Folk Singers

"In the clearing stands a boxer And a fighter by his trade And he carries the reminders Of ev'ry glove that laid him down Or cut him till he cried out In his anger and his shame "I am leaving, I am leaving." But the fighter still remains."

"I get all the news I need from the weather report."

"No I would not give you false hope On this strange and mournful day But the mother and child reunion Is only a motion away, Oh, little darling of mine I can't for the life of me Remember a sadder day I know they say let it be But it just don't work out that way..."

"When the papa found out, he began to shout, and he started the investigation It's against the law, it was against the law What the mama saw, it was against the law."

"I'm on my way, I don't know where I'm goin', I'm on my way, I'm takin' my time, but I don't know where. Goodbye to Rosie, the Queen of Corona See you, me and Julio down by the schoolyard."

"A young girl in a parkin' lot was preaching to a crowd Singing sacred songs and reading from the Bible Well, I told her I was lost and she told all about the Pentecost And I seen that girl as the road to my survival... Even now that sweet memory lingers"

"Peace like a river ran through the city Long past the midnight curfew We sat starry-eyed We were satisfied... You can beat us with wires You can beat us with chains You can run out your rules But you know you can't outrun the history train"

"When I look back on all the crap I learned in high school, It's a wonder I can think at all, And though my lack of education hasn't hurt me none, I can read the writing on the wall."

"Kodachrome, They give us those nice bright colours, Give us the greens of summers, Makes you think all the world's a sunny day, Oh, yeah, I got a Nikon camera, I love to take a photograph, So Mama, don't take my Kodachrome away."

"Come on, take me to the Mardi Gras, Where the people sing and play, Where the music is elite and there's dancing in the street, Both night and day."

"Some people never say those words "I love you". It's not their style to be so bold. Some people never say those words "I love you". But like a child, they're longing to be told."

"When I was a little boy, (when I was just a boy) And the devil would call my name (when I was just a boy) I'd say "Now who do, Who do you think you're fooling?""

"And if I was the President, (was the President) And if'n the Congress called my name (was the President) I'd say "Now who do, Who do you think you're fooling?""

"I met my old lover on the street last night, She seemed so glad to see me, I just smiled, And we talked about some old times, and we drank ourselves some beers, Still crazy after all these years, Oh, still crazy after all these years."

"Now I sit by my window and I watch the cars I fear I’ll do some damage One fine day But I would not be convicted By a jury of my peers Still crazy Still crazy Still crazy after all these years."

"In my little town I grew up believing God keeps his eye on us all."

"The problem is all inside your head, she said to me The answer is easy if you take it logically I'd like to help you in your struggle to be free There must be fifty ways to leave your lover."

"Just slip out the back, Jack, make a new plan, Stan Don't need to be coy, Roy, just listen to me Hop on the bus, Gus, don't need to discuss much Just drop off the key, Lee, and get yourself free."

"She said, why don't we both just sleep on it tonight And I believe, in the morning you'll begin to see the light And then she kissed me and I realized she probably was right There must be fifty ways to leave your lover, fifty ways to leave your lover"

"Then I learned to play some lead guitar, I was underage in this funky bar And I stepped outside to smoke myself a j When I came back to the room, everybody just seemed to move And I turned my amp up loud and I began to play."

"First thing I remember when you came into my life I said I wanna get that girl, no matter what I do Well I guess I've been in love before and once or twice have been on the floor But I've never loved no-one the way that I love you."

"One and one half wandering Jews, Free to wander wherever they choose, Are travelling together in the Sangre de Christo, The blood of Christ mountains of New Mexico, On the last leg of a journey they started a long time ago, The arc of a love affair, Rainbows in the high desert air."

"Mountain passes slipping into stones, Hearts and bones."

"Everybody loves the sound of a train in the distance Everybody thinks its true."

"Two disappointed believers Two people playing the game Negotiations and love songs Are often mistaken for one and the same."

"And what is the point of this story? What information pertains? The thought that life could be better Is woven indelibly into our hearts and our brains."

"These are the days of miracle and wonder, This is the long distance call, The way the camera follows us in slo-mo, The way we look to us all, The way we look to a distant constellation That's dying in a corner of the sky, These are the days of miracle and wonder And don't cry, baby, don't cry, don't cry."

"It's a turn-around jump-shot, It's everybody jump-start, it's, Every generation throws a hero up the pop-charts, Medicine is magical and magical is art, Think of the boy in the bubble and the baby with the baboon heart..."

"The Mississippi Delta was shining like a National guitar, I am following the river down the highway Through the cradle of the Civil War."

"I'm going to Graceland, Graceland, Memphis, Tennessee, Well, I'm going to Graceland. Poor boys and pilgrims with families And we are going to Graceland, And my travelling companion is nine years old, He is the child of my first marriage, But I've reason to believe We both will be received in Graceland."

"And she said 'Losing love is like a window in your heart, Everybody sees you're blown apart, Everybody feels the wind blow.'"

"She said, 'Don't I know you from the cinematographer's party?' I said, 'Who am I to blow against the wind?'"

"I said 'Hey, is this my problem? Is this my fault?' If that's the way its gonna be I'm gonna call the whole thing to a halt"

"She's a rich girl, She don't try to hide it, Diamonds on the soles of her shoes, He's a poor boy, Empty as a pocket, Empty as a pocket with nothing to lose, Sing ta-na-na, ta-na-na-na, She got diamonds on the soles of her shoes."

"A man walks down the street He says why am I soft in the middle now Why am I soft in the middle The rest of my life is so hard I need a photo opportunity I want a shot at redemption Don’t want to end up a cartoon In a cartoon graveyard."

"If you’ll be my bodyguard I can be your long lost pal I can call you Betty And Betty when you call me You can call me Al."

"A man walks down the street He says why am I short of attention Got a short little span of attention And woe my nights are so long"

"There were incidents and accidents There were hints and allegations..."

"A man walks down the street It’s a street in a strange world Maybe it’s the third world Maybe it’s his first time around … He looks around around He sees angels in the architecture Spinning in infinity He says Amen and Hallelujah."

"Homeless, homeless, Moonlight sleeping on a midnight lake."

"Well I'm accustomed to a smooth ride, Or maybe I'm a dog that's lost its bite, I don't expect to be treated like a fool, no, no, I don't expect to sleep long nights, Some people say a lie is just a lie but I say, Why deny the obvious child?"

"Sonny sits by his window and thinks to himself, How it's strange that some rooms are like cages, Sonny's yearbook from high school is down from the shelf, And he idly thumbs through the pages, Some have died, some have fled from themselves, On a struggle from here to get there, Sonny wanders beyond his interior walls, Runs his hands through his thinning brown hair."

"Never been lonely, Never been lied to, Never had to scuffle in fear, Nothing to dive to, Born at the instant, The church bells chime, The whole world whispering, You're born at the right time."

"Moves like a fist through traffic, Anger and no-one can kill it, Shoves a little bump to the momentum, It's just a little lump but you feel it In the creases and the shadows, With a rattling deep emotion. The cool, cool river Sweeps the wild, wide ocean."

"And sometimes even music Cannot substitute for tears."

"How can you live in the Northeast? How can you live in the South? How can you build on the banks of a river When the flood water pours from the mouth? How can you be a Christian? How can you be a Jew? How can you be a Muslim, a Buddhist, a Hindu? How can you?"

"If the answer is infinite light, Why do we sleep in the dark?"

"Locked in a struggle for the right combination Of words in a melody line, I took a walk along the riverbank of my imagination. Golden clouds were shuffling the sunshine."

"We don't mean to mess things up, But mess them up we do. And then it's "Oh, I'm sorry." Here's a smiling photograph Of love when it was new. At a birthday party. Make a wish and close your eyes: Surprise, surprise, surprise."

"I shoot a thought into the future, and it flies like an arrow, through my lifetime. And beyond. If I ever come back as a tree, or a crow, or even the wind-blown dust; find me on the ancient road in the song when the wires are hushed. Hurry on and remember me, as I'll remember you. Far above the golden clouds, the darkness vibrates. The earth is blue. And everything about it is a love song. Everything about it."