BURBANK

Well the rent’s no cheaper in Burbank
I think somebody lied
And they keep saying L.A. is over with
It’s like someone had died

But the rich and fortunate
Like - plastic surgeons
They all seem to thrive
I’m just skating on the boardwalk today
Thinking hey, how strange I’m alive

There’s a lady getting arrested
She’s walking topless on the beach
There’s an old blind man
With his banjo in hand
Tip jar is well within reach

But the lost and restless
They get nervous
When the cops pass by
I watch the old men play chess
Hey, hey—we all get by

(Repeat ½ above chorus)
I’m just here on the pier today
Thinkin’ hey, I’d like to do more
More than survive

There’s a part of me gone missing
It left so long ago
Some town I’d lived in
Some childhood nightmare
Where it went aint nobody knows

But the voices of angels
They will lift me
When it’s my time to fly
I’m just here in the California sun
Thinking hey, hey—I guess I’ll try

 

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Subatomic Zero

I got the six free issues of your magazine
Wanna know the truth my friend?
It didn't change one thing
I saw my family converge and dissipate
Fanned the flames of love
Burned with fires of hate

Subatomic—feel a little small
Subatomic zero baby
Then you feel like…nothing at all

I used to stare out the window
Of the gym at my high-school
Singing "Sarah" like Stevie Nicks
But not because it was cool
I knew I had to have a better life
Cos' that one was makin me die
That song somehow gave me hope
Even now it make me cry

Ya, I got the hotel record
I got your wrecking ball
I read the romance novel
I got the poster on the wall
I even saw the picture show
How life's supposed to be
Get taken to the cleaners
Believe everything you see

 

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BEAUTIFUL TATTOO

When she is drunk
She thinks that she can write like Dylan
& she dreams of a Paris France
With Anarchy
She never quite lived in
Her first boyfriend turned Buddhist….the one after that …he turned gay
And although she’s still glad, the last man she had…he turned to stone today…

She’ll probably go back to school
But that’ll be next semester
Feelin kinda lost just now
Wanna be alone - remain sequestered

But see, she has a goal…see, she has a rule
She’s looking for, she’s searching for
The most beautiful, the most beautiful tattoo

Not to be stymied
By man’s "Great Search For Meaning"
She leaves no Skin unexamined
For her particular style of gleaning

Her best friend from grade school just got married…the second best
Just got an MBA…although she’s still glad…the last friend she had
She turned to ice today…

She’ll probably go off somewhere but that’ll be later on
Feelin’ kindof lost just now
Like something she did was
Wrong…so wrong…no, no not wrong…not wrong…

But she has a goal…see, she has a rule
She’s looking for, She’s searching for
The most beautiful, the most beautiful tattoo

 

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What’s There To Eat?

I turn off the phones
And I isolate
I stay home alone
I stay up too late

I watch all the re-runs
Of my favorite shows
I don’t really think about
The good times I’ll never know

It’s too late to begin—It’s too late to win
It’s not fair—It’s too hard
I never could start
I always start strong—I finish weak
What’s on TV? What’s there to eat?
   
I see the celebrities
And the lives that they lead
You’d think with all that money
They’d give some to me

I went to rob the liquor store
But they sent me to jail
Compared to all the movie stars
I’m sure my troubles seem pale
(Repeat Chorus)

If life is a sideshow
For the small and the weak
Then who is the barker
For those who won’t speak?

We tally our losses
We fake a few wins
But some would rather fall and freeze on their knees
Than have to yearn and burn again
(Repeat Chorus)

 

 

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Guitars, Cadillacs (Documentary)

I been drinking scotch
It don’t take me much
Old man sang Dwight Yoakum song
Coupla nights ago

It’s been rainin’ all through Labor Day
I Just found out my aunt
She died today
And when my lease is up
I’ve no idea where I’ll go

Guitars and Cadillacs
Pink hotels and heart attacks
Summer times in Galveston,
Like a black and white grainy Documentary
Old poster of Paris, France
I know I’m lucky
Cos I got to dance
Few signs of evolution
Never mind the pollution in this Opportunity

Been confused about you babe
Compared to me thought you had it made
But I see your situation
That look on your face shows a different thing

Been runnin’ through my mind today
All the years that we sleep away
And when I grasp for answers
I see the past just turn and wave and walk away

Guitars and Cadillacs
Hearin’ that song makes me want you back
Roller skating in Central Park
Houston after dark
Drunken, documentary
Old lawn chairs rust and fade so slow
I know I’m lucky
Cos I got to go

We’re seeking absolution
It’s part of the solution, in this Opportunity
No sign of intermission

But God I want permission in this Opportunity
Yeah, yeah, I still get blown away
My life’s in shades of gray
Like some Documentary

 

 

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Onus O’Reilly

Onus O’Reilly sits on a fence
Contemplating suicide
Onus O’Reilly had been born a man
But wanted to be somebody’s bride

Oh, Onus, Onus O’Reilly
So very manly and so very unlikely

Onus—he likes to wear pretty dresses    
He wears them when he is alone   
Delicate under things               
Make his manly heart sing       
S’ like giving a dog to a bone

He bravely tries to hide it
Strongly tries to fight it
Thinks it might leave him alone
Always rears its lady-like head
Takes control of him instead
Now the dog’s being buried by the bone
(Chorus)

Onus decides to give a little push
And he ends up face down in the mud
He’s a little disappointed when he wakes up and he finds
Another job that he’s left undone

But he gets up and he shakes off
And he goes into the house
And he decides to start it all again
Now everybody driving by waves hello at the lady
Who was once stuck inside of a man, man, man
(Repeat Chorus)

 

 

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Amazed

Baby I’ve been amazed
I have been astounded
I’ve been flying high on love
But now, I feel more grounded
Baby I’ve been confused
Frightened by the ghost of you
Twice too many times I’ve tried
But now, I see that was unwise

We went to the carnival
We went as a pair
Someone called your name in the tunnel of love
I turned around, but no one was there
When we danced on the promenade 
I tried to hold your hand
Someone walked by —  you mumbled something
I never did understand

Time is never ending
Time is never free
It’s time I stopped pretending    
That the ghost of you
Is dancing with the ghost of me

Baby I’ve been around
Ya I’ve danced all over this town
In the arcade I made some dreams
Polaroids of us by the sea
Baby I was unwise
Made the music to my own lies
A parade of charades it seems
Dance with the truth-truth sets you free

There is just one answer
Answer is for free
Answer run to river
River run to sea
(Repeat)
River run to sea-I wish you ran to me

 

 

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Aloysius

Seems I find it hard to forget you
Seems you float in on the breeze
Seems they still find ways to rob you
Like the tone of their voice as they say “tickets please”

Ooh, Aloysius, king of the smorgasbord
Ooh, all my fences
Should I want less…
Or desire more?

Seems I still find ways to follow
You and that crazy dance you lead
I wrote down all the reasons that I love you
But the pen dropped when I got to 83

Ooh, Aloysius, king of the final frontier
Ooh, all my wishes
What are the things
I should hold dear?

I took those flowers that you gave me
N’ put ‘em in a pretty vase
Don’t you know that your words
They always save me
They keep me in a state of grace

Ooh, Aloysius, king of the smorgasbord
Ooh, all my fences
Should I want less………?

Ooh, Aloysius, king of the final frontier
Ooh, all my kisses
What are the things
Show me the things
What are the things
I should hold dear?
We should hold near?

 

 

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Dear Allen

Nothin, let’s talk bout about nothing
Talk about nothing, gonna fade away

Dear Allen, I’m getting married
I want to see if you object
Dear Allen, I, I miss your motives
I miss your need to self-protect

Allen I never knew why you withdrew
And took your sweet love away
You remember dancing down at Guido’s
While outside it rained?

Dear Allen, I have not heard from you
Want to make sure you’re okay
Oh Dear Allen, I ruined your idea of marriage
Did you think you’d see me here today?

Allen I don’t know why
It was always do or die
And your love you had to constrain
Like there’s something else besides Guido’s
You thought you had to attain

(Repeat ½ Chorus)
And you treated me like some stain
Spilling out of a bottle of beer at Guido’s    
Cos you wanted cheap champagne

Hey Allen, thanks for the memories
I hope you learned how to connect
Send a letter, drop a postcard
Or be like me, just call collect

Allen I think I know why it was you had to go
Took your sweet love away
I will always remember dancing down at Guido’s
Even after….the rain

 

 

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You Run Deep

There were some running around everyday
Nothing to think about - nothing to say
Some were so scattered - nothing could be found
A disturbance of air - but no one was around

They were just looking to jump off some lover’s leap
You, on the other hand, you run deep, you run deep

We hear them talk of things in the past
I look ahead and want something to last
There are other worlds that I dream of
Wish one would take me – and I’d rise above

And prima donnas dream of diamond rings
But rarely do they sleep
You, on the other hand, you run deep

You water the roots of my soul
Tour the very heart of me
Always something to dream about
Always pleasant to see
When others were swept aside
And others did not stay
You were always by my side
Always had magic to say

Sinbad sails and Pegasus flies
Some things I never want to question why
Santa Claus he never wore a ring in his nose
St. Francis did he ever Vogue or Pose?

Maybe there is nothing here that I can keep
You, on the other hand, you run deep, you run deep

There are stars that slowly change
Tumbleweeds blow out on the mountain range
Survey the horizon - all the world’s a stage
Reach inside get rid of silent rage

And I was just looking for someone I’ll never meet
You, on the other hand, you run deep, you run deep

 

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Judas

Judas, oh Judas
Oh, oh your lips were sweet
How you told me everything
Said I made your world complete

Oh Judas, hey Judas
You know, you really threw me off
And all the while there you were
Swearing one day you'd stop

Do you really wanna see me write more songs?
Cos you knew that I loved you right or wrong

Hey Judas, oh Judas
Oh your lips were sweet

Judas, oh Judas
You know you swore you'd not forget
How you burned into my skin
Like an unlit cigarette
Hey Judas, one day you know we will try again
So Judas, then Judas
You can deny you are my friend

Do you wanna see me write more songs?
Cos you know that I love you
Right or wrong

Judas, oh Judas
Oh your lips were sweet
Oh your lips were