I am the cosmos. Chris Bell.




1. I am the cosmos.

Every night I tell myself, I am the cosmos, I am the wind, but that don't get you back again. Just when I was starting to feel okay, you're on the phone, I never wanna be alone, never wanna be alone, I hate to have to take you home, wanted too much to say no, no.

Never wanna be alone, I hate to have to take you home, want you too much to say no, no. My feeling's always have been something I couldn't hide, I can't confide, don't know what's going on inside. So every night I tell myself, I am the cosmos, I am the wind, but that don't get you back again.

I'd really like to see you again, I really wanna see you again…


2. Better save yourself.

I walk the streets, I'm all alone, I just can't think what I've been doing wrong. I know you're mine, he treats you nice, it's suicide, I know, I tried it twice.

You should've given your love to Jesus, it couldn't do you no harm, should've given your love to Jesus, it wouldn't do you no harm. You've been sitting on your ass, trying to find some grace, but you better save yourself if you wanna see his face. I guess there are things you'd like to know, it's getting late and I know you want to go.

You should've given your love to Jesus, it couldn't do you no harm, should've given your love to Jesus, it wouldn't do you no harm. You've been sitting on your ass, trying to find some grace, but you better save yourself if you wanna see his face. I walk the streets, I'm all alone, I just can't think what I've been doing wrong.


3. Speed of sound.

I remember the first time you said you loved me, I waited all weekend, you never called me. So you find him attractive, so what if he is, you'd like some excitement, you could count his same kiss. So it goes, on and on, my love grows and yours is gone.

A lonely existence, well it's just a lie, if there is a reason I'd like to know why, something I want you to know, I've told you this once before, don't want you to see him no more.

Once again, you've let me down, broke my heart and turned me round. There's a light in the darkness, it doesn't seem far, there's something the matter that's brought us ajar. The plane goes down, will not land, pilot's dead, nowhere to be found.


4. Get away.

I know what it is you're thinking, but baby, it's sacred to me, whenever I feel like I'm sinking, you make a beautiful scene. You don't lie to me and I won't lie to you, oh no, baby, I'm feeling low, don't know what I'm going to do, don't know what you're putting me through.

Once in a while you're lonely, if you feel lonely, cry, I'd love to know what is the matter, unless you're with some other guy. 'Cause you don't lie to me and I won't lie to you, oh no, baby I'm feeling low, don't know what I'm going to do, don't know what you're putting me through.

You want me, I want you, you want me, I want you. Don't you know I'm losing sleep at night, sleep at night, don't know what I'm going to do, don't know what you're putting me through.

I know what it is you're thinking, but baby, it's strange to me, whenever I feel like I'm sinking, you make a beautiful scene, don't know what I'm going to do, don't know what you're putting me through…


5. You and your sister.

They say my love for you ain't real but you don't know how real it feels, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you. Your sister says that I'm no good, I'd reassure her if I could, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.

Plans fail every day, I want to hear you say, your love won't be leaving, your eyes ain't deceiving, fears will soon fade away, smile now, don't be afraid, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.

Let me whisper in your ear, don't you worry, they can't hear, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.


6. Make a scene.

You hurt me yesterday, I didn't know what to say, you didn't have to be so mean, you didn't have to make a scene. You don't have to be so cruel, you made me feel like a fool, I heard some things about you, they said you was untrue, I told them it wasn't so.

You hurt me yesterday, I didn't know what to say, you didn't have to be so mean, you didn't have to make a scene. You don't have to act so cool, I know that you've been to school, I started to feel unloved, I had no place to go, I turned on the radio.

You hurt me yesterday, I didn't know what to say, you didn't have to be so mean, you didn't have to make a scene. You don't have to be so cruel, you made me feel like a fool, I heard some things about you, they said you was untrue, I told them it wasn't so.


7. Look up.

Look up, look up, you'll see the sky, look up, look up, he's the light. Waiting to love you, wanting to reach you.

Look up, look up, you'll see the sky , the man walking down the street keeps his head down low, doesn't look up, wants to give up, he just keeps on looking down, staring at the ground.

Standing here at the corner, I'm watching him walk away, I'm standing here and I don't know why but I'm thinking it could be a great day. Look up, look up, you'll see the sky

Oh I wish you knew him, he's been waiting for so long, if you look up you'll see him, you know we're alone. Look up, look up, you'll see the sky, look up, look up, he's the light. Waiting to love you, wanting to reach you.


8. I got kinda lost.

I got kinda lost, I got kinda lost, I got kinda lost in giving. I got kinda lost and what can I say, feeling the way I do.

I'm trying to get it across to you, only wanted to be together all the time that it was I saw her, things that I'd done before are gone, I can't believe I'm on my own.

Once in a while I see you smile, but you don't know how it's going. I'm trying to get it across to you, only wanted to be together all the time that it was I saw her, things that I'd done before are gone, I can't believe I'm on my own.

I got kinda lost, I got kinda lost, I got kinda lost in giving. I'm trying to get it across to you


9. There was a light.

There was a light so dear to me, I wanted to live, there was a time so near to me, I've asked you to give your life to me. If it's a sign sent down to me, I'm asking you why it had to be.

Spending all my time waiting to die, what's the use. There was a light so dear to me, I wanted to live, there was a time so near to me, I've asked you to give your life to me.


10. Fight at the table.

They had a fight at the table, I didn't think it would end, I didn't think I'd be able to go on and pretend, I'd been having a good time, I didn't want you to go, she said, darling, I’m gone.

Start dreaming, at least it don't interfere, so what are you doing in Denver, I'd been having a good time, I didn't want you to go, why can't they stop all this jiving, don't want to know.

It must be getting past midnight and now I'm starting to scream, she really put up a good fight, think this must be a dream, 'cause they're having a good time, I told them just where I'm going, I think I'm going insane.


11. I don't know.

Whatever it is you're thinking, sit down and let's give it a try, you know that I'll always listen but sometimes I'm wondering why. You don't lie to me, and I won't lie to you, oh no, but, baby, I'm feeling low. I don't know what I'm going to do, you don't know what you're putting me through, I gotta get away from you.

Once in a while you're lonely, tell me you're feeling ok, I'd love to know what is the matter, but you say that you can't explain. You don't lie to me, and I won't lie to you, oh no, but, baby, I'm feeling low. I don't know what I'm going to do, you don't know what you're putting me through, I gotta get away from you.

You want me, I want you, you want me, I want you. Don't you know I'm losing sleep at night, sleep at night. I don't know what I'm going to do, you don't know what you're putting me through, I gotta get away from you.

Whatever it is you're thinking, sit down and let's give it a try, you know that I'll always listen but sometimes I'm wondering why. You don't lie to me, and I won't lie to you, oh no, but, baby, I'm feeling low. I don't know what I'm going to do, you don't know what you're putting me through, I gotta get away from you.


12. Though she lies.

When I look though your eyes I tend to get bitter, maybe I'm best advised to look to myself, I fall every time, though I know she lies, I can't stay away.

Stars would fall from the sky and I won't forsake you, you've got lost in your heart is what's sad to me, I'll use every line, anything to make you mine.

Keeping me in the dark wondering where you are, don't let me fall apart, you said take it slow but I don't know, I don't know.

Lying awake in the bed, trying to cope with the feelings, I don't know if it's love but what can I do, , I fall every time, though I know she lies, I can't stay away.


13. I am the cosmos (slow version).

Every night I tell myself, I am the cosmos, I am the wind, but that don't get you back again. Just when I was starting to feel okay, you're on the phone, I never wanna be alone. Never wanna be alone, I hate to have to take you home, wanted too much to say no, no.

Never wanna be alone, I hate to have to take you home, wanted too much to say no, no. My feeling's always have been something I couldn't hide, I can't confide, don't know what's going on inside. So every night I tell myself, I am the cosmos, I am the wind, but that don't get you back again. I'd really like to see you again, I really wanna see you again.


14. You and your sister (country version).

They say my love for you ain't real but you don't know how real it feels, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you. Your sister says that I'm no good, you know I'd show them if I could, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.

Love you every day, love to hear you say, your love won't be leaving, your eyes ain't deceiving, love you every day, let me hear you say. All I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.

If you give me a little time I will show you I ain't lying, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.


15. You and your sister (acoustic version).

They say my love for you ain't real but you don't know how real it feels, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you. Your sister says that I'm no good, you know I'd show them if I could, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.

Love you every day, love to hear you say, your love won't be leaving, your eyes ain't deceiving, love you every day, let me hear you say. All I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.

If you give me a little time I will show you I ain't lying, all I want to do is to spend some time with you, so I can hold you, hold you.


· · ·
Año: 1992.
Procedencia de la banda: Memphis (Tennessee), Estados Unidos.
· · ·

Five leaves left. Nick Drake.




1. Time has told me.

Time has told me, you're a rare, rare find, a troubled cure for a troubled mind, and time has told me, not to ask for more, someday our ocean will find its shore. So I`ll leave the ways that are making me be what I really don't want to be, leave the ways that are making me love what I really don't want to love.

Time has told me, you came with the dawn, a soul with no footprint, a rose with no thorn, your tears, they tell me, there's really no way of ending your troubles with things you can say, and time will tell you to stay by my side, to keep on trying 'til there's no more to hide. So leave the ways that are making you be what you really don't want to be, leave the ways that are making you love what you really don't want to love.

Time has told me, you're a rare, rare find, a troubled cure for a troubled mind, and time has told me not to ask for more, for some day our ocean will find its shore.


2. River man.

Betty came by on her way, said she had a word to say about things today and fallen leaves, said she hadn't heard the news, hadn't had the time to choose a way to lose, but she believes.

Going to see the river man, going to tell him all I can about the plan for lilac time, if he tells me all he knows about the way his river flows, and all night shows in summertime.

Betty said she prayed today for the sky to blow away, or maybe stay, she wasn't sure, for when she thought of summer rain calling for her mind again, she lost the pain and stayed for more.

Going to see the river man, going to tell him all I can about the ban on feeling free, if he tells me all he knows about the way his river flows, I don't suppose it's meant for me. Oh, how they come and go, oh, how they come and go.


3. Three hours.

Three hours from sundown, Jeremy flies hoping to keep the sun from his eyes. East from the city and down to the cave, in search of a master, in search of a slave.

Three hours from London, Jacomo's free, taking his woes down to the sea, in search of a lifetime to tell when he's home, in search of a story that's never been known.

Three hours from speaking, everyone's flown, not wanting to be, seen on their own, three hours is needed to leave from them all, three hours to wonder and three hours to fall.

Three hours from sundown, Jeremy flies hoping to keep the sun from his eyes. East from the city and down to the cave, in search of a master, in search of a slave.


4. Way to blue.

Don't you have a word to show what may be done, have you never heard a way to find the sun, tell me all that you may know, show me what you have to show, won't you come and say, if you know the way to blue.

Have you seen the land living by the breeze, can you understand a light among the trees, tell me all that you may know, show me what you have to show, tell us all today, if you know the way to blue.

Look through time and find your rhyme, tell us what you find, we will wait at your gate, hoping like the blind.

Can you now recall all that you have known, will you never fall, when the light has flown? Tell me all that you may know, show me what you have to show, won't you come and say, if you know the way to blue?


5. Day is done.

When the day is done, down to earth then sinks the sun, along with everything that was lost and won, when the day is done. When the day is done, hope so much your race will be all run, then you find you jumped the gun, have to go back where you began, when the day is done.

When the night is cold, some get by but some get old, just to show life's not made of gold, when the night is cold. When the bird has flown, got no-one to call your own, got no place to call your home, when the bird has flown.

When the game's been fought, you speed the ball across the court, lost much sooner than you would have thought, now the game's been fought. When the party's through, seems so very sad for you, didn't do the things you meant to do, now there's no time to start anew, now the party's through.

When the day is done, down to earth then sinks the sun, along with everything that was lost and won, when the day is done.


6. Cello song.

Strange face, with your eyes so pale and sincere, underneath you know well you have nothing to fear, for the dreams that came to you when so young, told of a life where spring is sprung.

You would seem so frail in the cold of the night, when the armies of emotion go out to fight, but while the earth sinks to its grave you sail to the sky on the crest of a wave.

So forget this cruel world where I belong, I'll just sit and wait, and sing my song, and if one day you should see me in the crowd lend a hand and lift me to your place in the cloud.


7. The thoughts of Mary Jane.

Who can know the thoughts of Mary Jane, why she flies or goes out in the rain, where she's been and who she's seen in her journey to the stars.

Who can know the reasons for her smile, what are her dreams when they've journeyed for a mile, the way she sings and her brightly colored rings, make her the princess of the sky.

Who can know what happens in her mind, did she come from a strange world and leave her mind behind, her long lost sighs and her brightly colored eyes tell her story to the wind.

Who can know the thoughts of Mary Jane, why she flies or goes out in the rain, where she's been and who she's seen in her journey to the stars.


8. Man in a shed.

Well there was a man who lived in a shed, spent most of his days out of his head, for his shed was rotten let in the rain, said it was enough to drive any man insane, when it rained he felt so bad, when it snowed he felt just simply sad.

Well there was a girl who lived nearby, whenever he saw her he could only simply sigh, but she lived in a house so very big and grand, for him it seemed like some very distant land, so when he called her his shed to mend, she said, I'm sorry you'll just have to find a friend.

Well this story is not so very new but the man is me, yes and the girl is you, so leave your house come into my shed, please stop my world from raining through my head, please don't think I'm not your sort, you'll find that sheds are nicer than you thought.


9. Fruit tree.

Fame is but a fruit tree, so very unsound, it can never flourish till its stalk is in the ground, so men of fame can never find a way till time has flown far from their dying day. Forgotten while you're here, remembered for a while, a much updated ruin from a much outdated style.

Life is but a memory, happened long ago, theatre full of sadness for a long forgotten show, seems so easy just to let it go on by till you stop and wonder why you never wondered why.

Safe in the womb of an everlasting night, you find the darkness can give the brightest light, safe in your place deep in the earth, that's when they'll know what you were really worth. Forgotten while you're here, remembered for a while, a much updated ruin from a much outdated style.

Fame is but a fruit tree, so very unsound, it can never flourish till its stalk is in the ground, so men of fame can never find a way till time has flown far from their dying day.

Fruit tree, fruit tree, no-one knows you but the rain and the air, don't you worry, they'll stand and stare when you're gone, fruit tree, fruit tree, open your eyes to another year, they'll all know that you were here when you're gone.


10. Saturday sun.

Saturday sun came early one morning in a sky so clear and blue, Saturday sun came without warning so no-one knew what to do. Saturday sun brought people and faces that didn't seem much in their day, but when I remember those people and places, they were really too good in their way. In their way, in their way, Saturday sun won't come and see me today.

Think about stories with reason and rhyme, circling through your brain, and think about people in their season and time, returning again and again. And again, and again, and Saturday's sun has turned to Sunday's rain. So Sunday sat in the Saturday sun and wept for a day gone by.


· · ·
Año: 1969.
Procedencia de la banda: Berkshire, Inglaterra.
· · ·

Joni Mitchell. Blue.





1. All I want.

I am on a lonely road and I am traveling, traveling, traveling, traveling, looking for something, what can it be? Oh I hate you some, I hate you some, I love you some, oh I love you when I forget about me. I want to be strong, I want to laugh along, I want to belong to the living, alive, alive, I want to get up and jive, I want to wreck my stockings in some juke box dive. Do you want - do you want - do you want to dance with me baby, do you want to take a chance on maybe finding some sweet romance with me baby. Well, come on.

All I really, really want our love to do is to bring out the best in me and in you too. All I really, really want our love to do is to bring out the best in me and in you. I want to talk to you, I want to shampoo you, I want to renew you again and again, applause, applause - life is our cause, when I think of your kisses my mind see-saws. Do you see - do you see - do you see how you hurt me baby? So I hurt you too, then we both get so blue.

I am on a lonely road and I am traveling, looking for the key to set me free. Oh the jealousy, the greed is the unraveling, it's the unraveling, and it undoes all the joy that could be. I want to have fun, I want to shine like the sun, I want to be the one that you want to see, I want to knit you a sweater, want to write you a love letter, I want to make you feel better, I want to make you feel free. Hmm, Hmm, Hmm, Hmm, want to make you feel free, I want to make you feel free.


2. My old man.

My old man, he's a singer in the park, he's a walker in the rain, he's a dancer in the dark. We don't need no piece of paper from the city hall, keeping us tied and true, my old man keeping away my blues.

He's my sunshine in the morning, he's my fireworks at the end of the day, he's the warmest chord I ever heard, play that warm chord, play and stay baby. We don't need no piece of paper from the city hall, keeping us tied and true, my old man keeping away my blues. But when he's gone, me and them lonesome blues collide. The bed's too big, the frying pan's too wide.

Then he comes home and he takes me in his loving arms, and he tells me all his troubles, and he tells me all my charms. We don't need no piece of paper from the city hall, keeping us tied and true. No, my old man keeping away my blues. But when he's gone, me and them lonesome blues collide. The bed's too big, the frying pan's too wide.

My old man, he's a singer in the park, he's a walker in the rain, he's a dancer in the dark. We don't need no piece of paper from the city hall, keeping us tied and true. No, my old man keeping away my lonesome blues.


3. Little green.

Born with the moon in Cancer, choose her a name she will answer to. Call her green and the winters cannot fade her, call her green for the children who've made her, little green, be a gypsy dancer. He went to California, hearing that everything's warmer there, so you write him a letter and say, "Her eyes are blue." He sends you a poem and she's lost to you, little green, he's a non-conformer.

Just a little green, like the color when the spring is born, there'll be crocuses to bring to school tomorrow. Just a little green, like the nights when the Northern lights perform, there'll be icicles and birthday clothes, and sometimes there'll be sorrow.

Child with a child pretending, weary of lies you are sending home, so you sign all the papers in the family name. You're sad and you're sorry, but you're not ashamed, little green, have a happy ending.

Just a little green, like the color when the spring is born, there'll be crocuses to bring to school tomorrow. Just a little green, like the nights when the Northern lights perform, there'll be icicles and birthday clothes, and sometimes there'll be sorrow.


4. Carey.

The wind is in from Africa, last night I couldn't sleep, oh, you know it sure is hard to leave here Carey, but it's really not my home. My fingernails are filthy, I got beach tar on my feet, and I miss my clean white linen and my fancy French cologne. Oh Carey get out your cane and I'll put on some silver, oh you're a mean old Daddy, but I like you fine.

Come on down to the Mermaid Cafe and I will buy you a bottle of wine, and we'll laugh and toast to nothing and smash our empty glasses down. Let's have a round for these freaks and these soldiers, a round for these friends of mine, let's have another round for the bright red devil who keeps me in this tourist town. Come on, Carey, get out your cane, I'll put on some silver, oh you're a mean old Daddy, but I like you.

Maybe I'll go to Amsterdam, or maybe I'll go to Rome, and rent me a grand piano and put some flowers 'round my room. But let's not talk about fare-thee-welIs now, the night is a starry dome, and they're playin' that scratchy rock and roll beneath the Matalla Moon. Come on, Carey, get out your cane and I'll put on some silver, you're a mean old Daddy, but I like you.

The wind is in from Africa, last night I couldn't sleep, oh, you know it sure is hard to leave here, but, it's really not my home. Maybe it's been too long a time since I was scramblin' down in the street, now they got me used to that clean white linen and that fancy French cologne. Oh Carey, get out your cane, I'll put on my finest silver. We'll go to the Mermaid Café, have fun tonight, I said, oh, you're a mean old Daddy, but you're out of sight.


5. Blue.

Blue, songs are like tattoos, you know I've been to sea before, crown and anchor me, or let me sail away. Hey blue, here is a song for you, ink on a pin underneath the skin, an empty space to fill in. Well there're so many sinking now, you've got to keep thinking, you can make it thru these waves, acid, booze, and ass, needles, guns, and grass, lots of laughs, lots of laughs.

Everybody's saying that hell's the hippest way to go, well I don't think so but I'm gonna take a look around it though, blue, I love you. Blue, here is a shell for you, inside you'll hear a sigh, a foggy lullaby, there is your song from me.


6. California.

Sitting in a park in Paris, France, reading the news and it sure looks bad, they won't give peace a chance. That was just a dream some of us had, still a lot of lands to see, but I wouldn't want to stay here, it's too old and cold and settled in its ways here. Oh, but California, California, I'm coming home, I'm going to see the folks I dig, I'll even kiss a Sunset pig, California I'm coming home.

I met a redneck on a Grecian isle who did the goat dance very well, he gave me back my smile but he kept my camera to sell, oh the rogue, the red, red rogue, he cooked good omelettes and stews, and I might have stayed on with him there, but my heart cried out for you, California. Oh California, I'm coming home, oh make me feel good rock'n roll band, I'm your biggest fan, California, I'm coming home.

Oh it gets so lonely when you're walking, and the streets are full of strangers, all the news of home you read, just gives you the blues, just gives you the blues.

So I bought me a ticket, I caught a plane to Spain, went to a party down a red dirt road, there were lots of pretty people there, reading Rolling Stone, reading Vogue, they said, "How long can you hang around?". I said "a week, maybe two, just until my skin turns brown, then I'm going home to California". California I'm coming home, oh will you take me as I am, strung out on another man, California I'm coming home.

Oh it gets so lonely when you're walking, and the streets are full of strangers, all the news of home you read more about the war, and the bloody changes. Oh will you take me as l am? Will you take me as l am? Will you?


7. This flight tonight.

Look out the left the captain said, the lights down there, that's where we'll land. I saw a falling star burn up above the Las Vegas sands. It wasn't the one that you gave to me that night down south between the trailers, not the early one that you can wish upon; Not the northern one that guides in the sailors. Oh starbright, starbright, you've got the lovin' that I like, all right, turn this crazy bird around, I shouldn't have got on this flight tonight.

You got the touch so gentle and sweet, but you've got that look so critical, now I can't talk to you baby, I get so weak, sometimes I think love is just mythical. Up there's a heaven, down there's a town, blackness everywhere and little lights shine, oh, blackness, blackness dragging me down, come on light the candle in this poor heart of mine. Oh starbright, starbright, you've got the lovin' that I like, all right, turn this crazy bird around, I shouldn't have got on this flight tonight.

I'm drinking sweet champagne, got the headphones up high, can't numb you out, can't drum you out of my mind, they're playing "Goodbye baby, Baby Goodbye, oh, ooh, love is blind". Up go the flaps, down go the wheels, I hope you got your heat turned on baby, I hope they finally fixed your automobile, I hope it's better when we meet again baby. Starbright, starbright, you got the lovin' that I like, all right, turn this crazy bird around, I shouldn't have got on this flight tonight.


8. River.

It's coming on Christmas, they're cutting down trees, they're putting up reindeer and singing songs of joy and peace, oh I wish I had a river I could skate away on. But it don't snow here, it stays pretty green, I'm going to make a lot of money, then I'm going to quit this crazy scene. I wish I had a river, I could skate away on, I wish I had a river so long, I would teach my feet to fly. Oh I wish I had a river, I could skate away on, I made my baby cry.

He tried hard to help me, you know, he put me at ease, and he loved me so naughty, made me weak in the knees, oh I wish I had a river, I could skate away on. I'm so hard to handle, I'm selfish and I'm sad, now I've gone and lost the best baby that I ever had, oh I wish I had a river, I could skate away on. I wish I had a river so long, I would teach my feet to fly, oh I wish I had a river, I made my baby say goodbye.

It's coming on Christmas, they're cutting down trees, they're putting up reindeer and singing songs of joy and peace, I wish I had a river I could skate away on.


9. A case of you.

Just before our love got lost you said, "I am as constant as a northern star." And I said, "Constantly in the darkness, where's that at? If you want me I'll be in the bar." On the back of a cartoon coaster, in the blue TV screen light, I drew a map of Canada, oh Canada.

With your face sketched on it twice, oh, you're in my blood like holy wine, you taste so bitter and so sweet, oh I could drink a case of you, darling. And I would still be on my feet, oh I would still be on my feet.

Oh I am a lonely painter, I live in a box of paints, I'm frightened by the devil, and I'm drawn to those ones that ain't afraid. I remember that time you told me, you said, "Love is touching souls", surely you touched mine, 'cause part of you pours out of me. In these lines from time to time, oh, you're in my blood like holy wine, you taste so bitter and so sweet, oh I could drink a case of you, darling. Still, I'd be on my feet, I would still be on my feet.

I met a woman, she had a mouth like yours, she knew your life, she knew your devils and your deeds, and she said, "Go to him, stay with him if you can, but be prepared to bleed". Oh but you are in my blood, you're my holy wine, you're so bitter, bitter and so sweet, oh, I could drink a case of you, darling. Still I'd be on my feet, I would still be on my feet.


10. Last time I saw Richard.

The last time I saw Richard was Detroit in '68, and he told me all romantics meet the same fate someday, cynical and drunk and boring someone in some dark café. You laugh, he said you think you're immune, go look at your eyes, they're full of moon, you like roses and kisses and pretty men to tell you, all those pretty lies, pretty lies. When you gonna realise they're only pretty lies, only pretty lies, just pretty lies.

He put a quarter in the Wurlitzer, and he pushed, three buttons and the thing began to whirr, and a bar maid came by in fishnet stockings and a bow tie, and she said "Drink up now it's gettin' on time to close." "Richard, you haven't really changed," I said, it's just that now you're romanticizing some pain that's in your head, you got tombs in your eyes, but the songs you punched are dreaming, listen, they sing of love so sweet, love so sweet. When you gonna get yourself back on your feet? Oh and love can be so sweet, love so sweet

Richard got married to a figure skater, and he bought her a dishwasher and a Coffee percolator, and he drinks at home now most nights with the TV on, and all the house lights left up bright. I'm gonna blow this damn candle out, I don't want Nobody comin' over to my table, I got nothing to talk to anybody about, all good dreamers pass this way some day, hidin' behind bottles in dark cafes, dark cafes. Only a dark cocoon before I get my gorgeous wings, and fly away, only a phase, these dark cafe days.
· · ·
Año: 1971.
Procedencia de la banda: Alberta (Fort Macleod), Canadá.
Escuchar
· · ·

This year's model. Elvis Costello and the Attractions.



1. No action.

I don't wanna kiss you, I don't wanna touch, I don't wanna see you 'cause I don't miss you that much. I'm not a telephone junkie, I told you that we were just good friends, but when I hold you like I hold that bakelite in my hands. There's no action, there's no action, there's no action. Every time I phone you, I just wanna put you down.

He's got the keys to the car, they are the keys to the kingdom. He's got everything you need, it's a shame that he didn't bring them. I'm not a telephone junkie, if I'm inserting my coin I'm doing just fine, and the things in my head start hurting my mind. And I think about the way things used to be, knowing you with him is driving me crazy, sometimes I phone you when I know you're not lonely, but I always disconnect it in time. There's no action, there's no action, there's no action. Every time I phone you, I just wanna put you, every time I phone you, I just wanna put you, every time I phone you, I just wanna put you down.

There's no action, there's no action, there's no action, every time I phone you, I just wanna put you down.


2. This year's girl.

See her picture in a thousand places 'cause she's this year's girl, you think you all own little pieces of this year's girl. Forget your fancy manners, forget your English grammar, 'cause you don't really give a damn about this year's girl.

Still you're hoping that she's well spoken 'cause she's this year's girl, you want her broken with her mouth wide open 'cause she's this year's girl. Never knowing it's a real attraction, all these promises of satisfaction, while she's being bored to distraction being this year's girl.

Time's running out, she's not happy with the cost, there'd be no doubt, only she's forgotten, much more than she's lost.

A bright spark might corner the market in this year's girl, you see yourself rolling on the carpet with this year's girl. Those disco synthesizers, those daily tranquilizers, those body building prizes, those bedroom alibis, all this, but no surprises for this year's girl. All this, but no surprises for this year's girl. All this, but no surprises for this year's girl.


3. The beat.

We're all going on a summer holiday, Vigilante's coming out to follow me. Heard somebody say they're out to collar me, anybody wanna swallow me? It takes two to tumble, it takes two to tango, speak up; don't mumble if you're in the combo.

On the beat, on the beat, till a man comes along and he says, 'Have you been a good boy, never played with your toy? Though you never enjoy, such a pleasure to employ’. See your friends in the state their in, see your friends getting under their skin, see your friends getting taken in.

Well, if you only knew the things you do to me, I'd do anything to confuse the enemy. There's only one thing wrong with you befriending me, take it easy. I think you're bending me. I've been a bad boy with the standard leader, my neighbor's revving up his Vauxhall Viva.

On the beat, on the upbeat, till a man comes along and he says, 'Have you been a good boy, never played with your toy? Though you never enjoy, such a pleasure to employ’. See your friends walking down the street, see your friends never quite complete, see your friends getting under their feet.

Oh, I don't want to disease you, but I'm no good with machinery. Oh, I don't wanna freeze you, stop looking at the scenery. I keep thinking about your mother, oh, I don't wanna lick them, I don't wanna be a lover, I just wanna be your victim. I don't go out much at night, I don't go out much at all, did you think you were the only one who was waiting for a call.

On the beat, on the upbeat, till a man comes along and he says, 'Have you been a good boy, never played with your toy? Though you never enjoy, such a pleasure to employ’. See your friends treat me like a stranger, see your friends despite all the arrangements, see your friends nothing here has changed, just the beat.


4. Pump it up.

I've been on tenterhooks ending in dirty looks, listening to the Muzak, thinking 'bout this 'n' that, she said that's that, I don't wanna chitter-chat. Turn it down a little bit, or turn it down flat. Pump it up when you don't really need it, pump it up until you can feel it.

Down in the pleasure centre, hell bent or heaven sent, listen to the propaganda, listen to the latest slander, there's nothing underhand that she wouldn't understand. Pump it up until you can feel it, pump it up when you don't really need it.

She's been a bad girl, she's like a chemical, though you try to stop it, she's like a narcotic. You wanna torture her, you wanna talk to her, all the things you bought for her, putting up your temp'rature. Pump it up until you can feel it, pump it up when you don't really need it.

Out in the fashion show, down in the bargain bin, you put your passion out under the pressure pin, fall into submission, hit-and-run transmission, no use wishing now for any other sin. Pump it up until you can feel it, pump it up when you don't really need it. Pump it up until you can feel it, pump it up when you don't really need it.


5. Little triggers.

Little triggers that you pull with your tongue, little triggers, I don't wanna be hung up, strung up, when you don't call up. Little sniggers on your lips, little triggers in your grip, little triggers, my hand on your hip.

Thinkin' all about those censored sequences, worryin' about the consequences, waiting until I come to my senses, better put it all in present tenses.

Little triggers that you pull with your tongue, little triggers, I don't wanna be hung up, strung up, when you don't call up. Little sniggers on your lips, little triggers in your grip, little triggers, my hand on your hip.

Worryin' about the common decency, when it is only a question of frequency, when you say O.K. but I gotta cheek to be sayin' you're tired of me when you don't even weaken these.

Little triggers that you pull with your tongue, little triggers, I don't wanna be hung up, strung up, when you don't call up. Little sniggers on your lips, little triggers in your grip, little triggers, my hand on your hip.


6. You belong to me.

What are you girls gonna tell your mother? I don't want to hear another word about young lovers, or hiding your boyfriend in the cupboard. She's been to see the doctor, so you hope that she recovers. You act dumb, you say you're so numb, you say you don't come under his thumb.

Don't wanna be a goody-goody, I don't want just anybody, no, I don't want anybody saying 'You belong to me, you belong to me’.

Your eyes are absent, your mouth is silent, pumping like a fire hydrant. Things you see are getting hard to swallow, you're easily led, but you're much too scared to follow. You've been warned, you're going to get torn, no uniform is gonna keep you warm.

Don't wanna be a goody-goody, I don't want just anybody, no, I don't want anybody saying 'You belong to me, you belong to me’. 'You belong to me, you belong to me’…


7. Hand in hand.

No, don't ask me to apologise, I won't ask you to forgive me, if I'm gonna go down,
you're gonna come with me. You say 'why don't you be a man about it, like they do in the grown-up movies?' But when it comes to the other way around, you say you just wanna use me. Oh, you sit and you wonder whether it's gonna be syndicated, you sit with your knees together, all the time your breath is baited.

Hand in hand, no, don't ask me to apologise, I won't ask you to forgive me, if I'm gonna go down, you're gonna come with me. Don't you know I got the bully boys out changing someone's facial design, sitting with my toy room lout, polishing my precious china. Don't you know I'm an animal? But don't you know I can't stand up steady? But you can't show me any kind of hell that I don't know already.

Hand in hand, no, don't ask me to apologise, I won't ask you to forgive me, if I'm gonna go down, you're gonna come with me. Hand in hand, hand in hand, hand in hand...


8. (I don't want to go to) Chelsea.

Photographs of fancy tricks to get your kicks at sixty-six, he thinks of all the lips that he licks, and all the girls that he's going to fix. She gave a little flirt, gave herself a little cuddle, but there's no place here for the mini-skirt waddle, capital punishment, she's last year's model, they call her Natasha when she looks like Elsie. I don't want to go to Chelsea, oh no, it does not move me, even though I've seen the movie, I don't want to check your pulse, I don't want nobody else, I don't want to go to Chelsea.

Everybody's got new orders, be a nice girl and kiss the warders, now the teacher is away all the kids begin to play. Men come screaming, dressed in white coats, shake you very gently by the throat. One's named Gus, one's named Alfie. I don't want to go to Chelsea, oh no it does not move me, even though I've seen the movie, I don't want to check your pulse, I don't want nobody else, I don't want to go to Chelsea.

Photographs of fancy tricks to get your kicks at sixty-six, he thinks of all the lips that he licks, and all the girls that he's going to fix. She gave a little flirt, gave herself a little cuddle, but there's no place here for the mini-skirt waddle, capital punishment, she's last year's model, they call her Natasha when she looks like Elsie. I don't want to go to Chelsea, oh no, it does not move me, even though I've seen the movie, I don't want to check your pulse, I don't want nobody else, I don't want to go to Chelsea.

9. Lip service.

You left the motor running, but I know you're so attractive, getting in some sharp practice, you better not do anything reckless. But everybody is going through the motions, everybody is going through the motions, are you really only going through the motions? Lip service is all you'll ever get from me, lip service is all you'll ever get from me, lip service is all you'll ever get from me, but if you change your mind you can send it a letter to me.

Don't make any sudden movements, these are dangerous amusements, when did you become so choosy? Don't act like you're above me; just look at your shoes. But everybody is going through the motions, everybody is going through the motions, are you really only going through the motions? Lip service is all you'll ever get from me, lip service is all you'll ever get from me, lip service is all you'll ever get from me, but if you change your mind you can send it a letter to me.

But if you change your mind you can send it a letter to me, but if you change your mind you can send it a letter to me, but if you change your mind you can send a little letter to me.


10. Living in paradise.

I don't like those other guys looking at your curves, I don't like you walking round with physical jerks, everything they say and do is getting on my nerves, soon they will be lucky to be picking up the perks. 'Cause when they pull the shutters down and throw up in the dark, they'll find that all the dogs outside bite much worse than they bark.

Here we are living in paradise, living in luxury, oh, the thrill is here but it won't last long, you better have your fun before it moves along, and you're already looking for another fool like me.

I call you Betty Felon 'cause you are a pretty villain, and I think that I should tell them that you'd make a pretty killing, 'cause meanwhile up in heaven they are waiting at the gate, saying 'We'd always knew you'd make it, didn't think you'd come this late'. And now it's much too dangerous to stop what you've begun, when everyone in paradise carries a gun.

Here we are living in paradise, living in luxury, oh, the thrill is here but it won't last long, you better have your fun before it moves along, and you're already looking for another fool like me.

Later in the evening when arrangements are made, I'll be at the keyhole outside your bedroom door. 'Cause I'm the first to know whenever the plans are laid, that never go further than floor to floor. You think that I don't know the boy that you're touching, but I'll be at the video and I will be watching.

Here we are living in paradise, living in luxury, oh, the thrill is here but it won't last long, you better have your fun before it moves along, and you're already looking for another fool like me…


11. Lipstick Vogue.

Don't say you love me when it's just a rumour, don't say a word if there is any doubt, sometimes I think that love is just a tumour, you've got to cut it out. You say you're sorry for the things that you've done, you say you're sorry but you know you don't mean it, I wouldn't worry, I had so much fun, sometimes I almost feel just like a human being. It's you, not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue, it's you, not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue, oh yeah.

Get to the slot machine almost dead on arrival, just hit me one more time with that live wire, maybe they told you you were only a girl in a million, you say I've got not feelings, this is a good way to kill them.

Select the control and then insert the token, you wanna throw me away but I'm not broken, you've got a lot to say, well I'm not joking. There are some words they don't allow to be spoken, sometimes I almost feel just like a human being. It's you, not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue, it's you, not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue, oh yeah…


12. Night rally.

I would send out for assistance but there's someone on the signal wire, and the corporation logo is flashing on and off in the sky, they're putting all your names in the forbidden book, I know what they're doing but I don't want to look. You think they're so dumb, you think they're so funny, wait until they've got you running to the night rally, night rally, night rally.

Everybody's singing with their hand on their heart, about deeds done in the darkest hours, that's just the sort of catchy little melody to get you singing in the showers.

Oh, I know that I'm ungrateful, I've got it lying on a plate, and I'm not buying my share of souvenirs. You can stand to attention, you can pray to your uncle, only get that chicken out of here. Everyone gets armbands and 3-D glasses, some are in the back room, and they're taking those night classes. You think they're so dumb, you think they're so funny, wait until they've got you running to the night rally, night rally, night rally…


· · ·
Año: 1978.
Procedencia de la banda: Londres, Inglaterra.
Escuchar.
· · ·

Radio City. Big Star.




1. O my soul.

Oh my soul mama, I lose control, go ahead, sing if you wanna, and I'll never know, come on, you know it's all right, we've got all night. You're driving me mad, now, you shouldn't do that, gotta get enough drink till we drop.

You're really a nice girl and I think you're the most, and when we're together I feel like a boss. Trying to see you, I knock off your doors, dying to see you, I'm down on the floor.

I can't get a license to drive my car but I don't really need it if I'm a big star. Trying to see you, I knock off your doors, dying to see you, I'm down on the floor. Never you mind, go on and have a good time.

Never you mind, go on and have a good time, yes, indeed. I can't get a license to drive my car but I don't really need it if I'm a big star. Trying to see you, I knock off your doors, dying to see you, I'm down on the floor.


2. Life is white.

Don't like to see your face, don't like to hear you talk at all, I could be them but I'd just get bored, can't even bring myself to call, and I don't want to see you now 'cause I know what you lack, and I can't go back to that.

Whatever’s all the same, now, there's nobody to know, and I can't recall, recall your name, all I can say is so, and I don't want to see you now 'cause I know what you lack, and I can't go back to that. Your life is white and I don't think I like you hangin' around.

Don't like to see your face, don't like to hear you talk at all, I could be them but I'd just get bored, can't even bring myself to call, and I don't want to see you now 'cause I know what you lack, and I can't go back to that.


3. Way out west.

She's a schemer and she makes me mad, but I love her a lot, those lonely nights, I was in a big room, playing my things, oh, I wish you were here, she can be so kind when she's not trying to hide, she tries not to love me but she knows she can't. And why don't you come on back from way out west, and love me, we can work out the rest.

Why don't you come on back from way out west, and love me, we can work out the rest. She thinks she's a mystery to all but I know what's behind those eyes, sometimes I think she'll make me forget what I need most to remember, and then I'll slip on back, even if they say it's better. Why don't you come on back from way out west, and love me, we can work out the rest.


4. What's going ahn.

I liked her face and, oh, those eyes, she left today, oh, goodbye, and looking at you, I'm drained outright, and isolated in the light.

Don't resent everyone, ever since I was young, I'm starting to understand what's going on and how it's planned. I like love but I don't know, all these girls, they come and go, always nothing left to say.

Don't resent everyone, ever since I was young, I'm starting to understand what's going on and how it's planned.


5. You get what you deserve.

Try to understand what I'm going through, don't blame me for what folks will do, for some of us it's not a good time but you're going to get choosed to, and you'd better resign yourself. You get what you deserve, you ought to find out what it's worth, and you've gotta have a lotta nerve.

You just do what pleases you, go on and sigh out every move, you gonna get place in a scene, all God's orphans get a face in the dream now. You get what you deserve, you ought to find out what it's worth, and you've gotta have a lotta nerve.

Too bad, such a drag, so much pain went down the drain and a lot of us ain't got many friends.

Try to understand what I'm going through, don't blame me for what folks will do, for some of us it's not a good time but you're going to get choosed to, and you'd better resign yourself. You get what you deserve, you ought to find out what it's worth, and you've gotta have a lotta nerve, you get what you deserve.


6. Mod lang.

I can't be satisfied, what you want me to do, so I moan, had to leave my home. Love my girl, oh yeah, she got to save my soul, I want a witness, I want to testify. How long can this go on, how long can this go on.

All night long I was howling, I was a barking dog. I can't be satisfied, what you want me to do, I want a witness, I want to testify. How long can this go on, how long can this go on.

All night long I was howling, I was a barking dog, I want a witness, I want to testify.


7. Back of a car.

Sitting in the back of a car, music so loud, can't tell a thing, thinking 'bout what to say and I can't find the lines. Know I love you a lot, I just don't know, should I or not, waiting for a brighter day and I can't find the way. I'll go on and on with you, like to fall and lie with you, I'd love you too.

Baby, I'm too afraid, I just don't know if it's ok, trying to get away from everything. Why don't you take me home, it's gone too far inside this car, I know I'll feel a whole lot more when I get alone. I'll go on and on with you, like to fall and lie with you, I'd love you too.

Sitting in the back of a car, music so loud, can't tell a thing, thinking 'bout what to say and I can't find the lines.


8. Daisy glaze.

I'm drivin' alone, sad about you, not goin' home, what's to do. You better not leave me here, better not leave me here, oh, I want you here, how can you leave me here.

I lie in the stream, I'm floating fine, receiving things in my beautiful mind, sometime drags, sometime, sometime so sublime, lover, yes I am, lover, you know I am.

Now I'm in a bar, it's gotta be where they are, gonna dance in the bar, they're gonna fight on the floor, faster than I can see. Now I'm gonna score, break for the door, who is this whore, soon be beggin drags.

And I'm thinking, Christ, nullify my life, nullify my life. You're gonna die, yes, you're gonna die, right now, you're gonna die, gonna decease.


9. She's a mover.

She don't believe anything and she can dance, oh, now, all night, so wild when she's a mover, she's so wild. Draggin fast we go, oh, I dig speed so good, it destroy her in the cruiser, it destroyer.

She name was Marsha, Marsha the name, she look like a dove now, and when she smile like crocodile. She tells the man to go to hell, and where that's at is where I'm coming from, so wild, oh, she's a mover.

She like devil, you know, she finds herself in catholic school, she's wild. She name was Marsha, Marsha the name, she look like a dove now, and when she smile like crocodile.

She’s so wild, she’s so wild, she’s a mover, she’s so wild…


10. September gurls.

September girls do so much, I was your butch and you were touched, I loved you, well, never mind, I've been crying all the time. December boys got it bad, December boys got it bad.

September girls, I don't know why, how can I deny what's inside, even though I'll keep away, maybe we'll love all our days. December boys got it bad, December boys got it bad.

When I get to bed late at night, that's the time she makes things right, oh, when she makes love to me.

September girls do so much, I was your butch and you were touched, I loved you, well, never mind, I've been crying all the time. December boys got it bad, December boys got it bad.


11. Morpha too.

Morpha too small, you're going to hurt yourself, I might call and I might need some help. I don't know shit, and I don't know what to do, I'm in love with you.

Kitty asked me to read her stars, I had liked her from afar. Got to play with your hair, I knew not to start, but there you are.


12. I'm in love with a girl.

I'm in love with a girl, finest girl in the world, I didn't know I could feel this way.

Think about her all the time, always on my mind, I didn't know about love. All that a man should do, is true, all that a man should do, is true.

I'm in love with a girl, finest girl in the world, I didn't know this could happen to me.


· · ·
Año: 1974.
Procedencia de la banda: Memphis (Tennessee), Estados Unidos.
· · ·

The Band. The Band.




1. Across the great divide.

Standing by your window in pain, a pistol in your hand, and I beg you dear Molly, girl, try to understand your man the best you can. Across the great divide just grab your hat and take that ride, get yourself a bride and bring your children down to the riverside.

I had a goal in my younger days, I nearly wrote my will, but I changed my mind for the better, I'm at the still, had my fill and I'm fit to kill. Across the great divide just grab your hat and take that ride, get yourself a bride and bring your children down to the riverside.

Pinball machine and a queen, I nearly took a bust, I tried to keep my hands to myself, you say it's a must but who can you trust? Harvest moon shining down from the sky, a weary sign for all, I'm gonna leave this one horse town, had to stall 'til the fall, now I'm gonna crawl across the great divide.

Now Molly dear don't you shed a tear, your time will surely come, you'll feed your man chicken every Sunday, now tell me honey, what you done with the gun? Across the great divide just grab your hat and take that ride, get yourself a bride and bring your children down to the riverside.


2. Rag mama rag.

Rag mama, rag, I can't believe it’s true, rag mama, rag, what did you do? I go on up to the railroad track, let the 4:19 scratch my back. Sag mama, sag, what's come over you? Rag mama, rag, I'm pulling out your gag. Gonna turn you loose like an old caboose, got a tail I need to drag.

I ask about your turtle and you ask about the weather, I can't jump the hurdle and we can't get together, we could be relaxin' in my sleepin' bag, but all you want to do for me, mama, is, rag Mama, rag, there's nowhere to go, rag mama rag, come on, resin up the bow.

Rag mama, rag, where do you run? Rag mama, rag, bring your skinny little body back home. It's dog eat dog, cat eat mouse, you can rag Mama, rag, all over my house.

Hail stones beating on the roof, the bourbon is hundred proof, it's you and me, and the telephone, our destiny is quite well known, we don't need to sit and brag, all we gotta do is rag mama, rag mama, rag. Rag mama, rag, where do you roam? Rag mama, rag, bring your skinny little body back home.


3. The night they drove old Dixie down.

Virgil Caine is the name and I served on the Danville train, till Stoneman's cavalry came and tore up the tracks again. In the winter of sixty five we were hungry, just barely alive, by May the tenth Richmond had fell, it's a time I remember, oh, so well.

The night they drove old Dixie down and the bells were ringing, the night they drove old Dixie down and the people were singing, they went, la, la…

Back with my wife in Tennessee when one day she called to me, Virgil, quick, come, see, there goes Robert E. Lee. Now I don't mind chopping wood and I don't care if the money's no good, you take what you need and you leave the rest, but they should never have taken the very best.

The night they drove old Dixie down and the bells were ringing, the night they drove old Dixie down and the people were singing, they went, la, la…

Like my father before me, I will work the land, like my brother above me who took a rebel stand, he was just eighteen, proud and brave, but a yankee laid him in his grave, I swear by the mud below my feet, you can't raise a Caine back up when he's in defeat.

The night they drove old Dixie down and the bells were ringing, the night they drove old Dixie down and the people were singing, they went, la, la… The night they drove old Dixie down and the bells were ringing, the night they drove old Dixie down and the people were singing, they went, la, la…


4. When you awake.

Ollie told me I'm a fool, so I walked on down the road a mile, went to the house that brings a smile, sat upon my grandpa's knee, and what do you think he said to me? When you awake you will remember everything, you will be hanging on a string from your, when you believe, you will relieve the only soul, that you were born with to grow old and never know.

Ollie showed me the fork in the road, you can take to the left or go straight to the right, use your days and save your nights, be careful where you step, and watch what you eat, sleep with the light on and you got it beat. When you awake you will remember everything, you will be hanging on a string from your, when you believe, you will relieve the only soul, that you were born with to grow old and never know.

Ollie warned me, it's a mean old world, the street don't greet you, yes, it's true, but what am I supposed to do. Read the writing on the wall, I heard it when I was very small. When you awake you will remember everything, you will be hanging on a string from your, when you believe, you will relieve the only soul, that you were born with to grow old and never know.

Wash my hand in lye water, I got a date with the captains daughter, you can go and tell your brother, we sure gonna love one another. You may be right and you might be wrong, I ain't gonna worry all day long, snow's gonna come and the frost gonna bite, my old car froze up last night, ain't no reason to hang my head, I could wake up in the morning dead. And if I thought it would do any good, I'd stand on the rock where Moses stood.


5. Up on Cripple Creek.

When I get off of this mountain, you know where I want to go? Straight down the Mississippi river to the Gulf of Mexico, to Lake Charles, Louisiana, little Bessie, girl that I once knew, she told me just to come on by if there's anything she could do. Up on Cripple Creek she sends me, if I spring a leak she mends me, I don't have to speak, she defends me, a drunkard's dream if I ever did see one.

Good luck had just stung me, to the race track I did go, she bet on one horse to win and I bet on another to show, the odds were in my favor, I had them five to one, when that nag to win came around the track, sure enough she had won. Up on Cripple Creek she sends me, if I spring a leak she mends me, I don't have to speak, she defends me, a drunkard's dream if I ever did see one.

I took up all of my winnings and I gave my little Bessie half, and she tore it up and threw it in my face, just for a laugh, now there's one thing in the whole wide world I sure would like to see, that's when that little love of mine, dips her doughnut in my tea. Up on Cripple Creek she sends me, if I spring a leak she mends me, I don't have to speak, she defends me, a drunkard's dream if I ever did see one.

Now me and my mate were back at the shack, we had Spike Jones on the box, she said, I can't take the way he sings but I love to hear him talk, now that just gave my heart a throb, to the bottom of my feet, and I swore and I took another pull, my Bessie can't be beat. Up on Cripple Creek she sends me, if I spring a leak she mends me, I don't have to speak, she defends me, a drunkard's dream if I ever did see one.

As there's a flood out in California and up north it's freezing cold, and this living on the road is getting pretty old, so I guess I'll call up my big mama, tell her I'll be rolling in, but you know, deep down, I'm kind of tempted to go and see my Bessie again. Up on Cripple Creek she sends me, if I spring a leak she mends me, I don't have to speak, she defends me, a drunkard's dream if I ever did see one.


6. Wispering pines.

If you find me in a gloom or catch me in a dream, inside my lonely room there is no in between, whispering pines, rising of the tide, if only one star shines, that's just enough to get inside. I will wait until it all goes 'round, with you in sight, the lost are found.

Foghorn through the night, calling out to sea, protect my only light 'cause she once belonged to me, let the waves rush in, let the seagulls cry, for if I live again, these hopes will never die. I can feel you standing there but I don’t see you anywhere.

Standing by the well, wishing for the rains, reaching to the clouds, for nothing else remains, drifting in a daze when evening will be done, try looking through a haze at an empty house, in the cold, cold sun. I will wait until it all goes ‘round, with you in sight, the lost are found.


7. Jemima surrender.

Jemima surrender, I'm gonna give it to you, ain't no pretender, gonna ride in my canoe. If I were a barker in a girly show, tell you what I'd do, I'd lock the door, tear my shirt and let my river flow. Oh, sweet Jemima, wont'cha come out tonight? The ground is so warm and the moon is so bright.

Jemima surrender, that’s all you have to do, I'll bring over my Fender and I'll play all night for you. There's a bird on my head and his mouth won't talk, you know he laughs just like a goose but looks like a hawk, Jemima, you know what I'm try'n to say, meet me in front and we'll fly away.

You can change your name, you can find a new walk, you can change a lock, its all the same, you don't have to give out if you'll only give in, you can jump and shout but can't you see girl, that I'm bound to win.

Jemima surrender, I'm gonna give it to you, ain't no pretender, gonna see my tattoo. I hand you my rod and you hand me that line, that's what you do, now, we ain't doing much fishing or drinking any wine. Sweet Jemima, if I were king, I'd fix you up with a diamond ring.


8. Rockin' chair.

Hang around, Willie Boy, don't you raise the sails anymore, it's for sure, I've spent my whole life at sea and I'm pushing age seventy-three, now, there's only one place that is meant for me. Oh, to be home again down in old Virginny, with my very best friend, they call him Ragtime Willie, we’re gonna soothe away the rest of our years, we're gonna put away all of our tears, that big rockin' chair 'wont' go nowhere.

Slow down, Willie Boy, your heart's gonna give right out on you, it's true, and I believe I know what we should do, turn the stern and point to shore, the seven seas won't carry us no more. Oh, to be home again down in old Virginny, with my very best friend, they call him Ragtime Willie, I can't wait to sniff that air, dip'n snuff, I won't have no care, that big rockin' chair won't go nowhere.

Hear the sound, Willie Boy, the flyin' Dutchman's on the reef, it's my belief we've used up all our time, this hill's to steep to climb, and the days that remain ain't worth a dime. Oh, to be home again down in old Virginny, with my very best friend, they call him Ragtime Willie, would-a-been nice just t'see the folks, listen once again to the stale jokes, that big rockin' chair won't go nowhere.

I can hear something calling on me and you know where I want to be, oh, Willie don't you hear that sound, oh, to be home again down in old Virginny, I just want to get my feet back on the ground, oh, to be home again down in old Virginny, I'd love to see my very best friend, they call him Ragtime Willie, I believe old rockin chair's got me.


9. Look out Cleveland.

Look out, Cleveland, the storm is comin' through, and it's runnin' right up on you, look out, Houston, there'll be thunder on the hill, bye bye, baby, don't cha lie so still.

Was Wednesday evenin' when first we heard the word, it did not come by train nor bird, it was when Ben Pike stepped down to say, this old town's gonna blow away.

Look out, Cleveland, the storm is comin' through, and it's runnin' right up on you, look out, Houston, there'll be thunder on the hill, bye bye, baby, don't cha lie so still.

Chain lightning, fighting as it may seem, must not be mistaken for just another dream, justice of peace don't know his own fate, but he'll go down in the shelter late.

Look out, Cleveland, the storm is comin' through, and it's runnin' right up on you, look out, Houston, there'll be thunder on the hill, bye bye, baby, don't cha lie so still.

Hiding your money won't do no good, build a big wall, you know you would if you could, yeah, when clouds of warnin' come into view, it'll get the old woman right outta her shoe.

Look out, Cleveland, the storm is comin' through, and it's runnin' right up on you, look out, Houston, there'll be thunder on the hill, bye bye, baby, don't cha lie so still.


10. Jawbone.

Oh, Jawbone, when did you first go wrong? Oh, Jawbone, where is it you belong? Three time looser, you'll never learn, lay down your tools before you burn, you keep on runnin' and hidin' your face, spreading your heat all over the place. I'm a thief and I dig it, I'm up on a beef, I'm gonna rig it, I'm a thief and I dig it.

Oh, Jawbone, why don't you sit and moan? Oh, Jawbone, you know that it's stone for stone. Sneak through the night upon your toes, to look in your eye, it never shows, your name upon the post office wall, put you on edge 'cause they wrote it too small. . I'm a thief and I dig it, I'm up on a beef, I'm gonna rig it, I'm a thief and I dig it.

Oh, Jawbone, revenge stays on your mind, oh, Jawbone, you been doin' too much time. Pull off a job with an inside man who needs the cash and likes your plan, then you will know just who to thank, when you land right back in the tank. . I'm a thief and I dig it, I'm up on a beef, I'm gonna rig it, I'm a thief and I dig it.

Oh, Jawbone, why dont'cha go home? Oh, Jawbone, where is it you belong? Boostin' and goin' out on the lam, you know that you'll steal anything that you can, temptation stands just behind the door, so what you wanna go and open it for? I'm a thief and I dig it, I'm up on a beef, I'm gonna rig it, I'm a thief and I dig it.


11. The unfaithful servant.

Unfaithful servant, I hear you leaving soon in the morning, what did you do to the lady, that she's gonna have to send you away? Unfaithful servant, you don't have to say you're sorry, if you done it just for the spite or did you do it just for the glory?

Like a stranger you turned your back, left your keys and gone to pack, bear in mind who's to blame, and all the shame, she really cared, the time she spared and the home you shared.

Unfaithful servant, I can hear the whistle blowing, yes, that train is a-comin' and soon you'll be going, let us not bow our heads for we won't be complaining, life has been good to us all, even when that sky is raining.

To take it like a grain of salt is all I can do, it's no one's fault, makes no difference if we fade away, it's just as it was, it's much too cold for me to stay, goodbye to that country home, so long to a lady I have known, farewell to my other side, I'd best just take it in stride.

Unfaithful servant, you'll learn to find your place, I can see it in your smile, and, yes, I can see it in your face, the memories will linger on but the good old days, they're all gone, oh, lonesome servant, can't you see that we're still one and the same, just you and me.


12. King Harvest (has surely come).

Corn in the fields, listen to the rice when the wind blows 'cross the water, King Harvest has surely come. I work for the union 'cause she's so good to me, and I'm bound to come out on top, that's where I should be.

I will hear every word the boss may say, for he's the one who hands me down my pay, looks like this time I'm gonna get to stay, I'm a union man, now, all the way.

The smell of the leaves from the magnolia trees in the meadow, King Harvest has surely come. Dry summer, then comes fall, which I depend on most of all, hey, rainmaker, can't you hear my call? Please let these crops grow tall.

Long enough I've been up on Skid Row and it's plain to see, I've nothing to show, I'm glad to pay those union dues, just don't judge me by my shoes.

Scarecrow and a yellow moon, and pretty soon a carnival on the edge of town, King Harvest has surely come. Last year, this time, wasn't no joke, my whole barn went up in smoke, my horse Jethro, well he went mad, and I can't remember things being so bad.

Then there comes a man with a paper and a pen, telling us our hard times are about to end, and then, if they don't give us what we like, he said, men, that's when you gotta go on strike.

Corn in the fields, listen to the rice when the wind blows 'cross the water, King Harvest has surely come.


· · ·
Año: 1969.
Procedencia de la banda: Toronto (Ontario), Canadá.
· · ·

Mediterráneo. Joan Manuel Serrat.




1. Mediterráneo.

Quizá porque mi niñez sigue jugando en tu playa y escondido tras las cañas duerme mi primer amor, llevo tu luz y tu olor por dondequiera que vaya, y amontonado en tu arena guardo amor, juegos y penas.

Yo que en la piel tengo el sabor amargo del llanto eterno, que han vertido en ti cien pueblos de Algeciras a Estambul para que pintes de azul sus largas noches de invierno, a fuerza de desventuras tu alma es profunda y oscura.

A tus atardeceres rojos se acostumbraron mis ojos como el recodo al camino, soy cantor, soy embustero, me gusta el juego y el vino, tengo alma de marinero. Qué le voy a hacer si yo nací en el Mediterráneo, nací en el Mediterráneo.

Te acercas y te vas después de besar mi aldea, jugando con la marea te vas, pensando en volver, eres como una mujer perfumadita de brea que se añora y se quiere, que se conoce y se teme.

Ay, si un día para mi mal viene a buscarme la parca, empujad al mar mi barca con un levante otoñal y dejad que el temporal desguace sus alas blancas, y a mi enterradme sin duelo entre la playa y el cielo, en la ladera de un monte más alto que el horizonte, quiero tener buena vista.

Mi cuerpo será camino, le daré verde a los pinos y amarillo a la genista, cerca del mar porque yo nací en el Mediterráneo, nací en el Mediterráneo, nací en el Mediterráneo.


2. Aquellas pequeñas cosas.

Uno se cree que los mató el tiempo y la ausencia pero su tren vendió boleto de ida y vuelta, son aquellas pequeñas cosas que nos dejó un tiempo de rosas, en un rincón, en un papel o en un cajón.

Como un ladrón te acechan detrás de la puerta, te tienen tan a su merced como hojas muertas que el viento arrastra allá o aquí, que te sonríen tristes y nos hacen que lloremos cuando nadie nos ve.


3. Mujer que yo quiero.

La mujer que yo quiero no necesita bañarse cada noche en agua bendita, tiene muchos defectos, dice mi madre, y demasiados huesos, dice mi padre, pero ella es mas verdad que el pan y la tierra, mi amor es un amor de antes de la guerra, para saberlo, la mujer que yo quiero no necesita deshojar cada noche una margarita.

La mujer que yo quiero es fruta jugosa, prendida en mi alma como si cualquier cosa, con ella quieren dármela mis amigos y se amargan la vida mis enemigos, porque, sin querer tú, te envuelve su arrullo, y contra su calor se pierde el orgullo y la vergüenza, la mujer que yo quiero es fruta jugosa, madurando feliz, dulce y vanidosa.

La mujer que yo quiero me ató a su yunta para sembrar la tierra de punta a punta, de un amor que nos habla con voz de sabio y tiene de mujer la piel y los labios, son todos suyos mis compañeros de antes, mi perro, mi scalextric y mis amantes, pobre Juanito, la mujer que yo quiero me ató a su yunta pero, por favor, no se lo digas nunca, pero, por favor, no se lo digas nunca.


4. Pueblo blanco.

Colgado de un barranco duerme mi pueblo blanco, bajo un cielo que, a fuerza de no ver nunca el mar, se olvidó de llorar. Por sus callejas de polvo y piedra, por no pasar, ni pasó la guerra, sólo el olvido camina lento bordeando la cañada donde no crece una flor ni trashuma un pastor.

El sacristán ha visto hacerse viejo al cura, el cura ha visto al cabo y el cabo al sacristán, y mi pueblo después vio morir a los tres, y me pregunto, por qué nacerá gente si nacer o morir es indiferente.

De la siega a la siembra se vive en la taberna, las comadres murmuran su historia en el umbral de sus casas de cal, y las muchachas hacen bolillos buscando, ocultas tras los visillos, a ese hombre joven que noche a noche forjaron en su mente, fuerte para ser su señor y tierno para el amor.

Ellas sueñan con él y él con irse muy lejos de su pueblo, y los viejos sueñan morirse en paz, y morir por morir, quieren morirse al sol, la boca abierta al calor como lagartos, medio ocultos tras un sombrero de esparto.

Escapad, gente tierna, que esta tierra está enferma, y no esperéis mañana lo que no te os dio ayer, que no hay nada que hacer. Toma tu mula, tu hembra y tu arreo, sigue el camino del pueblo hebreo y busca otra luna, tal vez mañana sonría la fortuna, y si te toca llorar es mejor frente al mar.

Si yo pudiera unirme a un vuelo de palomas y atravesando lomas dejar mi pueblo atrás, os juro por lo que fui que me iría de aquí, pero los muertos están en cautiverio y no nos dejan salir del cementerio.


5. Tío Alberto.

Gitano o payo pudo ser, o un aristócrata que ayer perdió su cetro de oro y su corona, camina sobre el bien y el mal, con la cadencia de su vals, mitad juicio y mitad mueca burlona.

Tío Alberto, tío Alberto, cató de todos los vinos, anduvo por mil caminos y atracó de puerto en puerto, entre la ruina y la riqueza, entre mentiras y promesas, aún sabe sonreír, tío Alberto.

Da todo lo que puede dar, su casa está de par en par, quien quiere entrar tiene un plato en la mesa, pero no os cambia el cielo por la orden de la legión de Honor que le dio la República Francesa.

Tío Alberto, tío Alberto, aún tiembla con los motores, las muchachas y las flores, con Vivaldi y el flamenco, tiene de un niño la ternura y de un poeta la locura, y aún cree en el amor, tío Alberto.

Por ti valsea en re bemol agradecido el tibio sol de ese otoño que hiciste primavera, el vaso de mi juventud yo lo levanto a su salud, rey del país del ensueño y la quimera.

Tío Alberto, tío Alberto, qué suerte tienes cochino, en el final del camino te esperó la sombra fresca de una piel dulce de veinte años, donde olvidar los desengaños, de diez lustros de amor, tío Alberto.


6. Que va a ser de ti.

Hace más de un año ya que en casa no está tu pequeña, un lunes de noche la vi salir con su impermeable amarillo, sus cosas en un hatillo, y cantando, quiero ser feliz.

Te dejó sobre el mantel su adiós de papel, tu pequeña, te decía que en el alma y la piel se le borraron las pecas, y su mundo de muñecas pasó, pasó veloz y ligera como una primavera en flor. Qué va a ser de ti lejos de casa, nena, qué va a ser de ti, qué va a ser de ti lejos de casa, nena, qué va a ser de ti.

Esperaste en el sillón y luego en el balcón a la pequeña, y de punta a punta de la ciudad preguntaste a los vecinos, y saliste a los caminos, quién sabe dónde andará.

Y hoy te preguntas por qué, un día se fue tu pequeña, si le diste toda tu juventud, un buen colegio de pago, el mejor de los bocados, y tu amor, amor sobre las rodillas, caballito trotador. Qué va a ser de ti lejos de casa, nena, qué va a ser de ti, qué va a ser de ti lejos de casa, nena, qué va a ser de ti…


7. Lucía.

Vuela esta canción para ti Lucía, la más bella historia de amor que tuve y tendré, es una carta de amor que se lleva el viento pintado en mi voz a ninguna parte, a ningún buzón.

No hay nada más bello que lo que nunca he tenido, nada más amado que lo que perdí, perdóname si hoy busco en la arena la luna llena que arañaba el mar.

Si alguna vez fui un ave de paso lo olvide para anidar en tus brazos, si alguna vez fui bello y fui bueno fue enredado en tu cuello y tus senos, si alguna vez fui sabio en amores lo aprendí de tus labios cantores, si alguna vez amé, si alguna día después de amar, amé, fue por tu amor, Lucía.

Tus recuerdos son cada día más dulces, el olvido solo se llevó la mitad, y tu sombra aun se acuesta en mi cama con la oscuridad entre mi almohada y mi soledad.


8. Vagabundear.

Harto ya de estar harto, ya me cansé de preguntar al mundo por qué y por qué, la rosa de los vientos me ha de ayudar, y desde ahora vais a verme vagabundear entre el cielo y el mar, vagabundear.

Como un cometa de caña y de papel me iré tras una nube para serle fiel a los montes, los ríos, el sol y el mar, a ellos que me enseñaron el verbo amar, soy palomo torcaz, dejadme en paz.

No me siento extranjero en ningún lugar, donde haya lumbre y vino tengo mi hogar, y para no olvidarme de lo que fui, mi patria y mi guitarra la llevo en mí, una es fuerte y es fiel, la otra un papel.

No llores porque no me voy a quedar, me diste todo lo que tu sabes dar, la sombra que en la tarde da una pared, y el vino que me ayuda para olvidar mi sed, que más puede ofrecer una mujer.

Es hermoso partir sin decir adiós, serena la mirada, firme la voz, si de veras me buscas, me encontrarás, es muy largo el camino para mirar atrás, qué más da, qué más da, aquí o allá, qué más da, qué más da, aquí o allá.


9. Barquito de papel.

Barquito de papel sin nombre, sin patrón y sin bandera, navegando sin timón donde la corriente quiera. Aventurero audaz, jinete de papel cuadriculado, que mi mano sin pasado sentó en lomos de un canal.

Cuando el canal era un río, cuando el estanque era el mar, y navegar era jugar con el viento, era una sonrisa a tiempo, fugándose feliz de país en país, entre la escuela y mi casa, después el tiempo pasa y te olvidas de aquel barquito de papel.

Barquito de papel, en qué extraño arenal han varado tu sonrisa y mi pasado vestidos de colegial. Cuando el canal era un río, cuando el estanque era el mar, y navegar era jugar con el viento, era una sonrisa a tiempo.


10. Vencidos.

Por la manchega llanura se vuelve a ver la figura de Don Quijote pasar, y ahora ociosa y abollada va en el rucio la armadura, y va ocioso el caballero sin peto y sin espaldar.

Va cargado de amargura, que allá encontró sepultura su amoroso batallar, va cargado de amargura, que allá quedó su ventura, en la playa de Barcino, frente al mar.

Cuántas veces, Don Quijote, por esa misma llanura, en horas de desaliento así te miro pasar, y cuántas veces te grito, hazme sitio en tu montura y llévame a tu lugar.

Hazme un sitio en tu montura, caballero derrotado, hazme un sitio en tu montura que yo también voy cargado de amargura y no puedo batallar, ponme a la grupa contigo, caballero del honor, ponme en la grupa contigo y llévame a ser contigo, contigo pastor.

Por la manchega llanura se vuelve a ver la figura de Don Quijote pasar, va cargado de amargura, va vencido, el caballero, de retorno a su lugar.


· · ·
Año: 1971.
Procedencia de la banda: Barcelona, España.
· · ·