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Songs
Clear
Blue Sky
Didn't We
Everything is Round
Fireside
Goin' Down to Eugene
The Great Stone Wall
If You Love The Water Let It Rain
Mr. Ondo
Over My Dead Body
River of Rage
This Land
Who Are They and Why Do They Hate Us
Clear Blue
Sky
funny how life goes, just when
you think you know
it'll hit you so sudden, you never even see the blow
and all the things you've been missin', they seem to crowd around
the way the shadows get longer when the sun goes down
and it's only one drop of water
in a clear blue sky
but it's enough to say good-bye
you see the minstrel on the
sidewalk singin', you hear the cowboy song
you see the old road traveler passin', lookin' for a place to belong
you see the bird do an aerial dance, you see the wing in the sunlight
glisten
there's music everywhere if you know how to listen
and it's only one drop of water
in a clear blue sky
but it's enough to say good-bye
oh and all of us, we are more
than we appear
all of that life, all of those years
standin' on a beach head, where the land and the water part
and all that really matters is what you hold in your heart
oh friend of mine, how can
I say
when your last great breath of life took my words away
laughin' 'cause we have to, laughin' in the face of it all
somewhere forever, on the other side of that wall
and it's only one drop of water
in a clear blue sky
but it's enough to say good-bye
back to
top
Didn't We
November 30th, '99
history walkin' on a tightrope line
big money pullin' on invisible strings
gettin' into everything
so deep, it's hard to believe
it's in the food and the water and the air you breath
and the chemistry, the bio-tech
the banker with the bottomless check
the corporations and the CEO's
and the bottom line is the profit grows
the money talks, you don't talk back
they don't like it when you act like that
but didn't we
shut it down
didn't we
November 30th, '99
it was a Tuesday mornin' when we drew the line
it was the WTO comin' to town
and we swore we're gonna shut it down
and they stood there with their big police
they had the National Guard out to keep the peace
with the guns and the clubs and the chemical gas
but still we would not let them pass
and they raged and roared and their tempers flared
and there were bombs bursting in the daylight air
and they'd run us off, do us in
but we came right back again
yeah, didn't we
shut it down
didn't we
November 30th, '99
millennium passing as the numbers climb
and the people came from everywhere
there musta been 50 thousand out there
there were farmers, unions, rank and file
every grass roots has it's own style
there were great big puppets two stories tall
there were drummers drummin' in the shoppin' mall
there were so many people that you couldn't see
how that many people got into the city
and the WTO delegates too
but we were locked down, so they couldn't get through
yeah, didn't we
shut it down
didn't we
November 30th, '99
lockdown at the police line
and they're hittin' you with everything they got
but you ain't movin', like it or not
and they're tyin' your wrists with plastic cuffs
and they're loadin' you up on a great big bus
and they're takin' you down to the navy base
pepper sprayin' you right in the face
try to break you down, try to get you to kneel
but you got the unity and this is for real
and they can't break a spirit that's comin' alive
that's the kind of spirit that's bound survive
didn't we
shut it down
didn't we
the media loves on the glitter
and flash
and the newspapers talkin' out a whole lot of trash
about the violence of the people in black
and how the cops were so tired they just had to attack
and the secrets hidden in that deep dark hole
that they call City Hall may never be told
the mayor's out doin' the spin
the police chief quit so you can't ask him
well they can swear to god and all human law
but I was there and I know what I saw
and the visible stains'll wash away in the rains
but this old town'll never be the same
'cause didn't we
shut it down
didn't we
it's the greatest story ever
told
David and Goliath, how you be so bold
standin' up to the giant when the goin' gets hot
and all you got is a slingshot
well they tell me that the world's turned upside down
you gotta pick it up and shake it, gotta turn it around
you gotta take it apart to rearrange it
I don't want to save the world I want to change it
don't let 'em tell you that it can't be done
'cause they're gonna be the first ones to run
just take a little lesson from Seattle town
WTO and how we shut it down
yeah, didn't we
shut it down
didn't we
back to
top
Everything
Is Round
the sun goes up and the sun
goes down
and all the many planets out spinning around
hangin' on to a little green piece of ground
everything is round
all around the lost and found
tubular bells they make a tubular sound
and the rollin' balls go rollin' around
everything is round
you can fantasize a straight
line
you can try it if you may
but I guarantee that straight line
is gonna turn around some day
there's a crazy man beatin'
on a big skin drum
and everybody waitin' for the kingdom come
while every other kingdom just comes undone
everything is round
starting from the mother earth
learning what a circle's worth
returning to the place of birth
everything is round
you can calculate the answer
you can call it "M C Squared"
but if space and time are truly curved
then there are no squares out there
if god could speak he'd have
to say
forget about the judgment day
there's no straight and narrow anyway
everything is round
entropy and institution
a convoluted evolution
revolving every revolution
everything is round
back to
top
Fireside
she put her feet beside me
and the sun was going down
she told me all those secrets, all those candles back in town
seven minutes elsewhere and it rained with all its might
the sun had long since gone and yet it stayed up all that night
she held her eyes both in her hand and gave them both to me
the avalanche exploded and a slave somewhere broke free
yes all these songs taste like
lilac wine
I must taste them all some time
I went out for a walk among
the rain, among the snow
the wind blew like a cistern and I had no place to go
I saw a man was lying with his face into the wet
his coat was torn, he whimpered, broken glass, a cigarette
my eyes were filled with alleys as I helped him to his feet
he thanked me with a smile and I walked off down the street
yes all these songs taste like
Arabian wine
I must taste them all some time
Sister spoke with innocence,
she drew her bolt aside
"stay here if you must, I know exactly what you need"
she smiled like a fireside, one hand upon the bell
I asked her if she knew and if she knew how could she tell
she laughed and pointed with her Jesus to the sky
saying "this is what you need and what you need is when you die"
she offered me some wine, I
saw her hand white as bone
I told her I was lost, and could she find me my way home
she laughed again, twinkled, and her hood fell to the side
and I heard her say "right here with me, among the fireside"
I excused myself and left her, and I left her all alone
she with no relations and I with no way home
yes all these songs taste like
sacred wine
I must taste them all some time
back to
top
Goin' Down
To Eugene
the car's gassed up and I'm
ready to roll
I got one eye open for the highway patrol
I got the other eye open for the freeway sign
300 miles and I'm makin' good time
my stomach's growlin' but my head's been fed
I'm goin' down to Eugene to see the Grateful Dead
tape deck's blowin' out a rattlin'
sound
in a sympathetic rhythm to the wheel-go-round
sports cars eat me up half-alive
this thing don't do more than 55
but I can sleep in the back, it's a roadside bed
I'm goin' down to Eugene to see the Grateful Dead
everybody needs a little break
sometimes
life gets too precise
put a little twist in the old straight line
and take some strange advise
rollin' into town I'm all eyes
and ears
look at all those people I ain't seen in years
tripped out hipsters, rag and bone
young neophitic tie dye, cellular telephone
Sister Salina and her Uncle Fred
they're goin' down to Eugene to see the Grateful Dead
there's 40 thousand people
in a great big bowl
they're all rockin' to the rhythm of the roll
some are fallin' in love, some are countin' their money
some are spinnin' in circles till their eyes get funny
ain't it just about the way they said
I'm goin' down to Eugene to see the Grateful Dead
goin' into the parkin' lot
I might get lost
best place in the world to get your wires crossed
reality shatters when you leap and shout
some people go in and they never come out
ain't never been the same since my senses fled
goin' down to Eugene to see the Grateful Dead
everybody needs a little break
sometimes
life gets too precise
put a little twist in the old straight line
and take some strange advise
now you can take my work week
and throw it away
I'll put a penny in a parkin' meter any day
hang out the phone bill and let it fade
landlord's gonna have to wait to get paid
I ain't got no use for your overhead
I'm goin' down to Eugene to see the Grateful Dead
my stomach's growlin' but my head's been fed
I'm goin' down to Eugene to see the Grateful Dead
back to
top
The Great Stone
Wall
if I could face the day the
way the sunlight does
if I could rise with morning mist
then I would know the way that the water-fish swims
I could hold the lessons in my fist
we are dying, say the elders, and we don't even know
this is only a temporary peace
we're only waiting for the outcome to show
and the endings to be released
behind the silence of a great
stone wall
in the howling of a new wilderness
beyond the distance of a great stone wall
it will change, it will change
it wasn't always like this
I've been to places where the
clocks don't tick
and they laugh at the hard straight line
where history looks through baby's eyes
and the light of the future is a good sign
some laws are made of barbed wire
and they lean to the privileged few
but reality shoots from behind a blade of grass
and its aim is true
there's a warfare fought in
the bloodstream now
and truth is a thing to be praised
the lie gets mean and it hides in the marrow
and it waits for the stakes to be raised
and the dry rattle breath of exit time
is a wake-up call to your ear
and the feel of a fist at the end of your arm
gives the answer to your tears
there's a light at the end
of the tunnel they say
and sometimes I think I see
like a dissident glint in the eye of a needle
and the glitter of a soul set free
there's a song they sing in the worst of times
to lift your spirit on the wings and fly
way on the other side of that storm cloud wall
dancing in the clear blue sky
back to
top
If You Love
The Water Let It Rain
when the good rains finally
came we stood out under cover
watched the dry earth drink it up like a long lost lover
we opened up our senses to let it in
felt so good to feel that way again
(chorus)
if you love the water let it rain
let it wash away your pain
there are reasons to explain
if you love the water let it rain
a long time ago when the world
was young
innocent life beneath the summery sun
desert flowers and the wild plantain
waiting for the weather to bring the rain
(chorus)
if you love the water let it rain
let it wash away your pain
there are reasons to explain
if you love the water let it rain
(bridge)
time is such a fleeting thing, you know it comes and it goes
it ebbs and it flows, waterfalls and rainbows
there was a time we kept ourselves
apart
surrounded by the dryness in our hearts
but life is a natural mystery, they say
so I guess we'll just let nature have its way
(chorus)
if you love the water let it rain
let it wash away your pain
there are reasons to explain
if you love the water let it rain
back to
top
Mr. Ondo
one afternoon as I came home
to the building where I lived alone
I met an old man on the stairs
as he paused to catch his breath there
his face was drawn and pale
his hand was clenched to grip the rail
he had a long way to go
and his name was Mr. Ondo
I offered him my helping hand
my steady legs to help him stand
"my room's upstairs and straight ahead
I'm not feeling very well," he said
we reached the door, he turned
the key
he turned around to look at me
and I saw myself in years to come
"thank you" he said, I said "you're welcome"
and we all have so far to go
don't we, Mr. Ondo
time passed by and all too
soon
there came another afternoon
when I was home alone once more
with some one rapping at my door
it was Mr. Ondo looking well
holding out a dollar bill
as so eagerly he bowed his head
"this is for your help" he said
I refused but he would not
relent
and then I saw how much it meant
a dollar for the man inside
for that was how he wore his pride
and pride is all that you've
got left
when they've all gone and you've been left
at home alone in a winter's chill
so I took his dollar bill
and we all have so far to go
don't we, Mr. Ondo
I never saw him after that
the place was sold and that was that
we all had to pack up and leave
and he's passed on I do believe
but sometimes when all is said
and done
and I see myself in years to come
I think how fragile this humanity
I hope some one does the same for me
and we all have so far to go
don't we, Mr. Ondo
back to
top
Over My Dead
Body
We are born in nature and in
nature we will die
And if we don't make it, it's not because we didn't try
They say they will incorporate
the world
Over my dead body, over my dead body, over my dead body, over mine
They have all the money but
we have the will
And I would rather be a match than a paper dollar bill
They have all the guns, all
we are is flesh and blood
But we will multiply our numbers and drown them in our flood
They say they will incorporate
the world
Over my dead body, over my dead body, over my dead body, over mine
They have all the power, that's
what they say
But we will turn those tables, take their power away
We will not be dissuaded and
we will not turn around
We will face the barricades and we will tear them down
They say they will incorporate
the world
Over my dead body, over my dead body, over my dead body, over mine
You can call me a fool, that's
alright with me
But I will live to see this good round world breaking free
back to
top
River Of Rage
he walked into
the cafeteria
he had a gun in his hand
he walked in like a time bomb
triggered to command
he fired 41 rounds
that's how the story gets told
he killed his mother and his father too
he was 15 years old
the doctors
they pondered
they puzzled and schemed
they analyzed his body language
and his camouflage dreams
they said his town was so normal
his street was just fine
all those unanswered questions
they're the most dangerous kind
river of rage
river of rage
blame it on
the music
it's easy to do
blame it on the internet
and the TV too
blame it on the devil
that's what he's for
but all the blame in the world won't put life back into
those bodies on the floor
it's a trickery
world
it's all mirrors and smoke
and the promises that they made to you
well they were just a joke
when you find you've been lied to
and the lie wasn't true
you gotta get mad at somebody
but you just don't know who
river of rage
river of rage
it's in our
blood
and in our memory's dream
warriors fighting
gun metal gleam
the smell of the powder
the sound of the sword
the anger of god as he rages through
where the grapes of wrath are stored
America the
beautiful
they say these colors don't run
everywhere we went
we just walked in with a gun
we blew 'em to pieces
we bombed 'em into dust
then we raised up our children
and they turned out just like us
river of rage
river of rage
don't know
if I can explain it
but at least I have to try
there's no love and compassion
in a mechanical eye
society's failing
it's society's guilt
and the monster that kills us
will be the monster that we built
the face in
the mirror
it's coming so clear
it's our future at stake now
and all that we hold dear
if this is our story
we can write a new page
or we can drown in the waters
of a river of rage
river of rage
river of rage
back to
top
This Land
come gather round me, hear
my sad story
I know you think you've heard some one sing it before me
but it's an old song, I had to change it
times ain't what they used to be
as I was walking that super
highway
below the gray haze and sooted skyway
I was arrested for hitch hiking on the freeway
they said it don't belong to me
it ain't my land and it ain't
your land
could be a rich land but it's a poor land
'cause of the few that hold it in their tight-gripped hand
so that it don't belong to you or me
when I was younger and in my
schooling
I learned and followed by all the rulings
I never dreamed that they were only fooling
how could my teachers lie to me
but as time passed and I grew
older
and the world around me got a little colder
I heard a voice came calling at my shoulder
said it don't belong to you or me
it ain't my land and it ain't
your land
could be a rich land but it's a poor land
'cause of the few that hold it in their tight-gripped hand
so that it don't belong to you or me
from the board rooms of corporations
to the back roads of desperate situations
it's a confused and dis-united nation
all the way from sea to shining sea
from the urban war zones of
the busted street lights
to the toxic waste lands of Nevada Test Sites
from the open strip mines to the clear cut forests
oh it's a sad sight to see
I see the downsize, I see the
layoffs
the corporate welfare, politician's payoffs
I see the breadlines that never make the headlines
'cause they're no so entertaining on TV
when they can reduce you to
just a number
when they can knock you down and they can plow you under
and when the only thing that matters is the dollar
then you know it don't belong to you or me
it ain't my land and it ain't
your land
could be a rich land but it's a poor land
'cause of the few that hold it in their tight-gripped hand
so that it don't belong to you or me
there was a time when this
song was greater
but that was then, and this is later
and there's a hole in my heart that's like a crater
and they say it's gonna be the death of me
let's take this song back,
let's take this country
take back our future, it's our duty
let's stand up tall so that everyone can see
then this land will belong to you and me
and it will be your land and
it will be my land
from California to the New York Island
from the redwood forests to the gulf stream waters
this land will belong to you and me
back to
top
Who Are They
and Why Do They Hate Us
I never thought I'd come under
attack
but now the world has changed and there's no goin' back
danger at my shoulder and it's gainin' fast
questions I'm afraid of but I have to ask
who are they and why do they hate us
I was raised to believe in
this American Dream
all the greatness and glory, the way that it seemed
how god was on our side and god doesn't lie
so why do all these innocent people have to die
who are they and why do they hate us
every color in the cloth has
a history to tell
ships across the ocean and the liberty bell
heroes in the monuments I know them by name
but now their granite jaws are shattered and their eyes are full of rain
my neighbor she's a foreigner
I can't pronounce her name
when she talks about her homeland her face fills with pain
she says she lost her children when the missiles hit
I don't know what to say so I just change the subject
who are they and why do they hate us
I see the TV news and they're
burnin' my flag
in some far away land like it's just another rag
the looks on their faces, they make me freeze
how in the world did we make so many enemies
who are they and why do they hate us
they tell me there are reasons
for unthinkable acts
rage and retribution won't bring anybody back
justice is alive, so subtle and sublime
I'd like to believe them but were running out of time
I never paid much attention,
guess I shoulda known
every far away country is somebody's home
empires rise and empires fall
the world is big enough, there should be room for us all
who are they and why do they hate us
back to
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