1. |
Song About Singing
03:56
|
|
||
|
I’ve done my share of flirting with danger,
Proving that I care, squaring off with strangers.
I took the risk I when raised my fist,
And my bruises show that I’ve taken some blows.
I carried a torch for saving the world,
Marched through the square with my flag unfurled.
I raised my voice. I made a terrible noise.
And I broke the law, ‘til my world turned raw.
I sang my song about Justice.
I sang my songs about Grace and Sin.
I learned a thing or two about what trust is.
Just big words, nobody heard.
No one wants to know where I’ve been.
CHORUS:
So I’m gonna sing a song about singing.
Gonna dance to a song about dancing.
I’m gonna make love to a song about making love.
And it’s alright, alright.
Dance to a song about dancing.
Sing a song about singing along.
There’ll be plenty of time for fighting to a fight song.
Now I’m chiseling away at the chip on my shoulder,
Heavier and heavier as I get older.
And I can’t relax as I grind my axe.
And my spirit caves in to a tunnel of clichés.
If any good comes my way, I try to pay it forward.
But when I show up, the bar gets lowered.
I will leave this place better than I found it,
But there’s no way around it;
Sometimes I just wanna drown it.
I gave my Untitled Sermon,
Preaching to the choir of a thousand strong,
I cooked when the fire was burning.
But at the end of the year, it all disappears
In an Ocean of Nothing
CHORUS
I sang my song about climbing that hill,
Just to get a closer howl at the moon.
But it’s lonely up there in the bitter thin air.
And something’s gotta give soon.
Tears in the rain. Breath in a hurricane.
I gotta get myself in tune.
CHORUS
|
||||
2. |
If I Could
03:27
|
|||
|
If I could, I would.
If I only could, I would.
Imagine all that I could do
If I weren’t in love with you.
Believe it or not it’s true,
You’re the reason that I’m through.
Sometimes I don’t know what to say.
I’ve seen my best years just go wasting away.
I let my well run dry,
Ever since you wandered by.
Yeah, you’re the reason why
I’m just an average guy.
I used to have such dreams.
But now it seems I’m satisfied
Just to be here by your side.
Yes, it seems I’m satisfied
Just to be here by your side.
Gone are the days of my prime.
No more rivers to cross,
No more mountains to climb.
But I ain’t got no remorse,
Every since I changed my course.
I opened up the doors and let that horse run free.
|
||||
3. |
Thoughts and Prayers
04:22
|
|
||
|
Send me your thoughts. Send me your prayers.
C’mon, let me really have it. Let me know how much you care.
You don’t have to lift a finger -- all your effort spared.
Just send your thoughts, and say your prayers.
How is the family? How’s your career?
Did you take them to the islands this year?
Did you get that big promotion? Yes, I’m glad to hear
That I’m in your thoughts and in your prayers.
I was in the news today. I think you saw.
And I don’t mean to disturb you, but it’s worth the call.
They came in wearing trench coats. I was backed against the wall.
If it weren’t for all the chaos, they might have killed us all.
Send me your prayers. Send me your thoughts.
Tell me once again this was the will of God,
That it happens for a reason whether we know or not.
Send me you’re your prayers. Send me your thoughts.
Write me an email. Send me a text.
Make sure you comment on my page about the men we should elect.
My friends were here one minute, and gone the next.
And I still can’t figure out what higher truth it all reflects.
Send me your thoughts send me your prayers.
Send me someone else to take on this cross I bear.
Send me your thoughts. Send me your prayers.
Send me all your solemn words and all your grown-up wisdom there.
Send me your thoughts. Send me your prayers.
|
||||
4. |
Jesus
05:07
|
|||
|
Jesus got all the dirt on you.
Jesus gonna put the hurt on you.
If you don’t get right before that final bell,
Jesus gonna dump you right straight to hell.
No more Mister Nice Guy; your time is coming soon.
You can worship the sun. You can worship the moon.
But if he don’t recognize you when you show up at the gates,
Jesus gonna bounce you out and leave you to your fate.
Everyone is welcome at his door,
All the sinners, all the hypocrites and whores.
Jesus loves everyone. It’s true.
He loves everyone but you.
Jesus, he’s on to you.
Jesus knows exactly what you do.
And if you ain’t got a good defense, up before the judge,
You’re gonna find out just how Jesus holds a grudge.
He heals the sick, he heals the lame, he heals the blind.
Yeah, Jesus turns the water into wine.
But if you don’t sober up before it’s time.
You’re gonna serve a heavy sentence for your crime.
‘Cause everybody’s welcome at this feast,
From the greatest to the least.
Every one of us is running through those doors,
Every soul, but yours.
Jesus is puttin’ on game.
He’s kickin’ ass and taking names.
And if you don’t everything he said.
Jesus gonna come and bust a cap upside your head.
Everyone is welcome at his house.
Your sister, your brother and your spouse.
He’s coming and he’s spreading ‘round the wealth
To everyone, but your bad self.
Jesus loves everyone, it’s true.
He loves the Pagans, the Gentiles, and the Jews, and the Muslims too.
Yeah, Jesus loves everyone, it’s true.
He loves everyone, everyone but you
|
||||
5. |
Frozen
04:07
|
|||
|
All I wanna do is hear you make that sound again.
You send a chill all up and down my skin.
But don’t pick up my heart just because you can.
‘Cause you don’t know where it’s been.
Maybe for a moment I was almost there,
When you sent your sign of safety through the air.
And I promise, Darling, when the darkness disappears,
I’ll go with you anywhere.
But here we are, nowhere to go.
Can’t say out loud what we both know.
Can’t deny, can’t believe.
Can’t give, can’t receive.
Cause we’re frozen, frozen, frozen
Another weekend night, and you’re on the edge.
And I’m walking you back from the ledge.
I could be your knight in shining armor, Baby.
But you don’t want to be my damsel in distress.
Everybody knows I’ve got a stoic side.
When something big goes down I turn and hide.
But someday, Baby, I’m gonna let you inside.
I’m gonna take you on the wildest ride of your life.
But here we are. This ain’t nothing new.
You can’t love me. I can’t love you.
Some love is fantasy. Some love is true.
I wanna find out what we got here, but there’s nothing I can do.
Because I’m frozen, frozen, frozen.
|
||||
6. |
My Daughter, My Love
03:41
|
|||
|
My daughter, my love, what can I do for you?
Now that you’ve put up a wall that I can’t see through.
I pulled you into this world with my own two hands.
Tell me why can’t I understand.
Tell me why.
My daughter, my love, is there anything you need?
Any wounds to heal, any dreams to feed?
I’ve got half my life left over, so I offer you all my years.
Anything to swim through these tears.
Anything.
I promised you I’d pave your way with roses & gold.
I shouldn’t have, I know it, but it’s the same dream I was sold.
Now you know, now you know all the same things I know.
This world can be cold.
Yes, this world is so cold.
My daughter, my love, is there nothing I can say?
Now that you’re lost in the dark, and you’re worlds away.
You see, I’m stronger, and I can wait longer than you’ll ever know.
So go anywhere you need to go.
Go anywhere.
My daughter, my love
|
||||
7. |
The Beast Is Back
03:16
|
|||
|
Well, I’m sitting here with old friends, drinking liquor and smoking pot.
I never thought I’d say it: “Sobriety ain’t so hot.”
You better believe, the Beast is back again.
I rode that wagon ten years runnin’. Yes, I rode it well.
In all that time I had no fun, and I believe it’s time I fell.
You better believe, the Beast is back again.
Oh, I could tell you stories that would really blow your mind.
I don’t mean to boast, but coast to coast, I’m a legend in my time.
Just take a look at this here tattoo.
Pass me that bottle. I don’t mind if I do.
Well I made amends with long lost friends, and I paid back all my debts.
After twenty-five years, I’m free and clear, but I ain’t done living yet.
You better believe, the Beast is back again.
When I found the Lord, I was born again, and I faced face reality.
But I gotta admit, the Devil’s got a lot more personality.
You better believe, the Beast is back again.
Oh, once upon a time, I was a menace to this world.
I wasn’t very nice, and I wouldn’t think twice about stealin’ your girl.
So, you better make some room and be polite.
‘Cause who knows what’s gonna happen if the beast comes out tonight?
Some things I don’t remember. Some things I’d like to forget.
But really get a feeling that I wanna do something that I surely might regret.
You better believe, the Beast is back again.
So if you see me walkin’, and my gaze is lookin’ blurred.
And if you hear me talkin’, and my words are gettin’ slurred,
You better believe, the Beast is back again
|
||||
8. |
Just a Man
02:48
|
|||
|
You is what you is, and you ain’t what you ain’t.
You can be a stay at home sinner, or a renegade saint.
The time is getting shorter, and the memories grow faint.
And it’s hard now to stretch out the canvas on which I paint.
It turns out I’m bitter, I’m petty, and I’m broken.
I’ve got the worst thoughts in my head. They go unspoken.
I can’t forgive. I can’t forget.
I can’t live down my regrets.
And all my lofty ideal; they’re just token.
I’m not the man I thought I was, so enlightened,
With all those deep thoughts in my heart, I tried to heighten.
No, I ain’t no Holy Master.
Just another sad disaster.
I get lonely sometimes. I get frightened.
I’m just a man, just a man.
After all these years, I’m just a man.
I may never paint my masterpiece,
Never reap my reward.
I may never wear my Golden Fleece,
Never taste the wine, no matter how it’s poured.
The woman that I love knows exactly who I am.
And she loves me anyway. And she understands.
All those nicknames that I’ve earned,
All the wisdom that I’ve learned;
It seems like none of it is worth a damn.
|
||||
9. |
Cozmic Repo Blues
05:07
|
|||
|
I’m your Broken-Hearted Savior
I claim the bounty on your head.
I turned a blind eye on your behavior,
And I kept you clothed and fed.
I loved you and forgave your every deed
And every killin’ word you said.
I am your Holy Father.
I’ve come to repossess your heart.
I fashioned it like no other,
The finest of my art.
I put it in your safekeeping, but you didn’t bother
To do your part.
I am your Mother Nature.
I’ve come to repossess your mind.
I’m the one who made ya,
But you sure are hard to find
It isn’t that I hate ya,
But you shoulda paid your bill on time.
I am your Prince of Darkness.
I’ve come to repossess your soul.
I’ve been following on your progress
Ever since the days of old.
Now you ain’t nothing but dumb and heartless.
It’s time to pay the toll.
Pay me what you owe me!
Pay me what you owe!
|
||||
10. |
Love Ain't Easy
03:50
|
|
||
|
I can’t believe we made it through.
I’m still here, and I’m looking at you.
And all along, nobody knew
Just how hard this was, and all the work we had to do.
‘Cause love ain’t easy.
Sometimes love is the last thing you want to happen to you.
Love ain’t easy.
But I’m so glad that I love you.
But I got to admit that I had my doubts.
I was sizing up all the things I thought I’d have to live without.
But every time I hear you sweet voice. You say,
“Everything’s gonna be worth it, and anyway we got no choice.”
‘Cause love ain’t easy.
If you give it all you got, there might be nothing left of you.
Love ain’t easy.
But I’m so glad that I love you.
And I feel sorry for that man I used to be.
But I wouldn’t even know him if I met him on the street.
And that poor girl who was crying at his feet,
How did she get the nerve to be so sweet?
So here’s my heart. Why don’t you take my hand?
And I’ll provide for you a softer place to land.
From here on out, we just go gliding past
All those things that used to scare us, Baby. Hold on fast.
‘Cause love ain’t easy.
Just ask anyone who’s been there what it takes to keep love true.
Love ain’t easy.
But I’m so glad that I love you.
|
||||
11. |
J. Edgar Hoover
04:15
|
|||
|
J. Edgar Hoover had a deep dark secret,
He kept until the day he died.
Even the C.I.A. couldn’t leak it.
That’s how desperately he held it inside.
You couldn’t break him if you tried.
And I can’t help thinking the world would be better
If we just let it all hang out.
I can’t help you if I don’t know what you’re feeling.
So say it out loud.
Billie Jean King was the Queen of her sport.
But there was something we never knew.
She took it out on some jack-ass on the court.
It was the only thing that she could do.
It would be years before we found out the truth.
And I can’t help thinking the world would be nicer
If we learned to take it all in stride.
Send up your signal, and we’ll see it through together.
‘Cause we’re running out of places to hide.
No more closet skeletons. No more monsters under your bed.
No more stampeding elephants. No more voices in your head.
No more demons dwelling in your cellar, preying on your fear and dread.
No more shadows in the corner of your eye.
No memories rising from the dead.
Reverend Jimmy Swaggart was fired up for Jesus.
He could preach the living hell out of a scene.
But he was truly in Spirit, doing what he pleases
In the back of a limousine.
In between he was just damn mean.
And I’m thinking that world would make a lot more sense
If we opened up the doors and let the sun shine in.
Yes I’m certain, what’s behind the curtain
Won’t be hurtin’ anyone
And I’m thinking that the world would make a much better host
If we put it into neutral and just let ‘er coast.
The burden gets lighter, and the love grows brighter
When you see it up close, So bring it up close.
|
||||
12. |
Involution
03:33
|
|||
|
Too many parts of you Involution
Don’t along with the other parts.
They put the kibosh on you
And everything you do
Even before it starts.
You could have been someone,
If only you could concentrate your heart.
You could have gone a thousand miles deep in the Promise Land,
If you weren’t so goddamned smart.
Clearly you were at the feast –
The way you wiped the meal upon your sleeve.
But no one saw your masterpiece –
The promise of the things you could achieve.
You could have gone somewhere
Back when you were hungry and naïve.
You let a single droplet of doubt
Contaminate an ocean of belief.
Why bother climbing?
You look like such a fool when you fall?
You could never get the timing right.
You think they’re gonna judge you,
When they’re paying no attention to you at all.
Oh, such a woeful sight to behold.
Oh, such a sad, sad tale to be told.
All your friends should intervene
And call upon the characters in your mind,
Make a big dramatic scene,
Haul ‘em in, and see what we can find.
You coulda done something.
Don’t you see you’re stars were all aligned?
You could have built a shining tower out of the starlight,
But the sunlight left you blind.
Why bother climbing?
You look like such a fool when you fall?
You could never get the timing right.
You think they’re gonna judge you,
When they’re paying no attention to you at all.
|
||||
13. |
It Wouldn't Be Hard
04:00
|
|||
|
I wonder where you’ve been.
It’s hard to tell from the picture you sent.
You’re looking pretty thin.
I haven’t seen you since the day we went
To the church revival, when our hearts would ache.
We prayed for salvation, but it didn’t take.
So what else could you do?
Packed up your stuff in a beat up car,
And found some place new,
Where no one knows who you really are.
And you could take the risk, and follow your dreams,
With nothing to lose, and nobody seems to judge you.
It wouldn’t be hard to say we’re sorry,
If it meant that we could see your face again.
If it meant that we laugh at all the crazy shit.
You say that comes out of nowhere.
Everybody’s jealous.
And you should hear the excuses we make,
When there’s no here to tell us,
That anything you want is yours to take.
You see we’ve all got responsibilities --
The mortgage, the kids, the utilities.
That’s life I guess.
That’s life, that’s life I guess.
It wouldn’t be hard to welcome you back
To give us a glimpse of the life we lack,
To shine a little a ray of sunlight
On this endless gray.
Thank you for the picture.
Yes I’m sure it’s worth a thousand words.
But I miss you.
If it’s any consolation,
I’ve taken up guitar and I wrote a few tunes.
No, I ain’t no sensation,
Just working up the nerve to play ‘em out soon.
But it’s hard to imagine what it’s like for you.
That doors might open just ‘cause you want them to.
Everything here for us in plain view.
It wouldn’t be hard to admit you were right,
If it meant that we could hang out together tonight.
We could have a conversation like we never really had.
We could lay it on the line, just lay it on the line.
And it wouldn’t be hard.
|
||||
14. |
If You Only Knew
04:35
|
|||
|
If you only knew how it feels to love you,
You’d take it easy on me, Baby.
Take it easy on me, Baby.
If you only knew.
If the walls of my lifeboat,
If they don’t keep me safe and dry,
Throw out a lifeline for me, Baby.
Throw out a lifeline.
‘Cause I’m about to lose my mind.
And I don’t care about my pride.
But if I falter one more time,
How will I keep you by my side?
How will I keep you by my side?
And if you only knew how far I come to be with you,
You’d take it easy on me, Baby.
Take it easy on me, Baby.
If you only knew.
‘Cause I’m in a strange location,
Without the tools of my trade.
And I need your navigation
To point the way.
‘Cause I’ve given up my soul.
There ain’t enough love to fill this hole,
And the digging takes its toll.
How will I ever reach my goal?
Don’t make me go on without you,
Though I know I ain’t no prize.
And I know that it looks pretty bad,
Now that I’m cut down to size.
I think that I could tell you this gets better,
Tell you that the sun’s gonna shine.
And make you believe I got the world on a string.
If you only knew.
Now if you only knew just what it takes to be with you,
You’d take it easy on me, Baby.
Take it easy on me, Baby.
If you only knew.
‘Cause I was nothing but a shell,
Just laying in this place I fell.
And if you never pulled me from the well,
How would I find my stories to tell?
Don’t make me go on without you.
Please don’t cast me to the sky.
I know that I said I was built for the wind.
But I’ll never fly. No, no, I’ll never fly.
I know that I can tell you I’ll be stronger.
I know that I can lift us both high,
And make you believe I’m a whole lot tougher than I seem.
|
||||
15. |
Continental Divide
02:55
|
|||
|
You go your way, I’ll go mine.
It don’t matter if you walk a straight line.
Any way you meander, that’s just fine.
You go your way, I’ll go mine.
Every river runs to the sea,
There’s an ocean for you,
There’s an ocean for me.
It’s only water, and it’s all the same.
It freezes into snow.
It falls as rain.
Last time I knew you,
I thought that I outgrew you.
But you were waving from the other side,
Of the Continental Divide.
Down in the valleys, we each got our scene,
People of our own, and a mountain in between.
When the rains come down from the same big sky,
There’s a big yellow sun that keeps us both dry.
Last time we sat on the porch,
We reminisced, and we passed the torch.
To the next generation on the other side
Of the Continental Divide.
You go your way, I’ll go mine.
It don’t matter if you walk a straight line.
Any way you meander, that’s just fine.
You go your way, I’ll go mine.
|
||||
16. |
||||
|
You don’t know it yet, this is our last kiss.
Sorry, I forgot to tell you to remember this.
But all this time, though I don’t know why,
I always knew we’d say goodbye.
Don’t beg. Don’t cry. Don’t waste a single tear.
Let me walk away, and I’ll just disappear.
I can’t go on pretending that I understand,
‘Cause this love was never really in our hands.
The only thing left to say is nothing.
It’s what I should have been saying all along.
When I open my mouth, everything comes out all wrong.
There’s just a few things that I regret.
My advice to you is you’ll soon forget.
I’m not the kind of man who says we can still friends.
When it ends, it just ends.
The only thing left to say is nothing.
And it’s a silence that’s meant to soothe.
When I lend my ear, I finally hear the truth.
I still get a chill up my spine when you make that sound.
You love me like no other man, when there’s no other man around.
But I’ve been here before, and I’ve walked these stones.
I slip on the same rock twice, I deserve to break some bones.
The only thing left to say is nothing.
So say it with all your conviction true.
Now we’ve done our part to break our hearts in two.
The only thing left to say is nothing
About all those things I don’t even know.
Everything that’s on my mind, I just leave behind, and go.
|
||||
17. |
The Rest of Me
04:03
|
|||
|
You’re digging into my history
You think you’ve solved my mystery.
You got me therapy.
Getting down to the bottom of me.
See anything that you like?
You can have what’s left of the rest of me.
After all, you’ve taken me apart.
Put me back together. Make the best of me.
There’s still a little love left in my heart.
I’m used to getting things my way,
I don’t know how I landed in your driveway.
I couldn’t finding my car, couldn’t make my getaway.
I couldn’t find my wings, I couldn’t fly away.
Too late, too late.
:
You can have what’s left of the rest of me.
I’ve got nothing left to hide.
I’ll ride it out with you if that’s my destiny.
There’s still little love left here inside.
I was walking with a friend of mine.
He could see the warning signs.
He told me I was on the decline.
He said, “Dude, ya better get in line.”
And I did, and I'm doing fine.
You can have what’s left of the rest of me,
Now that I’ve forgotten where I was.
Nobody’s come around to arrest me.
After everything, I’m still a worthy cause.
|
||||
18. |
Veil
03:27
|
|||
|
Most things never change.
People still get wet when it rains.
But I’m surprised how much of the world
You can put in a little box.
What’s left over you can stuff in your socks.
People on the other side say it’s all an illusion.
But I’m just looking for a closet to put my shoes in.
What if we really knew
What was going on?
What if we really knew?
If they pulled the veil, it would surely floor us.
Now here’s a confession I did it all with a thesaurus,
And a rhyming dictionary.
Don’t be so contrary.
Just watch my garden grow.
Watch it grow.
Most things never change.
So why should it be so strange?
Half the world is watching the other half on T.V.
Why should they care what happens to you and me?
Nobody really knows.
Nobody really sees.
Things just happen.
There’s no conspiracy.
|
||||
John Shipe Eugene, Oregon
Gushing reviews surround Shipe’s Americana work, charting in 6 countries on 3 continents. He's opened for Bob Dylan, Taj Mahal, Keb Mo, Cake, Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, Jerry Joseph, Jimmy Cliff, Derek Trucks, Los Lobos, Hootie & Blowfish, and Blind Melon. Shipe music is described as cinematic, appearing in feature films, shorts and documentaries. 36 Shipe tunes rotated on 100 radio stations. ... more
If you like John Shipe, you may also like:
Notes From The Wonderground
by The Reflection Box
Irish singer-songwriter Sarah E. Cullen bares her heart over pastoral folk arrangements enshrouded in a dream-pop haze.
go to album
Written as she was coping with an auto-immune disease, the new EP from Rachel Angel offers hushed, silvery ’50s-style Americana.
go to album
The new EP from denitia specializes in big, hooky pop songs that put her smoky voice front and center.
go to album
Thin Lear's sophisticated rock music is tempered with soaring chamber pop accents and an undeniable gift for melody.
go to album
Banjo-wielding indie folk outfit drop their fourth full-length studio album of broody ballads and barroom stompers.
go to album
Phenomenology
by The Mining Co.
Inspired by John Carpenter’s 1974 film “Dark Star,” the beautifully moody songs on this LP present a voyage into the unknown.
go to album
The Ohio songwriter navigates gender, queerness, class, and privilege through a powerful mix of country rock, folk ballads, and bluegrass.
go to album
