Music
The Ghosts That Haunt Me
©1991
Winter Song
I can't say that I miss my old dog much
And I've never looked back since I left home long ago
But I hoped a trip into the country
Would help remind me all the things I used to know

That's what I came for
That's what I hoped for

There once was good blood in the breeze here
We rode across the lake each new year
What have I remembered
What did this used to be

The ice, it used to shine upon our river
It was a mirror that the cold dark water ran way deep beneath
And here were many years of winter drownings
I kept track of these things as they were told to me

And that's what I came for
That's what I hoped for

There once was good blood in the breeze here
We rode across the lake each new year
What have I remembered
What did this used to be

The changes of the year were once a blessing
Well this year they're the seasons of my discontent
But I cannot rewrite my old diaries
I can only recall all the things that came & went

And that's what I came for
That's what I hoped for

There once was good blood in the breeze here
We rode across the lake each new year
What have I remembered
What did this used to be
(2x)
Comin' Back Soon (The Bereft Man's Song)
I've all my wisdom teeth
Two up top, two beneath
And yet I'll recognise
My mouth says things that aren't so wise
But when I sing my darling's praise
I know I'm right, or close anyways
For she's a gem upon this earth
I know to me she will return

CHORUS
Oh I know it's true, I know it's true
That I was made for her, and she me too
And I'm confident that she'll think so too
And she'll be coming back...soon

Mornings we have toast and tea
I gaze across the table, she glares right back at me
And when we're getting low on jam
I give her the last spoonful, that's just the way I am
And I drive her to work each day
Even though it's early and work is far away
And I don't even say a thing
When she plays the radio so loud you cannot think

[chorus]

I can't stand her goddamned friends
But I will tolerate them, even though I hate them
And I will put up with her parents
'cause she says I'll not meet someone who is so kind and sweet
Ever again...

[chorus]

I've all my wisdom teeth
Two up top, two beneath
And yet I'll recognise
My mouth says things that aren't so wise
But when I sing my darling's praise
I know I'm right, or close anyways
For she's a gem upon this earth
I know to me she will return

[chorus]

Yeah she'll be coming back...soon
Superman's Song
Tarzan wasn't a ladies' man
He'd just come along and scoop 'em up under his arm
Like that, quick as a cat in the jungle
But Clark Kent, now there was a real gent
He would not be caught sittin' around in no
Junglescape, dumb as an ape doing nothing

Superman never made any money
For saving the world from Solomon Grundy
And sometimes I despair the world will never see
Another man like him

Hey Bob, Supe had a straight job
Even though he could have smashed through any bank
In the United States, he had the strength, but he would not
Folks said his family were all dead
Their planet crumbled but Superman, he forced himself
To carry on, forget Krypton, and keep going

Superman never made any money
For saving the world from Solomon Grundy
And sometimes I despair the world will never see
Another man like him

Tarzan was king of the jungle and Lord over all the apes
But he could hardly string together four words: "I Tarzan, You Jane."

Sometimes when Supe was stopping crimes
I'll bet that he was tempted to just quit and turn his back
On man, join Tarzan in the forest
But he stayed in the city, and kept on changing clothes
In dirty old phonebooths till his work was through
And nothing to do but go on home

Superman never made any money
For saving the world from Solomon Grundy
And sometimes I despair the world will never see
Another man like him
(2x)
The Country Life
Darling I've been thinking this one through
We've been fighting like cat and dog now here's what we've go to do
This life in the city is killing the love that we one knew
We could be happy in the country

We would spend so many lovely days
We'd have chickens and cows and corn and whatever it is farmers raise
At breakfast each morning we'd fry up our own hand-picked eggs
We could be happy in the country

So let's pack our bags up together
And we'll be in the clear forever

We'll just sit right back and watch while our crops grow
While we listen to gals like Kitty Wells on country radio
Weekends we's two-step at some cowboy bar just down the road
We could be happy in the country

I know that the local folks will make us feel right at home
We'll have homemade whiskey and ramble down country roads

And I would learn to ride on the rodeo
I'd have shiny boots and a cowboy hat so that nobody'd ever know
That we'd once been city folks that owned sporty cars and fancy homes
If we could just be in the country
Here On Earth (I'll Have My Cake)
Some folks say that life is just a veil of tears
Not me man I can't pack enough into these years
I don't care if it's spring summer winter or fall
Make no fuss about the seasons, 'cause I like 'em all

Here on earth I'll have my cake
Gonna eat it too, make no mistake
'Cause if it's a question of to be or not to be
I'll put on my boots and go see what I can see

My grandpa, well a good Christian life he led
Worked like a dog just to put a roof over his head
He said that when he died he'd get his reward
'Cause heaven's a place where you don't pay room & board

Here on earth I'll have my cake
Gonna eat it too, make no mistake
'Cause if it's a question of to be or not to be
I'll put on my boots and go see what I can see

When I die, I hope I don't die too slow
But slow or quick, I hope heaven is the place I go
Old St. Pete's gonna serve me my pie in the sky
And I'll say "Pete, a side of ice cream, if you don't mind."

Here on earth I'll have my cake
Gonna eat it too, make no mistake
'Cause if it's a question of to be or not to be
I'll put on my boots and go see what I can see
The Ghosts That Haunt Me
There's a skeleton in everybody's closet
I can think of one or two in my own room
But I would like to introduce them both to you
You'd shake their bony hands and so dispell the gloom

'Cause you're so kind
I know you would not mind
You'd send away the ghosts that haunt me now
And the things I fear
Just wouldn't seem so near
And when I stroll out late at night
There would be nothing rattling at my hells

There are nights when all my aching bones won't let me sleep
And demons come to plague me as I lie in bed
But I know if you were sleeping there beside me then
That you could fend them off and they would let me rest

There are nights
When the wind comes howling through my old place
I have dreams
And I wake up with the sweat pouring down my face
And I wait till the morning comes

There will come a time I fear when all my days are done
And they will come collect my corpse and bury me
And then I hope you'll come over to the Other Side
To join me in our new life, keep me company
Thick-Necked Man
We're talkin' about a thick necked man in the city
Build a pub a blood and sweat
Swears by God he'll stand by justice
He aint stood by justice yet
He gets them drunk and gets their money
They cash their welfare checks for stout
Now he throws them into the street
He's sucked you in, he'll spit you out

This money-minded son of a bitch
Will not a penny lend
And all I can do is pray to God
He'll suffer in the end

We're talkin' 'bout thick-necked man in a three-piece
Killing from his office desk
The many places he has been
And many more he'll visit yet
Without his mommy's pride & kisses
Without his country's confidence
Without the dying man's permission
Without no guilt or consequence

This bloody-minded son of a bitch
Has not a wound to mend
And all I can do is pray to God
He'll suffer in the end

Now we're talkin' 'bout a thick-necked man in a fist fight
Losing lots of blood
It's not his night, his boss is uptight
His face and name are covered in mud
He watches T.V., all star wrestling
Slams a six of ale
Hits his wife, wrecks the car
And spends the long dark night in jail
Well the Preacher man, he comes and asks him
Does he know the mess he's in?
He says he'll turn to Jesus if he'll
Bail him out and buy him gin

This narrow-minded son of a bitch
Has not a soul to mend
And all I can do is pray to God
He'll get one in the end
Androgynous
Here comes Dick, he's wearing a skirt
Here comes Jane you know she's sportin' a chain
Same hair, a revolution
Same build, evolution
Tomorrow who's gonna fuss?
And they love each other so, androgynous
Closer than you know, love each other so, androgynous

We'll don't get him wrong, and don't get him mad
He might be a father but he sure aint a dad
And she don't need the advice that is sent to her
She's happy the way she looks, she's happy with her gender
And they love each other so, androgynous
Closer than you know, love each other so, androgynous

Mirror image, see no damage, see no evil at all
Cupie dolls and urine stalls will be laughed at
The way you're laughed at now

Something meets boy and something meets girl
They both look the same they're overjoyed in this world
Same hair revolution
Unisex evolution
Tomorrow who's gonna fuss?

And tomorrow Dick is wearing pants,
Tomorrow Jane is wearing a dress
Future outcasts and they don't last
And today people dress the way that they please
The way they tried to do in the last centuries

And they love each other so, androgynous
Closer than you know, love each other so, androgynous.
The Voyage
It may be that I'd like to
But I won't fall in love with you
We won't spend the rest of our lives together
But anyway couldn't we go on a trip together

We could go to the British Islands
And hike around the Scottish Highlands
The youth hostels they have there
would be perfect for us
Cause we're both youths,
so they would really suit us

Well darling each morning when we woke up
We'd have biscuits and tea from a tea cup
People might think that we were on our honeymoon
But we'd know better, even though we'd slept in the same room

We would live right out of our back packs
We'd send our parents lots of trinkets and knickkacks
Through the post and across the sea
Back to our own country

After that we could go to Yugoslavia
Oh how I'd love to travel with ya'
We don't have to be wife and husband
To take a trip across the ocean
At My Funeral
I'm still young, but I know my days are numbered
1234567 and so on
But a time will come when these numbers have all ended
And all I've ever seen will be forgotten

Won't you come
To my funeral when my days are done
Life's not long
And so I hope when I am finally dead and gone
That you'll gather round when I am lowered into the ground

When my coffin is sealed and I'm safely 6 feet under
Perhaps my friends will see fit then to judge me
Oh when they pause to consider all my blunders
I hope they won't be too quick to begrudge me

Won't you come
To my funeral when my days are done
Life's not long
And so I hope when I am finally dead and gone
That you'll gather round when I am lowered into the ground

If I should die before I wake up
I pray that the Lord my soul will take but
My body, my body - that's your job

Well I can't be sure where I'm headed after death
To heaven, hell, or beyond to that Great Vast
But if I can I would like to meet my Maker
There's one or two things I'd sure like to ask

Won't you come
To my funeral when my days are done
Life's not long
And so I hope when I am finally dead and gone
That you'll gather round when I am lowered into the ground