W.De.S Songwriting Collective

Songs and MP3 Audio Links

Poppa Pajama and Ms. Melodrama
Met Mr. Quiver at the Peep Show Panorama
They was cutting up Glaze on an old window pane
They was drinkin’ rye whiskey in the middle of the day

In come Big Red and Sweet Tourmaline
They was gaspin’ for breath
Smelled like kerosene
They said it’s the worst thing
That they’d ever seen
The Bounce House is burnin’ down

Now maybe Mad Lily went all willy nilly
And cooked off some sterno to heat up her chili
She didn’t keep her squeezin’s away from the flames
And the fire got her then the fire ran away

The smell of burnt rubber in the stinking haze
The screams of the children that never will fade
And there weren’t anybody to help them escape
When the Bounce House was burnin’ down

It ain’t no surprise there was blood in the eyes
Of the mob that came lookin’ for someone to chastise
But the Carnies all knew it was only their due
So they stood there and took it when the brickbats flew

Now they’re all gone to wherever they go
It surely ain’t heaven, that much I know
Maybe they’re all out on Absalom Road
‘Cause the Bounce House burned to the ground

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I’m 100 miles outside Mount Megiddo
I’m 300 miles from Botany Bay
It’s 500 miles to Old Paradiso
And 900 miles before I reach L.A.

I got 200 pounds of sweet brown sugar
I got 200 pounds of premium Glaze
I got 200 dollars stuffed in the glove box
And I’m too far from sweet Molly Methane

And I don’t think my Chevy can make it
I don’t think it will even get me half way
I don’t think my Chevrolet can take it
If I do not make it, there’ll be hell to pay

Now this road’s as long as God’s middle finger
The only detour is the exit to Hell
This road ain’t paved with good intentions
It’s never-ending and that’s probably just as well

When I left Molly I told her don’t worry
I told sweet Molly it would be alright
When I left Molly the Chevy was purring
And the road stretched out ahead and out of sight

And I don’t think my Chevy can make it
I don’t think it will even get me half way
I don’t think my Chevrolet can take it
If I do not make it, there’ll be hell to pay

There are dangerous people that want me to pay
There’ll be nowhere to run if I can’t make this play
Goddamn the day I bought this Chevrolet

When I left Molly I told her don’t worry
I told sweet Molly it would be alright
When I left my Molly the Chevy was purring
And the road stretched out ahead and out of sight

And I don’t think my Chevy can make it
I don’t think it will even get me half way
I don’t think my Chevrolet can take it
If I do not make it, there’ll be hell to pay

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She’s been gone for several years
Hi-yoh duh yip, hi-yohhhhhhhh-ohhhhhhhhh
I like to think I’d treat her better
But I guess I’ll never know

They say a dog don’t learn new tricks
Hi-yoh duh yip, hi-yohhhhhhhh-ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh
This old fool’s at least learned one
All I want is to see her home
All I want is to see her home

Chorus
This endless field
I work alone
Mumble and moan
Cuts to the bone
Of all God’s sins
The worst is pride
I made my bed
The fault is mine
The fault is mine

I hope she’s happy wherever she goes
Hi-yoh duh yip, hi-yohhhhhhhh-ohhhhhhhhhh
But I’d be lyin’ if I didn’t say
All I want is to see her home
All I want is to see her home

Bridge
The ass is back; I found the goat
I’m better now but I missed the boat
I’m better now; I changed my way
But sometimes change just comes too late
The rooster cries the break of day
I wish like hell she would have stayed
I wish like hell she would have stayed

Chorus
This endless field
I work alone
Mumble and moan
Cuts to the bone
Of all God’s sins
The worst is pride
I made my bed
The fault is mine
The fault is mine
The fault is mine
The fault is mine
The fault is mine

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I had a fire in my belly
I had a hunger in my soul
I heard of Absalom Road since I was seven
Maybe in church, I don't know

I drove for days
Who knew it would be so long?
And when I finally found that road
What could ever go wrong?

Where the neon lights still flicker
Where I wanted to be
Where hope meets desire in a raging fire
How could I know what would happen to me?

David, oh David, what became of your son?
Did he head out on the road?
When he comes back, will he be different?
Or still the man you think you know

I've been here for years
Who knew it would be so long?
I think I saw your son last night
What could ever go wrong?

Where the neon lights still flicker
Where I wanted to be
Where hope meets desire in a raging fire
How could I know what would happen to me?
Where the neon lights still flicker
Where the neon lights still flicker

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Here they come, the drowning men
Row, ye bastards, row on
Gone to sea now back again
Row ye bastards row

To slay the dread Leviathan
Row ye bastards row on
Ye must have the fire that burns from within
Row ye bastards row

Chorus
Far thee well, my faithless Jonny
Far thee well, my seasick swain
May ye lie in fifty fathoms,
Ohhhhhh…
In the great gray whale’s embrace

There is an island of the damned
Row ye bastards row on
All made of bones in the sucking sand
Row ye bastards row
And those great beasts so cruelly slain
Row ye bastards row on
Sing to your soul all the night and the day
Row ye bastards row

(Repeat Chorus)

Bridge
And the blood of the lamb
And the blood of Abraham
Runs a red river
Across this blasted land
No flesh, nor bone
Nor oil have ye found
To sacrifice for a penny
or for a bloody pound

100 days at sea and more
Row ye bastards row on
Deafened by the sea storm’s roar
Row ye bastards row
Eyes that see no light of shore
Row ye bastards row on
Beneath the waves at last are borne
Row ye bastards row

(Repeat Chorus)

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Hey now Bessie keep cuttin’ that rug
I’m a gonna catch up when they pass that jug
Head bobbin’, heart throbbin’, spats tappin’ stew
Keep playin’ that fiddle and makin’ that brew

Bomp bomp de bomp
Boom shaka-laka-laka
Bomp de bomp
Boom-a-laka boom

What’s up Fido play them bones
Ain’t no cause to sit there alone
Pound the 88’s; grab some barbecue
I’m a gonna put on my cloggin’ shoes

Bomp bomp de bomp…

Chorus
The barn’s been painted
and the field’s been plowed
The teacher’s been missin’ for ten years now
Kick those heels, bomp bomp de bomp
All the kin gettin’ crazy
with the Hog Waller Stomp!

Listen up Clyde turn that frown around
Better shake a leg o’lamb
when you hear that sound
I’m collectin’ the rhythm I’m recordin’ the blues
Start spreadin’ the gospel and the musical news

Bomp bomp de bomp…

Bridge
Bomp bomp de bomp!
Ya gotta stop your CRYin’
and start deNYin’
those WOEful times
Bomp bomp de bomp!
All the folks are DANcin’
and the critters are PRANcin’
their FANcy moves
Bomp bomp de bomp!
While the joint is HOOtin’
you can just start ROOtin’
for the joyful sound
Bomp bomp de bomp!
Soul’s full of FEELin’
and your body’s REELin’;
I TOLD you so!
I told you so!
I told you so!
I told you so!
I told you so!
I told you so!

Good lord, Percy, that’s a mighty fine feel
Can you play it again, I gotta change this reel
I think I missed that part ‘bout the electric chair
The boiling blood and the fiery hair

Bomp bomp de bomp…

Chorus
The barn’s been painted
and the field’s been plowed
The teacher’s been missin’ for ten years now
Kick those heels, bomp bomp de bomp
All the kin gettin’ crazy
with the Hog Waller Stomp
All the kin gettin’ crazy
with the Hog Waller Stomp

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She sang like an angel and drank like a man
She trod the boards from Five Points to Siam
Born on a cow patch of East Texas ground
She ran for the hills and the bright lights of town

She was light as a feather and soft as a dream
Her skin was as smooth as peaches and cream
But whiskey, cigars and cards she did love
And they called her the Lonesome Dove

Chorus
Far away, far away
Down where King Squid and the mermaids play
They say that she drowned
When the Great Ship went down
But she’s only far away

Her frills and her lace and her well-mannered grace
Concealed her love of the cowboy way
She carried a six-gun in a holster of silk
Strapped to her thigh and her garter belt

She was light as a feather and soft as a dream
Her skin was the smoothest any man ever seen
She didn’t always play fair when it came to love
And they called her the Lonesome Dove

Chorus

There upon the stage, she floats in the spotlight
A single tear a-sparkle in her mischievous eyes
In this theatre so grand, ten thousand hearts are lifted
You can hear the men weeping, you can hear the women sigh

A first-class cabin, an unsinkable boat
Seemed only the way for her to get home
As the iceberg hit, she cried out, “Oh shit!”
It’s the end of The Lonesome Dove

Chorus

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Chorus
going to my favorite dead end
going down to where the ripples on the grooves and the wrinkles in the synapses start to blend
riding my ship to the point where the pitches and time will both have to bend
going to my favorite dead end

Oh -
I've forgotten how to speak
I left the same gray beans they gave to me last week
They see that I won't work
They have found that it is fine to have a music clerk

They took us down the hall
We saw a band I could not understand at all
Then Kirkbride came around
I had applesauce and wished again to be shut of sound

The bits don't speak to me
We must be cranked up to spin and really see
My ears will be the horn
The needle through my fragile flesh will be torn

They served us pink spaghetti and
It made me so tired and old and bland
I need to go back down
To the Hot Five times on the west end of town

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Walking on two legs was a hard way to go
Out of the water from somewhere below
Where is my mother when I need her now
I stand, I crawl, get up, I fall
A kiss for luck? But there’s no one to call

Then off in the distance
I heard a joyous sound
Went walking towards it
as the wolves began to howl
The clouds grew dark with a wind most foul
But I chose to walk on, walk on, walk on
I chose to walk on, walk on, walk on

The flood it came and tried to wash me away
Walk on, walk on,
Surrounded by a blizzard at the end of the day
Walk on, walk on,

The trembling Earth sought to swallow me whole
Walk on, walk on,
The doubters and the liars with their bitter sad moans
Walk on, walk on

I could feel the lashing as they yelled and yelled
Walk on, walk on
Sayin’ I was weak and headed straight to hell
Walk on, walk on, walk on

Ouroboros!
Ouroboros!
Ouroboros!

Crawling through deserts I slither with wonder
Ouroboros!
On the horizon, a vermilion border bliss
Ouroboros!
The lips start to open as I come much closer
Ouroboros!
Will I finally, finally get my kiss?

Laying still in the silent rain
My body without any bones
Where the ghosts sing
in echoes of tormented souls
They are so tired of being alone
They are so tired of being alone

Finally dance through memory’s dust
Hearing only waves of joyous sound
Skyward o’er the rolling sea
Far far above the ground

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Watch the snow that coats the ground
Feel the wind blow all around
Concentrate, there is no sound
Right before the blossom and the spark

Hear the echo when no one’s there
Turn your head to block the glare
Fight the chill from the freezing air
Right before the blossom and the spark

Chorus
Shadows burst in a blaze of light
Morning wakes the sleeping night
A time of doubt, a time of blight
Shaking to your core
See if you can feel the thaw
See if you can beat the draw
Feeling something close to awe
Waking to your core

Slow motion crawl thru melting sludge
Buried alive beneath a grudge
Tell yourself not to budge
Right before the blossom and the spark

An electric arc across the gap
A shower of fire all over the map
A last minute escape from a hidden trap
Right before the blossom and the spark
Shadows burst in a blaze of light
Morning wakes the sleeping night
A time of doubt, a time of blight

Shaking to your core
See if you can feel the thaw
See if you can beat the draw
Feeling something close to awe
Waking to your core

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Don’t give in to the undertaker
Don’t raise the gates; put up a fight
He can’t come in; don’t forsake her
Lock all the doors; turn out the lights

She rings like a bell in a cathedral steeple
She rises like the sun after a stormy week
Not gonna give her up to the undertaker
Gonna do what it takes to knock him off his feet

Chorus
He’s looking thru your open window
Smackin’ his lips with sick delight
Rubbin’ his hands in linseed oil
Gonna cover your flesh if it takes all night
Layin’ you down like a linoleum floor
Throwin’ your body down the deep dark well
Clearin’ new space in the mausoleum
You gotta join me now and send him back to hell

Don’t give in to the undertaker
Take a deep breath; give out a howl
He’s got a smile but he’s a faker
He’s handsome and he’s charming and he’s on the prowl

She dances like Twyla Tharp on a slow motion day
She floats like a plump white cloud in a deep blue sky
Not gonna give her up to the undertaker
Gonna stand in his way no matter what he tries

He’s looking thru your open window
Smackin’ his lips with sick delight
Rubbin’ his hands in linseed oil
Gonna cover your flesh if it takes all night
Layin’ you down like a linoleum floor
Throwin’ your body down the deep dark well
Clearin’ new space in the mausoleum
You gotta join me now and send him back...
Don't give in to the undertaker

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Dear Sally, how are you? I’m doing fine
I thought I would write you ‘cause I got some spare time
I’m up in the Big House doin’ twenty to life
But you put me there so I guess you know why
But this letter, it ain’t filled with anger or spite
'Cause I just can’t hate you and lord knows I’ve tried
A bounty’s a bounty and when it comes due
You’ve got to collect it ‘cause that’s what you do

Chorus
And I dream of the day when I’ll see your sweet face
Across the table at the Last Chance Cafe
And we’ll share us a piece of Norma Jean’s pie
While we stare at each other with deep loving eyes
And I’ll always think of you wherever I go
‘Cause I always get snake-eyes when I roll the bones

I remember the days and the good times we had
I remember your lovin’ when I’m feeling sad
How we danced the black mambo all through the night
And you slithered and withered with fire and delight
Didn’t have much then but we loved what we had
King Cobra and boomslang and a pipefull of hash
But then came the day when I knew I might hang
‘Cause you’d polished your scales and sharpened your fangs

Chorus

You know that Harsh Billy deserved what he got
You know the reason I fired that shot
You know that he held you and he’d never let go
You smiled when I put him six feet below
But the reward they offered was too sweet to you
When I saw the poster, I knew I was doomed
But I still will love you wherever you go
I forgive you, I miss you, sincerely, Trom Bone

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There beyond the last horizon
The night fell with a shower of stars
It's not like I never knew you
Or don't know who you are

It's not the words that I wrote for you
That no longer come to mind
Or the way you seemed so bitter
When I was left behind

Chorus
It's the fog every morning
The scribbling on the wall
The questions I can't answer
The friends I'll never call
It's the broken wish on every star
The touch beyond my grasp
The barely sung forgotten note
That shining, twinkling gasp

I remember walking with you
Many years ago
And even what we talked about
In the lightly falling snow

But were there other walks in other years?
I hope there were a lot
It's not the ones that I can think about
It's the ones that I forgot

It's the fog every morning
The scribbling on the wall
The questions I can't answer
The friends I'll never call
It's the broken wish on every star
The touch beyond my grasp
The barely sung forgotten note
That shining, twinkling gasp

So if you think about me
Many years from now
When everything about our lives
Is gone, I hope somehow

You'll know that I cared
But there was nothing I could do
And that you'll think about me fondly
But I won't remember you

It's the fog every morning
The scribbling on the wall
The questions I can't answer
The friends I'll never call
It's the broken wish on every star
The touch beyond my grasp
The barely sung forgotten note
That shining, twinkling gasp

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Went to see you today
Went to see my wife
You said I must be wrong
As you held his hands tight
He mumbled something soft
And you laughed a bit
Like you used to do
Just like you used to do

Later that night
I sat in our home
Hearing the way
You used to sing
And I thought about the day
And how you had laughed
A bloody funny thing
Such a bloody funny thing

Sometimes I don't know
Whose world is real
Where you are
And where we were
But I cannot forget
And you cannot remember
It's a bloody funny thing
Such a bloody funny thing

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The white spaceship lies on its side in a field
Many days after the flood
It doesn’t look a thing like what we’ve seen on TV
Its shape is all wrong as it sinks in the mud

When the water receded, it didn’t leave much
Broken hearts, broken homes, broken dreams
And the folks who first went to scavenge the sight
Found out it was not what it seemed

Chorus
Hannah was there, a curious little girl
Followed after that by her dad
And then a few animals wandered too close
After the holler filled with water and it all went bad

There was many a body seen floating by
In the days during the flood
And some said that they only looked barely human
As they passed with the muck and the crud

The roads washed away; there’s no phone access here
We sent Henry for help but he hasn’t come back
And no one really knows what’s making those sounds
That we hear from old Wilson’s shack

Chorus
Three rivers did rise when the sky’s dam burst
In those days just before the flood
And there are other relics but not like this thing
Surrounded by the bones and the blood

Now no one else will get very close
And no one else knows what to expect
So each day we rise and hope it sinks more
Wondering what comes next

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When the hills were glowing
With the shine, oh! the shine
Please remember
Not to leave me behind

Chorus
It was only days
Of innocent lives
The lonely, the bitter
Days of monstrous moonshine

If the dew in the meadow
Isn’t gone with the sun
Alone, I would shudder
Too late to run

Chorus

Like the threads of a story
Coming undone
Like the shame of your breaking
A promise to someone

Chorus

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Went to see Mr. Collins
He was stayin' in a small hotel
He once lent me some money
Showed me some kindness as well

His door was unlocked
He never did the things he should
The last time I saw him
He didn't look that good

Chorus
I can't bake a cake; I never give folks a card
I wouldn't know what to write, and feelings come too hard
We shared most things that friendship will allow
I figured if I just show up, it'll mean more anyhow

His room was dark and crowded
With old magazines
Low light came through a window
Where an old git-tar gleamed

He once said that the guilt
Over something he had done
Was enough to make him wish
He could run from the sun

Chorus

The note beside his bed
Said on this special day
He couldn't fix the past
And did not deserve to pray

Said what happened in the tunnel
So many years ago
Was eatin' out his heart
And burnin' out his soul

Can you ever undo
Anything you've done?
Is mercy somewhere
When you think there's none?
Mr. Collins
Was a friend of mine
A friend
Of mine

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At mile twenty of the ditch
of the Irishman's dream
We struck a culvert
that could swallow ten whole crews
And as the ditchers cleared out
the last of the gravel
A whisper ran the pipe
There ain't nothing to lose

It could have been the echo
of shovels on sand
Or it could have been
the foreman's wracking cough
But I think it was the water
Over 10 miles away
Telling us we'd better listen,
And we'd better leave off

Chorus
There's a whisper in the line
and it won't go away
And there's a tingling
in every man's toes
And the moans from the brothel
say someone will pay
As the water rolls down
and the hot wind blows

And later when the pipes
went on down to the Jawbone
Little Davey he got
smashed like a bug
And the next day a whisper
went through all the men
As they centered the last one
in with a tug

When the final six inches
then fell into place
A low moan moved miles
down the line
And the men in the back
thought they heard "Hold!"
Too late, somebody knew
he had run out of time

Chorus

Spoken Word
Rich man got the land
And Mulholland got the water
It's a river of gold
But not for you or me brother
Down in the dirt
For five dollars a day
Sucking up the sand
For someone else's play
Carving up the rock
Feeling the pressure
I got a thirst that's bigger
Than this whole goddamn desert

One hundred million gallons
have flowed through the pipe
Now whisper under
teeming city streets
We'll raise a hand
to the wastrels of the sand
It's over, their undoing is
without a doubt complete

Chorus

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Perplexo's groovin', spinning the discs
The music playing over seagull screams
The sun is sinking very slowly
Yeah, it's the stuff of dreams

Tore up from the floor up was how we felt
It was one of the good ones that day
A lot of magic, a lot of hope
Hootin' and singin' our lives away

Chorus
Dancin' on the beach with the waves rollin in
Today there won't be any crying
Please take my request: play that song about the clifftop
The one where all those people end up flying

Andrea's moving with a fierce boogaloo
Mashed potato, pony and some twist
She's gonna break the bonds of this miserable mood
With a go go dance and a kiss

The promises had all been broken
And all thrown away
So we thought we'd make up some new ones ourselves
And live this life our own way

Chorus

Perplexo's groovin', spinning the discs
The music playing over seagull screams
The sun is sinking very slowly
Yeah, it's the stuff of dreams

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[Spoken, perhaps over music, a beat, or percussion]
Julie, it’s like nothing I’ve ever felt.
I want to move my feet
like I’ve never moved them before.
Look at that little bird there, dancing on that branch!
I want to move my feet and flap my wings
like that little bird there.
Look out, Julie, I’ve got popcorn in my pants!

[Song begins]
Prelude intro:
I was trudging through the days
Lost and lonely in the maze
Then it happened, big top spinning
No more losing, let’s start winning!

They say it was discovered way down in Mexico
In a dark and dangerous cave with flying bats and guano
I don’t know if that’s some wild yarn from above
But I bless that day and I swear it must be loooooooove!

Chorus
There’s popcorn,
Popcorn in my pants
Got my crazy legs a movin’,
Jumpin’ like there’s ants
But it’s popcorn
From my waist down to my toes
Yes it’s popcorn
The hull’s ‘bout to explode

You can take your jumping beans
and throw ‘em in the sea
Cotton candy, peanuts are not the treats for me.
I’m flying through the night and landing just to dance
Shake that thang with joy sublime
and popcorn in my pants

Bridge
Five’s too low, let it go
Turn that heat to ten
Six is bleak, way too weak
Turn that heat to ten
Seven’s better, don’t upset her
Turn that heat to ten
Eight is close, heaven knows
Turn that heat to ten!
Nine’s gettin’ there, feet beware
Turn that heat to ten!
Heat’s been turned to ten!
Heat’s been turned to ten!

There’s popcorn,
Popcorn in my pants
Got my crazy legs a movin’,
Jumpin’ like there’s ants
But it’s popcorn
From my waist down to my toes
Yes it’s popcorn
The hull’s ‘bout to explode

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The final show was over
The big tent was torn down
Said our goodbyes; some people cried
And everybody was running around
I lit a candle
Watched it burn for hours
Old friends walked by
As we pulled out
Then I heard that sound

Big black bell, let the tolling wash over me
May the birds fly high in a cloudless sky
Let the water flow
Big black bell, was there ever a sound so sweet?
When I make my peace, when I find my sight
When the last big top spins out into the night
When the last wagon rolls

I gave you some thrills and made you laugh
With the biggest show under the sun
Sometimes the days weren’t filled with joy
But we had a decent run
At the end I lit a candle
Watched it burn for hours
Old friends walked by
As we pulled out
Then I heard that sound

Big black bell, let the tolling wash over me
May the birds fly high in a cloudless sky
Let the water flow
Big black bell, was there ever a sound so sweet?
When I make my peace, when I find my sight
When the last big top spins out into the night
When the last wagon rolls

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