Rain Dogs

Inside a broken clock Splashing the wine With all the rain dogs Taxi, we'd rather walk Huddle a doorway with the Rain Dogs For I am a Rain Dog, too Oh, how we danced and we swallowed the night For it was all ripe for dreaming Oh, how we danced away All of the lights We've always been out of our minds The rum pours strong and thin Beat out the dustman With the rain dogs Aboard a shipwreck train Give my umbrella to the Rain Dogs For I am a Rain Dog too Oh, how we danced with the Rose of Tralee Her long hair black as a raven Oh, how we danced and you Whispered to me You'll never be going back home You'll never be going back home Oh, how we danced and we swallowed the night For it was all ripe for dreaming Oh, how we danced away All of the lights We've always been out of our minds Tom Waits

Budapest

My house in Budapest My, my hidden treasure chest Golden grand piano My beautiful Castillo You Ooh, you Ooh, I'd leave it all My acres of a land That I've achieved It may be hard for you to Stop and believe But for you Ooh, you Ooh, I'd leave it all Ooh, for you Ooh, you Ooh, I'd leave it all And give me one good reason Why I should never make a change Baby if you hold me Then all of this will go away My many artifacts The list goes on If you just say the words I, I'll up and run Oh, to you Ooh, you Ooh, I'd leave it all Oh, to you Ooh, oh Ooh, I'd leave it all And give me one good reason Why I should never make a change Baby if you hold me Then all of this will go away Give me one good reason Why I should never make a change Baby if you hold me Then all of this will go away My friends and family They don't understand They fear they'd lose so much If you take my hand But, for you Ooh, you Ooh, I'd lose it all Oh, for you Ooh, you Ooh, I'd lose it all And give me one good reason Why I should never make a change Baby if you hold me Then all of this will go away Give me one good reason Why I should never make a change Baby if you hold me Then all of this will go away My house in Budapest My, my hidden treasure chest Golden grand piano My beautiful Castillo You Ooh, you Ooh, I'd leave it all Oh, for you Ooh, you Ooh, I'd leave it all GEORGE EZRA

On the Pulse of the Morning

A Rock, a River, a Tree Hosts to species long since departed, Mark the mastodon. The dinosaur, who left dry tokens Of their sojourn here [On our planet floor], Any broad alarm of their of their hastening doom Is lost in the gloom of dust and ages. But today, the Rock cries out to us, clearly, forcefully, Come, you may stand upon my Back and face your distant destiny, But seek no haven in my shadow. I will give you no hiding place down here. You, created only a little lower than The angels, have crouched too long in The bruising darkness, Have lain too long Face down in ignorance. Your mouths spelling words Armed for slaughter. The rock cries out today, you may stand on me, But do not hide your face. Across the wall of the world, A River sings a beautiful song, Come rest here by my side. Each of you a bordered country, Delicate and strangely made proud, Yet thrusting perpetually under siege. Your armed struggles for profit Have left collars of waste upon My shore, currents of debris upon my breast. Yet, today I call you to my riverside, If you will study war no more. Come, clad in peace and I will sing the songs The Creator gave to me when I And the tree and stone were one. Before cynicism was a bloody sear across your brow And when you yet knew you still Knew nothing. The River [sang] and sings on. There is a true yearning to respond to The singing River and the wise Rock. So say the Asian, the Hispanic, the Jew, The African and Native American, the Sioux, The Catholic, the Muslim, the French, the Greek, The Irish, the Rabbi, the Priest, the Sheikh, The Gay, the Straight, the Preacher, The privileged, the homeless, the teacher. [They hear.] They all hear The speaking of the Tree. Today, the first and last of every tree Speaks to humankind. Come to me, here beside the river. Plant yourself beside me, here beside the river. Each of you, descendant of some passed on Traveler, has been paid for. You, who gave me my first name, you Pawnee, Apache and Seneca, you Cherokee Nation, who rested with me, then Forced on bloody feet, left me to the employment of Other seekers--desperate for gain, Starving for gold. You, the Turk, the Swede, the German, the Scot... You the Ashanti, the Yoruba, the Kru, Bought, sold, stolen, arriving on a nightmare Praying for a dream. Here, root yourselves beside me. I am the Tree planted by the River, Which will not be moved. I, the Rock; I, the River; I, the Tree - I am yours; your passages have been paid. Lift up your faces, you have a piercing need For this bright morning dawning for you. History, despite its wrenching pain, Cannot be unlived, [but] if faced With courage, need not be lived again. Lift up your eyes upon The day breaking for you. Give birth again To the dream. Women, children, men, Take it into the palms of your hands. Mold it into the shape of your most Private need. Sculpt it into The image of your most public self. Lift up your hearts. Each new hour holds new chances For new beginnings. Do not be wedded forever To fear, yoked eternally To brutishness. The horizon leans forward, Offering you space to place new steps of change. Here, on the pulse of this fine day You may have the courage To look up and out upon me, the Rock, the River, the Tree, your country. No less to Midas than the mendicant. No less to you now than the mastodon then. Here on the pulse of this new day You may have the grace to look up and out And into your sister's eyes, into Your brother's face, your country And say simply Very simply With hope Good morning. Maya Angelou

Musée Albert-Kahn on Fotopedia

The piano man

It's nine o'clock on a Saturday The regular crowd shuffles in There's an old man sitting next to me Makin' love to his tonic and gin He says, "Son, can you play me a memory? I'm not really sure how it goes But it's sad and it's sweet, and I knew it complete When I wore a younger man's clothes" La, la, la, de, de, da La, la, de, de, da, da, da Sing us a song, you're the piano man Sing us a song tonight Well, we're all in the mood for a melody And you've got us feelin' alright Now John at the bar is a friend of mine He gets me my drinks for free And he's quick with a joke or to light up your smoke But there's someplace that he'd rather be He says, "Bill, I believe this is killing me" As a smile ran away from his face "Well, I'm sure that I could be a movie star If I could get out of this place" Oh, la, la, la, de, de, da La, la, de, de, da, da, da Now Paul is a real estate novelist Who never had time for a wife And he's talkin' with Davy, who's still in the Navy And probably will be for life And the waitress is practicing politics As the businessman slowly get stoned Yes, they're sharing a drink they call loneliness But it's better than drinkin' alone Sing us a song, you're the piano man Sing us a song tonight Well, we're all in the mood for a melody And you've got us feelin' alright It's a pretty good crowd for a Saturday And the manager gives me a smile 'Cause he knows that it's me they've been comin' to see To forget about life for a while And the piano, it sounds like a carnival And the microphone smells like a beer And they sit at the bar and put bread in my jar And say, "Man, what are you doin' here?" Oh, la, la, la, de, de, da La, la, de, de, da, da, da Sing us a song, you're the piano man Sing us a song tonight Well, we're all in the mood for a melody And you've got us feelin' alright

Billy Joel

Soldier of fortune

I have often told you stories About the way I lived the life of a drifter Waiting for the day When I'd take your hand And sing you songs Then maybe you would say Come lay with me love me And I would surely stay But I feel I'm growing older And the songs that I have sung Echo in the distance Like the sound Of a windmill goin' 'round I guess I'll always be A soldier of fortune Many times I've been a traveller I looked for something new In days of old When nights were cold I wandered without you But those days I thougt my eyes Had seen you standing near Though blindness is confusing It shows that you're not here Now I feel I'm growing older And the songs that I have sung Echo in the distance Like the sound Of a windmill goin' 'round I guess I'll always be A soldier of fortune Yes, I can hear the sound Of a windmill goin' 'round I guess I'll always be A soldier of fortune

David Coverdale

Child in time

Sweet child in time you'll see the line The line that's drawn between good and the bad See the blind man shooting at the world Bullets flying, taking toll If you've been bad, lord I bet you have And you've not been hit by flying lead You'd better close your eyes Bow your head Wait for the ricochet I wanna hear you scream

Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Jon Lord and Ian Paice

I Will Wait

Well, I came home, like a stone, and I fell heavy into your arms. These days of darkness, which we've known, will blow away with this new sun. But I'll kneel down, wait for now, and I'll kneel down. Know my ground. And I will wait, I will wait for you. So break my step and relent. Well, you forgave and I won't forget. Know what we've seen and him with less. Now in some ways shake the excess. And I will wait, I will wait for you. Now I'll be bold as well as strong and use my head alongside my heart. So tame my flesh and fix my eyes. A tethered mind freed from the lies. And I'll kneel down. Wait for now. And I'll kneel down. Know my ground. Raise my hands. Paint my spirit gold. Bow my head. Keep my heart slow 'Cause I will wait, I will wait for you. And I will wait, I will wait for you. And I will wait, I will wait for you. And I will wait, I will wait for you.

Mumford & Sons

"Gimme Three Steps"

I was cutting the rug down at a place called "The Jug" with a girl named Linda Lu, when in walked a man with a gun in his hand and he was looking for you know who. He said, "Hey there fellow, with the hair colored yellow, watcha tryin' to prove? 'Cause that's my woman there and I'm a man who cares and this might be all for you."

 I was scared and fearing for my life. I was shakin' like a leaf on a tree. 'Cause he was lean, mean, big and bad, Lord, pointin' that gun at me. I said, "Wait a minute, mister, I didn't even kiss her. Don't want no trouble with you. And I know you don't owe me, but I wish you'd let me ask one favor from you."

"Won't you give me three steps, Gimme three steps mister, Gimme three steps towards the door? Gimme three steps Gimme three steps mister, And you'll never see me no more."

Well the crowd cleared away and I began to pray as the water fell on the floor. And I'm telling you son, well, it ain't no fun staring straight down a forty-four. Well he turned and screamed at Linda Lu and that's the break I was looking for: and you could hear me screaming a mile away, as I was headed out towards the door.

Larkin Allen Collins Jr. and Ronald Wayne "Ronnie" Van Zant

Agni (HYMN I)

I Laud Agni, the chosen Priest, God, minister of sacrifice, the hotar, lavishest of wealth. Worthy is Agni to be praised by living as by ancient seers. He shall bring hitherward the Gods. Through Agni man obtaineth wealth, yea, plenty waxing day by day, most rich in heroes, glorious.

Agni, the perfect sacrifice which thou encompassest about verily goeth to the Gods. May Agni, sapient-minded Priest, truthful, most gloriously great, the God, come hither with the Gods. Whatever blessing, Agni, thou wilt grant unto thy worshipper, that, Angiras, is indeed thy truth.

To thee, dispeller of the night, O Agni, day by day with prayer; Bringing thee reverence, we come.

Ruler of sacrifices, guard of Law eternal, radiant One, Increasing in thine own abode. Be to us easy of approach, even as a father to his son: Agni, be with us for our weal.

Rig Veda (Griffith tr.)

Titanium

You shout it loud, but I can't hear a word you say.  I'm talking loud, not saying much. I'm criticized, but all your bullets ricochet - you shoot me down, but I get up.

I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose.  Fire away, fire away.  Ricochet.  You take your aim; fire away, fire away. You shoot me down, but I won't fall.  I am titanium. Cut me down, but it's you who'll have further to fall.

Ghost town and haunted love. Raise your voice.  Sticks and stones may break my bones. I'm talking loud, not saying much. Stone hard, machine gun, fired at the ones who run. Stone hard, as bulletproof glass. You shoot me down, but I won't fall. I am titanium.

David Guetta

Aigiri Nandini

O daughter of the mountain, who makes the whole earth happy, who makes the whole universe rejoice, praised by Nandin; dwelling on the peak of the great Vindhya mountain, glittering widely, praised by those desirous of victory;

O goddess, wife of the blue necked siva, one who has many families, one who has done a lot; be victorious, be victorious,

O destroyer of the demon mahisa, with beautiful braids of hair, daughter of the mountain Himalaya: bestower of boons on Gods, one who assails those hard to control, who tolerates those with ugly faces, one engrossed in rejoicing; one who nourishes the three worlds, one who pleases sankara, one who removes sins, one who engrosses in sound of Om; one who is angry with the progeny of Danu, one who is angry with the sons of Diti, one who destroys those with evil intoxication of pride, daughter of the ocean:

O mother of the world, my mother, one who loves to dwell in a forest of Kadamba trees, one who keeps on smiling; one who is on her own dwelling on the tall peak of the Himalaya, the greatest among the mountains; one who is very sweet, one who has the treasure of demons Madhu and Kaitabha, destroyer of the demon Kaitabha,engaged in dancing:

O one who split the heads into hundreds of pieces and one who cut the trunks of great battle elephants; whose great lion is skilled in terrifying valor in tearing apart the temples of enemy elephants; one who has cut down into pieces the heads of enemy chieftains with the strength of her own arms:

O one who holds the invincible and undiminishing striking force which arose on the occasion of killing the enemies who were hard to subdue on the battlefield; who made Pramatha, the great attendant of Shiva, a leader in subtle thinking, her commander; who decided to destroy the messenger of demons who were sinful, with evil intentions, thoughts and mind:

O one who gives protection to the great heroic husbands of the enemy wives who have come seeking refuge; one who holds in her hands a spotless spear pointed towards the head of the opponent who is causing a great pain for all the three worlds; one who is like the blazing hot sun, aroused by the power of resounding noise of the drums of Gods:

O one who has blown aside hundreds of streams of smoke coming from demons with smoking eyes merely with her own roaring; who is like a vine of blood-drops grown from the dried blood drops in battle; one who delights in the company of auspicious Shiva, Shumbha, Nishumbha, and the spirits who were fed during the great battle; one who decks herself with dancing ornaments on throbbing limbs at the moment of the battle, making her bow ready; who killed the huge enemy soldiers with a shining sword and with a quiver which has golden brown spots; who made the battleground with fourfold army into a stage with a colorful drama with screaming little soldiers; be victorious! be victorious! whose victory should be sung, praised by the whole universe ready to sing the praise extolling her victory; who attracted the attention of shiva by twinkling of bells making various sounds of dancing; who delights in beautiful singing and in dance-drama presented by a leading dancer acting out the role of an actress with half of his body:

O one who has a flowerlike complexion attractive to the good heart of the goodhearted people surrounded by the face of the moon; who is in charge of huge royal elephants in fury whose rut is streaming down their temples incessantly; princess, the daughter of the ocean, who has the beauty of the moon, the ornament of all the three worlds; princess of cupid who enchants the minds desirous of ladies with beautiful teeth; whose spotless forehead is enhanced by the beautiful complexion, pure and delicate like that of lotus petals; whose flock of swans is moving sportingly with steps which are the marks of all beautiful arts; whose bees from the bakula trees meet on the tops of lotus flowers which are crowded with bees; whose sweet cooing sounds made with the flute held in her own hands have put to shame the Kokila bird and who has sweet thoughts; who is in colorful mountain groves pleasantly resounding with the assembled mountain folks; whose playbround is filled with good qualities of the flocks of the great tribal women who are manifestations of her own qualities; who has set aside the brilliance of the moon with the colorful rays coming from the yellow silk she is wearing on her waist; whose toe-nails shine like the moon because of the rays emanating form the crest jewels of the bowing gods and demons; whose breasts outshine the temples of wild elephants and the high peaks of the golden mountains; one who has surpassed the thousand-handed sun with her own thousand hands and one who is singularly praised by a thousand suns; she who performed the battle to save the Gods and whose sons fought a battle with the demon Taraka and are saviors:

O benevolent goddess accompanied by Shiva, if someone daily cherishes your lotuslike feet; then, O lotus dwelling Lakshmi, how will he not become wealthy?

O auspicious Goddess, is there anything that I would not have, if I earnestly believe that your feet are the highest goal to be achieved? if someone bathes you, the playground of virtues, with shining golden waters of the ocean; will he not experience in heaven the happiness embracing the full bosom of Sachi?

O Goddess worshipped by the speech of Gods, I take refuge in your feet, which are also the abode of Shiva. He who sufficiently dedicates himself to your entire moonlike face, which is as bright as a host of spotless moons; will he be turned away by the moon-faced beauties of the city of Indra?

O Uma, you should be kindly disposed toward me because of your virtue of compassion toward the meek; you may choose to do whatever is appropriate, she removes the great pain.

Adi Shankara

Sing Sing Sing

We must talk in every telephone, get eaten off the web. We must rip out all the epilogues from the books that we have read; and to the face of every criminal strapped firmly to a chair, we must stare, we must stare, we must stare.

We must take all of the medicines too expensive now to sell, set fire to the preacher who is promising us hell; and to the ear of every anarchist who sleeps but never dreams, we must sing, we must sing, we must sing.

And it'll go like this:

While my mother waters plants
My father loads his gun
He says death will give us back to God
Just like the setting sun
Is returned to the lonesome ocean

We must blend into the choir, sing in static with the whole. We must memorize nine numbers and deny we have a soul; and from this endless race for property and privilege to be won, we must run, we must run, we must run!

We must hold up in the bunker where the dying soldier laughs. We must stare into a crystal ball and only see the past; and to the caverns of tomorrow with just our flashlights and our love, we must plunge, we must plunge, we must plunge!

And then we'll get down there - you know, way down in the very bottom - and we'll see it. Oh my God, we'll see it, we'll see it!

Oh! My morning's coming back. The whole world's waking up. All the city buses swimming past. I'm happy - just because I found out I am really no one.

Conor Mullen Oberst

Dive in

I saw a man on the side of the road with a sign that read 'will work for food'. I tried to look busy, until the light turned green. I saw a bear on TV and his friends were all drowning because their homes were turning to water. A strange kind of sad big old bear surely would happily eat me. He'd tear me to pieces, that bear.

Tell me everything will be "OK" if I just stay on my knees and keep praying; believing in something. Tell me everything is all taken care of by those qualified to take care of it all.

One day, do you think we'll wake up in a world on it's way to getting better? and if so, can you tell me how?

I have been thinking that lately the blood is increasing. The tourniquets not keeping hold, in spite of our twisting. Though we would like to believe we are we are not in control. Though we would love to believe.

Wake up sleepy head - I think the suns a little brighter today. Smile and watch the icicles melt away and see the water rising. Summers here to stay and all those summer games will last forever. Go down to the shore, kick off your shoes, dive into the empty ocean.

Dave Matthews

The rape of Lady Justice

Running down the street with a gun in her hand, shooting in the air, she is followed everywhere. People try to kill her every day, though I don´t know why. Once, we were free but after years of social outrage there are times I want to cry.

There are times I want to die. Taking over buildings doesn´t proof a thing for the cause that you know you are fighting for but you will see, in future years, as people understand there´s a time to realize. There´s a time to open eyes.

Magnús Þór Sigmundsson

Suo Gân

Huna blentyn yn fy mynwes Clyd a chynnes ydyw hon; Breichiau mam sy'n dynn amdanat, Cariad mam sy dan fy mron; Ni cha' dim amharu'th gyntun, Ni wna undyn â thi gam; Huna'n dawel, annwyl blentyn, Huna'n fwyn ar fron dy fam.

Huna'n dawel, heno, huna, Huna'n fwyn, y tlws ei lun; Pam yr wyt yn awr yn gwenu, Gwenu'n dirion yn dy hun? Ai angylion fry sy'n gwenu, Arnat ti yn gwenu'n llon, Tithau'n gwenu'n ôl dan huno, Huno'n dawel ar fy mron?

Paid ag ofni, dim ond deilen Gura, gura ar y ddôr; Paid ag ofni, ton fach unig Sua, sua ar lan y môr; Huna blentyn, nid oes yma Ddim i roddi iti fraw; Gwena'n dawel yn fy mynwes Ar yr engyl gwynion draw.

Anonymous

For whom the bell tolls

Make his fight on the hill in the early day. Constant chill deep inside, shouting gun, on they run through the endless gray. On they fight, for they are right, yes, but who's to say?

For a hill, men would kill. Why? They do not know. Stiffend wounds test their pride. Men of five, still alive, through the raging glow: gone insane from the pain that they surely know.

For whom the bell tolls time marches on for whom the bell tolls.

Take a look to the sky just before you die. It's the last time you will. Blackened roar, massive roar, fills the crumbling sky. Shattered goal fills his soul with a ruthless cry. Stranger now are his eyes to this mystery. He hears the silence so loud.

Crack of dawn.  All is gone except the will to be. Now they see what will be. Blinded eyes to see.

Metallica

The Future

Give me back my broken night, my mirrored room, my secret life. It's lonely here - there's no one left to torture. Give me absolute control over every living soul and lie beside me, baby, that's an order!

Give me crack and anal sex. Take the only tree that's left and stuff it up the hole in your culture. Give me back the Berlin wall. Give me Stalin and St Paul. I've seen the future, brother - it is murder.

Things are going to slide, slide in all directions. It won't be nothing. Nothing you can measure anymore. The blizzard of the world has crossed the threshold and it has overturned the order of the soul.

When they said "REPENT! REPENT!" I wonder what they meant?

You don't know me from the wind. You never will, you never did. I'm the little jew who wrote the Bible. I've seen the nations rise and fall. I've heard their stories - heard them all - but love's the only engine of survival.

Your servant here, he has been told to say it clear, to say it cold: It's over, it ain't going any further. And now the wheels of heaven stop you feel the devil's riding crop. Get ready for the future - it is murder! Things are going to slide.

There'll be the breaking of the ancient western code. Your private life will suddenly explode. There'll be phantoms. There'll be fires on the road and the white man dancing. You'll see a woman hanging upside down, her features covered by her fallen gown. And all the lousy little poets coming round trying to sound like Charlie Manson and the white man dancing.

Give me back the Berlin wall. Give me Stalin and St Paul. Give me Christ or give me Hiroshima. Destroy another fetus now! We don't like children anyhow. I've seen the future, baby and it is murder.

Things are going to slide when they said "REPENT! REPENT!

Leonard Cohen

Imagine

Imagine there's no Heaven. It's easy if you try. No hell below us; above us only sky. Imagine all the people living for today.

Imagine there's no countries. It isn't hard to do. Nothing to kill or die for and no religion too. Imagine all the people living life in peace.

Imagine no possessions. I wonder if you can. No need for greed or hunger; a brotherhood of man. Imagine all the people sharing all the world.

You may say that I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us and the world will be as one.

John Lennon

Chocolate Jesus: the immaculate confection

I don't go to church on Sunday. I don't get on my knees to pray. I don't memorize the books of the Bible. I got my own special way. I know Jesus loves me; maybe just a little bit more. I fall down on my knees every Sunday at Zerelda Lee's candy store. Well, it's got to be a chocolate Jesus to make me feel good inside. It's got to be a chocolate Jesus to keep me satisfied.

Well, I don't want no Abba Zabba. I don't want no Almond Joy. There ain't nothing better suitable for this boy. Well, it's the only thing that can pick me up. Better than a cup of gold. See, only a chocolate Jesus can satisfy my soul.

When the weather gets rough and it's whiskey in the shade, it's best to wrap your savior up in cellophane. He flows like the big muddy, but that's ok - pour him over ice cream for a nice parfait.

Tom Waits