1. |
Wild Wind Blows
03:32
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The wild wind blows through the valley
The fire grows by the day
It’s time to go, come on Sally
That fatal glow, is coming our way
Seven generations now
On this family farm, somehow
We made it through floods and drought
We made it through the dust bowl and
We managed to bounce back again
When the bankers tried to close us out
Feel that heat it’s closing in
Close enough to scorch your skin
Sal it’s time to set the horses free
You’d think that all that thick black smoke
Would wake up all the anti-woke
But they stay too blind to see
The earth is black the sky is red
But most of us still keep our heads
In the smoldering sand
When the haze blocks out the sun
Sal, it’s time for us to run
But where can we go in this troubled land
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2. |
Foolish Old Man
03:07
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I see a beautiful earth
So green and so blue
A place of rebirth
All shiny and new
And it’s taken me a lot
To finally understand
Those are just crazy thoughts
Of a foolish old man
I see a world without war
with no selfish greed
Where we all look out for
Each other’s needs
But now it seems to me
I was just in dreamland
Just the fantasy
Of a foolish old man
The map that I made
Of my brilliant plan
Has all washed away
It was written in sand
By a foolish old Man
I can see you and I
Classic boy meets girl
With stars in our eyes
Out there changing the world
With love as deep as the ocean
Forever hand in hand
But that’s just a wild notion
Of a foolish old man
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3. |
American Taliban
03:46
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They got a blue-eyed Jesus.
Preaches the gospel of hate
They got a blue-eyed Jesus.
Preaches the gospel of hate
a platoon of believers
They are storming the gates
American Taliban
They’re everywhere but hard to see
American Taliban
They look just like you and me
They say they want their freedom,
But what they want is to take yours
They SAY they want their freedom,
But what they want is to take yours
There’ll come a day when you’ll see them
Knocking at your doors
They’ll put fear in your children
With their A R Fifteens
They’ll put fear in your children
With their A R Fifteens
It is clear they don’t mind killin’
To drive us to our knees
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4. |
Leonard's Secret Chord
03:02
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Painters and poets, philosophers and kings
Looking to the cosmos for the same things
Rebels and angels, singers, and dancers
Everybody’s out there looking for answers
We’re all looking for, we’re all looking for
Leonard’s secret chord
Some are looking inward,into their troubled souls
Some are looking for wisdom in the ancient scrolls
Some are looking to the heavens, some look beneath their feet
Some are looking in the dumpsters for something to eat
We’re all looking for, we’re all looking for
Leonard’s secret chord
A chord to transform your song and cut through
The mire and the muck, until it rings true
That will lift up your chorus and make it divine
So that when you sing it the stars align
Some say you’ll never find it if you overthink it
Or that there’s a magic potion, you just have to drink it
As for me I know where I want to start
Diving deep into your bottomless heart
We’re all looking for, we’re all looking for
Leonard’s secret chord.
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5. |
The World's Heavy Weight
03:25
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Those shoulders of yours were not built to carry
The world’s heavy weight.
It’s so much to bear, I’m afraid you’ll get buried
In your fragile state
You’ll get lost in the rubble
Overwhelmed by the troubles
That drop like bombs every day
You always fight the good fight
Turning darkness to light
When it makes me want to run away
That big heart of yours, with so much love in it
Wasn’t made for the fear and the hate
How much can you hold, there must be a limit
To what that poor heart can take
As things keep getting worse
I fear it’ll burst
If I trusted some god I would pray
That the goodness in you
Would somehow make it through
To find the sun in these skies of grey
You can’t make the
Rain of fire cease, all on your own
Can you wave a flag of peace
When we’re all throwing stones
So let’s fight the good fight
Together we might
Just find a better way
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6. |
Uncle Neil
03:20
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He took his fiddle off the wall,
And said “I get forgetful, that’s all
All this talk
From that quack of a doc,
He thinks that I should be mothballed”
Then he’d put that fiddle to his chin
Grab his bow and he’d begin
The way he always did with the St. Anne’s Reel
Somehow the part left in his brain
That held those tunes remained the same
As long as he could play then you could feel
Like we still had our good old Uncle Neil
Sometimes on visits he would know
Who I was and we would go
Down memory lane
So many road-blocks on the way
That trip could get treacherous and slow
But he’d start into an old-time tune
He’d tap his toe and pretty soon
He would be back on an even keel
And although that terrible disease
Had brought that poor guy to his knees
As long as he could play then you could feel
Like we still had our good old uncle Neil
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7. |
Nyabarongo
03:42
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After you meet your quota, at the end of a long day
Do you tally up your harvest, and put your scythe away
Do you walk past the church with your head held high
Do you whistle a tune to drown out the cries
What is the tale you tell your children
When you tuck them into bed
About the Nyabarongo and why it’s flowing red
And why it’s flowing Red
In the evening when it’s cooler,
Do you sit out on your porch
Before you head out for a night shift
With your machete and your torch
Do you discuss the subtle difference
Between a monster and a man
And tell your wife with a kiss goodnight
That it’s somehow all god’s plan
At night do you
Dream that some demon’s been released from the cage
That contained that hate, that chained up that rage
Does the beast that’s been unleashed howl at your door
Till you wake up and take up the hunt once more
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8. |
Wrinkles and Scars
02:46
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We earned all these wrinkles
We earned all these scars
And we wear them like badges
‘Cuz we made it this far
We’ve got near as many
As those twinkling stars
We earned all these wrinkles
And we earned all these scars
I got mine playing guitar
In these honky tonk bars
Livin’ the dream, boys, livin’ the dream
You got yours putting up with me
So thanklessly
Don’t know how you did it actually
Sometimes we
Do an inventory
‘Cuz each one tells a story
And counting them up’s kind of fun
We add up each other’s
Under the covers
Our work is never done
We used to hate ‘em
Now we celebrate ‘em
Top to floppy bottom
Those bumps along the way
Got us where we are today
We’re so grateful that we’ve got ‘em
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9. |
Willow
03:50
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I came down
To Simpson Sound
To spend my harvest pay
Madame Paquette
Had rooms to let
My intention was to stay
At least until
Those barren hills
Were free of snow again
Till my belly was full
And I felt the pull
To resume my wanderin’ ways
Madam she said
“If you visit the bed
Of young Willow over the stable
She’ll treat you kind
If you’d be inclined
To leave a deuce on my table”
Such delights
On those winter nights
Filled with love and laughter
She’d bend to me
Just like the tree
That she had been named after
Oh Willow
You don’t have to weep
Oh Willow I will set you free
By St. Patrick’s Day I’d spent my wages
And the ice in the bay was gone
“Willow”, I said, “Though it fills me with dread
It is time for moving on
But I can’t live. Unless you give
Me your hand and come with me”
She cried “Madame Paquette
Will never let me leave”
So I pleaded and I begged
Madame said “Sir. You can’t have her
Though every night you bought her
I won’t let her go. Because you should know
Willow is my daughter”
So we parted
Broken hearted
And I headed for the west
When I returned
With sorrow I learned
That Willow had been laid to rest
Oh Willow
For you I’ll always weep
Oh Willow, I pray the lord your soul to keep
Oh Willow, you set yourself free
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10. |
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The haze from the wildfires blocks out the sun
Everything’s grey and I’m feeling done
The summer seems like it’s on the run
I’m as lonesome as Hank Williams tonight
I’m as lonesome as Hank Williams tonight
No whippoorwill too blue to fly
No falling stars, no purple sky
But still I have to say that I’m
as lonesome as Hank Williams tonight
As lonesome as Hank Williams tonight
It’s
Knowing that you’re just not there
The ominous smoke that fills the air
The uncertainty that’s everywhere
Tonight it’s just too hard to bear
No midnight train to lowly whine
No robins weeping, no moon that’s cryin’
No endless night, and no leaves dyin’
But I’m as lonesome as Hank Williams tonight
as lonesome as Hank Williams tonight
I’m so lonesome I could cry
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11. |
Yacht Money
02:14
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Work hard all the live long day
Crappy hours, crappy pay
Your ends don’t seem to ever meet
You’re gonna end up on the street
It’s so sad it’s almost funny
You’re making your boss his Yacht Money
You call that a job? It’s god forsaken
Aches and pains, back breakin’
You wonder where the money went
It goes straight to the one percent
You never stop, just like that bunny
You’re making your boss his yacht money
Rent is high, your wages teeny
That’s how he gets his Lamborghini
Come on give us a great big smile
You’ve supported his lifestyle
He told you he’d be grateful if
You started doing longer shifts
And take a little cut in pay
‘Cuz times are tough for the rich these days
He needs to winter somewhere sunny
You’re making your boss his yacht money
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12. |
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You’ve made me your enemy
You howl like a wolf at my door
This will never be your victory
‘Cuz you’re fighting the wrong war
You look for someone you can blame
You need to settle up a score
In a game that you can’t name
It isn’t me you’re looking for
When you let love leave your heart
Hate will fill that hole
And that hate will tear us apart
And it will steal your soul
The fabric seems all torn
That once joined this fragile nation
So you honk your horn
And you shout out your frustration
But if you’re shouting I can’t listen
If you’re in my face I cannot see
A way to bridge the icy distance
That stands between you and me
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13. |
Music Was Your Lover
04:18
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Raised on
Rock and Roll, Rhythm and Blues
Twist and Shout and Blue Suede Shoes
You learned your trade you paid your dues
Music was your lover
The road became your closest friend
It nurtured you it kept you fed
You thought that it would never end
Music was your lover
When the road’s the only thing you’ve known
It’s in your blood it’s in your bones
it’s hard to watch it falling all apart
Your guitar’s not going to pay the rent
Unless you are the one percent
This broken biz is gonna break your heart
Something happened along the way
No one values what you do these days
They want your songs but they don’t want to pay
Music was your lover
Expenses have doubled and the income’s half
It’s so sad that you could laugh
It’s a joke if you try to do the math
Still music was your lover
When the rental car makes more than you
Gas and airfare, hotels too
What are you supposed to do
Music was your lover
Still somehow you keep on trying
It’s a hard sell, nobody’s buying
It’s not a living, it’s more like a dying
Is it time to leave your lover?
Maybe if you sold your gear
You’d make it through another year
But losing that life was not what you had planned for
People still like to hear you play
It doesn’t matter anyway
You can’t take applause to your landlord
So say goodbye to your beloved road
You can stay home and get it as a free download
Don Maclean was right I suppose
This is the day the music died
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14. |
Keeping You In Mind
04:16
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Storms on the horizon
Black clouds overhead
Something in
The worried wind
Is filling me with dread
In this stressed-out city
Folks can be unkind
But here’s what I do
To make it through
I’m keeping you in mind
As long as I’m
Keeping you in mind
You’ll show me a sign
And the sun will shine
I’ll be fine
I can stop this cryin’
As long as I’m
Keeping you in mind
We get our collective
Knickers in a knot
We fuss and fight
And we lose sight
Of the good things that we’ve got
But there’s joy and there is promise
Things you know how to find
I get by
As long as I
Am keeping you in mind
It’s a beautiful thing
All that you bring
It makes my heart sing
A song of you
When I feel despair
I come up for air
‘Cuz I know where
I can lose these blues
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JAMES GORDON Guelph, Ontario
James Gordon is a Canadian songwriter/playwright/musician/producer/author and community activist. Co-founder of the
legendary Canadian folk trio Tamarack, He’s released 40 albums in 40 years!
His newest release on Borealis Records- "the Heritage Hall Sessions" has been very well received world-wide. James Moonlights as a CIty Councillor in his hometown of Guelph, Ontario. www.jamesgordon.ca
... more
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