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NATHAN PHILLIPS MUSIC |
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Sample Lyrics
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TOUR GUIDE (62) (VS) If you ever go to visit planet earth I don’t suggest you get a tour guide Or you’ll just be dragged to all the typical shows The souvenirs that they hope you’ll buy As soon as you land at the airport, they’ll bombard you with brochures Of the All the well known locations you have to see for sure The skyscrapers and the waterfalls But the biggest and grandest that this world ahs to show Is small compared to what you’ve already seen I know that you have already seen so much more Than our ditches, mounds of earth and frail machines But before you hurry off, angry at having been Suckered into this planet’s tourist traps Follow me I’ll show you the beauty of the simple things That make up for all else the planet lacks (CH) I’ll show you a palace
made out of tar paper Coffee being roasted over an
open fire The smile of a poor old toothless
lady Is worth more than all money
can buy If you want to find this earths
true treasures I can tell you where you got
to go The true wealth here is discreetly
hidden I’ve been there so you’d
figure I ought to know (VS) We’ll have to travel light, so just a couple of changes of clothes Carried in a scruffy duffel bag We’ll take local transport so learn the tricks of the road Perhaps get to know people along the way The road winds up the mountains, you’ll see far away A lonely house carved right into the cliff The bus will stop to rest at a town halfway Eat the meat there at your own risk The final phase we’ll do on foot up a desert mountain path Around not a single sign of life The sound of running water and children at play Will be worth more than gold when we arrive (VS) There’s a place in
the middle of the As barren as a barren land can
be Where a weary traveller can find
refreshment In the shade of a single tree You must walk for more than twenty
miles Under the rays of the blistering
sun To feel the thrill of finding
an oasis Truly enjoy the rest of journey
done (VS) You reach a small village, you’re invited in By people who don’t even know your name Just because you traveled there, makes you a friend Whatever they have to eat with you they share That evening around the bonfire enraptured as you hear The tales of battles fought long ago You see the glint of in the chiefs eyes as he speaks How people fought to defend their homes (CH) There’s a rusty rifle
on the mantle A deep scar, and a missing eye Marks on a man who lived a life
that mattered Knew courage, passion, honor,
sacrifice Images like this are getting
rarer In a land of ease and compromise If you want to discover where
they are You gotta get off the beaten
path to find 0451 I WAS THERE (6:40) (44) (VS) If you only had the chance to go for a walk And follow in my footsteps for a day Meet a few of the people with whom I talk I guarantee, your life would change Through the crowded market in Seeing lean men toiling at their trades Somehow they find purpose with the little they have A life of hardship seems to be their fate If on my next journey you could tag along To where an entire village dances in the streets Aware there will be bloodshed before dawn Yet tonight they still find happiness and peace We could visit Duboj in northern To see Christians and Muslims side by side Though time hasn't yet healed the bulletholes in the walls Healing has begun in people's lives (CH) If I could just lend you my eyes Let you review my memories Walking a hundred thousand miles Just to observe humanity Then the things that weigh you down All of your worries and your fears Would disappear as would the doubt, "Is there a cause for me being here?" If you could see it all The answer would be clear (VS) We could climb the mountains of See the ruins of kingdoms of long ago Watch the women playing soccer in traditional gowns Strike up conversations along the road Or we could walk village to village in Where the crops are being buried by shifting sand The children are malnourished, yet the laugh and run Joy is stronger than the harshness of this land (VS) Or how about we climb a mountain north of Zhaozhoang Just to see if there's a temple at the top Then come around a bend and look up, amazed There's a stairway carved right into the rock We might swim in a river in south Under the shadow of a old temple to the gods Or stay the night in a Moroccan medina To hear the call to prayer before dawn. 1729 THE PEOPLE OF RCHIDA (26) (VS) In a dry and barren valley below A garrison was built by the French Determined that they would control The people who lived up on that cliff They had weapons they had fierce legionnaires They controlled almost half of the world But the people of this land had no fear Determined that their culture would be preserved (CH)
/The people of Rchida believe in freedom/ (VS) They built their village up on a cliff Surrounded by layers of walls Fought, persevered until the end they drank water that sprang from the rock In the end the French gave up and left Now that garrison is nothing but ruins But that village still flourishes (VS) Nowadays you can visit that town There’s a path that’s carved into the cliff The people still noble and proud But if you come and show them respect No matter where you are from They’ll invite you into their homes They will treat you as a friend Share with you their bread and olive oil. 1730 HAPPY LAND (5:03) (22) (VS) People have empty stomachs yet they still sing and dance There's a beautiful sense of community Go there, you'll be amazed at what you see Africans, yes I admire them Such a brutal history, yet they smile in spite of this They've been robbed, plundered, enslaved, yet there's no bitterness You go there and you'll be treated as a friend (CH) Someday when the whole world falls apart The rich and proud will weep at what they've lost They've seen the worst and never lost their song everybody
sing (VS) Would have crushed a weaker people, but they are adaptable The lack of rain, disease and pain Yet they find hope for a better day (VS) Eventually the world will even out Don't envy us, we won't be this rich too long In the end we will be weak and you'll be strong
0801 WANDERING MAN
(34) (10:47) (VS) Some people wander for fun, some do it to run away Some wander hoping to have stories to tell About their travels someday Some wander seeking for truth off in a distant land I know because I've met people like that And I'm also a wandering man Wanderers face many risks their determination is strong Dangers of thieves, disease, loneliness Yet they keep wandering on If you ask me what is the cause the force that drives me inside The energy that's kept me going all these years To be a wandering guy
(CH) I wander because I can't forget the hunger
That I've seen deep in a man's eyes
He'd never had the chance to hear
Music that was food for the soul inside
I saw I had something to offer
Do something that no one else is
And I realized that all over the world
There are many other people like him (VS) One night in a dark hotel room sitting on the side of my bed Wondering how I would find something to eat Make it through another day I remember when I used to have a family a job and a home Things that I cherished I left behind To go off and wander alone I ask myself how others can live the same routine all the time I realized it's because they don't know what I know Or seen the world as have I I imagine what it would be like to go back to an ordinary life But I know that I couldn't because the things that I've seen Would keep me awake in the night 0832 STAY IN THIS DREAM
(8:03) (46) (VS) Walking in the morning by the ocean As fishermen are bringing in their boats The women come running with platters on their heads To buy the biggest fish and take it home Boys and girls are playing in the water Their ebony skin glistens in the sun The old men gather under the palm trees Where important matters are discussed Here where houses almost touch the water And the streets are nothing but sand Men in colored robes answer the call to prayer All bow together as a single man The nation to the north is just a desert The nation to the south is at war Then suddenly from this dream I wake up In a cold and dreary land, my true home
Where are the trees where are the children?
All the bright colors that I saw?
If that dream appeared so real then
Why can't that be my life and this one not?
(CH) [Don't wake me up] I wanna stay in this dream
I've finally found a life from which I don't wanna leave
Don't wake me up, I wanna reinsert
I was jut fantasizing of a much better world [] (VS) I try to squeeze my way through the market Between mountains of spices and fresh vegetables An old woman gestures to me smile Offers to read my palm, tell me all I want to know I sample the sweets sold by the vendors I drink a glass of fresh mango juice Then suddenly everything goes dark, I open my eyes again I'm in the land of jaded hearts and stale food.
Where is the sun, where are the women?
Where is the excitement that I felt?
I wouldn't hesitate for a minute
Exchange the imagined for the real (VS) I go to my home down a blind alley Just as I'm about to reach my door I see that girl, for a second she looks at me Then suddenly she's gone and I'm alone
Where is the smell of dinner cooking
Fish being grilled on an open flame?
I tried to hold to it but I couldn't
I let that dream forever slip away. 1158 CHAOS
(42) (9:03) (VS) Over five hundred years an isolated tribe Lived peacefully on a island paradise Abundance of trees that soaked up the rain A balance that insured things would always be this way People always partying always lots of food Except for one young man who seemed to be in a bad mood Others asked him "what's wrong?" he said "we should plan ahead In case things go wrong we should be prepared We should build ships that can sail across the sea If this island dries up we'll want to leaved" Peopled scoffed at him called him a pessimist "Why should we prepare for danger that doesn't exist?"
(CH) /But if we can't get off this island
Why are we cutting down all the trees?
Are we suicidal or is it plain stupidity?
When the delicate balance is disrupted by our greed
We'll be stuck on this island with no water or food to eat/
/And we will die
And we will look up to the sky
And wonder why we were so blind/ (VS) So the party went on with the giant bonfires Building wooden palaces for others to admire Nobody except one man seemed able to perceive The soils getting washed away now without the trees Until one night they woke up to a giant roar Rain caused a mudslide washed off their topsoil Next spring they try to plant nothing's gonna grow Too late they realized they've dug themselves into a hole. (VS) About ten billion years ago on a planet next to ours There were plants and animals and people living on Mars Had a great civilization based on technology Acquired fuel by burning the planets many trees Like us they were intelligent created machines Understood electronics and electricity Most of which was focused on creating toys and games Priority is to keep all them Martians entertained Only a few scientist attempted to dissuade Saying "all this development is a complete waste Instead we should be building ships that can travel through space In case something goes wrong on this planet we'll be able to escape" 1173
(62) (10:23) (VS) Where is it you say you're going? Taking a trip down to planet earth I myself made that same journey years ago There's a lot of stuff you can learn there You'll surely get your money's worth No reason you should ever be bored My advice is you gotta stay there At least fifty spins around the sun It'll take twenty spins just to get settled in There's plenty of cool places to tour there Places that are a lot of fun But there's just one experience be sure you don't miss
(CH) Find a woman take your time
Walk through the villages keep an open eye
A girl that's working maybe grinding grain
Who's got tough hands but a gentle face
When you find that woman who still lives at home
Go have a chat with her father alone
Marry that woman whatever the price
It'll be the best thing you'll do in your entire life (VS) Other folks are gonna tell you Make sure that you get rich So you can cruise around the earth like a king But I warn you that earth's economy Is twisted and sick There'll be a bitter aftertaste if you succeed There's a lot of things that you could do there You could be a warrior or a president Conquering and accomplishing a lot But the memories of you bloody conquests Are gonna haunt you in the end But there's one experience that I guarantee will not
(CH) Find a woman in the simple lands
Where people struggle hard and work with their hands
A girl that's worth it a girl that's pure
Learn her language and the local rules
Marry that woman as tradition says
I promise she will love you to the end
A simple woman from a country home
Is the best thing that all earth has to show (VS) If you wanna see some waterfalls Wanna observe some wildlife Wanna enjoy the landscapes--such variety You won't have time to see it all, But, well, at least you can try Climb mountains, ford rivers, see the deserts and trees But after traveling around a while The weariness is gonna set in Leave the grandiose images behind Step into a simple home And share dinner with them Seek for one of them jewels that earth hides
(CH) Find a woman give her a child
Come home each day just to see her smile
Give that woman all of your love
She'll love you back ten times as much
Stay with that woman the rest of her days
She'll turn earth into the most beautiful place
Because a good woman is all you'll need
To turn you into a true king. 0661 HOTEL CHENNAI
(40) (7:44) (VS) [It's just another morning in Chennai] He doesn't have the energy to step outside Even the most picturesque individual Is unable to make his heart come alive He doesn't eat breakfast until two p.m. He goes on a short walk then comes back in Seen too many so-called great historic buildings The cracks in the wall are more interesting too him [] An encyclopedia of memories inside But today none of it seems to mean anything Ten years ago I could just as well have died But he'd determined "I must see To walk each mile is my destiny But what am I giving what am I getting Other than just blisters on my feet?"
(CH) /Chennai {hotel Chennai}/
If it were all to end here would it have been worthwhile? {} (VS) He's covered over a hundred thousand miles When was it that his heart became jaded All the faces started looking alike? But there could be no greater call If you have the chance to do it all Why would you want to stagnate in one place If you keep on rolling without moss? (VS) [] "I need to sort things out in my mind But I've already bought my ticket to the next town No time for the deeper questions of life The demons will soon catch up with me No choice but to again pack my bags and flee Find another fifty rupee hotel room Long ago became a routine" (VS) It's his final morning in Chennai Doesn't greet the porter as he walks outside Just another person whose life has no meaning He says "I'll write you" knowing it's a lie So he heads out to never return A short chapter to quickly write then burn But there's no passion, no searching no real clinging Nothing will ever get better or worse.
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1425 TOTAL LIFE CHANGE (5:02) (30) (VS) The
restless years are over I think things
through before I move Because there's
much I could lose Don't want
to end up out there naked Wishing I
had waited for a clue That it's
time to move The years
of random leaping Embracing
and then fleeing done I found a
life that I want Doesn't mean
I've closed my heart to change Just want
to finish this phase before I run I'm not sure
if I'm done (CH) I'd make a total
life change tomorrow If I know that I'll stay
on that track Knowing I don't want
to just get so far and Realize I'd rather go
back (VS) It used
to be so simple All that
I owned I could fit into a bag It was easy
to escape Now I've
got all these anchors It'll take
time to pull away, that's OK, Time to think
it through that way I really
don't envy that freedom This way
it forces a completion of a phase Before leaping
into change So when it
comes I can look back and Knowing I
accomplished something, not ashamed I didn't
start then walk away 1318 SEVEN MONTHS
(30) (4:05) (VS) Would
you mind if I asked what you did With the
last seven months of your life How many
memories could you list How much
is a haze in your mind? It ain't
up to me to say If your time
was well spent or not But personally
I am afraid Of living
a life that is quickly forgotten I'm not trying
to suggest You got to
take the same path as me Pushing myself
beyond the limits Just to create
new memories Doing something
never done before Soaking in
every inch of this earth You decide
how far you have to go To break
the monotony curse (CH) What could life
be like if we conquered reluctance and fear? If we would just reach
out how many dreams might become real? (VS) There's
a time for habit and routine For submitting
to the daily grind But we're
humans, we're not beasts We can't
live like that for all our lives We got to
break out of these chains Head out
there, try something new Maybe no
one else will appreciate But it's
just something we've got to do (VR) Or you could choose
to believe your excuses Convince yourself you're
doomed to be a slave (VS) So imagine
a year from today Looking back,
what do you see? A few halfheated
attempts to escape Never cutting
ties to the machine Then every
year that you live Will it look
just like the one before? Until you
look back at the end And all you see is
a blur 1768 MY OBAMA SONG (VS) November four two thousand eight Was the day that my life changed Born into a land of ignorant pride With a dark past that we just can’t leave behind Because deep inside most people’s heart That arrogant bigotry still holds strong but (CH)
{Now for the first time in my life} I feel proud to be an American {} Most
folks finally did something intelligent {} Looks
like we’ve finally broken those stereotypes For the
first type I believe people can change here in (VS) Two hundred years of modern civilization Always been clear privilege is not for everyone The circle tight of the elite Pay only lip service to the weak But November fifth the world woke up And it was my country that gave this man the chance Maybe we’ve finally atoned for our past.
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