1. |
Fires Gotta Burn
03:09
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If you think you know her well
You might be surprised
She’s got secrets she don’t tell
That she keeps well-disguised
It’s true she may seem cool and buttoned down
But she’s as hot as any flame in town
And fires gotta burn
Rivers gotta roll
The pounding of the surf
The spinning of the earth
It’s out of your control
Well she’s with you tonight
But soon you’re gonna learn
Come the light of dawn
She’ll be up and gone
Fires gotta burn
She may seem a tender thing
Quiet and demure
But she’s got something simmering
Deep inside of her
And a sense of restlessness that’s oh so strong
No she don’t stay in any place too long
Cause fires gotta burn
Embers gotta glow
Engines gotta roar
Eagles gotta soar
Winds gotta blow
Rains gotta fall
Tides gotta turn
Tomorrow when you wake
Your heart’s gonna break
Fires gotta burn
When all that’s left’s a trail of molten ash
Then you’ll know that she’s gone in a flash
Cause fires gotta burn
Embers gotta glow
Engines gotta roar
Eagles gotta soar
Winds gotta blow
Well where’s she’s heading next
That isn’t your concern
She’s leaving you behind
Moving down the line
Fires gotta burn burn burn
Tomorrow when you wake
Your heart’s gonna break
Fires gotta burn
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2. |
Memory Museum
04:24
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Rode my Raleigh down a back road
Baseball cards stuck in the spokes
Headed over to the drugstore
Had a couple cherry cokes
Spent the last of my allowance
Over at the five and dime
On some 45s and comics
Made it home for suppertime
You may think those things are gone now
But every day I still can see ’em
Cause they’re always on exhibit
In my memory museum
Fresh milk delivered in the morning
Mama opens up a jar
Daddy reads his morning paper
I can’t believe how young they are
Grandma’s sleeping in the guest room
Been two years now since Grandpa died
Of course at that point we don’t know it
But she’ll be with him come July
Sometimes it’s like I never left there
Other times it’s like a dream
Just another Tuesday morning
At my memory museum
It’s got a wing with paper airplanes
Lionel trains and Soap Box cars
I try to tell my kids about it
They look at me like I’m from Mars
Cause they can’t see the things that I see
But I know someday when they’re grown
They’ll have a personal collection
At some museum of their own
Well everything is always changing
It’s all about the here and now
But there are some things worth preserving
I like to think so anyhow
And when my time on earth is over
And they lay my body down
Well on that day there’ll be a building
That’s gonna burn down to the ground
But till then I can bridge the distance
It’s not as far as it may seem
Cause I can always pay a visit
To my memory museum
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3. |
Excuse Me For Living
03:03
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Verse1:
My dirty laundry’s piling up; my socks are on the floor
My once endearing habits don’t amuse you anymore
I drool at night when I’m asleep; I belch when I’m awake
You’re telling me to pack my bags; you’ve had all you can take
CHORUS:
Excuse me for living
Excuse me for breathing
If I’m not welcome here no more
Guess I’ll be leaving
And when I’m far away
Hope I’m forgiven
Till then all I can say is
Excuse me for living
Verse 2:
I guess I stained the carpet when my boots were caked with mud
The coffee table has a ring shaped like a can of Bud
I usually don’t smoke, except I like to when I drink
You threw out all the ashtrays, so I use the kitchen sink
REPEAT CHORUS
Bridge:
Those things that you don’t like I’m gonna
Wear ‘em like a badge of honor
I’ll never change; that’s guaranteed
Someday my epitaph will read
REPEART CHORUS
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4. |
Rottweilers
03:16
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Verse 1:
Rottweilers, pitbulls and Dobermans
Stand guard ‘round the gates of my heart
So if you want to go there
Then it only seems fair
That you’re properly warned from the start
You might want to know me
More than casually
But I don’t think that that would be smart
Cause those rottweilers, pitbulls and Dobermans
They’re liable to tear you apart
Verse 2:
Cobras, vipers and rattlesnakes
Slithering inside my soul
Their tiny sharp teeth’ll
Leave venom that’s lethal
And their scales are oily and cold
They’re hidden from view
So whatever you do
Don’t go reaching down into that hole
Cause those cobras, vipers and rattlesnakes
Are completely beyond my control
Bridge:
The river looks calm on the surface, so you may not know
‘Bout the turbulent currents and jagged rocks lying below
Oh . . .
Verse 3:
Arsenic, strychnine and cyanide
Lodged in the back of my throat
And if you get too close
There’s a powerful dose
That awaits you, with no antidote
You may dream of the bliss
Of a long tender kiss
Ah but everywhere danger abounds
Cause if you manage avoiding
The snakes and the poison
I may have to unleash the hounds
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5. |
Making Guns
03:32
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The noise in here it never stops
Every two seconds the hammer drops
And the floor shakes cause that thing it weights five tons
I work at Smith & Wesson, making guns
It’s larger than a shopping mall
Barbed wire fences, ten feet tall
And all day every day the factory runs
Yes I work at Smith & Wesson, making guns
They start as hunks of stainless steel, get milled and drilled and sanded
Forged and filed and polished to a shine
The noise can drive you crazy but I don’t take it for granted
That sound means steady work plus overtime
Each day is pretty much the same
I file the edges off the frames
Splurge a little when each second Friday comes
It’s decent pay at Smith & Wesson, making guns
They’re packed in crates and shipped from here
A half a million just last year
That’s a lot of M&Ps and ‘41s
Every day at Smith & Wesson, making guns
Sometimes they’re used in murders or in robberies and such
Other times they’re used in self defense
Does the good outweigh the bad -- well I don’t think about it much
I need to feed my wife and my two sons
So I work at Smith & Wesson, making guns
This is a dark and dirty town
Not too much other work around
So I’m thankful I’m among the lucky ones
Who work at Smith & Wesson, making guns
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6. |
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Verse 1:
I've got a mountain to climb
I take it one step at a time
Got a long way to go still, but I'm
Getting closer
Sometimes I get blown off the trail
Knocked down by a gust or a gale
But soon gentler breezes prevail
And the storm passes over
CHORUS
I'm not where I wanna be
I'm not where I'm gonna be
There are hard times in front of me
I know that there are
But I didn't come this far to only come this far
Verse 2:
Some days when it's sunny and clear
The summit ahead looks so near
Then night falls and it disappears
But I know it's there regardless
It may seem quite a distance away
But I'll get there one glorious day
Though they say the last mile of the way
Is always the hardest
CHORUS
I'm not where I wanna be
I'm not where I'm gonna be
There are hard times in front of me
I know that there are
But I didn't come this far to only come this far
Bridge:
Each time that I reach a plateau
I look down below
At the unlevel ground
The obstacles still may be many
But there won't be any
That could turn me around
CHORUS
I'm not where I wanna be
I'm not where I'm gonna be
But there are better days in front of me
I know that there are
Cause I didn't come this far
I didn’t come this far
I didn't come this far to only come this far
No I didn't come this far to only come this far
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7. |
The Sausage Factory
02:50
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Well they start with pig intestines and they scrape ‘em good and clean
Turn ‘em into casings stuffed with pieces fat and lean
All full of grease and tissue though it tastes deliciously
You never want to look inside the sausage factory
My neighborhood looks lovely as I take an evening walk
Inside each happy home must be a happy family
But then I hear angry voices echo up and down the block
Guess things aren’t always what they appear to be
And one image just keeps coming back to me
Well there’s tails and snouts and shoulders, and jowls and bellies too
Other than the hooves and eyes most any part will do
Though they look fine once they’re packaged through the bulk machinery
You never want to look inside the sausage factory
I’m sitting at the kitchen table trying to write a song
Crumbled sheets of paper stretch far as I can see
When you hear the finished product, your impression may be wrong
Cause you’re bound to think that it came easily
But you’ll never know how hard this is for me
Well there’s blood and guts and organs and innards by the score
Piles of slimy carcasses down on the killing floor
So though the process may arouse your curiosity
You never want to look inside the sausage factory
Well they say knowledge is power, but I beg to disagree
You never want to look inside the sausage factory (3X)
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8. |
Talk About The Weather
04:23
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A long time ago or at least it seems
We told each other all our hopes and dreams
But I you ran into you on the street the other day
And I could hardly think of a thing to say
We were joined at the hip; we were birds of a feather
Now all we can do is just talk about the weather
There's a cold front coming in from the west
Looks like we're gonna get a little rain I guess
We really could use it cause it's sure been dry
Last week there barely was a cloud in the sky
Well our lives were entwined till they came untethered
Now all we got left is to talk about the weather
Well our conversation used to flow so easily
But now I gotta tread real carefully
Cause if I ask a foolish question or say the wrong thing
There's a lot of old wounds I could be opening
Yeah we carry those scars like a piece of worn leather
So all we can do is just talk about the weather
Well the last few nights there's been a Southeast breeze
You can hear it in the rustling of the evening trees
The afternoon yesterday was mighty warm
It's surprising that we didn't get a thunderstorm
Well we once made a promise, for worse or for better
Now all we got left is to talk about the weather
We still breathe the same air and share the same sky
But that's all we have in common anymore, you and I
It's been foggy in the morning till the sun burns through
And the grass gets kind of misty from the morning dew
There's a haze over the city makes it hard to see
Seems that nothing is as clear as it used to be
After all those years that we spent together
Now all we got left is to talk about the weather
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9. |
Bad Memory
02:24
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Saw an old friend
We knew from back when
He asked if I'd run into you
I stared out the window
And I felt the wind blow
You back through my door, for a moment or two
Well everybody tells me
I've got a bad memory
And I know that it's sad but it's true
But there's no remedy
For my bad memory
My bad memory of you
They say forgive and forget
Not relive and regret
I must have misunderstood
But I'm sure I wouldn't dwell
On some old fare-thee-well
If only my memory was good
But it's plain to see
I've got a bad memory
And there's not a thing I can do
It's a sad malady
Oh my bad memory
My bad memory of you
My problem is not that it's hard to recall
My problem is that I remember it all
Now it's no mystery
I've got a bad memory
If only I could start anew
But I'll never be free
Of this bad memory
This bad memory of you
This bad memory of you
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10. |
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Verse 1:
Well it was many years ago
That Juliet took for her beau
The young and dashing Romeo
And pleaded "where art thou?"
Their passion could not be denied
When each had thought the other died
Their very lives they cast aside
That wouldn't happen now
CHORUS:
It was a love to remember
A love for the ages
A love written down
In the history pages
A love that was timeless and tender and pure
But they're not making love like that anymore
Verse 2:
Lancelot loved Guinevere
With eyes of green and golden hair
And by their clandestine affair
Betrayed his closest friend
Though he served Arthur faithfully
And pledged to him his loyalty
So mesmerized with her was he
A kingdom had to end
CHORUS:
It was a love to remember
A love for the ages
A love written down
In the history pages
A love that lives on still in legend and lore
But they're not making love like that anymore
Bridge:
Antony loved Cleopatra
Pined for his Egyptian queen
Nicholas loved Alexandra
Napoleon loved Josephine
Verse 3:
I once believed your love for me
Would last for all eternity
Like those great loves in history
That everybody knows
Guess that was my naïveté
To think that things could be that way
So if I'm asked, here's what I'll say
Now that the book is closed
CHORUS:
It was a love with a passion
That no longer rages
A love that dissolved
In a series of stages
A love that burned bright for a time, to be sure
But we're not making love like that anymore
We're just not making love like that anymore
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11. |
April Fools
02:17
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Verse 1:
The winter was so dark and gritty
But now the garden sure looks pretty
Feeling so giddy
We’re breaking all the rules
We climb the highest cherry tree
Where birds are singing harmony
With you and me
A couple of April fools
Verse 2:
The sun’s been AWOL since September
The snowfall started in November
So much in December
They had to close the schools
But now azaleas are in blossom
Those coats and shovels, we can toss ‘em
Isn’t it awesome?
We’re a couple of April fools
Bridge:
Well some old poet I can never recall
Once called it the cruelest month of ‘em all
But I’d bet a bunch of berries that he wouldn’t feel that way
If he were around to see this glorious day
Verse 3:
Through the woods we take a gander
At the path where we meander
Couldn’t be grander
The dewdrops shine like jewels
The beauty that this day has brung
Has our hearts feeling light and young
Cause Spring has sprung
For a couple of April fools
Yes this song is sung
For a couple of April fools
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Mark Stepakoff Boston, Massachusetts
"One of the best songwriters I have ever heard" - Christine Lavin
Singer-songwriter
Mark Stepakoff has been widely admired on the Boston folk and roots music scene for more than 20 years. His songs comprise a mix of humorous and poignant material in a style reminiscent of artists like John Prine or more contemporary songwriters such as Hayes Carll, and have drawn raves locally and nationally.
... more
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