SONG LIST
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1. Ubumama ( 4:48)
Out of the dark waters of the Mothersea we all have journeyed
Into this world of pain against all logic life comes churning
She who must carry us, bear us in time must be cherished
She who is vessel and ocean alike
Must know there are hands to catch her
Tossed by the storm of birth. .we will transform the earth
Out of the dark waters of the Mothersea we all have journeyed
Into this world of pain against all logic life comes churning
She who must fall to the rhythm and the call of our coming
She dances with hope and with death in the same breath
She honors the ancestors’ courage
As we must honor now our part in this ancient vow
Out of the dark waters of the Mothersea we all have journeyed
Into this world of pain against all logic life comes churning
We must take care of the Mother
We must take care of each other
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2. Quiet Way (3:07)
Above the roar, something that I longed to hear
The crush of noise, still I had a tender ear
A sort of sigh, a murmur at break of day
I knew it could be, maybe for me, I was seeking the quiet way
Out to the fields, the tall grasses bending low
Toward a shape, stark against the morning glow
I moved in close, you reached out as if to play
My heart beating fast, sensing at last a path to the quiet way
It was your eyes, deeper than I dared to glance
And then that smile, setting all the lights to dance
A simple tune from your mouth, I start to sway
With your little song, you took me along and showed me the quiet way
It’s in a room, it’s in the very heart of town
It’s waiting there when all the noise is bearing down
When sleep is scarce and night has too much to say
Remember this place and each shining face whose shown you the quiet way
Remember this tune and then very soon you’ll come to te quiet way
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3. Going By (3:23)
These spring wildflowers, they pass so quickly
Their sudden glory, it will not wait
You cannot plan for their perfect moment
You must just be there or be too late
Going by. . .
These children grow, they change so swiftly
They crawl one moment, the next they fly
The wings of time, so cruel and heartless
They steal your children with no goodbye
Going by. .
Each day will find you just changed by waking
If waking truly is what you please
And not to stumble from dawn to darkness
A victim of your opportunities
Each word, it passes into silence
Each thought, it seeks its life in breath
Each breath a texture in the great windsong
The wind that carries us to our death
Going by. .
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4. Broken Glass ( 4:29)
I was walking through the broken glass last night and thought of you
And wondered where your reckless ways had brought you to
My memories of you whirled me back to boiling blood and wrath
And I wonder if you’ve stumbled on a lighter path
Did you go out to the desert with the sun hot overhead
Did the dry and dusty heat make you wish you were dead
Or did the stark and open places ease your urge to roam
Did it make you feel at last like you were home
Or did you go out to the woods where the silver poplars sing
Did the quiet rustling chase away the city’s sting
Did the white birch, suspended lightning, strike the autumn glow
And touch your heart with tenderness so you could grow
I was walking through the broken glass last night and thought of you
And wondered where your reckless ways had brought you to
It’s a fiery mass of untapped power surging in your breast
I hope it found its way outside so you could rest
Did you go up to the mountains where the air is clear and cold
Did they give you back your tears, save you from growing old
As your hands and your feet fought gravity all up the ancient walls
I wonder, did you lose your ancient urge to fall
The last time I saw you, you were strung dangerously high
All your movements stiff and frightened and you could not cry
Suspicious of an honest smile and looking for a fight
The lonesome streets your home, your only friend, the night
Wherever you may be tonight, I hope you’re pleased and calm
That the air around you soothes you like a holy balm
That your lonely anger hasn’t turned your insides inside out
That you found a place some of us still dream about
I was dancing through the broken glass last night and thought of you
And wondered where your reckless ways had brought you to
All my memories of you whirled me back to boiling blood and wrath
And I wonder if you’ve stumbled on a lighter path
Oh, I hope you have stumbled on a lighter path
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5. Persephone’s Song (4:26)
Sun’s been shining for weeks on end
You say “Isn’t that lovely, aren’t we lucky, my friend!”
But I want something more like the night
I’m so tired, tired of the light
I know you hope it stays, but I need my rainy days
So bring those heavy skies, roll ‘em right in
You can lay ‘em right on me with a chilly, wet wind
Let them open while I shut down
They drive me, drive me underground
I know these aren’t your ways,
but I need my rainy days
Oh, I can’t dream with this hot sun gleaming
Or bury myself in a blanket or two
Can’t go in when the light is streaming
I mean way inside, many things to do
So many dreams to keep
It gets so quiet when I go real deep
No, my heart’s not broken, I’m fine and I’m free
So you can stop asking what is wrong with me
Too damn much color and light, that’s all
It numbs me, numbs me till I call
For the beauty, the beauty in the grays
And I need my rainy days, oh,
I need my rainy days
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6. Replenish/For the Birds (3:29)
We go on,
we go on, canoe under hot sun, the upturned paddle
guides liquid to our dry mouths. Water within us,
water surrounds us, a great mystery, our becoming
dry at all.
Replenish, replenish, all must be replenished,
the water within and without,
all that fills us, all that surrounds us:
The great whistling pines, the tenacious beaver,
the ancient loon, the rush
of the young eagle’s wings as it dips
low over our canoe.
Replenish!
The eyes
bathed in this delicate solitude, this trembling
eternity called back in mid-sweep
only to be assessed by greed-parched eyes.
Replenish!
Each shriveled heart
which has its moments only at events set aside
for its song, yet cannot fly for the connection
between the rock and the human body,
the heron’s wing and the hope in our souls.
We go on,
we go on,
our paddles dance
with the lake water to the music in our throats.
We will grow dry again,
perhaps leap into the water,
a small and symbolic celebration
of a great and endless task which,
gracefully undertaken,
might allow us all to go on
and on
and on.
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7. Wings of Wonder (2:57)
Hop up on these wings of wonder, let us fly toward the sun
Deep as wells and high as mountains, we will know that all is one
Every creature, winged and footed, every feature given free
There is no such thing as ugly when the heart can help the eye see
Hop up on these wings of wonder, do not be afraid to fly
I have waited for this moment, do not hesitate to cry
Fear will only kill your longing, make you hope for less than all
There is no such thing as fear when answering sweet mystery’s call
Hop up on these wings of wonder, while they linger, while they stay
They are strength and they are power, they are soaring night and day
Oh, such magic, they grow stronger with each soul who’s seen and known
They will not collapse or wither though some people think they’re all gone
Hop up on these wings of wonder, there is room for everyone
Wonderstruck and full of power, we will know that all is one
Free the hand that holds it back now, reach on out and take it in
To be known as well as well as knowing is to live to learn again
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8. Can’t Get Yourself Out of Love (3:54)
You’ve gotten yourself out of trouble ‘cause you’re a born diplomat
You croon, cajole, you’re so subtle, you can smooth ruffled feathers like that
But here’s one for the books, kiddo, ‘cause whenever push comes to shove
You can’t for the life of you get yourself out of love
You’ve gotten yourself out of harm’s way, swerved not a moment too soon
Jumped out of the path of an oncoming bus with a speed to make others swoon
But those reflexes don’t count much here, ‘cause whatever you’re made of
Can’t give you what you need to get yourself out of love
There’s no one on the receiving end, no warm body there when your arms extend
No tender little messages left on the phone, but still you can’t believe
You’re all alone
You’ve gotten yourself out of things to do, cleared your calendar in a clean sweep
A master of time and delegating, your self-control never sleeps
But the one thing you couldn’t cancel, postpone, or move below or above
Has got you hanging, now you just can’t get yourself out of love
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9. Hard Love (by Bob Franke) (4:59)
I remember growing up like it was only yesterday
Mom and daddy tried their best to guide me on my way
But the hard times and the liquor drove the easy love away
And the only love I knew about was hard love
It was hard love, every hour of the day
When Christmas to my birthday was a million years away
And the tears that came between them drove the tears into my play
There was love in daddy’s house but it was hard love
I recall the gentle courtesy you showed me as I tried
To dissemble in politeness all the love I felt inside
And for every song of laughter was another song that cried
This aint no easy weekend, this is hard love
It was hard love every hour of the day
Hard to be so close to you, so hard to turn away
And when all the stars and sentimental songs dissolved to day
There was nothing left to sing about but hard love
So I love you for your courage and your gentle sense of shame
And I love you for your laughter and your language and your name
And I knew it was impossible, but I loved you just the same
Though the only love I gave to you was hard love
It was hard love, it was hard on you, I know
When the only love I gave to you was love I couldn’t show
You forgave the heart that loved you as your lover turned to go
Leaving nothing but the memory of hard love
Now I’m standing in this phone booth with a dollar and a dime
Wondering what to say to you to ease your troubled mind
For the lord’s cross might redeem us, but our own just waste our time
And to tell the two apart is always hard love
So I’ll tell you that I love you even though I’m far away
I’ll tell you how you changed me as I live from day to day
How you helped me to accept myself, and I won’t forget to say
Love is never wasted, even when it’s hard love
It’s hard love, but it’s love all the same
Not the stuff of fantasy but more than just a game
And the only kind of miracle that’s worthy of the name
For the love that heals our lives is mostly hard love
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10. Blessing (3:39)
I am a dreamer and I am a doer, bless us both, set us both free
I am a maker and I am a user, bless us both, set us both free
I am a lover and I am a hater, bless us both, set us both free
I am among you, yet I am alone, bless us both, set us both free
You are a singer and you are a listener, bless you both, set you both free
You are a baker and you are an eater, bless you both, set you both free
You are a worker and you are a player, bless you both, set you both free
You are a blind one, yet you are a seer, bless you both, set you both free
We are all coming and we are all going, bless us all, set us all free
We are all smiling and we are all crying, bless us all, set us all free
We are remaining, yet we are all changing, bless us all, set us all free
We are all living, yet we are all dying, bless us all, set us all free
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11. Pretty At the End (5:51)
The ugliest building in the right light looks pretty at the end of the day
Rising in the calm glow, soft and still, so pretty at the end of the day
Jagged edges cooled in the kindness of shadow, pretty at the end of the day
A worn face tired from too many tasks still looks pretty at the end of the day
A smile sneaks out as the sun sinks down, it gets so pretty at the end of the day
Does the candlelight a favor, makes the first star wink, it gets so pretty at the end of the day
Open wide, you can’t hide, it’s too late to turn away. .
A world in trouble for all that’s surely wrong still looks pretty at the end of the day
Might be swept up in sorrow, might be trembling in the twilight, but still so pretty at the end of the day
Fragile as it holds us, waiting for the vision, can we see it’s so pretty at the end of the day
The future’s built on more than a casual backward glance to leave it pretty at the end of the day
Eyes must be open to the way we can live and leave it so pretty at the end of the day
I hope and I pray that this dream called tomorrow still looks pretty at the end of the day
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