"Ruminations" (2016)

Tachycardia lyrics - Conor Oberst

It's a mass grave
A dollar-fifty resting place
On the north face
It's a rope I've gotta climb
I'm a stone's throw from everyone I love and know
But I can't show up looking like I do
In an old suit my hair is slicked up back nice and smooth
In a court room, sweat rolling down my back
It's a bad dream
I have it seven times a week
No it's not me
But I'm the one who has to die

Needs a cold draw to slow his tachycardia
In a dark bar the world just melts away
And you feel fine
Your feet can just lose track of time
It's a good sign when he can stay awake
On a slow day the rain against the windowpane of the cafe
She spills the coffee grounds
And the same thought hits her like cinder block
Life's an odd job that she don't got the nerve to quit

Yeah it's just there
At the bottom of those spiral stairs
It's the world's fair
The future's on display
In the still night
They turned on the electric lights
And the crowd cried out
Everyone looks so amazed

Barbary Coast (Later) lyrics - Conor Oberst

There's a dance hall there
Where the sick folks go
Like the olden days on the Barbary Coast
There's a barefoot child playing in the rain
You can sell your wares even if they're hard
In the great bazaar or the parking lot
Cause it takes a while to know who to blame
I might have a taste cause the first one's free
And the checkout girl's got a thing for me
And they're both as sweet as the day is the long

I don't wanna feel stuck, baby
I just wanna get drunk before noon

I don't mind my head when there's room to dream
Feel like Paul Gauguin painting breadfruit trees
In some far off place where I don't belong
Tried to lose myself in the primitive
In Yosemite like John Muir did
But his eyes were blue and mine are red and raw
'Cause the modern world is a sight to see
It's a stimulant, it's pornography
It takes all my will not to turn it off

I don't want you to feel sad, baby
I take everything back, I swear I do

Cause once all the friends I had
Have used me up and left
I bet you hang around
I bet you'll hang around awhile

Gossamer Thin lyrics - Conor Oberst

Rings 'round his eyes
Tracks down his arm
His fans are confused and his friends are alarmed
His wife doesn't talk
Hates when he's gone
Counts every skirt in his new entourage

And they're all gossamer thin
Left of the dial, bohemians
And they dance, turnin' in style
Twirl 'round the room, curtsy and smile
And they sit at his feet, read poetry
Swoon with each word he speaks

She likes the new pope
She's not scared of hell
They meet once a week at a secret motel
She kisses his neck, she plays with his hair
Her screams sound like pleasure, her moans like despair

And they're spread gossamer thin
Pushed to the edge, frayed at the ends
And it's no business of mine
They can love more than one at a time
But they're pushing their luck
Hard but they must
Risk it all for love

Now I walk around in some kind of altered state
The drink in my hand is starting to shake
I get used to it if it has to stay this way
A new bunch of flowers I'll have to arrange

I don't want to eat or get out of bed
Try to recall what the therapist said
Ego and Id, the Essential Self
You are who you are and you are someone else

But I'm worn gossamer thin
Like delicate arch, carved by the wind
There's a glass psyche at stake
Throw me a brick, see if it breaks
'Cause the mind and the brain aren't quite the same
But they both want out of this place

Counting Sheep lyrics - Conor Oberst

Closing my eyes, counting sheep
Gun in my mouth, trying to sleep
Everything ends, everything has to
Get well balloon, going insane
Weight of the world, papier-mâché
Gone with the wind, out into nothing

I'm just trying to be easy, agreeable
I don't want to seem needy to anyone, including you

[?] drowned in a pool
Nearly got killed walking to school
Hope it was slow, hope it was painful
Life is a gas, what can you do?
Catheter piss, fed through a tube
A cyst in the brain, blood on the bamboo
Highway to hell's littered with signs
Everything last thing they advertise
I want to buy, I want to sell too

But I don't want to seem greedy, I'm generous
I'm just trying to be pleasing to everyone, including you

Tomorrow is shining like a razor blade
And anything's possible if you feel the same

Early to bed, early to rise
Acting my age, waiting to die
Insulin shots, alkaline produce
Temperature's cool, blood pressure's fine
One twenty-one over seventy-five
Scream if you want, no one can hear you

I just want to be easy, acceptable
I don't want to seem needy to anyone, especially you

Especially you
Especially you

Mamah Borthwick (A Sketch) lyrics - Conor Oberst

Just because you got it
You don't have to flaunt it
With an endless dream of famous men
Pretty as a portrait
Looked like Mamah Borthwick
On that Shining Brow of Taliesin

Someone might try and burn it down
So you'll have to put the fire out
Fortunes spent but that's irrelevant to build something that's sacred till the end
It cost twenty dollars to visit Fallingwater
It's the perfect house where no one lives
Maybe someone once did but they got evicted by a busload full of greedy tourists

And it would take a time machine
To fulfill all of my fantasies
'Cause a hidden dream can be embarrassing
And the only thing that's sacred till the end

Every time I tempt fate
There's a major earthquake
Heard the people scream as the ceiling fell
Every building damaged
Only one left standing
It was Frank Lloyd Wright's Imperial Hotel

A rumination in my mind
Winding like the ramp at the Guggenheim
I'm not content
But I'm feeling hesitant to build something that's sacred till the end

The Rain Follows The Plow lyrics - Conor Oberst

Straight away I learned to pray
He prays upon the sky
You go to heaven when you die
But keep that lake of fire in mind
Broke all the rules at Catholic school
Turned to a life of crime
When I stole that motorbike
I left a trail of tears behind

Had casual sex
Smoked cigarettes
Threw caution to the wind
Was a winding path that I always plan to get back to you again

Till the ground 'neath under clouds
The rain follows the plow
But it was never as profound as I had wanted it to be
The birds, they sang the rites of spring
In summer's La-Z-Boy
I sat down to enjoy a world that's comfortable in green

A red feather hawk and a Celtic cross
Are pierced into my ear
No matter where I went I meant to make my way back here

Well I don't need God or common law to tell me right from wrong
'Cause when you press me to your chest
I know where I belong

A Little Uncanny lyrics - Conor Oberst

You started drinking the Kool-Aid
We were taking the bait
We were talking big talk
Never playing it safe
Looking good as Jane Fonda
On a Vietnam tank
Can't get something for nothing
Have to energize your base

But she was young enough
She was blonde enough
She was about a perfect ten
Had millions of admirers but not a single friend
And it's a, it's a little uncanny what she managed to do
Become a symbol for a pain she never knew

You know old Ronnie Reagan
He was a shoe salesman's son
He got himself in the movies
He impressed everyone
He thought trial by fire
Was America's fate
He made a joke of the poor people
And that made him a saint

But he was tan enough, he was rich enough
He was handsome like John Wayne
And there was no one at the country club
Who didn't feel the same

But it's a, it's a little uncanny
What he managed to do
Got me to read those Russian authors through and through

I miss Christopher Hitchens
I miss Oliver Sacks
I miss poor Robin Williams
I miss Sylvia Plath
Every morning's a desert
Every night is a flood
They say a party can kill you
Well sometimes I wish it would

But I'll get strong enough, I'll be man enough
To keep myself in check
'Cause all my friends that flew to town
Said that's what they expect

But it's a, it's a little uncanny
What they managed to do
Made me admit to things I knew were never true

Next Of Kin lyrics - Conor Oberst

I saw a crash on the interstate
It left a feeling I could not shake
Just a name in a database who must be notified
It's not a phone call I wanna make
A stranger answers, I hesitate
Got some bad news that couldn't wait
Are you sitting down?
Her bathrobe hangs on the bedroom door
Though she's been dead for a year or more
He buried her by the sycamore
So that he could keep her close
It broke his heart and it made him old
Tries to rebuild but it just erodes
Some people say that's the way it goes
But he don't feel that way

Get too drunk and you can't perform
Something dies when a star is born
I spread my anger like Agent Orange
I was indiscriminate
Yeah, I met Lou Reed and Patty Smith
It didn't make me feel different
I guess I lost all my innocence
Way too long ago

She called my bluff and she won the fight
I ran outside in the hot twilight
I had a lighter that didn't light
Well I know I shouldn't smoke
I was going, I was free to leave
Walking fast down the Bowery
Tears in my eyes so I couldn't see
But I made my way back home

You All Loved Him Once lyrics - Conor Oberst

You all loved him once
And not without cause
He fed you through the winter
He led you through the fog
You hid behind his body to be sheltered from the mob
You all loved him once
And not without cause

You all loved him once
When his glory was unmatched
Your signal when to celebrate was the bugle of his laugh
Oh, when it came time to stand with him
You scattered with the rats
You all loved him once
That time has passed

You all loved him once
When the future was opaque
His reassuring visions were the pillars of your faith
Through a thousand false horizons
He would always fly it straight
You all loved him once
That turned to hate

You all loved him once
An uncommon love at that
What you saw as a pedestal
Was his elevated path
So to satisfy the Philistines
You stabbed him in the back
You all loved him once
Imagine that

You all loved him once
Yes you ate out of his hand
He mirrored your confusion
So that you might understand
Then your soul was an experiment
So he drew a diagram
You all loved him once
It ended bad

You all loved him once
And not without cause
He helped carry your baggage
When your strength was nearly gone
And the more and more was put on him
He tried his best to take it on
You all loved him once
Not without cause
You all loved him once
Now he is gone

Till St. Dymphna Kicks Us Out lyrics - Conor Oberst

Rise and shine, get out of bed
Get ready for the day
Get a coffee from the deli
And walk the riverbank
Be careful with your headphones on
When you cross the FDR
Don't want to be a casualty
Before you make it to the bar
And hide your shapes and worried face
Just sit down in the back
Your friends got there ahead of you
And night is falling fast

Oh, you know you shouldn't say it
So you're thinking it out loud
Some things we lost are never to be found
But if you're gonna talk like that
At least buy another round
And we can keep drinking till St. Dymphna kicks us out

This world is made of blinking lights
They're changing all the time
But depending who you're talking to
It's likely to be fine
I watched you go from bad to worse
The blues is here to stay
Sometimes it's the simple things that make it all okay

Oh, you don't have to lie, say you're alright
We're just happy that you're here
But if you yell and tell me to go to hell
Well at least you'd sound sincere
Oh, you know it's all a spectacle
When you go to take a bow
You always did get nervous in a crowd
But if you need some company
I'd gladly stick around
And we can keep drinking till St. Dymphna kicks us out

Let's get enabled
Great minds, they think alike
I never was a good judge of when to call it a night

Oh, you don't have to say it
So you're thinking it out loud
Some things go south and they never turn around
But if you want a confidant
I'd never let you down
Oh, we can keep drinking till St. Dymphna kicks us out
Yes, we can keep drinking till St. Dymphna kicks us out

"Upside Down Mountain" (2014)

Time Forgot lyrics - Conor Oberst

Polished my shoes I bought a brand new hat
Moved to a town that time forgot
Where I don't have to shave or be approachable
No I can do just what I want

I want to walk in that howling wind
'til it scatters all my thoughts
Sit alone on that riverbank 'til I
Forget that I can talk
Just listen

They say everyone has a choice to make
To be loved or to be free
I told you once I felt invisible
And I'm sure by now you see

What I meant is I'm not all there
Until I finally leave
Some loneliness is acceptable
And some's just outright mean
It gets even

Ivy crawls up the garden wall
Builds a ladder towards the sun
Can't be climbed but whose gonna mind
If I claim it can be done
Illusion

And the sun goes down
And the stars come out
In the distance that I felt I can see it for myself now

Boarding a train to take my memories back
Make up for time that I have lost
I'll never know if I'm delusional
I just believe that I am not
I'm going to work for my sanity
Give it everything I got
Though so far I have cheated death
I know someday I'll get caught
Just living

So here we go man it's beautiful
Get your trumpet get your drum
Keep in time in a second line
It can make you feel so young

I know you say you'll go all the way
But that's not quite far enough
Someone told me that same thing
Some told me that same thing
Someone told me that exact same thing once

Zigzagging Toward The Light lyrics - Conor Oberst

I'm blessed with a heart that doesn't stop
My minds a weathervane it spins around just like a top
Knows what the winds of fortune bring
In the season of the witch
Home is a perjury, a parlor trick, an urban myth

Oh how the circumstances change (ooooohhhhhh)
This world is smoke and steam
Compromise and metermaids
I'm going to leave here before to long
Zigzagging toward the light
I'm off to sing my boundless song

True love it hides like city stars
Nothing to gaze upon or contemplate
How near or far
If it comes, it comes quite unannounced
A momentary glance
Lit up by sun or moon
Or bonfire or ambulance

Oh how the circumstances change (ooooohhhhhh)
Feels unmistakable with no idea from where it came
But you will know it when it's gone
Zigzagging through the night
I've heard you sing your boundless song

How did you sing the boundless song?
How did you sing? How did you sing?
Sing for the founders his word is never kept
A bindle of flowers to state his mind
And bloom when he forgets

It's true that shadows tell the time
On sunny afternoons, on crowded sidewalks, passersby
I'm in a queue that stretches out
Far as the eye can see
It forms a figure eight and goes on for eternity

Oh how the circumstances change (ooooohhhhhh)
I fly by interstate across a purple mountain range
I find a place to come undone
Zigzagging toward you now
I sing out loud our boundless song

Hundreds Of Ways lyrics - Conor Oberst

What a thing to be a witness to the sunshine
What a dream to just be walking on the ground
What a time to live among the ashen remnants of our love
It came before and I'm still looking for that now

It took centuries to build these twisted cities
It took seconds to reduce them down to dust
And all the tour guide could say was
“Take your pictures folks it's late, try your best please to remember what was done.”

Don't look so forlorn
Don't you look so scared
Don't get so upset
This world was never fair

But there are hundreds of ways
To get through the days
There are hundreds of ways
Now you just find one

I used to think that time was of the essence
Now I just wish I could get some sleep
All this strange parade of sounds the city makes when I lay down
Little explosions that set fire to my dreams

Sometimes I get mistaken for this actor
And I guess that I can see it from the side
Maybe no one really seems to be the person that they mean to be
I hope I am forgotten when I die

Don't contradict me
Don't make me cross the line
If you feel threatened
It's only 'cause I might

But there are hundreds of ways
To get through the days
There are hundreds of ways
To get through the day
Yes, there are hundreds of ways
So you best find one

All my hero's they're all talk
Running in circles
Some stop watch some cast
Love was the message. Full stop

We ramble on and on
We ramble on and on

I stole all the rhinestones out of Carolina
Sold them out in Bakersfield for cash
The bandshell got a band sounds like an arcade in Japan
Blew all my quarters trying to get that feeling back

Now any sucker can turn boredom into violence
A sociopath riding on a bus
His irises are black from his novelty contacts
He looks around but he can't see the rest of us

In my sunglasses don't mind the blinding light
It's getting dark but I've always loved the night

But there are hundreds of ways
To get through the day
There are hundreds of ways
To get through the day
There are hundreds of ways
To get through the day
There are hundreds of ways
To get through the day
There are hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of ways
To get through the day
Just find one

Artifact #1 lyrics - Conor Oberst

What would it take to gain acceptance
To the grounds behind your eyes
You know I'm open to suggestion
The one you made we never tried

You let it slip right out from under
Your breath and it rolled around my head
It was nothing I'd consider
I knew it had to happen then

Stood on the banks of the Potomac
We watched the water rushing by
You said we should live in the moment
But then I'd miss you all the time

And I know no one will believe me
But I don't want a second chance
To be an object of desire
If that means slipping through your hands

If I had tried to make you mine
You would have walked away
Life can't compete with memories
That never have to change

This world is full of missing persons
All of these unsolved mysteries
If someone says they know for certain
They are selling something certainly

So when I set myself to wonder
On all the questions that remain
The only one that even matters
Is when I'll see your face again

I keep looking back for artifacts
To prove that you were here
The sound that's been keeps echoing
It never disappears

Lonely At The Top lyrics - Conor Oberst

It's lonely at the top of the upside mountain
Watch the sunrise from a windowless room
If the Paramedics stall the soul goes on
Without them in a wicker basket tied to a balloon

There are no boundaries to love
The heart can't comprehend the panorama
I took it on the chin from some second hand feeling
Sorrow handed down to me it felt brand new

Tiny violins or some summer insects listening
Another season leaving us too soon
Freedom's the opposite of love
You'll never keep it through the paranoia

Standing on the edge of a million landscapes
Emptying and the water from the glacier fills my shoes
Laying in your bed my dreams are sex and violence
I chase the rapist chasing after you

There is no dignity in love
Trade every scrap to get some absolution
'Til then I'm walking out the door
'Til then I'm running through the airport
'Til then i'm waiting around for no one

Enola Gay lyrics - Conor Oberst

He didn't give you that nickname
But you smile when he calls you the Enola Gay
Turns the lights down low for your migraines
And fetches what you've strewn
All around the room up and down the hall
Asking for your Sodium Pentathol
So you can read aloud from your big tell-all
Anecdotes in platitudes

This world's mean getting meaner too
So why'd you have to make it all about you
There's no harm in stepping to the side
Light your hurricane lamp when the sky grows dark
The wind's pissed off and the sun's at large
What you've gotta do, it's just a matter of pride
Until you vanish like the rest, out of sight and out of mind

Working all day in the control room
Mashing Charles Manson songs up with Showtunes
The feelings come quick but they leave as soon
Like music from a passing car
It's crowded in the club where you meet your friends
Try to save some room for the elephant
Every day's a chore and you're not done yet
You didn't think it'd be this hard

The root's begun, we're a nervous crew
So why're you trying to make it all about you
It's not so bad, it's just a flash of light
Light your hurricane lamp when the sky goes dark
The rain's upset, it just falls apart
You will get your wish, it's just a matter of time
Until you vanish like the rest, out of sight and out of mind
Until you vanish like the rest, out of sight

Double Life lyrics - Conor Oberst

It ain't perfect nothing is
There's still room to grow
Feeling different staying in
Made a little home
So when I sit back in my chair
As the evening waits
I don't remember getting here
But I'm glad I came

Don't look down just cross the bridge
And when you get there
You'll know why you did
There's a better life on the other side
It's your double life on the other side
It's your second life on the other side

It ain't simple like before
These are different times
No longer worried about getting bored
Just trying to clear my mind
From all the noise out there
All the spooks all the moving parts
Cameras everywhere I look imitating art

Don't look down just cross the bridge
And when you get there
You'll be glad did
There's a better life on the other side
There's an honest life on the other side
It's your double life
It's your second life on the other side
There's an honest life on the other side

Kick lyrics - Conor Oberst

Kick you know you're still a kid
And your diets too full of additives
Passed out on a couch with ashes in your mouth
Dreaming that you're hopping a fence
This world must have it out for you
From the shores of Montaca to Malibu
The trappings of a name you never could escape
Because people want to live in the past
Some goal they mentioned they never had

I thought we lost that Camelot
I thought we lost that Camelot
It's a children's story we forgot
So long ago

Kick it's hard to find a friend
In a place that's so cruel and partisan
But you should go in style to Stockholm for a while
Live outside oblivion's lent
Someday you'll have a fine divorce
And a cemetery plot in Johannesburg
It's time you close your eyes
On a helicopter ride
I hope you see it isn't your fault
I hope you know it isn't your fault

I thought they shot that Camelot
I thought they shot that Camelot
Whoever shot this movie star he grows
And the show must go on

Laying in an office on an old chaise lounge
Listening to the doctor drone
No therapeutic feeling once the shock wears off
Answer every question no
Hiding in a hammock with the shades pulled down
Wondering if the stories broke
Tragedy is prophet once the word gets out
Tablets at the country store
Searching under tables once the bars closed down
Said somebody stole your phone
Now there's no one to talk to but these trust fund drunks
Should have brought a chaperon

Kick I'd love to help you but I just don't count
Friendship makes you paranoid
I don't believe in crescents
But I just might now we never really had a choice
Like all your broken toys

Kick you know this life is rich
But pleasures not the same as happiness
If you don't collide with the traffic in your mind
I think you'll find your way out of this
I hope you find your way out of this

Night At Lake Unknown lyrics - Conor Oberst

It don't take much imagination
To see the picture frame
I don't need a concentration
To know when I'm in pain
When I lost myself I lost you by extension
I don't know who would stand to gain

These silly dreams aren't worth a mention
But they keep collecting in my brain
When on the hunt for fame and fortune
Picked up the trail just fine
Everywhere I go the doors fly open
But I run out once outside
When I break my heart I know that yours gets broken
I just wish that kept me in line
But I can't live outside the moment
And it just keeps leaving me behind
It just keeps leaving me behind

When I can't sleep my mind is a circle
I watched the ceiling fan
I closed my eyes and I feel the wind blow
My bed it turns into a raft
I drift away it's night at lake unknown I'm floating
I see it all for what it is
Most anything can be forgiven
With what is left we'll have to live
With what is left we'll have to live

You Are Your Mother's Child lyrics - Conor Oberst

I remember the day you appeared on this earth
With eyes like the ocean, got blood on my shirt
From my camera angle it looked like it hurt
But your mama had a big old smile

We drove you home, saw your yellowing skin
Packed a few things and drove you back again
Stayed up all night worrying, wondering
What was gonna make it better

Broken bones heal if you set them right
Get that fine tooth comb from the barbicide
Our love's a protective poison
But you are your mother's child
And she'll keep you for a while
Oh, one day you'll be grown, then you'll be on your own

Halloween costume, looking real cute
With your pillowcase full, in your astronaut suit
Your cousin the cowboy is eyeing your loot
Better watch that Snickers bar

Out on the diamond, and you're up to bat
Chewing your big league, adjusting your hat
Taking a swing and hearing it crack
Look at that apple fly

Tears will dry if you give them time
Life's a roller coaster, keep your arms inside
Fear that's a big emotion
But you are your mother's child
She'll keep you for a while
But someday you'll be grown, then you'll be on your own

Posing for pictures, cap and a gown
Summer is coming, you're driving around town
Everyone's asking what you're gonna do now
I know you're gonna make a splash

And find you a sweetheart to treat you so kind
Take her to dinner and kiss her goodnight
What I couldn't teach you, soon you'll realize
She's the only thing that matters

Although he's a bastard, make your papa proud
You're a fine young man and I got no doubt
That you're gonna do this better
Cause you are your mother's child
She had you for a while
But now you are grown and you're making it on your own
Now that you're grown, may you never feel this alone

Governor's Ball lyrics - Conor Oberst

He came with his friends, in a caravan
To witness the governor's ball
Sat by himself on a cool patch of grass
While the rest stood like bricks in a wall
The stage it looked like a vending machine
The singer, a black barbie doll
But it was well light, and well managed
Said our property, would be damaged
Until his boredom, took full advantage
Of it all

Talk to a girl, with klonopin eyes
Who said she had jewelry to sell
First he said no thanks, then he realized
That he realized he wasn't feeling that well
And he took what she held looked like pieces of sky
And a garnet like teardrops from hell
She offered, him a necklace, and he wanted to accept it
But it would end up, too expensive, he could tell
Then she said:
"Why not, what have you got, to lose, to lose"

When he never came back, and the curve you have pathed
His friends searched the fair grounds for clues
But security guard the maniacal laugh
Said its always the leader you lose
And he finally turned up in the broad light of day
With a black eye as big as the moon
They all asked him, what had happened
Was it real or, imagined
Why on earth had, he abandon them so soon
And he said:
"Why not, I do what I've got, to do, its what you do"

Desert Island Questionnaire lyrics - Conor Oberst

Say that you were stranded on a desert island
What books you gonna bring what friends would tag along
Say you had a month and you knew you were dying
How would you spend your time
What goodbyes would take too long
You don't like this game and you take exception
Who wants all this trouble even hypothetical
With the charging sky above
And the ground below that could swallow everyone

Staring at your phone at another party
Spend a lot on clothes got a lot of skin to show
People in the pool like the drowning army
Smoke along the moats and the hotel lobby glows
Wish that you can dance but you've got no partner
Keep tapping on your glass because you want to make a toast
To the ennui of our times
To the selfishness in everyone you know
Made a lot of friends but they can't be trusted
Don't know what their angle is
Post up at the bar and I'm double fisting
Talking to a mannequin
I don't know what it means when he takes my pulse
And says that I'm a lot like him
I say that's fair enough that's why I'm trying to loosen up

Every lunatic must be well intentioned
Sets himself apart he's an instrument of God
Took her from the playground to the farmhouse cellar
Kissed her while he killed her like a good Samaritan
They finally found her body many Autumns after
Interviewed her mother who said "she'd now be 21
And although we lost her young
I know the good lord has a plan for all of us"

Mormons at the door they look clean and handsome
Always have a good sales pitch
Your little sister swears she can paint my aura
But I can't take her serious
Need something to blame
For this human nature, is that what this condition is?
I'm so bored with my life but I'm still afraid to die
Everyone's asleep in this burning building
And I can't wake them up in time
You go on ahead I'll be right behind you
We're headed to the finish line
I can't get closer until this is over

Pretend that you were stranded on a desert island
What would be the message that you'd spell out for the plane
Say the engine failed when that plane was flying
If you were the pilot would you curse or would you pray
No one's gonna cry at this John Doe funeral
Not a lot to say didn't even have a name
Light a candle just in case he was someone's friend
Throw some flowers on the grave

Common Knowledge lyrics - Conor Oberst

He's my friend but he's no friend to me
Ask him why, he'll tell you casually
Washed up, bitter, broken, busted
Backstabbed everyone he trusted
Says he sees what no one else can see
And if I had half his guts I'd want it
To chase that fatalistic comet
Die young in the dark; that's poetry
But it was not to be, it was not for me

He's always sad but I've never seen him cry
When he comes to, sure he'll apologize
Find his car, assess the damage
Still drunk but he likes the challenge
Hold on to his mind just like a kite
But a good strong win can keep you honest
Fill you with some common knowledge
Things when we were young we never tried
Just figured we had time with such a long life

Money clips, alligator shoes
One more dance, he's in that champagne room
She moves like a chocolate fountain
Pouring, spilling all around him
Makes him wonder what else she can do
How bittersweet is love's illusion
Feelings that cannot be proven
Trust me, you'll see, my aim is true
I've done this all for you, I've suffered long for you

So many times he's tried to play it straight
Worked and worked until his body ached
But a brand new life can lose its lustre
Troubles tend to find each other
Call it luck or you can call it fate
But either way it's how it happens
Not the way that you imagined
So just go out with a bang like Hemingway
Some will say you're brave
Some will say you ain't

"One Of My Kind" (2012)

One Of My Kind lyrics - Conor Oberst

I can't live in this city
But I was born here
And I know all these people
Where they went to high school
Where they got their angle
Here they waited tables
Still call me brother
Like Cain and Abel

There, see all those old men
How'd they get so swollen?
I got so many broke friends
Who say I owe them
From when we were children
How did it happen?
Where is it going?
Is that your question, man?
Where does all your frustration lie?
Why are you pulling out your hair at night?
Just try and have a good time
All the rest aside
You're still one of my kind

I can't think in this city
But I remember
I know every story that it ever told me
Well, I got the blueprint
To create my own myth
That's what made it tragic
Like a summer snowdrift

Yeah, going to call my first love
Meet her at the new club
Tell her all that I've done
Finally be forgiven
And get good and drunk
Like it feels you're young
There are things against us
But I will fight tooth and nail
Stand in the sickening sunshine
After staying out all night
And maybe it's the good life
All the rest aside
The rest aside
The rest aside
You're still one of my kind

I can't live in this city
But I'll probably die here
Maybe that's how you feel
Like a poisoned cornfield
Like a best friend backstabbed
An abandoned train track
We're living straight-lined
Are you one of my kind?

Gentleman's Pact lyrics - Conor Oberst

I was lost for a while in a mirrored hallway of a high-rise hotel
Umbrella drink in my hand, sitting down
Saw ten thousand me's, numb cocaine teeth in their chattering mouths
Thought about home, thought about death, thought about moving south
Rodeo wind blew in, now the candle's out and everyone's scared
Call my broker, sell everything, I want to be prepared
Heard the cavalry cry of my girl for the night when I entered her
Sounded so fake, always feels fake, finishes and then it feels worse

Every hallway has a camera
Every hallway has a camera don't you know
They never let you open the window
They never let you open the window

Smoke signals of thought, white ribbons of loss
High above the tree line, they cry out

I froze up for a second on the pyramid side of the Las Vegas strip
My brother hunched over in the bushes getting sick
Security knew took one look and threw us out
Life's not fair
I tried to die young with my true love, ended up a millionaire
The mechanical world, a loud sound you've never heard that's always there
Radio's trailing through the desert, keep driving until you disappear
We made a gentlemen's pact: no stopping, no looking back
Lace those shoes.
Take the first step
Take the next step
That's a boy!
It is never too soon

All that you keep is the journey, all you keep are the spaces in between
It's not the fresh start or the ending
All that you keep is the journey

Smoke rings round my thoughts
Blue ribbons at the dawn
High beyond the tree line we pass out
Smoke signals of thought, white ribbons of loss
High above the tree line they cry out

Corina, Corina lyrics - Conor Oberst

Corina, Corina
Where you been so long?
Corina, Corina
Where you been so long?
I've been so worried about you, coquito
When are you coming home?

Corina, Corina
Where did you sleep last night?
You come back around this morning
Clothes don't fit you right

I got a bird that whistles
I got a bird that sings
I got a bird that whistles
I got a bird that sings
Oh without you Corina, this life don't mean a thing

Corina, Corina
Listen, you make me blue
Corina, Corina
Listen, you make me blue
Miss Figueroa-Escamilla
Hey, I'm talking to you!

Corina, Corina
Where have you been so long?
Mi querida, Corina
Where you been so long?

You're way out there in Toluca
I'm trapped in Tepoztlán
You're way out there in Toluca
I'm trapped in Tepoztlán

Synesthete Song lyrics - Conor Oberst

Harbor Ann, take me as I am
A flame reduced to ash
Laugh as my youth is taken from me
Winter's day, am I in your way?
You press against my skin
All the flowery speeches ended fast
Clinking glass
The champagne made my head feel light
And overcast the stars
Paper crane, tell me it's OK
An opera glasses view
Kaleidoscope of now and never
Gaia's love, schizophrenia
The devil's in my coat
Mothership coming to pick me up
Just my luck
They got my house surrounded
I'm the only one I trust

The dark light of man
The dark let him in

Synesthete, can I confide in thee?
The color is the sound
The screams were orange
My footsteps silver
Secret plan, man, I'll tell you if I can
The evils of this world are at your doorstep
Let me enter, friend, understand
We have come to the convergence
Now all the paths combine

Breezy lyrics - Conor Oberst

Move your slender fingers,
Help me play this song.
Spend another night inside this rented mansion.
I love you now,
I know that doesn't matter.
I love you now,
I know that doesn't matter.

Kissing me full of beer, tequila, weed and candy.
Walking down the boardwalk,
Act like we were married.
You always made it easy,
Then I'd want you more.
You always kept it easy,
Then I'd want you more.

Too smart for your own good,
Too sweet, too logical.
Statistics round your head,
Tried to teach me about baseball.
My favourite was the part when they make it home.
I like it when they steal, and when they make it home.

You left us with a sorrow too unreal to help.
Heard the birds sound broadcasts speakers at the Phoenix hotel.
All your friends are standing, crying, on the sidewalk.
All your boyfriends, they were standing crying on the sidewalk.

Breezy, I feel dizzy.
Can you help me up?
It's crowded at the backdoor,
How we getting to the burbs?
I'd like to help you find it if there's something better.
Yeah, I'll try and help you find it if there's something better.

Move your slender fingers,
Help me play this song.
Spend another night inside this practice mansion.
I love you now,
I know that's all that matters.
I love you now
And I know that's all that matters.

Phil's Song (Learn To Stop Time) lyrics - Conor Oberst

Well there's a lady I know down in Acapulco
Has a house up high on a hill
Don't bother bringing medicine
Her smile is your pill

There's a beach down the street, just 100 feet
Going to stick my toes in the sand
There's a couple so old, they're taking a stroll
But they're still holding hands

If there's a secret they have, well, I'd like to know
They could whisper it right in my ear
They said, "Open your eyes because you're living blind
And know love is greater than fear"

Because I've been up, and I've been down
No, I've been around and around

Well, there's a girl I see when I go back out east
She lets me sleep in her bed
In the morning we talk about everything
What she learned from the books she's read

There's a store on the corner that sells anything
A simple man might need
Cigarettes and coffee
Lotto tickets just to dream

There's a park on the way where I like to go
Just to sit and watch the folks
Kids playing ball
Their mamas on the phone

Because I've been here, and I've been there
With you, I feel safe and I feel scared
But if I could learn to stop time
Don't you know I would?
How sweet it would be
Only if I could

There's a friend I have, she up and packed her bag
And headed way up north
Turned her back on everything she knew
To brainwash some new foolish fool

If I had to guess, he ain't much different than me
Pretty smart but fairly dumb
Fall in line behind a pretty smile
And a phony selfish charm

But the past is the past and I don't look back
But sometimes she'll call my phone
Open the wound just to rub some salt
She's a miserable person but it ain't her fault

Because I've been here and I've been there
But with you, I feel safe and I feel scared
I've been up, and I've been down
No, I've been around and around
But if I could learn to stop time
Don't you know I would?
How sweet it would be
Only if I could

Normal lyrics - Conor Oberst

I used to care about it all
I used to lose it when she'd call
Had a dream I wished to live
I had some love I wished to give

Read the writing on the wall
You try to stand, you're bound to fall
Then the buildings grew too tall
You got to get used to feeling small

So I gave up thinking
I can't stop this boat from sinking
Grabbed a raft from that wall
My thought is done

So I'm back to normal
Whatever normal was
And I think I'm doing
What a normal person does

Letting go of what you know
I only squint to see
Letting of what you know
I only went to leave

So if life is formal
Find me my suit

Because I'm back to normal
Whatever normal was
And I think I'm doing
What a normal person does

Kodachrome lyrics - Conor Oberst

When I think back
On all the crap I learned in high school
It's a wonder
I can think at all
And though my lack of education
Hasn't hurt me none
I can read the writing on the wall

Kodachrome
They give us those nice bright colors
They give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world's a sunny day, oh yeah
I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama don't take my Kodachrome away

If you took all the girls I knew
When I was single
And brought them all together for one night
I know they'd never match
My sweet imagination
Everything looks worse in black and white

Kodachrome
They give us those nice bright colors
They give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world's a sunny day, oh yeah
I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama don't take my Kodachrome away

Mama don't take my Kodachrome away

"Outer South" (2009) (with THE MYSTIC VALLEY BAND)

Slowly (Oh So Slowly) lyrics - Conor Oberst

Potential, well, you're a loaded line
The veil between the world and the faceless bride
There's nothing yet but a bunch of white
Oh potential, well, you're a loaded line

Tomorrow, well, I'll wait for you
Laying right here floating in this swimming pool
There's a lot of things I got left to do
Oh tomorrow, but I'll wait for you

The days keep slipping down into the cracks
It takes a while to realize where you're at

Slowly (so slowly)
Slowly (so slowly)
Slowly, it's slowly ending

Dementia, you better treat me good
The human race is in its second childhood
I never learn but I understood
Oh dementia, you better treat me good

Sometimes I need a place to go
Classical music plays from the radio
I sit real still, let my shadow grow
Yeah, sometimes I need a place to go

My mind keeps slipping back into the past
I hope someday that I can get it back

Slowly (so slowly)
Slowly (so slowly)
Slowly, they're slowly ending
So slowly

Slowly (so slowly)
Slowly (so slowly)
Slowly, it's slowly ending

And soon that train is going to pull away
I hear it whistling, I try to wave at a glowing face
They can't tell who I am

Slowly (so slowly)
Slowly (so slowly)
Slowly, it's slowly ending

To All The Lights In The Windows lyrics - Conor Oberst

Moses up on the mountainside
What a place to meet
He brought his pad and his pencil
Poured himself some gypsy tea

And all the world's multiplicity
They turn his brain and his soul to stone
He drew his face on a tablet
And carried it back home

Jesus off in the water
Standing on his feet
Yeah, that's the thing about charisma
It makes everyone believe

That there is nothing impossible
When I'm with you and when you're with me
I got a sad sinking feeling
That that can never be

But I'm going to do what I can for you
I will make a plea
To all the lights in the windows
The puddles in the streets

And all the lovers that you've been teasing
From your balcony
May they carry you
You far from my memory

Solomon heard a protest
From the lower court
Reached in his ear for a silver dollar
Just like he'd done before

He tossed it high, said that wisdom's fickle
And chance is God's retort
And handed them a sentence
It was death by Trojan horse

Pharoah woke from a bad dream
Splashed some water on his face
When it's a matter of nightmares you had
Better ask a slave

And he may tell you a famine's coming
Or he may look away
If he's kind then return it
Let him lick your plate

But I'mma do what I can for you
I will make a plea
To all the birds in the chimneys
The whales up on the beach

And all the footsteps that you've been hearing
Like a tympani
May they carry you far from your enemies

I'mma do what I can for you
I will make a plea
To all the lights in the windows
The puddles in the streets

And all the hours that you've been sitting
At your vanity
May they carry you
You far from your misery
May they carry you, you far

Jesus off in the water
Standing on his feet
Yeah, that's the thing about charisma
It makes everyone believe

That there is nothing impossible
When I'm with you and when you're with me
I got a sad sinking feeling
I got a sad sinking feeling
I got a sad sinking feeling that will never be

Big Black Nothing lyrics - Conor Oberst

Big black nothing
Fooling everyone
Big black nothing
Put a halo around what you've done
Because a big black nothing
Is coming up

Would you be my
Would you still be my friend
If I told you
It's all just pretend?
'Cause a big black nothing
Is not the end

(Ooh, ooh, ooh)

Sing (big) me (black) something (nothing)
Something I can feel
Sing (big) it (black) louder (nothing)
The whole world has to hear
Because a big black nothing
Was made to appeal

(Ooh, ooh, ooh)

Lock the doors
Hide the keys
Flipping channels
Through the streets
All this news
Just makes me scared of you and you and you

Board up the windows
Unplug the phone
Make it look like
Nobody's home
I was scared
But so prepared for the worst, yeah for the worst

Big black nothing
Fooling everyone
Big black nothing
Put a halo 'round what you've done
It's just a big black nothing

Air Mattress lyrics - Conor Oberst

I want to sleep on the air mattress with you
And let the air leak out, what would I do?
And as we sleep our bodies slowly meet
I can feel it when your heart beats, I do

The air mattress with you
(Can I sleep on)
The air mattress with you?

It's under covers where it all begins
And we pretend that we are just friends
But when the others fall asleep, it ends
We become lovers once again, we do

The air mattress with you
(Can I sleep on)
The air mattress with you?
(Can I sleep on)
The air mattress with you?
(Can I sleep on)
The air mattress with you?

My dreams, they have a holiday
My lungs, they twist the night away
And even if I stay away
I still get rest for hours
I still get rest for hours
I still get rest for hours

And even if there was a king-size bed
Where I can stretch my legs and lie my head
All by myself, in the darkest room
Just know that no matter what the options are, I choose

The air mattress with you
(Can I sleep on)
The air mattress with you?
(Can I sleep on)
The air mattress with you?
(Can I sleep on)
The air mattress with you?

Cabbage Town lyrics - Conor Oberst

All that blotter going to twist up your mind
You can do it, just not all the time
Hiding in your room, you'll be feeling fine

Always manage to have something to sell
Talk on the telephone while painting your nails
Little plastic bags and a digiscale

Aw, this hallway's full of plastic kids
Aw, they jump and make the CD skip

I'm never telling what I find out
I'm going to love you like the New South
You drive me crazy with your foul mouth
Until you meet me down in Cabbage Town
Down in Cabbage Town

The way I see it we got plenty of time
It's going to happen but just not overnight
Bring a pack of cards and a box of wine

Oh, on the day when I flash that badge
Just try to think of the other half
It's hard living when it's a matter of fact

But this city's full of lazy kids
Sweetie, someone's got to steer this ship

I'm never telling what I find out
I'm going to love you like the New South
You make me crazy with your foul mouth
Come on and meet me down in Cabbage Town
Come down to Cabbage Town

Well it's just like old friends
To play "Remember When...?"
But if you want my help, I'm in

I'm never telling what I found out
I'm going to love you like the New South
You're talking crazy with your loud mouth
Come on and meet me down in Cabbage Town
Oh, come to Cabbage Town

I'm never telling what I find out
I'm going to make you like a new sound
You make me crazy with your foul mouth
Oh, won't you meet me down in Cabbage Town
Come down to Cabbage Town, oh

Come on to Cabbage Town
Come down to Cabbage Town
Come to Cabbage Town
Come on to Cabbage Town
Come down to Cabbage Town
Cabbage Town

Ten Women lyrics - Conor Oberst

Ten women (ten women)
Ten women between you and me
Ten women (ten women)
Ten women, the nightmare, the fantasy

Ten women, the thrill and the shame
Ten women, I miss you the same
While you're kissing the ring
Of some good timing king
Ten women, a fool I have made

Two faces (two faces)
Two faces, two faces you have
Two faces (two faces)
Two faces, keep one in your bag

Two faces from which you can choose
Two faces and neither are you
Though I'm biding my time
Like a cellar of wine
With two faces, you'll never be true

One witness (one witness)
One witness is all that I need
One witness (one witness)
One witness, just someone to see

One witness to all that's been done
One witness whose eyes will not run
Just someone to shout
In this big empty house
One witness to mourn for our love

Ten women (ten women)
Ten women between you and me
Ten women (ten women)
Ten women, the glory, the tragedy

Ten women to trust and betray
Ten women, I want you the same
It will be like it's been
If you come home again
Those ten women have all gone away

Difference Is Time lyrics - Conor Oberst

Well, call me if you want to talk
There's a telephone on your wall
And the reasons are many
And not too far apart

If there's some blood left in your heart
Well, let our loving finally start
If you run, you can catch me
Well, he's wide but not too sharp

I want to hear the whistle blow and feelings go
I want to be done with everything I know

Difference is time
It's the past, present and waiting in line
Difference is time
It's yours and it's especially mine
difference is time

And it's hard to stand on my feet
With this weight of vagrancy
I've been trying to tell the difference
Between the road and my street

But there's an end I shouldn't eat
When I'm done dancing to this beat
On my headstone it'll be written
"Life is hard, even if you cheat."

I want to hear the whistle blow and the feet is row
I want to be done with everyone I know

The difference is time
It's the past, present and waiting in line
Difference is time
It's yours and it's especially mine
Difference is time, woah
Difference is time

Don't act like there ain't nothing wrong
With a switch like that
It's just mean to keep it on
Don't act like there ain't nothing wrong
With a switch like that
It's just mean to keep it on

Difference is time
It's the past, present and waiting in line
Difference is time
It's yours and it's especially mine

Difference is time
It's the past, present and waiting in line
Difference is time
I know she's yours but she's especially mine

Difference is time, woah
Difference is time

Difference is time
Difference is time
She ain't yours and she sure ain't mine
She ain't yours and she sure ain't mine
Difference all the time
Difference all the time

Nikorette lyrics - Conor Oberst

I'm just trying to stay a human being
Sitting in the sun eating ice cream
Texting my friend about a bad, bad dream
Just had to tell someone who knows me

But I don't got time for this cuckoo clock
And I don't want to go to your Mason Lodge
There's nothing more sad than a lynching mob
Full of rational men who believe in God

But nothing makes sense when the wave rolls through
Nothing makes sense when the wave come through
So it coulda been me or it coulda been you
Whatever's in me is whatever's in you

My neighbor dreams big because his house is small
Says all he needs now is some capital
It's a pirate world, it's a free-for-all
They steal your bright ideas and they make them dull

Now everyone I see I think I've known before
From the opera house to the grocery store
My love for them, I cannot ignore
Like a human voice in a quiet morgue

But I don't want to wear no dead man's suit
I don't want to wear no dead man's suit
I don't want to wait until the moon gets blue
I don't want to wait until the moon turns blue

Well, it's all just a fix
Just one little hit
You'll hold it in

Sitting on a plane chewing Nicorette
Paradise lost, haven't found it yet
Will you talk me down if I get upset?
Be the cool washcloth to my fevered head

'Cause I don't want to dream if it don't come true
I don't want to dream if it don't come true
If there's something in me, well, I guess it's in you
If there's somewhere in me, then I know it's in you

Well, it's all just a fix
Just one little hit
You're holding in
You'll hold it in
You're holding in
You'll hold it in

And I don't want to dream if it won't come true
I don't want to dream if it don't come true
If there's something in me, then I know it's in you
If there's somewhere in me, then I know it's in you
If it happens to me, it's going to happen to you
Whatever happens to me, it's going to happen to you

White Shoes lyrics - Conor Oberst

You can wear your new white shoes
In the muddy afternoon
Walking past the day drunks, too
They whistle with their hands
But I could be your catcall, too
Anything you want to do
Anything you want to do

You can take your slide trombone
Play it in the catacombs
Find a town that moves real slow
And turn it on its head
And I could be your pharaoh's tomb
Anything you wanna do
Lover, anything you wanna do

If you want to be common
I can claim that I tamed you
A demigod in a bonnet
They're going to know it ain't true

You can paint your nails lime green
Rent yourself a limousine
Kidnap the professor's niece
Let's tell them that she's dead
We'll party in a hotel room
Anything you want to do
Sister, anything you want to do

You can get your hair all wet
Sleeping on the riverbed
Kiss a frog and then dissect
You got to find out what's inside
But you can have my bad side, too
Anything you want to do
Sugar, anything you want to do

And if you want to be common
I will claim that I tamed you
A demigod in a bonnet
They're going to know it ain't true

And yes, you are King David's star
And the crescent moon, and the crescent moon
You must sweep the Bodhi tree
I sit beneath, oh I sit beneath

You can wear your new white shoes
In the dirty afternoon
Walking through the traffic fumes
A flower in your hair
And I will swing upon your moods
Anytime you want me to
Just tell me what you want to do
Lover, anything you want to do
Lover, anything you want to do

Bloodline lyrics - Conor Oberst

Rolling around a lifetime on a name that spells my past
Carried through the mile markers up towards some last laugh
And if fools could only prosper, I'm afraid what they might say
From a podium built on generations bleeding what they make

Because here it comes
Watch them all jump right in
Tell me, how could you refuse to float with the rest of them?
You were born into it, there's no shame if you drift
Down the bloodline

Feeling temperamental underneath a broke sun
A certificate of excellence, but no proof on your pay stub
And if money's not a problem, I suggest you best believe
There's ten dollars on the table and a million up his sleeve

And here they come, watch 'em all pass us by
Tell me how could you refuse to look one in the eye?
Two sheets to the wind all over again
Down the bloodline
Down the bloodline

Yes, it feels scary to be ordinary
In a world that don't know your name
It would not be weird if I just disappeared
Blowing my back out, trying to hope I wake

Looking for a doctor with a cure for a broke heart
Seems I spent it all on a miracle just to watch it fall apart
Now there's no room for ill-complaining, I know it's all just what it is
Cherry-pick my best believers and send 'em off with a kiss

'Cause there they go
Watch 'em all wave goodbye
Tell me how could you refuse to think it's a wonderful life?
Two sheets to the wind all over again
Down the bloodline
Down the bloodline
Down the bloodline

Spoiled lyrics - Conor Oberst

Baby got her feelings hurt, singing that old standard
You Can't break a rule that ain't been made
A starlight chasing ponytails through mushroom clouds and black fields
I don't want to feel this entertained

Sitting on a crowded coach, staring at the stereo
Watching all the hippies through the haze
From gentle soul to sad and stoned
'Cause no one wants to be alone
But you know you can't always have your way

So tell me what you're going to do now
You get everything you wanted and you're still let down
Tell me what you're going to do now
You get everything you wanted, you still feel down

Farmer, he's a sentient being, sipping on his canteen
Passes it to me, I can't say thanks
Coco, she stays clear of me, remembers all those bad scenes
If she'd just sit still, I could explain

That every time I fucked her mind
It's 'cause I thought I was in love
And I woke up with that same thought today

Well, so it goes, the ebb and flow
Happiness was never us
If it's all free, why would you ever pay?

So tell me what you're going to do now
You get everything you wanted and you're still let down
Tell me what you're going to do now
You get everything you want, you still feel down
Yeah, you do, yeah you do

Tell me what you're going to do now
You get everything you wanted and you're still let down
Tell me what you're going to do now
You get everything you want, you still feel down

Tell me what you're going to do now
You get everything you wanted and you're still let down
Tell me what you're going to do now
You get everything you want, you still feel down

Worldwide lyrics - Conor Oberst

I don't smoke in the morning, can't get no sleep
That's the time for thinking what's going to be
I had a good thing going, but it didn't stay
Don't make no plans anymore, except to go away

The table's set and now the guests will be here soon
Lying for a living, I guess that's what I do

You got to get me out of here
I always heard that the world is wide
There's a price you pay for a summer's day
When you leave it all behind

You got to get me out of here
I see it clear when I shut my eyes
There's a place to go when the winter's cold
Leave it all behind

I can always find you like the sweet north star
It doesn't really matter now where you are
If you are in trouble, I'm in trouble too
I've fallen through a trap door into you

No bones, no ghosts, I threw my passport in the trash
I don't need my face now that the wind is at my back

You gotta me out of here
I always heard that the world is wide
There's a price you pay for a summer's day
When you leave it all behind

You gotta get me out of here
I see clear when I shut my eyes
There's a place to go when the winter's cold
Leave it all behind

You gotta get me out of here
I gotta shut my eyes
Gotta get me out of here
Leave it all behind

Gotta get me out of here
Gotta to shut my eyes
Gotta get me out of here
I know the world is wide

Roosevelt Room lyrics - Conor Oberst

Hey there, son of Adam
Hey there, daughter of Eve
Help me sing this tear gas riot song
For some fresh-faced police

They won't even know what hit 'em
When they lift their Roman shades
And the people's sun comes pouring in
On a brand new day

You who dammed the river
You changed our mountain's name
First we want Denali back
Then we're taking over Washington state

You get death as a consolation
You know only hate and rage
You paid a dowry for your child bride
And now she's living like a slave

A prayer came down the wire
It was all in the enemy's code
You couldn't figure out what mercy meant
So you did like you were told

When they finally sent the doctors
Once the fireball went out
There was nothing left but the cockroaches
And a movie with no sound

What good, what good are you
With your Cherokee trail and your Roosevelt Room?
What good, what good are you
With your Seneca plague and your Arlington tomb?

Go ask Hunter Thompson
Go ask Hemingway's ghost
It all catches up with you
Once you get just a little too old

Take a hard look in the mirror
It's a thing that you cannot see
Your shadow's long but the day is young
It just wasn't meant to be

There's no blankets for the winter
There's no oil in the lamp
And I'd like to write my congressman
But I can't afford the stamp

You want me to pay my taxes
So you can propagate your lie
While there's barefoot dudes down in New Orleans
Looking like they're gonna die

You who quote the legends
You who poisoned all of my dreams
You who pinned all of the medals on
All those boys from Omaha Beach

Hope you haven't got too lazy
I know you like your apple pie
'Cause the working poor you've been pissing on
Are doing double shifts tonight

What good, what good are you
With your Seneca plague and your Arlington tomb?
What good, what good are you
With your Cherokee trail and your Roosevelt Room?

Eagle On A Pole lyrics - Conor Oberst

Saw an eagle on a pole
I think it was an eagle
Watched its shadow fly across the cement

I woke up in the snow
All the trees were crowds of people
No coat, no shoes, no idea where they went

I followed the fence-line thin
Back where the yard begins
My woman, she stood crying like a man

So, where have you been?
Where have you been?
I thought you said that all of that was done
El cielo es azul, just don't go telling everyone

Thought the kettle was a train
Thought that Monday was a door frame
I tried so hard to finally settle down

Heard the fire pop and snap
Like a tack piano rag
I never could get used to happy sounds

Yeah, I hope the world's exposed
A cruel and elaborate hoax
That convinces me to walk without a cane

But what can you do?
What can you do?
I always heard that what is done is done
El cielo es azul, just don't go telling everyone

The past don't ever quit
Those boxes in the attic
Baby shoes and taxidermy dreams

While the ashes of the dead
Like a dandelion head
Explode and then are scattered by the breeze

And it's such a long way back
To all the fun I had
When nothing ever seemed to bother me

But what can you do, child?
What can you do?
Sleep 'neath the stars and toil in the sun
El cielo es azul, just don't go telling everyone
El cielo es azul, just don't go telling everyone

I Got The Reason, No. 2 lyrics - Conor Oberst

You know a lot can happen after everybody falls asleep
Ask the forest fire, ask the cop walking on the beat
And do right by them, work a little in your dreams
Don't let time rob you, hold onto your memories

In the glass houses, in the pages of the Rolling Stone
I get a sick feeling, like I'm rocking in a little boat
I hear the big church bell, it's ringing like a mobile phone
It's such a long Sunday drive to be taking it all alone

I want to belong to a reason
And cut a new key to the kingdom

And if anybody asks me, say I want to belong
If anybody asks me, say that it won't take long now
If anybody asks me, say I'm going to get it done
If anybody asks me, say I got a reason, oh

In the vast hard drive, in the satellites that kick and spin
They keep the old footage so everything can live again
Pretty pink roses, the ostrich and the elephant
It's the last Noah's ark, so everything's got to fit

In the creased pages of a letter I been trying to send
To a young widow who is desperate for some kind of friend
You'll find a long list of eligible, handsome men
Who want to lay with her upon the table of the elements

They're going to hold strong to a reason
And cut a new key to the kingdom

And if anybody asks 'em, say they're going to belong
And if anybody asks 'em, say that it won't take long now
And if anybody asks 'em, say Man I'm trying to get it done
And if anybody asks 'em, say they've got a reason, oh

Snake Hill lyrics - Conor Oberst

I was born on Snake Hill
And that's where I'll probably die
Because I don't like to kill
But I've got poison in my bite

Well, I feel safe to say
That I should probably stay upon Snake Hill

My mother told me, "Son
You got strychnine in your blood
It comes from pedigree ancestory"

She warned me not to leave
Said my concience was too deep
That when I bite
It would hurt mostly me

For many many years
I stayed up on that hill
Occasionaly I'd go down to the edge
Just to see what I could see
So curiousity got the best of me

Well, it's a big world and it's not fair to me
To stay up there when there's so much to see
I want to play with others that I need to meet
Poison will be poison till it's through

Soon I hit the world
I discovered that a girl
Was what my mother tried to hide from me

She could make you feel alive
She could make you want to die
And that's exactly what she did to me

And it was only self defense
But I coiled up and I bit
I let my venom run into her veins

And I sat and watched her die
To me
Then I realized

I was born on Snake Hill
And that's where I'll probably die
Because I don't like to kill
But I've got poison in my bite

Well, I feel safe to say
That I should probably stay upon Snake Hill

And it's a big world and it's not fair to me
To have to stay when there's so much to see
I want to play with others that I need to meet

And poison will be poison till it's through
Poison will be poison till it's through
Poison will be poison till it's through
Poison will be poison till it's through

"Conor Oberst" (2008)

Cape Canaveral lyrics - Conor Oberst

Oh, oh, oh brother totem pole
I saw your legends lined up
And I never felt more natural
Apart, I just came apart

Please, please, please sister Socrates
You always answer with a question
Show some kindness to a petty thief
Forgive, you did forgive

And watch the migrants' smoke in the old orange grove
And the red rocket blaze over Cape Canaveral
You've been a father to me, your 1960s speak
Give me comatose joy like re-run TV
While the mountainside was shining
Wild colors of my destiny

I watched your face age backwards
Changing shape in my memory
You taught me victory's sweet
Even deep in the cheap seats

Hey, hey, hey mother interstate
Can you deliver me from evil
Make me honest, make me wedding cake
Atone, I will atone

Wait, wait, wait mighty outer space
All that flying saucer terror
Made me lazy, drinking lemonade
A waste, it just went to waste

Like the freon cold out the hotel door
Or the white rocket fade over Cape Canaveral
You've been a daughter to me, your buried shoebox grief
I felt your poltergeist love like Savannah heat
While the waterfall was pouring
Crazy symbols of my destiny

I watched your face die backwards
Little baby in my memory
You told me victory's sweet
Even deep in the cheap seats

And you don't judge me
That's not your style
But I won't see you for a little while
And there's no worries, oh Lord, who's got time
All these changes gonna fill your mind

Like the citrus glow off the old orange grove
Or the red rocket blaze over Cape Canaveral
It's been a nightmare for me, some 1980's greed
Gives me parachute dreams like old war movies
While the universe was drawing
Perfect circles for infinity

I watched the stars get smaller
Tiny diamonds in my memory
I know that victory is sweet
Even deep in the cheap seats

Sausalito lyrics - Conor Oberst

Hair blowing in the hot wind
Time hanging from a clothespin
There's no sorrow that the sun's not gonna heal
I smell the leather of your new car
Drive through the desert after nightfall
Sleep on the shoulder, keep the stars all to ourselves

The kind of love that makes my back hurt
Wearin' nothing but a T-shirt
She's turning over on a mattress made of air
I close my eyes and see a staircase
Leading upwards into blank space
All of creation makes a sound too soft to hear

So I remain between her legs
Sheltered from all my fears
While bikers glide by highway shrines
Where pilgrims disappear

I know that trouble's been your good friend
Kept you company on the weekends
Kept you company even once your mind was made
You said, it's over and it's finished
Now a headache's all you're left with
We're no different, I've got debts I'd like to pay

We should move to Sausalito
Living's easy on a house boat
Let the ocean rock us back and forth to sleep
And in the morning when the sunrise
Look in the water, see the blue sky
As if heaven has been laid there at our feet

So we remain between these waves
Sheltered for all our years
While bikers glide by highway shrines
Where pilgrims disappear
Where time takes icebergs
Where fields burn westward
Where pilgrims disappear

Get-Well-Cards lyrics - Conor Oberst

All the peacock people left their plumes in a pile
They look good to a fault
And the Gulf water's warm like a bathtub
Full of lavender and epsom salt
See a bleach blond boy put his long board down
Help his girl get her sunscreen on
I thought about you in your little house
Think you're lonely but I could be wrong and

I wanna be a bootlegger
Wanna mix you up something strange
Braid your hair like a sister
Name you like a hurricane

Right there
That's the postman sleeping in the sand
He's got a letter to deliver
But I can't stay mad, oh
Right there
That's the postman sleeping in the sand
He's got a get-well-card to deliver
He's gonna do it by hand
He's gonna do it by hand

Now they drive their cars up and down the beach
It's ridiculous and everybody knows
Hear the Mustangs rev at the four-way stop
You get ghosted when the light says go
But in a town like this
In the checkered flag dawn
It's so empty it could make somebody dream
So maybe it's you in your four-post bed
Sound asleep bu still grinding your teeth

I wanna be your happiness
I wanna be your common sense pain
Wrap your head in a picket fence
Rebuild after the hurricane

Right there
That's the postman sleeping in the sand
He's got my letters to deliver
But I'm still not mad, oh
Right there
That's the postman sleeping in the sand
He's got a get-well-card to deliver
He's gonna do it by hand
He's gonna do it, he's gonna do it
He's gonna do it, he's gonna do it
He's gonna do it, he's gonna do it by hand

Oh
Right there
That's the postman sleeping in the sand
He's got a letter to deliver
But I can't stay mad, oh
Right there, that's the postman asleep in the sand
He's got a head-stack now to deliver
He wants to do it by hand
He's gonna do it, he's gonna do it
He's gonna do it, he's gonna do it
He's gonna do it, he's gonna do it
He's gonna do it, he's gonna do it by hand

Lenders In The Temple lyrics - Conor Oberst

A short delay, the parrot blues
Little voices mimic you
It's not so hard to make that sound
So watch your back, the Ides of March
Cut your hair like Joan of Arc
Disguise your will, they'll find you out
And when they do
Look out

There's money-lenders inside the temple
That circus tiger's gonna break your heart
Something so wild turned into paper
If I loved you, well that's my fault

A bitch in heat, the alpha male
Not something she'd ever tell
Except when she got deathly high
And out it came like summer rain
It washed the cars and everything
Felt clean for just a little while
A telethon
We drunk dialed

Those starving children they ain't got no mother
There's pink flamingos living in the mall
I'd give a fortune to your infomercial
If somebody would just take my call
Take my call
Take my call

Hello
Patterns in my mind now moving slow
Sorrow all across the surface rolls
Smoothing out the edges of the stone
The lights are out. Where'd everybody go?
Alone

Erase yourself and you'll be free
Mandala destroyed by the sea
All we are is colored sand
So pay to ride the ferris wheel
Smile, all that you can feel
Is gratitude for what has been
'Cause it did not
Happen

There's money-lenders inside the temple
That circus tiger's gonna break my heart
Something so wild turned into paper
If you love me, then that's your fault

There's money-lenders inside the temple
This crystal city's gonna fall apart
When all their power turns into vapor
If I miss you, well that's my fault
That's my fault
That's my fault

Danny Callahan lyrics - Conor Oberst

Green world, lovely chloroform
Front porch in the thunderstorm
Controlled chaos, confused energy
Stop reading the weather charts
Stop counting the playing cards
There's no system, there's no guarantees

That the love you feel and carry inside can be passed
But you try, I know you do, you still talk to your plants
Ask, how are you getting on alone

Some wander the wilderness
Some drink cosmopolitans
Some cull science, some glean astral planes
I can't tell where the canvas stops
Homesick as an astronaut
Just keep drifting, but still can't explain

How the love we feel we carry inside can be passed
See a brother in the gutter, you reach out your hand
Ask, how are you getting on alone

What guage measures miracles
And whose heartbeat's electrical
We feign sickness with our modern joy
But even Western medicine
It couldn't save Danny Callahan
Bad bone marrow, a bald little boy

But the love he feels he carries inside can be passed
He lay still, his mother kissed him goodbye
Said, come back, where are you going to alone
Where are you going all alone?

I Don't Want To Die (In The Hospital) lyrics - Conor Oberst

I don't want to die in the hospital
I don't want to die in the hospital
I don't want to die in the hospital
You got to take me back outside

I don't want to hear all these factory sounds
Looking like a girl in this sleeping gown
I don't want to die in the hospital
You got to take me back outside

Can you make a sound to distract the nurse
Before I take a ride in that long black hearse
I don't want to die in the hospital
You go to take me back outside

Ah, help me get my boots on
Help me get my boots on
Help me get my boots back on
Help me get my boots on
Help me get my boots on
Help me get my boots back on

I go to go, go, go, go
'Cause I don't have long

I don't give a damn what the doctors say
I ain't gonna spend another lonesome day
I don't want to die in the hospital
You go to take me back outside

And they don't let you smoke and you can't get drunk
All there is to watch are these soap operas
I don't want to die in the hospital
You got to take me back outside

Can you get this tube out of my arm?
Morphine in my blood like a slow sad song
I don't want to die in the hospital
You got to take me back outside

Ah, help me get my boots on
Help me get my boots on
Help me get my boots back on
Help me get my boots on
Help me get my boots on
Help me get my boots back on

I got to go, go, go
'Cause I don't have long

Is there still a world at my windowsill
All there ever was I remember still
I don't want to die in this hospital
You got to take me back outside

Don't know when it's day or when it's night
All I ever see are florescent lights
I don't want to die in this hospital
You got to take me back outside

They give me all these flowers and these big balloons
But I don't want to stay in this little room
I don't want to die in this hospital
I don't want to die

Are the stars still in the sky?
Is that fat moon on the rise?
Feel the earth's against my feet
As the cold wind calls for me

I don't want to die in this hospital
No, I don't want to die in this hospital
No, I ain't gonna die in this hospital
You got to take me back outside

Yeah, I ain't gonna die in this hospital
No, I ain't gonna die in this hospital
No, I ain't gonna die in this hospital
You're gonna take me back outside

Eagle On A Pole lyrics - Conor Oberst

Saw an eagle on a pole
I think it was an eagle
Watched its shadow fly across the cement

I woke up in the snow
All the trees were crowds of people
No coat, no shoes, no idea where they went

I followed the fence-line thin
Back where the yard begins
My woman, she stood crying like a man

So, where have you been?
Where have you been?
I thought you said that all of that was done
El cielo es azul, just don't go telling everyone

Thought the kettle was a train
Thought that Monday was a door frame
I tried so hard to finally settle down

Heard the fire pop and snap
Like a tack piano rag
I never could get used to happy sounds

Yeah, I hope the world's exposed
A cruel and elaborate hoax
That convinces me to walk without a cane

But what can you do?
What can you do?
I always heard that what is done is done
El cielo es azul, just don't go telling everyone

The past don't ever quit
Those boxes in the attic
Baby shoes and taxidermy dreams

While the ashes of the dead
Like a dandelion head
Explode and then are scattered by the breeze

And it's such a long way back
To all the fun I had
When nothing ever seemed to bother me

But what can you do, child?
What can you do?
Sleep 'neath the stars and toil in the sun
El cielo es azul, just don't go telling everyone
El cielo es azul, just don't go telling everyone

NYC-Gone, Gone lyrics - Conor Oberst

Gone, gone from New York City
Where you gonna go with a head that empty
Gone, gone from New York City
Where you gonna go with a heart that gone

Down, down to Mexico City
Got myself a lady, she knows how to treat me
Down, down to Mexico City
Got myself a lady to lay me down, to lay me down, lay me down

All my friends that you don't know
I'm gonna miss you when I go
But I'll see you down your road
Meet me at the station way down low, way down low

Gone, gone from New York City
Where you gonna go with a head that empty
Gone, gone from New York City
Where you gonna go with a heart that gone
Where you gonna go with a heart that gone

Gone, gone from New York City
Where you gonna go with a head that empty
Gone, gone from New York City
Where you gonna go with a heart that gone
Where you gonna go with a heart that gone
Where you gonna go with a heart that gone

Moab lyrics - Conor Oberst

I used up your compassion
So I've come to make a trade
You can hate me but just love me in return
And if I know where to find you
I'll stay out of your way
I won't come beg to borrow all the happiness you've earned
I'll just slide back down to the bottom
While you make your place in the hills

There's nothing that the road cannot heal
There's nothing that the road cannot heal
Washed under the blacktop
Gone beneath my wheels
There's nothing that the road cannot heal
Claro que si

They say the sun won't burn forever
But that's a science too exact
I can prove it, watch, we're crossing the state line
See those headlights coming towards us
That's someone going back
To a town they said they'd never, yeah, they swore it on their life
But you can't break out of a circle
That you never knew you were in

There's nothing that the road cannot heal
There's nothing that the road cannot heal
Washed under the blacktop
Gone beneath my wheels
There's nothing that the road cannot heal

Some would spend their precious time
Trying to decorate their lives
Taking measurements for some new look they want
So from one to ten, ten's exactly what I am
Zero being everything I'm not

Tell me what you like
Is it less than five
Is it less than five

There's nothing that the road cannot heal
There's nothing that the road cannot heal
When I make it to Moab
I'll get my canteen filled
There's nothing that the road cannot heal
Washed under the blacktop
Gone beneath my wheels
There's nothing that the road cannot heal

Souled Out!!! lyrics - Conor Oberst

The barrio starts two streets over
Miguel, he's a friend of mine
With brick weed built a reputation
Like dry ice in the summertime

Now all you need is an electric razor
A magic bullet and a grassy knoll
The whole world is just a little oyster
To Snow White and her poison apples

I woke up in the age of wires
I fell asleep at the dusk of man
Now I'm cold as Popocatépetl
Fingers crossed in the promised land

But you won't be getting in (you know by now)
No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
All souled out in heaven

The barrio starts two streets over
Monse, she's a friend of mine
Keeps it peace like a whistleblower
Flying kites in the wintertime

Magic carpet is the transportation
Went to the moon in a soda can
Not all my boys believe in science
Stretching truth in the promised land

But you won't be getting in (you know by now)
No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
It's souled out in heaven

Chorus again, or another one? Another one

El Popocatépetl esta dormido pero pronto despertara

You know by now
You know by now
You know by now

But you won't be getting in (you know by now)
No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
It's souled out, in heaven

No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
No, you won't be getting in (you know by now)
To heaven
To heaven (you know by now)
To heaven (you know by now)
(You know by now)
To heaven

Milk Thistle lyrics - Conor Oberst

Milk thistle, milk thistle
Let me down slow
Help me go slow
I've been carryin' on
I'm not scared of nothin'
I'll go pound for pound
I keep death on my mind
Like a heavy crown
If I go to heaven
I'll be bored as hell
Like a little baby
At the bottom of a well

Fairchild, fairchild
How are you, man
Did you fix that storefront
Did you start that band
Don't be scared of nothin'
You go pound for pound
You'll bring peace to midnight
Like a spotted owl
I'll be rootin' for you
Like my favorite team
If somebody sweats you
You just point 'em out to me

All the sights and sounds
This little world's too crowded now
And there's only one way out
An elevator ride
Through the tunnel towards the light
And I'm nowhere bound
Keep going up and down
Up and down

Newspaper, newspaper
Can't take no more
You're here every morning
Waitin' at my door
And I'm just tryin' to kiss you
And you stab my eyes
Make me blue forever
Like an island sky
And I'm not pretending
That it's all okay
Just let me have my coffee
Before you take away the day

Lazarus, Lazarus
Why all the tears
Did your faithful chauffer just disappear
What a lonesome feeling
To be waitin' around
Like some washed-up actress
In a tinsel town
But for the record
I'd come pick you up
We'll head for the ocean
Just say when you've had enogh

All the light and sound
This little world's too fragile now
And there's only one way out
But if you let me slide
I'll do my best to make things right
And I know where bound
Just going up and down
Up and down

Milk thistle, milk thistle
Let me down slow
Just help me go slow
I've been hurrin' on
I was poised for greatness
I was down and out
I keep death at my heels
Like a basset hound
If I go to heaven
I'll be bored as hell
Like a crying baby at the bottom of a well

"The Soundtrack To My Movie" (1996)

In My Sights lyrics - Conor Oberst

I can't,
I can't wait to see you again
I can't wait to see you again
I've been waiting,
I've waited all week,
I have waited all week
And I can't wait to see you again, again
And everything is fine when you're around
I can't wait anymore, anymore
Anymore

The Halcyon Days lyrics - Conor Oberst

Evening news is coming out my ears
My splitting head cracks open every fifteen minutes
I read the newspapers review so how did you think you'd do?
Another standing ovation I'm sure, something that you can hold on to
And I can just picture you in that big empty house all alone
Listening to the heavy breathing on the other end of your telephone

So turn on all of your lights and do what you must to survive
Stay close to the floor and don't make a sound
Cause the bender of my truth
And nothing, nothing, nothing can hurt you

My dark can cut through molted rock
But it gets burned when it tastes decent-ion come through these wires
And you probably don't notice it but shocking pulling at the roof of your mouth
I, I can taste it, I can feel it when I, when I talk to you
I can feel it too,

Turn off all of the lights and hope that you're safe tonight
My eyes are now shields to the benders of pride
Sneak up to see through the darkest nothing, nothing, nothing to find you
And nothing, nothing, nothing can hurt you,
Nothing can hurt you

Opened And Spent lyrics - Conor Oberst

The air was all dust, the night so untamed
The ground opened up and swallowed all of the rain
It swallowed you too into greatness unknown
They sat down at dinner and waited for you to get home
They set a place for you so don't believe everything that you read in that diary of yours

And this nervousness isn't all your fault
These shaky hands won't do what I want them to
And I tried to guess what it is you thought
About the lack of compassion that breathes through the holes in my skin

What are you crying for? Just dust my heart and you will find no fingers printed there
The untouched place that lies inside of every lonely boy tonight

And this opened air has caused me to choke
On your new found hope in me

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