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An older song i wrote about mining in West Virginia.
It was years before the Massey Mine disaster of early 2010. I dunno why, but ever since i was young i've stood humbled and amazed with the "grace under pressure" work that folks give their hands to. Here's to heroes.

lyrics

1,000 Miles Off Year: 2005
Written by Bill Mallonee for CyBrenJoJosh (BMI)

what's it gonna take to set the record straight
the critics they're just dogs looking for a hydrant to piss on
what's it gonna take when ghosts are hard to shake
the harvest was a-waiting the sickle and the scythe
that cold and distant wind
that autumn's bringing in
i was waiting in the wings
for you to save me

that aggravating loose thread
the knotted thin line of hope
when your heart's grown far too used
to the scatter gun approach
and the walls are paneled
with the salvation prayers off the tv channel
it's bigger than you feared
those objects in your mind's side view mirror

It don't take a mathematician
to figure out the loss
hell you could see it coming from 1,000 miles off

i awoke to a voice i heard in the hall
sun illuminates a peeling paint kitchen wall
you're drinking whisky from a cup
that says i love grandma
that you bought at the space center
in Huntsville. Alabama
it was top down on a highway
of promises and trust
now the labor bosses they all cleared out
after boom there is the bust

never took a palm reader
to have foreseen the loss
hell you could see it coming from 1,000 miles off

and the eyes are downcast
like everybody else's here
and the secret's that you feel like shit
but don't say nothing dear
soil's lost its heart and the veins have all been cleared
and the blood ran out on that spur line of yesteryear
and there's no living it down
the camera crews and documentary
can barely scratch the surface
like we did the hills of west virginny

never took a prophet
to have foreseen the loss
hell you could see it coming from 1,000 miles off

credits

from Works (in) Progress Administration Vol. 8: Coal Dust Soul (released Jun. 2010), released June 9, 2010
Bill: guitars, vocals, organ, harp

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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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