An American Tale

An American Tale

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

Once upon a time in America

In the green, rolling hills of southwestern Iowa

Where the tall corn grows for as far as you can see

And the sweet smell of hay travels on the breeze,

Two farm kids met and they fell in love

They didn't have much but what they had was enough

They cruised down Main Street; they burned up the gravel roads.

They rocked and rolled to Elvis on the radio.

CHORUS:

Theirs (ours) is a story that's a thousand times told

The changing of our lives, a generation old

The farm life abandoned as the cities prevail

Their (our) lives are an American Tale

He went off and joined the Air Force, left his farm and girl behind

But before the year was out, he had made her his bride.

As they drove to California, their apprehension grew

Was surviving in the city something they could really do?

Two daughters came along, both in different states

He did his time in Vietnam; she sold real estate.

From time to time, they'd go back, but somehow things had changed

The farm and family were still home, but their paths were not the same.

CHORUS

BRIDGE:

They rode the crest - the waves of change

They see how far they've come

The dream is real, the price is paid

They're united as one.

Now the legacy I never knew is the legacy I seek

To trade the trappings of success for a simpler way to be

To live the life they came from, to be closer to the land

Generations come from full circle - I've come to understand.

CHORUS ("ours")

By My Side

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

When we met, you chased the blues away.

You filled my days with laughter and play.

We dressed up and you took me on the town.

I was so alive with you around.

CHORUS:

And now you're here by my side

And you've gotta know I'll never let you go.

Sometimes it's a rocky ride

But through it all, I want you by my side.

You touched me like a gentle summer rain.

You kissed away the hurt and the shame.

You said you'd love me like no other would

Somehow, I knew that you could.

CHORUS

BRIDGE:

Don't you ever worry 'bout me

No matter what life throws our way

My head may be strong, and my words may be wrong

But in my heart, I won't ever stray.

CHORUS (repeat)

The Change Song

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

It started out so perfect - you know it always does

When he could do no wrong ... remember how it was

You held him in your arms, a son to bear your name

And dreamed about the future you wanted him to claim

But now the path he's taken is straying from your course

The choices that he's making are not the same as yours

Pride turns to anger as you try to make him see

The gulf between you widens and the distance dims your plea

Caught up in old patterns, I know you think you're right

Demanding that he change has robbed you of insight

CHORUS:

To change him (her/them) would be to ask the earth to stop its spin

To keep the rain from fallin, to redirect the wind

Blinded by control's illusion, can't you see the truth

The irony that what you really need to change is you

It started out so perfect - you know it always does

When she could do no wrong ... remember how it was

If your voice was raised, it rose in laughter's name

If your hand was clenched, it was only for some game

But now your adulation is buried under veils

Of anger and resentment at how you think she fails

The very things about her that once enriched your life

Have now become the axes that you grind and throw like knives

Caught up in old patterns, I know you think you're right

Demanding that she change has robbed you of insight

CHORUS (twice)

The Crab House Blues

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

Went down to Seabrook to get me some crabs

The week I'd had was more than just bad

Turned off the road under the bridge that goes there

When we walked up, we met with despair

(Cuz they said) We got crawfish, catfish, etoufee

Shrimp on a skewer and catch of the day

We got wine and beer and assorted booze

But there ain't no crabs - we got the Crab House Blues

CHORUS:

The Crab House Blues, the Crab House Blues

All of us here've got the Crab House Blues

The crabs are a-spawnin' and all we can say

Ain't there anything else that would brighten your day

Bob came to the tables and said his hellos

He and the servers they were all on their toes

They brought crawfish, catfish, and etoufee

Shrimp on a skewer and the catch of the day

We started laughin and having some fun

We were the happiest people under the sun

Bob brought us champagne, more crawfish and loot,

Like tee-shirts, pens, and koozies, to boot

CHORUS

The moral to this song, take this as your cue

When you're feelin down, there's only one thing to do

Start drivin' south, down Seabrook way

Get to the Crab House, it'll brighten your day

They'll bring you crawfish, catfish, etoufee

Shrimp on a skewer and catch of the day

They'll bring wine and beer and assorted booze

They'll do anything to get rid of your blues

CHORUS 2:

The Crab House Blues, the Crab House Blues

They chased away the Crab House Blues

The crabs are a-spawnin', but all we can say

There's plenty more here that'll brighten your day

Repeat CHORUS 2

Even Though

Words and music by: Ferryn Martin

There is something within me that will not let you go

Something within me that wants you to hold

But there's also something in me that pushes you away

Something within me that will not let you stay

CHORUS:

And even though the questions keep turning in my head

And even though I'm so confused by things that you have said

And even though I love and hate you all at the same time

I cannot let you walk away or get you off my mind

There are times I think I can't go on if you aren't by my side

You are my life, you are my love, in you I want to hide

But other times I think of you and tremble from the fear

Would a life with you be good, or would it be full of tears?

CHORUS

Do I want a family, or can I stay with you?

Do I want the normalcy, or can we have that, too?

Can I love you? Can I trust you, the way I did before?

Or will we always fight this thing, that's right outside the door?

CHORUS

Bridge:

So we go through life...and we learn to pray

For the love and trust, and the honesty to say

CHORUS

I cannot let you walk away this time

I Need A Vacation

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

CHORUS:

I need a vacation ... some rest and recreation

Urban liberation ... before I'm too far gone

I need to feel the wind against my skin

Without the help of any air conditioning

No faxes or phones ... leave my Day-Timer home

I need a vacation

My eyes start to focus as awareness sets in

The snooze alarm asks, "you gonna hit me again?"

I stumble to the coffee to get me a drink

But the coffee's on the floor ... I left the pot in the sink

My hands grip the wheel as the road games begin

Real women never signal if they want to win

Now, why'd he flip that finger? Did I just call him "that"?

I've become a highly educated psychopath

CHORUS

I've got fax-modem, e-mail, beeper, cell phone, internet

Technology is driving me insane, but don't forget

Ya gotta keep up with the Jones, but yet

Never mind that the Jones met with premature death

The bills are overdue and the fish are underfed

I haven't written friends, so I'm sure they think I'm dead

But I'm alive... in theory ... though, at times, it's hard to say

Is the American Dream worth the price you pay

CHORUS

Bridge:

It's not that I'm ungrateful ... it's not that I can't cope

I'm just a little frazzled, near the end of my rope

Don't worry 'bout me ... I'll be okay

Good ol' psychotherapy goes a long way

CHORUS

Just A Dream Away

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

I was taught that love is a gift that bears all things

Yet it seems the world attaches way too many strings

Love never fails, yet it's often asked to hide

Too many hearts bear the scars of love denied

CHORUS:

Will there be a place where we

1 & 4. Can let our love soar high and free

2. Know growing old is guaranteed

3. Can see that children never need

If you dare, I'll (come) meet you (me) there

Even if it's only in our dreams

The world we want is just a dream away

The papers tell the story with the passing of each day:

A relentless raging reaper takes so many friends away

So briefly did they touch our lives, but oh, so great a cost

To a world that seems unable to avenge its profound loss

CHORUS

I see life's injustice in the work I do each day

As I try to help the children that the world forgot to save

Kids with health so shattered by ignorance and crime

Classrooms full of teens who've grown old before their time

CHORUS

Bridge:

When despair and pain seem insurmountable to you

Remember, hope gains strength when it's multiplied by two

Dreams aren't just for wistful souls or jaded points of view

All things are created twice - you dream first , then you do .... (so, I believe)

CHORUS ("There will be ..")

(Repeat last line to end)

Love's War

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

I stand and watch long after your taillights have disappeared

As if by standing here I could make you reappear

Already I can feel how much I long for your return

How frightened I am by how you make the fires within me burn

As I lay awake in bed, my mind begins to dwell

On the darker side of love, on all the doubts I know so well

Am I further out on this limb of vulnerability

Could you care like I do? How long will you be there for me?

CHORUS:

I know you say you love me, and I know I should be strong

But I can't find the strength right now to prove doubt's demons wrong

Balanced on the double edge of love's sweet sword

I'm blissful, then I'm bleeding from the waging of love's war

Driven undaunted, my heart marches on in spite of all

Surging past protective walls, beating to love's battle call

Passions reaching lofty heights come crashing down on lonely nights

Trust, so elusive an ally in this fight

CHORUS (twice)

Mine, All Mine

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

The way you walk, the way you talk, the way you part your hair

The way you hitch that eyebrow up sends me I don't know where

I like it when you're good, but I love it when you're bad

Can't you tell that just one touch from you can drive me mad

CHORUS:

And you're mine, all mine - I've got to pinch myself to see

You're not just a dream I had - you're reality

Before you I never knew that love could be so fine

I wanna shout it out, "You're mine, all mine"

You send me to that moon I know you hung for me

You drive me to distraction, you're my wildest fantasy

I see the way you charm the socks off everyone you meet

I can't wait until they see you coming home to me

CHORUS

Bridge:

They say the judge of beauty depends on who beholds

So, I guess I might be biased - just a little, I've been told

But, Baby, I'll just keep right on beholding you this way

You will be adored by me until my dying day

CHORUS

Slow Burn

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

REFRAIN:

Slow burn within my soul

I've got a slow burn for you, baby, within my soul

The first time that I saw you, I never had a clue

That it would come to pass that you move me like you do

At first we were just friends, but then I felt a change begin

When I let you inside my soul, you sparked a passion deep within

REFRAIN

I sense the deep magnetic poles that one day may collide

Exploding from my heart to yours, stronger than the tide

When you look into my eyes I wonder do you see

The storm surge swell beneath my surface struggling to break free

REFRAIN

When you brush against me, my passion starts to smolder

The words remain unspoken...I become a little bolder

The tingle of your skin so close to mine drives me insane

Do I want to throw the switch to stop this runaway train?

REFRAIN

You touched a part of me I never knew was there to reach

You caused me to question vows I never thought I'd breach

Will we ever fan these coals, or feed this growing fire

Or should we douse these embers of desire

REFRAIN

Repeat REFRAIN

This Is The Life

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin & Ferryn Martin

CHORUS:

This is the life...(I've found)...what it's all about

This is the life...(no doubt)...I'd never trade it out

This is the life...(right now)...seize the day or you'll miss out

This is the life

Rising in the morning...coffee on the deck

Listening to the wind in the pines

Sittin on the dock, fishing with the dogs

Analyzing life, my friends and I

CHORUS

Wave-running, boat-gunning, body-sunning days...drinking margaritas all night

Game-playing, guitar-picking, story-telling, sleeping way past dawn's early light

Weekend warriors, we hit the street on roller-blades - oh, what a sight

But life is just too short for sitting tight

CHORUS

There was once a time I thought happiness was found

By those who worked and waited patiently

But here's to all our friends who keep the good times rolling now

Those "good old days" are happening, don't you see

CHORUS

We Can Be

Words and music by: Kelly Wallin

When I miss you, I realize just how much you mean to me

The roads we've travelled, good times we've shared and how close we've grown to be

How I struggle, taking the long way around before I see

There comes a time we must decide who we will be.

Like a young tree, planted 'neath boughs so much greater so nearby

Reached out so little, starved for the sun til then it did no more try

You showed me sunlight, that I could let go and reach up for the sky

Now, while the winds must change, I know that we'll still be.

So now the stage is set, for better or worse...we await our curtain calls

And I can see you yet, as the script that unfolds takes us through the rise and falls

And though tonight, you are there while I'm here...we're not apart at all

For with every note I play, I see your face...

And every song I sing, brings you back to me...

Now I finally see...that we can be...