Sweet Thoughts
By Joey Fortuna
Jack lost his son to a drive-by in Washington
Two kids in a stolen red car
In his dreams the boy says, "Papa did you ever think you'd see me here?
Did you ever think your son would get this far?
I can see in your heart while you sleep.
You don't have to worry about me anymore."

His brother took his own life in the night
When a cruel woman took away his heart
When Jack dreams of his brother now, he's hard to recognize
With his head held high and his arms spread wide apart.
And he says, "Jackie, all the girls here dance!
Who would've thought of it?
Who would've thought of it?"

CH:
It's a long, long wait. Then your ghosts come back.
Like memories of what you won't get back.
Oh, everything, if you could have it back.
It's the sweet thoughts that get you through the night.

He lost his wife to years of diseases
Cold, merciless and grey
But in his dreams, she dances round as brightly as you please
Like the sun on their wedding day.
She says, "Darling, you haven't changed.
I love the way you smile!
I love your blue, blue eyes.
I love the way you hold my hand,
Your fingers laced in mine.
There will come a time
When we won't need to say goodbye anymore."

White Bird
By Joey Fortuna
Yesterday you saw a white bird, you always were
One of those people who notices.
I turned to see it, but for me it's
Just one of those things that I'll always miss
So won't you be my eyes
When I'm blinded
And come sit beside me, I'll hear you describing the rays
Of the setting sun.

And all day long, how we roll along, and how my heart beats
All day long

Just today I found a calendar I lost a year ago,
Useless now, in my desk.
And we flipped through the days and it's full of mistakes and I know
I'm still bad at this, still, I'll press on
And still I'll be surprised
By how time is
But come sit beside me, there's always more time in the rays
of the setting sun

And all day long, how we roll along, and how my heart beats
All day long

And someday soon, with the rising moon, it'll be the end
Of these golden days, but then again
I don't care what they say, I'll be there anyway
Waiting around for the flip of another day
Soft surprise in your clear blue eyes
And while I'm waiting here,
What could be more clear?

Yesterday you saw a white bird, you always were
One of those people who notices.
I turned to see it, but for me it's
Just one of those things that I'll always miss
So won't you be my eyes
When I'm blinded
And come sit beside me, I'll hear you describing the rays
Of the setting sun.

Ghosts
By Joey Fortuna
If I become a ghost, I will wear a bright red tie
A green overcoat, and makeup on my eyes
I'd lose the chains and the howling screens
For a whistle and a red nose
And my shoes would be too big
And with the floppy soles, you might never know
But I would dance around your bedroom
Balancing a bowling pin on my head
I would trampoline into a kiddie-pool full of water
To see you laugh again

If you become a ghost, you will come to me in waves
All around me as I float across this wide, wide lake
And the coldest springs and the darkest rains
Would be falling all over me
And over time all my days would run on
Until they finally all run dry
But somebody told me a joke once
I'm gonna get it wrong just like I always do
Something about St. Peter at heaven's gate
One hand upon a book of names
The other showing you the way

Maybe it'll be just like they said
The tunnel out
The pearly gates
The dime store halos on their heads
For all we know, it'll be just like they said.
For all we know.
But after all this grace, could there be more grace to go?

We will find out soon enough,
We are speeding away from the past
It's so hard to let the days go by
But it's harder to make 'em last
And all the older people in our
Lives know so much more than we ever will
And I know it's just the way of things
The way of things
The way of things
But it'll take a bull to break me
It'll take a runaway freight train

Darling I will always be there for you
I'll always be there for you
I'll always be there

My Halo
By Joey Fortuna
My will to survive is what makes me so nervous
And makes me such a burdensome friend
Everybody keeps on talking about "Live for the moment"
But, oh, every moment ends.

When I first came to the city I was already jaded
I was all ready to believe
That all my best choices were already made
And just fading away from me

But I'm a long way from my halo.
I'm a long way from my home
In the host of golden angels
And I will not be for long

I boiled it all down for my friend at a wedding
Where I drank so much I burned my thumb
He just laughed and he handed me a drink and a smoke
And he said, "Wait till your baby comes."

'Cause you're a long way from your halo
You're a long way from your home
In the host of golden angels
But you will not be for long

And who will you love, who will you trust when you must
Who will you hold on to
And what do you see in your dreams of the future
What do you believe?


My will to survive is what makes me so nervous
And makes me such a burdensome friend
Everybody keeps on talking about "Live for the moment"
But, oh, every moment ends.

And I'm a long way from my halo.
I'm a long way from my home
In the host of golden angels
In the dust of days remembered
On a pullout couch in God's Great Big House
But I will not be for long

Sound of Voices
By Joey Fortuna
Wendy waits for the winter to pass
With her face pressed against the subway glass
With the hard-bitten crowds at her sides
And lunatics all in it for the ride
And with a gesture of holy defeat
Watch her raise her eyes and give up her seat
Just to have something to be proud of
While she's creeping underground beneath the streets.

The whole train is full and it's standing room and it's push and pull
And nobody meets her eyes and suddenly she realizes
She's read the same subway poem 16 times
It's all about the poet's father and how much he loved
And how young he died
And someone screams at her, "Do you believe?"
Under 14th Street and she says,
"Believe me, I believe" and she looks away.
And the train carries her on through her day.
But she wants to fly away

From the madness of unfinished business
The dream of survival, the rage of fitness
The soft horizon of last-minute choices
The hypnotizing sound of voices

Outside the snow is high,
Everybody stands in line.
She takes her place
She sets her face
And she's gone, gone, gone.
Lost in a song she heard yesterday:
"Da da da..."

Oh the madness of unfinished business
The dream of survival, the rage of fitness
The soft horizon of last-minute choices
The hypnotizing sound of voices

Slip Away
By Joey Fortuna
Is it me, is that the same tree?
Is it changing leaves?
Is it getting colder?
And you laugh, tell me I'm slow.
Like I don't know
That I'm getting older
But you look just like you do
In a picture I took of you
A long time ago
Would you laugh if I told you
All those years ago
Seem like yesterday
Don't days slip away?


And you tell me I'm thinking too much
And drinking for the wrong reason
But your eyes darken
And clouds gather around you
When it changes season
So I know you feel the same
And I know how long it's been
Since your heart was easy
Would you laugh if I told you
All those years ago
Feel like yesterday
Don't days slip away?
Don't days slip away?
Don't days slip away?
Don't days...

Sugar Baby
By Joey Fortuna
Sugar baby, such a long time ago
That I barely even know
I remember all the things that you did
I remember what you said

Once you come to ground
There'll be nothing left to do but settle down
And once you get me home,
there'll be nothing left to do but be alone

Once you spend the night
There'll be nothing left to do but see the light
And once you come to ground
Maybe your heart will settle down

Almost Gone
By Joey Fortuna
Oo, lookout baby, I can hear her cry
It's the first blue day of our brand new life
And the whole world is a cloudless sky
That fades into the future of your clear blue eyes
Till it's almost gone
It's almost gone
It's almost gone

And now this feeling, like a fallen tree
In the weight of the way that we used to be
As she walks away from me
With her promises still echoing
But almost gone
Almost gone
Almost gone

So, weather changes - but farther on
Our new blue day is a broken storm
With fields of rain that we cannot stop
But faith is as faith does
and it's almost gone
Almost gone
almost gone
almost gone

7th Avenue
By Joey Fortuna
When even a Sunday drive can't drive away
The feeling that I've got miles and miles to go to get through the day
then I'll take a walk with you
Down 7th Avenue

When even my nightmares lose their glamor of suspense
and fill up with bad stocks, punching clocks, paying way too much for rent
Then I'll take a walk with you
Down 7th Avenue

So, get your shoes
The white ones, that look so good on you
I don't want to lose
The last light in your eyes, with that shade of blue

When even the sound of music crashes in my ear
and everything I play all day sounds a little insincere
Then I'll take a walk with you
down 7th Avenue

My heart beats faster in the sun and when you laugh my only one.
Our happy ending has begun my closest friend my only one
My melody, my favorite song, my steady beat, my only one.

May Morning
By Joey Fortuna
So, did you hear the phone just ring
Or was it ringing in my dreams
Would you give me one more hour to sleep
Just let me sleep, let me sleep
On a May morning
Just before the summer comes again

You move around the house just like
A honey bee, like a honey bee
I can see you buzzing round the garden
Sweet as you could ever be
On a May morning
Just before the summer comes again

Out the window from the bedroom
I can see that crazy bird
That always goes after the cars
He doesn't know

He seems so neurotic and protective
I suppose he loves someone

And I can hear you from the kitchen
Saying "Help me please. Why can't you see
How much we have to do today?"
And I cannot see. But I can almost see.
On a May morning
Just before the summer
On a May morning
Just before the summer
On a May morning
Just before the summer comes again.

All Right
By Joey Fortuna
Harry asked me what it's like to be married
And I sat and sighed and I said
it's so much more than you expect.

It's all right, you can spend the night side by side
reading out loud until the light
comes through your window like a surprise.

But sometimes, deep in the middle of a long night
It gets a little confused, a little emotional, a little uptight

(and someone says) Don't you want this baby to get born
I just need a little time alone
Why can't your friends even say hello
This year let's spend christmas on our own.
But it's all right

But anyway, some days are easier than other days
Some days you want to go driving
Miles and miles away
With the radio, the wind in your hair and a Marlboro
And no one to care or complain

And don't you want this baby to get born
I just need a little time alone
Why can't your friends even say hello
This year let's spend christmas on our own.
But it's all right

Sundress
By Joey Fortuna
I feel tired but I'm
Still so wired
I can't fall asleep

I hear a girl on the
street she's singing
and it sounds so sweet

These are the moments I hope
I will remember
when I'm old

Here in the last days
before november
in our big city home

December, on a plane trip
My third red wine, as I took my first trip
My heart settled down
And you held my hand
As we left the ground
to fly

Out in the country we get
Loads of company
They come and drink our beer

They smoke their cigarettes
And push back the wilderness
And I'm so glad they're here.

The new year, and the long, long nights
Ice in the air, by kerosine light
All the bad jokes and the good lies
And eyes that shine
And how the time
Just flies

And I watch you outside
Planting flowers
In the garden, in the spring

In the sunshine
In the sunshine
I know it's your favorite thing.

And I found a picture of my
great grandmother that I showed you
In her sundress, in her flower garden
She frowns at the camera but
She's just starting
To smile

Almost Home
By Joey Fortuna
Well I'm almost home
And I know all the roads
And they look the same
As they did when I was young

It was years ago
I was bright-eyed, half-baked
and all hope
And the things I didn't know
And I'm still all hope
But now I'm almost home

How can I feel like this
Along the streets of this town,
With its maze of faces, its traffic, its crowds
I guess I've been around
So long it's almost home

That's the way the world spins around
Since the girl that I found
Settled down with me
In New York City
Where I never thought I'd be
Maybe that's why it's so strange to me

That I'm almost home
And with every step I put down
I get closer and closer
And sooner than you know
I will be
Home

And I'm almost home
And I know all the roads
And they look the same
As they did when I was young

Firefly
By Joey Fortuna
You made it out into the wide world
Like I said you should, but I wish you would be more at ease.
Sometimes it feels like you're walking alone
Through the bones of graveyard of dreams.
And it's a shame the way you talk to me
As if you want my sympathy.
Baby, it takes time
Sometimes you're so blind
You can't read your own mind.

You call me up to say, "The weather's strange, it never rains
And nobody complains about the sunshine.
It's like they can't imagine any other life
It's like they've never been alone or had a bad time."
And it's a shame, with all the sidewalks line
With silver stars it's still so hard to find your way
But give it one more day,
Give it one more day.

Don't you know you've got it made
Don't you know it's gonna be okay
Don't you love the sun in your eyes
Don't you love the sight of fireflies
Don't you think you'd fly
Like a butterfly
If you had the wings
So would I.

So, what if your love is too tough? And what if she never picks up her stuff?
And what if you'll never be a star?
You can smile and you can say, "It's all about the future."
But it's all about right where you are.
And it's a shame how she could just walk away.
And it's a shame it's not a brighter day,
But it's fine. With a little time
You'll leave it all behind.

Don't you know you've got it made
Don't you know it's gonna be okay
Don't you love the sun in your eyes
Don't you love the sight of fireflies
Don't you think you'd fly
Like a butterfly
If you had the wings
So would I.

Hard to Be You
By Joey Fortuna
What would you say if you woke up today
And you knew things wouldn't always
Go your way
Would you feel the way
I'm starting to?

And what would you do if I walked up to you
And said this is the best that you
Ever will do
Would you walk away
But would know its true?

CHORUS
I know your eyes
There is no ending in sight
It's in the way you come home
When you do
I know its hard
They're always raising the bar
It must be hard to be you
It's hard to be me, too

[repeat verse 1]

CHORUS

Your Cage
By Joey Fortuna
Mary Gregarious was the Queen of the ball
When asked to dance,
She would dance with them all
And say oh my god,
I'm so glad I met you

Deep in her heart she was a liberal girl
And nobody lives very
Long in the world
So all she ever saw
She saw it through

CHORUS: Where would you be if you were not here now?
What would you do if you could get out somehow?
Where would you go if you get out of your cage?

John the Baptist moved in with a girl
And in a state of shock
Like it had rocked his world
He said oh my god
Now what am I supposed to do?

What if she burrows underneath my skin
And sees right through
To the rock bottom of sin
That drives my soul and
Makes me do what I do?

CHORUS

And now my darling, we have come to this place
In ten short years
Like a downhill race
And oh my god
I'm so glad I met you

Now that you've burrowed underneath my skin
And you see right through
To the rock bottom of sin
There's only one more question
Left for you

CHORUS

I Know
By Joey Fortuna
I know my love lives by her song
I can tell by the way that she sings
It's in her light
It's in her darkness
It's in everything

I walk in shoeless and she says
Baby, the way that you come and go.
"I know," I laugh.
"It's my old song.
I know I know I know.

"And I know the way my own song sounds
It's a scattered and unfinished tune.
But every note
Every note
I sing, I sing for you.
Oh, every note.
Every note I sing I sing for you."

Maybe I Believe
By Joey Fortuna
Look out world, it's the girl with the dumbo tattoo
On her back that sat right in front of you
And just walked away
I guess everything comes back someday

She's the one that you faced in the blinding sun
When you told her you'd go back and do all the things you've done
I'm sure you would
But everyone has to move on

CHORUS: And you staggered down the streets
That you did not recognize
Until the scales had fallen from your eyes
Until you cried: Maybe I believe

There you are in the palm of the hand of god
Your brothers beside you as you wander off
into the haze
Of such a magnificent day

CHORUS

Round and Round
Crazy music coming up from in the streets
It sounds like machine gun fire
I've been trying all night to get to sleep
I think maybe I'm too tired

CHORUS: She's so beautiful
I can barely believe
I keep running round and round
She puts a handful of wildflowers Next to a picture of me

With all my friends the good times never end
We can keep it going all night long
Existential bets and a million cigarettes
And our whole life like a U2 song

CHORUS

Good good lord, I don't want to be ignored
I want all my thoughts in stone
But oh the shock of the clock
It makes me toss and turn till dawn

CHORUS

Starlight
By Joey Fortuna
Here we go again, your day begins at 6 AM
With such a perfect sense of timing.
And I'm taking out the coffee and making all my plans
And I can hear you laugh behind me

And I think: Oh, here I am, dreaming again.
That I will bring you starlight, and oceans
And golden sand.

Well I guess the days of you crawling away
And falling down a lot
Will all fade away behind us
And we won't have very long before
You've gone and wandered off
And it might take you years to find us again.

But I think: Oh, here I am, dreaming again.
That I will bring you starlight, and oceans
And golden sand.

Well the moon goes down and the sun comes up
And one of these old days
I'll be back on that horizon
But I'll have myself a good time making all these memories
Without ever realizing

And oh, here I am, dreaming again.
That I will bring you starlight, and oceans
And golden sand.

And surely you will be afraid and there will be some days
When nobody understands you
When you hold your head up as long as you can but it always comes down
And there's nothing that you can do

But even on those days, even on those days
I will still be standing right here
When you're feeling lost, even if you're far away
You can always turn to me, and if I know the way
I will show the way

Here I am, just dreaming again.
That I will bring you starlight, and moonlight and sunrises
I will hold your hand while you walk across the highway
And when you're working out the words
To happy birthday in your bed
Or when you're running up to me with
The next book that you want read
I will try so hard to picture
What goes on inside your head
And I wonder, one day, will you remember when I said
That I would bring you starlight, and oceans
And golden sand.

Western Hotel
By Joey Fortuna
There's a thunder crash in an old hotel
And a waitress and a bartender
And no one else

She looks up at him, oh if I could breathe
I know I would ask
What have you done to me?

And he stands so still, he is like a stone
And in seconds without knowing it
He's all alone

But he whispers slowly, stay with me
I can fix it, I can make it
Like it used to be
I can fix this I can make it
Like it used to be

There's a thunder crash and she laughs and sings
And he beats upon the bartop
In his memories

It's all over now, and all he can see
Is a red light in the moonlight
That says vacancy
Just a red light in the moonlight Is all he can see

There's a thunder crash and the sirens come
And the madness of the moment
Hits him like a gun

Well come on, he says, take me where we're going
Gonna take a while to get there
In this thunderstorm
Gonna take a while to get there
In this thunderstorm
Gonna take a while to get there
In this thunderstorm

Wonder Wheel
By Joey Fortuna
By the wonder wheel
I wonder how you feel
I wonder if your life ever felt unreal
And I wonder, I wonder
But how could I ever know?

And your mother laughed
So hard that day
And I wonder if she's ever felt the same
And I wonder, I wonder
But how could I ever know

And all we have is the look in each other's eyes
All we have is unspoken shared surprise
At time gone by

And by the wonder wheel
I wonder how you feel
I wonder if your life ever felt unreal
And I wonder, I wonder
But how could I ever know?

I wonder, I wonder
But how could I ever know?

What's True
By Joey Fortuna
I don't know if I'm happy, I don't know if I'm sad
Or properly thankful for all that I have.
I don't know why the world spins around like it does
I don't know what will be, I've forgotten what was

All I know is what's true
All I know is you

I don't know if I have enough time anymore
I don't know where to go without closing some doors
I don't know what it feels like to sleep through the night
Cause my head is all rattled with shadows and light

All I know is what's true
All I know is you

All I know is you and although I may stumble
All I know is you I will always run
All I know is you even mountains crumble
All I know is you and you're all I want
All I know is you

I don't know if the darkness I fear is for real
I don't know how much truth is behind what I feel
I don't know my old friends
I don't know who they are
Their faces are twisted in bottles and bars
And in years and the sheer weight of blood in our hearts
As we stagger from hope to hope hear in the dark
I don't know where the line is or when it was drawn
Between where I began and the road that I'm on
I can hear myself think as I walk through this town.
Nobody walks by without knocking me down
And I feel my ambition like a spear in my side and
Oh how I try (X 3)

Oh how I try

All I know is what's true
All I know is what's true
All I know is what's true
All I know is you.

One More
By Joey Fortuna
Through the window, I can see
Winter white upon the trees
Soon enough I'll be there too
And every winter spent with you I will hope
For one more.

I can see us now, my dear,
Through the window of the years
Winter white upon our heads
As we climb the stairs to bed
And you move around the room
And the fading light cuts through the gloom
And touches every photograph
And you just turn your head and laugh
Oh, give me one more kiss, one more kiss.
One more.

So I can hardly blame our boy,
His arms around his favorite toy,
When he turns to me and says,
As the final bedtime story ends:
One more.

Please, can I have one more?