1. |
The Mat-Su Valley Wind
03:06
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The fire,
it danced upon the wind saying,
“I’ll choose who’s my true partner.”
The wood,
it dropped from hands to feet saying,
“I’ll go not one step farther.”
The winds all rally
in Mat-Su Valley
to bring all things to the ground,
and today’s the day
I may say,
“Dear sir, I’ve burned your hay barn down.”
The crane,
it crept upon sandhill saying,
“Tarry, I will just ‘til morn’.”
My coat,
it fought the steady breeze saying,
“Seasons do die, while you are torn.”
The winds all rally
in Mat-Su Valley
to bring all things to the ground,
and today’s the day
I may say,
“Dear bird, I’ve learned to live here now.”
Dreams of fire
lick my tired head and the smoke fills my lungs with a soothing soak.
I bolt upright
in the night, parched and alone with no walls - just the ground as home.
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2. |
Island Bold
03:22
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Island bold
taunt the sea
as she spits at your feet.
I was sold
to a man,
slept in waves, gun in hand.
Satellites go sailing
‘cross the Chambers of the South
and back around.
Lighthouse fixed
off the coast
on a rock all alone.
My one wish
as I swim
after you is to live.
Fireflies cast shadows
‘cross the edges of your mouth
that dance around.
Slideshows worn with age
speak through filtered light -
tales from simpler days
framed in gold and bright.
My father hasn’t changed.
He’s swimming by my side.
I used to never fear the waves,
but I lost that along the line.
Now, I’ll resume the chase
to find those dancing lights,
so I may know your face
and never forget the lines.
All the while...
Satellites go sailing
‘cross the Chambers of the South
and back around.
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3. |
As You Pass the Time
03:22
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I step onto the dance floor
surrounded on all sides,
peering over strangers’ heads
lit by flashing lights.
I wonder where you’ve gone to
then feel your arm brush mine,
dancing as you pass the time.
I’ve never loved at first sight
or whispered just one name,
but when you send me burning eyes,
I can’t help turn aflame.
I wonder what it feels like
to own the keys and drive,
laughing as you pass the time.
I sit around and wonder
what it would be like
to hop off of this carousel
and shun the shining lights.
I wonder what it looks like
from the dark outside,
watching as you pass the time.
I know there’s just an off-chance
that you still think of me,
and as each year ticks away,
I’m a figment of a dream.
I know you do not need me
to be satisfied,
painting as you pass the time.
But here I am before you,
I’ve circled back around.
I’ve seen some men seek wisdom,
seen others steal crowns.
I know now that I need you
here by my side,
walking as we pass the time.
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4. |
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Johnsongrass, Johnsongrass,
boy, you sure do grow up fast!
Up to my knees, up to my chest,
boy, you grow up over my head.
And I want to know why
I just can’t seem to get you out of my life.
Johnsongrass, Johnsongrass,
boy, you sure do seem to last.
Mowed you once, hoed you twice,
boy, you come back every time.
And I want to know why
I just can’t seem to get you out of my life.
Johnsongrass, Johnsongrass,
boy, your reach is deep and vast.
Planted my squash, planted my beans,
boy, you cover everything.
And I want to know why
I just can’t seem to get you out of my life.
Even when I take your seeds
and throw them all the way to Kentucky...
I just can’t seem to get you out of my life.
Then I remember my science teacher
who said quite a bit about living creatures.
So I opened my book and couldn’t believe it!
Johnsongrass, I found your secret.
Instead of roots, you have rhizomes,
and when they break, you keep on growin’
‘cause bacteria, it feeds you with
the nitrogen gas that it has fixed.
Nitrogen fixation feeds you yummy, yummy ammonia.
And now I know why
I just can’t seem to get you out of my life.
I guess it seems there’ll always be
weeds like you in Tennessee,
and Johnsongrass, you’ll never be out of my life.
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5. |
Moonraker
06:03
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I sit in saloons
drenched in sweet sweat -
tired and dizzy,
smelling of whiskey -
and I lose sight of why I’ve gone West.
I know no names here.
I have no address.
Just like the raincloud,
I don’t stick around,
and I don’t mind that I’ll never impress.
In dry lowlands,
I’m dreaming again
of a moonlit lake,
and each time,
I see this woman swimming.
How I wish to know her face.
But I’m a moonraker.
Yes, I will always chase her.
I sail black oceans
seeking warm rays -
tired and shiverin’,
raincoat a’glistenin’ -
and each new beach I reach gives me grace.
I know Jiuzhaigou.
I’ve seen her lakes.
Her heart is honest,
a wide-open locket.
Her deeps all teem with trees that were replaced.
On high mountains,
I’m dreaming again
of a moonlit lake,
and I am cut through
when I hear her croon.
How I wish to know her face.
But I’m a moonraker.
Yes, I will always chase her.
HER
Time slows down
to a dragging pace
upon the lake
as you reach out
from the bow
of the shoddy ship you’ve made.
You say,
“Here’s my hand!
I offer it to you,
for my heart is in bloom.”
I say,
“Please understand,
you are but a man,
and I am the moon!”
But I’m a moonraker.
Yes, I will always chase her.
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6. |
Ten-Cent Love
05:30
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Darkness is neither kind nor patient.
I sit with no words next to Jason,
as if in a daydream.
The sun sends down a golden blanket
upon Sevier Park and its children,
yet we slip through the seam.
I ain’t worth a dime.
All I have is this ten-cent love.
I pray that it’s enough.
I can’t bring him back.
All I have is this ten-cent love.
I know it’s not much.
Nana, I saw you in full beauty
before the cancer ate your body.
The thief took you from me.
We talked and laughed about my problems,
but when I awoke, I couldn’t solve them
and found I’d been crying.
I ain’t worth a dime.
All I have is this ten-cent love.
I pray that it’s enough.
I can’t bring her back.
All I have is this ten-cent love
for when the times get tough.
My brother’s gone away.
I’m left to grope the dark.
I hear a howl and say,
“I once thought death was far.”
I see a distant flame
come forth from one small spark.
I hear laughter and say,
“Brother, there you are!”
I ain’t worth a dime.
All I have is this ten-cent love.
I pray that it’s enough.
I can’t bring them back.
All I have is this ten-cent love
for when the times get tough.
Brother, there you are.
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7. |
Facing the Window
04:57
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Never grew up like this
with these words on my chest,
yet now, I feel their weight
as each day finds me
peering through the iron gate.
Saw a Chinese boy street-side
open up his mouth real wide,
and I saw galaxies
all swirling behind his teeth,
and the light was blinding.
And I’m amazed
by the way
people face the window
but don’t look in.
Never knew I’d be here
in the comp’ny of seers,
yet now, I see my fate
as clear as the past
peering through the crystal gate.
Saw a girl on a bridge
with one foot over the edge,
when a homeless man
began to sing a song
and their embrace lasted through the dawn.
And I’m amazed
by the way
people face the window
but don’t look in.
I must confess,
my eyes aren’t nearly
wide open,
but when both Dippers
shine clearly,
I’m awoken
to the multitudes
that could all be scooped
in one sweeping motion,
to the milky moon
and its beatitude
as it hangs over the ocean,
to the ships that move
through the harbor’s grooves
as they pass their potions,
to the flirting youths
who all have love to prove
and hearts they’ve stolen.
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8. |
Quiver
07:31
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Light as a feather
set on an arrow,
first of the quiver
previously hollow.
I never met you,
yet I felt you knocking.
I saw your bedroom
and dreamt of us talking.
Death, I am not pleased by your presence.
Nor do I delight to make your acquaintance.
I miss my friends.
Oh, to see them again!
Spent summer dreaming,
dreamt of my wife.
You had a feeling
she'd come, in time.
I'm glad she met you,
though you missed the wedding.
Spring had yet to bloom,
and summer kept waiting.
Death, I am not pleased by your presence.
Nor do I delight to make your acquaintance.
I miss my friends.
Oh, to see them again!
You waited for me
at the terminal,
frail as can be
yet calm and joyful.
Between directions
back to your house,
you never mentioned
you waited for hours.
Death, I am not pleased by your presence.
Nor do I delight to make your acquaintance.
I miss my friends.
Oh, to see them again!
Sat at the chapel,
same as last year,
pressing my temple
and catching my tears.
I never said goodbye
or tied the loose strings.
No one hopes to die
or sing of its sting.
Death, I am not pleased by your presence.
Nor do I delight to make your acquaintance.
I miss my friends.
Oh, to see them again!
Stuck between
the veil I've seen
and what I call home,
I'm left to dream
in perfect peace
of the day we're all home.
Death, I am not pleased by your presence.
Nor do I delight to make your acquaintance.
I miss my friends.
Oh, to see them again!
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9. |
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Goodnight, baby,
little friend.
May the sky so hazy
wrap you tightly in bed.
Sinking, slow dream -
see your breath
rise o’er I-beams
stacked in a mess.
Hay-strewn, half-moonlit pasture
quietly passed on the fringe
by the fox driven far, far from the clatter
of the sunken, flooded den.
Goodnight, baby,
little friend.
May the sky so hazy
wrap you tightly in bed.
Rosy-red gleam
from the depths
sends a mute plea
of distress.
Footloose, festoon-filled rapture
quietly passed on the fringe
by the lamb charged to seek Jacob’s ladder
and the place where Almighty lives.
Morning comes fast and, with it, light.
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Brother, Oh Brother Franklin, Tennessee
Brother, Oh Brother is the name under which Michael Guido records his music. He is an independent artist based out of Columbia, TN.
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