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Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of New Lincoln Bio: Songs of Love & Power, Pretend You Don't Know Me, sweetnsour sally, If I Told You, The Shine, and It Used To Be A City.
1. |
Whichever One You Feed
08:06
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In the centre of the fire is an ember glowing red
When I see it, I remember how I felt when Grandma said,
“There are two weak wolves inside you, you will choose which one live
& the one you let go hungry will teach you to forgive.”
Life is born out of the battle between heaven, hell & earth
Martyrs tend to teach & travel, get tangled up in death & dirt
If I had a nickel for every time I heard somebody say
“I have also had a hard time in my silent, private way,”
I would help some peaceful movement, help my neighbours learn the names
of everybody on our block & on weekends we can watch the game.
Instead of church all day on Sunday, stay inside & watch TV
The sunsets might be cotton candy, but this ain’t air you want to breathe
‘cause deep down here in Cancer Alley, a dozen different ways to die
chemicals can soften bullets, bleach the blood or let it dry—
Don’t bore me with your new statistics, or try to tell me what makes me tick,
I don’t trust a soul in this world. Everyone I know is sick.
What can I do? My dad is not well, we do not have time for this
We all mess up & make mistakes & betray Jesus with a kiss—
How am I supposed to trust you? I guess that is up to you,
You could read Paul Ricoeur or follow that flame burning deep inside of you.
We all need something from each other, we all could use more time in love
Listen to what is being offered, lessons spelled out up above:
All the stars & all the planets, all the asteroids & comets, too
All the supernova fusions built the bones of me & you
Me & you & all the children who make up the wide world we know
Teach & tug & twist & take me places where I need to go.
I try my best not to get worried about the evil things I do,
I have learned it is best to bury—who decides what’s good & true?
I do not know how to admit I know being bad is my choice,
But love’s as hard as trying to quit shutting down some other’s voice
If they expose what I have done, we have all caused pain & lied
I’ve fought this war, I thought we won, just let this one story slide…
There must be some more pressing issue everyone could focus on
I will do my best to improve if this whole thing just moves along
& this is how we whitewash history, dye it pink or green or blue
let it run right down the drain until the sewer backs up with truth.
They might laugh & spit & taunt me, “This has all been said before,”
Then cut my throat & let me watch my own blood spill out on the floor.
People think I am a downer, but Lincoln told me to be real,
appreciate that pride & power smother love & fuel fear.
Fear is what we use to defend idols we love to create,
Don’t despise me, I don’t worship lies designed to force feed hate.
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2. |
Love & Power
02:59
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I woke up & felt a warning this morning
As if we were all under the same spell
There was a parachuting man in my dreams
It seemed the weather had a certain story to tell
Come over if you have a message for me
Don’t write letters to the house anymore
The phones are tapped, but nobody believes me
So rap out this rhythm when you knock on my door
Crawl over my quiet body
There’s more to war than what comes back from the field
I was born to be a scout
Because my hand shakes when I drop my shield.
Rose gold floss spins out of the sky
An eagle glides above us for hours
I have blackened both of my eyes
While fooling around with love & power
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3. |
Ever A Need
05:40
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Is there ever a need for me to get lonesome
when I’ve got two feet to walk
down to the station, over to my neighbour’s
find the first person to talk?
Find the first person who’ll sit down & listen to me
tell my story again—
maybe if I don’t insist on solutions
I might just find a new friend
The rain has been one of my closest companions,
cooling me when I’m too hot—
I feel like a fool when my brain overheats
& my soul gets tied into a knot
There’s no use pretending
that my heart ain’t broken,
been dragging it around for years
singing these songs & poking these places
where I tend to bury my fears
Well, take me downtown,
take me to the station,
take me some place safe to talk—
Maybe we can meet up as the sun starts setting
over the lake for a walk
The year has been lonely,
the money comes slowly,
keep rolling over more bad news
Light me a candle, place it on the mantle:
my prayers are like lighting a fuse
I’m sorry I misunderstood what you said,
my head is a heavy surprise
& I know that sometimes I can be dismissive
& my eyes have been known to tell lies
I know I could offer a bit more compassion,
I know I could give you more love—
it’s hard to feel hardened,
I miss how you soften my heart like an old baseball glove
Thank you for the cardinals & crows in my garden,
this piano misses you, too
I wish I could hear you
sitting, reading, writing
or just taking in the view
Now, it’s time to go down
to those fourteen stations
where the spirit meets the bone
lower my head & make my confession
there’s no need to go it alone
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4. |
Quick Script
03:57
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When I drove north up to see you
I had two voices/choices in my head
The car grew cold while my mind burned a line
From new Orleans to the edge of your bed
Careful came the questions
& I walked with trepidation
while I wondered whether you would want some wine
heavy round your shoulders,
a new york winter whisper,
you seemed two steps further, safer down the line
Sometimes I feel I’m following a script
Slanted, cursive & written very quick
With a mouthful of tricks
& a mouthful of roses
nobody knows this or owes me anything
sundown was behind us
& some thin ice seemed to warn us
or remind us what we have is what we hold
the cold & the wine froze my worries, warmed my spine
& I watched as you let yourself unfold
she shakes me down & takes me
to the places where the river chisels
& causes the clay to collapse
carves me out a shelter fit for any weather
so my body knows it’s time to relax
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5. |
Familiar Purple Nights
04:54
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Rain’s been blowing around again, my darling &
I’m not going anywhere
Hear the violin strings sighing,
See the meteors falling through the air
(& we’re all singing
every little thing is gonna be alright)
Sunrise spilling through the window
I’ve been waking early too
With a cup filled up with coffee
Hair pulled back, I’m in a suit
You know the weather here is manic
Another storm is coming soon
A puzzle half-forgotten on the coffee table
In the window is a bowl full of fresh fruit
I need to gather up my horses
& bring the clothes in from the yard
there is a line squall out on the horizon
& you know my voice doesn’t carry too far
Every morning’s pregnant with disaster
Evening comes in velvet golden hues
I was purple as an adolescent
I’ve been learning to grow into the blues
Most of my friends know I make music
& those who don’t might not know much at all
about me or the world that keeps me busy,
taking notes, trying to synthesize it all
night falls on me with a careful question
does the world need what I want to give
I’ve been violet ever since I can remember
but the bluesmen have taught me how to live
‘cause we’re still singing
every little thing is gonna be alright
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6. |
Here & Now
03:55
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When you cant deal with the weight of the real
& you want to find an out
The times reveal a terrifying truth,
What’s the use? We’re born with doubt
Take on a tornado, take me out of town
Take me away on a train, take me deeper underground
Chain me up, chain me down, change my mother’s wedding gown
Tear the straps & sleeves away, I want to stay
In the here & now
There are women, I’m afraid, who might take a lover’s name
To escape the life she lives in
& men who will possess their wife’s life until death do them part
it’s the game they’ve been given
he’ll restart with fresh flesh
pour some brandy, take some sex,
press his branding iron hot against her neck
feel the fight underneath what she’s been led to believe
all those needs are begging to be released
in the here & now
in the end, he will defend every tear he said he’d mend
he has lost every friend, but knows not how
he curses & he cries, rejects anyone who tries
left surprised, on his lonely bed he dies
in the here & now
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7. |
Simple Peace
04:26
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I woke up this morning humming a tune
Wrote it last night, dreaming of you
No matter how, it’s always nice to see you
Standing there, sun in your hair
Flowers all around you,
Your smile made me smile
& I put my arms around you
then I heard music
drifting in from someplace far
like someone strumming something like this
softly on guitar
& I found myself humming something, too.
This little song to tell you
I love you
… Dreams are long roads
I end up walking through
Places I’ve never known
Spaces I’d like to take you
Sometimes I like to stay asleep
Happy in a dream
It’s easier to get along, or so it seems
When I wake up, I want to go back inside my head
It takes a lot of coaxing to get me out of bed
Something to take the edge off,
Something to pick me up,
Someone to read the tea leaves left
at the bottom of the cup
I know I’m not perfect, but I still try to be
It’s worth it when I get to feel
That quiet simple peace
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8. |
A Decent Man
05:36
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There is far too much hanging
On the moment tonight
You know I used to be dangerous
They never treated me right
For not believing in their heaven
Like a panhandling fool
I have no need for that religion
Their money or those schools
You know if I was your mother,
I’d have a lot more to say
You don’t see me as a brother,
You never listen anyway
You’ve got a chip on your shoulder
& your head in the sand
You don’t just learn by getting older
How to be a decent man
I’ve been beat down by the bullies,
The police & the goons
I’ve gotten up to speak my piece
& watched you walk out of the room
you think that time is your weapon,
but time will wait & let you die
you won’t hear the president
ever ask you to be a decent guy
all the flags are at half mast
they should be flying upside down
people begging as you drive by
& families dying all around
So ask yourself why you are preaching
from a gospel full of hate
do you really think that jesus
teaches to discriminate?
You know I’m tired of explaining
But not as tired as my friends
They’ve been out here all night waiting
Tomorrow, they’ll be here again
‘cause you pretend you never promised
forty acres or a mule
you betray them just like Judas
Lie & say they broke some rule
You want to know what my name is,
You want to make me act right
You know I only was dangerous
Because I wasn’t well liked
& people thought I was stranger
than how they liked to live their lives,
but it was them misbehaving
& getting whipped by their wives
Now you’re hanging on this moment
Waiting for me to make a move
I’m long done with playing games, sir
It’s you who has something to lose
But if you admit you’ve lost it,
Be quiet, breathe & settle down
Read & listen to your prophets
Teach you how to be a better man
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9. |
Patterns
04:53
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I’ve been here before, but not like this
I’m starting to realize everything I’ve missed
the shadows are dark, the higlights are bright
I never paid attention to the small points of light
there are stories in the stars & once the clouds are gone
I stay awake to read them from dusk til dawn
the sun heats up across the land
I cross myself & try my best to understand
who my neighbour is & what I’ve done wrong
& what it means when I decide to put it in a song
‘cause I’ve been doing this forever, ever since I was a child
words are how I’ve learned to tame the ways I’m wild
my teacher told me “Tony if you want to get well
to heal a broken heart, you’ve got to trust yourself”
I’ve been trying to do, I struggle & I grieve
over lost loves & opportunities
I’ve only got this one life, twenty four hours a day
I do my best in my own way
I know I’ve hurt some people with my words & my fists
I have broken promises, it’s hard to admit
I’ve brought people down to the depths with me
down into a dark, cold & stormy sea
& there are dragons in the dungeons, three saints in the fire
questions I ain’t asked since I left the funeral choir
I wanted to be a coast guard so that others may live
well, telling my truth is how I’ve learned to forgive
when the baby is born with not much more than hope
love is our lifeline, hold on to the rope
but somewhere along the way
something or someone might fall out of line
looking up from the bottom, got a long way to climb
might feel a bit broken, maybe a bit confused
afraid of just about anything that might bring back the blues
so I look for the light, the path, the way, the practice
go tell it on the mountain it’s all about praxis
the circle I have learned goes round & round
yeah, I learn from my mistakes & then I fall back down
& then I get back up with care & support
if you’ve got my back, know that I’ve got yours
circles & cycles can be broken, for better or for worse
it helps to recognize the patterns first
I am grateful for the stories, the hymns & the tunes
I have picked up along the way with you
& everyone who has given me a moment or an ear
I love you & I’m thankful to be together here
& those who have gone to a place someday we all will go
sprinkle me with a little bit of what you know
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Anthony Oscar New Orleans, Louisiana
folk songs
joke songs
news songs
blues songs
new orleans, la
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