LONG HARD ROAD
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1990
Upon reflecting my years near thirty
I have had every job, some good some dirty
One I worked the lowlands twice I tended bar
I pumped gas in Abilene I wore a bow tie parkin’ cars
On the Long Hard Road
Had a gig on a cruise ship bound for tropic shores
Came back home that summer wiser burnt and poor
I met a maharajah with the secrets of the earth
He said I’ll share them with you but ya gotta pay me first
It’s the Long Hard Road
Busted and Disgusted I hitched my way out west
Sold my only cowboy hat and hocked my leather vest
The train that I keep riding makes infrequent stops
Most of the folks who get on board can’t wait to get off
Of the Long Hard Road
BEST I CAN
(words by Rich Lerner)
(music by Rich Lerner and Sammy Smith)
Copyright 2004
Tryin’ to do, Tryin to do the best I can
Tryin’ to prove I’m a worthy man
Tryin’ to say things inside my heart
Still at the beginning never too late to start
Tryin’ to learn, learn from my mistakes
Tryin’ to be ready when I get a break
It’s getting’ stronger the longer it goes on
Tryin’ to feel – feel my way along
Feel the weight of the world – Do the best I can
Feel the weight of the world – Try to understand
Feel the weight of the world – On every child woman & man
Feel the weight of the world
Feel the weight of the world
Tryin’ to do the thing that’s right
Tryin’ to see the eternal light
I follow my heart – I’ll lend you a hand
Tryin’ to do the best I can
Never too late to start (repeats refrain)
HERS
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
There’s an elegance about her
She always keeps her head
When whirlwinds surround her
She just lays still instead
There are glimpses of the future
In her memory
When I looked into her eyes
It felt like history
HERS is the voice of beauty
HERS are the eyes of truth
HERS are the whispering words
HERS is the final proof
There’s a radiance about her
I feel it when we touch
Without uttering a word
She can say so much
She moves my emotions
She takes control
Across the seven oceans
She sailed my soul
HERS is the heart of passion
HERS are the thoughts of dreams
HERS is the touch of kindness
HERS are the ways and means
HERS are the mountain ranges
HERS are the crystal seas
HERS is the open highway
Hers is the summer breeze.
ALL IN THE NAME OF GREED
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1990
I’ve seen men sacrifice their souls all in the name of greed
More than a few just lose control all in the name of greed
I’ve seen great leaders rise and fall all in the name of greed
I’ve seen death make a midnight call all in the name of greed
I’ve seen armies mobilize
I’ve seen love commercialized
I’ve seen salvation advertised
All in the name of greed
Successful men turn to lives of crime
All in the name of greed
Innocent men doing time all in the name of greed
I’ve seen countries overthrown all in the name of greed
Seen streets turn into battle zones all in the name of greed
I’ve seen hatred glamorized
I’ve seen rock and roll commercialized
I’ve seen poison advertised
Al l in the name of greed
I’ve seen justice bought and sold all in the name of greed
I’ve seen the young neglect the old all in the name of greed
I’ve seen families torn apart all in the name of greed
I’ve seen my share of broken hearts all in the name of greed
AQUA MARINE
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
Remembering days long gone
They roll back in my dreams
Like the calm before the storm
Nothing’s ever what it seems
Floating on the clear glass surface
Sliding on the open sea
Thinking ‘bout the time that flies
Like the wind between you and me
CHORUS
I see it etched upon my mind
Every detail of the scene
Aqua Marine
Deep inside the darkest alley
Far within the frozen frame
Out upon the empty highway
Nothing ever seems the same
Every day feels like a struggle
Every night feels like a crawl
Every time it seems a little farther away
But closer than I want to recall………………..CH
BRIDGE
Every stroke of the brush
Upon my soul is all too much
I’m holding on to fractured light
Through the prism of your sight
I’m tracing my footsteps through
The outline of your sketches to
Recesses that lie in between Aqua Marine
Colors of the palette
Faded in due time
Only you alone
Made the canvas shine
The yellow seems to vanish
Like the moon above our hearts
The crimson seems to pale
Where the shadows start…………CH
THE NIGHT OWL AND THE ALLEY CAT
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1990
in a town next to the border where the cultures clash
the night owl comes to mix it up with the alley cat
and the poker faced commandos can’t recall the question asked
but they are sure that violence is the answer
there’s a place between the midnight and the hour of the dawn
where the reptiles stalk the sidewalk and the serpents roam the lawns
and the alley cat he crosses paths with a toothless refugee
competing for the crumbs they can gather
the street was once a place where no one was alone
where any freedom seeker could strike out on their owl
what used to be the truth has turned into a lie
the streets nowhere to live now it’s just a place to die
brother’s killin’ brothers and the poor steal from the poor
innocent victims dying over some color war
recruiting kids to crime before they are old enough to think
somehow the circle must be broken
ten floors above there is a party goin’ on
champagne is served and the air is filled with song
and the whole wide world appears to be just one big paradox
realize your dreams or dash them on the rocks
this street is not an avenue, it’s not a boulevard
it’s just a twisted pathway where every turn is hard
misguided souls are lost in a place not on a map
the street’s nowhere to live now it’s just become a trap
EVERY SONG
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1994
the thunder it rattled like African Drums
thru every forest and clearing
she borrows her sorrows and silently hums
a song that alone she is hearing
cool august rain against mandolin strings
will her warnings be heeded
the melody’s rolling down every mountain
clearly there are no words needed
mother nature wrote every song
including the one I am singing
she gave it to me to pass on to you
can you not here her bells ringing
western wind blowing through a harmonica
up empty streets lined with benches
the coyote’s call can be heard by all
the soldiers lined up in their trenches
mother nature wrote every song
including the one I am playing
she wrote all the words and handed them down
can you not hear what she is saying
the sparrow at flight knows every chorus
the leaves on the trees they are dancing
the hound dogs tune beneath the full moon
outside each shanty and mansion
NOWHERE TO RUN
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1990
smoke screen thinly veils your features
up close you look so far a way
your face never shows expression
your life is nothing but a game
funny how I can’t recall just exactly what was said
with my back against the wall and all that guilt upon your head
you love no one else but yourself
you think of no one else but you
you laugh and walk all over people
you got nothin’ better to do
you betrayed your family double crossed your only friend
have you no trust or loyalty when will such sadness ever end
no truth ever spilled from your lips
just lies is all your tongue can twist
so quick to offer your opinion
advice dribbles down your chin
when you talk it’s like a tomb your words carry no respect
when you walk into the room I feel a chill run down neck
I SAW THE UNIVERSE TONIGHT
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1994
I saw the universe tonight
Tasted the most delicious tear
The splendid smell of sweet forever
The loudest silence pierced my ears
I felt the heartbeat of beginning
Lived a lifetime in one breath
I held that which can’t be touched
I saw the other side of death
I traveled light years in an instant alone
And found there is nowhere to go
This complex world is just so simple it seems
And there is nothing else to know
No mystery to unravel
No secret floating in the are
No destiny or speacial purpose
Except to live and love and care
TOXIC TOWN
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1994
in the death of a starless night you’ll call
upon the beat of a broken heart you’ll fall
from the foot of an unmarked grave
some will crawl just to be enslaved
until the very spark of life is stalled
everytime the wheel comes round
hearts of glass are rolling down
the littered streets of toxic town
in the black of a hurricane you’ll ride
inside the alley’s of the combat zone you’ll hide
don’t be fooled by golden looks
words are baited fishing hooks
capturing every soul in sight
every time the moon goes past
candle hearts are melting fast
upon the streets of toxic town
like a stray, you’ll be taken in
to a prison without walls or friends
from this trap there is no relief
you’ll be spoon fed cups of greif
while you pray for the end to begin
WHEN I SEE YOU AGAIN
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1994
Let the music shine down like the warmth of the sun
Let the words flow from my pen
Let the melody be softly hummed
when I see you again
let the stars shine down like diamond chips
let the moment feel like zen
let the God of mercy smile on us
when I see you again
when I see you again, violins will play
angels will sing oh happy day
let us praise his holy ways
it all comes from within
let us count our many blessings
when I see you again
let us thank him for each other
let us thank him for our days
let us thank him for helping
us to find our way
when I see you again, mountains will move
candles will burn and the music will groove
let the evening last forever
let us share it with our friends
let our love bloom like springtime
when I see you again
WORLD FULL OF STRANGERS
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 1990
a world full of strangers
connected by fate
in one boat together
sharing the water the land and the sky
through hopes and dreams and fears and lies today
a world full of people
you never will meet
millions of faces
each one with a history
connected by the mystery today
a world full of promise
quest for the unknown
expanding horizons
looking under every stone for truth
but faith still does need no proof today
a world full of conflict
poisoned by hate
and misinformation
shatter the ties that bind us all
will we rise or will we fall today
WHO WOULD BELIEVE IT
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
Who would have believed it
– It could take a century ‘til then
Feeling is believing
– I don’t want to wait that long again
Talk to me of challenge
– Talk to me of someone breaking through
Show me all the secrets
– Show me all the things that I must do
Help me to remember
– All of the mistakes of my past lives
Show me where we’re going
–Show me something clear & true & bright
Passage door open wide
Let me through to the other side
All the love I’ve been shown
In this world I’m not alone
Listen to the mountains
– Listen to the harbor call your name
Listen to the shadows
– Listen to the sweet cool autumn rain
Tell me of your oceans
– Tell me of your greatest mystery
Listen to the motion
– Listen to the sand embrace the sea
Passage door open wide
Let me through to the other side
All the seed I have sown
In this world I’m not alone
(repeat verses 2 and 3 and 1st Bridge)
UKULELE WIND
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
Let’s go chase the sunrise
Let’s run down the dawn
Let’s pretend our only friend
Is a ramblin’ cowboy song
Let’s lay on the hillside
Under the vanishing moon
And talk of superstition
While the olive branches swoon…….CH
(CHORUS)
So play the harvest fiddle
And strum the mandolin
On wings of strings we will soar
Through the ukulele wind
Upon the crimson prairie
The blue coyotes bay
Tumbleweeds are rolling
And the rosewood guitar plays
The campfire timbers crackle
The night is soaked with stars
The cactus holds a secret
Like the pyramids on Mars…………..CH
(BRIDGE)
Across the painted desert
Above the canyon ridge
The palominos run
Across the mesa bridge
We’ve seen the shadow dancers,
Felt the big stampede,
Heard the whispering sands,
And tasted life so free………….CH
TWISTED TIMES
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
Hard to carry this heavy load
Full of questions down this road
Can you help me to crack this code
Hard to think about what went down
The whole world is one small town
We are connected all around………CH
CHORUS:
Can’t let these twisted times
Take hold of a restless mind
Make you feel like you’re stumblin’ blind
They caravan of the remembered rides
Along the current of the changing tides
Across the mountains of alibis
Before the flood after the fall
You got to stand when you get the call
Oh lord please help us all………………..CH
BRIDGE:
These twisted times rain down
A monsoon on hallowed ground
Leave nothing but the sacred sound of hope
Love the ones that you hold close
Hold on to what matters most
Defy the fears and chase the ghosts
Reach into that hidden place
Inside the heart behind the face
Where the soul can navigate the space……….CH
TIME FOR THE TURNING
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
Time for the turning, the turning away
Time for the turning, starting today
Time to make peace, time to make haste
Time for the turning, no time to waste
Time for the journey, the moving beyond
Time for this moment to fade and be gone
Time to search inside, time to dig deep
Time for us all to wake from this sleep
Time to look forward – Time to look back
Time to look inward – Time now to act
Time to forgive – Time now to grow
Time for us all to weep what we sow
Time for the burning, the burning away
Time for the learning, starting today
Time to move on time to expand
Time to extend a welcoming hand
Time for the gates to open and close
Time for us all to be so exposed
Time for us all to make the hard choice
Time for us all to raise up our voice
(repeat 1st verse & 1st bridge)
STRENGTH OF THE WILL
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
We crossed the ocean on a ship of light
We built a castle out of pitch-black night
We grew a flower in the desert sand
And stopped a war with an open hand
….ooh Strength of the will
We climbed a mountain with a single stride
To cast our shadows on the other side
We made a river from the sweat of our brows
Threw a way the book and wrote our own vows
……ooh Strength of the will
Talked with the birds in a sycamore tree
Danced with the ghost of eternity
Laughed at the joke of hypocrisy
………ooh Strength of the will
We hitched our wagon to a shooting star
Drove through heaven in a broken down car
Formed a diamond on a charcoal grill
Chalked it off to the strength of the will
……….ooh Strength of the will
SPARE ME
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
Spare Me your latest inquisition
It’s getting’ on my nerves
Spare Me your brutal indecision
It’s something I don’t deserve
Spare Me your pointless observations
I’ve heard ‘em all before
Spare Me your vane interpretations
I’m headin’ for the door
BRIDGE:
Spare Me all the torture
Of trying to ignore
Your twisted sense of reason
I simply can’t endure
Spare Me all your good intentions
It’s just a waste of breath
Spare Me your dubious inventions
They’re ‘bout to bore me to death
Spare Me the righteous indignation
I’m shell shocked on the beach
Spare Me your trials and tribulations
I see you’ve memorized the speech
BRIDGE:
Let the critics sing your praises
Let the public all acclaim
You can go through all your phases
But please forget my name
Spare Me the slow articulation
It’s babble from below
Spare Me the constant arbitration
It’s nothing I should know
Spare me the reading of your thesis
You should wear a muzzle
Spare Me all your jagged jigsaw pieces
There’s nothing here to puzzle …….(repeat 1st bridge)
SHE’S NOT THE SAME
(words and music by Rich Lerner)
Copyright 2004
Time sure spins when you’re hangin’ round
Up until dawn with the rain fallin’ down
Stare out the window and hear not a sound
‘Cept that dark and luscious night
I stared at my watch it was five twenty nine
The sun came up and I missed the sign
I was mesmerized I’d been struck blind
and I never saw it comin’…………………CH
(CHORUS)
I’m thinkin’ ‘bout long ago
Something has changed -She’s not the same
I’m goin’ through changes too
There’s no one to blame – She’s not the same
I wasn’t real sure what I’d gotten into
Time was running out and I wasn’t in the mood
I was caught off guard deep in solitude
When the whole thing hit rock bottom
I was waylaid on the kokomo
Quarantined in the bungalow
Hidden in the vanishing moon glow
And I didn’t have a clue…………………CH
I just returned I’d been out for a smoke
When the phone call said the levee broke
It’s time to go she plainly spoke
Sayin’ “Do you not agree?”
I picked up the bags, she wrapped in a shawl
I stepped on the gas and we both hit the wall
I never dreamed we’d take the fall
But here I go a stumblin’………………..CH
I’m spinnin’ my wheels, can’t get no traction
I’m up on the mend from this over reaction
All this publicity but no satisfaction
And the hits just keep on comin’……………..CH
(refrain)
She’s not the same no more
– ooh the same no more
– not the same