1. |
One
01:29
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We've reached the end,
close your eyes & count to nine
put your tiny hand in eight,
fingered workman's gloves.
The dealer shuffles out the straight,
dots on dice add up to seven
the gates are closed on the way to six,
pacing tigers.
Five,
the buzzing of the
Four,
by four we banged on the
Three ring fleas by the willow
Two,
pence will get you past the guards,
will get you through the bones in the yard,
will get you burned to dust by the stars,
will get you to the
One
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2. |
Gold From Coal
03:11
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Slave drops of silver, with a one man band
Tell all the preachers, with blood on their hands
Cast a coin for midnight, let the weeds grow tall
Get fire from ice, gold from coal
Gold from coal
Hoist up a glass, for the ribbon soul
Fire in the rocking chair, & the cancer moans
Dawn comes again, no tomorrows sowed
Takes a thousand men, to carry the load
To carry the load.
Outside the winter blows
Sweat in the dark, push and pull
Blood on the rocks, runs dark & cold
through the cracks in the river, black river of gold
Pickaxe swinging, on the playground pyre
Lungs are bleeding, tied with string & wire
Canary is just sleeping, in his cage of tin
There’s a cage made of rock, keep digging in
Keep digging in.
Outside the winter blows
Sweat in the dark, push and pull
Blood on the rocks, runs dark & cold
through the cracks in the river, black river of gold
Break out the windows
On the tombstone street, wash the soot from you face
As you fight for your meat, find no shelter, but your bed is made
Lay your head on the road, that your blood has paved
That your blood has paved
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3. |
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A lone star,
swallows the silence,
of a home where no children will sing.
Bygones,
build up the myth
of the man.
With stories of bridges too solid to burn,
on the way,
we're on the way.
Paving the road to the grave.
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4. |
The Long Walk
04:13
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Pushed by the wagon wheel,
brush off the sins of the saints
The boys are all gone, the widows will shake
The blues from the rattlesnake
Blues from the rattlesnake
Walked through the night & the day,
poisoned the priest with his wine
Hammer all the books on the head of the nails
Till they bleed out his words on the pine
Bleed out his words on the pine
Freedom, Is resting on the rails
Long gone, the wall's crumbled down at the jail
May god have mercy, mercy on me
As we go down, down, we go down
Bang your cup on the door, Rattle this bag of bones
The wind & the blood, will weigh down the sea
Till we pay off the debt that we owe
Pay off the debt that we owe
Freedom, Is resting on the rails
Long gone, the wall's crumbled down at the jail
May god have mercy, mercy on me
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5. |
Devil's Cornbread
02:13
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John fell from the ladder & broke his crown
Your sweat & your blood they never trickled down
The man in the mirror can't be proud of me
for sittin' on the stump of the giving tree
Well Eve is cookin' up that Devil's Cornbread
Forbidden lips are candy apple red
Picked up a hitchhiker down by the dead sea
just a misquoted man from the Galilee
Oh, Shin-bone
Can't reach your knee cap on the telephone
Can't remember what the bible said
Somethin' 'bout Adam eatin' Devil's Cornbread
Tie a piece of string around the standing stone
but you can't pull the world along all alone
Fight temptation till you got it beat
but at the end of the day, a man's gotta eat
Now Eve is cookin' up that Devil's Cornbread
Forbidden lips are candy apple red
Picked up a hitchhiker down by the dead sea
Said Judas got the silver to pay my fee
Oh, Shin-bone
Can't reach your knee cap on the telephone
Can't remember what the good book said
Somethin' 'bout Adam eatin' Devil's Cornbread
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6. |
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You got steak in the morning & eggs in the evening,
Why we gotta talk about love?
Even bought you flowers when you wasn't grieving.
Why we gotta talk about love?
Why we gotta talk about it?
I bought real nice curtains for your bedroom winder.
Why we gotta talk about love?
I got the meat grind attachment for your fancy-ass blender.
Why we gotta talk about love?
Why we gotta talk about it?
We got Sundays for leisure, ribbed for her pleasure,
Cleaned up the sheet squirt, half an hour jaws hurt,
Roses in the bathtub, little button, nub rub.
Love, Sweet love...
Why we gotta talk about it?
Bought a new, used, john & when it broke I bought another!
Why we gotta talk about love?
I waited in the car while you had dinner with your mother.
Why we gotta talk about love?
Why we gotta talk about it?
Took you to the park for some kissin' & a'huggin'.
Why we gotta talk about love?
And I took you to Mick Foley fighting Hacksaw Duggan!
Why we gotta talk about love?
Why we gotta talk about it?
I got black lights, soul grooves, water based glide lube.
Cleaned up the bathroom, dog sprayed with perfume.
Underwear & leather jacket, love it when you make a racket.
Love, Sweet love...
Why we gotta talk about it?
Love, Sweet love.
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7. |
Red Balloon
01:45
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Halo, broken, broken, down
Halo, broken, shards of glass on the ground
The church house road leads
back to the tent.
Where the ring leader barks to an empty seat.
The muse is a Djinn,
with vapors of jasmine.
& the priests are all wooden,
roots digging,
roots pulling.
The crash of the market & the crash of the chain
As a doll stitched together,
a thousand times,
pulls the strings.
Death falls behind, until he's up ahead.
The card house folds,
Kings & Queens, trapped inside.
Rat ta tat tat.
The rat plays the march.
The sun.
The moon.
A red balloon.
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8. |
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Hey there, on the run, dressed in mirrors reflecting the sun,
Lying in the road. It seems dangerous.
Hey there, in the crowd, disavowing all that you had vowed.
Talking to the moon. It seems dangerous.
Hey there, at the ball, weren't we all just predestined to fall?
This is where the madness starts, put my hand around your heart
& make it rain.
Hey there in the clay, working day after glorious day,
Drinking your dignity blind. It seems dangerous.
Gambol with the blamed, not the righteousness of the unclaimed.
Here is where your troubles end, we shall weep and not defend
The wicked rain.
White Girl carving a sigil, in the crook of her arm.
Tattoo of her ex-lover bleeds, but she never meant him any harm.
White girl prays to sparrows. white girl prays to death.
White girl curses the lord on high, underneath her shallow breath.
White Girl drunk in your home at night, & fights with you, until you're...
White girl tell you your fortune, & the price that you pay her is steep.
White girl uses a camera, to take your picture while you sleep.
(You tell) White Girl Your Secrets, & then become afraid.
(But)White Girl teach you to revel in, all the White Girls you betrayed.
White girl mocking the locks you plied, & the Limeys cried when you got laid.
Laid.
Laid.
Hey there, on the roof, you're gonna show them whose truth is the truth.
Flying so high, it seems dangerous.
Hey there, WhatsYourName. let me teach you the meaning of shame.
Slip between my open thighs as I cover up your eyes
& make it rain.
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9. |
On Our Way #1 - Piano
00:35
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Key change,
a life wrapped in cardboard,
stacked up like bricks by the door
Sweat drops,
push the piano to the street
the rattling strings are knocked out of tune
on the way,
we're on the way.
Climbing the scales to the grave
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10. |
In The End
02:24
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I saw her just the other day, I didn't know what to say
but it's better this way.
& though I want her by my side, I had to pass her by
& send her away.
Was it the wrong place or the wrong time, & should I even try to comprehend?
Am I gonna hold her in my arms
In The End?
A new life had at last begun, not with just anyone
but the best company.
& still it's very obvious, there's a part of us
that never can be.
Was it the wrong place or the wrong time & will this lightning ever strike again?
Am I gonna hold her in my arms
In The End?
I close my eyes and I fantasize of an alternate reality.
Because I know when I open them that she'll be right here with me
She'll be right here with me.
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11. |
Blackout
00:58
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I'm sitting on a sofa with a mirror in the middle,
Spewing sanctity and solace & a modicum of spittle,
With the oldest of the junkies reassessing random violence,
& the boldest & the cruelest falling into bitter silence.
There's a cancer causing agent dressing stylishly in leather.
He's insipid & unflinching & insidiously clever.
He's a rat, the little fucker, & he'll sell you out for trifles,
And his uniform is Dramamine & Buddhas selling rifles.
I listened to his orders & I met him at the station.
He said, "Mine, the bastard's mine & I won't face humiliation."
It's covert. It's a cover. & it cloaks itself in doubt.
The more we think about him... the more we court a blackout.
The more we think about him.
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12. |
Ferryman
04:01
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Fish,
a penny from the well,
you get no rest on the long way to hell
Don’t you cry for me,
the fruit of Persephone is free
Time to bleed,
search for the key,
sink through the sand
Put a coin in the ferryman’s hand
Teeth,
gnash and sting,
the only weapons are the ones that you bring
Let sleeping dogs lie,
no one ever told me it was time to for me to die
Try to flee,
climb out of the sea,
sink through the sand
Put a coin in the ferryman’s hand
March,
the hero walks alone,
dressed in a lesser man’s clothes
Libations of blood,
turn to wine as they rise through the mud
Sow the seed,
rise to leave,
sink through the sand
Put a coin in the ferryman’s hand
All my memories turned to trash.
I start to shiver and to thrash.
My obsessions burned to ashes.
Wash
the memory away,
crossroads judgments laid
The damned soul must crawl,
to the pit that yawns beneath us all
No more dreams,
only shackles and screams,
sink through the sand
Put a coin in the ferryman’s hand
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13. |
Swords on the Ground
04:02
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Cold light rings the bell for the fight
Between the man & the boy,
still chasing his kite
The fountain's promise can't take back the shame
of loading the dice &
leaving the game
We'll hang from the roof,
shout at the gutter
Pour dust on the sidewalk,
till the diamonds are covered
Spin with the wind as the devils come down
Lay our swords on the ground
Stone rain
& the call of the train
Between the dust & the west,
the boxcar refrain
The wind at our back is calling us home
but this blood & these bones are all that we own
We'll hang from the roof,
shout at the gutter
Pour dust on the sidewalk,
till the diamonds are covered
Spin with the wind as the devils come down
Lay our swords on the ground
Fall down on your knees on the ground
Between the wheat & the rye,
start the Merry-go-round
Plowshares are rusted,
the weeds have grown tall
the sword on your belt,
can't cut down the wall
We'll hang from the roof,
shout at the gutter
Pour dust on the sidewalk,
till the diamonds are covered
Spin with the wind as the devils come down
Lay our swords on the ground
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14. |
Lament in F
03:59
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Man in black, Is going home
March through the dust and pray to be clean.
Rust the nail, Love before blood
Feed the crowd fishes before morning light.
Sweat and toil, This madness thirst
Cry shame on a man from Galilee.
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15. |
Gesthemane
03:17
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Ein Svi Dri Nincompoop
Kick Ball Chain, Toe Tap, Window Pane Crash
Down. I Spy In The Noose
New Head Same Crown.
Tick, Tock, Tick, Clang The Bell
Kiss The Cheek,Cold Tap, Hindenburg Crash
Down. I Lie, Back To Hell
Trees On Soft Ground.
Drip, Drop, Drip, Rain has stopped.
Hoo haha hoo ha hoo haha
Grapes of math,
Christ in a dead skin mask
Chores are due, scrub the knife,
The chalk hand holds the Scythe,
changing trains.
Flush down the tithe,
Till the goldfish is drowned
A fist of dirt on the shore,
Wring out the rocks and Tears,
bleeding hearts.
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
Shhh,
sleep,
hush,
hush.
Shhh.
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16. |
Closest Thing to Heaven
05:25
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She's got maraschino eyes,
red pimento hips
shakes her salted peanuts,
make you lick your lips
her condensation leaves a wet ring
slip it on your finger as the jukebox sings
I'll be drinkin' up her love tonight
She never hogs up all the covers or make me turn out the light
sings me to sleep on the living room floor
but when I wake up in the mornin', she's gone out the door
Leaves me howling down the porcelain well
Swearing never again, send her back to hell
But when I see her smiling at the end of the bar
that's the closest thing to heaven that I seen so far
Keep that tall drink of water,
I'll just take my shot
Give me three strong fingers,
you can hold the rocks
Her conversation, can be a bit dry
add a splash of vermouth, she'll bring a tear to your eye
Under a paper umbrella,
shake her coconut shells
Ice clinking in the glass,
sounds like wedding bells
Her combination, of sweet and sour
Makes four in the morning feel like happy hour
I'll be drinkin' up her love tonight
She never hogs up all the covers or make me turn out the light
sings me to sleep on the living room floor
but when I wake up in the mornin', she's gone out the door
Leaves me howling down the porcelain well
Swearing never again, send her back to hell
But when I see her smiling at the end of the bar
that's the closest thing to heaven that I seen so far
Alcohol mistress:
And you'll be drinkin' up my love tonight
Put a fire in your belly and a blur in your sight
Lay down beside you, when you can't take no more
But when you wake up in the morning, I know what's in store
So I slide back over to my friends in the well
Squeeze in between the bourbon and tequila they sell
Till I see you shamblin' at the end of the bar
Sing come back to heaven babe, you know where you are
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17. |
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Dark Room,
plastic wrap memories,
pictures of mothers in frames.
Years pass,
speaking of nothing again.
The past turns to dust in creaking books,
on the way,
we're on the way
Spinning our yarn to the grave.
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18. |
Patina
02:40
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Roll.
Down.
Stall the taxi for another round
Coal,
Found
Tell your neighbor that your leaving town, I said roll.
Harriet wore tweed again today.
The color of dust,
hounds-tooth decay.
Too late for whiskey, too soon for wine.
Lipstick & ice,
with a twist of the spine
The brass vial, the tincture.
A man with a milky eye.
Old & forgotten, not ready to die
Soul.
Drowned.
Leave a dollar by the wedding gown, I said roll.
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19. |
Sloe Gin
03:22
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Pour me a drink until you hear that click
Tick goes the list, tics I have many
Another book in the library stacks
Of bleeding hearts & heart attacks
Slow drift, that's how I'll go
A small shift, a boat out to sea
A tiny rift, a raft on a river
I'm cast adrift, to the edge... of the world
Slip in the gin, a bath of cool relief
Heart is bleeding like a TV joke
cliché abyss & tragic Dickinson
I'm just trying to find a warm bar tab
Slow drift, that's how I'll go
A small shift, a boat out to sea
A tiny rift, a raft on a river
I'm cast adrift, to the edge... of the world
Truckers let 'er ride for this slow drift, this
small shift it goes slowly over time
You hardly notice until one day
The sand won't hold back,
The highway's impassable,
You can't paddle the boat
And it all goes under...
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20. |
From the Mountain
01:42
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Tall man came down from the mountain,
shot the preacher through the head.
Said, “You boys can stand up now.
The impotent one is dead.”
Man said, “I’m gonna speak to you softly,
as befitting my religion.
I have come down from the mountain,
‘cause I’ve made a very big decision.”
“The good Lord took my sinful wife,
in the holy act of drinking strychnine.
To test my faith our reverend threw,
a rattlesnake in the bed of a baby boy of mine.”
“I have come here seeking soldiers.
I have come here burning sinners.
I have come to give you people,
hope for a new beginning.”
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21. |
On Our Way #4 Breathe
00:31
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Instrumental
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22. |
Slayers of the Moon
04:28
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We'll drink to the sinners boys, we'll drink to the saints
We'll drink a cup of poison now & laugh as we storm the gates
The tide is turning low,
it's turning low
We'll hoist up a glass for the men,
we'll hoist up a memory now & again
The sun is setting low,
it's setting low
Rusted chain around your neck
bolted & hammered to the boards of the deck
Swab & row & dive, want to get out alive.
Your eyes are the storm & the crushing waves
push us down
We'll pray for thew skeleton key,
to the shackles of the brothel and the sea
The chariot is swinging low,
It's swinging low
We'll cry out together in tune,
for the lovers and the slayers of the moon
the fire is burning low,
it's burning low.
We'll drink to the winners boys, we'll drink to the fates
We'll drink a cup of lies,
cry as we close the gates
The tide is turning low,
it's turning low.
Rusted chain around your neck
bolted & hammered to the boards of the deck
Swab & row & dive, want to get out alive.
Your eyes are the storm & the crushing waves
push us down.
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23. |
Bourbon & Avocados
03:00
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24. |
Where you Sleeping?
02:02
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Hey Mama. Hey Papa.
Where you sleeping while we're weeping?
The children hear from down the hall
the rise & fall of love and voices
as choices shape tomorrow.
The heater hums a soothing song
so play along ‘til tears, like rain,
pour once again from sorrow.
The things they touch & always break
it's their mistakes for which we pay
each & every day with broken souls
Honor thy father’s soulless sham,
a sacrificial scam of an innocent kiss
with tied up wrists & left no longer whole.
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25. |
In The Well
02:16
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Reverend:
If you are a man with a monkey or a daughter,
Better keep them off the land of a Mr. John Slaughter.
He's got one less boy than the man believes he oughter,
& something's gone and fouled all the well water.
Doodles:
I don't care what in the world anyone thinks of me.
I left my mother's morals on the dock (at midnight).
But when you hear the whispers, of your laced & satined sisters,
You'll show that there's much more to you than talk.
When this boy grew to become one of the customers,
We thought he'd grow to be another swell (like father),
But we knew with poor Miranda, cut & bruised on her veranda,
That we'd have to break & throw him in the well.
Well?
Spitshine:
When he said, "Old Mr. Shine, have you got work for me?"
I sent him off to Joe at Duffy's bar (on Clark street.)
(To get the) money for the numbers, which he subsequently plundered,
& said that he got rolled like a cigar.
Later Joe saw the boy climb, up to the whore's boudoir.
I'm not a man who really likes to dwell (what a nice guy),
(But if the) balance on the books, does not appease old Duffy's rooks,
Someone's gonna end up in the well.
Well!
Dr. Benjo:
I was home eating the fuck out of a cod souffle,
When Spitshine & the lady tugged the lock (which tumbled)
I listened to their story, filled with retributive glory,
& I told them I was shocked, I tell you, shocked!
I thought, "you dumb punks, gotta be kidding me!"
But then I thought, "well, really, what the hell?" (It's Tuesday.)
(I whacked the) pan I use for frying, on the bag when it was cryin',
(& we) dragged boy down to his daddy's well, boy, well, boy!
Reverend:
If you are a man with a monkey or a daughter,
Better keep them off the land of a Mr. John Slaughter.
He's got one less boy than the man believes he oughter,
& something's gone and fouled all the well water.
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26. |
On Our Way #5 The Walls
00:46
|
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Raised flag,
staking the claim
with a bottle of scotch and a song
Lay down,
in the shade of a sheltering tree
The walls won't hold back the wind and the rain
on the way
we're on the way
Holding small hands to the grave.
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27. |
The House Trilogy
07:00
|
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Part 1: The Hammer:
Instrumental
Part 2: Fall into Winter:
Tight rope sags,
over crocodile
tears
Rise up singing,
your muddy boots,
kick the leaves like fireworks.
& I spent a little time alone.
When the weeds reach the sun,
force em down
These rusty nails,
push em underground
Keys shake just like Marley's chains,
close the door,
close the cage
Part 3: Before We Go:
Before we go,
Take a look around the old house.
Before we go, Before we go,
Take a look inside the rooms where mistakes were made, paint was chipped, love mislaid.
Before we go, Before we go,
Take a look inside the closets where suits were kept, and brothers laughed and sisters wept.
Before we go, Before we go,
Take a look at that old tree with its switches peeled, but spirits rise and bruises heal.
I spent a lot of time alone.
I spent a lot of time alone.
I spent a lot of time making foolish trades.
No, let me get it out before memory fades.
I read under the covers till morning light,
while I listened to my parents drink wine and fight.
I overheard my sister get honor plied,
never said a word, just kept mum and cried.
I got down on my knees with a ring and tears,
I'll do it all again in about 10 years.
I held the old man's hand 'till his soul flew free.
Wait, I lied, that wasn't me.
I spent a lot of time alone.
I spent a lot of time alone.
I spent a lot of time playing rock star when you wasn't home.
Before we go, before we go.
Take a look around the old house.
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5 Cent Coffee Vallejo, California
5 Cent Coffee is a 4 piece post modern jug band full of grit and carnival hokum. We play original songs set in the dusty American tradition of travelling circuses and rail riders down on their luck. With soaring vocals, sometimes two accordions, sometimes two ukuleles, washboard and junk percussion, our sound is big and brash but soft and mournful, and always compelling. ... more
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