Lyrics for Not From Around Here
copyright Harvey Swanson 2005, all rights reserved
1. Here We Are
looking up at the stars at night
far from the city lights
and the sirens that wail and moan
looking into each others eyes
far from the fear and lies
and the illusions of being alone
oh,the worlds that we have made
oh,the trails that we have blazed
here we go,here we are
another shining star....here we go....
spinning on the wheel of fate
bending into altered states
thru the gates between waking and dream
into oxygen,into dust
far from the steel and rust
and the noise and the oil of the machine
oh,the worlds that we have dreamed
oh,the visions we have seen
here we go,here we are
another shining star....here we go....
waking into a golden light
rising from a pale blue night
into a world that our love has made
casting shadows, shedding skin
worlds collide and blend
images rise and images fade
oh,the love that we have made
oh,the bridges that still blaze
here we go,here we are
another shining star....here we go....
looking up at the stars at night
far from the city lights
and the sirens that wail and moan
breathing each others scent
co-inspiring incidents
we're lonely but we're not alone
oh,the worlds that we have made....
here we go,here we are
another shining star....here we go....
2. Thinking of You
thinking of you makes me laugh and smile
thinking of you makes me lonely
thinking of you makes me glad that we were once
and so sad I'm not you're one and only.
thinking of you fills my heart with joy
thinking of you makes me blue
thinking of you is always reminding me
I'm thinking too much about you
all of love's secrets and revelations
every mystery, every myth
every moment, every breath
and every being that I'm with
it all adds up to you
thinking of you fills my life with light
thinking of you has got me blinded
thinking of you has got me losing my heart
and it's getting too dark to find
thinking of you shows my weakness
thinking of you makes me strong
thinking of you has got me thinking I've been waiting
for you, and I've waited too long
love hangs in the balance
between the pain and the pleasure
any number, any ratio
that anyone can measure
it all adds up to you
3. Coyote Song
I'm just sittin' here singin' with the coyotes tonight
about how things look different in a different light
different time of day, different time of year, different clouds in the sky
yeah, things look a little different from here than they do from the other side
I took the path of the loner, built my fire on this mountainside
dancing to coyote's song, in the flickering light
different point of view from the ridge of this mountain, more to it than meets my eyes
hey, things look a little different from here than they do from the other side
these dancing shadows are calling me from deep in the heart of the sun
it's carrying over these mountains and canyons,telling me it's time to come
come down and build your fire a little closer to the road
a place where weary travelers can rest a while with their load
different songs and stories, different dreams, different visions thru different eyes
see how things look a little different from the other side
this young shadow that's been followin' me,is now traveling by my side
we'll be traveling together a while,before he slips on ahead into the night
this ancient spirit that's been shadowing me has always been my guide
he's been leading me up this mountain,he'll be leading me on over the other side
and we're all just sittin' here singin' with the coyotes tonight
about how things look different around the circle of life
different time of day, different time of year, different shadows tonight
the center's the same, though it looks a little different from the other side
4. Million Dollar Policy
sign on the dotted line for your million dollar policy
and you and your's are sitting fine
oh shit, oh dear, oh golly, gee
my heirs can spend their's sailing the seven seas
if the doctors don't get there first
how long have I got, doc, I'm planning my retirement
my policy says death is my only requirement
if these fees get too high, you'll have to wait 'til I die
I can't pull no more overtime
now,my doctor and the agent play golf every Wednesday
and I'm sure they've got my best interest in mind
but when they're on a roll, shooting thru the 9th hole
are they taking their time or are they taking mine?
it's like punching the timeclock,i t's like rolling the dice
it's like breathing, I don't even think once or twice
I've collected and paid for all of my medicine today
and I'm going to get a good night's sleep
the doctor's in the hallway, the checks in the mail
my pulse is fading, I'm looking pretty pale
raise the jug and pull the plug and we'll all wallow in it
we'll be millionaires for a minute
5. Okanogan Waltz
(one of those songs with a thousand verses, a million stories...here's a few of them....)
found myself a hideout, out on the backroads, far from the saddening crowd
the neighbors ain't too nosey and the lights ain't too bright and the music ain't too loud
a chorus of crickets, bullfrogs on the bass line, a hoot and a cheep and a chirp
movin' water over the round rocks and the wind thru the treetops and the low steady hum of the earth
CHORUS:
and all this is happenin' right 'round here
where the people have come and the people have gone for years and years and years
these dusty hills are dried and baked in the scorchin' summer sunshine
then frozen tighter than a rusty watch in the chilled still of the winter time
the twins will be twelve in June, some teenagers are leavin' soon, Rebecca just had a baby boy
the sun comes up, the sun goes down, the stars and moon are spinnin' round, and the pain is outweighed by the joy
little children don't stay that way, they grow their wings and fly away, the dish ran away with the spoon
the fruit don't fall far from the tree and if you don't fall too far from me, I'll catch you and we'll fly to the moon
CHORUS
(the gold mine version)
a watershed mountain up near the border line has got the millionaires in a gold-fevered pitch
with all their money and noise and dynamite and poison, they're gonna try and scratch that itch
pure water's more precious than a mountain full of gold, we told 'em but they don't believe it's true
the time will come,with their dried, parched tongues, they'll be crawlin' back, lookin' for you
CHORUS
(Y2K version)
new neighbors down the road; screamin' millenial madness; they've got a bomb shelter and a 12 volt TV
they're gonna watch the sunset, they're gonna watch their kids grow, they're gonna watch the world end on that 12 volt TV
I made my escape into my hole-in-the-wall hideaway, nobody noticed I's gone
kinda self-reliant and Y2K compliant since nineteen-seventy-one
CHORUS
6. Blues For An Aging Uncle (Small Planet Blues)
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7. Clearcut Wind
I've lived in this valley most all of my life
I've seen a lot of changes come 'round
condos and malls and heated horse stalls
on what used to be the outskirts of town
now the highways are wider, the highways are longer
more people on 'em, movin' real fast
speedin' toward the future, passing thru the moment
drivin' away from the past
it's a freeway wind blowing
down the valley these days
it didn't always blow this way
the wind from the high country would find it's way down
thru the hills and canyons, covered with trees
and by the time it reached us, here in the valley
it was a cool,gentle, pine scented breeze
now it's cleared for miles, where a forest had been
it's changed the course of the water, changed the course of the wind
everything changes,everything that's ever been
ain't that way now and it won't be again
it's a clearcut wind blowing
down the valley these days
no, it didn't used to blow this way
i've spent some time workin' in the woods and the mines
looking back, I can see how it changed
pickin' up speed, technology and greed
faster and faster like a runaway train
screamin' down the mountain, load after load
mountain after mountain, a thousand miles of road
we thought it'd never end, thought it would go on forever
things looked different back then, we didn't see it any better
it's a clearcut wind blowing
down the valley these days
no, it didn't used to blow this way
now the property taxes have gone crazy these days
we payed 'em this year more than we payed for the place
we're thinkin' 'bout sellin', thinkin' of movin' on
maybe buy a trailer, down around Tuscon
lookin' 'cross the field at the barn next door
it keeps on leanin', it's leanin' a little more
that barn's gettin' old, the wind's blowin' stronger
time takes its toll, it won't take it much longer
it's a clearcut wind blowing
down the valley these days
no, it didn't used to blow this way
just like everywhere else, big money talks
it grunts and it squeels and it farts and it squawks
it's taken the cream, it's back for the rest of the crop
it's taken it to the limit with everything we've got
pavin' over pastures, cuttin' down the woods
progress is progress, it don't gotta be good
onward, all you multi-national soldiers
thank you very much, you got it delivered
you sold this American dream down the river
it's a clearcut wind blowing
down the valley these days
no, it didn't used to blow this way
we're not the only intelligent life on this orb
but it seems we're the only one who's so damned self-absorbed
we take more than we need, we shit in our nest
a few take the most and the rest get what's left
but the hungry child can still laugh and smile
tho his stomach is tied in a knot
while the rich bitch and moan about everything they own
and waste more than that hungry child's got
it's a clearcut wind...blowing...
slammin' 'round the planet these days
I hope it doesn't always blow this way....
no, it ain't gonna always blow this way....
8. Higher Ground
let's head to some higher ground
and watch this storm roll in
we'll be taking our time
I'll take yours you'll take mine
we'll share it and savor it like a cool fine wine
and head to some higher ground
let's head to some higher ground
and watch the sun go down
the world spun around again
I spent this spin with friends
and if it keeps on spinnin' we'll be doing it again
and if the ways of this world
don't give you much to believe in
they're just the ways of this world
you can take 'em or leave 'em
live this life well
live it with a reason
for the joy and the laughter
the pain and the grievin'
and head to some higher ground
let's head to some higher ground
and watch the full moon rise
feel the pull of the moon
turnin' the tides
deep light of the night
shinin' from your eyes
and head to some higher ground
let's head to some higher ground
and watch this storm roll in
feel the lightening rise
from the earth to the sky
electricity between you and me
and head to some higher ground
and if the ways of this world
don't give you much to believe in
they're just the ways of this world
you can take 'em or leave 'em
live this life well
live it with a reason
for the joy and the laughter
the pain and the grievin'
and head to some higher ground
let's head to some higher ground
and watch the stars fall down
9. Miarcles
from the sky, every drop of rain is a miracle
circling and cycling, the blood of all life
there's a pretty good chance you can catch yourself a miracle
if you take your hat off your head and it just right
the high road to adventure,
rails and rides 'cross the countryside
traveling, unraveling the secrets of life
there's a pretty good chance you'll catch a ride with a miracle
if you stick out your thumb and hold it just right
Chorus:
through the eyes of a child, see the wonders off the ages
comin' 'round your blind side, catch you when you not lookin'
full of surprises, 'tween the lines and the pages
you might miss it if you blink,
you might miss it if your eyes are open wide
in the night, in the deep, in your sleep, dreams a miracle
floating to and from, between the other side
there's a pretty good chance
you'll catch a flight with that miracle
if you lift up you wings and open them wide
butterflies and wall flowers dancing on the summer breeze
opposing, attracting, crossing magnetic fields
there's a pretty good chance you'll catch a dance with a miracle
as the petals unfold and the heart is revealed
Chorus
every star is full of a million miracle
comin' right to you at the speed of light
there's a pretty good chance you'll be struck by a miracle
if you take off your mask and throw it to the sky
Chorus
10. Daddy's Gone To Baghdad
I remember like yesterday, my daddy, standing straight and tall
in his smooth green uniform, with rows of shiny medals, I's kind of awed by it all
a sunny Texas morning down at Fort Bliss, everybody was waving a flag
everybody cried a tear, everybody got a kiss, our daddies were off to Bagdhad
daddy's gone to Bagdhad
little children in a big box of sand
little toy soldiers and little toy tanks
marching over the land
a kiss and a hug and a wave goodbye
they got onto the airplane, flew into the sky
presidents don't lie, brave soldiers don't die
11. So Together (Clinically Cynical)
oh, we're so together in this fantastic age
jets fly, they're filling up the sky
the whole world is a stage
we'll rearrange the atmosphere with a dusty little cloud
we'll redesign the landscape, our descendants will be proud
we'll realign and read just everything we find
when it's written in the settled dust, history will treat us kind
oh, we're so together in this fantastic age
time flies, it's filling up our lives
and times always change
is the planet heating up or are we just getting colder?
is it true that time is speeding up as everything gets older?
let's place a bet, let's take a chance on eternity
let's take a lingering last dance with history and set it free
oh, we're so together in this fantastic age
bombs fly, they're falling from the sky
it's the latest rage
incommunicado telecommunications
bipolar, genetic modifi-mutification
media marketing mass misinformation
everybody's gonna drive a new car
all of this and more on this bubbly little planet
the one between Venus and Mars
oh,we're so together in this fantastic age
birds fly over the rainbow
I think I'll fly off a bridge
12. Drums Of War
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