1. |
banks of the marianne
04:46
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The Banks of the Marianne © Robbie Fulks
On the banks of the Marianne, he climbed aground
Looked out at the water and traced a line down
Just an hour ‘til darkness and four miles to swim
He closed his eyes and let her wash over him
And all the power that she could command
Swept l away at the touch of his hand
By the depths of his love, he was helplessly stirred
So he tamed a wild river, named it for her.
Now the world would remember the way they were then
When she was his harbor and her strength pulled him in
And the distance he’d gone from her light
He would win back, the hard way, tonight
To the ends of the earth, ‘til the rivers run dry
To the last breath of life in the man
Til he gives up the fight, ‘til the sun falls tonight
On the Banks of the Marianne
On the banks of the Marianne the relics of Kings
Lie strangely abandoned like children’s playthings
Drums of white plastic and cheap naugahyde
Stacked under a tarpaulin, safe from the tide
An ashtray, a bottle half-full,
Anything the undertow couldn’t pull
The horizon ahead of him, frozen in time
It’s a balm to his soul, but it’s a trick of his mind
In the wind he hears phrases gentle and low
From a song on the radio, ten years ago
And it hangs overhead like a prayer
To the One Waiting For Him Somewhere...
To the ends of the earth, ‘til the rivers run dry
To the last breath of life in the man
Til he gives up the fight, ‘til the sun falls tonight
On the Banks of the Marianne!
Now the water is heavy; his arms are like lead.
The whiskey has drenched every nerve in his head.
The fist in his stomach springs upward in rage
Knocks the light from his eyes and it pounds at the cage
And his prayers come falling like rain,
On the water that carries her name...
To the ends of the earth, ‘til the rivers run dry
To the last breath of life in the man
Til he gives up the fight, ‘til the sun falls tonight
On the Banks of the Marianne
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2. |
call of the wheel
02:54
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Call of the Wheel © Sandy Mackay
I wrote an ode to the writer's road:
Highway 2 where John Steinbeck drove,
Charlie and Rocinante,
GM Cervantes,
They're long gone, so long John!
I wrote an ode to the writer's road:
I careen where Jack Kerouac drank and drove,
Route 101,
some dangerous fun
but it's time to get back, so long jack.
I am not some cracking egghead,
though I have read a book or two
in the pages I feel the call of the wheel,
but i'm bound at home with you
I wrote an ode to the writer's road:
A vicarious dream the Rheostatics drove
Dave told the tale
"On a Long Cold Road"
I been saved, so long Dave!
Saved from a death that is worse than fate
the gig-road to hell through a golden gate
in my own quiet room I am curled in my chair
with a diesel fume and the breeze in my hair
I am not some cracking egghead,
though I have read a book or two
in the pages I feel the call of the wheel,
but i'm bound at home with you
With Barbara Ward to the Borderline
In the state of Maine down the old Airline
It was blowing a gail, I was chasing my tail
But I’m in a a sellors song, and I can’t go wrong
I am not some cracking egghead,
though I have read a book or two
in the pages I feel the call of the wheel,
but i'm bound at home with you
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3. |
i am a sailor
04:43
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I am a Sailor © Randy Sutherland
I asked my uncle what I oughta be
He said “there ain’t no future in genealogy”
You oughta go to school, learn to sea,
Become a sailor.”
So I been blown around, following a half-formed wish
I got freezer burned, swallowed by a half-warmed fish
Now I’m outta that school, they let me be, outta professional courtesy
Cause I’m a sailor
And the swells are all high rollers
And the troughs are filled with awe
Stop mashing them molars
Ain’t you heard the brand new law?
I asked myself “I wonder which one is worse:
To be smashed on reefer er swallowed by an alligator purse
Made into Sailor Jam? well I sink
therefor I am a Sailor”.
And the swells are all high rollers
And the troughs are filled with awe
Stop mashing them molars
Ain’t your heard the brand new law?
“All sailors will get shore leave
until the night is done
Then we’ll set off in search of souls again
In the everlasting dawn”
I asked my uncle just what I oughta be
He said “Find a place outside of history
And when you go, let me know,
And save a spot for me.”
Where the swells are all high rollers
And the troughs are filled with awe
Stop mashing them molars
Ain’t your heard the brand new law?
So farewell, to terra firma’s charms
Early in the morning, I’m far far at sea
So long
it’s been good to know ya
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4. |
season under ice
04:28
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Season Under Ice © SS 2005
The stars shine still in near perfection
The lake is filled with their reflection
I stand alone and blinded to the sight
Cuz you’ve been gone a season under ice
Just like you I'll dream a hundred frozen nights
Since you’ve been gone a season under ice
The moon can rise if it still wants to
But I won’t see; I only want you
To sit with me beside the lake tonight
But you’ve been gone a season under ice
The sun will rise; I do not doubt it
I’ll close my eyes; I’ll do without it
I’m losing hope it could ever happen twice
Since you’ve been gone a season under ice
When Jack Frost comes to end the season
The winter numbs all sense and reason
So I’ll stay right here another hundred nights
And you’ll be gone a season under ice
But you'll be gone...
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5. |
epizeuxis
03:14
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Epizeuxis (c) sandy mackay
I am Tom Tom Tom Tom Tommy
I drink beer beer beer beer beer
I write songs about my mommy and my daddy and my dear
We're a musicalish family
Even the sewing machines a singer
I was born with Epizeuxis
and I really... really love to ride
It's a fix, it is a habit, I'm a junkie with pen
When I write that Epizeuxis makes me say it all again
Sure, I have a fine thesaurus and a dicton in the den,
But I love that Epizeuxis I love that Epizeuxis
and I really... really love to ride
CH:
Oh I really really really love to ride ride ride
Down the river river river on the tide tide tide
It's my passion it's my passion and my pride pride pride
How I really... really... really love to ride
Baby baby baby baby how i love love love love love
Your sweet sweet sweet sweet sweet
and all the other things above
I want want want want want you
but you have to wait wait wait
First comes my epizeuxis first comes my epizeuxis
'Cause i really, really love to ride
<chorus and awesome honking here>
I was Tom Tom Tom Tom Tommy
I drank beer beer beer beer
I write songs about my mommy and my daddy and my dear
You can read it on my tombstone in letters deep and wide
"HE DIED OF EPIZEUXIS HE DIED OF EPIZEUXIS
BUT HE REALLY REALLY LOVED TO RIDE"
(And here's what else they carved there!)
HE WAS PASSIONATE AND FREELY AND HE FELT IT DEEP INSIDE, THROUGH THE MEDIUM OF WATER AS HE SAID IT "ON THE TIDE"
HIS RAMPANT REPETITION WAS THE REASON THAT HE DIED
BUT HE REALLY REALLY LOVED TO RIDE
LOVED TO RIDE
LOVED TO RIDE"
(cue howling dog)
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6. |
never coming back
04:09
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Never Coming Back © SS 2002
Don’t be afraid of what’s frightening
The thunder will not hurt you- it’s the lightning
You should be dreaming on the bed that you hide under
It’s the lightning that’ll get you; not the thunder
I listen for her footsteps when it’s misty
I think about the last time that she kissed me
Her kisses were as warm as drinking water from a hose
But now she’s gone and that’s the way she goes
And she’s never coming back
Never coming back
Nothing lasts forever
Except never coming back
I think I hear her singing when the wind blows
The breezes bring her in and out my windows
She was my dear companion; she always came along
And now I can’t imagine where she’s gone
And she’s never coming back
Never coming back
Nothing lasts forever
Except never coming back
Don’t be afraid of what’s frightening
The thunder will not hurt you; it’s the lightning
I prayed her ghost would haunt me but there’s no such thing as that
Once she’s gone she’s never coming back
And she’s never coming back
Never coming back
Nothing lasts forever
Except never coming back
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7. |
joy
03:19
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JOYDROP © sandy mackay
Faith Peace Love walk beside me
Joy Joy deep in my heart
(And I will) wait walk and meditate if you’ll guide me
Every step on the path as I stumble on
I here below,
You hear above
I follow the path that you wrote
I follow Jesus the pattern of love
Faith Peace love walk beside me
Joy Joy deep in my heart
And I will wait, walk, and meditate if you’ll guide me
Every step on the path as I stumble on
Consider each neighbor,
A sister or brother
With all your heart, love you one God
As we should love one another
Lift me up When I’m Down
Lift me Up Down on my knees
Lift me up When I’m Down
Lift me Up Down on my knees
Faith Peace love walk beside me
Joy Joy deep in my heart
And I will wait, walk, and meditate if you’ll guide me
Every step on the path as I stumble on
And I stumble on And I stumble on
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8. |
long time gone
04:32
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Long Time Gone © Sandy Mackay
I had a dream the other night; chasing down the wind
I thought I heard my younger self say
"Yonder comes my twin!
He's old and fat and bald and cruel, but it was plain to see
His hair was red his eye was blue- he looked a lot like me.
He’d lived his life for the buzz in his head,
His wife had fled, his liver was lead,
That’s when he came back to me
Long time long time gone
you been a long time gone,
Long time long time gone
you been a long time gone
I caught his eye in the looking glass and asked him to come back in
he fumbled for a thin cigarette and grasped a glass of gin
“I been drinking hard these 30 years , i've nothing left to give you John”
I said “You have the vig I need and you been a long time gone”
Cyan between mad sea and sky
His mouth was dry and the river was rye
That’s when he came back to me
Long time long time gone
you been a long time gone,
Long time long time gone
you been a long time gone
(insert fiddle tune: Over the Waterfall part b)
He took his last bottle from his overcoat, he set it on the table
My life was there inside the glass, my face was on the label
He said "your spirit’s in the whiskey, drink it down you’ll see"
I fetched out my clawhammer and set my spirit free
Then eye to I to I to eye
To I to eye to I to eye
Then he came back to me
Long time long time gone
you been a long time gone,
Long time long time gone
you been a long time gone
(a capella, repeat ad nauseaum etc)
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9. |
mr thomson
04:27
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Mr Thomson © Randy Sutherland, 2003
If you close your eyes and listen, you can hear the “Georgian Moan”
As the waters lick the outstretched hand of the shores he walked upon
Mr Thomson’s skyline comes to my mind before I fall too deep
In that all refreshing Devil’s blessing Both of us call sleep
Mr Thomson what’s it like? Do those hungry black flies bite?
Can you cup your fleshless hands and drink the stream?
‘Well I’m stretched across this light, b’tween the forest and the night.’
Won’t you come and paint your way into my dreams?
Rain falls on the harbor; words fall on deaf ears
Trying to paint the river’s song, before it disappears
Mr Thomson’s skyline comes to my mind
Before I fall too deep,
In that all refreshing Devils Blessing
Both of us call sleep.
Mr Thomson what’s it like?
Do those hungry black flies bite?
Can you cup your fleshless hands and drink the stream?
“Well I’m stretched across this light,
Between the morning and the night.”
Won’t you come and paint your way into our dreams?
If you close your eyes and listen, you can hear the “Georgian Moan…”
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10. |
loki's
02:09
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11. |
dogfood
03:01
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DOG FOOD by SANDY MACKAY
I was walking down a street as I lay dreaming,
I was walking down a the streets in old Quispam (sisss)
My dog beside me walking as we’re dreaming
And my dog was singing as he ran…. And He sang:
Dog food is good for you, Full of nutrients and protein too
Dog Food is good for you, I eat it every day
Dog food is such a treat, Full of corn and soy and wheat
Sometimes there is even meat, I eat it every day
Dog Food, Dog Food, Dog Food, Dog Food
Dog Food, it’s Dog Food, and I eat it every day
then a man in a bowler hat said at me
“Don’t steal from the little fish Sunny Bubbles;
You wanna get anywhere in this world,
go lift some Waits. Always ask for more.”
My dog is behind the wheel of the pick-up truck,
driving over the edge of the cliff, (Thelma and Louise)
And as we are falling; he sprouted wings, and we began to soar
And he sang:
Dog food is good for you, Full of nutrients and protein too
Dog Food is good for you, I eat it every day
Dog food is such a treat, Full of corn and soy and wheat
Sometimes there is even meat, I eat it every day
Dog Food, Dog Food, Dog Food, Dog Food
Dog Food, it’s Dog Food, and I eat it every day
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12. |
ordinary girl
03:18
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Ordinary Girl SSS©1999
On the highway as we travel
Through our mortal days
As the mystery unravels
Only to amaze
Incredible, indelible
Enormous and untellable
As all around us brilliant planets whirl
I'm in love with an ordinary girl
In this world of grand illusion
Dazzled by extremes
In the time of mad confusion
Bursting at the seams
In the hour of rising cost
Litigious times when hearts are lost
On battlefields with tattered flags unfurled
I'm in love with an ordinary girl
Architects of bold invention
In expanding days
Paving roads with good intentions
Showing us the way
But beauty is as beauty does
And clever never ever was
The forger of the wisdom into pearls
I'm in love with an ordinary girl
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13. |
spring
04:43
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Spring © steve sellors
I thought I heard a singing in my marrow
The weeds of hope were choking out the sorrow
Winter ended; spring time came
There was no sun; there was no rain
I waited for the wheeling of the swallow
The winter wind stayed cold and hard and hollow
The shingles fed the south winds teeth
The blackest birds ate the finest seed
The sky is cold and only growing colder
The mourning dove holds snow upon her shoulder
Springtime promised; springtime lied
The holy well is all but dry
I thought I heard a singing in my marrow
The weeds of hope were choking out the sorrow
Springtime ended; summer came
Autumn, winter, spring again.
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14. |
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Two Friends and Their Guitars (c) Steven Sellors
The crickets have gone crazy; they fiddle for their girls
The moon turns to an oyster, stars to pearls
Ten toes tap to the melody and something feeds the fire
Singing 'til the morning light; two friends and their guitars
Chorus:
They leave a trail of songs behind
Like tails on shooting stars
Singing 'til the morning light
Two friends and their guitars
The hoot owls and the peepers keep time in their own way
Keeping to the darkness after day
Fingers bring familiar strings to fretboards blessed by scars
Singing 'til the morning light; two friends and their guitars
They leave a trail of songs behind
Like tails on shooting stars
Singing 'til the morning light
Two friends and their guitars
The night's black bat goes winging singing sonar to himself
Tomorrow puts today up on the shelf
Chords decay, the voices fade and sleep is not that far
Singing 'til the morning light; two friends and their guitars
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sandy mackay St John, New Brunswick
sandy
sometimes lives on a little island in a big river in New Brunswick.
Plays strings
keyboards and bagpipes.
We're writing new songs these days, it's fall coming into winter and enjoyable snow!
Looks forward to seeing you soon, somewhere... send
messages to easandymackay@gmail.com
... more
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