1. |
Natatorium
04:13
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NATATORIUM copyright Ben Ballinger 2014
I got my first kiss in the Fort Dalles Museum
I smoked stolen cigarettes under the bridge
And I peed in the natatorium.
I kicked that cold, smokin Camels
I won that race with a hangover
And I'll follow you with a broken heart.
You are the laughing bleeding smiling singing woman I want to marry
You with my t-shirt as your tourniquet, my automobile,
Your good Samaritan
I'm as naked as a jay bird in the middle of the middle of nowhere
And all I have is a black ski mask, hitchhiking at night,
On an unused overpass
And I will lose my life, If I lose you, I love you
Don't make me die in pursuit
You are my Greyhound bus, full of hot chocolate,
Compass glow in the darkness, You are my warmest quilted comforter,
My knitted mittens, my seamless red umbrella
Tell me not, Tell me not to waste my time
Tell me not, Tell me not to live a lie
Tell me not, Tell me not to love a lass....
Praying high and low, she loves you back
And I will lose my life, If I lose you, I love you
Don't make me die in pursuit
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2. |
Radio
03:52
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RADIO copyright Ben Ballinger 2011
I can be a loud mouth lunatic
Full of Ads and static
On the low end of the AM dial
And I say, Ba-By Oh!
Let me be your Ra-Di-Oh!
I can love you e - ven though
I Tell You This From a Mi-cro-phone
I'm the saving grace for some
You couldn't beat me for a cheap companion
I'm a melody You can't help but sing
You're my one and only Listener
My morning Growl, My evening whisper
Baby Receive Me, Please Believe Me,
I can love you even though,
I tell you this from a microphone
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3. |
Rise and Run
04:08
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Rise and Run
In the morning i’m gonna rise and run away
This town has had it’s last look at my face
In a burning barn up the creek I was born and raised
I got a top notch education from my mistakes
I gave nothing, I took everything I could take
For a tale like mine I’m in pretty good shape
When I was young, I planned my great escape
Now I’m a coward, stuck in the planning phase
And it doesn’t matter how many times I moved away
Everytime that I look up I’m back in this place
I do believe the life I live is trapped in a bottle
its a lonely path, I didn’t plan to follow
Like a frog in a pot starting to boil
Im just sitting here, drawing shapes in the soil
All my window frames are filled with looking glass
I want to lock that door and never look back
I have no faith in the forecast, there’s rain in store
Time is a river, the past is a resevoure
And it doesn’t matter how many times I moved away
Every time that I look up I’m back in this place
So I say goodbye to the Granada, broken bulbs and all
Im heading South if I can climb my own brick wall
And it doesn’t matter how many times I moved away
Every time that I look up I’m back in this place
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4. |
Pocketknife
04:34
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POCKETKNIFE copyright Ben Ballinger 2011
Take me up that long gravel driveway
Show me to the inside of that shed
Hand me mason jars of rusty hardware
And I will do my best to make some sense
Build my brother and I a wooden bunkbed
Watch me as I learn to tie my shoes
Let me lick the bowl when you make brownies
And discipline me with a wooden spoon
And the world hurts
And the eyes burn
Life hits you in the cheek
and the world turns
Blackbeans and rice left over
Cream cheese birthday carrot cake
Doctor Pepper Bourbon chaser
Know I don't know what I think x2
Know I don't know what I eyeeeee
Draw a dusty line across the dresser
Wring out another ragged cotton towel
Dig the dandelions with your pocketknife
Muttering “It's good to be Alive” Chorus Outro
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5. |
Astoria
04:17
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ASTORIA copyright Ben Ballinger 2007
You tried to tame your dress on a day that begged for a kite
And I walked you as a lady with the weather on my side
I want to mess up your hair when there's nobody there
I want to taste your tenderness
Astoria! I owe ya a cough syrup Sunday
You fined me for “Failure to use restraint”
I built my love on pillars that I fashioned with my helpful hands
And you smiled like a lover unaware I was working with sand
I want to braid your hair around my neck
I want to feel you like fields feel rain
Astoria! Well I owe ya a hammock in the autumn afternoon
where I can sleep 'til I die, Trying not to miss you
I spoke with hope of a sun, setting slow over our shared horizon
And the men in me and the moon both knew the tide was rising
I want to carve my arms with symbols of you.
For I have loved you so much that it scarred my heart.
Astoria! I owe ya The mouth of the Columbia!
You gave me a green steel road arched like a rainbow
Astoria! I owe ya a single shot salute
Fired at my heart in honor of you and the truth. . . .
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6. |
Ashes to Ashes
04:57
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ASHES TO ASHES copyright Ben Ballinger 2012
I believe that when we are born,
we contain no original sin.
We are helplessly innocent and for a while
I was no exception.
But as I grew I saw the great divide
in between right and wrong
I didn't lose my innocence,
I gave it away one piece at a time
My disposition is not my decision,
I was born beneath a black tree
And despite the advice, I've learned otherwise
that the world has it out for me
Good Lord! That's some bad luck.
Lightning Twice has Struck
Call it what you want to,
I don't want to argue,
I call it The Blues....
It's been a blue moon or two
since I was down
And that means for me
it will be any day now.
My life was going alright,
I had almost overcome
But I made a deal when I did the Deed
and I can't Run.
Well I got a heart so fond of Sadness,
Oh you know that I have this
And a head so full of Gloom,
I have that too
I have a life long sentence
and nothing to lose
Call it what you want to,
I don't want to argue,
I call it The Blues.
Well I tried to leave them on the Highway,
in a storm of tears and headlights
I thought I was stronger than my sadness
but my Blues beat me in a fair fight
I tried to drown them in Liquor,
I tried to smother them in Lust,
Call it what you want to....
ASHES TO ASHES DUST TO DUST
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Ben Ballinger Austin, Texas
Ben Ballinger makes roots music with an uncommon emotional depth and songwriting mastery. A balladeer in the truest sense, Ballinger is a craftsman, building fine-tuned melodies out of roughhewn passions. After digging deep into the Austin, Texas scene for the past few years, Ballinger stands out among the pack of would-be Country soulmen with an undeniably genuine, and original delivery. ... more
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