CD 1. Sacrificial Lambs
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Sacrificial LambsWritten by Larry Klein & Warren Zevon
We're having a party We're burning it down We're building an idol He's sad but he don't frown He's the cream of the crop So we're making him god Start writing this down When I give you the nod Them Coptic monks Knew how to keep it real That Rosicrucian thing That Zoroastrian deal Well, they might be wrong They don't give a damn Long as they don't run out Of sacrificial lambs Eat my dust And I'll clean your clock Eat my dust And we'll reel and rock Eat my dust And I'll be your man You can be my Sacrificial lamb Madame Blavansky And her friends Changed lead into gold And back again Krishnamurti said, "I'll set you free Write a check and make it out to me" Take a look At my family tree Every brother and sister Wants something for free You get what pay for From me, my friend Nothing for nothing Forever, amen Eat my dust You can touch my stole Eat my dust And we'll rock and roll Eat my dust And I'll be your man You can be my Sacrificial lamb Smokey and the Bandit And Saddam Hussein Were staying up late And acting insane Along with Russell Crowe And Hafez Assad Start taking this down When I give you the nod The boys are all ready They've laid out the plans They're setting the stage For the man-made man We've worked out the kinks In your DNA So sayonara, kid Have a nice day Eat my dust And I'll clean your clock Eat my dust And we'll reel and rock Eat my dust And I'll be your man You can be my Sacrificial lamb 2. Basket Case
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Basket CaseWritten by Carl Hiaasen & Warren Zevon
My baby is a basket case A bipolar mama in leather and lace Face like an angel---she's a perfect waste My baby is a basket case Dracula's daughter, Calamity Jane Smoke on the water, water on the brain She's pretty as a picture---and totally crazed My baby is a basket case She's gonna make a madman outta me She's gonna make a madman outta me She's manic-depressive and schizoid, too The friskiest psycho that I ever knew We're paranoid lovers lost in space My baby is a basket case My baby's gonna celebrate I'm being dragged through the nuthouse gates Got my straitjacket on and I'm taking her place My baby is a basket case She finally made a madman outta me She finally made a madman outta me My baby made a madman outta me She finally made a madman outta me Warren: I read Basket Case in typescript a good while before Carl Hiaasen suggested we write the song for the band in the book. I said, "I thought you'd never ask!" He faxes or e-mails me lyrics, I FedEx him demos, as we've done in the past. 3. Lord Byron's Luggage
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Lord Byron's LuggageWritten by Warren Zevon
Lord Byron had a lot of luggage He took it when he traveled far and wide He didn't get to bathe very often But he liked to change his clothes all the time I had a little friend named Mister Johnson Who always tried to be like me He rose to the heights of this profession He was hard on his friends and family Still out here in the wind and rain Look a little older but I feel no pain And it stands to reason I'm still looking for love I went to the Henley Regatta Intending to put out to sea They pronounced me persona non grata Goes to show that you can't come and go as you please Still out here in the wind and rain Look a little older but I feel no pain And it stands to reason I'm still looking for love Looking for a needle in a haystack It's pretty hard to find Every dog has his day, Jack I'm still waiting for mine Still out here in the wind and rain A whole lot older but I feel no pain And it stands to reason I'm still looking for love 4. Macgillycuddy's Reeks
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Macgillycuddy's ReeksWritten by Paul Muldoon & Warren Zevon
She stood beside my narrow bed To check my E.K.G. She shook her pretty little head At what's become of me I thought I glimpsed a path that led Through rhododendron days And fuchsia nights to the boatshed In which we two once lay But she gazed only at my chart The valleys and the peaks Brought back the time she broke my heart In Macgillycuddy's Reeks But she gazed only at my chart The valleys and the peaks Brought back the time she broke my heart In Macgillycuddy's Reeks I saw her on Killarney's shore One morning in July When I still thought I was a thorn Trying to find a side I met her in the little launch That runs to Innisfallen Hunched together, haunch to haunch Trying to keep my balance But she upset my applecart She kissed me on the cheek And I was struck by Cupid's dart In Macgillycuddy's Reeks Macgillycuddy's Reeks Macgillycuddy's Reeks I was struck by Cupid's dart In Macgillycuddy's Reeks She was a systems analyst For a dot com company She said, "You think because we've kissed I'll be yours eternally I'll sign another pre-nup And we'll merge our P.L.C.s That's why most girls go belly-up In this economy But when it comes to a jump start Your forecast's pretty bleak The NASDAQ goes by dips and starts Like Macgillycuddy's Reeks The NASDAQ goes by dips and starts Like Macgillycuddy's Reeks She looked only at my chart The valleys and the peaks Brought back the time she broke my heart In Macgillycuddy's Reeks Macgillycuddy's Reeks Macgillycuddy's Reeks That was the time she broke my heart In Macgillycuddy's Reeks Warren: Macgillycuddy's Reeks is a mountain range in Kerry. I think "reeks" is related to "ridge." 5. You're A Whole Different Person When You're Scared
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You're A Whole Different Person When You're ScaredWritten by Hunter S. Thompson & Warren Zevon
You met her in a Turkish town But you didn't want to bring her here You didn't want her hanging around In the Kingdom of Fear So you left her there You're a whole different person You're a whole different person You're a whole different person When you're scared The eagle screams on Friday The Colts are doomed this year The fat's finally in the fire In the Kingdom of Fear Dangerous creeps are everywhere You're a whole different person... When you're scared We have ways to make you talk You won't like at all If you can't run, walk If you can't walk crawl But don't look down It's a long, long fall And you loved her in a Turkish town But you didn't want to bring her here You didn't want her hanging around In the Kingdom of Fear So you let left her there You're a whole different person... You're a whole different person when you're scared Michael Wolff organ Warren: I visited Hunter in Aspen a couple of times with the best songwriting intentions, but we always got...distracted. We wrote the song by phone. 6. Hit Somebody! (The Hockey Song)
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Hit Somebody! (The Hockey Song)Written by Mitch Albom & Warren Zevon
He was born in Big Beaver by the borderline He started playing hockey by the time he was nine His dad took the hose and froze the back yard And Little Buddy dreamed he was Rocket Richard He grew up big and he grew up tough He saw himself scoring for the Wings or Canucks But he wasn't that good with a puck Buddy's real talent was beating people up His heart wasn't in it but the crowd ate it up Through pee-wee's and juniors, midgets and mites He must have racked up more than six hundred fights A scout from the flames came down from Saskatoon Said, "There's always room on our team for a goon Son, we've always got room for a goon" There were Swedes to the left of him Russians to the right A Czech at the blue line looking for a fight Brains over brawn---that might work for you But what's a Canadian farm boy to do What else can a farm boy from Canada to do But what's a Canadian farm boy to do What else can a farm boy from Canada to do Hit somebody! was what the crowd roared When Buddy the goon came over the boards "Coach," he'd say, "I wanna score goals" The coach said, "Buddy, remember your role The fast guys get paid, they shoot, they score Protect them, Buddy, that's what you're here for Protection is what you're here for Protection---it's the stars that score Protection---kick somebody's ass Protection---don't put the biscuit in the basket just Hit some, Buddy! It rang in his ears Blood on the ice ran down through the years The king of the goons with a box for a throne A thousand stitches and broken bones He never lost a fight on his icy patrol But deep inside, Buddy only dreamed of a goal He just wanted one damn goal There were Swedes at the the blue line Finns at the red A Russian with a stick heading straight for his head Brains over brawn---that might work for you But what's a Canadian farm boy to do What else can a farm boy from Canada to do But what's a Canadian farm boy to do What else can a farm boy from Canada to do In his final season, on his final night Buddy and a Finn goon were pegged for a fight Thirty seconds left, the puck took a roll And suddenly Buddy had a shot on goal The goalie committed, Buddy picked his spot Twenty years of waiting went into that shot The fans jumped up, the Finn jumped too And coldcocked Buddy on his follow through The big man crumbled but he felt all right 'Cause the last thing he saw was the flashing red light He saw that heavenly light There were Swedes to the left of him Russians to the right A Czech at the blue line looking for a fight Take care of your teeth---that might work for you But what's a Canadian farm boy to do What else can a farm boy from Canada to do But what's a Canadian farm boy to do What else can a farm boy from Canada to do Sid McGuiness guitar Paul Shaffer organ Tony Levin bass David Letterman additional vocals Warren: Ironically, Mitch Albom and I laid out "The Hockey Song" at his beach house south of L.A. He's a good musician, so he co-wrote the music too. He e-mailed more ideas to me from around the country, and we finally finished the song on a few long long-distance calls from Rarotonga, where he was taking a break from covering winter sports. When we decided to include the hockey song on the album, I lightened up my intentions a little. That's why I put that emblem "Old Velvet Nose" on all my records. It's hard to get too pompous when your trademark is a skull wearing your glasses! 7. Genius
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GeniusWritten by Larry Klein & Warren Zevon
I've got a bitter pot of je ne sais quoi Guess what---I'm stirring it with a monkey's paw Since I saw you coming out of my barber's shop In that skimpy little halter top Did you light the candles? Did you put on "Kind of Blue?" Did you use that Ivy League voodoo on him, too? He thinks he'll be alright but he doesn't know for sure Like every other unindicted coconspirator Mata Hari had a house in France Where she worked on all her secret plans Men were falling for her sight unseen She was a genius There's a face in every window of the Songwriters' Neighborhood Everybody's your best friend when you're doing well---I mean good The poet who lived next door when you were young and poor Grew up to be a backstabbing entrepreneur Albert Einstein was a ladies' man While he was working on his universal plan He was making out like Charlie Sheen He was a genius When you dropped me and you staked your claim On a V.I.P. who could make your name You latched on to him and I became A minor inconvenience Your protégé don't care about art I'm the one who always told you you were smart You broke my heart into smithereens And that took genius You and the barber make a handsome pair Guess what---I never liked the way he cut your hair I didn't like the way he turned your head But there's nothing I can do or say I haven't done or said Everybody needs a place to stand And a method for their schemes and scams If I could only get my record clean I'd be a genius Derouin and Charlie Bisharat violins Evan Wilson viola Larry Corbett cello Warren: When Larry Klein and I collaborate, he sends me an instrumental track from his studio, which I redo in my studio. He had the wah-wah pedal, '70s-style funk thing going. I thought it was very peculiar, but I went along with it. When I started to add the kind of string arrangement they did back then, it turned into something much more like my "classical" writing. 8. Laissez-Moi Tranquille
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Laissez-Moi TranquilleWritten by Serge Gainsbourg
Pour leur plaire aux femmes Dites donc Dites-moi Madame Qu'ai-je donc Perfides ou sinceres C'est selon Quand faut s'en defaire C'est coton Avec une gueule pareille Nom de nom N' me manqu' aux oreilles Des pompons Et si je marchais a Croupetons J'aurais tout du pauvre A- liboron Laissez-moi Laissez-moi tranquille Laissez-moi Laissez-moi Laissez-moi tranquille Laissez-moi Allez sans esclandre Mes chatons Allez vous faire pendre Allez donc Ailleurs qu'a mon gilet A quoi bon Je n' suis pas le gibet D' Montfaucon Laissez-moi Laissez-moi tranquille Laissez-moi Laissez-moi Laissez-moi tranquille Laissez-moi Warren: I love - we all love - Serge Gainsbourg. I thought it would be fun to do a track in French ("Laissez Moi Tranquille") with my daughter, who went to school in Paris. 9. I Have To Leave
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I Have To LeaveWritten by Dan McFarland
This time I have to leave It's all too clear It's plain to see No use in hanging round Like a dog that whines and cries This time I have to leave Did you hear that I'm attached I'm on a dead end path Can't you see it hurts me so But I really got to go This time I have to leave Well, I'm gonna disappear Stayed too long, I'll shake my tears You gave your all---we weren't shy So thanks again---it's been nice But this time I have to leave It's all too clear It's plain to see No use in hanging round They tell me I'm outta bounds This time I have to leave Well, it looks as though I'll be gone for awhile So try not to get too riled There'll be another time When we can unwind But I got to get it on down the line This time I have to leave It's all too clear It's plain to see No use in hanging round You'll get by somehow This time I have to leave But love won't go away I feel that I've got to stay And go on living a lie With you I know there's no goodbye This time i have to leave It's all too clear It's plain to see No use in hanging round After all, anyway, anyhow--- This time I have to leave Warren: "I Have to Leave" was written by my high school surfing buddy Danny McFarland. I dug it and felt it fit the concept of the record perfectly. 10. My Ride's Here
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My Ride's HereWritten by Paul Muldoon & Warren Zevon
I was staying at the Marriott With Jesus and John Wayne I was waiting for a chariot They were waiting for a train The sky was full of carrion "I'll take the mazuma" Said Jesus to Marion "That's the 3:10 to Yuma My ride's here..." The Houston sky was changeless We galloped through bluebonnets I was wrestling with an angel You were working on a sonnet You said, "I believe the seraphim Will gather up my pinto And carry us away, Jim Across the San Jacinto My ride's here..." Shelley and Keats were out in the street And even Lord Byron was leaving for Greece While back at the Hilton, last but not least Milton was holding his sides Saying, "You bravos had better be ready to fight Or we'll never get out of East Texas tonight The trail is long and the river is wide And my ride's here" I was staying at the Westin I was playing to a draw When in walked Charlton Heston With the Tablets of the Law He said, "It's still the Greatest Story" I said, "Man, I'd like to stay But I'm bound for glory I'm on my way My ride's here..." |
RELEASE
DATE May 7, 2002 (US) LABEL Artemis (US) CATALOG NUMBER 751124-2 PRODUCER Warren Zevon STUDIOS Anatomy Of A Headache, Los Angeles The Ed Sullivan Theater, New York Pilot Studios, New York Private Island Studios, Los Angeles Spike Recording, New York |
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