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I Never Said I'd Make It Easy

by Ken Stringfellow

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Paul Marsh
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Jason Dennie
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Sigurd Alexander Røstad
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1.
Any Sign At All 02:43
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Tell me what went wrong Do you want me not to hear you when you cry? Did you listen when he spoke? Am I the question mark you hoped for? No? Sorry I’ll go away Don’t come home early today The bastard wasn’t cool Did he play you like a harbor to a fool? Though your stomach wasn’t in it As he played you to your limits As if having them’s what mode you feel secure You claim not to want me, are you sure? Any sign at all, I’ll dream it you’ll live it Any sign at all and I’ll give it I’ll give it Any sign at all, if it’s a sign of trouble I won’t stand in your way when it comes your turn to stumble
2.
Down Like Me 03:29
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At last I understand the consequences of my love But how could there be a heaven when they kicked you out Cuz you kicked out your chair from above? Everybody loves to stick with a winner But you showed me the line between victory and dying Couldn't get much thinner 'cuz you You found out how to get down Down like me When my self-pity became less than full time work I meditated on the methods and the means And whether or not it would hurt Then I got the call they found you swinging out over the earth So over me you win again In finishes, forms, in finals and in firsts You finally had to get down Down like me "By the time you read this I will no longer be here" I had to read these words to all your family, friends Everybody you never held dear We'll keep an empty place at dinner forever And I'll maintain and empty chair so you can set in And we'll never grow old together You showed 'em how to get down Down like Down like Down like Down like Down like Down like Me
3.
Find Yourself Alone 03:56
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Drink up and pay and it's time to move on This place is dying and they've turned the lights on Nobody wants to hear the ravings of a bad drunk They're afraid he'll speak their minds and say That you'll find yourself alone No matter who lives in your home You better find yourself alone My life's a car wreck on the side of the road Say nothing but you can't turn away Not a pleasant subject, so I don't blame you for turning away It's the least you could do anyway ’Til you find yourself alone No matter who lives in your home You better find yourself alone 'Cause it doesn't matter--who you are No it doesn't matter--what you make Stand on your own or say goodbye Goodbye I watch myself laying on the floor If there's pain here I can't feel it no more If you're beautiful, if you're young If your talents exceed your faults Here's a reason to be selfish ‘Cause you'll find yourself alone No matter who lives in your home You better find yourself alone You find yourself alone No matter who lives in your home You better find yourself alone You find yourself alone
4.
Sparrow 03:33
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Despite what you have heard You cannot cage this bird The sparrow on the wing Longs to hear you sing Once you have opened your heart to its church You find that the sparrow won't come to its perch Tears in conceit Narrow as your caged beliefs If you must assume the rose may never bloom Is creation such a fact? Can it be taken back? Once you have opened your heart to its church You find that your heart won't come home to its perch Years to complete The arrow winds in two wounds deep Once for those who put a size on love Once for those who only look above for sideways eights Once you have opened your heart to its church You find that your heart has come home to its perch
5.
Reveal Love 05:06
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There's so much pain Pain behind us, pain beside us, pain through us Pain to make us or erase our sense of trust Pain to bring us close or to undo us I wanted you In truth I want you still But you're so far away Unless I play the rules by which you want to play But then I feel you push me back As if it's challenge that you lack I say lover reveal love, never conceal love I want you still Lover be careful before you lose me I won't be still You're so alone Do you deserve it? I know you think so Do you know what's real? Are you afraid what something real could make you feel? Yeah You stayed with him On the losing side, you never gave in But he's so far away And if he didn't help you then, he won't today And you're afraid to make the leap But I only play my heart for keeps I say lover reveal love, never conceal love I want you still Lover be careful before you lose me I won't be still I want you still Or I could wait for you to come To the realization And say lover reveal love, never conceal love--I want you still Lover be careful before you lose me—well I won't be still ‘Cause I want you still--I want you still
6.
Here's to the Future 03:40
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Here’s to the future my friends Hope I can see you there We’ll have a drink together somewhere, somewhere Here’s to the future darlings Whatever may come to pass I send you with my good graces and that’s a fact What have you got to lose? Whichever paths you choose Keep in mind that the fates are kind if you let them be so And I know you will Here’s to the future brothers Raise your cups in the air Here’s to the future sisters and all the unlikely pairs What have you got to lose? Whichever paths you choose Keep in mind that the fates are kind if you let them be so And I tell you no lies Here’s to the future my friends And all that it holds in store I hope that each day from now on holds more Holds more Holds more Holds more Holds more Holds more Holds more Holds more Holds more Holds more Holds more
7.
Airscape 05:29
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And in the element of light The sun reflected from the waves Inshore it spangles The child of air is borne upon the wind that blows across the sea And in the element of summer The cliffs suspended in the heat The air in columns The tiny figures of the world are walking Underneath your feet And underneath your hair Where angels wander I'll wander too Where angels wander Over you And in the element of darkness The starlight shimmers on the spray And falls towards you Your perfect lover's never there And if she was, she wouldn't be And neither would you Save your illusions For someone else Save your illusions For yourself And in the element of laughter The quick explosion and the slow Release of heat The tide recedes upon the bones of something beautiful and drowned In coral and in jade Where angels hover I'll hover too Where angels hover Over you Over you Over you Element
8.
Don't Break The Silence 04:41
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She's not for sale She's deliberately not yours What you can’t own you break with violence She can't be counted She's a wave and an ocean Don't break the silence Don't break the silence Let her hold your face Like the summer's sun rays She burns so bright into the night winds But the winds don't ask her Of what she's made Don't break the silence Don't break the silence 'Cause what she didn't tell you Is that you broke her like The roots break the sidewalks So don't make plans for her It doesn't work To map her like an ancient catacomb She's free to roam And you're free not to stop her Just let her mind gaze On a frozen mystery She'll fill you in when she finds it She's got her own pain Don't make her give it up 'Cause what she didn't tell you Is that you broke her like The roots break the sidewalk So don't make plans for her It doesn't work To map her like an ancient catacomb She's free to roam And you're free not to stop her She's not for sale She's eternally not yours Respect the woman and her science Just feast your eyes On her cold sunrise Don't break the silence Don't break the silence Don't break the silence Don't break the silence Don't break the silence Don't break the silence Don't break the silence
9.
Ask Me No Questions 04:39
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Ask me no questions Tell me no lies if you don't mind And come with me There where the sun files There where the skies are bluer still Is where we'll be Take nothing with you I'll give you everything I can Have no fear For if you stumble Or should you fall along the way I'll be right here Close your eyes my love Close your eyes Gently Come And in the morning Don't tell a soul of what you saw It's just for you Keep it a secret Make me a promise that you will I'll make one too Close your eyes my love Close your eyes Gently, slowly Come Ask me no questions Tell me no lies if you don't mind And come with with me There where the sun flies There where the skies are bluer still Is where we'll be Is where we'll be
10.
Kids Don't Follow 03:17
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11.
You Drew 03:06
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Take the baby's cane away and hide his little braces Left to his devices he still wants that rocky road Feed him all your fables and your periodic tables Fabulous, a fatalist is what he wants to be But you drew the poison from me Picked me off the bayonet tree Pulled me like a tooth that kept your nights from finding sleep Move into a bungalow and disconnect the phone line Hello, grace, it's been awhile Your footsteps can go unnoticed That's not to say that you weren't missed But I guess you weren't invited I never lacked for company It's for care that I was wanting But you drew the poison from me Picked me off the bayonet tree Pulled me like a snaggled little loose tooth It's these late admissions that are driving me from sleep I admit that I admire admiration's name But if you come back to my senses I won't try to reason with you Knowledge gained is knowledge used, it never works out different But you drew the poison from me Picked me off the bayonet tree Pulled me like a snaggled little loose tooth And you drew the poison from me Picked me off the bayonet tree Pulled me like a snaggled little loose Tooth
12.
Any Love (Cassandra et Lune) 04:38
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Cassandra for the sunrise century Taking the moon in her bed like a lover Letting him leave her Taking no others Watching the tides as they fill up her eyes She says she's not upset She says that loneliness is worse than regret We have to wonder What she meant When she told us Any love is good enough We have to wonder What she meant When she told us Any love is good enough The sun comes to her on the windowsill She meets him there, he says “Come ride on my flaming hands By tomorrow we'll be painting the horizons With the gold streaks of a good goodbye What would the Moon suspect? He only sees the clouds that slither by his head” We have to wonder What she meant When she told us Any love is good enough We have to wonder What she meant When she told us Any love is good enough “Could heaven keep the light on so I can keep my eye on you? You and only you And follow you as far as I can go” There's a break in the trees the Moon is shining through She rolls down the window and says ‘”Is it you? Is it you?” Gravity turned him Comets had burned him, too She splashes the river to move his reflection She says ”Could heaven keep the light on So God can keep his eye on you? You and only you And follow you as far as you can go” We have to wonder What she meant When she told us Any love is good enough We have to wonder What she meant When she told us Any love is good enough We have to wonder What she meant When she told us Any love is good enough We have to wonder What she meant When she told us Any love is good enough
13.
Known Diamond 05:29
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Hearing the phone ring Another angel lost its wings Better to save it For when you really need something “Is heaven abandoned?” The words that you could never write They called me to send me Wondering where you are tonight Like a known diamond, they say you got the light, girl So take the right to find the fire that fits Your faded heart The shadow of diamonds, it kept you from my sight, girl Don't walk away, just say you'll stay engaged in who you are What you rejected when the harbor lights went out When all is uncertain, you can soothe yourself with doubt You look to the mirror and ask if they make fables there You know that you're moving fast when your surface is bare Like a known diamond, they say you got the light, girl So take the right to find the fire that fits Your faded heart The rumor of diamonds can set the dogs to fight, girl So hear these words of mine that say your shine is genuine Locked away, to keep the thieves from finding out Remember the sunlight when out in the world you'd walk? You'd drift like a smoke ring in the shadows of New York Then you see her picture, and wonder if you ever left You can Throw dirt on a memory, but you could never say it's dead You can Throw dirt on a memory, but you could never say it's dead Like a known diamond, they say you got the light, girl So take the right to find the fire that fits your faded heart The illusion of diamonds, it kept you from my sight, girl Don't walk away, just say you'll stay engaged in who you are
14.
Cyclone Graves 03:58
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You can't run away You were born it's all the same game Tear off the roof of your life And start your searching again You came on the day the clouds went away To their cyclone graves Where they stay, as sure as I say, that I hope you never go blind I hope that you're more than just kind Oh, to yourself You talk to the wind And you hope that it will listen in (And) blow you back where you can begin To resemble your weakest sin (But) you came on the day the winds blew away To their cyclone graves Where they stay, as sure as I say, that I hope you never go blind I hope that you're more than just kind Better find it, never fight it, never regret your heart Your love makes you less than useless, oh to yourself There's something about the way you hide The strength to engage an alibi Under the scrutiny of love What will it take to raise you above yourself? Divine or profane? Drink the wine or linger in the rain? Maybe you don't have to choose And fortune's smiling on everyone And I think it's smiling on you You came on the day the clouds blew away To their cyclone graves Where they stay, as sure as I say, that I hope you never go blind I hope that you're more than just kind Better find it, never fight it, never regret your heart Your love makes you less than useless Love makes you humble Pulls you forward Never fight it, never fight it, never regret your heart Your love makes you less than useless Oh to yourself
15.
Death of a City 04:31
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Did Ray really survive The death of a city that once was alive? Still wears bespoke suits He feels fireproof Maybe religion still offers him proof And he walks right through you and I now Silently make his usual rounds Oh, you're over and done with now You've broken my heart in But that's not important - a minor misfortune Now you're over and done with now The death of a city And nobody really cared Back streets Somebody weeps Closed circuit cameras are making the sweep And they look down on grass turning brown ‘Cause nothing is able to live in this town So you go out, late, and look for the stars All you see is orange on the clouds Oh, you're over and done with now You've broken my heart in But that's not important - a minor misfortune Now you're over and done with now The death of a city And nobody really cares Are we able to see what somebody was dreaming in steel and stone? Streets laid workers were paid and the skyline was something everyone owned And you know sometimes that's all you get to No you're not going now not when we're still enough to hear our own sounds Like when we breathe through each other's mouths The broken out window gives view to the south Now was it just a trick of the light Or did I see movement attracting my sight? Or is it somebody waiting for word To pull the curtain down? But oh, you're over and done with now You've broken my heart in But that's not important - a minor misfortune Now you're over and done with now The death of a city And nobody really cared Oh, you're over and done with now You've broken my heart in But that's not important - a minor misfortune Oh you're over and done with now The death of a city And nobody really cared But don't cry - don't cry 'Cause it's over and done with Over and done with now
16.
Never My Love 03:40
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You ask me if there'll come a time When I will grow tired of you Never, my love Never, my love You wonder if this heart of mine Will lose its desire for you Never, my love Never, my love What makes you think love will end? When you know that my whole life depends On you (on you) Never, my love Never, my love You say you fear I'll change my mind And I won't require you, well Never, my love Never, my love How can you think love will end When I've asked you to spend your whole life With me? (with me) With me (with me) With me With me Never, my love (Never, my love) Never, my love Never, my love Never, my love

about

A selection of the best songs from my first three solo albums, plus rarities

credits

released June 30, 2014

"Any Sign At All" from "This Sounds Like Goodbye" LP (1997) written by Ken Stringfellow, published by Fastmillk Music BMI

"Down Like Me", "Find Yourself Alone", "Sparrow", "Reveal Love" and "Here's to the Future" from "Touched" LP (1997) written by Ken Stringfellow and published by SOFT Rebellion songs BMI

"Airscape" written by Robyn Hitchcock and published by August 23rd Music/Bug Music Ltd

"Don't Break the Silence" written by Ken Stringfellow and published by SOFT Rebellion songs BMI

"Ask Me No Questions" written by Bridget St. John and published by Biscuit Music

"Kids Don't Follow" written by Paul Westerberg and published by Warner Chappell Music Inc.

"You Drew", "Any Love", "Known Diamond", "Cyclone Graves", "Death of a City" and "Never My Love" from Soft Commands LP (2004) and published by SOFT Rebellion Songs except "Never My Love" written by Don & Dick Addrisi and published by Universal Music Careers & Warner-Tamerlane Publishing

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Ken Stringfellow Seattle, Washington

A fixture on the music landscape, indie and otherwise, since the debut of his band The Posies in 1988, Ken Stringfellow has over thirty-five years of experience as a performer, composer, producer, arranger, programmer and more. In addition to his eight albums with the Posies and four solo albums, Ken spent a decade touring and recording with R.E.M and 17 years with Memphis cult band Big Star. ... more

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