Dan Bern - Dan Bern (1997) by Dan Bern (보컬) on maniadb.com

When I tell you that I love you
Don't test my love
Accept my love don't test my love
Cause maybe I don't love you all that much

Don't ask what kind of music I'm gonna play tonight
Just stay awhile
Hear for yourself awhile
And if you must put me in a box
Make sure it's a big box
With lots of windows
And a door to walk through
And a nice high chimney
So we can burn burn burn
Everything that we don't like
And watch the ashes
Fly up to Heaven
Maybe all the way to India
I'd like that

All the ancient kings came to my door
They said,

Enough of this throat singing already
If you wanna sing two notes at once
Why don't you do like everyone else
Get a multi-track machine
Lay 'em down separately
Make a little harmony
Maybe a bass track
Like one from the Rolling Stones
None of this long lost art
This archaic stuff
Go out and make something

If you wanna make some dough
You oughta invest in my company
We're putting barcodes
On the fetuses
Using ultrasound
And laser technology
We used to do babies
But some of them still got mixed up
This takes care of that

My love, go to sleep
We'll wake you tomorrow
My love, go to sleep
We'll wake you tomorrow

There's some tomatoes
Chemically engineered
They come out square
To fit in boxes
There's some people
Chemically engineered
They come out square
To fit in boxes
I'm sitting on the roof today
All by myself
Not saying nothing
To no one
I'm sitting on the roof today
All by myself
Not saying nothing
Goodbye

My love go to sleep
We'll wake you tomorrow
My love go to sleep
We'll wake you tomorrow

I saw the best of my generation playing pinball
Make-up on, all caked up
Looking like some kind of china doll
With all of Adolf Hitler's moves down cold
As they stood up in front
Of a rock and roll band
And always moving upward and ever upward
To this gentle golden promised land
With the smartest of them all
Moonlighting as a word processor
And the strongest of them all
Checking IDs outside a saloon
And the prettiest of all
Taking off her clothes
In front of men
Whose eyes look like they were in some little hick town
Near Omaha
Watching the police chief
Run his car off the side of a bridge

I saw a men with dreams
Like the ones I'd had
Beg quarters outside the Seven-Eleven
Till it got so they didn't affect me anymore
Than the mailboxes I'd passed
'Cept that sometimes
I'd put somthing in the mailbox

I'd had the wind at my back
Now I felt it cold in my face
And for an awful long time now
You were the only one who ever
Called me late at night
And I really never noticed
Till after you stopped calling
And the emptiness
And silence
Got so heavy

Broken up in the wasteland
Broken up in the promised land
Broken up in Disneyland
Broken up in the plastic land
Broken up in the wasteland
Broken up in the wasteland
Broken up in the wasteland

I saw dead Marilyn Monroe
Strung up on every street corner in Hollywood
Like some two bit whore
Offering a discount rate
And I wondered how Joe Dimaggio felt
I saw dead James Dean's ghost
Wandering the sidewalk looking troubled
And I wondered how his mama felt
I saw signs that said

But if she did
He'd a taken her to Paris
And if she did
She'd have smoked a lot of opium
And if she did
She'd have dyed her hair blue
And if she did
She might be alive

Oh-ohh Henry Miller
Oh-ohh Marilyn Monroe
Oh-ohh Henry Miller
Oh-ohh Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe didn't marry Henry Miller
She lived outside the Tropic of Capricorn
Marilyn Monroe didn't marry Henry Miller
I don't even know if she knew Henry Miller

But if she did
He'd a taken her to Paris
And if she did
They'd have fucked every day
And if she did
She'd have felt like a woman
Not a photogragh
In a magazine

Oh-ohh Henry Miller
Oh-ohh Marilyn Monroe

This is not a knock against Arthur Miller
Death of a Salesman is my favorite play
But Marilyn Monroe
Should have married Henry Miller
And if she did
She might be alive

Cause if she did
He'd have taken her to Paris
Tied her to the bed
And eaten dinner off of her
And okay maybe
she'd have died the same, anyway
But if she did
she'd have had more fun

Oh-ohh Henry Miller
Oh-ohh Marilyn Monroe
Oh-ohh Henry Miller
Oh-ohh Marilyn Monroe

Well, they elected me
King of the World
I said, "Here's what I'm gonna do
Send everybody over to China
Except for me and you
Strip ourselves naked
Go to Beverly Center
Watch movies and eat Cinnabons"
I think I'm gonna like
Being king of the world
For a change

They said, "As king of the world
You can have anything
Your greedy royal heart desires"
I said, "All I really want
Is some wide open space
Where I can set forest fires
I want peace and quiet
I want nudity
I want sex and wine and love"
They said "So let it be written,
Your highness,
So let it be done"

I am the king
The king of the world
It could have been you
But it's me
I'm suprised you didn't hear about it
It was on the cover of newsweek
November 1993

As king of the world
I'll occasionally go
To China to visit you guys
You don't have to be afraid
I don't need you to bow down
I'm not God
I'm just the king, I realize
Well, it might be nice though
If you'd kiss me feet
And call me, "All knowing leader of men"
If you were king of the world
I'm sure you'd want the same
For yourself

I am the king of the world
King of the world
Can you believe my luck
I'm king of the world

The day the Elvis died
Was like a mercy killing
America breathed
A sigh of relief
We knew all about the drugs
And the Vegas shows
And there wasn't much of anything
That looked like grief

And I guess he shoulda done
Like James Dean did
'Stead of putting on weight
And sinking down, down, down
Easier to take
If he had just skidded straight
To souvenir city
And T-shirt town

And sometimes I wish
I was smarter that I am
But I'm on my 3rd city
And I'm on my 4th car
And I'm on my 5th apartment
And so many of my days have sprung

And now it's too late to crash
Too late to burn
Too late to die young

If Pete Rose had exploded
Like Roberto Clemente
He'd be hanging in the Hall of Fame
Without fail
Can you name the last good film
Marlon Brando made
While trying to keep his kid
From going to jail
And the old people
On the street are telling you

We pulled into Rome
With blood in our eyes
After days of travelin'
Months of lies
Taking our various
Turns at the wheel
Taking booze
And pot and cigarettes
Anything not to feel
No one had slept
No one had eaten
Our bodies were bad
Our spirits were beaten
Together we dragged
All of us down
As we staggered through Rome
Blaming the town
Blaming the students
For worship of others
Blaming the cops
And blaming their brothers
And never quite looking
Ourselves in the heart
And minute by minute
Growing further apart

Julia, Julia
Where have you gone?
Why have you vanished
Off of my lawn?
Julia, Julia
Where is your truck?
Where have you driven
With all of my luck?

But even old bull fighters
Their grave stones in sight
Must search 'till they unearth
One last bull to fight
And so it was with us
So near to the end
One last story to tell
One last hill to defend
One glance to avoid
One guitar to strum
One untruth to be told
One last song to be sung
And you, the most brilliant
Most driven, most keen
Jewel of a bastard
I ever have seen
And you and your turn
A good bitch of the nile
So real to the end
Nothing left to defile
And me in the middle
Along for the ride
The unwilling distraction
From familiocide
And knowing our weaknesses
No one refrained
From picking
And prodding
'Till nothing remained

Julia, Julia
Where have you gone?
Why have you vanished
Off of my lawn?
Julia, Julia
Where is your truck?
Where have you driven
With all of my luck?

And now in this kitchen
Miles from home
Miles from anything
Miles from Rome
Rome was a bust
Rome was a scream
Rome was the final
Rapid eye movement
To this dream
We scattered like leaves
Like pieces of dust
Warriors watching
Their swords and shields rust
And now as we descend
To couches and clocks
To closets and appointments
Let us drink to the rocks
Let us drink to the sand
To the winds which have blowed us
Let us drink to the rivers
Let us drink to the road

And if you travel this far
From either conscience or greed
Have one piece of advice
That I think you should heed
If ever your travels
Take you this far from home
Consult your map carefully
Stear clear of Rome

Julia, Julia
Where have you gone?
Why have you vanished
Off of my lawn?
Julia, Julia
Where is your truck?
Where have you driven
With all of my luck?

We pulled into Rome
With blood in our eyes
After days of travelin'
Months of lies
Taking our various
Turns at the wheel
Taking booze
And pot and cigarettes
Anything not to feel
No one had slept
No one had eaten
Our bodies were bad
Our spirits were beaten
Together we dragged
All of us down
As we staggered through Rome
Blaming the town
Blaming the students
For worship of others
Blaming the cops
And blaming their brothers
And never quite looking
Ourselves in the heart
And minute by minute
Growing further apart

Julia, Julia
Where have you gone?
Why have you vanished
Off of my lawn?
Julia, Julia
Where is your truck?
Where have you driven
With all of my luck?

But even old bull fighters,
Their grave stones in sight,
Must search 'till they unearth
One last bull to fight
And so it was with us,
So near to the end
One last story to tell
One last hill to defend
One glance to avoid
One guitar to strum
One untruth to be told
One last song to be sung
And you, the most brilliant,
Most driven, most keen,
Jewel of a bastard
I ever have seen
And you and your turn
A good bitch of the nile
So real to the end
Nothing left to defile
And me in the middle,
Along for the ride,
The unwilling distraction
From familiocide
And knowing our weaknesses
No one refrained,
From picking
And prodding
'Till nothing remained

Julia, Julia
Where have you gone?
Why have you vanished
Off of my lawn?
Julia, Julia
Where is your truck?
Where have you driven
With all of my luck?

And now in this kitc

I got 36-foot insulation in my house
Wear 14 pairs of long underwear
Stick tape inside my ears
Cover myself with five bedspreads

I spend every morning in an isolation tank
Spend every afternoon high up in a tree
Spend every evening with one of those things over my eyes
Like in virtual reality

I'll never fall in love again

I got a walkman on my head every step I take
Put thorazine in my morning coffee break
Won't feed the birds bread boys, let them eat cake
I'll lock my doors, click click click bang bang
When I'm not awake

When I'm walking down the street
Don't make me meet your sister, Pete,
When there's a knock knockin at my door
I'll just sit here on the floor

I'll run 26 miles a day straight up hills
Work overtime to pay all of my hospital bills
I'll spray black spray paint on my windowsills
I'll make a million dollars leave you outta my will

I'll never fall in love again

I was painting a still life this morning
Of a throat lozenge sitting on a copy
Of Tropic of Cancer
The only thing weird about it
Is that a year ago,
I never thought I'd paint anything again
I decided I wasn't ever gonna paint again
It didn't bother me too much
Warhol's dead,
David Hockney's still alive
I don't need to paint

I painted over ten thousand paintings
Sad ones, funny ones, dark ones, and light ones
I've done haystacks
And rich old ladies by their pools
Wearing nothing but a scarf
I've painted everything there was to paint
Now it was time to sit back
Give interviews
Hang out at club med
Get on the internet
Take stock of what I've done

You know, the best friend I ever had was a dog
It sounds like a cliche unless it's happened to you
Some days that dog was the only reason I even got out of bed
That dog went everywhere with me
And then I heard the crack addicts
Were stealin' dogs and selling them for animal research
It sounded like an urban myth to me
Like the mouse in the Coke bottle
But I started leavin' her at home after that
You know, Paula was my wife for a while
She ran off to Paris with the great grandson of Van Gogh
A cartoonist who did fashion graphics for Le Monde
When Paula left she took my dog
I never saw her again
Except in the court during the custody battle
She won and got to keep the dog
And I didn't speak to anyone for months

You know sometimes it feels
Like there's so much that you need
Sometimes the world is upside down
Sometimes it feels
Like the only thing you need
Is holdin' someone's hand as you walk through town

I started hanging around with Dino-aca

Do you got to be a queen all your life
Are you gonna take that crown off your head
Are you ever gonna come to bed
Do you got to be a queen all your life

Do you plan on speaking in this year
Are you gonna keep everything inside
Are you gonna keep all your great thoughts to yourself
Do you got to be a queen all your life

Get off your throne
I'm alone
Get off your throne
I'm walking and moaning
I'm dying alone

Do you got to be a queen all your life
Do you got to cake on one more layer of make-up everyday
Are you ever gonna tell me what you want me to do or say
Do you gotta be a queen all your life