1. cds $15
2. mp3s $12 (sent via email--for direct download use rodmacdonald.com) includes cover art, lyrics, credits
3. on a USB flash drive $30 with mp3s, art, lyrics and credits for each album: Rants And Romance, White Buffalo, Beginning Again, Later That Night
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1-Come Out Annie ©2023 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
Intro:
Night time in the dead of winter
You can hear the ice expand
Knowing every day to come
Will warm all the frozen land
A young man wandering down the highway
Stops beneath a giant tree
Stands there hands in his pocket
Whistles up a melody
Come out Annie, the moon is rising
All the world has stopped its sound
Listen, you can hear the silence
Come and take a look around
All the trees are still and sleeping
You won’t hear the birds and bees
Come tomorrow, I’ll be going
Would you ever go with me?
Come out Annie, the night is calling
All the stars are clear and bright
You can see the bands of angels
Come and see the ancient light
All the flowers are still and peaceful
You can almost hear them breathe
Come tomorrow, I’ll be going
Would you ever go with me
I can see you in the moonlight
Like a vision or a dream
Come tomorrow, I’ll be going
Would you ever go with me
Come out Annie, the moon is rising
All the world has stopped its sound
Listen, you can hear the silence
Come and take a look around
2-Cry Freedom © 2022 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
How about it America? Ready for the big one?
Are you lining up to vote for Jesus and Kingdom Come?
Only the men to have authority Except for a few women and minorities
Who service their mastersmAnd polish their guns
So they can go out and punish Those reluctant ones
With their election day hit squadsmAnd their psychotic judges
And then stand before you with a straight face
Like the boy who cried wolf And cry freedom
They cry freedom While they're taking it away
They don't mean freedom for you
They mean the freedom for themselves to Tell you what to do
And your kids how to think
They're the ones who self-identify With the best decisions money can buy
And want elections they must personally run
To serve the fetus and the gun And push other people around
All they do is bring you down
When they stand before you with a straight face
Like the boy who cried wolf And cry freedom
Cry freedom on election day
Cry freedom til they all go away
Cry freedom everybody please Cry freedom
What up, America?Ready for the big shootout?
Open carry everywhere That's what I'm talkin' about
What could possibly go wrong? Well-armed militias in every town
With a Bible and a fiery cross There are some who'd call that Paradise
I could say more but I'm being nice
And why should I worry when deep down I know
They're just building him up To bring us all down low
As he stands before you with a straight face
Like the boy who cried wolf And cries freedom
Cry freedom on election day
Cry freedom til they all go away
Cry freedom that's the plan
Cry freedom take a stand
Cry freedom while you still can
Cry freedom everybody please
Cry freedom
3-Dangerous Game ©Darryl Purpose & Robert Morgan Fisher/ Arrive With Every Step Music - Extended Family Music (BMI)
Columbo, Sri Lanka, two civil wars,
One during the day, the other at night
I was counting cards at the house of risk,
I was a little ahead, I was doing alright
Tapped on the shoulder, led to a room
He called it his office, but it felt like a tomb.
We were from different worlds, But there was no language barrier
He said it’s a very dangerous game you’re playing
I said I know one scarier
Killington, Vermont, New Year’s eve,
Passing on the left, passing on the right
Left my coat and helmet back at the bar,
There was ice on the road, there was ice on my bike
Cop pulled me over, top of the hill
I walked the line, I knew the drill
That’s when he gave me the lecture, The whole chapter and verse
He said it’s a dangerous game you’re playing
But I know one worse
Mercury, Nevada, underground tests,
Fire in the earth reaching to the sky,
Greenpeace soldiers on a back country action,
All the way to ground zero we climbed
Wackenhunts waiting in their ATV’s
Guns raised and ready, tell us to freeze
They were protecting a bomb blast, Now, What could be stranger?
They said it’s a very dangerous game you’re playing
But they don’t know from danger
Front porch, her house, 3AM,
I’m feeling loose, door’s locked up tight
I reach for the doorbell, But then I wander
Off into the middle of the night
Crazy with cold feet can’t make up my mind
let it drag out, play for more time
And there was just one message, on my message machine
She said, “It’s a very dangerous game you’re playing.”
I said, “I know what you mean”
4-What Happened To You © 2022 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
I am not you I am me
you are not me you are you
is there a we in there I’d like to know
so I could have some idea
where this can go
I remember when you were just like me
we thought we were so wild and free
now here we are surrounded by this wall of noise
what happened to you
what happened to me
I am you as you are me
as you are we as we are all together
the Beatles said that and no doubt it’s true
I know what happened to me
what's happened to you
Down at the border children haven’t bathed for weeks
Some say they deserve it
Are you one of them?
Downtown the water is covering the city streets
Some say it’s an illusion
Are you one of them?
Proven liars are occupying the halls of justice
Some say it doesn’t matter
Are you one of them?
Billionaires are buying the west while millions go hungry
Some say it’s their right
Are you one of them?
Well, I am not you I am me
you are not me you are you
and I can’t ignore the things you want to do
I know what’s happened to me
but what happened to you?
5-The Pandemic ©2021 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
In the next generation to come down the line
I believe it was the year 2039
They asked hey mom what was the pandemic
I been hearing about it in school and I bet it
Was something you’d never want to do again
and mom sat down, shook her head
and said with a grin
Oh the pandemic wasn’t that a time
Well, said mom, I was just in my teens
Your daddy was trying to get in my jeans
We couldn’t travel so we married on zoom
The preacher in Maine, our parents back home
Baked our own cake and had colored balloons
Streamed the first kiss and went on our honeymoon without leaving the room
Oh the pandemic wasn’t that a time
Yeah, said mom, and who could forget
The numbers kept climbing and no one protected
Their faces til thousands were gasping for air
And businesses shutting down everywhere
And speaking of time, every now and then
We’d hear the news of a trusted friend
You knew you’d never see again
There was no toilet paper on the shelf
We couldn't go to work, we kept to ourselves
Took walks in the moonlight when the curfew was done
And I never have felt closer to anyone
There was some guy who was like a bad joke
Said people aren’t really dying it’s all a cruel hoax
but he was no friend of mine
Oh the pandemic wasn’t that a time
It was a quiet time to reflect, said mom
We had 600 channels in the living room
Though it’s amazing to me to remember today
There was never anything on anyway
Except for live concerts, there was these guys I know
Came on every Sunday with a different show
And somehow it eased my mind
Oh the pandemic wasn’t that a time
In the midst of it all people took to the streets
When an unarmed black man killed by police
Was becoming too normal and for the first time
The cops were made to pay for the crime
And speaking of crime there were women and men
Who thought they'd over throw the government
And ended up doing time
You knew it was coming to an end and soon
When you turned on the news and every afternoon
There was a shooting in a mall or a store
So many thoughts and prayers you couldn’t take anymore
It was easier to buy a gun than to vote
We had to dig deep to keep the ship afloat
For the next generation to come down the line
That's what Mom back said in 2039
Oh the pandemic wasn’t that a time
6-Heal The World ©2020 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
hey is anybody listening
are you alone wherever it is you are
I’m just sitting here thinking
or maybe I’m just wishing on a star
and if there’s a somebody out there
who can recognize a single word I say
I’d like to ask a simple blessing
for us while we’re all away
heal the world
heal the world
it’s a simple prayer, sing it everywhere
heal the world
we don’t need another mountain
we don’t need someone to lead us to the light
we just need to learn to live together
and I believe the rest will turn out all right
I’ve heard that mother nature
loves all creation, not only me and you
she will rise up if you harm her loved ones
and yes, we’re beginning to see that it’s true
7-Lady of the Harbor © Joe Jencks/Turtle Bear Music (ASCAP)
From far away, and distant lands
The tempest tossed with hopeful hearts and calloused hands
Reach for the light, the torch held high
And cast their gaze upon the Lady of the Harbor
And so it was, with my own kin
They sailed from Sweden and from France, and Ireland
Their earthly cares, packed in their bags
They cast their gaze upon the Lady of the Harbor
And she welcomed them with open arms
she said let my children in
Shine on, Shine on
Oh you Lady of the Harbor
Now we're locking down the borders and we're filling up the jails
And we say they don't belong
How conveniently do we forget
That we've all come to sing the same sweet song
Will the dream, survive the strain
Will huddled masses have a chance to learn it's sweet refrain
Or will we fall, into our fears
And turn our backs against the Lady of the Harbor.
And she welcomes them with open arms
she says let my children in
Shine on, Shine on
Oh you Lady of the Harbor
8-Enough About Me ©2022 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
i knew a girl from across the sea
she didn't plan to stay here but she
came back to be with me
and now my friends like her better than they like me
and I don't mind, I do too
it just shows the quality of my friends who
know I'm a lucky man you see
ah but enough about me
i knew a man who traveled the land
singing his songs whenever he could lend a hand
wherever it was time to take a stand
or thigns didn’t work out like they planned
I've sung his songs, I loved the man
and he was wise enough to understand
to fill his shoes was not my destiny
ah but enough about me
i knew a country great and strong
had a powerful sense of what was right and what was wrong
from whatever race or religion you came
your rights and freedoms were all the same
and I believe that anything less
would mean we've surely made a mess
of this beautiful land of the free
ah but enough about me
I knew a child who loved to dance
who'd bust a move anytime there was a chance
you could hear all the laughter in the air
from here to the far side of the square
oh and growing up can seem so very hard
But don’t forget that childhood love is still a part
of you for all to see
ah but enough about me
If I were you I’d lay those weapons down
Go home now to your pastor, Your minister, your priest
Your wife, your kids, your partner, your television and at least seek
forgiveness for the harm you’ve done
What did you think was gonna happen?
If you don’t watch out your fantasies will come true
And you’ll find yourself and your friends in a shoot out
With people all dressed in blue
Is that really why you came?
To give patriots a bad name
You shut the hell up, said the man in the center
What are you, some kind of wiseass?
No, just a concerned citizen.
They all stood there in silence
In the distance they heard sirens
If I were you I’d lay those weapons down
Go home now to your pastor, Your minister, your priest
Your wife, your kids, your mistress, your dealer and at least
Seek forgiveness for the harm you’ve done
And don’t forget how you came
To give patriots a bad name
10-I Miss You Here And Everywhere ©2021 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
you wouldn't guess it but i miss you so
you seem so far away and even though
we barely speak when we're both there
i miss you here and everywhere
it's late at night and i'm somewhere else
you're asleep and the story tells
A man who's world is crystal clear
i miss you here and everywhere
Over the mountain on virgin snow
Along the cliffs where the sea birds go
There’s so much distance, you’re still so near
i miss you here and everywhere
how can i tell you what i feel
the words serve only to conceal
i lack the courage to declare
i miss you here and everywhere
the wind howls outside the rain is gone
the smell of dead leaves remains strong
the seasons burn and love is rare
i miss you here and everywhere
11- I Didn’t go to Woodstock ©2019 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
I didn’t go to Woodstock, there was no way to get through
I’ve never been arrested for anything I didn’t do
I never was a hippie though I traveled with a few
When the highways closed I went to work, like they told me to
You’re not goin’ to Woodstock, my boss sat me down
We’re not gonna cover it, we need you downtown
That’s where there’s a biker gang and just the other night
They went into a Latin bar, and it turned into a fight
I went to see the biker gang they had a password at the door
I was carrying a bottle, we sat down on the floor
The head man took a swig passed it to me and said Now you
When it comes back the other way, you take a drink then too
They passed the bottle back and forth, I took a drink each time
Two for every one of theirs I was feeling pretty fine
I went back to the office typed out everything they said
Passed out in the bathroom, wishing I was dead
I didn’t go to Woodstock but to the downtown bar
I showed the man my fake Id, he said get on outa hyar
Outside two gangs were squaring off just when the cops arrived
They lobbed in a tear gas canister, and then a dog bit some guy
Oh you didn’t go to Woodstock but you heard Joni’s song
You couldn’t go to Woodstock, you weren’t even born
I went back to the bar at midnight just as I turned 21
Happy birthday said the man, he knew I was on the run
I didn’t go to Woodstock, go ahead, say it loud
No one went there anymore, there was too much of a crowd
I never was a hippie even when I tried
I wasn’t there at Woodstock, but the dream never died
12-When We Were Kings © Cliff Eberhardt/HankSr Music (BMI)
Well I wonder how you felt that night when you stumbled up the ladder
with excuses in your pocket I guess it doesn't matter
You never thought I listened to your stories and your fables
but I watched while Rome was burning in the ashtray on your table
You made your way to the stage but the barroom was your calling
you promoted and alerted all to the timeline of your falling
you didn't want my sympathy what you was wanted was a witness
to all the ones who turned their backs and the level of your brilliance
When we were kings we thought we'd live forever
but the devil doesn't care if you are smart or if you're clever
You thought you had fooled us hiding in your fortress
You had a secret lover: the bottle was your mistress
I will always hold you close to me your memory is persistent
I tell the stories of the good days keep the bad ones at a distance
I don't question our friendship I never question that I miss you
But I wonder why you turned away from all the dreams you had that came true
When we were kings the whole world lay before us
but we couldn't see the trees for we were standing in the forest
We thought that we had seen it all but we didn't know a thing
But the emperor always had new clothes back when we were kings
When we were kings we thought we'd live forever
but the devil doesn't care if you are smart or if you're clever
We thought that we had seen it all but we didn't know a thing
Still I wonder how you felt that night
back when we were kings
13-Smallpox © 2022 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
If You Know Who was Governor a hundred years ago
He’d have stood up for our freedom, don’t ya know
You wouldn’t have to be vaccinated and let me just say
It’s a shame we don’t have smallpox today.
Yes it’s a shame we don’t have smallpox today
There was no one with the courage to stand in the way
When we all got vaccinated and the disease went away
It’s a shame we don’t have smallpox today.
Let’s pay tribute to the wisdom and intentions of the man
Who sues the feds on behalf of all the parents in the land
So their 6-year old can go to school and sneeze all around
And not have to wear a mask or get a needle in the arm
The Governor stands for freedom, we can all agree
His freedom to tell schools they can’t teach as they please
And his freedom to tell employers they can’t let their employees
Protect their own workplace from infectious disease
Or his freedom to tell the health department they can’t count the dead
Or his freedom to name a health director who’s out of his head
Or his freedom to tell the voters all the ways their votes are gone
Or his freedom to tell women their bodies aren’t their own
Or his freedom to tell cities they can’t pass their own laws
Or his freedom to tell the legislature the maps they can’t draw
Unless they guarantee him victory and just in case that smells
His freedom to fire everyone and count the votes himself
Yes it’s a shame we don’t have smallpox today
But you can have our Governor he’s coming your way
He’s running for President and you’d better not say Gay
It’s a shame we don’t have smallpox today
14-if i Was President ©2016 Rod MacDonald & Elliot MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
oh if was president I’d make sure all the money was spent
and all the jobs were loaded and nobody paid any rent
oh if I was president
oh if I was president I’d line you all up at the fence
and say if you don’t recycle there will be a consequence
oh if I was president
yeah if I was president if I was president
I’d need to have some super power to fly over the tallest tower
and all with your consent
if I was president
oh if I was president I’d tell my intelligence
find out what is going on and make it your defense
oh if I was president
oh if I was president you’d wonder where it all went
that air that was unfit to breathe til it was clean again
oh if I was president
yeah if I was president if I was president
I’d tell the truth in every way, I mean I’d mean everything I’d say
and say everything I meant
if I was president
oh if I was president I would pardon all my friends
and everyone would love me and never want it to end
oh if I was president
15-King Of Tomorrow ©2018 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
/I’m the guy who was always going to be someone, and
I’m the guy who always knew which way to go, and
I’m the guy who was always going to take a stand, oh but
all I am is the king of tomorrow
I’m the guy who was going to show you how it’s done, and
I’m the guy who knew all there was to know, and
i'm the guy who was always there to make you smile, oh but
all the while I'm the king of tomorrow
and if tomorrow never comes i'll keep on learning today
to give you all my love in every way, ‘cause
i'm the guy who tried every trick under the sun, and
i'm the guy who couldn't wait to take it slow, and
i'm the guy who didn't get a thing done today, oh but
that's ok i'm the king of tomorrow
i'm the guy'd who'd give you everything you desire
i'm the guy who's always dreamed more than you know
i'm the guy who didn't set the world on fire today
ah but that's ok i'm the king of tomorrow
i'm the guy who always knew the best was yet to come, and
i'm the guy who never heard that lonesome whistle blow, and
i'm the guy who will never give up this fight, oh but
that's all right I'm the king of tomorrow
16-Six Feet Away ©2020 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
There’s a man six feet away, he’s laughing and pointing at me
He says I have fallen for a hoax, a conspiracy
To wear a mask, he says, infringes on his rights
It’s all about freedom, he says, there in the checkout line
you may be right I say, I don’t have all the answers
and if you are I’ll look foolish and have wasted my time
but if you’re wrong a lot of people are going to die tomorrow
freedom goes both ways my friend, I’m exercising mine
There’s a whole political party that says there’s no global warming
They have their own tv network to tell them it’s all a joke
And their guy calls me a tree hugger for the electric car I’m driving
And climbs down from his monster truck in a big blue cloud of smoke
You may be right, I say, I don’t know the future
and if you are I missed my chance to make that engine whine
but if you’re wrong people are going to lose their homes and families
freedom goes both ways my friend, I’m exercising mine
Jesse James rode the trails across the wide Missouri
and he only put a mask on to go into a bank
he aleays took it off when somebody bought him dinner
and he never put it on again til somebody said thanks
Bubba Beergut on the corner with his AK-47
Says taking my guns away ain’t gonna save those kids in school
It’s my freedom to show up anywhere carrying anything I want to
If you’re not carrying nowadays, well, you’re nothin’ but a fool
You may be right, I say, but I will still be working
To walk the streets without you threatening me or my kind
And if you’re wrong, we could save a lot of kids from dying
freedom goes both ways my friend, I’m exercising mine
17-The Trapper In This Town © 2014 Rod MacDonald/Blue Flute Music (ASCAP)
i am the trapper in this town
i get up in the morning when the sun comes ‘round
i like to catch at least ten pounds a week of hare and rabbit
i got me a single-action gun
a hunting knife too, now and that’s good fun
i can skin a rabbit while he’s on the run but i don’t make it a habit
my pa he’s got him a real good job
he’s makin’ little nails out of iron rods
he puts the shoes on the horses’ hooves so the horses they can get around
he and ma they got seven kids
so he don’t mind it or he keeps it hid
if i bring home dinner swingin’ on a stick
i am the trapper in this town
i had a girl was a trapper too
she caught herself a rabbit and a small raccoon
neither of us knew just what to do, we didn’t want to shoot it or bring it in
he scratched and hissed but he would no beg
so we opened up the jaws with a wooden peg
that coon ran off on three good legs and that girl never went with me again
well that’s all right but if the truth be told
i miss her in the winter when my hands get cold
but hey i’m just sixteen years old there’s lots of pretty girls around
so if you see somebody walkin’ down the street
with a couple of critters lookin’ good to eat
that’ll be me ‘cause i repeat
i am the trapper in this town
every monday afternoon about two
the ice and meat wagons come rumblin’ through
my mama buys chicken, mutton too takes it home on a big ol’ block of ice
come friday mornin’ that roast is done
that stew is over, my mom says son
i was lookin for meat and it was gonecan you find me something nice
well, i get up early and i make my rounds
i’m late for school and the teacher pounds
her fist and says “you’ll never amount to a thing the way you’re goin’”
so i brought the teacher home for a meal
she sat between my sisters like some big deal
she says “hey this tastes just like veal”
i am the trapper in this town