1. |
Gentleman Caller
03:39
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All the fishes in the sea
All waiting so patiently
Waiting for a man like me
Line them up all over town
I will be the one to knock them down
I can’t avoid it, I’m special
I’ve got game and potential
I’m everything you don’t need
I’m in before I arrive
My dialect, the car I drive
That’s all that I need to thrive
Line them up around the block
I will be the one who can really rock
I’m a gentleman caller
All the fishes in the sea
All lined up so patiently
Just to get away from me
So line them up around the world
I’ll be hanging onto every girl
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2. |
Circle Me
03:31
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Circle me, hold me in your arms
I just want to lie awake until I am not afraid
So circle me like a warm downpour
Falling endlessly, circle me
He spent his waking hours making
Hundreds and hundreds of lists
All thematically attentive to the women he had kissed
Concentrations on relations and vacations he had taken
But he found himself confounded by the one that got away
And he tried to look her up but met with limited success
She moved on and she was gone
And left no forwarding address
Now he cries up to the sky and wonders why and how
And who can help to find the one to just
Another morning, early morning
Drowning her delusions in a beer
She was coping, mostly hoping she’d be famous in a year
But she never spent a cent upon her rent because
She lived out of a shopping cart and drank away her change
She could act and she could dance but only sober as a bird
And with her eternal bender she could hardly make a word
Now she fishes out a penny and she wishes that
The friends she never made would save her and
I can wait as long as it takes
To cure my heartbreaks and get over my mistakes
And I don’t care about the bringer
Gonna put it through the ringer
I’ll do anything as long as I don’t have to lift a finger
When my days are done I’ll be the lucky one
Like a prodigal son without the mind to back it up
‘Cause when you’re happy and horny
And simple and stupid and there’s no mind
To be concerned about losing
You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs
So you might as well cut all your losses and beg
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3. |
Mouth Breather
03:18
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Don’t call it a comeback, ‘cause I haven’t left just yet
But I’m taking back a memory you won’t soon forget
Living in the middle of your riddle is a hassle
When you’re a house-sitting king
At someone else’s castle
Then you blow up ‘cause you think that you’re acting
Like a grown up and you’re so insanely clever
But you know what? You’re a one-sided discussion
And listening to you is like listening to a concussion
You say you’re dynamic but your dynamic seems to be
Running on hypocrisy that’s running on empty
And I’m amazed at the pseudo-abominations
That you spoke of
Your fire-backs backfired, they’re fun to make a joke of
Darn it, oh well, maybe next time you’ll be the incarnate
Of your feelings in your brain unless you tarnish
Your knowledge of the English language
Based on everything I’ve heard from you
It’s like you’re speaking Spanglish
There can be only one Highlander
There can be only one
Honey, your potential is to be a super mouth breather
And I know that you don’t like me
And I’m not fond of you either
But I’m trying to extend our dividend to make amends
We can always split our assets, I’ll end up with our friends
Tragic, isn’t it? I thought you could’ve been a rad chick
But there’s no use in prolonging all the magic
Here’s a quarter from your ear so you can call your mom
To pick you up and make you disappear, ‘cause
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4. |
The Great American Novel
03:38
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Every night, I sit, curmudgeon by the candlelight
The pages beg and plead for me to write
I don’t know how long this will take
But I’m scribbling and leaving legends in the pen’s wake
Should it be a vast account of my hypocrisy?
Or something pulled from my own memories?
I’d like to get my stories out
Maybe first, though, I should know what they’re about
I’m gonna get gypped out of my bet on the best
I’m gonna bet my fortune on my lack of success
I’m gonna write the great American novel
Seven eighths are done when I begin to radiate
Ideas that soon will come to generate
Another intriguing chapter, nothing for this page
But maybe on the one right after
Evident that this is how my adolescence spent
Concocting something maybe heaven sent
I’m hoping the flow won’t tarnish, if it does
This tour de force is landing in the garbage
I’m gonna fly up so high that I’ll land upside down
I’m gonna tie up the microphone and block out the sound
I’m gonna write the great American novel
Seeking forward in time can break my concentration
Hiding my wrists from cramps and blocks
This can’t be happening
Everyone, come see the masterpiece that I have done
My pride projecting like a loaded gun
It’s like my own personal progeny
I can still feel the narration seep within me
Fumbling for rights and non-eccentric publishing
The whole experience was troubling
Pulling teeth from cover to cover
I can’t wait until I get inspired to write another
I’m gonna run amok on my grave when I’m dead
I’m gonna wonder who makes all that noise overhead
I’m gonna write the great American novel
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5. |
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Well I’m the sergeant of the missing town
Break it down
It’s simple enough to wrap my thoughts around
I don’t wear a crown for that flimsy sound
But you can watch my south side when I’m northbound
‘Cause I’m eccentric, perhaps detrimental to the criss-cross
Made by the birds with their wooden mud house floss
For the dreamers, this goes out to half of you
And the rest of the world should wake up
And find something else to do
Skim down the population
And this week all becomes, becomes
Spend now your procreation
And meddle with your funds, your funds
It’s mighty cold when you’re naked in a centerfold
Living off the names of a million men
You wish that you’d known, I don’t condone
The opportunist who thinks that he can use this
Not gonna prove it’s just a messed-up theory set to music
And you’ve got that friend who doesn’t comprehend
The meaning of the end, he’s waiting, breathing
It’s time to watch the private screening
So vacation from the trepidation, it’s so exciting
When you’re melting in the sauna
And the Wall Streets are all biting
Well I’m the flavor of the minute by the time it all sets in
It goes back to the same lame game so I can’t win
It’s easy enough to act tough in front of a crowd
You’re a herd when you’re out
Lobbying with another angry mob
Don’t blow your desk job, son, it’ll come back to haunt you
In the gauntlet, the final showdown, it’ll only taunt you
Watch the lighting dip, flim, trip, flicker and fly out of sight
Out of mind, which means it’s almost time to die
Sweet unspoken ends, redone joking ends
Spring waif grabs the role
Sweet unbroken ends, dealer chocking ends
Six days in the hole
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6. |
Missing Link Blues
03:24
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Somewhere in the middle of the ages, I survived
Wait until the coast is clear to come out
And forgive, the pain is on, the face is on
When the bough breaks into heaven you’ll find
That I’m there and all the ancients
That came from them won’t be quite as scared
It’s a drag I know, it’s a drag for sure
It’s a drag I know, but I’m left wanting more
Got a headache raking leaves in there
Don’t you worry about a thing
I’ll come rescue you at the last second
No matter what you might think
And I’ll find it fine when it’s feeding time
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7. |
In Reverse
03:29
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I’ve tried quoting famous dead people a bit
And I fear that it won’t do justice to what I need
So maybe if I change my plans
Or make grand gestures with my hands
It’ll take a bit more time to heed
And if this means a single thing
It’s that it doesn’t mean a thing
Unless you’re listening in reverse
I want power in the way I finish a sentence
And it feels like I could use some more
The subliminal is all I know
But sometimes I don’t want that to show
In the life span of my latest score
And if you’re trying to dig deep
Just turn it down and get some sleep
Or else try listening in reverse
Maybe next time it won’t be so forbidden
Maybe I won’t keep my agenda hidden
What if I came right out and said
Exactly the phrases that I pasted together instead?
You’re better off just listening in reverse
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8. |
Space Between My Ears
03:27
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I stole a glimpse of Kublai Khan
He lumbered blankly with his shorts on
He ran a yardstick through his hair
And told me nothing much was left there
I dream of the water running short
I scream to the lukewarm feeling left
I scheme at the thought of vacant fear
Pristine as the space between my ears
I broke the ice with Marvin Gaye
He said that he’d been feeling okay
So much for myths that let us down
And thus, no point in milling around
I don’t want to let you down
I don’t want to let you down again, again
I don’t want to leave you out
I just couldn’t stand to leave you out again, again
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9. |
The Majestic
03:25
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I was a champion of vigorous mistakes
I spent the seasons drowning in my man-made lakes
I can’t distinguish all the real ones from the fakes
She came around and found me cowering alone
She sent along a gracious message I could own
And now I dial her up while perched upon my throne
All of the moments I’ve been blessed with
Are bleeding into me
Rooting around through the majestic
And left with the debris
A new life breathed into the void that was my heart
Amidst the madness that I’ve found my counterpart
Pray not to mess things up, at least I’ve made a start
I am still ignorant at times, I won’t deny
I dream in sepia and have no idea why
But with her starring there I’m such a lucky guy
Beneath the memories I revel
To feel them caving in
Although I don’t know where we’re going
I’m proud of where we’ve been
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10. |
Los Actress
03:57
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You're a lost cause, Los Actress
You came to Los Angeles in an olive bus condemned to rust
And you stepped off the curb, just thinking, “Hey
Mark my words, I’ll be famous by the end of the day”
Oh, and the interviews were tiring
But your voice was so inspiring
Or was it that your cleavage was presented just right?
Oh, like a prodigal daughter from the Mississippi water
You wouldn’t put out, give out, suck out
Without your name in lights
You’ll see your name on the silver screen
(But you’re just a secondary character)
Everyone in the world will watch your scene
(Still you’re just a secondary character)
You tore through Los Angeles with an agent
And a guy from Andy’s Donuts who chose all your clothes
Presented with scripts, maybe not left and right
But right enough to get you through the night
And oh, and the parties were exciting
And the drugs were so inviting
So much so that you woke up with a check and a part
Oh, and though the mystery deepened
You didn’t care where you were sleeping
As long as they threw peanuts at you and called you smart
You turn to run through the door
You trip and spill to the floor
Your chapter, no more
Oh, and the smoke is all around you
And the galas still confound you
And the Zoloft and the Lithium will start to take their toll
Oh, and you’re put through constant hell
But you swear you’ll never tell
Assuming you end up with a supporting role where
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11. |
I Know Something
03:42
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When I woke up lying but not bound
I don’t know what kind of force
Had knocked me to the ground
Should I stay here or just flee the scene?
Conflicted emotion hybrid, human tangerine
Footsteps haunting, I hope they will pass
Through the nooks and crannies
Like an English muffin has
Vertigo view, count the ceiling tiles
I can’t see a damn thing but they seem to go for miles
Tell me all about me, I can’t live without me
I know something but I doubt it’s what I see
Make me make my living, make me do my bidding
I know something but it isn’t something me
I was younger, always caving in
Never knew exactly when my conscience would begin
So much hiding, hiding behind doors
Hiding in parked cars and caves
And dumpsters next to stores
Now I’m older, older every day
Crab-walking through someplace new
As for why, I can’t say
Floors like gym mats, blue and relenting
My existence is a means of how I know something
One of these days I’ll escape the maze
I can’t wait to see the look I’ll have upon my face
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12. |
Dust Off The Cogs
05:28
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This is where I leave you, my friend
The fork where you veer left and I go right around the bend
I believe you’re ready for this earth
It’s time to go and find out what your aptitude is worth
I used to dream about you
Whether or not I’d doubt you here, here
The hours that I raised you
Conflated and appraised you dear
With my last dying breath I only ask
Do you promise to loom? To forever consume?
Put your feet on the track leading out of your room
Do you promise to find all the cracks in your mind?
Will you dust off the cogs or just leave them behind?
This is where the tide turns for good
I gave you what you need to oversee the neighborhood
And I don’t have to tell you that I’ll smile
When I see your name spread
All across the globe within a while
I’m not afraid of failure
I’m just afraid of failing you, you
And once we’ve gotten older
You’ll start to train your soldiers too
And as the lights go dim I’ll only ask
Maybe you’ll be something even better than I’ve been
If I had my druthers I would bust my chances in
Oh yeah
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