Get all 93 Bill Mallonee releases available on Bandcamp and save 20%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of WELCOME TO STRUGGLEVILLE (Remaster by Pete Lyman) 2024, Comes To Life (New single released March 14th, 2024), GLIMMER Spring 2024 (demos are back up for 2 days), NORTH, SOUTH, EAST, & WEST, ABOVE, BELOW & WITHIN (single from Orphan Songs), HERE IT OPENS WITH A PRAYER, BUT IT CLOSES WITH A SONG (2022), A CLAMORING OF GHOSTS (2021), THE LOT OF EVERYMAN (a free download today), STUNNED (an anniversary song), and 85 more.
Excludes supporter-only releases.
1. |
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YOU MIGHT HAVE TO TRUST ME ON THIS ONE
words/music: bill mallonee
there is nothing but confusion trying to state her case
and i do not have the blade
to cut to the chase
and the edits left a lot of holes and my how they seemed forced
and plot's disintegrating as a i veer of course
chorus:
you might have to trust me on this one
but who am i to say
nothing ever falls out the way it's s'ppose to
from the desert of despair to garden in full bloom
underneath, underneath
inside of you
well, you know i would not blame you. oh, far be that from me
i could never point a finger
since i have never gotten free
there's no resistance i can register
to counter such a front
for these weeds in inside the furnace
of my blue sky summer heart
my dreams have all but vanished and i barely knew their names
could be they simply could not get their breath
but i'll miss them just the same
confusion strokes my hair and leans in for a kiss
and my fingers? they have found the blade
to dispatch her with
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2. |
GRINDSTONE FLOOR
05:02
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ONTO THIS GRINDSTONE FLOOR words/music: bill mallonee
20 years down and some change thrown 'round
while i was learning how to rob
held the treasures all up to the spotlight
shoulda been getting outta Dodge
shoulda found me a girl & a warm fire
but nothing ever felt like home
20 years down some change thrown down
onto the grindstone floor
Yes, sometimes it felt like dying
but it felt more like a birth
just put the money in the bag
and nobody gets hurt
give it all to the man whose busted & poor
tip the waitress as you walk out that door
20 years down and some change thrown 'round
onto this grindstone floor
Now, fame & fortune don't measure a man
but it sure is a good game
whatever gets split vs. whatever gets lost
well, y'always know just who to blame
we're all just debtors rollin' loaded dice
waitin' for the score
20 years down and some change thrown round
onto this grindstone floor
bridge:
you can get yourself good and ready
for the last long ride
but all trails, they lead to the desert but
that's not the worse place to hide
Baby, you learn to sing in eulogies
cause it's the one size that fits all
you tell the living how the dead are missed
and you'll never lack for a job
everyday we die a lil' bit more
and when the words go south, well, that's what the string sections are for
20 years down and some change thrown 'round
onto this grindstone floor
20 years down
20 years down
20 years down
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3. |
ALL OUT IN THE CLEAR
04:52
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ALL OUT IN THE CLEAR words/music: bill mallonee
CHORUS:
nothing left to lose...nothing left to fear
nothing left to prove...all out in the clear
all out in the clear
all the tapes will be erased
the ones inside your skull
the ones that made ya' feel disgraced
the ones that made you feel so small
all the trinkets that you bought
every scene & every clique
all you cobbled together
to define yourself with
every mask you ever wore
every image you portrayed
every lie that you put forth
it'll all just fall away
fall away like an old suit
wash off like cheap cologne
like an old coat you discarded
threadbare to the bone
and everyone you ever hated
everyone that you reviled
everyone that you berated
you may yet, be reconciled
every wall that you erected
every line drawn in the sand
all those convictions you protected
wrapped up in prayers and flags
one day you'll meet somebody
well beyond the sea
and you'll shake hands with your true self
and you'll like what you see
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4. |
HEART~SHAPED KID
05:07
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HEART-SHAPED KID by: bill mallonee
so many things mold me & you
power, money & fear to name a few
and the idols of the age wanna piece of you
But you got a heart-shaped life, my friend
cause you’re a heart-shaped kinda kid
always seeing beneath.......the skin
chorus:
It’s a world that’ll show it’s teeth
but you said: “well, it’s gotta a lot to keep hid.”
Sa’ kinda thing you’d expect to hear
From a heart~shaped kid
you said: “try not to count the costs
it’ll all come out in the wash
get over that ledger sheet
of won and lost.
It’s easy for ‘em to drift far from shore
til they’re all caught in the undertow”
and when that old world sighed
you felt it in your bones
Now count Basie, he was really a King
88 keys and he made ‘em all swing
and the world, for a moment, was a Cotton Club dream
Satchmo blew a single note
s’all it took...s’all she wrote
and the hearts on that dance floor
became new & clean
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5. |
DEAR TO YOUR HEART
04:17
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DEAR TO YOUR HEART words/music: bill mallonee
Now i loved the land and i loved the sky
And the dreamers who'd pass by my door
i needed those dreams & I needed their dreamin'
and i needed those story they told
chorus:
pull on your boots...roll up your sleeves
you live out of a place that's on bended knee
step out into the sunshine...and before you depart
kiss all who are dear to your heart
kiss all who are dear to your heart
verses 2 & 3
a world of wonders...since i opened my eyes
writ large in the passing of seasons
and the thieves who speak violence and the preachers of fear
well that all flew in the face of reason
we're blind folks reading the braille of our heart
we're all spies breaking codes everyday
sooner or later it comes down to love
received then given away
verse 4
through all of the haze of our dime-store days
we spend hard on what little remains
But Love is a miner with his eye fixed on you
and there's gold deep inside of your veins
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6. |
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ONTO THIS GRINDSTONE FLOOR words/music: bill mallonee
20 years down and some change thrown 'round
Me? I was learning how to rob
held the treasures all up to the spotlight
shoulda been getting outta Dodge
shoulda found me a girl & a warm fire
but nothing ever felt like home
20 years down some change thrown down
onto the grindstone floor
Yes, sometimes it felt like dying
but it felt more like a birth
just put the money in the bag
and nobody gets hurt
give it all to the man whose poor
tip the bartender as you walk out that door
20 years down and some change thrown 'round
onto this grindstone floor
Now, fame & fortune don't measure a man
but it sure is a good game
whatever gets split vs. whatever you lose
well, y'always know who to blame
we're all just debtors rollin' loaded dice
waiting for the score
20 years down and some change thrown round
onto this grindstone floor
bridge
you can get yourself good and ready
for the last long ride
but all trails, they lead to the desert
and that's not the worse place to hide
Baby, you learn to sing in eulogies
cause it's the one size that fits all
you tell the living how much the dead are missed
and you'll never lack for a job
everyday we die a lil' bit more
and when the words go south, well, that's what the string sections are for
20 years down and some change thrown 'round
onto this grindstone floor
20 years down
20 years down
20 years down
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Bill Mallonee
Bill Mallonee is an Americana artist w/ 80 plus albums over a 30 year career. Voted by Paste Music Magazine #65 in their
"Top 100 Living Songwriters" poll. He was the
founding member of Vigilantes of Love. He has worked with Mark Heard, Buddy Miller, Emmylou Harris, & Peter Buck from REM.
His most recent work, "Lead On, Kindly Light" is a 23song double Cd released Feb 2020.
... more
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