SHADOWS AND STORM CLOUDS (Pain)

More enjoyable quotes

Some are born to sweet delight, others to endless night. (William Blake)

To get along with me, don’t increase my tension. (Ty Cobb)

This present darkness. (Ephesians 6:12)

Like hot-house plants set down on a bomb site, they are doomed from the start, their exotic beauty withered by the arid ground, mean surroundings and bleak economic climate. Those born to endless night are a renegade breed, unable to conform and poisoned by the beauty that seeps through their pores. Helpless in the face of genius that beats them back like an open blast furnace. All of the damned, whether they destroyed themselves or lingered on, were eaten away by the world.

Hellhound on my trail every place I go.
(Robert Johnson).

Blues and trouble, they was glad to shake my hand. (Robert Jr. Lockwood)

It is a time when one's spirit is subdued and sad, one knows not why; when the past seems a storm-swept desolation, life a vanity and a burden, and the future but a way to death. (Mark Twain)

Blood will flow when flesh and steel are one

Drying in the color of the evening sun.

Tomorrow's rain will wash the stain away,

But something in our minds will always stay.

On and on the rain will fall,

Like tears from a star, like tears from a star.

On and on the rain will say

How fragile we are, how fragile we are.
(Sting)

The tears flowed like wine.

Excess of job or excitement must be paid for by subsequent depressions. When the trial lasts, the strength to the emergency; but when it is over, natural weakness claims the right to show itself. Secretly sustained, Jacob can wrestle all night, but he must limp in the morning when the contest is over.
(Charles Spurgeon)

Eleanor Rigby picks up the rice in the church
Where the wedding has been
Lives in a dream
Waits at the window wearing the face
That she keeps in a jar by the door
Who is it for?
All the lonely people where do they all come from?
All the lonely people, where do they all belong?
(Lennon & McCartney)

Wyatt Earp to Doc Holliday: "Doc, what makes Johnny Ringo so mean?" "He has a hole through the middle of him that all the violence and destruction in the world can't fill." "But what caused the hole, Doc?" "The need for revenge, Wyatt." "But revenge for what, Doc?" "For being born.

"What do you want out of life anyway, Wyatt?" "I just want to lead a normal life, Doc." "Wyatt, you know there's no such thing as a normal life."
(From the movie, "Tombstone")

A myriad of men are born; they labor and sweat and struggle for bread; they squabble and scold and fight; they scramble for little mean advantages over each other; age creeps upon them; infirmities follow; shames and humiliations bring down their prides and their vanities; those they love are taken from them, and the joy of life is turned to aching grief. The burden of pain, care, misery, grows heavier year by year; at length, ambition is dead, pride is dead; vanity is dead; longing for release is in their place. It comes at last—the only un-poisoned gift earth ever had for them—and they vanish from a world where they were of no consequence; where they achieved nothing; where they were a mistake and a failure and a foolishness; there they have left no sign that they have existed—a world which will lament them a day and forget them forever. Then another myriad takes their place, and copies all they did, and goes along the same profitless road, and vanishes as they vanished—to make room for another, and another, and a million other myriads, to follow the same arid path through the same desert, and accomplish what the first myriad, and all the myriads that came after it, accomplished—nothing!

(Mark Twain)

"Does the road wind up-hill all the way?"
"Yes, to the very end."
"Will the day’s journey take the whole long day?"
"From morn to night, my friend."
(Christini Rosetti)

She lives alone with no one who can see she’s unhappy

She knows what she’s lost, still she’s waiting for more

She could be living in hell and not know someone loves her

What can she do, what is she waiting for?

The day turns to night,

He just can’t find the right words to tell her

Twisting and turning and looking for something to say

If you would let me hold you

I wouldn’t walk away

That’s what he wants, that’s what he wants to say

What can she lose, what is she waiting for?

He knows when she cries and he saw through the lies that she told him

She’s dreaming and planning a vow she could ask him to stay

If you would let me love you, I wouldn’t be the same

Please can we try, please can’t we try again?

(Maryanne Faithfull)

Alone Again (Naturally)
                      In a little while from now
                      If I’m not feeling any less sour
                      I promise myself to treat myself
                      And visit a nearby tower
                      And climbing to the top will throw myself off
                      In an effort to make it clear to who
                      Ever what it’s like when you’re shattered
                      Left standing in the lurch at a church
                      Where people saying: "My God, that’s tough
                      She's stood him up"
                      No point in us remaining
                      We may as well go home
                      As I did on my own
                      Alone again, naturally

To think that only yesterday
                      I was cheerful, bright and gay
                      Looking forward to well, wouldn’t do
                      The role I was about to play
                      But as if to knock me down
                      Reality came around
                      And without so much, as a mere touch
                      Cut me into little pieces
                      Leaving me to doubt
                      Talk about God and His mercy
                      Or if He really does exist
                      Why did He desert me in my hour of need
                      I truly am indeed Alone again, naturally
                      It seems to me that there are more hearts
                      broken in the world that can’t be mended
                      Left unattended
                      What do we do? What do we do?
                      Alone again, naturally

Now looking back over the years
And whatever else that appears
I remember I cried when my father died
Never wishing to hide the tears
And at sixty-five years old
My mother, God rest her soul,
Couldn’t understand why the only man
She had ever loved had been taken
Leaving her to start with a heart so badly broken
Despite encouragement from me
No words were ever spoken
And when she passed away
I cried and cried all day
Alone again, naturally
Alone again, naturally
(Gilbert O'Sullivan)

I’m a thousand miles from nowhere

Time don’t matter to me.

I’m a thousand miles from nowhere

There’s no place I want to be.

I got heartaches in my pocket

I got echoes in my head.

I’m a thousand miles from nowhere.
(Dwight Yokum)

I wish I didn’t know now what I didn’t know then. (Bob Seger)

Jack Teagarden, jazz trombonist, died alone of pneumonia.

He had a lot of happiness lock away inside of him, really padlocked, and it never came out—just the feeling of sadness. It was always there.

The coffin was open and I remember thinking, boy he really looks uncomfortable in there.

(Fellow musicians & friends of Mr. T.)

The blues they start rollin’
And they start at my front door.
My life has been like a rollin’ stone.
Until I find someone that loves me
Guess I’ll just keep on movin’ on.
Someday, someday, I’m gonna be six feet in my grave
There’ll be no more worries and I won’t have to feel this way.

I SEE A DARKNESS

Well, you're my friend

And can you see

Many times we've been out drinking

Many times we've shared our thoughts

Did you ever, ever notice, the kind of thoughts I got

Well you know I have a love, for everyone I know

And you know I have a drive, for life I won't let go

But sometimes this opposition, comes rising up in me

This terrible imposition, comes blacking through my mind

And then I see a darkness

Oh no, I see a darkness

Do you know how much I love you

Cause I'm hoping some day soon

You'll save me from this darkness

Well I hope that someday soon

We'll find peace in our lives

Together or apart

Alone or with our wives

And we can stop our whoring

And draw the smiles inside

And light it up forever

And never go to sleep

My best unbeaten brother

That isn't all I see

(Johnny Cash)

I'm Tryin
This gettin up early, pulling double shifts,
Gonna make an old man of me long before I ever get rich.
But I'm tryin
It's been two years since we've finalized,
I still ain't used to puttin ex in front of wife.
But I'm tryin.
Send more money right away, is pretty much all she has to say when she
Calls these days and don't you be late

But all I can do, is all I can do and I keep on tryin
And all I can be is all I can be and I keep on tryin
There's always a mountain in front of me,
Seems I'm always climbin and fallin and climbin
But I keep on tryin

HURT

I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real
The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything

What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

(Trent Reznor)

This gettin up early, pulling double shifts,
Gonna make an old man of me long before I ever get rich.
But I'm tryin
It's been two years since we've finalized,
I still ain't used to puttin ex in front of wife.
But I'm tryin.
Send more money right away, is pretty much all she has to say when she
Calls these days and don't you be late

But all I can do, is all I can do and I keep on tryin
And all I can be is all I can be and I keep on tryin
There's always a mountain in front of me,
Seems I'm always climbin and fallin and climbin
But I keep on tryin

I remember daddy sayin keep your eye on the ball, run like hell, play to win,
Get up when you fall
I'm tryin
Don't say nothin that you can't take back
Never do anything you might regret
No don't do that
Daddy I'm tryin
Know the difference between heaven and hell
Go easy on the bottle be hard on yourself
And I know he meant well

But all I can do, is all I can do and I keep on tryin
And all I can be is all I can be and I keep on tryin
There's always a mountain in front of me,
Seems I'm always climbin and fallin and climbin
But I keep on tryin

There's always a mountain in front of me
Seems I'm always climbin and stumblin
And then fallin'
And then climbin'
But I keep on tryin'

(Chris Wallin/Jeffrey Steele/Anthony Smith)

DESPEREADO

Desperado, why don't you come to your senses?

You been out ridin' fences for so long now.

Oh, you're a hard one,

But I know that you've got your reasons.

These things that are pleasin' you,

Can hurt you somehow.

Don't you draw the queen of diamonds, boy,

She'll beat you if she's able.

Know the queen of hearts is always your best bet.

Now it seems to me, some fine things,

Have been laid upon your table.

But you only want the things that you can't get.

Desperado, oh, you ain't gettin' no younger:

Your pain and your hunger, they're drivin' you home.

And freedom, oh freedom,

Well, that's just some people talkin'

Your prison is walking,

Through this world all alone.

And don't your feet get cold in the winter time?

The sky won't snow, the sun won't shine

It's hard to tell the night time from the day

You're loosin' all your highs and lows

Ain't it funny how the feeling,

Goes away?

Desperado, why don't you come to your senses?

Come down from your fences, and open the gate

It may be rainin', but there's a rainbow above you,

You better let somebody love you,

You better let somebody love you,

You better let somebody love you,

Before it's too late.

(The Eagles)

I remember daddy sayin keep your eye on the ball, run like hell, play to win,
Get up when you fall
I'm tryin
Don't say nothin that you can't take back
Never do anything you might regret
No don't do that
Daddy I'm tryin
Know the difference between heaven and hell
Go easy on the bottle be hard on yourself
And I know he meant well

There's always a mountain in front of me
Seems I'm always climbin and stumblin
And then fallin'
And then climbin'
But I keep on tryin'

This gettin up early pullin double shifts
Gonna make an old man of me
Long before I ever get rich
But I'm tryin'
(C.Wallin/J.Steele/A.Smith)

What Will I Do?
What will I do when you are far away and I am blue
What will I do?
What will I do when I am wondering who is kissing you?
What will I do with just a photograph to tell my troubles to?

When I'm alone with dreams of you that won't come true
What will I do? What will I do?

I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay
Watching the tide roll away, wasting' time.
(Otis Redding)

They were as lucky as poker players on the Titanic.

Tonight she lives with memories, the music, and the wine

When someone finds a new love, it always breaks another's heart

When somebody feels a new love, another's world falls apart

Someone's always leaving

Somebody else is left behind

But that's what plays the jukebox and sells the wine

(Gabe Tucker)

Almost blue
Almost doing things we used to do
There's a girl here and she's almost you
Almost all the things that your eyes once promised
I see in hers too
Now your eyes are red from crying

Almost blue
Flirting with this disaster became me
It named me as the fool who only aimed to be

Almost blue
It's almost touching it will almost do
There's a part of me that's always true...always
Not all good things come to an end now it is only a chosen few
I've seen such an unhappy couple

Almost me
Almost you
Almost blue

They carried my girl to the buryin' ground

They marked the place where she laid down

Today has been a lonesome day

Tomorrow's gonna be the same way

Go dig my grave with a silver spade and

Mark the place where I'll be laid

Did you ever hear a church bell tone?

You'll know by that I'm dead and gone

Today has been a lonesome day

Tomorrow's gonna be the same way

Will you love me tomorrow? (Dave Mason)

It’s fight for your life, that’s all. Until death do us part, you got it made. (jazz musician Lester Young)

The strong are not always vigorous,
the wise not always ready,
the brave not always courageous,
and the joyous not always happy.
(Charles Spurgeon)

I have been a rover
I have walked alone
Hiked a hundred highways
Never found a home
Still in all I'm happy
The reason is, you see
Once in a while along the way
Love's been good to me

There was a girl in Denver
Before the summer storm
Oh, her eyes were tender
Oh, her arms were warm
And she could smile away the thunder
Kiss away the rain
Even though she's gone away
You won't hear me complain

I have been a rover
I have walked alone
Hiked a hundred highways
Never found a home
Still in all I'm happy
The reason is, you see
Once in a while along the way
Love's been good to me

There was a girl in Portland
Before the winter chill
We used to go a-courtin'
Along October hill
And she could laugh away the dark clouds
Cry away the snow
It seems like only yesterday
As down the road I go

I've been a rover
I have walked alone
Hiked a hundred highways
Never found a home
Still in all I'm happy
The reason is, you see
Once in a while along the way
Love's been good to me

(by Rod McKuen)

Yesterday's lies and tomorrow's promises

I Don't Know What Kind of Blues I've Got
(Duke Ellington)

You're a honky tonk sweetheart and anybody's girl (Billy Gray)

PLEASE SEND ME SOMEONE TO LOVE

Heaven please send to all mankind

Peace on earth and peace of mind

But if it ain't asking too much

Please send me someone to love

Show the world how to get along

Peace will enter when hate is gone

But if it ain't asking too much

Please send me someone to love

I lay awake at night

With the world in a trouble

And my answer is always the same

That unless man puts an end

To this damnable sin

Hate will put the world in a flame

What a shame

Just because I'm in misery

Don't mean I'm begging for sympathy

But if it ain't asking too much

Please, please send me someone to love

Isn't it a pity
Now, isn't it a shame
How we break each other's hearts
And cause each other pain
How we take each other's love
Without thinking anymore
Forgetting to give back
Isn't it a pity
(George Harrison)

Now it begins, now that you're gone
Needles and pins, twilight till dawn
Watching that clock till you return
And lighting that torch and watching it burn

Now it begins, day after day
This is my life ticking away
Waiting to hear footsteps that say:
Love will appear and this time will stay

Each time you go
I try to pretend
It's over at last
This time the big hurt will end

Now it begins, now that you're gone
Needles and pins, twilight till dawn
So if you don't come back again
I wonder when, oh when will it end?
The big hurt

Snow Bird
Beneath its snowy mantle cold and clean
The unmown grass lies waiting for its coat to turn green
The snow bird sings the song he always sings and
Speaks to me of flowers that will bloom again in spring

When I was young my heart was young and true
Anything it would tell me, that's the thing that I would do
But now I feel such an emptiness within
For the thing I want most in life is the thing that I can't win

Spread your tiny wings and fly away and
Take the snow back with you where it came from on that day
The one I love forever is untrue
And if I could you know that I would fly away with you

The breeze along the river seems to say that
He'll only break my heart again should I decide to stay
So little snow bird take me with you when you go
To that land of gentle breezes where the peaceful waters flow

From There Are No Children There by Alex Kotlowitz
The 1988 inventory for the Cook County Criminal Courts included 14 perjuries; 103 briberies; 23 impersonations of officials; 260 indictments for official misconduct; 20 charges of obstruction of justice; 3,647 aggravated and heinous batteries; 8 charged with possession of explosive devices; 993 caught with burglary tools; 162 home repair frauds; 380 home invasions; 1312 charges of unlawful restraint; 830 kidnappings; 84 jail escapes; 8419 rapes; 1584 armed robberies; 1351 accused of unlawful use of a weapon; 10 police officers disarmed; 73 gambling charges; 5 food stamp frauds; 3101 thefts; 232 attempted burglaries; 6160 burglaries; 81 charged with intimidation; 1219 bailbond violations; 867 forgeries; 388 arsons; 156 charged with deceptive practice; 429 retail thefts; 2568 auto thefts; 3569 incidents of armed violence; 104 reckless homicides; 3 solicitations for murder; 953 attempted murders; 1905 murders; 6 charges of endangering the life of a child; 4 child abandonments; 36 charges of cruelty to children; 1 reckless homicide of an unborn baby; 2 involuntary manslaughters of unborn children; 7 intentional homicides of unborn children; 54 child abductions; 7 solicitations of juveniles; 1 juvenile pimping charge; 174 child pornography charges; 27 charged with taking indecent liberties with children; 14 incest charges; 10,518 drug charges; 24,390 cases and 56,204 charges heard by 32 judges.

The youngsters had heard that Chicago's suburban-bound commuter trains would shoot at them for trespassing on the tracks. One of the boys, certain that the passengers were crack shots, burst into tears as the train whisked by. For both the commuters and the boys, the unknown was the enemy. One evening Lafeyette, told his mother LaJoe, "Mama, I'm real tired. I could go outside and don't have to come back. Anytime I go outside, I ain't guaranteed to come back." (From There Are No Children Here, by Alex Kotlowitz)

The prison population consists of the bad, the mad, and the sad. (David Ramsbotham)

I had the feeling as if I had fallen into an ocean of boiling waters, and not knowing how to swim or to get out in another manner, I tried with my legs and arms as best I could. I never gave up. But how could I give up in the middle of an ocean? (Arnold Schoenberg) Schoenberg (modern composer) became a classic without ever winning the ungrudging public acceptance granted to lesser figures. (Charle Rosen0

Is That All There Is?
I remember when I was a little girl, our house caught on fire
I'll never forget the look on my father's face
As he gathered me up in his arms and raced out the burning building onto the pavement.
And I stood there shivering in my pajamas and watched the whole world go up in flames
And when it was all over, I said to myself
Is that all there is to a fire?

Is that all there is?
If that's all there is my friend
Then let's keep dancing, break out the booze, and have a ball
If that's all there is.

When I was twelve years old, my daddy took me to the circus, the greatest show on earth
There were clowns and elephants and dancing bears
And a beautiful lady in pink tights flew high above our heads
And as I sat there watching, I had the feeling that something was missing
I didn't know what, but when it was all over, I said to myself
Is that all there is to the circus?

Is that all there is?
If that's all there is my friend
Then let's keep dancing, break out the booze, and have a ball
If that's all there is.

And then I fell in love with the most wonderful boy in the world
We'd take long walks down by the river
Or just sit gazing into each others eyes, we were so much in love
And then one day he went away
And I thought I'd die, but I didn't
And when I didn't, I said to myself
Is that all there is to love?

Is that all there is?
If that's all there is my friend
Then let's keep dancing, break out the booze, and have a ball
If that's all there is.

I know what you must be saying to yourself
If that's the way she feels about it
Why doesn't she just end it all?
Oh no, not me, I'm not ready for that final disappointment
Because I know that when the final moment comes and I breath my last breath
I'll be saying to myself...

Is that all there is?
If that's all there is my friend
Then let's keep dancing, break out the booze, and have a ball
If that's all there is.
(Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller)

If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all

I'm shouting all about love

While they treated you like a dog

When you were the one who had made it so clear

All those years ago.

I'm talking all about how to give

They don't act with much honesty

But you point the way to the truth when you say All you need is love.

Living with good and bad I always look up to you

Now we're left cold and sad

By someone the devil's best friend

Someone who offended all.

We're living in a bad dream

They've forgotten all about mankind

And you were the one they backed up to the wall

All those years ago

You were the one who Imagined it all

All those years ago

Deep in the darkest night I send out a prayer to you

Now in the world of light

Where the spirit free of the lies

And all else that we despised.

They've forgotten all about God

He's the only reason we exist

Yet you were the one that they said was so weird

All those years ago

You said it all though not many had ears

All those years ago

You had control of our smiles and our tears

All those years ago

(George Harrison)

Here I am again mixing misery and gin. (Merle Haggard song)

Sometimes I feel like a has-been who never was. (Sandra Dee)

Be sure it's true,
When you say, "I love you,"
It's a sin to tell a lie!

Old Man River
There's an old man called the Mississippi
That's the old man I would like to be
What does he care if the world's got troubles?
What does he care if the land's not free?
He must know something
But he don't say nothing
He just keeps rolling along
He don't plant tators
He don't plant cotton
And them that plants 'em
Is soon forgotten
But Old Man River
He just keeps rolling along
You and me we sweat and strain
Body all achin' and racked in pain
I get weary
And sick of trying
I'm tired of living
And scared of dying
But Old Man River
He just keeps rolling along
(Oscar Hammerstein II)

Too much too soon

Til Love Comes Again
White light shadows gather around my door
They find me dreaming all alone once more
Memories come around to haunt my sleepless sounds
Now's the time I must be strong
I believe it won't be long

Till love comes again
To end these lonely nights
Till love comes again
To drive these tears I cry
It's darkest just before the dawn
And I'll just keep holding on
Till then
Till love comes again

Somewhere someone feels the way I do
And like me they dream of the love that's true
One day I'll look into his eyes I know the moment's right
Until then I'll just wait
No matter how long it might take

(Bog Regan,Ed Hill)

Nickels and dimes, memories and wines
She's on his mind once again
The same old stool, the same old fool;
Played by the rules, but didn't win
There's an old love in his heart that he can't lose
He tried forgettin',
But he knows that it's no use

He's got a fool hearted memory
It won't let him see
That she walked out the door
He's got a fool hearted memory,
And he sits patiently
Here every night so it can fool him more

She was his girl, his only whirl,
That string of pearls that slipped away
A thousand dimes, a thousand times
He doesn't mind what they say
He fills the jukebox,
And plays the same old song
He fills his glass,
And then he turns her memory on

Part-time lover

My memories will soon disappear like tears in the rain. (Blade Runner movie)

You can say the soul is gone
And the feeling is just not there
Not like it was so long ago.

On the empty page before you
You can fill in what you care
Try to make it new before you go.

Take the simple case of the sarge
Who can't go back to war
'Cause the hippies
tore down everything
that he was fighting for.

Or the lovers on the blankets
That the city turned to whores
With memories
of green kissed by the sun.

You can say the soul is gone
And close another door
Just be sure
that yours is not the one.

And I'm singing for the stringman
Who lately lost his wife
There is no dearer friend of mine
That I know in this life.

On his shoulder rests a violin
For his head where chaos reigns
But his heart
can't find a simple way
To live with all those things.

All those things
He's a stringman
A stringman
All those strings to pull

(Neil young)

I labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity. (Isaiah)

Oh You Crazy Moon
When they met, the way they smiled
I saw that I was through
Oh, you crazy moon
What did you do

And when they kissed, they tried to say
That it was just in fun
Oh, you crazy moon
Look what you've done

Once you promised me, you know
That it would never end
You should be ashamed to show
Your funny face my friend

(And) There they are, they fell in love
I guess you think that you're smart
Oh, you crazy moon
You broke my heart

(Johnny Burke)

I was much further out than you thought, not waving but drowning.
(Stevie Smith)

Sometimes I think it's a shame
When I'm feeling no pain
Sometimes I think it's like a sin
When I feel I'm winning and I'm I'm losing again
(Gordon Lightfoot)

Starin' at the world through the bottom of a glass,
All I see is a man who's fading fast.
But here I am again, mixin' misery and gin.
Sittin' with all my friends and talkin' to myself.
I look like I'm havin' a good time but any fool can tell,
That this Honkytonk Heaven really makes ya' feel like hell.
(Merle Haggard)

Every one is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody.
(Mark Twain)

Hey house lady
Seems like you hard to hear
Cause if you've got no whiskey
Just bring me a bottle of beer
Hey, house lady
Please M'am don't get mad
I just want another drink of that stuff I just had
Hey house lady
You sure do treat me mean
You treat me just like I is not a human being
Cause I been settin' here playin'
Mama for the whole night long

Old square face, old double chin, what you lookin' at me for?
Ain't gonna lead me to sorrow and sin no more, no sir, no more.
Too many times you got under my skin.
I'm through with you old square face.
Ain't gonna get me again, no sir, no sir.
Old square face, what you keep hangin' around for?
What's that you say?
It's time to begin?
Well, just once more.
Might as well bring those pink elephants in.
Man, I'm feelin' low, old square face.
You know, you got me again, yes sir.
You really got me that time.

A group of jolly cowboys discussing plans at ease.
Says one, I'll tell you something, boys, if you will listen please.
I'm an old cow puncher, you see me dressed in rags.
Used to be a good one, boys, but I went on great big jags.
I've got a home boys, a good one you all know,
Although I haven't seen it since very long ago.
I'm headed back to Dixie once more to see them all.
Going to see my mother when all the work's done this fall.

When I left home, boys, my mother for me cried.
She begged me not to go, boys, for me she would have died.
Mother's heart is aching, breaking for me that's all.
With God's help I'll see her when the work's done this fall.
That very night this cowboy went out to stand his guard.
Night was dark and cloudy and storming very hard.
Cattle they got frightened and rushed a wild stampede.
Cowboy tried to heard them while riding at full speed.
Riding in the darkness so loudly did he shout
Trying to head them and turn the herd about.
His saddle horse did stumble and on him it did fall.
He'll not see his mother when the work's all done this fall.
Send my mother my wages, boys, the wages I have earned.
I'm so afraid, boys, the last steer I have turned.
Headed for a new range, I hear my Master's call.
I'll not see my mother when the work's all done this fall.
Fred, you take my saddle, George you take my bed.
Bill, you take my pistol after I'm dead.
Please think of me kindly when you look upon them all.
I'll not see my mother when all the work's done this fall.
Charlie was buried at sunrise, no tombstone for his head.
Nothing but a little board, and this is what it said:
Charlie died at daybreak, he died from a fall.
He'll not see his mother when the work's all done this fall.
(D.J. O'Malley)

Would you know my name if I saw you in heaven?
Would it be the same if I saw you in heaven?
I must be strong and carry on,
‘Cause I know I don’t belong in heaven.
Would you hold my hand if I saw you in heaven?
Would you help me stand if I saw you in heaven?
I find my way through night and day,
‘Cause I know I just can’t stay here in heaven.
Time can bring you down, time can bend your knees.
I can break your heart, have you begging please.
Beyond the door there’s peace I’m sure,
And I know there’ll be no more tears in heaven.
(Eric Clapton)

Tear a star from out the sky and the sky feels blue.
Tear a petal from a rose and the rose weeps too.
(Henry Nemo)

I don't wanna play no more.
(Jazz tenor saxophonist Coleman Hawkins shortly before he died)

Johnny Guitar
Play the guitar
Play it again, my Johnny
Maybe you're cold but you're so warm inside
I'm always a fool for my Johnny
For the one they call Johnny Guitar
Play it again, Johnny Guitar
What if you stay, what if you go, I love you
What is you are cruel, you can be kind I know
There was never a man like my Johnny
The one they call Johnny Guitar
Play it again, Johnny
(Peggy Lee)

She lives her life in honkey tonks and crowded backstreet bars
A world of make believe that knows no sun or moon or stars
Just the glitter of the great white way and the glare of city lights
Where music is loud,
She’s in the crowd
A girl in the night
I wonder if she’s thinking of dreams that didn’t last
I wonder if she’s haunted by heartaches from the past
Perhaps there’s a story of a love that wasn’t right
Now shadows hide her empty pride
A girl in the night
She’s sitting there so lonely as she lights a cigarette,
The smoke rings in her eyes
There seems to be regret
Is she there to tempt another in a dress that clings her tight
A glass of wine to pass the time
A girl in the night
Now shadows hide her empty pride
A girl in the night (Hank Thompson)

Held in time in a world of tears I slowly drown.

Tragedy, when the feeling’s gone and you can’t go on,

When the morning cries and you don’t know why, it’s hard to bear.

With no one to love you, you’re goin’ nowhere.

Tragedy, when you lose control and you got no soul, it’s tragedy.

With no one beside you, you’re goin’ nowhere.

Stayin’ alive, life goin’ nowhere. Somebody help me. Stayin’ alive.
(The Bee Gees)

Now, I’m not in your town to stay
Said a lady old and gray
To the warden of the penitentiary
I’m not in town to stay
I’ll soon be on my way
I’m just here to get my baby out of jail
Oh, Lord, I’m just here to get my baby out of jail
I have tried to raise him right
I have prayed both day and night
That he’d never follow the footsteps of his dad
I have searched both far and wide
I have feared that he died
And I’m glad to fine my baby here in jail
Yes, Lord, I’m glad to find my baby here in jail
I will pawn you my watch
I will pawn you my jade
I will pawn you my diamond ring
I will wash all your clothes
I will scrub all your floors
If that will get my baby out of jail
Yes, Lord, you know I want my baby out of jail
Then me hear the warden say
To the lady old and gray
I will bring your baby back to your side
Then the gates went wide apart
She held her darling to her heart
She kissed the baby boy
Then she died
But smiling in the arms of her dear boy
There she died

There is no reason I should have to be so alone

I'm smothered by this emptiness, Lord I wish I was made of stone

Like a fool I lent my soul to love and it paid me back with shame

God help me, am I am only one who's ever felt this way?
(Maria McKee)

One thing you can't hide is when you're crippled inside. (John Lennon)

Close enough for love.

I got too smart too soon and wise too late. (Roosevelt Sykes)

What good is a used up world, and how could it be worth having?
(Sting)

The world was on fire and no one could save me but you
It's strange what desire will make foolish people do
I never dreamed that I'd meet somebody like you
I never dreamed I'd love somebody like you
I don't want to fall in love
No I don't want to fall in love with you

What a wicked game to play
To make me feel this way
What a wicked thing to do
To let me dream of you
What a wicked thing to say
You never felt this way
What a wicked thing to do
To make me dream of you

And I don't want to fall in love
No I don't want to fall in love with you

I never dreamed that I'd love somebody like you
(Chris Isaac)

I realized that God has always loved me more than I love myself.

Tryin' to make it real compared to what? I can't use it.

Life is a stern teacher.

He came out of the dark like he was made of it.
(From the movie Mary Reilly)

Tall and tan and young and lovely

The girl from Ipanema goes walking

And when she passes, each one she passes goes aah

When she walks she's like a samba

That swings so cool and sways

Oh, but I watch her so sadly

How can I tell her I love her?

Yes, I would give my heart gladly

But each day when she walks to the seas

She looks straight ahead, not at me

And when she passes I smile

But she doesn't she me

No, she doesn't see me

(Antonio Carlos Jobim)

Always tryin' to keep from cryin'
I'm low and lonely over you.
(Roy Acuff)

Some dance to remember, some dance to forget. (Hotel California, the Eagles)

Blues in the mornin'

Mis'ry in the evenin'

I'm the saddest man you ever knew.

Got my share of sorrow

Same ol' thing tomorrow

Since you're gone the dawn is always overdue.

Blues in the mornin'

Mis'ry in the evenin'

Keep me wonderin' what I oughta do.

Almost out of money

Yes, you think that's funny

Even when you know that I'm still in love with you.

Ba-by, when you told me goodbye,

With a smile in your eye.

Oh ba-by I had to laugh

So that I wouldn't cry.

Now there's nothin' but blues in the mornin'

Misr'y in the evenin'

Wake up sobbin' like a child of doom.

Wish I'd never met you, let the devil get you

Then you'll know the heartache of a fool -

Full of mis'ry and the blues.

(Charlie La Vere)

I must be invisible, no one knows me.
I have crawled down deadend streets on my hands and knees.
I was born with a raging thirst, a hunger to be free.
But I’ve learned through the years, don’t encourage me,
‘Cause I’m a lonely stranger here, will be on my day.
I don’t know what’s going on, so I’ll be on my way.
When I walk, stay behind, don’t get close to me,
‘Cause it’s sure to end in tears, so just let me be.
Some will say that I’m no good, maybe I am weak,
Take a look, then walk away, that’s all right with me.
(Eric Clapton)

Broken hearts in the world can't be mended left unattended.

Alone again, naturally. (Gilbert O'Sullivan)

I got one year of school left to go
Got my hometown wired and wheels of my own
What do I want to be?
I ain't got a clue
I got too many problems I can't share with you
And I'm still looking for a love to serve
Hey, I'm a walking nerve
I call girls regular, can't call them friends
The pressure to succeed never ends
I dream of peace that will never exist
I say no to drugs and drink like a fish
I'm scared to grow up, but I can't stop
God forbid I wind up on top
Probably blow all my money tryin' to be well thought of
'Cause I'm too sick to believe in self love
Don't know who I am or what I deserve
Yeah, I'm a walking nerve
I'm a walking nerve.
(Nils Lofgren)

She lives alone with no one who can see she's unhappy.
She knows what she lost, still she is waiting for more.
She could be living in hell and not know someone loves her.
What can she do, what is she waiting for?
The day turns to night, he just can't find the right words to tell her,
Twisting and turning and looking for something to say.
If you would let me hold you, I wouldn't walk away.
That's what he wants, that's what he wants to say.
What can she lose, what is she waiting for?
He knows when she cries
And he saw through the lies that she told him.
She's dreaming and planning of how she could ask him to stay.
If you would let me love you, I wouldn't be the same.
Please could we try,
Please could we try again?
(Marianne Faithfull)

Almost blue
Almost doing things we used to do
There's a girl here and she's almost you
Almost
All the things that your eyes once promised
I see in hers too
Now your eyes are red from crying
Almost blue
Flirting with this disaster became me
It named me as the fool who only aimed to be
Almost blue
It's almost touching it will almost do
There's a part of me that's always true... always
Not all good things come to an end now, it is only a chosen few
I have seen such an unhappy couple
Almost me
Almost you
Almost blue

THE SOUL CAGES (Sting)

Billy was born within sight of the shipyard, first son of a riveter's son.
And Billy was raised as the ship grew a shadow, her great hull would blot out the light of the sun.
And six days a week he would watch his poor father, a working man live like a slave.
He'd drink every night and he'd dream of a future, of money he never would save.

And Billy would cry when he thought of the future.

One day he dreamed of a ship on the sea
That would carry his father and he
To a place they would never be found
Far away from this town.

A Newcastle ship without coals
They would sail to the island of souls.
Soon came a day when the bottle was broken, they launched a great ship out to sea.
He felt he'd been left on a desolate shore to a future he desperately wanted to flee.

The boy child is locked in the fisherman's yard; there's a bloodless moon where the oceans die.
A shoal of nightstars hang fire in the nets and in the chaos of cages where the crayfish lie.
Trapped in the cage of the skeleton ship all the workmen suspended like flies,
Caught in the flare of acetylene light, a working man works till the industry dies.

These are the soul cages.

And Billy would cry when he thought of the future.

Then what they call an industrial accident crushed those it couldn't forgive.
They brought Billy's father back home in an ambulance, a brass watch, a check, maybe three weeks to live.
And what else was there for a riveter's son but a new ship to be built, new work to be done.

Two priests came round our house tonight, one young, one old, to offer prayers for the dying, to serve the final rite.
One to learn, one to teach which way the cold wind blows,
Fussing and flapping in priestly black like a murder of crows.

And all this time, the river flowed endlessly to the sea.
If I had my way I'd take a boat from the river
And I'd bury the old man, I'd bury him at sea.

That night, he dreamed of a ship on the sea
That would carry his father and he
To a place they could never be found
Far away from this town,
A Newcastle ship without coals
They would sail to the island of souls.

Why should I?
Why should I cry for you?
Sometimes I see your face, the stars seem to lose their place.
Why must I think of you?
Why must I?
Why should I?
Why should I cry for you?
Why would you want me to?
And what would it mean to say that, "I loved you in my fashion"?
What would be true? Why should I? Why should I cry for you?

I saw it again this evening,
Black sail in a pale yellow sky, gone where the gray gulls fly.
That night as I walked in my slumber I waded into the sea strand
And I swam with the moon and her lover until I lost sight of the land.
The gentle sigh turned to a howling and the gray sky, she angered to black.
And my anxious eyes searched the horizon with the gathering sea at my back.
Did I see the shade of a sailor on the bridge through the wheel house pane,
Held fast to the wheel of the rocking ship as I squinted my eyes in the rain?
For the ship had turned into the wind against the storm to brace.
And underneath the sailor's hat I saw my father's face.

If a prayer today is spoken, please offer it for me,
When the bridge to heaven is broken and you're lost on the wild wild sea,
Lost on the wild wild sea....

He dreamed of a ship on the sea
That would carry his father and he
To a place they could never be found
Far away from this town
A Newcastle ship without coals
They would sail to the island of souls.