The Bodarks
THE BODARKS' LYRICS
LIFE AMERICANA (Brooks, 2012)
Get ye over those MOUNTAINS MOUNTAINS
Get ye over the serpent's sea
Gotta take a drink from the FOUNTAIN FOUNTAIN
Life Americana gotta live so free
Horse-alligators are DANCIN DANCIN
Horse-alligators are drinkin gin
Take a shiny penny and put it in his pocket
And maybe he’ll dance for you, my friend
CHORUS:
It aint discovered as much as dreamed
There’s places over yonder that I aint yet seen
And maps aint made by those who stay behind
It aint got law and it aint got order
Aint got a flag and it aint got a border
Life Americana is just a state of mind
Life Americana is just a state of mind
Mighty Mississipi is SPILLIN SPILLIN
Mighty Mississipi is brimmin wide
Keelboat captain's got a whale on the griddle
He'd tell you how he caught it but he'd have to lie
Gasparilla was SAILIN SAILIN
Gasparilla king of the sea
Spied a fair lass in the water with fins
And now she's swimmin in sailors' dreams
CHORUS
Sacagawea is SEARCHIN SEARCHIN
Sacagawea with her baby on her side
Where can I find a perty little Jenny
Like Sacagawea to be my bride
Toss out the tea for your TAXES TAXES
Chop down your daddy’s ol cherry tree
You can go to hell I'm going to TEXAS TEXAS
Find a senorita to marry me
CHORUS
DEMON WHISKEY (Brooks, 2012)
Jesus Christ turned that water to wine
Well Simon Peter he was feeling fine
It’s not an easy job being lamb to the slaughter
But a night out with the boys and you can walk on water
Ol’ Dionysus from the vine is nice
And Babylon barley is sure good on ice
But when I’m wound up and the spirit hits me
You go to give me that demon whiskey now
CHORUS
You got-you got to give me demon whiskey now
You got-you got to give me that brew
You got-you got to give me demon whiskey now
That devil in the bottle gonna baptize you
Mama got the Gospel and now she’s hot
Stash it in the bottom of the flowerpot
I’m talking in tongues, got to chug it on the run
Better do it quick, she got the ol’ shotgun
Hold my breath, tuck it in my boot
Comb my hair over in my Sunday suit
Just one shot, Thank God she missed me
But damn it all to hell she got my demon whiskey
CHORUS
INTERLUDE
When that thirst gets worse with an itch in your pocket
You can take your soul to the Pawner and hock it
For fourteen dollars and thirty-three cents
Buys bliss in a bottle that is Heaven sent
They say Satan is there at the bottom
But you keep on drinking and you aint yet caught him
If you met him down there then you damn sure wish he’d
Buy another round of that demon whiskey
CHORUS
THE BODARK SONG (Brooks, 2012)
Banjo and mando picking wild and free
Two critters grinning ‘neath a bodark tree
Along come the Devil horse apple in hand
Said “Let’s make a deal, play music in a band”
Well they’d heard of evil deeds and tales oft’ told
Of Johnny’s golden fiddle and a dark crossroad
“But this aint the same” said the Devil with the fruit
“All I really want is to play the pan flute”
CHORUS:
Whao ho won’t you come-a come along
Sing with us our Bodark Song
Our fruits are rolling and our roots are long
We’re always thirsty and we drink ‘til dawn
The old old is a new kind of new
A little bit Dylan and Motley Crue
Got livers of steel and our hearts are true
So drink a drink with us and be a Bodark too
They shook their heads and said “Let’s meet in the middle
We don’t need a flute but we could use a fiddle”
The Devil stared down at his hooves and cursed
Said “That duel with douchebag Johnny was the worst”
But then he grinned from ear to ear
Said “I did always dig the lower register”
A snap of his fingers and from a firey lake
He pulled a fat bass and he made the earth shake
CHORUS
A twister whipped up and its winds did carry
A big hunk of Kansas to that Texas prairie
A girl with ruby shoes played a gold violin
Said “Ol’ Charlie Daniels skipped a verse at the end”
They ate from the bodark ‘neath the light of the moon
Now the angel on the fiddle makes the fellas swoon
The Devil shakes the earth, fruit falls from the tree
And the pickers in the band get their drinks for free
CHORUS
BET ON THE BLUES (Brooks, 2013)
Love put on his coat of stars
Took a hard drag of his cigar
Said The chips are all yours I guess
But you’ll have to loan me some emptiness
‘Cause when the deal goes down you know you can bet on the blues
Death counted out his hurricanes
Raised the stakes with eternal flames
Said In the end I could read your mind
When you bet it all on all Mankind
‘Cause when the deal goes down you know you can bet on the blues
Peace got lucky til they called his bluff
Paid out in plagues when he’d had enough
Said There’s something underhanded going on I bet
War said It’s more than just the cards you get
And when the deal goes down you know you can bet on the blues
BRIDGE
You can chalk it up to chance do your voodoo dance
Or pray to the gods of rain
You can say it’s all in fun but when the dealing’s done
You’re sure gonna lose the game
He filled his eyes with the Milkey Way
Said Can all this really be in vain
Her hair fell down into his face
She said Let’s recreate the human race
‘Cause when the deal goes down you know you can bet on the blue
GOT A REMEDY (Brooks, 2013)
Some folk call me apothecary
And some the Snake Oil King
I blowing into town with the tumbleweed
Then I’m gone when the whip-poor-will sing
What I offer is worth the price
Here’s a little something to entice
Between you and me, take my advice
I got a remedy for you Yeah … I got a remedy for you
Leftenant Jim had an ailing limb
From the Battle of Union Gap
Wanted back up in the saddle again
Wave that saber from his lap
Took my tonic and an oath was sworn
Now he’s blowing the charge like a bugle horn
Salutes them ladies now he’s airborne
Says I got a remedy for you Yeah … I got a remedy for you
Widow May said she couldn’t pay
But had an itch she had to scratch
I gave a little dose to her anyway
With a collateral catch
Don’t matter none no nickel or dime
I’m here to help my fellow mankind
If you’re looking for something you cannot find
I got a remedy for you Yeah … I got a remedy for you
I got a remedy I got a remedy
I got a remedy for you Yeah … I got a remedy for you
So your head is aching your heart aint right
I got a remedy for you Yeah … I got a remedy for you
Your old man’s cussing and putting on a fight
I got a remedy for you Yeah … I got a remedy for you
If you’re looking for something you cannot find
I got a remedy for you Yeah… I got a remedy for you
GRAVITY (Brooks, 2014)
East of Eden into Wichita
My heart is making me break the law
Ooooooo of gravity
Angel riding shotgun into the sky
It don’t really matter’s long as you are my
Ooooooo my gravity
BRIDGE 1:
Mr. Newton, where are you now?
I defy your laws somehow
Am I out of orbit or spinning round
Am I falling up or diving down?
CHORUS:
Oooooo Gimme your gravity girl
Oooo your gravity
With the weight of living there’s nothing sure
But I let go and feel the pull of your
Oooooo your gravity
We’re riding this rock around the sun
But your light is my only one
Oooooo my gravity
BRIDGE 1
CHORUS
BRIDGE 2:
They say it’s a natural fact
How two bodies in space attract
But that force that pulled that apple from the tree
Aint got nothing on you and me
CHORUS
OLD MUDDY ROAD (New, 2012)
Swingin low my knapsack on the West side of the tracks
Luggin round my burdens and Iʼve fallen through the cracks
Only my friend Danielʼs taken knives out of my back for me
Dirty Charlie asks me for a nickel or a dime
I ainʼt got neither one and I sure ainʼt got no time
Lifeʼs been doin me wrong since I left my baby Madeline
CHORUS
That old muddy road is callin me to find my paradise
And I donʼt speak to no one so Iʼm takin his advice
Iʼm walkin til I find my peace, somewhere I can unload
But until then my boots are stuck
In this old muddy rooooad
Old muddy rooooad
First smoke of the morning as the sun begins to rise
No food again last night and I can feel all my insides
Iʼll beg a piece of bread and maybe hitch a ride tonight
The sun beats down my will and I find rest under a tree
The devil pays a visit, I take what he offers me
Time again Iʼve sold my soul to have some company
CHORUS
Shadows lurk in nighttime and they linger in the day
I fear the same old weary life, thatʼs why I just canʼt stay
Iʼll walk until my flesh becomes the earth along the way
CHORUS
OLD NEW ORLEANS (Brooks & New, 2012)
In the heart of Louisiana
There's a city where I long to be
And I would walk for miles to get there
For my baby's in old New Orleans
CHORUS 1
On the bayou-ooo
Do I cry-ooo
Give me jambalaya to ease my pain
For my baby's in Old New Orleans
My boogalee baby loves crawfish
And the Hurricane is her specialty
And when I drink too much in the Quarter
You know that she's drunker than me
CHORUS 2
On the bayou-ooo
Do I cry-ooo
Give me shrimp etouffee to ease my pain
For my baby's in Old New Orleans
One night in the Quarter I left her
New York City did I long to see
But now I'd fight gators to be near my cher
And back there in the Old Big Easy
CHORUS 3
On the bayou-ooo
Do I cry-ooo
Give me crawfish gumbo to ease my soul
For my baby's in Old New Orleans
CHORUS 4
On the bayou-ooo
Do I cry-ooo
Give me one Hurricane to ease my pain
For my baby's in Old New Orleans
D-R-U-N-K (Brooks, Kelleher 2013)
Police man he make me stop
Take me to the line and make me hop
He say Son I gotta little game to play
Called Are You D-R-U-N-K?
Well I kinda like to play games more than some
So I said Sure Boss let’s have fun
But this cop’s game it was the worst
You say your ABCs reversed
CHORUS
Gonna get blott-o blown away
Gonna get D-R-U-N-K
Gotta little game for you to play
Called Are You D-R-U-N-K?
Believe it or not I done some school
And way back then I’s a spellin fool
But now I knew I had to pray
‘Cause I was D-R-U-N-K
CHORUS
Z Y X... double-U
V U T ...uh SRQ
P O N… M L…
Ohhh …What the hell
Now here is how the next game goes
Reach on out and touch your nose
Walk the line try not to flop
Stand on one leg while you hop
Put your hands upon the car
You drank too much at the bar
Put your hands behind your back
Do the do-si-do with Jailbird Jack
CHORUS
So he says Boy I’ve had enough
We danced around I felt the cuff
I said Man you wouldn’t be this way
If you were D-R-U-N-K
CHORUS
LITTLE GREEN MEN (Brooks, 2014)
Little green came and set up shop
They came in peace, made circles in the crop
Met the local primates at a smoky little bar
Learned about alcohol and his-to-ry of war
They woke up with a headache, prodded and poked
By monkeys with gloves and a stethoscope
They said, “Go probe yourself with all your paranoia
Aliens aint the ones going to destroy ya
CHORUS
The End it’s comin, Gonna end up with nothing
Better duck and cover, Better love one another
That’s the way to spend it, The only way to win it is to lose
Little green men said, “Take us to your leader
Antennas on our head can tell a hate breeder
You raise your baby monkeys to kill your enemy
Though you all descended from the same monkey tree”
“It ain’t gonna be some giant space rock
It ain’t gonna be from techtonic shock
It ain’t gonna be zom-bie apocalypse
If there’s anything that dooms you it’s your gods and politics
CHORUS
Well monkeys never listen to alien advice
They just locked them away and packed ‘em in ice
Fought their monkey wars till everyone was dead
All because some ancient book that everyone misread …it said:
CHORUS
CHORUS
CAROLINE (Brooks, 2014)
Left my girl in ribbons waiting
Left my girl in flowing tears
A lock of auburn hair she gave me
Promised that she’d wait the years
CHORUS
Caroline my heart is calling
Caroline I come to you
If’n die before I get there
Tell Carolina that I love her true
Aint too proud of the things I done
While wearing soldier gray
But I would do near anything
To get me back to her one day ...CHORUS
Stitch yourself a perty little dress
Put jessamine in your hair
I’m coming home to you this day
And babies we will bear ...CHORUS
Startled on a lonesome Blue
From my hometown he fled
Raised my muzzleloader
Put a ball into his head ...CHORUS
Searched his bloody rucksack
For much the dead can spare
Just a perfumed handkerchief
And lock of auburn hair ...CHORUS
OUTRO CHORUS:
Oh My Caroline
Oh I come to you
Oh My Caroline
Tell Carolina that I love her true
ONE MORE BEER (NEW, 2013)
One more beer, just ONE MORE BEER
This bar ainʼt serving any more, so get your ass in gear
The bandʼs about to finish, Brian's passed out on the floor
So have just ONE MORE BEER and show yourself the door
VERSE 1:
This bar was nice and empty when I came in here at 3
Met Patti the bartender, she was so good to me
Six beers later, she was my new best friend
Love that woman with all my heart keep me drinking til the very end
VERSE 2:
By the time the clock struck 9 there were babes in the bar
I said “Youʼre oh-so sexy, letʼs go do it in my car!”
Cute little thing she slapped me and I watched her walk away
Said “That’s okay now baby, I aint got a car anyway.”
CHORUS ("Jeff")
Got the midnight munchies and we needed a bite to eat
So we all went to the Whataburger that’s about a block down the street
Jason took a bite of burger and he threw up on the floor
Now they say we canʼt go to Whataburger anymore
CHORUS (“Jason”)
VERSE 3:
Closing time came around too fast, and I thought that I might cry
When youʼre having so much fun, itʼs sure hard to say goodbye
Said farewell to my new found friends, I spilled beer right in their lap
Bid adieu to my new girlfriend - holy shit that girl can slap!
CHORUS OUTRO:
One more beer, just ONE MORE BEER
You donʼt have to go home but you can't stay here
The band’s about to finish, Shelly’s passed out on the floor
So have yourself just ONE MORE BEER and show yourself the door
Have yourself just ONE MORE BEER and show…yourself…the door
GET IT WHILE THE GETTIN'S GOOD (Brooks, 2014)
You can get down there on the corner
You can get it fresh or made to order
You can get it down south of the border
Better get it while the gettin’s good
CHORUS
Slow down cowboy
This aint no race
Dontcha live your life in such a hurry
To get out of this place
Shoulda coulda woulda with your regrets
Had a hell of a hand but never placed your bets
Well it’s now or never with the time we’ve left
Better get it while the gettin’s good ...CHORUS
Well time melts away like an ice cream cone
Ya better eat it up gonna be long gone
Honey you and me gotta get it on
Better get it while the gettin’s good ...CHORUS
BRIDGE:
Better go and get it! (x3)
Get it while the gettin’s good
You can get it down in Abilene
You can get it down at Francine’s…
Got girls workin there that aint so mean
Better get it while the gettin’s good ...CHORUS
NEW AMERICA (Brooks, 2014)
Hey - you – punkgrass kid
Beat – on – banjo head
Tat – too – on your face
Don’t – you – know your place at all?
Fight – for – something new
Love – that – red white blue
Pack – your – heat with you
Stop – mob – at the border wall
Give – us – your huddled mass
Un – less – you're underclass
Get – yours – I got mine
Melt – ing – pot or Frankenstein
My – worst – enemy
Is – the – one in me
Mis – fit – Goldilocks
A hot – cold – paradox am I
CHORUS
I am I am I am I'm
The New America [x2]
Can’t – af – ford to pay
Cost – to – be healthy
Fix – me – when I’m broke
Keep – them – communists at bay
Check – mark – in between
Black – white – card is green
Check – the – “Other” square
We’re – all – queer in our own way ...CHORUS
Four – score – Alamo
Let – my – people go
Red – man – toe the line
This – land – yours and mine For Sale
Re – con – struct the past
In – the – history class
Sea – to – shining sea
Manifest your destiny in Hell ...CHORUS
SHAME SHAME (Brooks, 2014)
Shame on youooo … Shame Shame (x2)
There’s a valley now in between you and me
And I fill it up with whiskey and you, with apologies
You wrap yourself and gather all your clothes
But you weren’t so modest just a minute ago
CHORUS
But there’s the man in the moon and an aeroplane
And a company of crickets saw the whole damn thang
Whaooo Shame Shame
I said Honey I don’t wanna rush
But the words you said would make a sailor blush
Whaooo Shame Shame
So it was just a little lapse of your dignity
Well there’s a swarm of bees buzzing inside of me
That was sure one hell of an accident
But a drop of a dime and I’d do it all over again
CHORUS
You went away with all your regrets
But now you’re going through men like they’re cigarettes
You broke my heart beyond all repair
While you carry yours like you don’t even care
Shame on youooo Shame Shame (continues)
CHORUS
UPROOTED (Brooks, 2016)
Got a heart full of songs that can’t be sung
About the shit I did when I was young
I got a head as hard as bodark wood
I’d surely go back home baby if I could
But now I’m uprooted I'm high on in the wind
And I can’t go back to the garden again
CHORUS:
You can’t go back, You can’t go back
You can’t go back to the garden again
When your time comes to an end
They’ll plant you back in the dirt my friend
But now you’re uprooted high on the wind
And you can’t go back to the garden again
The miles I’ve traveled from the start
Are as distant as the loved-one from a broken heart
They say you are where you come from
But I tell you up-rooted is what I’ve become
Now I’m on the road and I’m westward bound
Running out of sunsets to chase down
CHORUS
So you’re running out of roads to chase out west
But you can’t go back to mama’s breast
No you cannot swim in the same creek twice
Or seal your first kiss with a wondering eye
Now your bones are brittle and your miles are long
All you can do is keep rolling on
CHORUS
BRIDGE:
Ain’t it a downer when you’re an out-of-towner
Wherever you put your roots down
But you’re never gonna find the Eden in your mind
By going back to your hometown
CHORUS
THE GHOST OF ALMA KELMER (Brooks, 2014)
Forgive me, Father, I must confess
With the tolling of the bell it’s hard to rest
In ouuuuuuurrr sleepy little town
How many more holes must you dig in the ground?
Your words are soothing and con-fi-dent
People believe you are Heaven sent
And soooooooo why would anyone doubt
You Christen them in then you pardon them out
CHORUS
Haaa-aaa-aa llelujah
Do you still hear the whispers of the souls you laid to rest?
Haaa-aaa-aa llelujah
Do you cry in the night like they did when they confessed?
There’s one less lass in the class today
Alma Kelmer has run away
But Noooooooo she’s right under your feet
With the tolling of the bell you know she never will sleep
CHORUS
Late on the Sabbath when your flock had gone
Save in the nave there remained just one
Weeeeeeeping for your child yet born
You wiped away the sin and then you pardoned your own
CHORUS
BRIDGE
What lifeless fish are those that float
On the waves of the river as morning broke
Revealing the pieces of a lover whose
Hand is pointing at you
Haaa-aaa-aa llelujah
Do you still hear the whispers of the souls you laid to rest?
Do you cry in the night like they did when they confessed?
FIREWATER & TUMBLEWEED (Brooks, 2017)
Firewater was a horse a handsome appaloosa
The fastest thing on four legs south of the Wakarusa
But his cowboy lost him to a man who had a knack for cheatin’
Now that stallion ain’t been seen since the day them spades were beaten
BRIDGE: On his dreams, he still rides [x2]
The cowboy walked in the saloon but soon he was perplected
You see Whiskey had a strange effect not quite what he expected
Water was leaking out of his eyes and he shook through his whole body
Everyone looked away as he cried out like a lone coyote
BRIDGE & CHORUS:
Ooooo-I am the rolling tumbleweed
Ooo-oo And you are the wind
Ooooo- I am the rolling tumbleweed
Ooo-oo And you are the wind
Such behavior ain’t befiittin’ of a man with knack for fightin’
So the doctor checked his head and said “Go to bed and sleep the night in”
Next thing you know he’s dreaming of his friend and they’re riding the Estacado
And they’re sleeping snug together ‘neath the stars of Colorado
BRIDGE & CHORUS
I wish I could tell you in the end the two were reunited
And rode into the setting sun not again to be divided
But all I know is even if your hand’s sure to win you money
Never bet your horse or even better yet your buddy
BRIDGE & CHORUS
CHORUS
MY FLYING MACHINE (Brooks, 2015)
Aint got a halo honey but I got a pair of wings
Fly with me on my machine And I will show you things
Like you never known, Like you never seen
Like birds into the cloudy blue if you fly with me
Hold on tight my darlin’ as I pedal through the air
Feel the breeze upon your face and blowing through you hair
This penny-farthing’s faster than a locomotive train
We'll fly into the sunshine, we'll rise above the rain
BRIDGE & CHORUS:
I’ll fly you to Timbuktu and all points in between
No need to pack We’ll be right back as swiftly as a dream
There’s sure to be some storm at sea, a typhoon here or there
But trust in me and you'll see we’ll fly without a care
Oh trust in me and you'll see we'll fly
This High-wheeler flies higher than a circus blimp
But it takes two in tandem to take this kind of trip
Like ants upon the hillside folks gather down below
They stare up at the blue sky and they wish that they could go
BRIDGE & CHORUS
LONESOME JACK (Bell, 2015)
Lonesome Jack the campfire preacher
Lived out on a dirty beach and
Slept upon an oyster bed in exile by the sea
The shadow of a ramblin man
who wandered freely cross the land
His careless drifting railyard amble faded far away
CHORUS
Lonesome Jack, a gentleman of the road
A highballin daddy in someone else's clothes
He lived his life a loner and so he died alone
With no one waiting up for him at home
You can train your dogs or train your kids
but not old Jack, he never did
learn one damn thing about living, He was leaving all the time
At night his thoughts would drift afar
tucked inside a freighter car
Dreaming of a life before he caught the Frisco line
CHORUS
The hard-time hobos ran him out
And he wandered to the coast
A railroad man without a rail to ride
He settled in a sandbar there
And laid him down to sleep
20 years of drifting passed right before his eyes
CHORUS
The wrong turns that you can't make right
Will follow you to bed at night
And now the life you left behind is coming back for you
When death draws near embrace the light
A coal-black Coach on a silent night
Rumbling down the rail to train its one good eye on you
CHORUS
WINDERMERE (Brooks, 2017)
Now London’s no place for an Abilene man
So I hopped the trains for the Norther lands
When I stepped off of the Cumbria Line
I found me a place still frozen in time
The wind off the water in the winter sure bites
There’s snow on the pub but a fire burns inside
When the sun breaks through the mist in the glen
I’ll lose myself in the fells once again
CHORUS:
Let’s go where the heather is green
And people up there are rarely seen
Let’s walk the haunted fells so fair
Oh carry me back there to Windermere (repeat)
I found a town in the foggy shroud
Far away from the bustling crowd
Its mossy stone walls and cross-timber wood
Were as old as the earth where it stood
A local man nodded and bought me a pint
Asked “What are you Yanks all so eager to find”
I shook my head and looked to my beer
Said “I don’t know, man, but I sure found it here”
CHORUS
About a mile out of Ambleside
A Lancashire gal asked if I needed a ride
I said “There’s no place that I need to be
But I’ll get there much sooner in your company”
She drove me up to a circle of stones
We found a grave yard of ancient bones
I asked if she knew of their history
She said “They’re no different from you and from me”
CHORUS
MUSCADINE WINE (Brooks, 2014)
Use me up, go on abuse me
Fill your cup, no need to seduce me
When your head’s abuzz, go on accuse me
But just don’t blame my muscadine wine
Drink me down, til your head is swimmin
Round and round, now the room is spinnin
You can say you got a way with the women
But just don’t blame my muscadine wine
BRIDGE
Wild off the vine, it’s enchanting your mind
But you don’t need excuses my dear
Your face is now numb, you can loosen your tongue
And tell me I’m the reason you’re here
Binge on me, I’ll intoxicate you
Overdose, I’ll rehabilitate you
Say it’s my charms that truly medicate you
But just don’t blame my muscadine wine
BRIDGE
Fall on me, in your condition
Count on me, to lift your inhibition
Take another drink before you juxt my position
But just don’t blame my muscadine wine