The Things Dreams Are Made Of
I can't remember the dream I had last night, But it went something like this, She was the only light in the tunnel, And I fawned for her kiss, The morning cut thru us like a shiny blade, And the newly woken dreamers forgot, Like the lampposts grasping circle of light, We can only see our frozen lot, Somewhere a child soars on an eagles back, Somewhere gleams the image of right and wrong, Reality calls to the high priest of the universe, The night will wait but it won't wait long.
I am awake but I’m still dreaming, As the dark spot moves across my brain, Carry me thru this dark night, And this dream I can't explain.
There she was on my pillow, I’m shining silver she’s coming on gold, My eyes are open but my eyes can't see, I was bragging to someone about a lie I told, And there goes the pangs of desire, Hurt me so bad almost like real pain, But the curtain is drawn in the sea, That divides the water from the rain, The floor of the building moved from underneath my feet, Parts of an illusion are in play, And this night really does last forever, It’s just occasionally interrupted by the day.
I am awake but I’m still dreaming, As the dark spot moves across my brain, Carry me thru this dark night, And this dream I can't explain.
There’s my limping fragment of flesh, Drawn into the slumber that feeds it, This is my hopeless night of nights, This is the only time when time needs it, Move to and fro in relative motion, In the dream the chair was in the wrong place, There is some kind of hunger in an empty chair, I’ll never forget that horrible face, And what about that dream, I believe she is awake now, As these dreams try to wake me up, I don’t know when and I don’t know how.
I am awake but I’m still dreaming, As the dark spot moves across my brain, Carry me thru this dark night, And this dream I can't explain.
Dreams are made of..........
April 87
Whirlwind
The muse spoke to me from the whirlwind, And I thought to myself spoken like a true artist, Now I’m gonna drive myself out of this desert, Go home and try to figure out who’s the smartest, I cut thru the oasis of liberty, Where the walking wounded meet the walking dead, I could hear their words clear enough, But I still couldn’t understand what they said, Then I stumbled upon the scene of an accident, They couldn’t decide who was most careless and therefore who to blame, The witness said he felt like a victim just being there, But it was his only claim to fame.
But everyone here I know will go free, And the burden will be put to us all, We’ll seek protection from the lawmakers, And be defended by the law, Those who knew this would happen have already left town, Those who stayed; stayed just to watch, And with the great courage of indifference, Became as children playing hopscotch.
You can't live here unless you want to die here, You can see the reason but there is no rhyme, Living strictly by these rules, Is the most perfect of crimes, But most of these fools are actually thankful for what they’ve got, But we’ve seen it before it’s an old hunter's trick, The trap and the bait are one and the same, The side-effects aren't noticed because they don’t make you sick.
Heroes have their reputation to think about, They have to keep the reins pulled tight, And the goddess of good intentions, Who did wrong but meant to do what was right, It’s not so much cruel as it is just convenient, It’s like a flood in the heart and a drought in the mind, Everybody wants a guarantee they want their moneys worth, Everybody's looking for something they think they can find, It’s the plague of mortality, It’s the vain struggle against the fall, It’s this life of us and them, That will be the death of us all.
July 88
First Day on the Job
"Look I’ve been doing this a long time, And I’m not one to give advice, But if you do what your told and don’t ask no questions, I think you’ll be all right."
I said "man I’ve got so much inside, I’m just dying to let somebody know, But it’s hard to rectify a situation, When it was wrong from the word go, But sometimes don’t you just wanna give it all up, Don’t you ever get hungry; hungry for life."
"Look kid; don’t come in here thinking you can change the place, Most of the people who have tried to help just increased the strife, Just do your job the best you can kid, Don’t let your left hand worry about your right, People around here fall hook line and sinker, So just yank hard if you get a bite."
"But there’s a world to save and I just wanna know, If this is doing any good."
"Look kid around here nobody cares about that kind of thing, You just do what you can you can't always do what you should, Let me tell you nobody even knows what foreign policy is, Never mind what it means, So you best just cover your ass, And don’t make any scenes, Sure there was a time when I used to think, Ah man; there must be a better way, And now I’m sure there is but I still collect my pay, Look the worlds gone crazy; there’s no doubt about it, But what the hell can you do, But if you don’t stick it to them first, They’ll just stick it to you."
"Yeah I don’t understand why that is, But I understand how it works, Somewhere in the heart of every good man, The seed of envy lurks, But why can't the buck stop here, This is a good a place as any, There’s always a few rotten apples, But does there have to be so many, I don’t know sometimes it’s hard just to make it thru the day, And sometimes I feel so high I get dizzy, I just wonder if there’s anybody......."
"Look kid there’s the boss, Look down and pretend your busy."
Sept. 88
The New Dark Age
Where were you when the lights went out, We gathered in a chapel of doom under candle light, No one there had any doubt, That we had won the war but lost the fight, Now a prophet don’t need eyes in the back of his head, The price of an unappreciated luxury is high, And only the already dead, Don’t realize they must die.
Precision earth and random life, My aching heart my own true wife, The snake has shed; shed its skin, And it will; will again, It’s gonna take all our scientists and sages, To save us from the new dark ages.
Technology is killing us and saving us at the same time, It’s hard to tell which it will do first, Somehow this reason just don’t seem to rhyme, You could live beside the ocean and die of thirst, You know second place ain't so bad, Depending on how many were in the race, I’m scared the end of this story is gonna be sad, But that’s the price of first place.
Precision earth and random life, My aching heart my own true wife, The snake has shed; shed its skin, And it will; will again, It’s gonna take all our scientists and sages, To save us from the new dark ages.
Rumors of the apocalypse won't even turn an ear, Everybody’s heard don’t believe everything you hear, This world is so brutal and these bones are so brittle, This is what it means to be stuck in the middle, And if you can’t live with it you my have to die for it, There comes a time when you just can't ignore it, Of all the prophecy that's ever stained this earth, There is none more frightening than the death of birth, But you do what you can just to face what you must, Not sure who to despise not sure who to trust, We have to live our lives as though tomorrow is for sure, We have to suffer this disease although we know the cure.
Precision earth and random life, My aching heart my own true wife, The snake has shed; shed its skin, And it will; will again, It’s gonna take all our scientists and sages, To lead us to the new dark ages.
Aug. 88
The Weatherman
Hey mister where you going with that thermometer in your hand, I know it’s been a long time since we measured time with sand, But I know so well how you like to take command, But yesterday I saw your wife walking with a bigger man, When I asked her how you were doing she just turned around and ran, Oh I know women are so strange, But hey mister it ain't nothing you can't change.
Hey mister you walk with that fork as if you were going to a feast, The celebration's ready but no one called the priest, And no one will eat if the foods not been blessed so the festivities have ceased, I know you want everything perfect your the one I’d suspect the least, To ever have an impure thought or to be seen walking with a barefoot beast, Oh when you wake up you never wonder about your dreams, Hey mister don’t you know everything is closer than it seems.
Hey mister why or you heading to the D.A. with that smirk on your face, We’ve got jails for lawbreakers but it don’t always work like that in this place, Can't you feel these bars we lean against stretched out thru this empty space, Ah but some one like you would never get involved in such a futile race, I forget you know right from wrong and your dying at a much slower pace, Things don’t ever really get you down that much, Hey mister everything turns sterile at your touch.
Hey mister there are people watching you with excited eyes, Out on the town dressed like an average citizen such a perfect disguise, Perfectly poised while you wait for your party’s banner to rise, You talk so much with your own voice but you just repeat someone else's lies, Caught between the rushing river and the bridge of sighs, But you don’t ever make promises to yourself that you don’t keep, And hey mister you don’t ever lose any sleep.
Hey mister you don’t carry a wallet you carry a silk purse, You consider poverty not a problem but a curse, You don’t pay attention you say things couldn’t get any worse, So you play doctor with your own disease and when it hurts you call your nurse, But don’t try to play plumber when the water pipes burst, Ah you have a hard time even feeling your own pain, Hey mister you might be right about this weather but you're wrong about this rain.
Jan. 84
Progressive Regression
You must drink till the glass is empty this is the wine of salvation, You must see with the eyes of the critic look thru the eyes of frustration, Now that the lesson is over the time has come to learn, All the passions are free it’s the right to pay the price you have to earn.
And in the end all you can do is do what you can, The man makes the situation then the situation makes the man.
The night is your lover but the morning is your wife, And her embrace is your freedom but her touch is like a knife, How could a ghost of such glory haunt these minds of such vague imaginations, You bask in the glorious atonements and suffer from expectations.
Ah but let the dead bury the dead while the dying nurse the sick, A different magician a brand new hat but it’s always the same old trick.
You must walk the line on your tiptoes for this is the silent season, What good is the end if you can't justify your means with the reason, Five years ago you thought you'd be further down this road now you're surprised you made it this far, But it’s so easy to be easy when your not sure when you are.
Perfect control over the senses ignoring the pain and the obvious faults, These are the facts of life we live by and the real truth is locked deep inside the vaults.
There’s such life in her body but the smell of suicide is on her breath, You would die for her longing but you couldn’t live thru her death, And the poison she feed you for lunch has now taken its toll, And she opened your mind and the poison leaked into your soul.
And in the end all you can do is do what you can, The man makes the situation then the situation makes the man.
Sept. 85
So Close
Living on the blunt edge of hope, It takes all your strength just to cope, Dying inside in a thousand ways, As my life wanders thru these lifeless days, I’m so close, I’m so close.
Fist tense from aggravation, Mind busy in investigation, I can still see traces of beauty, Where I turn to face my duty, I’m so close, I’m so close.
I close my eyes and you lead me thru, Neither one sure of what the other might do.
We’ve got this free spirit in a cage, In our self contained rage, Disenchanted with this fancy dance, And still scared to take this risky chance, I’m so close, I’m so close.
The gleam in the edge of a shiny knife, The desperation at the end of a desperate life, The moon in the water of a sleepless night, The ten thousand wrongs for the one right, I’m so close, I’m so close.
I close my eyes and you lead me thru, Neither one sure of what the other might do.
Gratitude is not an easy friend, There is only one thing these storm clouds can send, A winner trapped in this losers pool, Blame your weapon and choose a tool, I’m so close, I’m so close.
False heart in your secret prayers, Surprised when you find out nobody cares, You and I walk together alone, Desire disguised in flesh and bone, I’m so close, I’m so close.
I close my eyes and you lead me thru, Neither one sure of what the other might do.
May 87
The Right to Remain Silent
Anything you say my be used against you, Anything you want may be used to tempt you, It’s a vicious world for a gentle man, You do what you must just to face what you can, The blueprint for a new world may be imbedded in your mind, But a good architect sure is hard to find, No one has the right to keep your rights from you, You don’t have to do nothing if that's what you want to do.
You have the right, Not to fight, Come on freedom, Shine your light.
People protesting this; people protesting that, Maybe all that exercise will keep them from getting fat, The foolish rule by majority, Making futile laws for the unmoral minority, Right and wrong don’t have nothing to do with the power of the law, Because the ones who need it the most don’t seem to use it at all, Yeah murderers and rapist still go free but they’ll hang your ass for a DUI, When nothing seems to matter what for you can't help but wonder why.
You have the right, Not to fight, Come on freedom, Shine your light.
You say enough is enough but no not here, If the only thing to fear is fear itself we sure got a lot to fear, Are we going anywhere or just wasting time you say we got nowhere to go, That's what happens when you think your already there and you believe but you don’t know, Maybe someday it will be against the law just to leave your house, Maybe someday it will be conventional for a man to act like a mouse, But don’t think things couldn’t get no worse or that's just one more reason why they will, You see right or wrong ain't the question and freedom is the deal.
You have the right, Not to fight, Come on freedom, Shine your light.
Oct. 88
Advertising Space Available
I saw the news yesterday the war in the Middle East is over, But in South America the first shots had just been fired to start a new one, They interviewed a lady who had seen a bank robbery from a teller's line, She said all she could really see was that the man had a big gun.
And I say hey hey where we going, Hey hey where we been, Oh oh the river's flowing, And we're running a race we’ll never win.
A friend of man got fired from his job because of a drug test, He said man that's the first joint I’ve smoked six months he had his job eight years, Oh big brother want you help me I sure could use a hand, Justice protects our values and provokes our deepest fears.
And I say hey hey where we going, Hey hey where we been, Oh oh the river's flowing, And we're running a race we’ll never win.
Truth is stranger than fiction and blood is thicker than truth, An idea may be good or bad but it’s only an idea just the same, Corruption knows no limits when it’s on a roll, And the quickest way out is to have a good intention to blame.
And I say hey hey where we going, Hey hey where we been, Oh oh the river's flowing, And we're running a race we’ll never win.
I was on my way home from work down Twelfth Avenue, I saw a man on the side of the road with a sign that said I’m hungry give if your able, Then I went down a few blocks toward home, And I saw another sign that said advertising space available.
And I say hey hey where we going, Hey hey where we been, Oh oh the river's flowing, And we're running a race we better win.
Sept. 88
The Human Situation
An experiment in pessimism, Led to a breakthrough, An expert in masochism, And he’s willing to teach you, Nothing ends where nothing starts, Throw away the leftover parts.
I’ll defend this masquerade, While you pretend you’ve got it made.
A dream dance in waking sense, Led to a nightmare, Try hard to make repents, Or try hard not to care, One way in and no way out, Act assured when in doubt.
I’ll amend this psychology, While you apply this philosophy.
A notch-hole in reality, Led to the grand illusion, A utopian fantasy, And a one line conclusion, It’s now a ghost town, Don’t bother to come around.
I’ll advise these ill breed planners, You revise these death bed manners.
A pinpointed mechanical precision, Led to a human error, One moment of indecision, An eternity of terror, Feeding on the endless need, Choking on the mindless greed.
I’ll protect these man made fears, You collect these handmade tears.
A bright spot in dark heart, Led to a poet's pen, But the waters didn’t part, Stuck on the shore again, Body talk and soul castration, This is the human situation.
Feb. 86
May the Best Man
Welcome to the big world little man, Where the best you can do is all you can, In the endless days of yesterday's dreams, And every night is busted at the seams, These fantasies are appalling and appealing at the same time, The blood of the lamb with a twist of lime, Your future reads just like your past, You can't break the spell once it’s been cast.
You resign your self to a troubled life, Divorce the world and take a wife, A choice has been made but you didn’t get to choose, Oh oh may the best man.....
Welcome to the little world big man (pig man), Where the best you can do is the best you can, The end of the road is an easy pace, The fattest rat will win the race, Desire's only limit is a poor cash flow, All dreams come true in reality’s afterglow, The icon who worships his prayers, Who seems concerned but never cares.
Headlong your self righteous ideal is hurled, You divorce your wife and take the world, Your virtue is just a thinly disguised sin, Oh oh may the best man.....
Welcome to the real world simple man, Where all you can do is all you can, Laughter is the middle way between the seriousness and the sorrow, Today is the never ending bridge between yesterday and tomorrow, The kingdom is not the castle nor the king, It’s the song itself that inspires one to sing, The tragic beauty of the truth knows no shame, And the eye of the beholder cast no blame.
The light still pervades in the darkness blind, The path is hard to keep though it’s easy to find, And all those other tall tales well that's just so much shit, Oh oh may the best man quit!
Nov. 87
Two Teardrops
I know a man working two jobs a day, His wife she does the same, They say we're playing by the same set of rules, But I think we're playing a different game, I know a man playing rock and roll in a bar, He’s been there a long long time, The only thing he wants to say, Is this song is mine.
Gotta keep pushing, Make things come out right, It ain't easy to get up in the morning, But it’s just as hard to go to bed at night.
I’ve walked down this street with you so many times girl, We might as well call it home, It’s just a shady street it’s not London Paris or Rome, But we're just two teardrops in this river baby, Not even safe in case of a flood, Life don’t want that much from us just a little sweat and a little blood.
Gotta keep pushing, Make things come out right, It ain't easy to get up in the morning, But it’s just as hard to go to bed at night.
There’s been good men thru the ages, Trying to keep this world in tune, But it don’t work like that, You might as well try to paint the moon, Anytime somebody’s willing to die for something, You can rest assured there’s somebody willing to kill for it too, So just try, try, try, But there’s not that much you can do.
Gotta keep pushing, Make things come out right, It ain't easy to get up in the morning, But it’s just as hard to go to bed at night.
Dec. 83
All Songs Composed, Performed and Recorded by M.M.
Released 01 October 1988
