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1. |
Tricky Dick Forever
05:28
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Verse (A): California on the surface is elegance and grace
But lurking underneath, squids from outer space
I knew a girl named Brenda who worked at Yorba Linda
At the Presidential Library and Tricky Dick’s estate
Verse (A): She loved Latino dancing and Georgia O’Keefe
I’d have to say off-centre was her leitmotif
She whispered as we danced the San Clemente salsa
‘You know, Tricky Dick had friends from LA to Mombasa.”
Chorus: She said, “The President did not go out in glory.
But not many know or care to hear his story.
If he was on the gallows, I could not pull the lever.
My sympathies reside with clemency and Tricky Dick forever
Verse: I haven't any answers, my insights hit and miss.
So, who am I to question, cavil or dismiss?
The world is full of thunder, innocence and blunder
Brenda often left me chuckling with wonder
Verse: America’s divided (splintered) into unforgiving tribes
Open up your mouth and you risk diatribe.
They blow up every rumour and have no sense of humour
I guess I hearken for a gentler kind of slime
Chorus: She said, “The President did not go out in glory.
But not many know or care to hear his story.
Mercy is not strained, falling like the rain
My loyalties remain with leniency and Tricky Dick forever.
Verse (A): She said, “I know Dick was crooked, and his mind began stray
But he made peace with Russia and he launched the EPA
Mercy is not strained, falling like the rain
My mind is like a sieve; to laugh is to forgive.”
She loved to Latino dancing and Georgia O’Keefe
Our parting was sweet sorrow, her memory bittersweet.
If he was on the gallows, she would not pull the lever
But I could not compete with Tricky Dick forever.
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2. |
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Verse (A1): I’d tell you the truth, but you know I’m a liar
I’d give you the moon, but you want higher
Well, I’m an easy-peasy man, except when I’m not
I got chocolate gelato, but you want apricot
Verse (A2): I was up against the wall, my situation dire
You sauntered by, said, “Boys, hold your fire.”
I’m an okey-dokey man, but sometimes I screw up
You took a drag on my cigarette & said,
“Ain’t it time you grew up?”
Chorus (B): You said, “You’re my Romeo, but that ain’t enough.
I want you with me when the going gets rough.
Will you dance with me up on the high wire?
Aren’t you tired of being such a liar?”
Verse (A3): I’m a bird with a French fry, a dog with a bone
I’m happy with you, and I was happy on my own
Now I’m your easy-peasy man, I’d crawl through barbed wire
Let’s have a big family and spread like wildfire.
Chorus (B2): You make me grin, you’re my amplifier.
When you wear that dress, you are a five-alarm fire.
You lift me up like St. Elmo’s fire
I’ll dance with you, woman, on the live wire.
Truth is, I’m tired of being such a liar.
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3. |
Tears I Cried For You
03:38
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Verse (A1): You took another lover, left me in the rain
Kissing and hugging him while I sat with my pain
Ain’t saying you were cruel, ain’t saying you were wrong
Tears I cried for you have made me strong
Verse (A2): I drank a dozen bottles, I’d forget you girl, I swore
But memories of all we shared was painful as before
Streets so cold & empty, night, a winter’s song
Tears I cried for you have made me strong
Chorus (B): Why must we struggle learning how to live?
Why must we suffer to be wise?
All those lonely nights, I learned to forgive
Appreciate, accept and humorize
Verse (A3): Now you say you’re sorry, you want me back again
Your love affair has fizzled, you’re empty & ashamed
Ain’t trying to be cruel, but the love we had is gone
And tears you cry for me may make you strong.
Chorus (B): Why must we struggle learning how to live?
Why must we suffer to be wise?
All those lonely nights, I learned to forgive
Appreciate, reflect and humorize.
Ain’t trying to be cruel, but the love we had is gone
And tears you cry for me may make your strong.
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4. |
Toronto, Toronto
04:47
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Verse (A1): Toronto, Toronto is a marvellous town
We got a good thing going, and word gets around
Though I love Manhattan and London town
Toronto is my home town
Verse (A2): You’ll find waiters simpatico at Café Diplomatico
We’ll sip Campari and share calamari
We’ll watch the World Cup
And get all worked up when Italia scores.
Chorus (B1): On the Hanlan’s Point ferry
Troubles are temporary
Look at that skyline – ain’t it divine?
Who’d have thought Niagara wine could be so fine?
Verse (A3): I carry your locket & a puff in my pocket
I saunter on foot or ride the Red Rocket
Get tickets for TIFF, you may see Brad Pitt
Or Justin Bieber slouching at the bar
Verse (A4): You’ll look like a million, at Sunnyside Pavilion
The boardwalk is for lovers, it goes on forever
We’ll catch a regatta, or a boardwalk sonata
As that old sun goes down
Chorus (B2): In Kensington Market, with hipsters and starlets
We’ll find a designer for you on Spadina
You’ll be my femme fatale at the Palais Royale beneath the stars.
Verse (A5): We’ll sit under elm woods at Trinity Bellwoods
A play on King West, then exit stage left
We’ll cheer & give thanks when our Jays beat the Yanks
And paint our faces powder blue
Verse (A6): We’ll feed the swans on Grenadier Pond
I love your freckles, my strawberry blonde
Though I love Manhattan and London town
Toronto is my home town (2x)
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5. |
Shame on the Sun
04:53
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Verse (A): Shame on the sun and new morning dew
The November sky so high and so blue
Shame on the streets and traffic lights
And all the rain that fell last night
Shame on the happiness we once knew,
Shame on the sun, and shame on you
(A): Shame on the wind coming in from the sea
Shame on the grass and the mulberry tree
Shame on flowers blazing with life
And on everything happy and bright
On Father Time and sweet memory
Shame on the wind, and shame on me.
Chorus (B): Now and then I wander
Boulevards we use to stroll
When I loved you heart and soul
It all went by so fast, it all went by so fast
How come good things never last?
(A): Shame on the stars, and the strawberry moon
I won’t be seeing you anytime soon
Shame on the husband, shame on the wife
And on all the good things left in life.
Shame on kids and ice cream trucks
Shame on the moon and shame on us (2X)
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6. |
Elliot Bay
04:44
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Verse (A): Raining again on Elliott Bay
Funny how rain awakens dismay
Evergreen trees, sway in the breeze
Islands in mist, and the deck where we kissed
Chorus (B):
If you walked down that pier, could I swallow my pride?
Would we embrace, would something survive?
Verse (A): A weird Romeo, an odd Juliet
You looked down at me from your parapet
Our unsettled life, our droll minuet,
Was I looking at you, or your silhouette?
Chorus (B):
If you walked down that pier, could I swallow my pride?
Would we embrace, would something survive?
Verse (A): The ferryboats sound like a bass clarinet
I never could read your heart’s alphabet
We win the award, our own statuette
Outstanding performance in a comic duette.
Chorus (B):
If you walked down that pier, could I swallow my pride?
Would we embrace, would something survive?
Verse (A): Drizzly again, Elliott Bay...
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7. |
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Iggy, Spike & Lester (My Interstellar Band)
Verse (A1): How do you write these songs and raise a family?
How do you have a band and keep your sanity?
I’ll tell you all my secret, please try to be discreet
Extra-terrestrials keep me on my feet
Chorus (B1): They’re from over the moon & far beyond the sun
Iggy, Spike & Lester, know how to get things done
You may doubt my story, but they’re from Alpha Centauri
My interstellar, screw propellor, cyclone cellar band.
Verse (A2): How do they play their instruments? They’re 7 inches high
Well, they got 14 fingers, 2 noses and 3 eyes
They’re so fine & funny, I feel neanderthal
They love their Chinese food, but can’t handle alcohol
Chorus (B):
They’re from over the moon & far beyond the sun...
Verse (A3):
Iggy plays the fiddle, as only Iggy can
Spike is on the keyboard & sometimes baby grand
Lester plays the guitar, dobro & pedal steel
Me, I write the songs and sing them any way I feel.
Chorus (B): They’re from over the moon & far beyond the sun...
My interstellar, screw propellor, cyclone cellar band...
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8. |
Angel in the Snow
03:02
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Verse (A1): Angelina, mi amor
Chavismo and Maduro have cut you to the core
Such unlucky stars, only I have seen your scars
We still have vertigo
My angel in the snow
Verse (A2): Angelina, mi corazón
La revolution has bled you to the bone
Such unhappy times. How could we ignore the signs?
As above and so below
My angel in the snow.
Bridge (B): Venezuela, desafortunada
We had no choice, we had to let you go
The tsunami was upon us. Barely fled the undertow
Chavista goons (punks, thugs, creeps) came for me
In an armoured black sedan.
Somehow, we made El Norte, via Yucatan
Verse (A3): Venezuela, I still see you in my dreams
So sad your air full of poison, your water, kerosene
Such unhappy days.
We’re lonesome castaways
We’ll fight the undertow
My angel in the snow.
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9. |
Banks & Churches
03:49
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Verse (A1): Banks & churches
Life reverses (& disperses)
Where have the tellers gone?
The choir’s happy song
Starbucks & condos now line streets of Toronto
Why am I feeling blue?
It’s just a different point of view
Goodbye Hogtown, hello Brigadoon
Verse (A2): Books & payphones
Pads & IPhones, what’s your birthstone?
My page is popular, my Tweets oracular
I check my latest ping, feeling second string
Got a telescopic lens.
What does Google recommend?
A thousand likes and not a single friend.
Chorus (B): Please don’t misunderstand
Old days were not that grand
But I miss the Reverend, and sometimes
The latest thing is built on sand.
Verse (A3): Dictionaries, tooth ferries, libraries
The park is overgrown, somebody flies a drone.
I’m sipping cappuccino with DeNiro and Pacino
The old neighbourhood is gone, the church’s carillon
Got a telescopic lens; I miss the Reverend.
What would Google recommend?
A thousand likes and not a single friend.
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10. |
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(A1): Roses like those I gave you a lifetime ago
You were a queen and I your crude Romeo.
Though season’s late, by garden gate they bloom.
Though ground is bare, they still share their perfume.
(A2): Roses like those I gave ‘neath a scarlet (sturgeon) moon
When each day was Sunday, and every month was June
In this quiet glade in London, I have strayed
A dubious bloke, a comic castaway
(B1): Where are you, my lover? Have your dreams come true?
Were they worth the price, or did they turn to ice on you?
Though reverie’s uncertain, mercy’s like the rain
Washing out the ache of yesterday
(A3): Roses like those I gave you once in a dream
When Time was kind, and love was blind and green
Though season’s late, by garden gate they climb
And all of the city clock towers whirr and chime.
(A4): Roses like those I gave when the season was new
Night was a river, and moon a smiling balloon
In this quiet glade in London, I have strayed,
A dubious chap, a comic castaway
(B1 reprise): Where are you, my lover? Have your dreams come true?
(A): Roses like those I gave you a lifetime ago
When you were a queen and I was your crude Romeo...
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11. |
Cabaret Casino Waterloo
07:56
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Verse (A1): Crazy years, profiteers, New York City 1981
Detectives running heroin, only law the barrel of a gun
Everything was burning, garbage rotting in the heat
Peep shows on the boulevards, children in the street
Verse (A2):
Crazy years, crazy fears, ambulances wailing in the dark
Time Square was a sewer, muggers in the subway and the park
Belleville overflowing, a deadly new disease
Skeletons on gurneys, the Village on its knees
And we had a front row view at the Cabaret Casino Waterloo
B Section (B1): Augustine, Cajun queen, MC in satin leotards
She had a shine and could divine your fortune in the Tarot cards
Her Celtic cross, could reach across boundaries of space & time
Though she rarely crossed that line, she rarely crossed that line.
B Section (B2):
Salome, from San Jose, knew the curse of cocaine
She bore the scar of Escobar, demon king of Medellin
She prayed each day to Santa Fe de San Francisco e los santos
She loved Jesus e los cantos de la libertad,
E de la hamabilidad (kindness)
Verse (A3): Crazy years, racketeers, Diamond Jack was king of cocaine
His palace was the Waterloo where politician’s knelt to kiss his ring
He loved exotic animals, admired the Marquis de Sade
He strode the halls of influence like an Olympian god
Verse (A4): Crazy days, castaways, Diamond Jack was New York’s albatross
Somehow she still protected him. It troubled her and left her at a loss.
Was it love among the ruins, lechery and crime?
Was she trying to turn the chaos and misery into wine?
She often misconstrued her motivations at the Waterloo.
B Section (B3): Wheel of Fate, Judgement Day, the Lovers and the Knight of Wands.
Reaching ‘cross the great beyond, she dealt the final card
The cards foretold what would unfold: a burning shore and overdue rewards
Our sorry checkerboard...Augustine turned up the Queen of Swords.
Verse (A5): Crazy times, pantomimes, a bloody final movement to the dance.
Augustine was singing, Salome stared as in a trance
Diamond Jack lay dying, a bullet in his brain
The fire started in the boiler room, nobody could explain
Verse (A6): Crazy days, castaways, Salome and Augustine alone
They watched the building burning, remembering the scent of Jack’s cologne
Was there life among the ruins and along the river shore?
Tonight was an inferno, tomorrow an open door
At the ringing final chord, burning embers and the Queen of Swords
And the moon came into view above the ashes of the Cabaret Casino Waterloo
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12. |
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Verse (A1): I wheel & deal like Elon Musk
Slip & slide from dawn till dusk
Wear cufflinks like an English duke
Bespoke suits like King Farouk
Verse (A2): Friday nights I slip my chain
Meet my crew at the baseball (old ball) game
My baby said, “You better wear your mask.”
As I was filling my whisky flask
Chorus (B1): I got the Covid in the dog house blues
Covid in the dog house blues
You’re my pride & folly, take a pill by golly
Covid in the dog house blues
Bridge (C): Yodel on F – C – G9 – C
Verse (A3): I was cutting deals, making plans
Tiktok tweeting to all my fans
Now stuck in here with this remote
Channel flipping like a billy goat
Chorus (B1): I got the Covid in the Dog House Blues
Covid in the Dog House Blues
You’re my pride & folly, take a pill by golly
Covid in the Dog House Blues
Bridge (C): Yodel on F – C – G9 – C
Verse (A4): Two more days & I’ll fly the coup
I’ll take you, baby, to Guadeloupe
One day you’ll drive a Cadillac
Everybody going to tip their hat.
Verse (A5): We’ll have our dream home, by and by
I’ll wear a puff and ascot tie
For now, I’m making goofy rhymes
Neither dog nor cat will give me time
Chorus (B1): I got the Covid in the Dog House Blues
Covid in the Dog House Blues
You’re my pride & folly, take a pill by golly
Covid in the dog house blues
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13. |
Activate Me Lizzy
03:39
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ACTIVATE ME, LIZZY
You know I love you baby, everyone knows that it’s true
Drive me to drink, can’t sleep a wink, thinking all night of you
Activate me Lizzy, actuate me Lizzy, reinstate me Lizzy,
You’re a fine healthy thing from your head down to your heels
Way back in the Bible Solomon loved a girl
Hair like silk, kisses like milk, Sol gave her all the world.
Activate me Lizzy, propagate me Lizzy, saturate me Lizzy,
Acclimate me Lizzy
Such a fine healthy thing from your head down to your heels
Bridge: Pretty pink lips, skin like cream
You drive a white Mustang, you’re a drama queen.
Expiate me Lizzy, explicate me Lizzy, extricate me Lizzy
Just don’t forsake me, Lizzy
You’re a fine healthy thing from your head down (3X) to your heels
Samson & Delilah, they say that she done him wrong
Hands on her hips, pretty pink lips
He forgot what made him strong.
Activate me Lizzy, syncopate me Lizzy, chocolate cake me Lizzy
Such a fine healthy thing from your head down to your heels (1X)
You know I love you baby, heaven knows that I do.
Let’s get hitched, have six kids, spend my life with you.
Activate me Lizzy, expiate me, extricate me, reinstate me Lizzy,
You’re a fine healthy thing from your head down (3X) to your heels
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14. |
Vancouver Time
03:34
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Verse (A1): Mountains & sea, you & me
Happy because we were free
Tiny room on the second floor
Tiny bed, didn’t need much more
Yesterday is long ago, today is all I’ll ever know
Sweet kisses by English Bay
Morning walk and tea every day
Last of a vintage wine, Vancouver time
Verse (A2): Mountains & sea, and evergreen
Happy as I’ve ever been
Little Jin running everywhere
Cham Se at morning prayer
Sheets of rain pouring down
We shed no tears in Chinatown
Holding hands on Pender Street
Cheap movie or museum treat
Makeshift valentines, Vancouver time
(B1): Told me you’d be gone ‘for a little while’
Made myself smile
I could hear the clock towers chime
Vancouver time.
Verse (A3): Am I just a hippie dinosaur
Loafing a barren shore
On a goofy, smiling face
Teardrops would be out of place
Yesterday is long ago, today is all I’ll ever know
Sweet kisses by English Bay
Morning walk and tea every day
Last of a vintage wine
Was happiness such a crime?
Dying embers and pointless rhymes
Vancouver time.
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15. |
Singapore Serenade
03:52
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Verse (A1): Well, I think I’ll go down to Boon Tat Street
Get me some kaya and jasmine tea
You know how I love old bakeries
Have my breakfast underneath the trumpet tree
The air is heavy, rain coming soon
Last night at Duxton I howled at the moon.
Verse (A2): Nutmeg, ginger, and laksa leaf
New ring on your finger, it’s giving me grief
You’re leaving for London with your hedge fund tout
You say you still love me. What’s that all about?
How can you live in parallels?
How could I miss the warning bells?
Chorus (B1): My feelings remain retrograde
About our Malay masquerade
Like Raffles by the palisade
I’m singing my Singapore Serenade
Verse (A3): That day in Katong, I bought you a sarong
You looked so fine, in crimson and lime
That Festival night in Jurong Park
You whispered, ‘I love you’, and ‘you’re in my heart’.
Our dance at Fullerton Hotel
I said, “Je t’aime, mademoiselle.”
Chorus (B2): My toast is dry, needs marmalade
You cried, then kissed my shoulder blade
And left me here in the quiet shade
Singing my Singapore Serenade
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16. |
Tree of Life (Bahrain)
03:49
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Verse (A1): Bahrain (Eden), in the misty rain
Is that a whooping crane?
Some claim Adam & Eve lived on this plain
Verse (A2): Lorraine, I met you in Key Biscayne
You’re my weather vane
My candle flame, my happy ball & chain
Chorus (B1): Daybreak hike by the silver sea
There is the Tree of Life
Centuries old, means a lot to me
All I’ve known is toil and strife.
Verse (A3): Wetlands, in full winter bloom
By the bright lagoon
It’s warm and wet beneath a cherry moon
Chorus (B2): Let’s explore the ancient fort
That looks on Manama Bay
Loving you is a contact sport,
For this cautious castaway
Verse (A4): Lorraine, what is the protocol?
In this spicy port of call
We’re such a long, long way from Montreal
Chorus (B3): Sometimes love is a guessing game
And life’s a martial art
Rain runs down your window pane
You can’t finish what you start.
Verse (A5): Bahrain, at the Tree of Life
With my heart’s delight
All around the sky is blue and bright.
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Pascal Dennis Toronto, Ontario
Making classic songs with a modern twist.
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