1. |
Message Man
03:28
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Message Man
i drove up to taos
through the river gorge at night
looking for i don’t know what
just fleeing from the fight
i was playing old cds
and i sang each tune loud
talking so much cosmic smack
sweet words like peace and proud
have to seize the moment
offer what i can
got a lyric for the world
hey i’m your message man
of course nobody listens
my girl friend locked her door
there was daily life to live
though i just warbled more
once she had believed in me
but she grew bored and mad
where was her new tricked out ride
free verses all i had
chorus
up atop the mesa
i heard coyotes howl
i just pulled my head up high
and hooted like an owl
have to seize the moment
offer what i can
got a lyric for the world
hey i’m your message man
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2. |
Naming
02:55
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Naming
i blew up the planet
and watched the fragments fly
if there was no planet left
then where the hell was i
i veered off from madness
a buzzing swarm of mind
rage and fear consuming
while on i stumbled blind
we are all star witnesses
and even when it’s rough
something secret still enjoys
this naming of the stuff
the lawyer stole my silver
the coach ran off with knives
everything was breaking down
a splintering of lives
there was only language left
to soften up the end
pointing out each crazy state
with no need to defend
chorus
i watched from a distance
and dove way deep in soul
so much was exploding here
just painted words seemed whole
we are all star witnesses
and even when it’s rough
something secret still enjoys
this naming of the stuff
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3. |
Little Criminals
04:07
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Little Criminals
we were little criminals
my honeybun and me
we knew every kind of dodge
such proud mendacity
she called me her nemesis
does that mean i seemed real
footprints in the alley trash
where once we did the deal
i live on the outside
though i keep peering in
trying to outflank the dark
where yet again i’ve been
there was never meaning
in the flicker of the screen
she saw something vanish
down the gutters in between
she said it was freedom
and then she laughed and laughed
as we paddled from the dock
the air hissed from the raft
chorus
she screamed at the magistrate
then tried to call her mom
nothing’s ever made much sense
since we blew off the prom
i live on the outside
though i keep peering in
trying to outflank the dark
where yet again i’ve been
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4. |
Tatters Of The Flag
03:32
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Tatters Of The Flag
we were full of nothing
our silent pain referred
hate between the factions
a distant gong i heard
we’d give no resistance
if they hauled us away
best no provocation
and fight another day
who could quite believe it
the tatters of the flag
plus i’d folded up my rage
and stuffed it in a bag
rumors of rebellion
an altar in the cold
kneeling on the cobblestone
near where the lies were sold
you had quite a skirmish
of course i could see why
then you lay down in the crowd
and pointed at the sky
chorus
dancing girls and speeches
my breath froze in the square
we were shouting slogans
the cameras everywhere
who could quite believe it
the tatters of the flag
plus i’d folded up my rage
and stuffed it in a bag
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5. |
Sham
02:35
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Sham
we were ruled by monsters
but maybe they were us
clanging pots out in the street
was simply too much fuss
went along to get along
in fact we bought the hype
not polite to challenge folks
i never was the type
blitz of propaganda
democracy gone sham
power swamps the airwaves
pretends to give a damn
we knew there was little time
and so much to be done
but we’d forgotten discipline
our love affair with fun
plus we had internalized
the justifying lies
then they sacked the malcontents
that right big money buys
chorus
we grew horns and tails and hooves
though we swore we were good
then we poured into the streets
and trashed the neighborhood
blitz of propaganda
democracy gone sham
power swamps the airwaves
pretends to give a damn
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6. |
A Little Kindness
04:07
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A Little Kindness
will it make a difference
of course i cannot say
to lend a little kindness
to someone every day
to listen and be open
to feel out what they are
not just on the surface
but deeper in by far
so you can join the killers
joke with the elite
or you might find a hidden crack
where maybe souls can meet
everybody’s hungry
just dying to be heard
husbanding what’s hidden
such risk to say a word
love needs revolution
the climate will not cool
brutal suits might scorn you
and mock you as a fool
chorus
maybe that is what you bring
to hold the heart inside
offering a conscious voice
a witness to the ride
so you can join the killers
joke with the elite
or you might find a hidden crack
where maybe souls can meet
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7. |
Sing
03:09
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Sing
when you’re up to your neck in crap
all you can do is sing
there was never one way out
the sun ate everything
i caught up with the ghost godot
at least they said that’s he
when i bragged i had a plan
well he just smiled at me
i’m singing for my supper
i’m singing for my soul
as this world flies all apart
what else could keep you whole
dying could go easy
they manage every day
all the things we thought and did
one moment washed away
now they pitched necessity
while i dreamed of the moon
i’d been here forever then
and still it seemed too soon
chorus
when you’re up to your neck in crap
all you can do is sing
joy still flowing in your heart
assailed by everything
i’m singing for my supper
i’m singing for my soul
as this world flies all apart
what else could keep you whole
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8. |
Wolf Mind
03:25
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Wolf Mind
i knelt at the altar
and prayed aloud for peace
we were led by mad men now
all panting for release
plus they wanted cover
distraction sleight of hand
they trumped up fierce bogeymen
so terror ruled the land
gunboat wars for profit
that goal must be concealed
even sheep might finally rise
if wolf mind was revealed
any nation that had turned
to try a different way
they would work to undermine
bow down to what we say
now they could assassinate
whomever with a drone
while they straddled all the earth
the grapes of wrath got sown
chorus
so much propaganda
like fog we couldn’t see
sold by hustlers each new grab
to keep their captives free
gunboat wars for profit
that goal must be concealed
even sheep might finally rise
if wolf mind was revealed
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9. |
Brawl
03:13
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Brawl
i came for the rest cure
but all they did was fight
hateful words and fisticuffs
destroyed my peace at night
when i called the front desk
the manager stormed in
briefly he seemed civil
but soon he joined the din
we can’t seem to help it
another chance to brawl
i’m sure eve and adam scrapped
for years before the fall
i don’t think i noticed
way back when i was young
violence just the air we breathed
and insults what we slung
now my juice for conflict’s slight
and sparring i don’t crave
is this just a harbinger
a calling from the grave
chorus
i walked in the forest
then sat against a tree
i could feel the hungry ghosts
come jabbering at me
we can’t seem to help it
another chance to brawl
i’m sure eve and adam scrapped
for years before the fall
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10. |
Sapling
03:09
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Sapling
we ate pancakes at the diner
pounding milk shakes by the pint
then we went for something stronger
downtown at this pool hall joint
i felt great for no good reason
though the news was kind of bleak
everything just seemed so funny
maybe this could last all week
where is the life you long to recover
where is the sapling who sang to the sea
who grabbed the check with the cup overflowing
so much soul yearning still hidden in me
i accepted the stories they promised
then i resembled the lies that they told
where was the key to the box filled with treasure
buried so deep in the dictator’s hold
i loved the booze and the drugs they gave me
oh and the women what pleasure we had
drowning the dread of dust ever after
staring too deeply could drive a man mad
chorus
we’re so briefly in this body
born to feel it all so fast
grab each evanescent moment
quick this speeding train won’t last
where is the life you long to recover
where is the sapling who sang to the sea
who grabbed the check with the cup overflowing
so much soul yearning still hidden in me
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11. |
Tomahawk
03:25
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Tomahawk
once i swung the tomahawk
i saw my future pass
but i was young and stupid
strutting like an ass
i felt for his widow
plus she was kind of hot
now my creature comforts
three meals and a cot
they say what you manifest
depends on what you feed
i knew only anger then
not yet what i might need
i learned how to read here
and i began to pray
still i felt my blood boil up
at least once every day
we seemed just like monkeys
all programmed to defend
but once you take an eye for eye
the craziness don’t end
chorus
every night i lay in bed
i ask the lord for peace
even if i never leave
i still might find release
they say what you manifest
depends on what you feed
i knew only anger then
not yet what i might need
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12. |
Last Goodbye
03:52
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Last Goodbye
thicket of deception
shallow grave of lies
there was almost no flesh left
beneath the buzzing flies
you asked for a blessing
which i could not provide
i was there to bid farewell
but not to choose a side
it all goes so quickly
so soon we’re moving on
now we say a last goodbye
and then another dawn
every day we’re falling
the new ones crowding in
fighting for the things we want
enraptured by the spin
older then but wiser
the folly of the fray
can we find some kindness here
to brighten every day
chorus
i can hear the traffic
again the curtains rise
i will see your face again
that big love in your eyes
it all goes so quickly
so soon we’re moving on
now we say a last goodbye
and then another dawn
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Kito Peters Santa Fe, New Mexico
Kito Peters has released (like doves!) quite a few CDs, has garnered his share of esoteric radio airplay, and has won a baker's dozen of New Mexico Music Awards, including twice for Best CD of the Year and four times for Best Pop CD. He is a big fan of Harry Bosch, Al Kaline, and Laura Nyro. ... more
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