- Black Swan
there was a black swan outside the palace
it was appointed by the king
and people took it as a sign that he needed more time
but you said "I ain't afraid of no black bird!"
there was a rumor of a ghost in the bedroom,
hanging in and around the bed
but by the time the moon rose, you had taken off your clothes
- Child-Heart Losers
There's a child heart in the child
There's a child heart in the child
There's a child heart in the child
Living wild oh
La la la la la
Fire makes it go
And you were pretty before you knew
- Coming To at Dawn
Obliterate the memory of coming to at dawn
Knowing only that the night was someplace that you had gone
Upon amber waves on the showboat of laughter
And you cannot change the way you slid down railings in the lobby
And then again down the gangway shortly after
obliterate the memory of coming to at dawn
Knowing only that the night has gone
Obliterate the grass stains from the cloth
- I'm Sorry I Sang on Your Hands That Have Been in the Grave
Carry on, carry on, carry on, ba-dum, ba-dum
Carry on, carry on, carry on, ba-dum, ba-dum
If you are a teacher I am a vessel, oh
So carry on, carry on, carry on, ba-dum, ba-dum
There are ones that lie
And ones that lie underground
- idiot heart
sunset rubdown - idiot heart
Stay away from open windows, and put the telephone down.
Can you run as fast as this house will fall, when the alarm bell sounds?
No, I was never much of a dancer but I know enough to know you gotta move, your idiot body around.
And you can’t, can’t settle down until the idiot in your blood settles down
- Nightingale
So let me hammer this point home:
I see us all as lonely fires that have burned alive as long as we remember.
But like all fireworks and all sunsets,
we all burn in different ways:
You are a fast explosion,
and I am the embers.
And though your flames are quick and mean, they will not last the year,
but expire like a sudden falling star,
- Paper Lace
I heard you're suffering
Come be a wild thing
Come run with Jackie, me, and this lady
The stupid house you made
Fell away like paper lace
Come run with Jackie, me, and this lady
- Shut Up I Am Dreaming of Places Where Lovers Have Wings
you're on the distant shore!
you're on the distant shore!
Oceans never listen to us anyway,
Oceans never listen to us anyway.
And if I fall into the drink,
I will say your name, before I sink.
He says your name out loud;
- Silver Moons
confetti floats away like dead leaves in the wagon's wake
there were parties here in my honor til you sent me away
and now silver moons belong to you
i'm passing the baton from the old mare to the fawn
it was out of line but it was fun, didn't you love the part right before the dawn?
and now silver moons belong to you
i'm off to the ballet and to practice all these ancient ways
tell the new kids where i hid the wine, tell their fathers that i'm on my way, and say:
- Stallion
Stallion, step away
Saddle up the width of an age
I am good where I am I am good where I am
Stallion
Wrote off “stay gold” from the list I hold, then I
Wrote off “all gold” from the list you hold
I’ll be the grave with no name on the stone
- The Empty Threats of Little Lord
If I ever hurt you
It will be in self-defense
If I ever hurt you
It will be in self-defense
Podiums as high as the gallows are low
Swing low, swing low, swing low.
- The Taming Of The Hands That Came Back To Life
I am embracing the cold rushing in
Like ice to a diamond
It’s a new kind of rough you can find me in
When the sail starts flapping in the wind
I say cool. That looks cool.
Now do you think the 2nd movement has too many violins?
- They Took A Vote And Said No
One, two, three
They took his kids,
He was right
They took his ears,
They took his eyes,
They said a ride
Is never free,
- Up On Your Leopard, Upon The End Of Your Feral Days
You're the one who ran in the wild 'cause
You're the one the wild called
And you're the one who followed the child
To save the sun from how it falls
You're the one who had knives
Set aside for the throats of hunters
But they tricked you with a trinket and a name
- You Go On Ahead
you go on ahead for awhile
I would like to follow you awhile
you go on ahead for awhile
I would like to just follow you awhile
and I'd like to watch the white flash of your heels as they take turns breaking the desert heat to beckon me in languages I've never learned
and I'd like to have you navigate two hills where no musicians live and on the way decide what mendings of your will you're willing to forgive