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State of the Union

by The Rivergods

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Doug Braun
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Doug Braun Great release concert Friday night. You brought together many great friends and fans to enjoy the music creations you all do together so well. Bless your strengths of talent together to create great music enjoyment. May it be found by new listeners. Great success going forward!!
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1.
Jubilee 04:18
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Trucks on the highway on a rainy old Monday Shipping their wares to some foreign city All I know is that I used to like dancing Now C major is just any old key It used to be that we were much closer Our lives had a steadfast opacity Once in a while I can get myself going now But that big picture's getting harder to see Some think marriage the most perfect union I say careful it can it you in three One part hope, one part abandon One part eventuality Maybe it's time we got going Try the geographic cure 'Cause I'm not down with sticking around Beating that horse Just to be sure See those windmills spinning in the foothills Green grass and tarmac stretching out to the Bay Let's make the most of this quotidian folly Hold each other like its all okay Jubilee... All is forgiven All is not lost Jubilee...
2.
New Emperors 04:17
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NEW EMPERORS When the slot machines rang We were singing in tune Rolling in laughter Over the moon Nothing could stop The trail of treasure and tears We lived like new emperors We danced in the aisles Doubled-down on our bets Played it for smiles Nothing felt better Than not having to feel for a while Where'd the money go? Now that it's gone You're looking at me Like I should have known more Where'd the money go? Nobody knows for sure There's a card that you play When you're down on your luck You look both ways twice And then you say... You're not the only one With nothing to lose in this game Because sometimes you win More often you lose You can say it's misfortune Or call it the blues Maybe it's just the way Things were meant to play out Where'd the money go? Now that it's gone You keep looking at me Like I should have known more You're not the only one With nothing to lose in this game Where'd the money go? Damned if I know There's some things That we both didn't wanna let go Where'd the money go? Nobody knows for sure We threw back the drinks Never heard the last call Floated free down that river Barrelled over the falls Hit the bottom hard Blew the whole thing apart Now that you're on the wagon It's back to the grind And every other cliché You can finger and find To help you move forward Away from the smoldering wreck Where'd the money go? Now that it's gone You keep looking at me Like I should have known more You're not the only one With nothing to lose in this game Where'd the money go? Damned if I know There's some things That we both didn't wanna let go Where'd the money go? Nobody knows for sure
3.
It's Up to You 02:54
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IT'S UP TO YOU Oh, if you listen, you might hear The sound of your own voice Breaking through the crowd And giving you a choice You can take what they will give you Or you can wander your own road Learn the songs they teach you Or make up one of your own! It's up to you (it's up to you) No one else needs to approve Find a path to follow That means something to you It's up to you (it's up to you) No one else will do it for you Listen to your own voice, Don't let them drown you out Now I have always wandered Never truly found my way But I understand the journey Is much longer than today It may take a thousand steps And then another thousand more But the path that I am on Was never walked before! CHORUS When I get up the mountain I'll look back down and say There was no single truth There was no easy way To recognize my reason Had to cover all that ground To finally find my freedom I had to unwind what I had bound! CHORUS
4.
Churches 03:39
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CHURCHES I've been to old churches I've been to new churches I've been to some churches Too blind to believe I've been to red churches I've been to blue churches When I went to no church It was then I did see Now I've seen a man With a book in his hand He's telling the people What they should believe Only men can be leaders Women can't have choices There's rules to the kingdom And we hold the keys CHORUS Now I've seen a man With a gun in his hand Quoting from scripture With God-given might I see another one Reads from a different book That assures him the same thing: "You're wrong, and I'm right" CHORUS Now I've seen some men Groups of believers Fighting and fussing About their homes in the sky Gotta keep order Keep people from thinking They'll want the same thing Start questioning why CHORUS Now it's always some man Setting up boundaries Divide 'em and conquer Read 'em and weap Every creature on this earth Only wants its freedom You can't rule the order If you can't keep the peace CHORUS
5.
Angel's Face 04:59
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ANGEL'S FACE Alright, okay, you win Alright, okay, you win Try as I might I can't turn the darkness into light Try as I may I can't make the feeling go away So I wait and I wait Desperately humming along Pray that an angel's face Comes and lights the way home Alright, okay, you win Alright, okay, you win Try to be true Do all the things that I should do Try to believe Something soon will come to my relief CHORUS Alright, okay, you win Alright, okay, you win Pay what I owe Better to be above ground than below Get what I give Remember what it takes to keep on living CHORUS
6.
Station Down the Line 04:29
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STATION DOWN THE LINE If I can just remember That's all part of a plan Remember to remember It's all out of my hands Truth or coincidence No one knows for sure But come light or darkness There's time to even up the score Don't leave me hanging here Dried up on the vine Just keep me moving toward That station down the line If I can just convince my eyes Of the beauty all around Believe in what I can't see All that matters is right now Don't leave me hanging here Dying on the vine Just keep me moving toward... How I long to see The light beyond the clouds Right now I need to hear The words come from your mouth And I'll believe Don't leave me hanging here Dried up on the vine Just keep me moving toward That station down the line
7.
Early Birds (Something for Me) 03:51
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EARLY BIRDS (SOMETHING FOR ME) Maybe I will never sleep Have to be content to keep on dreaming Of something that might never be Something that's just out of reach Wishing won't make it true It doesn't bring me back to you It's just something that might never be It's just something that you'll never see Time might tell us differently For now it seems like an eternity Just give me something, something please That I can hold, that I can release Something real, some kind of peace Just give me something, something for me There's a sound outside the window All the little creatures stirring They know something we don't know They know what to keep, and what to let go Wishing things were somehow different Pining away for another chance It don't change the master plan It doesn't bring you back again Time might tell us differently For now it seems like an eternity Give me something, something please That I can hold, that I can release Something real, some kind of peace Just give me something, something for me Time might tell us differently For now it seems like an eternity Give me something, something please That I can hold, that I can release Something real, some kind of peace Just give me something, something for me Just give me something, something for me Just give me something, something for me Just give me something, something for me Just give me something, something for me
8.
Ratchet 04:36
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RATCHET Ratchet me up Wind me back down Pull up the covers You'll come around Lght a candle Let's play the game Tonight Open your drawer Lift up the tin Take out your day planner Pencil me in It's high time We make the case For love We've been tethered A couple of years Lets do something To settle our fears  Once and for all Acetylene Like a burning torch Won't you make the walk, mama Across my front porch Gonna get intense We'll swing for the fence  Tonight CHORUS Come to my doorway Throw me a line Read me a chapter It'll all be fine Drop what you’re doing You've been busy Working overtime The shape of your cello, mama The small of your back Keep you around For another heart attack... Alright! CHORUS
9.
Dress Like a Poet 03:25
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DRESS LIKE A POET Is there more to be seen More to be gleaned When you're dressed like a poet? Dressed like a poet It's not how you look, It's how you look at things When you're dressed like a poet Dressed like a poet Do the feelings last longer Is the beat a little stronger? When you're dressed like a poet Dressed like a poet Are the colors all brighter The world more exciting? When you're dressed like a poet Dressed like a poet Yeah! Now I've got the answers I know all the dances When I'm dressed like a poet Dressed like a poet If you've got the time I'll spin you a rhyme When I'm dressed like a poet Dressed like a poet I quote Keats and Yeats and Meredith When I'm dressed like a poet Dressed like a poet I can feel my feelings With the best of them When I'm dressed like a poet Dressed like a poet Put on your autumn coat Let's take a stroll Out in the nighttime air Hold my hand, love The future's just a hop from here QUOTED LINES FROM G 'N' R: "I've been walking the streets at night Just trying to get it right It's hard to see with so many around You know I don't like being stuck in the ground And the streets don't change, but baby the names I ain't got time for the games 'Cause I need you, ooh ooh yeah, I need you..." ...to dress like a poet! Dress like a poet Dress like a poet Dress like a poet Dress like a poet
10.
Lost on You 04:08
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LOST ON YOU A thousand missed chances Words flying past your ear Across the room and back glances Whispers you never hear Stories that are really worth telling Can't seem to find a way through Your so busy being busy It all gets lost on you Lost on you Lost on you It all gets lost on you Lost on you Lost on you It all gets lost on you You never really made the cut But somehow you always break your fall Now you have the gall to wonder Why you don't have it all You know you're driven by some fire Think that you can't lose That's just primitive desire But that's lost on you CHORUS Perhaps some greater lesson Will be left unlearned And as the flame smolders out I won't be the one burned You'll still be slithering around Snake-eyed, scrounging for pearls Stealing fruit off of the tree Like it's lost on you CHORUS
11.
New Traditional 05:22
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NEW TRADITIONAL Lord, you gotta get me through the day Lord, you gotta get me through the day Please won’t you take this pain away Lord, see me through to another day Please, won’t you take me by the hand Please, won’t you take me by the hand Lord, you got to help me understand Please, don’t you let go of my hand Lord, help me beat this demon down Lord, help me beat this demon down Look out, I can see him coming round Lord, help me put him underground See, I’m just beginning to see the light See, I’m just beginning to see the light Lord, you got to help me put things right Please, don’t you let me out of your sight Lord, you gotta get me through the day Lord, you gotta get me through the day Please won’t you take this pain away Lord, see me through to another day Oh, Lord, see me through to another day
12.
State of the Union 06:21
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STATE OF THE UNION I will never be young again I have no one to blame but myself There's a shadow flying over me Hawk, dove or something else? My children are just like me Young and headstrong, eager to fly Burn the nest like a pile of kindling Hope they know better sooner than I did The best that I can do What I have to say The most that I can offer you Is this... We will never be free again Don't even know what freedom means For your legs, they'll sell you a nightstand It'll hold the the flat screen of your dreams Right-wing lunatic flapping his gums Preying hard on the feeble and green Pundits preaching on the television Treat the poor like some social disease CHORUS 2X There just a bunch of tired old men Love addicts, one and all Can’t stay long, but don’t wanna miss out Make the scene for their curtain call You think you’d better use it or lose it I think you better just leave it alone 'Cause home-wrecking ain't recreation Pack your things and go on home CHORUS

about

The Rivergods

State of the Union

©2017 Good Sponge Records

credits

released January 31, 2017

Recorded October 14-16, 2016 at Pwop Studios, New London, CT
Carl Franklin, lead producer/engineer 

Vince Tuckwood, production assistant
Additional tracking Nov-Dec. 2016
Mixed and mastered December 2016 by Carl Franklin


Ben Parent - Vocals, electric & acoustic guitars, harmonica, whistling
Nancy Parent - Vocals, pedal steel, acoustic guitar, tambourine, whistling
Bil Groth - Piano, organ, glockenspiel, backing vocals
Chris DeBiasi - Drum kit, shaker

Dana Takaki - Violin
Mark Gehret - Bass
Tom Brown, USCG - Trumpet, piccolo trumpet

All songs words/music written by Ben Parent ©2017 except track 6 words by Ben Parent and music by Steve Elci. Track 9 contains brief homage to W. Axl Rose

Additional arrangements by Bil Groth, Nancy Parent, Tom Brown and the Rivergods.

Studio photos by Stephanie DeBiasi


Design by Good Sponge

Produced by Carl Franklin with Ben & Nancy Parent

Special thanks to our supportive families, friends, fans, and babysitters, venues, radio outlets and fellow artists that support us, and Dennis Walley for great sound and ongoing support.

For more on the Rivergods, visit www.therivergods.com or facebook.com/therivergods

Dedicated to James Velvet, who always believed in us.

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The Rivergods New London, Connecticut

The Rivergods are an original band based in southeastern CT that has played its own heartfelt harmony-rich folky/rootsy/rockish music (and occasionally others) since 1997. The Rivergods are fronted by husband/wife songwriters, Ben and Nancy Parent, and the band includes some of the finest, most talented players in the region. We have several albums out… available right here on Bandcamp! Enjoy. ... more

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