^8 1/2 Avenue^
Other albums:
MN
Boy
the light in van hise
all songs copyright 1998
jake donze |
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DOWN THE SHORE
Down the shore to lift
our spirits, everybody goes
Have another one on me, my friends,
and drink a toast.
Down the shore to lift our spirits,
I know why we're here,
To get away and stay up late and to celebrate
this time of year.
Took a trip
to the east coast, making plans,
but I wasn't sure exactly what to do
There are so many tons of places
everywhere out there
I'd never ever, never ever, never ever been to.
A woman out there said Follow me,
We'll go to a place down by the sea,
Where the sand's as soft as a downy bed,
I asked her where we're going, and she said
Down the shore
to lift our spirits, everybody goes
Have another one on me, my friends,
and drink a toast.
Down the shore to lift our spirits,
I know why we're here,
To get away and stay up late and to celebrate
this time of year.
We took off
in her jeep top-down flat-out
I felt like we were headed for disaster
All I heard her say is that we're really in a hurry,
So now we're gonna go, we're gonna go a little faster.
But don't you worry, it'll all be fine,
We'll get there soon and you can spend your time
On the beach in the sand in the water in the sun
With a drink in your hand and a pocketful of fun,
Watching everybody dance, watching everybody sing,
Getting everybody's glance, getting all those things.
Doing what you want to do
and being who you want to be
And feeling what you're wanting to
and seeing who you want to see.
Down the shore
to lift our spirits, everybody goes
Have another one on me, my friends,
and drink a toast.
Down the shore to lift our spirits,
I know why we're here,
To get away and stay up late and to celebrate
this time of year.
From the stare-at-me
sunlight to care-free nightlife,
Everything about it was a weekend to remember,
I may be going home
but now I know that when it's snowing
There's a memory inside of me
to help me in December.
Jersey breeze, bright lights,
staying cool on a hot summer's night.
Down the shore
to lift our spirits, everybody goes
Have another one on me, my friends,
and drink a toast.
Down the shore to lift our spirits,
I know why we're here,
To get away and stay up late and to celebrate
this time of year.
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
THE LONG WALK HOME
It's a long walk home
when you're all alone
Look up at the sky and think about the days gone by
We had a long
talk tonight,
And a drawn out goodnight
I wonder what to say as I'm thinking please don't turn away
Memories fall
like rain and settle on my mind
Summer drops once warm now fall far behind
Leaves are green today, but I know that soon they fall away
We'll take
a long time to heal with memories always kicking at our heels,
Questions from the past echo behind me,
It's hard to not look back.
Memories fall
like rain and settle on my mind
Summer drops once warm now fall far behind
Leaves are green today, but I know that soon they fall away
Falling down,
falling, falling down
The memories slow me down
It's a long
walk home when you're all alone
Look up at the sky and think about the days gone by
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
SOMEDAY
I've been throwing questions
in the air
Will I ever find you or will you find me
And what will be the color of your hair
Do you blush at compliments, when will I be content
And see your eyes
And what will they disguise
Will we just know or will we find out as we go
I know you'll take my breath away.
Promise to meet me someday.
Are there certain
stories that make you cry
Do you like to watch old black and whites or go on walks at midnight
Will we stay up late and watch the sky
Find a falling stare to share
Would you like to dance up there
With me for a while spinning across the miles
Holding on to our own sweet Avalon
Take on the world come what may
Promise to meet me someday.
Will it hit
me like a breeze or a hurricane
Have we passed along the street, but didn't get the chance to
meet
When will I find out your name
Is it just me or do you think about these questions, too
Somewhere, somehow
I wonder what you're doing now
When will I find this person on my mind.
'Cause then I'll fall in love to stay
Promise to meet me
Promise to meet me
Promise to meet me
Someday
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
GUIDEBOOKS TO LOVE
I was having women troubles
What else is new
I couldn't find the answers
Couldn't get a clue
And then it hit me in the grocery store line
All the answers that I yearned for were only $3.99
All I need
to know I read in Cosmo
Secrets women tell were in Mademoiselle
From Redbook, Glamour, Shape to Self
The answers are upon the shelf,
They're month to month guidebooks to love.
I was thinking
about my diet
Is it fit or fat
And these new exercises
Will they make my tummy flat
And tell me how can I get perfect skin
Well if you really want to know
I know right where to begin
The smell of
perfume fills the room
As you leaf through the pages
From hats to swimwear, it's all in there
Defining love in seven stages
Every one has millions of words to live by
Yet month after month, they make my life so cut and dry.
While I was
paging through,
I found a quiz
I answered thirty questions
And found out how my love life is
And I tell you, from what I could discern
As far as knowing women
I've got an awful lot to learn.
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
OUT
OF THE BLUE
I was lying in my bed
one Saturday morn,
The pages of my love life were tattered and torn
I've heard seek not and ye shall find,
So I stopped looking to heal my mind,
And then the phone rang and out of the blue came you.
I pinched myself
to see if it was a dream
But it was real no matter what it may have seemed
The sun was shining the sky was bright
I opened the blinds and in poured the light
And riding a sunbeam, out of the blue came you
I met you so
recently I didn't think I'd ever see
The day that I would get to be with you
I didn't think you knew my name, of course I'm not one to complain
About the fact you came into my view
My steps were
quick as I approached our meeting place
The sky had cleared so the sun could see your face
I walked on air right into town
You called my name, I turned around
And standing there, out of the blue came you.
A talk along
with coffee
A walk along the lake
Sunshine a song and springtime
Flowers to greet you when you wake.
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
SHAKING HANDS WITH THE SKY
An extraordinary man
born ahead of his time in 1915,
Greeting life's troubles with an optimism like you've never seen.
Growing up so quickly in difficult times
Facing every challenge, saving every dime
Marrying his best friend after chasing for so long
Raising up a family whose roots are deep and strong.
Your voice
still carries from afar
Your joys outnumber all the stars
You'd want us to smile and not to cry
You taught me to shake hands with the sky
Never giving
up, always staying on his feet
Working with his wife, side by side, to make ends meet
Bringing up their children and teaching them the rules
Giving them their freedom, send them off to school
Welcoming their loved ones with loving open arms
Always filled with pleasure and a simple kind of charm
Your voice
still carries from afar
Your joys outnumber all the stars
You'd want us to smile and not to cry
You taught me to shake hands with the sky
Tell me what
it's like out there
I know you we care
Thanks for all you shared
The wind is your whisper in the air
Though you've
away our conversations thrive
An inspirations always, your dreams are still alive
Teaching us life lessons in every single word
Making sure they listen, making sure we're heard
Your memory will live always in every one you've known
We all but hope to follow in the footsteps that you've shown
Your voice
still carries from afar
Your joys outnumber all the stars
You'd want us to smile and not to cry
You taught me to shake hands with the sky
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
WHEN I CLOSE MY EYES
I know it's early; no,
you didn't wake me,
Even if you did I wouldn't mind
If you had to guess, how long do you think it would take me,
To get to your end of the line
It's funny when we talk like this it's like you're just across
town
Even though you're an ocean away, but…
When I close
my eyes
I see what my sight denies me
The details of your face fall gently into place
When I close my eyes
SO, what sights
have you seen since we talked before,
You've seen so much in so little time.
Everywhere you look are new places to explore,
You'll have to show me around sometime.
Things here are going well, work is going fine,
It's really good to hear your voice, for…
When I close
my eyes
I see what my sight denies me
The details of your face fall gently into place
When I close my eyes
And oh, I know
I'll see you soon
Did you happen to get a chance to look at the moon
Never hesitate to call me in the morning,
Which is your afternoon
Everyone back
home says hi
I'll tell them you say hello
I guess about this time we need to start saying goodbye
We're not good at it, I know
But I'll talk to you soon again, call when you get the chance
In the meantime, I'll see you in my dreams because…
When I close
my eyes
I see what my sight denies me
The details of your face fall gently into place
When I close my eyes
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
SOMEWHERE GREEN AND PEACEFUL
I've heard of scores
of wars on foreign shores
What's more, there's trouble in my home town
It kinda gets you down
A helpless
plea from refugees on boats at sea
On the TV news at night
People scared to turn out the light
Though every
day a mountain tumbles
Somewhere in this place there's humble you
I know you
and you can see a different world out there
Somewhere where it's green and peaceful
Lost in defeat,
people on the street
Discreetly ask you for a dime
No one seems to have the time
Some work forty
hours or more, what for
They're not quite sure why they're there
Nobody seems to care
And in this
raining world of tears
You can find the words to calm my fears
I know you
and you can see a different world out there
Somewhere where it's green and peaceful
Often times
it's dark and cold
People young forced to grow old
There's still a sparkle in your eye
You can help this world to fly
I know you
and you can see a different world out there
Somewhere where it's green and peaceful
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
WOMEN
DATE JERKS
When she first walked
into the room
I caught a hint of her perfume
But she was walking with this guy
Who couldn't look her in the eye
Oh, tell me
why she's with this guy who treats her like he might forget her
name
Yet there she stands holding his hand while he makes plans to
leave her in the rain
It all sounds insane
But there are
always complications
When analyzing dating situations
The reason for it, we don't know, but studies always show
That women date jerks
That's just the way it works
And so many nice guys just keep getting passed by
'cause women date jerks
and that's just the way it works
Oh look, those
two are in a fight
I bet this happens every night
How did they ever last this long
When everything just seems to wrong
If his advances
up his chances then romance is different than before
No one would say that they're okay, but still they stay together
through their war
It's the same old story…
But there are
always complications
When analyzing dating situations
The reason for it, we don't know, but studies always show
That women date jerks
That's just the way it works
And so many nice guys just keep getting passed by
'cause women date jerks
and that's just the way it works
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
IF I COULD SAY IT LIKE SHAKESPEARE
If I could say it like
Shakespeare
I would put it into verse and speak like Hamlet or King Lear
But my inkwell has run dry and my thoughts are buried deep
Were we meant to be or not to be
If I could
paint it like Monet
I would paint you on a bright and clear, warm summer's day
But the colors of my palette have all begun to bleed
Do I get clearer the further you get from me
Paint you a
picture, I'd write it on the wall
Put it up in lights for all to see
I'd make you a mixture of anything at all
Whatever it takes to get you to see me
If I could
figure it out like Einstein
I would think of an equation showing how you could be mine
But I've never been good at math, and I doubt that I'll learn
now
I know the answer I'm trying to find but I'm not sure how
Paint you a
picture, I'd write it on the wall
Put it up in lights for all to see
I'd make you a mixture of anything at all
Whatever it takes to get you to see me
Well, I don't
have it written down in a play
And any pictures that I've painted should not see the light of
day
Now I guess I could do some math, but it would take me way too
long
All I have to give is this little song
Paint you a
picture, I'd write it on the wall
Put it up in lights for all to see
I'd make you a mixture of anything at all
Whatever it takes to get you to see me
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
THE
WINDOW (ANGEL IN THE SNOW)
It was early evening,
I was looking out the window of a café
I sipped my coffee while I watched the snow fall down just a
few feet away
Like peering at a portrait through a frame
Where everybody in it looks the same
Staring out at all of the faces that have no names
I see an angel
in the snow
When the nighttime's falling slowly
Just here to watch the show
Through the window
It grew dark
outside and soon I could see my reflection
Now the café and the snowfall were mixed from my direction
Then suddenly someone returned my stare
A presence to which nothing could compare
Was she on the outside or the inside, was she really there
I see an angel
in the snow
When the nighttime's falling slowly
Sitting with my cup of joe
By the window
Was she on
the outside looking in or was she next to me
I didn't look, I didn't dare to turn around,
I was afraid of what I'd see…
She took off
her scarf and set it down beside mine on the window sill
We both sat for a while locked in our separate silences quiet
and still
We saw each other's faces in the glass
Without a word we talked about the past
And answered all of the questions we never asked.
I see an angel
in the show
When the nighttime's falling slowly
We're in no rush to go
At the window
I see an angel
in the snow
When the nighttime's falling slowly
It's always nice to know
She's in the window
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
ALL
THE WORLD'S A STAGE
I've heard that life
dictates art
But no one's written down my part,
so I'll just find my own way around
Until someday someone writes it down
Getting ready
for the day
Looking for some motivation
House lights are down, it has begun
Be in the moment in those moments in the sun
We've been
handed a blank page
And asked to sell our soul
If all the world's a stage
I want a bigger role
In life you're
constantly off book
No one to tell you where to look
Sometimes you'll want to call for line
But take your chances, and I'll take… I'll take mine
We've been
handed a blank page
And asked to sell our soul
If all the world's a stage
I want a bigger role
No breaks if
your awake so don't be making up a reason or rhyme
History and tragedy and comedy are all of the time
Impromptu scripts fall from our lips, the never-ending run
Art and life are intertwined and redefined as one
We've been
handed a blank page
And asked to sell our soul
If all the world's a stage
I want a bigger role
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
LAUNDRY
ROOM BLUES
I'm standing there with
messed up hair
In my last pair of underwear, and they're briefs
You see, I never wear briefs
I'm naked down to my shoes
I got them laundry room blues
Didn't have
time to get any dimes
All I have are bills
and no one that works here has bothered to fill the change machine
I know my socks went in in twos
I got them laundry room blues
Now maybe I
should think some more
But I swear those pants weren't pink before
So I'll put in another load
Even though this dryer is gonna explode
There it goes
One dryer works,
though it wiggles and jerks
But now it's full of somebody else's who forgot to pull
Out their dry clothes
So I replaced them with my clothes
Threw 'em on
the floor, who's that at the door
If that's the guy, I think I should start by saying goodbye to
my life here
He must not believe in light beer
I'm sorry man,
please understand
It's not my fault, all of your clothes just seemed to fall out
of the dryer
He didn't appreciate a liar
I'm at the
end of my fuse
I got them laundry room
Piling up since a year ago June
Man, I want out of these fruit of the loom
Blues
|
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|
STORM
ACROSS THE BAY
Upon a stone beside
a lake
A threadbare notebook opened wide
I sit alone and try to make
Some sense of what I feel inside
This horizon
holds my dreams
In its ever-distant hand
But the size of the space between
Seems so very far to span
Don't you worry,
I'll be all right
Despite the thunder in the bay
When clouds roll in, the stars get dim
Sometimes a storm will light the way
A busy mind,
I think too much
About the things I can't control
So many times I've only touched
The things I've most wanted to hold
Don't you worry,
I'll be all right
Despite the thunder in the bay
When clouds roll in, the stars get dim
Sometimes a storm will light the way
Droplets of
rain touch the paper
As I'm writing down these lines
I can't explain mother nature
But I've learned to read her signs
Don't you worry,
I'll be all right
Despite the thunder in the bay
When clouds roll in, the stars get dim
Sometimes a storm will light the way |
Track listing:
1. Down the shore
2. The long walk home
3. Someday
4. Guidebooks
to love
5. Out of the blue
6. Shaking hands with the sky
7. When I close my eyes
8. Somewhere green and peaceful
9. Women date jerks
10. If I could say it like Shakespeare
11. The window
12.
All the
world's a stage
13. Laundry
room blues
14. Storm
across the bay
^top^ |
|