Lyrics & Clips

OIL AND WATER            MP3
Ron Sowell and Jon Wikstrom
Story Circle Music

You sit in the kitchen
Blowing rings at the ceiling
Licking your wounds
Searching your feeling
Hell has no spite
Like the fury of a lover's fight
Defending the fears we are concealing

CHORUS
Oil and water
Tell me what should I do
Oil and water
Leave or see it through
Oil and water
This is breaking our hearts
We keep coming together
And drifting apart
Like oil and water

Upstairs in my room
Trying not to cry
Saying I don't care
Knowing it's a lie
Our difference was our strength
But it's pushed us to the brink
One step more
Do we fall or fly

CHORUS

UPWARDLY MOBILE LOVE            MP3
Ron Sowell
Story Circle Music

She was tanned and beautifully accessorized
In her Gucci blouse, jeans and heels
She had aerobics class six days a week
She had buns that were made of steel

She had an MBA from UCLA
A job with the Fortune Five
She chased away her blues
With a Carnival Cruise
And a trip to Club Med on the side

He was fresh out of school
Knocking down 50 thou'
Before he even paid any dues
He had a Turbo Z and big screen TV
And a closet full of LL Bean shoes

He wore power ties, took power naps
Talked to his broker from the phone in his car
Never left home without his gold Express
His Visa or his Master Card

CHORUS
It was an upwardly mobile romance
Beneath an upwardly mobile moon
The DJ played, they danced the night away
To an upwardly mobile tune
Just two upwardly mobile climbers
Reaching for the rung up above
Upwardly mobile romance
Upwardly mobile love

She was instantly attracted
By the bulge of the wallet in his pants
She thought right away
If he's not married or gay
I think I'll give him a chance

So she flipped her hair
With her left hand
Recrossed her legs and smiled
The international sign
For throw me a line, make your move
Let's see some style

He said I think you're beautiful baby
Let's do lunch where we can be seen
Have your people call my people
Have your machine leave a message on my machine

Let's exchange resumes
Blood tests and a credit scan
And I'll fax you and you fax me
If everything goes as planned

CHORUS

It was a marriage made for the papers
Yves St. Laurent meets Pierre Cardin
Her daddy paid to share their wedding day
With five hundred intimate friends
Expensive gifts, a honeymoon in France
All in all it was quite a show
Happily they lived ever after that
At least for a month or so

CHORUS

THE BEST FRIEND I EVER HAD            MP3
Ron Sowell
Story Circle Music
(Lovingly Dedicated to Sodapup from Sally)

Whenever I would have one of those days
When nothing in the world would go my way
You were my saving grace
A sloppy kiss upon my face
You could lift my spirits
And make it all ok

Oh Sunday afternoon when the weather turned lame
We'd curl up on the couch and watch the rain
There was no place you would rather be
Than right there with me
Content to share my joy or my pain

CHORUS
No words were needed
One hug and the blues were defeated
In your eyes I felt completed
Being with you made me glad
You were the best friend I ever had
You were the best friend I ever had

If I tried to leave the house
You would put on a show
Cause anywhere I went
You had to go
So off down the road again
Pals through thick and thin
Ready for trouble me and my shadow

CHORUS
No words were needed
One hug and the blues were defeated
In your eyes I felt completed
Without you I feel sad
You were the best friend
A once in a lifetime friend
You were the best friend I ever had

ANGRY MAN            MP3
Jon Wikstrom and Ron Sowell
Story Circle Music BMI

You give him all your love
You get yours from the kids
You know just how it's done
It's what your momma did

You say it's only the booze
When the meanness falls like rain
You smile and excuse
Behind a mask of pain

CHORUS
You take it like a woman
Survive the best you can
Another day in your life
With an angry man
Another day in your life
With an angry man

He can knock you around
Without raising a hand
But you're black and blue
'Cause he does that too

You've got wounds full of salt
And children so sad
And it's always your fault
You shouldn't make him so mad

CHORUS

BRIDGE
You know you've got to leave
But you've got no place to go
He's left you nothing to believe

Too afraid and ashamed
To even raise your voice
You didn't know that a man
Could be a life and death choice

CHORUS

SIXTEEN TONS            MP3
Merle Travis
Unichappel Music/Elvis Presley BMI

Some people say a man
Is made out of mud
A poor man's made
Out of muscle and blood

Muscle and blood
Skin and bone
A mind that's weak
A back that's strong

CHORUS
You load sixteen tons
What do you get
Another day older
And deeper in debt
St. Peter don't you call me
Cause I can't go
I owe my soul
To the company store

I was born one mornin'
When the sun did not shine
I picked up my shovel
Walked straight to the mine

Loaded sixteen tons
Of number nine coal
The straw boss said
Well bless my soul

CHORUS

I was born one morning
In the drizzlin' rain
Fightin' and trouble
Are my middle names

I was raised in a cave
By an old mamma lion
Ain't no high tone woman
Make me walk the line

CHORUS

If you see me comin'
You better step aside
A lot of men didn't
And a lot of men died

I got one fist of iron
The other of steel
If the right one don't get you
The left one will

CHORUS

WHY CAN'T WHITE BOYS DANCE?            MP3
Ron Sowell
Story Circle Music BMI

Snowed in in Chicago
On my way to see a friend
The midnight flight was cancelled
They put me up in a Holiday Inn
Too late to go downtown
Too early to turn in

So I followed the arrows to the lounge
Where the band was gettin' it on
Grabbed a drink, pulled up a seat
Just like a young Don Juan
Slicked back my hair, tried to prepare
For what was to come

There were double knitted conventioneers
In patent leather shoes
Intoxicated salesmen
In white tie, white belt, white shoes
Hustling AWOL housewives
In two tone tacky jumpsuits

BRIDGE
The Gals were girlishly
Whirling dervishly
Pictures of rhythm and rhyme
Guys were moving
Spasmodically grooving
In and out of time
Try as they might on their feet
To be light
White boys just can't dance

CHORUS
Why can't white boys dance
Why can't white boys dance
When they're given a chance
Why can't white boys dance

One guy was flailing wildly
Like a raging bull in heat
Epileptically jerking
His elbows, hips and knees
Frantic on his feet
But not to the beat

Another was catatonic
With moves so measured and small
His jitterbug was statuesque
His shimmy slowed to a stall
If he wasn't supposed to be dancing
You'd swear he wasn't moving at all

There was a big city bruiser
An off duty cruiser
With muscles of concrete
A real lion hearter
Stomping his partner
With random rambling feet
A graceless Attila
I hope he don't kill a
Lady so petite

BRIDGE

CHORUS

TIME FOR THE HOMELESS TO COME HOME            MP3
Ron Sowell
Story Circle Music

Billy had a birthday
No candles no cake
No presents no party
No friends to celebrate

Six years old
Is no fun for a boy
When his Mom and Dad
Are unemployed

He should be in the backyard
Playing baseball
Not collecting cans
Behind a bar
He should be riding bikes
With his best pal
Not living in the back seat
Of a car

Doris never got rich
Never had it made
Married to her work
Teaching music was her trade

When she retired
She fell between the cracks
Lost her way
Never made it back

She should be singing
Playing the piano
Not searching through the dumpster
For something to eat
She should be sitting writing a letter
Not walking the night
With swollen feet

CHORUS
And it's time for our hearts
To be known
Time for our love to be shown
Time for the weary
To know they're not alone
Time for the homeless to come home
Time for the homeless to come home

Gary went to college
He was born to lead
Charming and good looking
Most likely to succeed

His friends were shocked
When the bullet took his mind
Who'd have thought
That he'd try suicide

He could use some clean clothes
And a shower
He's not a psycho
He just looks wild

If he had a shave and a haircut
You'd see that he's no madman
He's a child

Mary has a family
Eight, six and three
She's always had to work hard
So many mouths to feed

She got laid off
When the factory closed
Lost her house
Everything she owned

She should be tucking
Her kids in their own beds
Not sheltering with strangers
For the night
They should be in their own kitchen
Eating breakfast
Not standing in line
She has her pride

CHORUS

BRIDGE
Does it make sense
In this land of plenty
That some have so much
And others haven't any

CHORUS

I'M IN DEBT            MP3
Jane Voss
Obscure Origins Music BMI

Well come hear my tale of woe
Cause I've got no place to go
Because everywhere I look
I see somebody that I owe

CHORUS
I'm in debt
Down deep in over my head
I'm in debt
Down deep in over my head

It was nothing that I bargained for
It was not in my plan
But lately little by little
Things have got out of hand

And now the ground that I'm standing on
Is shaking under me
It's a quagmire I'm caught in
Being dragged down deeper into debt

CHORUS

I wish I had ten dollars now for
Every time I heard it said
If you keep on working hard
You're bound to get ahead

But I can see where I'm gettin
I've been taken for a ride
I put my best foot forward and slide
Deeper into debt

CHORUS

Now I can't make any headway
I can't hold on to a cent
Because before it's even in my hand
The dough's already spent

My cash flow is negative
I've got no safety net
There ain't nothing goin' down
Except for me
Goin' deeper into debt

CHORUS

I don't know what I'm gonna do
I struggle on in vain
Just keeping up with my upkeep
Is driving me insane
Well I might think that I've
Hit bottom but in case there is room for doubt
You know the bottoms falling out
And I'm goin' down
Deeper into debt

CHORUS

ENCORE            MP3
Ron Sowell
Story Circle Music

For the past few months
You've been masking your feelings
Like an actress
Reciting your lines
Inside secretly leaving
Outside pretending fine

Last night the curtain fell
On the final score
Your performance
Reduced me to tears
Parting words
Eloquent epitaph
Practiced tones
Rehearsed for years

CHORUS
Encore, Roses
The critics rant and rave
Offers pour in from everywhere
For your next part
In your next play

BRIDGE
Congratulations to the leading man
He was convincing to the end
I never knew until the final scene
He was more than a friend
More than a friend

CHORUS

TOWN OF THE LIVING DEAD            MP3
Ron Sowell
Story Circle Music BMI

The year was 1930
Hard times were at hand
The great depression
No work for the mountain man

The wheels stopped turning
At the factories
The mines shut down
And the coal trains ceased

A man toiled hard
Just to make ends meet
Still the kids cried out
For something to eat

In Fayette County
On a rocky ridge
Down by the New River
In a town called Gauley Bridge

Bold plans were hatched
To assemble a crew
To cut a hole in the mountain
And let the river through

A tunnel four miles long
And sixty feet wide
A thing like that
Had never been tried

So the call went out
For miles around
The company was hiring
There were jobs to be found

We walked, we hitched
We hopped the trains
A thousand more
And still we came

In just a few days
It did not take long
There we stood
Two thousand strong

CHORUS
Some were old and some were young
Some had names that would twist the tongue
Some were white and some were black
But most of us never came back
From the town of the living dead
Town of the living dead
Town of the living dead

The big drills turned
And the mountain gave away
To our steady digging
Both night and day

The bosses smiled
And the critics shut up
Till we struck a seam
Of pure silica

Then the air turned white
A storm from hell
I heard a gasp
As the first man fell

Then like flies
We dropped one by one
So they carried us out
And laid us in the sun

But when breath returned
To the ghostly mob
The boss said go back
If you want to keep your job

So back we went
Into the void
We were sick and scared
But we were employed

Months rolled by
A mile into the rock
When we got our first visit
From the company Doc

He said boys don't worry
You're not that ill
You're just got tunnelitis
And gave us little black pills

But no pills would work
For if the truth were known
Our lungs like the mountain
Were turning into stone

CHORUS

Every morning it took courage
Just to get out of bed
Our lungs were on fire
Our bodies moved like lead

When a man couldn't work
A new man took his place
We continued to fall
They continued the pace

Rumors flew
Sounded an alarm
In Washington
A committee was formed

An inspector was sent
But on the day that he came
They poured water on the drill
And the dust was tamed

Wetting the drill
Settled the sleet
But it took too long
And there were deadlines to meet

The inspector left
They drove us on
Two miles of earth
Twelve months were gone

Then two men died
On the very same day
The wagons came
And carried them away

When morning came
They took two more
And after a month
We just stopped keeping score

Like seeds they were planted
Two or three to a hole
In a shallow trench
With a cornstalk gravestone

CHORUS

Now the water flows
Where the mountain had been
To the power plant
Where the turbines spin

My rocking chair squeaks
As I sit next to my wife
And I wonder why
God has spared my life

Fifteen hundred men
Paid with their lives
To buy fur coats
For the company wives

They count their money
We strain for breath
They plan their future
We pray for death

CHORUS

MOTHER EARTH BLUES            MP3
Ron Sowell and Jon Wikstrom
Story Circle Music BMI

Now, listen here kids
I've been watching your behavior
And I'm not amused
You act like you own the planet
But I think you're confused
You see, you weren't even in diapers
When I saw her give the dinosaurs
Their walking shoes
Take it from Father Time
Mother Earth has got the blues

You dumped crude in the ocean
Stripped the jungle of its trees
Punched a hole in the ozone
Drove the animals to their knees
I've not seen her this upset
Since maybe the Deluge
Take it from Father Time
Mother Earth has got the blues

BRIDGE

You want more beach front property?
Hey, that can be arranged
How about a nice long stretch
At the foot of the Rocky Mountain range?
Weather getting too warm?
Afraid of a drought?
Another Ice Age just might chill things out
You're laughing. You think she
Wouldn't do you that way?
Seems like I heard that once before
Back in old Pompeii...

For the last hundred years
I've heard every excuse
But what we've got here
Is a case of first degree planet abuse
You better come to your senses
You've got everything to lose
Take it from Father Time
Mother Earth has got the blues

TAG
You're got everything to gain
And everything to lose
Take it from Father Time
Mother Earth has got the blues

I tell you she's really upset
I mean, how would you like it
If someone punched a hole in your ozone?
You'd better watch it
You'll be filing a missing species report
I mean, she's going to send you right back
To the primordial ooze!
I tell you, she's got the blues
Mmm, that could be bad news
Oh, when Mother Earth gets the blues
When Mother Earth gets the blues