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Making Home

by Kyle Rightley

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1.
Two in the morning and the factory’s humming Deep runs the well Coal fire’s burning just to keep the wheels turning Deep runs the well I met a man in Cincinatti, he had lived there all his years. He said “I’ve seen it all, sometimes you run sometimes you crawl.” Then he turned around and muttered something into his beer. Early October and the cows are in the clover Deep runs the well New life beginning with a cool harvest wind Deep runs the well She’s an old soul, she’s a fighter, oh she’s a morning star. She said “I’ve been paying off my loans, but you won’t hear me moan spending days stuck in an office and nights behind the bar.” If you want it, you gotta take it. You gotta dream it before you make it. Don’t hesitate, no don’t you hesitate. Trucks on the freeway over the Saint Lawrence Seaway Deep runs the well Seagulls are circling over longshoremen working. Deep runs the well. I hope it’s not just wishful thinking, but the roots run deeper than the rot. And you know we’re more in sync than some would want you to think. And if we don’t have a dream, then what else have we got?
2.
Dumb Tragedy 03:58
You and I, we’re the only ones here waging our little wars and pointing fingers as it falls apart. You and I, through the passing years our hands stuck in our pockets and our feet stuck in the mud. You and I, we’re like the earth and the sky so alike but so apart You and me, it’s such a dumb tragedy each waiting for the other one to have a change of heart, a little change of heart. Once upon a time, we were like good cheese and wine Maybe not the same, but we could still see eye to eye. Well just a little bit of compromise, it might kill us to try We’re running ‘round in circles trading stock in hurtful lies. You and I, we’re like the day and the night so where do we even start? You and me, it’s such a dumb tragedy each waiting for the other one to have a change of heart, a little change of heart, a little change of heart, a little change of heart. Black and white, with no gray in between We’re both middle and extreme in our own little kingdoms now. You and I, it’s like a blizzard in July probably not written in the stars. You and me, it’s such a dumb tragedy each waiting for the other one to have a change of heart, a little change of heart.
3.
All of the bookshelves in the house are looking pretty sparse And half of the plates are packed away. Pressing your ear against the big white empty bedroom wall, you can just about hear the words replayed. Her clothes are all packed into suitcases and grocery bags, boxes all lined up by the door. She told you she won’t need your help getting her things downstairs. No she won’t need your help anymore, not anymore. Well I wonder, what would love say to see you in this state. A chance to start again, or too little too late? And I wonder, what would love do, stick it out or run away? Oh I wonder, what would love say. Can you tell me, what would love say? Better to have loved and lost as the saying goes, or do I remember that right? Love starts out young and strong, a hero in a film’s first act. Plenty of heart and plenty of fight. There was a time she felt a tingling down her spine at the mention of your name. She used to light up your phone late at night when she was alone and in the morning, soon as she was awake. But those days have gone away. And I wonder, what would love say to see you in this state. A chance to start again, or too little too late? And I wonder, what would love do, stick it out or run away? Oh I wonder, what would love say. Think it over, what would love say? After a while, you will see love in a photograph. And this is what love will have to say: “I’m still alive, but I’m weak and my light is fading from all of those years you locked me away.”
4.
Thirty 04:39
The art of conversation's always lost on me When it's my turn to talk, I seem to come up empty It's not for lack of having any words to say I just need some time to put them out the right way Oh I wish I were quicker, I wish I were sharp I wish I could keep up the pace And I wish that the world would stop spinning so fast I missed the beginning of the race I've never really been one to keep in touch with friends I lose them once our trails go around separate bends Despite my best intentions, they slip away from me I can only love from a distance, or so it seems Oh I wish I were sober, I wish I were drunk I'm just stuck somewhere in between And I wish I were older, I wish I were young I wish I could stop this machine I wish I had an answer to starvation and cancer, the killings and the refugees And I wish I believed in some higher power but that never made much sense to me Once I wrote a sad song about my broken heart I made up the whole thing, and then I called it art It's not for lack of having my own tail to tell You see, it's just that it's safer to pretend I'm someone else Oh I wish I were joking, I wish I could laugh I wish I could hit where I aim But I wish I could take myself seriously Life just seems to be a role-playing game And I wish that you were here tonight I thought I wanted to be alone But the only thing in this broken mind is a dream of going home
5.
I want everything to sound the way that it sounded in the 70's I want a Fender Princeton Reverb, a mellotron, and an ARP Odyssey I want a 12-string Gretsch and an 8-track cassette, a fixed up Hammond organ that smells like cigarettes I want everything to sound the way it sounded in the 70's I want everything to sound the way that it sounded in the 60's I want that wall of sound around me just like Phil Spector, but less murdery I want a real echo chamber and an old Fuzz Face, a Uni-Vibe pedal and a Rickenbacker bass I want everything to sound the way it sounded in the 60's The writing's on the wall, the writing's on the wall This nostalgia will be the death of me The writing's on the wall, but the worst part of all is it's build upon a faulty collective memory I want everything to sound the way that it sounded in the 80's You know those 303 bass lines sure know how to move all the ladies I want those cheap samples from a Series I Fairlight, the gated snare drum sound from "In the Air Tonight" I want everything to sound the way it sounded in the 80's It's all the same to me, it's all the same to me Any yesteryear will do just fine It's all the same to me, because I don't trust my memory and every sound grows sweeter with some time I'll want everything to sound the way it sounded in 2017 You know I'll really miss the digital sound of that auto-tune robot sing 'Cause I'm a sucker for that legendary studio lore and everything was better in the time before I want everything to sound the way it doesn't sound anymore It doesn't sound anymore, it don't sound that way no more
6.
Old Mercury 04:37
Sing to me old Mercury, and speak my many names. Earth upon my twisted roots, rivers in my veins. Secret places in the ground, a passageway for souls. Silver coins or innocence to pay the gateman’s toll. Granite walls stand tall and sheer above the lucid pool. Waters whisper, still as death, waiting, deep, and cool. I have lain for centuries, staring at the sky. Feeling the wind across my face, watching seasons go by. But I’m so tired of waiting. I need to find release. I need for you to come to me and set me free. Standing on the axis mundi, holding up the world. Leaves are falling to my feet, from branches old and gnarled. My head is the mountaintop, my heart is the sun. My gift is the knowledge that all deeds will be undone. But I’m so tired of waiting. I need to find release. I need for you to come to me and set me free. Eastward to the dreaming land, go and don’t return. Hold aloft and speak out loud the lessons you have learned.
7.
Pulling in to the Albuquerque station I spent four days on the Southwest Chief Trying to figure out my situation Travel used to bring me some relief Don't mind me, don't mind me I think I've been awake since Topeka I think I've been awake for a year Trying to drink myself to amnesia Trying to change the man in the mirror But you, you show me where I'm going to You keep my heart a-flowing, ooh, it's so true I'm a stranger without you I used to write my songs about ascension I used to say goodbye is not goodbye I used to say the road would bring redemption I never even thought to wonder why Don't remind me, don't remind me But you, you show me where I'm going to You keep my heart a-flowing, ooh, it's so true I'm a stranger without you I'm a stranger without you And if I try to pick myself up, I'll only fall back down again And if I try to make it on my own, I'll only start up where the same old circle ends But you, you show me where I'm going to You keep my heart a-flowing, ooh, it's so true You're the one who pulls me through And there's nothing I can do 'cause I'm a stranger without you I'm a stranger without you I'm stranger without you I'm a stranger without you
8.
Let the rain upon the river sing you to sleep It calls the name of your forgiver into the deep And as the early rays of sunshine crest the canyon walls above the new light paints a better picture of a world just begun So let the rain upon the river wash you away Let the terrain softly deliver you to a new day And call out all your doubts and questions, all your worries and your fears The canyon turns your voice around, the echoes filling up your ears singing… Silly man, what are you searching for, searching for? ‘Cause in this world, nothing’s for certain, for certain And it’s a fool who tries to keep the score of the waters up against the shore Throw your pain into the river She’s the giver and receiver What you gain is what you wager So give your pain back, back to the river And as you watch it float away, you’ll wonder why it took so long for you to open up your ears and listen to the river’s song singing… Silly man, what are you searching for, searching for? ‘Cause in this world, nothing’s for certain, for certain And it’s a fool who tries to keep the score of the waters up against the shore
9.
They said I’d fade and be forgotten, they said I wouldn’t last the fall. But I held the line, I stayed the course and I got the job done. Now I got ‘em with their backs against the wall. They banged their drums and held their banners. Oh how they tried to get me to back down. But money’s on my side as long as I appease my masters, and I’m bringing some big changes around. Don’t talk to me about inequality For you are all equal in my eyes. I’ve got top people now drafting a policy to keep you all equally neutralized. And don’t talk to me about wealth distribution ‘Cause man, that’s just not the American Dream. It’s a centuries old tried-and-true institution, the poor will stay poor and we’ll skim the cream. They tried to topple me with numbers, they cited their facts and made their graphs. But I turned it around and made my own facts to work for me. Now let’s see whose side is having the final laugh. Don’t lecture me about education We’ve got all the education we need. Hard working people don’t need information, Their station in life is to work ‘til they bleed. Thank you for your support and I’m glad we’re all agreed.
10.
From home to the heartland, I'm putting miles beneath my boots From the loam comes the garden, but I'm shaking the grass up off my roots From the desert to the mountains, from the mountains to the coast I could count the things on one hand that matter the most From the heart to the homeland, this lovesick stranger's rolling through From the delta to the highlands, I'm doing what I gotta do From the railroad to the highway, I keep on moving faster yet Someday I'll spread my wings and fly away with not one regret From the darkness to the sunrise, you know it won't be long From home to the heartland, I'll just keep singing this song From the desert to the mountains, from the mountains to the coast I could count the things on one hand that matter the most I could count on one hand the things that matter the most I think it's time I'm moving on You gotta keep on moving, moving on.
11.
Making Home 04:03
You say I should take a seat, feel the ground beneath my feet Well maybe you're right, maybe you're right I'm no good to myself when I'm turning every dial up to 10 Maybe it's time, maybe it's time that I Take care of myself so I can help with someone else Stone by heavy stone, I'm making home Sometimes I seem to think if I don't swim, I'll surely sink But it's not like that, not always I thought that I understood, if it comes too easy it can't be good Well sometimes yes, most often no And I take care of myself so I can help with someone else Stone by heavy stone, I'm making home Seems kind of obvious now You can't reap your crop before you plow I'm smiling at my failures 'cause I'm finally learning how Whoa-oh-oh You say I should hit the streets raise my voice and stomp my feet well maybe you're right, maybe it works 'Cause I don't like it anymore than you and I'll do what I need to do, but it starts at home It starts in every home, and I Take care of myself so I can help with someone else Stone by heavy stone, I'm making home I say that we make our homes Look after each other 'cause no one's alone And we'll just get by, we'll just get by And hope is a demon, you know that hope is a demon but it's better than nothing at all, nothing at all Seems kind of obvious now You can't reap your crop before you plow I'm smiling at my failures 'cause I'm finally learning how I'm making home I'm making home.

credits

released December 13, 2017

Written, performed, and produced by Kyle Rightley
Photography by Elizabeth Galewski
Layout and design by Kyle Rightley
Special thanks to Elizabeth

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Kyle Rightley Madison, Wisconsin

A native of the Four Corners region, Kyle Rightley is no stranger to crossroads. A trained classical musician with a jazzman’s flare for improvisation and a folk singer’s love of storytelling, Kyle stands at a unique junction. In addition to his solo exploits, he is a member of award-winning groups The Big Payback, Driveway Thriftdwellers, The Civil Engineers, Beefus, and other area ensembles. ... more

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