611 : 12/12/99 : Stone Buddha (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 58/101)

I only have one ambition
I face every day with the same decision
I want people to point and say
he’s a Stone Buddha
he’s superfly he’s astral
he’s a stone Buddha
don’t let his wisdom slip past ya
I wanna step past all the phases
the need for Chi or secret places
I wanna be rock steady
like a stone Buddha
still and ready
like a stone Buddha
one day I’ll just slip away
maybe I’ll petrify some day
and finally achieve my karma
becoming Stone Buddha

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

610 : 12/11/99 : The Gates of Paradise (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 57/101)

Where are the gates of paradise
point me in the way
I’ve had my share of fire and ice
and you won’t have to show me twice
I’ll know it by the rocks and clay
I’ve seen its aspect in my dreams
And visions of it when I pray
or so it seems
at start of day

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

609 12/10/99 The True Path (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 56/101)

No coming
no going
the true path
no slowing
me down now
I’m in it
get on it
begin it

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

608 : 12/9/99 : Tea Master (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 55/101)

Tea master
and assassin
there’s a tale
to keep you laughin’
imagine being
Fooled by tea
and the Tea Master
at the tea Academy
the usual alchemy
raised to the point of artistry
hardly useful
but mark the words
the assassin’s blade
can’t cut all the cords
hey Tea Master
that’s quite a
scenario you spin
The Tea Master
and the assassin

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

607 : 12/8/99 : Will and Testament (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 54/101)

I am nothing
but an insignificant
insect

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

606 : 12/7/99 : The Giver (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 53/101)

1,680 : 52 ?


I just need a couple million
Build the machine and put the wheels on
I’ve got it all locked up inside
I’m ready for the ride
I just need some one to Give Me
What I’m missing to hire my Army
To round up my million men
And get ready to begin
I promise I’ll act like a man of the Tao
And I’ll give it all back but I need cash flow now
the giver should be thankful for me
giving them some reason to be
I’ll give one million a reason to
Stand up and rise on cue
Take control and shout the riddle
I’ll laugh while it burns and play my fiddle

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

605 : 12/6/99 : Your Light May Go Out (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 52/101)

Anyone can speculate
Your light may go out
So be sure to constantly meditate

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

604 : 12/5/99 : Sour Miso (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 51/101)

Don’t cry over sour miso
children are starving in Vietnam
Children are starving in China
Children are even starving in Japan

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

603 : 12/4/99 : Clear Realization (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 50/101)

Realize so clearly
no path but pain
I figured it out once
I guess I have to again
when will I give up on satisfaction
when will I give up on satiation
when that when that day comes
I will have my clear realization

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

602 : 12/3/99 : Black-Nosed Buddha (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 49/101)

Black nosed Buddha
I’m gonna pray on you I’m gonna
pray on you I’m gonna
pray pray pray on you
and your ugly black nose
will tell me what to do
Black nose buddha
I’m burning my incense
just for your black nose
Your golden body mocks me
through a nose as black as coal
Black nosed Buddha
are you enlightened now
will you take me with you
will your black nose point me how

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

601 : 12/2/99 : Proportion (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 48/101)

Don’t try to fool me with
second best
If you put me up to it I’ll
pass the test
And if it seems to you
there is a hint of distortion
In my priorities
Then you lack my
Sense of proportion

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

600 : 12/1/99 : Stingy Artist (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 47/101)

I’m a stingy artist
I always take my pay
I never work for free
and I’m working every day
I painted for the king baby
I painted for his girls
I charge as much as I can get
in diamonds gold and pearls
I’ve got a secret habit
my art is just a tool
I’m not saving for a race car
or to build a swimming pool
I’m not charging just to have more
that’s a path fit for a fool
My art pays to feed the poor
and build a road to heaven’s door
my art will build a temple
please observe my fine example
I’m a stingy artist baby
I’ll charge you through the nose
but it’s all for a good cause
but that’s a truth just heaven knows

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

599 : 11/30/99 : Grass, Trees, Enlightened (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 46/101)

1,672 : 44 ?


I have a notion
I'm gonna be all right
come what may...
just look I'll have
escaped to paradise
within another day
grass, trees, enlightened
bees whisper
secrets as you dream
insensible
to the notion
of your own silent stream

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

New Continuity Record

Allow me to break the flow of the decade past for a moment for a note on what I'm writing now - I noticed today that I have broken my previous recorded continuity record on the current songwriting, that is to say the number of songs I have written on consecutive days without missing a day. Sometime around March 2009 (my handwritten notations on the subject are difficult to decipher) I broke a streak of 40 songs written on consecutive days; today I wrote song number 1,672 of the Second Series, marking 44 songs written without missing a day, and still rolling. Huzzah.

598 : 11/29/99 : Right From Wrong (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 45/101)

I need a classroom
to myself
to learn to write this one song
I need special treatment
because I don’t know
right from wrong
right and wrong
and good and evil
man and woman tooth and nail
If we have endorsed
the wrong rites
well maybe that god is in some detail
I learn my lesson
learn to pull back
before the hammer strikes
I learn to count
my p’s and q’s and use
my muse to fuel my mikes

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

597 : 11/28/99 : The Thief (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 44/101)

After I got off my sentence
I went back to the only one
who had not called me a thief
His singular example
had created
something like belief

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

596 : 11/27/99 : Beggar’s Life (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 43/101)

I am not cut out for the beggar’s life
always down and out misfortune is my life
I’m attached to food and wealth and mystery
this beggar’s life is too hard for me
I would like to be renowned for what I know
but I do not love knowledge for it’s own sake, so
the beggar’s path is all that is left to trod
I’ll beg my way to heaven, I’ll beg my way to God
I’ll beg my way all the way to Carnegie Hall
I’ll beg my way out when my back’s against the wall
I’m begging right now for grace I have not earned
isn’t it something how the wurm has turned
If I can make it three days on the beggar road
I may have a vision of Master Joad
And he’ll whisper the beggar’s secret in my ear
Softly softly just for me to hear

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

595 : 11/26/99 : Dead Man (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 42/101)

I said
I am dead
to this world
to this inheritance of the meek
she kicked me
in the head
and said
fool
dead men do not speak

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

594 : 11/25/99 : Joshu’s Zen (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 41/101)

What can
not be
thrown or
carried
no thing
no thought
burned or
buried
I can’t
wrap my
head a-
round it
Joshu
spun it
then I
found it
no thing
no thought
taut or
tangled
on the
hook of
mind I
dangled
no thing
in my
battered
noggin
take the
back off
let this
cog in
fit me
in a-
mong the
wurmgears
turn me
turn me
till my
mind clears

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

593 : 11/24/99 : Dreamland (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 40/101)

Dreamland
see the sages and
pick up the robe
the master dropped
touch the bowl
and dreamland stopped

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

592 : 11/23/99 : Sleeping in the Daytime (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 39/101)

1,666 : 38 ?


They say
Soyen
never slept in the day time
is that a riddle
what time did he
sleep in
then?

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

591 : 11/22/99 : Work (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 38/101)

thirteen years’ work
and still more gates
and still more blows
still more glory to come
when I feel the jerk
of the collar I hesitate
but where it leads I go
a grind to another a glory to some

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

590 : 11/21/99 : Sutras (II) (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 37/101)

Penny by penny
stone by stone
another day another dollar
I work alone
saving up to publish
My invisible sutras
ten years or twenty
don't matter to me
maybe no one gets it
well what will be will be
until I publish
my invisible sutras
penny for the orphan
penny for the poor
penny for the widow
wish I had a little more
hope they read what they need
in my invisible sutras

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

589 : 11/20/99 : Flower (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 36/101)

A long time ago the scientists say
flowers were unknown in all the land
they came before we made the scene
predestining our grasping hand
reach you cannot hold it
it’s just the way they told it
the flowers will inherit the earth
as they fall down around me
the simple truths astound me
the whole world spins an empty hub of mirth
everything changed when flowers came
everything changes when the flowers fall
the spider god crouches at the center of the world
and the ancestor gods make me record it all
and past the point of no return
is when you finally feel the burn
the empty in the fullness of desire
and while nobody complains much
when the flowers fall at the rain’s touch
they know at heart the elements of fire

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

588 : 11/19/99 : Minute Zen (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 35/101)

I’m a Lutheran myself
but every now and then
I have to stop and do
a little minute Zen
One breath that rocks the bellows
between heaven and earth
and pulls the stars into existence
at the cosmos’ birth
I practice grace through faith not works
I’m always at the cross
I rock a thousand times a day
between satori and plain loss
I’ve nothing but a shelf of books
my notebook and my pen
I turn it into time gone by
and lose myself in Minute Zen

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

587 : 11/18/99 : A Smile (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 34/101)

when they come to take you
and the guillotine awaits you
greet them with a smile
when it's time to meet your maker
and they beat you blind for being a Quaker
get up and take it with a smile
Nothing is fair and nothing makes sense
We're all getting put up at heaven's expense
and none of it will matter a thousand years hence
so greet the new day with a smile
when the big computer mixes you
and your alien slave lord fixes you
hey wake up with a smile
when the universe enters the big heat death
and you're in pain whenever you piss or take a breath
oh lie down each night with a smile
We're all headed for oblivion anyway
and nobody knows who listens when we pray
so you might as well live in the one day
and meet each moment with a smile

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

586 : 11/17/99 : Hand (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 33/101)

My hand is clenched tight
around my heart
I am a stingy miser
and I play a stingy part
I need to open my hand
and let my treasure go
it’s no use to me like this
to live it has to flow
I need to open my hand
and cast my bread abroad
across the seven waters
to show my faith in God
my heart can’t stand the squeezing
my treasure’s turning green
I’ll take my hand away from it
step from behind the screen

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

585 : 11/16/99 : Inch Time Foot Gem (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 32/101)

1,659 : 31 ?


Seven times a day
Inch time foot gem
this day will not come again
each minute’s price a worthless gem

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

584 : 11/15/99 : Everything Is Best (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 31/101)

Everything is best
everything is right
wakes you in the morning
keeps you up at night
could it be that simple
could it be that fast
Every beggar’s wealthy
every first is last

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

583 : 11/14/99 : Calling Card (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 30/101)

A goose ran over your grave
while you were away sir
an important man
stood scattering sand
while I lay sleeping
my fate stopped in
while passing by
I was out with my mortal sin
engaging in the long goodbye
and a blank calling card
is what I returned to
on the back it said I knocked once
on the back it said we spurned you
a blank calling card
a space for a name
on the back it said
just leave the way you came

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

582 : 11/13/99 : No Water No Moon (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 29/101)

No water, no moon
No water, no moon
at last I understand
not one minute too soon
no more water in the pail
no more moon in the water
I've uncovered my fate
after years that I sought her
after years on the search
after years on the path
there are waves in the water
and moonlight in the bath
there is light in the water
and light in my eyes
there is light everywhere
it should come as no surprise
and the light spills down
from a bamboo spoon
no water, no moon
no water, no moon

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

581 : 11/12/99 : Treasure House (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 28/101)

All the beautiful things you seek
are inside of you
In the end the darkness is overcome
and cannot hide the truth
And I’m not sayin’ nothin’
I’m quiet as a mouse
All the wonderful things I seek
are hidden in my treasure house

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

580 : 11/11/99 : The Voice of Happiness (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 27/101)

I’d kill and I’d die
I’d give my one good eye
just to speak with a voice of clear intent
I’d love to be enlightened
and have all my inputs heightened
but the hub is very tiny
and the spokes are very bent
they say the holy men
Speak with tongues mightier than the pen
and voices unencumbered with duress
unrestricted by society
free to speak the heart’s endless variety
how I yearn to hear the voice of happiness

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

579 : 11/10/99 : Trading Dialog (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 26/101)

The victor with the snappy lines
Wins the right to be the figurehead
sets up house in the cradle of society
We’d be better off electing a blind mute instead
trading dialog for a place to stay
trading dialog for food
they talk us out of a hell of a lot
and if we balk they act so rude
power speaks a wordless language
a fist shook under our noses
the man with the plan he warns us
there’s no time to smell the roses
It’s time to depose the masters of
the lying rhetorical game
and knock our stupid little brother off the throne
and know power by its true name
it’s time to win the war of dialog
and roust this class of professional liars
all they do is talk in circles
and piss on imaginary fires

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

578 : 11/9/99 : Three Days More (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 25/101)

1,651 : 23 ?


I’m only going to put up with this
three days more
I tried my best but in the end I
couldn’t find the door
I listen for a sound
that isn’t there at all
I guess I’d better kill myself
3 days is a damn long time to fall
I’m only going to knock myself out
three days more
if trying doesn’t work then what
is trying for
enlightenment or bust friend in
three days I’ll know
I’ll know as clean and crisp and clear
as freshly fallen mountain snow

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

577 : 11/8/99 : Sutras (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 24/101)

Was Hitler Enlightened?
Was Stalin Enlightened?
Was Pol Pot Enlightened?
When the Buddha turned the light on
In the world that day
I write my own Sutras
Recite my own Sutras
My daily homegrown Sutras
Why not I’m not so very holy
to use the real thing anyway
I’d like to exclude some
the wicked and fearsome
I can’t work out the sum
of evil versus universal
transcendent salvation
I baffle the lotus
I circle the lotus
I can’t work the lotus
into my twisted
universal equation

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

576 : 11/7/99 : Departure (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 23/101)

Stupid people ask me if the fire burns
Stupid men concern themselves
with steady returns on investment
What did you get out of life today
When the time of my departure comes at last
I won’t get sidetracked
by my past or a digest of regrets
It’s the same as anything say what you may
I’m on a plane and the plane’s on fire
It seems an awfully complicated
funeral pyre to me
technology has arranged my departure
for me
My preacher told me ‘bout the afterlife
he said nobody’s sure
but it’s the end of strife I promise
and it’s all guaranteed and all
for free

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

575 : 11/6/99 : My Heart Burns Like Fire (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 22/101)

My heart burns like fire
But my eyes are cold as dead ashes
See how the ocean rises
See how the great wave crashes
I’ve never eaten enough to fill me
I never think about the past
I never raise the flag up
it always flies half mast
But my heart burns like fire
and my eyes are cold and dark
and if I let an arrow fly
it always finds its mark

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

574 : 11/5/99 : One Hand Clapping (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 21/101)

The files among other things
collect one thousand songs
for example the world's smallest bell
and the way the surf of the big sea pounds
and the meow of the kitten that made me sad
dripping water in a cave where no one's been
and diamonds crystallizing on Neptune
and a duplicate of Einstein's voice in paraffin
a grasshopper chewing on the first page of
the last copy of an undiscovered verse
which lays out in aching clarity
a truth so complete it had no choice but to disperse
a cymbal, a wristwatch, a party horn
a candle, a bird's bone snapping
a windmill, a whirlwind, a dinosaur egg
from which there comes the slightest tapping
but nowhere among these rare recordings
or the nine hundred eighty five more
is the sound of one hand clapping
they say it's somehow secretly embedded in the core.

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

573 : 11/4/99 : Advice (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 20/101)

My mom gave this advice
don’t invent the wheel twice
All the good things that you seek
You’ll find inside of you

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

572 : 11/3/99 : The First Principle (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 19/101)

The theory is the
empty and unfettered mind
sets down a bold stroke
and each that follows in kind
is a masterpiece
perfect and simple
led inevitably
through from the first principle

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

571 : 11/2/99 : Parable (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 18/101)

If all my certainty
is only rooted in habit
I guess what sweet is offered me
I’m bound to reach out and grab it
if only reason creates order
what then creates reason
if chaos is a postulate
why do I name each season
I’m caught in between the
certainty of doubt
and the doubt of certainty and
I’m dying to get out
I’m trying to square the circle
and turn lead into gold
while I practice all my tricks
the future will unfold
just the way it wants to
So strong in wanting nothing
Don’t think too hard about it
You must have your own parable to sing

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

570 : 11/1/99 : Stingy Teacher (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 17/101)

1,645 : 17 ?


I’ve got a stingy teacher
she won’t give me an inch
and everything is hard to me
that she says is a cinch
she teaches me with riddles
they don’t make any sense
she just laughs and says
that I’m spectacularly dense
I’ve got a stingy teacher
she won’t give me a clue
She says I must do what I must
to know what I must do
I threaten that I’ll leave her
I threaten I’ll give up
she asked after the color
of the water in my cup
She stumped me with a question
one word that means no thing
Now that I think about it
There’s no word that I can sing.

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

Recalibration of time machine complete

Well damn, I have once more achieved temporal parity with the prior decade. Halloween 1999, I remember it well. A little too well, actually, but that's a whole other story. How long will I manage to maintain the daily-ish posting this time? Try not to let the suspense hurl your sense of order into violent disarray.

569 : 10/31/99 : Not Far (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 16/101)

I’m not far now
It’s not far now
I’m almost there
I’m working on how
It’s not far to go
a future none may know
I’ll find it at my own pace
shuffle through this deck of woe
It’s not far now
to get back to
the start of things
and me and you
I know a guy
who knows just what to do
and it’s not far
he’s not far from
finding what was sought for
answering what was asked
opening to one last knock
revealing what was masked

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

568 : 10/30/99 : Mother (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 15/101)

I don't care if people laugh
and whisper to each other
I don't care what people say
I'm a mama's boy
I'll always love my mother
I love all my family dear
Dad and sister and my brother
I know where I came from
I'm a mama's boy
I'll always love my mother
This life gives you just one chance
you cannot buy another
I know where my heart belongs
I'm a mama's boy
I'll always love my mother

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

567 : 10/29/99 : Muddy Road (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 14/101)

Come on girl
I’ll lift you in my arms
carry you across this muddy road
ignoring all your charms
When we reach the other side
I’ll set you gently down
it’s just the kind of monk I am
the root of my renown

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

566 : 10/28/99 : A Buddha (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 13/101)

If I renounce my vices
give up smokes and practice Zen
If I follow all the precepts
will I be a Buddha then?

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

565 : 10/27/99 : Happy Chinaman (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 12/101)

There are more happy Chinamen
in this world than any other
kind of man, that’s just statistics
that’s nothing special
If I had a sack of special gifts
If I’d just worked harder on the riffs
I might be some kind of
rock and roll santa by now
I can’t do what I want
So I guess I must do what I can
do I make any sense to you
happy Chinaman?

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

564 : 10/26/99 : Shunkai (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 11/101)

When I read the story of Shunkai
I know that I don’t have the right
to claim stories that aren’t my own
to take up someone else’s fight
It seemed to confirm my suspicion
that it’s a sorry lot we’re handed
God is silent God is mute
the rich are rewarded the good reprimanded
how could I compare myself
to the true pilgrims that went before
still Shunkai would have forgiven me
we all knock at the same door

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

563 : 10/25/99 : Last Poem (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 10/101)

I may have fooled you up to now
but you must know I am no master
I cannot predict my last poem
I cannot foresee disaster

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

562 : 10/24/99 : The Moon (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 9/101)

A wolf in a business suit
watch the bastard blow
I’m killing him with kindness
and he doesn’t even know...
the means of production
the source of all wealth
five acres and independence
wolf baby here’s to your health
I wish I could give you the moon
something worth howling at
It used to be yours by right
but you’re a different sort of cat
the will of the people
the truths self-evident
the pursuit of happiness
so many letters that I sent
that said here’s the moon for you
wolf I wanted you to have it
take the clothes off my back
I only wear them out of habit

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

561 : 10/23/99 : Great Waves (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 8/101)

It seems there is a bellows
it’s working all the time
drawing in the chaos
spewing out exquisite rhyme
And I am just the waves
that took me as a child
How can a man so strong
be so meek and mild
All I ever think of are great waves
Once I was bashful
painfully shiy
now all the little honeys
say my oh my
but all I ever think about are great waves
the universe rocks
between one breath and another
And anyone who’s breathing
I am your spirit brother

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

560 : 10/22/99 : Final Announcement (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 7/101)

What can I say but
Wish that I could stay
oh well final announcement
I’m leaving this day

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

559 : 10/21/99 : Ain’t No Lovingkindness (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 6/101)

Ain’t no lovingkindness
in this world we built
gonna hafta burn the whole thing down
gonna hafta burn the whole thing down
Ain’t no light or sense
in this system as it stands
gonna hafta run turn this ship around
before the whole thing goes aground
Ain’t no sense in trying
to fix what’s past repair
We’ve got time to start again
We’ve got time to start again
Maybe we will learn something
or do it all the same
guess we’ll never know till when
our sorry shack’s on fire friend

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

558 : 10/20/99 : If You Love (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 5/101)

If you love you’ll understand
despite my crazy scrawling hand
If you love you’ll see the light
If you don’t love well then goodnight
If you have an open heart
you’ll see that I am not so smart
to hold myself the way I do
to keep myself away from you
In the company of fools
helpless minions placid tools
If they love they’ll see someday
It’s what some try to steal away
What can’t be stolen can’t be bought
or forced by should or must or ought
what can’t be grasped or fastened on
by even virtue’s paragon
If you love be open true
and cast off all the gardyloo
and take this lesson home with you
That if you love you’ll be loved too

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

557 : 10/19/99 : Obedience (Flesh and Bones: An Homage 4/101)

Called by anger called by dismay
called to the left side watch me obey
called by anguish called by pain
called to the right side see what you gain
called to obedience and discipline
called to the carpet ready to begin
called to gentleness meek as a lamb
I guess I'm finding out what kind I am
I don't mind the sleeplessness or the hurt
I'm rising to enlightenment just keep on your shirt
obedience is hard for me I'm trying hard to change
Guess that I'll just have to wait and see what you arrange
Call me to sit and learn I'll curl up at your feet
the vinegar is bitter but the lotus flower's sweet
the simple truth is there's a truth you can't write down
if you trace it in the air you get to wear the Buddha gown

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

Transition Protocol

This brings us to the end of Songs of Days volume 4, Blank Book. We we will proceed forthwith tomorrow with volume 5, which bears the title Untitled (very postmodern, I know. Or perhaps, what's the word? Pretentious). Looking back I'm sort of baffled that I didn't elect to drum up three standalone songs to fill the fourth volume before starting such a long related series as Flesh and Bones: An Homage 1-101, but there it is. I guess I have taken the attitude that the division of the books themselves is essentially arbitrary: start at the beginning, start a new one when the old one is full. In retrospect I do find (or imagine or project) a certain thematic coherence and narrative character in the volumes, but at the time of their writing the content was purely dictated by the flow of the daily writing in the context of whatever blank page happened to be next.

The only book this isn't true of is the final volume of series one, which ends in the middle and so was left half blank because I got to the last song I intended to write. Thinking of that I realize (four years too late) that it would have been more bad ass if, when I started the second series of daily songwriting, I had picked it up on the next blank page of the last book of the first series - instead of starting a new book, which is what I actually did. Though perhaps the decision to establish a concrete break between the two projects was intentional: my memories of starting the second series are surprisingly vague, considering its scope. I remember getting pretty worked up about the idea of returning to daily writing, and about making the huge, 10,000 song commitment, and that I started out with a bunch of complicated extraneous codes and markers that indicated stuff like what time of day the song was written, which were soon abandoned. These days, though, the specific inspiration and trains of thought that led up to these decisions are lost to me. The lesson of this may be no more than that the momentary whims of decision are not as important as we often think: only persistence carries through in the long run.

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

556 : 10/18/99 : Is That So? (Flesh and Bone: An Homage 3/101)

I thought I saw the universe a simple
spiral code
the small reflects the large
vice versa
nothing less nothing more
is that so? Is that so?
I thought I saw or heard
that all would be well
and all would be well
I want to believe that it is so
but it’s a hard sell
Is that so?
Is that so?
Is it mine? Does she know?
Was it hers
Why did she say what she said?
So many things
You seem to want me to know
Why is it all I say
is
is that so?
is that so?

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

555 : 10/17/99 : Diamond In the Road (Flesh and Bone: An Homage 2/101)

Did you find me like a
diamond in a muddy road
You must a known others had owned me
take me on invite me into your abode
I clean up pretty I look real sharp
I cut a fine profile
What a treasure for you to find
along this muddy mile
Diamond in the road
I might be who you were waiting for
If you give me wisdom
I might be the one who sees you through the door
I may be the hardest thing you’ve known
Impossible to penetrate
But trust me I am worth a fortune
Pick me up and don’t hesitate

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

554 : 10/16/99 : Cup of Tea (Flesh and Bone: An Homage 1/101)

It seems so obvious
my mind is spilling out on every side
life's a brief candle
and the river's very wide
my cup of tea is running over
trying to make a point
can't solve this with another retreat
can't solve this with another joint
who is pouring out the wisdom
where does the spilt tea go
I can't see the point in crying
how was I supposed to know
If the pot has finally run dry
if the saucer's spilling too
soaking down into the carpet
maybe I can share some tea with you.

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

553 : 10/15/99 : Slow But Steady

Slowly but surely
I’m getting nowhere
a feeling I can’t bear
I loathe it purely
Faster and faster
the nights come on
I write some song
Song is my master
I’m turning the pages
slow but steady
I’ll start when I’m ready
I’ll get there by stages

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

552 : 10/14/99 : Wicked Bone

I’ve got a wicked bone in my body
It’s vibrating right now
It says baby you can have everything
and only I can show you how
give in to my wicked ways
I’ll show you wicked fun
I’ll show you how to make it yours
I’ll show you how this world is run
I’ve got a slightly tarnished halo
and a brass ring that I snatched
it only turned my finger green
but what a wicked thought it hatched
My wicked bone rests quiet now
concealed in flesh and blood
a little like a lotus flower
it will bloom in mire and mud
I’d like to go for wickedness
but the skeleton’s out of the closet
a man must reap the wages of
the treasure he chooses to deposit

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

551 : 10/13/99 : My Million

When I get high enough
and listen to the cosmos seethe
I can hear my restless million
I can hear my million breathe
when I get low enough
I know I’m all alone
I know that only death waits
this poor construction of flesh and bone
when I get wild enough
I know I’ll live forever and a day
And that’s enough to keep
this desperate longing at bay
when I calm down enough
I’ll marshall all my thoughts
and write them down for my million
in five to the fifth electric shots
when will my million rise
when I am ready to begin
I’m a long way off yet
but that is no sin

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

550 : 10/12/99 : Song of Myself

If I sang the song of myself
what would it sound like
like going down a steep hill
ten years old, on my bike
Is it some thing I should
be hearing right now
is it there and I’m not listening
is it a small or a big sound
song of myself I’m not dancing
but maybe I should be
Maybe I should be crying
for all the things I could be
The song I sing’s the best I’ve got
I guess they’ll have to do
At least there are a lot of them
I wrote them all for you
Maybe in a couple years
we’ll all look back and laugh
At how it all wrapped up so fast
preserved in one last photograph

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

549 : 10/11/99 : The New Leaf

If you’re waiting for salvation
You best not hold your breath
Well the way that you’re behaving
is just like living death
If you want to live forever
You must do more than wish
You’ve got to turn over a new leaf
just like when Jonah got ate by a fish
in the darkness of its belly
he prayed a fervent prayer
said Lord I’ll turn a new leaf
if you’ll just take me there
Nineveh it’s here again
the writing’s on the wall
listen what I say to you
this whole thing has to fall
if you turn a new leaf now
the Lord might spare your life
If you keep on scorning it
You won’t get nothing but strife
The new leaf the next page
get ready for the next big turn
gonna shake what shakes and rock what rolls
and what will burn will burn

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

548 : 10/10/99 : Hypodermic

A needle piercing your skin
is the worst thing you can know
that was how it all got started
oh so many years ago
like a hypodermic needle
physics jogged the memory
of brute matter brought forth
the whim of the sensory
with the introduction of the
looped feedback self-referent
there formed the theory of
an arch encrypted glyph that heaven sent
they sought it in the pyramid
they sought it in the hive
they knew it was in plain sight
and they knew its mark was five
So a little information
is a very unsafe thing
best forgo the hypodermic
and the knowledge it will bring

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

547 : 10/9/99 : Invisible World

1,638 : 10 ?


When we are silent
the stories we tell
As I sit and wait
for the whole thing to gel
to come into focus
the night turned to dawn
the sureness we sought for
uncertainties gone
when the world is silent
its stories unfolds
invisible world
not of silver or gold
not of hammers or highways
it sprouts in the cracks
and nothing can stop it
it can’t be held back
we think we’re important
we are in a way
we all have our moments
we all have our day
we find it in silence
just part of the same
the world that turns ever
all part of the game

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

546 : 10/8/99 : Parthenon

If we’re separated by circumstances
or sudden disaster
Meet me at the Parthenon
I’ll be waiting patiently like some Greek master
I may be holding forth like Aristotle
but I’ll stop if I see you
so if fate comes between us
that’s what you should do
Go to the Parthenon
and in the shadow of ruined symmetry
the golden mean the columns
in the shadow of ancient mystery
I’ll be waiting there
I will wait forever and a day
for you to find me
at the Parthenon so far away

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

545 : 10/7/99 : Sublime (II)

Whatever value is left
In this crust
will sublime away
disappear without a trace
leaving us alone bereft
of even the dust
of an honest day
met with an honest face
It’s amazing how things
can disappear into thin air
vanishing instantly
gone and forgotten
Can you hear how the bell rings
Can’t you feel the way your hair
stands and trembles hesitantly
can’t you feel this world is rotten
And it’s all sublime
It’s all subliming
It’s all in the wrist and the rhyme
It’s all about timing

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

544 : 10/6/99 : 3 Magic Spells

3 Magic Spells
will you work for me
will you make it all okay
will you make me happy
will religion save me
Maybe money is the answer
maybe I should quit my job
become a Latin Dancer
If I don’t believe in my 3 spells
will they work anyway
Guess we’ll see if anything answers
Ain’t that just the way

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

543 : 10/5/99 : Any Old Way

the dies cast
the marks made
why don’t I feel satisfied
why don’t I feel saved
the first stroke
the bold plan
why can’t you explain it to me
then I’d understand
it just keeps going on
any old way
I try to go on strong
but it hasn’t been my day
and if I go along
will I someday say
I understand it now
I’ll leave my mark I guess
Heaven just knows how

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

542 : 10/4/99 : Plank (The Clean Slate 3/3)

Put me down
I’m done I give up
You were right all along
clean the slate
start over with a fresh cup
sounds like some kind of song
clean the slate
but put me down first
let me start it blank
let me start adrift and peaceful
before you force me to walk the plank

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

541 : 10/3/99 : The Clean Slate (The Clean Slate 2/3)

Could I break it all down
And pile the whole thing up again
Build a revolution by pad and pen
And remake this little town
Can we really clean the slate
Make a fresh start any day
Still there’d be a price to pay
From some forgotten date
Some wrongs you still must make good
Some Caesar must pay his due
Somehow I’d still want you
In some way I’ve never understood
Every moment is a clean slate
and we make the marks we must
the clean slate lurks in blood and rust
there’s one underneath your plate
there can be no final counting
all we see must vanish by and by
we can’t grasp it but we try
as we watch the pressure mounting

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

540 : 10/2/99 : Tabula Rasa (The Clean Slate 1/3)

I was tabula rasa
when the Big Sound woke me up
I said Lord I’ve had enough
I’d like to go back to my half full cup
I’d prefer not to go forward
I’d prefer to stay right here
No one down here gets their preference
I can see that much is clear
what’s the use to hear the big sound
if it always has to fade
back into the background music
if the piper must be paid
i will choose to pay my own way
with the coin that I see fit
If there is a price to be paid
I by God will pay for it
If I do not have a nickel
if I do not have a dime
I must be the dumbest boy on earth
tabula rasa all the time

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

539 : 10/1/99 : Floating World

How it all whirls around
when we realize underground
another world is floating

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

538 : 9/30/99 : High Commander

Yeah well dude when the
demon’s at your door
In the morning sometimes he
comes back with more
friends
You don’t know the places I been
And when the lights go out in
the city man
that’ll just prove it was
God’s Great Plan
all along
You don’t know the road I took
to come to sing this song
Yeah well High Commander
let me whip a salute on you
look what a fine job you done
telling’ everyone what to do
down here
you don’t know the meaning
of the word fear

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

537 : 9/29/99 : Iacta Alea Est

Toss the coin up
that’s all we get
see where it takes us
that’s the bet
nobody gets more
roll of the dice
cross the the river we cast it
no one gets to do it twice

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

536 : 9/28/99 : Hardliner

I’m drawing a hard line
with a firm hand
and I’ll work my way backwards from it
back into the promised land
I’ve been fooled
And misled
My God the sands of destiny
The handful we’ve been fed
I will not step back
from my hard line
I will cast away what’s spent
and cleave to what is mine
I will live a hardliner’s life
of austere hedonism
I will be the new American
I will cure this mortal schism

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

535 : 9/27/99 : Scintillation

Oh scintillation
partway illumination
the truth is always winking
at us somewhere out there
Glimmers of hope or reason
wake us up in the cruelest season
everything that happens here
happened before somewhere

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

534 : 9/26/99 : Guidance

Give me guidance
give me direction
give me a clue
what’s looking out from my reflection
Give me purpose
give me a plan
I want to make the whole world right
but I am just one man
give me insight
just enough to pull me through
give me a clear path
between me and you
give me focus
give me strength
give me the endurance
to run the whole length
but right now
all that I desire
is for you to watch my back
while I try to light this fire

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

533 : 9/25/99 : Simple Life

I can see myself
living the simple life with you
I can see myself loving
every day the way I do
Right Now
I can see how I value
each day’s simple feast
and I heard you shouting love
At the heart of my beast
Don’t stop now
It’s simple to reach
out a helping hand
I know we can make it
So strike up the band
Let’s go
It’s simple enough
live in this one day
If I could just learn to
hear what the beast has to say
say it’s so

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

532 : 9/24/99 : Bourgeois Lady

Bourgeois Lady won’t you come out with me tonight
Don’t you know only the revolution
Is going to make you feel all right
We won’t make the same mistake this time
Trying to make what you are a crime
We’re through trying to make it with an iron glove
So we’re going to bring you over with love
Bourgeois Lady wear your pearls and fancy things
Your French perfume and silk and diamond rings
We’re going to kill the capitalist state for good
And you’ll be right beside me
Just like I knew you would

Bourgeois Lady step out and see the town
Can’t you tell this whole machine
Is going to run right down
But we ain’t gonna fuss or fight
We’ll just lay down loving to last all night
We’ll kill it with kindness and just like that
Your proletariat man is up to bat
Bourgeois Lady with your cognac and portfolio
We got the answer to your sad imbroglio
We’re gonna dance it all apart for once and all
Stick by me and see
The rise after the fall

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

531 : 9/23/99 : Brazil Tent’s Spiracle

We came a long damn way for nothin’
In the twenty first century
Bad sex and bad teevee
And if it’s just one thing
Well that’s one brilliant miracle
So what are we doing here
eating chemicals and drinking pisswater beer
the truth is streaming form a Brazil tent’s spiracle

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

530 : 9/22/99 : Brevity

Brevity is a virtue I have not learned
I tried to keep my mouth shut
But the words inside me burned
a hole in my pocket
I’d like to take a rocket
back in time to when this
wurm first turned

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

529 : 9/21/99 : Ship of Woe

If this ship sinks
I’m not gonna swim for it this time
I’m not gonna fight to get on a lifeboat
I’m not gonna waste my time
This beautiful vessel of love
has just become a ship of woe
I’m lashing myself to the wheel
If it goes down so will I go
We sailed past the siren’s rock
we kept out of the reef
who was it knocked a hole in our boat
who was the vandal who was the thief
If this ship sinks
I’m keeping the captains role
I’m heading toward the bottom
nothing else will satisfy my soul

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

528 : 9/20/99 : The Helix and the Caduceus

Now the big machine unrolls the scroll for us
The patterns are revealed in a handful of dust
The serpent and the tree the helix and the caduceus
can you find coincidence in what you see
the fruit is very sweet but the enlightenment is bitter
the ball is small and I’m a very shaky hitter
the lion and the lamb, a God who calls himself I am
after all this time you would expect at least a telegram
Jesus, Buddha, Jim Jones, Vishnu
Koresh,, Yoda, Orpheus too
Zoroaster, Kant and Nietzsche
Every crazy mystic teacher
In the clay or on the moons of Jupiter
And if you don’t believe it you couldn’t be stupider
the templates of life are spinning as we speak
and by all indications they still haven’t hit their peak

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

527 : 9/19/99 : Dog of War

The dog of war
runs in this world
it will not stop: it won’t stand still
It makes the rounds: it never sleeps
it counts the clock: the time it keeps
is
Carthage: Persia: Laos: Troy
Hiroshima: watch out: Big Boy
London: Boston: Kosovo
The dog of war finds someplace to go
What are we seeking to conquer?
What are we seeking to gain?
can anybody still believe
the outcome could erase the stain
of
Dresden: Paris: Rome: Afghanistan
Babylon: Saigon and Pakistan
The dog of war gnaws at its bone
and if it seems a shame to you you’re not alone.

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

526 : 9/18/99 : Brief

Brief pause aside to say
I saw the devil out today
observing all the busy streets
He keeps a close watch on his beats
I said to God who’s been off site
It’s getting harder to believe
This will turn out right
He didn’t say much
Guess he’s busy
Just the concept
makes me dizzy
In brief then
things seem bad
but I’m easy
I’m quite glad
I’ve got an answer to fill your cup
Do not heed them
And don’t give up

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

525 : 9/17/99 : Song for Fun

I’ll give up my bad habits
And howling at the moon
just to get better
just to be with you
I’ll sail across the ocean
To any foreign bay
Just to get beside you baby
I don’t care if that’s cliché
The kind of love I’m feeling
I never felt before
makes me want to live forever
get a peek through every door
But I’m desperately lucky
I got luck I’ll never earn
I don’t have to cross the ocean
or to sail where the river turns
to the mighty delta mouth
and the gulf of Mexico
Out into the mighty blue
And across another sea to go
Just to meet up with you
So let’s go there just for fun instead
and sing this silly song
for fun as we lay late in bed

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

524 : 9/16/99 : Old Dog

Look at this old dog
gon’ haft’ to learn new tricks
seems a little stiff and slow
just the way things sometime go
That truth applies to everyone
doesn’t make it stick less goin’ down
But once the pill is in your mouth
Nowhere left to head but south
One more day ain’t gonna kill me
guess I’ll push for one more try
or maybe fade quite away
old dog waiting for my day

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

523 : 9/15/99 : All Is Vanity

It isn’t fair you should expect this of me
given the condition that I’m in
You just had to show me all is vanity
Isn’t it a shame but it’s time to begin
Isn’t it a shame she went and did that to you
Isn’t it a shame we have to go
isn’t it a shame we got our hopes up
Isn’t it a shame we didn’t know
27 years was not enough for you
so you pile another on the heap
don’t think any phoenix is gonna rise outta that
inferno of the things I couldn’t keep
All in all it’s all just vanity
knowing doesn’t make it any better
There’s no use in thinking of the possibilities
if she wants to go you have to let her
there is nothing in this world to hold on to
nothing’s waiting for your grasping hand
nothing in this world is gonna change things
baby that’s a vanity I cannot stand

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

522 : 9/14/99 : Vanity

I don’t know what you’ve been told
but the whole thing was paid for
with fairy gold
Oh, oh our insanity
And I can’t tell you what is true
I don’t bother trying to
proselytize the likes of you
oh, oh the humanity
It’s just a night like any other night
I can’t sort out wrong from right
they both just seem as strange
And I’m not sure what kind of party
I thought I was trying to arrange
I hung a symbol on the situation
gravely practiced meditation
and went softly to each night
And though I traced a thousand stars
the things in jars
kept blotting out the light
I don’t know it matters much
but I waited seven years for your touch
Oh, just my vanity

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

521 : 9/13/99 : Nothing to See

There’s nothing to see here
So pass on by
I will not endure the
fictionalization of my life
Keep your eyes fixed straight on
Walk on by this accident
there’s nothing to see here
You’ve got your own sins to repent
I took the corners so fast
I didn’t slow down to read the signs
I didn’t think to pack a map
I didn’t stay inside the lines
I should have known I’d come to this
I should have kept my eyes fixed on the road
I should have gotten much more sleep
considering the row I’ve hoed
So grant me in my downfall
some small courtesy and grace
take a picture if you need to remember
the mystified look on my face

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

520 : 9/12/99 : Innocence

The universe is spun around
by innocence
It doesn’t know that down here
we got pollution and outrageous rents
the poor thing doesn’t know
that everything must wind down
and down here that makes
for a lot of Hard Knocks caps and gowns
and as a consequence
A little innocence
flies outta the world forever again
Do you think you’re in control friend
We’re all getting dragged around
the same bend
And down here we all
wind up as nothing in the end
Maybe we go on to something else then
But who knows for sure
And so we cannot help always
Searching for the cure
for the burden of the present tense
and the consequences of lost innocence

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

519 : 9/11/99 Gardyloo

We make everything so complicated
I thought you wanted me I know I wanted you
Why can’t we just collide like two ships in the night
Instead of messing around with the gardyloo
I only know I wish I had you here with me
It just makes me sad you can’t be here, too
Why can’t I just tell you what I mean
I always got tangled in the gardyloo
look into my eyes you cannot lie to me
you have to have to tell me what is true
are you still on my side?
Without you my life’s all just gardyloo
Will you always come back home to me
Will you hold my hand and say I do
All I want is everything with you
As we cruise through all the gardyloo

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

518 : 9/10/99 : The Clean Slate

I’m cleaning the slate
I’m drawing all the accounts down
I just need to roll up one big score
then I’ll blow this town
I stayed underground
I kept my mouth shut drew my pay
I dreamed about my big blue ocean
dreamed about every dog’s day
So much chaos and clutter
a lifetime’s writing on the wall
I’m wiping the tablet blank and clean
this time I won’t hesitate or stall
this time I won’t fumble my lines
this time I won’t have one regret
this time will be different
I’ll end up with what I set out to get
one more time Please Jesus
just give me one more try
I will make it really happen
I’m just that kind of guy

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

517 : 9/9/99 : Myself

1,631 : 3 ?


Me myself myself and I
and I am just one just one guy
here in the real world perfect it’s not
god knows I learn slow but that one I got
I can’t explain myself hot under the collar
going mad from eating crow and chasing the dollar
Just myself to face the music
I was just but now I’m too sick
to recall the lessons I learned
when everything was possible and I just burned
with a light that knew no reason
I was there so don’t step to me son
I myself was there to see
when it turned down into a blind alley
And led us to the state we’re in
I got strong medicine but it can’t cure sin

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

516 : 9/8/99 : In the Event

this is just a test
it’s not the real thing
if this were a real emergency
fifty different kinds of bell would ring
In the event
that the shit hits the fan
chances are the power will fail
You’ll have to figure out your own plan
In the event
that your culture collapses
try to trust the basic instincts
lurking back in your synapses
If it all turns out
to be a house of cards
In that event just roll with it
and get ready to go backwards

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here

515 : 9/7/99 : Reason for a Song

Everybody wants to get away
that’s no reason for a song
Everybody wants to turn out right
But half of us go wrong
The other half are fine and mighty
They deserve the song I sing
they’re the ones that deserve everything
My kingdom for a country
My kingdom for a war
My kingdom for a battle
That’s what the horse is for
My kingdom for a horseshoe
My kingdom for a nail
I’d drive it to the center
For the want of a hammer my cause will fail
My kingdom for a reason
My reason for a song
A thousand songs if you can tell me
Why the hell we can’t all get along

You can read an explanation of the origin of these lyrics here