Get all 27 Stephen Bard releases available on Bandcamp and save 80%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of EXPECTATIONS, 1994, DINOSAUR VII, STATE OF THE ONION, 11 HERTZ, TERRA FILIA / SPACE, TWO WORDS, DINOSAUR III, and 19 more.
1. |
A Thousand Years Ago
03:39
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A thousand years ago the Brooklyn bowling alley
Put on a show for mental health
Standing in the bathroom now gazing in the mirror
Trying to recognize your self
Has it all gone down for the better or the worse?
Tough to figure out if it’s a blessing or a curse
Lately you’ve been thinking it’s a little bit of both
Either way there’s one thing that you know
That bowling alley show is a thousand years ago
A thousand years ago you threw a special party
To celebrate a milestone
Looking around you now so many of the others
Struggling through every day alone
The room turned upside-down as the radio was humming
The ones who made the killing are the ones who saw it coming
Lately you’ve been wondering how the wicked always know
And why the rest of us are left to try and grow
Picturing a life we used to know a thousand years ago
And you know there’s got to be a silver lining
In the moments you can’t face it anymore
Take a walk outside and usually the sun is shining
Faith is nearer than it ever was before
Truth is dearer than it ever was before
Love is clearer than it ever was
A thousand years ago this coming February
A woman walking in a mask
Even in the moment there you noted it peculiar
Too busy trying to get somewhere to ask
Not too much longer after that the whole thing took a turn
Hard these days to clarify exactly what’s been learned
Lately you’ve been thinking it’s a process very slow
Either way there’s one thing that you know
That city woman walking through the snow
Is a thousand years ago
A thousand years ago
It’s a thousand years ago
A thousand years ago
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2. |
Earth Will Be Just Fine
02:59
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The Earth’ll be just fine
It’s us I’m not so sure about
She’s always right in line
Of course she can endure without us
Getting it together ‘cause we’re running out of time
But don’t you ever worry ‘bout her baby
The Earth’ll be just fine
Leaders pull out all their tricks
A proud variety of pricks
Forms a line and has a pissing contest on the wall
When these fools act so imperiously
It’s tough to take them seriously
But they’re the ones we obviously need to most of all
The Earth’ll be just fine
It’s us I’m not so sure about
She’s always right in line
Of course she can endure without us
Getting it together ‘cause we’re running out of time
But don’t you ever worry ‘bout her baby
The Earth’ll be just fine
You would think with all these brilliant minds
Imaginative resilient minds
They’d read the signs and figure out a way to tap the sun
To run the cars and stir the farms and heat the homes
The mini bars and superdomes
And turn the ocean’s water into drinks for everyone
The Earth’ll be just fine
It’s us I’m not so sure about
She’s always right in line
Of course she can endure without us
Getting it together ‘cause we’re running out of time
But don’t you ever worry ‘bout her baby
The Earth’ll be just fine
Swimming in the plastic
Breathing in the toxic
Hate to sound sarcastic
It’s the simplest of logic
To every greedy bastard major industrial head
We all run out of air and food and water motherfucker
Everyone including you is dead
The Earth’ll be just fine
It’s us I’m not so sure about
She’s always right in line
Of course she can endure without us
Getting it together ‘cause we’re running out of time
But don’t you ever worry ‘bout her baby
Nothing we can do to screw this lady
Forever coming round and I don’t mean maybe
The Earth’ll be the Earth’ll be the Earth’ll be
The Earth’ll be just fine
The Earth’ll be just
The Earth’ll be just fine
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3. |
Long Desert Road
03:28
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Mother sets the table
Father breaks the glass
Brother still unable
To let his anger pass
Long desert road
Everybody wants you now
Long desert road
Abraham he haunts you now
Long desert road
What did you do
To make there be such trouble over you?
It all comes down to brothers
Who’s the favorite son?
A patriarch has two to love
But usually he chooses one
Vanity and frailty
Insanity to blame
How many have to bleed
To see that everyone’s the same?
Long desert road
What did you do
To make there be such trouble over you?
To make there be such trouble over you?
To make there be such trouble over you?
The churches of the cities
The temples of the sand
An ancient black vendetta
Over who will tend the land
A prophet to the people
Giving peace a chance
Murdered there upon the stair
To see there’s no advance
Long desert road
Everybody wants you now
Abraham he haunts you now
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4. |
More Kindness
04:29
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Looking at a sick land
Sinking in the quicksand
A battery of malcontents spin it back and forth
Some hawk says something stupid
Picking on what a few did
Ruffling up the feathers of some buzzards who just flew up north
Yeah the words they’re all just jokes
But the jokes can cut ya deep
And all these tired folks aren’t getting much sleep
‘Cause the unit is distracted
So impacted by the screen and all its dopey fun
You got a real Big Brother
You think he’s out to get ya
Troubles to upset ya and ya don’t know who to thank
Well I hate to tell ya honey
Follow the money
All these crooked patriots are laughing all the way to the bank
Yeah the mountain’s still on fire
And the ocean’s still a toilet
The emperor’s a liar and you know he’s bound to spoil it
The kingdom stands divided
So shortsighted as the down and dirty deals get done
But more kindness never hurt no one
More kindness never hurt no one
We’ve been so busy talkin’
Lately we’re forgetting
We should all be walkin’ out there in the setting sun
You know that all lives matter
The rest is idle chatter
The lesson isn’t over ‘cause the learning’s only just begun
And the music is the way for us to gather up together
And brighten up the day
No matter what the weather
Vibrations are forever
We should never underestimate the power
We could generate as one
And more kindness never hurt no one
More kindness never hurt no one
More music never hurt no one
More music never hurt no one
More empathy never hurt no one
More empathy never hurt no one
More kindness never hurt no one
More kindness never hurt no one
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5. |
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It’s all being fought right now
No one really wins
It’s all being taught right now
Some don’t have to pay for their sins
A song don’t mean a thing if no one’s left to sing it to
A song will fade away and disappear if no one’s there to hear it
So supremely deaf and dumb
Everybody loses
Voice of woman overcome
Whenever a grey man chooses
The truth don’t mean a thing if no one’s left to bring it to
The truth won’t stand the friction of the day
If no one dares to say it
Say it!
Say it!
Clowns and jugglers flying blind
Big top full of holes
Hard to walk the straighter line
With worn out dirty souls
A song don’t mean a thing if no one’s left to sing it to
The truth don’t really matter much if we’re all taught to fear it
Peace don’t mean a thing if no one’s left to bring it to
A song will fade away and disappear
If no one’s there to hear it
No one’s there to hear it
When nothing is free but the music
You see just how weird it can be
When nothing is free but the music
You see just how weird it can be
When nothing is free but the music
You see just how weird it can be
When nothing is free but the music
You see just how weird it can be
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6. |
Peasant (Spoken)
02:57
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A ghoul sits on a stool and makes a rule fit for a fool
And so a tool cruelly makes off with your gold
Proud ‘cause he’s allowed
Legally endowed wrapped in a shroud
You bowed and thanked him loudly for his cold shoulder
A sheep asleep so deep
You keep doing as you’re told
After all it’s such a ball to be so utterly controlled
By forces you can’t see who whisper it’s your luxury
To be another in some bigger brother’s stranglehold
And it’s hard to be a king in the clothing of a peasant
Hard to see the future and be shackled in the present
Hard to be so clear when everything else so clearly isn’t
Oh Lord grant me safer passage
Oh Lord grant me safer passage
A pig, he takes a swig
He digs a fig and snaps a twig
He’s a bigwig on his rig and don’t forget it
You cry and think to lie but it’s his sty
Why even try when you can spy it in his eye you’re going to get it?
At 9 you wait in line to pay the fine and brave the swine
Because the crime is the design’s designed against you
It’s true it’s revenue, the royal screw no matter what you do
This crew don’t give a damn if they’ve incensed you
Hell they laugh because they’ve already dispensed with you
And it’s hard to be a king in the clothing of a peasant
Hard to see the future and be shackled in the present
Hard to be so clear when everything else so clearly isn’t
Oh Lord grant me safer passage
Oh Lord grant me safer passage
What else is there to say about the M-E-D-I-A
And the realities at play on television?
Of course we disagree but why can’t everybody see
That the obvious decree here is division?
Everyone I know’s at odds
An embarrassment of false gods
With celebrity and gossip now religion
This fake two party system just a twisted mechanism
That tricks us into thinking we’re assisting a decision
And it’s hard to be a king in the clothing of a peasant
It’s hard to see the future and be shackled in the present
Hard to be so clear when everything else so clearly isn’t
Oh Lord grant me safer passage
Oh Lord grant me safer passage
Oh Lord grant me safer passage
Oh Lord grant me safer passage
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7. |
The Dark Pool
04:51
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Don’t go dipping your toes
Even if you want to just see what it’s like
It leads to where nobody knows how to ever get back
Don’t go dipping your toes
Even if you still have your eyes to the sky
It feeds into something that closes you off from your soul
And your soul is all that you have
And all that you have is your soul
I’ll say it again
Beautiful friend
All that you have is your soul
Don’t wade in to your knees
Even if the water’s inviting and warm
It flows to where nobody sees the real thing anymore
Don’t go up to your waist
Even if the surf looks exciting and cool
A lake of potential replaced by a sea of regret
Such regret
‘Cause your soul is all that you get
And all that you get is your soul
I’ll say it again
Now till the end
All that you get is your soul
And your soul is all that you have
And all that you have is your soul
I’ll say it once more
Just like before
All that you have is your soul
So don’t go dipping your toes
Don’t go dipping your toes
Don’t go dipping your toes
Dipping your toes
Even the shallowest part is connected
Before you know it you’re drowning
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8. |
The Toxic Ones
04:31
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The toxic ones are toxic no matter what you do
Let them in there long enough they take their toll on you
Oh the toxic ones don’t mean to be
It’s just the way they are
Whether it’s the bedroom or the office or the bar
It don’t matter ‘cause they’re toxic
The toxic ones are toxic
It’s always the behavior
But how long do you stick around trying to be a savior?
Every line to cross is different
And there’s some that stretch eternally
So the trick I guess is learning how to not take it so personally
But it’s so hard
You try and try and try but it’s so hard
Makes you want to cry
Because the toxic ones are toxic
The toxic ones are toxic no matter what you say
Let them shake you long enough they’ll break you one fine day
Oh the toxic ones don’t even know how deeply they affect
Everyone who cares about them but it’s more than they’d expect
It don’t matter ‘cause they’re toxic
The toxic ones are toxic
That’s usually how it turns out
But how long do you swallow it before your spirit burns out?
Oh you give so many passes that you end up losing count
If you love them it must surely be an infinite amount
But it’s so hard
You try and try and try
But it’s so hard
Makes you want to cry
Because it’s so hard
Blow a kiss and say goodbye
Because the toxic ones are toxic and that don’t ever change
You always wonder why they are the way they are, it’s strange
But the toxic ones can’t help it and God knows they have it rough
But when does someone finally say enough?
When does someone finally say enough?
When does someone finally say that it’s enough?
Enough
For me it’s now
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9. |
This Really Happened
04:18
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Half of them were Jews
The rest were gypsies, blacks and queers
A country based on freedom carried slaves 400 years
A Jersey boy from Freehold sang a song called “Jungleland”
And someone shot the guy who sang “Imagine”
This really happened
A Russian stopped a holocaust in 1983
He had a faith in others all the others couldn’t see
’71 was Ram and Blue, Who’s Next and Led Zep IV
And Hitler’s nephew William fought against him in the war
This really happened
I’ve never claimed to understand this world that we inhabit
Balancing insanity and innocence
If any real love comes our way I suggest we grab it
The only thing makes anything make any sense
Gypsies, cripples, blacks and queers
The other half were Jews
You do something like that
You never know how much you lose
But you can get your mind blown
If you really pay attention
A guy showed up and sang us all “Imagine”
“Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” and “Strawberry Fields Forever”
“Across The Universe” and “Revolution”
“All You Need Is Love” and “(Just Like) Starting Over”
“In My Life”, “Norwegian Wood” and “Woman”
“Instant Karma” and “I Want To Hold Your Hand”
This really happened
This really happened
I’ve never claimed to understand this world that we inhabit
Balancing insanity and innocence
If any real love comes our way I suggest we grab it
It’s the only thing makes anything make any sense
The only thing makes anything make any sense
It’s the only thing makes anything make any sense
Any sense
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10. |
Tired Of Hating
04:26
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You don’t have to like anything I say
They don’t have to feel anything I do
And I don’t have to like the way you go about your day
But I’m tired of hating
Take a look around
You see aggression of all kinds
Don’t like to accept or even say it but it’s true
Everybody suddenly was granted an opinion
Well everybody in this world has got an asshole too
But I’m tired of hating
Tired of hating
Also getting oh so tired of waiting
For someone to tell the truth
Someone’s got it in for us
Don’t know who it is
But they’re hiding there just beyond our vision
Folks don’t even seem to care
Bad vibes creeping everywhere
Can’t we see it’s all about division?
Division
Division
Get down to the end of every day so exhausted
Bombarded by an endless stream of negativity
Really feels sometimes like the entire race has lost it
You’d think by now this far along in human history
We’d be tired of hating
Dreamt I got to sit right down and have an audience
With the drunk on power leadership of each respective crew
Looked them in their frowns and asked
“Does this at all make sense to you?
Really for the love of your own children tell me true
Aren’t you tired of hating?”
Tired of hating
Also getting oh so tired of waiting
For someone to tell the truth
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11. |
You'd Be Wrong
02:44
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The war to end all wars
Came to an end eventually
And the Spanish influenza spread like wildfire in every country
Millions earned
Millions burned
You’d think that something would be learned
From looking at a history so long
But you’d be wrong
Every generation gets their version of a voice
This doesn’t necessarily translate into a choice
Millions made in the parade
You’d think that we’d be sick of being played
Just like a tired oldies song
But you’d be wrong
You’d be wrong
You’d be wrong
You’d be wrong
What’s it gonna take to change what we have wrought?
Something’s gotta break to get these wires and lessons taut
What’s it gonna take?
I shudder at the thought
You would think that we’d get wiser
With everything that’s going on
Everything that’s going on
The war to end all wars
Came to an end eventually
And the Spanish influenza spread like wildfire in every country
Millions earned
Millions burned
You’d think that something would be learned
From looking at a history so long
But you’d be wrong
You’d be wrong
You’d be wrong
You’d be wrong
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Stephen Bard New Jersey
This page is home to the music of
Stephen Bard
and
Terra Filia
who is
Stephen Bard
and
Emily Claire.
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