1. |
Drug Store Readers
03:15
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They might as well be another species
So uninformed, so proudly blank
But what the hell? What were you thinking?
That French tuck it ain’t foolin’ anyone
Never gonna get with your drugstore readers
Every line is out there on display
Never gonna get with your drugstore readers
Close up shop, call it a day
It’s all so silly, but her elbows laid you low
Is there a hidden camera? Is this all some prank?
You can feel the smirks forming behind your back
Cuz that French tuck, it ain’t foolin’ anyone
Never gonna get with your drugstore readers
Every year is out there on display
Never gonna get with your drugstore readers
Close up shop, call it a day
You can see, the lights go out behind her eyes
She can sense what you already know,
She’s not missing anything
It’s all about superfluous beauty
It’s a cold and vain eternity
Destined. to relive. my addled essence
Laid out at once for all to see
Never gonna get with your drugstore readers
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2. |
Nickeled & Dimed
03:33
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Invisible syllables
Standing in for principals
Memories in jeopardy
Sacrificed to reveries
You’ve been nickeled and dimed
Not listening, just belittling
Classical conditioning
Standing proud, talking loud
But reaching out is not allowed
You’ve been nickeled and dimed
Hung up on a line
Just wasting time
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3. |
Easiest Thing to Do
04:18
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Doors open at seven. Last call is at four
But it’s barely eleven as I sneak out the door
Don’t know how you do it. I’ve never heard the call
So afraid you’ll see through it...
You can try hard or not try at all
It's all the same when you start to fall
The path of least resistance
Is the bane of my existence
Cuz I'll always try and do
The easiest, thing to do
It’s all so exhausting and yet nothing’s at stake
Forgoing the frosting for want of a cake
The crowd grows quiet. The batter steps to the plate
All his decision
Swing for fences or not swing at all
Only you can make the call
The path of least resistance
Is the bane of my existence
Cuz I'll always try and do
The easiest thing...
There's comfort in persistence
That seems to offer some assistance
But I'll always try and do
The easiest thing to do
The crowd grows quiet The batter steps to the plate
All his decision
Swing for fences or not swing at all
Only you can make the call
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4. |
Call It Sleep
05:19
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A dirty sixth floor walk up, windows smudged and cracked
The view across your alley another kid just staring back
Your parents had their reasons for leaving your life behind
And if you don’t understand them, best to block it from your mind
The wind is howling down your street, shoes shot full of holes
And those kids that don’t like you, question if you’ve got a soul
And no matter what the prize may be, this price is way to steep
The lights go out but you don't dream, at best you’d call it sleep
I guess you could call it sleep
This language is relentless, it scrambles up your head
And those laundry bags you’re dragging might as well be full of lead
The gas light makes you drowsy, and the dust just makes you cough
And that hunger in your stomach never seems to drop off
Moments of tranquility never last that long
And you know when he’s not shouting that a smack is coming strong
No matter what the prize may be, this price is way to steep
The lights go out but you don't dream, at best you’d call it sleep
I guess you could call it sleep
Someday you’ll be all grown-up, and you’ll get the hell away
To a place that’s more forgiving, where hope can light the way
Where there always is enough to eat, and room enough to play
You catch yourself wasting time, there’s work to do today
No matter what the prize may be, this price is way to steep
The lights go out but you don't dream, at best you’d call it sleep
I guess you could call it sleep
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5. |
A Rough Translation
03:41
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Take these words of love
From English to German
German to French
French to Spanish
Then back to English
And let’s see what’s left.
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6. |
Hired Hand
04:17
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Anita and Mick, Donald and Nick
Sweet baby James, such a fox
A thousand broken hearts
In the house of blue lights
Always pressing to turn back the clock
That hole in yer gut don't care how it’s filled
Push it enough and it’s gonna bleed
How drunk we must be
To set our bodies free
Best to just follow his lead
Can you love the hired hand?
Rise up and take a stand
Walk like there’s someplace to go
Like there’s someplace you gotta be
Uh-huh, oh yeah
Uh-huh, oh yeah
Burroughs and Borges, Norman O. Brown
Nothing’s as simple as it seems
Try to engage
like it’s all the rage
Stare all you want, it won’t reveal what it means
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7. |
Muscle Car Séance
03:34
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Dad listens to a talk show
On a brand new radio
That he bought about a week ago
Hold fast to feral memories
It’s all so -extrasensory
Emergent technologies
You're charging fast, headed straight uphill
Always moving, never standing still
Windshield wipers tap out the tempo
To a song you knew oh so long ago
You read the map by the radio’s glow
Past the Stop & Shop, past the Circle K
Your escape is never far away
Just don’t forget there’s no reason to stay
You’re charging fast, headed straight uphill
Always moving, never standing still
Muscle car séance
Bringing spirits to life
Past the Stop & Shop, past the Circle K
Your escape is never far away
Just don’t forget there’s no reason to stay
Muscle car séance
Bringing spirits to life
Muscle car séance
Bringing spirits to life
Muscle car séance
Bringing spirits to life
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8. |
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You think you’re special? You’re nothing special
Anyone can do what you do
Cuz those chords and that voice
Are never gonna see things through
What you need to push it over, you know there’s just a chosen few
So you head to the back of the queue
Uh-huh-huh
You’re only as good as the one on the throne
They’re the folks who make sense of it all
Pulling together your well-worn threads
Decoding your illegible scrawl
Open up your point of view, no matter how meager or small
And just flat out kickin’ the stall
Uh-huh-huh
So you gotta give the drummer some
Give the drummer some
You gotta give the drummer some
Give the drummer some cash
There are times they’ll brush you off,
but you know it’s never personal
You’re a friend, but then again
sometimes it’s transactional
Just forget it, you won’t regret it cuz it sounds so subliminal
Bordering irrational
Uh-huh-huh
Give the drummer some cash
Try to make it last
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9. |
Blue Heron Drive
03:51
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All I’ve got is this photograph of your voice
To keep me company through the night
There was time I swore that I touched you
but it was just smoke and mirrors after all
I hope there’s still time for me to catch you before you slide
Down blue heron drive
Where’s that person I once knew
The one who turned left whenever I said right
Someone took her and left you here
The eyes are still blue but the smile ain't right
I hope there’s still time for me to catch you before you slide
Down blue heron drive
We all have decisions we have to make
You can live in the dark, or you can switch on a light
You can keep mining your body for gold
Or go to the well though you know that it’s dry
I hope there’s still time for me to catch you before you slide
Down blue heron drive
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10. |
Never Gonna Be the Same
04:13
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The ferry’s such a pleasant ride
Did it just ‘bout every day
Then spent my time on the sides
Trying to stay above the fray
Fortunes gained and fortunes spent, A lifetime's to be lost
All that matters are these friends, So hold on at any cost
It’s never gonna be the same, But we'll get through in spite
Didn’t want to play their game,And maybe that's alright
Mostly never dreaded work
There are puzzles to be solved
And they’re mostly nice most of the time
If you’re mostly uninvolved
Fortunes gained and fortunes spent, A lifetime's to be lost,
All that matters are these friends, So hold on at any cost
Never gonna be the same, And I'll be forever glad
Never gonna be the same, And maybe that ain’t so bad
Think you know just how
This road is gonna bend
But soon you come to realize
None of this matters in the end
It’s never gonna be the same, But we'll get through in spite
Didn’t want to play their game,And maybe that's alright
Never gonna be the same, And I'll be forever glad
Never gonna be the same, And maybe that ain’t so bad
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11. |
Murdering Kind
03:24
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Ahistorical - ain't no precedent for this
Try as I might to walk in the light
It's in darkness you find your bliss
Metaphorical - try to find a way inside
Wracking my brain to access the pain
That's forever along for the ride
You say you want a killer
Well you best leave me behind
You say you need a killer
I'm not the murdering kind
Categorical - it’s time to for us to part
But I know that it’s not real, these things that I feel
in my head but not my heart
You say you want a killer
Well you best leave me behind
You say you need a killer
I'm not the murdering kind
Allegorical - hoping it makes some sense
Twisting my thoughts, connecting the dots
Trying to not cause offense
You say you want a killer
Well you best leave me behind
You say you need a killer
I'm not the murdering kind
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12. |
Get in the Way
03:38
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She’s driving in circles stuck in the roundabout
I’m riding shotgun staring at my phone
Dreams are lost at such a cost, the sun can’t melt this permafrost
There’s nothing but doubt
No one should have to go it alone
I never wanted to get in the way
She lays in bed, heart pounding in her ears
I drift off serenely in my sleep
A million plans still are pending, a million threads in need of mending
To silence those fears
Who’ll hold the rope when you dive in deep
I never wanted to get in the way
She’s watching me fade away in her rear view
I’m on the shoulder staring at my phone
The warm sunshine lies just ahead, a cooler breeze, a softer bed
Where everything's new
No one should ever have to go it alone
I never wanted to get in the way
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13. |
Please Think First
03:14
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In your mind it’s just a little conversation
You didn’t think it sounded like a confrontation
before you knew what you had done
Your words had sucked out all the fun
Please think first and save yourself a lot of pain
If you’re not smart you’ll craft yourself a mausoleum
Locked inside where no one ever gets to see ‘em
Just a thought as you hit the bar
You’re not as bright as you think you are
So please think first and save yourself a lot of pain
cuz no one wants to do this all over again
Clever kids ain't so cute as they grow older
Being alone's no fun as they days grow colder
How many chances before you're through
So tired of the likes of you
please think first and save yourself a lot of pain
cuz no one wants to do this all over again
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14. |
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Fictitious remedies, implanted memories
Marking time till you can help me get rid of these
Anonymous tendencies, interdependencies
Trying hard not to worship accessories
Please won’t you please take a word from the wise
Love is never lost and nothing ever dies
(Please won’t you please take a word from the wise)
Feeling bereft inside, nothing left to hide
All too soon I might cross the last divide
Just my stupid pride, left to coincide
With all these thoughts I can’t push to one side
Please won’t you please take a word from the wise
Love is never lost and nothing ever dies
Nothing ever dies
Nothing ever dies
Fictitious remedies, implanted memories
Fictitious remedies, implanted memories
Please won’t you please take a word from the wise
Love is never lost and nothing ever dies
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15. |
Some of Shelly's Blues
03:08
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Lyrics by Mike Nesmith
Tell me, just one more time the reasons why you must leave,
Tell me once more why you're sure you don't need me,
Tell me again but, don't think that you'll convince me.
Now you've said,
Before falling in love again you'd rather be dead,
'Cause when someone breaks your heart, you cry your eyes red,
But there's nothing so hard about the life that you've led.
As far as I can see,
There's no reason for goodbyes,
You're just running scared,
And that's something I won't buy.
So you lose,
I won't let you go with nothing to show but more blues,
And all this talk about leaving is strictly bad news,
So you settle down and stay with the man that loves you.
As far as I can see,
There's no reason for goodbyes,
You're just running scared,
And that's something I won't buy.
So you lose,
I won't let you go with nothing to show but more blues,
And all this talk about leaving is strictly bad news,
So you settle down and stay with the man that loves you.
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16. |
Nothing is Free
09:19
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Take Fulton past William, the station’s on your right
Gold exits into Maiden, take Front Street straight on through the heights
Take Nassau up to Beekman, follow Cedar down to the piers
Water turns into Pearl Street, turns into Saint James, then disappears
You may think things are better
But blind eyes will never see
There’s just one thing to remember
Nothing is free
Stay away east of A is what they said at the time
From C to D was not for me, don’t even think it, not on their dime
Suffolk, north of Delancey - rubble as far as the eye could see
If you get lost east of Essex, just be warned you won’t blame me
You may think things are better
But blind eyes will never see
Just one thing to remember
Nothing is free
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Sal Cannestra New York
It'll all be here, eventually.
Band stuff available here: thethirteen.bandcamp.com
If you like Sal Cannestra, you may also like:
supported by 4 fans who also own “Sal Cannestra's Department of Amusement”
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