1. |
Revolver Blues
04:55
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You slighted me with a promise
Said you’d never leave my side
You triumphed in the way you met me
Long before I found my pride
You said you’d rectify all the times we fought
And raised your glass up to the sky
But I woke up and viewed you all the same
I saw right through your roving eyes
I’m a bullet you load in your revolver
Waiting in the cylinder with other sorry souls
I’m sent flying through the barrel
Piercing my dignity right through the skull
When you’re mad at me, you treat affection
Like it’s an awful sin
You roll in late and go to sleep without a word
I can only wonder where you’ve been
The porch light’s glow is slowly fading
It screams out for kerosene
In the darkness I lay out the minefield
I won’t let you burden me in dreams
I’m a bullet you load in your revolver
Waiting in the cylinder with other sorry souls
I’m sent flying through the barrel
Piercing my dignity right through the skull
I’m a bullet you load in your revolver
Waiting in the cylinder with other sorry souls
I’m sent flying through the barrel
Piercing my dignity right through the skull
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2. |
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Let me relive that night you looked at me longingly
Then you took me home just because you were lonely
Meanwhile, you were the one I wanted only
You wanted a cowboy, but you got me
I wear my cowboy hat in hopes that you might see
I don't look like him, although I still can please
I must admit, this is all causing me grief
Cause you wanted a cowboy, but you got me
It's time I tell you the truth, I ought to set you free
But it's hard, I'll let you go, reluctantly
I'll say it fast and not very poetically
You should find a cowboy instead of me
Yeah, you should find a cowboy instead of me
You wanted a cowboy, but you got me
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3. |
Garden Over Embers
03:36
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When did reality become subpar?
Pills in my pocket and liquor never far
Powder in my wallet and a fatal family at the bar
Remnants of a childhood left so marred
When we sat down for dinner in the North End
I never thought you’d present my one year medallion
Let’s say a prayer for your mama up in Heaven
That ring on your finger must mean something
We somehow grew a garden over embers
At dawn our lilacs revel, then surrender
It seems God offered me a pardon
So I share this sober toast with you my darling
When did reality become subpar?
Dealers were friends, took drugs from strange men,
And passed out in the train car
Any grievance sent my way
Was a good excuse to escape the pain
Nights spent praying that I’d wake up tomorrow sane
When we sat down for dinner in the North End
I never thought you’d present my one year medallion
Let’s say a prayer for your mama up in Heaven
These rings on our fingers must mean something
We somehow grew a garden over embers
At dawn our lilacs revel, then surrender
It seems God offered me a pardon
So I share this sober toast with you my darling
God must have offered us a pardon
Now I share this sober toast with you my darling
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4. |
Dead Ends
02:56
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I've reached some dead ends
And cried over dead friends
Strangers made their passes
When I showed up cashless
And told them, my words were all I had
I've lost good love to petty theft
And lost my voice to cigarettes
My actions caught up fast
As I fumbled in my craft
Traded my audience for whatever was on tap
But now I must confess
Things no longer seem like my death sentence
I put some views to rest
Paranoia never got me far
It was rooted in regret
I languished on the bottom shelf
'Til I was seeing stars
Most everyone has seen
A loved one turn mean
Words can't be taken back
My mind rewinds the track
When trust has been tampered with
Not much remains intact
But now I must confess
Things no longer seem like my death sentence
I put some views to rest
Paranoia never got me far
It was rooted in regret
I languished on the bottom shelf
'Til I was seeing stars
But now I must confess
Things no longer seem like my death sentence
I put some views to rest
Paranoia never got me far
It was rooted in regret
I languished on the bottom shelf
'Til I was seeing stars
I languished on the bottom shelf
'Til I was seeing stars
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5. |
Sacred Kind
03:21
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Can you sing “By the Mark”
From where you’re resting now?
You take the melody
I have the harmony down
In the mother of pearl beneath my strings
You carved your hand reaching from the clouds
Was it a sign
That you would leave us all behind?
Was there anything left on earth
That could have kept you here?
Did you even know
You were the sacred kind?
Then you made the world resign
When you put your fire out
Roads you’ll never drive
Unseen visions of your future wife
Instruments you would have made
And the songs you’ll never get to write
They all went up in a cloud of smoke
When your flame heaved its last sigh
We missed the signs
That you would leave us all behind
Was there anything left on earth
That could have kept you here?
Did you even know
You were the sacred kind?
Then you made the world resign
When you put your fire out
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6. |
Devil in a Bar Fight
02:42
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Chance never wanted to raise a child
Meeting women in the dungeon was more his style
He stopped stealing tractor trailers
Took his cheap suit to the tailor
And cried out to the heavens, I’m not a failure
Chance found a night job slinging drinks
He’d splash his reddened face in the kitchen sink
How could he resist temptation?
Part-time barman, full-time patron
Doused his suit with rum as a libation
Chance taught pretty girls how to play pool
Every now and then when he remembered the rules
Left the bar floor caked in sin
Whiskey knocked beer out of the ring
His cigarette said vows to the morning drink
He said,
I’m not cut out to be here every minute
I don’t wanna leave this world
But I don’t wanna be fully in it
And if I die by chance so will my plight
When I was cruising dry
I lost to the devil in a bar fight
I lost to the devil in a bar fight
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7. |
Stranger Park
04:01
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We’d always go to stranger park
Where the lost men would hide
We’d pick up the litter
And watch the rail yard at night
Buried all my pets there
And it’s where I went to cry
Remember the time
We flew the paper airplane high
Far above the buildings
And into the sky
I can see it soaring
If I close my eyes
I was well aware
That the bottle was your true love
I’d known that before I was even ten
Yet I still clung to the idea
At least I was your best friend
I’ll be about to let you go
But love is the whisper
That can sense my resignation
Yet stubbornly linger
All of my resentment
Starts to taste bitter
The urge to reform
Lies dormant in you
Your eyes are lustrous
And unbearable too
Your apology is soothing
But it’s long overdue
I was well aware
That the bottle was your true love
I’d known that before I was even ten
Yet I still clung to the idea
At least I was your best friend
I’ll be about to let you go
But love is the whisper
That can sense my resignation
Yet stubbornly linger
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Johanna Wacker Boston, Massachusetts
Johanna Wacker is a singer-songwriter and roots musician from Queens, NY, though much of her family comes from the mountains of Virginia. Johanna’s music incorporates traditional influences from Appalachian old-time, bluegrass, classic country, blues, and the American folk revival. Her primary instruments are banjo and guitar, but she also plays fiddle, mandolin, and mountain dulcimer. ... more
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