(click title to hear song)
Just when I thought I’d seen everything
A dragon swirled out of the sky.
His tail trailed behind him like ink
Spelling ‘dragon’ across the sky.
I touched a scale- it was shiny & soft,
So I touched him again & again.
He breathed fire so deep into me
Smoke was pouring from my skin.
I would have mounted on his back,
But he was delicate & high.
I just stood there, six feet tall,
Gazing in his western eye.
Ain’t nothing here I want to fade away,
Nothing here I want to rise above–
You & Me could be like soldiers MAKING LOVE.
In my mind I still recall
The ivy that grew by your door.
I don’t forget the day it curled
To grow back into the earth.
Burrowing down through the soft earth
Like a snake sliding down through a hole.
In the darkness I could feel the ivy
Sliding down like a snake through a hole.
Drawn to the earth’s red belly like
A hawk screaming down from the sky.
In my dreams that vine & I
Would crisscross in Shanghai.
Ain’t nothing here I want to fade away,
Nothing here I want to rise above–
You & Me could be like soldiers MAKING LOVE.
I can’t see no one in this room
But the clear brown eyes of you.
The fire escape creeps out the window,
The sky hides behind a crescent moon.
My jacket is hung on the doorknob,
So there’s nothing to touch here but you.
Your car keys are lying behind me on the floor,
So there’s no way out but to just push through.
When teacher taught us bout dust to dust
And how nothing continues on.
I remember her shining like the sun
Shining on & on & on & on & on.
Ain’t nothing here I want to fade away,
Nothing here I want to rise above–
You & Me could be like soldiers MAKING LOVE.
For a sign
Some people complain about time, boy
I could always see what was mine, boy
I could stand for ever and just watch the stars unwind.
For a name,
A piece of gold to hold in the rain, boy
So buy up all the land you can claim, boy
I will stay behind you in the darkness and I’ll pray-
Pray to men that live in water, men that live in dreams
Show me how to love and conquer, show me what it truly means to
Fall
Show me how to fall.
For a dream
To chase after that glittering gleam, boy
Though things will never be as they seem, boy
Diamonds in your hand evaporating into steam.
And a fate
You can’t stand beside the water and wait, boy
Not many in this world who are brave, boy
I will stay behind you in the darkness and I’ll pray-
Pray to stars that keep us shining, pooling in the night
Stars of love and stars of violence, show me how to truly fight and
Fall
Show me how to fall.
Then the mist
It will flow around you like this, boy
Your thoughts will start to garble and twist, boy
Feeling with your hand to find the something you have missed.
Then the night
It starts when you get used to the light, boy
Then things will start to dim but not quite, boy
Feeling with your hand you realize that you are dying…
But are you dying from asphyxiation, dying from a flood?
Dying for a drop of luster, dying for some blood?
I will hold you in my mind then, shining like a dream
Emerald lights upon your shoulder- shining like an emerald king and
Fall
Show me how to fall.
Feels like I’m falling in love
Feels like I’m falling in love
Feels like I’m falling in love
Everybody’s falling in love
I will never know what it’s like to be you
I have never held the keys to a cage.
See my hair is falling into my eyes, once again
Now you’re flying into a rage.
Feels like I’m falling in love…
Lock me up again in your cage every night
Leave me sitting there on my hands.
Leave me gazing into the moonlight
I already see the face of a man.
Feels like I’m falling in love…
I can smell the flowers inside of my mind
I’m crushing them inside my brain.
I can you standing behind of the willow tree
Peering through a cloud of cocaine.
Feels like I’m falling in love…
Tie by the wrist till it bleeds and it burns
Then watch me struggle against my cage.
All the while the universe twists and it turns
All the while I dance on its stage.
Feels like I’m falling in love…
Don’t cry, don’t cry
Just look at the sky
It’s your friend ’til the end
It’s your mother’s blue eye
And the leaves on the trees
Well they know how you feel
And they eat all the bad
And they store up what’s real
In a trunk by their roots
That no one’s ever seen
Cause it’s deeper than deep
And it’s blacker than green
Except one who goes there
To the unikorns lair
With her soft padded footsteps
And pearls in her hair
“Beware I am Fanciful!
I am not plain
All the sweet dreams you fancied
Did not die in vain
I have warmed them with Sunshine
And fed them with Rain
Now I give them to you
On a long golden chain…”
And the Moon in the sky
Is a pearl in her hair
As she sips her tea slow
From a lacy pink chair
And it’s creamy and sweet
With a rock candy stir
Topped with Rose Petals
From a bouquet you gave to her
You! You were her man
She was your wife- you did not understand
She kept all of your valentines on her nightstand
She removed all her rings and showed you her bare hand!
Beware I am Fanciful!
I am not plain,
All your rashness and anger
It was not in vain
I have dipped them in gold
And have fashioned a chain
That I wear on my wrist
How it sparkles in Sunshine & Rain!
Oh! The cars on the road
How they glitter like diamonds- I’ll set them in gold
I’ll adorn every ear where my story is told
In the apricot evening, we’ll sit on silk cushions…
Beware I am Fanciful
I am not plain
All my sweet little fancies
Were not made in vain
No, my sweet precious babies
Were not made in vain
They will not work for you
Like slaves tied to a chain
They will call you their father
They’ll lift their arms up to you
Late in the evening
When all of your work is through
Climb on your lap
And they’ll give their hearts up to you
Whisper you stories
That taste like pink fluff to you, Man.
Silver haired soldier, your age and your beauty
your grey uniform speaks to me.
Skipping behind you, I’m leaping to find you
and every step you take demands of me three.
The sky is so pretty, as big as a bluebird,
whose wings have uncurled to uncover three clouds.
But your eyes see nothing, they’re sleeping like babies,
nestled like birds in the fur of your brows.
Oh soldier, oh soldier, oh Please Let Me Tie
a pretty pink bow on your beard or your thigh!
My lucky pink ribbon, your age and your beauty,
the shadows of gun fire and fear…
May I call you fancy fancy fancy my dear?
My very presence refreshes!
The touch of my hand gets you high!
Someday my sweet little fancy, I’ll teach you to fly.
Sitting on tree stumps now, sifting through gruel
with the long silver arm of a spoon.
Twisting your neck arouned, raising your chin
cause you wanna keep track of the moon.
Write a letter now, Write One To Me
Let our fingers entwine, let me sit on your knee!
Let my words dance for you, let them enchant you
away from this world where you die!
Let me sleep by your side.
My very presence refreshes!
The touch of my hand gets you high!
Someday my sweet little fancy, I’ll teach you to fly.
The curtain is drawn and your time passes by.
I sit on the other side watching the sky…
Leaping on stones with your gun at your side
till you fall from the weight of a wound.
Hooking the sky with your one working eye
as you try to hang on for the moon.
First you see nothing and then you see me!
Your sweet baby blue with his head on your knee.
You scoop me up sweetly, a man & his baby;
I finger the bow in your beard.
We’re in love now, fancy, fancy, fancy, my dear.
My very presence refreshes!
The touch of my hand gets you high!
Someday my sweet little fancy I’ll teach you to fly.
Can you close your eyes we’re almost there?
I can feel the tendrils of his hair
Look I see the pole they said that we’d find
First you know we saw it in our mind.
Close your eyes and let him start to speak
First we fall down limply then go weak
Though we cannot move we see the star
And we know this man will take us FAR.
First we feel his hands caress our face
Lips that part too gently to erase
All the things that lay behind us now
Things that hurt us in the mind somehow.
Darkened hands that lifted up the lid
Of the heavy black box where we hid
Till those heavy hands became a star
And we knew this man would take us FAR.
Sister hold my hand it’s just the two of us
to withstand what he gives.
Let your mind give way you know they say the one who dies
will be the only one lives.
First his eyes seem black then they seem blue
First he watches me then watches you
As though we were dancing though we lie
Paralyzed and facing towards the sky.
Then we feel his hands begin to touch
Do we like it no or very much?
Either way we’re flying in his car
We have found the man who takes us FAR.
All alone with no pocketbook waiting for you.
Press my head on the the looking glass waiting for you.
And my pockets are big but my fingers are small
And I cry like a butterfly smashed on the wall as I stand
Pressed on the looking glass dreaming of you.
We met in the army when I was sixteen.
I was a typist, you were a marine.
Your rank it grew like a snowball each day;
I got the boot cause they thought i was gay-
but I was straight as an arrow for you.
I used to dream of us making sweet love
Till my body would start to explode.
Oh Father! Father Father Father, I’m cold.
The sky is stretched out like a sheet in the sky.
Far below on the earth a king scuffles by.
And he’s dressed up in rags like a woman today;
He hops through the woods like a bearcub at play,
When who should he meet in the forest but you,
He meets you.
“Take off your clothes, please.” you say with your gun.
Off comes his clothes & he stands in the sun.
Blood fills your face & it twitches your hands
When you find that your woman is really a man.
You say, “Why, why did you lie, Mr. Leopold?”
He said,”Look at your hands, please,
They’re shaking like pansies; your heart
Can’t do anything bold.”
Oh Father! Father Father Father, I’m cold.
Should I go back to the army again?
This time as a soldier, this time as a man?
Cause the sky is so big and my life is so small
Like a dumb stupid photograph glued to the wall-
And I’d cross both my eyes & I’d wiggle my toes
And I’d bleed thru the heart & I’d pay through the nose.
Oh please call me back to the battle of life
And I promise to do as I’m told!
Oh Father! Father Father Father, I’m cold.
The moon a crescent in the sky
The world a carpet down below
He came to place me on the ferris wheel
His face a shadow in the show.
Green. Green.
Pull back the curtain and you’ll find
An empty room that know one knows
Shake your head and climb the ferris wheel
This is the world that you will come to know.
Green. Green.
I thought the flowers they would one day, one day
I thought the leaves and trees would one day call me home.
You take my hand just like a leaf
You show my foot just where to go
You help me climb upon the ferris wheel
You point down at the world below.
Green. Green.
5 bright stars that I’ve never seen before
Step by step walking on the checkerboard
You know, some things get easier with time
Blood flows much easier when I know the blood is mine.
5 dark knights sleeping underneath the skies
Toss and turn, thinking of the way you died
I can’t describe what is left of me more delicate than a lace
Hold me in your hand then let me slip into the wind and watch
Me fly.
Sometimes the sky is filled with eyes.
5 small boys I saw them inside my dream
Step by step but the checkerboard was green
You know, they never cried they were a bubble in the air
Flying in the wind they never knew that you were there
All of the time.
They were oblivious to the feeling of your eyes.
Step by step walking to the rabbit hole
And there I will forget, fall into a black so fine
That you were there with me when every wind
Was filled with time.
We were oblivious to the feeling of their eyes.
They walk the road together;
they walk it side by side.
They hold each other’s hands;
they stretch out five men wide.
The sky stretched, too,
a flag of morning glory blue.
See the five of them
walk into the convenient store.
One of them buys the bread,
the other four wait by the door.
That’s what friends do-
they always hover near to you.
When they wander, when they roam,
they will hit the road together.
If one day they build a home,
they say they’ll live in it forever…
what a word…
so carefree and so blue, like a bird…
The five friends eat their meal
at a table that is round;
they never wince and cringe
to hear each other’s munching sounds.
But why?
Because these friends were dipped in sky,
their nerves never run dry.
The five friends walk the road
in matching jeans but different shirts.
They share a bag of snacks,
passing the bag both back and forth.
No concerns-
the five friends don’t believe in germs.
Five friends sit by the fire;
they listen to the music play.
One friend is asked to dance-
these friends are all too shy that way…
turning pink…
perhaps they could just sit and think?
The five friends seek advice
from a wise man at the church.
He says that friends are great,
but still you have to put God first.
And they agree-
but where is God?- He’s hard to see.
Is he a friend inside your mind?
Or could God be the sky?
The five friends vote on it-
the vote is five to none
that God must be the sky;
He shelters everyone,
so clear and sweet,
surrounding us with time and dreams,
surrounding us with space to explore;
that’s what friends are for.
cloud in the sky
will you come down onto me
fill my ears fill my eyes
teach me not to hear or see
turning grey turning wet
till i vanish in a foam
no more buildings, no more eyes
now its only me alone
in your banner of blue
let it never be true
the flags so low
did somebody go
away to find
a place where they could hide
feet on the earth
you’re the only thing i feel
be my mind, be my guide,
help me know which things are real
be my friend, be my drum
be the only thing I hear
make my thoughts of the future
and my memories disappear
in your banner of brown
let it never be found
the flags so low
did somebody go
away to find
a place where they could hide
pictures project
on the fog inside my mind
people cry, people scream
i don’t know which voice is mine
use my hands try to feel,
but the fog gets in my way
i feel cotton & gauze;
i feel 50 shades of grey
in your banner so sheer
let it never be clear
the flags so low
did somebody go
away to find
a place where they could hide
the flags so low
did somebody go
away to find
a place where they could hide
You big and tall man
You strong as a wall man
I did everything that you wanted me too
You are the great man
You never feel afraid man
we did everything that you wanted us to…
Even as a boy, the sun brought you no joy
Your heart was a man with meat slabs for hands and
with sandpaper cheeks and a parrot that squeaks
when he knows that the danger is near.
Then your vision grew tall, and as hard as a stone wall
With one wooden leg, that you carved from a keg
of the whiskey you’d drink, when you’d try not to think
but just watch the clouds roll through the air
You are the big bad man
Let me draw the green flag man
Let me climb climb climb up the tower for you.
Here take a seat now man
Soon the heat will be here man
Soon them Frenchies come to steal glory from you.
Cause the sun’s in the west
it’s the one you love best
the horizon is wide, you can feel it inside
of your chest like a prayer, blowing wild on the rail
cause it longs to be free to be free
when them Frenchies descend, like an ocean of men
They’ll expect you to care, you’ll set fire to your hair
it means nothing to you, just an old leather shoe
that you’d carelessly toss in the sea
You close your eyes now man
Let me hold your hand hand hand
Let me sit me down on the crate next to you
Soon comes the dawn man and soon
this world will all be gone man
soon we’ll fly fly fly to a world meant for two…
But we don’t feel afraid
Cause our hearts were already made
Die by the sword; aren’t we already kind of bored
Flags on the rail, blowing wild blowing crazy
they try to be free to be free.
Blackbeard, blackbeard, now the moment has neared
Feel the sun in the east, feel the ocean at peace
Spy the fin of a fish that will grant us one wish
It’s the wish that we held back for years.
This is the last day man
Let us go the gay way man
Let us fly fly fly to a world meant for two.
Fly away in a little bit
Fly away in a cloud of strings
Like the sun on an icicle
You found your pair of wings.
When the time wasn’t over yet
When the time was ready to begin
When my heart was red lying in a box
Waiting for the sticking pin.
There you go, I know your eyes
Fire like a flash of pain
Feel it burn, feel it end
What is the name of this thing that remains?
Fly away in a little bit
Fly away in a cloud of strings
Like the sun on an icicle
You found your pair of wings.
There you go, the hand that wears the glove of velvet red
Like a woman, like a child, is the man afraid of his own death
Like a woman, like a child- the man who will never fight
Flickering beneath the sky and dying that same night.
Fly away in a little bit
Fly away in a cloud of strings
Like the sun on an icicle
You found your pair of wings.
There you go, the man I know whose legs are far too thin
Find the box and open it to push your stick pin in
Fire I know, death I know, I also know your eyes
Like a woman, like a child- the man who never lies.
Fly away in a little bit
Fly away in a cloud of strings
Like the sun on an icicle
You found your pair of wings.
Years ago I fell into a tunnel made of white
Held my arms against me & they bound them to me tight.
Follow me down. Follow me down.
Was it night or was it day, the lanterns seemed the same
Dimming for a moment and then bursting into flame.
Follow me down. Follow me down.
Did I fight? Did I bow?
I’ve been afraid for so long now
No way to still remember what I thought I’d found.
Falling forward on my knees
To think of all those precious things
To wait for all the time again to come around.
Follow me down.
Did the walls reach out to touch me with their silky hands?
Colder than the snow yet dry and sparkling like the sand.
Follow me down. Follow me down.
Do you think he cared but was possessed by something black?
Wandered so far in the night he couldn’t wander back?
Follow me down. Follow me down.
Did I cower? Was I proud?
I’ve felt alone for so long now
No way to see the way that things would come around.
Falling forward, rise again
To tangle with so many men
To wait for all the softer things to come around.
Follow me down.
If I wander further will I find the stairwell down
Leading to that chamber where the trees grow underground?
Follow me down. Follow me down.
Climbing up, fall again
I’ve tangled with too many men
Too late to see the way for things to start again.
Maybe still I did succeed
I stood there proudly on my knees
Nobody knew my hands were full of soft diamond things.
Follow me down.
Following fire, half-deranged by desire
Like a zombie I walk through the night.
Every dark alleyway, every car breakaway
Leads in my fantasy somewhere so bright.
Reason, morality- never my gifts;
I had the gift of belief.
I light a fire for you, filled with desire for you-
I know you see. I know you see.
Fire in the sky if you let him come by
I will pay you back for all that you’ve given me.
Pay you with blood, it’s the ruby of God,
I will open myself to you, please!
Following fire, melted down by desire
And the star that I follow is hope.
Making me pay like a knife every day-
I know you won’t, I know you won’t.
Lighting a candle for you every night
Cause I know you are drawn to the flame.
I see your spirit a butterfly flicker-
You won’t cause me pain, you won’t cause me pain.
Fire in the sky if you let him come by
I will pay you back for all that you’ve given me.
Pay you with blood, it’s the ruby of God
I will open myself to you, please!
Lighting a fire, half-deranged by desire
And the stars that are drawing me high.
Thinking of you, like a fire you can burn away
Hands on my throat, lay down or die.
Holding my finger right next to the candle wick-
Strong is the thing I must be,
Just until I can draw you to my flame.
You won’t hurt me. You won’t hurt me.
CHORUS:
Is there any tool that can be used by a fool
so they’ll have food to eat and clothes to wear?
A fool must be a tool, but I don’t know what for.
That’s why I’m sitting here in despair.
How is a fool supposed to make their way in this world?
They can’t just get a job or start their own business.
A fool is like a baby bird, they can’t build their own nest,
they can’t hunt their own worms.
Are they supposed to become prostitutes or beggars?
CHORUS
God, we fools are asking you to know just what you made us for.
What was it you intended us to do?
What are we equipped with that can help us to survive?
How can a lady fool catch a husband’s eye?
CHORUS
Now Dusty Stables, don’t you laugh at me so soon.
Please, don’t regard me with disdain.
Just give me one day to figure out what being a fool is all about
in the great creative scheme of things.
I’m sitting here in a restaurant today,
I’m the only one that’s all alone.
The other people are wearing black and sipping soup du jour.
Now do you see why I feel alone?
42 years in a place where nothing shines
63 years in a world where nothing’s mine
I crawl; I beg
There’s a face up on the wall but he does not return my call.
Tell me God, what did I do wrong? I did everything you said
I organized my sock drawer and poured shit upon my head
Please don’t make me be the person to remind you
Please do not forget the people who defined you.
Everybody told me that someday I would see
You were just a taker; you took all your gold from me
Still I scraped myself on your stone
Threw my body on your altar and begged you to take me home.
Tell me God, what did I do wrong after 40 years of pain?
I cut myself so badly that my blood poured down like rain
Please don’t make me be the person to remind you
You should not forget the people who defined you.
You are a diamond in a world where nothing shines.
You’re my friend within a place where nothing’s mine.
I walked through the bright red door you opened up for me
Lay my heart upon my eyes; I did not want to see
The hell I paved in gold
Everything that I destroyed and everything I sold.
Tell me God, what did I do wrong? I was there for you each night
I bore the nails into my fists; I held the screams in tight
Must I really be the person to remind you?
You did not exist until the day that we defined you.
Are your stripes the shadows of bars or the hint of things unseen?
I move in for a closer look but I’m put off by your scream.
I got a gun and a knife. I’m sitting up high in a tree.
The moon is out; it’s my time of night. I’m waiting for you to come to me.
Are you a lost cause? Do you want to fuck me all night long?
I’m a soldier in the American dream; I need a man to tie my ribbons on.
Rasputin, he’s a handsome man; his eyes are black as beads,
His legs are long like noodles; but he ain’t got what I need,
Because the dawn will soon be breaking; the night is starting to pulse and creak;
Soon I’m gonna have to testify- I need somebody to take care of me.
Are you a lost cause? Do you want to fuck me all night long?
I’m a soldier in the American dream; I need a man to tie my ribbons on.
Right now I don’t love nobody. My mouth is bigger than my heart.
I’m encrusted, insensitive; I wear a button on my heart,
But what if you kissed me every night, ironed my ribbons, and made me tea,
Brushed my hair for a hundred years, you know, it might just start getting through to me.
Are you a lost cause? Do you want to fuck me all night long?
I’m a soldier in the American dream; I need a man to tie my ribbons on.