Inspired by a recent Forum discussion, here's a fine Beatles tune.

When I'm Sixty-Four

When I get older losing my hair many years from now
Will you still be sending me a valentine,
Birthday greetings, bottle of wine?
If I'd been out til quarter to three would you lock the door?
Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm sixty-four?

Oh, you'll be older too - Ah
And if you say the word, I could stay with you

I could be handy mending a fuse when your lights have gone
You can knit a sweater by the fireside,
Sunday mornings, go for a ride
Doing the garden, digging the weeds, who could ask for more?
Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm sixty-four?

Every summer we could rent a cottage in the Isle of White,
If it's not too dear
We shall skrimp and save, grandchildren at your knees,
Vera, Chuck, and Dave

Send me a postcard, drop me a line stating point of view
Indicate precisely what you mean to say,
Yours sincerely, wasting away
Give me an answer, fill in a form, mine forevermore
Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm sixty-four?

I find that I really like this song *sniff, sniff - puddle, puddle*. Kinda makes me want to take Clark Kent out and buy him a beer or two, y'know?
-------------------
I can't stand to fly,
I'm not that naive
I'm just out to find
The better part of me.

I'm more than a bird...I'm more than a plane,
More than some pretty face beside a train
It's not easy to be me.

Wish that I could cry,
Fall upon my knees.
Find a way to lie
About a home I'll never see...

It may sound absurd...but don't be naive ~
Even heroes have the right to bleed.
I may be disturbed...but won't you concede?
Even heroes have the right to dream.
It's not easy to be me.

Up, up and away...away from me,
It's all right...you can all sleep sound tonight.
I'm not crazy...or anything...

I can't stand to fly,
I'm not that naive.
Men weren't meant to ride
With clouds between their knees.

I'm only a man in a silly red sheet,
Digging for kryptonite on this one way street.
Only a man in a funny red sheet
Looking for special things inside of me,
Inside of me,
Inside me,
Yeah, inside me
Inside of me...

I'm only a man
In a funny red sheet,
I'm only a man
Looking for a dream.

I'm only a man
In a funny red sheet
And it's not easy, hmmm, hmmm, hmmm...

Its not easy to be me..

Often these days, I wish I had led a life like this instead of my rather Milquetoast existence.

McCormack and Richard Tauber are singing by the bed
There's a glass of punch below your feet and an angel at your head
There's devils on each side of you with bottles in their hands
You need one more drop of poison and you'll dream of foreign lands

When you pissed yourself in Frankfurt and got syph down in Cologne
And you heard the rattling death trains as you lay there all alone
Frank Ryan brought you whiskey in a brothel in Madrid
And you decked some f*****g blackshirt who was cursing all the Yids
At the sick bed of Cuchulainn we'll kneel and say a prayer
And the ghosts are rattling at the door and the devil's in the chair

And in the Euston Tavern you screamed it was your shout
But they wouldn't give you service so you kicked the windows out
They took you out into the street and kicked you in the brains
So you walked back in through a bolted door and did it all again
At the sick bed of Cuchulainn we'll kneel and say a prayer
And the ghosts are rattling at the door and the devil's in the chair

You remember that foul evening when you heard the banshees howl
There was lousy drunken b******s singing Billy is in the bowl
They took you up to midnight mass and left you in the lurch
So you dropped a button in the plate and spewed up in the church

Now you'll sing a song of liberty for blacks and paks and jocks
And they'll take you from this dump you're in and stick you in a box
Then they'll take you to Cloughprior and shove you in the ground
But you'll stick your head back out and shout "we'll have another round"
At the graveside of Cuchulainn we'll kneel around and pray
And God is in His heaven, and Billy's down by the bay

Loved those lyrics, stuthehistoryguy ! I believe they might be suitable for many occasions indeed!

Some in my circle always said 'once a Fogelberg-er, always a Fogelberg-er'. I believe it's true. We may all be a bit gray, have "sold out" in several ways and worry about our cholesterol far too much these days but we, like Dan, still hang in there. Try. Observe simply. I heard him sing in a tiny venue once and this song was especially strong as he sang it. In a quietly brutal way...

"Wysteria, did you change your face
again?
Those of us who loved you when
Can't even find you.

Wysteria, did you lose another man?
Did you make him understand
That he can't touch you?

Wysteria, did he take you to the fair?
Were the folks that you met there
The same that we met?
Wysteria, did he teach you how
to dance,
Did he bring you paper fans
to hide your secret?

Was he just like all the rest
When he got to the sad part?
Did he stay a bit too long
To save his heart?

Wysteria, are your lips still lily white?
Do they still bloom just
At night and die at sunrise?"

*sigh*

back in black I hit the sack
I been too long I'm glad to be back
yes I am
let loose from the noose
that's kept me hanging about
I keep looking at the sky cause it's gettin' me high
forget the hearse cause I'll never die
I got nine lives cat's eyes
using every one of them and runnin' wild
cause I'm back
yes I'm back well I'm back
yes I'm back
well I'm back back
well I'm back in black
yes I'm back in black

back in the back of a Cadillac
number one with a bullet I'm a power pack
yes I am
in a bang with the gang
they gotta catch me if they want me to hang
cause I'm back on the track and I'm beatin' the flack
nobody's gonna get me on another rap
so look at me now I'm just makin' my play
don't try to push your luck just get out of my way
cause I'm back
yes I'm back
well I'm back
yes I'm back
well I'm back back
well I'm back in black
yes I'm back in black

I changed these a little:

God, I feel like hell tonight
Tears of rage I cannot fight
I’d be the last to help you understand
Am I strong enough to be your man?

Nothing’s true and nothing’s right
So let me be alone tonight
Cause you can’t change the way I am
Am I strong enough to be your man?

Lie to me
I promise I’ll believe
Lie to me
But please don’t leave

I have a face I cannot show
I make the rules up as I go
It’s try and love me if you can
Am I strong enough to be your man?

When I’ve shown you that I just don’t care
When I’m throwing punches in the air
When I’m broken down and I can’t stand
Will I be strong enough to be your man?

Stu, I hope you won't mind me posting this one, which seems to me somehow fitted with the above

Well it's Saturday night
You're all dressed up in blue
I've been watching you awhile
Maybe you been watching me too
So somebody ran out
Left somebody's heart in a mess
Well if you're looking for love
Honey I'm tougher than the rest

Some girls they want a handsome Dan
Or some good-lookin' Joe
On their arm some girls like
A sweet-talkin' Romeo
Well 'round here baby
I learned you get what you can get
So if you're rough enough for love
Honey I'm tougher than the rest

The road is dark
And it's a thin thin line
But I want you to know I'll walk it for you any time
Maybe your other boyfriends
Couldn't pass the test
Well if you're rough and ready for love
Honey I'm tougher than the rest

Well it ain't no secret
I've been around a time or two
Well I don't know baby maybe you've been around too
Well there's another dance
All you gotta do is say "Yes"
And if you're rough and ready for love
Baby I'm tougher than the rest

Oh, goodness gracious, no, don't ever post anything from Bruce Springsteen, especially something that goes so well with the lyrics above

Hmmm. After reading those, what does the radio dude play?

Down here the river meets the sea,
And in the sticky heat I feel ya open up to me.
Love comes out of nowhere baby, like a hurricane.
And it feels like rain...

Underneath the stars, lying next to you,
Wondering who you are, baby.
How do you do?
When the clouds blow in across the moon
And the wind howls out your name?
Feels like rain...

We'll never make that bridge tonight
Across Lake Ponchartrain.
Feels like rain...

Batten down the hatches
But keep your heart out on your sleeve.
A little bit of stormy weather? That's no cause for us to leave.
Just stay here, baby, in my arms.
Let it wash away the pain.
Feels like rain...

I hear the drums echoing tonight
But she hears only whispers of some quiet conversation
She's coming in 12:30 flight
The moonlit wings reflect the stars that guide me towards salvation
I stopped a nomad along the way
Hoping to find some long forgotten words or ancient melodies
He turned to me as if to say, "Hurry boy, it's waiting there for you"


It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
I blessed the rains down in Africa
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had

The wild dogs cry out in the night
As they grow restless longing for some solitary company
I know that I must do what's right
As sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti
I seek to cure what's deep inside, frightened of this thing that I've become

Hurry boy, she's waiting there for you

It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
I blessed the rains down in Africa, I blessed the rains down in Africa
I blessed the rains down in Africa, I blessed the rains down in Africa
I blessed the rains down in Africa
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had

I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real

The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything

What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know
Goes away in the end
You could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

I wear this crown of thorns
Upon my liar's chair
Full of broken thoughts
I cannot repair

Beneath the stains of time
The feeling disappears
You are someone else
I am still right here

What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know
Goes away in the end
You could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt
If I could start again
A million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way

This one is a very stirring piece by Loreena McKennit, a Canadian folk singer. The music gives it life and atmosphere however the words are beautiful. She travels the world and writes songs from her experiences and cultural awakenings. This one is from her last trip (and subsequent album) when she read Dante's 'The Divine Comedy'.........hence the title - 'Dante's Prayer'.


When the dark wood fell before me
And all the paths were overgrown
When the priests of pride say there is no other way
I tilled the sorrows of stone

I did not believe because I could not see
Though you came to me in the night
When the dawn seemed forever lost
You showed me your love in the light of the stars

Cast your eyes on the ocean
Cast your soul to the sea
When the dark night seems endless
Please remember me

Then the mountain rose before me
By the deep well of desire
From the fountain of forgiveness
Beyond the ice and fire

Cast your eyes on the ocean
Cast your soul to the sea
When the dark night seems endless
Please remember me

Though we share this humble path, alone
How fragile is the heart
Oh give these clay feet wings to fly
To touch the face of the stars

Breathe life into this feeble heart
Lift this mortal veil of fear
Take these crumbled hopes, etched with tears
We'll rise above these earthly cares

Cast your eyes on the ocean
Cast your soul to the sea
When the dark night seems endless
Please remember me
Please remember me

only hope, by Mandy Moore

There's a song that's inside of my soul.
It's the one that I've tried to write over and over again
I'm awake in the infinite cold.
But you sing to me over and over and over again.

So, I lay my head back down.
And I lift my hands and pray
To be only yours, I pray, to be only yours
I know now you're my only hope.

Sing to me the song of the stars.
Of your galaxy dancing and laughing and laughing again.
When it feels like my dreams are so far
Sing to me of the plans that you have for me over again.

So I lay my head back down.
And I lift my hands and pray
To be only yours, I pray, to be only yours
I know now, you're my only hope.

I give you my destiny.
I'm giving you all of me.
I want your symphony, singing in all that I am
At the top of my lungs, I'm giving it back.

So I lay my head back down.
And I lift my hands and pray
To be only yours, I pray, to be only yours
I pray, to be only yours
I know now you're my only hope.

The Right Place - Eddi Reader

The lights are on our side, driving out of town tonight
This night the colour of blue glass
The warm wind is in our hair, summertime is everywhere
It's funny how today just flew past
I've been in the wrong place, I've been in the wrong place
Long enough to know I'm in the right place now
Five or ten lifetimes ago, there lived a girl that you don't know
She walked about and answered to my name
But let's not talk of strangers now, of where and when or why and how
I've turned around and I'm looking at a new day
I've been in the wrong place, I've been in the wrong place
Long enough to know I'm in the right place now
I've been waiting so long, I've been waiting so long
I've been waiting so long
Now I don't mind if the sun goes down
The night can't hurt me now
The summer's young and the road is clear
I thank whatever brought me here
I've been in the wrong place, I've been in the wrong place
Long enough to know I'm in the right place now
I'm in the right place now

Hay, Lioness, and Denni, those were great. Really resonated with me in many ways.

I think you'll like this one - it captures about where I was about eight months ago, and where I still am to a degree.

+++++++++++++++++++++++
Early one mornin' the sun was shinin',
I was layin' in bed
Wond'rin' if she'd changed at all
If her hair was still red.
Her folks they said our lives together
Sure was gonna be rough
They never did like Mama's homemade dress
Papa's bankbook wasn't big enough.
And I was standin' on the side of the road
Rain fallin' on my shoes
Heading out for the East Coast
Lord knows I've paid some dues gettin' through,
Tangled up in blue.

She was married when we first met
Soon to be divorced
I helped her out of a jam, I guess,
But I used a little too much force.
We drove that car as far as we could
Abandoned it out West
Split up on a dark sad night
Both agreeing it was best.
She turned around to look at me
As I was walkin' away
I heard her say over my shoulder,
"We'll meet again someday on the avenue,"
Tangled up in blue.

I had a job in the great north woods
Working as a cook for a spell
But I never did like it all that much
And one day the ax just fell.
So I drifted down to New Orleans
Where I happened to be employed
Workin' for a while on a fishin' boat
Right outside of Delacroix.
But all the while I was alone
The past was close behind,
I seen a lot of women
But she never escaped my mind, and I just grew
Tangled up in blue.

She was workin' in a topless place
And I stopped in for a beer,
I just kept lookin' at the side of her face
In the spotlight so clear.
And later on as the crowd thinned out
I's just about to do the same,
She was standing there in back of my chair
Said to me, "Don't I know your name?"
I muttered somethin' underneath my breath,
She studied the lines on my face.
I must admit I felt a little uneasy
When she bent down to tie the laces of my shoe,
Tangled up in blue.

She lit a burner on the stove and offered me a pipe
"I thought you'd never say hello," she said
"You look like the silent type."
Then she opened up a book of poems
And handed it to me
Written by an Italian poet
From the thirteenth century.
And every one of them words rang true
And glowed like burnin' coal
Pourin' off of every page
Like it was written in my soul from me to you,
Tangled up in blue.

I lived with them on Montague Street
In a basement down the stairs,
There was music in the cafes at night
And revolution in the air.
Then he started into dealing with slaves
And something inside of him died.
She had to sell everything she owned
And froze up inside.
And when finally the bottom fell out
I became withdrawn,
The only thing I knew how to do
Was to keep on keepin' on like a bird that flew,
Tangled up in blue.

So now I'm goin' back again,
I got to get to her somehow.
All the people we used to know
They're an illusion to me now.
Some are mathematicians
Some are carpenter's wives.
Don't know how it all got started,
I don't know what they're doin' with their lives.
But me, I'm still on the road
Headin' for another joint
We always did feel the same,
We just saw it from a different point of view,
Tangled up in blue.

Doffs hat to Mr. Dylan. And to Stu for posting this .

What I like most about this thread is how a verse from a song immediately makes a weird connection in my mind and directs me to another song I know and like. **I am currently 'haunted' by "You look like the silent type" thing**
I have to confess, somedays it's so difficult for me to restrain from posting 25 songs at once .

I am, for the first time in two years, speechless . I saved the lyrics to "Tangled Up in Blue" yesterday to post on here next time I remembered to. Stopped in today and there it is already. How on Earth can that have happened, with all the songs out there on the fields of space and time? Very cool, really, but almost eerie...

I must say, stu, you certainly picked a terrific song there !

When I think of how scary things are in this country and around the world, this old Dylan song keeps drifting into my mind...

Farewell Angelina
The bells of the crown
Are being stolen by bandits
I must follow the sound
The triangle tingles
And the trumpets play slow
Farewell Angelina
The sky is on fire
And I must go.

There's no need for anger
There's no need for blame
There's nothing to prove
Ev'rything's still the same
Just a table standing empty
By the edge of the sea
Farewell Angelina
The sky is trembling
And I must leave.

The jacks and queens
Have forsaked the courtyard
Fifty-two gypsies
Now file past the guards
In the space where the deuce
And the ace once ran wild
Farewell Angelina
The sky is folding
I'll see you in a while.

See the cross-eyed pirates sitting
Perched in the sun
Shooting tin cans
With a sawed-off shotgun
And the neighbors they clap
And they cheer with each blast
Farewell Angelina
The sky's changing color
And I must leave fast.

King Kong, little elves
On the roof tops they dance
Valentino-type tangos
While the make-up man's hands
Shut the eyes of the dead
Not to embarrass anyone
Farewell Angelina
The sky is embarrassed
And I must be gone.

The machine guns are roaring
The puppets heave rocks
The fiends nail time bombs
To the hands of the clocks
Call me any name you like
I will never deny it
Farewell Angelina
The sky is erupting
I must go where it's quiet.

A dual purpose choice today. First because it's a pretty dandy song and, second, it pays homage to another thread right now since it is sung by The Barenaked Ladies ....

It's the perfect time of year,
Somewhere far away from here.
I feel fine enough, I guess,
Considering everything's a mess.
There's a restaurant down the street
Where hungry people like to eat.
I could walk, but I'll just drive -
It's colder than it looks outside.

It's like a dream - you try to remember but it's gone, then ya
Try to scream but it only comes out as a yawn, when ya
Try to see the world beyond your front door.
Take your time cos the way I rhyme's gonna make you smile, when ya
Realise that a guy my size might take a while, just to
Try to figure out what all this is for.

It's the perfect time of day
To throw all your cares away!
Put the sprinkler on the lawn
And run through with my gym shorts on.
Take a drink right from the hose
And change into some drier clothes.
Climb the stairs up to my room
Sleep away the afternoon.

It's like a dream - you try to remember but it's gone, then ya
Try to scream but it only comes out as a yawn, when ya
Try to see the world beyond your front door.
Take your time cos the way I rhyme's gonna make you smile, when ya
Realise that a guy my size might take a while, just to
Try to figure out what all this is for.
Pinch Me
Pinch Me
Cos I'm still asleep.
Please God
Tell Me
That I'm still asleep

On an evening such as this
It's hard to tell if I exist.
If I Packed the car and leave this town
Who will notice that I'm not around?
I could hide out under there
(I just made you say 'underwear'),
I could leave but I'll just stay.
All my stuff's here anyway.

It's like a dream - you try to remember but it's gone, then ya
Try to scream but it only comes out as a yawn, when ya
Try to see the world beyond your front door.
Take your time cos the way I rhyme's gonna make you smile, when ya
Realise that a guy my size might take a while, just to
Try to figure out what all this is for.
Try to figure out what all this is for.
Try to see the world beyond your front door.
Try to figure out what all this is for.

I'd just like to thank everyone at Funtrivia for their patience, their love, and their understanding. It has really meant a lot to me.
-------------------------------------

When you're weary, feeling small
When tears are in your eyes, I'll dry them all...all...
I'm on your side, oh, when times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

When you're down and out
When you're on the street
When evening falls so hard
I will comfort you
I'll take your part, oh, when darkness comes
And pain is all around
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down


Sail on silver girl
Sail on by
Your time has come to shine
All your dreams are on their way
See how they shine
Oh, if you need a friend
I'm sailing right behind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind

People around me are at it again. God only knows how they do it.
One to another then back again, something keeps putting them through it.
Me, I've been watching more than fifteen years and it hasn't changed a bit.
People keep talking about a different line but it never seems to fit.

This is a song for you far away, far away. This is a song for you far away from me.
This is a song for you far away, far away. This is a song for you far away from me.

Sitting here all alone is bringing it on again, I'm gone again.
Sitting here thinking of you is driving it home again.
This is a song for you far away, far away. This is a song for you far away from me.
Open the door it takes me back, oh it takes me back.
Mention your name and I'm gone again, oh I'm gone again.
This is a song for you far away from me, far away from me.
-JT

A Paul Simon - shaped complaint directed at me from several folks lately - and rightfully so...

Why don't you write me
I'm out in the jungle
I'm hungry to hear you.
Send me a card,
I am waiting so hard
To be near you.
OOOooooooo la,la, la
Why don't you write?
Something is wrong
And I know I got to be there.
Maybe I'm lost,
But I can't make the cost
Of the airfare.
Tell me why
Why
Why
Tell me why
Why







Why don't you write me,
A letter would brighten
My loneliest evening.
Mail it today
If it's only to say
That you're leaving me.
(La, la, la)

Monday morning, sitting in the sun
Hoping and wishing for the mail to come.
Tuesday, never got a word,
Wednesday, Thursday, ain't no sign,
Drank a half a bottle of iodine.
Friday, woe is me
Gonna hang my body from the highest tree.
Why don't you write me?

I met my old lover
On the street last night
She seemed so glad to see me
I just smiled
And we talked about some old times
And we drank ourselves some beers
Still crazy afler all these years
Oh, still crazy after all these years

Im not the kind of man
Who tends to socialize
I seem to lean on
Old familiar ways
And I aint no fool for love songs
That whisper in my ears
Still crazy afler all these years
Oh, still crazy after all these years

Four in the morning
Crapped out, yawning
Longing my life a--way
Ill never worry
Why should i?
Its all gonna fade

Now I sit by my window
And I watch the cars
I fear Ill do some damage
One fine day
But I would not be convicted
By a jury of my peers
Still crazy after all these years
Oh, still crazy
Still crazy
Still crazy after all these years