1
NOTHING IS
Well I guess
Well I guess we won’t be meeting in this world so I’ll have to wait until the next one if there is one
One…day I hope, and not referring to heaven or hell, this thing may not even be a place per se
Say…what you will about what you left behind, not you, I mean the others that are here with me
Me…and my feelings aside, I think you left your mark by the words and openness of your death reception
Reception …here is not so good, so I assume I am talking to myself unless there is some kind of magic in the air
Air…is what you are required and space and time, bring fully consciousness for what you need for your time
Time…runs out and we wonder if we all know when that time comes, is there a warning or nothing at all
All...is the goal, not in material terms but the space when you can dig deep without the digging
Digging…deep, you’ll end up in the same place where you started that creates the false form
Form…your own thoughts I say, but please keep them to yourself so I can remember the way I want
Want…is the thing that needs to cease, not increase so we can find peace, so simple but never embraced like things
Things…like goodbyes are the way that we have defined closure but nothing is not closed, nothing is not closed
Nothing is not closed
Closed minds create hate and that is not beautiful, the opposite of one of your favorite words
Words…may not be needed nor thoughts nor feelings nor posts, sit with it just sit with it
It…is gone and will never be back regardless of what the truth history has taught us
Us…and this, and you, and I are part of the thing that we can come together without being in the same room or the same side
Side…put away your side, your inside, your outside, your children and wives, and there will be you
You…cannot ignore the advice as you call it, it’s not advice, you can listen to anyone
With…with grace and kindness and the openness to respect, connect in retrospect
In retrospect…was yesterday, we have no need for that now like past printed words, it’s time for the rewrite
Rewrite…the wrongs thru stories and songs like you did in when you invited us into your realm
Realms of mystery…some say, ohh the audacity, but I say the only way you knew how…and I thank you
DOWN & UP
Please give me a long head start baby
I’m moving a little slower these days
I can’t tell if it’s just me or this world
This general darkness and feeling of malaise
I’m down …
Try and catch up man, you’re moving too slow
You’re self pity is weighing you down, way down
I ain’t gonna wait too long for you anymore
Maybe you’ve reached your final and last plateau
I’m up…
One day I feel like the mighty Hercules and the next I’m the beach weakling
Yeah, I’ll tell you if I could but I lost all those feelings
Will you help me instead of just watching, your judgement is making it so much worse
It’s time to give up like defeated soldiers, I can’t put this thing in reverse
And I can’t remember my dreams, and I don’t mean the sleeping kind
You’re guess is as good as mine when the morning light comes, if ever
Yeah, I appreciate your suggestions, but I’ve tried all that too
And those words of wisdom ain’t real, it’s just ink on my skin-scarred tattoo
I’m up
Down…
Today I feel up in the clouds
Today I feel down in the dirt
And today I will take leaps and bounds
An today it just, it just, hurts
BANG
Like her rusted leg braces
I can smell the blood traces
Of the black cocaine mother
Bought by her cousin’s brother
Well have you, well I’ve never
And you needn’t bother
Over the bridge is where it lives
Under the bridge is where it gives now
Go out with a bang not a whimper
Go out with a bang
Go out with a bang not a whimper baby
It never forgives or forgets
Like a killer it’s got no regret
Owe me pay up your debts
Don’t ask me where it’s kept now
The game started without you
While you were sleeping
I ask you what are you going to do
Act like you got the bird flu
Go out with a bang not a whimper
Go out with a bang
Go out with a bang not a whimper baby
Pockets filled with gold
Making rolls when the shit gets sold now
Making money never gets old
You can roll it, lick it, fold it
Like her rusted leg braces
I can smell the blood traces
Of the black cocaine mother
Bought by her cousin’s brother
Go out with a bang not a whimper
Go out with a bang
Go out with a bang not a whimper baby
BETTY APHRODISIAC
Betty Aphrodisiac walked in like the she-Jesus of Nazareth at midnight
You could smell the rock-hard confidence from her Mary Kay made-up pores
The men’s drop-jawed, wide eyes and dog tongues drooled like stale Elmers Glue
She took their souls, and their spirits, and their limits and wiped them up with the dirty floor
A couple so-called brick short brave boys tried to get too close for a little taste
I can’t even describe what happened next, but it was more than black eyes and bloody noses
Let’s just say they ain’t nothing but a mark on that old greasy tiled tavern floor
And some say one guy survived in witness protection wearing another man’s clothes, but noone really knows
You may think I’m just passing on this bullshit tale of dangerous, beautiful Betty
But I can assure you non-believers, human- deceivers, and understatement under-achievers
I was there at Nick’s that night, sitting like George Bailey on A Wonderful Life Christmas Eve
Crouched down, eyes down and feeling way down like a first night jail time prisoner
Betty Aphrodisiac, she’ll give you more than just a heart attack
Well now, I’m supposed to tell you how the story ends as we enter this final verse
You might assume that I’m perhaps exaggerating, taking creative licenses
But we lucky survivors mad a blood brother alliance to keep our determined silence
And let’s just say Betty Aphrodisiac may walk through that door at any time and surprise us
And thus
And thus
Betty Aphrodisiac, she’ll give you more than just a heart attack
Betty Aphrodisiac, oh yeah, she’ll be back
2
A LITTLE ROPE
Well the world seems a little more blue today
But hey man, we can all get that way
When you got a little bit of that struggle
Throw a fellow Homo Sapien a little bit of rope
Not to use it or to noose it
But as a means to bring up some hope (hope floats)
Things always seem darker in the black of night
Some mornings can get just as dark
Yeah them schemers always be scheming
And thieves got their hands in our pockets
So please call me baby wherever you are
I’ll come running to you by boat, by train, or by car
Throw me a little bit of rope baby
Just a little bit of rope
The world seems a little more blue today
But hey man, you, me, we can all get that way
When you got just a little bit of that struggle
Throw a fellow human a little bit of that rope
And not to use it for anything specific, or to noose it
But as a means to bring up a little bit of hope
Because things always seem darker in the black of night
Some mornings can get just as dark
And them schemers always be scheming
And those little thieves got their little hands in our pockets
So please call me baby wherever you are
I’ll be coming running to you by boat, by train, by balloon, or by car
A little bit of hope
Give me a little bit of rope for a little bit of hope
A little bit of rope
And I’ll see you on the other side
Just a little bit of hope
DISGUISE
Disguise disguise disguise
Your eyes, your lips, your lies
You can crawl back from where you came from
Or make your last goodbye
Disguise disguise disguise
Your whys, your size, your pride
You can hide it in the shadows
Or give it your best try
Disguise disguise disguise
Your highs, your lows, your insides
You can let yourself bleed out now
Or put away all your knives
Disguise disguise disguise
Your trys, your spies, your skies
You can look up at the bright light
Or curl up and die
NEW YEARS REVOLUTION
Now I’ve been around the block
I’ve seen a few of these eves
The amateurs out there doing their damages
Let’s just cozy up, I’ll grab the whiskey
Ain’t got none of those resolutions
I don’t believe in the institution
Iv’e come to my own conclusion
You gotta start your own New Year’s revolution
Now I’m staying right here with you baby
With you tonight
Yeah sure, it’s a new year
But let’s just do what feels right
We can look ahead to 2024
But be happy with what you got
Yeah there’s a couple things I’d like to do
This year I’ll give it another shot
I wish all you cat and dog lovers
A safe, inebriated night
So go do what you gotta do
I’ll be sleeping with Mr. Woodford by midnight
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3
2, 1 baby
2, 1
TIME TO FLY
When the burgundy ravens tell you it’s time to go
Listen up, they never lie, they’re always in the know
There’s an unsettling feeling, do you feel it like I do?
Maybe it’s all coming down, it’s time for the reckoning, the redo
And the oak trees sway like nervous first-day high schoolers
They move in practiced unison, like seasoned modern dancers
If you listen real close you can hear the muffled screams
Or maybe it’s just me and those screams are in my dreams
And the sidewalks look different today, depressed and ready to crack
A lot more opportunity to break your momma’s back in fact
I think we’re all fed up from jumping through non-existent hoops
Forget the tried and true troops, it’s time to be real and talk about a truce
My doors seem less open these days, hinges all pissed off
They don’t get as much use as they used to, the outside cut off
Even inside your own head there’s no guarantee for safety
I miss the days when I could smell, hear, see, and feel for free
So hey kids, as the man says, you gotta just go for it, don’t think about what comes after, or what came before it
Bend you knees my friend, take a deep breath and jump
You ask what if I fall?
But as the man says, what if you don’t fall at all
What if you don’t fall at all
What if you fly
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©℗ ASCAP John C. Bruce
©℗ BMI Conrad Richards