( music: Natalie Merchant & Dennis Drew/words: Natalie Merchant )
Can I be unhappy? Look at what I see: a beast in furs and crowned in luxury. He's a wealthy man in the poorest land, a self-appointed king, and there's no complaining while he's reigning. The lambs are bare of fleece and cold; the lion has stolen that, I'm told. There must be some creature mighty as you are. The lambs go hungry (not fair), the biggest portion is the lion's share. There must be some creature mighty as you are.
Can I be unhappy? Listen and agree, no words can shame him or tame him. The lambs are bare of fleece and cold; the lion has stolen that, I'm told. There must be some creature mighty as you are. The lambs go hungry (not fair), the biggest portion is the lion's share. There must be some creature mighty as you are, as you are.
Razor claws in velvet paws, you dunce in your guarded home, 'til a stronger beast will call on you and pounce upon your throne.
Do we pay? Dearly, for the lion takes so greedily and he knows that what he's taken, it is ours. That's how the wealth's divided among the lambs and king of the beasts, it is so one-sided. Until the lamb is king of the beasts we live so one-sided.
Follow the typical signs, the hand-painted lines, down prairie roads. Pass the lone church spire. Pass the talking wire from where to who knows? There's no way to divide the beauty of the sky from the wild western plains. Where a man could drift, in legendary myth, by roaming over spaces. The land was free and the price was right.
Dakota on the wall is a white-robed woman, broad yet maidenly. Such power in her hand as she hails the wagon man's family. I see indians that crawl through this mural that recalls our history.
Who were the homestead wives? Who were the gold rush brides? Does anybody know? Do their works survive their yellow fever lives in the pages they wrote? The land was free, yet it cost their lives.
In miner's lust for gold. A family's house was bought and sold, piece by piece. A widow staked her claim on a dollar and his name, so painfully. In letters mailed back home her eastern sisters they would moan As they would read accounts of madness, childbirth, loneliness and grief.
that summer fields grew high with foxglove stalks and ivy wild apple blossoms everywhere emerald green like none I have seen apart from dreams that escape me there was no girl as warm as you
how I've learned to please to doubt myself in need you'll never, you'll never know
that summer fields grow high we made garland crowns in hiding pulled stems of flowers from my hair blue in the stream like none I have seen apart from dreams that escape me there was no girl as bold as you
how I've learned to please to doubt myself in need you'll never, you'll never know you'll never know...
violet serene like none I have seen apart from dreams that escape me there was no girl as warm as you how I've learned to please to doubt myself in need you'll never, you'll never know you'll never know...
that summer fields grow high we had wildflower fever we had to lay down where they grow how I've learned to hide, how I've locked inside you'd be surprised if shown but you'll never, you'll never know
times are far between, and few I bet we can look upon our lives without regret
of all the things I have done you think I'm proud of everyone without exception?
'til you make your peace with yesterday you'll never build a future I swear by what I say
whatever penance you'll do decide what it's worth to you and then respect it however long it will take to weather your mistakes why not accept it?
my hands, for now, are tied I'm a body frozen I'm a will that's paralyzed
when will you ever set aside your pain and misery? no matter how I beg no matter how I wish or plead
you'll never be more than alive you'll never do more than survive until you expect it do you want to build a world with our lives? you better soon decide or you can forget it.
my hands, for now, are tied I'm a body frozen I'm a will that's paralyzed 'til you drop that heavy baggage you're dragging behind there won't be room for us to both go this ride
we are the roses in the garden beauty with thorns among our leaves to pick a rose you ask your hands to bleed
but what is the reason for having roses when your blood is shed carelessly? it must be for something more than vanity
believe me, the truth is we're not honest not the people that we dream we're not as close as we could be
willing to grow but rains are shallow barren and wind-scattered seed on stone and dry land, we will be waiting for the light arisen to flood inside the prison
and in that time kind words alone will teach us no bitterness will reach us reason will be guided in another way
all in time... but the clock is another demon that devours our time in Eden in our paradise
These are These are days you’ll remember Never before and never since, I promise Will the whole world be warm as this And as you feel it, You’ll know it’s true That you – you are blessed and lucky It’s true – that you Are touched by something That will grow and bloom in you
These are days you’ll remember When May is rushing over you With desire to be part of the miracles You see in every hour You’ll know it’s true That you are blessed and lucky It’s true that you are touched By something that will grow and bloom in you
These are days – These are the days you might fill With laughter until you break These days you might feel A shaft of light Make its way across your face And when you do You’ll know how it was meant to be See the signs and know their meaning You’ll know how it was meant to be Hear the signs and know they’re speaking To you, to you
You won a prize for that, for telling lies like that So well that I believed it. And I never felt cheated. You were the chosen one, the pure eyes of Noah's dove. Choir boys and angels stole your lips and your halo. In your reckless mind, you act as if you've got more lives. In your reckless eyes, you only have time and your love of danger to it you're no stranger. In that August breeze of those forgotten trees, your time was set for leaving, come a colder season. In your reckless mind, you act as if you抳e got more lives In your reckless eyes, it's never too late for a chance to seize some final breath of freedom. Very, so very wise.
Don't reveal it. I'm tired, tired of knowing where it is you're going. In your reckless mind, you act as if you've got more lives. In your reckless eyes, it's never too late for your love of danger to it you're no stranger. In your reckless mind, you act as if you've got more lives. In your reckless eyes, it's never too late for a chance to seize some final breath of freedom
He fills the flower vases Trims the candle bases Takes small change from the poor box Tyler has the key He takes nail and hammer To tack up the banner of felt scraps glued together reading, "Jesus Lives in Me" Alone in the night he mocks the words of the preacher: "God is feeling your every pain" Repair the Christmas stable Restore the plaster angel Her lips begin to crumble and her robes begin to peel For Bible study in the church basement Hear children Gospel citing Matthew 17:15 Alone in the night he mocks the arms of the preacher raised to the ceiling "Tell God your pain"
To him the world's defiled In Lot he sees a likeness there He swears this Sodom will burn down. Near Sacred Blood there's a dance hall Where Tyler Glen saw a black girl and a white boy kissing shamelessly Black hands on white shoulders White hands on black shoulders Dancing, and you know what's more He's God's mad disciple, A righteous title for the Word he heard He so misunderstood Though simple-minded, a crippled man, to know this man's to fear this man To shake when he comes Wasn't it God that let Puritans in Salem Do what they did to the unfaithful?
Boys at the Jubilee Slowly sink into brown-bag whiskey drinking And reeling on their feet Girls at the Jubilee In low-cut dresses yield to the caresses and the man-handling Black hands on white shoulders White hands on black shoulders Dancing, and you know what's more
Through the tall blades of grass he Heads for the Jubilee With a bucket in his right hand Full of rags soaked in gasoline He lifts the shingles in the dark and slips the rags there underneath He strikes a matchstick on the box side and watches the rags ignite He climbs the bell tower of the Sacred Blood to watch the flames Rising higher toward the trees Sirens wailing now toward the scene
In the dark night a giant slumbered untouched for centuries 'til awakened by a white man's cry: "This is the Eden I was to find." There were lands to be charted and to be claimed for a crown, when a hero was made by the length he could stay in this dangerous land of hateful hate.
Curiosity filled the heads of these, there was an upper room they had to see. Curiosity killed the best of these for a hero's hometown welcoming. Still they moved on and on.
Who came building missions? Unswerving men of the cloth who gave their lives in numbers untold so that black sheep entered the fold. Captured like human livestock, destined for slavery. Naked, walked to the shore where great ships moored for the hellbound journies. Bought and sold with a hateful hate.
Curiosity filled the breasts of these with some strange ecstasy. Curiosity killed the best of these by robbing their lives of dignity. Still they moved on and on.
Calling men of adventure for a jungle bush safari. Come conquer the, his claws and teeth. See death in his eyes to know you're alive. European homesteads grew up in the colonies with civilized plans for wild hinterlands, their guns and God willing. Such a hateful hate.
Curiosity spilled the blood of these for their spotted skins and ivory. Curiosity filled the heads of these madmen with the lies of destiny. Curiosity spilled the blood of these, then blotted their lives from history. Curiosity filled the heads of these, one man claimed all that he could see. Curiosity still entices these madmen with a lusting and a greed. Their legacy, legacy, legacy...
to think of my task is chilling to know I was carefully building the mask I was wearing for two years, swearing I'd tear it off
I've sat in the dark explaining to myself that I'm straining too hard for feelings I ought to find easily called myself Jezebel I don't believe
before I say that the vows we've made weigh like a stone in my heart family is family, don't let this tear us apart
you lie there, an innocent baby I feel like the thief who is raiding your home entering and breaking and taking in every room
I know your feelings are tender inside you the embers still glow but I'm a shadow, I'm only a bed of blackened coal call myself Jezebel for wanting to leave
I'm not saying I'm replacing love for some other word to describe the sacred tie that bound me to you I'm just saying we've mistaken one for thousands of words and for that mistake I've caused you such pain that I damn that word!
I've no more ways to hide that I'm a desolate and hollow place inside
I'm not saying I'm replacing love for some other word to describe the sacred tie that bound me to you I'm not saying love's a plaything no, it's a powerful word inspired by strong desire to bind myself to you
how I wish that we never had tried to be man and his wife to weave our lives into a blindfold over both our eyes
I should know to leave them home. They follow me through the store with these toys I can't afford. "Kids, take them back, you know better than that." Dolls that talk, astronauts, T.V. games, airplanes, they don't understand and how can I explain? I try and try but I can't save. Pennies, nickels, dollars slip away. I've tried and tried but I can't save.
My youngest girl has bad fever, sure. All night with alcohol to cool and rub her down. Ruby, I'm tired, try and get some sleep. I'm adding doctor's fees to remedies with the cost of three day's work lost. I try and try but I can't save. Pennies, nickels, dollars slip away. I've tried and tried but I can't save. The hole in my pocketbook is growing.
There's a new wind blowing they say, it's gonna be a cold, cold one. So brace yourselves my darlings, it won't bring anything much our way but more dust bowl days.
I played a card in this weeks game. Took the first and the last letters in three of their names. This lottery's been building up for weeks. I could be lucky me with the five million prize, tears of disbelief spilling out of my eyes. I try and try but I can't save. Pennies, nickels, dollars slip away. I've tried and tried but I can't save. The hole in my pocketbook is growing.
There's a new wind blowing they say, it's gonna be a cold, cold one. So brace yourselves my darlings, it won't bring anything much our way but more dust bowl days.
Tell me what's gone wrong. I tilt my head there, under the faucet, but when I turn it on -- dry as paper. Call the neighbors. Who's to blame for what's going on? In the dark without a clue I'm just the same as you.
O, they tell us there's poison in the well, that someone's been a bit untidy and there's been a small spill. Not a lot, no, just a drop. But there you are mistaken, you know you are. I wonder just how long they knew our well was poisoned but they let us just drink on.
O, they tell us there's poison in the well, that someone's been a bit untidy and there's been a small spill. All that it amounts to is a tear in a salted sea. Someone's been a bit untidy, they'll have it cleaned up in a week. But the week is over and now it's grown into years since I was told that I should be calm, there's nothing to fear here. But I drank that water for years, my wife and my children.
Tell me, where to now, if your fight for a bearable life can be fought and lost in you backyard?
O, don't tell us there's poison in the well, that someone's been a bit untidy, that there's been a small spill. All that it amounts to is a tear in a salted sea. Someone's been a bit untidy, they'll have it cleaned up in a week.
To your common sense firm arguments I won't listen to your voice of reason trying to change my mind. I mind my feelings and not your words. Didn't you notice I'm so headstrong even when I know I'm wrong? Take this to your heart and into your head now: before you waste your time, call a truce and call a draw.
What's the use in mapping your views out in orderly form when it does nothing but confuse and anger me more? I mind my feelings and not your words. Didn't you notice I'm so headstrong. You're talking to a deaf stone wall. Take this to your heart and into your head now: the old wives' tale is true, I'll repeat it. All is fair in love and war, that's how the famous saying goes.
Open up your eyes, see me for what I am: cast in iron, I won't break and I won't bend. Take this to your heart and into your head now: the old wives' tale is true, I'll repeat it. All is fair in love and war, that's how the famous saying goes.
If I told you we were out to sea in a bottomless boat, you'd try anything to save us, you'd try anything to keep us afloat. And if we were living in a house afire, I don't believe that you could rush out and escape it and not rescue me. Take this to your heart and into your head now: the old wives' tale is true, I'll repeat it. All is fair in love and war, that's how the famous saying goes. Listen, I think they were talking to you.
How did they teach you to be just a happy puppet dancing on a string? How did you learn everything that comes along with slavish funnery? Tell me something, if the world is so insane, is it making you sane again to let another man tug at the thread that pulls up your nodding head?
How did they teach you to be just a happy puppet dancing on a string? How do you manage to live inside this tiny stage you can't leave? Tell me something, if the world is so insane, is it making you sane again to let another man tug at the thread that pulls up your nodding head?
A dullard strung on the wire. When the master's gone you hang there with your eyes and your limbs so lifeless.
How did they teach you to be just a happy puppet dancing on a string? How do you manage to speak, your mouth a frozen grin?
A dullard strung on the wire. When the master's gone you hang there with your eyes and your limbs so lifeless.
Tell me something, if the world is so insane, is it making you sane again to let another man tug at the thread that pulls up your empty wooden head?
Your hollow head, your marble eyes, your wooden hands and your metal jaw pins all wait in limbo for the man who knows how to move you this way.
Trouble me, disturb me with all your cares and your worries. Trouble me on the days when you feel spent. Why let your shoulders bend underneath this burden when my back is sturdy and strong? Trouble me.
Speak to me, don't mislead me, the calm I feel means a storm is swelling; there's no telling where it starts or how it ends. Speak to me, why are you building this thick brick wall to defend me when your silence is my greatest fear? Why let your shoulders bend underneath this burden when my back is sturdy and strong? Speak to me.
Let me have a look inside these eyes while I'm learning. Please don't hide them just because of tears. Let me send you off to sleep with a "There, there, now stop your turning and tossing." Let me know where the hurt is and how to heal.
Spare me? Don't spare me anything troubling. Trouble me, disturb me with all your cares and your worries. Speak to me and let our words build a shelter from the storm. Lastly, let me know what I can mend. There's more, honestly, than my sweet friend, you can see. Trust is what I'm offering if you trouble me.
Detroit to D.C. night train, Capitol, parts East. Lone young man takes a seat. And by the rhythm of the rails, reading all his mother's mail from a city boy in a jungle town postmarked Saigon. He'll go live his mother's dream, join the slowest parade he'll ever see. Her weight of sorrows carried long and carried far. "Take these, Tommy, to The Wall."
Metro line to the Mall site with a tour of Japanese. He's wandering and lost until a vet in worn fatigues takes him down to where they belong. Near a soldier, an ex-Marine with a tattooed dagger and eagle trembling, he bites his lip beside a widow breaking down. She takes her Purple Heart, makes a fist, strikes The Wall. All come to live a dream, to join the slowest parade they'll ever see. Their weight of sorrows carried long and carried far, taken to The Wall.
It's 40 paces to the year that he was slain. His hand's slipping down The Wall for it's slick with rain. How would life have ever been the same if this wall had carved in it one less name? But for Christ's sake, he's been dead over 20 years. He leaves the letters asking, "Who caused my mother's tears, was it Washington or the Viet Cong?" Slow deliberate steps are involved. He takes them away from the black granite wall toward the other monuments so white and clean.
O, Potomac, what you've seen. Abraham had his war too, but an honest war. Or so it's taught in school.
"Mercy, mercy," why didn't we hear it? "Mercy, mercy," why did we read it buried on the last page of our morning papers? The plan was drafted, drafted in secret. Gunboats met the red tide, driven to the rum trade for the army that they created. But the bullets were bought by us, it was dollars that paid them.
Please forgive us, we don't know what was done, Please forgive us, we don't know what was done in our name.
There'll be more trials like this in mercenary heydays. When they're so apt to wrap themselves up in the stripes and stars and find that they are able to call themselves heroes and to justify murder by their fighters for freedom.
Please forgive us, we don't know what was done. Please forgive us, we didn't know. Could you ever forgive us? I don't know how you could.
I know this is no consolation. Please forgive us, we don't know what was done, Please forgive us, we didn't know. Could you ever believe that we didn't know? Please forgive us, we didn't know. I wouldn't blame you if you never could. Please forgive us, we didn't know. I wouldn't blame you if you never could. Please forgive us, and you never will.
O, Baby blankets and baby shoes, baby slippers, baby spoons, walls of baby blue. Dream child in my head is a nightmare born in a borrowed bed. Now I know lightning strikes again. It struck me once, then struck me dead. My folly grows inside of me. I eat for two, walk for two, breathe for two now.
Well, the egg man fell down off his shelf. All the good king's men with all their help struggled 'til the end for a shell they couldn't mend. You know where this will lead, to hush and rock in the nursery for the kicking one inside of me. I eat for two, walk for two, breathe for two now.
When the boy was a boy, the girl was a girl, they found each other in a wicked world. Strong in some respects, but she couldn't stand for the way he begged and gave in. Pride is for men; young girls should run and hide instead. Risk the game by taking dares with "yes". Eat for two, walk for two, breathe for two now.
Walk for two? I'm stumbling. Breathe for two? I can't breathe. Five months , how it grows. Five months now, I begin to show.
Music by 10,000 Maniacs - Lyrics by Mary Ramsey & John Lombardo
This was once a city harmony a common theme but these complications now make life a bit uneasy hallowed buildings scrape the sky voices ride the airwaves once a city years gone by will they still be standing in thecenturies ahead going underground little children hiding, bullets never meant for them must there be such bloodshed in our hearts, our homes, ourheads? will I be walking, walking so free? this was a city once this was once a city harmony a common theme but these complications once a city, once a dream.
Now I've been happy lately, thinking about the good things to come And I believe it could be, something good has begun
I've been smiling lately, dreaming about the world as one And I believe it could be, something good is bound to come
For out on the edge of darkness, there rides a peace train Peace train take this country, come take me home again
Peace train sounding louder Ride on the peace train Come on the peace train Peace train is a holy roller Everyone jump upon the peace train This is the peace train
Get your bags together, come bring your good friends too Because it's getting nearer, soon it will be with you
Come and join the living, it's not so far from you And it's getting nearer, soon it will all be true
Peace train sounding louder Ride on the peace train Come on the peace train
I've been crying lately, thinking about the world as it is Why must we go on hating, why can't we live in bliss
For out on the edge of darkness, there rides a peace train Peace train take this country, come take me home again
Peace train sounding louder Ride on the peace train Come on the peace train Peace train is a holy roller Everyone jump upon the peace train This is the peace train Come on the peace train Come on come on, come on the peace train
