Acoustic, folky, and unpretentious, everything comes down to the song, the story, the voices. "If one didn't know Scott was a poet, his lyrics would give him away. His images are clear and vivid. They carry his stories without effort-- and these songs are stories." -- Steve Thorpe, Rapid City Journal (2000) Ozzie's Guitar Ozzie drove an El Camino cuffed the hems of his navy chinos man alive, could grandpa drive-- odd jobs from here to Reno livin' light, heck if we know how or why, but he was alive And every time that Ozzie'd come around his bags were dusty with the gravel roads of a thousand little towns we saw the world, we traveled far on the silver strings of Ozzie's guitar It was a six-string La Valenciana with my teeth brushed and my warm pajamas I was "good to go" for granddad's show well we'd ride the rails, we'd waltz across Texas his fingers danced till our hearts would break, his voice would soar then swoop down low And every time that Ozzie'd come around his bags were dusty with the gravel roads of a thousand little towns we saw the world, we traveled far on the silver strings of Ozzie's guitar Well, some days, I miss the rhythm of a highway song, and I want to be with him oh, it ain't long till I find that guitar it never held its tune so good it's just some rusty keys and weathered wood but there's an open road in every scar And every time that Ozzie'd come around his bags were dusty with the gravel roads of a thousand little towns we saw the world, we traveled far on the silver strings of Ozzie's guitar Man on the Mountain The man on the mountain he doesn’t come down but once a week the man on the mountain he’ll buy his supplies and never speak the man on the mountain he’s too lost to find, too blinded to seek She died in the winter when their baby boy was barely weaned he couldn’t even touch her— she and the child were quarantined and then when he lost them he knew that he’d never see the spring Way up there upon the mountain the air is thin as it can be but he wants to get as close to Heaven as a man in Hell can ever be You have to dig deep there to find enough water just to drink you have to climb higher to find enough space just to think but memory is painful it only leads him to the brink (instrumental verse) Way up there upon the mountain the air is thin as it can be but he wants to be as close to Heaven as a man in Hell could ever be Life on the mountain, it’s not so romantic as they say— whether you’re banished or you choose to go away— if your only companions are the ghosts of yesterday Way up there upon the mountain the air is thin as it can be but he wants to be as close to Heaven as a man in Hell could ever be Dry Land When I was a boy we used to go down to the river strip down and jump in fast jump out on the bank and shake and shiver It’s hard to understand when to float with the current when to stay on dry land The current’s fast and it’ll take you down in a hurry no, you won’t last boy, you’ll make your mamma worry if you don’t understand when to float with the current when to stay on dry land There’s so much you’ve never seen and so much to do that river’s gonna call your name yeah the river’s got a one-way ticket for you It’s icy cold When the snowmelt flows in the springtime Feet grow numb You can freeze to death in no time If you don’t understand When to float with the current When to stay on dry land Well, the rains will come they take the path of least resistance cut through the mountainside dig themselves a grave with their persistence but you must understand when to float with the current when to stay on dry land There’s so much you’ve never seen and so much to do that river’s gonna call your name yeah the river’s got a one-way ticket for me and you Time I went out walking in my hometown last night, I hadn't done that in quite a long, long time. There was a full moon--- she went behind the clouds And lit the storm-front from behind. And I was thinking about the time we said goodbye The way most good friends do: "See you later, when we both have the time..." And then the time ran out on you. I have a friend; he wrote a letter. He had no one to send it to. I wrote a song--- but I could sing it so much better If I could sing my song for you. And I was thinking about the time we said goodbye The way most good friends do: "See you later, when we both have the time..." And then the time ran out on you. At 3 am, you never see a soul When the winter is on the ground. The houses are hollow and the brick streets are so cold; Some nights are lost never to be found. And I was thinking about the time we said goodbye The way most good friends do: "See you later, when we both have the time..." And then the time ran out on you, And then the time ran out on you. A Good Man David was a golden boy his mamma’s only son he’d pull his Converse high-tops on and man, could David run. Growing up south Arkansas in 1952 free-throws and picture shows— what more could a good boy do? What more could a good boy do? He never ran for president his name was known by few but everywhere that David went well, he’d have some time for you. What else would a good boy do? David went to college and he found himself a wife got a job in Memphis settled down into his life. Their first child was a big surprise right out of the blue of course, he named him David what else would a good boy do? What else would a good boy do? He never made a fortune leastwise, that I knew but he wrapped his family in his arms and loved them strong and true. What else would a good man do? They say a good man’s hard to find I reckon that it’s true— and if that job paid any better there wouldn’t be so few. So here’s to all the good boys, every mother’s son lace up your high-tops lads long may you run. Long may you run. He could have done most anything— spread his wings and flew but he chose to stay here on the ground to show his son just what to do. What more could a good man do? Yeah, you could have done most anything— spread your wings and flew but you chose to stay here on the ground to show me what to do. And I want to be a good man just like you. I want to be a good man just like you. Hampton Town If you’re a traveling man then listen here a stranger alone has cause for fear if you go down to Hampton, watch your back or it’s tar and a-feather and don’t come back or you’re wearing a rope without no slack you’ll be swinging like taters in a gunny sack… if you go down to Hampton, watch your back Well, the Sheriff, they just call him Jed grease his palm, he’ll turn his head ‘less a man like you is toting cash, best make your visit, make it fast your luck’s gonna run out in a flash them Hampton folk don’t take to “trash” ‘less a man like you is toting cash Sometimes I want to kiss the ground for the good folk God done spread around but I’d burn my boots and settle down ‘fore I’d step a foot in Hampton town (instrumental verse) (Chorus) You see, I had a girl sometime ago was the sweetest thing you’d ever know but she went down to Hampton and never came out yeah, they twisted her nearly inside-out she forgot what love is all about now she’s a Hampton girl, ain’t no doubt yeah, she went down to Hampton and never came out (Chorus, twice) Hampton Town (square dance calls) Take her hand, that pretty little thing Promenade around the ring Possum in the hen house, coon in the spring Hold on tight cause we're a-gonna sing Now you're cookin', here we go Change directions, do ci do Bow to your partner, bow to your beau Careful not to step on your sweetheart's toe Step to the middle, step to the side In Hampton town, ain't nowhere to hide Gone tomorrow, here today Hold her sweet while you promenade Kick up yer heels just like I say And hold on tight cause now we gonna play Step to the corners, ladies first Quick as a rabbit, slow as a hearse Don't stop now there's one more verse A little bit softer-- could be worse Step to the middle, step to the side In Hampton town, ain't nowhere to hide Take that girl, swing her 'round Fancy shoes and a calico gown Roost in the holler, or peck on the ground But never go down to Hampton town Place the Flowers Place the flowers in water throw some seed out for the birds stop to hear the children’s laughter work a kind thought into words into words We are only here a moment but a moment’s all you need Watch the sun climb up the mountain see the mist rise from the lake catch something flash beneath the surface know something hidden can awake can awake We are only here a moment but a moment’s all you need Go walking in the moonlight ancient wisdom in her glow tiny sparks that leave the campfire burn so bright before they go but they must go We are only here a moment but a moment’s all you need You can never reap the harvest till you pause to plant the seed Take All You Want Growing up in the depression Made Grandpa kinda tight He wouldn’t part with a wooden nickle Without a fight And when he married Grandma Sixty years ago, he said, Darlin’ there is something you should know Well you can take all you want But eat all you take Don’t fill up on salad When you went and ordered steak If you want to be at Heaven’s banquet Then you’ll have to clean your plate Take all you want, but eat all you take Now Grandma did the cooking And she did it well The scent would travel miles around Just like a dinner-bell And the family quickly multiplied But one thing we all knew At Grandpa’s house, there’s one thing You must do Well you can take all you want But eat all you take Don’t fill up on salad When you went and ordered steak If you want to be at Heaven’s banquet Then you’ll have to clean your plate Take all you want, but eat all you take Oh, the Good Book says you can’t live life On bread alone I reckon Grandpa knew his Bible well Cause every meal they served was like A smorgasbord Each time we went to visit I would swell Swell, swell Well one of these days old Grandpa Will leave this earthly vale And no one will give a second thought To where his ship will sail And when he meets old Peter At them pearly gates on high He’ll tell him with a hunger in his eye I’m gonna take all I want But I’ll eat all I take I won’t fill up on salad Cause I done ordered steak I’ve been waiting for Heaven’s banquet And I’m gonna clean my plate I’ll take all I want, but I’ll eat all I take Well you can take all you want But eat all you take Don’t fill up on salad When you went and ordered steak If you want to be at Heaven’s banquet Then you’ll have to clean your plate Take all you want, but eat all you take Call It A Day I spent the morning with my father Fishing for lake trout in the stream We caught nothing but the north wind And a hand full of rainbow colored dreams He smoked the pipe my grandpa gave him I chewed a blade of long-stemmed grass The water clear as the future The fish as hungry as the past A storm rolled in above the mountains And from the far bank he did say Looks like the good Lord wants us somewhere else I guess we’ll call it a day Working figures in the lamp light Lining up ciphers on the page His neck was red as the clay soil His forehead pale as the sage He’d shave his pencils with a jack-knife He kept our savings in a jar He knew the shortness of a dollar bill He knew a little could go far And when the bankers came one evening And there was not enough to pay, He said, Looks like the good Lord wants us somewhere else I guess we’ll call it a day One day I saw him by the barn door Lean his whole weight upon the latch Thin as a weather-beaten split-rail Light as a burned-out kitchen match He’d spent his days, he’d spent his body He didn’t know no other way What you hold back in your livin’ son He said, you’ll only waste upon your grave And when his body finally gave out I knew exactly what he’d say Looks like the good Lord wants me somewhere else, son I guess I’ll call it a day Dave Shake his hand and you’d feel the knot; his knuckles were twisted but his spirit was not. As a younger man he built the roads, as an older man he somehow turned them all to gold. Always the storyteller— we listened to his tales. He gave the plane its wings he gave the ship its sails and he’d laugh at each as he remembered them. How his life was full; how we used to laugh along with him. He said that life was like a man who owned two hounds; one was kind and gentle one would bite whoever was around and the secret lay in learning how to know which to feed and which to let go. He was a father and he fed his children well upon the joy of his faith upon water from the living well. Shake his hand you’d feel the knot, knuckles twisted but the spirit, not. As a younger man he built the roads, as an older man he paved the way for us to go. Wildflower Moon The birds are singing And the rabbits play Down by the waterside Looking for love, looking for love My love lives in a Hickory house Down by Buffalo Gap She’s so sweet all the maple trees Won’t give up their sap Hi, ho don’t you know She’s my little wildflower You can’t make pone From store-bought meal And you can’t get shine Without sour Come on up to the Hills with me Springtime full in bloom Sun so bright you’ll close your eyes Rest your mind by the light of a wildflower moon She told me I was her true love I asked her how I’d know She said all the other pretty fellers she knew Was a bit more kin than beau (refrain) Now she has a coon hat, fits her fine Wears it down to the church Yeah, she’s got a spirit rough as a oak And a soul as white as a birch (refrain) (chorus) Now some grow broad and some grow tall And some grow just plain wild But you’ll always grow needles on a white-pine tree And thorns on a wildflower child (refrain) (chorus) Lonely No More Out on the mesa You don’t have to face A thousand prying eyes Up on the mountain You don’t have to count A hundred cars pass you by Just give me a place With only your face And I’ll never be lonely no more Down on the prairie It ain’t ever scary Just to listen to a lone coyote’s call The howl fills the open The miles I was hopin’ To cover by early this fall Just give me a mile In the light of your smile And I’ll never be lonely no more No matter the season I have trouble breathin’ The noisy big-city air There’s always a riot And never a quiet No matter how long you stay there Just a small space of air With the scent of your hair Even one country mile In the light of your smile Just find me a place And your loving face And I’ll never be lonely no more Copyright 2000, Scott Simpson, All Rights Reserved