My lumber mill experience in song.

Hammond's Mill (copyright 2018 Three String Music BMI)

The wind slices through my bones like the first pass from the saw
These work gloves that I'm wearin', don’t cut the cold at all
A massive pine lets out a scream, the slab heads down my way
The crack of dawn in rural Maine, the start of another day

At the base of Tear Cap Mountain, even now I feel the chill
Like the first day I set foot inside, this hell called Hammond’s Mill

Fingers and eyes are missing, safety’s an after-thought
The guy I'm replacing, got his right arm caught
A 5 pound ax and Peavey bar, my weapons in this fight
Gotta bust your ass to satisfy the chipper’s appetite

Respect these hungry jaws of steel, work at its command
Lose your concentration, and you’ll likely lose a hand
I want to turn and walk away, from drowning in sawdust
There ain't no work for miles around, so you do what you must

The saw has made it's final run, there’s button (or butt) wood to load
Then it's cigarettes, a six pack, at the store just down the road
It's been this way before I came, and will be when I go
Low wages, winter layoffs, hopes lost in the snow

Hammond's Mill

Reposting this to help celebrate our dear friend...the KING of Bluegrass Jams....Clayton Brown!  It's his birthday 1/21. Thanks for the joy dear friend.

Clayton's Jam

Written in 1997
Dedicated to the streets of Historic New Castle Delaware...and my twisted ankle.

Cobblestones

Just a descriptive song about our daily early morning walks through our beloved town Historic New Castle.

Here and Now
                                                                    
Sorry that I woke you allow me, allow me to apologize
Glad you're not grumpy my life I wouldn't want to jeopardize                                                                   
There's a gift wrapped morning waiting by the riverside
Tied in scarlet ribbon reaching far and wide
 
Here and now there's no such thing as sorrow
Here and now the puzzle is complete
We'll cross the bridges that come our way tomorrow
Love gives strength through the bitter and the sweet                                                        

Shift the day in neutral simply gonna let it coast
Get busy doin' nothing with the one I love the most              
Tip our hats say hello to friends that we meet on the street 
Every step that we take the blues are in retreat

Chorus 

Take memories shared stretch 'em out end to end
They run the length of this river back downstream again
Let the moon and stars circle high above our heads
The fabric of life is sewn with many different threads

Here And Now

I wrote this for Townes several years ago. Recorded on a Zoom H-1

Townes would have been 80 on March 7th.  Brilliant, sad, self-destructive singer-songwriter.

No Place To Fall

Not much time these days for "producing". I grabbed my trusty old Zoom H-1, did one take and added drums & bass. Now I'm free!


Gold Heart 2024 (James Eoppolo)

She let the gold heart fall from her slender right hand
Walked away never did see it land
Broken off the chain, like she's broken free
Well worth the gamble with no guarantee

The din from the traffic seemed to mock him in shame
Again and again as he shouted her name
How It all fell to pieces consider the source
The calmest of rivers in time will change course

Hanging in the balance the best laid plans
For each one that falters, another one stands

Counts herself lucky that she finally awoke
Located the exit despite all of the smoke
Shedding the skin of the last empty years
Leaving behind her no trail of tears

He watched as she vanished deep into the crowd
Stronger alone as she always avowed
Shadows grow heavy suffocating the pride
Of this fool on the edge of a steep downward slide

In the stillness she's pleased to hear her own voice 
Not for a moment doubting her choice
Content not to hurry to fill empty space
With the sun in her eyes the sun on her face

A tap of his finger the ashtray's now filled
There on the table where the whiskey was spilled
No point pretending his guilt was complete
When he saw the gold heart fall into the street

Gold Heart

What do you do after having cardiac bypass surgery? Well I came home and wrote a silly blues song. Heartfelt thanks to my friends Jim McMillian on guitar and Kyle Roth for the title (before I went in). One take, Zoom H-1.  Love that little device.

Code Blue Blues

Dedicated to South African friends lost over the years.

Message from Soweto

Copyright-James Eoppolo 2024

No big story. My usual lay it down and move on recording process.

Thanks all!

That Night

Strange Goins On

When Love Is Love

Like so many here I write and record my own "stuff." Give a listen if so inclined.  Thank you-James

James Eoppolo

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