Lyrics

Neal Kassanoff
some assembly required
©1998

Do You Long For Me

You look like you're so old
You're run down and tired with the blues
You think that you got it  all under control
But that's only cause you're confused
When you gonna shake that sad veil till it dances
Do you care to taint your penchant for no second time around

CHORUS:
Do you long for me 
Do you long for a breathing spell
Do you long to be running for someone else
Instead of running away from yourself 

There must have been someone
Who played on your devils and vice
Pushed all your buttons 
Short circuited all of your wires
Will you let me sweep you off of this stale melancholy
Will you let me give you what I believe you deserve

CHORUS

Camomile. camomile
Oriental Cinnamon
Cigarette smoke ride
Cheap air lineament
Take a breath, take a breath 
Put it to your lips again
Let me be your new love
Let me be your best friend
Let me be the honey in in your tea
Let me be your cigarette nicotine free
Drag on me, drag on me, drag on me deep
Let me fight the shadows and the demons from your sleep
And when your feeling worn out I can be your relief
And when all of your tricks have run dry you can look up my sleeve

CHORUS

Saving it for Later Well she stays up late at night And she roams from tome to tome And she loves to be with me But she loves more to be alone And as she contemplates the prose She never fails to look me in the eye Is she nowhere to be found Is she lost in someone's novel I could write a world around All the glances that she models And I wonder if Full up with a secret aliby And I don't know why I assumed That she could be my saviour And by the way she's looking We'll be saving it for later Saving it for later Saving it for later As the characters you speak of Take shape and come to life Do you place the faces on them That resemble you and I I have read the novel through you I'm just looking for the hero's tragic flaw We can run through all the pages From Thoreau to Norman Mailer Keep the best books on the top shelf We'll saving them for later Saving them for later Saving them for later Don't reveal the answer Don't spoil the surprise You've read the book through seven times I've only read it twice And its like the Heart of Darkness Getting warm as the equator But you've dog eared all the pages and your Saving it for later Saving it for later If I could count the novels We have cast beside my bed If I could count the times I vowed to write my own instead I'd be pushing all the beads Along the abacus till time was almost spent And I wonder if she's who she is Or if I really made her And I'd like to get know her But I'll be saving it for later Saving it for later Saving it for later

She's got demons she's got demons on her shoulders she's so nice she's so nice she says "i'm not getting any older" well it's no lie it's no lie and she's hungry for what's inside of me red as a ripe cherry tree it's just one kiss that stands one kiss she demands one kiss to take us right where we should be just one kiss that stands one kiss she demands one kiss between me and eternity she's got such pronounced incisors she's says hold tight it's only one bite i'm no red corpuscle miser ask me just right and I just might and she holds me like it could be forever and I think to myself I might never do better CHORUS What's it been like for you all of these years Do you ever feel desperate, are you numb to the fears And have there ever been any before me that promised you here to eternity she's got demons on her shoulders she's not hep to what I told her she says come with me you'll be no older she asked right so I just might I just might

Wine from a Bottle Drinking wine from a bottle after midnight Throwing down what's been sitting on the shelf Little Stevie singing now everything is uptight Stevie I can dig it I'm uptight myself 1590 on the AM dial They give me lots of soul from sixty-three I can almost see the DJ smile I'm on bottle number one of twenty seven Gonna try to drink my life away Gonna guzzle my path to heaven I'm gonna guzzle my path to heaven I'm gonna guzzle my path to heaven Down go the lights on the nights I used to spend on the town that never tried to know me Out with a crowd, well they all know my name, still the same I'm feeling nothing but lonely The cold halo of the dim lights inside Another bottle of this sweet elixer If I had any left I'd surely swallow my pride Still I feel like a hippy at a fraternity mixer Drinking in rays and waves of moonbeams Filtered through shades of greys and blue scenes Hiding from days and days of stale dreams Biding my time but I'm bursting Biding my time but I'm bursting Biding my time but I'm bursting at the seams Lord I think I've lost my sense of humor But, maybe its hidden at the bottom of a beaujoulais German wine is a lot like the Rhine Its cold and its quick and its sweeping me away Its cold and its quick and its sweeping me away Be it French or Italian, Chenin Blanc, Cabarnet Be it day old crackers or a Dominoes pizza man "Hey, how you doing its so good to meet ya man" Keep the change now, don't be strange now I'm glad to know that you're in range now Fix me up when I'm too drunk to drive But don't get me wrong because I don't strive to be... Drinking wine from a bottle after midnight Throwing down what's been sittin' on a shelf Little Stevie singing now everything is uptight Stevie, I can dig it I'm uptight... (UNUSED VERSE) Thinking time was the measure of a moment Thinking wine was an understanding friend Thinking bout the feeling that I was overcoming Thinking bout the time I had left my self for dead

No Place In New York There was a Yellow Cab traffic jam on Broadway That killed the mood as I made my way back home To a hovel on the East Side with barely room to breathe And thoughts bouncing off of the wall And I knew before midnight we'd be sharing bitter words We'd be up late and uptight trying to figure out what its worth Why can't two of the millions be on better terms Chorus: Well I can't find no Place in New York To get my peace The city streets keep echoing your thoughts and deeds and speech And if I find out on the road I'm haunted by the same old ghosts I know It was meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee It was meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee And now I got a road map on my lap I got junk food in the shotgun I'm achy and I'm tired and I feel like crap And I just begun my run Got a load to think over shiftin' all around Before you could say it was over I rolled on out of town I'm gonna waltz through the clover when I find some solid ground CHORUS I got time to roll on down the I got mine to take my chance cause I'll unwind and try to get lost Freedom rides It rides at what cost Free to grab the frayed ends of the choices now of which I speak My ideas are strong but my spirit and my constitution are weak I got change for the turnpike I got drizzle on my windshield I got New Jersey and Pennsylvania I got cityscapes and open fields And I'm ready to put some distance between me and you At least for a while then see what we wanna do And I'm makin' time but I'm miles from where I'm headin' to CHORUS Clouds makin' way for the starry sky A river that shines like the light I remember In your eyes In your eyes In your eyes In you eyes..............

Crazy Times If we turn this over We're bound to find the same old thing So won't you tip that bottle But be sure to save a drink for me Another round to think about it Another round to savor time And I'm better off without it But I'd rather lose my mind Lose my mind Take care in these Take my share in these Take good care in these crazy times I'm walking on Empty air Take good care in these crazy times Won't you take good care in these crazy times Well I swear to God I'm Crawling right out of my shoes On this garbled phone line You're lucky if you can get through Another call to think about it A nother call to savour time And I'm better off without it But I'd rather lose my mind CHORUS You'll be shattered in half by morning Will you finally stop this skid, Or will you pick up a few of the fragments and do it again? When you're fueled by passion And shoot like a rocket to mars Got no seat belt fastened And the rumble is kind of bizarre So light a fire to think about it Light a fire to savour time And I'm better off without it But I'd rather lose my mind CHORUS

Carol Anne Sitting on the bed with my best x girlfriend She just arrived like a cat darting out of the rain Said she came by, just to see the new pad Oh Carol Anne do you really believe that I show her round the house, but I keep the lights off Thereís just the shimmer in the shadows as we fumble around Carol Anne is so easy to interpret Oh Carol Anne is it really all worth it Well we could put the top down and go driving around Stay inside making animal sounds Talk about how much you hate your boyfriend Oh Carol Anne there are so many choices Well Carol Anne had said weíd never really work out But that was back when she was strung out on a couple of drugs Lately Carol Anneís been making it easy for me Oh Carol Anne do you see what I see? CHORUS

Lord Take Care Love broke hard when she said to pull over On a road through the hills, on a gravely shoulder I meant what I said but she did not believe me As she jumped from the shotgun to hitch back to Sweeney I've done what I could, I can't hold on much longer But I can't seem to set myself free Lord take care of that girl for me I suppose its a knee jerk reaction 'Fore it happens again, better take one step back son I've rescued that girl from high water and Hades Still strung out all knowing that she's just as crazy I could change my mind but it won't change the fact that She'll still be what she's gonna be Lord take care of that girl for me Lord take care she's off her rocker On that shoulder on her on own On her own, I can't relieve her On her own, I hope she'll survive On her own, its better to leave her On her own to save my own life I should have known she was too hard to tame When I pulled on my hat brim and she told me my name She looked deep inside with a half crazy smile Like a telephone ring was the call of the wild I've done what I could I can't hold on much longer But I can't seem to set myself free Lord take care of that girl Lord take care of that girl Lord take care of that girl for me

Levee Fest Take me down to the levy, Baptize me in Missippi mud I don't want to talk about nothing heavy I don't want to hear none of that crud A good man's spirit gets to sagging A good man's blood can run impure But by the river I ain't lacking Anything, of this I'm sure River river, come and clear my spirit River come and clear my head River let me be born again River wake me up from the dead Take me down to the levy Lets run naked in the mud Till black is brown and so is white And it don't matter if you're the other or the one Ship at bay along the river The union boys are dancing on the deck This scene is giving me the shivers Oh well, what the hell, oh what the heck River river come and clean my spirit River come and clear my head River let me be born again River wake me up from the dead My Creole Baby, I'm feeling lazy Lets go down to the levee this afternoon Holy Rollers don't need no Billy Joelers I'm gonna give it to you til you swoon My love is like the Mississippi Steady with a heavy undertow I'll take you swimming in my loving I'm gonna bathe you in the afterglow Now listen closely you can hear it Don't never mind now where you are You can hear on the shores of Manhattan Or in some broken down Venice beach bar Gonna take you back to New Orleans to the fringes of the Mardi Gras Gonna have yourself a levee fest In your office or your home or in your car River river come and clean my spirit River river come and clear my head River let me be born again River wake me up from the dead Levee Fest Take me down to the levy, Baptize me in Missippi mud I don't want to talk about nothing heavy I don't want to hear none of that crud A good man's spirit gets to sagging A good man's blood can run impure But by the river I ain't lacking Anything, of this I'm sure River river, come and clear my spirit River come and clear my head River let me be born again River wake me up from the dead Take me down to the levy Lets run naked in the mud Till black is brown and so is white And it don't matter if you're the other or the one Ship at bay along the river The union boys are dancing on the deck This scene is giving me the shivers Oh well, what the hell, oh what the heck River river come and clean my spirit River come and clear my head River let me be born again River wake me up from the dead My Creole Baby, I'm feeling lazy Lets go down to the levee this afternoon Holy Rollers don't need no Billy Joelers I'm gonna give it to you til you swoon My love is like the Mississippi Steady with a heavy undertow I'll take you swimming in my loving I'm gonna bathe you in the afterglow Now listen closely you can hear it Don't never mind now where you are You can hear on the shores of Manhattan Or in some broken down Venice beach bar Gonna take you back to New Orleans to the fringes of the Mardi Gras Gonna have yourself a levee fest In your office or your home or in your car River river come and clean my spirit River river come and clear my head River let me be born again River wake me up from the dead One Move Take a note from a fat chord Lay it on a fly groove Swivel on a hip thing, yo Take line from an old voice Try to keep a tune up Dancing in a donut hole With a slab of honey mustard Gonna have to trust her Take a hold a' all that's mine Gimme sauce on the side I can dip to my likin I can over dose a little at a time ONE MOVE ITS A MATTER FACT YOU GOT TO TRY TO RELAX I GOT TO TRY TO REMIND YOU CHORUS Take a lesson from a cool breeze Try to make it easy Take a single step thing (yo) Let the groove in your new shoes When you got the beat, see You don't know where it could go With an angle from the outside Try to make a bee line Into the sit still center Its a trail to the sweet stuff Don't be taking too much Just a little snack til dinner You can't be too lovey dovey Can't get to sentimental You've got to trust your body It'll open the window She got a sweet candy coatin' Pouring smooth down the throat and And then I feel like I'm floatin' with the butterflies Just the nape of her neck Is enough to make me beg And I don't need to feed her any bullshit lines As I go to the ceiling On the helium she breathing Try to hover in the feeling that she knows my mind Gonna give it back to her All the love that'll do her Sweet as milk and Kalhua make her mine in time CHORUS Red Letter Bible Preaching the Gospel in a run down bar out south of San Anton' Smoked a pack of Marlboro, waited for the sun (son) but it still hasn't shone (shown) Its been rainin' half the day and I can't play another game of dominoes The good 'ol boys are ripe to fight and Jesus says it might be time to go I got my Red Letter Bible with the zipper leather cover All the good parts book marked, pages folded over Maybe me and Jesus need to make our way home But the tattoo on my arm says "Born to Roam" I was born to roam Hitchin' a ride from the barrio boys, (they) liked to save my ass They said "a friend of Jesus is a friend of ours" and then we smoked some grass It kept rainin' through the day and nothing on the radio but Tejano And I ain't seen those boys in I don't know how long and Lord I miss them so All I got's my: CHORUS Well the barrio boys loaded me up With ten pounds of dope and a pick up truck Rosary hanging from the windshield mirror Thinking 'bout my Lord, Protector and Savior Try to do right by the one true God I say "lead me to the straight path if I get lost" Police comin' on me right behind I think they're gonna stop me but they roll on by I got my CHORUS Back in the bar down in San Anton' tryin' to turn the other cheek I try to tell the boys bout Jesus Christ but they wouldn't let me speak Its been rainin' half the day and I can't play another game of dominoes The good ol' boys are telling me that I'd be better off out on the road With my CHORUS Heart Wind up the gramophone How I love to hear it rattle Captain America's Patriotic prattle With a Crackle and a hum O'er the good's impending triumph Anarchy is in the wings Its time to start a riot Give you a heart like a feather And your eyes are open wide I will flow like a river to the ocean side I will flicker like a candle By your bedside late at night I'm gonna wake up all the angels Beneath this milky light If I'm leanin' on false hopes Kick 'em on out from under me I don't need false hopes And if the path unclear Its only obstacles out in front of me I ain't afraid of obstacles anymore Oh the crackle and the hum Of a winter morning triumph Anarchy is in the wings Its time to start a riot CHORUS Angel came to me last night and whispered anthems in my hear Try to keep fortified with lots of song a little beer Get yourself a good night's sleep And get yourself another song Angels in the elements will keep the beat and roll along CHORUS Noah Rain falls Another day arrives We're working up to forty and Noah's out of sight He said That he'd be coming by He built a ship and stocked the bar to celebrate through troubled times well Noah he knows the way Noah's a navigator Money down, he'll come around Just a little bit later Oh Noah, where have you been Wood houses float away Brick houses cave in Adobe turns back into mud Rain keeps a steady drone The water's rising There's time, there's time to save us from the flood Chorus Roof leaks but I am not afraid I've filled the house with buckets and I've built a barricade To stop the flood line from growing any closer But if Noah's in the neighborhood, I sure wish he'd stop over Noah, Oh Noah, where have you been, the water's been rising and I cannot swim Ride My Bicycle You no you, you really are a roller You no you, you take it on the run You no you, you drink your Coca-Cola You no you, You're bound to come undone Ride my bicycle, ride my bike Ride it ride it wherever you like Take it up a hill with a bump and a grind But you better bring it back cause its mine all mine You no you, you should have been a skater You no you, the way you're gliding down the pavement You no you, you say you'll see me later You no you, go rolling 'round the bend Chorus You no you, were born in Oklahoma You no you, were conceived in a corn field You no you, came down with carcinoma You no you, called your mom and got faith healed Chorus You no you, I should have never trusted You no you, have broken all my spokes You no you, my bike you up and busted You no you, are not like other folks Cause you Chorus You no you, I'm tired of all this singing You no you, are all I got to sing about You no you, I'm sitting here thinking You can take my bike cause I didn't want it anyhow Chorus Black Balloon When the wind Revives you you'll remember Where you've been The night before You're coming down From way too high Coming down down down Out above The ground is all directions I could float like a black balloon In the night I might get high And then go down down down Tangled in The signs along the highway Tangled as the sun goes up In the night I became what I was thinking And now I'm down down down Well I wanna be with you right here Or I don't wanna be here I don't wanna be anywhere in between Here and not here With you I believed That I could stand the moment As I watched you Smile from the inside I changed my mind I turned around And I went down down down Yeah Slicing up roses Into the blender Finding a way Of keeping the thorns down Cause I wanna swallow My desire I wanna swallow Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Yeah-yeah-yeah Lighting a candle Day of the dead I've been a bad boy Put me to bed Cause I wanna follow With something that's better I wanna follow Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Yeah-yeah-yeah Sometimes my girl puts on a skirt Makes me wanna dig in the dirt But I don't wanna be like the dirt I wanna be like a rose Move Swiftly Back in the summer when the tar was swellin and Turnin' the road into highway to hell and I could see the heat waves art a quarter to twelve I'd be lightin my candles and castin my spells I'd call one and then I'd call the other The one's hanging out with a girl she's in love with The others at home she says I'm all alone And if you come over I'll unplug the phone But you gotta move swiftly now Don't wait Move swiftly now Don't wait I might just change my mind if you hesitate You gotta move swiftly now I said, I'm not sure but I think I can feel it The way the pull of the moon is inclined to reveal me Or maybe its blood as it leaks through a hole in my heart Can I wait, can I see where the tide wants to go…no CHORUS She said love is an ocean and its here in your veins And the thing that you feel is the tide as it strains To well up beyond your desire to refrain If you don't let it go then it might be too late CHORUS X2 Lillian Time has come to lift me up and hang me out to dry About to say I've had enough of trying to make it right I just feel this force of gravity nailing me Time has left me hanging on I try to keep it spry Oh my my my Lillian voices never lie All these words and deep embraces stay right here AW, LILLIAN GAWN 'N GIT YER GUN MEET ME WITH THE CAR RUNNIN THERE BEHIND THE BANK I DON'T NEED, I DON'T NEED TO TELL YOU ANYMORE MEET ME WITH THE CAR RUNNIN THERE BEHIND THE BANK I open up my grip to give the bag that holds the weapon Lillian won't let me down, she's my great hereafter Bellanoka's ringing out keep the comrades warm Yes I know "The Roundabout" I played it all day long Picture of my Lillian pressed against my thigh I reach into my pocket just to open up her smile Faded pictures everything I need, right now CHORUS Lillian, meet me as the sun is beginning to bleed into the horizon For surely as the color leaves the sky We'll be gone, from here Be still and wait, and know that this has always been ours Our plan, our loot, our getaway, our fate And, Lillian, our love. Our love most of all Lillian