Lyrics

Timberland©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

Take a walk on the wild side
Take a chance on me
Show a little faith in this lonely heart
Like you do the things you can’t even see
Choose which side of the moon you’re on
Cast aside foolish games
Forge ahead as you sneak behind
The error of our ways
Did I lose you once again
Will I see you in the end
When my world comes tumbling down
High hopes left low on the ground
Timberland
Make a deal with the Devil
Go tell him all he wants to hear
Confess all your dark secrets
All the ones you sheltered from my ears
Did I lose you once again
Will I see you in the end
When my world comes tumbling down
High hopes left low on the ground
Timberland

Goin’ Home©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

Christmas lights streaming by
Apple pies cooling high
See Uncle Jack with his hand in his hat
In all my travels I ain’t never seen a fedora like that
Goin’ Home
Goin’ Home
Small time town
Berkshires bound
Same old cars
Same old bars
Captain of the football team, he scored with the ladies, he bragged
Now he works at 7-Eleven
He’s fat and bald and dresses in drag
Goin’ Home
Goin’ Home
And those posters on my bedroom walls
Welcome their weary friend back home
And the night casts its lonely light
‘Round me like a blanket I’ve long lost
At such a cost
And no matter where I’ve been
And no matter what I’ve done
This room will always be
A safe, warm memory
Goin’ Home
Goin’ Home
Lazy days
August haze
Sweet corn fields
Old wagon wheels
Big old hound dog
Snoozing in the summer sunshine
Never cared if I was right or strong
Just as long as I was by his side
Goin’ Home
Goin’ Home
And those posters on my bedroom walls
Welcome their weary friend back home
And the night casts its lonely light
Around me like a blanked I’ve long lost
At such a cost
And no matter where I’ve been
And no matter what I’ve done
This room will always be
A safe, warm memory
Goin’ Home
Goin’ Home

Old Granite Stones©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

Well, my name was Corey Walker
And I was born in this old Georgia town
And I was never sweet on the flowers ‘neath my feet
But I loved the scent in this sacred ground
And they said, I wasn’t much of a fighter
But that all depends on what a fighter means
As a soldier, I admit, I was less than a perfect fit
But as a boy, I was much more than I seemed
Amongst these old, old granite stones
Where the new names are carved amongst the old
Old granite stones
Hiding spots and homes
And doors to the unknown
The year was 1862
When I found the wrong path home
And they thought I was blind but my eyes saw just fine
My fear saved me from these stones
And they said I was more than lucky
But that all depends on what lucky means
Because there’s a wrong and a right
And there’s a black and a white
And luck is the shadow in between
Between these old, old granite stones
Where the new names are carved amongst the old
Old granite stones
Hiding spots and homes
And doors to the unknown
Oh, and you tell me
Is it better to die young with honor or to live long in shame?
Is the curse the same?
So now, I tend to this graveyard
Like my father before the war
And I hide in the dirt shoveled aside
And I wait for the Devil to settle the score
And my eyes, they watch the wounds heal
My soul, it never did
And the flowers they grow bury secrets deep below
In the bones of heroes we hid
Amongst these old, old granite stones
Where the new names are carved amongst the old
Old granite stones
Hiding spots and homes
And doors to the unknown
Old granite stones

Sunday Morning ‘Round 4am©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

Sound morning ‘round 4am
The phone nearly rang of its hooks
And I feared to take that call
And to hear the news I knew I’d hear
I said, “Hello? Yes, this is he.”
“Thank you, Mame. I’ll be right down.”
And in the dark, as I drove
I just tried to picture your face
Fifteen years had come and gone since the last time that we spoke
But you were always in my thoughts and my prayers
For what they’re worth
And the snow on the pine trees of green lined the road to where you slept
And with led, led in my boots
I climbed the mountain to you
Where a man I did not see pulled the shroud from your face
And there, looking down
I saw a girl finally at peace
And I let go
Lord, I let go
Thirty years’ worth of tears
And said goodbye to my little girl
Sunday morning ‘round 4am
Sunday morning ‘round 4am

Change Gonna’ Come©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

Yesterday I bought a pack of Lucky’s
Though I told myself I’d quit
I felt the same ‘bout this dead-end job in shame
And I swear, one of these days…I’m gonna’ split
Yesterday I downed a pack of Rolaids
But they spelled me no relief
I felt the same about this woman who stole my name
And I swear, one of these days…I’m gonna’ leave
Change gonna’ come like a howlin’ wind
And they say when it does you ain’t never the same again
Change gonna’ come turn green grass brown
And they say when it does you can never turn back around
Oh, yeah, change gonna’ come
Yesterday I bought a pair of Nikes
Though the race had already been won
I felt the same about that love I chased in vain
And I swear, one of these days…I’m gonna’ run
Yesterday I found a crystal ball
Though its magic had all disappeared
I thought the same about this town in my window pain
And I swear, one of these days…I’m outta’ here
Change gonna’ come like a howlin’ wind
And they say when it does you ain’t never the same again
Change gonna’ come turn green grass brown
And they say when it does you can never turn back around
Oh, yeah, change gonna’ come
Change gonna’ come
Now yesterday I bought me a cell phone
But I won’t call ‘till I’m gone
I hope to say, “hey, I’m off to find my way”
And I swear, one of these days…I’m movin’ on
Change gonna’ come like a howlin’ wind
And they say when it does you ain’t never the same again
Change gonna’ come turn green grass brown
And they say when it does you can never turn back around
Oh, no, change gonna’ come
Change comin’
Change comin’

Much About Much©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

Straight from the war
Medals in my hand
I bought a ticket on a Greyhound bus
I sat near the back
Stared through the glass
And didn’t care much about much
Girl a few rows back
She looked pretty to me
I turned…she smiled…I blushed
And she looked lost
But not as much as me
And she didn’t care much about much
Black man to my right sang soft Southern songs
Said God had graced him with good luck
He said, “I’m blessed to not be white like you,
Cause then I’d care too much about much”
So I watched the wheatfields
Swing and sway
Like a girl with a summer’s crush
Same golden glow
Same easy flow
And she didn’t care much about much
Pulled in to Jackson about an hour ahead of time
I left my medals back on the bus
Purple, silver and gold
Will never bring back the lives they stole
They don’t care much about much
In the quiet of the station reflecting on my sins
When all around me fell an eerie hush
And my generation
It withers with the wind
It don’t care much about much
Now comes my father
His necktie like a noose
He leaned on my mother like a crutch
Love comes and goes but it always leaves a scar
He never cared much about much
A few paces back stood a silhouette of peace
My sweet mother, so out of touch
Love’s prison walls secure Time’s frozen dreams
When she cared too much about much
Now I’ll pick up the piece
If you help me rebuild
Oh, tell me if I ask to much
I’m not expecting to build a castle in this land
Cause too few care much about much
Too few care much about much

Roll the Dice©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

As you can see, I’m a real mess
I wouldn’t recognize my own kids, I confess
And you say I’ve still, blue eyes
But the boy behind ‘em’s died
It’s my life
I’ll roll the dice
Now I’ve been a user too long
I took these pills to help me stand strong
But now I couldn’t leave ‘em if I tried
I’m standing tall with an addicts pride
It’s my life
I’ll roll the dice
I ran with the wrong crowd from a tender age
Wore a see through costume to the masquerade
Reality’s what you want it to be
What’s real is real but not if you can’t see
It’s my life
I’ll roll the dice
Now I’ve got a woman she’s gonna’ save me
Through the river of my own blood
But these new lives
They won’t change me
There ain’t no Jesus here for me
One day when my flame burns out
Will I leave behind all doubts
And when I look back on this
Will I see it all as a long, strange trip
I don’t want your pity or your sympathy
Don’t furrow your brow feeling sorry for me
Two roads diverged in a wood
I took the wrong one because I could
It’s my life
I rolled the dice
It’s my life
It’s my life
It’s my life
I rolled the dice

Save Me a Smile©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

If you take the fall
I’ll take the blame
Our Love’s the same old children’s game
We’ve played for years
So you should know by now
You can’t win
But even better
You can’t lose
When I can’t see my hands in front of my face
Or when I can’t tell if I’m in first or last place
When I don’t care if your cloths are out of style
Well I’ll be alight if you just stay here a while
And save me a smile
And how many times
Have we walked that road
Yet it seems so unfamiliar
Strange how the things
You want to forget
They never go
But those you always should remember
You just lose
When I can’t see my hands in front of my face
Or when I can’t tell if I’m in first or last place
When I don’t care if your cloths are out of style
Well I’ll be alight if you just stay here a while
And save me a smile
Tell me, can there be such things as wrong impressions
And sole searching confessions
And love that never ends
Please tell me, can there be questions with no answers
And second, second chances for you and me
Darlin’ when I can’t see my hands in front of my face
Or when I can’t tell if I’m in first or last place
Now I don’t care if your cloths are out of style
I’ll be alight if you just stay here a while
And save me a smile

Evergreen©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

So I lost
Now I’m coming home
There’s good in every bad
Silver linings
In every thunder cloud
A humble eye in every storm
I left home a tiger
Return now a cub
But I ‘ve earned my stripes
And I met a fighter
And called her Evergreen
She taught me all Love’s favorite rites
Some folks they change on the inside
Remain the same on the outside
Can’t you see
Can’t you see through me
So I sailed West on winds of hope
Peter Pan dreams in my mind
Like days of old, in search of Fool’s Gold
I left a treasure trove behind
And I learned to swim from a pretty prison guard
Wed to cuffs and petty crime
“There is no shame” she said, “in losing love
Only shame in losing time.”
Some folks they change on the outside
Remain the same on the inside
Can’t you see
Can’t you see through me
Oh, so we roam
Fragile bags of bone
And when the night is more than black
You forge ahead or you turn, you just turn back
Turn back
Turn back
So now I stand
Heart in my hand
At your door
Take your time
I’m a patient man
And the rain don’t bother me no more
Now I look the same on the outside
But I’m all changed on the inside
Can’t you see
Can’t you see
Can’t you see

No Closer©
Words and Music by Howard Kirkpatrick

Would you still believe in me if I told you
I’d no penny to my name
Would you still believe in me if I told you
I’d spent every dime we made
Would you let me in from the cold cruel wind
Would you always consider me your friend
Would you light my way in the dark of day
Would you cast these shadows from my path
And I’m no closer
I’m no clozer
To understanding you than I was before
I’m no closer
No, I’
M no closer
To understanding you than I was 10 years before
Would you still believe in me if I told you
I’d no mask to hide my pain
Would you still believe in me if I told you
I’d no one left to blame
Would you let me in from the cold cruel wind
Would you always consider me your friend
Would you light my way in the dark of day
Would you cast these shadows from my path

Took a ride from LA through the mountains into Monterey
In a failed attempt to escape for a while
And I wished I had a convertible to feel the Route 1 wind in my hair
Then at least I’d have an excuse for the salt in my eyes
We took many drives together and some of those nights were a hell of a ride
And now I just can’t adjust to this empty seat by my side
I took a wrong turn near the mansions of gold
And pulled aside just to gaze awhile
And wonder what it would be like to live in such style
When a servant scurried down the driveway
He said, “you look lost. Be on your way.”
And as I turned to go, he said, “I got more to say.”
He said, “this ain’t no Pasadena. And this ain’t no Harlem too. And this ain’t no place for a man like you!”
So I walked away in silence and turned the key in my old Ford
And reversed all my dreams back to a life I could afford
Took a ride from LA through the mountains into Monterey
And I missed you more than words could say

I miss you when the sun sets down
You were the North Star in a Monday morning town
I remember sharing Rocky Road cones
And with chocolate smiles we’d race the shadows home
Easy come and easy go
A simple phrase for a simple soul
Easy come and easy go
I’m sitting on a weathered park bench
The very scene of my favorite event
Our first kiss, could have been truth or dare
But like Audry Hepburn you pretended not to care
Easy come and easy go
A simple phrase for a simple soul
Easy come and easy go
They say true love’s like a star, you know
A fleeting glimpse on a summer’s night
Or the timeless beauty of Orion’s light
For a million years or just one night
It makes no difference to this heart tonight
Now love’s strange
It can grown on its own
Like a might oak sprouting from a stone
Don’t recall when a crush ends and love begins
But it’s like the difference between a smile and a grin
Easy come and easy go
A simple phrase for a simple soul
Easy come and easy go
They say true love’s like a star, you know
A fleeting glimpse on a summer’s night
Or the timeless beauty of Orion’s light
For a million years or just one night
It makes no difference to this heart tonight
Easy come and easy go
Easy come
Easy go

Well, if you’d only speak well
Then you’d have no reason to whisper
And if you’d only see good
Then you’d have no reason to hide
And if you’d only hold me
Then I’d have no reason to shiver
And if you’d only tell me you love me, then I’d never ask
And if we knew the answers to all the mysteries
And if we knew the answers
What fun would this life be
Oh, so we play the game
Well, if I’d only hear you
Then you’d have no reason speak
And If I’d only heal you
Then you’d have no reason to hurt
And if I’d only touch you
You’d have no reason to sour
And if I’d only tell you I love you
Then maybe you’d never go
And if we knew the answers to all the mysteries
If we knew the answers
Oh, what fun would this life be
Oh, so we play the game