David Van Cortlandt Crosby (born August 14, 1941) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of three bands: The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash (who are sometimes joined by Neil Young), and CPR. Crosby has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice: once for his work in The Byrds and once for his work with CSN.
David Crosby was born in Los Angeles, California. His parents were Aliph Van Cortlandt Whitehead and Floyd Crosby, an Academy Award winning cinematographer. He is also the younger brother of musician Ethan Crosby. Growing up in California, he attended several schools, including the University Elementary School in Los Angeles, the Crane Country Day School in Montecito, and Laguna Blanca School in Santa Barbara for the rest of his elementary school and junior high. At Crane, he starred in HMS Pinafore and other musicals but was asked not to return due to lack of academic progress. He graduated from the Cate School in Carpinteria, completing his studies by correspondence. In 1960, his parents divorced, and his father was remarried to Betty Christie Crosby.
by David Crosby
You know what I miss
Small things, like
textures and flavors
How close up everything
used to feel
Till this distance came
in our lives... distance
came in our lives
It always happens
when you're trying to
get next to someone
When you want to reach
their heart.
You cannot get close
enough... to start
Talking.
Talking straight to
one another.
Do you remember
The things you used
to write on the dashboard
in the dust?
And the way we never, never
we never thought
this car would rust
Till this distance
came in our lives.
Distance came in our lives.
It always happens
when you're trying
to get next to someone
When you want to reach
her heart.
You cannot get close, close,
close enough to start
Talking... talking straight
to one another
Talking and talking and talking
Across these distances
in our lives.
distances in our lives
distances in our lives.
(c) 1986 Guerilla Music Inc. (BMI)
Acoustic guitar: David Crosby
Electric guitar: Dan Kortchmar
Bass: George Perry
Electric piano: Kenny Kirkland
Electric piano: Graham Nash
Drums: Joe Vitale
I have wasted ten years in a [unverified] blind-fold
Ten-fold more than I've invested now in sight
I have traveled beveled mirrors in a fly crawl
Losing the reflection of a fight
But like a compass seeking North
There lives in me a still sure spirit part
Clouds of doubt are cut asunder
By the lightning and the thunder
Shining from the compass of my heart
I have flown the frantic flight of the bat-wing
And only known the dark because of that
I have seized death's door-handle
Like a fish out of the water
Waiting, waiting for the mercy of the cat
But like a compass seeking North
There lives in me a still sure spirit part
Clouds of doubt are cut asunder
By the lightning and the thunder
Intro. (Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar and Electric Piano)
If I had ever been here before I would pro'bly know just what to do
Hey, don't you?
If I had ever been here before on another time around the wheel I would pro'bly know just how to deal
With all of you
And I feel like I've been here before
Feel like I've been here before
And you know it does make me wonder
What's going on under the ground
Do you know?
Don't you wonder?
What's going on
Down under you
Na, na, na ...
Instrumental (Bass + Harmonica + Electric Piano + Electric Guitar)
We have all been here before
We have all been here before
We have all been here before
We have all been here before
Ending (Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar and Organ)
You want to know
How it will be
Me and him
Or you and me
You both stand there your long hair flowin'
Eyes alive your mind still growin'
Sayin' to me, "What can we do now that we both love you?"
I love you too
I don't really see why can't we go on as three
You are afraid
Embarrassed too
No one has ever said such a
Thing to you
Your mother's ghost stands at your shoulder
Face like ice a little bit colder
Sayin' to you, "You can not do that, it breaks all the rules
You learned in school"
I don't really see
Why can't we go on as three
We love each other
It's plain to see
There's just one answer
That comes to me
Sister lovers water brothers
And in time maybe others
So you see what we can do is to try something new
If you're crazy too
I don't really see
If you smile at me you know I will understand
'Cause that is something everybody
Everywhere does in the same language
Well I can see by your coat my friend
That you're from the other side
There's just one thing I got to know
Can you tell me please who won?
You must try some of my purple berries
I been eating them for six or seven weeks now
Haven't got sick once
Probably keep us both alive, yeah
Wooden ships on the water very free and easy
You know the way it's supposed to be
Silver people on the shoreline leave us be
Very free and easy
Sail away where the mornin' sun goes high
Sail away where the wind blows sweet, young birds fly
Take a sister by her hand
Lead her far from this barren land
Horror grips us as we watch you die
All we can do is echo your anguished cry
Stare as all your human feelings die
We are leaving you don't need us
Go and take a sister by her hand
Lead her far from this foreign land
Somewhere where we might laugh again
We are leaving you don't need us
No, you don't need us
Sailing ships on the water very free and easy
Easy you know the way it's supposed to be
Silver people on the shoreline leave us be
Very free and gone
No, no, no
No, no, no
No, no, no
Ride the music
Go ride the music
Go ride the music
Go ride the music
Go ride the music
Go ride the music
Waking stream of consciousness
On a sleeping street of dream
Thoughts like scattered leaves
Slowed in mid fall into the streams
Of fast running rivers of choice and chance
And time stops here on the delta
While they dance, while they dance
I love the child who steers this riverboat
But lately he's crazy for the deep
And the river seems dreamlike in the daytime
And someone keeps thinking in my sleep
Of fast running rivers of choice and chance
And time stops here on the delta
While they dance, while they dance
While they dance, while they dance
While they dance, while they dance
I wonder who they are
The men who really run this land
And I wonder why they run it
With such a thoughtless hand
What are their names
And on what streets do they live?
I'd like to ride right over
This afternoon and give
Them a piece of my mind
About peace for mankind
Peace is not an awful lot
It's hard enough, I know
To find the strength to go
Back to where it all began
It's hard enough to gain
Any traction in the rain
You know it's hard for me to understand
Hard to find a way
To get through another city day
Without thinking about
Gettin' out
Now the strangest thing I've seen
Was a T-shirt turning green
In envy of a turtle dove
The dove's lady was the cause
Or maybe it was the olive branch she held in her claws
Or maybe he could see they were in love
You know it's hard for me to find a way
To get through another city day
Without thinking about
You are walking, you've always been walking
Stumbling half blinded and dry as the wind
That strafes you and leaves you to lie in the sand
And the wall stretches endless beside you to nowhere
This wall that you've been trying to cross for years
This fence made of tears no one hears
You see a door, ah, such a great open door
You know that your eyes tellin' lies still you chance
A shambling run, a ridiculous dance
Like a scarecrow that's hung up to dry on a fence pole
And there's a place like vacuum waiting inside you
For you to get through to the blue
You scent the water, fresh green grass, food and water
Your breath is scraping your brain into dust
Your rusty old engine is ready to bust
You cannot believe it that they would not trust you
The door is wavering, is that your eyes?
I recall my so called misspent youth
It seems more worthwhile, every single day
Cruisin' Van Nuys and actin' so uncouth
All the joys of runnin' away
There was no speed limit on the Nevada state line
The air was red wine on those top down nights
Just you and me my old rollarskate
And the common sense to know our rights
Sweet old racin' car of mine
Roarin' down that broken line
I never been so much alive
Too fast for comfort, too low to fly
Too young to die
You say, a man can't love a material thing
With aluminum skin and a cast iron soul
But they never heard your engine sing
Ah, there's peace in losing control
Sticky fingers, turned up real loud
Ah, we were flirtin' with catastrophe
We were doin' everything that's not allowed
Life didn't come with a warranty for you and me
Sweet old racin' car of mine
Roarin' down that broken line
I never been so much alive
Too fast for comfort, too low to fly
Too young to die
There is peace in losing control
When I die I don't wanna go to Heaven
I just wanna drive my beautiful machine
Up north on some Sonoma country road
With Jimmy Dean and Steve McQueen
All the boys be singin', singin'
Sweet old racin' car of mine
Roarin' down that broken line
I never felt so much alive
Too fast for comfort, too low to fly
Too young to die
Just a little bit too young
You were dreamin' on a park bench
About a broad highway somewhere
When the music from the carillon
Seemed to hurl your heart out there
Past the scientific darkness
Past the fireflies that float
To an angel bending down
To wrap you in her warmest cloak
And you ask, "What am I not doing?"
She says, "Your voice cannot command"
She says, "In time you will move mountains
It will come through your hands"
Still you angle for an option
Still you argue for your cause
Like you wouldn't know a burning bush
Till it blew up in your face
We dream about the future
We memorize the past
When just a simple reaching out
Could build a bridge that lasts
And you ask, "What am I not doing?"
She says, "Your voice cannot command
In time you will move mountains
And it will come through your hands"
So whatever your hands find to do
You must do with all your heart
There are thoughts enough to
Blow men's minds and tear great worlds apart
There's a healing touch to find you
Out on that broad highway somewhere
Gonna lift you as high as music
Running through an angel's hair
And don't worry what you are not doing
'Cause your voice cannot command
And in time you will move mountains
And it will come through your hands
Well, I used to walk around with my eyes on fire
Well, I used to walk around with my eyes on fire
My nerves real close to my skin
Had a fist full of questions a brand on my cheek
And we would skate where the ice got thin
And the smoke blowin' down from a cabin on a hilltop
Smoke blowin' down in the street
Some kind of sweet smellin' mystical backdrop
To the story unfoldin' at my feet, my feet
There's an edge to the twist of an acrobat in the air
There's an edge to the twist of the knife
There they hard heart of darkness
Hovering there just around-the corner from life
I have no answers
I got no patented path to set you free
Besides I wouldn't know where you wanted to go
And it's probably not the same place as me
There's a thousand roads up this mountain
You can get lost in a minute if you try
And it's probably enough that I was laughin' today
Lookin' this close in your eye
I said, there was a thousand roads up this mountain
You can get lost if you try
It's probably enough that I was laughin' today
Lookin' this close in your eye
In your eye
In your eye
My eyes were full of morning
And my mouth was full of night
I was in a strangers room
And I couldn't find the light
I rose to use a different bathroom
Than the one before
And what it is I'm running from
Is what it is I'm running for
Where do I go from here?
Help me
I wish I could disappear and go away
From the knowing that you've known me far too long
When I find a different tune
I guess I'll sing a different song
Where do I go from here?
Help me
Wish I could disappear and go away from the morning
'Cos my eyes are full of flight
I am in a strangers room
Melody
You are my reason for being
In my life's coldest season
I keep on seeing you, melody
I am such a patchwork of a man
Out here trying to catch
Every whisper that I can
Of you, melody
Wander, you know you wander
Through my life, all the time
Follow, you know I'll follow
And when I do
Then my life starts to rhyme
Sometimes I lose it
I abuse it, and I fall
Into the worst damn places of all
Sometimes I even
Start to close my eyes
And then silence
Comes to claim me as its prize
Suddenly, suddenly nearly
A song rises up to fly
Oh melody, oh melody
Oh music, oh music of my life
I love you, I love you
It's been a long time comin'
Goin' to be a long time gone
And it appears to be a long
Appears to be a long
Appears to be a long time
Such a long, long time before the dawn, yeah
Turn, turn any corner
Turn and hear
What your friends and your neighbors might have to say, yeah
Something, something, something's goin' on around here
Surely, surely, surely will not stand the light of day
And it appears to be a long
Appears to be a long, yeah
Appears to be a long time
Such a long, long time before the dawn, yeah, yeah, yeah
Speak out, speak out against the madness, yes, yeah, yeah
All I'm sayin' is speak your mind
That is if you still can and you still have the guts to
Don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't
Try to get yourself elected, no, no
And if you do forsake this child you'd better cut your hair
It appears to be a long, yes it does now
Appears to be a long, yeah, yeah
Appears to be a long such a long, a long
Such a long, long time before the dawn
It's been a long time comin'
It'll be a long time gone
But you know, the darkest hour, yeah
It is always, just before your dawn, yes it is
And it appears to be a long, oh, oh
Appears to be a long, oh, oh, oh
Appears to be a long time
Such a long, long time
I thought I met a man who said
He knew a man who knew what was going on
I was mistaken, only another stranger that I knew
And I thought that I'd found the light
To guide me through my nights and all this darkness
I was mistaken, only reflections of a shadow that I saw
And I thought I've seen someone
Who seemed at last to know the truth
Look around again
It's the same old story
You see, it's got to be
It says right here on page 43
That you should grab a hold of it
Else you'll find it's passed you by
Rainbows all around
Can you find the silver and gold?
It'll make you old
The river can be hot or cold
And you should dive right into it
Else you'll find it's passed you by
Pass it round one more time
I think I'll have a swallow of wine
Life is fine
Even with the ups and downs
And you should have a sip of it
Everybody's sayin' that music is love
Everybody's sayin' it's, you know it is
Every one yes every one
Everybody's sayin' music, music is love
Everybody's sayin' that music is love, everybody's sayin' it's love
Everybody's sayin' that music is love, everybody's sayin' it's love
Everybody's sayin' that music is love, everybody's sayin' it's love
Everybody's sayin' that music is love, everybody's sayin' it's love
Everybody's sayin' that music is love, everybody's sayin' it's love
Everybody's sayin' that music is love
Everybody's sayin' that music is love, everybody's sayin' it's love
Put on your colors and run come see
Everybody's sayin' that music's for free
Take off your clothes and lie in the sun
Our lady of the harbor
Lady of the light
An immigrant like all
Who came before
She says, "Give me your homeless
Your landless, and your poor
Come see, what we believe
Behind this open door"
That all are created equal
And given half a chance
They can work out all their differences
Their distance in the dance
How many eyes
Through how many tears
Saw the Promised Land
When they saw you for how many years?
This country's got so big
We hardly know one another
It's hard to think someone you don't know
Could really be your brother
But wasn't that the idea
When we started out
In school that's what they said
The constitution was about
And many good men died
Maybe more next week
So, we could have the freedom
To believe and think and speak
And anyway sweet lady
I just wanted you to know
There's a lot of us out here
Who like to see your torch's glow
Wasn't that the idea
When we started out?
In school that's what they said
The constitution was about
Me and my good partners we were riding back to our camp
We were feeling very fine air was clear and slightly damp
We were riding back to have ourselves a party
To celebrate the robbing of the train
We were talking kind of low and lazy
About not having to go out soon again, oh yeah
You know we hadn't been back home two hours
We heard a hawk cry out in the night
And you know that's a signal from young Billy, who's our sentry
He's saying something here ain't exactly right, oh
So we quick grabbed some of our hardware
Stumbled out of our home
Two minutes flat we had found her an Indian girl all alone
And Eli said, "Let's take her back to the cabin"
I said, "You don't know she might be the law, yeah"
He said, smiling kind of nasty
"It ain't too damn likely she'll beat me to the draw", Oh yeah
We were walking back through the darkness
I heard the Duke, he's our dynamiter, say
He said, "What's your name, sweet little Indian girl?"
She said, "Raven" and she looked away
Right then I didn't trust her, no and I said so, oh no
Now, Eli, he's our fastest gunner
He's kind of mean and young from the South
He said, "Fat Albert, you're getting kind of old and weird now"
You'd better get your twelve gauge or shut your mouth and ass now?
And I [Incomprehensible]
Now Eli and the Duke they got down to it
They each wanted the Indian girl for their own
But when they finally got around to asking her
You know she said, ?She'd come to take young Billy home?
Eli said, ?He'd kill young Billy he'd kill the Duke
And probably me too, yeah?, the Indian girl said, "Go ahead now do it"
I said, "Stop it", and she bit my thumb nearly clean through
And when they finally started to break down the door
I smeared my face up with blood from my thumb, yeah
I laid down on the floor and played real good possum
You know I'm crazy but I ain't real dumb, oh no
Now I'm dying here in Albuquerque
I must be the sorriest sight you ever saw
You know the reason I'm the only man here to tell it
When I was a young man I found an old dream
Was as battered and worn a one as you have ever seen
But I made it some new wings and I painted a nose
And I wished so hard up in the air I rose, singing
Carry me, carry me, carry me above the world
Carry me, carry me, carry me
And I once loved a girl
She was younger than me
Her parents kept her locked up in their life
And she was crying at night
She was wishing she could be free
'Course mostly I remember her laughing
Standing there watching us play
For a while there, the music would take her away
And she'd be singing
Carry me, carry me, carry me above the world
Carry me, carry me, carry me above the world
And then there was my mother
She was lying in white sheets there and she was waiting to die
She said if you'd just reach underneath this bed
And untie these weights
I could surely fly
She's still smiling but she's tired
She'd like to hear that last bell ring
You know if she still could she would
Stand up, and she could sing, singing
Carry me, carry me, carry me above the world
Guinnevere, had green eyes
Like yours, mi'lady like yours
She'd walk down through the garden
In the morning after it rained
Peacocks wandered aimlessly
Underneath an orange tree
Why can't she see me?
Guinnevere, drew pentagrams
Like yours, mi'lady like yours
Late at night when she thought
That no one was watching at all
On the wall
She shall be free
As she turns her gaze
Down the slope to the harbor where I lay
Anchored for a day
Guinnevere had golden hair
Like yours, mi'lady like yours
Streaming out when we'd ride
Through the warm wind down by the bay
Yesterday, seagulls circle endlessly
I sing in silent harmony
I'm sitting here at my piano
I'm wondering how this battle can be won
The woman I was sure I was in love with
Seems to feel that the deal is done
But I don't, no, I don't
And I want you to understand
Oh yes, I can
Still be the man you fell in love with
Oh yes, I can
Fire and ice, fire and ice, water
Well, I'm sittin' here in my kitchen
But food is not on my mind
I love you so much, I don't want to see you go
And I think this must be what it feels like to be going blind
And I need, you know I need
And I need you to understand
Oh yes, I can
Still be the man you fell in love with
Oh yes, I can
Fire and ice, fire and ice, water
And I'm sittin' here in the sand dunes
Asking the ocean what to do
I found my life again and it's you I want to share it with
But I'm so afraid of losing you
And I know, you know I know
And I want you to understand
Oh yes, I can
Still be the man you fell in love with
Oh yes, I can
You see, I'm talking about fire and ice
Well, I went out for my evenin' stroll
All along the boulevard
It's familiar turf from the hills to the surf
I treat it like my front yard
Well, I right away ran into a girl I know
She said, "You gotta come with me tonight
The word is out that the underdog
And the monkey gonna finally fight"
I've been fightin', fightin'
Fightin' just to stay alive
And I've been fightin', fightin'
Fightin' to get from four o'clock to five
Well, now I'm not what you'd call a violent man
But the news brought a smile to my face
'Cause the underdog is a friend of mine
I'd just love to see him put that monkey in his place
You may think I'm crazy
The odds are against the dog, you understand
This monkey is as strong as a gorilla
He'd stretch a tire like a rubber band
But I've been fightin', fightin'
Fightin' just to stay alive
I've been fightin', oh, oh, fightin'
Fightin' to get from four o'clock to five
Now, he's sneaky and he'll smile on
Right at you, pretend to lick your boots
And all the while, he'd be thinking
How to rip your soul out by the roots
When we got there, my old underdog
He didn't really look too good, no
But his eyes met mine and he said, "I'll kick his ass"
I knew right then he would
Oh, been fightin', yeah, I've been fightin', yeah
Fightin' just to stay alive
I've been fightin', oh, oh, oh, oh, fightin'
Fightin' to get from four o'clock to five
Well, now I don't want to bore you
With a bunch of dialog
It's not how much dog is in the fight
It's how much fight is in my dog
And I've been fightin', oh, fightin'
Fightin' just to stay alive
I've been fightin', yeah, fightin'
Fightin' to get from four o'clock to five
Oh, fightin', oh, fightin', yeah
Fightin' just to stay alive
Fight, fightin', fightin'
Fightin' to get from four o'clock oh, oh, oh, oh
Fightin', oh, fightin'
Fightin' just to stay alive
I've been fightin', yeah, oh, fightin'
Almost cut my hair
It happened just the other day, it's gettin' kinda long
I could-a said, "It wasn't in my way"
But I didn't and I wonder why
I feel like letting my freak flag fly
Yes I feel like, I owe it to someone
Must be because I had the flu' for Christmas
And I'm not feelin' up to par, it increases my paranoia
Like lookin' at my mirror and seein' a police car
But I'm not givin' in an inch to fear
'Cause I, I missed myself this year
I feel like, I owe it to someone
When I finally get myself together
I'm goin' to get down
In that sunny southern weather
And I find a place inside to laugh
Separate the wheat from the chaff
Four of us were having dinner
And I threw down the paper with a curse
And my wife said, "Complaining doesn't get it
You got to do something or you can bet it
Will get worse"
And my friend said, "You've been watching TV too much
And all that hippie hopefulness is just a crutch"
But if thinkin' that way helps you
To make it through the night
Then who am I to say what's wrong and right
But I think, we're passing through here kind of fast
Did you think these tracks in the dust would last
I think, we're passing through here kind of fast
Did you think these tracks in the dust would last
So you think we should just sit here
And have another glass of wine
While the world goes to hell
Which you know damn well
It's going to do just down the line
And his lady said, "I don't know how can you be so sure
I mean some things seem to get better
You know the hero still saves the
Damsel in distress, the villain doesn't get her
And I said, "Where have you been living
I mean they're selling death in the streets"
Cheap and the lying politicians
Are rolling in the profits they reap.
And he said, "He's right honey
But I think it's always been that way"
And he smiled kind of patiently
And I knew he was going to say
I think, we're passing through here kind of fast
Did you think these tracks in the dust would last
I think, we're passing through here kind of fast
Did you think these tracks in the dust would last
How can I sweep these words into a cluster
Put 'em in a pile like feathers on your floor
Voyages and sea forests deep blue and rusty
Sew 'em in a satchel 'n leave 'em at your door
People's lives, people's whose lives
They fascinate me
All my life, all my life
I've wanted to understand
There's a man on the corner he's got the moon in his eyes
He just comes here to visit and he wears a disguise
And I wonder if he's looking for friends or for truth
I think he's calling for some in that telephone booth
And the smiling woman answers
She defeats fear with her eyes
She thinks life's fine so I think she's wise
And my heart wants to give her a gift so grand
That it will speak for me and tell her just where I stand
And I stand on a pillar and it's melting like ice
Of years that I've lived and some I've lived twice
And I have all these feathers and leaves on my floor
That I don't want just blowing around loose anymore
And I feel a need to gather to rummage and fetch
To shake out my life and give it a stretch
To bring shells to the surface, give 'em to you
Gifts from the sea floor rusty and blue
Now these two lives hold my attention quite well
You see lives almost never run parallel
Like the boards in the flooring all deep grained and worn
Fated and fitted long before we were born
People's lives, people's whose lives
They fascinate me
All my life, all my life
I've wanted to understand
Look at those dancers gliding around
Seems if their feet
Don't hardly touch the ground
Look at them smiling
Like they knew one another
And they never would come down
Turn around and hold me
I'd like to see your face alone
I'm hoping there's someone home
I'd like to meet you
Who do you see?
Introduce yourself to
Whichever of me is nearby
Close behind your eyes
You're laughing at me
And I'm stuck here with no instructions
That I can see to steer by
Stick around it's tricky ground
I'd like to see your face alone
I'm hoping there's someone home
Two or three people fading in and out
Like a radio station that I'm thinking about
But I can't hear
Who gets breakfast? Who gets the lunch?
Who gets to be the boss of this bunch?
Who will steer?
Turning, turning
To see your face alone
I'm hoping there's someone home
Dream
Do you dream
Dreaming
Do you?
Dream
Do you dream
Dreaming
Do you?
In my dreams
I can see, I can
I can see a love
That could be
In my dreams
I can see, I can
I can see a love
That could be
Ba, ba, da, da
Ah, ah
In my dreams
I can see, I can
I can see a love
That could be
In my dreams
I can see, I can
I can see a love
That could be
In my dreams
I can see, I can
I can see a love
That could be
In my dreams
I can see, I can
There I was at the immigration scene
Shining and feeling clean, could it be a sin?
I got stopped by the immigration man
He said he doesn't know if he can let me in
Let me in, immigration man
Can I cross your line and pray?
I can stay another day, won't you let me in, immigration man?
I won't toe your line today, I can't see it anyway
There he was with his immigration face
Giving me a paper chase but the sun was coming
'Cos all at once he looked into my space
And stamped a number all over my face and he sent me running
Come on and let me in, immigration man
Can I cross your line and pray?
I can stay another day, won't you let me in, immigration man?
I won't toe your line today, I can't see it anyway
Here I am with my immigration form and it's big enough to keep me warm
When a cold wind's coming, go where you will
As long as you think you can, you'd better watch out
Watch out for the man anywhere you're going
Come on and let me in, immigration man
Can I cross your line and pray?
I can stay another day, won't you let me in, immigration man?
It was one of those great stories
That you can't put down at night
The hero knew what he had to do
And he wasn't afraid to fight
The villian goes to jail
While the hero goes free
I wish it were that simple for me
And the reason that she loved him
Was the reason I loved him too
And he never wondered what was
Right or wrong
He just knew
He just knew
Shadow and shade mix together at dawn
But by the time you catch them
Simplicity's gone
So we sort through the pieces
My friends and I
Searching through the darkness to find
The breaks in the sky
And the reason that she loved him
Was the reason I loved him too
And he never wondered what was
Right or wrong
He just knew
He just knew
And we wonder yes we wonder
How do you make sense of this
When the hero
Kills the maiden
With his kiss
With his kiss
Well it was one of those great stories
That you can't put down at night
The hero knew what he had to do
And he wasn't afraid to fight
The villian goes to jail
While the hero goes free
I wish it were that simple
For me
I'm sitting here inside this stranger's place
and time is racing by
I've been way out here for a month or more
Tongiht I'm wonderin' why
you try to understand the things that i feel
maybe this time I'll find a way to explain it
Cause there is a dream deep inside my head
And it may seem liek it's breaking the thread
that hold me to you
still you have never wanted to change me
But darling i know throught we're far apart
the signal is strong
this helpless heart will always belong to you .. to yu
This power takes me from the place i belong
To where only the strong get throught
You've got to keep on believeing or you'll lose your way
Cause it slips right out of view
Thought there are days the light can flicker and fade
here in this place tongiht a fire is burning
Cause there is a dream deep down inside my head
and it may seem liek it's breaking the thread
that holds me to you
still you have never wanted to change me
But belive me i know thought we're far apart
the signal is strong
this helpless heart will alway belong to you
this helpless hear will always belong to you
will always belong to you
to you
only to you
It was one of those nights when you drive
Right by your own street and you wonder who's running
Your hands and your feet and your car becomes a capsule
Sometimes you can hide
Last night I just wanted, I wanted to ride
I wanted to drive my car
Didn't really care how far
I wanted to roam alone
I wanted to drive my car
Didn't really care how far
I wanted to roam alone
I was not out looking for honeys
Oh, I noticed them like usual but not as strong
And the distance between me and my pavement
Seemed to get a hundred yards long
I still feel the wind on my elbow
But I'm driving by the seat of my pant
I keep on tryin' to tune in, tune in on the radio
Trying to tune me out of my trance
I wanted to drive my car
I didn't really care how far
I wanted to roam alone
I wanted to drive my car
Didn't really care how far
I wanted to roam alone
At least a car goes where you steer it
Sometimes that's the only thing it does
So I get in it and I drive it, just to hear it
And remember this feeling that there was
I wanted to drive my car
I didn't really care how far
I wanted to roam alone
I wanted to drive my car
I didn't really care how far
(by Bonnie Hayes)
The TV is talkin' to me
It's positive identification
But maybe I'm mistaken
I talk to my radio
I keep it tuned to the all night show
I'd give my last dime for coverage
But you will not cover me
I got a penchant for the printed page
I got a mention in the Monday news
I was on my last leg
When it came through
I talk to my radio
I keep it tuned to the all night show
I'd give my last dime for coverage
But you will not cover me
No no no no
Tune it in to the pale blue light
Whispers to me through the night
Better love
Better lovers
Cover cover cover cover
Cover cover cover cover
Coverage
I would have made it sooner see
But I got caught up in the dream traffic
Blew the demographics
I talk to my radio
I keep it tuned to the all night show
I'd give my last dime for coverage
But you will not cover me
No. You will not cover me
(David Crosby, Jeff Pevar and James Raymond)
Some of us wind up in shadow
Some of us wind up in shade
There are distinctions
In the darkness to be made
I have made welcome to darkness
When the light's focused in too tight
And said hello as if to a friend
When I should have picked a fight
Darkness with blues is
Different than darkness shared
The blue tones will make you lonely
And lonely leaves you scared
Right at the edge of consciousness
Black meets flickering red
Of the fires in the ruins
And a truth is left unsaid
We are all sparks in the darkness
And there is the oncoming night
Fool that I am I want to touch your wings
And try to make some light
Many of us live in a fog
The wire wizards made
Sucking up a string of electrons
From the screen where they are sprayed
Darkness with blues is
Different than darkness shared
The blue tones will make you lonely
And lonely leaves you scared
The blue tones will make you lonely
And lonely leaves you scared
Some of us wind up in shadow
(David Crosby, Jan Crosby, Jeff Pevar, James Raymond, Steve DiStanislao, Andrew Ford)
This dance that we do leaves me breathless
Reeling on the edge of falling down
A lodestone pull that leaves me breathless
Through many lifetimes handed down
And you touch hands
And you taste breath
And you know
You try to walk in step and stumble laughing
You hold each other up to stop the fall
You hold each others eyes like a magnet
And for a moment time just seems to stall
And you touch hands
And you taste breath
And you watch each other
A bell once struck will ring forever
It just gets louder the closer it is held
Love is a bell, once struck will ring forever
It just gets louder the closer it is held
The closer it is held
You lead me like a spirit through the forest
Where I alone would surely fear to go
Safely with my hand on your shoulder
Somehow it's a thing I just know
And you touch hands
And you taste breath
And you watch each other
A bell once struck will ring forever
It just gets louder the closer it is held
Love is a bell, once struck will ring forever
It just gets louder the closer it is held
That House (5: 25)
Words: David Crosby
You could have heard a pin drop in that house
Someone was crying somewhere
Into a pillow that it wasn't fair
It got lost somewhere
You couldn't take your heart out in that house
It just might not want to beat again
A storm is pounding on the roof outside
Like something died
You couldn't take you heart out in that house
Water dripping in the sink
I'm tired of crying you start to think
The sound leads to the kitchen
Kitchen leads to door and you think I must not live here anymore
Repeat Chorus (3x)
Then you walk
walk on down to the street
keep walking
You put one foot down, in
front of the other (repeat)
David Crosby: Lead Vocal, Acoustic Guitar
Jeff Pevar: Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Electric Slide Guitar
James Raymond: Vocals, Piano
James “Hutch” Hutchinson: Bass
Russ Kunkel: Drums
Luis Conte: Percussion
The heat of the stone against your face
The incredible presence of mass
The clink of the metal the hiss of the rope
The sky like a piece of blue glass
He clings to the rock with the feeling reversed
As if he holds the whole earth in his hands
He loosens a pebble and hangs there quite silent
Listening to his heart 'til it lands
Listening to his heart moved by his art
Up the wall, up the wall
His life in his hands who knows where it lands
Up the wall, up the wall
[Instrumental (Acoustic and Electric Guitar, Mandolin)]
They say climb if you want to climb because it's there
Climb 'cause you're a man
I say live on the wings of what's possible here
Climb it because you can
Spirit of mountain (Spirit of man) spirit of man
The Sioux said they both had their place
Here on the ledge (Here on the edge) looking over the edge
I can feel it on my face
Listening to his heart moved by his art
Up the wall, up the wall
His life in his hands who knows where it lands
Up the wall, up the wall
[Instrumental (Piano, Acoustic and Electric Guitar)]
So I listen now to this spirit of mine
Floating in clean air and then
I face to the west and I speak to the sun
And I say thank you quite softly again
Listening to his heart moved by his art
Up the wall, up the wall
His life in his hands who knows where it lands
Up the wall, up the wall
[Instrumental Ending (Piano, Acoustic and Electric Guitar)]
Up the wall
by David Crosby & Craig Doerge
keyboards: Craig Doerge
Guitar: Larry Carlton
Drums: Russell Kunkel
Bass: Leland Sklar
Percussion: Joe Lala
Drop down mama
Let your daddy see
you got something down there
that keeps on worryin' me.
But my mama don't allow me
to fool around
She's sayin' "son you're too young now.
some woman might put you down."
Go 'way from my window
Stop scratchin' 'round my screen
you're so evil woman
And I know what you mean.
Any my mama don't allow me
To fool around
She's sayin' "son, you're too young now,
some woman might put you down."
I got three women livin'
on the same damn road
one does my cookin'
one does my washin'
one pays my room and board.
And my mama don't allow me
to fool around
She's sayin' "son, you're too young now,
some woman might put you down."
Drop down mama
Let your daddy see
You got something down there
that keeps worryin' me
And my mama don't allow me
to fool around
She's sayin' "son you're too young now,
some woman might put you down."
"Son you're to young no,
some woman might put you down."
(c) 1988 Stay Straight Music (BMI)
Guitar: David Crosby
Drums: Jim Kaltner
Bass: Tim Drummond
Slide Guitar: Dan Dugmore
Organ: Mike Finnigan
Four of us were having dinner
And I threw down the paper with a curse
And my wife said, Complaining doesn't get it
You got to do something or you can bet it
Will get worse.
And my friend said, You've been watching
TV too much: and all that hippie hopefulness
Is just a crutch.
But if thinkin' that way helps you
To make it through the night
Then who am I to say what's wrong and right.
But I think, we're passing
Through here kind of fast
Did you think these tracks
In the dust would last.
So you think we should just sit here
And have another glass of wine
While the world goes to hell, which you know damn well
It's going to do just down the line.
And his lady said, I don't know
how can you be so sure, I mean
Some things seem to get better
You know the hero still saves the
Damsel in distress, the
Villain doesn't get her
And I said, where have you been living
I mean they're selling death in the streets.
Cheap.
And the lying politicians are rolling
in the profits they reap.
And he said, He's right honey
But I think it's always been that way.
And he smiled kind of patiently,
and I knew he was going to say:
I think, we're passing
Through here kind of fast
Did you think these tracks
In the dust would last.
I think, we're passing
Through here kind of fast
Did you think these tracks
In the dust would last.
I think, we're passing
Through here kind of fast
(c) 1988 Stay Straight Music (BMI)
Guitar: David Crosby
Guitar: Michael Hedges
Fare Thee Well
by Emily Saliers (Indigo Girls)
performed by David Crosby
(B-side of the "Hero" single)
Fare thee well my bright star
I watched your taillights blaze into nothingness
But you were long gone before I ever got to you
Before you blazed past this address
And now I think of having loved and having lost
But never know what it's like to never love
Who can say that's better and my heart's become the cost
A mere token of a brighter jewel sent from above
Fare thee well my bright star
The vanity of youth, the color of your eyes
Aand maybe if I'd fanned the blazing fire of your day-to-day
Or if I'd been older I'd been wise
Too thick the heat of those long summer evenings
For a cool evening I began to yearn
But you could only feed upon the things which feed a fire
Waiting to see if I would burn
Fare thee well my bright star
It was a brief brilliant miracle dive
That which I looked up to and clung to for dear life
Had to burn itself up just to prove it was alive
And I caught you then in your moment of glory
Your last dramatic scene against a night sky stage
With a memory so clear it's as if you were still before me
My once in a lifetime star of an age
Fare thee well my bright star
Last night the tongues of fire circled me around
And this strange season of pain will come to pass
Time is the Final Currency (5: 18)
Time is the final currency
Not money
Not power
The time will come
When you will give
Anything for one more hour
Today I learned
There are no secrets
Only time for them to unfold
And the patience to watch
The scroll of truth
Slowly be unrolled
There is a time to this
There is a flow
There is a tension here
Like a hard bent bow
Ready to send up
Send up another one
Another spark in the night
And suddenly you realize
That this time it is all right
I watched the greatest miracle
Take three quarters of a year
To bring forth life
And tiny breath
For all the world to hear
There is a time to this
There is a flow
There is a tension here
Like a hard bent bow
Ready to send up
Send up another one
Another spark in the night
And suddenly you realize
That this time it is all right
David Crosby: Lead Vocal, Acoustic Guitar
Jeff Pevar: Vocals, Electric Guitar
James Raymond: Vocals, Electric Piano
James Hutchinson: Fretless Bass
(David Crosby, Graham Nash and James Raymond)
And an angel came unto me
And inhabited the body of my child
And for a moment she could speak to me
She was radiant and calm
Though her eyes were slightly wild
She could surely see things that we can't see
Angel of mercy
Angel of dreams
Nothing's ever quite what it seems
She said I bring to you this message
A little glimpse of passage
While you lay your head down, down to rest
And this love that you follow
It will never grow hollow
It is the one true flame to fuel your quest
Angel of mercy
Angel of dreams
Nothing's ever quite what it seems
There are no guarantees Aaah ...
That wisdom will come and find you Aaah ...
It is written on no stone that you will be so blessed Aaah ...
But I hear they are pleased somewhere Aaah ...
With your weavings of harp and drum and bell Aaah ...
And the truth we find between your pages pressed Aaah ...
To carry on for another voice to tell Aaah ... Yeah
Angel of mercy
Angel of dreams
Nothing's ever quite what it seems
Not quite what it seems Nothing's ever quite
Not quite what it seems Nothing's ever quite
(David Crosby and James Raymond)
She walks into a sideways rain
Hands tucked under her arms
It's cold out there
And it's cold in here
Like a sister sailing ship
Paired against the sea
She holds on
She holds on
Arms too empty
Heart too true
Voice too distant
Eyes too blue
The wet stone echoes sound to me
The footfalls hers alone
She walks on
She moves on
Dream and sweet reality
If she returns are one
And I hold on
Yes, I hold on
Arms too empty
Heart too true
Voice too distant
Eyes too blue
Arms too empty
Heart too true
Voice too distant
Eyes too blue
Arms too empty
Heart too true
Voice too distant
Eyes too blue
She walks into a sideways rain
Hands tucked under her arms
It's cold out there
(David Crosby, Jeff Pevar and James Raymond)
The world will little know nor long remember
Why we fought these battles in the sky
And I am but a servant and a seeker
And I don't feel qualified to tell you why
Anyone should have to take another's life
Any father should find his children and his wife
Gone forever, gone forever
Gone forever, gone forever
The world will give us glimpses through the mist
Moonlit landscapes we can almost see
That feeling when you're alone that you've just been kissed
And you can fly and you shall be free
When we feel that if another page gets turned
We can save us if not one more book gets burned
Gone forever, gone forever
Gone forever, gone forever
I have been walking here for quite a while
And I think I know the path where of I speak
It's a road going up a mountain
And it might not entirely reach the peak
But I know I don't have to know it all
I would just like to see not one more seeker fall
Gone forever, gone forever
Gone forever, gone forever
Gone forever, gone forever
Gone forever, gone forever
The tiniest actions the turn of one card
And Kings get broken hard
And hard ain't handsome hard ain't rich
Good isn't easy and bad's a bitch
And you make a motion
That you can't hold still
And it changes something
And it always will
And ya pick up the pieces as if somehow
They're goin' to tell you how
To finally sing that magic word
That shines like gold and will be heard
Over all this cryin'
Over all this noise
And the song of the chainsaw
And the soldiers' toys
And I need an audience with the king
I need to ask him something
Why do they do
The things they do
And do they think about me
Do they think about you
I feel like shouting right out loud
And I feel safer in a crowd
'cause the crowd ain't lonesome
The crowd's my friend
And they will sing with me
And the song won't end and
We will finally sing that word
That shines like gold and will be heard
Over all this cryin'
Over all this noise
Over all this cryin'
Over all this noise
We're gonna finally sing Sing
Sing of joys Sing of joys
We're gonna finally sing Sing
Sing of joys Sing of joys
We're gonna finally sing Sing
Sing of joys Sing of joys
We're gonna finally sing Sing
Sing of joys Sing of joys
We're gonna finally sing Sing
Sing of joys Sing of joys
We will sing Sing
Sing of joys Sing of joys
We're gonna finally sing Sing
Sing of joys Sing of joys
We're gonna finally sing Sing
Sing of joys
The tiniest actions the turn of one card
by Craig Doerge, Judy Henske
There was a city
In this desert
Shining with fountains
And pools of clear
sweet water.
So many clouds
of white birds soaring
It might have been
the sea...and there
was music.
Deep in the wild heart
Nothing ever changes
Deep in the wild heart
Nothing remains.
A place of stone
A tower of glass
Where bells of hammered brass
rang for hours.
Deep in the wild heart
Nothing ever changes
Deep in the wild heart
Nothing remains.
Over the horizon
Into the majesty.
As far as I can see
There is nothing of humanity.
In all your windy space
There is no trace of us.
I want to see
A human heart,
Show it to me...
Show it to me...
Deep in the wild heart
Nothing ever changes
Deep in the wild heart
Nothing remains.
Sleep, wild heart
In the wide ruin.
(c) 1988 Fair Star Music Inc./The Real Mousetower Music Co. (ASCAP)
Additional vocals: Jackson Browne
Acoustic piano and Rhodes: Craig Doerge
Bass: Leland Sklar
Drums: Russ Kunkel
Guitar: Steve Lukather
(David Crosby)
Just like gravity
It's just like gravity
Pulls me
It pulls so hard
It pulls so right
It pulls so hard
Pulls so tight
And it's just like gravity
Just like gravity
Pulls me
If the moon was a woman
And the sun a star
How can she pull so hard
From so far?
It's just like gravity
Just like gravity
Pulls me
You were out of sight
Beyond the realm of possibility
'til we went faster than light
Sliding past her at night
Like crystalline nobility
Just like gravity
Just like gravity
Pulls me
Just like the dinosaurs
Trapped in tar
We are held in place
By a distant star
And it's just like gravity
Just like gravity
You're forever beginning
Barely winning the fight
And you feel just like an old soldier tonight
You're not getting any younger
That much is true now
But you've still got that hunger
Burning in you now
So what do you do now
What do you do now
Listen old soldier
To the sound in your ears
Of too many battles
For too many years
There's only one thing
You've learned in defeat
Losing is bitter
And victory is sweet
You're always unravelling
Traveling light
And you feel just like an old soldier tonight
Feel just like an old soldier tonight
Shortcut to David Crosby Lyrics
David Crosby - Almost Cut My Hair Lyrics
David Crosby - Columbus Lyrics
David Crosby - Compass Lyrics
David Crosby - Coverage Lyrics
David Crosby - Cowboy Movie Lyrics
David Crosby - Delta Lyrics
David Crosby - Déjà Vu Lyrics
David Crosby - Distances Lyrics
David Crosby - Drive My Car Lyrics
David Crosby - Drop Down Mama Lyrics
David Crosby - Flying Man Lyrics
David Crosby - Guinnevere Lyrics
David Crosby - Helpless Heart Lyrics
David Crosby - Hero Lyrics
David Crosby - I'd Swear There Was Somebody Here Lyrics
David Crosby - In My Dreams Lyrics
David Crosby - In the Wide Ruin Lyrics
David Crosby - Lady of the Harbor Lyrics
David Crosby - Laughing Lyrics
David Crosby - Long Time Gone Lyrics
David Crosby - Melody Lyrics
David Crosby - Monkey and the Underdog Lyrics
David Crosby - Music Is Love Lyrics
David Crosby - My Country 'Tis of Thee Lyrics
David Crosby - Natalie Lyrics
David Crosby - Night Time for the Generals Lyrics
David Crosby - Oh Yes I Can Lyrics
David Crosby - Old Soldier Lyrics
David Crosby - Orleans Lyrics
David Crosby - Rusty and Blue Lyrics
David Crosby - Song With No Words (Tree With No Leaves) Lyrics
David Crosby - Tamalpais High (At About 3) Lyrics
David Crosby - Thousand Roads Lyrics
David Crosby - Through Your Hands Lyrics
David Crosby - Till It Shines on You Lyrics
David Crosby - Too Young to Die Lyrics
David Crosby - Tracks in the Dust Lyrics
David Crosby - Traction in the Rain Lyrics
David Crosby - What Are Their Names Lyrics
David Crosby - Wooden Ships Lyrics
David Crosby - Yvette in English Lyrics
First time I saw her
She was still in school
Chewin' on a pencil
Playin' pool
Stayin' up all night
Full of dreams
I've known her family
Ever since we were small
Gettin' in trouble
Drivin' our folks up the wall
Wastin' time
Yeah... but we had fun
She was gonna
Ride her bike to China
Sail away on a bottle top
And as the years passed by
One night I held her close to me
That was the first time I
Said I love you
To Natalie
Carousel was crowded
So we talked for a while
Natalie said, "Baby,
You know I miss your smile...
Whenever you go away
From me."
You know that time starts tickin'
When a love starts to fade
I knew something was wrong but still
I thought we had it made
The first time I
Said I love you
To Natalie
That was the first time I
Said I love you
To Natalie
Now I look at her pictures
And I talk to these walls
Call out her name
She don't hear
Me at all
And she got wild and restless
Tried everything
She could take
One night I tried to stop her
But I was too late
That was the last time I
Said I love you
To Natalie
And that was the last time I
Said I love you
To Natalie
That was the last time I
Said I love you
That was the last time I
Said I love you
That was the last time I
Said I love you
Graham Nash
Come another year-and I am sitting here
Looking over all the Haight
As far as my eyes can see
What's happening to me? Trying to find
A girl to be on my mind.
Come another year-will she be here?
I wonder what I'm looking for
But I'm looking everyday
Searching every face-trying to find
A girl to be on my mind.
On my mind there is a question
Time-time
Only time will tell when time is right
I await my resurrection
Feeling fine
Come another year-will I be sitting here
Looking after someone else
Who's looking after me
That's happiness to me-so I am trying to find
Somehow She Knew (7: 05)
Words: David Crosby
As the room slid into focus
and he woke up
With room service at the door
And he wondered why he
never spoke up
About all of that fear before
It was standing just an inch
behind him
A shadow stalking by his side
A thing he was afraid would
find him
And wash him away in the tide
And somehow she know why
I was crying
She knew just which fears
I had not faced
In her eyes I could see
Where I was lying to myself
And a path that she gently traced
To where the man in the movie said
Is it all right
If I miss her tonight
And the man felt just like me
They say a wolf in a trap will
chew off his own leg
I guess I did the same
It's what you do with a thing
you can't handle
A picture you just can't frame
And from somewhere deep in that movie
She opened a door in my chest
And delicately took out a death
That had never been laid to rest
And somehow she knew why
I was crying
She knew just which fears I had not faced
In her eyes I could see where
I was lying
To myself
And a path that she gently traced
To where the man in the movie said
Is it all right if I miss her tonight
And the man felt just like me
David Crosby: Lead Vocal, Acoustic Guitar
Jeff Pevar: Vocals, Mandolin
James Raymond: Vocals, Piano
James Hutchinson: Bass
Orleans, Beaugency, Notre Dame du Cléry, Vendôme, Vendôme
Orleans, Beaugency, Notre Dame du Cléry, Vendôme, Vendôme
Orleans, Beaugency, Notre Dame du Cléry, Vendôme, Vendôme...
David Crosby
On what do you base your life, my friend?
Can you see around the bend?
Can you see?
On what star do you take your sight
On a cold and blowy night
Alone, alone?
Old man can you make a mirror for me?
It's got to be clearer than air for me
'Cause you see I can't see me, no
And I always thought that I meant what I said
But you know that lately I've read
We were lying
All of us lying
Just making it up, yeah
Graham Nash
Liberty laughing and shaking your head
Can you carry the torch that'll bring home the dead?
To the land of their fathers whose lives you have lead
To the station at the end of the town
On the southbound train going down.
Equality quietly facing the fist
Are you angry and tired that your point has been missed?
Will you go to the back-room
And study the list
Of the gamblers using the phone
On the southbound train going down.
Fraternity failing to fight back the tears
Will it take an eternity breaking all the fears?
And what will the passenger do when he hears-
That he's already paid for the crown
David Crosby
David Crosby: Vocal, Rhythm Electric Guitar
Jeff Pevar: Lead Electric Guitar
James 'Hutch' Hutchinson: Bass
Michael Finnigan: Organ
Jody Cortez: Drums
Intro. (Electric Guitar)
What does it take to getcha
To admit it?
How much light
'til it shines on you?
How much did she betcha
You couldn't get it?
What does it signify
When it lands on you?
They will tell you you're a loser
They'll stone you in the street
Makes you kinda wonder 'bout the people you meet, yeah
Instrumental (Electric Guitar and Organ)
There's a telegram they send ya
To tell you that you won
And that now your life is gonna
Suddenly be fun
It's a piece of empty paper
It's a piece of empty pie
It is a vision of delusion
It will surely pass you by
And I don't know what to tell ya
I haven't got a clue
I don't know why people do the things that they do, no, no, no
Instrumental (Organ + Electric Guitar)
What does it take to getcha
As confused as me?
And how much information
Is gonna finally set you free?
What does it take to getcha
To admit it?
How much light
'til it shines on you?
How much light
'til it shines on you, yeah?
How much light
'til it shines on you?
How much light
Shines on you?
Instrumental Ending (Electric Guitar and Organ)
One For Every Moment (3: 59)
She would run across the barren land
And pause to let the light caress her
Ask the earth to share its secrets
And listen for the wind to tell her
He could see her so very clearly
Dancing as the moon rose to see
He could feel her breath upon him
Letting all the doubt go free
He looked to the desert sky
Counting all the stars above her
One for every moment he would love her
One for every moment he would love her
She would walk to where the land and sea
met each other in a dance of violence
She found a treasure of untold beauty
Tossed it back and swore herself to silence
He could see her so very clearly
Dancing as the moon rose to see
He could feel her breath upon him
Letting all the doubt go free
He looked to the desert sky
Counting all the stars above her
One for every moment he would love her
One for every moment he would love her
James Raymond: Lead Vocal, Piano, Wedding Ring
David Crosby: Vocals
Jeff Pevar: Vocals, Nylon String Guitar
Steve Tavaglione: Soprano Saxophone
Leland Sklar: Bass
Luis Conte: Percussion
Intro. (Bass + Electric Guitar and Organ)
Well, it's night time and the long cars
Were arriving at the door
The general is having another party
There's a congressman or three
And some guys you never see outside the bank
There's a laughing clink of glasses
And a polished click of boots
Bitter talk of our country
With a weakness in its roots
It's night time for the generals and the boys at the C.I.A.
Power gone mad in the darkness
Thinking they're God on a good day
They giveth, they taketh but they like, like to take it away
Instrumental (Organ)
"Well, a fool won't know the difference
It's for their own good" they said
And they shot blind Lady Liberty
In the back of her head
And it's night time for the generals and the boys at the C.I.A.
Power gone mad in the darkness
Thinking they're God on a good day
They giveth, they taketh but they like, like to take it away
Instrumental (Electric Guitar)
Night time
I said it's night time oh, oh, oh
Night time yeah, yeah, yeah
Night time
They giveth, they taketh but they like, like to take it
They giveth, they taketh but they like, like to take it
They giveth, they taketh don't let them take it away
Ending (Guitars and Organ)
Yeah Na na na na na Oh Na na na na
Almost battleship your sights on my heart,
It was like operation when you tore it out,
Five card stud you were bluffing big,
It was just like monopoly when you sold me
Yeah Na na na na na Oh Na na na na
You're on my back when I try to run,
I ain't your whipping boy, as if you had one,
You like to make a fool of me,
I'm your hide and seek,
Finish up with a game of war when you kill me
Yeah Na na na na na Oh Na na na na
Stop playing Games with my heart,
Stop playing me
Stop playing Games with my heart, (with my heart)
Yeah Na na na na na Oh Na na na na
I'm you're dice,
You kiss me for luck then you cast me to the ground,
Come on let's go,
High speed chase, I'm both doom and disgrace,
I'm a sucker for your pretty face,
You want to catch me
Yeah Na na na na na Oh Na na na na
Stop playing Games with my heart,
Stop playing me
Stop playing Games with my heart, (with my heart)
[x2]
Jerusalem
(James Raymond)
I came back to Jerusalem
Just to see if the light had changed
But it all seems about the same
My friends are here on a holy mission
A mass convergence of Judeo-Christians
It's nice to put the faces with the names
Don't you know me by my ancient eyes
Sweet salvation what a lonely prize
I came back to Jerusalem
I came back to Jerusalem
And it's all coming down right now
I ran into Magdalena
She said she's staying for the Y2 Cana
But I see the sadness in her eyes
We all lost the one we loved
He's up there livin' high above us
Fire and love gonna rain on down, down, down
Don't you know me by my well worn shoes
I walked this road beside the King of Jews
I came back to Jerusalem
I came back to Jerusalem
And it's all coming down right now
But I've been waiting for two thousand years
That's a lot of blood
And a lot of tears
Call me certified delusional
But I got stoned against this very wall
I came back to Jerusalem
I came back to Jerusalem
And it's all coming down right now
I came back to Jerusalem
I came back to Jerusalem
{by Noel Brazil)
Better keep your distance from this whale
Better keep your boat from going astray
Find yourself a partner and treat them well
Try to give them shelter night and day
'Cause here in the blue light
Far away from the fireside
Things can get twisted and crazy and crowded
You can't even feel right
So I dream of columbus
Every time the panic starts
I dream of columbus
With your maps and your beautiful charts
I dream of columbus
There's an ache in a traveling heart
See how the cormorant swoops and dives
Must be a thrill to go that deep
Down to the basement of this life
Down to where the mermaid gently sleeps
Not like here in the blue light
Far away from the fireside
Where things get twisted and
Haunted and crowded
You can't even feel right
So I dream of columbus
Every time the panic starts
I dream of columbus
With your maps and your beautiful charts
I dream of columbus
There's an ache in a traveling heart
As the tide must ebb and flow
I am dragged down under
I wait the livelong day
For an end to my hunger
So I dream of columbus
Every time the panic starts
I dream of columbus
With your maps and your beautiful charts
I dream of columbus
Crosby, Pevar & Raymond
(released June 23, 1998) [Samson Music GC0145]
Morrison (4: 45)
Words: David Crosby
Music: James Raymond
He was lost and I don't think
he wanted it that way
like a gull blown inland
on a stormy day
Lost in round one
spitting out pieces of his teeth
lost in a Paris graveyard
carrying his own wreath
And I have seen that movie
and it wasn't like that
he was mad and lonely
and blind as a bat
To the bridge
and the falling tree
Too deaf to hear his own song
You see
How does anyone get to there
We may never know
How they got that far
Or what made them go
But he had flown from his homeland
You could see him there
A gull circling
In the high desert air
(Chorus)
And somehow I
Have to learn from this
'Cause I can hear him cry
And feel the hiss
Of the wind in his feathers
and the sand on his feet
As he dies in the desert
On that Paris street.
(Chorus out)
David Crosby: Lead Vocal
Jeff Pevar: Vocals, Electric Guitar
James Raymond: Vocals, Piano
Leland Sklar: Bass
Steve DiStanislao: Drums
Luis Conte: Percussion
At the Edge (4: 21)
Words: David Crosby
Our grasp is so fragile the thread is so thin
I wonder each day if I'm blowing away
I know that I'm lucky
I wouldn't be here at all if somebody's hand
hadn't been where I stand
at the edge of a very great fall
And like a lighthouse before you at the edge of the sea
the woman whose grip holds when you slip
But the darkness won't get you
Your family won't go
they will make your heart light
to where you know what is right
and you go where you know you should go
And it's life and it's dying
it's beginnings and end
it's what did you do
with the life they gave you?
It's were you the honest, and
did you make amends
To all the ones under your guns
How have you treated your friends
David Crosby: Lead Vocal
Jeff Pevar: Vocals, Fretless Bass, Acoustic and Electric Guitars
James Raymond: Vocals, Piano
Steve Distanislao: Drums
Luis Conte: Percussion
(David Crosby and Jeff Pevar)
One, two, three ...
Over the northern border
Up where it's always been
Out in the great wheat ocean
There lives a great north wind
It blew around Katies' ankles
It blew all around her feet
Blew her mind into the snowdrift
Along the edges of the street
Katie did, Katie did
Katie did what had to be done
Katie did, Katie did
What she did was run
She ran down to the music
She ran down to the light
Feel the drumbeat movin' her feet
Made her just as high as a kite
She had been singing along with the records
Pretending she was in front of the band
She had a pretty good ear and legs up to here
When she did it she felt just grand
She went down to Chicago
She went down to LA
Sometimes no one listened sometimes they did
Sometimes she got to play
But sometimes she'd miss her wheatfield
A sky like a big blue bowl
Guitar would start talking to her heart
The girl was meant to rock and roll
Katie did, Katie did
Katie did what had to be done
Katie did, Katie did
Katie did what had to be done
Katie did, Katie did
A crowded field of wildflowers
They turn to face the knowing day
Sentries of the secrets that lie beneath the colored clay
Secrets of the Coyote King
This river of blood has washed away
The dreams of a million sons and daughters
They spill into the hungry sea
They spill into the night
Lost their fame and fortune to the Coyote King
He'll lead us through the canyons
Deliver us to Eden
Grease the clasped hands standing
In the way of freedom
A lighthouse throwing blinding lies across an angry sea
We never saw the eyes of the Coyote King
He'll lead us through the canyons
Deliver us to Eden
Grease the clasped hands standing
In the way of freedom
A lighthouse throwing blinding lies across an angry sea
We never saw the eyes of the Coyote King
Of the Coyote King
Of the Coyote King
Graham Nash
I tried to reach beyond the walls you're living in
As a friend I flew a long way for a friend
But the way you treated me
Made me feel like giving in
I don't know if I'll break or only bend
You're supposed to be my friend
And if you carry on the way you did today
All the music in my veins will turn to stone
All the faking of your friendship
Doesn't make it anyway
Does it get you off to act so all alone
It'll chill you to the bone
So my advice to you is not to take advice
From the dealers who are handing out the cards
Take your life into your own hand
Just have faith in who you are
And all your goodness that I'm forced to disregard
My country 'tis of thee
Sweet land of liberty
Of thee I sing
Land where my fathers died
Land of the pilgrim's pride
>From every mountainside
Let freedom ring
Let freedom ring
Let it ring...
Traditional: Arranged by Michael Hedges (c) 1988 Naked Ear Music (BMI)
Additional vocals: Graham Nash, John David Souther
Guitar & guitar arrangement: Michael Hedges
I found a map to buried treasure
I found it deep within your smile
I think that now that I have found it
I will study it
I wear your allegiance like a cloak of trust
Wrapped around the heart of me
And no conditions were discussed
When we joined forces helplessly
Falling inward we were linked by chain
Across the length of rolling sea
Welded by laughter and sealed in pain
Floating love has rescued me
It's trust that holds it anchored
It's the trust takes years to build
Without it there is nothing
Just emptiness unfulfilled
Brick by brick you know we built it up
Built a house to hold a dream
A shape that's rising from the rubble
Where the shaking death had been
I found a map to buried treasure
I found it deep within your smile
I think that now that I have found it
I will study it for a while
No sticks and stones can hurt us
Nor the liars or the thieves
We'll use the stones to ring our garden
And the sticks to gather up the leaves
Brick by brick you know we built it up
Built a house to hold a dream
A shape that's rising from the rubble
Where the shaking death had been
I found a map to buried treasure
I found it deep within your smile
I think that now that I have found it
I will study it
I found a map to buried treasure
I found it deep within your smile
I think that now that I have found it
I will study it a while
I found a map to buried treasure Aaah ...
I found it deep within your smile Aaah ...
I think that now that I have found it Aaah ...
I will study it ... for a while
Little Blind Fish (3: 37)
Words: David Crosby
Little Blind Fish in a wide river
Who is the gift and who is the giver
Is it a matter of choice where you go
Does it give you a voice just to know
You're here...
Little Blind Fish
Staring at a mirror
How far can you see
Are you getting any nearer
Little Blind Bird
sitting in a tree
Saying this is the end now
Can't you see
It's all gone... solid gone
Little Blind Fox
Sitting in a box
Saying this is an open space
and it has no locks
Tattered Old Lion
Living in a cage
Bit off his own leg in a rage
In a rage... (Repeat 1st verse)
David Crosby, Lead Vocal
Jeff Pevar: Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
James Raymond: Vocals, Organ
James Hutchinson: Fretless Bass
Debra Dobkin: Percussion
I slept last night in a good hotel
I went shopping today for jewels
The wind rushed around the dirty town
And the children let out from their schools
I was standing on a noisy corner
I was waiting for the walking green
Across the street he stood
And he played real good
He was playin' real good for free
Me I play for fortunes
And those velvet curtain calls
I got a black limousine and about thirty-seven criminal
Escorting me to this halls
And I'll play if you have some money
Or if you're a friend to me
But that one-man band by the quick lunch stand
He was just playin' real good for free
Nobody, I say nobody, nobody stopped to hear him
Though he played so sweet and high
They knew they had never seen him on their TV screen
So they passed his music by
Me I meant to go over ask for a song
Maybe put on a harmony
I heard his refrain as the signals changed
It's hard enough, I know
To find the strength to go
Back to where it all began
It's hard enough to gain
Any traction in the rain
You know it's hard for me to understand
Hard to find a way
To get through another city day
Without thinking about
Gettin' out
Now the strangest thing I've seen
Was a T-shirt turning green
In envy of a turtle dove
The dove's lady was the cause
Or maybe it was the olive branch she held in her claws
Or maybe he could see they were in love
You know it's hard for me to find a way
To get through another city day
Without thinking about
Gettin' out
Guinnevere, had green eyes
Like yours, mi'lady like yours
She'd walk down through the garden
In the morning after it rained
Peacocks wandered aimlessly
Underneath an orange tree
Why can't she see me?
Guinnevere, drew pentagrams
Like yours, mi'lady like yours
Late at night when she thought
That no one was watching at all
On the wall
She shall be free
As she turns her gaze
Down the slope to the harbor where I lay
Anchored for a day
Guinnevere had golden hair
Like yours, mi'lady like yours
Streaming out when we'd ride
Through the warm wind down by the bay
Yesterday, seagulls circle endlessly
I sing in silent harmony
We shall be free
(by Bonnie Hayes)
The TV is talkin' to me
It's positive identification
But maybe I'm mistaken
I talk to my radio
I keep it tuned to the all night show
I'd give my last dime for coverage
But you will not cover me
I got a penchant for the printed page
I got a mention in the Monday news
I was on my last leg
When it came through
I talk to my radio
I keep it tuned to the all night show
I'd give my last dime for coverage
But you will not cover me
No no no no
Tune it in to the pale blue light
Whispers to me through the night
Better love
Better lovers
Cover cover cover cover
Cover cover cover cover
Coverage
I would have made it sooner see
But I got caught up in the dream traffic
Blew the demographics
I talk to my radio
I keep it tuned to the all night show
I'd give my last dime for coverage
But you will not cover me
No. You will not cover me
No. You will not cover me
Well, I used to walk around with my eyes on fire
Well, I used to walk around with my eyes on fire
My nerves real close to my skin
Had a fist full of questions a brand on my cheek
And we would skate where the ice got thin
And the smoke blowin' down from a cabin on a hilltop
Smoke blowin' down in the street
Some kind of sweet smellin' mystical backdrop
To the story unfoldin' at my feet, my feet
There's an edge to the twist of an acrobat in the air
There's an edge to the twist of the knife
There they hard heart of darkness
Hovering there just around-the corner from life
I have no answers
I got no patented path to set you free
Besides I wouldn't know where you wanted to go
And it's probably not the same place as me
There's a thousand roads up this mountain
You can get lost in a minute if you try
And it's probably enough that I was laughin' today
Lookin' this close in your eye
I said, there was a thousand roads up this mountain
You can get lost if you try
It's probably enough that I was laughin' today
Lookin' this close in your eye
In your eye
In your eye
Talk to me