65 - Audio CD
Album Credits
65 is my nineth studio album. It was released in April of 2021. It is a collection of my best songs and recordings - new and older songs that were never recorded. It encompasses the "working class" anthem Tough Town about my hometown of Belfast, Maine, all the way to my homeage of the Allman Brother's Blue Sky Again. It represents my love for folk, 50's rock 'n' roll and newer rock. Robert Arconti provided tracks for Tough Town, Mother's Day and Now I'm 60. Ed Eastridge provided tracks for What's Love and It Ain' Right. Melissa D. Moorhouse sang on Tough Town and What's Love. Evelyn Cormier sang on Eagle's Wing Duet and Fly Away. Clayon Crawford played guitar on Blue Sky Again.
1. Tough Town
I grew up in a tough town
A lot of tough people were walking around
You had to be tough to stand your ground
If you weren’t tough, you’d get knocked down
Never show your bluff, or things will get rough
From dawn to dusk, working was no joke
Standing in the gut line or the pickup crew
Packing fish by day, stitching shoes by night
Drinking bottles of beer, smoking cigarettes
No more broiler queen, streets are pristine
Fancy stores line the streets, where butchers sold their meats
The waterfront is upscale, expensive houses for sale
Feather merchants have given way to the residents of today
A lot of tough people were walking around
You had to be tough to stand your ground
If you weren’t tough, you’d get knocked down
Never show your bluff, or things will get rough
In a Tough Town
The factories were full of hard-working folkFrom dawn to dusk, working was no joke
Standing in the gut line or the pickup crew
Packing fish by day, stitching shoes by night
Drinking bottles of beer, smoking cigarettes
In a Tough Town
No more Chicken Town, factories are shut downNo more broiler queen, streets are pristine
Fancy stores line the streets, where butchers sold their meats
The waterfront is upscale, expensive houses for sale
Feather merchants have given way to the residents of today
In a Tough Town, No more Tough Town
2. Leave Well Enough Alone
Overlooking the bay, On a bright, summer day
Walking down the knoll, On a steady stroll
Never was a nicer day, Than our wedding day
On the coast of Maine, coast of Maine
What am I gonna do, If I ever lose you
How will I live my life, Without a loving wife
Where will I wonder to?, Will my dreams come true?
Without you, without you
Rocking on my front porch, Lighting the tiki torch
Down an old back road, Time just ebbed and flowed
Once it’s told, it’s all told
Walking down the knoll, On a steady stroll
Never was a nicer day, Than our wedding day
On the coast of Maine, coast of Maine
What am I gonna do, If I ever lose you
How will I live my life, Without a loving wife
Where will I wonder to?, Will my dreams come true?
Without you, without you
I don’t do well, on my own
I’m no good at changing
Leave well enough alone
Life shouldn’t be so hard, Sitting around playing cardsI’m no good at changing
Leave well enough alone
Rocking on my front porch, Lighting the tiki torch
Down an old back road, Time just ebbed and flowed
Once it’s told, it’s all told
Chorus
3. 2020 (Divided We Fall)
United we stand, divided we fall
Show your hands, and count them all
Together we fly, broken we crash
Will we survive, or do we just clash?
In a voting both, we make up our mind
We look for the truth, we are not blind
Relying on trust, majority rules
The results are just, we are not fools
United we stand, divided we fall
Raise your hands, let’s count them all
In a voting both, we make up our mind
We look for the truth, we are not blind
Show your hands, and count them all
Together we fly, broken we crash
Will we survive, or do we just clash?
In a voting both, we make up our mind
We look for the truth, we are not blind
Relying on trust, majority rules
The results are just, we are not fools
United we stand, divided we fall
Raise your hands, let’s count them all
In a voting both, we make up our mind
We look for the truth, we are not blind
4. What's Love
What’s love, but a feeling
It’s real when you’re reeling
What’s love, unless you show it
How else could you know it
Coming out from undercover
What’s love, but a moment
Looking back and still hoping
Filled with some devotion
What’s love, without an answer
It dies like a cancer
It’s real when you’re reeling
What’s love, unless you show it
How else could you know it
But the fever in my heart
It is tearing us apart, us apart
What’s love, without a loverIt is tearing us apart, us apart
Coming out from undercover
What’s love, but a moment
Looking back and still hoping
Chorus
What’s love, but emotionFilled with some devotion
What’s love, without an answer
It dies like a cancer
Chorus
5. Fly Away (with Evelyn Cormier)
When I was a young boy
My parents split up
We boarded an airplane
Flew back to where we’re from
He was standing on a train
I waved goodbye to him
And I cried in the rain
Pulling the President
His wife wore a black veil
His son was saluting
My friend was distraught
Something about John Lennon
And how he had been shot
And I tried to be tough
When my lover told me
She didn’t want my love
And held my mother’s hand
I watched her take her last breath
And tried to understand
My parents split up
We boarded an airplane
Flew back to where we’re from
We got wings, to fly away
Like two angels, we flew way
Last time I saw my dadLike two angels, we flew way
He was standing on a train
I waved goodbye to him
And I cried in the rain
He got wings, to fly away
Like an angel, he flew away
I watched the horsesLike an angel, he flew away
Pulling the President
His wife wore a black veil
His son was saluting
He got wings, to fly away
Like an angel, he flew away
The phone rang in the nightLike an angel, he flew away
My friend was distraught
Something about John Lennon
And how he had been shot
He got wings, to fly away
Like an angel, he flew away
I held back my feelingsLike an angel, he flew away
And I tried to be tough
When my lover told me
She didn’t want my love
I got wings, to fly away
Like an angel, I flew away
I sat beside the bedLike an angel, I flew away
And held my mother’s hand
I watched her take her last breath
And tried to understand
She got wings, to fly away
Like an angel, she flew away
Like an angel, she flew away
6. Love/Blue Sky Again
Love fills your heart
And love fools your head
Love leaves you upside down
Love makes you skip
And love makes you run
Love can’t be undone
Those crazy dreams
Love brings it all back home
Love is the truth
And love never dies
Love never tells no lies
And love fools your head
Love leaves you upside down
Love makes you skip
And love makes you run
Love can’t be undone
Love makes you sing
Those sweet melodies
And singing makes the song
Love makes you dreamThose sweet melodies
And singing makes the song
Those crazy dreams
Love brings it all back home
Love is the truth
And love never dies
Love never tells no lies
Chorus
7. Actions Speak (Louder Than Words)
Can’t you see all that I offer
Is something you should not refuse
Do you wish to open my coffer?
Or do you want me just to use?
When I said that I loved you
Did you think it wasn’t the true?
Vulcans can’t lie in such matters
Would you like to see more proof?
How long has it gone on like this?
I can wait only one lifetime
But I sure could use a kiss
You must come to some decision
Give it up or let it commence
You’ve got to stop pretending
That you need to build a fence
Is something you should not refuse
Do you wish to open my coffer?
Or do you want me just to use?
When I said that I loved you
Did you think it wasn’t the true?
Vulcans can’t lie in such matters
Would you like to see more proof?
Or is the lonely jailer
Still the one you prefer
Do I need remind you
Actions speak, louder than words!
Time goes by oh so quicklyStill the one you prefer
Do I need remind you
Actions speak, louder than words!
How long has it gone on like this?
I can wait only one lifetime
But I sure could use a kiss
You must come to some decision
Give it up or let it commence
You’ve got to stop pretending
That you need to build a fence
Chorus
Actions speak, louder than words (repeat)
8. Eagle’s Wing Duet (with Evelyn Cormier)
As is the eagle’s wing
Hovering over land & sea
And everything
I cannot dim my eye
In some saloon
I cannot leave my sky
And nightly moon
Be not the fowler’s net
Which stays my flight
And craftily is set
To allure the sight
Be then the favoring gale
Which bears me on
And still does fill my sail
When you are gone
I cannot leave my sky
For your caprice
True love would soar as high
As heaven is
The eagle would not brook
Her mate thus won
Who trained his eye to look
Beneath the sun
Poem by Henry D. Thoreau
My love must be as freeAs is the eagle’s wing
Hovering over land & sea
And everything
I cannot dim my eye
In some saloon
I cannot leave my sky
And nightly moon
Be not the fowler’s net
Which stays my flight
And craftily is set
To allure the sight
Be then the favoring gale
Which bears me on
And still does fill my sail
When you are gone
I cannot leave my sky
For your caprice
True love would soar as high
As heaven is
The eagle would not brook
Her mate thus won
Who trained his eye to look
Beneath the sun
9. Now I'm 60
Now I’m 60, I am glad to be alive
Counting days till no more nine to five
Now I’m 60, I have learned my lessons well
Am I wiser or have I just gone to hell?
I stayed up all night with a bunch of fools
When I was 30, I began to come around
But it took till 40 before I settled down
I barely have the time to make them last
Now I’m 60, my life is moving on
I am trying to undo what I did wrong
Counting days till no more nine to five
Now I’m 60, I have learned my lessons well
Am I wiser or have I just gone to hell?
Now I’m 60, I can laugh instead of cry
I won’t give up until the day I die
When I was 20, I lived by different rulesI won’t give up until the day I die
I stayed up all night with a bunch of fools
When I was 30, I began to come around
But it took till 40 before I settled down
Now I’m 60, I feel more at ease
I know exactly who I have to please
When I was 50, the years went by so fastI know exactly who I have to please
I barely have the time to make them last
Now I’m 60, my life is moving on
I am trying to undo what I did wrong
Now I’m 60, I can laugh instead of cry
I won’t give up until the day I die
I won’t give up until the day I die
10. It Ain't Right
Do you know that I miss you, I long for your touch
It feels like I need it, almost twice as much
The night we first spent, together still lives on
The day we last kept, won’t let me leave this song
What seems to me like years, has only been a while
I don’t mean to say it, but you really let me down
Perhaps what I want just can never be found
It feels like I need it, almost twice as much
The night we first spent, together still lives on
The day we last kept, won’t let me leave this song
It ain’t right to let it die
It ain’t right to let it die
It just ain’t right, to let it die like that
Do you know that I miss you, I long for your smileIt ain’t right to let it die
It just ain’t right, to let it die like that
What seems to me like years, has only been a while
I don’t mean to say it, but you really let me down
Perhaps what I want just can never be found
Chorus
11. Grumpy Man
Some call me a grumpy man
But they just don’t understand
Some think I’m a pessimist
But life is just a bloody mess
They obviously did not care
They probably have grey hair
And I’m sure they are hearing impaired
But they just don’t understand
I am really an optimist
But life is just a f*ckin’ mess
But they just don’t understand
Some think I’m a pessimist
But life is just a bloody mess
Am I too old to rock ‘n’ roll
I’m just a grumpy man, please save my soul
Whoever said that life was fairI’m just a grumpy man, please save my soul
They obviously did not care
They probably have grey hair
And I’m sure they are hearing impaired
Chorus
Some call me a grumpy manBut they just don’t understand
I am really an optimist
But life is just a f*ckin’ mess
Chorus
12. Mother's Day
I don’t quite know how to say goodbye
I held your hand and tried not to cry
I imagined this time would finally come
All my plans couldn’t stop kingdom come
I whispered to you, I will be okay
You can let go now and pass away
I still am your only child today
I’ll always love you, especially on Mother’s Day
I held your hand and tried not to cry
I imagined this time would finally come
All my plans couldn’t stop kingdom come
I whispered to you, I will be okay
You can let go now and pass away
I still am your only child today
I’ll always love you, especially on Mother’s Day
13. Lucid Dreamer
Lucid Dreamer, are you deep asleep now?
Are your eyes moving to and fro
Do you know you are sleeping soundly
As you hear the voice from within
Lucid Dreamer, what are you scheming?
Are you here or flying high above?
Do you see and feel something surreal?
Can it change when you will it too
Of some scene from long ago
Is it ancient, the vision of mystics
Or is just another nightmare
Are your eyes moving to and fro
Do you know you are sleeping soundly
As you hear the voice from within
Lucid Dreamer, what are you scheming?
Are you here or flying high above?
Do you see and feel something surreal?
Can it change when you will it too
Only in our dreams
Do we have the power
To be so free, in vivid fantasy
Lucid Dreamer, are you the witness?Do we have the power
To be so free, in vivid fantasy
Of some scene from long ago
Is it ancient, the vision of mystics
Or is just another nightmare
Chorus
14. Love of Long Ago
You’re the one I loved first
For you, I felt a thirst
Though you say it’s a curse
I remember the hours that you spent
On my mind, they never went
Now you make it seem
Like it was all just some dream
You’re so neat and so clean
But there’s nothing only black and white
You’ll wait forever for it to be just right
I feel no less for you
Then I ever used to do
But you won’t let me get through
So it’s over now we’re apart
But are those tears, still from your heart?
You of fixed, heavy air
Me with earth in my hair
A very interesting pair
Time will tell what becomes of us
You may never regain your trust
To a love of long ago
My memory now does flow
Looking back when days were slow
Realizing it’s been so many years
Wondering if my thoughts are really fears?
For you, I felt a thirst
Though you say it’s a curse
I remember the hours that you spent
On my mind, they never went
Now you make it seem
Like it was all just some dream
You’re so neat and so clean
But there’s nothing only black and white
You’ll wait forever for it to be just right
I feel no less for you
Then I ever used to do
But you won’t let me get through
So it’s over now we’re apart
But are those tears, still from your heart?
You of fixed, heavy air
Me with earth in my hair
A very interesting pair
Time will tell what becomes of us
You may never regain your trust
To a love of long ago
My memory now does flow
Looking back when days were slow
Realizing it’s been so many years
Wondering if my thoughts are really fears?