1. |
Crosswalk
02:59
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I was standing at a crosswalk
When a man walked up
He said, “I prefer to work,
But my leg’s banged up.
I wish I had the sense
To learn about computers,
So I could work an office job
Like the rest of my friends.”
He said, “I need just 14 dollars
To get by every day,
But some of them will stay and beg
And never go away.
I just stay as long as I have to.
I never take more than I need.”
“I can lift heavy things
And do lawn care,
But they just see my leg
And my graying hair.
They’ve already made up their minds,
And they look at me like I’m invisible.”
I offered him some water
Ot something from the store
As he held up his home made sign
Saying he was poor
He never asked me for one penny
I think he thought I was homeless too.
He could have been my father
He could have been yours too
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2. |
Love Me
03:32
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Edison and Tesla
Had an electric war
Hemingway and Faulkner
Chose the pen and not the sword
Van Gogh and Paul Gaugin
Had words and then had none
Copernicus and the Church
Argued about the sun
Love me like you used to love me
Love me like you used to do
Love me like you used to love me
Baby, like I love you
Did you ever wonder
What John would imagine next?
Or, what would have happened
If Kurt and Courtney never met?
I wish that I could see the photos
Francesca never took
And we all wish Sylvia Plath
Wrote another book
Love me...
I need to learn to be alone
I need to learn to be alone
I need to learn to be alone
I need to learn to be, so love me.
Rimbaud chose the desert
Instead of life in verse
Rocky Marciano
Left the ring before he got hurt
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3. |
Panama
04:08
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Breathe in deep
Count back from ten
You might feel
Some tingling
We’ll grind away
That tooth decay
Relax and just
Keep your mouth open
When you’re gone
You might say
Some funny things
But, it’s ok
Everyone
Reacts the same
Relax and just
Keep your mouth open
Do you know how many died
To try to connect what had been divided?
That isthmus proved too wide
For so many years
But, when the sweat and the quinine
Finally won and the depths united
We said it went just fine
A man, a plan, a canal, Panama
You might dream
Of a faraway place
Forget about
Your past mistakes
A brand new
Same old you
Relax and just
Keep your mouth open
Do you know...
I’ll never know what you want
I’ll never know what you need
I’ll never know what you’re scared of
I’ll never know what you dream
I’ll never know...
Relax and just
Keep your mouth open
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4. |
Cowbirds
04:25
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I didn’t know I’d crowd you out
I didn’t know I’d grow so stout
Or that Mother’s nest could be too small
Or that Mother wasn’t Mother at all
Cowbirds just need love like anyone else
Every other form of earthly wealth pales in compare
Cowbirds don’t know they’re raised by somebody else
A mother’s love heals everything everywhere
I didn’t know it wasn’t fair
That Mother gave me a bigger share
I guess that she could always see
That I had much bigger needs
Cowbirds...
One day I might feel the need
To leave my young with another breed
And when I do I hope you can forgive
Because I don’t know another way to live
Cowbirds...
And in the spring
When we all take wing
We’ll all hear her sing
Because a mother’s love loves everyone equally
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5. |
Orchard
04:34
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When the bombs start to fall
I want you to stay calm
And say all your prayers
And recite your psalm
When the dogs start barking
And the men rush in
I want you to remember
Just like us, just like us
They’re consumed by their sin
And we all love how we want to be loved
And we all give what we wish we were given
And when it’s not returned
It feels like earth that’s been burned
And when it’s all over
If I don’t survive
I want you to help
The one’s left alive
But watch them closely
This could happen again
That’s what happens
When we get, when we get
Consumed by our sins
And we all love how we want to be loved
And we all give what we wish we were given
The birds will bring the seeds
The blossoms bring the bees
There’ll be fruit upon the trees
Of your orchard again
And when you get older
You will meet someone
Who will help you forget
When you’re having fun
But, tell your children
So they can begin
The kind of world
That cannot, that cannot
Be consumed by our sin
And we all love how we want to be loved
And we all give what we wish we were given
If I could have one wish
It would be that you learn this
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