LYRICS
SAFER
Shut your windows, lock your doors It’s safer inside, safer inside Lights out, quiet now It’s easier to hide, easier to hide Oh, where do you go? Oh, where do you go? You’ve been burned before, you have reason to believe That it’s safer inside Safer inside But is it easier to stand up, or to leave? Don’t believe those lies, don’t believe those lies The stones can’t reach you in there But neither can the light Insulated in your blanket Are there monsters outside? Monsters outside And, either way, it’s likely raining It’s fixed in your mind, fixed in your mind That’s no way to live your life You’ve got to live your life SANTIAGO Lines drawn hard, tight across the hands Of the old man on the sea Sleep brings dreams of lions on the beach And of a younger, stronger me But I won’t let go Not for the life of me I won’t let go But I won’t let go Not for the life of me I won’t let go The blue September sky Salty air has me talking to the sea Pulling hard on me, now Eighty days & nights I have waited for this fight I’ve given far too much, now Dawn breaks, I’m still standing As the beast jumps from the sea The Sacred Heart of Jesus & me Against this fish & the Gulf Stream But I won’t let go Not for the life of me I won’t let go But I won’t let go Not if it’s the death of me I won’t let go Sleep brings dreams of lions on the beach And of a younger, stronger me CEDARS Among the cedars A band of light shone on our faces where we Slept on the damp ground Where the paper stars had lulled us to sleep & we Lodged in the caverns When the rain fell hard or the midday burned with heat Among the cedars We found ourselves We found ourselves Among the cedars We came to life We came to life In rhyme & meter We came to light We came to light Among the cedars The rocky spine of the old AT, where we Crossed the Hudson River Never looking back as autumn burned the trees Those days were innocent When the sun fell hard & every moment was sweet Among the cedars We found ourselves We found ourselves Among the cedars A band of light shone on our faces where we Slept on the damp ground Where the paper stars had lulled us to sleep LEXINGTON Last time I last saw you There was fire in the trees I ran in the night ‘Til I was weak in the knees Wrote you this letter That I may never send Tears & ink were spilt My bones, in time, will mend Love in a time of war Some things are worth fighting for Lexington is calling me The North Star’s hanging in the east Seen things never thought I’d see Raiders from across the sea You’ll be my bride when this war is through Pray the Lord brings me back to you FIRST DANCE As we summit this rock That we started climbing River below us Flowing & winding Here Heaven is so close Could reach out & touch us And now this new journey That’s laid out before us Together embarking Angels in chorus Welcome us in Free as hawks on the wind On the wind From this first dance To our last waltz I want to grow old with you From the first breath of spring To the last gasp of winter Canvas, white & new My stream in this desert The wind at my back You’re the trail that leads me back home I’ll always remember this first dance with you, my love My love, my love My love, my love Never seen such a light As I saw in your eyes Knelt to the ground, Asked for you as my bride That long, long wait Now so easily forgotten Now pick up a pen & let’s write down our story Days be our letters, We’ll start up a family I thank God above for you For you I will always remember this first dance with you, my love My love My love THE WEATHER Diamonds in the sea, on an empty beach Last time you were here with me The weather’s cool & clear, wind & waves are all I hear I wish that you were here And I wonder what you’re thinking When you look up at the stars And the constellation we used to claim as ours I wonder in this moment If you’re thinking of me, too When all that I can do Is think of you I’m here without you Oh, I’m here without you Some memories don’t fade the way that night time turns to day As gentle waves cascade It thrills my heart for me to know Your love for me has only grown I love you more than you could know I’m here without you Oh, I’m here without you The weather’s cool & clear, wind & waves are all I hear I wish that you were here SWIMMING IN THE SEA My sentences won’t stick together My words are simply failing me Swimming in the sea Feels like a losing battle My peace has sprouted wings & flown from me Swimming in the sea Swimming in the sea Hold fire, hold fast I need to heal I’ve been breaking my fists, fighting the stars Grasping for the wheel Hold fire, hold fast Have mercy on me This ship is broken, lend me your hand ‘Cause I’m swimming in the sea Swimming in the sea Swimming in the sea Seems like your slings & arrows Are aimed right at me Swimming in the sea But my hope is not abandoned I know that you still love me Swimming in the sea Swimming in the sea PAPERTHIN ‘Neath the aspens Rusting leaves take flight Hallowed light of morning On your countenance tonight Burnished & branded, senses abandoned to you And your blue eyes I’m trembling in the doorway Shuttered & feathered & struggling to bring it to light Times you’re like mercury My defenses are paperthin Here in the waiting, waxing & waning, I’m Paperthin Oh, summer come heal me, I’m Paperthin Midst of winter New Year’s Eve tonight Leafless scarecrow trees touch Like our stars cross in flight Burnished & branded, restless & candid with you Into your sweet light Your rainy eyes won’t own you I’ll hold you till dawn kisses the night We were in bloom We would shine like the stars We were in bloom We would shine like the stars We were in bloom We would shine like the stars We were in bloom We would shine like the stars HALLELUJAH I've heard there was a secret chord That David played, and it pleased the Lord But you don't really care for music, do you? It goes like this The fourth, the fifth The minor fall, the major lift The baffled king composing hallelujah Hallelujah, Hallelujah Hallelujah, Hallelujah Your faith was strong but you needed proof You saw her bathing on the roof Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you She tied you To a kitchen chair She broke your throne, and she cut your hair And from your lips she drew the “hallelujah” Maybe I've been here before I know this room, I've walked this floor I used to live alone before I knew you I've seen your flag on the marble arch love is not a victory march It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah I did my best, it wasn't much I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you And even though It all went wrong I'll stand before the Lord of Song With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah WINGS I was cutting through the fields On the way to your house that night Fireflies hanging like stars in the dusky light Your mother said you weren’t home But I could hear you crying inside Didn’t know what I’d said, Didn’t know how to make it right Were you an angel? Were you an angel? Dreamt that I saw wings Taproot & limbs & the crown of a king Your eyes never seemed so bright As they did in my memory of those summer nights Dreamt that I saw wings But sometimes dreams just don’t mean a thing But I dreamt that I saw wings 10th Street Philadelphia One cold & wintry night You smiled at me, & I smiled as I walked on by Our history is past, like two ships in the night Never knew what to say, Never knew how to set it right Were you an angel? Were you an angel? MANHATTAN Manhattan I walked your streets alone, Perhaps it was a dream You’ve got me feeling like the only living boy Among the million faces that I see The angels are singing Up in Washington Square My thoughts are a quill Writing poems on the air I’m sending this song home Over waves & wires I’ve been treading up & down Broadway And I’m so tired Pavement to the sky, your streets alive Are such a lovely view And, Manhattan, that’s mostly What I need from you Manhattan You’re quite a sight, Central Park all decked in snow Goodbye for now, I’ve got to get back to my girl From Penn Station to my Pennsylvania home And, Manhattan, that’s mostly What I need from you PRAYER OF SAINT FRANCIS Make me a channel of Your peace Where there is hatred, let me bring Your love Where there is injury, Your pardon, Lord, And where there’s doubt, true faith in You Make me a channel of your peace, Where there’s despair in life, let me bring hope Where there is darkness, only light, And where there’s sadness, ever joy Oh Master, grant that I may never seek So much to be consoled as to console To be understood, as to understand, To be loved, as to love with all my soul Make me a channel of your peace, It is in pardoning that we are pardoned, In giving of ourselves that we receive, And in dying that we’re born to eternal life Amen, amen Amen, amen Amen, amen Amen, amen Amen, amen Amen, amen Amen, amen Amen, amen |
RIVER (A DARK CHASE)
You treat me like a criminal The ghost of some lonely soul A silent hound on a dark chase Full moon splits these streets in two The light & the shade between me & you In a different world We could have been brothers I’m a man acquainted with pain Crying out to the heavens again Should I run to the river? Run to the river? Run to the river? Run to the river? Is there peace by the river? Peace by the river? So through the streets of Paris we fled Guilty only of stealing bread Protecting my lark Guarding my beloved So I whisper to her, “Hold on to me” “Hold on to me” GOLD Now, I’m not sayin’ that you need to like me Judgin’ from the barbs you throw my way But sometimes bitter roots Give rise to sweeter fruits And all your sticks & stones, they turn to gold Every time I put the pen to paper The letters spell a sweet refrain Sometimes bitter roots Give rise to sweeter fruits And all your sticks & stones, they turn to gold Sometimes my words, they just feel weightless Benighted by cinders & ashes of shame Sometimes bitter roots Give rise to sweeter fruits And all your sticks & stones, they turn to gold I really think that you could love me That would be such a sweet refrain Sometimes bitter roots Give rise to sweeter fruits And all your sticks & stones, they turn to gold INDIGO I’m in no weather for this lashing O, indigo A mast is down, the sails are all around me O, indigo Indigo, O, indigo Dream of my love ‘midst fields of indigo Sailing home, this wounded craft must hold O, indigo Thought I saw your eyes up in the cold blue stars O, indigo Indigo, O, indigo Dream of my love ‘midst fields of indigo Remember those nights when the nightingale & wolf cried out O, indigo The springtime sky would wrap us up in velvet night O, indigo Indigo, O, indigo Dream of my love ‘midst fields of indigo Point me home, O point me home To be with my love ‘midst fields of indigo How I long to share those sunsets with you again, my love O, indigo But now I’ll ply these oars through this moonlit dark O, indigo Indigo, O, indigo Dream of my love ‘midst fields of indigo Point me home, O point me home To be with my love ‘midst fields of indigo Remember those nights when the nightingale & wolf cried out O, indigo I’ll stand beneath that springtime sky with you again, my love O, indigo HELIOTROPISM (LEANING TOWARD THE LIGHT) Painted over the rust But it still shows It still shows I got nothing but time on my hands And this heavy load Heavy load Sure could use someone to walk beside me now So pull up a stool & help me talk this out I’m walking down this road Carrying more weight than I can hold I don’t always see things in black & white But I assure you that I am leaning toward the light Carrying more weight than I can hold alone Covering over the scar I try to hide Try so hard to hide Failed more times than I can count But I have tried Lord knows I’ve tried Sure could use someone to walk beside me now So pull up a stool & help me talk this out |
UNDER THE SUN
A wise man once said there’s nothing new under the sun I’m starting to believe him, ‘cause all I see has all been done I’m burning my hands holding this torch for you A pain I’ll gladly endure even with a skin too few Rain must fall down, down on every man But I’m singing outside your window, Asking for your hand I sense the colors changing, a wry smile on your lips You say, “There’s nothing new Under the sun” Under the sun Under the sun I see my reflection, in a mirror, dimly You’re holding that key to daybreak, now won’t you share that with me? I’m burning my hands holding this torch for you Burning my hands THE LARK (UNDER SHIVERING STARS) Ambling through the shabby streets Of your little town Trying to beat your wings against The ones that hold you down The ghosts, ghosts That you think that you see Startle you from your Winter reverie But I hear you I hear you Who’s going to fight the good fight for you now? Under shivering stars I’ll drag a match to light the dark I’ll fight the good fight for you now You can rest here Won’t you sing for me, my lark? Seven seasons older Feels like twenty years Vestiges of hope In spite of all the tears The ghosts, ghosts Can’t reach you now Take my hand I’ll lead you out I hear you I hear you The cold trees for your confessional You didn’t see me there Tearing pages from the book of pain you’ve known The cold trees for your confessional You didn’t see me there Burning pages from the book of pain you’ve known Under shivering stars I’ll drag a match to light the dark Under shivering stars #8 On those vintage days of June The sky was worn and bruised Like sleepless eyes And gently spilled the rain We were lush and bright Like moths to a light Our house of cards Would never see the ground Summer came and it Broke upon us like Roman candles in the sky Trade your coins for a Handful of wildflowers and Let the summer rain Sing you to sleep Summer sing you to sleep The promises to keep Would run like rivers deep Like letters sent Adrift upon the wind But seeds tend to grow And you shall ever know You were a lighted window At the end of my street AVALANCHE Bracing for the avalanche Waking up the sleepers Where you go, I will go And hang out with the dreamers April seven, you’re waking up To the brighter side of what’s making up your little world The flowers and the season bloom Like the daylight shining in the room In the place that you now call home In the air, you feel the change Suddenly, your splintered trust is rearranged Thinking love is worth the fall The damage healed, and truth is all that remains You and I can wander far I feel I could bottle up the stars and give them to you But I’m not sleeping, I’m waking now And ready to see exactly how this all plays out “Make something of your life,” they say You find you have, and those voices fade away Thinking love is worth the fall The damage healed, and truth is all that remains Tell me, ‘cause I may be wrong But I’m thinking maybe I belong Thinking love is worth the fall The damage healed, and truth is all that remains Truth is all that remains Truth is all that remains Truth is all that remains YOUR VINTAGE HEART Under a sky painted red And clouds of white You glide through the wheat and heather It’s good to be alive But you feel so much older Beside these trees and leaves Burned by the seasons and the sun Don’t you see there’s beauty in the broken Insecure in all your moving parts I’m tangled up in all your strings and wires, tell me Is there room for me in your vintage heart? Is there room for me in your vintage heart? Oh, my love You just need some time to mend Assemble the fragments of your thoughts So take a bite of air And remember that our Maker Knows that we are dust And it’s okay to fall apart Sometimes you close up all the windows And shut all the doors Keeping the world from your lights and graces Put away your armor Won’t you see the beauty that’s within And just let me embrace you? You store up all your secrets In your little hidden book And guard them all so secretly Open up your vintage heart And let me understand you However poor and darkly Love, let me try and love SEVEN MILES Memory is haunting When you sleep and dream Treasure all the little things Fireflies and silver rings I see through your disguise To the fear you hold inside Seven miles up the road You search for hope to pierce the darkest night Living with the fear of God Learn your lessons through experience and time Mercury is falling Moonlight spread on Sinclair Street Life opens the door to the brightest and the darkest It’s not all as it should be Do you see through my disguise To the fear I hold inside? THE LIGHT & THE SEA The wind on the water This sea is dark as wine Did you get my letter? Restlessly passing the time All I want is redemption To make this right and new This light burns inside of me A silver fire for you When daylight fades and these Fears rush in I need your grace You’re whispering Don’t forget in the darkness What you found in the light This candle is burning down On this wind-blown night Don’t forget in the darkness What you found in the light This candle is burning down Don’t leave me alone in the night Did I hear you speak to me Or was it only a dream? The stars flutter up in the sky Of this mystery All I want is redemption Overstepping this line in the sand This light burns inside of me As you reach for my hand The daylight fades and these Fears rush in I need your grace You’re whispering FILMS We went down to the docks To look at the water Could still hear those night trains rumbling The confluence where the creeks join the river Last year it was just me around here Now you’re back in town Scenes from a movie Films ‘bout our story The waters of time & doubt could not drown Absence felt like salt in the wound But I was still too blind to see That your love was never really absent When the ghosts from my past tried to haunt me Shreds of indigo turning darker by the minute We barely make a sound Scenes from a movie Films ‘bout our story The waters of time & doubt could not drown The first scene was easy The second moving mountains The light, the contrast of white on white The third scene still happening This path keeps unfolding This light keeps on shining You say we’ve only begun Scenes from our movie Films ‘bout our story Tying knots that time & doubt had undone ARROWS You caught me Speechless and silent with fear They accuse me Maybe they're right about the burden I bear You say nothing Just words etched into sand Grace stooped down And offered me a hand And these arrows The wounds and the bruises I bear I've got no right to feel the healing I feel And these arrows The wounds and the bruises I've dealt Forgive me Speak the words that my heart needs to hear Can I believe You? You prove Yourself time and again There are times when I need to feel Your wounds with my own hands Just words etched into sand You offer me Your hand OTHER SIDE OF THE WATER Paint the time with your tired refrains You speak the words, but will you own the grace? How can you love me at an arm’s length? You’re on the other side of the water You’re on the other side of the water Is this love or is this war? Burned the bridges to your door Is this love or is this war? A thousand times I’ve heard your voice cry out across this line A thousand times the broken bread A thousand times the poured out wine Can your hands reach out and touch me where I stand? You’re on the other side of the water You’re on the other side of the water You’re on the other side of the water The sun is distant and the hour is late Don’t pass me by as if I’m in your way How can you love me at an arm’s length? You’re on the other side of the water You’re on the other side of the water How can you love me at an arm’s length? How can you love me at an arm’s length? Is this love or is this war? Borders don’t matter anymore Is this love or is this war? REPAIRS Rain fell through the open window Of her recurring dream Water gathered on the wooden floor Empty chairs in an empty house She fumbled for the keys To open up that wooden door Dawn creeps in, like love itself When you let love in Words sting like the truth They haunt me like a ghost Pray that love will heal the fracture & bring repairs that we need most He tried in vain to catch her In his recurring dream Stars reflected in black water & so he dove in after Though he knew not how to swim He could not bear to lose her Dawn creeps in, like love itself When you let love in WOUNDED HEALER The sun sets over the city And You are good You awaken the dawn And You are good You sent Your Son to live and die For our sins, He sacrificed You offer us Your love and You are good The darkness and the tragedy The widows, and orphans, and wandering Through it all You prove that You are good Wounded Healer Full of grace I’m so caught up in myself I don’t recognize Your face You made us to be Your hands and feet So why are we still wondering When You’ll show up Shine Your light through me A soul rises from the ashes And You are good, a homeless Child given a meal And You are good You beckon us and Your love goes free From the chains of her captivity You’ve filled us with Your love And You are good The glory and the poverty Grace that makes beauty of ugly things Through our weakness, You show That You are good The sinners and saints and politics We’re drowned in affluence, breathe into us Will You show us what it looks like ‘Cause You are good? Shine Your light through me Shine Your light through me SHEPHERDS & ANGELS Oh, dawn, won’t you wake up & bring me your light? Distant candles, The 4 am stars are burning bright Open road before me I’ll take what light I can take Night watches When only the shepherds & angels wake Driving away Thousand miles to go Love Keeps bringing me home, Lands me back near you, love Love Steals my thoughts on the road, Wraps my mind like a glove The most beautiful love often comes from the most broken things Just mid-December But it’s feeling like snow The car heater battles The outside freezing cold The tune through the speakers Its old familiar ring Music just like The shepherds & angels sing Winter’s well on its way Thousand miles back home Thousand miles away I just want to go home A CONTEMPLATION ON PEACE Is peace just the absence of war? Could making peace mean something more? We apply a bandage to the gaping wound Damaged, but beautiful Your hurting world Peace to you, my friend Peace also to our enemies We didn’t get what we deserved, But aren’t all men Made in the same image? O God of all, we need You now This world is all messed up We need Your Kingdom Come Use these flawed vessels, lifted up Justice is possible We can be the peace You want O God of all, we need You now This world is all messed up We need Your Kingdom Come Use these flawed vessels, lifted up Justice is possible Will we be the peace You want? ASH WEDNESDAY Where the new moon expired I slept, but my heart was awake Scatter the ashes of what used to be Confessing in the light of Your flame Coming back home as the mercury and the snow come down Giving You all of me that I am able Intentions burned up, down to the ground, like ashes & dust Feasting on the crumbs from Your table I’m feasting on the crumbs from Your table Running to You like a child Scared of the edges of the night A cross of ashes in Your home with no walls Begging Your flame to be my light Coming back home as the mercury and the snow come down Giving You all of me that I am able Intentions burned up, down to the ground, like ashes & dust Feasting on the crumbs from Your table I’m feasting on the crumbs from Your table Forty days Shades of black & white & grey Forty days Shades of black & white & grey Feasting on the crumbs I’m feasting on the crumbs I’m feasting on the crumbs from Your table |