I never really record covers, but this is one of my favorite old Robert Johnson blues tracks just for fun.  Also done really well by Eric Clapton on "Unplugged".

Walkin' Blues

Verse1:
I had a girl, but I did not have a car.
So I won her heart with a beat up old guitar.
I don't know where most of my old friends are
But she's right here next to me

I would sing just to see if she would laugh
I would sing to make her smile if she was sad
It was a good old time and we're never gonna get it back
But It's a real good memory

And we rocked until the sun came up
We rocked until we'd had enough
We rocked when it was good and we rocked when it was rough.
Til the morning come.

Verse2:
Got me a girl, and I've got some little boys
The only thing that never changes is the noise
I'm not the only one in this house that plays with toys
It's a big ol' family

We tried the lullabye, and we counted sheep
But tonight this girl of mine won't go to sleep
She's daddy's girl and it's a love that runs real deep
To the bottom of the sea

So we'll rock until the sun comes up
We'll rock until she's had enough
We'll rock when nights are good and we'll rock when nights are rough
Til the morning come.


Verse3:
Tonight we're gonna sit around and sing
And reminisce about the way things used to be
Before old age caught up to you and caught up to me
Back when we were young

I plan to spend my last few days and nights
In this chair, just you and me and a porch light
We've come a long long way and we've lived a long long life
It's been a good run

And we're gonna rock until the sun comes up
We're gonna rock until we've had enough
We're gonna rock right here til the good Lord calls us up
And the morning comes.

Til The Morning Comes

I’ve done my time
In paradise
You thought that I 
Would find it nice
But I couldn’t bring myself
To finish life in a place that stands still

You take the coast
And I’ll stay dry
I was born to the cold
And I’m bound to die
Watching it come and go
And then arrive the way it always will

  No it can’t always be
  Seventy degrees
  Sometimes a heart needs to freeze
  The summertime sun
  Won’t get it done
   If you can’t see the forest for the trees

You stay the course
And I’ll stay mine
You wanted more
But I’ll be fine
We parted ways, even though we tried
To see the whole thing through

One thousand miles
Is a long way
A thousand goodbyes
I’ve had to say
For one thousand reasons that I won't explain
I don’t miss you
  
  No it can’t always be
  Seventy degrees
  Sometimes a heart needs to freeze
  The summertime sun
  Won’t get it done
   If you can’t see the forest for the trees 
  

Paradise

I can’t remember a life before
The one we started after the war
The lovin was good, the livin was poor
For the first time

We both held tight to the rosary
Until the summer night I stopped counting those beads
And God himself took hold of me
For the first time

One of these days I’m gonna close my eyes
For the last time
I’m really gonna leave behind what I leave behind
For the last time
So I’m gonna say I love you every night
Like it’s the last time
Til the day I finally close my eyes
For the last time

We were cheaper by the dozen on a small town street
Two small rooms closing in on me
Every one of them had another mouth to feed
For the first time

We were making ends meet, we were making it work
Wake up tired, and go to bed hurt
Putting food on the table that we raised from the dirt
For the first time

One of these days I’m gonna close my eyes
For the last time
I’m really gonna leave behind what I leave behind
For the last time
So I’m gonna say I love you every night
Like it’s the last time
Til the day I finally close my eyes
For the last time

I've lived a good 25000 days
The kids we raised have got kids to raise
I don't understand half of the words they say
For the first time

I don't know that I'm ready to go home yet
Im walking through the valley of the shadow of death
But I know that I sure don't have much left
For the first time 


Today I’m gonna close my eyes
For the last time
And I’m gonna leave behind what I leave behind
For the last time
So I’m gonna look so deep into your eyes
For the last time
Then I’m gonna see the one who gave me life
For the first time


For The First Time

How many times
Will she solve the crime
How many men and women have to die

Before we ask the question
Or make the strong suggestion
That the queen of Cabot Cove is living a lie

She’s living a lie

I could never place the accent
I’m tempted now to ask when
She landed on the frigid shores of Maine

Jack the Ripper in a blouse
I’ve got her figured out
It’s my duty now to end her grisly reign

Chorus:
It always coincides
But coincidence aside
Jessica Fletcher is a monster in disguise 

Verse:
They turn up dead
We scratch our heads
Turn our TVs off and settle into bed

The detectives have it wrong
They let her ride along
Despite the truth that she is followed round by death

And she's one step ahead

She's done the deed herself
Still she offers help
Some innocent young man lands in a cell

The devil in a dress
Cleaning her own mess
As a quiet Northeast town turns into Hell

It always coincides
But coincidence aside
Jessica Fletcher is a monster in disguise 

The piano starts to play 
Her fingers type away
Her murders are all written on the page

She'll lock you in a room with 
Her bed knobs and her broom sticks 
And lead them to your body when you die
And no one will suspect her 
A geriatric Dr. Lecter 
Jessica Fletcher is a monster in disguise

Jessica Fletcher

Some days I’m doing my best
Some days it’s hard to get dressed
Some days I can’t be
Convinced that I’ve even got anything worthwhile left

Some days I’m down on the floor
Some days I can’t fake anymore
Some days I feel like I’m caught in the wheels of a deal
Between the devil and the Lord
And I’ve got a choice to make

But I’m gonna hear the truth
I’m gonna stay right here with you
I’m gonna see the good
I’m gonna love the way that I should
I’m gonna preach to my pain
A grace that endures, a love that won’t fade
When I drift away again
Would you pull me back in
       
Some days I’m steady and sure
Some days my memory is short
Some days I need you to take hold of me
And do the one thing I’d never ask you for

Some days I’m a slave set free
Some days I rage like the sea
Some days I fear that you might disappear
And there will be nothing left of me
And I’ve got a choice to make

Some days I’m doing alright
Some days I’ve given up the fight
I’ve got a choice to make

Some Days

John lives in a trailer that he grew up in
His mother left it to him, and now he’s raising all his kids
Right there.
Just like his mother did.

Jimmy’s dad still lives there, and he swears he’ll never leave
30 years I’ve put in, and there’s nothing else for me
Anywhere.
I’ll die before I quit.

In this harbor, the ships don’t ever sail
Too many sunken stories of the ones who tried and failed
So drop the anchor and pay the rent 
Here in this harbor
We just watch the ships come in

Jenny sits on the carport with nowhere else to go
Double wides all laid out on this hill like dominoes
14 years old 
She'd like to burn them to the ground

She's spent her whole life watching mom and dad live hand to mouth
If they don't make some money soon, they'll never make it out
Of the hole they're in
She thinks it might be good if she wasn't around.

There’s dreams up and down this coast
What it would be like to cut the rope
And just let go

We don’t fear the sea anymore
But this dirty piece of shore
Is all we know

Harbor

Once you were my only son
The one who turned my light switch on
I was sure, but I was wrong
Til you came along

I thought I knew what you would need
Everything your heart could dream
What you needed most was your mom and me
When you came along

Nothing is impossible
If the Lord is on my side
But raising boys to live as men
Is the hardest thing I’ve tried

I’d give my life to give you yours
The heart right from my chest
Today you are a child no more
And I’ve got five years left

They told me not to overthink
They also told me not to blink
I did both and you’re thirteen
And it’s almost gone
You don’t care about Spider-Man
You’ve got dreams and you’ve got plans
You’re taking life with your own two hands
Oh it’s almost gone

All this time I’ve thought about
The beginning of the end
Wish I knew how to go back now
And do it all again
Wish I could say I’m good today
But the truth is I’m a mess 
Today you are a child no more
I’ve got five years left

I swear to you this solemn oath
I'll let you know the things you know
And I'll try to help with the things you don't
In these five years left
Son, I know we'll see the day
You question every word I say
Maybe all I'll do is pray
In these five years left

Someday you might understand
The way that I feel now
No one outruns Father Time, and now one slows him down
Before I held my baby boy
They talked about the hope and joy
But no one talks about the day
He leaves for good to make his way
And you stare at empty rooms and say
I've got no time left

I could shut my eyes and cry
But I'll just make the best
Of these five years left

Five Years Left

Disappearing Man

Fifty years ago a man worked a job that he hated
12 hours a day, and everyone ate
Maybe he was restless and maybe he was jaded
But he planned to retire someday

It was enough to pay the mortgage
Benefits and pension
We’ll never be wealthy, we’ll never be thin
And the things that he gave up are things you don’t mention
Those things are the burden of men

He remembered the dream
And how he felt when he dreamed it
I’ll do what I love with my heart and my hands
But the family came first 
And that’s not what they needed
He became the disappearing man.

He hated George Bailey
For staying in Bedford
Becoming by accident the noblest of men
But years make you wiser 
And hopefully better
And he hoped to be George at the end

The train’s left the station
And the terminal’s quiet
Chasing down dreams is a young man’s pursuit
If the moment arrived, he wouldn’t even try it
Now he’s got too much to lose

All of those youthful intentions he gave up
Shuttered ambitions and the wreckage of plans
Are nothing compared to the ones that he’s raised up
And they need a disappearing man

His boy made the Dean’s List
His girls gave him grandkids
All of them thankful for the father they had
Even though none of his dreams are left standing
Life’s just too good to be sad

The suitcase is brand new
The passport is unused
He’ll never be known for the work of his hands
Thankfully all of those dreams didn’t come true
He gave all he had, and now they understand
The heart inside a disappearing man

Disappearing Man

This is for my friend and fellow August Gate pastor Todd Genteman.  The music is a shameless reproduction of "Oh God" by Citizens, which really inspired the whole thing.  We were just sitting around singing, "Oh Todd!" and the rest is history.  If you don't know Todd, he runs a business called Sidney Street Sales, which is an amazing thrift store in South City.  Check them out on Facebook.

Kevin Paul Wright

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