Who Will

Who will save our souls?
There's so much left to do
There's so much left to do
Who will burn our clothes
And tend to our wounds
And look back for me and you
Who will close our eyes
There's so much left to see
So many of my dreams
So I'll dance and I'll laugh
And I'll fade and I'll crash
And I'll wake and I'll yawn
And on, and on
He is just a word
I know it in my soul
O lord, I know it in my soul
Haven't you heard? There's no one in control
Oh no, there's no one in control
So we'll dance and we'll laugh
And we'll fade and we'll crash
And we'll wake and we'll yawn
And on, and on

For Franny Glass

Oh Franny Glass
Just let me tell you that I loved you
And that it's so surreal to see you
And to hear your voice again
Oh Franny please
Tell the father that I loved him
But that I know he's not the only son
He's not the only son
I was born on the day that music died
I was born into the decades of fratricide
Sometimes it feels like we're fallin through a well
And that when the world's over we'll be one
Oh Franny please
I know you know that's not your name
But really that is such a shame
You two would get along
Oh Franny no
Some people cannot tell apart
Those things destined and those that aren't
So instead they write songs
Or they sell insurance of they're looking for a job
Or they dream up miracles or put all faith in god
No matter which road you're going down, I wish you well
I'll see you when the earth kisses the sun

The Country Clear

I stumbled home in the dark
Smiling to the roads I passed
I fell for you that night again
I thought about your breath
And the way it rushed out
You were a spell cast that I hadn't shaken. 
I have been so drunk on love
While the world failed around me
Now I see the country clear
Now that you have found me
When I finally got to bed
I saw your eyes in the air
And on the inside of my head
I tried to make a list
Of the things that might tear us apart
And then I fell asleep and waited
Because before, this love--it wasn't quite real
It was just enough to kill, it was just enough to steal
But now I see it has grown, it has grown
It's time for you to see what you've sown

The Past Always Runs Faster

You walked down that stolen path
On that gold New England isle
Like you didn't even really care
You talked about the war, and how it would never really end
They'd just rename it to change its air
Then the sky blew up overhead, 
You said, "Now it's time to go in."
But instead we stood up and we stared
This was a year of natural disaster, 
Floating echoes ever faster
No one has a reason to be scared
Why do you look so scared
We already have all the answers
Why do you run so fast,
When the past always runs faster
The next month I went to your wake
You instructed them to make sure
You sat up in your chair
You were flanked by rows of candles
Flickering wildly on the mantles
We were all caught in your snare
They played all your favorite songs,
My god, it took so long
In between the silent air
On the way out I shook your hand,
Looked in your eyes and couldn't stand
The fact that there was nothing there
Why do you look so scared
We already have all the answers
Why do you run so far,
When the past always runs farther

Robin and Marian

Robin Hood lived in Homestead; the year was 1892.
He worked at Carnegie's steel mill, his eyes were a bright blue.
He fell in love with a girl named Marian that went to the same church.
In March they went and got married, for better or for worse.
Marian was a seamstress; she made satin quilts.
She sold them to the wealthy, who overpaid her out of guilt.
Cos Marian was so pretty, but she had nothing to wear.
She had no fine dresses, or things to tie back her hair.
Robin was a socialist, a unionist through and through
They locked out his paycheck, he needed something to do.
They had a little money, and didn't wanna stay
So they went to New York City, come out come out and play.
Marian had her doubts about everything under the sun,
But Jesus said, turn your cheek, Mary, be kind to everyone.
So when Robin began to steal and buy her nice new clothes
Because he gave most to the poor, she kept her mouth closed.
Robin knew Emma Goldman, and young Norman Thomas too.
They used to have lunch together; Marian made beef stew. 
Emma'd run her mouth a lot, say to kill this person or that,
But Robin knew that wasn't the way he'd just bought Marian a new hat.
As Marian washed the dishes, Emma came up to her, and said,
"Why are you doing this? Come out, make your voice heard."
But Marian wasn't into it; she had nothing to say
She was so innocent, she calmed Robin's day.
Eventually the government, they caught up to Robin Hood
They could've thrown him in jail, instead they shot him where he stood.
But Robin was a lively one, and he got to his feet
He tried to run away, but he was as white as a sheet.
He got to their apartment; Marian was there.
He said, "Don't you worry, darling, there's no reason to stare."
He fell down on the floor and she ran to his side.
They stared into each other's eyes, and then, of course, he died.

For No One

I've spent too long in your arms alone
I've wondered too long: where is my home;
Is it here, or there, or anywhere
I think perhaps the time has come
For me to be the cruel one
So I say goodbye to my first love
Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye
Now I'm engaged to New York
I've got my doubts; might not work out
But she's cold and strong and satisfied
Soon we'll be sharing the same place
Some little hold I don't have time to decorate
The same place as all the rest of hers
But I'll try, I'll try, I'll try, I'll try
Don't make me out to be what I'm not
Alone in a world you forgot
I don't exist, I'm, just a thought
I'm pretty sure you cried for no one

Nineteen

Get in, she said, and I shut the door
Lucky Man on the radio, just like ten years before
Where to, I said, rolled the windows down
As she impatiently undid her hair with her patent frown
I don't know if we saw everyone that night, but we tried
So many moved so far away, where the rent wasn't as high
But we saw the sun swell across the sky at four a.m. 
As the birds began to sing, and the glow died from Manhattan
And now, it feels like we're still there
But the rain is murmuring in the heavy air
And I am lost, five hundred miles away
While she is up on some cross, contemplating fame
I don't know if I will ever look at her the same again
Her body's changed to suit her, and her mind is at its end
But maybe I can find her in the rubble of her soul
If there's enough of her to patch together while the rest is sold
I'll come find you when you're old and tired, and you realize what you've done to your life
Nothing ever is as satisfying as it looks when you are nineteen, and so alive

Your California Sky

Winter and summer, nothing in Between
That is what I've seen
The seasons threaten, as they turn
Because of you I am an urn
The hills have gone from gray to brown to green
I've never known what you mean
And so things happen, just like they did before
But I'll never think of you no more
I feel old and strong now that you're not here
At least your absence makes that clear
I had forgotten what it feels like
To be living so very light
You always say that you might not return
Outside there's so much to learn
I hope you get to see your California sky
But beware how quickly clouds go by

You're A Real Thing

The young ones wish that they were younger
So that they wouldn't feel the way they do
And the youngest wish that they were older
Cos the young ones they all look so cool with their
Tired eyes and their sleeves full of lies
It's no surprise that the youngest ones want you
The old ones wish that they were younger
So that they could know what they know now
And the oldest wish they were no longer
So that they wouldn't see what the world comes down to
with their achy bones and their quiet homes
it just goes to show that you run out of things to do
Don't you quit on me now
You're a real thing
You're a real thing
They're so rare in this place
Just you wait and see
Just you wait and see
The quietest ones are in the middle
They're the band on the sinking ship
They all still feel so little
Everyone says they've grown up so quick
With their newborn kids, and their marriages
It doesn't fit that they think they're playing the fool
Don't you quit on me now
You're a real thing
You're a real thing
They're so rare in this place
Just you wait and see
Just you wait and see.

No Wonder

I wish I could make you feel older
I wish I could make you feel older
I know how, I know how
Don't look down, don't look so down
Things would fall apart if you could let them
Please, baby please, don't correct them
Make them work, make them work on you
Make them hurt, might just help all of you
I used to think it was impossible
But I was such a fool
I rode high in disparate skies
Suffering to be cool
To think that I was in Love with You
Sometimes things fall down and still defeat you
Sometimes things fall down and still they beat you
I don't mind, I don't mind
There's still time, there's no time
There's no need to pretend that we're still close
Please, darling please, give up the ghost
Don't deny, there's no reason to
Even try living like you do

It's Okay If You Want To

When the music stops in the warm back room
Our memories go soft and begin to bloom
I remember all the times that only happened in my mind
But now I'm here and so are you
Self deception's a small price to pay
When it's been accomplished we can rest so safe
Let's elope you and I
An eye for an eye
We'll get a house out in the shade
It's okay if you want to
Keep it all to
Yourself.
I understand what the words say
Keep them at bay
On the shelf.
It is only cruel for a little while
It will be eclipsed by your gorgeous smile
I won't believe you're mine
Cos it just slays me every time
Even over so many miles
It's okay if you want to
Keep it all to
Yourself.

If Only

I'm sorry that you think we've lost our country
But all that I've ever said and done
Was take a glance in the wrong direction
Then watch all the young boys congress hung
If only I could come home
If only I knew where to go
What I see in your eyes will tell me
That this is only training for much worse
Soon we'll see cities battling oceans
And pick up the guns and drive the hearse

Judas, 1966

All you lonely people at Free Trade Hall
Judas was no traitor after all
He just always tried the best he could
To uphold principles that no one understood
One day the lord took him aside
And said to Judas, I'm going to die
But I need you to help break my fall
By taking the blame, yeah taking it all
Well, Judas said, "Lord that I can do
Can I be a martyr, just like you"
And Jesus said, "Judas yes you can
You'll be a martyr above all of them"
The plan went off without a hitch
And Judas hung himself as he wished
But when he woke up, he was in Hell
And saw that Jesus too had fell
Well, Judas said, "Lord, what have we done
Why are we here? Your work's just begun"
And Jesus said, "We're not home yet
Just hold on tightly, the road's up ahead"

New Jersey

We left New Jersey with our eyes closed
We all went looking for the center of the floor
We all came back on the tips of our toes
We had forgotten what we were looking for
Oh darling, is it you, is it you?
You feel so much like home to me
I see all the kids I had managed to forget
And the one that I couldn't bear to not see
I see the V.A. where they lit up the sky
And the public pool where I learned how to dive
And all the schools where we tried to blend
And the Great Swamp where I'll go when I die
I believe in heaven, but never in hell
Sometimes New Jersey is heaven to me
And after we all have left again
I'll walk and I'll walk and I'll come back, you'll see