Get all 7 John Thomason releases available on Bandcamp and save 35%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Venetian Glass, Blanket, Heart of Dixie, Venetian Blinds (2020 Remix), Wake Up On Fire, Cosmic Cartoon, and Venetian Blinds.
1. |
For Hire
04:25
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I'm laying out in this field
Just waiting to get killed
By all these choices up in my head
Sometimes they make me wish that I was dead
Come on girl, let's get to bed
There are things that we could be doing instead
Of giving our lives all this thought
'Cause in my own decisions I don't wanna be caught
Lock me up in a jail
Look at my new surroundings and say "Oh well"
Don't really care about the dimensions of the cell
Don't really care about the fire pits of Hell
Don't give a damn about religion
For me what has it ever done?
Don't really care about no aeroplanes
Knocking New York skyscrapers into the Seine
'Cause I'm trying to get used
And there ain't no denying, girl, I don't wanna choose
And I don't even really care to get to know you
And I don't really give a fuck, 'cause I ain't got nothin' to lose
Got a pocket full of coins
Gonna ease this yearnin' down in my loins
Go down to the village inn
Oh God, I don't know where to begin
Guess I'll drink for about an hour
Wait for my mind to turn a little more sour
Barkeep, turn off that TV screen
'Cause I don't even care what the newscast brings
'Cause I'm trying to get used
And there ain't no denying, girl, I don't wanna choose
And I don't even really care to get to know you
And I don't really give a fuck, 'cause I ain't got nothin' to lose
All I've got is this apathy for hire
Girl you know I'd be a liar if I said we couldn't get much higher
Come on set my soul on fire
I've got apathy for hire
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2. |
I Don't Want You
03:20
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The skateboarder he lost his shirt
Fell on his face with a mouthful of dirt
No one seemed to care if he was hurt
As he attempted to stand
The boy with the boiled brains
Sent by the Russian exchange
He seems to have you wrapped in chains
And he took you by the hand
He kicked the skateboarder in the side
And threw down a fistful of lies
He must not have any secrets to hide
To be so feckless
And everybody who's standing 'round
Wonders when you will be coming down
You seem to be so high above the ground
With your heels and pearl necklace
When you were living on the Seine
I was the voice inside your brain
That told you how to take back Aquitaine
And become a saint
But then you turned and walked down the shore
Down roads we had never been before
With someone else that you said you loved more
For his stickers and his paint
With your black hair on your white vest
And the heavy burden upon your chest
And all the secrets underneath your breast
That no man can conquer
Although the Russian boy did try
No one believed his alibis
Or even tried to take his side
Except when you did falter
Now you've got your codeine curls
Hidden away from the other girls
You can't always keep your flag unfurled
Now can you?
The skateboarder kissed you in the rain
After the Russian boy went back to the exchange
It's all just the same
There's nothing I can really do
One day I'll surrender my crown
One day I won't be held down
One day you'll stop hanging around
Maybe
No more pleas or evil deeds
No more fees form you to me
Your teases won't bring me to my knees
Again or at all, baby
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3. |
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It was a time of abandon when men could be kings
Before callow clouds stole the gifts that liberty brings
Images in my mind demand to be set free
And pour across my soul in shades of mediocrity
Ever since Orange Beach, things just haven't been the same
I memorized the touch of her face, but not the name I knew before
Of the girl from the eastern shore
We spent several nights inside of run down bars
Trying to escape the silent stare of the everpresent stars
I turned on the radio as we puleld into the park
We only had a couple of hours 'til Dawn set her spark
Her man was down the road driving through the hail
She didn't say a word to me as my clothes fell to the floor
With the girl from the eastern shore
It was a cold day on Government Street
At some Mardi Gras Parade where we did meet
She was dressed like Aphrodite, I was dressed like Mars
Both of us climbed into Tennessee's street car
She had fallen out with her lover, mine moved to the Catskills
I checked into an old hotel looking for time to fill and more
With the girl from the eastern shore
Had to go back to Jones Valley just as things cleared up
Made a few bad deals that gambled away my luck
I didn't kiss her goodbye, but she gave one to me
As I stepped into the elevator to return the key
But my time in the westside just left me raving mad
Should have known the things my heart had in store
With the girl from the eastern shore
We'd talk about whatever was on our minds
But we always did on other people's time
I met her for a concert down near the dock
And after it was over we went out for a walk
Should've remembered her lover never drifts too far
Can you guess how I felt when he came to the car door
And saw the girl from the eastern shore?
Back in the Magic City things are just the same
And my heart still feels the heat of that Hephastian flame
She could be in Los Angeles, she could be in Mobile
She might be in New York City or maybe she was killed
In some Afghani field growing heroin
But I'm still here thinking about all that did happen before
With the girl from the eastern shore
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4. |
Nothing Comes
03:27
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He was an actor
She was in love
He was a priest
And she was his dove
Everyone acted
But nobody cared
There was no feeling
Nothing left to share
Tell her "I love you"
If not, then your loss
Nothing is new
After you have been caught
Carry it all, boy
Throughout your fall
All of the weeping
You'll find that no one's sleeping
Remember what you had
It wasn't that bad
Now you have left it
And soon you'll regret it
Nothing to be fixed
All the while you were sick
She was right by your side
Ready to be your guide
But you threw it away
With nothing left to say
Nothing Comes
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5. |
Isabella
03:29
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Feeling so broken and tired
In this desolate city
Death, hunger and disease
Well, they aren't all that pretty
But then I saw you coming down
From the mountains to the sea
Your eyes looked so full of mercy
Enough to rescue me
Isabella
Well I can honestly say thanks
The shadows no longer bring shivers to my soul
And as I watcdh you leaving me for tomorrow
I can't tell how much my heart sank
And I held my tongue as you ran up to him
And the bus ride, it was a chore
Every time that I see your doubled face
It's just the one thing I try the hardest to ignore
And I thought that you were an angel of change
A healing warmth, a blessed radiance
But now it's obvious that you aided my self-destruction
Bringing me nothing but pestilence
But I still love you, Isabella
Even through all my sorrow
And my arms a-waitin' for you to come back tomorrow
But not for long
Not for you, Isabella
Not for you
Isabella
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6. |
It Hurts Me Too
02:30
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You said you were hurtin'
Almost lost your mind
And the man that you love
He mistreats you all the time
When things go wrong
So wrong with you
It hurts me too
You love him more
When you should love him less
I come up behind him
And take his mess
When things go wrong
So wrong with you
It hurts me too
He love another woman
And I love you
But you stay with him
Yes, you're stuck like glue
When things go wrong
So wrong with you
It hurts me too
Now you better leave him
Yes, he better put you down
Lord knows I won't stand it
To see you pushed around
When things go wrong
So wrong with you
It hurts me too
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7. |
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I hold you close in the windy winter night
While no one looks around
The ferry drifts across the open waters
And no one makes a sound
Now I just stand there, you know I'm hardly brave
I could've tried harder, guess it comes with age
In three months time, things will just be the same
Now I'm out of time, out of my mind
Before we were on the canals of Venice
Sailing by the porticoed streets
Yo tried to pay me more attention
But I was just so cowed by defeat
Back in Verona, I could've scrawled your name
On the house where Romeo and Juliet laid their claim to fame
But given time, I thought that my feelings would change
Now I'm out of time, out of my mind
Now I'm back in hot, humid, sweaty Mobile
With those Memphis blues again
Reluctantly you offer me your condolences
Despite your boyfriend's chagrin
Then the music faded, I was left waiting in line
I looked all around but could not see the sign
You left me there all battered, bloodied, and blind
Out of time, out of my mind
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8. |
Venetian Blinds
03:46
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The cerulean sea cries to the naked pause of the sky
As the merciless sun cuts through solemn rock
And we tread through the test bed of silent scorched sand and shell
To talk, but before we begin you say "Fare thee well"
I took your fire and cannot be held by chains
My pig skinned suitor, he will protect me
It was only mercurial dreams and Oberon's fantasies that you were seeing
And now these Trojan ruins are all that remain
How could you leave me here like Andromeda to Neptune's Kraken?
And how could I be as blind as Oedipus as to what was gonna happen?
You know that I can't let you go
I gave you my heart and my soul
You were my ladder
Because of you I became bold
The sapphire curtains climb
To embrace the Venetian blinds
That shut out the noise of time
And leave me here to witness this crime
The harpsichord plays
The funeral march
For the carnival parade
Turn the lights out
This;ll be the last day
The last day
We started the graveyard train
Before the coming of the acid rain
And then we slept and slipt
In the pugnacious mire of the sulphur pit
The sun had retreated to the pink pastures before the gates of night
Leaving the sea to sing "It'll be all right. It's all right"
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9. |
Stuck in Venice
08:20
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I've been trying to talk to you
But you won't even smile at me
What exactly are you hiding?
I could go to the Venetian merchants
And talk to them about the nature of love
And how I should treat you
They said "A man must hazard all he hath"
But girl, you know I've already done that
What else would you have me do?
I could sell a pound of my flesh
To a Jew practicing usury
But what good would that do me?
I could sing about the Elysian fields
If somehow that would help to win over your heart
You're always out with another man
And my friends want to keep us apart
Now I ain't no Odysseus
I ain't got a soothsayer to talk to
Or a goddess watching over me
But I could sing a song to placate Satan
To release all the souls in Hell
But what good would that be?
I suppose we live in a better world
With war and hatred to tear us apart
And emotions to mess with you
And if I could exchange my love
For you into some form of peace
That might do some good
I could sing about the Elysian fields
If somehow that would help to win over your heart
You're always out with another man
And my friends want to keep us apart
Now I bet you wish I was Hercules
But I've already labored for you
And you just turn me away
And if I could turn back time
Just give ti a pause and some rewind
Then in your arms I would stay
With your hair of the finest ebony
Striking better than any piano key
Could put a song into my heart
But then somehow you got away
And just turned your back on all the crowd
Before I could even remark
I could sing about the Elysian fields
If somehow that would help to win over your heart
You're always out with another man
And my friends want to keep us apart
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10. |
E Venezia
03:35
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Well I can honestly say
That my mind feels weighed down by my heart
And there's so much trouble in this world
That I just don't know where to start
I feel just like Othello
And you are my Desdemon'
But you know that this time around
You earned this man's scorn
And you could tell all the lies in the world
Try to satisfy everyone
But when the end of time, it comes
I wanna know if the right thing was done
Had a date with Liberty and I felt so relieved
Time seemed to fall out of my mind
When you leaned over to kiss me
And it was an amazing feeling
As my hands were binding your fate
And yes, I'm pretty damn sure I felt God lift that weight
And you could tell all the lies in the world
Try to satisfy everyone
But when the end of time, it comes
I wanna know if the right thing was done
And I watched the sun rising over London
Saw the steeples of Paris from the sky
And as I got the hell out of Venice
Well girl, I just couldn't keep you off of my mind
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John Thomason Alabama
Singer-songwriter doing alternative americana and distorted synth rock
John Thomason recommends:
Ryan's a great songwriter and you can hear that on tracks like "Shine a Duck" and "Flower in a Drought".
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The kind of album where you roll down your windows and turn it up while driving down the highway. Basically a perfect record.
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High Energy and Plain Dumb Fun
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The legendary Alejandro Escovedo returns with another country-rock scorcher.
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