1. |
1849
04:09
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They traveled across the angry sea in 1849
With all that they could carry
They traveled sick they traveled blind
Their home the starving island just a photo in their mind
They buried the dead at sea, winter 1849
The captain was a sailing man respected in his time
He’d made the journey twice before and almost lost his life
The hardest part was choosing who would sail and who would die
Left stranded with the hunger of 1849
They left behind the clans who’d been together a thousand years
With music and the memories ringing in their ears
They brought with them tradition and the will to work and die
In the land known for freedom, soil and sky
The memories of the loved ones, who were swallowed by the sea
Handed down from father to son along with a rosary
One black bead for every soul forever lost in time
Who never heard the New Year’s bell of 1849
They left behind the clans who’d been together a thousand years
With music and the memories ringing in their ears
They brought with them tradition and the will to work and die
In the land known for freedom, soil and sky
His name was Patrick Mulligan his eyes were steely blue
He lost his wife to famine and a younger son too
I know we’ll be united in the Lord’s good time
And hear the tales of family in 1849
They left behind the clans who’d been together a thousand years
With music and the memories ringing in their ears
They brought with them tradition and the will to work and die
In the land known for freedom, soil and sky
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2. |
It'll be all right
03:31
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Once were the days long before we was men
But manly we was and may yet be again
For better for worse if ever I am
Down with the boys when we landed in a jam
All of the demons takin' us far from home
Every man among us has some demons of his own
Takin' on the trouble with the fire in his heart
It'll take more than trouble now to tear us apart
So here's to the girls that we love every night
And here's to the boys that can still put up a fight
And here's to the rest who are hoistin' a pint
I think it'll be all right
Don't know if that hard rain is ever gonna fall
Don't know where we been but we've been through it all
We don't have a clue when that ship is comin' in
It don't have a name but we're callin' it again
So bang on the drum and we'll rosin up the bow
Nothin' left to lose now and nothin' much to show
How we got here from there we've never known
Shedding all our skin to get down to the bone
So here's to the girls that we love every night
And here's to the boys that can still put up a fight
And here's to the rest who are hoistin' a pint
I think it'll be all right
Now all we can give is the best we can do
If we run the ship aground we can still muddle through
Let every card we draw tumble right where it will
'Cuz we're already chewin' on that devil's bitter pill.
So here's to the girls that we love every night
And here's to the boys that can still put up a fight
And here's to the rest who are hoistin' a pint
I think it'll be all right
I know it'll be all right
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3. |
Turning Point
03:13
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Well I’m right back where I was before
Dawn comes quick and the day is gone once more
What’s up ahead well I don’t know
But I hear that battle call
This is the turning point
I see you under the weight of the world
You’ve been broke down your flag torn
We’re moving up to higher ground
Only gravity keeps us down
This is the turning point
Here we are together now
You and me and the sad
Remains of every dream we ever had
But now the time is right
Things will change from here on out
This is the turning point
The clock ticks and it reaches my ear
No time for greed, hate or fear
We only go from beginning to end
With no stops in between
Every dog has his day
Don’t let nothing get in the way
This is the Turning point
This is it, we got to go
There is no lookin’ back any more
There is no lookin’ back and I’ll drink to that
There is no lookin’ back any more
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4. |
Jailhouse of County Fife
03:57
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In the jailhouse of County Fife all good men did time
For celebratin' good and bad with fists and a bottle of wine
Then in the cellblock late one night a rumor passed our way
Of a blanket and a rifle and three square meals a day
Now in the winter we set sail from troubles and from pain
The new world came up on the bow somewhere the coast in Maine
They signed us up right then and there every man and boy
And took us down to Washington the place of our employ
We was off to fight that Johnny Reb in the name of Uncle Sam
We'll chase 'em down with cannon balls
'Til we reach the promised land
We’re the Union men of County Fife
We'll fight to the very last man
We rolled right through Antietam the fightin' hand to hand
We made it all through Gettysburg and we hardly lost a man
They paid us off in whiskey the one thing we could spend
Those greenback Union dollars we had nowhere to send
We was off to fight that Johnny Reb in the name of Uncle Sam
We'll chase 'em down with cannon balls
'Til we reach the promised land
We’re the Union men of County Fife
We'll fight to the very last man
When we marched into Atlanta we knew it was meant to be
We all knew General Sherman was marchin' to the sea
Now some say they had it comin' some say we was blind
But we left everything that crossed our path
For the widows that they left behind
We was off to fight that Johnny Reb in the name of Uncle Sam
We'll chase 'em down with cannon balls
'Til we reach the promised land
We’re the Union men of County Fife
We'll fight to the very last man
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5. |
Molly McGuire
03:32
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Well the war ended in '64
Molly arrived in '66
The land from which she came was troubled and torn
She followed her forefather's steps
Later that year Molly gave birth
To a son she always called King
The days were long and the work was hard
Reward no match for the dream
But as the boy grew there developed a bond
Unique between mothers and sons
Molly gave King his Daddy's gold ring
That wandering heart made her run
(Chorus) Where are you going Molly McGuire?
Your dreams all gone and your heart on fire
Where are you going Molly McGuire?
Molly can I go with you?
Soon the big city sucked Molly down
Into a void on a factory row
She worked like a slave, died a little each day
She knew it was her time to go
Molly loved the land where Lady Liberty stands
She followed her dreams but she failed
With a pistol in her purse she could finally lift the curse
No more tears, no more pain
She thought about Ireland, thought about King
No one left to blame for the loss of her dreams
She drew her last breath and laid it to rest
On a cold New York night in the rain
(Chorus)
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6. |
True Believer
03:56
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That family tree where I come from is blowin’ in the wind
The dirt road out the front door won’t bring ‘em back again
California dreamin’ hangs on him like a curse
Barstow or Shingletown I don’t know which is worse
Now everybody bears a cross from somewhere in the past
Those memories just hang around and the good time never last
She’s got those little ways of gettin’ through
She might even change your point of view
She’s a true believer like I’ve never seen before
A true believer keep comin’ back for more
Stickin’ with me like the only thing she didn’t have to be
She made a true believer out of me
Now guys like us we grew up fast just like our daddies did
Things we like to brag about and keep the rest all hid
So all you sons and daughters just pretend
Until the circle comes around again
To a true believer like I’ve never seen before
A true believer keep comin’ back for more
Stickin’ with me like the only thing she didn’t have to be
She made a true believer out of me
Some day we’ll have one hell of a story to tell
Of glory and of heartbreak and demons we knew well
She didn’t pack it in when everything went strange
She makes me feel my luck’s about to change
She’s a true believer like I’ve never seen before
A true believer keep comin’ back for more
Stickin’ with me like the only thing she didn’t have to be
She made a true believer out of me
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7. |
What Kind of Animal
03:48
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How any fool could live like that I'll never understand
So crawl from underneath your rock and take it like a man
It takes one among the millions to blacken out the sun
Of hope and peace and freedom can't we get the damn thing done?
At three in the mornin' you oughta be in bed
Three fingers in a molotov and devils in your head
Marchin' down the county road with trouble on your mind
And three little souls you can never leave behind
What kind of animal, what kind of animal
What kind of fool gets under my skin
What kind of animal, what kind of animal
Tryin' to invent an original sin
If I had my way they’d never see the light of day again
Now we love all your women and your music and your beer
But the nations of the world man we've had it up to here
With your fightin' and your killin' and your battle of the bands
And every bastard son with blood on his hands
Now there's gotta be a way around the damage that you do
But your fathers never told you cause they didn't have a clue
What kind of animal, what kind of animal
What kind of fool gets under my skin
What kind of animal, what kind of animal
Tryin' to invent an original sin
If I had my way they’d never see the light of day again
Now I know it looks so easy to judge from where we stand
A country full of hypocrites a gun for every man
Target practice after school the only way to be
And millionaires at midnight runnin' wild and free
What kind of animal, what kind of animal
What kind of fool gets under my skin
What kind of animal, what kind of animal
Tryin' to invent an original sin
If I had my way they’d never see the light of day again
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8. |
Aunt Louise
04:14
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The garbage pale is loaded there’s dog food on the floor
Dead flowers in the windowsill say that love doesn’t live here any more
No one ever calls ‘cuz she won’t pick up the phone
The world came crashing down now she’s in misery alone
Out there somewhere he’s riding away
With his brand new Harley and toupee
She never saw it comin’
And then she refused to believe
She use to know how to live … Louise
She sits in a room with the shades pulled down
It’s never very easy when the bottom falls out
Each day being counted she’s closer to the edge
And every day is harder to drag her self from bed
Her eyes say as she drags her cigarette
There’s no use in trying she could never forget
She never saw it comin’
And then she refused to believe
She use to know how to live … Louise
Another morning she dresses in black
No one seemed to notice she falls through the cracks
She gave her self away a word or two at a time
Knowing she was too old to die young on the vine
Now I wonder lying here awake
What difference does it make anyway
‘Cuz she never saw it comin’
And then she refused to believe
She use to know how to live … Louise
She never saw it comin’
Is it anybody’s crime?
She never called to say goodbye … Aunt Louise
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9. |
Sweet Angel
04:23
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It's only a matter of time
A shot in the dark, an uphill climb
In the end you realize you're alone
On your own, without a home
Part of my soul's on fire
The part where you lived the
Flames leap higher and higher
I feel my whole world tumble down
Spirit lies in pieces on the ground
Wake in the morning with tears in my eyes
In my heart I feel you sayin' goodbye
(Chorus) Sweet angel rescue me
Alone in the darkness on my knees
Sweet angel rescue me
It's all confusing to me now
I stare at my mirror, pray out loud
Got a hole where I once had a heart
Angel of mercy, tearing me apart
Wake in the morning with tears in my eyes
In my heart I feel you sayin' goodbye
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10. |
Save Me as I am
04:54
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Father Brannigan took off his shirt he said
Tom you got it bad and that ‘aint good
Did his best to smile said Tom say your prayers
Prepare to meet your maker
Tom said father I’ve got few or no regrets
I lived my life hard and carried the weight of my intellect
Even if it was only down to the liquor store
Can’t you save me as I am, won’t you save me as I am
Father Brannigan said hey it’s not my style to reprimand a man
Who’s starin’ death in the eye, but for God’s sake
Be careful with your words my child
Tom said father it’s a load on my heart that I don’t know
The top dog seems to me this is no time to start lying here
On my back in this dirty street
Can’t you save me as I am, won’t you save me as I am in the nick of time
Death was making deals and in no mood for a compromise
Tom there’s no place that God won’t grace with his presence
And his love as he puts the challenges in places just let him
Into your humble heart, time is short for you
Father I’m a man who likes to save his words for bummin’ cigarettes
And sweet talkin’ pretty girls and makin’ bets and I find my tongue is tied
On this matter of the pearly gates of heaven
Can’t you save me as I am, won’t you save me as I am
Don’t blaspheme son your time is short
Can’t you look into your heart and find just one little part
One little place that begs forgiveness
Tom just said save me as I am
Won’t you save me as I am in the nick of time
Can’t you save me as I am, won’t you save me as I am in the nick of time
Father can we really fly away …
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11. |
Long Way Home
04:19
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Longing in my heart I just can't describe
Longing in my heart keeps me alive
A blessing in disguise, a curse a reoccurring dream
A twisted tale, a broken switch
Always needing another fix, injecting myself with the same pain
again and again
(Chorus) And it's a long way back home
Let your heart be your guide
In my mind I choose to roam
And it's a long way back home
Memories filter through my mind, pieces of my life frozen in time
Visible to anyone, useless to anyone but me
Pointless and strange as it seems to me now
There was a time when I thought I knew how
To manipulate anyone, anything that got too close to me
(Chorus)
Everyone here is created the same
Everyone here has a name
Everyone is someone to someone until the bitter end
The closer it gets to being said and done
The more you realize you've just begun
And everything familiar will fade into the unknown
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12. |
We Was Wrong
04:24
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Well I thought of some things I’m glad that I didn’t say
Arrows and slings in the cold grey light of day
Three men on a mission just bidding our time
Finding our wisdom in a bottle of wine
Livin’ to fight another day
And thinkin’ we all knew the way
We was wrong yeah yeah wrong
Never knew ‘bout what we were missin’
By not doin’ instead of just wishin’
Just bidding our time goin’ out of our minds
Hopin’ life wouldn’t take us too long
We was wrong, yeah, yeah wrong
We’ve been chasin’ it round down many a road for years
When we been broke down it all ended up right here
We sang for the losers and followed the blind
With the world on a string that would never unwind
Runnin’ till the wind turns around
Like the lost that would never be found
We was wrong yeah yeah wrong
Never knew ‘bout what we were missin’
By not doin’ instead of just wishin’
Just bidding our time goin’ out of our minds
Hopin’ life wouldn’t take us too long
We was wrong, yeah, yeah wrong
Well time after time we’ve seen it all slip away
It’s so easy to fall when you’re climbin’ the wall night and day
Instead of floatin’ downstream and tryin’ to hide
We could sail the wide ocean and cast our nets wide
The fever she’s still hangin’ on
Forgotten but still we ain’t gone
We was wrong yeah yeah wrong
Never knew ‘bout what we were missin’
By not doin’ instead of just wishin’
Just bidding our time goin’ out of our minds
Hopin’ life wouldn’t take us too long
We was wrong, yeah, yeah wrong
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The Elders Kansas City, Missouri
The Elders were founded in 1998 by six musicians with a passion for music rooted in Irish jigs & reels & American folk rock. Their original songs offer delightful story lines, with vibrant narratives that explore history, legends, tall tales and true-life experiences ... more
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