LOOKING DOWN ON THE END OF THE WORLD
the shell shocked and merely lost
survivors doomed to pay the cost
for all we did and didn't do
and i do mean me, and i do mean you
i'm looking down at the end of the world
the dispossessed and dreamless
realizing they've nothing left
wander through the world they made
passing ghosts along the way
i'm looking down on the end of the world
no bomb went off, no war was fought
we killed ourselves the day we lost
that part of us we chose to toss
when we stopped forgiving, and forgot how to love
no government, no sceintist
had anything to do with it
we sealed our fate all by ourselves
as we took and took, with every tree we fell
...everyone knows, everyone sees
it's no secret we've all taken more than we need
how else could it possibly go?
where else could it possibly lead?
i'm looking down at the end of the world
CARNIVAL
carnival
rides and velvet skies
revolving
worlds spinning out of sight
stars
hang suspended in the summer night
as
i get lost in the glow of a neon light
the clowns disguise is upside down
walking on his hands, his smile's a frown
he rolls and he tumbles, then he spins around
and picks up a penny somebody threw him from the ground
barkers peddle their baubles and beads
to the clueless, the fools, the tragic, and the freaks
it's a spectacle one has to see to believe
a hall of mirrors, a desperate maze
people get lost in oh so many ways
for a second, or a minute, for an hour, for a day
and where they go no one ever seems to say
no one's come looking for reality
they're looking for baubles, they're playing for beads
they'll keep on making bets 'til all their money's gone
at midnight the carnival disappears
you'd never know it was even here
in another town down the road it'll reappear
the rides, the lights, the clowns, and the hall of mirrors
MIRIAM
she
came out of nowhere
it
seemed odd, but i wanted to know her
so
i asked her, her name
she
said "who wants to know?" and just smiled
she had secrets and mysteries
i tried my best at opening
so i asked her where she'd been
she said "who wants to know?" and just smiled
miriam, miriam, why do you love me?
miriam, miriam, i'm so glad i found you
miriam, miriam, whatare you thinking
miriam, miriam, is any of this real...
we wandered from town to town
if only to see what lay around the next bend
to make new friends
she said "this is all i want" and just smiled
we stayed where we could
under the stars when we could
our pockets empty, our hearts full
she said "this is all i want" and just smiled
(rf)
DANGEROUS DAN'S DELIRIUM BLUES
he's got conspiracy on his mind
he's got it mapped out on his wall
he's selling books and dvd's
and pamphlets that explain it all
he knows who killed the kennedy's
and how they faked landing on the moon
he knows who lurks in the shadows
their secrets, and how they play us all for fools
he believes in codes and passwords
in plots, and signs, and schemes
he's the lone ranger, he's superman
living in and out his dreams
he's the master of the riddle
with visions of a world yet to come
he's a soldier for the cause
with his bible and his gun
SOMETHING MORE
i've been the boss, it didn't fit me too well
kept me in the spotlight, from being myself
i took it for what it's worth, which is nothing at all
i wanted something more
i became someone else, who i was expected to be
a lonely pauper mistaken for a king
i took it for what it's worth, which is nothing at all
i wanted something more
...something to trust in, somewhere to begin
a place at the table, a chance to join in
to something more
someone to believe me, somewhere to be
where me and you becomes you and me
and something more
i said all the words, they didn't get me too far
around and around, and back to where i was
i took it for what it's worth, which is nothing at all
i wanted something more
i proclaimed my decisions, my drones filled the air
building walls between me and whoever was there
i took it for what it's worth, which is nothing at all
i wanted something more
(rf)
i've been the boss, i've said all the words
played the game for better or worse
STATE
OF MIND
why
is what I see in the corner of my eye
never there when I focus my attention
why is who I am, no matter where I am
the one in need of some direction
guess i'll go my way
for a while
see
what happens
why does what
I hear in the corner of my mind
vanish
when I focus my attention
why
is who I am, no matter where I am
the
one in need of some redemption
Me And My Good Friend
when
me and my good friend stay up real late
we
lock the door and laugh at what a sight we make
the stereo blasting and the tv all aglow
there's nowhere else to be and nothing more to know
when me and my good friend stay up real late
the cares of the day just
melt away
when me and my good friend watch the rain come down
we kick back and focus
on the here and now
what
happens happens we say, it'll happen again
the
wind makes patterns on the windowpane
when
me and my good friend watch the rain come down
the cares of the day are nowhere to be found
when
me and my good friend hit the dusty trail
we
always travel slow and never check our mail
we
soak up the sites and sample local fare
smile
and get to know all the people there
when
me and my good friend hit the open road
we crank up the tunes and just go man go
when
me and my good friend choose to disappear
to lose ourselves to the moment we're in
we like to stay gone 'til morning comes
when me and my good friend catch that wave called time
we try to relax and just go for the ride
hope it takes us where we want to be
it's not just getting there, it's what happens
in between
when me and
my good friend catch that wave called time
the
cares of the day go to the back of the line
when me and my good friend stay up real late
the cares of the day just melt away
when me and my good friend watch the rain come down
the cares of the day are nowhere to be found
Questions
We Ask
what's up? what's what?
is anything as we think
it is?
what it is? where's
it at?
merely questions
we ask
what's in? what's
out?
can anyone even answer
that?
why any of it, really,
if we can't figure it out?
how are you? how am
i?
it depends when you
ask it
how's work? how's
life?
are they treating
you well?
where've
you been? where're you going?
merely
small talk we make
to feign
interest in which we've no interest at all
people
say things with no idea what they mean
people
move there so they don't have to be here
filling
time and space with all the things that they lack
making both love and war for reasons unclear
how's about a nod? or a wink?
or a shrug of the shoulder?
something, anything
that says i have your attention
would a smile or laugh
be too much to ask?
is it really that hard to state your intent?
can
you say what you want?
do you say what you mean?
The
Last I Heard
the last i heard she went looking for herself
and fell off the face of the earth
the last words she spoke
to me
were from a phone
booth somewhere
she said
somethin about jesus
somethin
about dyin
somethin about
doin somethin about it
i
don't know what she meant
don't
ask me anymore
i've
already told you everything i know
she
might be in new york city, another face in the crowd
maybe she's in california just hanging out
she just gave up, then she gave up on me
i thought she was happy, thought that she loved me
i don't know where she's gone
please don't ask me anymore
Her Coming of Age
in
the spring she rode, for summer she sought
upon the black mare her father had bought
for her coming of age
'neath the moon and the sun, through night and through day
she rode like the wind from her life and her fate
for promised she was to the king's eldest son
a man with no pity, a man with no love
for her freedom she rode, from the prison he'd wrought
with his vision of power no matter the cost
upon the black mare her father had bought
in
a village on thames after riding for days
she found herself caught in a cold cruel rain
a kindly lad with a blacksmith's hands
welcomed her in and shared what he had
'twas there that she stayed, hidden
away
from the prince who
pursued her in vanity and rage
in
the name of his king
in
the name of his king
but
the seasons passed by and winter drew nigh
still the thought of her plight was never far from her mind
and though the nights grew long, her heart grew strong
and to the blacksmith declared,
i've fallen in love
and
to her he replied, long have i wished you were mine
from the moment i saw you and looked in your eyes
come spring they rode, for summer they sought
upon the black mare her father had bought
for her coming of age
