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Let's Travel On (lyrics & links)
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An American Original
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Let's Travel On (lyrics & links)
- Let's Travel On (lyrics & links)

Greenaway Sounds

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Without a Backward Glance

From the recording New Electric Cocktails

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Without a Backward Glance
by John Greenaway

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Before I come …to the end
                      I want my life to begin

All my life
I’ve tried to be free
I wanted to find something greater than what was around me

Perhaps a wife
Could satisfy this life
And tie up all the loose ends that surround and confound me

But then you came to me
With a whole new way to see
Something that moved like a river that flows to the ocean

No need to change
Nothing left to lose or gain
Now I feel like the breeze that floats from the seas to the mountains

From there, there is nothing to see but the sky all around me
I can see the sun, the moon and stars that surround me
All my questions fall away
Now my life can begin today

Who am I?
All my life I have tried
To wander through every door, down every road I came to

But I never realized
No matter how hard I tried
That all the answers I seek can be found inside me

Then I came to you
And there I found something new
Something that moved like a river that flows to the ocean

You reached to me
Bending down upon one knee
Then you lifted me up above every love I ever imagined

From miles above, I could feel a warm love all around me
Mile, after mile, after mile your sweet smile has found me

Looking down, I wondered why
           How I came to fly so high
           Can I stay here if I try?

Walking down a road so far from my home
Never felt so free, yet so much alone
Trees lift their leaves to waltz in the breeze
Could all this wonder I see be meant for me

Grasses sway like waves upon a restless sea
The tides rise and slide, rocking endlessly
I lift my eyes to greet the sun
And welcome every moment; one by one

(instr.)

I shall survive through everything I find
Through any trial, I know that I can thrive
I am of nature and I’m given the time
To weave my life with rhythm and with rhyme

I watched two robins weaving their nest within the leaves
As nature yields to each request and every need

I look around from the sky down to the ground
And feel a part of all that I have found
I feel a part of all that I have found
And feel a part of everything I found

.

Does the life I live
Seem worthy of the time

What’s the value of a day?
As each one comes it slips away
Is there meaning as the weeks keep tripping by?
How can these hours feel worthwhile?
As my dreams keep chasing time
Is there a way to make each moment come alive?

I’m sitting here as time flies by
Life is like a long train ride
Sitting still as the stations pass me by
Watching the hills pass by my eyes
All I need is by my side
Just waiting for the time that I arrive

Every now and then I wonder
What comes at the end of my life… as I fade
Is there something left to save?

Will I sense what’s waiting for me
Lying on that quiet bed?
Will a feeling of peace come over me
No matter what lies ahead?
But that’s not yet

Is there some wonder in this life
Beyond all the things we try?
A joy that’s greater than the pleasures that we find?
Some secret voice or hidden sound
Some silent verse within the ground
To satisfy the longing that I have found

Every now and then
I get to blossom once again
Some hidden bud decides it’s time to open wide
I guess its season had arrived
Nothing had to be contrived
Just take your time and watch the garden thrive

Every now and then I wonder
What will be the meaning of the end?
Will it ever come again?
Or is that what we pretend

I’m so grateful for these days
Clear of din and free of haze
Swept the ashes from the floor to find the door
Everything that went before
Makes this life of mine worth more

Every now and then I see what the day is for
Every now and then I see what the day is for

You walked in the room
And started to dance
The crowd stepped back to clear the way
They’d never seen such romance

The Moon came in through an open door
To waltz with you ’cross the floor

The two of you joined and the tides rose high
Washing the towns from the shore and watching them collide

Then the stars began to sway
As mountains fell to the sea

Even gods in the sky stopped to see, wonder why, how can the both of you glide so peacefully

Oh my, stars started cry

You danced much too close to them
Orion tightened his belt
He drew his long sword to fight for you
And drive the comets away

So many have come and have gone before
But no one knew how to thrill all the gods before you came

Time bends before the end
To see you enter again

Everything likes to swing, even galaxies sing, watch the universe spin and be entranced by you

You walked in the room
And started to dance

I feel like sleeping
But my heart keeps weeping

I wander near and far
I wonder where you are
I walk the empty streets and think of you

I stroll beneath the stars
I hear the distant cars
Riding aimlessly to find out who we are

I don’t have a clue
Except for you

I lie down on the bed
Where my soul once bled
You said that love had somehow passed us by

With nothing left to try
As we both softly cried
I turned
And turned the lights out
For all time

And wondered what to do
Without you

My heart is sinking
In wells too deep for drinking
You may find a better star
But no matter how or far

I will wonder where you are
I will wander where you are
I will wonder where you are

I wandered the hills of my life
Looking for someone
Looking for me

I crossed through rivers and valleys
Crawled through the forests that called to me
What did they mean?

Let’s travel on now

No matter how I searched the mountains for you
I never found a single clue
What should I do?

(instr.)

Years have come and have gone now
Since I met you
And you found me

Years filled with wonder and sorrow
As we both knelt to drink sweet mountain springs
We both dove in

As life’s new sounds resound in wells of memory
That join in deep, sweet harmony

Let’s travel on
Let’s travel on

Embracing all the years that still lie ahead
Until we reach the silent shore
Who could ask for more

Let’s travel on now
Let’s travel on
Let’s travel on
Let’s travel on

What am I supposed to do
When this world is crumble-ing
Should I try to sink or swim
Or why should I try at all

What is there that I can do
When people run from reasoning
Can’t they see what’s happening
To the world we…
The wonderful world
We live in

What’s this confusion surrounding us
Not allowing us the whole truth

I grew up believing
That our world would change
And I’ll never stop believing in the dreams
I could see in my youth

(instr.)

I started reasoning
That people do the best they can
This must be the saddest thing
We could save this world if we tried
Wasting all our precious time
When our time is on our side
Time to free what’s trapped inside
Hiding behind all
The little lies we call
Our own

I still believe we can find a way
Letting kindness guide us
I’ve seen so many crimes that love has saved
Let’s lean on love and then, my friends, let’s live in peace
Let’s live in peace
Let’s live in peace

He walked his house down to the river
Just to take a dive
And when the swimmin’ was over
He climbed on a rock and crawled inside

She knows the way to walk on water
Like it’s a country road
Just spread her skinny legs over
Perched on top of her tiny toes

Who knows all the wonders we perform
As we live each day
We’re a miracle surrounded by miracles
There’s nothing to say, it’s really just that way

He spent his life stuck on the bottom
With the surface so high
Then he turned himself like a Transformer
To make his home in the sky

His cousin clung to the branches
By the riverside
Until she uncovered her nature
Stretched out her wings and started to fly

Just watch the wonders around us
Each and every day
We’re a miracle surrounded by miracles
What can I say, it’s really that way

Did you see people come to the river
In the summertime
They are one of the wonders of nature
And they don’t even try

We are all the wonder of wonders
By the river side

.

I walk the hazy streets of my youth
Looking for
The corners that I crossed before
They are no more

Dinner smells would greet the sidewalks
Lingering for hours
As the summer sun moved on
Those smells have gone

Down the road I see the dawning of a brand-new day
I see the sunrise waiting on a distant hill
Is it waiting still

(instr.)

I walk the dusty lanes and allies
Looking for the backyards that I once knew so well
I cannot tell

I see the quiet sidewalks sighing
Wondering what’s the secret that I’ve been waiting for
There must be more

I find the broken door steps
I climbed so many times before
I cross the porch and enter through a swinging door
I see the toys of childhood gathered on a dusty floor
Can I sit and play with them one time more
                Just like I did before

.

I walk the hazy streets of my youth
Looking for
The corners that I crossed before
They are no more

Dinner smells would greet the sidewalks
Lingering for hours
As the summer sun moved on
Those smells have gone

Down the road I see the dawning of a brand-new day
I see the sunrise waiting on a distant hill
Is it waiting still

(instr.)

I walk the dusty lanes and allies
Looking for the backyards that I once knew so well
I cannot tell

I see the quiet sidewalks sighing
Wondering what’s the secret that I’ve been waiting for
There must be more

I find the broken door steps
I climbed so many times before
I cross the porch and enter through a swinging door
I see the toys of childhood gathered on a dusty floor
Can I sit and play with them one time more
                Just like I did before

It’s been two years
Since the capital’s been cleared
Of the hate and the rage and the fear
But not a thing’s been resolved, not a single problem solved
          While waiting for the next shoe to drop

Floods carry us away
Storms worsen each day
Droughts drag on for year after year
Carbon limits been set, but none of them met
          While waiting for the next shoe to drop

People murder each other
Countries decide who it’s right to destroy
And the ones that a left will never get rest
          Waiting for the next shoe to drop

(instr.)

Then the pandemic became a clear and common enemy
When we suffer, we suffer the same
But we could not agree, only got more angry
        Waiting for the next shoe to drop

What on Earth can we do
When the meaning of “we” does not include “you”

Then our progress will rust
All we’ve done turn to dust
        While waiting for the next shoe to drop
                      Stop waiting for the next shoe to drop

.

To see what I might find
After so many torn and restless days
That I cannot explain
         Just what happened to
         The love I once shared with you

Can we agree on the facts?
And then proceed with how to act
Let’s make the best of the coming years
And remember what we hold dear
         Without the fears
                    That sometimes surround us
                                     Surround us
                                    Surround our love

Our love
Our love
Our love can be
If our love can see

(instr.)

Come take a walk with me
No need to talk, just be
Watching the trees as the seasons change
Accept the reasons they rearrange
While love can still remain
                         Still remain
                               Still remain
                                     Still remain free

.

What’ll I do with a priestess like you, my dear
Praying down upon your knees
Then you decide to climb on top
To spread the truth to me

It’s a crime to take your time, you say
Then you stop and turn around
There’s so many lessons to be learned
             Lying on the ground

I took you out the other night, you know
To talk and have a meal
You just wanted to get back home
              And squeal
                           And get your soul unsealed

I wonder what will come of me, dear Lord
For lovin’ this too much
Drinkin’ from the sacred cup
                In your Church of Touch

One more time for the gods above
Stuck in the dirt or rising in love
Never hurts when you give too much
Give yourself, my sons, to the Church of Touch.

(Instr.)

My mama said to me that you
You ain’t the kind to trust
But you know, there ain’t one thing I wouldn’t do
              For your Church of Touch

I’d crawl to Hell and back, you know, my dear
It wouldn’t be too much
To fetch a pale of burning coals…of pure lust
              For your Church of Touch

Lay me down and pick me up, my dear
You know it’s boom or bust
‘til there’s nothing left of me but dust
              In your Church of Touch
              In your Church of Touch
              In your Church of Touch

.

Did you see that pick-up truck, all jacked up, goin’ faster and faster
Can’t get nowhere that he couldn’t get there goin’ slow
Tearing down that gravel road, engines overload, askin’ for disaster
And there ain’t no place to go, drivin’ on River Road

What a day to take a page from the road less traveled
So, I made a turn at the sign that read “River Road”

I passed an old man sittin’ on his porch, just clutchin’ his shotgun
He held it high for every stranger passing by
He looked at me cold and mean, like I was his mortal enemy
From some war that he made-up in his mind

He may be angry and he may be cruel
But why should I suffer from such a fool
They say that you reap just what you sow
Especially, they say, on River Road

Did you see her flag cape, gun belt strapped ‘round her waist, lonely and tattered
Did you see her long blonde hair flowing down, but once it was brown
Did you watch her hips slide, with a six pack by her side, like nothing mattered
Advertising to any boy or man passing by

Well, I may be weak or I might be wise
But she ain’t the kind that I’d dare to try
Perhaps I’ll seize the day before I’m old
But for now, I’ll just let her go
Down River Road

[Instr.]

I met a little tike in her bright red bike, peddling up next to me
She smiled in my face and said if I wanted to race, she’d get the best of me
She talked on, so young and bold, saying even if she grow’d very old
There would never be a place as great as River Road

Just then a dragonfly whizzed ‘round my head
My afternoon was changed by the words she said
Like the old man, seeing just what he thought
I’ll end up getting just what I bought

Maybe I can stop believing what I’ve been told
And try to smile a little more
When I’m drivin’ on River Road
On River Road

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