1. |
Sonny
02:54
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Sonny, tell me why you're looking down
Did no-one tell you 'bout the tears of a clown
And someday soon we'll turn this whole world upside down
And the days are gonna be much better
Sonny, tell me why you seem so blue
Did no-one tell you that these feelings pass on through
And someday soon you'll see the sunlight shines on you
And the days are gonna be much better
And then our days will be
Out of a fantasy
There will be you and me
And we'll be happy
Sonny, tell me why your day's so long
Did no-one tell you that you've got to sing along
And someday soon we'll play a different kind of song
And the days are gonna be much better
And then our days will be
Out of a fantasy
There will be you and me
And we'll be happy
Oh Sonny, tell me why you seem so blue
Did no-one tell you that these feelings pass on through
And someday soon you'll see the sunlight shines on you
And the days are gonna be much better
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2. |
Presidential Pardon
03:51
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He wasn’t playing baseball
This was a different game
The cops can pick you up
And put three strikes against your name
You’re free to fight for innocence
But understand the threat
At this courthouse casino
It’s a very foolish bet
If you had friends in high places
You’d be above the law
The Presidential Pardon opens up that prison door
Not the black boy from the Projects
But the white guy in the suit
That Presidential Pardon
Must seem a bitter fruit
And every copper knows
That there’s a way to load the dice
So even when they give a bit
You pay a heavy price
You won’t dare choose a trial
Cos there’s just too much to lose
You sign up for the jailhouse
On a deal you can’t refuse
If you had friends in high places
You’d be above the law
The Presidential Pardon opens up that prison door
Not the black boy from the Projects
But the white guy in the suit
That Presidential Pardon
Must seem a bitter fruit
But if you’ve got a pot of gold
And crave for even more
You steal and cheat and swindle
Til you’re noticed by the law
Don’t lose your sleep at night time
When your friends are who they are
The Presidential Pardon
Means you’ll see no prison yard
If you had friends in high places
You’d be above the law
The Presidential Pardon opens up that prison door
Not the black boy from the Projects
But the white guy in the suit
That Presidential Pardon
Must seem a bitter fruit
And now he’s serving time for something else he never did
And he might be out to see some of the childhood of his kid
You can take the seven years
Or there’s thirty on the line
You’re free to go to trial boy
And gamble with your time
If you had friends in high places
You’d be above the law
The Presidential Pardon opens up that prison door
Not the black boy from the Projects
But the white guy in the suit
That Presidential Pardon
Must seem a bitter fruit
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3. |
Distillery Blues
02:50
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Your picture's on the mantelpiece
But when I go to bed
I still can't get you from my mind
Your picture's in my head
I dream about you through the night
And wake without you near
I feel like shouting "I love you"
I know you will not hear
Ain't you heard the latest news
I'm a-suffering from the distillery blues
Had too many a drunken day
So the girl of my dreams has gone away, she's gone away
I often think about the days
When we were both together
And wish they would return again
And stay with us forever
But I know it's not to be
It breaks my heart to say
I made too many bad mistakes
And this is how I pay
Ain't you heard the latest news
I'm a-suffering from the distillery blues
Had too many a drunken day
So the girl of my dreams has gone away, she's gone away
So here I am without you
As empty as my glass
Alone with my whisky bottle
And my memories of our past
Ain't you heard the latest news
I'm a-suffering from the distillery blues
Had too many a drunken day
So the girl of my dreams she's gone away, she's gone away
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4. |
Friends And Influence
03:40
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He saw a book on body language at the local library
Now when you scratch your face he scratches his face too
It tells him how to build rapport and he follows it blindly
Now he’s using it on you
He found a guru on the way to win a lady
How to give compliments that subtly undermine
Precariously she is clinging on to his maybe
Keeps her dangling on the line
Though they cheer and thank the Lord
You know deep inside that you’re just a fraud
Though you say it does no harm
All these ways you coax and charm
But you haven’t got a clue
Because none of this was you
Every single word you speak
Well it’s just some cheap technique
No one knows who you really are
When you’re just an avatar
Did it need so much pretence
To win friends and influence
He learned persuasion from Dr Bob Cialdini
Now he can make you do whatever he wants you to
And his charisma is magnetic and so appealing
Ah but none of it is true
Though they cheer and thank the Lord
You know deep inside that you’re just a fraud
Though you say it does no harm
All these ways you coax and charm
But you haven’t got a clue
Because none of this was you
Every single word you speak
Well it’s just some cheap technique
No one knows who you really are
When you’re just an avatar
Did it need so much pretence
To win friends and influence
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5. |
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If I should reach the night again
I'll be a lucky man
If I should reach the night again
Will you hold my hand
I've been sitting up all night
Counting my regrets
Through the debris of my life
And all my losing bets
And surely I cannot deny
That I'm a gambler still
I'll only reach the night tonight
By fortune over will
If I should reach the night again
I'll be a lucky man
If I should reach the night again
Will you hold my hand
Will you hold my hand
There's many ways a gambler pays
In money, friends and time
Each passing day I am always
Amazed I stayed alive
If I should reach the night again
I'll be a lucky man
If I should reach the night again
Will you hold my hand
Will you hold my hand
Will you hold my hand
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6. |
Lockdown Lover
02:58
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She's just a lockdown lover
Using me to get through
She's in my bubble
Whole load of trouble
What’s a boy to do
She's a lockdown lover
Under the cover
Wasting time for two
When she first kissed me
She didn’t even ask
But truth be told
She had to be bold
Well I was wearing a mask
We were skin to skin
And she moved into my pad
She's just a lockdown lover
Using me to get through
She's in my bubble
Whole load of trouble
What’s a boy to do
She's a lockdown lover
Under the cover
Wasting time for two
She said the world’s gone crazy
We're taken by surprise
So why be bored
Alone indoors
When we can’t go outside
Hold your horses
Let’s join forces she cried
She's just a lockdown lover
She's using me to get through
She's in my bubble
Whole load of trouble
What’s a boy to do
She's a lockdown lover
Under the cover
Wasting time for two
When the lockdown lifted
I had a heavy heart
I debated getting vaccinated
Cos I knew that we would part
She said pull yourself together
As soon as it’s winter weather
We’ll restart
She's just a lockdown lover
Using me to get through
She's in my bubble
Whole load of trouble
What’s a boy to do
She's a lockdown lover
Under the cover
Wasting time for two
She's a lockdown lover
Under the cover
Wasting time for two
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7. |
Some Other Universe
02:46
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I tried
So hard I near lost my mind
Love is more crazy than blind
Big as the sky
Oh you and I
In this reality
There’ll be no you and me
Here where the worlds won’t collide
In some other universe
For better and for worse
I pass the years at your side
You too
Wished it so hard to be true
And all of the things you would do
To push it on through
For me and you
But in this reality
There’ll be no you and me
Here where the worlds won’t collide
In some other universe
For better and for worse
I pass the years at your side
Oh oh
For I, oh I tried
So hard I near lost my mind
Love is more crazy than blind
Big as the sky
Oh you and I
But in this reality
There’ll be no you and me
Here where the worlds won’t collide
In some other universe
For better and for worse
I pass the years at your side
Oh at your side
Oh oh at your side
Oh at your side
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8. |
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Your grandfather stood on that picket line
Maybe your father did too
When those bastards on horseback they came for them
And beat them black and blue
And when they marched back to work that day
Defeated behind that brass band
Who'd have thought that the grandchild they doted on
Would strengthen their attacker's hand
May the ghosts of your grandfathers
Torment you every day
May you never sleep at night
Cos you can't chase their demons away
And the predators you voted for
I hope that they see you as prey
May the ghosts of your grandfathers
Torment you night and day
Though you're fooled with nostalgia of Empire
Not a penny of plunder they shared
And you've taken the gains that your grandparents made
You've trampled them into the dirt
So long as Johnny Foreigner
Is put on the next leaving boat
Though you can't even find the breath to cheer
For a boot presses down on your throat
May the ghosts of your grandfathers
Torment you every day
May you never sleep at night
Cos you can't chase their demons away
And the predators you voted for
I hope that they see you as prey
May the ghosts of your grandfathers
Torment you night and day
So may you rot and perish
Like you deserve to do
May you understand your ancestors
When this time they're coming for you
May no one show you mercy
When they hear your agonised groans
As the vultures you befriended
Rip all the flesh from your bones
May the ghosts of your grandfathers
Torment you every day
May you never sleep at night
Cos you can't chase their demons away
And the predators you voted for
I hope that they see you as prey
May the ghosts of your grandfathers
Torment you night and day
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9. |
Streets Of Manhattan
03:23
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Before you were conceived they cast you as an extra
It’s hard to believe but that’s the way it goes
Shut up and learn your lines, understand your function
There’s no place to hide carry out your role
I will never walk through the streets of Manhattan
I will never tread through those movie scene streets
I will never walk through the streets of Manhattan
Walking through another man’s dreams
You’re naked on the stage, the script is so specific
The colours turn to beige, you’re praying for a dime
You’re noticing the hour, how once you were rebellious
Things are turning sour in this pantomime
I will never walk through the streets of Manhattan
I will never tread through those movie scene streets
I will never walk through the streets of Manhattan
Walking through another man’s dreams
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10. |
I Dated A Therapist
03:09
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I dated a therapist
Some time ago
We met in the kind of place
Where therapists go
She told me her interests
She told me her name
I said that I liked her
She told me the same
Dating a therapist
It comes with a catch
I knew I was crazy
So I thought we would match
Dating a therapist
Was harder than I thought it would be
Turns out the therapist
Was even crazier than me
I dated a therapist
It lasted a while
She asked about traumas
That I had as a child
She spent her day soothing
Emotional pain
Her job was ironic
Cos she drove me insane
Dating a therapist
It comes with a catch
I knew I was crazy
So I thought we would match
Dating a therapist
Was harder than I thought it would be
Turns out the therapist
Was even crazier than me
Dating a therapist
It comes with a catch
I knew I was crazy
So I thought we would match
Dating a therapist
Was harder than I thought it would be
Turns out the therapist
Was even crazier than me
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11. |
I'd Rather Be The 'Orse
02:54
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The master has a workhorse
He keeps the 'orse well fed
Cos he can't make the 'orse work
If the bloody thing is dead
So he feeds it and he grooms it
And he gives it an embrace
Cos unlike me the 'orse would cost
A fortune to replace
I'd rather be the 'orse
I'd be better off of course
He may still work me til I drop
But I'd rather be the 'orse
He has a happy horsey face
He strikes me quite content
Cos he gets food and shelter
And he doesn't pay no rent
He has no money worries
He's never in the red
No bailiffs at his stable door
They're all at mine instead
I'd rather be the 'orse
I'd be better off of course
He may still work me til I drop
But I'd rather be the 'orse
So put the reins around my neck
Attach me to the plough
When faced with being 'orse or man
I'd choose the 'orse right now
So put the saddle on my back
Feed me oats and hay
I'd be a beast of burden
As a human anyway
I'd rather be the 'orse
I'd be better off of course
He may still work me til I drop
But I'd rather be the 'orse
I'd rather be the 'orse
I'd be better off of course
He may still work me til I drop
But I'd rather be the 'orse
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12. |
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You
Were so much better
When you
Were suicidal
I liked you better then
I could relate to you
And you loved me too
But now there's so much joie de vivre
You interrupt my sorrow
Your laughter makes me grieve
Why did you have to change?
Cos you
Were so wonderful
When you
Were suicidal
You were much easier
And I could make you see
That you depend on me
But now you flourish and you thrive
It really isn't good for you
You're glad to be alive
I don't know who you are no more
Cos you
Were delightful
When you
Were suicidal
I liked you better then
When you were lost and blue
And you loved me too
It isn't good for you
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13. |
Sweet Optimism
03:01
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She don't let life get in the way of a good time
Life get in the way
She's not the kind to waste her time on a headline
It won't ruin her day
If providence should play with her
She just joins in the game
Noone's putting out that flame
We all need hope
We all fall down
We all need faith
To hold our ground
We all need time
To fool around
And sweet optimism
We all need love
To make us whole
We all need heart
And rock and roll
We all need friends
To soothe the soul
And sweet optimism
Sweet optimism, sweet optimism, sweet optimism
It's not her goal to change the way that you see her
She wouldn't try
Won't trade her soul to lose her freedom to be her
It wouldn't fly
She knows authenticity will always be her guide
Staying true to what's inside
We all need hope
We all fall down
We all need faith
To hold our ground
We all need time
To fool around
And sweet optimism
We all need love
To make us whole
We all need heart
And rock and roll
We all need friends
To soothe the soul
And sweet optimism
Sweet optimism, sweet optimism, sweet optimism
We all need hope
We all fall down
We all need faith
To hold our ground
We all need time
To fool around
And sweet optimism
We all need love
To make us whole
We all need heart
And rock and roll
We all need friends
To soothe the soul
And sweet optimism
Sweet optimism, sweet optimism, sweet optimism
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14. |
Ruby Remembers
03:49
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Take off your shoes they said
We've only just hoovered the place
Dish out the evening meal
Always make sure you say grace
Stilted conversation
Cannot mask these old regrets
Everybody forgets
But Ruby remembers
They hoped that time would wash
All of her memories away
Then it might feel easier
When daughter came to stay
But anytime they catch her eye
They make that nervous cough
Everybody hopes she forgot
But Ruby remembers
Ruby remembers the feelings of dread
Ruby remembers the truth instead
All the things that go unsaid
Ruby remembers
Why must you talk this way
What's coming out of your mouth
Strange allegations made
We don't know what you're talking about
She sees the guilty glances
At the corners of their eyes
And now they realise
Now they realise
Now they realise
Ruby remembers
Ruby remembers the feelings of dread
Ruby remembers the truth instead
All the things that go unsaid
Ruby remembers
Ruby remembers the feelings of dread
Ruby remembers the truth instead
All the things that go unsaid
Ruby remembers
Ruby remembers
Ruby remembers
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15. |
Goodbye
02:57
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Don’t need to know which way you’re heading
You’ll still find your way
You wanna be the one who’s so serene
The pain can wait for another day
So I take the blame
I’m crying out your name baby
Cos I don’t wanna be the one to say goodbye
I don’t wanna be the one to leave
I know it goes this way sometimes
I’m not a fool
But I don’t wanna be the one to say
Goodbye
I don’t wanna say it
I don’t wanna say it
No no no no no
I know this train has left the station
With only one of us on the train
I’d rather fight than be so damn polite
At least I’d know you felt the same
And though I know we’re through
I’m clinging on to every inch of you darling
Cos I don’t wanna be the one to say goodbye
I don’t wanna be the one to leave
I know it goes this way sometimes
I’m not a fool
But I don’t wanna be the one to say
Goodbye
I don’t wanna say it
I don’t wanna say it
I don’t wanna say
Goodbye
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Alun Parry Liverpool, UK
Known as the UK's Woody Guthrie, Alun Parry's music is uplifting, soul stirring, defiant, and tons of fun!
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