Undying Love

Would You Lay With me (In A Field of Stone)

WOULD YOU LAY WITH ME IN A FIELD OF STONE
IF MY NEEDS WERE STRONG, WOULD YOU LAY WITH ME

SHOULD MY LIPS GROW DRY,
WOULD YOU WET THEM, DEAR
IN THE MIDNIGHT HOUR,
IF MY LIPS WERE DRY

WOULD YOU GO AWAY TO ANOTHER LAND
WALK A THOUSAND MILES THROUGH THE BURNING SAND
WIPE THE BLOOD AWAY FROM MY DYING HAND
IF I GIVE MYSELF TO YOU

WOULD YOU LAY WITH ME
IN THE STREAM OF LIFE
WHEN THE MOON IS FULL,
WOULD YOU BATHE WITH ME

WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME,
WHEN I'M DOWN AND OUT
IN MY TIME OF TRIAL,
WOULD YOU STAND BY ME

WOULD YOU GO AWAY TO ANOTHER LAND
WALK A THOUSAND MILES THROUGH THE BURNING SAND
WIPE THE BLOOD AWAY FROM MY DYING HAND
IF I GIVE MYSELF TO YOU

WOULD YOU LAY WITH ME
IN A FIELD OF STONE
IF MY NEEDS WERE STRONG,
WOULD YOU LAY WITH ME



Boulder To Birmingham

I don't want to hear a love song
I got on this airplane just to fly
And I know there's life below
But all that it can show me
Is the prairie and the sky

And I don't want to hear a sad story
Full of heartbreak and desire
The last time I felt like this
It was in the wilderness and the canyon was on fire
And I stood on the mountain in the night and I watched it burn
I watched it burn, I watched it burn.

I would rock my soul in the bosom of Abraham
I would hold my life in his saving grace.
I would walk all the way from Boulder to Birmingham
If I thought I could see, I could see your face.

Well you really got me this time
And the hardest part is knowing I'll survive.
I have come to listen for the sound
Of the trucks as they move down
Out on ninety five
And pretend that it's the ocean
coming down to wash me clean, to wash me clean
Baby do you know what I mean

I would rock my soul in the bosom of Abraham
I would hold my life in his saving grace.
I would walk all the way from Boulder to Birmingham
If I thought I could see, I could see your face.

Red Dirt Girl

This is a beautiful but terribly sad song about two girls with dreams.  One made hers come true.  The other completely lost her way.  Your challenge is to Take This Tune and tell us about choices and outcomes.

Important Notice:  This will be the last "Take This Tune" I do on this site.  I will continue to do them every once in a while on my regular site:  Durward Discussion.




Me and my best friend Lillian
And her blue tick hound dog Gideon,
Sittin on the front porch cooling in the shade
Singin every song the radio played
Waitin for the Alabama sun to go down
Two red dirt girls in a red dirt town
Me and Lillian
Just across the line and a little southeast of Meridian.

She loved her brother I remember back when
He was fixin up a '49 Indian
He told her 'Little sister, gonna ride the wind
Up around the moon and back again"
He never got farther than Vietnam,
I was standin there with her when the telegram come
For Lillian.
Now he's lyin somewhere about a million miles from Meridian.

She said there's not much hope for a red dirt girl
Somewhere out there is a great big world
Thats where I'm bound
And the stars might fall on Alabama
But one of these days I'm gonna swing
My hammer down
Away from this red dirt town
I'm gonna make a joyful sound

She grew up tall and she grew up thin
Buried that old dog Gideon
By a crepe myrtle bush in the back of the yard,
Her daddy turned mean and her mama leaned hard
Got in trouble with a boy from town
Figured that she might as well settle down
So she dug right in
Across a red dirt line just a little south east from Meridian

She tried hard to love him but it never did take
It was just another way for the heart to break
So she dug right in.
But one thing they don't tell you about the blues
When you got em
You keep on falling cause there ain't no bottom
There ain't know end.
At least not for Lillian

Nobody knows when she started her skid,
She was only 27 and she had five kids.
Coulda' been the whiskey,
Coulda been the pills,
Coulda been the dream she was trying to kill.
But there won't be a mention in the news of the world
About the life and the death of a red dirt girl
Names Lillian
Who never got any farther across the line than Meridian.

Now the stars still fall on Alabama
Tonight she finally laid
That hammer down
Without a sound
In the red dirt ground

Ain't Talking

This video below is a little strange as You Tube was being difficult about the copyrights involved. If you don't have the Modern Times album in your collection, it is well worth adding to Mr. Dylan's wealth and buying it. It is one of the best examples of his poetry with all the layered meanings. Take This Tune and have fun.





As I walked out tonight in the mystic garden
The wounded flowers were dangling from the vine
I was passing by yon cool crystal fountain
Someone hit me from behind

Ain't talking, just walking
Through this weary world of woe
Heart burning, still yearning
No one on earth would ever know

They say prayer has the power to heal
So pray for me, mother
In the human heart an evil spirit can dwell
I am trying to love my neighbor and do good unto others
But oh, mother, things ain't going well

Ain't talking, just walking
I'll burn that bridge before you can cross
Heart burning, still yearning
There'll be no mercy for you once you've lost

Now I'm all worn down by weeping
My eyes are filled with tears, my lips are dry
If I catch my opponents ever sleeping
I'll just slaughter them where they lie

Ain't talking, just walking
Through the world mysterious and vague
Heart burning, still yearning
Walking through the cities of the plague.

Well, the whole world is filled with speculation
The whole wide world which people say is round
They will tear your mind away from contemplation
They will jump on your misfortune when you're down

Ain't talking, just walking
Eating hog eyed grease in a hog eyed town.
Heart burning, still yearning
Some day you'll be glad to have me around.

They will crush you with wealth and power
Every waking moment you could crack
I'll make the most of one last extra hour
I'll revenge my father's death then I'll step back

Ain't talking, just walking
Hand me down my walking cane.
Heart burning, still yearning
Got to get you out of my miserable brain.

All my loyal and my much-loved companions
They approve of me and share my code
I practice a faith that's been long abandoned
Ain't no altars on this long and lonesome road

Ain't talking, just walking
My mule is sick, my horse is blind.
Heart burning, still yearning
Thinking about that girl I left behind.

Well, it's bright in the heavens and the wheels are flying
Fame and honor never seem to fade
The fire gone out but the light is never dying
Who says I can't get heavenly aid?

Ain't talking, just walking
Carrying a dead man's shield
Heart burning, still yearning
Walking with an ache in my heel

The suffering is unending
Every nook and cranny has its tears
I'm not playing, I'm not pretending
I'm not nursing any superfluous fears

Ain't talking, just walking
Walking ever since the other night.
Heart burning, still yearning
Walking until I'm clean out of sight.

As I walked out in the mystic garden
On a hot summer day, a hot summer lawn
Excuse me, ma'am, I beg your pardon
There's no one here, the gardener is gone

Ain't talking, just walking
Up the road, around the bend.
Heart burning, still yearning
In the last outback at the world's end.

Big Chill Double Decker

One of my favorite movies and soundtracks is "The Big Chill" with its window on a generation. It featured 14 great songs that acted both as music for the film and commentary on the interaction of the characters. This week you get your choice of two songs to use for your Take This Tune prompt. Hope you have as much fun as the cast did in the kitchen.

Don't forget to sign in when you post your blog piece so everyone can visit during the week.



Ain't Too Proud To Beg - The Temptations

I know you wanna leave me,
But I refuse to let you go
If I have to beg and plead for your sympathy,
I don't mind coz' you mean that much to me

Ain't too proud to beg, sweet darlin
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me, girl, don't you go

Now I heard a cryin' man,
Is half a man with no sense of pride
But if I have to cry to keep you,
I don't mind weepin' if it'll keep you by my side

Ain't to proud to beg, sweet darlin
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go

If I have to sleep on your doorstep
All night and day just to keep you from walkin' away
Let your friends laugh, even this I can stand
Because I want to keep you any way I can

Ain't too proud to beg, sweet darlin'
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go

Now I've gotta love so deep in the pit of my heart
And each day it grows more and more
I'm not ashamed to come and plead to you baby
If pleadin' keeps you from walkin' out that door

Ain't too proud to beg, you know it sweet darlin'
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Baby, baby, baby, baby (sweet darling)



You Can't Always Get What You Want - The Rolling Stones

I saw her today at the reception
A glass of wine in her hand
I knew she was gonna meet her connection
At her feet was footloose man

You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes well you might find
You get what you need

I went down to the demonstration
To get my fair share of abuse
Singing, "We're gonna vent our frustration
If we don't we're gonna blow a 50-amp fuse"

You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes well you just might find
You get what you need

I went down to the Chelsea drugstore
To get your prescription filled
I was standing in line with Mr. Jimmy
And man, did he look pretty ill
We decided that we would have a soda
My favorite flavor, cherry red
I sung my song to Mr. Jimmy
Yeah, and he said one word to me, and that was "dead"
I said to him

You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes well you just might find
You get what you need

You get what you need--yeah, oh baby

I saw her today at the reception
In her glass was a bleeding man
She was practiced at the art of deception
Well I could tell by her blood-stained hands

You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes well you just might find
You just might find
You get what you need

The House That Built Me

Whew! Almost forgot to put up a song. Now if someone other than Travis would join in, I would appreciate it. Just sign in any time this week if you have a story about what made you you.

The House That Built Me - Miranda Lambert

I know they say you can’t go home again
I just had to come back one last time
Ma’am I know you don’t know me from Adam
But these handprints on the front steps are mine

Up those stairs in that little back bedroom
Is where I did my homework and I learned to play guitar
I bet you didn’t know under that live oak
My favorite dog is buried in the yard

I thought if I could touch this place or feel it
This brokenness inside me might start healing
Out here it’s like I’m someone else
I thought that maybe I could find myself
If I could walk around I swear I’ll leave
Won’t take nothing but a memory
From the house that built me

Mama cut out pictures of houses for years
From Better Homes and Gardens magazine
Plans were drawn and concrete poured
Nail by nail and board by board
Daddy gave life to mama’s dream

I thought if I could touch this place or feel it
This brokenness inside me might start healing
Out here it’s like I’m someone else
I thought that maybe I could find myself
If I could walk around in I swear I’ll leave
Won’t take nothing but a memory
From the house that built me

You leave home and you move on and you do the best you can
I got lost in this old world and forgot who I am

I thought if I could touch this place or feel it
This brokenness inside me might start healing
Out here it’s like I’m someone else
I thought that maybe I could find myself
If I walk around I swear I’ll leave
Won’t take nothing but a memory
From the house that built me

South Coast of Texas

In case you haven't figured it out yet, I love story songs, slice of life songs, places that will never come again songs. Here is one of the best. Guy Clark's picture of the South Coast of Texas, his youth and the people he knew whose way of life is disappearing in favor of the tourists who don't know what they missed. So do you have a story of a place and time now gone.



The South Coast of Texas

The south coast of Texas is a thin slice of life
It's salty and hard it is stern as a knife
Where the wind is for blwon' up hurricanes for showin'
The snakes how to swim and the trees how to lean

Chorus

The shrimpers and their ladies are out in the beer joints
Drinkin' em down for they sail with the dawn
They're bound for the Mexican Bay of Campeche
And the deck hands are singin' adios Jolie Blon

There's snowbirds in search of that sunshine and night life
And fond of greasin' palms down the beach as they're goin'
This livin' on the edge of the waters of the world
Demands the dignity of whooping cranes and
The likes of Gilbert Roland

Chorus

In the cars of my youth how I tore thru those sand dunes
Cut up my tires on them oyster shell roads
But nothin' is forever say the old men in the shipyards
Turnin' trees into shrimp boats Hell I guess they ought to know

Chorus

Big City Blues

Cocktails and Broken Hearts

Jack Vettriano

This week's Take This Tune is a little different.  About 30 years ago, Barry Manilow made a jazz album with some of his favorite musicians and singers.  There is a whole video of the making of 2:00 AM Paradise Cafe on You Tube and well worth watching to see how musicians and singers come together to create a theme album.  Since it goes back to his jazz roots, this is a Manilow album for even those who think they don't like Manilow.

Below is a small piece of the documentary  featuring a consummate jazz singer Mel Torme and jazz musician Manilow creating Big City Blues which is about as classic a sound as you can get.  So take this tune and maybe tell us something about a big city or the blues or just hopes about love.




Mel Torme:

Much of my life has been spiced with romance

Barry Manilow:

Too many bedrooms I've slept in by chance

Mel Torme:

Drownin' out my sorrow

Barry Manilow:

Longin' for tomorrow

Both:

Caught up in the big city blues

Barry Manilow:

Rain pourin' down from a cold winter sky

Mel Torme:

Don't wanna smile and I'm too sad to cry

Barry Manilow:

Clouds hangin' above me

Mel Torme:

No one there to love me

Both:

Guess it's just the big city blues

Barry/Mel:

Someday I'll find me the dream that I'm after
I'll know her with only a glance
She'll make me smile
and she'll fill me with laughter
and our love will be like a dance

Skies will be clear and the sweet sun will shine
I'll hold her near and I'll know that she´s mine
No more stormy weather
Love will last forever
Good-bye to the big city blues