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Larry Scanlon

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Some of What I Heard

Six of One Side

The Day I Missed that Train
At the Corner of Hackney and Chestnut
Come Sit by Me, Marie
Straight Ahead
Some of What I Heard
Pine Breeze or Salt Air

A Half Dozen of the Other

Baby Without You
Across the Borderline
Wrack my Brain
A Guy I Used to Know
They Said They Said
Shekomeko Flow

__________________________________________________________

All songs written by Larry Scanlon (ASCAP), except Across the Borderline, written by Ry Cooder, Jim Dickinson, & John Hiatt

Recorded and Mixed by John Ross

Produced by John Ross

Drawings by Annie Prezzano

Layout and design by Lindsay Prezzano

This record is dedicated in memory of Laura Cavicchi and Jimmy Scanlon, and to the future for my grandchildren, Aidan, Annie, & Eliza.

Thank you to all the amazing musicians who played, especially to John Ross, Karl Allweier, Dan Keegan, Mike Brenner, Libby Weitnauer, and to the Rhinebeck School of Music.

Thank you to my children, Alison, Lindsay, Maura, & Kaitlin, and to Mary-Grace.

Website: larryscanlonmusic.com

__________________________________________________________

Six of One Side

The Day I Missed that Train

(Or: The One That Got Away. Other than maybe a motorcycle, a train is the coolest vehicle for a song.)

When I got to the station

I ran with all my might

Stopped dead on the platform,

I watched that train pull out of sight.

That image keeps returning

With its maddening refrain,

I missed much more than the train I missed

The day I missed that train.

I miss each little one-horse town

That backs up to the rails,

The clotheslines, the tire swings,

The schoolhouse, the jail,

All the faces turning,

To the turning weathervane,

I missed much more than the train I missed

The day I missed that train.

The fields of hay, and wheat, and rye,

The swallows on the wing,

The scarecrow with the steady eye

Observing everything,

Majestic towering silos

Filling up with grain,

I missed much more than the train I missed

The day I missed that train.

The pines that climb the contoured hills

That pass, and roll on by,

The moving shadows cast by clouds,

The changing colors of the sky,

The pointillistic patterns

Where cattle dot the plain,

I missed much more than the train I missed

The day I missed that train.

My destiny was manifest,

My fate at my command,

Was feeling right, feeling blest,

My future in my hand.

Now in my dreams I’m on the platform

Standing hatless in the rain.

I missed much more than the train I missed

The day I missed that train.

Beside her in the darkling coach,

There on the empty seat,

Now fade from promise to reproach

A letter’s words that once were sweet

And on her cheek a lonely tear

Reflected in the pane.

I missed much more than the train I missed

The day I missed that train

Yes I was too late to the station,

I ran with all my might,

Stopped dead on the platform,

I watched that train pull out of sight.

That image keeps returning

With its maddening refrain,

I missed much more than the train I missed

The day I missed that train

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals:

Karl Allweier: bass, lead guitar, mandolin, & percussion

John Ross: percussion

At the Corner of Hackney and Chestnut

(Where chance and circumstance collide)

Sighs heave

Friends leave

Wind blows

Love grows

Children sleep

Serpents creep

Babies cry

Suits lie

Yes, there are countless reasons why

We win or why we lose

Sometimes we laugh, we sometimes cry

We seldom get to choose

Give the wheel another spin

The coin another toss

Chalk up another win

Take another loss

Moon glows

River flows

Birds nest

The dead rest

Bridges burn

Wheels turn

Truth hides

Love abides

Give the wheel another spin

The coin another toss

Chalk up another win

Take another loss

Cause there are countless reasons why

We win or why we lose

Sometimes we laugh, we sometimes cry

We seldom get to choose

The strong survive

The wicked thrive

The faithful stay

Priests prey

Pride falls

Duty calls

The craven cringe

The mad unhinge

The stable genius was on top

The heartless, vain, malign buffoon,

Whose blather seemed to have no stop,

Now he sings a different tune

There is no final alibi

It’s the universal epitaph

You know, when you want to cry

Sometimes you just have to laugh

Bells ring

Birds sing

Doves return

Lovers yearn

Losers win

Wheels spin

Nothing lasts

There is no past

Yes, there are countless reasons why

We win or why we lose

Sometimes we laugh, we sometimes cry

We seldom get to choose

There is no final alibi

It’s the universal epitaph

You know, when you want to cry

Sometimes you just have to laugh

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Dan Keegan: drums

TC Bronwell: bass & organ

Come Sit by Me, Marie

(The title is something my dad used to say to my mom when she’d be fussing over something or stressed and needed comfort.)

The shiny billboards call for our attention

And we submit to them so dutifully

We gaze at them in rapt misapprehension

As if we've all been blinded by decree

Come sit by me, Marie

The charging bull's been loosed from Bowling Green

It's breaking all our well-kept crockery

The unthinkable has now become routine

What's fit for outrage has no boundary

Come sit by me, Marie

We may escape from all the world's distress

I've come up with the perfect remedy

I've set a table in the wilderness

And spread it with a cloth for toast and tea

Come sit by me, Marie

The echo chamber roars, now hear the din

And each one present, every absentee

Wants to be heard, but how to begin

When you can't even hear to disagree?

Come sit by me, Marie

Now fantasy parades in place of fact

And revels in malignant jubilee

Truth itself is subject to attack

And everything’s a vast conspiracy

Come sit by me, Marie

Hear the grating roar at Dover Beach,

The lapping on the shore at Innisfree,

And neither place is ever out of reach

We’ll journey through our own geography

Come sit by me, Marie

A storm is bringing drought and flood and fire

To the smoky wood, abandoned rookery

A tempest rages, fueled by our desire

Resentful wind blows ferociously

Come sit by me, Marie

The field beside the road is swirling dust

The rutted road is cluttered with debris

The carriage rigging’s rotted, gone to rust

The wheel has fallen from the axle tree

Come sit by me, Marie

Let us escape from all the world’s distress

Arise and go, there’s a better place to be

I've set a table in the wilderness

And spread it with a cloth for toast and tea

Come sit by me, Marie

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Libby Weitnauer: violin

Straight Ahead

(The title is something my brother Jimmy used to say when taking off on his global travels: So long, straight ahead!)

One time, I stood on a fault line

I thought thinking a thought crime

Wandering under a bad sign

Feeling under a spell

The world is vast and wide where I dwell

There’s infinite space inside of a nutshell

The ocean’s roar is there in the seashell

I let it all go, and now the world is mine

I’d forgotten more than I could know

And yesterday was oh so long ago

I heard nothing but hearsay

Every voice would echo and ricochet

I felt alone as a castaway

Feeling ever so small

Dried out, I welcomed the rainfall

Cut short, I stayed for the long haul

Knocked down, I stood up to stand tall

After all, still finding my way

No matter what, I always have returned

To each and every one of my bridges burned

I wish I could play the violin

Or, well, maybe the mandolin

Just like Grapelli or Grisman

Imagine the thrill

I can hold the world at a standstill

Reduce a mountain down to a molehill

Surrender myself, give up my free will

Make my world as wide as a grin

Just when I thought I’d heard it all

I turned my head so I could hear the call

Woke up, feeling near half dead

Head filled with all that I dread

Washed off down at the riverbed

Turned the bitter to bittersweet

Follow the sounds, listen to my feet

Walking on grass, clacking on concrete

Stroll along down easy street

Thinking of things left unsaid

I could look back, keep living where I’ve been

Or look straight ahead, find a new place to begin

Larry Scanlon: 12-string guitar & vocals

Arden Yonkers: bass

Dan Keegan: drums & glockenspiel

Dan Nosheny: accordion

Some of What I Heard

(My attempt to write a John Prine song)

I’ve seen all kinds of weather

As I’ve gone from town to town

Barely hold myself together

Patches patched around

Saw the plains of paradise

Stood on stony ground

Heard some funny stories

Didn’t write them down

Though this might not all be word for word

I’ll tell you some of what I heard

Fellow said, I used to drive a taxi

Worked at bending steel

Lunched on dirty waters

Broke for some liquid meals

Played cards and threw the laughing bones

And fell for every deal

Now I’m knocked and bounced around

The pill upon the wheel

Another said, I started off with petty theft

An eager young recruit

I’ve hidden in a hideout

Been hounded by pursuit

They locked me up for larceny

And laundering my loot

They threw away the key

I should have worn a suit

And someone said, I tried to lead a healthy life

Best as I was able

Make sure my food was wholesome

To put upon the family table

Went down to the market

Tried the read the labels

Told them they should post

A periodic table

Though that might not be word for word

That’s for certain some of what I heard

Fellow said, they hired me as a carpenter

I was their last resort

Always tried to do my best

But I’m sorry to report

I found the building plans

Gave me no support

I kept taking a little more off

The board was still too short

Young fellow said, I can drive a racecar

Throw it into gear

I can join the army

I’m free to volunteer

I can marry anyone

Who’d want to call me dear

Can purchase a machine gun

Can’t buy a beer

That might not all be word for word

But it’s for certain some of what I heard

I’ve seen all kinds of weather

As I’ve gone from town to town

Barely hold myself together

Patches patched around

Saw the plains of paradise

Stood on stony ground

Heard some funny stories

Didn’t write them down

That might not be all word for word

But is for certain some of what I heard

Yeah that might not all be word for word

But it’s for certain some of what I heard

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Dan Keegan: drums

Karl Allweier: bass & lead guitar

Pine Breeze or Salt Air

(A love story with two or three settings)

Eyes bright

Shine like moonglow

We go

Walking in the night

Climb high

Over the hilltop

We stop

Look at the sky

She say

Isn’t it lovely

Above we

See the Milky Way

It seems

Under the starlight

We might

Inhabit a dream

Gull cry

Over the wave breaks

See the line that the eye makes

Between sea and sky

Fair wind

Brushes the ocean

Perpetual motion

Wrinkling sand

We know

The pull of the pale moon

Be turning the tide soon

Ebb and flow

It seems

Out in the sunlight

We just might

Inhabit a dream

We walk

Out in the meadow

Look at the shadow

Hovering hawk

Reborn

Wandering we go

Intent as the scarecrow

Watching the corn

Red wing

Lights on the rail fence

Stirs the silence

Hear it whistle and sing

It seems

Pine breeze or salt air

Whenever we’re there

The world is a dream

Yes it seems

Pine breeze or salt air

Whenever we’re there

The world is a dream

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Mike ‘Slo-Mo’ Brenner: steel guitar

Libby Weitnauer: violin

A Half Dozen of the Other

Baby Without You

(My attempt at a pop song)

Baby without you

The sun would still shine

There’d be promise in its rising

But it wouldn’t be mine

Baby without you

Hearts would still yearn

Each for one another

But it wouldn’t be my turn

Without you, I’m an errant thought,

Considered and dismissed

The extra sock, a glove misplaced,

My name heads the list.

A stranded sailor tied to shore,

A nomad tired of wandering,

A peregrine that wants to soar

But falls on broken wing.

Baby without you

The moon would still rise

Its beguiling charms

Would be nothing to my eyes

Baby without you

The fire would still glow

It’s warm and welcome comfort

Would be nothing that I’d know.

Without you, all my former joys

Are meager infelicities

The sweetest music only noise,

There is no forest, there are no trees.

You’ve heard about that engine

That’s lost its driving wheel,

I think that I would feel that way

If I could only feel.

Baby without you,

I’d still sip the wine

But to my taste

It might as well be turpentine

Baby without you

I’ll still wake each day

But all of my tomorrows

Are already yesterday.

Baby without you

The sun would still shine

There’d be promise in its rising

But it wouldn’t be mine

Baby without you

Hearts would still yearn

Each for one another

But it wouldn’t be my turn

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Karl Allweier: bass & lead guitar

Dan Keegan: drums

Across the Borderline

(Ry Cooder, Jim Dickinson, & John Hiatt)

(A wonderful song from the great Ry Cooder)

There’s a place where I’ve been told

Every street is paved with gold

And it’s just across the borderline

And when it’s time to take your turn

There’s a lesson that you must learn

You could lose more than you’ll ever hope to find

When you reach the broken promised land

And every dream slips through your hands

Then you’ll know that it’s too late to change your mind

Cause you’ve paid the price to come so far

Just to wind up where you are

And you’re still just across the borderline

Up and down the Rio Grande

A thousand footprints in the sand

Reveal a secret no one can define

The river flows on like a breath

In between life and death

Tell me who’s the next to cross the borderline

En la triste oscuridad

Hoy temenos que cruzar

Este rio que nos llama mas alla

But hope remains when pride is gone

And it keeps you moving on

Calling you across the borderline

When you reach the broken promised land

And every dream slips through your hands

Then you’ll know that it’s too late to change your mind

Cause you’ve paid the price to come so far

Just to wind up where you are

And you’re still just across the borderline

Now you’re still just across the borderline

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Arden Yonkers: bass

Dan Keegan: drums

Mike ‘Slo-Mo’ Brenner: steel guitar

Libby Weitnauer: violin

Wrack my Brain

(Is this a country song, a tongue-in-cheek take on one, or both?)

Ever since you walked out that door

I pace the room and walk the floor

You must know I’m still looking for

A reason

With all the promises we made

You said your love would never fade

And I never thought that you would trade

In treason

CHORUS

I wrack my brain

Since you’ve been gone—with thinking

I feel my gray cells turning black and blue

To ease the pain

I take a drink—and keep on drinking

But drinking gets me thinking

About you

We both signed on that dotted line

Swore I’d be yours and you’d be mine

Our two lives would be entwined

Together

Remember that you said I do

For better or worse you would be true

You’d stay with me, I’d stay with you

Forever

REPEAT CHORUS

Good and bad times we’ve been through

Read the vows again and you

Will see that it would be a sin for you

To leave me

Now you complain that I’m untrue

I know I’ve had a fling or two

But my heart always stayed with you

Believe me

REPEAT CHORUS

Every anniversary

You’re sure to get a card from me

You have my word, my guarantee

Be grateful

I tell the world how cute you look

You know I like the way you cook

We swore upon the holy book

Be faithful

REPEAT CHORUS

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Dan Keegan: drums

Karl Allweier: bass & lead guitar

Mike ‘Slo-Mo’ Brenner: steel guitar

A Guy I Used to Know

(Subtitled The Antimetabole Song. A song about a guy I used to know. Maybe you knew him too.)

I often get to feeling blue

It doesn’t matter what I do

What I do just doesn’t matter

My thoughts like frighted birds have scattered

So shattered and deferred, my dreams

Are benighted, all for naught, it seems

And I haven’t got a clue

Why I get to feeling blue

I’ve squandered opportunities

And countless days I failed to seize

Yes, I failed to seize so many days

Neglected in oh so many ways

So many days lost to neglect

I’ve even lost my self-respect

The reason why? Don’t ask me, please,

I‘ve squandered opportunities.

I built myself a wall so high

It blocked the sun out of the sky

Yes, from the sky I blocked the sun

Sent the clear skies on the run

It’s on the run clear skies have gone

I’ve only darkness with the dawn

I just don’t know the reason why

I built myself a wall so high.

I dug myself a hole so deep

I could drown in the tears I’d weep

It’s in those tears that I could drown

As I go down deep and deeper down

You know, the deeper down I go

The less and less it is I know

Just why in the world I should keep

Digging in that hole so deep.

I dug my heels in, held a grudge,

Steadfast and stubborn, wouldn’t budge

Wouldn’t budge, stood steadfast,

A captain strapped to his own mast

My road to ruin precisely mapped

I am in my own ambush trapped

And I must be the last to judge

Why I held on to a grudge.

I let my head be filled with pride

I should have felt ashamed inside

What I should have felt was shame

I have only myself to blame

Yes I can only blame myself

For a tiny trophy on a dusty shelf

Why was I so self-satisfied

To let my head swell up with pride?

I went down that road feeling bad

To shake the blues that made me sad

You know I had to shake those blues

And negativity refuse.

I had to lose the negative

Take from the road what it had to give

Feeling good myself, now I’m so glad

I went down that road feeling bad.

Still, I often get to feeling blue,

It doesn’t matter what I do

No, what I do just doesn’t matter

My thoughts like frighted birds have scattered

So shattered and deferred, my dreams

Are benighted, all for naught, it seems

And I haven’t got a clue

Why I get to feeling blue

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Dan Keegan: drums

John Ross: bass

Dan Nosheny: accordion

Libby Weitnauer: violin

They Said They Said

(A nod to the Beatles in the title)

Come on down for a hanging,

They’re clean and don’t take long.

Come on down for a hanging,

Bring a friend along.

I went down to get one,

The line was too damn long.

Sign said no left turn,

Detour to the right.

Sign said no left turn,

There was nothing else in sight.

I’m looking at a dead end

After riding through the night.

Tell me that you love me,

You know I love you so.

She said, tell me that you love me,

I’ll never let you go.

Ah, what I know now,

Then I didn’t know.

They said it was the greatest deal,

Deal of the century,

They said it was the greatest deal,

And they offered it to me!

I paid that low, low, discount price,

Can’t afford the fee.

Won a ticket at the carnival,

Signed by Lady Luck,

She said come back tomorrow

Collect your hundred bucks.

Returned next day to cash it,

Carny’s all hauled off in trucks.

They said it was a sure thing,

The favorite would place,

They said it was a sure thing,

My horse would win the race.

I put my money down,

Now it’s gone without a trace.

They said it would be easy cash,

A simple robbery.

Our pockets full of easy cash,

We’d get away scot-free.

Well, you can read all about it

In my prison diary.

My teachers taught me well,

Showed me the way.

Taught me what to think,

Told me what to say.

Now those emperors

Stand naked on display.

Yes, they taught me to believe

In invisible entities,

Said I could converse with them

If I got down on my knees.

Now what was never living

Can never truly find decease.

I thought that I was dreaming,

But that was just a dream,

Then I dreamt that I was dreaming,

But that was just another dream.

Now I know that sometimes

Things are just the way they seem.

Yeah, come on down for a hanging,

They’re clean and don’t take long,

Come on down for a hanging,

Bring a friend along.

I went down to get one,

The line was too damn long.

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

John Ross: keyboards

Shekomeko Flow

(About the history and geography of the local area where I live. The Shekomeko Creek flows through the woods behind my house.)

Went from Pine Plains up to Gallatin

Stopped at Patchin Mill

Walked on on Silvernails

Up to the Jansen kill

That flows down from Ancram

Where they forged the mighty chain

That stretched across the Hudson

Against a tyrant’s reign

CHORUS

As I walk I think about

How time moves on apace

And then time itself turns about

To times that even time cannot erase

Flow Shekomeko

Shekomeko flow

I passed the place, the native home

Near where the last Mahican stood

Stood still awhile, all alone

And followed a deer trail through the wood

Down to where the water flows

As clearly now as it did then

Listened to what the water knows

Of time, and times, and time again

REPEAT CHORUS

Back to the days before the mill

Before the forge, before the chain

Icebound Jansen never walked

Beside the kill that bears his name

But Manessah practiced medicine

And if I listen I can hear

And feel its healing regimen

In the flowing stream that still ruins clear

REPEAT CHORUS

Larry Scanlon: guitar & vocals

Karl Allweier: bass & dobro

Dan Keegan: drums & percussion

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