One of my favorite themes: Express Yo' Self! with Max Beckman (bass) and Janet Daniel (drums)

Romeo is just asleep in the churchyard
Any day now, he’ll awake in that tomb
And you’re a rocket with a launch date scheduled for soon.
So push your nose out from under those blankets.
Put your shoes on and open that door.
When the clouds part,
You might see something more.

Now, everyone is so afraid.
They say it’s always been this way.
Well, baby, hold on tight,
'Cause everything’s about to change.
Let’s bake you a cake when you quit your job
C’mon, walk out on stage and sing your own songs
Who cares ‘bout mistakes, just write your name ten feet tall.
They can’t make you stop.

Roots keep growing under the surface,
And leaves keep falling, leaving trees bare.
Travel by moonlight and you can go anywhere.
Maybe you’ll dive deep in the ocean,
Or climb up high to the tops of the trees.
The future’s like playdough. It’ll bend however you please.

Are any of you here with me
Dreaming of something new?
Are we brave enough to see this through?
To finish a revolution,
Keep turning until it’s done.
Don’t stop now, you’ve just begun.

Now, everyone is so afraid.
They say it’s always been this way.
Well, baby, hold on tight,
'Cause everything’s about to change.
Let’s bake us a cake, let's quit our jobs
C’mon, walk out on stage and sing your own songs
Who cares ‘bout mistakes, just write your name ten feet tall.
They can’t make us stop.
They can't make us stop.
They can't make us stop.
They can't make us stop.

They Can't Make Us Stop

Hopefully I get to play this in person for you sometime.

Oh my dears, after so much patience,
Are we really here, or is this a simulation?
Are we sharing air? Has it been a generation?
Oh, oh
Well, they say our online lives will be sustained
And so I pray for blackouts like I pray for rain.
I want to share your dinner, not just see it in the frame.
Oh, oh

So if the Feds want to surveil us, let them come to our meetings.
Leave your phones in a bucket by the door.
Let the words I sing now disappear and be fleeting.
If you don’t remember why, let’s do this more.
Oh, I’ve missed you, I’ve missed you, I’ve missed you.

Some say photos can steal your spirit.
When I record a song, I can forget to hear it.
And we can Google Earth and still never get near it.
Oh, oh
Sure, there’s power in all those ones and zeros.
We all live in towers built by programming heros.
But for an hour, let’s see the world without those mirrors.
Oh, oh

We can give up a million entertainment choices
And commit to being in the room.
If we sing, we’ll hear each others’ voices.
Don’t you dare even mention Zoom.
Oh, I’ve missed you, I’ve missed you, I’ve missed you.

Oh, my dears, I don’t mean to wax poetic
About being here, but it’s sweet and I’m diabetic
After these years of being so hermetic.
Oh, oh
I guess all I mean is that it’s been a while,
And I’m so keen just to see you smile,
Not on a screen, or in a video file.
Oh, oh

So let the FBI put pants on and come to our meetings.
Leave your phone in your pocket for now.
We could even try three-dimensional greetings.
If you don’t remember those, I’ll show you how.
Oh, I’ve missed you, I’ve missed you, I’ve missed you.
I’ve missed you, I’ve missed you, I’ve missed you.
Oh, oh, oh

Pandemic Fantasy

I performed this once at a dinner, with background singers holding animal puppets, and it was both wonderful and awkward. with Max Beckman (bass, animal sounds) and Janet Daniel (drums)

I used to feel a little guilty
About the way I got my food.
Guess I didn’t like fishing,
And hunting just seemed rude.
But I’ve learned something about my humanity.
Now I’ll even eat a manatee.
I’ve learned that I’m human, and they’re not.

(chorus) And they don’t feel a thing.
It’s all right. (It’s all right.)
Even after you clip their wings,
You know the birdies still sing.
It’s all right. (It’s all right.)
Just remember as you pick up your knife (turn out the light)
That they don’t feel a thing.
No, they don’t feel a thing.

You’re lied to as a child,
So many talking animals on your TV screen.
But now that you are older,
How many friends say it’s so hard being green?
The truth of the matter:
Everything that slides across your plate
Was made for you to munch on, not raised to relate.
						
(chorus)

They’re ready to die, so set the oven to high.
I thought I might cry, but then I could hear them sing:
Can you hear the animals?

They say it’s okay! (It’s okay.) It’s all right! (It’s all right.)
Put us out of our misery tonight.
We won’t fuss. (We won’t fuss.) We won’t fight. (We won’t fight.)
Won’t you send us along through that long, dark night?
It’s okay! (It’s okay.) It’s all right! (It’s all right.)
Yeah, we’re ready to go tonight.
We won’t bark. (We won’t bark.) We won’t bite. (We won’t bite.)
It’s okay!
It’s okay!

They Dont Feel A Thing

It's a sort of catalog.

Heterosexual couples, heterosexual couples
They’re doing fine with the party line
That a woman and man is the master plan
And spawning’s effectual in non-intellectual
Heterosexual couples

Lesbian lady couples, lesbian lady couples
Well, I get kinda jealous that they don’t want no fellas
But there’s no use in trying to argue with a vagina
So don’t be afraidy of Sadie and Katie
They’re a lesbian lady couple

Gay male couples, gay male couples
There’s so much stigma about so much smegma
If you’re out of the closet, please watch out for laws that say
You’re going to jail, or even to hell
‘Cause you’re a gay male couple

Polyamorous groups, polyamorous groups
If talk of monogamy puts you in agony
And you’ve got all your lovers down under the covers
And you’re spreading your soups with the troops
Then whoops! You’ve got a polyamorous group

Casual blindfold orgy, oh the blindfold orgy
I felt a finger but I couldn’t see a thing, er, well
It could have been my mom, or my best friend Tom
I was left in the cold, but I guess I’m still sold
On the blindfold orgy

How ‘bout the jack off artist, great jack off artist?
If you’re a loner and you’ve got a boner
Then it’s most efficient to be self-sufficient
Oh, you won’t feel a lack all alone in the sack
If you’re a jack off artist

—- instrumental break —-

Truly celibate monks, truly celibate monks
They say you never get bored when you’re serving the lord
But it’s still pretty rare to get by just on prayer
And some of them flunk, but it’s not just junk
There are truly celibate monks

Pornographic entertainment, like this song
Pornographic entertainment, like this song!
It gets you erected when you’ve been neglected
But then you feel dejected when you least expect it
You can’t get elected if you don’t reject it
So you say we should inspect it, but don’t you collect it?
If your wife detects it, does she disconnect it?
Oh, does she select it? Well, I stand corrected!
Have you ever checked it and seen yourself reflected
In fantasies projected, keeping you protected
From the unexpected or your life dissected?
Sure, it’s misdirected, but at least you’re not

The Varieties Of Sexual Experience

Silence up above, shadows underfoot.
Sun sets like a hug. Everything is where you put it.
The day’s gone by. Now you’re free to forget it.
You’ve done your part. There’s no need to regret it.

(refrain) Feel the wind off the water and breathe.
The world will be there tomorrow and so will we.

Every little star in the dark of night
Shows us where we are, doesn’t need to be the brightest.
The day’s gone by. Now it’s part of the story
You’ll tell with pride when you wake in the morning.
(refrain)

In this momentary peace, when everything’s been said,
Feel the knot release. Let’s not worry where you’re headed
‘Cause life will still go on if you let it
And if your heart’s come loose, here’s a way to reset it.
(refrain)

Lullaby

A tale of love gone wrong in a very unusual way.

LYRICS:
Your brand-new lover seems to share your disposition
Doppelganger! Doppelganger!
You pose for photos in identical positions
Doppelganger! Doppelganger!
Same job, same car, much more in common than with your real wife
It’s so bizarre, just like a dream except in real life
Why’s she here? She just appeared!

It’s in the winter when the mysteries begin
Doppelganger! Doppelganger!
Friends swear they’ve seen you at a place you’ve never been
Doppelganger! Doppelganger!
At night, you stare into her eyes and say you love her
You’re so excited to have finally found another
Just like you! Can it be true?

We’re all desperately searching for that perfect match,
Like jigsaw puzzle pieces, asking, “Where do I attach?”
But if everything lines up and there’s no catch,
I say beware of monsters there!

One fateful night, at first you can’t make out her features
Doppelganger! Doppelganger!
You see your own face on that shape-shifting creature
Doppelganger! Doppelganger!
It’s too late to scream for help. Your heart is racing
Now are you running from yourself, or are you chasing?
Who can say? ‘Cause you look the same!

You say she hit her head and died, and you’re still golden
Doppelganger! Doppelganger!
But would we know if your identity was stolen?
Doppelganger! Doppelganger!
If there’s a lesson in this frightful tale of danger,
Next time I have that much in common with a stranger,
It’s time to run! That’s when I’m done!

We’re all desperately searching for that perfect match,
Like jigsaw puzzle pieces, asking, “Where do I attach?”
But if everything lines up and there’s no catch,
I say beware of monsters there!

Doppelganger

Animal B

Wolves

Perotsz

Music for the short suspense film "Within". Directed by Ryan Pierson, produced by Izzy Video. Strings by Olivia Lemmelin (vn), Tamara Freida (vn), Ben Allred (vla), Zack Clark (vcl), Nicholas Villalobos (cbs).

Within: Opening Credits

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