1. |
That Bloody Sun
02:50
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THAT BLOODY SUN
(C. M. Duncan)
From barrio or village they ride north on the trains
Cooking when the sun shines, soaking when it rains
Ragged little pilgrims, some barely in their teens
Following their mamas or chasing after dreams
CHORUS:
They’ll cross at Nogales all right
And then, ten miles out of town,
Get lost in the desert tonight
Out where that bloody sun goes down
Out in the Sonora some find their journey’s end
In the shade of some barranca they may never leave again
Or stumble into farmyards, upset the farmer’s wife
Or through their final doorway and straight out of this life
CHORUS
No border fence will stop them, forever they will come
As long as things are better over here than where they’re from
Ah, pobrecìto Mèxico: how can your children rest—
So far away from God and so close to the U.S.?
CHORUS
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2. |
Corporation Farm
04:19
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CORPORATION FARM
(C. M. Duncan)
Water’s so smart here that it runs uphill
On the Corporation farm
Ocean’s an ashtray there’s no way to fill
On the Corporation farm
Mountains had better learn to get out of the way
‘Cause us guys don’t care if the skies are cloudy all day
And the buffalo don’t roam unless we say it’s OK, no harm
On the Corporation Farm
Your Daddies all worked here since the last World War
On the Corporation Farm
Turned out so good we started plannin’ more
On the Corporation Farm
We stole the brightest brains from every former enemy
And the stuff they’re comin’ up with is sure somethin’ to see
And we’re bettin’ all we got that the third time will be the charm
for the Coporation Farm
We’re just small-town boys here but we done real good
On the Corporation Farm
Had one road-side stand and now even Hollywood
Is on the Corporation Farm
We can suck the bucks out of a rock before you can turn around
We can make a man a king or we can put him in the ground
Shot the astronauts through heaven and brought most of them back down unharmed -- on the Corporation Farm
We’ve got the largest coaxial cable concern
In the sixteen western states
And we can show you the latest Beirut baby to burn
Or the President’s handsome face
And the water’s so smart here that it runs uphill
On the Corporation Farm
The sky is just an ashtray there’s no way to fill
On the Corporation Farm
Not even we know how far our influence goes
The smell of us will cling to every single wind that blows
And we’ll keep pushing on no matter how much God grows alarmed
At the Corporation Farm
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3. |
Favor From The Rain
04:01
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FAVOR FROM THE RAIN
(C. M. Duncan)
Maybe this rain
Will carry our sins away
And lead us to a brighter day
Away from this pain
Where anger and mistrust
Are swept away and justice
And compassion will remain
We ask this favor from this rain
Maybe these eyes
Will finally look around and see
A place where any child can be
Kept free from the stain
Of prejudice and hate
That strangle the tall gates
Of Freedom in their wicked chain
We ask this favor from this rain
Let it fall on every rooftop
And wash every street
Let it swallow every raging fire
And cool the heat
Maybe one heart
Will open all its windows wide
And let the light it holds inside
Pour out and show plain
Why our hearts should never be
Shut tight by fear when we
Need all the love they can contain
We ask this favor from this rain
Down a crooked road we’ve come,
Brother ring that bell, Sister bang that drum:
We need this favor from this rain
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4. |
Streets Of Gold
04:13
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STREETS OF GOLD
(C. M. Duncan)
The cold wind blows
The steps are hard
The traffic flows
Down the boulevard
And who are these
Without a place
Out on our streets
The night to face?
The daylight dims and on the breeze
Their faces young and old
They’re drifting in like falling leaves
To sleep on streets of gold
“In God we trust”
The dollar says
But when it goes bust
They’ll lay their heads
In alleyways
Where towers gleam
And yesterdays
Are just a dream
The night rolls in and there they are,
Their ragged beds unrolled
Like shadows underneath the stars
To sleep on streets of gold
This land of ours
Of thee we sing
Your eagle soars
On a broken wing
When every night
In every town
There in plain sight
They lay them down
The day returns and on they roam
Their stories still untold
Like strangers in their family home
To sleep on streets of gold
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5. |
Mercy Island
03:25
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MERCY ISLAND
(C. M. Duncan)
You can’t walk
To Mercy Island
Until the tide
Is running low
But when you hear
The seabirds crying
You will know
It’s time to go
And every step
Along the causeway
And every mile
Will take their toll
But the light,
It shines a long way:
To the bottom
Of your soul
You can't walk
To Mercy Island
Until the tide
Is running low
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6. |
Son Of A Gun
03:55
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SON OF A GUN
(C. M. Duncan)
We are not born in fear
No, we’re not born to hide from the sun
Yes and while we are here
We should not live apart but as one
CHORUS:
So can we lay down our pride
And look at what we have done
To turn a child of light
Into a son of a gun?
No baby is born
With a gun in his hand
Oh, but in the U.S.
He gets one before he can stand
CHORUS
Get your cowboy hats on for the gangster parade
Yeah the buffalo’s gone but the bullshit has stayed
And unto himself every man is a law
‘til we’re back to whoever is best on the draw
So, hail the Colt .45
And the Winchester 76
The Wild West is alive
With Smith & Wesson and the rest of those hicks
And we can’t ask the dead—thirty thousand a year—
If their weapons have kept them all safe beyond fear
But we can ask George Zimmerman whether it’s true
That you carry a gun or a gun carries you
It’s just a matter of time
‘til we’re all of us gone into dust
What a shame and a crime
To waste it in doubt and mistrust
CHORUS
Yeah, right here in our hearts
Is where the race will be run
To raise a child of light
Or one more son of a gun
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7. |
Have You Seen Tom Joad?
05:05
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HAVE YOU SEEN TOM JOAD?
(C. M. Duncan)
It could be any morning& it could be any day
He’ll show up without warning & leave in the same way
From Bakersfield to Jackson,
where the grapes of wrath are stowed
until everyone is asking
“Have you seen Tom Joad?”
He starts a conversation, in a coffee shop or bar
He wonders if our nation can survive the way things are
With Liberty and Justice
gone where all the money’s flowed
while those left in the dust ask,
“Have you seen Tom Joad?”
He’s the big idea they can’t erase
and can’t run out of town,
He’s the joker who will trump their ace
when the final deal goes down
Well he might be with the strikers when they’re holding out for more
& you may have seen his likeness standing in the jailhouse door
From Memphis to Topeka,
on the Revolution Road
where the voice of truth is speaking,
you have seen Tom Joad
So let the cradle rock, though the bough may break
& Congressmen may cry
There’s a higher law than the kind they make
& a ghost can never die
It could be any morning& it could be any night
Wherever the lines are forming on the side of what is right
& when everybody’s children
own their fair share of the load
we can let him rest, but ‘til then,
have you seen Tom Joad?
Dear God, yes, this wheel’s on fire,
getting ready to explode
but it’s stopping to inquire,
“Have you seen Tom Joad?”
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