A modern take on a traditional song from the Depression Era.

Killed the Analog Man

Milwaukee Blues

Dirt

Verse 1
Someone was playing your song the other night.
The bar was all but empty except for one guy.
Couldn’t stop, kept playing your song on a loop,
That guy was me, honey, your trusty old stoop.

Chorus
Don’t spread no rumors,
Acting like they are true;
Got my own dirt on you,
I can dish it too.
One way or the other,
We will both hurt —
Don’t spread no rumors,
Don’t spread no dirt.

Verse 2
As I’s heading for the exit a new thought hit me fast —
If I can’t handle it, I’ll probably go bust.
And it’s a shame for a man come into his prime
To keep looking for a nickel in a pocketful of dames.

Bridge
So I barreled down the road at a decent eighty five.
Fog was thick and heavy, you could cut it with a knife.

Chorus
Don’t spread no rumors,
Acting like they are true;
Got my own dirt on you,
I can dish it too.
One way or the other,
We will both hurt —
Don’t spread no rumors,
Don’t spread no dirt.


Jackson Lucas ©️2023
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Pilgrim Road

Dirt/Grass

Leaving Home

I’m leaving home,
I’m free to roam
Into a wilderness today
And eternity tomorrow.

My past is gone
And all debts paid.
The man I was before
Is going fast to fade.

I cut the cord
And moved away;
Another night
Is another day.

My past is gone,
I’m leaving home.
I’m leaving home,
I’m moving on.

All restrictions gone,
There are no rules;
I’m not the same,
I’m a brand new fool.

The meter’s running,
I won’t pay a dime.
Will keep it running
Away from time.

I’ll fill a hole in the ocean,
I’ll grab a pie in the sky;
The water’s calm and mighty,
Sky is seven thousand feet high.

I cut the cord
And moved away;
Another night
Is another day.

My past is gone,
I’m leaving home.
I’m leaving home,
I’m moving on.


Jackson Lucas ©2024
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Leaving Home

Fading Into Blue


We’ve come a long way through the darkness
We’re yearning for a glimpse of light
We’re sitting on our broken bed and
We’re talking late into the night.

You say I offer empty midnights
You say my love is no more true
You say our hearts are no longer hungry
But I can’t face life without you

Fade into blue
The curse on me 
Is a curse on you;
We’re fading into blue
My own true love’s
Lost without you

I say don’t feed me to the monsters
I say they’re waiting for their break
All dressed up in their Sunday best
They wait to burn me at a stake

Fade into blue
The curse on me 
Is a curse on you
We’re fading into blue
My own true love’s
Lost without you

Fade into blue
The curse on me 
Is a curse on you
We’re fading into blue
My own true love’s
Lost without you

My own true love’s
Lost without you,
My own true love’s
Lost without you.


Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Fading into Blue (cinematic version)

Fading Into Blue

We’ve come a long way through the darkness
We’re yearning for a glimpse of light
We’re sitting on our broken bed and
We’re talking late into the night.

You say I offer empty midnights
You say my love is no more true
You say our hearts are no longer hungry
But I can’t face life without you

Fade into blue
The curse on me 
Is a curse on you;
We’re fading into blue
My own true love’s
Lost without you

I say don’t feed me to the monsters
I say they’re waiting for their break
All dressed up in their Sunday best
They wait to burn me at a stake

Fade into blue
The curse on me 
Is a curse on you
We’re fading into blue
My own true love’s
Lost without you

Fade into blue
The curse on me 
Is a curse on you
We’re fading into blue
My own true love’s
Lost without you

My own true love’s
Lost without you,
My own true love’s
Lost without you.

Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Fading Into Blue

Master Rain

Verse 1
Master Rain, do you know what remains?
Shall we go down fighting those flames,
Or just run and drop our guns in the drain,
Master Rain?

Verse 2
Master Rain, I fear this bumpy dark road
With signs I can’t tell will lead us to hell,
But I am too high to ever complain,
Master Rain!

Verse 3
Master Rain, let’s revisit tomorrow,
Too much junk brings more sorrow,
Let’s plan something less trouble again,
Master Rain!

Chorus
We hold in a cluster and push back with bluster
But our energy sinks as we get to the brink
And realize we are both dazed and mildly insane.
We are just two cowboys peddling cocaine.

Verse 4
Master Rain, we’ll get another terrain,
Mind our own corner, get it in order,
Kill the roaches and ride high again,
Master Rain!

Verse 5
Master Rain, our loss is their gain;
There’s an old rusty biplane and it’s
Waiting to get a clear lane,
Master Rain!

Verse 6
Master Rain, let’s climb on board,
Nothing left to explain, we’re soaked
And cold in a dark, invisible plain,
Master Rain!

Bridge
We’ll find more buys than we realize, we
Just need to keep rolling all the way up to Maine.

Chorus
We hold in a cluster and push back with bluster
But our energy sinks as we get to the brink
And realize we are both dazed and mildly insane.
We are just two cowboys peddling cocaine.


J Jackson Lucas ©️2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com


Master Rain

love is a knife

love is a knife
you push it slow
then pull it hard
away you go

love is a knife
on a black horse
a dead rider 
in Sierra Morena

love is a knife
love is pain
it goes deep down
leaves no stain

black horse
dead rider
thieves are
singing your song

love is a knife
hurts like hell


Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Love Is a Knife

inhale the light

my mind made up
no guardian cloud
iron lung inhale
inhale again
rain colors wipe the dust
inhale the light

hole in my shoe
leaking water
trapped in space
down frosty waves
cloud guardian at the gate
inhale the light

every day do what we do
every day today we do

pick me up, damn shame
nobody takes the blame

my mind made up
no guardian cloud
iron lung inhale
inhale again
rain colors wipe the dust
inhale the light

bright sky behind
rain evil dies
a troubled mind
inhale again
stars will be aligned
inhale the light

pick me up, damn shame
nobody takes the blame

my mind made up
no guardian cloud
iron lung inhale
inhale again
rain colors wipe the dust
inhale the light


Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Fading into Blue

Inhale the Light

golden coast heatwave


a golden coast heatwave
sky furnace is on blast
a golden coast heatwave
sky furnace is on blast

driving down from Mendocino
hugged the coast, kicked some dust.

when we got to Santa Cruz
we thought we finally had it made
when we got to Santa Cruz
we thought we finally had it made

old man sat on the side of the road
said, slow down, it’s one ten in the shade.

we can’t slow down we hurry
we have a tail on us we fear
we can’t slow down we hurry
we have a tail on us we fear

pray tell us where we get
a fifth of rye, a case of ice-cold beer.

old man sauntered to our side
been waiting for you guys a while
the old man sauntered to our side
been waiting for you guys a while

get out and put your hands where I see them
our cells are cold, he told us with a smile.

judge said, son, you get 30 for this one
thanks judge, I said, we will behave
judge said, son, you get 30 for this one
thanks judge, I said, we will behave

we’ll take a roof, free meal and a bed
any day in a golden coast heatwave.



Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

golden coast heatwave

inhale the light


hole in my shoe
leaking water
trapped in space
down frosty waves
cloud guardian at the gate
inhale the light

pick me up, damn shame
nobody takes the blame

my mind made up
no guardian cloud
iron lung inhale
inhale again
rain colors wipe the dust
inhale the light

bright sky behind
rain evil dies
a troubled mind
inhale again
stars will be aligned
inhale the light

every day do what we do
every day today we do

pick me up, damn shame
nobody takes the blame

my mind made up
no guardian cloud
iron lung inhale
inhale again
rain colors wipe the dust
inhale the light



Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Inhale the Light/Night Cut

hounds of heaven

hounds of heaven 
are hunting me down
haunting my dreams
won’t leave me alone

floating on surface
dark demons in tow
mighty Rhine sleeps
dreaming life lows

speak in tied tongues
bells ring in valleys
no songs of freedom
bring freedom to me

hounds of heaven
they can still wait
it’s early morning
spring light is late

speak in tied tongues
bells ring in valleys
no songs of freedom
bring freedom to me

horizon is clear
i’m ready for war
i’m ready for war



Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

hounds of heaven

hounds of heaven 2

Master Rain


Master Rain, do you know what remains?
Shall we go down fighting those flames,
Or just run and drop our guns in the drain,
Master Rain?

Master Rain, I fear this bumpy dark road
With signs I can’t tell will lead us to hell,
But I am too high to ever complain,
Master Rain!

Master Rain, let’s revisit tomorrow,
Too much junk brings more sorrow,
Let’s plan something less trouble again,
Master Rain!

We hold in a cluster and push back with bluster
But our energy sinks as we get to the brink
And realize we are both dazed and mildly insane.
We are just two cowboys peddling cocaine.

Master Rain, we’ll get another terrain,
Mind our own corner, get it in order,
Kill the roaches and ride high again,
Master Rain!

Master Rain, our loss is their gain;
There’s an old rusty biplane and it’s
Waiting to get a clear lane,
Master Rain!

Master Rain, let’s climb on board,
Nothing left to explain, we’re soaked
And cold in a dark, invisible plain,
Master Rain!

We’ll find more buys than we realize, we
Just need to keep rolling all the way up to Maine.

We hold in a cluster and push back with bluster
But our energy sinks as we get to the brink
And realize we are both dazed and mildly insane.
We are just two cowboys peddling cocaine.


J Jackson Lucas ©️2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com


Master Rain Blu

Love Is a Knife/Electric

Dark Horse Theme

sometime you can't help but feel your life is just another circle you are thrown in


another circle

sharp staccato bursts
of swirling words
crisscrossing conversations
without end

appearing disappearing
rising falling like
comets in tobacco skies
a noisy circle closes in

i am weary
i am weary
going round 

heart is silence
glows in liquid light
despondent tossed
in fitful sleep

in dreams i fly away
takes days sometime
walking back awake
to find a mind inside

i am weary
i am weary 
still



Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Another Circle

Hey Sweet Girl, I Love You

I know you will break my heart
And your friends will keep us apart
’Cos I’m not your very best choice,
My dad doesn’t drive a Rolls Royce.

But tonight nothing matters at all,
We are alone, no one will call.

And all I want to say to you is
Hey sweet girl, I love you.
I’ll say it again:
Hey, sweet girl, I love you.

I know that they’ll turn you away;
Will tell you it won’t last a day;
But here in the soft, quiet night
It’s just you and me and the angel of light.

Tonight nothing matters at all,
We are alone, no one will call.

And all I want to say to you is
Hey, sweet girl, I love you.

The world may say what they will
But right here it’s perfectly still;
And ‘long as you’re here with me
It’s the only place I want to be.

With you the world fades away;
You are my girl here to stay,
And all I want to say to you is
Hey sweet girl, I love you.


Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Hey Sweet Girl, I Love You

sometime you have to tell people they should not mess with you


My Monkey Is Not Your Monkey

you’re coming on strong
looking for something
a place to belong
or play with the monkey

my monkey is not your monkey
I’ll make it clear, get outta here
my monkey is not your monkey

there’s no grand design
bridge under repair
you will now find
you can’t go there

my monkey is not your monkey
I’ll make it clear, get outta here
my monkey is not your monkey

still pond with birdsong
9 lives and counting

my monkey is not your monkey
I’ll make it clear, get outta here
my monkey is not your monkey


Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

My Monkey Is Not Your Monkey

inhale the light


my mind made up
no guardian cloud
iron lung inhale
inhale again
rain colors wipe the dust
inhale the light

hole in my shoe
leaking water
trapped in space
down frosty waves
cloud guardian at the gate
inhale the light

every day do what we do
every day today we do

pick me up, damn shame
nobody takes the blame

my mind made up
no guardian cloud
iron lung inhale
inhale again
rain colors wipe the dust
inhale the light

bright sky behind
rain evil dies
a troubled mind
inhale again
stars will be aligned
inhale the light

pick me up, damn shame
nobody takes the blame

my mind made up
no guardian cloud
iron lung inhale
inhale again
rain colors wipe the dust
inhale the light



Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com


Inhale the Light/Day Cut

Love Is a Knife/Cinematic

life, travel, the state of mind that takes us through it all

traveler

mountains are high
valleys are deep
up down i roll
before i sleep

old dirt road
lead me somewhere
lead me anywhere
have no time to spare

top of the mountain
is nowhere to go
going down slow
to the valley below

down in the valley
look up and see
a winding dirt road
far among hills

old dirt road
lead me somewhere
lead me anywhere
have no time to spare

i am a traveler
all day all night
dirt road the cross
in my dancing light



Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Traveler

A plea for peace, not a political statement because, you will agree, far too many innocent people, many thousands women and children, have died in Gaza and other war zones around the world.

The Bloody Gates of Paradise


Many things will break your heart then leave you none too wise,
Lives on earth built for years, wrecked in the blink of an eye.
Sent the killers down below, whores were kept for the late night show.
Horrors of war far and near; hopes and dreams lost to fear.
Didn’t know who’s wrong or right, didn’t know who is playing nice
Till we came upon the bodies at the bloody gates of paradise.
 
Think about it ‘fore you rise: no bad will, no strong denies
Keep us clean: we’re all in, just cannot see through all the lies.
Memories float slowly by, how much hate can we survive?
Past quickly flies as we stare death, trying to stay alive
Didn’t know who’s wrong or right, asking wasn’t smart or wise
Till we came upon the bodies at the bloody gates of paradise.
 
The dead don’t care who is wrong, don’t give a hoot if we are right;
Don’t much care if we get along, or if we always fight.
The dead, they could not care less, their corpses rotting in the snow
Don’t tell us where souls will go: some go up, some head below.
Didn’t know who’s wrong or right, felt no pressure, heard no cries
Till we came upon the bodies at the bloody gates of paradise.

We don’t pretend we have it all, we’re work in progress to be sure;
Preacher says man’s bound to fall, hopes & dreams may not endure.
Let’s pray and show the world our best and not repeat the lies
We hear often far and near the bloody gates of paradise.
Didn’t know who’s wrong or right, didn’t know death threw the dice
Till we came upon the bodies at the bloody gates of paradise.

Why are God’s children punished? can’t they try & make amends,
Live together like they did before on their ancient lands?
Didn’t know who’s wrong or right, didn’t know death threw the dice
Till we came upon the bodies at the bloody gates of paradise.  

Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

The Bloody Gates of Paradise : Gaza

If you feel sad & lonely at night, this song is for you.... 

time a broken wire

a windswept corner
time a broken wire
tears like sawdust
kiss like molten fire

I move on down
sleep sea around
smile a naked smile
I know I know
everything is a lie.

no way to light
kind darkness inside
a green yellow night
low mounts and ride

that’s way up yes
and hell and gone

my soul is a cage
a dark storage space
she comes inside
once in a while
once in a while


Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

time a broken wire

Traveler Remix

Leaving home is hard, even if you don’t have many fond memories growing up in it.

Leaving Home

I’m leaving home,
I’m free to roam
Into a wilderness today
And eternity tomorrow.

My past is gone
And all debts paid.
The man I was before
Is going fast to fade.

I cut the cord
And moved away;
Another night
Is another day.

My past is gone,
I’m leaving home.
I’m leaving home,
I’m moving on.

All restrictions gone,
There are no rules;
I’m not the same,
I’m a brand new fool.

The meter’s running,
I won’t pay a dime.
Will keep it running
Away from time.

I’ll fill a hole in the ocean,
I’ll grab a pie in the sky;
The water’s calm and mighty,
Sky is seven thousand feet high.

I cut the cord
And moved away;
Another night
Is another day.

My past is gone,
I’m leaving home.
I’m leaving home,
I’m moving on.


Jackson Lucas ©2024
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

Leaving Home Remix

looking

i am sitting on
my broken keel
looking for some
words to use
some tension
wire to repair

a crown of 
moons in her
studied glare
looking at 
me sideways
how can i forget

great bitterness
we borrow and
move on to
higher ground

dark green bark
covers grass
my pet lizard
looks at me
at an angle
i bring him water

& then
proceed inside
looking for peace
while said
peace is outside
looking in

great bitterness
we borrow and
move on to
higher ground

with eyes closed looking
looking on a world to share


Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

looking

the first track of Geometric, a jazz poetry groove of the Jackson Lucas Project

line

a line in the sky
a line in the sand
a line in the water
a line on dry land

a line is the shortest distance between two hearts
that hate each other when they are apart

a line in the sky
where eagles fly

a line in the sand
at the water’s end

a line in the water
to make you hotter

a line on dry land
so you understand

a line is the shortest distance between two hearts
that hate each other when they are apart

somehow
some way
some day
a line will break
and you will stay



J Jackson Lucas 2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

line

A classic jazz organ trio instrumental in the style of Jimmy Smith, Grant Green & Kenny Burrell

line instrumental

the kind of love song you want to hear sitting alone at a bar at midnight...

my beautiful lie
a jazz piano ballad

so many words in the air
line them up lying words 
always sound so good 
better than true

my beautiful lie
how will i spend
eternity without you

mad and at peace
i am trying to connect
i am trying to connect
to anybody else out 
there in the madlands

my beautiful lie
how will i spend
eternity without you


Jackson Lucas ©2025
jjacksonlucas@yahoo.com

my beautiful lie

I wrote the song for my wife on a flight from Paris to Washington DC last November after a long month in Europe.

Jackson Lucas

Pinned to spotlight

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