1. |
Strangers Three
03:45
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Stranger please, I'd like to go back to the time when we,
when we had never met and there was nothing to forget
'cause you, regret and me were better off
as strangers three.
Stranger please, I wonder if we couldn't
take back these things we said but shouldn't,
cursing that ventriloquist who made your mouth an angry fist
that kissed us strangers three.
And now my memory's a minefield,
though it's been riddled with our tears.
And though they say that only time heals,
I'll make you disappear if it takes a hundred years.
Stranger please, so if you wouldn't mind
releasing me from this unholy bind -
let ash to ash and dust to dust because
you and me and trust are just the same as
as strangers three.
And now my memory's a tattoo,
the green inky outline of your name.
They say that patience is a virtue
but I hope you fade away before another day.
Stranger please, so now the credits role
up on the screen, the same stupid story's told-
the lights come up, the ushers weep
as you, me and deceit complete the theme
of strangers three,
just us strangers three, bye-bye strangers three.
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2. |
Lullaby To A Nightmare
02:48
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Cross the "t" as in "tragedy" by the old spine
and dot the "i" in "apologize" for the last line.
And words that bind this lullaby to a nightmare
wake us up where we began.
Emphasize and italicize for the meaning.
Parenthesize "…over Jessie's eyes..." while she's sleeping.
And words that bind this lullaby to a nightmare
wake us up where we began.
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3. |
A Long Time Ago
03:23
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I think there were roses, I'd swear there were roses,
and there was the ocean's hum and somebody singing some
song that I used to know
but that was a long time ago.
I think she was laughing, yes I'd swear she was laughing -
a dance in an empty room and under the waning moon
something was whispered low
but that was a long time ago.
I think I was staring, I'm sorry for staring
you see you remind me of the girl that I used to love
I'd better get going home 'cause that was a long time ago.
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4. |
I Dreamt I Was A Boat
03:01
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I dreamt I was an empty boat
floating on the sea, but the sea was black
and swallowed anything that sailed upon its back.
I dreamt I was a lonely snake
snaking through the earth, but the earth was black
and swallowed anything that snaked upon its back.
And I dreamt I had a Valentine's, pressed her lips to mine,
but her lips were black
and they swallowed anything that passed before their crack.
And I dreamt you were a photograph swaddled all in white
I kissed your wooden spine and swallowed all my pride -
you are no longer mine.
Then I dreamt we were alone at last
drifting to the sun because the sun was white
I followed all my clues, to me the sun was you,
I followed all my clues, to me the sun was you
and I'm following the sun but the sun won't follow me.
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5. |
The Fisherman's Line
06:31
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He knew her face better when the lights were off
and could not erase the palette of her words.
They made their way into the tissue of his dreams
and built their nest, shiny silver birds.
No longer can the fisherman stand by.
She knew his face better when the screen was lit
and cut and paste a dialogue of bones.
And in a place somewhere in between the frames
she found a grace withered and alone.
No longer can the fisherman stand
the tightness of the line so he closes his eyes
and raises his hands high.
Now when they face it seems that all the lines are blurred
once pulled so tense from under and above.
And now they trace two figures as they intertwine.
The sea's embrace envelopes them in love.
No longer can the fisherman stand the tightness
of the line so he closes his eyes and raises his hands
to the endless plain of sky.
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6. |
Bells Will Ring
03:58
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A single voice, the silver thread
unravels sentences from the pages.
The spoken words alight like birds
and spin in spirals around our heads -
yours veiled in white delightful coils
it's a beauty a name would soil
but tenderness fits you best,
it's the suit that you wear so well,
dressing up for the show and tell
when bells will ring.
The flowers fly the old girls cry
beneath umbrellas of memory,
the golden ring, new queen and king
pray and kneel at the throne of love
basking under the clangs above
when bells will ring.
And it's love that makes her glow,
take my word for it I should know
when bells will ring.
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7. |
The Beekeeper's Daughter
04:19
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There's the color of tea that's been steeping too long,
steeped in memory of buzzing yellow swarms.
But if you show me your room I'll gladly show you mine,
your beautiful cryptic tomb where nothing ever dies.
I wanted to ask her but words underwater
they get stuck in the syrup of the beekeeper's daughter.
There's the humming of trees where fragrant flags unfurl
and just a drop for the queen and another drop for the girl
I wanted to show her to build her an alter
with bee's wax for the mortar to the beekeeper's daughter.
I wanted to ask her but words underwater they get in the syrup
before they can adorn her and I wanted to show her,
to build her an alter with bee's wax for the mortar
to the beekeeper's daughter.
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8. |
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The memories are so thick but now time slips in between them
like the ocean through a sieve, like streaming down the cheeks
from staring at the sky that ties us up inside.
Don't let them slip away like the waves pull sandy weeds
away from rocky shores just leaving residue,
it's the sad cruel residue that ties us up inside.
The memories are not thin, they're a deep vermillion hue
and full of gravity when I pull them from the box
that's tied up inside my head by a ribbon there that says,
"A large, large part of my small, small life that ties us up inside.
A large, large part of my small, small life that ties us up inside".
Someday we may be friends and the box inside my head
can be filled up again.
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9. |
Wake Me Awake
02:39
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Mother says, "Look out below there's a madman and a liar.
Take the gun out of his hands because he's playing with fire.
Wake me awake, am I dreaming?
Because no one here will say exactly who's to blame
for breaking the backbones of reason.
You throw it all away when these children want to play too rough
enough to raze the bluff to an anthill with a finger
and roll the bones with creaks and groans of a gambler on a bender.
Wake me awake, am I dreaming?
Because no one here will say exactly who's to blame
for breaking the backbones of reason.
You throw it all away when these children want to play too
rough.
Wake me awake, am I dreaming?"
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10. |
Boys Can Fall
07:22
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I found me lost in a dream of an endless blue meander
where diamond words, anointed pearls
tipped the blades of heaven's lathe.
And down below they waved hello, their feeble arms beating the air.
Aren't you afraid, the boy made your fatal wings of wax and hair,
'cause you're no god, this is no dream -
you're just a boy, and after all, boys can fall.
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Erik Sanko New York, New York
Erik Sanko is best known as a contributor to many of downtown NYC's infamous musical elite and a founding member of the
joyfully raucous Skeleton Key.
After releasing the critically acclaimed solo record "Past Imperfect, Present Tense" in 2001 Erik broke a guitar string and lost his train of thought.
Expect the follow up no sooner than 2029.
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