by Jonathan Marin
It May Be the Middle of Nowhere (But It's
Home)
They're Only Playing
Survivor
Motel Room Molly
The Toxic Chemical Mall
She Knows How
Sleepin' on the Sofa - Again
Halfway
Tent-Meeting Preacher
One More Try
II.
It missed us last time it snowed;
We still don't have an Area Code;
Those sorts o' things don't bother us a bit.
'Cause since we drew a borderline
And gave the place a name -
We've got onto the waitlist for a zip.
III.
Our state senator campaigned up here
Just this last election year;
Some folks came out to cheer and some threw rocks.
Feelin's were a-runnin' high
And people here still wonder why
They never did pick up our ballot box.
BREAK
They say a plague passed through our town -
Found no-one to infect.
Bell Telephone ain't heard of us-
Ya cain't call here collect.
Our electric only alternates -
It cain't find us direct:
Ya see, our latitude and longitude -
They do not intersect!
CHORUS.
It may be the middle of nowhere, but it's home...
Where the prostitutes play scrabble New Year's Eve.
It may be the middle of nowhere, but it's home...
Don't knock it... if you can't find it.
IV.
A homing pigeon was our mascot
Dressed up in a tux and ascot,
Doggone thing could never find his way.
Our town flower is the pumpkin seed
It used to be a Tumbleweed,
'Til one day it just up and blew away,
V.
We used to have a radio set
There was a station we could get
It broadcast from a town not far away.
Now that set's up in the attic
'Cause all we can get is static
Since that town closed down for good last Founder's Day.
CHO.
It may be the middle of nowhere, but it's home...
Where even the hogs get bored on Saturday Night.
It may be the middle of nowhere, but it's home...
Don't knock it... if you cain't find it.
I.
Balanced on a narrow ledge
Pressed ever closer to the edge
The firm self-dealt itself a hedge
How desperate they get!
Midst waffling, fibs, and caviling
They've lost control of everything
The company's unraveling.
(Who pawned the company jet?)
Don't fret
Don't be upset
They're only playing survivor
II.
Investments chances naked calls
Controllers' starts to climb the walls
The Boss grabs Audit by the balls:
And it ain't over yet.
Sales grabs Plant around the neck
But Plant says Finance caused the wreck
While Legal tags the Boss as chief conniver.
Don't fret
Don't be upset
They're only playing survivor.
CHORUS 1
All day they dictate memos
That they study in their limos
Each obliged to read what all the others wrote.
Next morning they're discussed
As through a gauntlet of distrust
Each honcho dances as he must
If he isn't to be saddled as the goat.
Don't fret
Don't be upset
They're only playing survivor
They're only playing survivor
III.
Production's missing inventory
Memos turn inflammatory
H - R files derogatory
Someone missed a bet.
It's poker in the corner suite
As VeePees swerve to dodge the heat
And set each other up as errant driver.
Don't fret
Don't be upset
They're only playing survivor
IV.
The common stock's not worth a dime
They all could end up doing time
Which friend will turn state's evidence at trial?
The new bond issue fails to float
The bankers move to call their note
There's no way left to right the boat
Its time to fashion plausible denial.
Don't fret
Don't be upset
They're only playing survivor
CHORUS 2
All day they dictate memos
That they study in their limos
Each one must ponder what the others think.
All the filings were illicit
Criminality's explicit
Every one of them's complicit
And its curtains for the first exec to blink.
Don't fret
Don't be upset
They're only playing survivor
They're only playing survivor
We've taken makin' love up to a new dimension
Where hormones morph right into electricity.
My limbs and joints are way beyond their full extension
Defying Newton's Laws and relativity.
CHORUS
Don't come any nearer
I really need the mirror
-- To see.
Positions we are taking
My back is really breaking
-- My knee.
II.
I think that we've discovered sev'ral brand new angles
These twists 'n' turns would stump a team of engineers.
I don't see how were ever gonna get untangled
By God, we've moved geometry to new frontiers.
We oughta package what you know for high school science;
We'll shoot attendance up to ninety-nine percent.
We'll bolster creativity and self-reliance
Then publish full reports of kids' experiments.
CHORUS
Don't come any nearer
I really need the mirror
-- To see.
Positions we are taking
My back is really breaking
-- My knee.
III.
You coulda let me know that you were double jointed
I wish I was a gymnast or an acrobat
No way without a compass to know where I'm pointed
Those dents up on the ceiling - say, did we do that?
Imagination's revvin' up with each new tactic.
My spirit's in renewal and my mind is free.
The rest of me is gonna need some chiropractic
And acupuncture-pins and phys'cal therapy.
CHORUS
Don't come any nearer
I really need the mirror
-- To see.
Positions we are taking
My back is really breaking
-- My knee.
CHORUS
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
The Toxic Chemical Mall
They do not spare
Water, soil, or air
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
I.
There's paths to bike
And trails to hike
In winter there's a sleighride.
There's boats to take
On a sterile lake
That's mostly vinyl chloride.
Corroded drums
Leak noxious gums
To welcome all who enter.
Lead-toxious fuels
In storage pools
Feed a fountain at the center.
CHORUS
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
The Toxic Chemical Mall
They do not spare
Water, soil, or air
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
II.
There's aldehydes
That'll burn your eyes
When the fountain starts a-pumpin'
It'll fry your gills
With the caustic spills
Of years and years of dumpin'.
No need to sniff
To catch a whiff
The aroma is pervasive.
If you're like to cough
It'll set you off
It's guaranteed abrasive.
CHORUS
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
The Toxic Chemical Mall
They do not spare
Water, soil, or air
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
III.
There's eggless hens
And mutagens
That make the boldest cautious.
The acrid smell
From every well
Makes even sewer rats nauseous.
There's a benzene shower
'Bout every hour
At the hydrocarbon river.
Breathe N-O-x
And drifting specks,
While the alkenes coat your liver.
CHORUS
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
The Toxic Chemical Mall
They do not spare
Water, soil, or air
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
IV.
Condensing spume
Will sputter and fume
Hell, it's been reported glowin'.
Its special kick
Makes the Eastside sick
When the old west wind's a-blowin'.
It's known to choke
Air breathing folk
Of every rank and station.
It's a monument
To the judge-u-ment
Of a Great Industrial Nation.
CHORUS
The Toxic Chemical Mall
The Toxic Chemical Mall
They do not spare
Water, soil, or air
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
V.
Great valves of brass
Leak clouds of gas
That fogs the minds of locals.
Rich financiers
High-five smug sneers
At the numbed, defenseless yokels.
Big industry
Will come for free
They'll promise jobs and manna.
They'll help your state
Enjoy the fate
Of sweet Louisiana.
CHORUS
The Toxic Chemical Mall
The Toxic Chemical Mall
They do not spare
Water, soil, or air
At the Toxic Chemical Mall
(C) 2001, 2002 by Jonathan Marin
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BREAK
She ain't into the nightlife scene
Or vintage wine or haute cuisine
. . . She just makes you feel human
She don't do drugs or drink to excess
Or do dumb things she just has to confess
. . . She knows how - mmm hmm -
To be a woman
III.
She don't turn on to fads and trends
Or pick dumb fights or trash your friends
She'll always let you make amends
. . . She knows how - mmm hmm -
To be a woman
IV.
She's game if a quarrel's got to start
She'll hold her ground and play her part
'Cause makin' up's her highest art
. . . Yes, she knows how - mmm hmm -
To be a woman
BREAK
She senses when you're under stress
Then a gentle word and a soft caress
And magically you're human.
She's never moody and never mean,
Still fresh as the day she turned eighteen
. . . But she knows how - mmm hmm -
To be a woman
II.
She's always startin' dinner
Or it's time for her fav'rite show
Then asks "Why don't we talk no more?"
And it's my fault, don't ya know!
If it wasn't for the children
I'd have left her long ago.
Looks like it's liver for dinner, or maybe it's chicken pot pie.
Ain't no doubt I'm sleepin' on the sofa again, tonight.
Ain't no doubt I'm sleepin' on the sofa tonight.
III.
She loves to squander money
Then whine 'bout how we're strapped.
The kids and neighbors all agree
She's played me for a sap.
I dream about the day
I'll draw the line and skip this trap.
Could be I muddied the carpet, or left the damn toilet seat up.
Anyway, I'm sleepin' on the sofa again.
BREAK:
Been talkin' to a lawyer
When I can I'm gonna run.
You can bet I'll be beddin' down like it's never been done.
Crowing like a rooster I'll embrace each morning sun.
Don't care if I never see a sofa
Again as long as I live.
Don't care if I never see a sofa
"Say, Miss, have you got a bed?"
Don't care if I never see a sofa again.
IV.
She's cheerful down at breakfast,
Asks me why I'm such a grouch.
Then says I need to exercise -
I shuffle and I slouch.
I swear I'll end up hunchbacked
Just from sleepin' on that couch!
Maybe I'll just skip the damn sofa,
And stretch myself out on the floor
Maybe I'll just stretch myself out on the floor.
V.
Next time I'll nix the sofa
And check into a motel.
I'll call her from the room phone,
And I'll really give her hell.
I'll tell her "Have a nice life"
And I'll wish the children well.
Every night that I sleep on that sofa
I swear that it's the very last time,
Still there ain't no doubt I'm sleepin' on the sofa again, tonight.
Ain't no doubt I'm sleepin' on the sofa again.
CHORUS:
Halfway ... Halfway!
For every day you've lived
You get just one more day.
To measure what's to come,
Count the time already gone.
It's a milestone to reflect upon;
You've come halfway.
[Words and Music Copyright (C)1997 by Jonathan
Marin]
I. Oh, be there on Sunday at the carnival grounds To hear the man weep and make public confession He'll bring tears to your eyes - sweet forgiveness abounds, When he sings halleluja for you When he sings halleluja for you. Faith and redemption. Salvation in the garden. Everyone invited. Refreshments. As a con man and hustler he cheated the poor Now he'll bare his soul's story of sin and repentence. Once bloated with evil - reborn he's purged pure. He'll sing halleluja for you. He'll sing halleluja for you. CH. You'll hear all his swindles, his tricks, and his lies. You can see it's all true by the slush in his eyes. What dissonance shadows his pure joyous cries? What is it he still needs to hide? What is it he still needs to hide? II. This slippery magician, through cruel moral blindness Affected false friendships to squeeze people dry. Hear him call from the heart, preaching sunshine and kindness. He'll sing halleluja for you He'll sing halleluja for you Faith and redemption Salvation in the garden Everyone invited Refreshments. He'll say we're all able to suffer from pain, But some ain't equipped to protect themselves from it. Stand as their shield and bleach white all your stain. God will sing halleluja for you God will sing halleluja for you CH. You'll hear all his swindles, his tricks, and his lies. You can see it's all true by the slush in his eyes. What dissonance shadows his pure joyous cries? What is it he still needs to hide? What is it he still needs to hide? III. Grace cleanses the soul from a lifetime of wrong Yet the wake of our harm ripples outward forever The candle is short but the shadow is long Yet he'll sing halleluja for you Yet he'll sing halleluja for you Express Lanes Cars Only Exact Change Required Twenty-seven Cents No Pennies Oh be there on Sunday at the carnival grounds To hear the man weep and make public confession. He'll bring tears to your eyes, preaching sunshine and kindness. He'll sing halleluja for you. He'll sing halleluja for you.
The Tent-Meeting Preacher [Words and Music Copyright (C)1997 by Jonathan Marin] Back to Top of Songs Page
I.
What would it have cost me love
To let you have your way?
Is it true we'd all been winners
If we'd learned how to play?
If I'd only said "forgive me love - hell, I was wrong..."
Hey, we'd still be young today if we hadn't lived so long...
CHORUS:
If we could have our one tomorrow
Would it be just another day? . . . Just another lie?
Oh baby, honey, love, we'll never know
If we don't give it one more try
II.
Last night I was gonna call you hon'
But I saved my dime.
If we'd saved the nights we wasted
We'd still have lotsa time.
If you'd only tried a little bit to see my side...
Hell, I would have told the truth love, if I hadn't lied.
CHORUS
III.
Our lives would be so different now
If you weren't so proud.
And the sun would sure be shinin'
Except for them clouds.
Sometimes, recall the little songs our children sang
How I was gonna write a novel, but the doorbell rang...
CHORUS
One More Tomorrow
[Words and Music (C)1990, 2002 by Jonathan Marin]
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This page is maintained by
Jonathan Marin
(j.marin.1@alumni.nyu.edu)
Last modified on November 6, 2002