Get all 20 Tim Harrison releases available on Bandcamp and save 35%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Moon River (Johnny Mercer-Henry Mancini), Grey County Winter (New Version), The Stars Above vol. II, Blowin' In The Wind written by Bob Dylan, Backporch Confidential, Out There (single), Love In The Time Of Covid (single), Songs For The Seasons, and 12 more.
1. |
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TRAIN GOING EAST
©
Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1972
Packed my suitcase and I packed my man
Star spangled night and blue clouds that spanned the skies
We weren’t going blind, weren’t looking behind
Some angel was guiding our way
Chorus:
It’s like a train going east’
Like a beggar at the feast
Like friends in the morning
Up off their knees
It’s like dogs in the alley
Like birds in the air
Like when you float down the street
And you haven’t a care
My friend once told me that he’d had a dream
Filled up with visions that were meant to relieve the mind
I said that’s OK, blow' em on down my way
Cause there’s moving to do but not much time
Chorus
Soaring on bridges and rays of the sun
Sweet windy pastures and a soul on the run from me
The morning time came, dawn played some game
And the rest just took voices to sing
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2. |
One Woman (Early Days)
03:24
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One Woman
©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1977
One woman she stands in the cold winds
Another she hides from the storms
But I know one who's gone traveling
To find where it might be warm
She doesn't much care for your talk
She doesn't much care for a home
No she was born of the wild wild wood
Destined to forever roam
CHORUS:
But oh how she dances in the moonlight
Where the stars can look down upon her there
And the earth it surrenders to the touch of her feet
And the four winds they blow back her hair
Now I guess that you could say that we were happy
At least I can say for a time
But the urge it caught it was time for go
I’ll never use that word mine
CHORUS:
And oh how she dances in the moonlight
Where the stars can look down upon her there
And the earth it surrenders to the touch of her feet
And the four winds they blow back her hair
One woman she stands in the cold winds
Another she hides from the storms
But I know one who's gone travelling
To find where it might be warm
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3. |
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Boys In The Backroom
©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1978
Well out in front is the crowd with their double delight,
In the fog, they let out their sorrows,
And they wait for the end, ‘cause for nine out of ten,
There are just too many tomorrows.
And out on the street, men in blue pound the beat,
Chasing winos and drug store dependents,
They take a good look around as they lay themselves down,
Numb from their morning refreshments.
CHORUS:
And here’s to the boys in the backroom
Whippin’ up their memories,
The card game’s a mess,
But they’re going on blessed,
And the losers all get in for free
And the people seem few who can look up at you,
With a smile and they just aren’t pretending,
Their children sit by, their clean socks say hi,
But how are you and where are you going?
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4. |
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Turnaround
©Stan Rogers and Fogerty’s Cove Music
Bits and pieces you offered
Of your life; I didn’t think they meant a lot,
Or said much for you.
And all the chances to follow
Didn’t make a lot of sense when stacked against
The choices you made.
For yours was the open road,
The bitter song, the heavy load
That I couldn’t share
Though the offer was there
Every time you turned around.
Now, it’s not like you made out
To hang around, although you know I made some sounds
To show that I cared.
And when it looked like you heard the call
I didn’t say a lot, although I could’ve said
Much more, had I dared.
But yours was the open road,
The bitter song, the heavy load
That I couldn’t share
Though the offer was there
Every time you turned around.
And if I had followed
A little ways, because we’re friends you would have made me
Welcome out there.
But we both know it’s just as well,
'Cause some can go, but some are meant to stay behind,
And it’s always that way.
And yours is the open road,
The bitter song, the heavy load
That I’ll never share,
Though the offer’s still there
Every time you turn around.
And yours is the open road,
The bitter song, the heavy load
That I’ll never share,
Though the offer’s still there
Every time you turn around.
Every time you turn around.
Every time you turn around.
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5. |
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Not Done Yet
©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1976
Come on in, the fire’s bright,
Shut the door and light the light
Sit down and listen to an old man’s song,
But who can call 20 years old?
CHORUS:
And we’re not done yet,
There’s more to come you can bet,
There’s a song left to be sung...to someone,
To me.
Travelin’ down an empty road,
You see the signs before they show,
But who can believe what the poet conceives,
Just turn back and move on with the blow.
CHORUS
See the city, shining bright,
On up ahead you can see the light,
Not scared of shadows and you feel no fear,
As you jump inside your favourite atmosphere.
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6. |
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COAL TATTOO
©Billy Edd Wheeler 1963 (arrangement by Tim Harrison)
I’m goin’ down that coal road leavin’ this town
Hear the rubber tires whine
Good bye buckeye and white sycamore
I’m leavin’ you behind
Cause I’ve been a miner all of my days, layin’ down track in the hole
Got a back like iron wood bent with the wind
And blood veins blue as the coal, boys, blood veins blue as the coal
Somebody said that’s a strange tattoo
That you have on the side of your head
I said that’s the mark of number 9 coal
Any closer I’d have been dead
Still I love the rumble and I love the dark
I love the cool of the slate
But I’m goin’ down a new road lookin’ for a job
It’s this travel and lookin’ I hate, boys, this travel and lookin’ I hate
I stood for the unions and I stood on the line
Worked against the companies
I stood for the UMWA
Now who’s gonna’ stand for me
‘cause I got no money and I got no pay
All I got me is a troubled soul
And this blue tattoo on the side of my head
Made by number 9 coal boys, made by number 9 coal
When I die and I go to heaven
Land of my dreams
I won’t have to worry about losin’ my job
To hard times and big machines
No I'm not gonna pay my money away
On dues and hospital plans,
I'm gonna pick coal where the blue heavens roll
And sing with the Angel Bands boys,
Sing With The Angel Bands.
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7. |
Down To The River
04:49
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©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1979
Down To The River
Chorus:
Let's go down to the river
You can wash your soul
Sit on the banks and watch it flow by
We all got a reason to go
I went down to the main street
People rushing to and fro
Moving around in a world that keeps them down
They've got no one to turn to
They've got nowhere to go
CHORUS
I saw a woman staring (at nothing at all)
She'd gone away pretty far
Too scared to talk and too stiff to move
Desperation on her face
Fear in her heart
CHORUS
I was talking to some old folks
They say they've got nothing left to give
Swallowed up by some young people's lies
They don't even feel
They have a reason to live
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8. |
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TWO HEARTS BEAT IN GALENA
©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1982
CHORUS:
Two hearts beat in Galena
Two hearts burn like the sun
In the hills of Galena
Two hearts beat as one, they beat as one
In a world full of struggle
In a world full of pain
In a world with no glory
I can look to love again
When you think you’ve got nobody
No love can you find
It may help you to remember
That it can all come in time
The stars in the heavens
Can bend to kiss the ground
The moon can shine like silver
Lost souls can be found
You can reach out in the darkness
You can reach out for a friend
You can reach out for a lover
Who will stay to the end.
CHORUS REPEATS
‘cause two hearts beat in Galena
Two hearts burn like the sun
In the hills of Galena
Two hearts beat as one,
Two hearts beat as one,
In the hills of Galena
Two hearts beat as one.
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9. |
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Elizabeth's Lament
©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1982
It was coming on to New England night
She was driving down the Mass. turnpike
The leaves had turned to yellow-brown
The sky was grey, winter was coming down
She thought about the ones at home
A son she loved about to go
A daughter half way out the door
A man who didn't know her anymore
And the skies open up the turnpike slicks with rain
And the rhythm of the wipers on the windshield click her time away
And she holds the thought of security she'd bought
But the days go by and the Time runs out…a spirit is caught...
She thinks of her community
The Ladies to bridge, the Ladies to tea
Forced cocktail parties now and then
Where she cannot call a single soul a friend
And she wonders about the home routine
The daily Chores, the weekly Clean
Soap operas in the afternoon
At night the house gets silent far too soon
So she goes up and turns the bed sheets down
A quick kiss and the husband's gone
The shadows on the ceiling play
She wonders how it came to be this way
And the tires grip the road the rain keeps coming down
And the lights on the highway flicker by as she reaches town
Still she heads for home, her shelter from the storm
But the days go by and the time runs out…a spirit is gone...
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10. |
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Night Rider’s Lament
By Michael E. Burton
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music
Last night while I was out a riding The grave yard shift, midnight 'til dawn The moon was bright as a reading light For a letter from an old friend back home
And he asked me Why do you ride for your money Tell me why do you rope for short pay You ain't a'gettin' nowhere And you're losin' your share You must have gone crazy out there
He told me last night I run on to Jenny She's married and has a good life And you sure missed the track When you didn’t come back She's the perfect professional's wife
And she asked me Why does he ride for his money And tell me why does he rope for short pay He ain't a'gettin' nowhere And he's losin' his share He must've gone crazy out there
But they've never seen the Northern Lights They've never seen a hawk on the wing They've never spent spring on the Great Divide And they've never heard ole' camp cookie sing
Well I read up the last of my letter And I tore off the stamp for black Jim And when Billy rode up to relieve me He just looked at my letter and grinned
He said now Why do they ride for their money
And why do they rope for short pay
They ain't gettin' nowhere And they're losin' their share
They must've gone crazy out there
But they've never seen the Northern Lights
Never seen a hawk on the wing
And they've never seen spring hit the great divide
And they've never heard old camp cookie sing.
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11. |
Maps Of Paris
04:51
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MAPS OF PARIS
©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1985
Well I thought I'd been traveling
But I've just moved from town to town
Looking for some kind of love
That wouldn't keep me down, that wouldn't put me down
I guess I've been chasing some kind of dream
And I never seem to come out clean
Till you came along and my world has been redeemed
Cause I'm studying maps of Paris
And I'm lookin’ at maps of France
I want to watch you strut down the Rue de Voltaire
And I want to watch you dance
I love to watch you dance
I'd forgotten what love can be
Forgotten what it's like to be complete
I was wondering why it is that people meet at all
Bridge:
I'd put my life upon a shelf
I'd built shrines to the past
I was trying to remember the good times
And thinkin’ bad ones were the only ones that last
But now I'm studying maps of Paris
And I'm lookin’ at maps of France
I want to watch you strut down the Rue de Voltaire
And I want to watch you dance
I love to watch you
We'll sit in some all-night cafe
And listen to the hot club till the break of day
And the rest of the world
Can just go on its way
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12. |
Pride
04:29
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Pride
©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1985
The sun came up over Queensboro Bridge
And I was thinking of you
And the moon and the stars had all disappeared
As the New York day came shining through
And if we knew then, what we know now,
You might be by my side,
But the anger and pain and the tears and the shame,
Have all broken down into pride.
You said, “If I’d only,” I said “I’d rather be lonely,
Than admit that some blame may be mine.”
Besides you’d never respect me and I’d never respect you
If we’d gotten back just to toe lines.
Well some folks know their own mind, for us its taken some time
To find out just who’s at the wheel,
And by the time that we’d learned it, but the time that we’d earned it,
We’d burned all our bridges for real.
And it was pride
That broke us apart
And when we tried,
It just broke our hearts.
Now you’re walkin’ your way, and I’m walkin’ my way,
Separate paths, separate roads, separate lives,
And I may never forget you, and you may never forget me,
‘Cause the only thing wrong was the time.
I may dream of you often, you may dream of me often,
When darkness turns into the light,
Yes in the brightness of the mornings
And the darkness of the evenings,
We’ll dream we hold each other tight.
Still it was pride,
That broke us apart,
When we tried,
It just broke our hearts....
The sun came up over Queensboro Bridge
And I was thinking of you
And the moon and the stars had all disappeared
As the New York day came shining through.
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13. |
What's Already Gone
04:48
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WHAT’S ALREADY GONE
Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1984
Didn't we plant our rows deep and long
Didn't we tend them when we could
Didn't we try to make the whole thing strong
At least we said that we would
CHORUS:
At this point don't it just get crazy
Dust in our eyes from the days gone wrong
There's not much left and we just get lazy
Giving up on what's already gone, what's already gone
Didn't we walk on summer evenings
Didn't we gaze up at the moon
I guess that hearts that touch in the dawning light
Don't often get to touch past noon
CHORUS
Didn't we try to find a balance
Didn't we try to get along
Didn't we start out singing sweet harmonies
And wind up singing different songs
At this point don't it just get crazy
Dust in our eyes from the days gone wrong
There's nothing left and we just get lazy
Giving up on what's already gone
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14. |
In The Barroom Light
03:47
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In The Barroom Light
©Tim Harrison and Second Avenue Songs 1980
Well he walks down the street
And the people he meets
See a face with a mask he has gotten
And the man that he hides
Never losing his stride
Cries out please don’t let me be forgotten
So he hits the bar for a while
Driven in by the smile
Of a ghost that he sometimes remembers
With his time measured out
He stops to think about
The life that he may have surrendered
CHORUS:
And it looks alright in the barroom light
Where the world seems to just disappear
You can laugh at it all as you stare at the wall
You think you’ve got nothing to fear
And the smoke rises thick
From the place where he sits
And he dreams of the way it could be
And through distant eyes
He sees beautiful lies
As a shot from the glass brings relief
CHORUS
He turns to leave
With some kind of belief
That he’ll make it by somewhere somehow
He hasn’t the time
To stand and stare down the line
If he’s really got places to go
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Tim Harrison Owen Sound, Ontario
Biography
Tim Harrison has worked as an artist, songwriter, and as a creator of arts events.. Along with
founding the Owen Sound Summerfolk Festival,Tim has been Artistic Director of the Mariposa, Northwind, and Eaglewood Folk Festivals, and the Big Fish Music Fest.
Tim has released eight highly acclaimed recordings of original material and has toured extensively throughout the U.S. and Canada.
... more
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