Side One

This Could Be Anywhere 

I’d love to know if you can hear me 

Woke up and something’s not right 

All my assumptions swept away 

A dead switch on a disconnected life 

And it’s the look feel of my hometown 

Looks the same but feels all wrong 

Like I can no longer tell the good from bad 

I’m just watching it move along 

(chorus) 

It’s a jungle in here 

But I learned to get by 

It’s a jungle in here 

Signals broken, lines are down 

And this could be anywhere 

We promised to be “friends forever” 

Just to soothe our adolescent fear 

We soon found we weren’t that patient 

“Friends forever” soon disappear 

But I stayed busy and not so attentive 

To the world outside my plan 

Now my mom’s studying tai-kwon-do 

My dad bought a van 

(chorus) 

(bridge) 

This job - came from my last job 

That job - from the one before 

I took that one because I had no idea 

What I was looking for 

I step out this morning into a strange future 

No shotgun rider to share my alone 

I know that the thing that kills me the most 

I can find nothing in this town to call my own 

And when it’s all you know 

Where else do you go? 

(chorus) 

Rosa and Sam 

In a New York City summer  In a way too fancy bar 

Saw a pretty Southern girl  With the drive to go far 

A wide eye city boy  Was trying to amuse 

They stood off in a corner Discussing day old news 

They started with the goal To fit in and make a sound 

But they began a story  That neither could put down 

Ro-Ro-Ro Rosa and Sam 

Sam was a man adrift  In the post college flow 

A cocky S.O.B but still  Scared of his own shadow 

Rosa had a way  Of choosing what to do 

And letting no other light Find its way through 

Ro-Ro-Ro Rosa and Sam 

It’s a sight to see  The strength of love’s power 

Life takes flight  The bloom of a flower 

Two kids searching For whom they should be 

Found themselves a road  That only they could see 

Sam was self employed  From sales to carpentry 

They had a one-room walk-up  On the city edge of the city 

Rosa lived by talking to  Everyone she met 

She’d come home at night  And tell Sam all about it 

Ro-Ro-Ro Rosa and Sam 

One day they moved to the wild  Got a big house out by the hill 

Lived big in the little world  And then that house they began to fill 

They raised five kids  They did it their best way 

Made a few bucks  But gave most away 

Then the kids were grown  So, on a restless day 

Put some things in their truck  And headed to L.A 

Ro-Ro-Ro Rosa and Sam 

So, it’s me on The Strip  Chasing the next star 

Just another guy  In just another bar 

Got my map spread out  Who I want to be 

Old man named Sam  Sitting next to me 

He said “there’s one thing that I know 

Nothing you do will make the time slow 

It all ends old whether you like it or not 

Get here how you want, take your best shot” 

Ro-Ro-Ro Rosa and Sam 

Ro-Ro-Ro Rosa and Sam 

It’s A Trap 

Monday morning meeting to say where we’re going 

Friday happy hour to forget where we been 

Nothing ends the way it had begun 

Another week wasted chasing the next rung 

(chorus) 

It’s a trap, it’s a trap 

Think you’re getting better but you’re only getting worse 

I feel my blood rising before they even ask 

They’re selling another shot at the gold 

I’ve only been called in on the latest task 

Ambition in motion and life on hold 

It’s a trap, it’s a trap 

Think you’re getting better but you’re only getting worse 

(bridge) 

Flesh and blood desires 

just waiting for my call 

All my old distractions hanging on the wall 

I wake up on the other side of a thousand Monday meetings 

But all the rewards were lost or fleeting 

Look back at a thousand wars I started 

All those old rivals don’t care or have departed 

In the heat and frustration, the walls get near 

Nothing to show but an explanation nobody wants to hear 

It’s a trap, it’s a trap 

You think you’re moving up but you’re only going down 

It’s a trap, it’s a trap 

You think you’ve gotten noticed but no one heard a sound 

Maybe you gotta learn to love it 

It’s a life that ain’t that bad 

Lose the frustration and begin dreaming 

Everything gets hazy, everything feels fine 

I start drifting… 

Happy Disconnections 

My family doesn’t know where I am 

And I don’t really know where I am 

Met a couple new friend 

Don’t know their name 

In a life with no familiarity 

It all starts to look the same 

I’m happy disconnected 

From a hill on Gateway Park 

I can see the world underneath me 

It’s more than a thrill, it’s a sacred destination 

To rise from the earth and be free 

Stopped following the words the sounds and images aimed at my mind 

I control my next step and I live off what I can find 

I’m happy disconnected 

Don’t know the latest score 

Don’t know who I should vote for 

People say they got a problem with technology 

Ten they’ll say that I’m the one who’s crazy 

But I had tried… 

I was plugged into all the media 

Emails to keep in touch 

Reaching out to anybody anywhere 

What I got was everybody from everywhere 

It was all too much 

And it all left me busy and occupied 

But not happy 

I’m happy disconnected 

Thank You Very Much 

I thrilled them in my heyday 

With the words I strung along 

And now when they find me 

They ask where I went wrong 

Thank you very much (much),  Thank you very much 

Thank you very much (much),  Thank you very much 

Your concern’s appreciated 

But a wee bit misplaced 

You think it’s all been wasted 

A gift that’s been disgraced 

You say I held the cards 

A future of my own 

But it took all my talents 

Just to make a home 

Thank you very much (much),  Thank you very much 

Thank you very much (much),  Thank you very much 

She said “I respect your experience 

Your years have made you wise” 

She said “I guess you would concede my youth is also a valued prize” 

I said: I was young once. 

And it sucked. 

Thank you very much (much),  Thank you very much 

Thank you very much (much),  Thank you very much 

Like’s the new love, 

Green’s the new red 

But opinions are just opinions 

And dead is still dead 

Thank you very much… 

Side Two

A Good Day to Be Alive 

Tom took a job where he works with his hands 

He made a little life and he made no plans 

In the summer we drive down to the Shore 

Go fishing on a boat neither of us could afford 

We have our fill and when we’ve had enough 

We head on back before our life piles up 

Night lights carry us from earth to sky 

I look out the window as the beauty rolls by 

(chorus) 

It’s a good day to be alive 

It’s a good day to be alive 

Got the sun on my side 

It’s alright, it’s alright 

My father got sick and “if we could have afforded the med” 

Is a thought that keeps rolling round my head 

Might have made a difference but we don’t know 

We get through the day just by letting go 

Gave them two grandkids and we drive each week 

To see their loving grandma but there are words we don’t speak 

There’s sadness when we get there but after awhile 

The family is together I sit back and smile 

(chorus) 

You make your choices you choose your ride 

Sometimes you wind up on the wrong side 

Priest once told me “that it’s not only the sin 

But the penance that brings grace back in” 

I used to have a job where I decided the fate 

Of the aid that was given by the state 

I didn’t have a problem being cold and fair 

I left when I knew no one was getting anywhere 

I had a four-cylinder stick that I bought with cash 

And she accepted the ride when I asked 

She smiles when I mention the days gone by 

Like there never was a reason to wonder why 

I know this road has had its rough patch 

And we both looked for an escape hatch 

But we’ve arrived this far 

Alive and in our very own car 

(chorus) 

And sometimes it is only the sin 

And two heartbeats riding the wind 

Sold For A Dollar 

Weak-willed half-hearted 

You lose before you started 

They’ll buy your soul 

If you lose control 

Give you an office – Say it’s all yours 

Sell you a house – you can’t afford 

You wake up to realize 

You got a wallet full of lies 

(chorus) 

Somebody, somebody 

Somebody with power 

Sold my future 

My future for a dollar 

Sold me for a dollar 

We try - play fair 

Be nice, pay our share 

It’s the give and it’s the take 

Unaware, our mistake 

Give you a blanket – when you are cold 

Offer up a promise – when you get old 

Never tell you what you pay 

For all the things you gave away 

(chorus) 

(bridge) 

Don’t sell yourself short 

Better yet… 

Don’t sell yourself at all! 

It took a long bad trip over many many years 

To figure out what I’d been losing to fear 

It may be late, I may be closer to done 

But I gotta take back, gotta take back some 

(chorus) 

Last Call From Nowhere 

Used to live life on my sleeve 

Got burned a time or two 

I just chalked that up to the cost 

Of living a life that is true 

But there are snipers all around with their dead aim low 

And in this season 

It’s the reason to escape the show 

They say escape is futile 

But resistance 

Ahh, sweet resistance… 

(chorus) 

I don’t need a car 

To make my get-away 

I keep my dreams secret 

And I watch what I say 

This is my last call from nowhere (nowhere) 

Well let’s go into hiding, yea, let’s just run 

We’ll drive until the morning and we’ll walk in the sun 

But they got hot links in Asia, connections round the globe 

And the last trail in Alaska has a line into your home 

They say escape is futile 

But resistance 

Ahh, sweet resistance… 

Shake it baby, don’t let it break you, you can’t hide from the eye 

But there’s a road only we can travel and it’s open til we die 

The Drifter 

The drifter thought there was a reason 

For going down that road 

Half way down, turned around 

And decided to go home 

The drifter came into my life 

One day as I walked outside 

Lit a spark that lit the dark 

I held on for the ride 

(Chorus) 

I fell in love with the drifter 

I fell in love with the song 

The broken parts 

Will break your heart 

And the drifter will move on 

It brought my life the unexpected 

And the thrill of just being alive 

The days and nights cascaded 

The old fears subside 

(chours) 

You know, you know, you know 

Where this will go 

Either the drifter stays or goes 

You know, you know, you know 

The trouble if they stay 

One day, you’re gonna be alone 

I cut a deal with the drifter 

Part time we’d have it all 

It’s not the waiting that’s devastating 

It’s that I have to make the call 

Swear My Love 

Taste of loss lingers sweet 

Surrender to desire’s need 

Shallow roots have been torn 

Poisoned heart leads to scorn 

Empty void hears desperation’s word 

I keep calling out (calling out) in prayers unheard 

(chorus) 

We meet in the night 

Lovers forever, come together 

The heat from your touch 

I can’t want this too much 

We meet in the night 

And I swear my love to you 

There’s a flow the lonely know 

A slow train crawling- an endless road 

Liars lie, fighters fight 

All to get through the night 

In dark corners our fears are shown 

I keep calling out (calling out) in prayers alone 

(chorus) 

There’s a price for secrets kept 

There’s a warning sign on our next step 

A Social Life 

Nobody rides for free or gets left behind 

Achieve them both and we’ll all be fine 

I made better choices when I was young 

My friends the best choices I have done 

I got older but I didn’t get wise 

Settled on life’s consolation prize 

Never corrected just wander and rust 

Tried not to let it all bother me much 

So, I chose to hide 

Now I’m looking outside 

(chorus) 

I choose to live 

A social life 

I choose to live 

A social life 

Together we’re better 

And the greater we’ll be 

When no one’s left behind 

And no one rides for free 

We protect ourselves with defenses 

We retreat within our own fences 

We keep each other behind lines 

Take on the armor of our times 

Had enough paying bad dues 

A social life is what I choose 

(chorus) 

I got up one Sunday with a pain in my head 

It was due to the week I had ahead 

Work a bad job and it cuts you down 

Hopeless weeks just keep rolling around 

So, I chose to hide 

Now I’m looking outside 

(chorus) 

Lost in this space not sure how to be 

I asked the world: 

“what do you want from me?” 

And it answered…. 

We don’t need your act to be 

Some tough guy who disagrees 

If Pollyanna isn’t in your heart 

Then that doesn’t have to be your part 

Don’t need to pretend to be happy or sad 

To let it slide or go hair-trigger mad 

Or act like a cheerleader to go along 

If you need to pretend then you are wrong 

We don’t need some grand act from you 

We have a job that can only be done by you 

What we need… 

Is for you to be the Pollyanna 

If that’s who you are 

Or the tough guy on the block 

The jerk in the slow car 

We have an opening for an angry guy 

To be hair trigger mad or to let it slide 

We need you happy if you’re happy 

We need you mad when you are mad 

We need a cheerleader to go along 

Someone to write music -someone to sing along 

We need people engaged in what they believe 

To fight whether they agree or disagree 

To admit mistakes to question what they know 

This is the thing that makes the world go 

We have a job for you to do 

And it can only be done by you 

And remember… 

Together we’re better 

And the greater we’ll be 

When no one’s left behind 

And nobody rides for free 

Your choice to live 

A social life 

Karen From the 80’s 

Hey K, what can you squeeze from a memory? 

It is you and me and the past makes three 

You’re frozen in time but not in flesh 

One goes stale but the other stays fresh 

Do you remember our shared moments? 

The times where we were all one? 

On opposite sides of the sofa 

Of the country, of the setting sun 

Do you remember when he drove all night? 

To proclaim his love in a Pennsylvania bus pit 

We held our breathe as he made the ride 

And felt like we made it – when he had made it 

Karen, Karen from the 80’s 

And when we pass on the street 

Nod but don’t stare 

To all these little secrets 

That only we share 

And this ain’t just an exercise in nostalgia 

Just to mention leg warmers and parachute pants 

There was something there once upon our moment 

That had its moment but never had a chance 

There’s two-ton generation ahead of us 

And another one on our heels 

They both seem to have the same weakness 

Gas guzzlers with spiked metal wheels 

And I don’t think they see 

What exists today can fail 

So we’re left with the timeless job 

Follow that elephant with a shovel and pail 

Millennials are overacting scenery chewers 

I’m thinking of you James Franco 

Baby boomers all naval gazing method acting 

Here’s to you Marlon Brando 

And we were the nameless Kevin Bacons 

Making sure it all moved along 

Aw, but that’s just self-serving revisionism, 

True, but I don’t think it is wrong 

And when we pass on the street 

Nod but don’t stare 

To all these little secrets 

That only we share 

But it ain’t all bad don’t ever think that it was 

Time cannot take the victories from us 

And I keep having to fight the temptation 

Nostalgia is a hollow dirty word 

And what was and what we remember 

Is a line that is always blurred 

But Karen I recall from my spot in the concert hall 

That there were songs that lifted me over the wall 

And I know how the sun felt on my face 

Or racing through an endless night 

And I know there was a freedom we had 

Before or since, Karen, only we got it so right 

And frankly I’d be better without them 

I wish these memories would go away 

Cause I know every aging old romantic 

Spits out the same tired cliché 

But Karen here’s to you 

And Kimberly, and Lisa, and Michelle 

And to Susan, Mary, and Jennifer 

I hope you all are doing well 

On behalf of Christopher 

And Ronald, Steve, and Mark 

Rest assured that the faithful 

Still carry the spark 

And remember… 

So… when a snake swallows a generation 

It can go through like a rat 

Big and heartburning and bulky 

And disappears as nothing but scat 

Or… it can swallow like a firecracker 

Lit and burning the whole way 

And after torching the place 

Turn and blow that snake away 

Or… it can go through on its own terms 

And know it doesn’t have a chance 

But to leave some crumbs for the next one 

And leave some time to dance 

Karen, Karen from the 80’s…