words without music

Abductee
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

There's a spaceman standing on my stoop
He's calling up to me
He wants to take me home
And here I thought I was
All along
But I'm wrong

There's this feeling swimming over me
That I'm incomplete
And I'm not asleep
Here I thought I was
All along
But I'm wrong

Every now and then
The arms will open wide
And I will rise
Into the sky
Into the sky
Into the sky

There's a spaceman standing on my stoop
He's calling up to me
He wants to take me home
And here I thought I was
All along
But I'm wrong

There's a silver halo overhead
The storm is gonna pass
The hero's on his way
And here I thought I was
All along
But I'm wrong
I'm wrong
I'm wrong
I'm wrong
I'm wrong
I'm wrong


Age Nowhere
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Whole Hog for the Macho Jesus

I'm a Christmas tree
On Groundhog's Day
I'm fillet mignon
On a TV tray
I'm a wet cigarette
In a lifeboat box
I'm all about intentions
But at least I'm here

To your guns, to your guns
Yeah the marching soldiers
To your boiling oil

I set a lump of coal
In your diamond mine
I saw your eyes light up
Were they dollar signs?
I'm only flesh and cold
Whenever one winks out
I'm hanging in suspension
But at least I'm here

To your guns, to your guns
Yeah the marching soldiers
To your boiling oil
I try to salvage what I can
From my weekend in the sun
'Til age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again

To your guns, to your guns
Yeah the marching soldiers
To your boiling oil
I try to salvage what I can
From my weekend in the sun
'Til age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again
Age nowhere strikes again


All Around the Underworld
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Whole Hog for the Macho Jesus

Your car will emerge through explosions of birds
And huge half-truths and tiny words
I was born to sift this sand
And kiss the darkness where it stands

All around the underworld
Fame is just a pretty girl
So sing her songs
But not too long

I am not the boss of me
At least as far as I can see
I'd like to bleed across the sky
The comet age has passed me by

And left me in the underworld
Fame is just a pretty girl
So sing her songs
But not too long

And I wouldn't want to be there
When they pull the veil away
To see this world for what it is and what it means today
Isn't it a pity that you never know forever 'til it's not
And this is not
This is not forever
This is not forever

There's an old friend that I had
Who just got tired of being sad
She packed and moved this afternoon
From Jackson Street up to the moon

Looking down upon the underworld
Fame is just a pretty girl
So sing her songs
But not too long
Not too long


Bottom Feeder
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

Bottom feeder
Bottom feeder
Perfect the frosting
Permit me to lick the beater
Bottom feeder
Bottom feeder
Our recipe's the same
But your ingredients are sweeter

Your biggest fan
At your right hand
Your master plan
My also-ran

Bottom feeder
Bottom feeder
You vaccinate against
My second-hand mosquito
Bottom feeder
Bottom feeder
I'm at a loss and out of breath
And following the leader

Your biggest fan
At your right hand
Your master plan
My also-ran

Slave sucker second fiddle fool
Slave sucker second fiddle fool
Slave sucker second fiddle fool

Condescending my love to you
So come on
Put Jesus on the guest list
I'm golden here tonight
And everything's all right
So come on
I'm shrugging off the sickness
You're swimming out of sight
And everything's all right

Bottom feeder
Bottom feeder
You flaunt your razor blade
I'm still a secret bleeder


Cellophane
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

One, two, one, two, three, four

Wherever you are is wherever I'll be
Should you wander afar to avoid your mediocrity
I drip from your cieling through your cellophane mirage

If you find you're alone in a parlor full of clones
Who think that Elvis was an actor and the moon is made of foam
I'll be watching you squirm through your cellophane mirage

Cellophane ends the rain, wrecks a train, and numbs the pain
Cellophane cures the sane and anything else inside your brain

Wind me up and turn me loose
Strychnine in the apple juice
Playful dance around the noose
Cellophane

Madly, madly wave your hands
Nervously the poet stands
Waiting as a ghost commands
Cellophane
Cellophane

Cellophane ends the rain, wrecks a train, and numbs the pain
Cellophane cures the sane and anything else inside your brain

So now you're slightly confused, you feel you've been used
It's a subtle suspicion, but it won't be refused
And now you have to admit
Now you have to admit
Now you have to admit
Now you have to admit
Now you have to admit I'm your cellophane mirage
Do with me as you see fit, I'm your cellophane mirage


Color Me Gone
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Whole Hog for the Macho Jesus

I don't think you're who you say you are
You never could fool me
Your magic lamp is killing
What your truth could never be
And you're just some deadly old idea
Done up with mirrors and smoke
And I'm nothing but some passerby
Trapped in your inside joke

I was talking to your daddy, girl
He said to say "Hello"
He asked if you're the same surprise
That burned him long ago
And my tongue turned into leather
And my lungs turned into steel
And I knew at once that I had got
The wrong end of the deal

Sing it loud
Sing it clear
Light a candle for the ones who cannot hear
'Cause I tripped and broke my halo
And stained my brand new wings
Paradise lost
Color me gone

Well I took a trip 'cross the railroad tracks
Into your sordid past
The one you left behind
When you found out it would not last
And your legions of admirers
Victims stood as one
And they drank a toast and cursed your name
And hoped you're having fun
Yes, they hoped you're having fun

Sing it loud
Sing it clear
Light a candle for the ones who cannot hear
'Cause I tripped and broke my halo
And stained my brand new wings
Paradise lost
Color me gone
Paradise lost
Color me gone
Paradise lost
Color me gone


Diary
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

How do you do? I am a lost boy
I was sent for you to enjoy
My brain is tasty 'cause I like to read
My body's honey fed and set to bleed
Show no mercy
I don't need it

How do you do? This is the worst-case scenario
This is the last place you wanna go
Don't wanna lose face
My charter member of the rat race
Show no mercy
Not yet, anyway

I don't want to show up in your poetry
Your dirty mind or dirtier dreams
I can see where this is heading
And I suspect that all you really want from me
Is kindling for your diary

I was alive in the '70s
Grew up with muscrat love and baby tees
Star Wars was cool but damnit won't you please
Save me from my disco miseries?
You can't make me
Shake nothing, no, no, no, no

I don't want to show up in your poetry
Your dirty mind or dirtier dreams
I can see where this is heading
And I suspect that all you really want from me
Is kindling for your diary

What you, were you, when you, why you?
Won't you let me slide right by you?
What you, were you, when you, why you?
Why won't you let me slide right by you?
What you, were you, when you, why you?
Why won't you let me slide right by you?
What you, were you, when you, weren't you?
Why won't you let me slide right by you?
Won't you let me slide right by you?
Slide right by you, hey hey hey

I don't want to show up in your poetry
Your dirty mind or dirtier dreams
I can see where this is heading
And I suspect that all you really want from me
Is kindling for your diary


Disposable Soul
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

Poor businessman up in space
Remembered Armani but forgot his face
Now he laughs, knows he can never replace
The disposable soul in his hand
Poor businessman, he phones his wife
And says, "Honey, I'm sorry, I've signed over my life"
Now she sits alone in late afternoon light
With a disposable soul in her hand

And love is in the air
It's floating out of sight
Don't you worry, it's up there somewhere
Disposable souls travel light

Poor businessman examines a shelf
Of vicarious wonders, but never himself
"Oh well," he says, "I've still got my health.
My disposable soul's in my hand."
Poor businessman reads Kerouac
And he thinks of the youth he can never get back
Now he has no choice but to trap and attack
The disposable soul in his hand

And love is in the air
It's floating out of sight
Don't you worry, it's up there somewhere
Disposable souls travel light

You can't waste your breath with the notion that death
May be hovering outside your window
Or choke on your robes or spraypaint violent strobes
Of some hitherto uncharted rainbow
In a room full of men we become what we are
Like the melting pot princess our mother
Yes, treason is red, but the reasoning's dead
When disposable souls are uncovered


Favorite Ghost
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

Substitute my sense of duty
For the twisted pawn-shop beauty
There's no way to hide my crooked smile
Wrap it up in years of squalor
Cauterize with boiling water
Buried at the bottom of the dial

It's down to flashes now
Temporary, very proud
Never loved you anyhow, almost
You're my favorite ghost

Now the golden boy's in trouble
Six survivors in the rubble
There's no way to hide my chisel now
Seven seas are looking stormy
Ship of fools is headed for me
Fire warning shots across the bow

It's down to flashes now
Temporary, very proud
Never loved you anyhow, almost
You're my favorite ghost

We didn't meet so much
As smack together
Like two wounded birds
I walk this bloodshot city
Hurt myself and
Choke on wasted words

Fifteen-hundred tons of smiles
Fifteen-hundred-thousand miles
There's no way to hide my big mistake
Now it's over, I feel better
Crush the flowers, burn the letters
Only hurts me when I'm fast awake

It's down to flashes now
Temporary, very proud
Never loved you anyhow, almost
You're my favorite ghost
You're my favorite ghost
You're my favorite ghost
You're my favorite ghost
You're my favorite


Flame Fatale
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

Lost sheep on fifth street peculiar and pained
I look her up when I can
Twelve o'clock witching hour Mercedez-Benz
Bobbing for pumpkins again

I offer nothing but the shirt off my back
And the heart on my sleeve and the moon
It's not a question of sin or suggesting
I just want one warm afternoon

Not enough hours in one single day
For all of her fantastic schemes
As saviors and bad boys of butterflied strange
Rush through her wild-eyed dreams

And I offer nothing but the shirt off my back
And the heart on my sleeve and the moon

She's falling, she's falling, she's falling again
So call out the crash crews and crash mannequins
As sweet flame fatale she is falling again
Around me, inside me, where nobody's ever been
Nobody's ever been here
Oh, la la la la
Oh, la la la la la
Oh, la la la la
Oh

Hypnosis in her soft-focused parade
Hopeless, but I can't complain
I can't move a muscle, I won't even try
Thirty-five bucks down the drain

Hypnosis in her soft-focused parade
Hopeless, but she can't complain
Drawn here by gravity, she has no choice
Burns up in friction and flame

She's falling, she's falling, she's falling again
So call out the crash crews and crash mannequins
As sweet flame fatale she is falling again
Around me, inside me, where nobody's ever been
Nobody's ever been
Falling, she's falling, she's falling again
Falling, she's falling, she's falling again
Sweet flame fatale she is falling again
Around me, inside me, where nobody's ever been
Nobody's ever been here
Nobody's ever been here
Nobody's ever been here
Nobody, nobody, nobody, no


Forget Me Not
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

Leave me here in pewter-colored strange
I've seen the error of my ways, but it's too late to change
Mercy, mercy all is mercy now
I'm well aware of why to die but still hung up on how
Don't get gothic on me, babe, it's been a hellish night

Forget me not
Don't ignore me, don't you know you're all I've got
Oh, forget me not
Remember me and keep in touch and write a lot
Forget me not

Heaven help me when I go astray
Now and then's developed into nearly every day
Never knew how lonely mobs could be
Well, I rally 'round the effigy but he looks just like me
Don't get sentimental dear, I know it's been awhile

Well, I don't know what to say
I'll see you Saturday
Well, guess it doesn't matter anymore

Don't get nervous or upset don't even turn around

This isn't how it happens on TV
I should be beside myself and you should be with me

Oh, forget me not
Don't ignore me, don't you know you're all I've got
Oh, forget me not
Remember me and keep in touch and write a lot
Oh, forget me not
Oh, forget me not
Oh, forget me not
Remember me and keep in touch and write a lot
Forget me not


Further & Further
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Whole Hog for the Macho Jesus

Whole hog for the macho Jesus
The pain medications never seem to please us anymore
Hail Mary and the saints preserve us
If Becky comes around tell her we're still nervous from the war

Worse came to worse
But if better comes to better
Let me take you for a ride
Until then, honey,
I'll be mailing dead letters from the passenger side

Five dollars on the coffee table
Six picks, seven digits
You're not quite able to recall
Let's have a big hand for the real go-getter,
The little homewrecker in the murder red sweater down the hall

Worse came to worse
But if better comes to better
Let me take you for a ride
Until then, honey,
I'll be mailing dead ltters from the passenger side

It's taking me further & further away
Further & further & further away
Further & further away from where I wanna be, yeah
Further & further away
Further & further & further away
Further & further away from where I wanna be, yeah

Skip ahead to the part where you say you want me
Skip ahead to the day where your ghosts don't haunt me
Skip ahead to the part where you say you want me
Skip ahead to the day where your ghosts don't haunt me

Further & further away
Further & further & further away
Further & further away from where I wanna be, yeah
Further & further away
Further & further & further away
Further & further away from where I wanna be, yeah
Further & further away
Further & further & further away
Further & further away from where I wanna be, yeah


Glow
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

He's got more self-control than all of us put together
If it's an act you'll never know
Futuristic deep-space poet man, he's living like a vision
Apocalyptic second-cousin to Rimbaud

What can I take from you?
Sweet elephant candy from a billion-dollar baby
Maybe it's the truth, I don't know
You and I have been through hell together
Maybe heaven could be better
If they see l'Andrew let him know
That we're soaking up the glow
Soak it up
Soak it up
Soakin' up the glow, yeah, yeah
Soak it up
Soak it

He had a dream that I shot shattered lyrics to the ether
In some faith infirmary we all know
Well, I never really wrote them, but I'm so proud when I hear them
All parading in their brand-new shiny clothes

And I thought of The Spiders
T-rex and Johnny Thunders
they were looking down in wonder
At some skinny boy from Cleveland, Ohio
Skinny boy from Cleveland, Ohio
Just some skinny boy from Cleveland, Ohio
Soaking up the glow

What can I take from you?
Sweet elephant candy from a billion-dollar baby
Maybe it's the truth, I don't know
You and I have been through hell together
Maybe heaven could be better
If they see l'Andrew let him know
That we're soaking up the glow
Soak it up
Soak it up
Soakin' up the glow, yeah
Soak it up, baby
Soak it up
Soak it up
Soakin' up the glow, yeah


Going Sane
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

If you don't believe me, I don't mind
I've seen too much to stay
I'm tired of being insulated, blind
This is my getaway

So stop the parade
I am afraid
I am going sane
Stakes have been raised
Bullets have grazed me
Help me clean the stain

Remember how I always turned around
Whenever the sun would set?
I worried if I watched it sinking down
It'd pull me in after it

So stop the parade
I am afraid
I am going sane
Stakes have been raised
Bullets have grazed me
Help me clean the stain

Now I serve my verbal knife shows
With a couple twists of lime
And though I'm still morose
I'm getting less ose all the time
Still got two dozen reasons
But only nineteen rhymes

I'm running low on luck
I don't give a flying
Funny how the time goes faster now
That I believe in it
Revelation station, show me how
Look how the pieces fit

So stop the parade
Plans have been made
I am going sane
Stakes have been raised
Well, I am amazed
I can see again
I am going sane


Grand Design
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

Come with me
I will take you where you wanna go
Come with me
Open up your mind and let it blow
Nothing ventured, nothing gained
Let the escapade begin
Let your conscience come unchained
Show your secret, second skin

Follow me
Cast your worries out into the tide
Follow me
Take a step into the great outside
If there's something in the way
Close your eyes and count to ten
You can mourn for yesterday,
But you can't wish it back again

And I would walk a million miles
If it brought me back to you
I've done it all before
And if you hold on to my hand
I will keep you on that straight and narrow line
Keep you in the grand design

And I would walk a million miles
If it brought me back to you
I've done it all before
If you hold on to my hand
I will keep you on that straight and narrow line
Keep you in the grand design
Keep you in the grand design
Keep you in the grand design


Heroin(e)
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Whole Hog for the Macho Jesus

She's as dark as the truth and twice as sad
With three times the pain of leaving
A fourth as hard as coming back again
She's a fragile china cup
Of everything that leaves me grieving
With a lump or two of sugar added in
She interferes with how I think
'Til all I do is sit and drink her in
My blood flows thick and warm with her
I'll ride out any storm with her in wind

I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e) tonight
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e) tonight, tonight

She's a page from the book that teaches me
However fast I'm learnin'
There's a life's supply of things I'll never know
She's a suicide of ecstacy
That leaves my body burnin'
And takes me where my darkest thoughts won't go
She never fails and barely tries
And through it all it's no surprise to me
That every slow release of her
Results in one more piece of her in me

What I would give
To lay down
By her side as the stars circle 'round
Not a word
Not a sound
By her side as the stars circle 'round

She's as dark as the truth and twice as sad
With three times the pain of leaving
A fourth as hard as coming back again

I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e) tonight
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e) tonight
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e) tonight
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e)
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e) tonight
I'm her fix
I'm her fix
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e) tonight
I'm her fix
I'm her fix
I'm her fix and she's my heroin(e) tonight, tonight, tonight


Ice
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

Ice in your face, ice in your hair
Ice takes the place of Van Gogh and Molier
Ice will breathe slowly it stiffens the air
'Til you no longer break, you no longer care
You should have listened close to me
It's spreading free
I should have made you come with me

Ice in the sky, ice in the ground
Ice creeping up from the souls all around
Ice will breed slowly, it won't make a sound
Feeds on the dreams of those already drowned
You should have let me tell you so
It's spreading slow
You should have known the time to go

Ice is forming
Ice is steady jarring
Feather storming
Whisper warning
Ice is forming
Silent, sighing crystals
Silver painted
Silent sainted

Ice is the first, ice is the last
Ice is the fate of things present and past
Came out of nowhere it's moving so fast
Gathers wherever dark legions are massed
You should believe me when I say
It's on the way
You should believe me when I say
It's on the way
You should believe me, believe me when I say
You should believe me, believe me, believe me, believe me
Believe me, believe me, believe me, believe me
You should believe me when I say
It's on the way
It's on the way
It's on the way


Jenny
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

There's a body in the tub in apartment ten
There's a feeling that you'll never see your sanity again
There's a nervous knock from a nervous hand outside
Cloud eight with a bullet
Ride the rocket on a downward slide

If he ever comes back again
Pray to God that he'll understand
That two words or less is all he could hope for
If he wants to spend the night
Pray to God that he won't want to fight
'Cause two words or less is all you'd be good for

There's a shiver in your bones from last night's snow
There's a fever in your chest and it looks as though
The only friends that you got are the ones inside your head
Cloud eight with a bullet
Sad's bored and bored is dead

There's a ringing in your ears, there's a churning in your guts
There's a bitch on the telly, she's driving you nuts
There's a hundred different ways to feel better than you do right now
Cloud eight with a bullet
Let the supermodel show you how
How

If he ever comes back again
Pray to God that he'll understand
That two words or less is all he could hope for
If he wants to spend the night
Pray to God that he won't want to fight
'Cause two words or less are all you'd be good for

Jenny's on cloud eight
Jenny's on cloud eight
She's a basketcase
But her hair looks great
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now

Jenny's on cloud eight
Jenny's on cloud eight
She's a basketcase
But her hair looks great
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now

Jenny's on cloud eight
Jenny's on cloud eight
She's a basketcase
But her hair looks great
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now
Smile pretty now


Lady Malaria
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

Drop another coin in the melodrama jukebox
I came here to be alone
If you feel the need to bleed
Then I'll condemn or I'll condone but
I'm not your pocket shrink
And not going to buy your drink
And you will never know what I think about it

Did you take a big step, babydoll,
Lady malaria?
Did you have a knock-down drag-out
Lady malaria?
When it's said and done will someone be around to take care of ya?
Lady malaria

So here we go again bring it on you've earned it
Seven come eleven with a big red bow
Before you pitch another fit my way
Here's just one thing that you should know
I'm not the bad guy here and
Those roles aren't cut that clear and
And what you think is fear is fever
Only fever
Only fever breaking

It's sad but nothing new
And no matter how much you stew, well
There's nothing you can do about it

Did you take a big step, babydoll,
Lady malaria?
Did you have a knock-down drag-out
Lady malaria?
Did you take a big step, babydoll,
Lady malaria?
Did you have a knock-down drag-out
Lady malaria?
When it's said and done will someone be around to take care of ya?
Lady malaria
Lady malaria


Laugher Tax
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Whole Hog for the Macho Jesus

Back in the last days of Rome
They went for Nero man
Nero wasn't home
He was playing sax and violin
For all the slackers styling alone

It was a major affair
All the major movers and the networks were there
Waiting for something to happen
Through the smoke and noise and crap in the air

He gave them something that they've never seen
Kind of like what you did to me
Give me laugher tax for my sins
Burns at first, but it feels so nice when it begins
When it begins
Laugher tax for my sins

I gave my life to the church
I'm cloning Jesus through genetic research
I'm the patron saint of grieving
And the morals that you leave in the lurch

Not gonna say, "I believe"
I keep one in my hand, two up my sleeve
With my rosary, my collar
And the stack of silver dollars received

I'll give them something that they've never seen
Kind of like what you've done to me
Give me laugher tax for my sins
Burns at first, but feels so nice when it begins
When it begins
Laugher tax for my--

I'm dumbing it down
I'm kissing the ground
I'm living the life
I'm leaving your wife

I love it, I love it
I need someone to covet
A lover to smother
To leave me for another

So here's your thought for the day
You only try and dog me when the cat is away
I'll be conquered and divided
Hoping that you have decided to stay

You give me something that I've never seen
I kind of like what you've done to me
Give me laugher tax for my sins
Burns at first, but feels so nice when it begins
When it begins
When it begins
When it begins
Laugher tax for my sins


Little Trophy
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

Practiced in the ways of shame you found me
My arms held open to the sun
Taking in the sights and sounds around me
But losing precious pieces one by one

I've paid my dues, I've paid my don'ts as well
I want some wills, the won'ts can go to hell

Well, all right
You win
Now you've got your little trophy
Chalk it up to young and much too far from home
Well, all right
You win
I'm proud to be your little trophy
Yours alone
Yours alone

You said to write you if I lost direction
I didn't think I'd fall apart so soon
I turned around and found the leaves had fallen
And covered up my breadcrumbs back to you

And soon the snow will fall and bury me
I know you'll be along to carry me

Well, all right
You win
Now you've got your little trophy
Chalk it up to young and much too far from home
Well, all right
You win
I'm proud to be your little trophy
Yours alone
Yours alone

I've paid my dues, I've paid my don'ts as well
I want some wills, the won'ts can go to hell
Go to hell

Well, all right
You win
Now you've got your little trophy
Chalk it up to young and much too far from home
Well, all right
You win
I'm proud to be your little trophy
Yours alone
Yours alone
Yours alone
Yours alone


Long Live the Scene
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

Welcome to my torture box
My own infernal equinox
Welcome to the welfare state
Slowly I disintegrate
Welcome to my torture box

I have seen the death of me
Flashing lights from out to sea
I have waited for you here
With everything that you hold dear

Fought my way through the crowded war
I've got angst and a couple of chords
Long live the scene

Napoleon went off his wire
Shot his wad in fields of fire
By the time the priest rushed in
Wasn't too much left of him
Napoleon went off his wire

Make a fist and feel the rage
Paranoia knows no age
Children always suffer most
Father, Son, to Holy Ghost, yeah

Fought my way through the cellar door
I've got angst and a couple of chords
Long live the scene
I'll have my hair dyed turquoise green
Cheapest guitar in the magazine
I'll douse my words in sweet caffeine
Every day will be Halloween

But I love my job
Hell yes, I love my job
Full time circus freak
Example of what not to do
Classic heart and soul
Skeleton hands reach out for you, yeah

Fought my way through the cement floor
I've got angst and a couple of chords
I was once too young to ignore
We'll be young forevermore
Long live the scene
Long live
Long


Mess
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

Pull the car onto the shoulder now
You're making a mess
Just a little bit of irony
Your life is running out your eyeballs
In a pretty blue parade
Things were fine until the angel
Poked out of your chest
And read your happy life the riot act
Now you're drowning in a sea of broken promises you made

Breakup, breakdown
Put your stick back
Until you black out softly

Pull the bull out of the china shop
He's making a mess
Let him loose into the gallery
Pour the dust into the bloodstream
'Til it's all that you can see
What's the point in pulling punches?
You can't even guess
What's the point in faking flattery?
What's the point in anything that pulls you far away from me?

Breakup, breakdown
Put your stick back
Until you black out softly

We're so very sorry
We're so very sorry
We're so very sorry
We're so very sorry
We're so very sorry
We're so very sorry
We're so very sorry


Nocturne
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

In sedation nation
Far away in cocoon and
Underneath the wet sand
I will sleep in the bed that you keep
Tuck my head beneath the blankets now
If I find you under there somehow
I will love you if I'm still allowed

In between us they have seen us
All the while slow dissolving
Crashing and revolving
And today when the world falls away
In explosions of orange and blue
And the twilight it turns into
I will gladly give myself to you

When you find me blind me
From the way dark surrounds us
And they'll pronounce us
Free to swim to the bottom of the sea
Free and clear to the warm that will cover you and me
Swear to God that I'll try to be whatever you will need


Only God In Town
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

I burned out at twenty-seven
Punched a ticket for a rock'n'roll heaven
The first time in my life i went shopping for a different one
Growing old, sophisticated
Into the thing that you and I hated
Junkie chic may be a dead-end street but it's a glamorous one

Maybe you would rather use your head
A little more bored, a little less dead
Ah brother, when the sky falls down
You're not the only god in town

Saw my chance, I tried to take it
It went to hell so I thought I'd try to fake it
The first time in my life I knew the meaning of a better one
You were young, full of glory
Skipped ahead until you missed the whole story
Drunk and dazed is a painful phase but it's a common one

Maybe you would rather use your head
A little more bored, a little less dead
Ah brother, when the sky falls down
You're not the only god in town

Hit the wall around thirty
I found a way to get my fingernails dirty
The first time in my life I'm feeling lucky just to have one
I saw your face for just a minute
A psychodrama with your name featured in it
Ambition's such an easy drug--it conquers everyone
Everyone

Maybe you would rather use your head
A little more bored, alive instead
Time will see when the world falls down
Time will see when the world falls down
Time will see when the world falls down
If you're the only god in town
In town


Paradise
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

"Eureka," cried the holy ones,
"We'll fry the bastard sinners, sons.
So clap your hands and throw your guns
The end's in sight we've almost won."

And tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Yeah, tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise

We've put our faith in instant god
Just add incense, blood, and sod
Salvation in the name of fraud
As television saints applaud

And tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Yeah, tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise

It's raining, it's pouring
The righteous are roaring
They're loudly ignoring
The point the others made
A tisket, a tasket
Your head's in a basket
They'll bend down to ask it
If your soul's been saved
Well?

Well, Christ came back three weeks ago
I saw him on twelve TV shows
He's sponsored by Spaghettios
And Mickey D's and Michelob

And tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Yeah tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise

And the church bells sing!

As for me, my dear, I've got a plan
Be my girl and hold my hand
Don't push me what you think is true
And I will do the same for you

And maybe we'll see paradise
Maybe we'll see paradise
Yes, maybe we'll see paradise
Maybe we'll see paradise

And tonight we'll sleep in paradise
And tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Yeah, tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise
Tonight we'll sleep in paradise


Possum
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

Words I've never said are knocking on my bedroom door
I pick the lock sing "Glory, glory, hallelujah"
Songs I've never sung are underneath my kitchen floor
Stick around and let the charge go slashing through 'ya

You never know who's watching
You never know who's waiting
You never know
You never know
You never know
All I know is I'm not up for anything today
So be it

Wrap the blanket 'round my feet
Let me sleep here in the street
I'm playing possum now
I'm playing possum now
I'm playing possum now

Words I've never said are crissing-crossing through my brain
Stretching out like some sedated superhighway
Songs I've never sung are sitting broken in the rain
I messed it up you know at least I've done it my way

You never know who's watching
You never know who's waiting
You never know
You never know
You never know, no
And all I know is I'm not up for anything today

Wrap the blanket 'round my feet
Let me sleep here in the street
I'm playing possum now
I'm playing possum now
I'm playing possum now

Traps I've never set are sitting all around my feet
Excuse me if I do not kiss your lily ass

I'm playing possum now
I'm playing possum now
I'm playing possum now
I'm playing possum now


Scratch
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

I've got these scratches on my arms
And I don't know how they got there
I do know that I blanked out
A couple days ago
Scratches on my arms
And I sure hope that they felt good
'Cause I've got some scars left
I will watch them grow

Through my fingers, through my ribcage
Through my insides, inside my shoe
They're my perfect little symbols
And I'll name every one of them after you

And from now on
Teach myself not to let go
Scratches
Scratches
Scratches, they have told me so

Scratches on my arms
They were stupid, they were foolish
But I would not trade them
Not even if I could
Scratches on my arms
Are my formal education
Don't know if they taught me
I only know they should

You were painful and degrading
Pull my innocence out like a rotten tooth
Shattered all my rosey glasses
Felt you breathing up my youth

And from now on
Teach myself not to let go
Scratches
Oh, scratches
Scratches, they have told me so

I have done to myself what you have done to me
Who has enjoyed it more? Who knows
I have done to myself what you have done to me
Who has enjoyed it more? Who knows
I have done to myself what you have done to me
Who has enjoyed it more? Who knows
I have done to myself what you have done to me
Who has enjoyed it more?

And from now on
Teach myself not to let go
Scratches
Oh, scratches
Scratches, they have told me so


She's a Ballad
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Whole Hog for the Macho Jesus

I never had the taste for the obvious adrenaline
The subtle spiked fingers are more my speed
And now these tiny violent symphonies of anger and acetylene
Are rooted in my insides growing like a weed

She's a nervous habit
Anyone can see
She's a ballad
She's a ballad to be
She'll be the ballad of me

I tried to float away on some innocent oblivion
To wash away your face in the rain of my brain
I tried to change the luck of the lies I've been living in
But all I ever get is try again, try again, try again

She's a nervous habit
Anyone can see
She's a ballad
She's a ballad to be
She'll be the ballad of me

Bring on the boys singing "be-bop-a-lu-la"
Bring on the whores and the businessmen
I can count on one finger the reason to do this again

I save a little taste for the Cherubim and Seraphim
In the all-night laundries and the opium dives
I say a little prayer from the soft sanitarium
For all the poor suckers with the love in their lives
Go on and save yourselves
It's too late for me
Go on and save yourselves
It's too late for me

She's a ballad
She's a ballad to be
She's a ballad
She'll be the ballad of me
She's a ballad
She's a ballad to be
She's a ballad
She'll be the ballad of me


She's My Disease
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

Sister mischief heads my way, tugs my chain and I obey
Can my corpse come out and play with her today?
Sister mischief knows the rules, I love her as her scheme unspools
And I will drown in gentle pools of velvet clay
If love's a dog from hell, I'm on the wrong side of the fence
My curiosity won't tell my fear it's too intense

She's my disease
There is no cure, she bleeds me by degrees
My disease
And I hear her rustling in the trees
And I wonder, "Will she come tonight and bring me to my knees?"
She's my disease

I first met her in this hall, she was so beautiful and small
And I heard seven angels call me from the mountain
My head exploded, I saw stars, and my leg still bears the scars
From where I ran into this very drinking fountain
If love's a battlefield, I'm on the wrong side of the line
There is no hope of rescue, but my capture feels just fine

She's my disease

If I am dreaming, oh, please God, let me never wake
If I am falling, let me land in feathers for her sake

Sister mischief makes my day, or so she tells me anyway
I find it very hard to say she is lying
And there are things that I would change, but I'll love her 'til I'm strange
Enough to not care how the months and years are flying
If this is paradise I'm on the wrong side of the wall
The snake is on me, but I find that I don't care at all

She's my disease
There is no cure, she bleeds me by degrees
My disease
And I hear her rustling in the trees
And I wonder, "Will she come tonight and bring me to my knees?"
She's my disease


Someone Else's Bones
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Everything's Blowing Up Roses

Angels caught up with me today
They asked me where I'd been
All I could do is sweat and mumble and stumble away
They just wouldn't understand and nor would you, nor would anyone at all
It's a curse, a stone that I don't own
Someone else's bones beat me further down the road

I was having such a lovely time
I didn't even notice you
My ivory beanstalk is such a very long and lonely climb
The clouds got in the way, it's in my blood, maybe only in my head
Well, I will try to clone my only throne
Someone else's bones isolate and pain me so

I kneel down, I kiss your holy debris
I feel the cleansing rust raining down on me
Well, it's much too lonely there, and much too dark to see
That someone else's bones have run away with me

I kneel down, I kiss your holy debris
Well, I feel the cleansing rust raining down, down on me
Well, it's much too lonely there, and much too dark to see
That someone else's bones have run away with me

Angels caught up with me today
They asked me where I'd been
All I could do is sweat and mumble and stumble away


Sweetsirengaschamber
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

You're a slow-acting potion
You draw me in like a tide
You cloud my mind like a fever
You strip away my pride
Your voice calls to me from corners where you hide

My world is burning badly
Borne on your breeze
My head is pounding madly
From your sweet disease
I tumble towards the rocks and you control the seas

Sweetsirengaschamber
Such a love is this
So poison, so lovely
You kill a thousand with a kiss
Make it go away
Make it go away

I have no expectations
Of how this dream will be
I can't tell the nature of the things I'll see
You're a phantom beacon beckoning to me

Sweetsirengaschamber
Such a love is this
So poison, so lovely
You kill a thousand with a kiss
Make it go away
Make it go away

She goes in circles, comes in threes
She coils and hisses at my knee
She's got me walking Spanish, speaking Japanese

Sweetsirengaschamber
Such a love is this
So poison, so lovely
You kill a thousand with a kiss
Make it go away
Make it go away
Make it go away
Make it go away


Very Very
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Shrug.

It dangles from his lips
Scorn hangs like a cigarette
He hasn't even met me yet
Shock the monkey
Make it funky
Doesn't mean a thing

The wax museum breathes
It slithers out of taxicabs
A generation up for grabs
Sell the rumor
Sense of humor
Doesn't mean a thing

Kamikaze fashion zombies on the prowl
Scared to death of letting their defenses down

Very very plastic scary suicide
You're undercooked and overtried
And Andy's on the phone
Keep pretending that you mean it
I'll pretend that I believe it
I wish to God that I was back at home
I wish to God that I was back at home

We sold the factory
Down the river years ago
Don't pretend you didn't know
We kept the poses
Overdoses
Didn't mean a thing

Mickey Mouse meets Mr. Brownstone in the john
So exciting, grab a partner, carry on

Very very plasic scary suicide
You're undercooked and overtried
And Andy's on the phone
Keep pretending that you mean it
I'll pretend that I believe it
I wish to God that I was back at home
I wish to God that I was back at home

It fizzes in my ear
Sparkles like a disco ball
I find myself inside it all
I'm not above it
I know I love it
Never miss a thing
I never miss a thing

Very very plasic scary suicide
You're undercooked and overtried
And Andy's on the phone
Keep pretending that you mean it
I'll pretend that I believe it
I wish to God that I was back at home
I wish to God that I was back at home
Well, I wish to God that I was back at home


Wake Up, Sugarplum
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Whole Hog for the Macho Jesus

Wake up, Sugarplum, it's time to be a genius
Time to beat your brain into a perfect circle
Wake up, Sugarplum, up off the matress
Wash your face and face the faceless, muddled masses
Wake up, Sugarplum, put on some coffee
Hesitation breeds resistance
And I'm not feeling your breath on my neck for nothing
This time

Wake up, Sugarplum, up from sedation
Face the nation, they await your answer
Wake up, Sugarplum, into the mainstream
The time is right for you to be the one to save us
Wake up, Sugarplum, gulp down the aspirin
You've been asleep for way too long
And everyone agrees that you should've known better
This time

It's nothing after all
It's nothing but a freak out
And after all
It's tough for you to speak out
So what if you got nothing to say today
We love you anyway

Wake up, Sugarplum
Wake up, Sugarplum
Wake up, Sugarplum
'Cause I'm not feeling your breath on my neck for nothing
No, I'm not feeling your breath on my neck for nothing
This time

It's nothing after all
It's nothing but a freak out
And after all
It's up to you to speak out
So what if you got nothing to say today
We love you anyway
It's nothing but a freak out
And after all
It's up to you to speak out
So what if you got nothing to say today
We love you anyway
We love you anyway
We love you anyway
We love you anyway
We love you anyway
We love you
We love you


You'd Make A Lovely Funeral
Written by: Tod Weidner
Album: Sampler

With your flowers and your frowns
And your feelings draping down
You'd make a lovely funeral
And I'll give you what you need
But you treat my noble deed
Like some amazing miracle

Hey, Amelia, can't you see I'm listening?
Huddled in the corner, plain as day
Well, I'm waiting for your cross-examination
Cut me open, tell me what to say
Cut me open, tell me what to say
All right
Come on
I'm waiting

Well, I remember you in blue
And in green and turquiose, too
But you gravitate to black
And it's no wonder
That I thought that I could save you
With this red balloon I gave you
But I lost it in the cold, gray cloud you're under

Hey, Amelia, can't you see I'm listening?
Huddled in the corner, plain as day
Well, I'm waiting for your cross-examination
Cut me open, tell me what to say
Cut me open, tell me what to say

And everyone is waiting in the car
Every woman's half the woman that you think you are
And every man is sitting at the bar
With his heart out for the taking
And every hope of making you a star

So, baby, can't you talk
Take up your staff and walk
Out from your bargain basement?
If you've left behind your man
Can't you take me as I am
To dry your eyes and compromise
And act as his replacement?

Hey, Amelia, can't you see I'm listening?
I'm huddled in the corner, plain as day
Well, I'm waiting for your cross-examination
Cut me open, tell me what to say
Cut me open, tell me what to say
Cut me open, tell me what to say
Cut me open, tell me what to say
All right
Come on
I'm waiting
Waiting
I'm waiting
I'm waiting
I'm waiting
I'm waiting
I'm waiting

With your flowers and your frowns
And your feelings draping down
You'd make a lovely funeral
(more to come)


Transcribed by Chuck Roslof

Of course, everything here is copyright Shrug/Tod Weidner 1998, 2000, 2005