The August Waltz - Words and Music by Andrew Perry

Slow waltz, - C tuned 12 string, capo 2

Hank lights another cigarette and he sighs, rubs his hand across his face and

blows smoke at the flies buzzing at the window pane, he looks across the

room, to the day bed where she lies

He's a man with a history, a man with a past, some loves , some losses

and too much pain And he smiles his love at the woman in the corner, the lady

who made his life sane

Chorus: And each day they wait for tomorrow, And each night they wait

for the day And there ain't no love stronger than this And there's nothing more

Barbara takes another cruel breath and she smiles, as his eyes caress her soul

This tired old bear with the silvery hair, who plays nursemaid and honours the role

And they both know that love is a matter of time, and their time it is ebbing away

But in the quiet and the dark there is always a spark , of the love that they

He hears her silent cries, again and again and prays to take her pain

She's suffered too long, and the words of her song, are nearing the final refrain.

It's a hot August evening and Hank takes her hand, and she rises as he lays on the

schmaltz And they dance so closely in their small living room, and they dance

their August waltz

A NEWBURY WALTZ (Beukema-Lang)

The highway's gettin' shorter now

The old car needs a tune

The north star moved down south last year

To take care of the moon

Old horses don't forget the days

They danced like frisky colts

Dance with me tonight, my dear

To a Newbury waltz

There's a train off in the distance

Midnight needs her train

Like I need your arms around me now

Darling, ease my pain

You always find the best in me

And overlook my faults

Dance with me tonight, sweetheart

To a Newbury waltz

We've listened to this music now

Almost all our lives

And even if the singer's gone

You know his song survives

The rain blows in from Oregon

Fingers tap the window pane

The wind is trying to catch her breath

From runnin' with that rain

The music's playing slowly now

One time before it halts

Dance with me, my darling

To a Newbury Waltz

[Words and music by Doug Lang, assist by Hank Beukema]

ONCE A MAN BY DOUG LANG

When I was a boy he took me

Out in the July sun

To show me the hot black tar

Once he built highways

The first roads across these plains

Now he can’t drive a car

He’s almost eighty, tryin’ to grow a beard

Silver hair’s gone hippie wild

He’s become what he always feared

Once a man and twice a child

We’d stop in Belle Plaine

Always the same café

Mom’s Place, for homemade pie

Women used to turn their heads

When he walked in

Now they wouldn’t bat an eye

He didn’t vote in the last election

The dirty laundry’s piled

On the checkerboard floor in the kitchen

Once a man and twice a child

He wants to go to Five Mile Dam

Sunday, he says, so we’ll go Sunday

Wants to go home to Dublin, too

One day, we’ll go there one day

The long day closes

Sun behind the Cypress Hills

An orange fireball sinking

He looks out the window

Then he looks at me

I ask him what he’s thinking

“Oh,” he says, “all that old man crap

About God and being reconciled”

Take your beauty nap, I say

Once a man and twice a child

Would you know my name

If I saw you in heaven

I must be strong, and carry on

Cause I know I don't belong

Would you hold my hand

If I saw you in heaven

Would you help me stand

If I saw you in heaven

I'll find my way, through night and day

Cause I know I just can't stay

Time can bring you down

Time can bend your knee

Time can break your heart

Have you begging please

There's peace I'm sure.

And I know there'll be no more...

Would you know my name

If I saw you in heaven

I must be strong, and carry on

Cause I know I don't belong

THE PILGRIM [CHAPTER 33] KRIS KRISTOFFERSON

INTRO Recitation (over riff above): "I started out writin' this song about . . . [insert own music gods!]" [Notes: * each chord name below = one entire "bum-chicky-bum-chicky"; * (...sus4) = add sus4 to 2nd half of measure) * letters in < > are bass notes than can optionally be incorporated into guitar accompaniment] VERSE 1: [add sus4 to 2nd half of G measures at will] G G G G See him wasted on the sidewalk in his jacket and his jeans, C C G G Wearin' yesterday's misfortunes like a smile-- C C G <F# Em Once he had a future full of money, love, and dreams, A7 A7 D (...sus4) D Which he spent like they was goin' outa style-- G G G G And he keeps right on a'changin' for the better or the worse, C D G G Searchin' for a shrine he's never found-- C C G G Never knowin' if believin' is a blessin' or a curse, C D G G Or if the goin' up was worth the comin' down-- CHORUS: C C He's a poet, he's a picker-- G G He's a prophet, he's a pusher-- D D D G He's a pilgrim and a preacher, and a problem when he's stoned-- C C G G He's a walkin' contradiction, partly truth and partly fiction, D D D G G Takin' ev'ry wrong direction on his lonely way back home. [modulate whole-step up:] A (...sus4) A (...sus4) VERSE 2: [add sus4 to 2nd half of A measures at will] A A A A He has tasted good and evil in your bedrooms and your bars, D D A A And he's traded in tomorrow for today-- D D A <G# F#m Runnin' from his devils, Lord, and reachin' for the stars, B7 B7 E E And losin' all he's loved along the way-- A A A A But if this world keeps right on turnin' for the better or the worse, D E A A And all he ever gets is older and around-- D D A A From the rockin' of the cradle to the rollin' of the hearse, D(or Bm) E A A The goin' up was worth the comin' down-- CHORUS D D He's a poet, he's a picker-- A A He's a prophet, he's a pusher-- E E E A He's a pilgrim and a preacher, and a problem when he's stoned-- D D A A He's a walkin' contradiction, partly truth and partly fiction, E E E A A / g# f# Takin' ev'ry wrong direction on his lonely way back home. E E E [A:coda riff] There's a lotta wrong directions on that lonely way back home.

Gambling to me is like breathing

There ain't nothing I've got I can't lose

Last time I fell for a dancing girl

She left me in one of her dancing shoes

I've been sinkin'

Ain't been singin'

Lord I could breathe up a woman

And gamble a fortune a day

And run the whole show from a black limozine

But little Joe tricked me slid down for his pay

I've been sinkin'

Ain't been singin'

(instrumental break)

The pallbearers came in and waited

Yeah this old man was surely to go

And word was about that the devil himself

Was seen down the road in a freshly dug grave

I've been sinkin'

Ain't been singin'

Cause lord I been losin

Ain't been choosin'

I's sinkin' and was saved by a lifeboat

And it put all my nightmares to sleep

I had ten thousand ships full of moonlights and midnights

I bet 'em on Nancy Nine and she sunk the whole fleet

I've been sinkin'

Ain't been singin'

Cause lord I been losin

Ain't been choosin'

THE DUTCHMAN -- by Michael Smith

The Dutchman's not the kind of man who keeps his thumb jammed in the dam

That holds his dreams in, But that's a secret that only Margaret knows.

When Amsterdam is golden in the summer, Margaret brings him breakfast,

She believes him. He thinks the tulips bloom beneath the snow.

He's mad as he can be, but Margaret only sees that sometimes,

Sometimes she sees her unborn children in his eyes.

Let us go to the banks of the ocean Where the walls rise above the Zuider

Long ago, I used to be a young man And dear Margaret remembers that for me.

The Dutchman still wears wooden shoes, His cap and coat are patched with the

That Margaret sewed there. Sometimes he thinks he's still in Rotterdam.

He watches tug-boats down canals And calls out to them when he thinks he

the Captain. Till Margaret comes to take him home again

Through unforgiving streets that trip him, though she holds his arm,

Sometimes he thinks that he's alone and calls her name.

Let us go to the banks of the ocean Where the walls rise above the Zuider

Long ago, I used to be a young man And dear Margaret remembers that for me.

The winters whirl the windmills 'round She winds his muffler tighter

They sit in the kitchen. Some tea with whiskey keeps away the dew.

He sees her for a moment, he calls her name out, she makes the bed up

Singing some old love song, A song that Margaret learned when it was very

He hums a line or two, they sing together in the dark.

The Dutchman falls asleep and Margaret blows the candle out.

Let us go to the banks of the ocean Where the walls rise above the Zuider

Long ago, I used to be a young man And dear Margaret remembers that for me

Let us go to the banks of the ocean Where the walls rise above the Zuider

Long ago, I used to be a young man And dear Margaret remembers that for me.

SONG OF SORROW -Mickey Newbury

They call me a fool

Tell me I'm wasting my time

How I will search for the rest of my life

For a rainbow I never will find

Well it's true I'm a fool

I will do what a dreamer would do

I'll dream long enough and

I just may be fool enough

To see one dream come true.

So let's sail to the ground

In one last of burst of sound

For you are my dreamaker

I'm need dream to borrow

It will all be forgotten tomorrow

So let's sail to the ground

In one last burst of sound

For it's true I'm a fool and a dreamer

I will do what a dreamer would do

I'll dream long enough

And I just may be fool enough

To see my dreams come true.

Route 66 by Robert William Troup

--------------------------------

Well if you ever plan to motor west

Travel my way, take the highway that's the best

Get your kicks on Route 66

Well it winds from Chicago to LA

More than two thousand miles all the way

Get your kicks on Route 66

Well it goes to St. Louis, down to Missouri

Oklahoma City looks so, so pretty

You'll see Amarillo, Gallup, New Mexico

Flagstaff, Arizona, don't forget Wynonna

Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino

If you get hip to this kind of trip

And go take that California trip

Get your kicks on Route 66

(repeat "Well it goes..." part)

(repeat last verse)

Get your kicks on Route 66 (x5)

Are the Good Times Really Over for Good ?

I wish a buck was still silver, and it was back when the country was

strong

Back before Elvis, and before the Vietnam war came along

Before the Beatles and yesterday, when a man could still work and still

would

Is the best of the free life behind us now?

and are the good times really over for good?

Are we rollin' down hill like a snowball headed for hell

With no kind of chance for the flag or the liberty bell

I wish a Ford and a Chevy would still last 10 years like they should

Is the best of the free life behind us now?

and are the good times really over for good?

I wish coke was still cola and a joint was a bad place to be

It was back before Nixon who lied to us all on tv

Before microwave ovens when a girl could still cook and still would

Is the best of the free life behind us now?

And are the good times really over for good?

Stop rollin' downhill like a snowball headed for hell

Stand up for the flag and let's all ring the liberty bell

Let's make a Ford and a Chevy that'll still last 10 years like they should

The best of the free life is still yet to come

And the good times ain't really over for good.

-By Freddy Powers & Merle Haggard

THESE DAYS

Well I've been out walking

I don't do that much talking these days

These days--

These days I seem to think a lot

About the things that I forgot to do

For you

And all the times I had the chance to

And I had a lover

It's so hard to risk another these days

These days--

Now if I seem to be afraid

To live the life I have made in song

Well it's just that I've been losing so long

I'll keep on moving

Things are bound to be improving these days

These days--

These days I sit on corner stones

And count the time in quarter tones to ten, my friend

Don't confront me with my failures

I had not forgotten them

Jackson Browne

Do It

If the wheel is fixed

I would still take a chance

If we're treading on thin ice

Then we might as well dance

So I play the fool

But I can't sit still

Help me get this rock

To the top of this hill

Do it

'Til we're sick of it

Do it 'till you can't do it no more

Friends will pity you

I guess that's what they're for

But they just take you like they find you

When they find you on the floor

But you do it

Til you sick of it

Do it til you can't do it no more

From the LP "Third Down, 110 To Go"

Stuff That Works By Guy Clark & Rodney Crowell

I got an ol’ blue shirt

And it suits me just fine

I like the way it feels

So I wear it all the time

I got an old guitar

It won’t ever stay in tune

I like the way it sounds

In a dark and empty room

I got an ol’ pair of boots

And they fit just right

I can work all day

And I can dance all night

I got an ol’ used car

And it runs just like a top

I get the feelin’ it ain’t

Ever gonna stop

Chorus

Stuff that works, stuff that holds up

The kind of stuff you don’t hang on the wall

Stuff that’s real, stuff you feel

The kind of stuff you reach for when you fall

I got a pretty good friend

Who’s seen me at my worst

He can’t tell if I’m a blessing

Or a curse

But he always shows up

When the chips are down

That’s the kind of stuff

I like to be around

Chorus

I got a woman I love

She’s crazy and paints like God

She’s got a playground sense of justice

She won’t take odds

I got a tattoo with her name

Right through my soul

I think everything she touches

Turns to gold

Chorus

TAXI

by Harry Chapin

It was raining hard in 'Frisco,

I needed one more fare to make my night.

A lady up ahead waved to flag me down,

She got in at the light.

Oh, where you going to, my lady blue,

It's a shame you ruined your gown in the rain.

She just looked out the window, and said

"Sixteen Parkside Lane".

Something about her was familiar

I could swear I'd seen her face before,

But she said, "I'm sure you're mistaken"

And she didn't say anything more.

It took a while, but she looked in the mirror,

And she glanced at the license for my name.

A smile seemed to come to her slowly,

It was a sad smile, just the same.

And she said, "How are you Harry?"

I said, "How are you Sue?

Through the too many miles

and the too little smiles

I still remember you."

It was somewhere in a fairy tale,

I used to take her home in my car.

We learned about love in the back of the Dodge,

The lesson hadn't gone too far.

You see, she was gonna be an actress,

And I was gonna learn to fly.

She took off to find the footlights,

And I took off to find the sky.

Oh, I've got something inside me,

To drive a princess blind.

There's a wild man, wizard,

He's hiding in me, illuminating my mind.

Oh, I've got something inside me,

Not what my life's about,

Cause I've been letting my outside tide me,

Over 'till my time, runs out.

Baby's so high that she's skying,

Yes she's flying, afraid to fall.

I'll tell you why baby's crying,

Cause she's dying, aren't we all.

There was not much more for us to talk about,

Whatever we had once was gone.

So I turned my cab into the driveway,

Past the gate and the fine trimmed lawns.

And she said we must get together,

But I knew it'd never be arranged.

And she handed me twenty dollars,

For a two fifty fare, she said

"Harry, keep the change."

Well another man might have been angry,

And another man might have been hurt,

But another man never would have let her go...

I stashed the bill in my shirt.

And she walked away in silence,

It's strange, how you never know,

But we'd both gotten what we'd asked for,

Such a long, long time ago.

You see, she was gonna be an actress

And I was gonna learn to fly.

She took off to find the footlights,

And I took off for the sky.

And here, she's acting happy,

Inside her handsome home.

And me, I'm flying in my taxi,

Takin tips, and getting stoned,And I go flyin so high,when I'm stoned...

Desperados Waiting For The Train

(Words and Music by Guy Clark)

I played the Red River Valley

He'd sit in the kitchen and cry

Run his fingers through sev-enty years of livin'

"I wonder, Lord, has every well I've drilled gone dry?"

We were friends, me and this old man

Like desperados waitin' for the train

Desperados waitin' for the train

He's a drifter, a driller of oil wells

And an old school man of the world

He taught me how to drive his car when he was too drunk to

And he'd wink and give me money for the girls