Love Is The King
Here I am
There it is
At the edge
Of as bad as it gets
I’m a boxer
Blind when I swing
I sink
To my knees
I cling
And I bleed
But cry don’t you dare
When I die in the ring
Life isn’t fair
Love is the king
Love is the king
Love is the king
Of the beautiful trees
How everyone sings
And tanks in the street
Like cats
Watching with skill
Green and grey
Violent and still
Spinning above
Stones in slings
When push comes to shove
Love is the king
Love is the king
Love is the king
Love is the king
Love is the king
Love is the king
Ambulance
Once just by chance
I made a friend in an ambulance
I was half man half broken glass
She had a needle but I wasn’t afraid
I’d slap the cuffs right on my wrists
I’d get so high I’d arrest myself
For honeysuckle on a buckle
Broken teeth biting on my belt
High in a trance
My life smeared right past
In a blue light
I thought she was dancing
But she was just holding my cold hand
Cause everything can shine
Even the devil sometimes
And while I was busy dying
My lord she made some other plan
Traveling salesmen carrying trunks
You can smell them coming like skunks
In the distance, if your eyes can focus
That’s how God once spoke to us
Trying not to laugh
They pronounced me dead at half past
And that priest he pissed his pants
When he heard me start to say hello
Everything can shine
Even the devil sometimes
While I was busy dying
My lord she made some other plan
written by Jeff Tweedy
Remember the Mountain Bed
Do you still sing of the mountain bed we made of
limbs and leaves: Do you still sigh there near the
sky where the holly berry bleeds: You laughed as I
covered you over with leaves, face, breast, hips
and thighs, You smiled when I said the leaves
were just the color of your eyes.
Rosin smells and turpentine smells from
eucalyptus and pine Bitter tastes of twigs we
chewed where tangled woodvines twine Trees held
us in on all four sides so thick we could not see I
could not see any wrong in you, and you saw none
in me.
Your arm was brown against the ground, your
cheeks part of the sky, As your fingers played with
grassy moss, and limber you did lie: Your stomach
moved beneath your shirt and your knees were in
the air Your feet played games with mountain
roots as you lay thinking there.
Below us the trees grew clumps of trees, raised
families of trees, and they As proud as we tossed
their heads in the wind and flung good seeds
away: The sun was hot and the sun was bright
down in the valley below Where people starved
and hungry for life so empty come and go.
There in the shade and hid from the sun we freed
our minds and learned Our greatest reason for
being here, our bodies moved and burned There
on our mountain bed of leaves we learned life's
reason why The People laugh and love and dream,
they fight, they hate to die.
The smell of your hair I know is still there, if most
of our leaves are blown, Our words still ring in the
brush and the trees where singing seeds are sown
Your shape and form is dim, but plain, there on
our mountain bed I see my life was brightest
where you laughed and laid you head...
I learned the reason why man must work and how
to dream big dreams, To conquer time and space
and fight the rivers and the seas I stand here filled
with my emptiness now and look at city and land
And I know why farms and cities are built by hot,
warm, nervous hands.
I crossed many states just to stand here now, my
face all hot with tears, I crossed city, and valley,
desert, and stream, to bring my body here: My
history and future blaze bright in me and all my joy
and pain Go through my head on our mountain
bed where I smell your hair again.
All this day long I linger here and on in through
the night My greeds, desires, my cravings, hopes,
my dreams inside me fight: My loneliness healed,
my emptiness filled, I walk above all pain Back to
the breast of my woman and child to scatter my
seeds again.
Published by Woody Guthrie Publications, Inc. (BMI)/Warner-Tamerlane Publishing
Corp./Words-Ampersand Music (BMI)/You Want A Piece Of This Music (ASCAP),
administered by Bug Music
Words: Woody Guthrie 1944
Music: Jeff Tweedy/Jay Bennett 1999
Leroy Bach: piano
Jay Bennett: organ, nylon-string guitar, backing vocal
Ken Coomer: drums
John Stirratt: bass, backing vocal
Jeff Tweedy: vocal, 12-string acoustic guitar
Sunlight Ends
You’re not the kind of city street
Anyone can cross
You’re the kind of spinning star
That only gets you lost
You
Dance
Like the dust in the
Light
Where the sun comes in
And I’m
Following
‘Til the sunlight ends
You’re not the kind of mountain stream
Anyone can cross
You’re the kind of flashing sign
That only gets you lost
You
Dance
Like the dust in the
Light
Where the sun comes in
And I’m
Following
‘Til the sunlight ends
You’re not the kind of desert sand
Anyone can cross
You’re the kind of missing page
That only gets you lost
And you’re lost
And I’m lost
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
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)
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
Everlasting Everything
Everything alive must die
Every building built to the sky will fall
But don’t try to tell me my
Everlasting love is a lie
Everlasting everything
Oh nothing could mean anything at all
Every wave that hits the shore
Every book that I adore
Gone like a circus, gone like a troubadour
Everlasting love forever more
Everlasting everything
Oh nothing could mean anything at all
Oh I know this might sound sad
But everything goes, both the good and the bad
So it all adds up, and you should be glad
Everlasting love is all you had
Everlasting everything
Oh nothing could mean anything at all
Everlasting everything
Oh nothing could mean anything at all
Country Song Upside-Down
I found
A
Song
Upside-down
A country song
Like a trout
Dying sky and water
Rainbow
Flickering out
Inside
A dark
Cabin
The more moonlike
I become
I’m rounding all of my edges
Because
I’m worried
It can’t be sung
This is the gist
It goes
Like this
I found
A
Song
Upside-down
A country song
Without a doubt
Dying sky and water
Rainbow
Flickering out
written by Jeff Tweedy
Pot Kettle Black
Crazy rides rockets
Waves a magic wand
Empty out your pockets
Words without a song
I myself have found a real rival in myself
I am hoping for the rearrival of my health
Sleeping eye sockets
Baby suck your thumb
I'll keep you in my locket
A string I never strum
It's become so obvious
You are so oblivious to yourself
I'm tied in a knot
But I'm not
Gonna get caught
Calling a pot kettle black
Every song's a comeback
Every moment's a little bit later
Lazy locomotives
Wherever you may roll
I think you have no motive
I know you have no home
It's become so obvious
You are so oblivious to yourself
I'm tied in a knot
But I'm not
Gonna get caught
Calling a pot kettle black
Every song's a comeback
Every moment's a little bit later
Every moment's a little bit later
Every moment's a little bit later
Every moment's a little bit later
I'm tied in a knot
But I'm not
Gonna get caught
Calling a pot kettle black
I'm not
Gonna get caught
Calling a pot kettle black
Normal American Kids
I remind myself of myself long ago
Before I could drive, before I could vote
All of the time, holding a grudge
Before I knew people could die just because
Shot from a sling, head full of buzz
I knew what I liked was not very much
High at the time, tied to the grid
Always afraid of those normal American kids
Oh all of my spirit leaked like a cut
I knew what I needed would never be enough
I was too high to change my bid
Always afraid to be a normal American kid
Always hated normal American
Empty summer days
Lightning crazed and cracked like an egg
High behind the garden shed
Painting myself as a normal American kid
I always hated it
High as high as high can loom
Under the sheets in my bedroom
I was as high as high can get
Always afraid of the normal American kids
Oh bongs and jams and carpeted vans
Hate everything I don’t understand
High times tightening the lid
Had to get away from those normal American kids
Always hated those normal American kids
Always hated those normal American kids
Guaranteed
We've been through
A lot
Me and you
Hospitals and bars
I know how it hurts
I'm a piece of work
And you're no walk in the park
Oh that's a good place to start
When things go wrong
Our love gets stronger
A normal heart is a shopping cart
Left by the side of the road
Maybe I'm naive
Is it up to me
Whether I'm alive or alone?
Oh I'd love to know
How things go wrong
Love gets stronger each day
Things go wrong
And our love is stronger that way
Tragedy
is guaranteed
Things go wrong
We think we can't go on
Nothing can break you and me
Oh oh oh
I'm lucky I'm not alone
Oh I don't need to know
Why things go wrong
Our love gets stronger that way
Don't let your pain go to waste
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
Pecan Pie (Golden Smog)
As I walk along and stumble
Trains rumble in my head
As I breeze along and grumble
Think about you instead
And a piece of pecan pie
And you thats all I want
Just a piece of pecan pie
And all I want is you
Sometimes I get so hungry
Think about pie all day
Just a little whipped cream
Honey, Im on my way
With a piece of pecan pie
And you thats all I want
Just apiece of pecan pie
And all I want is you
Just a piece of pecan pie
And you thats all I want
Just apiece of pecan pie
And all I want is you
Now, dont you call me key lime
You are the apple of my eye
Dont you know Ill be fine
Whenever youre by my side
With a piece of pecan pie
And you thats all I want
Just a piece of pecan pie
And all I want is you
All I want is you
All I want is you
All I want is you
All I want is you
written by Jeff Tweedy (Appears on Golden Smog album Down By The Old Mainstream)
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 it
Love is for Love
new song by Jeff Tweedy
I'm Always In Love
Why, I wonder is my heart full of holes
And the feeling goes but my hair keeps growing
Will I set the sun
On a big-wheeled wagon
Well I'm bragging
I'm always in love
When I let go of your throat, sweet throttle
When I clean the lash of your black-belt model
Will I catch the moon
Like a bird in a cage
It's for you I swoon
I'm always in love
I don't get the connection
If this is only a test
I hope I do my best
You know I won't forget
When I fold the cold in my jet-lag palm
When I soak so long I forget my mother
Will I set the sun
On a big-wheeled wagon
Well I'm bragging
I'm always in love
It's a drag I snag
Well I'm always in love
Well I'm worried
I'm always in love
I'm worried
I'm worried
I'm worried
I'm always in love
I'm worried
I'm worried
I'm worried
I'm always in love
I'm worried
I'm worried
I'm worried
I'm always in love
I'm worried
I'm worried
I'm worried
I'm always in love
Instrumental credits:
Jeff Tweedy – vocals, baritone guitar
Jay Bennett – bass, piano, keyboards, drums, backing vocals
John Stirratt – piano, backing vocals
Ken Coomer – drums
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
I Found Reason [The Velvet Underground cover]
Cry Baby Cry
new song by Jeff Tweedy