1. |
AIN'T THAT SOMETHIN'
05:14
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you ever hear about Blind Lemon Jefferson?
he had quite a style
people down in Texas in those days
they came for miles
to listen to the big man play
and then they’d say
“ain’t that somethin’”
you ever hear Billie Holliday
when she was singin’ her song?
and everything was just right
right where it belonged
gardenias in her midnight hair
she could take you anywhere
ain’t that somethin’
because if that ain’t somethin’
then somethin’ ain’t nothin’ at all
Lemon went to Chicago
to try to make his name
froze out the sidewalk
when the winter came
and Billie died broke
it all went up in smoke
ain’t that somethin’
you could spend your whole life
living in the sound
one snap of the fingers
and it all comes down
funny thing is after you’re gone
then everybody’s singin’ your song
ain’t that somethin’
because if that ain’t somethin’
then somethin’ ain’t nothin’ at all
where can we go dancin’
where the music plays slow?
everybody’s in a hurry
like they got some place to go
and maybe they do, how would I know?
but me, I’m just gonna let it go
because sometimes when I hear you singing
and you don’t think I do
it’s sounds so pretty
I just don’t know how to tell you
so I just let it pass
like a vision in a pane of glass
ain’t that somethin’
because if that ain’t somethin’
then somethin’ ain’t nothin’ at all
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2. |
ANGELINE
04:14
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in this beautiful country
in which I’m living
there is a story that you’ll find
about a woman named
Kikisoblu
and how they called her Angeline
Angeline, Kikisoblu
she was the eldest
daughter of Chief Seattle
she watched the world disappear
she said “you can
build your town around me
I’m not going anywhere”
Angeline, Kikisoblu
it was the fine and expensive
wife of Doc Maynard
who defined her into something to be owned
when she said, “you’re much too beautiful
for such an ugly name
from now on you will be known
as Angeline, not Kikisoblu”
and they made her illegal
and all of her people
and the children threw rocks behind her back
but Kikisoblu
had some rocks of her own
and she threw them back
Angeline, Kikisoblu
landlord, landlord
look over your shoulder
careful who you’re talking to
maybe somebody
you stole something from
come to take it back from you
Angeline, Kikisoblu
so many thieves
for all that they have taken
they leave us with a world full of holes
but we have rocks
and we have heroes
and we will not do what we are told
Angeline, Kikisoblu
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3. |
DOWN TO ZERO
04:54
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there are no words enough to say
how a world like this could die away
how reason falls on deaf ears
truth dissolves and disappears
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
they warned us years ago
people laughed it off said “what do they know”
and we went our separate ways to find
a future facing the end of the line
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
now the weather stumbles, forests burn
past the point of no return
corporation money thrives
while the refugees look for a place to survive
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
history walks the plank
its eyes are flat, its face is blank
the melting ice the rising sea
a redder sun than used to be
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
I know people who live in trees
who chain themselves to machineries
who face the judge’s scornful stare
there is no shelter anywhere
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
thunder clap, the black snake
times like these you do whatever it takes
wherever a line is drawn
for the people and the land they live on
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
I fear for the children I see
and I don’t blame them when they look at me
as if to say “how could you?
we were depending on you”
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
I woke up in a sweat last night
so all alone I couldn’t face my fright
but I took a look around to see
millions more just like me
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
resistance goes from hand to hand
for the air, the water, the people, the land
tomorrow is born from the seeds of today
and we are going that way
and the clocks are counting
down to zero
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4. |
SLEEPING ON A CAR SEAT
03:18
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sleepin’ on a car seat
on a side street
sleepin’ on a car seat
without a bed sheet
some cars don’t have any seats
some seats don’t have any cars
you get tired enough
you sleep right where you are
sleepin’ on a car seat...
it’s a quiet kind of neighborhood
nothin’ ever goes too far
sunny day on the mornin’
and there you are
sleepin’ on a car seat...
one foot out, one foot in
one foot on the prowl
oughtta be sleepin’ in a feather bed
but this’ll have to do for now
without a car around it
just the way you found it
sleepin’ on a car seat...
somebody come along
maybe somebody see your shoe
somebody steal your wallet
now what you gonna do
sleepin’ on a car seat...
crows talkin’ tree to tree
the day is getting warm
there’s a turbulence advisory
but that’s for another kind of storm
sleepin’ on a car seat...
one foot out, one foot in
where you been my friend?
all around the world and back
and there you are in a sleepin’ sack
without a car around it
just the way you found it
sleepin’ on a car seat…
mouse run over your shoulder
drone flyin’ over your head
police sittin’ in a cruiser
ain’t no breakfast in bed
sleepin’ on a car seat…
hello in there
hello
hello
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5. |
ONLY HEAT I HAVE
05:02
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she came into the shop one day when snow was coming down
not a lot of customers, empty streets of town
just an old woman with an old style toaster in her hand
she laid it on the counter, said “fix it if you can”
“well, I can,” says I, “though it may take a day or two
but I’ll see what I can do, and get it back to you”
she smiled a thank you smile, her eyes loving gaze
“it’s the only heat I have,” she said, “and it’s been cold for days”
it’s the only heat I have, the only heat I have
she smiled a thank you smile, her eyes loving gaze
“it’s the only heat I have,” she said, “and it’s been cold for days”
it’s a little coastal town, where the mountains come to rest
with the Irish sea before me, and the landward to the west
you can watch the sunlight slanting, ‘neath the rolling patchwork sky
while family friends and strangers come and go to passing by
and I’d sit in the window in afternoons and raise a toast to it all
to the heights that I ascended to and how long it took to fall
I was used to my loneliness, didn’t think I could ever be surprised
until I met the young woman with the fire in her eyes
we could’ve been each other’s lovers, it happened pretty fast
but she was running after something that was just beyond her grasp
and I’d misread the fire, I thought it was for me
just goes to show that what you don’t know is right where it’s supposed to be
she was the only heat I had, the only heat I had
she packed up all that fire and a little extra too
she was the only heat I had but she was only passing through
so now I think about the wintertime that lays across the land
and I think about the old woman with the toaster in her hand
and I think about the girl who was only passing through
I hope she found what she was looking for, some people never do
she was the only heat I had, the only heat I had
she was the only heat I had, but she had somewhere to go
and I gave up feeling sorry for myself a long time ago
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6. |
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the rain in the morning, the bright afternoon
the days of our lives that are over too soon
the ripples of incident rise up and fall
there’s so much to know, you can’t measure it all
away to the city somewhere there to find
a way out of this great big impossible bind
an old man with a dog, and a woman in a chair
you never know what you’ll find till you get there
(chorus)
the eyes of tomorrow, the arrow of time
if you can’t take it with you, you leave behind
like a jewel in the ocean awash in the brine
as seen through the green tea of your mind
she said if “I could just get up away and fly
I’d write my name like a bird in the sky”
he said “the sky isn’t big enough for what you have to say
and you speak your own language anyway”
it was a good town for music and they found a little bar
where there were people in the mix, and whisky in the jar
where the music was medicine for the way that you feel
and maybe that’s how we all have to heal
(chorus)
some people have everything laid out on a platter
some people don’t care and what does it matter
you face up to your burden or you turn tail and run
it’s the hand that you’re dealt and everyone gets one
you did a lot of drinkin’ in your way back when
and one of these days you might do it again
but for now its the green tea that suits you just right
away in the morning, good luck and good night
(chorus)
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7. |
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first first time I rode the bus I was hitchin’ a ride
I was just a kid, flat broke
I got on board, sat down down and got warm
and across town we rode
took me just about a block away
from exactly where I’s tryin’ to get
I said “thanks,” he said “see ya later”
and I still remember it yet
(chorus)
everybody rides the bus
everybody, that’s us
everybody rides the bus
and everybody thanks the driver
I used to know exactly how much money I had
just by just lookin’ in the palm of my hand
twenty five pennies right down to the number
just like I had it all planned
and I’d sit up front with the driver
and we’d have ourselves a chat
smoke ‘em if you got ‘em when it’s just us two
we’d ride the line like that
(chorus)
Sam was a driver, a juggler, and a clown
he just loved to make people laugh
he had a heart attack drivin’ on the viaduct
with no way to get off of that path
he said “I need a little help at the wheel up here
whatever little help you can give”
and all together they pulled it over
savin’ everybody’s life but his
(chorus)
my friend Annette, she’s singin’ the blues
and she’s blowin’ harmonica too
but it’s hard to make a livin’ ‘round here these days
in this six figure hullaballoo
so she drives the bus five days out of seven
on the other two she grooves
the wheels and the wherewithal
that’s how the world moves
(chorus)
so if you want my autograph
because you like the way I play the guitar
go ask a bus driver first
‘cause I’ll never get you that far
(chorus)
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8. |
AMAZON
04:20
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we live in a boomtown metropolis
a place where success is a weapon of war
some people live in spectacular mansions
some people can’t afford to live anywhere anymore
but Bezos has the money
he’s got all of that money
more than a hundred billion dollars in his pants
way down in his pants
they built a shiny new temple to themselves downtown
people genuflect as they pass
artificial sunlight and climate control
so they can colonize the jungle behind a pain of glass
and because Bezos has the money
he’s got of all that money
clutching in the fingers of his hand
he’s a rich man
Amazon - you don’t have the right to use that name
Amazon - it is a nation and a people
Amazon - one of the world’s greatest rivers
Amazon - it is the lungs of the planet
and we can barely breath anymore
we gather together see what is to be done
we know the risks we take are perilous
we sharpen up our wits for the days ahead to come
somebody has to and it might as well be us
because we have the history
we know what we are doing
and we will not just disappear
we’re gonna stay right here
Amazon - you don’t have the right to use that name
Amazon - it is a nation and a people
Amazon - one of the world’s greatest rivers
Amazon - it is the lungs of the planet
and this is our planet
and it is not for sale
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9. |
AMADOU DIALLO
03:45
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Amadou Diallo
New York City, shot him 19 times
they get away with murder
it oughtta be a capital crime
after midnight
four white cops from the elite corps
and Amadou Diallo
standing in his own front door
Amadou Diallo
he was a West African man
they said he was suspicious
he had something in his hand
it was his wallet
it was his wallet
they put the trial up in Albany
where the police have more friends
they said it was a big mistake
and they’d never let it happen again
his mother cryin’
in a far off lonesome place
she came to see justice done
what she got was a slap in the face
gunslingers
walkin’ on the side of the law
some have a real short fuse
and that can be a fatal flaw
if you fit the description
they might want to see you dance
Amadou Diallo
he never had a chance
there’s a woman in the harbor
and she’s carrying a burning light
but it’s gettin’ hard to see now
there’s gonna be a storm tonight
can’t you hear the thunder
can’t you feel that river run
someone ask a question, someone give an answer
somethin’s gotta be done
everybody’s talkin’
there’s somethin’ on everybody’s mind
Amadou Diallo
it oughtta be a capital crime
Amadou Diallo
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10. |
PULLING THE STATUES DOWN
04:23
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you don’t know me by name
I don’t know you too
but we’re on the same road, my friend
and we have some things to do
in summer of no return
fires lit for the fuse to burn
they killed somebody in broad daylight
gonna take a lot of changes to make it right
(chorus)
pullin’ the statues down, bells a-ringin’
statues down, and everybody singin’
“hey – will look at that
ain’t that a beautiful sight to see?”
some old songs we used to sing
don’t sing them anymore
some flags we used to fly
don’t fly them anymore
architects of a bad design
some worn out state of mind
best just to let it go
you can’t hold on when the winds begin to blow so hard
(chorus)
look – there goes Andrew Jackson
look – there goes Christopher Columbus
look – there goes Junipero Serra
we’ve been at war before
we know that does
sometimes what you stand up for
ain’t what you thought it was
there’s a new day knockin’ on the old one’s door
we can’t ignore it anymore
come on out and take a look to see
the way that it’s about to be
it ain’t if you lose or win
but whose shoes you’re standing in
and I know you understand
so come on out and give me a hand
(chorus)
look – here comes Harriet Tubman
look – here comes Frederick Douglass
look – here comes Geronimo
(chorus)
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11. |
NOW IS THE TIME
05:12
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there are things to come and things to pass
pure and simple, made of glass
to feed the future you weed through the past
to make it fast, and make it last
(chorus)
the time is now, now is the time
the time is now, now is the time
time has come and time has gone
to pick up roots and to move along
to rise up early before the dawn
to start out standing to come on strong
(chorus)
you got eyes to see you got ears to hear
and you know very well what’s been happening here
don’t make light of the people’s tears
stand up and face your fears
(chorus)
there was a time when the winter came
and all the world turned cold
will be a time when the spring arrives
and all the flowers unfold
and the future belongs
the future belongs to the bold
don’t let it scare you, the noise and the dare
so many millions arise everywhere
polish the glass, hold it up to the air
look in the reflection, you’ll see yourself there
(chorus)
now we stand with the wind at our backs
for we are the eye of the storm
we look at the world and the world looks back
and the drums beat a rhythm to warn
that the future is just
the future is just being born
the fuses were lit such a long ways away
and they’d stutter and spark, fade and decay
now the clocks are on fire at the edge of the day
and we turn to each other and say
(chorus)
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Jim Page Seattle, Washington
Named by Seattle Metropolitan Magazine as “One Of The 50 Most Influential Musicians In Seattle History.” Originally from California Page has called Seattle and the Pacific Northwest “home” since 1971. Songs covered by The Doobie Brothers, Christy Moore, Dick Gaughan, Michael Hedges, and Roy Bailey. Utah Phillips: “If you’re ever going to get the message, this is the messenger to get it from.” ... more
Jim Page recommends:
Lost on Purpose
by The Castaways
My buddy Ricardo Russell has recently released this solid gem. Check it out and get lost on purpose.
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J.R. Rhodes sings better than I ever will.
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Dream Your Own Dream
by Orville Johnson
Orville Johnson has been making great soul inspiring music for decades.
go to albumIf you like Jim Page, you may also like:
The St Buryan Sessions
by Sarah McQuaid
Recorded live at St Buryan Church, the latest from Sarah McQuaid is a showcase for the simple power of voice & guitar.
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such bad things happen
by Levi Fuller & the Library
Turbulent indie rock from Levi Fuller & the Library that has the snarl of hardcore and the knotty meter of math rock.
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Our Blood Is Red
by Luke James Williams
Emotive acoustic balladry from this UK musician with heart on sleeve and hushed arrangements.
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