| THE LOST TRAILERS |
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| LYRICS |
| NYC |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson When you�re walkin�, in the city, keep your hands on your wallet.(*2) Cause nobody knows when they�re gonna go. When you�re walkin� in the country, keep your hands in your pockets,(*2) Cause nobody knows where they�re gonna go. Don�t let �em tell you that you�re wasting your precious time�.when they�re sittin� on the other side. When you�re walkin� in New York City, keep your hands off your wallet, |
| Lyrics by Matthew Ryder Lee; Music by Lee and Nielson Tide keeps creepin� squeezing me to row Sad surrender of the summertime of my soul. Water will you wash me down and away Carry me home to the place where I need to lay. Carry you there, and halfway here again, Try to freezeframe, when the second hand seems to spin I wonder can you tell me how, to keep on flowing to the end from now. There�s a quiet and a rest, it ain�t that bad, but far from the best, And my dream keeps getting pulled away from me. And the time I waste will be my time to tell, If I�m walking blind or if I�m running well, And my dream keeps getting pulled away from me. Rain crash harder leave a ripple on my front page, Floood rise higher to drown out my age, Wave break down over me, Send me walking to where I need to be. |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson Where�s your shelter, Where�s your shelter, Where�s your safety, When you�re helpless. It all has to go.. In your glass casino, the one you built, when you were slipping through the cracks, It brought you back. Where�s your heroes, Where�s your Conscience, Where�s your Jesus, When all�s forgotten. It doesn�t really matter.. When your glass casino is spent and shattered on the walls of your front room, It�s what you knew, it�s what you had, it�s where it�s at because it brought you back, To the space that arraigned you, Where everyday is the same, Yes isn�t it a shame, when nothing�s left to show, and your glass casino, comes smashing down, and all the pieces are strewn around, Just pick them up. |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson Don�t mind my need to breathe, must be a part of my imagination, The work grows long now and the nights are short but full to the brim. Words fly in, stares fly out, leaves me feeling inside out. Someone sold me a long time ago, I think they said something about progress, I guess; Hold your tongue �till the job gets done, take a step off the rung when they call for recess. The world is changing now, the cities spread and crack wide open, So close the chapter on the books that left our family�s broken. |
| Family Reunion |
| Walking Blind |
| Glass Casino |
| Fairweather Queen |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson She showed up on my doorstep, with teardrops in her eyes, She said that she�d been lonely, and she�d like to stay the night. I said, �This is the third time, you�ve created such a scene.� But I can�t close the door on, my fairweather queen. Cause when the sun is out, she is always there, And when the grass is green, she is dancing on air, When my pockets are full, she is my everything, But when it rains she is the first to leave, Yes, when it rains she is my fairweather queen. She emptied out her pockets, the air was filled with lent and ash, I knew she�d had her last dance before she thought about coming back; I said, �I see a storm is brewing, the wind is blowing in from the east. You got to take the rain with the sunshine, if you can�t, you�ve got to leave.� Cause when the sun is out, she is always there, And when the grass is green, she is dancing on air, When my pockets are full, she is my everything, But when I�m broke she is the first to leave; Yes, when I�m broke she is my fairweather queen. So who is to say if she will be there, When the storm comes tearing through, But I don�t care, no I have said my piece, And in the end, that�s all a man can do, When your fairweather queen comes to you. |
| Averly Jane |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson I saw her face in horizon clouds, soak up the smoke from her last goodbye, And I can�t feel pain cause there�s no one to blame. Averly was always meant to be free, and when she left she thought it best to take some company, That�s when she broke my chains and we took off. They never knew we were gone till the dawn cried. Hey Hey, Averly, ain�t it �bout time to see, where you need to be tonight; If you�ve got the mind to spare, send it to the ones who care about you, Don�t waste your breath on running alone; Just bring it on home sweet Averly Jane. Walkin� down these ol� graveled tracks, cause I lost her at the Great Divide, I got my sweat-stained sleeve to wipe my brow dry. Every footprint is caked in rust, While my shoes are shining rails I fight the rising dust, Then I feel her face up in the sunrise, They never knew we were gone till the dawn cried� Hey hey Averly, Ain�t it bout time to see, where you need to be tonight, If you�ve got the time to spare, spend it with the ones who care about you, Don�t waste your breath on running alone, Just bring it on home, sweet Averly Jane. And if you see the highway slide beneath your feet, Just take a look around and remember what you see, Cause you might find a friend you know, burning through the morning cold, To help you find your way back home through the misty haze. Hope to see you down again Averly Jane. I caught the glare of a passerby, just a sittin� on the side of the road. He wore his heart on his sleeve, just to watch it bleed. He said, �Son, you look a lot like myself, if I was you I�d put my dreams back on the shelf.� I said, �When I come home, I won�t be alone. I won�t be sittin� on the side of the road while the sun cries.� Hey hey Averly, Ain�t it bout time to see, where you need to be tonight, If you�ve got the kind to spare, share it with the ones who care about you, Don�t waste your breath on running alone, Just bring it on home, sweet Averly Jane. |
| The Battery |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson I woke up on the Battery, on a Charleston Friday night, With my dirt-stained Balances and corduroys, crumpled up by my side. Said goodbye to my company, and then I shook it on down the line, Sometimes I get a little lonely and wish I hadn�t left her behind. Cause every highway bears a bright sign, posted on the side of a roaring world; and every passerby rolls back again, and in the end, you get what you�re looking for. So all I need is my good friends, and a good-hearted woman, just give me some high times, to fall back on. Sometimes I might need a cool drink, and the good Lord to save me, Then I will be found, yes, I will be found. Ran out of gas on the freeway, about a quarter-mile from Abeline, That Texas sun just hung in the sky, smiling on me. A stranger stopped named Casey, said he�s a friend of a friend of mine, He said, �It sure is a small world.�, I said, �It suits me just fine.� (Chorus) Well, they put me in a jail cell, before a race in Bristol, Tennessee; Don�t you go to Sully County, if you want to be free. But there are two ways you can take things, you can make �em right or keep �em wrong, So I kept my mouth closed and played Dominos, �till the judge sent me home. |
| Long Fall |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson The waves are settling down, and the sun has sunk into the sand, And the only calm this city gives is living in these ocean sounds. Well, it�s not as bad as it could be, it�s just not as good as I thought it would be; You�ll find out what you miss most when you�re out alone on the West Coast�. In a long fall, Looks like it�s gonna be a long fall. I�m not sure why I�m still here, when I left my life seemed so clear, Now my dreams are heavy things that are muddied by reality, Cause I can�t find good pay, and there�s no Gamedays on Saturday, Yes, the only tailgates I see down are loading smack and crack cocaine� For a long haul, Up the West Coast in this long fall. My girl loved the price of fame, I lost her when she changed her name, Yes, her face used to feel so soft, �til her agent�s doctor pulled it off, She got a new nose and cheekbones, and a bit part on a TV show, But a home can turn to a frozen place, when the one you love�s got a stranger�s face.. Its� a long fall, out in LA, It�s a long fall. Still no rain, and I don�t feel the same� SOLO Just when I thought I�d head on back, I saw a black haired girl on the concrete path; She flung her hair back with her hands, between the setting sun and a coffee stand; In the fading light I could barely see, when she lit up a Winston and gave it to me, She said, �You look like someone I know�; I said, �I do, well, thanks for the care, cause it shows.� In this longfall, There�s fine folks out on the West Coast. It�s just a longfall. Where there�s no cold, and no one gets old. In this long fall, There�s no rain, but I know Jane will change. |
| Ode to Joe |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson Old Joe was a soldier back in 1973; he stole a johnboat and a battling gun and he headed for the Java Sea; Never made it past the quicksand, he never heard the news the war was dead. Just woke up in a cold sweat, in the arms of a motel bed. He said, �You won�t find me, you won�t find me anywhere; Cause the only road I�ve ever known was Georgia grown and it left me on my own, And now their singing odes to Joe.� Joe just keeps it to the highroad, he hitched a Mississippi Gypsy Queen, She got him lit up like a torchlight, that touches everything he�s ever seen. They saw the fire shoot from the mountain, and a babe roll down the mountainside; Joe hid the kid, said he�s lightnin� bred, but he�s looking like a son of mine. (Chorus) You won�t find me, you won�t find me anywhere;(*2) Got to leave you, but I�ll be back in the wintertime, keep you warm when you are cold. Joe Jr. was a nitro healer with a somber soul to smile, Every town that caught him passing through shined like a beacon for a little while. One day he just slipped away and left Joe and Gypsy on their own, Said, �I�ll be back in the wintertime, when I�ve found another heart of gold.� |
| Landmark |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson I saw the landmark, creeping into town. (*2) It used to stand outside the county line. It used to stand outside the county line. I heard the landmark fall with a crashing sound. They made a blueprint for the space they found. But everything they build, keeps breaking down, down, down; Yes, everything they build, keeps breaking down. It keeps breaking down. I heard the landmark fall with a crashing sound, They made a blueprint for the space they found. They never came back, they tried to kill this town, Cause everything that they build keeps breaking down. |
| Whirlwind |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson Yesterday was a bright shining star on a misty moon, And today is a broad shout away from where we want to be, but it ain�t that bad. Take a freight-train from the east side of town to the west side, and not much happens, Take a cool shade and a Sunday afternoon couch, and feel the howling wind. I hope you are happier now. In this whirlwind. Light changes before it ever starts to reappear, but it don�t matter people cross anyway, And everybody wants a heart that they can hold dear, just as long as it is golden in silence, When you first get off the bus, the city seems surreal, and you get lost in it, And you get hit by the sounds that you never hear, like the howling wind. (Chorus) |
| New Train |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson I went out to Ashton Place, left Nashville for a while; Took my fishin� pole, some cold tall boys, and my old South Georgia smile, Saw a diner on the way down, stopped in for a bite to eat, You�ll never guess who sat right next to me. He wasn�t in a shade of black, no hat upon his head, The only way I knew it was Johnny was that hat that he was wearin�, He said, �Son this ain�t no diner, it�s a different way of life, But if you play your song, you can come inside.� Cause music will keep changing as long as grass will grow, So put your ears to the track, and you�ll hear that whistle blow, So tell those no soul pretty boys to put their guitars down, Cause there�s a new train rollin� into town. Oh my cousin, won�t you look around the room, Waylon�s at the jukebox, and Willie�s makin� brew, Robert Keen and Sunvolt bringing in the younger ears, Yes, young outlaws are always welcome here. Chorus So if you�re feeling haggard like you�re on desolation road, And your panic stricken brothers are starting to get old, Just take the lead out of your shoes, sit right down and sing the blues, And thank the Lord that train is comin� soon. |
| Postcard Home |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson I needed time today, and I needed space, and I found it all on these barren waves; And I could�ve called you to say I was gone, but I never felt like I needed to. I needed peace today, and I needed space, and I felt my time slip into the glaze, I reached behind me, to grasp where I�ve gone, and I found that you were there all along. I don�t leave cause I don�t need you, I leave because I do, And everyday that I�m away keeps me coming back to you. I�m not asking you to sympathize, just know that I wander; Yes, I roam sometimes. I needed faith today to run by my side, to stay through the wake when two lives collide, And two yellowed sentiments await my return, one tear stained postcard and love I don�t deserve. Chorus I needed you today, I called out your name. But you were not there, you were far away. Someday you won�t be so far away. |
| Under FM Waves |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson When you�re in a hole it�s a hard job getting out, And there�s a few bad men full of bread and grins who don�t want you on their cloud. And if you ask for a hand, well they�ll give you one that will push you back in place, And it�s that same hand that pays the man that�s runnin� FM waves. My heroes are not cowboys, they�re the ones who sing about them, Not caring if they�re paid or have a place to lay their head. Cause dough will always come and go, but a good song will never gray, No, you�d never know from radio but there�s gold under FM waves. When you�re outside, they like you lookin� in, And they�ll drink champagne to that window pane where they�ve found a thousand peeping men, And even if you don�t want to sell your tune, they might take it from you anyway, And you�ll feel wronged when you hear your song being slaughtered over FM waves. Chorus So Big Wigs, I wouldn�t want to take your place, Cause I don�t want to find, your French wine, when I�m looking for saving grace, And you can always close your ears, cause one day my voice will fade away, But there will always be a bunch like me, playing music under FM waves |
| Dougherty County |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson He said, �There�s so much there before you, there�s no need for looking back�, I said, �If you grew up where I did, you might not say a thing like that.� Caused your money fades and crumples, turns to lines upon your face, But I learned a lesson long ago, old friends can�t be replaced. So we all meet in Dougherty County, once or twice a year, We laugh and lie and keep the night awake, Our hair is a little longer, our words a little stronger, But our hearts are something the years have never changed. And I remember times like these, they are the times of my life, And I fall back on times like these, when life gets a little rough, Cause they never go too far. He said, �Well, why don�t you go back then.� I said, � Man, I wish I could. But I made a promise long ago, and I�m bound to make it good. And I look forward to tomorrow I�m just proud of where I�ve been, Can�t help but hear their voices ringing through the summer wind. They call me back to Dougherty County on Independence Day, We laugh and sigh and keep the night awake, I guess the reasons that I left hear are the reasons I come back, Sometimes you�ve got to leave to find out what you have. Chorus And these changes, are stealing my ways, they give me today then its gone, And these angels keep me awake, I feel lucky to know them at all. I reach back into my wallet and pull a postcard from its place, The sides are torn and tattered, and the words are half-erased, I guess I�ve memorized those few lines, that my Papa wrote, He said if things aren�t working out, Son, you know you�re always welcome home |
| Fire on the Ponchatraine |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson The cocaine bags and your lovers� numbers, Found in the bottom of our baby�s crib. I never asked for what you have given, And I won�t take it for another day. If you say that I�ve become a stranger in this house that I built for you, Then I would ask you to reconsider your rendezvous out on Lake Ponchatraine. Cause I have been wronged, and I�ve gone mad, And I�ve done violence in the face of love. I tore the wires and left them tattered, that boat I swear to you won�t make it back. I used to guess why men would turn to violence, Then I met you and it came all too clear. The whiskey, wine, and constant lying, And the cheating in our very own home. Cause I have been wronged, and I�ve gone mad, And I�ve done violence in the face of love. I tore the wires and left them tattered, that boat I swear to you won�t make it back. So cheating men, and cheating women, don�t deserve half of what they�ve torn away. Just a brief float, in my old johnboat, and blow them up on the Ponchatraine. Cause I have been wronged, and I�ve gone mad, And I�ve done violence in the face of love. I tore the wires and left them tattered, that boat I swear to you won�t make it back. There�s a fire on the Ponchatraine. I�ll see the rising flames, and make a toast, and I�ll but myself a brand new boat. It�s a beautiful light. How such a beautiful lie turns to a beautiful light. What a beautiful life. On the night of the pouring rain, I saw you leaving for the Ponchatraine, I turn my head and I count to ten, now I want you back again. Oh, what a beautiful life. |
| 6 AM on a Saturday Night |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson I like the way that you're walk-'in away from me, The way you turn and you say, that we'll be back here someday. Cause I will buy what you sell, and all the stories you tell, Well I don't mind it cause I've told them myself. Chorus Just turn a lamp on, and leave your front door unlocked, Cause I will be there when the music has stopped. (*2) Its not enough that I'm young, Its not enough that I'm free, Cause I still need to have my own room to breathe, The way you look is just right, the way you take is so nice, Six in the morning on a Saturday night. Solo Break Down There is a time to be safe, there is a time for the world, But I don't want it 'til my thoughts are all heard. So you can hold all my calls, I'll be out tearing down walls, And I won't stop until I see where they fall. Just leave your lamp on, I'll close your front door up tight, Six in the morning on a Saturday night. Yes, leave your lights on, and keep the front door unlocked, Cause I will be there when the music has stopped. |
| Where Are We Now |
| Lyrics and Music by Geoffrey Stokes Nielson I saw the angels falling from the sky, and the buildings rising up to meet them. Tried to reach you but it was too late, for any consolation.... Oh where are we now? Where are we now? Good Lord what's happening here? They say there's nothing to fear, but the world's falling down. I saw the people running for the streets, and the fire falling all around them; Yes, I knew we'd never be the same, when I heard them calling out your name.... Oh where are we now? Where are we now? Good Lord what's happening here? They say there's nothing to fear, but the world's falling down. We've got the past slung over our shoulders, And the future is clinging to our necks, But we'll keep walking 'till we're out of breath, and let the world figure out the rest...... Oh, where are we now? |
| There's an Old Man standing by a pond, Smiling like the world can do no wrong. Cool water runs against his toes, as he holds the petals of a yellow rose. Years ago he was in Central Park, He and his woman disappeared in the dark, And underneath the city's glow, they left the petals of a yellow rose. So would you be my Yellow Rose? Would you stand beside me when the wild wind blows? I'm only asking cause I'd like to know.... Would you be my Yellow Rose? They came in on a Jersey Train, He took her hand and said, "I love you, Jane." She saw the passing of a garden's row, and said, "I'd be yours if I had one of those." So would you be my Yellow Rose? Would you lay beside me in the morning glow? I'm only asking cause I'd like to know.... Would you be my Yellow Rose? Well, the water is still, and the woman is gone, But the Old Man ain't moving on. Cause there are moments when all you need is a cool pond and a memory..... |
| Yellow Rose |