The Streets of San Miguel
​
Somethin’ bout these cobbled streets,
it makes me smile at those I meet
Or maybe it’s the total lack of clocks
in all the bars and coffee shops
But I’ve given us some thought,
more than you prob’ly think I’ve got
And I swear I was sober when
the great big answer came floodin’ in
Why would it take a town like this
for me to finally take the hint?
But I’ve taken it so well…
here on the streets of San Miguel
My heart’s been known to take so long,
when I come to, the moment’s gone
That’s why I hope you’re at your door
when I come knockin’ at Room 4
So I can try to make it clear,
that I’ll be yours if your still here
N’ maybe I lied about bein’ clean,
It’s jus’ there’s so much tequila in Mexico,
if you know what I mean
But still I can’t believe it’s true,
that even you know that it’s you
So let’s just say it’s where I fell…
where I fell in San Miguel
N’ what I meant was where I fell…
fell for you in San Miguel
By the way, it’s not like I
was drinkin’ all alone last night
So let’s just say it’s where we fell…
where we fell in San Miguel
And what I meant was where we fell…
for each other in San Miguel
Here on the streets of San Miguel
Ay, ay, ay, ay, ay
Canta y no llores…
Includin’ You
Got a daughter turned eighteen
Hardly ever darkens my door
Got a mom and dad who just hit 80
Given me so much, I can’t take more
Got a shadowed past that hurts ‘em all
Twenty lost years I can’t get back
Got a lot of ghosts, all with voices
Voices that sound like a heart attack
And it’d be hard to let it all go now
To forget the past and move on through
But I’m gonna have to forgive myself somehow
Or I’ll lose it all… includin’ you
So much love n’ loss between us
I’m not sure where we go from here
We need one good thing to set our eyes on
To give some purpose to these tears
Chorus 1
Chorus 2
And it’ll be hard to let it all go now
When it comes to what I’ve got to do
‘Cause I’m gonna have to forgive myself somehow
Or I’ll lose it all… includin’ you
Princess and the Frog
She couldn’t stand those red dresses
That kings require of their princesses
She dreamed in other colors
The chief concern of her princely brothers
He hated being green
Did his best to be heard but never seen
He hid among the rocks and reeds
Wandered what color a blue-blood really bleeds
‘Cause sometimes the story
Doesn’t fit the fable
The wine gets spilled
All over the royal table
Sometimes the prince
Gets addicted to the grog
And when kissed
The frog just stays a frog
She thought that they could make it
But he… knew he couldn’t fake it
All those parties, royal banquets and balls
His froggy legs would never learn to waltz
Chorus
Bridge
O Rapunzel, Rapunzel
You can let down that hair
But even if he climbs up
He might be gone within the year
N’ Snow White, O Snow White
How those dwarves weep
But with all we know of fairytales
It might be better just to sleep
Ain't Gonna Be Me
​
I hope you find someone to hold you
Every time that you cry
Or to drive you to the doctor
Next time you’re goin’ to die
‘Cause it won’t be me / It ain’t gonna be me
I hope you find a better actor
To lead in all your plays
Another villain you can punish
When he acts out and betrays
‘Cause it won’t be me / It ain’t gonna be me
It ain’t gonna be me that you blame
When God’s judgement’s comin’ down
It ain’t gonna be me and my good name
You smear all over town
You’ll have to find some other Jesus
To hang up on your cross
Another tomb where you can lay him
With all your suffering and loss
‘Cause it won’t be me / It ain’t gonna be me
I hope you find a better bandage
To stop the bleeding of your heart
One that holds all the pieces
When your brain falls apart
‘Cause it won’t be me / It ain’t gonna be me
I hope you find a better ride
Next time you run away
And wherever it takes you
I hope to God you stay
‘Cause I won’t be there… / & it won’t be me
On the Fault Line
​
Every time you cry I feel it shake
The earth beneath us begins to quake
It’s about to topple, about to break
So, soon we’ll see how much it can take
This love… that lives
On the fault line for you
My heart… that gives
It’s very blood for you
My love… my heart
On the line
I send it up, it comes back down
I think maybe next I’ll just swing it around
Or I might bury it deep in the ground
To see if it grows back towards light and sound
Bridge:
It still lives, it still breathes
It may be hard to hold and please
But it’s still here, a little black and blue
N’ it may be cracked, but I can finally see through
Petals on the Rose
​
Up in the blue I can just make out
The vapor trail of a sailing plane
I wipe the sweat from the heat of my brow
It’s been so long since we’ve seen the rain
But across these plains in the western skies
Clouds on the horizon bring hope to our eyes
The leaves are dry in the heart of the drought
They feel a thirst only the lonely heart knows
The thorns are hard and the stems are brown
But I still see petals on the rose
There in your eyes I can just make out
The trace of tears you’ve refused to cry
Still you’re here with a hand held out
And a heart that still seems willing to try
N’ I can’t demand what I don’t deserve
So either you’ve got good blood, or you’ve got some nerve
Chorus
N’ you don’t seem to care what’s around this curve
So either you’ve got good blood, or Baby you’ve got some nerve
Saint Agnes
​
There’s some holy in her hell
A little dirt on her wings
But even angels listen
Anytime she sings
She was handed down some darkness
She got it from both sides
But anytime she dances
Even the devil runs n’ hides
And if you listen to her heart
You’ll hear the beat inside my madness
And why I’ve called upon
The help of Saint Agnes
And if you look into her eyes
Your mind will melt with sadness
And you’ll see why I’ve put her
In the hands… of Saint Agnes
So, even if she speaks
Her pain is sworn to silence
And any time she laughs
It’s just an act of defiance
And even when I knock sometimes
And she decides to let me in
There’s a hidden line between us
And that’s the way it’s always been
Bridge:
Sweet Saint Agnes, please watch over
My precious little girl
Oh Saint Agnes do not leave her
All along in this world
Let's Make the Most
​
So we’ve heard the world’s days are numbered
All we’ve got is borrowed time
So we don’t need one more expert’s dire prediction
Another harbinger goin’ out of his mind
So I’m turnin’ off the evening news forever
I’ve got better… better things to do
And even if it’s true, it’s all now or never
I’ve got this guitar, and I’ve got you
So come my friends, let’s sing a song together
Gather ‘round the fire, raise a great big toast
Come cloud or sun… come any kind of weather
We’ve got today… let’s make the most
I’ve made mistakes, but now they don’t matter
I’m starin’ down a higher road
I’ll do what it takes, ‘cause now I would rather
Let ‘em go… n’ lighten up my load
Bridge:
Serve every day like it’s the last
Forgive my brothers as if there were no past
Serve my friends only the best tequila
Or shake it up in one last margarita… oh yeah…
Long, Long Road
​
It’s a long drive from Duluth
To that bar in Kansas City
And to tell you the truth
Only parts of it are pretty
From those 10,000 lakes
Through the fields of opportunity
Leaving miles in my wake
N’ about as many cups of coffee
35 South
Goes west in central Kansas
They’re on a seven-year drought
So the weatherman says
I turn the radio dial
To see what else is on
And I can’t help a smile
To hear your favorite Hayes Carll song
And it’s a long, long road back home to you
But there’s nothin’ left now for me to do
I only hope that you’re still there
I only hope that we’re not through
Well these tall-grass plains
Roll south to Oklahoma
Where native blood stains
The Osage Hills around Pawhuska
I’ll pass through my hometown
Where we spent a happy year or two
Before we moved down
To Austin in an early June
And it’s a long, long road beside the setting sun
But there’s nowhere left now for me to run
I only hope that you’re still there
I only hope that we’re not done
And on that final stretch
I’ll think of your soft eyes
And I’ll feel my throat catch
As my hopes begin to rise
​
Because there’s not much road left ahead of me
So, soon enough now, I will see
See if you’re still there…
Good Luck with That
​
So you wanna be a poet
But don’t wanna read no books
Or some block-bustin’ novelist
Turns out it’s harder than it looks
So you wanna be a hippie
But you’re drivin’ daddy’s Escalade
You wanna save a burnin’ planet
But could we do it in the shade
Well I’ve heard it all before, my friend
So save it for the judge
N’ good luck with that
So you wanna be a surgeon
But you just can’t take the blood
You wanna save the ill and desperate
‘Long as their insurance is good
So you wanna be the president
But don’t wanna take the blame
Or maybe a Hollywood movie star
Since they’re pretty much the same
* * *
You wanna spread the love o’ Jesus
But you just can’t find the time
You wanna feed the poor and hungry
But you’re always short the dime
Well he’s heard it all before, my friend
So save it for the judge
& good luck with that
Beautiful Silence
​
Spent most of the day
Waiting on the phone
But the call never came
As calls often don’t
It’s beautiful in Texas
Had a beautiful rain
And no matter what my head says
My heart feels a beautiful pain
N’ I know I should not have
Up and run away
N’ I know that when I turn back
It will already be too late.
‘Cause when I get home
There’ll be nobody there
Just a beautiful hole
With a couch and a chair
Yeah when I get home
You’ll already be gone
Just a beautiful silence
Such a beautiful audience
For this beautiful song.
Will you leave me a note
Will you just disappear
Or forget a favorite coat
Or stand at the door and stare
Will a beautiful teardrop
Fill your beautiful eye
For a moment will your heart stop
As you say a beautiful goodbye
Rise
​
I’m gonna square my shoulders
I’m gonna plant my feet
I may be gettin’ older
But I can still feel the beat
Gonna raise my voice
Gonna make it heard
I may not have your sword
But I can still wield these words
And I will not… back off
I will not… stand down
I’m gonna stop right here
I’m gonna hold my ground
You can blow your horn
You can tweet your lies
You can knock me down
But I’ll only rise…
We’re gonna raise an army
Armed with poems and peace
We’ll march forth in hope and love
And we’ll overflow these streets
So you can load your guns
Bring all your bluster and wind
And we’ll see who runs
And who’s left standing in the end
All I'm Hoping For
​
A house full of photographs
Weighin’ down the walls
Families and ski trips
The past it all recalls
Over there I see our wedding
Smiles all around
Here’s our honeymoon in France
Where we painted every town
But lately there’s a silence
In the halls and on the floor
Some secret that is hiding
Behind our bedroom door
So here I am knockin’
(Cause here I am knockin’…)
‘Cause I don’t know what to do
(Since I don’t know what to do)
But to stand right here and ask
For you to please hear me through
And whether you open your heart
Or decide to close its door
A love like yours will always be
All I’m hopin’ for
(What I’m Hopin’ for)
Closets full of t-shirts
And cases for guitars
Books I need to throw away
Along with a few old scarves
And yes, I’ve got some skeletons
Underneath my dirty clothes
But everybody’s got them
Though not everybody knows
And now they’ve come to haunt us
Because I could not keep ‘em down
And the words they spoke between us
Seem to echo all around
​
Bridge:
If you could block out those voices
Ringing in your head
And turn your ears to me, Babe
And hear my heart instead