1. |
Black Cloud Umbrella
03:53
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I just can’t win, I just can’t win
I got bad luck blood underneath my skin
I live in a shack under skies of black
I got tire tracks tattooed on my back
Everyone I know has got it much better
Heard of Lady Luck, but I never met her
Most people say I’m a pretty nice fella
I’m just living under this black cloud umbrella
I just can’t win, I just can’t win
I just can’t win, I just can’t win
Both Mom and Dad were drunk and no count
They lived in the gutters of a run-down town
On a dark, stormy night when no star could shine
I was born under a bad neon sign
Woke up one morning, saw the devil’s eyes
So I went to the river to be baptized
Put a toe in the water but just as quick
The river it parted like Moses’ trick
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2. |
The Pressure's On
04:00
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From you my tough facade won’t hide me
You seem to be wrapped up inside me
I hoped and prayed that I would find this
But I feel fear below the blind bliss
The pressure’s on
The pressure’s on
The pressure’s on
The pressure’s on
I’m not regretting letting you in
But where are you now, what are you doing
The future’s bright but partly hazy
I hope I’m not the kind that love drives crazy
So many hearts that become greedy
Too many friends who failed completely
When I’m with you no specter’s looming
When I’m alone I’m only human
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3. |
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Those crazy demons of mine, they cling just like kudzu vine
I cut ‘em down, I watch ‘em burn
But when my flesh is weak, they always return
They hound me, confound me ’til I can’t discern
When they drag me back across the line
Those crazy demons of mine
Those crazy demons of mine, in the dark, how they shine
I turn my head away, I shut my eyes tight
But they burn through my dreams with the devil's white light
To control me they console me and say it's alright
They tell me everything is fine
Those crazy demons of mine
Those crazy demons of mine, they rip out my soul and spine
What I love the most, they treat like dirt
They tell me that what you don't know won't hurt
Then they stop me and drop me at the hem of your skirt
They seem to drink your tears like wine
Those crazy demons of mine
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4. |
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Make your fortune, have your fame
Rich or poor, it’s all the same
Gold can’t outlast emptiness
Success doesn’t make much sense
When there's nothing to hold on to
When there's nothing to hold on to
When there's nothing to hold on to
When there's nothing to hold on to
In every town, in every state
Forsaken souls ignore their fate
Wasted hours, empty dreams
Distract yourself from what it means
Losers cry and winners gloat
In the same slow-sinking boat
Everything that’s wrong feels right
Day is just as dark as night
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5. |
Sweet Apathy
04:44
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Overwhelmed by a world gone wrong
Too much good forever gone
Adrift upon a sea of grief
Aloofness tempts me with relief
Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah, sweet apathy
Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah, sweet apathy
I throw my hands up to the stars
Release my faith and bare my scars
I yearn and pray for thicker skin
To keep the dark from seeping in
In this world it’s a curse to care
The unconcerned live unaware
But in the end they pay a price
It’s their own souls they sacrifice
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6. |
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I've lived a long life and I've seen many things
But nothing I know of is worth
Hanging around like a guest who won't leave
Clinging to this wretched earth
I've worked all my life but have nothing to show
No loved ones, no money, no power
My bags will be packed and I'll go with no woe
Nor regret in my final hour
Until I go, just let me be
I'll miss this world like it'll miss me
I've been hated by those who say they love all
And robbed by those who claim to give
Hypocrites pointing their fingers at me
Telling me how I should live
I toil day and night and I foresee no rest
'Til I rest in the back of a hearse
I doubt I've earned Heaven for my misery
But I figure Hell can't be much worse
Now, I ain't whining, don't get me wrong
This world doesn't owe me a thing
But if you're in the same boat, here's you a song
And it won't cost you nothing to sing
And to all of you liars, cheaters and thieves
Taking all that you can get
None of your possessions will make it across
I'll see you on my level yet, but …
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7. |
So Be It
03:44
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I stand before you just as I am
A shadowy shell of a broken man
Standing in this exit line
Running out of hope and time
My old man, on his death bed
Looked into my eyes and said
“Time turns hate into regret
Love denied is your soul’s debt”
I’m gonna ride my pain like a funeral train
Taking me home with a mounful moan
You gotta walk through the night, but to find the light
You gotta lay down your gun
So be it, it’s done
I flew the flag of spiteful pride
I dug my trench and crawled inside
The battles I thought I’d won, I lost
My victories became my cost
For all my loved ones’ love I’ve killed
By making their lives my battlefield
For all the foolish, self-rightous rage
I used to build this lonesome cage
I kept all my failures clenched tight in my fist
As I watched everything disappear in the mist
I tied my own rope to my own tree
Then searched for somebody to blame but me
I ranted and raved and condemned and cursed
‘Til everyone who gave a damn dispersed
Then I woke up in the gutter, drunk and alone
And I heard that low, distant whistle moan
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8. |
Dead Man
03:53
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Trying to prove to you I will survive
But I’m a dead man, pretending to be alive
Hiding hunger, denying thirst
Dreaming of you cracking first
It’s not the same world as when I arrived
I’m a dead man
Until you breathe life into me
I’m a dead man
Resurrect me or set me free
Going through the motions of the day
At one with life’s perpetual decay
Comatose and yet I feel
Something living in me still
If only I could rip that part away
Lying still and staring at my wall
Wondering how much further I can fall
Like a razor through a vein
Sever pleasure, sever pain
Until I finally feel nothing at all
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9. |
Hitchin'
04:28
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I’m hitchin’ to a bitchin’ new country
I’m hitchin’ to a bitchin’ new place
My thumb’s in the air, ‘Cause I can’t afford fare
But I’m wearing a smile on my face
I’m wearing a smile on my face
I’m ignoring all the naysayers
And all of their foolish talk
They call it a farce and traffic is sparse
But I’ll get there if I have to walk
I’ll get there even if I have to walk
I’m escaping the kingdom of hatred
I’m heading for the city of love
I’ve left behind negative people
To find what they were robbing me of
The place I’m escaping’s divided
With both sides obnoxious and loud
Instead of picking a side I’m hitchin’ a ride
Far from the quarrelsome crowd
Far from the quarrelsome crowd
Take me away from the madness
Of a world that’s in such a state
Free thought’s ill-advised, all is politicized
And opinions are met with blind hate
All opinions are met with blind hate
I’m leaving the mountain of chaos
I’m traveling to the valley of peace
From the web of deception and insults
I soon will gain my release
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10. |
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There's a lot of dirt to swallow
But not a lot of new ground anywhere
And you're losing when you follow
'Cause the leaders always beat you there
My back burner dreams have lost their fight
But there's something about the morning's light
The saints are far off dreaming
Of finding something rarely found
The sinners won't stop screaming
Over who is more hellbound
Even though my hope has taken flight
There's something about the morning's light
It's disheartening when survival
Seems to be what's killing you
Another day's arrival
With nothing really ringing true
Yet you lay down in darkness every night
'Cause there's something about the morning's light
The strength of youth has faded
The mystery and magic gone
Life's drudgery replaces
The dreams that drove you on so long
I covet every good thing still in sight
And hold on to something about the morning's light
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Mark Coram
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