before
Oh and that red set through the shades
Showin’ that bed set still unmade
Her nails, her claws tattoo this beast
Just minutes later I would lay her to sleep
Go down, go down
Let’s go pound on her door
To have sing solemn and softly like before
Go down, go down
Let’s go pound on her door
To have sing solemn and softly like before
Timbre of June
There’s iron in my blood
And iron is my love
But I’ll be the last
To call and grasp for your glove
Sing me word
And sing from your throat
For a bird may call,
But you can carry the note
Well it comes when it rains
And it calms my veins
When I’m weathered and wet
I know I’ll not forget
The timbre of June
The timbre of two
The timbre of you
There’s iron in my eyes
Rust red from the sun
Glistening fast on the hood
Of my Plymouth ‘91
The muffler will sing
Like the tanager in Spring
These melodies think I’m on the brink
And soon my hopes they will sink
Well it comes when it rains
And it calms my veins
When I’m weathered and wet
I know I’ll not regret
The timbre of June
The timbre of two
The timbre of you
My Hated Half
I lost my say
Crossin’ paths with my hated half
Built for crass
Not tilted to the pastured way
Told “lay there, lay,”
My mother tore my pride
Pushed me to stride
But I’m anchored in her nurture’s weight
I feel how high we’ll rise
But still, I see in their eyes, I lied
It’s only when I go home
The crowd grows callous and cold
Sayin, “You’re better off alone”
Marry me to the stream
They all cried, “Do it again
Bank’s worn to the end
The weather won’t change if you bend”
I feel so well
‘Til I feel the bounds of hell
Sink and swell
Shot clean with a minor ring
I feel how high we’ll rise
But still, I see in their eyes, I lied
It’s only when I go home
The crowd grows callus and cold
Singing, “You’re better off on your own”
Now I try my hand
Dealin on the Devil’s path
Caught cornered and I claim that half
They’re lookin’ down from their angel band
I feel how high we’ll rise
But still, I see in their eyes, I lied
It’s only when I go home
The crowd grows callous and cold
Sayin, “You’re better off alone”
Neither Hide Nor Hair
So find me and slide me in some cover
As a cool breeze hides the hard heat of the summer
Cause it’s only now that I’ve gone
Short of breath, I attest, that I ain’t comin’ home
So leave me strong scriptures as I wander
Cause they’ll feed me posed pictures from your mother
As I’m weighed down, it’s further way out that we rode
In two weeks I passed Topeka’s harsh hinderin’ cold
It’s only now that she’s gone, that I feel in my lungs
That still I’m not, fit to come home
So Denver delivered me some progress
From here now, I’ll just cough out in blood red
They say stay out, but dare I to go
Consumed I’ll - fall down and rest in the snow
Right here, my dear, I’ll die if I want
Stranded and branded, I wasn’t born to come home (x2)
Neither hide nor hare, will follow me there
So I rest my case and I’ll die in this place
Neither hide nor hare, will follow me there
So I rest my case and I’ll die in this place
So I rest my case and I’ll die in this place
The Virgin Gaul
I may go
I may take the tightrope home
Feel you wild
A force to feed like child
She stands tall
Like a virgin gaul wanting the road
Wet teeth while in Rome
And she’ll ride
Wild and white
Placing her fate and I will mate
With myself and find a fool
Trying to bind the light through a leper’s rule
Take the bait babe oh break down
Lay my hands in sand and beg to bend to your will
I’m your trophy kill
Kept crucified by eyes waiting for blood
Flowing down
They wait for blood
Beating out
They scream for blood
Get me out
They bathe in blood
I’m fading out
White snow
On her snout
There’s only one way
One way out
Last Red Eyed Goodbye
Last red eyed goodbye
Like a luger in my side
The cold was thick on her hands
She pulled quick on the strand
And it’s one more time, she’s gonna be
Only fine, she’s gotta be mine
She’s gonna be fine
So spell it like it is
Is true love like this?
We’ll paint lines on our face
Put god in his place
And it’s one more drink, I think
I’ll find my own way home and out of disgrace
Pull tight on my lace
Like some cruel dead fool in a ditch
I felt the time for the switch
Feel the steel peel at my neck
Like her cry or her peck
And it’s so few past pictures plastered up
So few plastic mementos of two
Glass remnants of you
Red eyed and blue
Red eyed and blue
Red eyed and blue
California Kid
How long is the hand
Bend down over, bend down friend
How black is the dirt
When it buries an inch of hurt
Comes in times
Comes in times when
Comes in times when I dream like a
California Kid
How blue is the Jay
When it sings its heart away
As the set starts to fade
Watch the sun turn bright to grey
Comes in times
Comes in times when
Comes in times when I dream like a
California Kid
Bloodroot-August 29th, 2015
BONNIE WHITE REST
Be lonesome, be lonesome, lonesome you’ll be
Cried the fated man in his sleep
Be gone, be gone, I’ve gone to be
But in the mornin’ I’ll be free
Oh shackled, oh shackled, iron shackles on me
Like the sparrow to the tree
Oh cold, so cold, so cold I am
But awake me Hannah please
I don’t belong to you, no I don’t belong
I don’t belong to you, no I don’t belong
Oh my son, please lay me down
Oh my son, please lay me down
To bonnie white rest
Be bound to the ground where the seeds are found
Like the dead one to his grave
Take time, take time, cause you’ll have
When your body is not in it’s bed
Be ladylike lovely ‘cause I’m dreamin’ of thee
When I close my eyes in jest
Be seedy and sorry while I’m in the quarry
For tonight is not your best
I don’t belong to you, no I don’t belong
I don’t belong to you, no I don’t belong
Oh my son, please lay me down
Oh my son, please lay me down
To bonnie white rest
HOLD STEADY
My hands are scarred, my lips are blue
And I’m involved with a girl like you
And I keep searchin’
Oh I keep searchin’
Like a child born, still like the morn
My hands are bleedin’ and my lungs are needin’
And I am ready
Oh so ready
So, please hold steady
Please hold steady
I’ll wrap the rope around your waist
I’ll lean down and I’ll curse your face
Cause I am buyin’
The night is dyin’
It’s a wicked wheel, it’s an untracked train
It’s a wild horse and I’m holdin’ the reins
But I am ready,
Oh so ready
So, please hold steady
Please hold steady
Well Gabriel waits down by the gates
Satan sees me and cries, “Please don’t leave me.
Now boy are you comin’?
Boy are you comin’?”
My soul ain’t saved, but I have behaved.
I’ve heard the word and I’ve chosen the range
And I am ready,
Oh so ready
So, please hold steady
Please hold steady
WHERE IN THE GARDENS
Where, where in the gardens did you scar your tongue?
Cause your speech, your speech is so broken, like you’re chokin’ on blood
Beware, beware if you carry no cares your world
Will sink to the bottom below
But dear, oh dear, say can you hear, I’m near
To where the cold wind blows
Where, where in the orchard did you torture your sight?
Was it with ten older maidens that you slay them by knife?
Yes, oh yes, I let them dress in red
Before laying them in their beds
And fresh, oh fresh, was their breath like the breeze
Before slaying them on their knees
Where, where in the meadow did you burn coal to your hands?
Was it down, down by the white shore where they turn ore to lead?
No, sir no, I never will show you where
My hair was tainted black
So beat your fists upon my wrists, but in vain
‘cause you’ll never slit the veins I lack
Where, where in the pasture did you master the light?
‘Twas here, here in the shadows that I let go of the night
No more, no more can I take these words my love
I know not what you’re speaking of
But sir, oh sir I’m ready you see for to be
Your lovely loyal wife
Where, where in this homeland would you like for us to live our lives?
GIRL FROM SPAIN
I was tamed by a countess
I was tamed in the Fall
I was told more than once that I’m not alive
But I just can’t forget you at all
Well, we met on a Spanish moor
Where my ship I did dock to dry
Well, I hope when I die I will be by your side
And these tears you will cry no more
Well, the war did some good for
Revolutionaries with wealth
Now I’m lost in Spain and I’m searching for her name
And she knows not that I’m in good health
I found her perched like a sparrow
In some castle caged by the bay
She said, “Oh my god, I thought you were gone
But I’m engaged to the King of this lake”
She looked cold and wood, like an oak tree
Her soft voice had lost all it’s bark
I saw her ungrateful and said that’s a fate full
Of life without leaving a mark
So, off I did crawl looking for a crown
Or some way to forge a name
Cause in this old life of purpose and strife
That’s that way the girl of Spain will be claimed
I spoke to a man from the mountains
And I spoke to a man of God
They both said, “No regrets, cause you cannot forget
That’s a way to force a smile in pain.”
You’re a way to force a smile in pain
LITTLE CAROLINE
Rollin’ home
That’s three hours gone
That’s three hours left on the track
Steal your heart
And I’ll take the baby too
Take the baby far from you
I don’t why
I can’t explain
I’ll do my time
I’m your’s to blame
Killed a man
Was lookin’ for a pallet
Just lookin’ for that pallet on his floor
Six feet down
Little Caroline she knew
Little Caroline she wept the night threw
I don’t know why
I can’t explain
I’ll do my time
I’m your’s to blame
Steal your heart
And I’ll take the baby too
And I’ll take the baby far from you
I don’t know why
I can’t explain
I’ll do my time
I’m your’s to blame
I’m your’s blame
I’m your’s to blame
TO KANSAS & THE PINES
I’ve been down in Kansas
And I’ve been down in a well
And of both them places
The hole’s better than this Hell
Low was the sunset
And long the dogs did whine
Tellin’ of their troubles
But none the likes of mine
Settle your prospects and settle in time
Swing low and forfeit to Kansas and the pines
So cover your callus
And cover your crime
Like a lady her malice
And a man his brine
Go and tell all the people
With fences built to fend
I don’t want no trouble
I just need a friend
Settle your prospects and settle in time
Swing low and forfeit to Kansas and the pines
Once I saw her standing
And once I saw her kneel
In a garden of roses
And to the back of another’s heel
They say the wind carries a message
To the door of the one in need
But I’ve begun to question
Whether this wind will carry me
Settle your prospects and settle in time
Swing low and forfeit to Kansas and the pines
Settle your prospects and settle in time
Swing low and forfeit to Kansas and the pines
MY WHITE HAIR
I’ve been tryin’ to build a home out of sticks and stones, but I won’t
I’ve been tryin’ to lay foundation in a nation of sensation and care
Oh, won’t you meet me there
Oh, with my white hair
And the dirt’s turned to clay and I’ve been wasted all day, so I think
And my boots they have trod and I myself have gone wrong oh my dear
Oh won’t you meet me here
Oh with my black beard
These pipes they do leak and I can hardly speak my mind
And this desk it is cracked and I’ve nearly broken my back over you
Well what would you have me do?
Oh my empty true
My belt is pulled tight and I can hardly feel right with you gone
And my shirt is tucked in and I can hardly begin to know where to go
Oh in my overcoat
Nearly ten days ago
Simplicity from far comes in Cadillacs and cars in my dreams
Well my neck it is warm while my thoughts they are torn and frayed
Oh my lovely May
You can have your way
These hairs on my chin poke and prod for a friend in the night
And these nails on my toes scratch and bend away from foes for their share
Oh won’t you meet me there
Oh with my white hair
ASK ME OF THE NORTH
My brother went North when I was young
He lived and died there alone
With one brother gone
And the others livin’ on
I learned not to seek the things he sought
Should come a time when I would peak
As did the work and then grew weak.
Then the leaves began descending
So did I keep pretending
That I would not repeat my brother’s path
So, Lady my love
Feed me when I come
Ask me of the North
And of course, sleep me on your porch
I was married come the Spring
To Denise, a girl from the East
With hardly a home
Just five acres dry as bone
We set out to work our promise land
But drought gave way to debt
As did the liquor turn to the bet
Those wicked white dice
They rolled over twice
Deliverin’ to me that serpent shot
So, Lady my love
Feed me when I come
Ask me of the North
And of course, sleep me on your porch
How many times did it frost
Before the freeze gave way to loss
I hear my brother in the breeze
And my mother through the trees
Tellin’ me the things I always thought
So, Lady my love
Feed me when I come
Ask me of the North
And of course, sleep me on your porch
Ask me of the North
And of course, sleep me on your porch
LAWRENCE, HE IS FINE
It’s an honest accident
When he lays his hand
On my cheek, I shouldn’t speak or have taken a stand
To his word, spoken first, his lovin’ command.
Well Lawrence, he is fine
Yes, Lawrence, he is fine
When he hits me harder and harder,
It’s so hard to breath.
When he hits me harder and harder,
I can hardly see.
It’s an honest accident, don’t you see?
I should have let it be.
He’s workin’ hard now, he can barely sleep.
Well it ain’t easy and Lord it ain’t cheap.
Well Lawrence, he is fine
Yes, Lawrence, he is fine
When he hits me harder and harder,
I can hardly stand.
When he hits me harder and harder,
I know he’s a man.
It’s an honest accident, when he hits me harder.
It’s an honest accident, when he lays a hand.
When he hits me hard and harder,
I know he’s a man.
It’s an honest accident, he’s an honest man.
It’s an honest accident, he’s an honest man.