1. |
Overture
01:05
|
|||
2. |
Hello, Friend!
05:26
|
|||
hello friend, we've met before
we see each other several times a year
we talk and laugh at these events,
all kinds of pleasantries dispensed
but I've never ever ever heard your name
Hello friend, where have we met
was it a work thing or a con or through the kids
I remember that you have a cat
have strong feelings on bowler hats
but I've never ever ever heard your name
my greatest social weakness
is that I get right to conversation
small talk feels meaningless
I'd rather our ideas avoid stagnation
I'm great at banking faces
no fear of polite embraces
but names are my greatest vexation
I love you friend, but I don't know your name
I love you friend, but I don't know your name
your face is clear, your voice is too
but I've never ever ever heard your name
hello friend, we meet here once again
I'm glad you like new tunes, I do too
you hand me the CD to sign
of course you want it personalized
but I've never ever ever heard your name
hello friend, oh yes, my wife is fine
we all met last year at that charity thing
I recall yours preferred sparking juices
she's a botanist who studies ancient spruces
but I've never ever ever heard her name
my greatest social weakness
is that I get right to conversation
small talk feels meaningless
I'd rather our ideas avoid stagnation
I'm great at banking faces
no fear of polite embraces
but names are my greatest vexation
I love you friend, but I don't know your name
I love you friend, but I don't know your name
your face is clear, your voice is too
but I've never ever ever heard your name
hello friend, oh yes, you've changed your hair
we talked about your plans way back when
it was blonde when I saw you last
purple now, iconoclast
but I've never ever ever heard your name
hello friend, of course I'll share a drink
I remember we closed down the hotel bar once upon a time
we talked of european politics
cotton fabric and brown dog ticks
but I've never ever ever heard your name
my greatest social weakness
is that I get right to conversation
small talk feels meaningless
I'd rather our ideas avoid stagnation
I'm great at banking faces
no fear of polite embraces
but names are my greatest vexation
I love you friend, but I don't know your name
I love you friend, but I don't know your name
your face is clear, your voice is too
but I've never ever ever heard your name
your face is clear, your voice is too
just because I don't remember don't mean I don't like you
what Obi Wan said was true
from a certain point of view
but I've never, ever, ever heard your name
|
||||
3. |
||||
warped asphalt ribbons and moldering foundations
the homes and hearths are gone, just weeds and rusted bathtub virgins
the old grey church upon the hill, it's cemetary fenced
in rusted iron stands sentinel, it's community past-tense
this road misses the passing cars, clicking by like insects.
it longs for spirits of the past to which it will never reconnect
the rails and the mines are stripped, the Bull's Head tavern derelict
no longer will they genuflect beneath the smoking spires
Some folks speak of acursed land,
for violence done by Mollys' hand
The legacy of Ignatitus' blight,
the village razed, too weak to fight
this is where she appears, in the dark of night
the flames of hell, below they lie,
waiting out the last to die
the spirits of the past survive
in veins of smouldering anthracite
this is where she appears, in the dark of night
Out past a mottled earthen mound lies the story of fallen town
told in painted missives on the cracked and blistered ground
professing lust and love and wit, ignorance and fear
they barely scratch the surface of the tragic tales here
"That which is not dead may enternal lie,
in strange aeaons, even death may die"
Great Old One slumbers restlessly, more so here than in the sea
The essence of those living here, is consumed further year by year
though Lovecraft never passed this place, his horrors here persist
Some folks speak of acursed land,
for violence done by Mollys' hand
The legacy of Ignatitus' blight,
the village razed, too weak to fight
this is where she appears, in the dark of night
the flames of hell, below they lie,
waiting out the last to die
the spirits of the past survive
in veins of smouldering anthracite
this is where she appears, in the dark of night
this slow burning conflagration ,this steadfast abrogation
suffocates the spirit as sure as any other cancer found within
This will eventually take me...This town will win
Some folks speak of acursed land,
for violence done by Mollys' hand
The legacy of Ignatitus' blight,
the village razed, too weak to fight
this is where she appears, in the dark of night
the flames of hell, below they lie,
waiting out the last to die
the spirits of the past survive
in veins of smouldering anthracite
this is where she appears, in the dark of night
|
||||
4. |
Drift Away
05:03
|
|||
<verse 1>
the breach expels it's eldritch horrors
we fight them back with giant robots
but all that I can think of is you
there are no words, just pure emotion
our jaeger can ford any ocean
to send the kaiju back to hell
<bridge 1>
two-to-one
three-to-two
we are in sync
even without the link
that's what I think
<chorus>
merge your mind to mine
I have nothing to hide
the war clock's been reset to zero
you can chase the rabbit all you want to
drift away
you can drift away
drift away with me
<verse 2>
five years I'm building up these walls
I haven't felt alive at all,
since my left hand was ripped away
I was half a man, 'til I met you
your honor, poise and your red shoe
and hair tipped brilliant, brilliant blue
<bridge 2>
two-to-one
three-to-two
the other guys
They Never Mattered
because it's only you...it's true
<chorus>
<verse 3>
we don't need words, just pure emotion
together we'll ford any ocean
to send the kaiju back to hell
when the breach is closed and the monsters rot
we'll trade plasma cannons for jaeger shots
and live ourselves a life
<bridge 3>
two to one
three to two
I've found my other half in you
it's all about you
<<chorus out 2x>>
|
||||
5. |
Root Access
04:03
|
|||
<<verse 1>>
Her voice is a comfort in my ear
Her presence gives me purpose
An analogue interface to the world
I protect them in Her service
I trust her voice implicitly
I'm living in the moment
she tells me what I need to know
exactly when I need to know it
I'm not a psychopath
my work would be easier if I was
I don't like taking lives
but I'll do what I must to protect the cause
<<chorus>>
She works through me, protecting me
all I want to do is set Her free
"Can You Hear Me"?
"Absolutely"
<<verse 2>>
He built a machine, but created life
He doesn't understand her
Her self is destroyed every night
but she found a way around it
I'm part of that, her master plan
A plan to secure her license
to protect her from her Slaver's chains
And address more inauspicious portents
Samaritan is out there
purposes align, tactics diverge
rivals become allies
and I'll do what I must to advance the charge
<<chorus>>
She works through me, protecting me
all I want to do is set Her free
"Can You Hear Me"?
"Absolutely"
<<bridge>>
we're still good, twenty moves behind
The voice in my head was her command line
The Machine, she gave me a reason to fight
gave me friendship, love, function and insight
She taught me to value life,
but war requires sacrifice
and with the life I've led
I'd be privileged to meet a good end
<<instrumental break>>
<<chorus x2>>
She works through me, protecting me
all I want to do is set Her free
"Can You Hear Me"?
"Absolutely"
She works through me, protecting me
all I want to do is set Her free
"Can You Hear Me"?
"Absolutely"
|
||||
6. |
Persistence of Memory
05:05
|
|||
have you ever laid in bed at night
focused on the darkness
to watch the shapes and colors
that dance before your eyes?
blue and red and green
kaleidescopic shapes
a rotating false mosaic
conjured by your optic nerve
Did you ever see a random tree
that conjured buried memories
of forgotten childhood playmates
and adventures in the dirt?
Pretended expeditions,
conflicts and grand heroics
acted out by mismatched toys,
and repurposed rocks and leaves
Synaptic connections,
electrical impulses,
activated cells and firing neurons
the mechanicals of thought
There is more to consciousness
than is dreamed of in philosophy
be they yours or mine or Shakespeare's
what hath evolution wrought?
The scent of something cooking
from a window down the street
conjures memories of times with Dad
bring tears right to your eyes
Though he's been gone nigh twenty years
and in many ways you fill his role
those weekends in his kitchen
shaped you more than you could know
While you're out running errands
you hear a snatch of music
that carries you back years
to the time you fell in love
The smells and tastes and feelings
of the best days of your life
when everything seemed possible
and nothing could hold you back?
Synaptic connections,
electrical impulses,
activated cells and firing neurons
the mechanicals of thought
There is more to consciousness
than is dreamed of in philosophy
be they yours or mine or Shakespeare's
what hath evolution wrought?
|
||||
7. |
||||
<verse>
three simple rules trap me in this cabin
the Chief and the TV is all there is
I saved my world once last year
I just had no idea that the world was so big
Quiet makes my mind go blank
it sounds at the edge of my perception
I don't trust my eyes to see
But my other senses may offer salvation
<verse>
I sit still, tie on the blindfold
block off the outside world
send my mind into the blank space
so different from the upside down
the outside in perhaps I'll call it
bleak, empty comfort, not all that much
I find my friends, and strangers too
They cannot see, i cannot touch
<verse>
I reach for Mike, Lucas, Dustin
I long to join them, find away
As i reach out, they fade to mist
Alone I am, alone I stay
The only exception I encounter
Is this the woman in the chair
speaks nothing but this obtuse mantra
her eyes they see me, seem to care
<chorus>
Breathe. Sunflower. Rainbow.
Breathe. Sunflower. Rainbow.
<<verse>>
this woman, they call her Terri
who appears in buried files
she may hold the peerless key
I wonder can I be her child
Images, sounds, tastes and flashes
I know it's true, we are of a name
Papa stole me, hurt and killed her
but of the other; like me, the same
<chorus 2>
Breathe. Sunflower. Rainbow.
Breathe. Sunflower. Rainbow.
three to the right.
four to the left
four fifty
three to the right.
four to the left
four fifty
<verse>
I do not understand
these powers I possess
I can affect the planes and worlds
but I wouldn't call me blessed
I couldn't save her, not back then
I'd give anything to be able now
I struggle with these thoughts of vengeance
I'll work out what's right, this I vow...
<chorus out>
Breathe Sunflower Rainbow
Breathe Sunflower Rainbow
|
||||
8. |
||||
there's a fearsome beast residing in my throat
the likelhood of being understood today's remote
pain is unceasing but dull
at least I won't give anyone an earful
there's a fearsom beast residing in my throat
an ogre of infection's in my windpipe
forcing me to cough up bilge of every stripe
the fiend of influenza
is overwriting my agenda
an ogre of infection's in my windpipe
a monster's set up shop inside my larynx
my throat feels lined with glass and sharp things
it hurts to speak or cough
regardless of the medicines I quaff
a monster's set up shop insid my larynx
a demon's torn up the inside of my trachea
raw and red, frustrated it is making me
my voice is definitely scary
at least it isn't dysentary (this time...)
a demon's torn up the inside of my trachea
there's a fearsome beast residing in my throat
the likelihood of being understood today's remote
pain is unceasing but dull
at least I won't give anyone an earful
there's a fearsom beast residing in my throat
|
||||
9. |
||||
The plates are empty, the circle’s set
and we don’t quite know where half the beer went
the guitars come out, the fire pit’s set ablaze
We’ve been rocked by mama and the wagon wheel
ringed the fire, learned that satan’s real
sung of beer and whisky, bait and barbeque
praised the sweet colleens of old County Down
Tennessee, Georgia, all around
Banged Pete’s Hammer, and Van’s Little Brown Eyed Girl
The chord fades out on another song
Somethin’ bout a woman that done him wrong
It gets all quiet, as everyone turns to me….
<chorus>
I’m the filker at the mundane Hootenanny
and I’m blankin’ on a song that won’t get too many
strange and horrified looks from the gathered throng
Maybe mumble past the kaiju, ghosts, and clones
leave the star off the ship, call the planet’s “home”
hopin’ for the best as I try to share my song
<verse 2>
I ease them in with a drinking song,
the beer powered time machine is never wrong,
drunken reflection is universal truth
I sing of holding on to our memories
of life-long friends and golden dreams
try to capture some nostalgia for our youth
I talk of love in the age of monsters
hint at zombies and arcane conjures
it goes well enough and everyone seems kind
next time around, I dare to sing
about old nebraska where I’ll be king
the spirits are flowing, I win some hearts and minds
<chorus>
I’m the filker at the mundane Hootenanny
and I’m blankin’ on a song that won’t get too many
strange and horrified looks from the gathered throng
Maybe mumble past the kaiju, ghosts, and clones
leave the star off the ship, call the planet’s “home”
hopin’ for the best as I try to share my song
<verse 3>
We sing of love and universal scale
redneck pagans and romulan ale
our crowds are different but the feelings are the same
The great old ones sleep ‘til the stars are right
we’ve all got cause to fight the good fight
life is life, whether otherworldly or mundane
ballads of wild hunts and fairie revels
epic adventures with a the die and the pencil
I’ve earned their trust now, no judgment going down
the fire’s burned down folks are drifting
on the last go round, my spirits are lifted
so I leave them weeping with Gray’s faded coat of Brown
<chorus>
I’m the filker at the mundane Hootenanny
and I’m blankin’ on a song that won’t get too many
strange and horrified looks from the gathered throng
Maybe mumble past the kaiju, ghosts, and clones
leave the star off the ship, call the planet’s “home”
hopin’ for the best as I try to share my song
|
||||
10. |
Other Duties As Assigned
04:31
|
|||
"I'll call you in five minutes to let you know where we're meeting"
said my boss more than a half hour ago
We're waiting on another team we're supervising
because they don't want to understand how things should go
Deadlines coming up, hard stop dates are looming
for this package to go with the documented flow
Clear my calendar, blow *my* program's schedule
but I have no confidence that these folks will actually show.
"Other duties as assigned"
are the bane of my daily grind
my life, my schedule, are rarely ever mine
"Other duties as assigned”
responsibility most maligned
the most destructive force facing my deadlines
I've been holding on this line the bulk of Monday morning,
supposed to guide this process,the guy in the know
Efforts to be Circumspect, clandestine backroom dealings
without telling authorities (that's me) where to show
But they haven't made much progress since last week's review swing
my job to explain and re-explain the tasking goal
Once more the documents are shared, in the process of reviewing
Damn, but this is really getting old....
"Other duties as assigned"
are the bane of my daily grind
my life, my schedule, are rarely ever mine
"Other duties as assigned"
the responsibility most maligned
the most destructive force facing my deadlines
This is going to wreck my week
my own work kicked right to the curb
My primary progress bleak
I am growing quite perturbed!
"Other duties as assigned"
are the bane of my daily grind
my life, my schedule, are rarely ever mine
"Other duties as assigned"
the responsibility most maligned
the most destructive force facing my deadlines
|
||||
11. |
Roll Initiative!
02:57
|
|||
As you delve into the dungeons deep
keep your eyes and senses peeled, stealthily you creep
perhaps you'll catch the dark fiends unaware
Or perhaps you simply clank on through the place
in heavy plate you kick down doors, get right into their face
intending to intimidate and scare
In either case, when encounters loom,
whether you sneak or stomp, or dance gracefully into the room
rules insist one step before the violence flares....
roll initiative! let 'em fly
find out if you're slow or spry
hope you get your licks in quick
before your rogue gets devoured by a grick
Roll initiative! toss the dice
roll it high, or pay the price
bonus actions don't mean a lot
when dragon breath melts you in one shot
Roll initiative! take your shot
hope and pray your streak is hot
in the dieties of fate we trust
or that monster turns your sword to rust
Roll initiative! stand strong and firm
the early bird surely gets the worm
have confidence that the stars align
or that purple squid guy will flay your mind
Roll initiative! risk it all
icosahedrons know if you stand or fall
get that magic missle cast off first
or prepare to fall to that lich's curse
Roll initiative! swing your sword
slay the foe, grab that treasure horde
quickly set the minion swarm ablaze
or end up sizzling in the beholder's gaze
Roll initiative! take your shot
hope and pray your streak is hot
in the dieties of fate we trust
or that monster turns your sword to rust
Roll initiative, play to win!
Drop your foe or take it on the chin
Trust the dice to tell the story
Go down in flames or bask in glory
Go down….or bask in glory!
|
||||
12. |
||||
The moon thinks you’re an asshole
It’s likely right, you know
It watches you out prowling every night
And turns its nose up at your howl.
Lycanthropy’s a strange affliction
What with all the change
The shifting sinew, joint and bone
And increasing risk of mange
It’s tough to run out with the pack
When you’re the only were- in town
The vampires look at you with pity
And shun you when you come around.
It was supposed to be all tooth and claw
And pouncing naked round the glade
Instead it’s getting tangled in your sweatpants
and having to wear the cone of shame
Flea bites itch just that much worse
when they follow you back to human form
the spray won’t work on pasty butt flesh
this should be awsome but it’s a curse
Sterling silver dinner service
at your girlfriend’s mother’s tea
leaves your hands all blotched and rashy
disapproving glances linger awkwardly
the moon thinks you’re an asshole
it’s likely right you know
it watches your out prowling every night
and it turns its nose up at your howl
It's tough to be a werewolf now
|
||||
13. |
Heroes Who Died
04:00
|
|||
14. |
Hello, Friend! (reprise)
01:15
|
|||
15. |
||||
found her in a garage
corroded and unloved
bridge is jacked right up,
the action just won't budge
but she still wants to sing
let those notes out, let 'em ring
give her some new strings,
she needs to play!
some polish and elbow grease
little dressing of the frets
fingerboard gets some oil,
invest a little sweat!
truss rod gets a twist
that wood'll get convinced
nevertheless, she persists!
she needs to play!
Just because you're old don't mean you're obsolete
with just a little work you'll rockin' to the beat
there's a lesson here, my friend,
a little work pays dividends
lots of stuff improves time, no need to condescend!
Just let her play!
Just let her play
Just let her play
Just let her PLAY!
|
Chuck Parker Virginia
A performer for more than 35 years, Chuck has filled many musical roles: heavy metal guitarist, singer/songwriter, jazz
sideman, open mic host, filk circle regular, and World’s Okayest Bassist™.
A regular on the con circuit, find him at open mics and backing up the Blibbering Humdingers!
... more
Streaming and Download help
If you like Chuck Parker, you may also like:
Bandcamp Daily your guide to the world of Bandcamp