PAGEANT SQUARE
don’t walk down to pageant square
there’s no one there to lean on
don’t walk down to pageant square
there’s no one there to lean on
no one could have seen this coming
tightened lips without the humming
pushed aside to stand the winter
sealing cracks and sanding splinters
parisian clay
parisian clay
don’t walk down to pageant square
there’s no one there to lean on
don’t walk down to pageant square
there’s no one there to lean on
forest foliage growing thicker
friendly bushes start to bicker
wearing coats that warm our worry
parting ways has made things blurry
parisian clay
parisian clay
don’t walk down to pageant square
there’s no one there to lean on
don’t walk down to pageant square
there’s no one there to lean on
no one could have seen this coming
tightened lips without the humming
pushed aside to stand the winter
sealing cracks and sanding splinters
parisian clay
parisian clay
REGULAR HANDS
it’s interesting you left
because i’m not who i say i am
eloquently put
just a pair of regular hands
try to shape the contour of our land
just a pair of regular hands
try to shape the contour of our land
PISS DIARY
if you could only stay
even for a day
we could spend some time
yes you’ve spent some time
i’ve seen you with your books
memorizing lines
up at some day school
making others out as fools
sweet autumn leaves seem to long for the pre-garden days
sweet autumn leaves seem to long for the pre-garden days
you and arthur meade
taught me how to read
and how to waste a day
paint pictures of photographs
i paint pictures that made you laugh
sweet autumn leaves seem to long for the pre-garden days
sweet autumn leaves seem to long for the pre-garden days
little girl who’s got the blues
just you, the cat, and the covers on the bed
and your subject’s were once rough
but now they lack the stuff
sweet autumn leaves seem to long for the pre-garden days
sweet autumn leaves seem to long for the pre-garden days
go on about keeping warm
and you wonder why the doctor warned you not to flip your wig
i heard that you were out there, breaking weather
let me take you where the moss grows
like walking out into the year’s first snow
let me take you where the moss grows
like walking out into the year’s first snow
sweet autumn leaves seem to long for the pre-garden days
sweet autumn leaves seem to long for the pre-garden days
CROSS YOUR EYES
trust in me when i say i’ll leave you all behind
trust in me to trust in you to take it all in stride
so place this in the hands of those who have forgotten
cause everything you’ve tried to say has finally turned to rotten
cross your eyes to see
burning holes in me
cross your eyes to see
burning holes in me
i never even thought to ask you what you’re doing here
but it was easier to talk without the atmosphere
lately i’ve said goodbye to more people than i thought i’d known
you said let’s see the country now you’re on your own
cross your eyes to see
burning holes in me
cross your eyes to see
burning holes in me
trust in me when i say i’ll leave you all behind
trust in me to trust in you to take it all in stride
so place this in the hands of those who have forgotten
cause everything you’ve tried to say has finally turned to rotten
cross your eyes to see
burning holes in me
cross your eyes to see
burning holes in me
HAWAII IN TEN SECONDS
hear this float away
i can’t concentrate on weather or sunny days
i can’t concentrate
perfect and glistening
nobody’s listening
perfect and glistening
nobody’s listening
HOW CRUEL
how cruel the fate that brought me here
to dwell with my boredom and sorrow
i’d leave today if i could have it my way
but i guess i’ll just wait for tomorrow
she’s lost, i know, so far from home
and she don’t need a man to defend her
i pour a drink to help me think
on the terms of my final surrender
well i turn my eyes from this gilded prize
let my purpose be served by another
i wait and i wait
and i hope and i pray
for the crime that my conscience can’t smother
FIELDS
world-weary with blinded eyes
i felt the flashes of chairman nice
we danced alone from town to town
past a mix of woven shrouds
where the world and language change
my empty room never felt so strange
camera flair
little air
he reached for the ladder but settled for a chair
little air
the easy answer that is reached for but never there
i’m in love with a tragedy
in stitches with grinded teeth
where all the hills are occupied
the daily drag of afterlife
pacific groves in perfect lines
a frozen road of faceless signs
camera flair
little air
he reached for the ladder but settled for a chair
little air
the easy answer that is reached for but never there
camera flair
little air
he reached for the ladder but settled for a chair
little air
the easy answer that is reached for but never there
NEW OLD FRIEND BLUES
well it’s hard not crumble
under the pressure of an angry woman
well it’s hard not crumble
under the pressure of an angry woman
see her stare beneath her furrowed brow
and all those things unsaid
leave me wondering how
we’re the angriest of women
and we’re the silliest of men
i’ve got a friend for you
a friend with the old friend blues
well it’s been some years
and i’ve thrown some fights
bad blood and a bottle of wine
get drunk before you see the light
i’ve got a friend for you
a friend with the old friend blues
i’ve got a friend for you
a friend with the old friend blues
WHETHER OR NOT IT MATTERS
the sections of glass are romancing my brain
underground speech keeps me laughing again at
the hair on the trees as the canvases melt
the fits of traps and the different stories told
i realize i’m tired from the endless talking
this is the day that could spare me the trouble
we’re hopeless and now we’re bottomed out
whether or not it matters doesn’t matter
stones and rocks for the purpose of stepping
the audience grieves while the actor is crying
the table is shaky but it holds all the trophies
making my way through the long cold empty hall
FANFARE
well i failed to take in all those things that you did
for the sake of my being and the state i was in
the coldest and darkest place that i’ll go
will suit me just fine if it doesn’t move slow
don’t look at that
take it back
cause i can still see with my eyes closed
heads look down pressing on
and we will all march with the fanfare
curvy roads and warning signs
we will all wait with our open arms
don’t look at that
take it back
cause i can still see with my eyes closed
heads look down pressing on
and we will all march with the fanfare
curvy roads and warning signs
we will all wait with our open arms
SILVER TREES
silver trees
pinwheels in the snow
no we didn’t see you
that year you kept your shutters closed
well i’ve been sleeping
to your face
and i’ve been talking to your songs
every single day
i find a different way
to keep my feet off of the ground
and though i never fought the law
i can lie about it all
and though i never fought the law i can lie
what you say
and what you mean
are always two completely different things
they love your riddles
and your plans
they say i was funny before i was a man
i don’t remember
i was too young to see
all those things that happened right in front of me
every single day
i find a different way
to keep my feet off of the ground
every single day
i find a different way
to separate my head from my shoulders
every single day
i find a different way
to shun the warmth, embrace a coldness
embrace a coldness
Kingsbury Manx 