Funeral Songs... Everybody needs a list.

Subject to revision, I hope.

Funeral Songs

Elegy -Bruce Cockburn
Flying Red Horse -John Gorka
You’re On Your Way -John Gorka
Love Is Our Cross To Bear -John Gorka
If I Could Forget to Breathe -John Gorka
Kind Woman -Chris Smither (Richie Furay cover)
‘Til I Gain Control Again -Blue Rodeo (Rodney Crowell cover)
Dark Angel -Blue Rodeo
Know Where You Go/Tell Me Your Dreams -Blue Rodeo
Simple Song -Lyle Lovett
Family Reserve -Lyle Lovett
Glory of True Love -John Prine
Clay Pigeons -John Prine (Blaze Foley cover)
Bear Creek -John Prine (Carter Family cover)
Long Monday -John Prine
Festival of Friends -Bruce Cockburn
Last Night of the World -Bruce Cockburn
He Came From the Mountain -Bruce Cockburn
Southland of the Heart -Bruce Cockburn
All The Diamonds -Bruce Cockburn
The Color Green -Rich Mullins
Silver Garden -The Everybodyfields
Elegy -Bruce Cockburn

And Love You....

I was trying to channel John Prine. Didn't work, but I have no shame and it is sincere, so I put it down anyway.

Oh, my Sweet Bonnie. I wait forever...

And Love You

Before we make that move uptown
I want a chance to hold my ground
To stand right here another twenty years
And love you

Been walkin' circles, now I’m found
Been rescued from the lost dog’s pound
I’ve been redeemed and now I need
Time to feed on all the blessings

I’m grateful for the time we’ve had
Lord knows I don’t deserve all that
I've found the house where true love lives
Don't have to bust the locks and steal it

Tonight we’ll take a little ride
County roads in full moonlight
When I break and beg and pray for time
Just take me home and love me

You know I’ll follow you through thick and thin
Past the point where light grows dim
On though what most folks call the end
You are Love and love I carry

Before we make that move uptown
I want the chance to hold my ground
To stand right here another twenty years
And love you
Love you

© D. Dain, 2008.

Santa Blues

Santa Blues

(Daddy, is Santa real? Oh, Daddy, is Santa real?)

Son, Santa lived,
But Santa died
He was shot down right out of the sky,
Over East L.A. in '95
By a bunch of Crips, while in the midst
Of a Christmas Morning sleigh-ride-by...

Pushing all the bounds of fashion
Dressed all in Red with White-furred trim
Stocking cap, Ho-Ho-Ho's
Big-buckled belt and lumps of coal
Trespassing was his only sin
A fashion faux pas did him in

(It was a fashionista’s teachable moment)

Was it The Grinch who sold
The Crips that rocket launcher?
The graffiti'd missile found the steam
Off Rudolf's button-nose... and blew
The whole damn sleigh, presents and all
To hell or where bad children go

As he fell, this hero of rotundity,
This bright-red savior of the milk and cookies set,
Shouted "Merry Christmas, Peace on Earth,
The whole wide world's my bloody turf"=
Including all that's tagged with blue spray paint
And the airspace over East L.A."

And so my Son, the moral of the story,
For there is always at least one of those,
Is Look for the unspoken rules and lines
And notice when they change
And do not cross without good cause
And always look down-range
And best not be a fashion horse
Safety first and stay the course
Stick to brown and green
They're not so easy seen

(Repeat 1st Verse)

Route 50 -- a Protest Song...

Route 50

Lookin' cross this country, from my front porch I can see
Big four-lane runnin' one-way down toward Washington DC
Seems change is rarely good, an' it's oh so hard to bear
I remember all this open range, before Route 50 got my share

Rollin' thru my little town, shops all boarded up
One stop sign, one gas station, take my time, I got enough
My job moved all the way to China, seems Route 50 takes you there
Glance across the street, and I say a little prayer

(Chorus)
'cause if you're there, a-starin' at that Store-Front Mission sign
It says "God Bless America, She's runnin' out of time"
Jus' 'cause it's up there on the plaaastic, don't mean it's set in stone....
But some things were better left alone

I can’t remember when my taxes ever came right back to me
Got Congress in my pocket, and they rob me blind, you see…
Bunker Hill and Trenton - Lord, "The Sons of Liberty”
Might be we need to throw ourselves a brand new tea-par-tee
(Bridge/music same as chorus)
I'll wear my Ten Commandment t-shirt when they stand me up ag’in' that wall....
Still my country, still my land, no blindfold – that’s my call
Can't remember where you come from and you ain't goin' anywhere.…
We bear left on Route 50, the future's flyyyin' through the air

I have known for years that Pogo got it right
We have met the enemy, and he's sittin' here tonight
And if God can bless this country, Lord -- He can take it alllll away
And it takes more than a plastic sign to keep ourselves at bay

(Chorus)

© 2006, D. Dain

Hope Springs...

Hope Springs

...even as The King flips his car and doesn't walk away,
the Tribal Elder is carried home from the hunt,
and eleven generations of farm slide across the auction block
Hope springs...

As the journeyman catches The Champ with that lucky left hook,
the World Tree catches a fungus and starts dropping limbs,
and we dig up our beginnings as our middle sneaks on past
Hope springs...

And we watch the sea rise, swaying in waves of All You Need Is Love
Love...

On a blue ball of clay with aging courtesan's fading charms
We wagered wrong, wandered too far off the farm
We discounted faith, amazing grace, ignored conscience's alarms
Hope springs...

Didn't think, crossed the brink, pausing only to re-arm
Counted greed a virtue, lied and said we meant no harm
And our posterity's a radio signal brushing by the last star of our spiral arm
Hope springs...

It's diving past galaxies, lined up like standing stones
Straining at the reins and and racing down the long hall
Toward home

While we watch the sea rise, swaying in waves of All You Need Is Love
Love...

Marlin 39....

A short exchange between Chuck Hicks and myself spurred me to this. Revisions are probably forthcoming, but don't expect all the cliches to disappear.

Marlin 39

Dad had a rifle
A Marlin Twenty-two
Pre-war Model 39
Octagon and all re-blued
The design was old,
It never changed
Every part was tried and true
Tried and true

Long one down a squirrel' eye,
Groundhog on the run
Showed me more than I could learn
Still, he taught me some
Most of what I ken
‘bout people and their kinds
It came from him
Dad had a Marlin 39

The barrel had a full eight sides
Dad had a few sides too
Still no doubt and no mistake
Straight-shooter thru and thru
Walk the trap-line cold and wet
Skin and stretch and dry
Life is choices, good and bad
Do it right and die
Dad had a Marlin 39

(Chorus)
He grew up in the mines
Working at fourteen
Didn’t learn to shoot back there
It was a favor from the war machine
He didn't talk it up
But old photos show the change
Just knuckled down and went to work
Wouldn't sow or throw the blame
It’s a Greatest Generation thing

God will not forsake
His people when they call
And though He will correct you, son
His Promise stands to break your fall
He has a plan for every man
Love God, land and line
In meekness and obedience
Grow peace and peace of mind
Dad had a Marlin 39

(Chorus)

God will not forsake
HIs people when they call

© D. Dain, 2008.

Shaky....

Shaky

I got shaky hands and leaky eyes
Tired of shilling compromise
Of lying liars' lying lies
And the way we eat it up
The full debt due is dreck and doom
The end of days might be real soon
We’re slouching toward a ready ruin
And the fire door is nailed shut

We fenced the range where freedom rang
Where Woody, Jack and Utah sang
Shining cities felt the pang
Slid down the hill in doubt
Cloud floats over Harvest Moon
John Smith and Pocahontas too
Thanksgiving came and stayed and grew
Then the gravy all ran out

(Chorus)
Oh my hands
Oh my eyes
Here we stand
And helpless I
Wish wishes win
One last, once more
Please send a course to hold
A steady oar
Toward that distant shore

Farmer Brown - he plant, he grow
Run the race - he place, he show
Banker take it all, foreclose
Class warfare by a nose
The framers never could relate
We're reined in, tamed, been replaced
With ruthless change for change's sake
And it's further down that road

(Chorus, then 1st Verse)

Cross my heart, hope to die
Boots off, loved one by my side
No shaky hands, no leaky eyes
Burn it down and start it over
Burn it down and start it over
Burn it down and start it over

© DDC ‘08

John Gorka cover: I Never Told You

As far as I know, JG never put this on anything but a couple bootlegs off of the monitor feed.

I Never Told You