Back to [Discography]      or       [Home]
1.Dublin Blues (4:19) 6.The Cape (3:40)
2.Black Diamond Strings (3:49) 7.Baby Took a Limo to Memphis (4:08)
3.Shut Up and Talk to Me (3:30) 8.Tryin' to Try (3:11)
4.Stuff That Works (5:04) 9.Hangin' Your Life on the Wall (3:30)
5.Hank Williams Said It Best (4:43) 10.Randall Knife (5:31)


Liner Notes


Dublin Blues

I wish I was in Austin
In the Chili Parlour Bar
Drinkin' Mad Dog Margaritas
And not carin' where you are

But here I sit in Dublin
Just rollin' cigarettes
Holdin' back and chokin' back
The shakes with every breath

Chorus
Forgive me all my anger
Forgive me all my faults
There's no need to forgive me
For thinkin' what I thought
I loved you from the git go
I'll love you till I die
I loved you on the Spanish steps
The day you said goodbye

I am just a poor boy
Work's my middle name
If money was a reason
I would not be the same

I'll stand up and be counted
I'll face up to the truth
I'll walk away from trouble
But I can't walk away from you

I have been to Fort Worth
I have been to Spain
I have been to proud
To come in out of the rain

I have seen the David
I've seen the Mona Lisa too
I have heard Doc Watson
Play Columbus Stockade Blues

Chorus

Repeat 1st half of verse 1


Black Diamond Strings

Chorus
Black Diamond Strings
Black Diamond Strings
Drinkin’ 1 W. Harper
Playin’ Black Diamond Strings
Black Diamond Strings
Are like white flour and grits
You play Black Diamond Strings
‘Cause it’s all you can get

Black Diamond Strings on a Catalog Guitar
That’s pretty high cotton whoever you are
You break one you change one, that’s as good as it gets
You can play all year long on two or three sets

J.W. Crowell was a hell of a man
He played two nights a week in a hillbilly band
He played at the Ice House on Telephone Road
He played in the yard just to lighten his load

Chorus

Hey J.W play that frogline
Let Rodney sit in, hell, he’s goin’ on nine
His fingers are bleedin’, but he’s keepin’ good time
Playin’ Black Diamond Strings, he’ll never quit tryin’

Causette told ‘em both
You boys pack t up, it’s time to go home
We got church in the mornin’, it’s comin’ up dawn
Don’t make me say it again or I’m gone
You can stay here forever, but you’re gonna walk home


Shut Up and Talk to Me

Love is never gonna be a solid bet
It’s kinda like workin’ without a net
Don’t be afraid to let your feelin’s out
That’s what lovin’ is all about
Come on Baby and give me a break
It’s how do you feel, not what do you think
Stop rattlin’ your keys
Shut up and talk to me
Shut up and talk to me

You know I’ve known you long enough to know
There’s nothin’ you can hide that still don’t show
You ain’t foolin’ anyone but you
When you put me through what you put me through
Come on Honey and tell me the truth
Gimme chicken fried steak, not a Baby Ruth
I’m not that hard to please
Shut up and talk to me
Shut up and talk to me

Bridge
You can talk about the weather
Till it drives me nits
You can rattle on about
Why, who, what
A little conversation
Wouldn’t hurt that much
A little somethin’
With a human touch

Now, if you’re hurtin’, Baby, tell me so
If you need attention let me know
I’m not the one that you’re hidin’ from
It doesn’t matter what the ever you done
You can have your cake and eat it too
That’s the kinda stuff I want from you
How hard can it be
Shut up and talk to me
Shut up and talk to me


Stuff That Works

I got an ol’ blue shirt
And it suits me just fine
I like the way it feels
So I wear it all the time
I got an old guitar
It won’t ever stay in tune
I like the way it sounds
In a dark and empty room

I got an ol’ pair of boots
And they fit just right
I can work all day
And I can dance all night
I got an ol’ used car
And it runs just like a top
I get the feelin’ it ain’t
Ever gonna stop

Chorus
Stuff that works, stuff that holds up
The kind of stuff you don’t hang on the wall
Stuff that’s real, stuff you feel
The kind of stuff you reach for when you fall

I got a pretty good friend
Who’s seen me at my worst
He can’t tell if I’m a blessing
Or a curse
But he always shows up
When the chips are down
That’s the kind of stuff
I like to be around

Chorus

I got a woman I love
She’s crazy and paints like God
She’s got a playground sense of justice
She won’t take odds
I got a tattoo with her name
Right through my soul
I think everything she touches
Turns to gold

Chorus


Hank Williams Said It Best

One man’s hawk is another man’s dove, one man’s hug is another man’s shove
One man’s rock is another man’s sand, one man’s fist is another man’s hand
One man’s tool is another man’s toy, one man grief is another man’s joy
One man’s squawk is another man’s sing, one man’s crutch is another man’s wing

One man’s pride is another man’s humble, one man’s step is another man’s stumble
One man’s pleasure is another man’s pain, one man’s loss is another man’s gain
One man’s can is another man’s grail, one man’s curse is another man’s sail
One man’s right is another man’s wrong, one man’s curse is another man’s song

Chorus
For every father’s daughter
For every mother’s son
The only think the same
Is that is ain’t for everyone
Hank Williams said it best
He said it a long time ago
"Unless you have made no mistakes in your life
Be careful of stones that you throw"

One man’s deuce is another man’s ace, one man’s back is another man’s face
One man’s reason is another man’s rhyme, one man’s dollar is another man’s dime
One man’s tree is another man’s post, one man’s angel is another man’s ghost
One man’s rain is another man’s drought, one man’s hope is another man’s doubt

One man’s false is another man’s fair, one man’s toup is another man’s hair
One man’s hand is another man’s stub, one man’s feast is another man’s grub
One man’s dread is another man’s dream, one man’s sigh is another man’s scream
One man’s water is another man’s wine, one man’s daughter leave another man’s cryin’

Chorus

One man’s famine is another man’s feast, one man’s pet is another man’s beast
One man’s bat is another man’s ball, one man’s art is another man’s scrawl
One man’s friend is another man’s foe, one man’s Joesph is another man’s Joe
One man’s hammer is another man’s nail, one man’s freedom is another man’s jail

One man’s road is another man’s rut, one man’s if is another man’s but
One man’s treasure is another man’s trash, one man’s landin’ is another man’s crash
One man’s word is another man’s lie, one man’s dirt is another man’s sky
One man’s skin is another man’s color, one man’s killer is another man’s brother

Chorus


The Cape

Eight years old with flour sack cape
Tied all around his neck
He climbed up on the garage
Figurin’ what the heck
He screwed his courage up so tight
The whole thing come unwound
He got a runnin’ start and bless his heart
He headed for the ground

Chorus
He’s one of those who knows that life
Is just a leap of faith
Spread your arms and hold you breath
Always trust your cape

All grown up with a flour sack cape
Tied all around his dream
He’s full of piss and vinegar
He’s bustin’ at the seams
He licked his finger and checked the wind
It’s gonna be do or die
He wasn’t scared of nothin’, Boys
He was pretty sure he could fly

Chorus

Old and grey with a flour sack cape
Tied all around his head
He’s still jumpin’ off the garage
And will be till he’s dead
All these years the people said
He’s actin’ like a kid
He did not know he could not fly
So he did

Chorus


Baby Took a Limo to Memphis

She did not want to drive
She did not want to fly
She did not want to wait
For a bus to come by

She did not want to hassle
She did not want to hurry
She didn’t want to know
What is cost, don’t worry

Chorus
Baby took a limo to Memphis
Seemed like the thing to do
Baby took a limo to Memphis
She did it ‘cause she wanted to

She was not lookin’ back
She was lookin’ good
She was not in the mood
To be knockin’ on wood

She knows what she wants
She knows how to get it
She knows what it takes
Just do it, don’t regret it

The shortest distance between two towns
Is ridin’ in a limo with the windows down

Don’t ask why she’s goin’
She might let you know
Don’t ask when she’s comin’ back
‘Cause she don’t know

Don’t let her fool you
She’s nobody’s fool
She knows what’s tacky
She knows what’s cool



Tryin' to Try

I threw a rock through your window
Just to let you know I love you
Just to let you know I care and I ain't scared
To have you see how I feel

I blew a kiss through your keyhole
Just to let you know I'm breathin'
Just to try and smack you in the heart,
if I was smart
I'd give up and go back home

Chorus
I'm not tryin' to say I'm sorry
I'm trying to say I love you
I'm not tryin' to make excuses
Nor set myself above you
I'm not tryin' to rearrange it
I'm not sayin' I can change it
The only thing I'm tryin' to do is try

I was hidin' by the back porch
Just to try and catch you leavin'
Just to try and catch you unaware
I don't care
If that ain't fair, I ain't proud

Chorus

I leaned on your doorbell
Just to see if you would answer
Just to see if you would open up,
no such luck
I'll come back when you calm down

Chorus Twice


Hangin' Your Life on the Wall

I used to be Juanita's old boyfriend
We sure gave 'em some stories to tell
Now I can't even find her picture
I guess I'm finally through foolin' myself

I used to be an ex-bullrider
Livin' on the edge of life itself
Now I can't even find my buckle
Looks like I'm finally through foolin' myself

Chorus
Hang on just as long as you can
Get up whenever you fall
Shake it off, Boys, and go 'round again
Don't be hangin' your life on the wall

I used to be forever chasin' firetrucks
I sure could raise me some hell
I don't know why I like to do that kinda stuff
I guess I wasn't through foolin' myself

I used to have a smokin' little fastball
I sure could show 'em some stuff
Now I can't even make it on the
church team anymore
I guess I'm finally through foolin' myself

Chorus Twice

Shake it off, Boys, and go 'round again
Don't be hangin' your life on the wall