1. |
Why Aye (Oh You)
03:35
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With my legs around my tail
And an ill wind in my sail
I was out before the daylight to the caravan
I could have said goodbye
But I didn’t even try
I’ve always been a solitary man
What I think I’m trying to say
Is that I’d like to change my ways
And I only dare to say it ‘cos it’s true
So I’m asking, in my way
“Is it okay if I stay?”
That’s not something I just say out of the blue
You are the reason, it’s true
I didn’t have much to do with it
I’m blaming you, wae’aye
Oh you are the reason, it’s true
I didn’t have much to do with it
I’m blaming you.
Why aye oh you.
I’ve been drinking every night
I’ve been ending up in fights
Causing trouble left and right like I used to do
Any Tom or Dick or Dave
I’d send them to an early grave
If they ever dared behave that way to you
What I think I’m trying to say
Is “I’ll get out of your way...
and you only need to say the word, I’m gone”
Out from underneath your feet
I’ll be quiet and discreet
I’ll be labelled obsolete before too long.
(chorus)
I’m still brash and I’m still bold
I still don’t do as I’m told
I’m just getting far too old to be a bachelor
I’ve got fewer friends around
They’ve mostly died or settled down
It’s about time that I found my better half
(bridge)
(chorus)
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2. |
||||
The hardest head is the softest body part
And the hardest heart is an easy steal
Now it’s been said I’ve been something of an albatross
And all you got was the shitty end of the deal
I love you so much girl, that I’m leaving
My wicked ways are getting out of hand
I love you so much girl that I’m leaving
I’ll come back better, I hope you understand
‘Cos a love like yours deserves a better man
In years from now, when you forget how I used to be
The memory will still follow me round
Morning, noon and night, and I’ll l fight him every day
‘Cos with the beast at bay we’ll be safe and sound
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3. |
In Reverse
03:27
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It’s cold again.
Sweating hell in the middle of the night
I’m not sure how I’m supposed to feel but I’ve a feeling this ain’t right
But it’s warm and safe over on your side
I don’t want to bother you again tonight
Your breath is deep and your sheets are dry
And I’m cold again, with my t-shirt wet with toxic sweat
Well I know I said that I’d try my best
What a terrible lie to maintain
On perilous tracks stuck in reverse
Southbound on a downtown train
I’m cold again.
I crossed every T, I dotted all the I’s.
Followed each page with diligence, ate every bitter little pill of advice.
The prescription they gave I’m not sure is mine.
Is the Doctor honestly stuck for time?
I’m told again that it’s gonna get worse if the meds are to work.
And while the witch trial carries on undeterred
All the witches cower in shame
Well the whole thing feels a little unrehearsed
And now I’m stuck in reverse again.
You’re cold again, funny how it felt like we’d all thawed out
A body won’t find any fire when the mind is trying to dry the matches out
“it’s a brand new you” the analyst chimed
Well anything new get’s old with time
And cold is then just a holding pen till the heat kicks in
But a year on this stuff is time enough
For it to do what it’s supposed to do
I was happy to say we shared this train
And I was stuck in reverse with you
But now we’re both going backwards too.
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4. |
||||
You’re here without invite because the sticky tape and glue
Didn’t help put it all back together again, like it used to do
You saw my defences down, through and unguarded open door
And then you walked right in and made your self at home, next to me on the floor.
But I will let you in my friend
And I will take it on the chin
And you will let me down again
I was guilty of looking away, and that’s when he made off with me
I didn’t expect that he’d see this as an opportunity.
So who was I trying to kid? I always knew he’d be along.
He’s summoned when you fix a problem by saying that there isn’t one.
But I will let you in my friend
And I will take it on the chin
And you will let me down again
The smile was a fight sometimes, with just a script to keep it straight
You don’t get to be a professional, you just become a heavyweight
But I will let you in my friend
And I will take it on the chin
And you will let me down again
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5. |
No Regrets
03:30
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I know your leaving is too long overdue;
For too long I've had nothin' to show to you
Goodbye dry eyes
I watched your plane fade west of the moon
It feels strange to walk away alone
There's no regrets
No tears goodbye
I don't want you back
We'd only cry again
Say goodbye again
The hours that were yours echo like empty rooms
The thoughts we’d share I now keep alone
I woke last night and spoke to you not thinking you were gone
And it felt strange to lie awake alone
There's no regrets
No tears goodbye
I don't want you back
We'd only cry again
Say goodbye again
Our friends are trying to turn my nights to day
A strange face, a new place to keep the ghosts away
Now just beyond the darkest hour and just behind the dawn
It feels strange to lead my life alone
There's no regrets
No tears goodbye
I don't want you back
We'd only cry again
Say goodbye again
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6. |
Detachment
03:01
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There is a harrowing wind it’s blowing through this calm
Where the past meets the present day
One of the guests left the door ajar
Some opportunist tries to keep his options free
Then out of nowhere negative worlds collide
And the beast is free
Of a thousand things I’ll never know for sure
I know that I don’t wanna live in your world no more
I don’t wanna live in your world no more
There’s not a man alive I wouldn’t leave for dead
There’s not a popular lie I’d take over the word of a friend instead
I see promises made and broken easily
If I could count my friends on a single hand, that’s alright with me
I don’t want to make peace, don’t want to settle the score
I don’t wanna live in your world no more
I don’t wanna live in your world no more
If I’ve got to bite I’ll snap down tight
Keep the snakes away from my door
I still feel the same as I did before
I don’t wanna live in your world no more
I don’t wanna live in your world no more
If I’ve got to kill by God I will
To be rid of this pitiful war
Don’t want to live in your world no more
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7. |
A Better Love
04:46
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Walking through this sticky water
How I got here is anyone’s guess
All alone, I turn to stone
I’m just as shocked as anyone else
Isn’t there a better love for people that we appear to be?
We deserve the kind of love where we get a piece.
So we all join hands and hold on tight
You are my day, you are my light
You’ve been knocked down and there you stand
If you stick around I might stand a chance of breaking through this.
What’s the chances?
Every year I’m more proud that we’re there,
And we mean it...course we mean it,
Why else be seen around here?
Without a better love, for people like we are made to feel?
You deserve a better love, your piece of the deal.
So we all join hands and hold on tight
You are my day, you are my knight
We’ve been knocked down and here we stand
If you stick around I might stand a chance
But without you here to prove we can
We’re a long time scared, we’re a long time damned
What would I do here if you couldn’t see me winning?
(instrumental)
So we all join hands and hold on tight
You are my day, you are my knight
We’ve been knocked down and here we stand
If you stick around I might stand a chance
But without you here to prove we can
We’re a long time scared, we’re a long time damned
What would I do here if you couldn’t see me winning?
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8. |
||||
Every morning when I’d take my walk
I sat upon a throne of straw and watched the sea as it kissed the shore
I would say I’d feel detached
But unless you’ve read Oliver Sacks you may well misinterpret that
And I don’t mean to assume
I’ve just made that mistake before
To become immune you first must be infected
Their reactions are not to be predicted
Oh, if I’d known where the wind would turn
Would it have even made the slightest bit of a difference?
I assume we both know it isn’t really war
This road leads up, up, up
This road leads down
Can I just stay right here with you around?
When his time is up, up, so abrupt
They bring the gavel down
Can I just stay right here with you around?
You and I are justified
Feeling peaceful deep inside where my ambition used to hide
Where my aggression now resides
But even momentary peace is a glimpse through cleaner glass
Of what might come to pass
I don’t mean to assume but I must have served my time
In this barren stretch of bleak incarceration
Those seasons spent in deviation sown
To the icy, lifeless ground
Could it be they show timely shift in fortune?
Is this the point where we throw the burden down?
(chorus)
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9. |
Barbed Wire & Roses
04:53
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While the city is asleep there are the tiniest weeds breaking through
And while we’re learning to walk they go unnoticed right under our feet
Empty and dry, the husks of our society ride the bus
Or the heavy traffic to work
Heads pointed forwards, like there’s something to see
And in time we’re at the mercy of the mightiest vine
Rusty wire or garden rose
The rain makes time for colouring both
So God only knows
If rusty wire or garden rose
Is the vicious vine that clings to your clothes
But it’s got you now, and it won’t let you go.
The firmly employed are waging a war to avoid engaging
Their faces locked to a screen of information
Supplied by the team that design
The disconnection of distractible minds
(chorus)
A fellow could lose his faith
Given the human race’s penchant
To court people and places that are flashing neon mistakes
So cast away your sins, believe in anything
If it parts those brambles and bids you freedom from being tangled again.
And just so you know, that when you hit the concrete
That you’re not alone
Tethered here by spurs unknown
(chorus)
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10. |
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I don’t wanna, I don’t wanna work on this song no more
I’ve barely necked me breakfast and me nerves are already raw
I’ve a mind to screw this paper up
And chuck it in the bin on the floor
Cos I don’t wanna, I don’t wanna work on this song no more
My Tanglewood got pregnant with another song that wanted to live
So I made a pot of Hot Java Lava, and I tried to get positive
The caffeine ploughed some memories out
They were darker than the brew
Now I don’t wanna, I don’t wanna go back there with you
(chorus)
Well, I tried to drive the anger out so I got into the car
Where the writing on the rear view sent me back to my guitar
It’s said “objects in the mirror are closer than they appear”
And I don’t want to look back when the road ahead is clear
(chorus)
Sometimes there are melodies that will not leave your brain
And sometimes there are memories that should not be unchained
But always there are choices, which ones to entertain
(musical interlude)
And I don’t wanna, I don’t wanna go back there again.
(chorus)
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11. |
I Wanna Be Yours
01:50
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I wanna be your vacuum cleaner
Breathing in your dust
I wanna be your Ford Cortina
I will never rust
If you like your coffee hot
Let me be your coffee pot
You call the shots
I wanna be yours
I wanna be your raincoat
For those frequent rainy days
I wanna be your dreamboat
When you want to sail away
Let me be your teddy bear
Take me with you anywhere
I don’t care
I wanna be yours
I wanna be your electric meter
I will not run out
I wanna be the electric heater
You’ll get cold without
I wanna be your setting lotion
Hold your hair in deep devotion
I don’t wanna be hers
I wanna be yours
I don’t care
I wanna be yours
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12. |
Sweet Wanderlust
03:41
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Step by step, bit by bit
To this day I’ve not found a place where the pieces fit
Little by little, piece by piece
I believe that I will someday be released
’Till then I will be gone, real gone
I’ll keep moving on in sweet wanderlust
Ah he’s knock knock knocking again
“Praise be”
Knock, knock knocking again
Till we all hit the bottle again
One by one, two by three
Itching to leave for another place I don’t wanna be
Lyric by lyric, sheet by sheet
I can feel unwelcome earth beneath my feet
So I’ll just keep on keeping on
I’ll keep moving on in sweet wanderlust
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13. |
There Is A House
03:39
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First there is the word, a promise from cradle to grave
To protect and to serve, and to honour the vow that you
made
And then there is the lie.
When you said they’d be safe here at night
You neglected to tell them the evil’s already inside, with
them.
There is a house that doesn’t allow the sunshine in.
First there was a scream, the loss of control at the start
The murder of the dream but you lived with the cold in
your heart
When accusations came did you run out of people to
blame?
Did you tell everyone that the building was wearing the
shame for your sins?
There is a house that don’t let liability in.
There is a house that poisons the tenants inside
I still have my doubts there’ll be anyone left there alive
They say that it’s supposed to be haunted by a turbulent
ghost
Some violent spirit who ran out of excuses to throw at the
wind
There is a house that doesn’t allow the sunshine in.
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14. |
Stalemate
02:13
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It was all going fine, we were biding our time
We were working like camels, but on the subject of animals
The elephant loomed in the back of the room
It was a matter of time,
Put it out of your mind, like people do
But will you look at the clock!
All you ever wanted was a decent conversation, didn’t you?
All we ever avoided was a decent conversation, didn’t we?
There was a time and a space for to tidy the place
For us to change all the locks, put the mess in a box
But instead we sat like a couple of twats
Fixing sweet sod all ‘cept wa gaze on the wall
Watching the hands spin around on the clock
All you ever wanted was a decent conversation, didn’t you?
All we ever avoided was a decent conversation, didn’t we?
Now it’s a little too late, all the fruit’s out of date
It tends to get stale, mate, when avoiding confrontation
But waste is waste when you get sick of the taste
Yeah, the summer was a bit rushed
The weather didn’t help much
So we needed space, least that’s what we thought
And now we’ve got more space than an astronaut
Sailing way above the cloud, Azimov would be proud
You want a lot more freedom?
Well, there’s the outcome.
Careful what you wish for
All you ever wanted was a decent conversation, didn’t you?
All we ever avoided was a decent conversation, didn’t we?
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15. |
||||
There is word going round
There’s curse upon this town
I’ve seen families struck down and disregarded.
Where the twain never meet
At the dark end of the street
Where the wretched find peace in the darkness
I’ve heard things, many things
Some men never seen again
It’s the stuff you don’t mention in earnest
In the shadows they wait.
Now a burden on the state
Left to self medicate into darkness
Ah, home.
Where the wild dogs roam
Is there anybody there? Does society still care?
Or are they lost in the glare of the circus?
Out of sight, out of mind, leaving mindless people blind.
May a peace come in time to the restless.
I will not curb my bite, I was dragged into this fight
I’ll be fucked if I’ll carry on in silence
Mine’s the face, mine’s the voice of those who never had a choice
May the wretched rejoice in this darkness
May the restless find peace in their darkness
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