1. |
Chasing A Song
04:29
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Yes sir that’s correct, just two years of college
I guess I never quite found what I was looking for
Who knows, maybe things would’ve turned out better
I got by loading trucks and sweeping floors
That’s right, it says three jobs in just nine months
And ‘though I’m never one to stick around too long
Most of my former employers will vouch for my work ethic
Then they’ll tell you I resigned ‘cause I was chasing a song
Chasing a song ain’t for the choosing
You chase the song because it first chased you
I agree, sir, as a white working class male
I’ve had more than my fair share of chances to get things right
But the muse can be illusive and whenever it shows up
I drop what I’m doing and I don’t let it out of sight
Ah here it comes, you tell me that you play guitar too
And that you wanted to be a rock star when you were young
And you’re just glad that somebody talked some sense into you
Respectfully, I’d say that’s not the same as chasing a song
Chasing a song ain’t for the choosing
You chase the song because it first chased you
Thanks for your time and I hope that I’m still in the running
For your car wash technician position, I guess I’ll be going
You’ve got my number if you have any other questions
In the mean time I’ll be busy chasing a song
Chasing a song ain’t for the choosing
You chase the song because it first chased you
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2. |
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I get an early start from the sirens I still haven’t learned to sleep through
And I walk down to the corner for an intravenous caffeine drip
Looking through display windows and all of those retail shops
mesmerized by the wrestling textures I can almost grip
A schizophrenic’s screaming at the passing bicycle wheels
Maybe I feel a little bit of what he feels
Like I didn’t ask for this beautiful world, I’m just trying to deal
Where there’s either no such thing as ordinary or everything is
With the smoke and the sugar and the sewer drifting through the air
I’m nauseous but I’m hungry and I’m keenly alive
There was never a better place to be than right here
The immigrants are selling umbrellas and selfie sticks
Maybe I feel what they feel just a little bit
Like I didn’t ask for this beautiful world, I am a stranger in it
Who, Well I never really knew
I just woke up one day and the clock hands started to move
It was all black, I’m not saying change it back
But I didn’t ask for this beautiful world so cut me some slack
Only a taxi, a bus, a train, and a plane ride away
To a conversation with a lonely cat and a glass of wine
Maybe it’s the jet lag but I’m feeling philosophical tonight
I didn’t ask for this beautiful world but I’m glad that it’s mine
We didn’t ask for this beautiful world but it’s ours for a time
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3. |
Whale Watchers
03:18
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In a rainstorm on a bluff
She becomes sixteen
She can’t believe how this town’s grown
She complains about the rich folks
Boats circle in the distance
It can only mean one thing
She sees a splash, her eyes light up and she’s gone
And I’m goin’ after her
Chasing to the lighthouse like kids
Whale watchers
She talks dorsal fin notches
And ponders over pods
The way she turns from a woman to a girl
I never want it to stop
I say I wish they’d come in closer
They’re hard to see this far away
She gazes below to the waves and she’s gone
And I’m goin’ after her
Tracin’ ‘cross Lime Kiln, she and I
Whale watchers
If I ever get rich
I’m gonna build her a glass house by the water
And every time the whales go by
She’ll light up and so will I
She’ll be gone
And I’m goin’ after her
Fingers crossed we see a breach
Whale watchers
She and I and she and I
A couple of whale watchers
In a rainstorm on a bluff
She becomes sixteen
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4. |
Hello Fellow Traveler
04:42
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Hello fellow traveler, young and eyes full of fire
You remind me of what it was like to feel so alive
What you lack in experience, you make up for with hunger
Whatever wisdom I have is yours without charge if you want it
But if you’re anything like me when I was like you
You’ll insist on carving a path you’re convinced your path is brand new
And if the lesson is still the same price
When it’s finished the fire in your eyes won’t burn quite as bright
But you’ll be alright
Hello fellow traveler, smack dab in the center
Of when you were born and when death will most likely occur
By now you’re familiar with your limitations
Sometimes you’d like to throw in the towel and just accept your station
But at night when you lay down, is it just me
Or does a voice turn on in your brain that won’t let you sleep
And does it tell you what you already knew
That it won’t allow you to throw in the towel even if you want to
I guess we know what we have to do
Travel on travel on
Hello fellow traveler, old and approaching the end
I’ve so many questions I worry the answers will never sink in
Like have you loved too little, have you lived enough
Do you feel like you’ve made a difference, does it even matter that much
And as you face the unknown have you any regrets
Could you have done more, do you feel like you’ve done your best
Have you any fears left or do they die out with age
Peace be with you as you live out the rest of your days
And goodbye fellow traveler
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5. |
Resistance
02:45
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I believe in peaceful protest, I support equality
When I witness such a thing I feel a stir
I’ve been told about Ohm’s law, of voltage and of currents
I’m amazed at how a microwave works
My psychiatrist is helping me uncover repressed thoughts
To force the unresolved to consciousness
I have a layman’s grasp on different types of opposition
But one that I can’t seem to digest
Is the resistance that the universe bestows
Constant inconveniences to keep me on my toes
Resistance of the supernatural kind
And I wonder what it is that I’ve done wrong
My morning coffee grounds are strewn about the kitchen floor
The well-oiled handle never fails to stick
There’s a sputter in the engine ‘though it’s recently been tuned
The radio just up and quits
I’ve got a wine stain on my dress shirt, the one I bought last week
The Tide stick melted in the center console
And every light at every intersection turns red
I run just one and see a state patrol
Resistance that the universe hands out
Never ending roadblocks to fill me up with doubt
Resistance of the supernatural kind
And I wonder what it is that I’ve done wrong
Sabotage, guerrilla warfare,and the stock exchange
Resistances with reason, cause, effect and change
But resistance that the universe unlocks
Proverbial punches to take me down a notch
Resistance of the supernatural kind
I wonder what it is that I’ve done wrong
I don’t know what it is that I’ve done wrong
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6. |
Anywhere But Here
04:01
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Lately all the customers have the lottery bug
Since that lady got lucky on a scratch-off last month
I ring ‘em up and wish ‘em well
And go back to mopping the aisles
As I work, I imagine how it’d feel to win
I wouldn’t make a scene when I told Marge that I quit
This place is punishment enough
There’d be no need to get her riled
But I’d say goodbye to my mother and that’s it
Book a flight to somewhere I’ve never been
Anywhere but here
I’m sobered by the buzzer, fill her up on eight
A quick-pick ticket and a can of Skoal Straight
Collecting someone’s money
For someone else I’ll never know
The kid who graduated first in my class
Works at an AutoZone near the overpass
He comes into the station sometimes
For a paper and smokes
It seems like some folks have the tools and never use ‘em
While others have the dreams and they just lose ‘em
When they don’t get anywhere but here
The radio says the Chinese New Year’s coming on
Something snaps inside of me, I’ve wasted time for too long
No one hitchhikes anymore, I’m just walking with my thumb in the air
Anywhere, anywhere, anywhere but here
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7. |
I Never Know A Heartache
03:13
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I can spot a con man before he even gets through the door
He wears a big grin and his alligator shoes make marks on the floor
And I can smell a weasel or a rat almost every time
It’s a mixture of anxiety, cheap cologne and wine
And I get a feeling sometimes that you might call clairvoyance or prophesy
But no matter how hard I try there’s one thing that always gets the best of me
I never know a heartache, I never know a heartache, I never know a heartache
’til it’s too late
I can hear a voice, a whisper or a shout
I can repeat back the words and I know what she’s talking about
I know the taste of her skin, each and every kiss
Like the way it must taste to be granted your every wish
When we touch I believe she feels about me the same way I do about her
I only know to trust my senses but if there’s one thing I’ve learned
I never know a heartache, I never know a heartache, I never know a heartache
I never know a heartache, I never know a heartache, I never know a heartache
’til it’s too late
And it’s got me searching for things that aren’t there
Going out of my mind
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8. |
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Let me just make this disclaimer
If it all comes down to behavior
There’s no need to drag this thing out any longer
But if it’s about love and forgiveness
We might just still be in business
And if there’s room for yet another favor
A hymn instead of a homily
A simple broken melody
No agendas or pretending
My attention span’s not what it used to be
A hymn instead of a homily
I used to think as I got older
I’d understand life a little better
Turns out I have more questions now than ever
But the scrap of faith that keeps me knocking
Ain’t attached to any doctrine
But harmonizing “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior”
A hymn instead of a homily
A simple broken melody
No agendas or pretending
My attention span’s not what it used to be
A hymn instead of a homily
While in the middle of a sermon
I begin to doubt the air I breathe
Words just never seem so right
As when I hear a congregation sing
A little off key
A hymn instead of a homily
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9. |
Keeping Up Appearances
03:51
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I’ve been having a hard time lately trying to find my place
Every time I leave the house I feel like I’m in outer space
I look around and all I see are spray-painted smiles on walls
I’m sick to death of all the social cues, my face is about to fall off
From keeping up appearances
The truth is I prefer to be alone
Keeping up appearances
If you need me leave a message on my phone
I don’t remember a ballot on the issue down at the election hall
Or maybe it was one of those fine-print deals where they trick you into passing the law
Either way it’s a contagious disease, no one says what they mean anymore
I caught myself saying yes to a vacuum cleaner salesman who came to the door
I was keeping up appearances
And I just bought a brand new vacuum last year
But keeping up appearances
Somebody please get me out of here
I saw a snowflake pure and naked, it was a masterpiece
It melted in a pile of caked on makeup as it landed on a lady’s cheek
What an awful way to leave this world
On someone keeping up appearances
I’m not trying to make any enemies
But keeping up appearances
I just wish that things were what they seemed
Instead of these appearances
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10. |
When Enough Is Enough
03:59
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5:30 in the morning awake and sore
In a navy blue collar work suit like my grandpa wore
For job number three and I’m feeling rough
I guess I never have known when enough is enough
I’ve been sizing up big dreams all my life
Putting in hours without any end in sight
Anyone with a little sense would wrap it up
But I never have known when enough is enough
When it’s worthwhile forget the cost
Follow it right off the side of a mountain and brush it off
Get up and brush it off
With love it’s the same thing, no exceptions
Each time I stayed on past the date of expiration
I’ve only gotten worse ‘cause this time I’m not giving up
I never have known when enough is enough
When it’s worthwhile forget the cost
Follow it right off the side of a mountain and brush it off
5:30 in the morning awake and sore
In a navy blue collar work suit like my grandpa wore
For job number three and I’m feeling rough
I never have known when enough is enough
I guess I never will know when enough is enough
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11. |
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Who gets the flu in August
Who’s even heard of such a thing
One hundred degrees out and you’ve got the chills
Sipping on chicken broth, choking down pills
While others are slurping down slushies and licking ice-cream
You’re coughing and you’re wheezing asking
Who gets the flu in August
Who knew that fate could be so cruel
You should be swimming with all of your friends
Perfecting cannon balls in the deep end
There’s just one thing the flu’s good for and that’s missing school
But it’s still summer break for one more week
Who gets the flu in August
Of course it would have to be you
Who gets the flu in August
No doubt it would have to be you
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Adam Burrows Nashville, Tennessee
Adam Burrows has toured the United States, Canada, and Europe at the invitation of grateful audiences and other artists who admire his work. He has been selected for an official showcase at Folk Alliance International, recorded a Daytrotter session, played Music City Roots, and performed at numerous other well regarded listening rooms. ... more
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