NINE SONGS I WROTE LAST YEAR (2007)
Read more about how the album came to be born, and the inspiration behind the songs.
LYRICS
Track listing:
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CHASE THE SUNSET
I’ve been wandering,Looking out upon the wonders of the world.
And it’s made see,
That from now on I must be the real me.
There’s a voice inside,
That is telling me to stop the compromise,
Dispense with the disguise,
Live life through my own eyes,
Chase the sunset.
Meet me where the darkness kills the blue.
Chase the sunset.
Stop talking, now is the time to do.
Hold the front page,
I feel that there’s a change in the air.
If I seize the day,
If I make it count, if I heed the wake-up call,
When night begins to fall,
Can I say I gave my all?
Chase the sunset
Search the golden embers in the sky.
Chase the sunset.
I’ll never find my heart ‘til I try.
As I walk these timeless lands
I feel the force of Life’s giving and thieving hands.
Chase the sunset.
Meet me where the darkness kills the blue.
Chase the sunset.
Stop talking, now is the time to do.
Meet me where the darkness kills the blue.
I LEARNED TO DISCO IN SAN FRANCISCO
I was just seventeen,Always had this madcap dream,
About taking off and heading up the coast.
Mama asked what was I thinking of,
Looking for my own summer of love?
My Daddy said that I’d be chasing a ghost.
But I hitched a ride, was gone,
Driving Highway One,
The sun and waves meant I never felt alone.
When I first saw the bay,
I knew I’d found my way,
In my heart of hearts I knew that I was home.
I learned to disco in San Francisco.
I could feel the magic beat.
Got my rocks off, danced my socks off,
At the club on Haight Street.
At the club on Haight Street.
Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, I learned to disco.
Wasn’t sure why I was there,
Was I looking for a love affair?
Or just somewhere I could belong?
Old way had made me sad,
But now I was glad,
I had my chance to sing a different song.
I learned to disco in San Francisco.
Nothing here seemed out of reach.
Got my rocks off, danced my socks off,
From The Mission to North Beach.
Through the ‘60s bloom,
‘70s and ‘80s gloom,
This has always been a place living on the edge.
Some say the magic’s gone,
But I still party on,
“I will survive” will always be its pledge.
I learned to disco in San Francisco.
I still feel the magic beat.
Get my rocks off, dance my socks off,
At the club on Haight Street.
Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, I learned to disco,
Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, I learned to disco.
I learned to disco, I learned to disco.
I learned to disco in San Francisco.
Free love had its flaws,
Closed so many open doors,
A tragic way to learn responsibility.
But here now I can be,
Just who and what I want to be,
The true spirit of the land of the free?
And when I’m old and grey,
And I look out on the bay,
Like that first day when I was seventeen,
Will I have had my way,
And lived my life each day,
Will I say that I have lived the madcap dream?
I leaned to disco in San Francisco.
And somewhere in my feet,
I feel that magic beat.
THE THINGS I'VE NEVER HAD
So many years have passed since the day we met.We’ve often laughed and joked about the future we might get.
Well now those days are here but nothing’s really changed,
We’re still playing hide and seek while friendships have rearranged.
Once I was a witness to a game I couldn’t play,
But then someone changed the rules, now you’re standing in my way.
You always lift me with your laugh, your zest for life.
But you never let the mask drop; I don’t know what’s the truth behind those eyes.
‘Cause I can’t find the words to say that I’ve fallen for you.
So when I’m at home at night I pray that you’re thinking of me.
The fear of no tomorrow that makes me sad,
Your fears, your tears, your touch, your kisses,
The things I’ve never had.
Well now the time has come for me to make my mark.
I’ve been stuck in third gear, I almost lost my spark.
I built a brick wall between my feelings and my fate,
But now that wall is falling down, please tell me now I hope it’s not too late.
But I can’t find the words to say that I’ve fallen for you.
And when I’m at home at night I pray that you’re dreaming of me.
The memory of your smile that drives me mad,
Your fears, your tears, your touch, your kisses,
The things I’ve never had.
What I need is a kick up the ass.
Oh why do I let these chances pass me by?
It’s been quite a journey, I’m glad you came along.
But now we’ve reached a crossroads, somehow we must move on.
Does our future lie together; are you that stranger in my heart?
Or are we just lonely ships passing then crashing in the dark?
I guess the thing I’m trying to say is that I’ve fallen for you.
And I am hoping that some day we will be together.
The fear of no tomorrow that makes me sad,
Your fears, your tears, your touch, your kisses,
The things I’ve never had.
Oh, the things I’ve never had.
THE UNDERSTUDY
The understudy, it’s a part I often play.Each night I learn the lines I never get to say.
I always thought that I was set for great things,
But my whole life it feels like I’ve been waiting in the wings.
The understudy, a phantom of the stage,
Behind the smiles and make-up burns a jealous rage.
I know Hamlet but I always play the clown,
And when I play the king I’m wearing someone else’s crown.
Ah oh, second best will take its toll.
Ah oh, now I want a major role,
But I’m losing control.
The understudy, so often misunderstood.
I watch them take their bows; know I am just as good.
So backstage tonight, I stop to pause,
And plan my escape from the shadows, to claim the applause.
Ah oh, to be or not to be.
Ah oh, that is the question haunting me.
Do I want to be free?
Ah oh, life’s not a play you can rehearse.
Ah oh, more like a character you nurse,
For better, for worse.
So when that time comes, when I take that curtain call,
Will I be remembered as the finest actor of them all?
Oh, second best had scarred my soul,
Oh, but I will claim that major role,
Now I’ve taken control.
JUKEBOX JUNKIE
The jukebox junkie,He just felt so clunky,
He lived his life through song.
There was a boy who loved a girl,
But he didn’t have the faintest clue,
How to get the message through to her.
He was shy but knew his heart,
Even made her tapes of their favourite songs,
With subtle hints so she might catch on.
But in the bar at night,
Those unspoken dates out with their mates,
She said: “The tapes you made,
“They made me cry.”
But he looked for an alibi.
The jukebox junkie,
He just felt so clunky,
He lived his life through song.
With his music playing,
Shaking hands were praying,
For her to song along.
He called out to say:
“I want you.”
But his words faded away.
He stood and chose the songs that told,
The feelings he was scared to show,
The magic golden discs began to glow,
And eased the racing of his heart,
The machine that never gets tongue-tied,
The key to free the lover locked inside.
And as they played out loud,
Mechanic missives in place of kisses,
He looked at her,
She stared at him,
Waiting for something to begin.
The jukebox junkie,
He just felt so clunky,
He knew his style was strange.
With his awkward dances,
And his hopeful glances,
So desperate for change.
He called out to say:
“I love you.”
But his words just slipped away.
He saw her home, they waved goodbye,
The taxi pulled away and quietly,
She whispered: “Please fall in love with me.”
THE MORNING AFTER
Tired eyes, feeling rough.Hopes broken, enough’s enough.
When you’re feeling down on your luck,
And you know when the dream’s come unstuck.
You’ve got to pick yourself up now,
You know you’ll shine again somehow.
And stand tall through the tears and the pain,
The self-doubts that you’ll see off the rain,
But you’ll survive,
You always get by.
You’ve got to search and find a way,
You know you’ll smile again some day.
And stand tall through fears and the shame,
The self-doubts that you’ll see off the rain,
But you’ll survive,
You’re strong, you’ll get by.
You get by.
LOVE@HOTMAIL.COM
It was a lonely night in London,I was playing on my PC,
When you said “hello” to me.
We chatted on line for hours,
Then started sending love e-mails,
I bought you virtual flowers.
And all the single guys and single girls,
Looking for love in the modern world.
Can you find love@hotmail.com?
You don’t need to know my name or where I come from.
But what has happened to old-fashioned romance,
A picnic in the park, dinner and a dance?
You said you lived and worked in New York City,
Did not have much time for love,
And now your friends were all hitched up.
But you had your job, your cat and your own house,
Love at your fingertips,
At the click of a mouse.
But is this love, or just another ready-made meal?
You write the words “I love you”, but is it what you really feel?
Define love@hotmail.com
A modern way to meet you with untold freedom.
But I’m confused by these new-fangled effects,
We live life by the text, paranoid, undersexed.
So we agree to meet, I catch a plane to JFK.
And at a bar in Union Square,
We begin our real affair.
We laugh and talk and smile and dance into the night,
I look into your eyes,
This is love at first sight.
But as we kiss and say this is where the virtual ends,
We stop and pause so we can text and tell our friends,
That we’ve found love@hotmail.com
You don’t need to know my name or where I’ve come from.
Now I’m consumed by this new-fangled romance,
A picnic in Central Park, dinner and a dance.
TONIGHT, TOMORROW
I close my eyes,Feel your fingers.
I hold your hand,
Hear raindrops land on my window.
Shut the world outside.
The distant sound of alarms.
But lying here with you in your arms,
I’m safe now.
And you whisper to me softly,
Oh will I be,
The same person I was tonight,
Tomorrow?
Open your heart to me,
Give my soul the friend it needs,
Now.
You look so peaceful while you’re sleeping,
And it’s slowly sinking in.
The reflection of the moonlight on your skin,
I watch it glow.
You wake up when the birds sing,
Yet the panic bells still ring.
But then you hold me as the sun makes tonight,
Tomorrow.
Open your heart to me,
Give my soul the friend it needs,
Now.
HOME
You slam the door shut when you leave,You say I never will believe it,
When you say that you love me.
You say I’m far too paranoid,
I think all good things are destroyed,
Oh, I don’t think that.
You say I always talk the talk,
But will I ever walk the walk?
I guess that’s something we need to talk about.
But when I kiss you, it feels like home,
We’re no good on our own.
I slowly dare to let you tread,
On frozen lakes inside my head,
You conquer my fears.
You say each ruler has a throne,
Every Caesar has his Rome,
Where he can smile and shed his tears.
When I kiss you, it feels like home
We’re no good on our own.
And as you melt the lakes I froze,
I start to live the highs and lows,
Oh together we’ll sail through.
And as we learn to give and take,
Fulfil the promises we make,
I’m ready to take the walk with you now.
When I kiss you, it feels like home,
If I’m Caesar, you’re Rome.
When I kiss you, it feels like home, like home, like home.
If feels like home, like home, like home.
I know I’m home.
DOLPHINS
I was lost inside my dreams,Of waterfalls and flowing streams,
A golden sunrise.
I was torn between two lives.
I could play with sand, or play with knives
And open my eyes.
I always knew I thought too much,
Was always searching for some easy crutch,
That no one could break.
But now I look into your eyes,
And feel the magic thread that ties us.
I’m awake now.
It’s like the dolphins in the sea,
They’re just the same as you and me,
They just like living.
And do the birds up in the sky,
Ever stop to ask why,
They’re flying?
Bring us chocolate, bring us wine,
Play the songs that make us feel just fine,
But don’t be lazy, oh no no no.
‘Cause when we dare to step outside,
And watch the morning and the night collide,
You amaze me, oh yes.
We’re like the dolphins in the sea,
They’re just the same as you and me,
We just like living.
(Feel the animal inside).
And do the birds up in the sky,
Ever stop to ask why,
They’re flying?
(Where are the animals we hide?).
Catch our breath and taste the dawn.
The blackbird sings, the day’s reborn.
Crunch frosty leaves with happy feet.
I hold you close and feel your heat.
Marvel as the day unwinds,
And when the thought crosses our minds,
Is this in some way pre-designed,
We feel the magic thread that binds us now.
We are the dolphins in the sea,
They live inside of you and me,
We just like living.
(Feel the animal inside).
And do the birds up in the sky,
Ever stop to ask why,
They’re flying?
(Where are the animals we hide?).
The 10 photos that appear alongside these lyrics are all courtesy of stock.xchng
These photos come from all the six major continents of the world.
- Great Lakes sunset, KD, Canada
- Club dance floor, Nick Willshire, Hong Kong (www.entertainingasia.com)
- Silhouette, Cathy Kaplan, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
- Curtain, arryll
- Jukebox, Jeff Osborn, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia (www.vertexstudios.com)
- Raindrops, ubahn, Argentina (www.ubahn.com.ar)
- What U looking for, Carl Dwyer, Ulm, Germany (www.mediagroup-leroux.de)
- Blinds, Marcelo Moura, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (www.marcelomoura.com.br)
- Roof tiles, Robbie Ribeiro, Durban, South Africa
- Dolphins, Monique Stowasser, Magstadt, Germany