1. |
The Wings
03:18
|
|
||
Sleep under the piano in your grandfather’s house
On the braided rug and lay his best suit out
As if there’s an art to it, as if you had planned it.
In dreams, I’ve taken off my sailor’s crown and I’m in the arms of your dressing gown.
But I’ve seen the timbre of your strings.
I know you’ve never been one who would wait in the wings – is that still true?
And would it grow if we let it grow?
Darling, I’m afraid we will never know.
There are stories in your eyes, but I know that they are lies – but they are good lies and I fall for them every
time.
And I still try, I try try try.
Sleep under the piano in your grandfather’s house
On the braided rug and lay his best suit out.
You’ve seen the barest of me, I hope you’ve taken it to heart.
|
||||
2. |
Supernatural Powers
04:02
|
|
||
I used to drag out the days watching the crowds gather for the subway.
You used to drive them away.
A million other people go about their days so carefully, but you grow on me.
Laziness and loneliness are through
Now that I found company in you
Endless nights and weekends, what to do
With the hours spent just being in your view
I used to ride out the hours
Just waiting for my supernatural powers
Did I get carried away? Could you be the leading lady in my ballet?
Laziness and loneliness are through
Now that I found company in you
Walking endless loops through city parks
Staying out til well after dark
Lazy nights and lonely days are through
|
||||
3. |
Seventeen
03:23
|
|
||
I’m trying to learn your patterns of energy.
What do they do, and what do they really mean?
When no one’s listening, we disagree.
I know you’re just waiting for me to leave…
You saw UFOs when you were seventeen.
Those lights in the air – what did they even mean?
And I should have met you at seventeen before you learned how not to believe – before you knew any better.
I know you’re just waiting for me to leave with your eyes closed pretending to sleep.
I can find the moment you gave up on me. Definitely.
|
||||
4. |
Gold Coast
03:38
|
|
||
I shot out the light across your alley.
I wanted to get a full night’s sleep.
I said it was good to feel well-rested.
You said I was in too deep.
I broke off your record player’s needle.
I wanted to hear something new.
As if I could add to your collection.
As if I could take care of you.
And you know how to find the Northern lights.
And you know how to fight wildfires.
And you know the Latin names for every tree.
But you don’t know me.
I guess I deserved to learn a lesson –
Sometimes I deserve a talking-to.
I tried to believe in your intentions,
But they don’t come out how you intend them to.
And you know every road to the Gold Coast
And when to find the tide at its lowest
And how to skip the heaviest rocks across the sea
But you do not know me.
|
||||
5. |
Orbit
04:39
|
|
||
6. |
East-Facing Window
02:44
|
|
||
We meet at the airport, take the A to the city.
I’m a little bit nervous as anyone would be.
The view of the statue from the morning ferry.
An east-facing window woke us too early.
In Grand Central Station, you asked me a question that no one ever thought to ask before.
You said “What did you come here for?”
My arm in your jacket, your hand in my vest.
There’s no city bird here who could build such a nest.
And I had this idea that was far-flung at best and a bit premature still so it stayed on my chest:
Let’s hang up our artwork
In a borrowed apartment
Find new occupations
Pretend we belong here
I mean, all our friends have done it
(and it’s not like they’re geniuses or anything)
so how hard could it be?
You seemed pretty clever to me…
But Grand Central Station gave me reason to pause
So I told you that I came here just because
It’s never been clear what to make of us two
But Grand Central Station gave me a clue, gave me a clue
|
||||
7. |
Tilden
02:43
|
|
||
It’s darker than usual tonight. The waves are bigger than usual tonight.
We shouldn’t be here at all!
The wind rips a button off my dress.
There’s salt in my eyes, I know that I’m a mess.
I definitely shouldn’t be here!
By the time that I finally get down to my skin, you’re already halfway in.
With nothing to cover me up but the water, I go under.
In the sand, I had drawn a clearly definitive line.
But the tide is unsettled, your body breaks over mine.
And I should have heeded my previous notion to stay out of the ocean.
And I’m sure I could wring something real out of you,
But whatever you’d tell me, I’ll never belong to you.
You’d head for the hills at the first sign of thunder – I’d go under.
|
||||
8. |
Curtain Call
02:53
|
|
||
The facts are vague, but you re-count them all (have they improved with age?)
You with your slingshot and your wrecking ball waiting to take the stage.
I’m not the one who missed the curtain call, but I’m the one who is ashamed.
Somebody told me how I stole your show, all for my own acclaim.
But I would be happy in the chorus, down in your dressing room rehearsing all your lines – and in the finale,
shine.
And I would bring you flowers every time.
We shared a roll of film in black and white (you made the sidewalk spin)
But the photographer was out of sight, too late to capture it.
And I would be happy in the chorus, down in your dressing room rehearsing all your lines if I could call you
mine.
|
||||
9. |
A Ride That Never Came
02:34
|
|
||
10. |
The Future
03:42
|
|
||
Let me tell you about the future.
Don’t get impatient, you’ll be in it soon enough.
In fact, you can almost see it if you stand with your eyes just so.
Things are not that different here – don’t try to imagine them though. You don’t know the half of it yet.
While you are back in the states,
The country that led me away has not been making a very good case as the dateline hangs over our heads while
both of us wait.
My late afternoon is your yesterday night.
I have one watch to set for tomorrow’s flight while the other is set for when I arrive,
and all that my absence has lacked will be returned tenfold when I get back.
Oh, the future is bigger than anyone guessed.
It is almost too large to describe – but if pressed, I would say that the grandest notions we had of it still fall
flat…but I would like to know what you’ll think of that
Let me tell you about the future…
|
Shenandoah Davis Seattle
Souvenirs is a breakup album, but not in the traditional sense. Recorded and produced by Sam Miller in his Brooklyn apartment, it delves into breakups both personal and professional, romantic and platonic, intimate and inanimate, shedding light upon seemingly inconsequential occurrences and illuminating their greater meanings and potential consequences in our lives. ... more
Streaming and Download help
Shenandoah Davis recommends:
If you like Shenandoah Davis, you may also like:
Bandcamp Daily your guide to the world of Bandcamp