Casablanca Hotel

(by K.Brown)

I was sittin' at the bar

starin' through the bottle

at the Casablanca Hotel

when a friend walked up to me

and tapped me on the shoulder

he said

I knew I'd find you

probly chewing on another

passage of American song

sippin' on a Harpers

you got another one of those?

Jazzman

 (by K. Brown)

Jazzman, Jazzman

where you go so soon

a breeze has caught your tune

on a trip around the moon

Reach out touch the sun

bring it back, and touch someone

who loves you

Momma, sweet momma

don't worry, don't you cry

I'm gonna tell you why

feel the breeze up in the sky

Jazzman's been to the sun

come back to everyone

brought a handful back to you

Jazzman, Jazzman

doo doo doo doo do

brought a handful of the sun

brought it back to you

Tree of Knowledge (unfinished)

(by K. Brown)

You see that tree
thats standing there
weathered by
100 hundred years
it's statures old
but it's knowledge green
and comes to speak it
every spring

You think you know
your words so well
that I should listen
as you tell
what's left is right
what's right is wrong
do you know the meter
of the song

Ben Bullington

Newest favorite writer ... in my book with Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, David Rodriguez, and a few others.

on death:

"our souls might mingle in the aftertorch ... like four friends smoking on a late night porch ..."
"promise me you won't worry ... it's probably like the time before I was born ..."

on legacy:

"you got the name, you got the farm, now don't break the line ... lone pine"
"sundown and daybreak alone mark the time ..."

This Scratch on My Guitar

(by K Brown)

1
This scratch on top of my guitar
Don't pick it
It might leave a scar
Took miles of forgetting where you are
To leave it there
on this guitar

2
That scratch right there on my guitar
didn't know
could run that far
Tryin' to reach you where you are
a puff of breeze
a distant star

(Break)
That scratch it bleeds some
everyday
more than once along the way
I nearly run right off the road
tryin' to lose
a heavy load

3
That scratch there cut right to the bone
A little deeper
when you can't atone
But sooner or later you'll get home
This guitars your friend
when you're alone

4
This scratch on the top of my guitar
Don't pick it
It might leave a scar
Took miles of forgetting where you are
To leave it there
on this guitar

(Coda)
Yeah
Took a long time of forgetting where you are
To leave that scratch
on my guitar

Belle Of The Ball

(by K Brown)

Bella, Oh Bella
you're the belle of the ball
and when all of the dancin' is through
you were the one that we all want to waltz with
Oh Bella, gal, where are you

When the last fiddle plays
and the memory fades
Bella, you know
we loved you

(They say) you could not see straight, your teeth would not be straight
And cowlicks that ran through your hair
some say imperfections, but to me was all beauty
perfection for me I don't care

Now I'm as blue as the deep blue sea
Not sure whats come over me
by the light of the moon, and a sly parting glance
You left the dance way to soon

Where will you go now, what will you do
Where will we look to find you
By the light of the moon, will you show us a dance
to the lilt of a soft fiddle tune

Bella, Oh Bella
you're the belle of the ball
and when all of the dancin' is through
you were the one that we all want to waltz with
Oh Bella, gal, where are you

It's time to go home now, the dance is all through
We had us a time that is true
With a soft fiddle tune, we're sure that we'll see you
dance by the light of the moon

Bella, Oh Bella
you're the belle of the ball
and when all of the dancin' is through
you were the one that we all loved to waltz with
Oh Bella, gal, we loved you

When the last fiddle plays
and the memory fades
oh Bella,
once in a blue moon

Reach Out For The Other Side

(by K. Brown)

I made a fool of myself
singing right out loud
tried to draw a crowd
but, what for, what's it good for

Thought they might be on my side
tried to make an honest sound
then looked around
and they were gone, all gone

Reachin' out from the other side
Where you been
what you been doin'

Long ago I might of tried to hide
but now I'm goin' ...

I can't seem to find myself
voice is too loud
while I fool the crowd
but, what for, what's it good for

Tryin' to reach out for the other side
and make an honest sound
maybe look around
for you, and the love you showed

Reachin' out from the other side
Where you been
what you been doin'

Long ago I might of tried to hide
but now I'm goin' ...

(open G for reference)

Old Rockin' Chair

(by K. Brown)

That old rockin chair
sittin over in the corner, there
its got some tales that it could tell
its worn its finish
pretty well

no question its got time on me
before my baby eyes could see
and then long after I am gone
be rockin there
a long time on

It seems we run our lives so fast
its hard to make the memories last
getting there from place to place
and times we wish we could erase

But not that rockin chair
sittin in the corner there
its got some tales that it could tell
its worn its finish
pretty well

Just turned around and then got old
before I even got my story told
that chair there got it all on loan
each creaking joint
each quiet moan

One of these days I'll be gone
But I hope that chair rocks on and on
These old joints of mine now creak and groan
and that long ago
seems so far gone

But not that favorite rockin chair
sittin in the corner there
its got some tales that it could tell
its worn its finish
pretty well.

("Reward" Neal Casal for reference)

Just Want To Be

(by K. Brown)

I just want to be
and not be
called out
strung out
and hung out to dry

I just want to be
and not be
passed out
thrown out
and only left to cry

And in a time
when its cloudy
and quite shady
and hard to trust
just what you see

You must be careful
not to believe it
or deceive it
and put your trust
in what is real

I just want to be
and not be
found out
freaked out
and asking why

I just want to be
and not be
tuned out
left out
or wonder why

I want to be
just to be free

Windy Point (unfinished)

(by K. Brown)

Theres a reason we're called Windy Point
like what you've never seen

And it ain't because the boys all had
their fill of steak and beans

You can see those clouds a formin'
And rollin' from the North

Rockin' like a hurricane
from the Sault to Presque Isle Port

It might of been the 5th of May
Or maybe was the 6th

Keep On Keepin On

(Don't Wait For The Dogs To Come Home)
(by K. Brown)

You can't take back
what you done wrong
Best you can do
is keep keepin on
try to do better
try to do right
try to do what your Mom would like

Da doo doo doo, Da da da da
And keep on keepin on

Sittin here readin
all the fake news
in my Facebook feed
from friends I thought I knew
but now I don't know
Now I aint sure
if whats news is news
and whats yours is yours

Da doo doo doo, Da da da da
And keep on keepin on

Have me a boy
we don't say too much
he thinks I'm just
an old such and such
grass is blue
sky is green
tomatoes is tomattos
from what I seen

You can't take back
what you done wrong
Best you can do
is keep keepin on
try to do better
try to do right
try to do what your Mom would like

Da doo doo doo, Da da da da
And keep on keepin on

Sure would like
to kick back some
but the high cost of livin
got me feelin low down
Try to save a dollar
only make a dime
give it all to the wife
most the time

Da doo doo doo, Da da da da
And keep on keepin on

One of these days
and it wont be long
This old dog gonna
get out and run
Try to catch a rabbit
Try to dig a bone
Probably lose his mind a little
before he gets home

You can't take back
what you done wrong
Best you can do
is keep keepin on
try to do better
try to do right
try to do what your Mom would like

Da doo doo doo, Da da da da
And keep on keepin on

Just keep on keepin on

Don't wait for the dog to come home
Just keepin on


(Lester Flatt - Six White Horses, for reference)

(UnTitled)

(by K. Brown)

I been left standin' by the road
I been left out in the cold
and now, I ain't got nowhere left
that I can turn
I let my soul go wander
left my mind out over yonder
and now I can't seem to find my way
back home

Could I ask you for direction?
Could I beg for my redemption?
Just a favor that could maybe
help me through
Push the door back open
was all that I was hopin'
on my way to find my way
back home to you

Back home to you
back home to you
been a long hard road
to get back home to you

True Believer

(K Brown)

My brother he's a God fearin' man
My Momma been doin' alright
Since Daddy's 10 years buried
might see him bye and bye

You ain't no true believer
til you been washed in blood
least that's what momma told me
guess I ain't been washed enough

By day I work the furnace
that makes the cold steel hard
from fire good and hot as hell
but just make you old and tired

At night I hear them haulers
as they go rollin' by
My baby's good and gone
and I hang my head and cry

Which way do that highway run (lord,lord)
Which way do that highway run
come mornin' time I'm leavin'
And I'll be good and gone


(reference Charlie Jordon - Dollar Bill Blues)

Bernadette

by KB Brown

(guitar lick)

Bernadette
slinkin' around
makin everybody
wonder where you come from

Bernadette
look what you done
Come'n in here
like you own the town

Oh my lord
here comes Bernadette
shes a sashayin'
like a game she's playin
(with) the other girls they all hate her,
just sayin'
but the boys love Bernadette

Bernadette
pretty little pout
all those other girls
feelin' strung out

Bernadette
cattin' around
shake em all up
run em all down

Oh my lord
here comes Bernadette
shes a sashayin'
like a game she's playin
(with) the other girls they all hate her,
just sayin'
but the boys love Bernadette

Bernadette
are you stickin around
the other girls say
please make her leave town

Bernadette
pretty little pout
all those other girls
feeling left out

Oh my lord
here comes Bernadette
shes a sashayin'
like a game she's playin
(with) the other girls they all hate her,
just sayin'
but the boys love Bernadette

Bernadette
slinkin' around
shakin that tail
like to come unwound

Bernadette
with your cattin' around
Come'n in here
now look what you done

Perch Fry

(by K. Brown)

1.
It's Saturday Mornin'
Rooster crowin'
Hang the bait pot off the dock

C'mon woman
No time to waste
Be fishin' by 9 o'clock

Got fish to catch
got fish to clean
before it gets too hot

(Tonight gonna be)
A perch fry eatin'
campfire singin'
swingin' kind of spot

2.
Well the Party Barge
been a workin' hard
hittin' on the honey hole

Ain't enough perch
in this lake
Could make us head back home

Double up the limit
'bout every half an hour
til the bait pots all used up

(Tonight gonna be)
A perch fry eatin'
campfire singin'
swingin' kind of spot

Break.
We'll get the whole lake swayin'
to some guitar playin'
and some perch fry eatin'
and some cold beer drinkin'
All I'm a thinkin'
is some campfire singin'
like to keep my biscuits hot

3.
Tomorrow mornin'
it's back to work
toilin' on the Party Barge

C'mon woman
no time to waste
be fishin' by 9 o'clock

Theres fish to catch
and fish to clean
before it gets too hot

(Can't get enough of that)
Perch fry eatin'
campfire singin'
swingin' kind of spot

Break.
We'll get the whole lake swayin'
to some guitar playin'
and some perch fry eatin'
and some cold beer drinkin'
All I'm a thinkin'
is some campfire singin'
like to keep my biscuits hot

Gonna double up the limit
'bout every half an hour
until they all been caught

Coda:
(I'm talkin' 'bout)
Perch fry eatin'
good and greasy
campfire singin'
nice and breezy
cold beer drinkin'
slow and easy
... perch fry hits the spot!

Louisiana Gal

(by K. Brown)

They say the blues come all the way
down the mighty Mississippi
where the muddy waters flow
And make their way
to the tip of Louisiana
to the Gulf of Mexico
The Delta is the place
they stir it in the gumbo
when you hear those brass horns blow
And we could do some kissin'
and some cookin' in your kitchen
Gal when you gonna come back home?

You been away so long
noone hardly knows your missin'
and your just like some sweet old song
Then all a sudden sister
you blow in like a twister
and everything turned upside down
Just like a force of nature
sweep the mess up later
and Katie bar the door
But your what this place been missin'
And we could do some kissin'
Gal when you gonna come back home

Nothing could be finer
than the girls from Carolina
when they show the boys the door
And nothin' could be sweeter
than to kiss a Georgia peach
leave you comin' back fo' more
And the girls up in the mitten
well they sure can do some knitten
cuddle up and keep you warm
But that Louisiana gal
puts the hot sauce in the gumbo
when she boils the pot back home

Next time you go missin'
Don't expect that I'll be wishin'
to come at your beck and call
But no matter what I do
you just like Marie Laveux
and I'm like some puppy dog
Don't know what you been a-hoodoo
with that special kind of voodoo
only you can do so well
Just a Louisiana gal
give a ragin' Cajun yell
and stir the old folks up back home

Just a ragin' Cajun missus
and we could do some kissin'
gal when you gonna come back home

(Hole In My) Levee Wall

by K. Brown

One more drop of rain
One more drop that's all
You can sure enough bet
be a hole in my levee wall

I came in to work last Monday
after spendin most of the day drinking on Sunday
The boss called me in
said theres been a change of plans
I got to let you go
it's not you
your a good man you know
just a case of unforeseen shifting
supply and demand

I got a mortgage and no cash float
for a car and boat
bank note
And I'm sure my wifes,
hair and nails
just won't understand

One more drop of rain
One more drop that's all
You can sure enough bet
be a hole in my levee wall

I'm down here on my knees
and I been prayin'
Lord could you spare me
some relief
I'm just sayin
I'm doin' what I can
to get my feet up on dry land
but the water's risin' faster than I am

One more drop of rain
One more drop that's all
You can sure enough bet
be a hole in my levee wall

There's days you want to think
you could be winnin'
with  a shot of some belief
I'd keep from sinkin'
I'm doin' all I can
To get my feet up on dry land
tryin' to plant my boot heels in the sand/the waters risin faster than I am

One more drop of rain
One more drop that's all
You can sure enough bet
be a hole in my levee wall

One more drop of rain
One more drop that's all
Got a thumb holdin' back a flood
in that levee wall

Come n' Go Katie

(K Brown)

You and I can't say
We were good for one another
Just sort of last call kind of lovers
The kind that'll help you through the night
And in the morning when the whiskey breath
is just a little stronger
we hit the bottle one more time
just a little longer

Come n Go Katie
Come n Go Katie
Come n Go Katie
would you come n go with me

Is that all that there is?
Please don't tell me or I'll lose it
It all just gets to lonesome to bear
As you're slippin' into last nights clothes
and slippin' off to somewhere
Leavin' me just sittin' here
and contemplating "nowhere"

Come n Go Katie
Come n Go Katie
Come n Go Katie
hit the bottle one more time with me

I couldn't tell you why
the sky's all full of rain
but I could tell you how a whiskey bottle
helps to ease the pain
And I couldn't say for certain
How a love could go so wrong
but I been thinkin' on it every day
til the  bottles gone

Come n Go Katie
Come n Go Katie
Come n Go Katie
hit the bottle one more time with me

You and I can't say
we were good for one another ...

Delta Blue

(by K. Brown)




Capo 2nd fret

C
There ain't no sky bluer
G
than a Carolina sky
Am                                 Am/G
on a hot day in summer
F
in the month of July

C
And there ain't no boy greener
G
than a boy on his own
Am                                               Am/G
on those hard worn down footprints
F
thats a long way from home

G
And they make you a man
Am                               Am/G
just as hard as can be
F
in the hot July sun
Dsus
in that low country

G
And the Delta Blue is truer
Am                          Am/G  
than any blue can be

F
And no heart could be finer
Dsus
than the ones in Carolina
G
in the mornin'

F
And there ain't no sky bluer
D
than a Carolina sky
C
in the mornin'

There ain't no grass geener
than the green grass of home
when it's 110 there in the shade
and you're a long way from home

Couldn't be nobody bluer
than a boy could be
in a hard scrabble backward place
way over the sea

And they made you a man
just as hard as the stone
of that hot worn down land
been left on it's own

But the delta Blue is truer
than a blue can be

And there ain't no hearts finer
than the ones from Carolina
in the mornin'

And there ain't no blue truer
than the Red, White and Blue
in the mornin'

You do the work you have to do
do the best you can
take it on your shoulders'
it's the measure of a man

God I never asked for much
but if you'd take the time to see
I'd sweart I'd be a better man
if you'd bring him back to me

And they made him a man
just as hard as can be
in the hot July sun
in that low country

And the Delta Blue is truer
than any blue can be

And no heart could be finer
than the ones in Carolina
in the mornin'

And there ain't no sky bluer
than a Carolina sky
in the mornin

Aurora Borealis Song

(by K Brown)

In the North
where the creeks and the air runs cold
and the waters divide
from the glaciers of old

I breathed so deep
til my lungs were raw
Where the mighty trees 
outlived the saw

It was there in midst
of the cedar stands
and wild and free
Canadien winds
There was a time
in a young mans life
when I had hoped
that we'd start a life

but leaves fall down
and cover stone
and the Huron waters
just roll on

In the Mackinac
wild and free
the ghosts in the trees
there howl at me
the haunted leaves
and hunter wind
as it was in the beginning
blows no end

and leaves fall down
and cover stone
and the Huron waters
just roll on

I am old now
my mind it strays
to where the Aurora Borealis
fades
Stars there swim
the deep night sea
the ghosts living there
won't let me be

I am old now
my heart still beats
where the Aurora Borealis
meets
the stars there swim
the deep night sea
I see the ghosts there
they won't let me be

(for reference: PERRO Sessions, or E-A-Cm-B )