1. |
Choices
02:45
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I didn't choose to be me
I can't control the way I am
there's no religion or philosophy that can make me a better man,
so what choice do I have?
I can't control where I go
I can't even follow this road
girl, you're the closest thing I've got to a map,
but I don't know east from west, so what choice is the best?
I didn't choose to be born
I didn't choose to be a man
I didn't choose to be given a death sentence by God,
but what choice do I have?
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2. |
When Will I Be Ok?
02:49
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when will I be ok?
lately, I just want to be alone
with my guitar and my voice
and the alcohol of my choice.
it's a wonderful escape
from the world I've grown to hate.
when will I be ok?
I walk, because I can't afford to drive
I cry because I'm too poor to drive
and scratch off lotteries until my fingers bleed.
and accept your criticism, as I fall broken to my knees
when will I be ok?
I see your pain
I see your pain
these tears of love will make you bloom,
'cause I love and accept everything about you.
everything about you.
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3. |
Pockets
02:40
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so today is tomorrow, and yesterday is today
everything, to me, gets lost in the month of May
I found your twenty on the couch downstairs
I almost took it, so I could start paying you back.
oh, I'll see you tonight,
and I'll love you more than I do now.
I had some money, but no pockets to put it in
I got some pants, and now I got no money to put in them
so, I went home to the sunniest part of the USA,
but now I'm broke, so I'm selling my house today.
oh, I'll see you tonight,
and I'll love you more than I do now.
'cause the longer we live, the louder the sound.
wearing pockets as flags, using my hands as cups
I hold them out, and wait for any city resident to just fill them up
on the streets, there's no one nice to meet,
so I start to weep, and think of how life used to be
when I'd see you at night,
and you loved me more than you do now.
why can't I see you tonight?
wish you loved me like I love you now.
'cause the longer we live, the louder the sound.
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4. |
No Dial Tone
03:08
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you were driving down the road
when I drove straight in to you
you tried to call your husband,
but there might as well have been no dial tone.
she was crying all alone,
cause she had no money, and got kicked out of her only home
she cried to God her father,
but there might as well have been no dial tone.
he was drowning his worries
writing this song while you're listening
so drunk, and all alone
that there might as well have been no dial tone.
can you hear me?
can you notice?
are you listening?
they were drowning their worries
cause they couldn't stand society
they tried to call the governor,
but there might as well have been no dial tone.
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5. |
James
03:46
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the sun, the sky
it's all right here
James, he starts
his day with fear.
walking, walking through heaven,
and seeing only hell.
color poured in
to his dark eyes
he saw his love,
and loved her life.
living, living the same life,
but finally alive.
he painted
pictures with his words
shared stories
with little brown birds.
surprise, surprise his hell was
coming back in to his life
life's cycles still remain.
open your eyes to the beauty that is life
oh, James can't you see that you're beautifully alive?
smile right now, cause you could you could die tonight
oh, James can't you see that you're beautifully alive?
I'm closing my eyes
to the beauty you call life
I know to you
I'm beautifully alive.
but for now,
I'm just alive.
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6. |
Life Loves Me
02:27
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I walk with my head down low
cause I'm a fraction of what I want to be
but when she heard me say I'm hating life
she told me I'm lucky to be alive.
life loves me
and I just can't seem to see.
now, I walk with my head on straight,
but let's be honest it can't always stay that way
cause what she told me that day
is velcroed to my brain.
life loves me
she loves me
and I'm trying to see
walking backwards, forwards to dinner
she's my love and she loves me.
life loves me
she loves me,
and now, I can see
she loves me
life loves me
and now, I can see
life loves me.
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7. |
More Than a Tree
02:09
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I breathe out so you can breathe in
but then you took out your axe,
and I fell on to your land
why did you do that to me?
I was much more than a tree.
I was home to a family of five bluebirds just a learnin' to fly
I gave your friends shade when they all went outside,
but most importantly, I was alive.
you put out seeds, and I'd sing you songs,
but now, I'm sad and lonely all day long
cause one day when I came home
you started cutting down my tree
so I flew and flew as the tree fell down
cried as my wife and children hit the ground
why would you do that to me?
you killed my whole family,
so now it's just me.
so, now it's just me.
life may go on,
but I can not.
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8. |
Two Summers Ago
02:50
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it's not coming back, so stop looking there.
you can't drink or eat enough to ever be full or satisfied.
I miss two summers ago
we all do, but today will have to do.
I see you walking there wishing you were here.
it's not really that bad, but the smoke from an old flame
is covering all the beauty of this day.
yeah, you can't see or think, but remember a place where you could.
I miss two summers ago
we all do, but today will have to do.
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9. |
You're Not Happy
03:17
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clouds gather in your sky
your vision starts to blur,
as your head begins to hurt.
and you know exactly why
you are not happy
I can see it in the way you've changed
you laugh so sadly,
and struggle to cover up your pain.
afraid you lie lonely
knowing you'll never get
this moment back
it hurts, but it'll always get better if you let it.
you are not happy
I can see it in the way you've changed.
you laugh, so sadly,
and struggle to cover up your pain.
I see you lying in that dark room
your eyes can't even look the same
I see you lying in that dark room
your life can't be lived that way.
you are not happy
I can see it in the way you've changed.
you laugh, so sadly,
and struggle to cover up your pain.
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10. |
Starting New
03:06
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today, I saw rain turn to blood under the sun
I cracked a smile, cause I knew the storm had just begun
you made me walk for miles out here all alone
so far from home.
but I'm starting new,
because of you.
last night, I drank and drank and drove away
saving problems and my duties for another day.
I acted like an asshole under the influence
I hurt my friends -- every one of them.
but I'm starting new,
because of you.
I'm a candle in the driver's seat
with the windows down, and my flame is flickering.
I want to burn 'til there's no more wax left,
'cause this life can only be lit once.
I'm starting new,
because of you.
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Ben Hughes New Jersey
"...channels musicians like Elliott Smith, Bright Eyes, and Sufjan Stevens, as on Hughes’ previous releases. But this record
immediately calls to mind Pedro the Lion’s Control, with its deep-voiced chords and melodies, lyrical themes of corporate hell, and Hughes’ slurring voice. It could stand as a complimentary album to Control just as well as it stands on its own."
-Nick Tate, WXPN
... more
Ben Hughes recommends:
Can hardly describe how great this record is, you're just going to need to trust me on this one...
go to album
Greetings From Night Windows & Pilkington
by Black Rd Records
This is a split EP that was released via Black Rd Records that my band Night Windows contributed to. Pilkington's tracks on the split are amazing, and I sang back-up on All To Work. Give it a listen.
go to album
A Week or Two That Will Sorely Be Missed
by Night Windows
"This is indie rock the way it used to be done before blogs turned it into an amorphous zone where artists who don’t rock can call themselves indie." Sam Wade, I Heart Noise
go to albumIf you like Ben Hughes, you may also like:
Goodbye, Cagoule World
by Benjamin Shaw
Benjamin Shaw isn't all Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now, there's also beauty, noise, and a shoulder to lean on.
go to album
Soccer Mommy re-affirms her emergent rock star status with a surging new LP that explores everyday struggles through the lens of synethesia.
go to album
Soccer Mommy’s debut album presents her as a singular artist brimming with authenticity.
go to album
