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Freddie Long

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It's Been A Year
1. It's Been A Year
It's Been A Year
'IT'S BEEN A YEAR'

It's been a year, and it's hard to know if I'm still here
Time is a mirror, it depends how you stand in the light
And I haven't done the best, but I've done my best in trying
Between love and fear, it's been a year

I've had some time, to think of this life that is mine
No sense in lying, not much further from where I began
Well I know I've been lucky, oh but luck is just showing your hand
Between yours and mine, I've had some time

I don't know where to go, when nothing is quite what it seems
Oh and it's hard to be a person, when nobody knows what it means

It's been a year, and it's hard to know if I'm still here
Time is a mirror, it depends how you stand in the light
And I haven't done the best, but I've done my best in trying
Between love and fear
Between love and fear
Between love and fear
It's been a year
Here's a song I wrote and recorded around the 1-year anniversary of the pandemic, just reflecting on it all. I also posted a video for the song of me playing/recording it live in my living room, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuqiWy_06x4. Released March 17, 2021.
Just A Hand
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1. Just A Hand
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Single written for and featured in the SHIP of Frederick County and Maryland Ensemble Theater production of 'There's No Place Like Home - Life Without the Ruby Slippers', illuminating the struggles of homelessness. Released January 6, 2016
Nashville
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1. Nashville
Nashville
Can't remember how I got here
Can't remember why I came
All that whiskey down on Broadway
And hands of strangers that I shake

I can feel the Cumberland straining at the seams
With the tears of so many washed-up dreams

Oh, Nashville
You always tip your hat in such a sad, sad way
Oh, Nashville
You're a friend that can't remember my name

It'd hard to know where I'm supposed to stand
When all of this town is just a stage
The more I try to be different
The more it seems I'm just the same

I can feel the Cumberland straining at the seams
With the tears of so many washed-up dreams

Oh, Nashville
You always tip your hat in such a sad, sad way
Oh, Nashville
You're a friend that can't remember my name

I just wanna curl up with my baby
Sleep in my own bed
See my dog, hug my mama
And rest my weary head

Oh, Nashville
You always tip your hat in such a sad, sad way
Oh, Nashville
You're a friend that can't remember my name
2. Natalie
Natalie
I sit in my car and look up at the night
Your message is still playing in my mind
And here I am and you could be anywhere
But your words I’ve kept with me all this time

And I wish I could’ve seen you
The way I see you now

Oh, Natalie
I know our time was brief
But oh, Natalie
You’ve helped me when it’s been hard to believe
And your little kindness has gone a long way with me
Oh, Natalie

Another Thursday night at Johnson’s
Trying to thin the blood that makes me who I am
You let this stray follow you home and then you drove me back
Across the town to the house where I lived

And I wish I could’ve seen you
The way I see you now

Oh, Natalie
I know our time was brief
But oh, Natalie
You’ve helped me when it’s been hard to believe
And your little kindness has gone a long way with me
Oh, Natalie

Maybe someday we’ll have a few drinks and a chance to catch up
Or maybe the parts we played were all that were written for us

And I wish I could’ve seen you
The way I see you now

Oh, Natalie
I know our time was brief
But oh, Natalie
You’ve helped me when it’s been hard to believe
Your little kindness has gone a long way with me
Your little kindness has gone a long way with me
A little kindness can go a long way you see
Oh, Natalie
3. Blanket
Blanket
You're the kind that tells me I look good
Days I know it's far from the truth
You and I, ya know, we're not that different
I just hide it more than you

And I know it's not what I do best
But I've got to get this off my chest

Well I know I don't say it often
But you take the shiver out of growing old
Sometimes I'll see your face and feel so good about my place
You're like a blanket for my soul

Yeah I know I like to give you a hard time
And sometimes you take it personally
But I'd never ever mean to hurt you
'Cause you define that genuine kind of sweet

And I know it's not what I do best
But I've got to get this off my chest

Well I know I don't say it often
But you take the shiver out of growing old
Sometimes I'll see your face and feel so good about my place
You're like a blanket for my soul

The world is full of unsung heroes
'Cause it's hard sometimes to say what's on your heart
But I'm giving it a shot, and if you know it or not
I love you and who you are

Well I know I don't say it often
But you take the shiver out of growing old
Sometimes I'll see your face and feel so good about my place
You're like a blanket for my soul

...You keep me warm when it gets cold
4. Four Long Years
Four Long Years
Every new day that I get up to face
It isn't long before I'm wondering how you are
And for as much that has changed between us
The same old feelings fill my heart

And I wish there was some way you could know
All the searching and the hurting that I've been through

'Cause it's been four long years without you, baby
But I've taken you with me everywhere
I think about you every day, no your memory never fades
Believe me when I say
It's been four long years

I still wear that shirt that you say never fit me
And the cross you gave me hangs around my neck
I kept that picture of us standing in my driveway
I'm holding on to you with every breath

And I wish there was some way you could know
All the searching and the hurting that I've been through

'Cause it's been four long years without you, baby
But I've taken you with me everywhere
I think about you every day, no your memory never fades
Believe me when I say
It's been four long years

And I wish there was some way you could know
All the searching and the hurting that I've been through

'Cause it's been four long years without you, baby
But I've taken you with me everywhere
I think about you every day, no your memory never fades
Believe me when I say
It's been four long years
5. Stranger
Stranger
I’m a stranger in my own body
I feel like a stranger almost everywhere that I go
And tonight I just can’t be the person that I seem
And I almost like being alone

I’m not the one that you think you know
I wish I could play the part that I wrote
But I’m out of identity and I’m running low on hope
You can talk about me when I leave

‘Cause I’m a stranger in my own body
I feel like a stranger almost everywhere that I go
And tonight I just can’t be the person that I seem
And I almost like being alone

Tomorrow I’ll remember most of my lines
And with a convincing delivery I’ll recite
But my memory will remember that those words aren’t really mine
Back into the wings

‘Cause I’m a stranger in my own body
I feel like a stranger almost everywhere that I go
And tonight I just can’t be the person that I seem
And I almost like being alone

Yeah I almost like being alone
6. Hard-Up and Lonesome
Hard-Up and Lonesome
I’ve got an empty bottle of dreams
I’ve got a memory full of crime
I’ve got an old rusty compass
And buckets full of wasted time

The dust of yesterday stings my face
As the tumbleweed rolls on by

I ain’t going nowhere
Ain’t got no one to call my own
I don’t even know what I believe in
Stranded at the corner of hard-up and lonesome

Turned down a ride from a handful of angels
Don’t seem they’d take me where I need to go
What could they know about a drifter
Who just hasn’t found the breeze to blow him home

I stand by this quiet roadway
Looking for the answers in the sky

I ain’t going nowhere
Ain’t got no one to call my own
I don’t even know what I believe in
Stranded at the corner of hard-up and lonesome

I wish I was the mountains, or the trees, or the sun
But even they won’t live forever when all is said and done
I want to wrap myself in a quilt of fields before they pull the plow
I want to get the hell out of here, but I just don’t know how

The ocean kindly spoke to me
Said it’s time to start walkin’, walkin’ for a while

I ain’t going nowhere
Ain’t got no one to call my own
I don’t even know what I believe in
Stranded at the corner of hard-up and lonesome
7. Wish You Had
Wish You Had
I was so into you
I gave the best of what I knew
My strawberries and champagne
But I was just your convenience
Not to be seen by your friends
Your back-up plan for your rainy day

And I never made your priority list
So just put me down for one regret

‘Cause I’m gonna be, so out of your league
By the time you realize your mistakes
‘Cause I’m everything, yeah I’m everything
You gonna wish you had someday

You gonna wish you had me

I played your game for way too long
I couldn’t stand when you didn’t call
I was a fool the way I’d wait
You’d love me and leave me
Kiss me and keep me
Then you’d just give yourself away

And I never made your priority list
So just put me down for one regret

‘Cause I’m gonna be, so out of your league
By the time you realize your mistakes
‘Cause I’m everything, yeah I’m everything
You gonna wish you had someday

You gonna wish you had me

Just give me that piece of mind, that happenstance
When I get to smile and say that you had your chance
Yeah, you had your chance

‘Cause I’m gonna be, so out of your league
By the time you realize your mistakes
‘Cause I’m everything, yeah I’m everything
You gonna wish you had
Wish you had
Wish you had someday

You gonna wish you had me
You gonna wish you had me
You gonna wish you had me
8. Anyone But Me
Anyone But Me
Another day, wasting away
Spinning my wheels
Slept ‘til three, you know it’s so hard to be
When hopelessness is all that I can feel

The grey of the afternoon
Is shining through the blinds

I wish I was anywhere but here
I wish it was anytime but now
I wish I could have a say, find a way
Just to work things out
I wish it was anyone but you
But you are the only one I see
And right now
I wish I was anyone but me

The hum and rattle of the ceiling fan on high
The only conversation I can stand
The pictures on the wall, a silent vigil
Crowded ‘round a broken, bleeding man

The dark quiet of the nighttime
The only time the action fits the scene

I wish I was anywhere but here
I wish it was anytime but now
I wish I could have a say, find a way
Just to work things out
I wish it was anyone but you
But you are the only one I see
And right now
I wish I was anyone but me

I sleep through the promise of the morning
It’s a promise that’s been broke a thousand times

I wish I was anywhere but here
I wish it was anytime but now
I wish I could have a say, find a way
Just to work things out
I wish it was anyone but you
But you are the only one I see
And right now
I wish I was anyone but me

Yeah right now
I wish I was anyone but me
9. Save The Day
Save The Day
Don't know how to fly and I can't stop a train
But I guess I have my moments now and then
Still it's hard for me to reconcile what will never be
And what will never ever be again

But I keep holding on
Yeah, I keep holding on

Do you think the Lone Ranger ever gets lonely?
Bet it ain't easy being Batman and Bruce Wayne
And I'm sure Superman misses his home and his family
The world's a funny place
It gives then it takes
And we all die trying to save the day

It's difficult for me to know that I can't change the wind
Trying to set my sails just right across the breeze
And I'm not sure I'd wish myself on anybody else
But then again, there's no one else I'd rather be

So I keep holding on
Yeah, I keep holding on

Do you think the Lone Ranger ever gets lonely?
Bet it ain't easy being Batman and Bruce Wayne
And I'm sure Superman misses his home and his family
The world's a funny place
It gives then it takes
And we all die trying to save the day

I never signed up for this
I never signed up for this, you understand
No, I never signed up for this
But I'm gonna do the best that I can

Do you think the Lone Ranger ever gets lonely?
Bet it ain't easy being Batman and Bruce Wayne
And I'm sure Superman misses his home and his family
The world's a funny place
It gives then it takes
And we all die trying to save the day
10. The Punch Line
The Punch Line
I look at life and I can’t keep a straight face
I take comfort in the lighter side
I tend to laugh in the midst of tragedy
Might as well, won’t make it out this life alive

I used to worry about anything I could find
But all that ever seemed to do was ruin my good time

Season’s change and time passes by
The good times leave us in the blink of an eye
Live, laugh, and love and everything’ll be fine
Cause sometimes life is just a joke and we’re all the punch line

I’ve been through a lot these last few years
Seen my dreams and I’ve seen the shadow descend
But ain’t it funny how things work themselves out
And often times it’s for the better in the end

Well I never meant to hurt nobody,
but I’ve made my share of bad mistakes
So I’ll take all my lemons, make them lemonade,
but I won’t forget how those lemons taste

Season’s change and time passes by
The good times leave us in the blink of an eye
Live, laugh, and love and everything’ll be fine
Cause sometimes life is just a joke and we’re all the punch line

I found out in full that I’m not invincible,
I’m just thankful to still be alive
Thankful for the life and love that I have
Don’t lose sight, see the portrait of your life,
take a look around and let it slide
And you may find that the worst really ain’t that bad

Season’s change and time passes by
The good times leave us in the blink of an eye
Live, laugh, and love and everything’ll be fine
Cause sometimes life is just a joke and we’re all the punch line
11. Still Home
Still Home
Across the street there used to be a farm where Steve and I would play
But now there’s a brand new neighborhood
And right next door there was a red cart that sold the fruits of this land
But when Mr. Watkins passed, they closed the stand for good

Leaving me with a nostalgic depression
The years never asked for my permission

Tell me what happened to this place that I grew up in
It’s getting harder to recognize these roads
Even though the little things are fading away
When I’m in the drive I know that I’m still home

Well I used to walk right into 103 to say hello
But I find it’s hard to talk to a machine
And the drag strip on the corner, it’s been here for thirty years
But by November it’s a place for the elderly

Leaving me with a nostalgic depression
The years never asked for my permission

Tell me what happened to this place that I grew up in
It’s getting harder to recognize these roads
Even though the little things are fading away
When I’m in the drive I know that I’m still home

I still walk barefoot down to get the mail
And I know not to take that turn too fast
And I can take you to the sidewalk where I had my first kiss
Oh thank God that there are some things that time can’t even have

Tell me what happened to this place that I grew up in
It’s getting harder to recognize these roads
Even though the little things are fading away
When I’m in the drive I know that I’m still home

I know that I’m still home
I know that I’m still home
I know that it’s still home
12. Cecil
Cecil
Cecil looks in the mirror
Make-up running from his eyes
The silly clothes that he’s wearing
Are far from what he ever had in mind
Well he puts on his face he puts himself away
And he goes out and puts on a show
But there’s so much music inside of him
That these folks will never know

He puts on his hat and he puts on his shoes
Forty years of motions he’s been going through, and he says

I wanna be a poet, I wanna live by the sea
You know I’ve always been a dreamer
But this live has made a jester of me

I walked into the bar, it’s a Sunday
Just a quarter past ten
It’s just me and the barman and a fella in the front
Just sitting there hanging his head
Over an empty glass of whiskey and a half lit
Parliament cigarette
I say, ‘let me sit down I will buy you a round
And you can tell me where you’ve been’

He said the women and the whiskey never give him no peace
From being everywhere except where he needs to be, and he said

I wanna be a poet, I wanna live by the sea
You know I’ve always been a dreamer
But this live has made a jester of me

Last week, I think it was a Wednesday
I went into town
Walked out of that corner store
Saw Cecil sitting on a Greyhound
He grinned when he turned and he saw me
And I will never forget that glow
He got up from his seat to say goodbye to me
But it was already time to go
Stuck his head out the window as he rolled away
And some nights I still hear him say, he said

I’m gonna be a poet, I’m gonna live by the sea
You know I’ve always been a dreamer
And this live ain’t gonna make no jester of me

I’m gonna be a poet, I’m gonna live by the sea
You know I’ve always been a dreamer
And this live ain’t gonna make no jester of me
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Acoustic album recorded in Nashville, TN.
Released on April 22, 2011
Shotgun With The Devil
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1. Shotgun With The Devil
Shotgun With The Devil
Well a nun was putting gas into a Taurus
And I went dancing with a bride that wasn’t mine
I’m just waiting for the day the karma-roller runs me over
Down my corpse they’ll paint two brand new yellow lines
Oh, ain’t that about right

Now I’m wearing my bad luck shirt on purpose
I’ve been playing chicken with the universe
I’m a five-year-old in a crane pushing buttons in my brain
Wish I could stop this thing before someone gets hurt

But it’s hard to know where to hold on
When you’re stuck between the cosmos and an atom

Fear is riding shotgun with the devil
The warden and the reaper in the back window seat
And I can’t seem to find my safety belt
Should’ve never stuck my thumb out on that street

Threw a handful of quarters down the hallway
Won’t be long until the twister forms again
And my mind is just a pair of star-crossed lovers
And a sword is just a cross from the other end

It’s hard to know where to hold on
When you’re stuck between the cosmos and an atom

Fear is riding shotgun with the devil
The warden and the reaper in the back window seat
And I can’t seem to find my safety belt
Should’ve never stuck my thumb out on that street

Slow down, stop the car
Let me out, I don’t care where we are

It’s hard to know where to hold on
When you’re stuck between the cosmos and an atom

Fear is riding shotgun with the devil
The warden and the reaper in the back window seat
And I can’t seem to find my safety belt
Should’ve never stuck my thumb out
Should’ve never stuck my thumb out
Should’ve never stuck my thumb out on that street
2. Hard-Up and Lonesome
Hard-Up and Lonesome
I’ve got an empty bottle of dreams
I’ve got a memory full of crime
I’ve got an old rusty compass
And buckets full of wasted time

The dust of yesterday stings my face
As the tumbleweed rolls on by

I ain’t going nowhere
Ain’t got no one to call my own
I don’t even know what I believe in
Stranded at the corner of hard-up and lonesome

Turned down a ride from a handful of angels
Don’t seem they’d take me where I need to go
What could they know about a drifter
Who just hasn’t found the breeze to blow him home

I stand by this quiet roadway
Looking for the answers in the sky

I ain’t going nowhere
Ain’t got no one to call my own
I don’t even know what I believe in
Stranded at the corner of hard-up and lonesome

I wish I was the mountains, or the trees, or the sun
But even they won’t live forever when all is said and done
I want to wrap myself in a quilt of fields before they pull the plow
I want to get the hell out of here, but I just don’t know how

The ocean kindly spoke to me
Said it’s time to start walkin’, walkin’ for a while

I ain’t going nowhere
Ain’t got no one to call my own
I don’t even know what I believe in
Stranded at the corner of hard-up and lonesome
3. Take It Or Leave It
Take It Or Leave It
Baby everyday I’m trying
Vying for your attention
You know that I love you, you know that I need you
It’s hell living without your affection

‘Cause there ain’t nobody else
And I know what I gotta do

I’m gonna give my love to you (give my love to you)
I’m gonna give my love to you (give my love to you)
I’m gonna give my love to you
And you can take it or leave it
You can take it or leave it

All I do is think about you
All I am is what you are
And I know you feel the same about me
So why’d you run away so far

‘Cause there ain’t nobody else
And I know what I gotta do

I’m gonna give my love to you (give my love to you)
I’m gonna give my love to you (give my love to you)
I’m gonna give my love to you
And you can take it or leave it
You can take it or leave it

I’ll give you everything I have, every ounce of myself
It may not seem like much right now, but one of these days it will

I’m gonna give my love to you (give my love to you)
I’m gonna give my love to you (give my love to you)
I’m gonna give my love to you
And you can take it or leave it
You can take it or leave it

…Oh, but baby don’t you leave it
4. April Showers
April Showers
Writhing in bed I whispered aloud
“Lord, won’t you help me please”
Bev is dying and inside I can’t stop crying
There ain’t an ounce of hope left in me

Then I woke to a harmony of voices
Too beautiful to be coincidence

Maybe Mama was right
Maybe there’s someone listening out there
And all these April Showers are bringing beautiful flowers
In the bloom of an answered prayer

Yesterday Greg buried his father
But not before one more duet
Oh I wept as I read his story
And felt it bring me back from the dead

Did someone out there really hear me?
Are we angels for each other after all?

Maybe Mama was right
Maybe there’s someone listening out there
And all these April Showers are bringing beautiful flowers
In the bloom of an answered prayer

Hold on to me, and I’ll hold on to you
Hold on to me, and I’ll hold on to you

Maybe Mama was right
Maybe there’s someone listening out there
And all these April Showers are bringing beautiful flowers
In the bloom of an answered prayer

Maybe Mama was right
Maybe there’s someone listening out there
And all these April Showers are bringing beautiful flowers
In the bloom of an answered prayer
5. Anyone But Me
Anyone But Me
Another day, wasting away
Spinning my wheels
Slept ‘til three, you know it’s so hard to be
When hopelessness is all that I can feel

The grey of the afternoon
Is shining through the blinds

I wish I was anywhere but here
I wish it was anytime but now
I wish I could have a say, find a way
Just to work things out
I wish it was anyone but you
But you are the only one I see
And right now
I wish I was anyone but me

The hum and rattle of the ceiling fan on high
The only conversation I can stand
The pictures on the wall, a silent vigil
Crowded ‘round a broken, bleeding man

The dark quiet of the nighttime
The only time the action fits the scene

I wish I was anywhere but here
I wish it was anytime but now
I wish I could have a say, find a way
Just to work things out
I wish it was anyone but you
But you are the only one I see
And right now
I wish I was anyone but me

I sleep through the promise of the morning
It’s a promise that’s been broke a thousand times

I wish I was anywhere but here
I wish it was anytime but now
I wish I could have a say, find a way
Just to work things out
I wish it was anyone but you
But you are the only one I see
And right now
I wish I was anyone but me

Yeah right now
I wish I was anyone but me
6. Just What To Do
Just What To Do
You’re the kind of distraction that I like
Turned up to 11 with the body of a 10 and you’re dressed down to the 9s
Now I ain’t worried ‘bout your brother or the one who thinks you’re his
Just trust me baby when you hear me say you’re gonna want what I got to give

Ain’t got time to take it slow
So baby is there somewhere you and me can go

‘Cause I’m a sucker for a girl in a tank top
And a pair of painted jeans
No we haven’t met but I would bet
We’d get along if you know what I mean
You got lips like a pair of razor blades
Coffee skin with a cream or two
And I think tonight that you just might
Be the one who knows just what to do

Caught you looking at me, I guess you caught me looking back
Just a couple of wild animals looking for a midnight snack
The dimples on the back of your waist, one hell of a baited hook
Gonna sink my teeth so I can see if you taste as good as you look

Ain’t got time to play no games
Baby all I really wanna know’s your name

‘Cause I’m a sucker for a girl in a tank top
And a pair of painted jeans
No we haven’t met but I would bet
We’d get along if you know what I mean
You got lips like a pair of razor blades
Coffee skin with a cream or two
And I think tonight that you just might
Be the one who knows just what to do

Ain’t got time to be hanging around
But I could make a little time with you right now

‘Cause I’m a sucker for a girl in a tank top
And a pair of painted jeans
No we haven’t met but I would bet
We’d get along if you know what I mean
You got lips like a pair of razor blades
Coffee skin with a cream or two
And I think tonight that you just might
Be the one who knows just what to do
7. That's The Way
That's The Way
Dr. Braem was my college French professor
Sometimes we’d talk after class let out
Said his wife was also a teacher
But she stayed in Richmond a couple hundred miles south

Every weekend he’d drive up and back
Just to see her for a couple of days

That’s the way I care about you baby
Love without a reason, love without fear
There’s nothing to question, nothing to say
Nothing that could take your place
That’s the way

It was the last class before the final
He gave us a take-home and I knew something was wrong
He said, ‘My sweetheart’s been losing a battle
So I’m leaving now and don’t know how long I’ll be gone.’

See, they’d been trying to find a cure in Virginia
And I wish you could’ve seen his face

That’s the way I care about you baby
Love without a reason, love without fear
There’s nothing to question, nothing to say
Nothing that could take your place
That’s the way

Saw Dr. Braem at graduation
But I knew where his heart had stayed

That’s the way I care about you baby
Love without a reason, love without fear
There’s nothing to question, nothing to say
Nothing that could take your place
That’s the way
8. Catherine, Come Through My Window
Catherine, Come Through My Window
I haven’t been the same since that morning
I left my heart on the stairs by your room
And there ain’t nothing in this world more reckless
Than a man with no heart left to lose

But I’m trying to fight the feeling
Make sense of it all
Oh but time ain’t doing much healing
It won’t while you’re gone

Catherine, come through my window
Catherine, come to me tonight
Catherine, come through my window
And let the wind blow you back into my life
Catherine, come through my window

Everyday I wake inside this cage
An animal trapped inside itself
Oh but I still believe in you and me
And one day you will free me from this hell

I’m pounding and I’m pleading
Rattling these walls
Hoping somewhere ‘bove the ceiling
You’re hearing my calls

Catherine, come through my window
Catherine, come to me tonight
Catherine, come through my window
And let the wind blow you back into my life
Catherine, come through my window

Some nights I dream you’re here with me
It’s so real but I wake up alone

I’m trying to fight the feeling
Make sense of it all
Oh but time ain’t doing much healing
It won’t while you’re gone

Catherine, come through my window
Catherine, come to me tonight
Catherine, come through my window
And let the wind blow you back into my life
Catherine, come through my window
9. Born To Shine
Born To Shine
Fifteen minute drive takes two hours
Next thing you know ten years have gone on by
A cigarette and a five dollar coffee
Shouldn’t be the only joys in life

It ain’t making a living
If nothing about you is alive

So all my brothers and sisters
You painters and you givers
Can’t you hear that voice inside?
You don’t have to be no saint
To give this world a little grace
Just listen to your light
‘Cause we were born to shine

Hey Sisyphus put down your stone, you ain’t going nowhere
Come with me, I’ve got a plan
Let’s climb these towers of Babylon
And show these folks that there’s life outside the man

There’s something noble in a means to an end
Just can’t ever let the end become the means

So all my brothers and sisters
You painters and you givers
Can’t you hear that voice inside?
You don’t have to be no saint
To give this world a little grace
Just listen to your light
‘Cause we were born to shine

Born, born, born, born to shine
Born, born, born, born to shine
Born, born, born, born to shine
Born, born, born, born to shine

So all my brothers and sisters
You painters and you givers
Can’t you hear that voice inside?
You don’t have to be no saint
To give this world a little grace
Just listen to your light
‘Cause we were born to shine
10. Cecil
Cecil
Cecil looks in the mirror
Make-up running from his eyes
The silly clothes that he’s wearing
Are far from what he ever had in mind
Well he puts on his face he puts himself away
And he goes out and puts on a show
But there’s so much music inside of him
That these folks will never know

He puts on his hat and he puts on his shoes
Forty years of motions he’s been going through, and he says

I wanna be a poet, I wanna live by the sea
You know I’ve always been a dreamer
But this live has made a jester of me

I walked into the bar, it’s a Sunday
Just a quarter past ten
It’s just me and the barman and a fella in the front
Just sitting there hanging his head
Over an empty glass of whiskey and a half lit
Parliament cigarette
I say, ‘let me sit down I will buy you a round
And you can tell me where you’ve been’

He said the women and the whiskey never give him no peace
From being everywhere except where he needs to be, and he said

I wanna be a poet, I wanna live by the sea
You know I’ve always been a dreamer
But this live has made a jester of me

Last week, I think it was a Wednesday
I went into town
Walked out of that corner store
Saw Cecil sitting on a Greyhound
He grinned when he turned and he saw me
And I will never forget that glow
He got up from his seat to say goodbye to me
But it was already time to go
Stuck his head out the window as he rolled away
And some nights I still hear him say, he said

I’m gonna be a poet, I’m gonna live by the sea
You know I’ve always been a dreamer
And this live ain’t gonna make no jester of me

I’m gonna be a poet, I’m gonna live by the sea
You know I’ve always been a dreamer
And this live ain’t gonna make no jester of me
11. A Body For Romance
A Body For Romance
Wisconsin born and raised, Midwestern drawl on all of your ‘A’s’
Kills me every time
So strangely captivating, beauty so self-deprecating
And since we met I can’t get you out of my mind

So have me over, let me in
I promise I won’t stop, Until you tell me when

Because you’ve got a body for romance
And you know I’d treat you right
Oh what I wouldn’t do for the chance
To show that body a little romance tonight

Light a candle and let me handle all the rest now
I wanna give you love, love you gonna remember
As our flame of passion burns I will leave no stone unturned
Until I feel the glow of your every ember

So have me over, let me in
I promise I won’t stop, Until you tell me when

Because you’ve got a body for romance
And you know I’d treat you right
Oh what I wouldn’t do for the chance
To show that body a little romance tonight

So have me over, let me in
I promise I won’t stop, Until you tell me when

Because you’ve got a body for romance
And you know I’d treat you right
Oh what I wouldn’t do for the chance
To show that body a little romance tonight
12. Madison's Song
Madison's Song
Sweetheart won't you let me see you smile
And I'll smile too cause you brighten up the air
You're my candlelight of faith in this world
A breathing miracle with brown eyes and dark hair

Your first words will be a serenade
You'll go from riding bikes to driving cars
Yeah life might try and see what you are made of
Just don't forget where you're from and who you are

And we'll be the first ones to get there and the last ones to leave
The first ones to tell you it's alright
We'll be the first ones to hold you cause we were the first ones to love you
The day you opened up those eyes

Now I am not a man of wisdom
I'm still finding things out for myself
But I do believe in the power of compassion
And I hope you'll reach to the those who need your help

And I do know that I'm so very thankful
For you and every moment that we have
And I hope you'll learn to find the humor in yourself and in this life
And if things get kinda funny I hope you'll laugh

And we'll be the first ones to get there and the last ones to leave
The first ones to tell you it's alright
We'll be the first ones to hold you cause we were the first ones to love you
The day you opened up those eyes

Stop and smell every rose along the way
Dream as though the sky is yours to make

And we'll be the first ones to get there and the last ones to leave
The first ones to tell you it's alright
We'll be the first ones to hold you cause we were the first ones to love you
The day you opened up those eyes
13. Catch-23
Catch-23
So much violence atop my shoulders
The injured and the dead lay in between
I’m begging for some kind of coexistence
But everyone’s too stubborn to agree

And the past is just that, everybody’s got regrets
Funny how you can’t remember until you start to forget

I wish they’d leave me alone but they won’t let me be
I’m a soldier and civilian in this paradox of me
The fight begets the glory, but I’m a man of peace
I wish they’d leave me alone but I know I’m just a catch-23

I’ve made friends along my travels
And they don’t stop calling me to come out and play
But I’m playing for both sides will someone tell me where’s the line
Between equilibrium and tragedy

And the past is just that, everybody’s got regrets
Funny how you can’t remember until you start to forget

I wish they’d leave me alone but they won’t let me be
I’m a soldier and civilian in this paradox of me
The fight begets the glory, but I’m a man of peace
I wish they’d leave me alone but I know I’m just a catch-23

Come on back to me, Come on back to me
Come on back to me, Come on back to me
Come on back to me, Come on back to me
They won’t let me be, ‘cause they’re a part of me

I wish they’d leave me alone but they won’t let me be
I’m a soldier and civilian in this paradox of me
The fight begets the glory, but I’m a man of peace
I wish they’d leave me alone but I know I’m just a catch-23
14. Heavy
Heavy
Liz sits at the bar and smokes a cigarette
She says she don’t care like most do or like she used to in the past
She’s scared I can see, tears fall from her laughter
Five years are all the doctors say she has

So I just try to make her smile

‘Cause oh, sometimes it gets so heavy
And it’s hard not to buckle at the knees
Everybody needs somebody and that might be all this means
When oh it gets so heavy

Richard’s drowning in a see of booze
His parents split and they left him on his own
His anger dissolves in trails down his face
He says, ‘I got no place to go! I got no place to go!’

So I try to tell him that he’s got me

‘Cause oh, sometimes it gets so heavy
And it’s hard not to buckle at the knees
Everybody needs somebody and that might be all this means
When oh it gets so heavy

I know my time is coming soon
So please don’t leave me alone

Evelyn sits across the street alone
It’s been years since Wayne passed
She was thinking of suing the hospital
But that won’t bring her husband back

I wish I could bring him back

Oh, sometimes it gets so heavy
And it’s hard not to buckle at the knees
Everybody needs somebody and that might be all this means
When oh it gets so heavy
15. The Stuff Inside
The Stuff Inside
Sometimes it feels like you can't go on
Nothing's working and everything is wrong
But the brightest lights shine through the darkest days
You gotta dig deep down, hold your ground, and keep moving on your way

It's the measure of a man
What he holds in his heart is what he holds in his hand

So here's to the stuff inside
I raise my glass to the moments we define
And if you follow that feeling you'll always be right
So here's to the stuff inside

We get so lonely but we never are alone
Take for granted all the love that we've been shown
Appearance is deceiving and talk can be so cheap
But if you step on back you may find that you got everything you need

It's the measure of a man
What he holds in his heart is what he holds in his hand

So here's to the stuff inside
I raise my glass to the moments we define
And if you follow that feeling you'll always be right
So here's to the stuff inside

It's holding out a hand and helping someone through
Taking one more step when it feels like you can't move
Trying to do the best, the best that you can do
And giving back more than what's been given to you

So here's to the stuff inside
I raise my glass to the moments we define
And if you follow that feeling you'll always be right
So here's to the stuff inside

So here's to the stuff inside
I raise my glass to the moments we define
And if you follow that feeling you'll always be right
So here's to the stuff inside

Here's to the stuff inside
16. Back To Me
Back To Me
I still remember how it all began
Saw your face across the table and was never again the same
The feeling grew and grew, I fell so hard and fast and true
One touch was worth a lifetime of pain

But then the hands of something cruel pulled us apart
And shot a bullet full of sorrow that lodged into my heart

So I will wander the earth for you
I will bleed you onto everyone I see
I will beg, I will burn, I’ll be the ghost of your return
Until the day you come back to me

These days I stagger clutching my chest
Every broken beat getting weaker by the day
No good to anyone else and I guess it’s just as well
As I lay here in your memory’s shallow grave

I’ve stabbed myself a thousand times
I drink bottles and bottles of poison, but I never seem to die

So I will wander the earth for you
I will bleed you onto everyone I see
I will beg, I will burn, I’ll be the ghost of your return
Until the day you come back to me

It’s been so long without the warmth you bring
And I’ll never heal until I feel it once again, I gotta feel it once again

So I will wander the earth for you
I will bleed you onto everyone I see
I will beg, I will burn, I’ll be the ghost of your return
Until the day you come back to me

Until the day you come back to me
17. Shotgun With The Devil (farewell reprise)
Buy All Digital Files for $5.99!
The FLB's sophomore release.
Released 8/15/09.
Strangers and Friends
Strangers and Friends
Randy Mazzi: Bass Guitar
Ken Deater: Drums
Christopher Bell-Boudreaux: Electric Guitars
Freddie Long: Vocals, Keyboards, Acoustic Guitars, Harmonica

Produced and Arranged by The Freddie Long Band

Recorded and Mixed by Freddie Long

Mastered by Tom Volpicelli at The Mastering House
www.masteringhouse.com

Songs written by Freddie Long
FGL3 Music (ASCAP)

Album Photography by Kate Deater
Credits
Play all
1. Wish You Had
Wish You Had
I was so into you
I gave the best of what I knew
My strawberries and champagne
But I was just your convenience
Not to be seen by your friends
Your back-up plan for your rainy day

And I never made your priority list
So just put me down for one regret

‘Cause I’m gonna be, so out of your league
By the time you realize your mistakes
‘Cause I’m everything, yeah I’m everything
You gonna wish you had someday

You gonna wish you had me

I played your game for way too long
I couldn’t stand when you didn’t call
I was a fool the way I’d wait
You’d love me and leave me
Kiss me and keep me
Then you’d just give yourself away

And I never made your priority list
So just put me down for one regret

‘Cause I’m gonna be, so out of your league
By the time you realize your mistakes
‘Cause I’m everything, yeah I’m everything
You gonna wish you had someday

You gonna wish you had me

Just give me that piece of mind, that happenstance
When I get to smile and say that you had your chance
Yeah, you had your chance

‘Cause I’m gonna be, so out of your league
By the time you realize your mistakes
‘Cause I’m everything, yeah I’m everything
You gonna wish you had
Wish you had
Wish you had someday

You gonna wish you had me
You gonna wish you had me
You gonna wish you had me
2. She's
She's
She's a 5 foot 9 walking inspiration
She's got a reputation turning heads
She's got a smile could lead a criminal to Jesus
Her eyes more than twice have led this jumper down from his ledge

In the presense of such a woman
I am but a child

She's so amazing
Me, I'm just crazy

She can make a man forget all his best intentions
She can take one moment and forever make it last
She's got a face that conveys a deliverance
From the guilt and the shame of the shadows that I've cast

In the presense of such a woman
I am but a child

She's so amazing
Me, I'm just crazy

One look and you'll see
She's the sweetest blend of perfection and modesty
Her hips in those jeans
Change the way I look at all my dreams

She's so amazing
Me, I'm just crazy

She's so amazing
Me, I'm just crazy

She's so amazing
Me, I'm just crazy
3. Natalie
Natalie
I sit in my car and look up at the night
Your message is still playing in my mind
And here I am and you could be anywhere
But your words I’ve kept with me all this time

And I wish I could’ve seen you
The way I see you now

Oh, Natalie
I know our time was brief
But oh, Natalie
You’ve helped me when it’s been hard to believe
And your little kindness has gone a long way with me
Oh, Natalie

Another Thursday night at Johnson’s
Trying to thin the blood that makes me who I am
You let this stray follow you home and then you drove me back
Across the town to the house where I lived

And I wish I could’ve seen you
The way I see you now

Oh, Natalie
I know our time was brief
But oh, Natalie
You’ve helped me when it’s been hard to believe
And your little kindness has gone a long way with me
Oh, Natalie

Maybe someday we’ll have a few drinks and a chance to catch up
Or maybe the parts we played were all that were written for us

And I wish I could’ve seen you
The way I see you now

Oh, Natalie
I know our time was brief
But oh, Natalie
You’ve helped me when it’s been hard to believe
Your little kindness has gone a long way with me
Your little kindness has gone a long way with me
A little kindness can go a long way you see
Oh, Natalie
4. The Punch Line
The Punch Line
I look at life and I can’t keep a straight face
I take comfort in the lighter side
I tend to laugh in the midst of tragedy
Might as well, won’t make it out this life alive

I used to worry about anything I could find
But all that ever seemed to do was ruin my good time

Season’s change and time passes by
The good times leave us in the blink of an eye
Live, laugh, and love and everything’ll be fine
Cause sometimes life is just a joke and we’re all the punch line

I’ve been through a lot these last few years
Seen my dreams and I’ve seen the shadow descend
But ain’t it funny how things work themselves out
And often times it’s for the better in the end

Well I never meant to hurt nobody,
but I’ve made my share of bad mistakes
So I’ll take all my lemons, make them lemonade,
but I won’t forget how those lemons taste

Season’s change and time passes by
The good times leave us in the blink of an eye
Live, laugh, and love and everything’ll be fine
Cause sometimes life is just a joke and we’re all the punch line

I found out in full that I’m not invincible,
I’m just thankful to still be alive
Thankful for the life and love that I have
Don’t lose sight, see the portrait of your life,
take a look around and let it slide
And you may find that the worst really ain’t that bad

Season’s change and time passes by
The good times leave us in the blink of an eye
Live, laugh, and love and everything’ll be fine
Cause sometimes life is just a joke and we’re all the punch line
5. Stay The Night
Stay The Night
You were always my favorite contradiction
A star of David playing Jars of Clay
You don't like to swear, but you'll swear that you don't lie
And then you'll smile at me and lie right to my face

There's an edge to that grin that your eyes they just can't match
But I always knew better than that

And if my heart is a hallway
Lined with rooms in a soul I've yet to find
Oh then I'll be standing in your doorway
Hoping you'll ask if I'll stay the night

Lying in your bed, you cracked me open
But now there's so much that we don't say
And it's not that I don't think about you
It's just so damn hard for me to communicate

You're so hard to read
Sometimes you're all I have, sometimes you're all I need

And if my heart is a hallway
Lined with rooms in a soul I've yet to find
Oh then I'll be standing in your doorway
Hoping you'll ask if I'll stay the night

And if words can be spoken
Without expectations being broken
Then let me offer a few
I love you

Somedays I'm not sure
If you've ever heard how wonderful you are

And if my heart is a hallway
Lined with rooms in a soul I've yet to find
Oh then I'll be standing in your doorway
Hoping you'll ask if I'll,
Hoping you'll ask if I'll,
Hoping you'll ask if I'll stay the night
6. Blanket
Blanket
You're the kind that tells me I look good
Days I know it's far from the truth
You and I, ya know, we're not that different
I just hide it more than you

And I know it's not what I do best
But I've got to get this off my chest

Well I know I don't say it often
But you take the shiver out of growing old
Sometimes I'll see your face and feel so good about my place
You're like a blanket for my soul

Yeah I know I like to give you a hard time
And sometimes you take it personally
But I'd never ever mean to hurt you
'Cause you define that genuine kind of sweet

And I know it's not what I do best
But I've got to get this off my chest

Well I know I don't say it often
But you take the shiver out of growing old
Sometimes I'll see your face and feel so good about my place
You're like a blanket for my soul

The world is full of unsung heroes
'Cause it's hard sometimes to say what's on your heart
But I'm giving it a shot, and if you know it or not
I love you and who you are

Well I know I don't say it often
But you take the shiver out of growing old
Sometimes I'll see your face and feel so good about my place
You're like a blanket for my soul

...You keep me warm when it gets cold
7. Gullible
Gullible
I turn on the television
Listen to my favorite songs
Don't catch all of what they're selling
But I'll buy most of it before I turn them off
I wanna be the bad guy
I wanna show them I'm a man
Turn into people I swore I'd never be
And I hope that's not who I am

I wish that I wasn't so gullible
But I fall for it every time
And you'd think I'd recognize
The hook, the sinker, and the line
Oh sometimes I'm just so gullible

Afraid to miss the party
We all do care what they think
But I know there's so much more to this life
Than getting off and waiting for that drink
One is all you really need to tango
So I'm not placing any blame
I guess I'm praying for an answer
Should I accept or do I need to change

I wish that I wasn't so gullible
But I fall for it every time
And you'd think I'd recognize
The hook, the sinker, and the line
Oh sometimes I'm just so gullible

Echoes of my grandfather and the final words he said
Boys grow up and be among the kind and gentle men
Somedays I act like a fool, somedays I walk with him
Somedays I think I'm so cool, somedays I hang my head

I wish that I wasn't so gullible
But I fall for it every time
And you'd think I'd recognize
The hook, the sinker, and the line
Oh sometimes I'm just so gullible
8. Behind Every Set
Behind Every Set
Cigarettes and flourescent light
Joe's been drinking since he got up today
Another night down on Mid County
I say to Joe, "I don't want to read about you on the front page."

He pulls my face against his and with polluted breath
Says, "If I go know I died a happy man."
But in his bloodshot eyes I see the deepest roots
Of a pain I hope I never comprehend

His father never gave him a prayer
But he's got a good heart, I just hope he knows that it's still there

Behind every set of hardened eyes
Is just someone who wants to feel loved inside

Then there's the tough guy with a streak oh so mean
Doing lines for good times, never outside his crew
But I bet if you could see past that look in his eye
You would see someone just like me and you

And I wonder where it all went wrong
I hope he finds that love he never had or might've lost

Behind every set of hardened eyes
Is just someone who wants to feel loved inside

So everyone you've ever written off
Why don't you go pencil them back in
Love thy enemies
And don't be surprised if you get love from them

Behind every set of hardened eyes
Is just someone who wants to feel loved inside

Behind every set of hardened eyes
Is just someone who wants to feel loved inside
9. Still Home
Still Home
Across the street there used to be a farm where Steve and I would play
But now there’s a brand new neighborhood
And right next door there was a red cart that sold the fruits of this land
But when Mr. Watkins passed, they closed the stand for good

Leaving me with a nostalgic depression
The years never asked for my permission

Tell me what happened to this place that I grew up in
It’s getting harder to recognize these roads
Even though the little things are fading away
When I’m in the drive I know that I’m still home

Well I used to walk right into 103 to say hello
But I find it’s hard to talk to a machine
And the drag strip on the corner, it’s been here for thirty years
But by November it’s a place for the elderly

Leaving me with a nostalgic depression
The years never asked for my permission

Tell me what happened to this place that I grew up in
It’s getting harder to recognize these roads
Even though the little things are fading away
When I’m in the drive I know that I’m still home

I still walk barefoot down to get the mail
And I know not to take that turn too fast
And I can take you to the sidewalk where I had my first kiss
Oh thank God that there are some things that time can’t even have

Tell me what happened to this place that I grew up in
It’s getting harder to recognize these roads
Even though the little things are fading away
When I’m in the drive I know that I’m still home

I know that I’m still home
I know that I’m still home
I know that it’s still home
10. Unconditional
Unconditional
Last night I saw two kids falling in love
Sitting on the back of a Jeep
And as I drove out of that parking lot
I wished that one was you and the other one was me

I thought I had cut the ties that bound me
But last week I woke up in a sweat
Seems in my dreams somehow you'd found me
So much for trying to forget

I guess I'll always wish we'd go back where it started
But if we never make it that far

You will always live inside each moment
So go on and walk all over me, leave me standing in the storm
'Cause there's no fine print to read, just a lifetime guarantee
From now on my love is unconditional

It been weeks since our last farewell episode
I guess I'm a little early in this cycle we have made
I've been trying to think it through but all I really think I know
Is that I don't want to live without you and sure as hell can't walk away

I'm so tired of fighting
So I'm kneeling down and handing you my sword

You will always live inside each moment
So go on and walk all over me, leave me standing in the storm
'Cause there's no fine print to read, just a lifetime guarantee
From now on my love is unconditional

I could dwell on our misunderstandings
But I'd like to think that's really all they are
And I'd much rather tell you that you're beautiful
And that I'll never be too far


You will always live inside each moment
So go on and walk all over me, leave me standing in the storm
'Cause there's no fine print to read, just a lifetime guarantee
From now on my love is unconditional
11. Bittersweet Memories
Bittersweet Memories
Through the door and up the stairs,
Like a ghost from another life
Down the hall and past your room I'm overcome
With the feeling of an era lost in time
Of sleepovers with you lying in my arms,
And nights that we'd wrestle to the floor
Remembering the way you made me feel,
Like I'd found something that I had lost before

Looking back it seems close enough to make it real again
But chasing the past is a game that we can never win
But I miss you and the times in my mind I still see
Thinking through the pages of my bittersweet memories

Someone once told me
The older you get, the faster it goes by
And I swear I cursed out loud the day I found out
That it didn't take long before they were right

Looking back it seems close enough to make it real again
But chasing the past is a game that we can never win
But I miss you and the times in my mind I still see
Thinking through the pages of my bittersweet memories

Well I guess everything has its place in time
The hands keep turning as they should
And I think sometimes not knowing what you have
Is the very thing that makes it so good

Looking back it seems close enough to make it real again
But chasing the past is a game that we can never win
But I miss you and the times in my mind I still see
Thinking through the pages of my bittersweet memories
Thinking through the pages of my bittersweet memories
12. Figure Me Out
Figure Me Out
"There's something wrong with you," she whispered
As I climbed into her bed
She didn't know how right she was
But things have been so messed up in my head

And I use remedies no doctor would prescribe
And all they do is leave me with a hollow sense of pride

Have you ever been so hopelessly conflicted?
Standing on the edge of breaking down
I hope someday that I am able to fix this mess I've made
But I'm still trying to figure me out

Desparate for a beacon
Tossed among relentless seas
There's so many things I have compromised
I've broken things that don't belong to me

I hear everything they say
And the ghosts that I've created I see twice a day

Have you ever been so hopelessly conflicted?
Standing on the edge of breaking down
I hope someday that I am able to fix this mess I've made
But I'm still trying to figure me out

Right now all that's keeping me together
Is the love of two people a hundred miles away
So as I wave goodbye to youth and struggle with the truth
The only thing that's left to do is pray

Have you ever been so hopelessly conflicted?
Standing on the edge of breaking down
I hope someday that I am able to fix this mess I've made
But I'm still trying to figure me out
13. BONUS TRACK: Stranger
BONUS TRACK: Stranger
I’m a stranger in my own body
I feel like a stranger almost everywhere that I go
And tonight I just can’t be the person that I seem
And I almost like being alone

I’m not the one that you think you know
I wish I could play the part that I wrote
But I’m out of identity and I’m running low on hope
You can talk about me when I leave

‘Cause I’m a stranger in my own body
I feel like a stranger almost everywhere that I go
And tonight I just can’t be the person that I seem
And I almost like being alone

Tomorrow I’ll remember most of my lines
And with a convincing delivery I’ll recite
But my memory will remember that those words aren’t really mine
Back into the wings

‘Cause I’m a stranger in my own body
I feel like a stranger almost everywhere that I go
And tonight I just can’t be the person that I seem
And I almost like being alone

Yeah I almost like being alone
Buy All Digital Files for $5.99!
The FLB's self-produced debut release.
Released 2/3/07.
Rock-Can-Roll Compilation to Benefit Autism Speaks: Volume 1
The Original Music Association of Philadelphia, Inc, in association with Fifth Stone Music School and Studios and Ride Now Philadelphia, are proud to announce an original music compilation to benefit Autism Speaks and the Cure Autism Now Foundation.

'Blanket' is track number 12 of this 16-song compilation. 

Show your support and purchase by clicking HERE.
 

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