1. |
Back Street
03:43
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It’s that place where everyone leaves
Their old broken stoves
And couches with cigarette burns
The alley cat roams
Lurks by the garbage cans
While a shady character patiently waits his turn
Leave those things behind
You don’t need anything more this time
Lost in the backstreet
Torn jeans and dirty feet
Waiting for you to come home
It’s a dead end place
You know where this goes to
Wandering out in the dark and the cold and rain
No, you won’t find what you’ve been looking for
Every one of those streets just looks the same
Leave those things behind
You don’t need anything more this
Lost in the back street
Torn jeans and dirty feet
Waiting for you to come home
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2. |
Oh June
03:17
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Oh June
How do you do?
I run across the meadow
With stars in my pockets
Oh June
What to do?
I can’t contain
All this firelight and milkweed and roses
Oh June
You left me standing by the old fence.
Wildflowers blooming in cement
And yesterday’s compost pile
How to
Explain to my lover?
I have become a bird
That soars over water
Oh June
What about you?
Did you break hearts
When you sailed off apart from the winter?
How true!
You don’t have to tell me twice:
This life is for living
And living can be so nice.
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3. |
Canvas & Clay
04:17
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This is what I have decided
After thinking it over for a while
Life’s not meant to be a straight line
Or even a smooth ride
I like paintings that are layered
Dappled textures and blurred-out lines
Sometimes the artist only knows what he’s painting
Through messes and wasted time
And all these years I was worried by the errors I was making
And all this time I thought I was missing every turn I should be taking
But maybe it’s more like
We’re a canvas on a painter’s stand
I watched a potter throwing clay
She said “I know that it looks easy, but it’s not.
Sometimes it takes a lot of starting over
To make the perfect pot.”
But maybe it’s more like
We’re clay in a potter’s hand
I’ve been pressed down and painted over
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4. |
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It’s such a shame that a heart breaking
Happens so quietly
If it was loud then everyone around
Could come running
And they’d press the broken parts
‘Til they started to mend
And folks all over town
Would talk about that near-fatal end
They say that two is company
But I’ve never felt so alone
Than when I sat right next to you
After that space had grown
Is this an ending
Or is it a start?
I cannot tell yet
And I don’t know how to read the stars
It’s such a shame that a heart breaking
Happens so subtly
Too bad there’s not some number to call
Ambulance or police
They’d bring their stretchers
And their oxygen
Get that heart somewhere safe
And give it some medicine
What does the future hold?
I can’t see that far
Will this heart beat again?
Oh, I don’t know how to read the stars
Oh, I don’t know how to read the stars
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5. |
All the Trees
03:50
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We fell in love in the summertime
When the days were long and the light was fine
We traced each other ‘til early morning
When I look at photos we’re always smiling
Oh how I wish that I could turn back time
I would find us there in that morning light
But all the trees are bare now
And our love is worn out
Winter came and stayed too long
And I think it’s time that we moved on
My mother wanted me to marry for money
But I was marrying for love, oh honey
We were young and naive and we believed
Love could hold us in the roughest seas
I got a white dress and you got a black suit
We went down to Old Saint’s Church on Broadway Avenue
But all the trees are bare now
And our love is worn out
Winter came and stayed too long
And I think it’s time that we moved on
Oh how I wish that I could turn back time
I would find us there in that summer light
But all the trees are bare now
And our love is worn out
Winter came and stayed too long
And I think it’s time that we moved on
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6. |
Blue Dress
02:55
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I got my blue dress on
I think I’ll go downtown
Walk into Woodwards
Buy me a good purse
One that can hold a few pounds
I got my black high heels
Oh, and they make me feel
Like Jacki O or Marilyn Monroe
I got my black high heels
And now I just need a place to put this cash
He thought he could fool me but I found his stash
And I’m going shopping and then out to find me a little house
Somewhere a little South of here
I got my suitcase packed
I won’t be looking back
Cuz I’ve had enough of vacuuming rugs
Go find a maid for that!
I got my satin gloves
‘Case I’m inclined to love
Find me a good man
With money to spare and
A hankering for the stuff
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7. |
Happy All the Day
02:33
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I walk down sidewalks but it's more like they carry me
Aspen and Maple and apricot sun-filled streets
Everything shines as we go on our way
You make me happy all the day, all the day
We walk through cedars and shadows and leftover rain
The sun's in the valley but it'll be here soon again
Everything shines as we go on our way
You make me happy all the day, all the day
Don't worry darlin' I've got no place to be
We've got 'til Sunday to wander these quiet streets
Everything shines as we go on our way
You make me happy all the day, all the day
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8. |
Ashes
04:29
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Our love was a summer day
That wilted when the fall came
Our love was a garment of praise
But the fabric burned in the blaze
Our love was a winter coat
Whose stitches wouldn’t hold
Our love was a shelter from rain
That caved in the heat of the day
Our love turned to winter cold
That settled into our bones
Our love turned to ashes and soot
And we tried to gather it best we could
Where do we go from here?
Into a place where the sky is clear
If our love was a summer day
Then another summer will come our way
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9. |
About You
03:24
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You said you’d try a little later
When our life wasn’t so complicated
Or when the weather got better
You said you’ll wait until the snow comes
And then you’ll see what needs to be done
The snow came and went and you really meant to
Back when our love was fine
You were always taking your time
It’s one of the things that I liked
About you
You planted me like a garden in spring
But you neglected to water that thing
Don’t say I scorned you, I warned you
Well I was a box in the basement that you
Labeled “things to get around to”
And so I waited and faded
Baby, if I was your garden in spring
I would have given you everything
When summer came. Oh, what a shame!
And if you’d remembered me there on your shelf
You could have held me against yourself
But you played it cool, and I’m the fool
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10. |
I've Got My Eye on You
03:33
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Honey, why don’t you come over soon?
Don’t stay there so far across the room
I’ve got my eye on you
Somethin’ tells me you’ve seen a thing or two
Somethin’ tells me you’re nobody’s fool
I’ve got my eye on you
We don’t need to take our time
I can tell right now that I like you fine
And I think it would be a crime
Not to do what it takes
To make you mine
Someone told me you’ve got a broken heart
Maybe I could help with the healing part
I’ve got my eye on you
So honey, why don’t you just take a chance?
Music’s playing and I love to dance
And I’ve got my eye on you
It’s getting late and I saw you look at me
I looked back and I think it was meant to be
I’ve got my eye on you
Well, I cross the room and I tell you my name
I hope it’s not to forward of me to say:
I’ve had my eye on, on have my eyes gone
I’ve had my eye on you
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11. |
Sunday
03:07
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Sunday is a sweet consolation
A way to keep you next to me
Daffodils blooming so profusely
Edges softened now
Let’s just stay in the house
Oh, will it always be this way?
Missing you when you’re away?
Wanting things that go to stay?
I watch you from the kitchen window
Monday, you’re walking down the street
too far away for me to see
And I want to call your name
and keep you back today
Oh, will it always be this way?
Missing you when you’re away?
Wanting things that go to stay?
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Kim June Johnson British Columbia
Singer-songwriter & poet living on the west coast of Canada.
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