1. |
Ground Zero
04:14
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Ground Zero
I wake up at four, pull my boots on my feet
Black coffee on the subway, black ice on the street
Click goes my time card, we begin working slow
Knockin’ it up down at ground zero
We’re like thousands of ants in two great big holes
Digging and drilling, and welding steel poles
We’re Mexican, Russian, Jamaican, Chinese
No one’s got a green card
But who’s gonna see?
Roll up, roll up
Its Friday night
The city’s a feast, under circus lights
We’re gonna rock until dawn
Because when the whistle blows
We’ll be knocking it up down at Ground Zero
My brother Paul’s a romantic guy
All the girls love his silence, and his deep blue eyes
He enlisted the day the planes fell from the sky
They sent him to Baghdad but they didn’t say why
Now he’s home on leave, and we’re out on the town
Dressed up like stars, tomcats on the prowl
We’re drinking and dancing and laughing like fools
Like nothing has changed and we still make the rules
Paul says, I love freedom and I love my country
And I love the dream that we can set them all free
I would give up my life, if that’s what it takes
But I’ve watched children die from our stupid mistakes
I was angry and proud when I joined the fight
It all looked so pure in that cool morning light
Now I’m stuck in the mud with the blood and the screams
And I fear that we’re wrong with no way to retreat
She says, My name’s Hanna, and looks in my eyes
Her pretty dark friend’s got Paul in her sights
We’re on our way out now, walking hand in hand
Some guy says, Hey, Chocolate, want to try a real man?
He’s a mountain of tattoos with a big ugly head
But Paul cuts him down, barely breaking a sweat
My sweet little brother’s now a killing machine
Our days of innocence a far away dream
I wake up at four, pull my boots on my feet...
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2. |
Oh le le le
04:24
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Oh le le le
I am a mountain, I am a rock
I’m the ocean tide that no man can stop
My breath is wind in trees
My blood is hope and dreams
I run with wild horses and rivers to the sea
Oh le le le, Oh le le la
Freedom alive or dead
That’s our battle cry
Oh le le le, Oh le le la
For every one that you cut down
A thousand more will rise
The lessons of history, seem hidden from your view
The human spirit doesn’t quit, it grows more resolute
You can’t force us to be silent, you can’t force us agree
You’ll fail ‘cause we’ll struggle until eternity
The more you push us down, the more we’ll hold our ground
Time and god are on our side, can you hear that sound?
It’s the scream of the lion, the wolf’s cry in the night
The rumble of the volcano, waiting to ignite
Timor, Burma, Tibet, Palestine
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3. |
Coffee Coffee Coffee
03:22
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Coffee Coffee Coffee
He looks a little bit like Leo DiCaprio
She looks a little bit like Nicole… you’re kidding me!
He thinks he’s starring in a Bollywood movie
Tight pants, biceps, tattoo of a python
Lucy comes every day, exactly on the minute
Old lady, small dog, latte with a biscuit
She’s not looking at the black-eyed slackers
Ekkied out, no doubt
They need a shot of caffeine if you want to see them happy
Coffee Coffee Coffee
Coffee Coffee Coffee
Steaming black and dirty
Hot and white and frothy
Coffee Coffee Coffeee
Coffee Coffee Coffee
I need a shot of caffeine
If you want to see me happy
Danny is a fireman at the station on the corner
The waitress is smiling as she’s taking his order
She digs his uniform, he’s breathing in her pheromones
Lucy with her little dog laughing at the theatre
Banker takes a double shot, another day, the same lies
Black bag under his arm, black bags under his eyes
Out of work actors, Latinos with an attitude
Here at Joe’s café everybody’s in the theatre
Cappuccino, macchiato, double espresso
Arabica, Robusta, the service is too slow
Skinny latte, hammerhead, decaffeinated, drip brew
The master barista is bringing it to you
Roasted, toasted, roller-coaster, steam-percolated
Brazilian, Colombian, Java or Jamaican
Mocha, Turkish, frappuccino, hydroponic, organic
I don’t know what to order
I’m starting to panic
Yeah they need a shot of caffeine
If you want to see them happy…
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4. |
Cambodia
05:24
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Cambodia
It was the monsoon season of ’75
Nixon said we weren’t there, but he lied
There were bombs like rain from American planes
They didn’t understand it was a huge mistake
Pol Pot blamed it all on the capitalists
He said everyone who’s brainwashed will have to be killed
We’ll empty the cities, go back to the land
Start from year zero again
She was just eight years old, a barefoot skinny rice farmer’s kid
When the Khmer Rouge came like dragons dressed in black
The one with the scar on his cheek took her momma
She heard screaming
Then her sister Leah pushed her out through a door in the back
And she said...
Run Bo, and don’t look back
I’ll be right behind you, just stay on the track
Go the fisherman’s shack, I’ll meet you there
Find the river and follow it down to the sea
Find the river, and follow it down to the sea
Bo was waiting for Leah when the dragons came
But the fisherman took her in his boat through the waves
They drifted for weeks, with no food and no plan
Washed up on the beach in east Thailand
A UN man came and said, I’ll give you a new life
Bo closed her eyes, terrified
They put her in a bird in the hot, wet heat
It landed in the snow, she was frozen with grief
A family took her in, and loved her like their own child
But those dragons dressed in black still came at night
Bo studied hard, became a lawyer
And moved up to the city lights
With her sister Leah’s voice one step behind
She said Run Bo, and don’t look back
I’ll be right behind you, just stay on the track
Go the old fisherman’s shack, I’ll meet you there
Find the river and follow it down to the sea
Find the river and follow it down to the sea
Another UN man came and said, if you dare
I’m looking for a lawyer who can speak Khmer
The trials will begin now, thirty years late
Bo flew to Phnom Penh, in the hot wet rain
She stood in the court-room as they brought him in
Looked at his scar, and stifled a scream
Then led out the evidence of all of his crimes
And the judge said, lock him up ‘til he dies
She was just eight years old, a barefoot skiny rice farmer’s kid
Now Bo’s standing on the court steps wondering where to turn
She goes to the fisherman’s shack
And is laying flowers in the sea
When a voice behind her whispers, like a dream
Oh, little Bo, I knew you’d come back
I was right behind you but I fell on the track
I’ve been waiting for you because I knew one day
You’d find that river and follow it down to the sea
You would find that river and follow it back to me
I was alone and afraid, now my sister’s home, I’m free
I was alone and afraid, now my sister’s home I’m free
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5. |
Roll with the Punches
05:03
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Roll with the Punches
There’s a lantern’s shadow in a local bar
Down an unlit Mexican lane
I’m drinking Mezcal shots with an old sea dog
Its August, in the year of the great earthquake
He telling tales of a thousand ports
And says, I aint been home since the war
Through his bloodshot eyes he throws me words of advice
As I’m crawling out through the door
You’ve got to roll with the punches boy
Bend like a willow tree
If you’re proud and tall like a mast in a storm
You’re gonna break when a strong wind comes
I’m in a Bangkok trap with a kilo of black
When a knock comes on the door
I wake in a filthy cell, with a urinal smell
My blood lies in pools on the floor
The script of the dream didn’t have this scene
Someone’s cheating, I shouldn’t be here
And as the months drip by I fight losing my mind
Whispering his words through my tears
The highest of highs and the lowest of lows
Seem to be the rules of the road
Through the wandering years I fought phantoms of fear
Lived in heat and shivered with cold
Through a sweat-soaked African malarial hell
Into the arms of a princess, beguiled
I felt the screaming slice of the cold turkey knives
Watched a friend sell me out with a smile
Now my traveling days have begun to fade
I’m tied down, caught up, and it all tastes the same
But the miles and the smiles, the jewels of the road
I carry within me wherever I go
When its dragging me down and I fear I might drown
And there’s nothing legal that can ease my pain
I cast my mind back to old one-eyed Jack
And the gift that he gave me down that Mexican lane
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6. |
Ambulance 44
04:17
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Ambulance 44
There’s a red light flashing through the window in the rain
Some kid’s in the back, needs help with his pain
Kimbo shoots him up, so he’s quiet while he gets to work
Through the hospital doors, we see a friendly white gown
The doc says Hi boys, prep’ him, take him down
Its just another night, In Ambulance 44
I got a solid truck, and a partner that I trust
We do what we can and pray that its good enough
Get a call about midnight, find a woman in the bath
The guy says she must have had a heart attack
But I see bruises round her throat
There’s no doubt what that means
He comes for me on the slippery floor
Then tries to run, but I take him at the door
It’s just another night, In Ambulance 44
I got a solid truck, and a partner I trust
We do what we can and pray that it’s good enough
Got a red light flashing through the window in the rain
In the back a baby cries, I guess she couldn’t wait
Its just another night, In Ambulance 44
For ten long years I tried to find my place in this world
Doing office time felt like prison time
I kept dragging at my collar like a dog on a chain
But when the siren’s on
And we’re speeding through the dark city night
I know I was born for this, I need the risk
I’m only any good when everything’s gone wrong
I got a solid truck, and a partner I trust
We do what we can and pray that its good enough
In the clean morning light people heading off to work
I’m covered in gore, every muscle hurts
Had a fire, a car wreck, a shooting and two OD’s
Back at the station do the paperwork and turn on the steam
It all washes away, just like a dream
Another night in Ambulance 44
Just another night in Ambulance 44
It’s been a beautiful night
In Ambulance 44
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7. |
Baghdad Sky
04:13
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Baghdad Sky
Oh, there’s a fire in the sky again
The sound of mortars breaks up my sleep
In the darkness I hear my children breathing
Feel the pulse of my baby’s heartbeat
I am a peaceful man
I don’t believe in the rule of the gun
But when they come, knocking down my door
I’m gonna do what needs to be done
I watch the TV, I see those families
Playing on the green grass, swimming in the blue sea
So where’s the reason that they are them and I am me
I’ve never known one single day of peace
I am a simple man
Just getting by the best that I can
But when they come, knocking down my door
I’m gonna do what needs to be done
Growing up under the hand of a madman
Only strengthened the love we have for our land
I always prayed that a savior would deliver us
But now they’ve come and made an even worse mess
George was a simple man, all he had was a simple plan
Let’s smoke ‘em out, that’s what John Wayne would do
Get rid of Saddam and get us some oil too
Simplistic
Naïve
Ignorant
Arrogant
The modern world is a complex mix
No simple solutions, no quick fix
The only constant is constant change
We save our lives through the lives we save
It’s not about religion, color or race
It’s about opportunity and the disgrace
Of taking more and more, and leaving less and less
When they’re backed into a corner, what do you expect?
I am a peaceful man
I don’t believe in the rule of the gun
But when they come, knocking down my door
I’m gonna do what needs to be done
Oh, there’s a fire in the sky again,
The sound of mortars breaks up my sleep
In the darkness I hear my children breathing
Feel the pulse of my baby’s heartbeat
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8. |
Wild Forces
04:09
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Wild Forces
Wild forces possess me
One foot in darkness, one in ecstasy
Stripping away my identity
Leaving me wide open, like a newborn baby
Vulnerable, but so excited
Trusting all, terrified
Flying, crying, trying to understand
This mystery, so far from understanding
If you say, It looks too hard lets walk away
I’ll be dust outside your door
But if you say, Together we will find a way
Wild horses won’t drag me from you
Wild forces, friend or foe
Send me a sign, so that I will know
Is this real, or is this just fantasy
Falling in love or falling in love with love
But my heart sings when I’m close to you
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9. |
Taxi
03:25
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Taxi
Climb into my time capsule
Leave behind the windy night
Put your life in shaky hands
The blind leading the blind
Yeah we’ve got wild stories
Kings and queens in my back seat
Fans wave from every corner
Taxi
I drive the graveyard shift
Moon-tanned by midnight sun
I chase those cocky boys
When they get out and run
Lords and whores, priests and thieves
Ignore back seat lovers’ screams
Fans wave from every corner
Taxi
My city’s filled with lust tonight
Smooth wet skin under shining lights
I can feel her pulse, I need to drive
We’re electric, we’re alive
Like a pin-ball bounced from side to side
Every night’s a brand new movie
Every customer’s a star
Yeah we’ve got wild stories,
Kings and queens in my back seat
Fans wave from every corner
Taxi
I drive the Minister
When he’s undercover with his secretary
Picked up Father O Shea in drag
He said, Hi I’m Mary
I sit through the quiet hours
Just the alley cats and me
Fans wave from every corner
Taxi, taxi
Hey, taxi
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10. |
Tsunami Dave
05:44
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Tsunami Dave
If you’ve got a few minutes, I want to share a little rave
About a surfing legend known as Tsunami Dave
It might be a bit stretched, it could be true blue, no matter
It’s a great little story when you’re sharing as brew
Born on the gold coast, where his old man Nick
Taught Dave to hang five before he turned six
They chased perfect waves, and traveled ‘round the world
Dave won all the contests and the hearts of the girls
From Manly to Pipeline and Waimea Bay
Out at Teaup’eau, Ulu, G land, Cloudbreak
Dave caught the biggest, surfed the deepest inside
But his thirst to ride giants wasn’t satisfied
So he studied meteorology, the tides and the sea
‘til he came to understand what the scientists believed
As our cars and factories melt the ice poles
The extra weight of the water cracks the earth below
Dave set up his gear, to watch and to wait
‘cause when the sea bed shifted it would send out a wave
Twenty miles deep, twenty metres high
When it got near the shore it would reach to the sky
The waves of my life are tumbling down
I’m lonely and scared and fear I might drown
In this sea of uncertainty there’s one thing I know
If Dave was here, he would go
Just before dawn on a September morning
Dave’s buzzer went off, and he sent out a warning
As everyone ran to reach higher ground
Dave waxed up his board and paddled on out
The ocean was still, like glass on a lake
On horizon a massive blue mountain took shape
It grew and it grew, Dave’s heart thumped in his chest
It peaked and then broke as he paddled down the crest
He dropped, and he dropped, got air, dropped again
Shot way out in front and carved a huge turn
Out on the face of the screaming green beast
He rode over the reef, and over the beach
Dave surfed up the main street, cut back by the mall
Bumped over a cop car, slipped but didn’t fall
Pulled into a tube formed by the old banyan tree
Came out by the bus-stand where he’d first kissed Marie
The rising earth slowed down the wave
‘till on five mile hill, high and dry, stood Dave
He hung up his board, with a hoot and a smile
His quest to ride giants finally satisfied
Chorus
They cleaned up the mess, made Dave mayor for life
‘cause without his warning no one would have survived
Now he sits on his porch and stares out to sea
Patiently waiting for the next tsunami
The waves of my life are tumbling down
I’m lonely and scared and fear I might drown
In this sea of uncertainty there’s one thing I know
If Dave was here, he would go
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11. |
Everything I am
03:15
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Everything I am
I’m sitting here trying to get what’s inside out
Tears running down my face, as I’m not quite sure why
There’s an ocean of memories
Laughter light, forgiveness and pain
A million miles traveled, wish we could do it all again
I’m only two or three, I can smell the lemon tree
You’re hanging out the washing in the cool morning breeze
Then I’m stuck on my face with broken bones
Screaming, all alone
Then you’re holding me, and all my fear is gone
Everything that I am, I owe to you
And I just wanted to say, thank you
It wasn’t always smooth, you’re obstinate, its true
Maybe I get mine from you, because I’m obstinate too
Anger fuels flashing tongues
We’ve cut each other more than once
Before settling down on different sides of truth
Everything that I am, I owe to you
And I just wanted to say, thank you
Now I’m traveling down my own road
Found myself a shared soul
With little hearts to guide
And hold when they’re tired and cold
Now I’m the one who must be strong
And not let on when things go wrong
And when I’m falling, the smell of lemons drags me on
Everything that I am, I owe to you
And I just wanted to say, I miss you
I just wanted to say, I love you
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Patrick Burgess Australia
Human rights activist singer-songwriter Patrick Burgess draws from the stories of ordinary people who have inspired him
during his travels to many of the world’s conflict areas. He has worked in Rwanda, East Timor, Myanmar, the Congo, Cambodia and dozens of other countries, always carrying a guitar...
Patrick Burgess’ new single, ‘Stolen Children’ out now on Bandcamp!
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