1. |
Mama Can't See Us Now
04:16
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Annabella takes a drag in a run-down motel room
Every evening she works the bar at the Southern Cross Saloon
Her mama always said to her, "Darlin' don't you give up yet
There ain't a thing in life worth gettin' without even breakin' a sweat"
But Mama can't see her now, and she don't know the trouble she's in
She would need to receive a promotion to move up to livin' in sin
Annabella reminds herself she’s got a bit more left in the tank
Don't get busy dyin' when you got so much life left in the bank
Benny turns the engine off, locks the Beamer up real tight
Then he heads on up to his high-rise to turn in for the night
His mama always said to him, “Hard work'll bring your reward”
But he's burned out, and Mama never had to answer to the board
And Mama can't see him now, where Benny dreams of runnin' away
Findin' him a nice tall swing set and catchin' up on play
Well you can put the hammer down chasin' numbers in the bank
But keep it down too long and you'll find you got nothin' left in the tank
Gerald drops the anchor down, and he turns to face the sun
He takes a real deep breath and loads a flare into the gun
There ain't nobody for miles around, so no one oughtta see him sink
But then it goes off right in his hand and shoots the rocket into the drink
I guess Mama can see him now, and she still watches over her boy
Gerald raises his head up high and lets the main sail deploy
He takes another deep breath and makes a promise to no one
The only thing on fire's the sky as it burns above the setting sun
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2. |
Leave Salem
04:52
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All the signs were pointing out of Salem
And every road just washed me out of town
I couldn't change the things I'd done in Salem
A broken minstrel with moonstones in his crown
Three weeks and four days out of Bristol
And I ain't ask one single son of a bitch
To let me look down his loaded pistol
And find the grim fate down there in a twitch
Through the challenger deep of the road by night
The sword of Orion drips crimson with starlight
The neon gods stand guard by the asphalt
And leases on life fall fast into default
I walk this line
And leave Salem behind
I'm sick and tired of all these same old memories
I'd pour gas and set the pile ablaze
But the road's got me lit up like Dad's old chimney
Breathing fire and spitting dust for days
I'd sell my soul but I ain't had no offers
And it ain't worth the cost to get appraised
And there ain't nothin' left in this old coffer
Fortune ain't worth sufferin' anyways
When I was young they told me I was an old soul
Now I'm old and childish as they come
But you gotta keep on kicking for that field goal
And marching when it's hard to hear the drum
You gotta know the feeling when the air turns
And summer storms come rolling off the sea
Salem sure is pretty when it all burns
The time has come to let ol' Salem be
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3. |
Bordertown
03:29
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There’s a place in a Texas border town
Way up on a hill by the stars
Where the firebrush grows
And the spirits don't care who you are
Where the ruins of old times linger
In the moonlight of yesterday
And we dance while the echo
Of a long-gone jug band plays
There's drifters and trail-worn outlaws
From every which way the wind blows
They all seem to know the way
When it's their turn to go
When it comes at last
You wanna get there fast
Only trouble's you don't know the way
But by the time you learn
Then all the daylight's burned
And you're thinking you might as well stay
The eyes of today can't see you
And you go whenever you want
Where the poets and soldiers and preachers
And farmhands haunt
Waylon's here lookin' for Jessi
To go dancin' to old Bob Wills
And Billy just rolled in
On a fast train from the Georgia hills
And the times, they ain't a-changin'
So come and sit for a spell
Where you know every stranger
And there ain't no souls left to sell
And when the sun goes down
They're gonna rock this town
Playin' cards, raisin' hell all night
But then if you or me
Head on up there we'll see
Nothin' but ruins and dust in sight
There's a place in a Texas border town
Where the trail only takes you so far
And the long lost souls
Come to drift on the sea of the those stars
So grab a bottle and lean a while
Hunker down with the boys outside
'Cause when the sun chases off those shadows
Once again we'll ride
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4. |
I Dream of Highways
03:12
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5. |
Facade
04:29
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Since I last saw your face I've never known another
You are my father's son so therefore you're my brother
I'm the appointed one to tell you that it's true
But if you don't believe, I'll leave it up to you
It's so amazing what one sees with his eyes closed
Brighter horizons than the open eye can know
Just turn the world upside down so it all can drain
And I will meet you somewhere for to break these chains
They've got you wondering if things are what they seem
You've never understood what any of it means
If you don't know by now then find somewhere to hide
Have a nice trip, I'll see you on the other side
Your disposition shows more strain the more you do
I know it's true because I know you
You'll stand around and watch it erode at your feet
Don’t wait to move until you start to feel the heat
It's too late to worry ‘cause you know nothing will change
The nights grow frightening and the days grow strange
Beware the ones who sneer when life turns out so hard
And don't look too closely cause it's all a facade
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6. |
In Another Life
05:01
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I know a woman down in Texas
Her story's long and spirit's wild
She captures life in gorgeous pictures
And beats down the hard times with her smile
She sees hard times and gives 'em double
And gives her kids the best she can
She laughs her way through all her troubles
And in another life I was her man
I know a hippie up in Asheville
She rides the Blue Ridge like a steer
She bathes in Appalachian moonlight
And marches to drummers we can't hear
We spent two summers on the Grand Strand
Our stories frozen there in time
Standing at the whole world's edge, hand in hand
And in another life I called her mine
I know a girl down at the theater
Her smile keeps shining through her strife
She casts her spell on all the company
And makes those stories come to life
She is not lost but yet still wanders
And never hesitates to dance
Among the daffodils and sun showers
And in another life we got our chance
I know a lady of the desert
Her heroes play in smoky dives
Her little boy's a pint-size rock star
And they're keeping punk rock's past alive
She makes sure dreams are never squandered
She paints the world how she prefers
We kissed our last some decades yonder
But in another life she called me hers
Sometimes the best tales still ain't written
There's still more pages left to turn
So if you're longing for adventure
Go out in search and you may learn
Don't be so salty at some ending
You can dream new dreams and write new twists
So if you're still upright and breathing
Go find that other life you missed
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7. |
Not the Same
03:24
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I'm not the same man that I used to be
Pretty house of cards I built came down on me
So I picked them up and I shuffled them again
Turns out the Joker is my oldest friend
I don't have the same friends that I used to have
They tend to fade like an old photograph
But if you truly love someone you set them free
Then words cannot express how much she once loved me
And I asked the sun
If it's tired of rising
But he beamed at me
And said, "The seasons are my vow
And when it's done
I just hope I gave my best to you
I don't know if I can be replaced
So I'll shine this light for now"
These ain't the same roads that I used to roam
If I get lost, I just change where I call home
And I sing new songs and I dream new dreams
Time tends to change your taste in everything
I don't know the same things that I used to know
But even life forgets the ways we used to go
So I carry this guitar while my new friend lights the day
And a backpack full of memories of those who've fallen on the way
And I asked the road
If it's tired of winding
And it told me no
And said "Adventure is my task
And when it's done
I just hope I took you somewhere new
And the people all were kind to you
Now what more could someone ask?"
I'm not the same man that I used to be
Pretty house of cards I built came down on me
So I picked them up and I may build it once again
I might find out the Joker is my only friend
I just may find the Joker is my only friend
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8. |
Down to the Water
03:58
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Let's go down to the water tonight
We'll go stand in the currents of the past
We'll think back to when we were all a family
And stood here last
When this place was the edge of the world
And the world spun around you and I
And the ones who gathered here around us
Could never die
We swam here with three generations
Built castles with this very sand
And if we close our eyes we can feel them
Take our hand
And time is a fire
And we're all standing right in its kindling
And it'll burn unending as memories dry
Let's go kneel at the feet of the ocean
Offer prayers to the gods of the deep
And we'll dig up a trunk full of memories
That we both keep
We'll skip shells on the tide pools at sunset
Breathe deep of those ancient tides
Drink a toast in the Carolina moonlight
To years behind
I'll take you dancing to Shannon Tanner
Finding memories we long left behind
We'll crank up every song by the Drifters
That we can find
And time is a landslide
On the face of the hills we've conquered
But we just move onward, and we abide
There's a time when the ones who've loved you
Move along to a place out of sight
And they leave this resounding silence
That we can't fight
But we walk now in their old footprints
And their path starts to merge with ours
For the ashes of all those memories
Have turned to stars
And we'll stand while the dust of the ages
Rains down from the heavens above
We'll become something more in an instant
On the winds of love
And time is a canyon
Cut deep by a river so violent
All those years in the silence
Where progress hides
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9. |
I Ain't Worth Shootin'
04:56
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Sometimes I feel like I done seen my share of bars
That highway's callin' and I long to count those stars
I ain't seen the sunshine so I do not cuss the rain
My feet don't fit no railroad and this world has changed my name
My soul needs saving and my fortune needs a swell
And it's been a year now since I faced those hounds of Hell
So with a broken compass and map that's burned to chars
I headed south to find some new stars
The worst part of lonely's when there's no one left to blame
I ain't worth shootin' or the slab to carve my name
My coat's in tatters and the jewel's gone from my crown
I ain't worth shootin' or the dirt to lay me down
There's a man there in that tavern, he's making money sitting still
But his woman sits at home and counts the days that pass in pills
'Cause you can keep on gunning for that pot of gold
Or you can keep on coming home to those you hold
This world keeps turning on those lives about to start
This drought won't break and there's a housefire in my heart
So I'll let this whiskey burn the rest down to the frame
And I'll drink a toast to all the dreams inside those flames
The nights grow longer and the days all seem the same
I ain't worth shootin' or the slab to carve my name
Only job left in this rodeo's to play the clown
I ain't worth shootin' or the dirt to lay me down
My ramblin' knows no bounds but this road knows no shame
I ain't worth shootin' or the slab to carve my name
If somethin' falls in this hollow heart's it make a sound?
I ain't worth shootin' or the dirt to lay me down
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10. |
Just Because
04:09
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Just because you may be silent
Doesn't mean I have to know
Everything you're thinking
Lying in the afterglow
Just because the nights are fleeting
Doesn't mean I'm not with you
Off in some corner
Of the memories I run to
But then we catch our moment
And the world belongs to us
'Cause love can be most thrilling
When it's dumb and dangerous
And I wonder where we'll be
When the rain comes down on you & me
And I would drown in your eyes and your arms and your kiss
But how can I drown in your heart?
Tell me where to start
I don't know where you found the nerve
But I'm glad you called my bluff
And just because we talk so often
Doesn't mean we say enough
And just because some nights are red-hot
Doesn't mean that most aren't blue
I feel the weight of silence
And I know you feel it, too
And just because I want you right here
Doesn't mean you don't have to go
We may be good at deadlines
But we still may someday float
And just because my lips still taste you
Doesn't mean they always will
So I live in the spaces
In between and until
And just because we burn like fire
Doesn't mean we can't go out
But sparks fly when we touch
Without a doubt
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11. |
Dust on the Old Days
05:10
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Where have you run to so slow so late in November?
Is the end of the bottle so warm when you get there alone?
And when was the last time I saw you, ‘cause I can't remember
This bank full of memories is starting to feel overdrawn
Lord, take me back to those days in that cramped old apartment
Where we both left some piece of our wilder and true selves behind
But you can't fill those holes with the things you can pour from a bottle
And go looking for something the most dogged of men never find
From Star-spangled nights and those hangover mornings you slept off
To random hell-raising and those middle-age problems we swept off
There's dust on the old days and everything looks kinda cloudy
You used to polish 'em with me, but it's hard now without you
Christmas don't come 'round in summer, no it waits 'til December
Nightfall don't happen at noon, it waits for its time
We don't cut down the saplings still growing like just so much timber
But I'll damn sure sing songs to those outlaws cut down in their prime
Sometimes I wake up swearing I just heard you call
But I pick it up to your voice shouting nothing at all
If sunsets are supposed to be so goddamn pretty, then why can't I look?
The dawn coming soon will be gray from the color you took
Sometimes I wake up swearing I just heard you call
But I pick it up to your voice shouting nothing at all
Someday I'll see you and tell you how growin' old feels
With a mouthful of stories and a lifetime of dirt on my heels
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12. |
Dixie
01:41
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(instrumental)
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13. |
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Look away, my brothers, from an age-old credence
And see now the truth in their scars
And rest ye assured that the fault, dear Brutus
Lies deep in our stars and our bars
Look away, ye sinners, from resentment's temper
You mistook your estate for a throne
And you’ve beaten so many old plowshares to swords
That you're wasting away to your bones
Oh I wish I was in the land we've promised
Where storm-ravaged waters at long last turn calmest
May old times there be someday forgotten
Amen
When the ghosts of old Shiloh can stay dead and buried
And we don't remind people of the scars that they carry
When the kindness of strangers becomes customary
Then the South shall rise again
No one in the Bible fought hard to preserve
The way everything always had been
Except Caesar, and Herod, and the ones who our preachers
Agree were all misguided men
Each struggle has heroes who never stop climbing
To bask in the glow of the stars
While the old ones try hard to keep casting their shadow
So now ask yourself which one you are
Well I wish I was in the days yet coming
But they're marching so close I can hear the drumming
Carrying us on to what we're becoming
And then
When we show those forsaken that they damn-well matter
The ashes of old crosses take wind and then scatter
When the sigil that bound them is rent into tatters
Then the South will rise again
See I wish someday for the land of cotton
The souls of our fathers reprieved
But the rain won't stop coming and the fields have gone rotten
And the sins of our fathers we grieve
There's a time for the gun and a time for the rose
And a wise one knows when they fall
But we're jumping, Jim Crow, and our purpose now shows
In the echo of destiny's call
Oh I wish I was in the future I see
We'll rise like we've promised, but this time we'll be
A bright shining beacon in a turbulent sea
For all time
We'll sit down together at that old lunch counter
And we'll build us a future fit to rattle the founders
While the voices of freedom ring louder and louder
Then the South may finally rise
We'll greet every stranger with grace and a smile
A bed when they're weary and a drink when they're dry
A hand up from hard times and love when they cry
This is the way we shall rise
We’ll meet down in Selma, and this time we’ll stand
On the John Lewis Bridge, my hand in your hand
No second-class people, just women and men
Then the South shall rise again
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Brandon Mullis Augusta, Georgia
I'm a primarily acoustic singer/songwriter who's been writing lyrical folk/Americana music for more than 20 years. I play
all over the eastern USA, and my influences range from Neil Young to Alice in Chains to Jason Isbell to David Allan Coe. I love good melodies and heartfelt stories, and I try to pass along the best ones I can.
youtube.com/mullismixes
facebook.com/brandonmullismusic
... more
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