1. |
Graduation Day
05:20
|
|||
|
GRADUATION DAY, by David Fahl
v1 You been running so hard, you don't get anywhere.
You been learning so much you don't really care to know
You're looking through me now with that educated stare
I think it's time for graduation day.
v2 Something 'bout us always seemed so temporary.
We been skimping on bread, splurging on cherries.
I got to admit something still seems so scary
About graduation day.
Ch1 Nothing lasts forever, we knew it all along.
We're just checking out the damage now, it's time to move along
Don't want to make the next move, afraid we might get it wrong
Nobody planned it this way
But you got to go somewhere on graduation day.
Nothing's the same after graduation day.
V3 Taught you everything I knew, you learned something else
There's stories a hero lives, there's stories he tells
There's treasures he keeps, treasures he sells
To pay for the party on graduation day.
V4 Who's teaching who, it's always in doubt.
There's answers we whisper, there's questions we shout
And you'll go on with me or you'll go on without,
But it won't be the same after graduation day.
Ch2 Nothing lasts forever, that’s saying nothing new
We've got a whole lot to see now, a whole lot to do
And it's been happening to me just like it's happening to you
Nobody planned it this way
But you got to go somewhere on graduation day.
Nothing's the same after graduation day.
|
||||
2. |
Nothing's Gonna Happen
05:16
|
|||
|
NOTHING’S GONNA HAPPEN, by David Fahl
V1 She was leaning in the doorway, delivered by a careless wind.
She had a bottle of tequila, she was thinking ‘bout coming on in.
My guitar was out of tune, I was singing ‘bout a fool I’ve been
Something made her laugh, her laughing let me think I might win.
Ch Nothing’s gonna happen if you don’t make a move
Sometimes you stumble when you try to catch a groove.
You love to play, though sometimes you lose.
Nothing’s gonna happen, Nothing’s gonna happen,
Nothing’s gonna happen, if you don’t make a move.
V2 He was casually dressed but he was wearing kinda formal hair
He had money in his pocket, he had bullets to spare.
He had a feather like a whip, he owned rides at the county fair
She was looking right through him, like he wasn’t really there.
Ch Nothing’s gonna happen if you don’t make a move
Sometimes you stumble when you try to catch a groove.
You love to play, though sometimes you lose
Nothin’ gonna happen, Nothin’ gonna happen,
If you don’t make a move.
V3 It was getting kinda dark I was thinking it was gonna rain
I was looking for my bottleneck I planned on playing “Love in Vain”
I'd been drinking her tequila I was thinking could find some pain
He pulled a pistol from his pcket it was pointing at my baby’s brain
Ch Something’s gonna happen if I don’t make a move
Sometimes I stumble when I try to catch a groove.
I love to play, though sometimes I lose
Something’s gonna happen, Something’s gonna happen
Something’s gonna happen, if I don’t make a move.
V4 I threw the bottle at him it exploded on his lit cigar
It burned his mustache and his eyebrows, knocked his wig ajar
He dropped his pistol to the floor he said he didn’t mean to let it go so far
She started digging through his pockets for the key to that shiny new car
Ch Nothing’s gonna happen if you don’t make a move
Sometimes you stumble when you try to catch a groove.
You love to play, even when you lose
Nothin’ gonna happen, Nothin’ gonna happen,
If you don’t make a move.
Outro Nothing’s gonna happen if you don’t make a move
Nothing’s gonna happen if you don’t make a move
Better make a move.
For crying out loud, do something!
|
||||
3. |
Road Song
04:00
|
|||
|
ROAD SONG, by David Fahl
V1 She took her daddy's Buick. She heads for the desert
She figures under the stars she gonna find her way
Directions are useless when you're running to run
Cruising's like talking with nothing to say
There's the desert you leave, the desert you find, the desert you carry with you.
You don't have to believe but I think you'll find, no desert on earth gonna save you
V2 On the highway tomorrow, the man gonna find you.
He's been sent by his boss, but he's got his own game.
He's holding his ticket you can't turn him away.
He's taking his seat, he's gonna have his say.
There's the game you leave, the game you find, the game you carry with you.
You don't have to believe but I think you'll find, no game on earth gonna save you
Your compass is spinning your map's telling lies
There's an accident waiting there's a reason they say
There's the reason you leave, the reason you find, the reason you carry with you.
You don't have to believe but I think you'll find, no reason on earth gonna save you
v3 There's a big cat walking. He's mean as the night
He knows where you stand and he knows what he needs.
He’s making your movie, you won't like the end.
You call your brother, he's got nothing to say
There's nothing you leave, nothing you find, nothing you carry with you.
You don't have to believe but I think you'll find nothing on earth gonna save you.
|
||||
4. |
Too Much Perfume
04:06
|
|||
|
TOO MUCH PERFUME, by David Fahl
V1 Sometimes she wears a little too much perfume, but that’s all right with me.
Talking sweet with every man in the room, that’s just the way she’s got to be.
I don’t believe there’s a man in this town, would want to turn her down.
I don’t believe there’s a man in this town hasn’t felt like her clown.
V2 Some nights I’d be drinking late, we’d get to talking ‘bout things;
Bad love, good times, long lost friends, parties, and wedding rings.
I don’t believe there’s a joint in this town hasn’t heard our laughing.
I don’t believe there’s a joint in this town gonna grieve our passing.
Br A woman like that, is hard to ignore. She don’t know how to turn it down.
Every man in the place, trying to catch her eye, when his woman’s not around.
Every woman wondering when her man’s gonna fall, or if he’s already done the crime
If they loved her once, want to love her again, if she’d just give ‘em the time.
v3 Some days when the sun’s too bright, she hides behind her shades.
She leaves ‘em on till the middle of the night, don’t wanna let ‘em get mislaid.
I don’t believe there’s a soul in this town knows a better way
I don’t believe there’s a soul in this town.
|
||||
5. |
Close My Eyes
08:10
|
|||
|
CLOSE MY EYES, by David Fahl
V1 She got clear blue eyes and a name she picked up in a book somewhere
She got long brown hair and a smile that says she knows a secret.
She learned the smile before she knew the secret.
She learned her lines before she knew the play.
She learned the game before she knew the prize.
V2 She's a spider of a kind, he's standing in line to be her meal.
He knows how it goes, but he can't deny the way it feels.
He sees the smile, thinks she knows a secret.
He hears the lines, thinks he knows the play.
He plays the game, thinks he knows the prize.
Br Babe I wanna Babe I gotta Babe I need ta get a little
closer to the fire that I see burning when I look into your eyes.
Baby doya Baby canya Baby willya let me kissya
while I hold ya dancing to the music I hear when I close my eyes.
Please believe me I can helpya see if you just let me touchya
while I hold the secrets that I dream of when I when I close my eyes.
I've gotta close my eyes. I've gotta close my eyes.
V3 She’s got clear blue eyes, they blind you when she moves into the light.
She whispers when she tells you you're the only one who ever gets it right.
She touches you lightly, you're glad to have her touching you at all
She waves you goodby. You leave as if you've got somewhere to go.
You touched the smile, you may know the secret.
You said your lines, you know the end of the play.
You played the game, you don't need any prize.
Br Babe I wanna Babe I gotta Babe I need ta get a little
closer to the fire that I see burning when I look into your eyes.
Baby doya Baby canya Baby willya let me kissya
while I hold ya dancing to the music I hear when I close my eyes.
Please believe me I can helpya see if you just let me touchya
while I hold the secrets that I dream of when I when I close my eyes.
You’ve gotta close your eyes, close your eyes.
You’ve gotta close your eyes, close your eyes.
|
||||
6. |
Reptile Love
04:10
|
|||
|
REPTILE LOVE, by David Fahl
V1 I was reading 'bout your brain in a science magazine.
It's a place where the path of evolution can be seen.
You've got your big old frontal lobes make you human and unique,
That's where you get the stuff to watch TV and try to speak.
There's a cerebellum under like in every mammal's head
Runs your habits and emotions, chases down your daily bread.
And in common with the bottom of the vertebrate tree
Is your medulla oblongata that's a’fascinating me.
Ch Come on baby, give me your reptile love.
I got no interest in any of the stuff above.
We can wiggle like the snake, wave our tail like the lizard do.
Meet me at the bottom of your brain, baby. I love you.
V2 Your lizard brain remembers everything the dinosaurs did.
We're not talking superego here. We're barely talking id.
Chasing ancient memories, found with the filter gone,
We'll make a direct connection, then we'll put the other stuff on.
Find a love like hunger, buried treasure of an unknown kind,
Echoes of awareness forgotten to the waking mind.
I'm after something elemental here, I know that you'd agree
If you would be inclined to let your reptile mind set you free.
Ch Come on baby, give me your reptile love.
I got no interest in any of the stuff above.
We can wiggle like the snake, wave our tail like the lizard do.
Meet me at the bottom of your brain, baby. I love you.
Ch Come on baby, give me your reptile love.
I got no interest in any of the stuff above.
We can wiggle like the snake, wave our tail like the lizard do.
Meet me at the bottom of your brain, baby. I love you.
|
||||
7. |
Her Boyfriend's Shirt
03:30
|
|||
|
HER BOYFRIEND'S SHIRT, by David Fahl
V1 She's hurrying down to the grocery store, Before they quit selling the wine.
Strutting all the way from her car to the door, You can tell she's feeling fine. Got her hands in the pockets of her favorite jeans, walking with her shoulders back
She sees the old men all checking her out, she can even put up with that.
Ch ‘Cause she's wearing her boyfriend's shirt, she can feel him all around her.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. Nothing's gonna bring her down.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. Don't ask where he might be tonight.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. She’s gonna be all right.
V2 Watching TV movies in the black and white, lights in the living room off.
She's quit smoking seven times this week. There's a lit one making her cough.
The wine in the bottle is already gone. It's too late to go get any more.
Commercial comes on with his favorite song, the tears begin to pour.
Ch But she's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. She can feel him all around her.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. Nothing's gonna bring her down.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. Don't ask where he might be tonight.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. She’s gonna be all right.
Ch She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. She can feel him all around her.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. Nothing's gonna bring her down.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. Don't ask where he might be tonight.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. She’s gonna be all right.
She's wearing her boyfriend's shirt. She’s gonna be all right.
|
||||
8. |
Feels Like Flying
03:32
|
|||
|
FEELS LIKE FLYING, by David Fahl
v1 Her main man’s got empty pockets. Her side man does, too.
One’s got a broken heart. One’s got the side man blues.
She’s out there chasing midnight, sure she’ll find a better time.
Until she hits the ground, falling feels like flying.
v2 Young man sings a lonely song, old man sings of love.
They’ll swear it’s different songs, but it sounds like the same one.
Calling on a miracle that never comes around.
Falling feels like flying, until you hit the ground.
Br I know I’m no angel, but sometimes
I feel like I’ve got wings.
I soar above the dreary day
Watch the people wearying by
Feel safe, up in my clear blue sky
From everything
v3 She says she’s glad to see you, but she hides her face
Behind her long hair, she’s staring into space
She’s two steps ahead dancing all the way down
Falling feels like flying, until you hit the ground.
Until she hits the ground, falling feels like flying.
|
||||
9. |
Blackout HIghway
04:31
|
|||
|
BLACKOUT HIGHWAY, by David Fahl
V1 I found myself behind the wheel of an old convertible, I’d never seen it before.
I was driving south from Denver towards the Raton Pass,
there was a locked steel briefcase on the passenger floor.
She was in the back seat with a gun at my head. She said “Now it’s time to pull it over.”
Just another interruption in a long sweet dream out on the blackout highway.
V2 ‘Bout a hundred policemen, with bullhorns and lights, somebody shouting my name.
There was blood on my trousers and a song in my head, a ballad about love’s sweet game.
Couldn’t really tell you which exit we were at. From here they kind of all look the same.
Just another interruption in a long sweet dream out on the blackout highway.
Br Some folks’ll tell you that it don’t mean nothing, they say life is but a dream.
Everything’s illusion and everything passes, and nothing’s what it seems.
Don’t know where I come from, can't say where I'm going,
can’t explain what anything means
Got a little situation, requires my attention. 'scuse me while I scream.
V3 There was a long white tunnel and echoing whispers, feeling lighter than air
There were seventeen angels spinning like cyclones and blue sky everywhere
Then a hand on my neck trying to stop the bleeding and I’m shivering in the cold dark air.
Just another interruption to a long sweet dream out on the blackout highway.
V4 There was a clear night sky, miles from anywhere, filled with a million stars.
A woman I love sitting close beside me, we're keeping one another warm.
Thinking about a song from long ago, before I learned what living required.
Another interruption, in a long sweet dream.
|
||||
10. |
Be There, Too
03:04
|
|||
|
BE THERE, TOO, by David Fahl
V1 I’ve never been in love in Arkansas, barely been there at all.
Drove through it a time or two, it’s gorgeous in the fall.
Hadn’t thought much about going back, never felt the call.
But if you want to be there, you know I want to be there, too.
There’s nothing in Arkansas gonna keep me away from you.
V2 There’s a big old world out there, packed full of things to see.
I like this house we’re sitting in, can’t think why I’d leave.
You and my guitars are here, not much else I need.
But if you wanna be somewhere, you know I wanna be there, too.
There’s nothing in this little house gonna keep me away from you.
Br Never been around the world, never sailed the seven seas
Never seen the sun set green in a flash from the Florida Keys.
Never seen the moon rise full and bright from the Parthenon in Greece
But I’ve seen the love in your eyes
Reflecting the love they see in mine.
V3 Never been in love in Italy, but maybe someday I’ll be
If I take a little trip to Italy and you come along with me.
If we never get to Italy, it’ll be alright with me
I’ll be fine if wherever you are, I get to be there, too.
There’s nothing in this wide world gonna keep me away from you
|
||||
11. |
Caravans
05:01
|
|||
|
CARAVANS, by David Fahl
V1 I watched the daylight dying, feared the night’d be cruel and long.
I heard my baby crying “I need one more morning song.”
I thought about the darkness, I thought about the light.
She said “Baby stop your thinking. Sing it to me right.”
Ch1 Picked up my best guitar to hear what it would say.
All the chords were minor in the dying of the day
I sang about a hero stepping through an endless night.
Empty miles of nothing, trembling in his fright.
V2 Some who walk among us deny that we’re all kin.
They raise themselves above the sky, forget they’re mortal men.
They battle one another. We’re the ones who die,
Leaving hungry wives and children, for fairy tales and lies
Ch2 ‘Round the campfires of the caravans they pour the wine ‘til dawn.
Singers tell the stories. Dancers live the songs.
They know the world of moonlight like others know the day.
They whisper in the shadows. They dream the day away.
V3 This world is made for the rulers. It’s not made for me.
I am just a poor man in love with liberty.
There’s many kinds of slavery, chains of violence and deceit.
If you can’t see your prison walls, you never will be free.
Ch3 They’ll try to sell you heaven, trade your time in this world
For promises as empty as a drunken sailor’s words. <or greedy preacher>
They’ll poison all your pleasures, turn your dance into a march.
They fear your vision. They fear your heart.
Ch2 ‘Round the campfires of the caravans they pour the wine ‘til dawn.
Singers tell the stories. Dancers live the songs.
They know the world of moonlight like others know the day.
They whisper in the shadows. They dream the day away.
|
||||
12. |
One Way or Another
04:07
|
|||
|
ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, by David Fahl
V1 Will says this world’s a jungle, you’ve got to fight for what you need.
Take what we can get, and leave the wounded to bleed.
Philip sees a world that needs a lot of love.
Wonders why we stay below what we can rise above.
V2 Some say the world goes on the same no matter what we do,
Like we’re too weak, too wicked, to be making something new.
But we’re each changing something every time we breathe.
And the world that we come into’s not the same world that we leave.
Ch We can tear it into pieces, or mend it where it’s torn.
We can try to hold what’s dying, or help what’s being born.
We can feed or turn our back on all the hungry boys and girls,
But one way or another, we’re going to change the world.
V3 We could bury it in poison, we could burn it in the fire,
Try to freeze it in a dream of some old mens’ desire.
Or practice ways of living with the love we want to know,
Leave it better than we found it when it’s time for us to go.
Ch We can tear it into pieces, or mend it where it’s torn.
We can try to hold what’s dying, or help what’s being born.
We can feed or turn our back on all the hungry boys and girls,
But one way or another, we’re going to change the world.
One way or another, you’re going to change the world.
|
||||
David Fahl Houston, Texas
David Fahl crafts personal narratives with equal measures swagger and sway.
Well-crafter lyrics with an original viewpoint, musically adventurous with solid blues, rock, folk and country roots.
If you like David Fahl, you may also like:
A Picture for a Frame
by Noble Dust
Boston group excels at making songs driven by taut, multilayered vocal harmonies and supported by Americana arrangements.
go to album
I Don't Like My Chances On The Outside
by lilo
The London-based duo's intimate folk music explores love, friendship, and loss.
go to album
Family Album
by Stephen Simmons
Nashville Americana artist Stephen Simmons reaches deep into his own family tree for an album of clear-eyed, open-hearted storytelling.
go to album
The Open Road - Arizona Amp & Alternator
by Howe Gelb
The prolific Arizona songwriter's latest is a scrapbook of the past five years of work.
go to album
Hooky
by This Frontier Needs Heroes
featured on Bandcamp Radio Sep 10, 2013
go to album
Irish singer-songwriter Oisin Leech's acoustic folk music is characterized by its muted beauty and intimate, solitary quality.
go to album
The haunting new record from Canadian folk artist Avi C. Engel bridges old and new traditions with a minimalist approach.
go to album
