The Universe
Talk to me
I don’t want to hear poetry
Say it plain
Like how you really speak
The universe
For what it’s worth
Everything is listening
For what it means
Spit it out
Every doubt
Poison flower
We can all agree
The universe
For better or worse
It’s the only place
To be
I’m serious
I don’t really care
I’m serious
I don’t really care about a single thing
Everything is listening
For what it means
Everything is listening
For what it means
So talk to me
I don’t want to hear poetry
Just say it plain
Like how you really speak
The universe
Could be worse
It’s the only place
There is to be
written by Jeff TweedyGwendolyn
I don’t think I can take another day
Oh I don’t know how I could ever say
I’m OK being so far away
Oh I don’t think that I can take another day
When Gwendolyn, when she starts to speak
To a county police with a plastic cup between her teeth
The sun beating down like a big trombone
That’s right when I start missing home
She holds my hand between her knees
It’s like a dream, I never know what it means
I only know I’m feeling alone
That’s right when I start missing home
Honestly Gwen I’m not ashamed to say
Between you and me I’m relieved they put you away
Sun coming up like a piece of toast
That’s right when I started heading home
That’s right when I started heading home
Well that’s right when I started heading home
Having Been Is No Way To Be
Oh I was naive
My shoes were untied
In heaven everything is just fine
But the phones are dead
And so is the light
And so are you
And honey so am I
But the earth still turns
For the unconcerned
Days pass below like train windows
I was a sapling tree
The birds looked like me
So I begged my nerves to kick me something new
From time to time
I’d watch you sleep
I wonder how much freedom we can dream
And I’m sorry when you wake up to me
I just got tired
Shining steady like a spider web
Is an empty stage
Now people say
“What drugs did you take?”
And “Why don’t you start taking them again?”
What difference would it ever make to them
But they’re not my friends
And if I was dead
What difference would it ever make to them
If I got high
From time to time
I wonder how much freedom you would need
And I’d be sorry when you wake to me
I’m reaching out to you
I’m writing all the time
I don’t see deep but I see far and wide
I see dead trees
But the roots have leaves
Just because I can’t describe it doesn’t mean I shouldn’t try
To untwist the knife
To unmake my mind
Having been is no way to be alive
And I’m alive
When I watch you sleep
I wonder how much freedom we need
And I’m here
When you wake up to me
I’m still here
When you wake up to me
Radio King (Golden Smog)
Lets go down, together
3 A.M tomorrow night
I’ll take you over anything Lets go out, together
Broad daylight in the street
I’ll take you anywhere Your music fills my car
Your voice breaks every time
I’m still wonderin
If I know who you are
I hang on every line Lets go down, together
Down by the old mainstream
I’ll take you over anything Lets go back in time
Nineteenfiftynie
I’ll take you, Radio King Your music fills my car
Your voice breaks every time
I’m still wonderin
If I know who you are
I hang on every line written by Jeff Tweedy and Gary Louris (appears on Golden Smog album down by the old mainstream)Don't Forget
Don’t forget
Don’t forget you’ve got a key
Yeah a cosmic key
Oh I love you so much
Don’t forget
We’re all blowing in
The interstellar wind
I’m your little galaxy
Don’t forget
Don’t forget sometimes
We all
We all think about dying
Don’t let it kill you
Don’t forget
I won’t forget the long drive
We arrived in time to say goodbye
And the way my roses shook
I won’t overlook
The willows bending by the graves
The very next day in the shade
Sweating in a new suit
I don’t regret
I don’t regret sometimes
We all
We all think about dying
Don’t let it kill you
Don’t forget
Don’t forget to brush your teeth
Or you’ll have a funny smile
You don’t have to smile at me
Don’t forget
Don’t forget sometimes
We all
We all think about dying
Don’t let it kill you
Don’t forget
Don’t forget sometimes
We all
We all think about dying
Oh
Evicted
Oh I can take a joke but
My clothes are all soaked
It’s too late to be unclear
I’d laugh until I’d die
If it wasn’t my life
If it wasn’t me in the mirror
Am I ever going to see you again?
Maybe I’m a whistle on a lonely old train
I’m crying all the time
Listen to the sound getting further away
Fading deep
Into the night
Am I ever going to see you again?
I’m evicted
From your heart
I deserve it
Black against the shade
Shadow lovers embrace
I look away, I look away
They say heartache
Always fades
I look away I look away
I’m never gonna see you again
I’m evicted
From your heart
I deserve it
Oh I can take a joke but
My clothes are all smoke
It’s too cold to be unclear
I’d laugh until I’m old
If it wasn’t my life
If it wasn’t me in the mirror
I’m never gonna see you again
I’m evicted
From your heart
I deserve it
I’m evicted
From your heart
I deserve it
I deserve it
I deserve itDawned On Me
I’ve been young
I’ve been old
I’ve been hurt
And consoled
Heart of coal
Heart of gold
So I’m told
I’ve been lost
I’ve been found
I’ve been taken
By the sound
Of my own voice
The voices in my head
I can’t help it if I fall in
Love with you again I’m calling
Just to let you know
It dawned on me
Every night is a test
To the east from the west
The sun rises and sets
That’s the sun at it’s best
I forget, then I know
I’d regret letting you go
Sometimes I can’t believe how dark it can be
I can’t help it if I fall in
Love with you again I’m calling
Just to let you know
It dawned on me
It dawned on me
So on
And so forth
And again
I will stop to begin
At the end
I can’t help it if I fall in
Love with you again I’m calling
Just to let you know
It dawned on me
Oh I can’t help it if I fall in
Love with you again I’m calling
Just to let you know
It dawned on me
Box Full of Letters
I've got a box full of letters
I think you might like to read
Some things that you might like to see
But they're all addressed to me
I wish I had a lotta answers
'Cause that's the way it should be
For all these questions
Being directed at me
I just can't find the time
To write my mind
The way I want it to read
You'll come back again
And I'll still be your friend
I got a lot of your records
In a separate stack
Some things that I might like to hear, but I
Guess I'll give 'em back
I wish I had a lotta answers
'Cause that's the way it should be
For all these questions
Being directed at me
Just can't find the time
To write my mind
The way I want it to read
You'll come back again
And I'll still be your friend
I can't find the time
To write my mind
The way I want it to read
Just can't find the time
To write my mind
The way I want it to read
Instrumental credits:
Jeff Tweedy – vocals, guitar
John Stirratt – bass, vocals
Max Johnston – dobro
Ken Coomer – drums
Brian Henneman – guitars
The Ruling Class
He resurfaced on the sidewalk on my block the other day
Yeah it's a fact, check it sorry charlie honey he's back from LA
So son you better turn it around, yeah Christ is on his way across town
He was gettin' tired of hangin' around
Yeah he's back jack, smokin' crack, find him if you wanna get found
he's having supper with the upper management of a new regime
He's in a new jacket, tax bracket, sandals and a dark pair of jeans
He's got deductions right on down the line
Dependent claims on all of my mankind
Have no fear he's right here drinking beer just trying to get down
he resurfaced on the sidewalk on my block the other day
Yeah it's a fact, check it--sorry charlie honey he's back from the grave
You better turn your frown upside down, yeah Christ is on his way across town
He was gettin' tired of hangin' around
Yeah he's back jack, shootin' smack, find him if you wanna get down
Yeah he's back jack, smokin' crack, find him if you wanna get found
Country Disappeared
Wake up, we’re here
It’s so much worse than we feared
There’s nothing left here
Our country has disappeared
With the winter trees bleeding leaf red blood
And the summer sweet dreaming April blush
But none of that it is ever going to mean as much to me again
Hold out your hand
There’s so much we don’t understand
So stick as close as you can
To all of your best laid plans
You’ve got the white clouds hanging so high above you
You’ve got the helicopters dangling, angling to shoot
The shots to feed the hungry weekend news crew anchormen
So every evening we can watch from above
Crush the cities like a bug
Fold ourselves into each other’s guts
Turn our faces up to the sun
I won’t take no
I won’t let you go
All by yourself
I know you need my help
When the cold light shakes you like a chandelier
The snowflakes break through the atmosphere
And melt on the blue breath of the auctioneers and disappear
So every evening we can watch from above
Crush the cities like a bug
Fold ourselves into each other’s blood
Turn our faces up to the sun
I Am Trying to Break Your Heart
I am an American aquarium drinker
I assassin down the avenue
I'm hiding out in the big city blinking
What was I thinking when I let go of you
Let's forget about the tongue-tied lightning
Let's undress just like cross-eyed strangers
This is not a joke so please stop smiling
What was I thinking when I said it didn't hurt
I want to glide through those brown eyes dreaming
Take you from the inside (baby) hold on tight
You were so right when you said I've been drinking
What was I thinking when we said good night
I want to hold you in the bible black predawn
You're quite a quiet domino bury me now
Take off your band aid cuz I don't believe in touchdowns
What was I thinking when we said hello
I always thought that if I held you tightly
You would always love me like you did back then
Then I fell asleep in the city kept blinking
What was I thinking when I let you back in
I am trying to break your heart
I am trying to break your heart
But still I'd be lying if I said it wasn't easy
I am trying to break your heart
Disposable Dixie cup drinker
I assassin down the avenue
I've been hiding out in the big city blinking
What was I thinking when I let go of you
(I'm the man who loves you)
On and On and On
On and on and on we’ll stay together yeah
On and on and on we’ll be together yeah
You and I will try to stay together yeah
On and on and on we’ll be together yeah Please don’t cry
We’re designed to die
Don’t deny
What’s inside
On and on and on we’ll stay together yeah
On and on and on
On and on and on One day we’ll disappear together in a dream
However short or long our lives are going to be
I will live in you or you will live in me
Until we disappear together in a dream Please don’t cry
We’re designed to die
You can’t deny
Even the gentlest tide
On and on and on we’ll be together yeah
On and on and on
On and on and on
We’re going to try Please don’t cry
This world of words and meanings makes you feel
Outside
Something that you feel already
Deep inside
You’ve denied
Go ahead and cry On and on and on we’ll stay together yeah
On and on and on
On and on and on On and on and on we’ll stay together yeah
On and on and on
On and on and on You and I will stay together yeah
You and I will try to make it better yeah Written by Jeff Tweedy and Wilco Instrumental Credits Jeff Tweedy – vocals John Stirratt – bass Glenn Kotche – drums, percussion Mikael Jorgensen – Hammond A100 organ Nels Cline – electric 12-string Pat Sansone – piano Karen Waltuch – viola, violin
Passenger Side
Hey, wake up
Your eyes weren't open wide
For the last couple of miles
You've been swerving from side to side
You're gonna make me spill my beer
If you don't learn how to steer
Passenger side
Passenger side
I don't like riding
On the passenger side
Roll another number for the road
You're the only sober person I know
Won't you let me make you a deal
Just get behind the wheel
Passenger side
Passenger side
I don't like riding
On the passenger side
Should've been the driver
Could've been the one
I should've been your lover
But I hadn't seen
Can you take me to the store, and then the bank?
I've got five dollars we can put in the tank
I've got a court date coming this June
I'll be driving soon
Passenger side
Passenger side
I don't like riding
On the passenger side
I don't like riding
On the passenger side
Instrumental credits:
Jeff Tweedy – vocals, acoustic guitar
John Stirratt – bass
Max Johnston – mandolin, fiddle
Ken Coomer – drums
Brian Henneman – small stoned guitar
Evergreen
If I get back from wherever I travel
I'll tell you what I've seen
The good and the bad
The hearts and the hassle
In the cities under siege
I'll tell you all about where I have been
And I won't ever leave again
Now you might think it's a lie
When I say I'm going to write
But if I break my pen filling you in
Wouldn't that change your mind
Evergreen
Evergreen
Have you even seen anything?
Evergreen
Whenever I get back from
Wherever I go
I'll look for you in the shade
A marker in the grass
I'll tell you at last
You're not the reason I went away
Sometimes I wish you were the one
Who had left and I had stayed
Evergreen
Evergreen
Have you even seen anything?
Evergreen
Evergreen
Evergreen
Have you even seen anything?
Evergreen
Less Than You Think
Your minds a machine
It’s deadly and dull
It’s never been still and it’s will has never been free
Lightly tapping
A high-pitched drum
And as your spine starts to shine
You shiver at your soul
A fist so clear and climbing
Punches a hole in the sky
So you can see for yourself
If you don’t believe me
There’s so much less to this than you think
It’s almost gone
The night is dissolving
In a cup god lifts to toast the lightning
Lightly tapping
It’s high pitched and it hums
Your spine starts to shine
And you shiver at your soul
A fist so clear and climbing
Punches a hole in the sky
So you can see for yourself
If you don’t believe me
There’s so much less to this than you think
Instrumental Credits
Jeff Tweedy Vocals, 6 String Acoustic Bass, Loops, Filters & Synths
John Stirratt Acoustic Guitar, Loops, Filters & Synths
Glenn Kotche Drums, Hammer Dulcimer, Loops, Filters & Synths
Leroy Bach Acoustic Guitar, Loops, Filters & Synths
Mikael Jorgensen Serge Modular Synthesizer
Jim O'Rourke Loops, Filters & Synths
Lou Reed Was My Babysitter
I want to sweat
Sweat next to you
With a sticky carpet
Sucking on my shoes
Rock n roll
Ain’t never gonna lose
No
I want you
To dance into me
Spill my drink
I want to feel the kick
Kicking in my teeth
My bleeding heart
Bleeding to the beat
Uh huh
I want you
To blow smoke in my eyes
Smoke in my eyes
I want to shake shake
Shake shake shake
Until my shoes untie
Rock n roll ain’t never gonna die
Not as long as you and I are alive
’Cause rock n roll is dead and the dead don’t die
The dead don’t die
The dead don’t die
The dead don’t die
I want to feel everything
I want to feel everything
I want to hear the idiot sing
Until I can’t feel anything
’Cause rock n roll is dead and the dead don’t die
The dead don’t die
The dead don’t die
written by Jeff Tweedy
Cruel Country
I love my country like a little boy
Red
White
And blue
I love my country stupid and cruel
Red
White
And blue
All you have to do is sing in the choir
Kill yourself every once in a while
And sing in the choir
All you have to do is sing in the choir
Set yourself on fire every once in a while
And sing in the choir
With me
With me
I love my country like a little child
Red
White
And blue
I love my country stupid and cruel
Red
White
And blue
All you have to do is sing in the choir
All you have to do is sing in the choir
All you have to do is sing in the choir
With me
With me
written by: Jeff Tweedy
We've Been Had (Uncle Tupelo)
We’ve Been Had
There's a guitar leaning on a Marshall stack
Used to sound like the sun on the horizon
Now I think we've been had
There's a young girl screaming all the way in the back
Poor kid, she never saw it coming
Now she knows she's been had
Watching labels spinnin' on my turntable
There's no call waitin' in my headphones
And every star that shines in the back of my mind
Is just waiting for its cover to be blown
There's an eardrum bleeding, yeah, it's in my head
Could I still be so in love when I know
We've been had?
Republicans, Democrats can't give you the facts
Your parents won't tell you 'til you're grown
That every star that shines in the back of your mind
Is just waiting for its cover to be blown
Flashing your badges, just like the law of averages
Nobody likes 'em where they're from
And every star that hides on the back of the bus
Is just waiting for its cover to be blown
written by Jay Farrar
originally appeared on Anodyne/ Uncle Tupelo
I'm the Man Who Loves You
All I can see
Is black and white
And white and pink
With blades of blue
That lay between
The words I think
On a page
I was meaning
To send to you
I couldn't tell
If it would
Bring my heart
The way I wanted
When I started
Writing this letter to you
But if I could
You know I would
Just hold your hand
And you'd understand
I'm the man who loves you
All I can be
Is a busy sea
Of spinning wheels
And hands that feel
For stones to throw
And feet that run
But come back home
It makes no difference
Ever known
Makes no difference
Ever known to me
But if I could
You know I would
Just hold your hand
And you'd understand
I'm the man who loves you
All I can see
Is black and white
And white and pink
With blades of blue
That lay between
The words I think
On a page
I was meaning
To send to you
I couldn't tell
If it would
Bring my heart
The way I wanted
When I started
Writing this letter to you
If I could
You know I would
Just hold your hand
And you'd understand
I'm the man who loves you
If I could
You know I would
Just hold your hand
And you'd understand
I'm the man who loves you
If I could
You know I would
Just hold your hand
And you'd understand
I'm the man who loves you
I'm the man who loves you
I'm the man who loves you
I'm the man who loves you