1. |
Song For Joni
03:53
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I'm camouflaged like cotton balls in a cupboard full of surgical gauze
Gazing through the open maw to watch the whitewash fall apart
I'm a passive actor, I'm filled with anger, sensitive to horror, hung-up on cliffhangers
I read the news Lord knows I don't make it
And every now and then I get a little down down
Yes every now and then I get a little bit down down down
So I put my shoes on and tie them up tight
Then I run around the block just to clear my mind
When I come back you're cooking dinner on the stove
And our daughter is dancing on the living room floor
I could do this all night
Yes I think I could do this for my whole life
So let's take a record out and wipe it down
I drop the needle Black Uhuru sounds
There's nothing in the world like the rush of love when she says
"Daddy will you dance with me?"
But every now and then I might get a little down down
Yes every now and then I might get a little down down down
But I could do this all night
Yes I think I could do this for my whole life
Yes I could do this all night
Yes I think I could do this for my whole life
Yes every now and then I get a little down down
Yes every now and then I might get a little down down down
Yes every now and then I get a little down down
Yes every now and then I might get a little down down down
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2. |
Pretty Eyes
03:35
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It’s 10pm on a Tuesday so you’re talking about the end of it all,
I brush the wine from my teeth as I lean with my back on the wall.
You say, “One of these days will be the last one. One of these nights we’re gonna cross the line.”
“I wonder which one of these smokes will kill me. I wonder if we’ll feel it when we’re on the wrong side.”
I still remember the time at the Asian Fusion spot when we developed a plan to kidnap Cheney and tie him up.
You had such pretty eyes and a lust behind that look. I wrote a note for you on the inside cover of my favorite book. We spent a month in bed cocooned against the winter chill, and time seemed to warp and stretch as we listened for the snow to melt on the roof.
I still remember the time when I drove to your house in a storm. The stupidness of it all was swept away when you opened the door.
It’s ten years later, and the kids are sleeping down the hall. You drain the wine from your glass as I clean up some bouncy balls.
It smells like smoke again, I really hope there’s not another fire. You give me a kiss on the neck, I don’t think I’ve ever felt so tired.
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3. |
Trailing Speed Lines
03:47
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When I look in the mirror I see time
But all my memories share the same voice in my mind
Sometimes the nights seem like they'll never end
But then great chunks of weeks and months collapse like calving glaciers in the arctic
You're just a baby now but I'm afraid it won't be long
Till you're stealing my car and smoking weed on the back lawn
And what's it gonna feel like then?
I mean I know my bones and muscles won't be able to contend with fifteen years
A couple thousand more beers
As slow as this evening feels we're still hurtling through time
Like cartoon planes trailing speed lines
I've often wondered why we can't seem to recall
Those first few months of life when we could sit staring in awe
At golden leaves against a cobalt sky
Just dancing in the wind and blowing our minds
Dancing in the wind and blowing our minds
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4. |
Best Parts
02:20
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I’ve seen more suns rise this year than in the last 10 at least
I used to think those were special times, now I just wish I got more sleep.
But to warm my home with a fire while the pale stars fade away, to hold your little body close is a fine way to start the day.
The best time for a walk in the woods is the morning after it rains
Full-up creeks and drip pattering leaves, eucalyptus on the breeze
The best parts of you are the ones you’re headed to
and the best parts of me are so long gone you’ll be coming on them soon.
The loneliest times are the nights when everything sleeps except my trampoline mind
When I finally nod off, you walk through my dreams as wind through leaves
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5. |
2008 Redux
02:53
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6. |
Nine x 2600
02:07
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7. |
When We Wake Up
02:17
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I really want to learn to take a photograph
To take a camera and document the lips you have
And in the morning when we wake up
The wrinkles around your eyes without your makeup
I like to watch you take your clothes off
I like the smell of your skin when we make love
And in the morning when we wake up
I'll open up the blinds and light your face up
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8. |
Mono/Poly Arp
00:24
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9. |
Whales Breach
04:07
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Once I sat in a perfect place beneath a giant oak
High above the sound of surf exploding on the rocks below
A sliver of moon in a tangerine sky
And, honest to God, whales breaching like they were trying to blow my mind
Don’t let it go
Cause you’ll wanna go back yeah you’ll want it all back
I’d give everything to go back
Once I got high in the mountains with some friends of mine
We pitched our tents in the dark on a hill above a crystal alpine lake
I stepped away from the fire and saw the Milky Way
A perfect mirror image reflected in the water
I sat down on the bank and I cried I cried I cried
Don’t let it go
Cause you’ll wanna go back yeah you’ll want it all back
I’d give everything to go back
Once I walked an old road through a young redwood forest
My son was in a pack on my back and my daughter rode her scooter ahead
We got to a field of tiny white wildflowers
And we spread a blanket and ate sliced apples in the sun
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10. |
Pro-Jam
02:45
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11. |
Pandemic Dreams
01:57
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12. |
Your Old Mind
04:40
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It all started when he couldn’t go to school anymore.
The thought of waking up was too much to endure.
People started asking, “What’s he taking, anyway? We know you kids have gone astray, so don’t deny it, boy.”
All I could do was shake my head. It wasn’t drugs that took my friend.
Oh Rudy can’t you hold out for a while? The winter is almost over and depression’s out of style. Rudy, can’t you keep it under wraps? You’re too young for these panic attacks.
Cops picked him up, it was pushing five below, 2AM in the ice and the snow.
Walking down the street in nothing but his under clothes, he was frantic and alone, a delusional boy.
All they could do was shake their heads, pump him full of pills in a hospital bed.
Oh Rudy can’t you hold out for a while? The winter is almost over and depression’s out of style. Rudy, can’t you keep it under wraps? You’re too young for these panic attacks.
Rudy you were such a different guy before this paranoia put a distance in your eyes.
Rudy I just need a little time, but call me if you’ve got an afternoon with your own mind.
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James Riotto Pasadena, California
James Riotto is a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer/engineer in Pasadena, CA. After over a decade on staff at Tiny Telephone Studios, James relocated to Southern California in order to build Altamira Sound, an ambitious multi-room recording studio, with friends and partners Andrew Maguire, Rob Shelton, and Carly Bond. ... more
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