A song about Facebook abuse
Now you’re gonna act like you don’t know what I’m talkin’ about
You’re gonna act like you don’t know what I’m talkin’ about
This is so damn real
This is real as it gets, babe
Take time to think and respond
‘Cause if you get this thing wrong
There’ll be no second chance
Now you’re gonna act like you don’t know what I’m talkin’ about
You’re gonna act like you don’t know what I’m talkin’ about
You’re in the big show now
You’re at center stage, babe
Better get your lines right
‘Cause if you mess up tonight
There’ll be no second chance
Falser words were never spoken
And now you’re heart’s been broken
I’m feelin’ but I can’t reach ya
Maybe this time will teach ya
You just can’t go ‘round cryin’
‘Bout how you’re stuck and dyin’
‘Cause nobody really cares and…
My motor’s no longer runnin’
I confess that it’s been done in
From listening to your drivel
It’s really just that simple
There’s just no rhyme or reason
Pull the plug and ram the keys in
‘Cause I don’t really care and…
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards, sax
You walk into the room
With your pencil in your hand
You see somebody naked
And you say, "Who is that man ?"
You try so hard
But you don't understand
Just what you'll say
When you get home.’’
You raise up your head
And you ask, "Is this where it is ?"
And somebody points to you and says
"It's his"
And you says, "What's mine ?"
And somebody else says, "Where what is ?"
And you say, "Oh my God
Am I here all alone ?"…
You have many contacts
Among the lumberjacks
To get you facts
When someone attacks your imagination
But nobody has any respect
Anyway they already expect you
To all give a check
To tax-deductible charity organizations.
You've been with the professors
And they've all liked your looks
With great lawyers you have
Discussed lepers and crooks
You've been through all of
F. Scott Fitzgerald's books
You're very well read
It's well known…
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Dolores Timmerman - vocals
Stacy Boyd - vocals
Soft Landing (Christmas 2007) (Purvis)
A song about losing a pet and why we keep acquiring them
Both the kids are still in bed
Packages garbed in green and red tossed underneath the tree
Another year about to pass
How much wine left in the glass, nobody knows
But you and I are still here, our hearts aglow
Cried our eyes out two days straight
Another friend’s cast off the weight of this world’s pull
Saying goodbye is always tough
But somehow there’s just too much love to keep to ourselves
I think I hear another orphan being dropped off at the door
Just when I think my face can’t hold any more lines
You take my hand and we leap off one more time
A soft landing promised deep in your eyes
Cause you‘re my love
Now how much longer will it take
Until my heart cannot break I’d really like to know
But you say there’s so much more to feel
And it’s the pain that makes you real, trickling off your heart
How did you get so wise, I’d really like to know
Just when I think my face can’t hold any more lines
You take my hand and we leap off one more time
A soft landing always promised in your eyes
Cause you‘re my love
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Dolores Timmerman - vocals
Stacy Boyd - vocals
Larry Sauer - percussion
People keep on learnin', soldiers keep on warrin'
World keep on turnin', cause it won't be too long
Powers keep on lyin', while your people keep on dyin'
World keep on turnin', cause it won't be too long
I'm so darn glad he let me try it again
Cause my last time on earth I lived a whole world of sin
I'm so glad that I know more than I knew then
Gonna keep on tryin' ‘til I reach the highest ground
Teachers keep on teachin', preachers keep on preachin'
World keep on turnin' cause it won't be too long
Lovers keep on lovin', believers keep on believin'
Sleepers just stop sleepin', cause it won't be too long
I'm so glad that he let me try it again
Cause my last time on earth I lived a whole world of sin
I'm so glad that I know more than I knew then
Gonna keep on tryin' ‘til I reach my highest ground
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Dolores Timmerman - vocals
Stacy Boyd - vocals
Levon
wears his war wound like a crown
He calls his child Jesus
'Cause he likes the name
And he sends him to the finest school in town
Levon, Levon likes his money
He makes a lot they say
Spend his days counting
In a garage by the motorway
He was born a pauper to a pawn on a Christmas day
When the New York Times said God is dead
And the war's begun
Alvin Tostig has a son today
And he shall be Levon
And he shall be a good man
And he shall be Levon
In tradition with the family plan
And he shall be Levon
And he shall be a good man
He shall be Levon
Levon sells cartoon balloons in town
His family business thrives
Jesus blows up balloons all day
Sits on the porch swing watching them fly
And Jesus, he wants to go to Venus
Leaving Levon far behind
Take a balloon and go sailing
While Levon, Levon slowly dies
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Dolores Timmerman - vocals
Stacy Boyd - vocals
You Can Make a Weapon Out of Anything (Purvis)
A song about how even the noble art of healing can be used for nefarious purposes
Hey, lawdy mama, look at this mess
I’ll give you credit, you’ve sure done your best
Fat-filled lips and fashion mall breasts
Not a wrinkle in sight: now, will you give it a rest?
Oh-oh, what have you done?
Textured ab’s and implant-perfect buns
Oh-oh, another lipo cha-ching
But, then, you can make a weapon out of anything
You’re pretty attractive, at least that’s what they say
‘Though I’m not sure why anyone would pay to look that way
An expression Michael Jackson wouldn’t want even on a good day
Your skin looks like it’s been shit out of modeling clay
Oh-oh, what have you done?
Not enough sleep and too much sun
Oh-oh, you make those tillers ring
But, then, you can make a weapon out of anything
Too bad those docs can’t put something inside your head
Live rich, die ugly, alone in your bed
Your life’s so shallow it wouldn’t float a paper cup
There goes the buzzer- oops! Time’s up!
Oh-oh, you blew your only chance
This ain’t no dress rehearsal, no warm-up dance
Oh-oh, your time here was just one lost fling
But, then, you can make a weapon out of anything
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass, keyboards
Walk Away Renée (Brown, Sansone, & Calilli)
And when I see the sign that points one way
The lot we used to pass by every day
Just walk away, Renee
You won't see me follow you back home
The empty sidewalks on my block are not the same
You're not to blame
From deep inside the tears that I'm forced to cry
From deep inside the pain that I chose to hide
Just walk away, Renee
You won't see me follow you back home
Now, as the rain beats down upon my weary eyes
For me, it cries
Your name and mine inside a heart upon a wall
Still finds a way to haunt me though they're so small
Just walk away, Renee
You won't see me follow you back home
The empty sidewalks on my block are not the same
You’re not to blame
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Carol Plough - vocals, cello
Carrie Giger - vocals
Dolores Timmerman - flute
Riding on the City of New Orleans,
Illinois Central Monday morning rail
Fifteen cars and fifteen restless riders,
Three conductors and twenty-five sacks of mail.
All along the southbound odyssey
The train pulls out at Kankakee
Rolls along past houses, farms and fields.
Passin' trains that have no names,
Freight yards full of old black men
And the graveyards of the rusted automobiles.
Dealin' card games with the old men in the club car.
Penny a point ain't no one keepin' score.
Pass the paper bag that holds the bottle
Feel the wheels rumblin' 'neath the floor.
And the sons of pullman porters
And the sons of engineers
Ride their father's magic carpets made of steel.
Mothers with their babes asleep,
Are rockin' to the gentle beat
And the rhythm of the rails is all they feel.
Nighttime on The City of New Orleans,
Changing cars in Memphis, Tennessee.
Half way home, we'll be there by morning
Through the Mississippi darkness
Rolling down to the sea.
And all the towns and people seem
To fade into a bad dream
And the steel rails still ain't heard the news.
The conductor sings his song again,
The passengers will please refrain
This train's got the disappearing railroad blues.
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Carol Plough - vocals
Carrie Giger - vocals
Jim Timmerman - mandolin
A song about exactly what it says it’s about
You always said there’s a time and place for everything
But I’m not so sure there’s ever been a time for that
You’ve got that look in your eyes
I’ve been upbraided, scolded, and vilified
I’ve been advised I should keep such things to myself
But, seriously, how much fun would that be?
Let’s blow ‘em off and take a whole week off work
Let’s put some effort into doing nothing at all
Have you ever looked a tiger right in the face?
Told him your dreams, shared a laugh or two?
They’ve got a great sense of humor
Have you ever done a dance on the canyon’s rim?
Where one quick breeze could push you right over the edge?
You’ll never feel more alive
Let’s blow ‘em off and take a whole month off work
Let’s concentrate on doing nothing at all
Do you really want to wake up when you’re eighty-five
Wondering where the hell did your life go?
Never once having stepped foot in County Cork
Never once having felt the hurricane blow
Ah, let it blow…
Do you really want to wake up when you’re eighty-five
Wondering what did I do with my time?
God gave you this world to be savored
Now, get out there and live your life
I’m gonna kiss you in Las Vegas at midnight
I’m gonna weave French flowers into your hair
Just to see what they look like
We’re gonna swim naked and laughing with our dolphin friends
Swap stories with a fat koala bear
You wouldn’t believe some of the things they’ve done
Let’s blow ‘em off and take the rest of our lives off work
Put all our effort into doing nothing at all
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Susan Herner - vocals
Molly Herner - vocals
Sunday morning walks on the seashore
Mom and my brothers off at church
You and me pickin’ up shells from the sand-
Our secret search
That Florida beach was abandoned
The world a million miles away
Your words were few but I always knew
What you had no need to say
That you would always love me
Your hand always at my back
No matter the miles between us
And that’s a fact
Like children do I grew up hard and angry
At times I couldn’t stand the sight of you
I learned to despise everything you loved
Sad but true
My words to you were cruel and cutting
In all the world I hated you the most
I wanted to drain out the half of my blood that was yours
And become a ghost
But still you always loved me
Your hand stayed at my back
No matter the lies built up between us
And that’s a fact
I realized too late who you really were
And the day you died I felt so alone
Tears of shame burned acid streaks down my face
And choked my throat
But now in the still of the morning
I smell the perfect salt of the sea
And I can still your shadow falling next to mine
You’re still with me
And I know that you still love me
I can still feel your hand at my back
No matter the great rift between us
And that’s a fact
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Carol Plough - cello
Dennis Sturdevant - synthesizer
A song about homeless people and life’s futility…in short, a pretentious hot mess
There’s a hole in my backyard twenty feet wide
That keeps getting’ bigger every day
It provides asylum for thieves and whores
It’s where all the rejects play
I keep tossin’ in food and cash and clothes
It seems like a nice place to stay
Look on the bright side, the way things are goin’
It could be yours any day
It might not be Paris, it might not be Rome
But with a bit of finesse you could call it home
Word travels fast, better get on down
Welcome to your new home town
It’s not a whole lot more
A ramshackle sign just off I-69
Got a freshly scrubbed dirt floor
Three jars of beets off the food pantry shelf
New duct tape ‘round the door
You get a pass and you’re not harassed
Still the people would prefer you gone
Your nine-to-five is just stayin’ alive
Singin’ that freeway-exit song
It’s already been said by The Grateful Dead
The Reaper doesn’t seem so grim
‘Cause a friend of the devil is a friend of mine
What’s it matter in the end?
Not a whole lot more
There’s a hole in my backyard fifty feet wide
And it’s swallowing up my life
People speaking languages I’ve never heard
Living ways I can’t even describe
The hand-made blade from the refugee arcade
I feel it pressing hard to my chest
Eloi, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?
Why would you leave such a mess?
It’s no hard-sell that we’re all guilty as hell
Kick a man when he’s down and time will tell
If when he gets back up things’ll get rough
I guess I’d better find a hole of my own
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Susan Herner - vocals
Molly Herner - vocals
Monster: Monster/Suicide/America (Kay, Edmonton, St. Nicholas, & Byrom)
Once the religious, the hunted and weary
Chasing the promise of freedom and hope
Came to this country to build a new vision
Far from the reaches of Kingdom and pope
Like good Christians some would burn the witches
Later some got slaves to gather riches
But still from near and far to seek America
They came by thousands, to court the wild
But she just patiently smiled and bore a child
To be their spirit and guiding light
And once the ties with the crown had been broken
Westward in saddle and wagon it went
And till the railroad linked ocean to ocean
Many the lives which had come to an end
While we bullied, stole and bought a homeland
We began the slaughter of the red man
But still from near and far to seek America
They came by thousands to court the wild
But she just patiently smiled and bore a child
To be their spirit and guiding light
The Blue and Grey they stomped it
They kicked it just like a dog
And when the war was over
They stuffed it just like a hog
And though the past has its share of injustice
Kind was the spirit in many a way
But its protectors and friends have been sleeping
Now it's a monster and will not obey
The spirit was freedom and justice
And its keepers seemed generous and kind
Its leaders were supposed to serve the country
But now they won't pay it no mind
Cause the people grew fat and got lazy
Now their vote is a meaningless joke
They babble about law and order
But it's all just an echo of what they've been told
Yeah, there's a monster on the loose
It's got our heads into the noose
And it just sits there watchin'
The cities have turned into jungles
And corruption is stranglin' the land
The police force is watching the people
And the people just can't understand
We don't know how to mind our own business
'Cause the whole world's got to be just like us
Now we are fighting a war over there
No matter who's the winner we can't pay the cost
'Cause there's a monster on the loose
It's got our heads into the noose
And it just sits there watchin'
America, where are you now
Don't you care about your sons and daughters
Don't you know we need you now
We can't fight alone against the monster
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Dennis Sturdevant - keyboards
Susan Herner - vocals
Molly Herner - vocals
A pre-sobriety song
I ordered up two more shots
In terms of effort, it doesn’t seem like a lot
Toss ‘em back until I toss ‘em all back up
Gonna ride around all night on the porcelain bus
You broke my heart and not for the first time, that’s for sure
But you assured me your motives were entirely pure
Anyway, finding your soul mate is always just dumb luck
Maybe she’ll be there tonight on the porcelain bus
I can’t dance, I can’t sleep
I can’t walk, I’m always falling
I can’t eat, but I can drink
Excuse me, oblivion’s calling
So I’ll order a few more shots
Get on Heartbreak Boulevard and hope I don’t get caught
But if they pull me over there won’t be much to discuss
You never have to explain yourself on the porcelain bus
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Susan Herner - vocals
Molly Herner - vocals
If your memory serves you well
We were going to meet again and wait
So I'm going to unpack all my things
And sit before it gets too late.
No man alive will come to you
With another tale to tell
And you know that we shall meet again
If your memory serves you well.
This wheel's on fire,
Rolling down the road.
Best notify my next of kin
This wheel shall explode.
If your memory serves you well
I was going to confiscate your lace
And wrap it up in a sailor's knot
And hide it in your case.
If I knew for sure that it was yours
But it was oh so hard to tell
And you know that we shall meet again
If your memory serves you well.
If your memory serves you well
You'll remember you're the one
That called on me to call on them
To get you your favours done.
And after every plan had failed
And there is nothing left to tell
You know that we shall meet again
If your memory serves you well.
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Carol Plough - vocals
Carrie Giger - vocals
In Praise of Fine and Impractical Arts (Purvis)
A song about the invaluable asset of stupidity
I wish to celebrate idiocy
The gorgeous freedom of folly
The passionate abandonment of good sense
The surrender to reckless abandon
I wish to celebrate fatuous movements
The kind we’ll recall on our death’s day
When all else retreats undistinguished
To the shadows of vulgarities forgotten
I wish to celebrate poor judgment
And the youthful delight in the profane
The whole-hearted commitment to lunacy
Made perfect this midsummer’s evening
I wish to celebrate life
Outside the laws of the pristine
Beyond the requirements of prudence
Perfect in all its brutality
I wish to celebrate sheer madness
Naked swimming in public at sunrise
Stolen kisses from strangers at midnight
And dancing so freely that it hurts us
This is the key
This is the means
This is the part too often missing
This is the means
This is the key
Give yourself to holy kissing
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Dennis Sturdevant - keyboards
Bring It On Home To Me (Cooke)
If you ever change your mind
About leaving, leaving me behind
Oh-oh, bring it to me
Bring your sweet loving
Bring it on home to me
I know I laughed when you left
But now I know I only hurt myself…
I'll give you jewelry and money, too
That ain't all, all I'll do for you…
You know I'll always be your slave
'Til I'm buried, buried in my grave…
Jeff Purvis - vocals, guitars
Randy Bryant - drums
Steve Raymond - bass
Phil Jacoby - keyboards
Carol Plough - vocals
Carrie Giger - vocals