UNTRADITIONAL So here we are, a new CD, finally!!! These songs are interesting and powerful, and feel good when I sing them. This is called ‘Untraditional’ because originally it was going to be all traditional covers, but I had some songs that needed to breathe and see light. The emotional level of the songs is low and there aren’t many happy bright spots, so let’s start with the first song. I think the lyrics probably tell the story better than any description of what i'm trying to acomplish. So here are the lyrics to the originals. I did a couple of traditional tunes just to round things out a bit. Happy I’m happy Can’t you see it in my face Am I really out of place Because I’m Happy I’m happy Can’t you see it in my eyes Is it such a surprise? That I’m Happy I’m Happy Can you hear it in my voice? Do you think I have a choice? To be Happy I’m happy Can you hear it in my songs? Can it be so wrong? To be happy I’m happy Can you see it in my face? Is it such a disgrace? To be happy I’m Happy Happy Happy Happy So Happy Alstead (Great Flood of 2005) I used to live in Alstead, NH when I first moved from the city. I lived on Lake Warren on Rte 123, in Alstead NH, which is referenced in the song. This was really hard for me to write; I wanted it to be truthful, but also to show the resolve of the people that wanted to stay and rebuild. They shut down Rte 123 for awhile and had to re-route the road. All of the places where there were houses are just flat gravel now. It’s a sad and sobering drive. The person I refer to in the song (Ray) is my wife’s father, who works for the Langdon Police Department, and who was banging on doors that night, getting people out. The anniversary of the flood is Oct 9. It was the darkest Saturday night, windblown rain fell from the left to right Like God hadn’t cried for a thousand years, and tonight he couldn’t hold back the tears Ray came to the house, he was a banging on the door, Said ‘Son you can’t stay here anymore’ The stream is now a river overflowin’, no time to pack, you can’t take nothing’ Made it to the edge of the property line, turned around for one last time In the muffled thunder, a flash of yellow lightning, the house where I was born was crumblin’ Alstead, New Hampshire it’s north of Louisiana Once was whole, well we ain’t anymore This great flood of 2005 Has left us high and dry The house standing across the way, straight and whole as this October day Two lots down, you know all that’s left, is a broken well pipe and a trashed picket fence Houses they were swallowed by the river, cars strewn around like forgotten child’s toys Uprooted trees twisted like chicken wire, and there’s nothing left but the mud, the muck and mire Alstead, New Hampshire it’s north of Louisiana Once was whole well it ain’t anymore The great flood of 2005 And it left us high and dry There’s an uneasy feeling, there’s an eerie peace, 123 is a tangled mess of asphalt and concrete Save our city, painted on an old brick wall, it tells this town’s tale, tells it all Most of the locals well they made it out, they got their health still intact, And the sun will shine one more day, we will re-build and stay Alstead, New Hampshire is north of Louisiana Once was whole well it ain’t anymore The great flood of 2005 And we will rebuild and we will survive Mirage She moved through the fair Wind Blowing through her hair I thought she caught my eye I was mistaken, she walked on by I got on down on one knee And I asked her to be mine Thought I saw a tear Thought I saw fear We were married on a spring day There was nothing left to say Held hands and we prayed That the fear would just go away Two years, three months to the day This love was drowned by hate We act as if nothings wrong We act as if nothings wrong House is as still as a church This sadness was replaced by hurt This mirage of hope and love Has died like a caged dove. 12:15 (This is a Love Song) 12:15 She can’t to find her being All she wants to be is sleeping And at night she always loses it Because her life is always a Hit or Miss So this is a love song So this is a love song Say something, anything, anything, anything, anything to stop the tears Say anything, anything, anything, anything, something to stop the fears This is a love song This is a love song It’s 1:15 and nobody hears her All she wants, is someone to believe her And after all of the self made delusion This is where she finds the conclusion This is a love song This is a love song Say something, anything, anything, anything, anything to stop the tears Say anything, anything, anything, anything, something to stop the fears This is a love song This is a love song It’s 2:15 she lies sleeping peacefully She founds out who she wants to be A woman who has arrived A woman who will survive So this is a love song So this is a love song Say something, anything, anything, anything, anything to stop the tears Say anything, anything, anything, anything, something to stop the fears This is a love song This is a love song Food for Thought VERSE I’ve been thinking And I’ve been watching And the difference between The have and have nots And we always say what can I do? Because it’s up to me and you And it’s all about giving So they can go on living PRE-CHORUS So don’t turn your head When children need to be fed When you don’t have to look far To find a family living in a car There’s a single mother Struggling to make it on her own Lonely man with AIDS Just counting the days CHORUS So this is where we live And this is where we work And we can’t turn away From our responsibility anymore And just because you can’t see them Doesn’t mean they aren’t there The homeless we forgot It’s just food for thought VERSE Volunteers doing what they can And I see them making a stand Participation is what it’s all about Even the smallest dollar amount Or an hour of time To hold someone’s hand Or to look someone in the eye And tell them you will be by their side. PRE-CHORUS There’s a battered woman Trying to stand Looking for a place Hoping to be safe An addict walking the line Taking it one day at a time Knowing the support Will ease the hurt CHORUS So this is where we live And this is where we work And we can’t turn away From our responsibility anymore And just because you can’t see them Doesn’t mean they aren’t there The homeless we forgot It’s just food for thought Destiny Don’t cry my little girl Momma said don’t cry Don’t cry little girl I’ll be watching over you tonight Don’t cry little one Momma has to let you go Don’t cry my little one I love you more than you know There’s a place better for you I know you don’t understand Momma knows what you need And it’s just your destiny Smile for your daddy He is here for you Smile for your daddy He can take better care of you When you look into the sky And the sun shining bright Where the sparrows and the robins fly Just think of me and smile Don’t cry my little girl Momma said don’t cry Don’t cry my precious one Your life will be filled with love Tears will flow But it’s time to go The leaves fall from the tree This is your destiny The Ice Storm I started my car Looks Like Rain The cold chills to the bone As I drive to your place Slide the wedding ring off Don't know what to do Put it in the glove box And forget about you I know she isn't waiting up Called her to let her know Going out for a beer After the show I shouldn't be here But I am I shouldn’t be holding you But I am Someone else is waiting for me I shouldn't be here But I am Rain is beating on the roof Ringing in my ears Double yellow line is just a blur As the car self steers When you open the door I know what to do Even though I have to go back You still come through Back in the car Put my ring back on Driving in this Ice Storm I've been gone too long.... 1000 Coffins (Letter to the President) I wrote this when the Iraq war had only taken about 1,000 military lives. According to CNN, as of August 29, 2006, 2,800 coalition forces have now lost their lives. This was another song that has had many different versions and re-writes. 1000 Coffins in an airplane hangar 1000 freshly dug graves 1000 chiseled Headstones 1000 People alone Too Many hearts still being broken Too many lives still being stolen And a thousand children They don’t understand So Dear Mr. President How do you sleep at night Knowing we were never meant To fight this fight Dear Mr. President in that heart of stone Would you bring our soldiers home 1000 wooden crosses 1000 lost causes 1000 unfulfilled lives The men in power of a thousand lies Can you look into the eyes Of the parents and brothers and sisters Of the sons and daughters Who died for you Dear Mr. President We were in Afghanistan Explain to me Because I don’t understand How we ended up under attack In the deserts of Iraq Dear Mr. President Just one more thing Don’t call on me Don’t you think about my offspring Your fighting and killing too And the weapons you never found 1000 Coffins in an airplane hangar 1000 freshly dug graves 1000 chiseled Headstones 1000 have died alone