1. |
Everything Goes Green
04:22
|
|||
Summer's coming to a close
I'm throwing out the withered rose
It might be the last one of the year
Summer's end is drawing near
But you and I will carry on
Another solstice come and gone
Fortunes ebb and flow with the sea
But it's the same you and me
Autumn colours come on
Everything goes green again before too long
Autumn leaves drifting down
Spinning rugs of red and brown
Summer games forgotten in the grass
Autumn soon will come to pass
And if our promise ever fades
It's just a layer of dust away
A journey through the album of our lives
For our promise to revive
Winter branches come on
Everything goes green again
Winter deals an icy blow
Seasons hidden under snow
Favourites ever faithful to return
Winter's grip no longer firm
And if we wander from the path
It's not to squander what we have
I watch another summer winding down
And know we'll always come around
Springtime showers come on
Everything goes green again before too long
|
||||
2. |
Get Back in the Game
03:43
|
|||
I remember the day
You opened up your mended heart to me
You had so much to say
A picture of positivity
And given what you said
I guess you really know what life is worth
Coming back from the dead
To cherish every moment on this earth
Now nothing’s gonna keep you down
You've risen from the cold, hard ground
Chorus:
So get back in the game
Show everybody how you beat the odds
And how you overcame
You must have done something to please the gods
Now nothing’s gonna keep you down
You've risen from the cold hard ground
So get back in the game
So grab your gear
The team that saved you needs you now
And there's nothing to fear
And only you can show them how
And I've heard tell
What doesn't kill can only make you stronger
So find where you fell
And get back out there where you belong
Now nothing’s gonna keep you down
You've risen from the cold hard ground
Chorus:
|
||||
3. |
Sons of Summer
03:57
|
|||
I keep a picture on my window sill
For whenever there's a void to fill
The English seaside in the seventies
Our bodies drying in the ocean breeze
The waves are calling I can hear them still
I keep a picture on my window sill
I found a record that we used to play
"Hey there Mr. Blue Sky" on a Christmas Day
So natural, it was in our blood
Music was the medicine of our childhood
And I feel it just as strong today
I found a record that we used to play
Chorus:
The sons of summer
Are smiling down on me again
Taking me somewhere
That only they can know
Only they can go
I hold a place in my halcyon heart
To keep us close now that we're apart
So when I need to keep the blues at bay
Those sunny days are just a beat away
And they bring me back to the start
I hold a place in my halcyon heart
Chorus:
|
||||
4. |
Rain City Blues
06:20
|
|||
The house across the way has turned to rubble
The garage is a goner and the garden's too much trouble
When you're working like a dog to make ends meet
There's no tears for the old timers disappearing from our streets
If you're lucky you could rent a mortgage helper
That or join the masses driving in from the delta
Either way you'll be in debt above your head
And you'll wish you'd bought a cottage in The Maritimes instead
'Cause on the surface it can look like perfect bliss
But if you're living in this city you'll do very well to miss
All the talk about the bubble going bang
And the very heavy volume on The Knight, Oak, and Arthur Liang
And the school around the block is being shuttered
It's too quiet in the corridors, the mums and dads gutted
There'll be no more skipping ropes and bottle rockets
In the schoolyard with a playground that was paid for from their pockets
Quite the model for a public education
No more pennies for the poor kid with ideas above her station
It's a Band Aid on a cut requiring stitches
And some medicine for the boys to kill the insects in their britches
A cacophony of axes chopping strings
Is the next thing on the program then it's scissors clipping wings
So spare a thought for the pencil and eraser
In the hand of the child who built the Port Mann and Alex Fraser
Now our neighbours to the east are on their uppers
They were dancing in the sands and now they're singing for their suppers
And nobody has seen the farmer's daughter
For her daddy's fields are finished or they'll soon be under water
As the queen collects her eggs in a basket
It's her subjects who'll be carrying those chicks in a casket
'Cause the cookie is not crumbling in her favour
And a smorgasbord of fossil fuels has kinda lost its flavour
For the ones who like to stop and smell the roses
And listen to the leaders who can see beyond their noses
As you're looking at the ships in the shallows
Through a window made in China from the Lions Gate or Second Narrows
But the people are now putting heads together
As they try to turn this tanker sailing into stormy weather
And the eagle and the whale are at the helm
And a cargo of compassion is returning to the realm
As the needle of the compass shifts direction
The simple act of sharing is the latest reconnection
In a nanny state that's finally relaxing
Soon the day to day could be a little bit less taxing
Johnny Walker's gonna marry Mary Jane
She'll be waiting on the corner if you want to numb the brain
To the stories that you're hearing on the news
Or another dreary winter and a case of Rain City blues
|
||||
5. |
Continents
03:59
|
|||
Years ago, distance could never divide
The widest gaps were small
Nowadays, seems we're standing on different sides
And it makes no sense at all
Chorus:
'Cause these continents are drifting apart
They were pulling away from the start
And we can't navigate by this chart anymore
Thinking about all the land that locks into place
When two worlds collide
Staring at an unknown and uncertain space
From a rift so deep and wide
Chorus:
'Cause these continents are drifting apart
They were pulling away from the start
And we can't navigate by this chart anymore
A new map will need to be drawn
With the frontiers that have been formed
And the ocean that can't be ignored anymore
Bridge:
There's no turning this tide around
And nobody to blame
There's no saving these bridges from tumbling down
Things will never be the same
Chorus:
|
||||
6. |
Freedom Train
03:46
|
|||
Chorus:
Rolling, keep rolling
Rolling like a freedom train
Come on friend, lend a hand
We can't do this on our own
Side by side on this crazy ride
Beats going it alone
We'll make the climb, we've still got time
If we don't drag our heals
Let's throw all caution to the wind
And our weight against the wheels
Chorus:
Come on friend, just round the bend
We might be nearer than it seems
Let's push this thing against the odds
Inch closer to our dreams
We'll make our way, take each day
And every milestone as they come
Trade our time and our energy
For our moment in the sun
Chorus:
Come on friend, until the end
It's no use turning back
Hope wouldn't bring us all this way
Just to stop us in our tracks
We'll share the road, bear the load
And find when all else fails
The strength to carry on and keep rolling
Straight along the rails
Chorus:
|
||||
7. |
Dad Glad
02:13
|
|||
8. |
Mosquito
03:19
|
|||
Mosquito sticks proboscis in
A perfect patch of untapped skin
Without permission from the host
Now let the thieving feast begin
Injections painless, touch so light
Procedure done she takes to flight
And leaves the hapless victim feeling
Used and cheated every bite
The needle doesn't cause the itch
She pours a potion every stitch
To let the fluid freely flow
Hydraulic fracture wicked witch
At last the scratching will recede
But something worse remains beneath
Just pray the water’s good to drink
And hope the air is fit to breathe
It's just a quick in and out
She is not concerned about
The seeds of sickness being sewn
Her babies will not go without
Mosquito, harbinger of hell
Your industry is hard to sell
Self-absorbed and bloody-minded
Sucking like an oil well
|
||||
9. |
Grandpa's Wedding Ring
03:32
|
|||
When it was handed down
I thought: How could this be
For he was such a big man
Yet it doesn't fit on me
So I put it on a neck chain
Where it hung next to my heart
Thinking until death do us part
Until death do us part
It served as a reminder
Told the story of his days
How the fingers and the factory
Almost wore the thing away
And I thought it gave me comfort
As it lay against my skin
My very own memorial to him
My own memorial to him
Chorus:
It touched the hand of his bride
So delicate in his palm
It probably touched my shoulder
When he held me in his arms
It was there for every story
Every song that we'd sing
So tell me if you find
Grandpa's wedding ring
Oh but I don't need a keepsake
When I can hold a pen
And write about the jeweller
Who made it whole again
And tell you all about Texas
And how I paid a cost
But I found so much more than I lost
So much more than I lost
Chorus:
|
||||
10. |
Retirement Plan
03:40
|
|||
You could say I'm starting late
Slow to bloom, after noon, not the quickest out the gate
Or think I've lost my mind
Not to tire or kill the fire that is burning deep inside
You might expect me to behave
Quit the fight, hide my light and take it to the grave
And tow a steady line
Not to chance, dance the dance, and hope it works out fine
Oh how easy it could be
To keep working for the man
Chorus:
But this is my retirement plan
Making music while I can
Not slipping into silent ways
I'm gonna sing until my dying days
And I hope you'll sing along with me
In the chorus keep me company
And leave the stage a happy old man
This is my retirement plan
Yeah there's more to life than cash
Make a list, take a risk, what’s the purpose of a stash
I could be half dead
In the sack, in the black wishing I was in the red
You know it happens all the time
Money saved, house paid down to the final dime
Just to watch it all go
Paying bills, fixing ills till there’s nothing left to show
Oh how easy it could be
To keep working for the man
Chorus:
|
||||
11. |
Okanagan Sunset
04:17
|
|||
There are cattle on the hills
Drifting slowly home to sleep
And they know the pathway home
Though the snow is fresh and deep
And the light is fading fast
To a palette of sweet dreams
Where a midnight moon awaits
For to wrap your soul in peace
I will meet you there if you bide a while
For that sunset never fades
While I’m dreaming of your smile
Golden willows bow their heads
Deep in silence by the lake
And the whole world wants to rest
And my heart just wants to break
Still this road goes on and on
While there's light enough to see
It's a dark and lonely path
God knows where it's leading me
I will meet you there if you bide a while
For that sunset never fades
While I’m dreaming of your smile
I will find my way for a few more miles
Till I lay me down to rest
Once more dreaming of your smile
|
||||
12. |
Fragments
02:06
|
|||
Fragments come together from so many different places
Random jigsaw puzzle pieces flip to show their faces
A fragment is a turning point, a different frame of mind
The ending of an episode or unexpected find
A fragment is a friend escaping from the jaws of death
A miracle reminding us to savour every breath
A fragment is the constancy of a brother's bond
A multitude of memories to make a magic wand
A fragment is a traffic update on the drive to work
The disappearing line between collected and berserk
A fragment is a photograph recalling sunny days
A couple riding tandem slowly going separate ways
A fragment is a three-year-old face down in the sand
A father grieving for his son while reaching out a hand
A fragment is the fruitfulness of trying something new
A gem that we uncover when we carry something through
A fragment is a parasite ravaging its host
A conduit for coffin nails heading for the coast
A fragment is a grandfather regaling with a story
A brother's face aglow with wonder basking in his glory
A fragment is a ball and chain detaching from a dream
A vision of an engine building up a head of steam
A fragment is an open mind inclined to go along
A stranger in a hotel room weeping through a song
Fragments come together from so many different places
Random jigsaw puzzle pieces flip to show their faces
|
Chris Ronald Vancouver, British Columbia
Originally from England and now living in Canada, Ronald’s music has been described as “Canadian folk with British roots.” In recent years, his “keenly luxuriant voice and immaculate songcraft” have won him many accolades including a nomination for “Songwriter of the Year” at the Canadian Folk Music Awards. His latest release, Fragments, was released on esteemed Canadian label Borealis Records. ... more
Streaming and Download help
If you like Chris Ronald, you may also like:
Bandcamp Daily your guide to the world of Bandcamp