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Solidago

by Chris Velan

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  • Compact Disc (CD)

    I recorded this album - over many burritos - at Mission Bells studio in San Francisco and released it in 2008. It was produced by the one and only Tim Bluhm of the Mother Hips - an incredible songwriter and performer as well as a gifted producer. David Simon-Baker, aka DSB, engineered it at MB and mixed the hell out of it at Laughing Tiger in Sausalito. I had such a blast making this record. I was joined by an illustrious gang of Bay Area/SoCal musicians: Adam Topol (drums), John Hofer (drums), Paul Hoaglin (bass), Jackie Greene (piano, organ), Dan Lebowitz (guitar), Nicki Bluhm (backing vocals), Sara Johnston (backing vocals), Tim Bluhm (guitar, backing vocals) and Dave Ralicke (horns).

    It comes in this 4-panel eco-digipak with a lyric book and the enhanced CD includes a video documentary filmed and edited by award-winning filmmaker, Banker White. Artwork and design by CloudRaker and Kevin Peacock.
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      $10 CAD

     

1.
HARD WAY LEARNER So I find myself here again I have to wonder if it’s ever going to end I once knew this place by a different name I guess I shouldn’t be surprised Had I thought I would have recognized ‘Cause the faces are different but it feels the same// So please be patient with me baby I’ll try to make this the last time// But I’m a hard way learner I keep my finger to the burner And I need my time to get it right I’m a, I’m a hard way learner// For a while everything is fine Like I’ve left it all far behind But there’s a rip in the cloth where the past crawls through And it comes in a new disguise To try to look me right in the eyes And ask again what’re you going to do// So please be patient with me baby I’ll try to make this the last time// I’m a hard way learner I keep my finger to the burner And I need my time to get it right I’m a, I’m a hard way learner// The flags go up The alarm bells ring But I’m blinded I don’t hear a thing// Push that rock, Sisyphus, up the hill Will it roll back, yeah it probably will But you don’t have to keep pushing ‘till you come undone They talk about a wheel to which we’re bound To ride forever as it goes around And if you don’t get it in this life You try the next one// So please be patient with me baby I want to make this the last time// I’m a hard way learner I keep my finger to the burner I need my time to get it right I’m a, I’m a hard way I’m a hard way learner I keep my finger to the burner I need my time to get it right I’m a, I’m a hard way//
2.
Wobbly Bones 04:01
WOBBLY BONES The last time I saw you, you were lying on a bed With bracelets on your wrist and a hole through your head Your eyes wide-open looking straight at me As if you still had something to see The last time I saw you, you were running for your life No child in your arms and no sign of your wife Your mouth wide-open in strangest way As if you still had something to say// Take these wobbly bones Break them with stones Here is my skin it keeps it all in Under my clothes The blood still flows To ten fingers and ten toes Ten fingers and toes Ten fingers and toes Count them on your ten fingers and toes// The last time I saw you, you were buried in the sand A crater in the place where your home used to stand Your arms twisted reaching up to the sky Asking for the answer why Oh, the last time I saw you all the soldiers had arrived They lined you up along with the rest that survived You dropped to your knees and you started to pray Never stopping as they dragged you away// Take these wobbly bones Break them with stones Here is my skin it keeps it all in Under my clothes The blood still flows To ten fingers and ten toes Ten fingers and toes Ten fingers and toes Count them on your ten fingers and toes// The last time I saw you, you were nowhere to be seen They painted the walls scrubbed the floor squeaky clean I haven’t seen you since, I won’t see you for sure ‘Cause no one’s going to knock on your door You don’t have a name anymore Yeah, no one’s going to knock on your door And you don’t have a name anymore// Take these wobbly bones Break them with stones Here is my skin it keeps it all in Under my clothes The blood still flows To ten fingers and ten toes Ten fingers and toes Ten fingers and toes Count them on your ten fingers and toes//
3.
Oldest Trick 04:30
THE OLDEST TRICK Gonna take more eyes than the eyes that you have in your head To see what’s happening gonna take more teeth Than those in your mouth to chew it all down Gonna take more brains than the brains that you have in your skull To find the answers ‘cause these days information stinks There’s enough lies here to fool the Sphinx// The newest version of the oldest trick It’s been working since they wrote that book And you say that it makes you sick But not before that it made you look// Gonna take more words than the words that can roll off your tongue To express that there is a way better than this to be free Gonna take more hands than the hands that grow on your arms To chip away the tired veneer It’s thick as a myth You don’t know what you’re messing with// The newest version of the oldest trick It’s been working since they wrote that book And you say that it makes you sick But not before that it made you look// Well, it started so long ago with Just a few rich men they Had to protect what they had, what they had but the Problem with freedom is Everyone wants some and If all are equal than the poor might get mad So they found enemies, built up mythologies To keep the people from snooping around It worked so well we can no longer tell Where the truth turns to rust who to kill who to trust// The newest version of the oldest trick It’s been working since they wrote that book And you say that it makes you sick But not before that it made you look//
4.
PAUPER IN A PALACE You’ve never known where your place is Among faces and how do you do The planets made you divided They decided to split you in two So you tried many disguises Shapes and sizes to fit yourself in But each one left you wearing strange clothes Now when the wind blows you start to spin ‘Cause when it comes down It really comes down// You feel like a pauper in a palace A pretender to the throne Feel like you’re a prince in a poorhouse And you’ve never been so alone// Everyone’s running from something Probably the one thing they need the most And it’s there if you think you deserve to But you prefer to remain a ghost ‘Cause if you decide You have to decide// You feel like a pauper in a palace A pretender to the throne Feel like you’re a prince in a poorhouse And you’ve never been so alone// You’ve got love in your heart And there’s something you’re supposed to do But you’re throwing the fight ‘Cause you’re scared of what might be true// Your seat is set a the table If you’re able to let yourself stay And the world is patiently waiting For you to get out of your way// You feel like a pauper in a palace A pretender to the throne Feel like you’re a prince in a poorhouse And you’ve never been so alone Lately you’re a stranger to your own self Though you’ve known it all along If there is nowhere that you fit in Maybe you are already where you belong//
5.
HUNTING SEASON Forest floor, here we stand Beast to beast and man to man No reward, no applause Just strangers baring claws After we take our stance After this ugly dance All that comes shining through Will be wasted on you So if you can’t walk away And let it go// Let me begin I don’t want to fight But you’re pulling me in Why you still swinging when nobody can win In this hunting season Let me begin You are the grenade but I am the pin Look how we’re bleeding from the shape that we’re in ‘Cause everyone gets hurt in this hunting season Everyone gets hurt in this hunting season// I seldom shout but you’re bringing my devil out And I’m dreaming how to make you sting Now I see why they say That a small like yours is a dangerous thing You’re greedy hands are around my throat But you’ll get nothing from me ‘Cause I’m not your antidote No I’m not your enemy But if you can’t walk away And let it go// Let me begin I don’t want to fight But you’re pulling me in Why you still swinging when nobody can win In this hunting season Let me begin You are the grenade but I am the pin Look how we’re bleeding from the shape that we’re in ‘Cause everyone gets hurt in this hunting season Everyone gets hurt in this hunting season// ‘Cause the traps are set and the lines they are drawn Long knives at night or pistols at dawn No matter what happens when the battles is on I’ll still be here, you will be gone Understand I am a peace-loving man I trod upon this earth with a guitar in my hand and You seem like you want to drag me down but what goes around Must come back around What goes around must come back around But if you can’t walk away and let it go// Let me begin I don’t want to fight But you’re pulling me in Why you still swinging when nobody can win In this hunting season Let me begin You are the grenade but I am the pin Look how we’re bleeding from the shape that we’re in ‘Cause everyone gets hurt in this hunting season Everyone gets hurt in this hunting season
6.
Go Easy 04:10
GO EASY Your message said you’d be OK I hate it when you lie to me But I am just too far away To help much to calm your sea The hanging judge is at your door The serpent’s underneath your bed You summon all your angels out They tell you it’s in your head And this may hurt for just a while But it always comes out right// Go easy, go easy on yourself tonight Go easy, go easy on yourself tonight// When all the secret codes you know Can’t seem to unlock the door And all the roads that led you home Don’t arrive there anymore Don’t scare yourself by thinking that You’ve lost your only light// Go easy, go easy on yourself tonight Go easy, go easy on yourself tonight// When all the pretty temples you built Make you want to tear them down You’re crying over milk you spilt Long before it hit the ground Pull your mad genie back inside And screw the lid on tight// Go easy, go easy on yourself tonight Go easy, go easy on yourself tonight Go easy, go easy on yourself tonight Go easy, go easy on yourself tonight//
7.
A YEAR CAN CHANGE A LOT No flights out of Paris The new year’s almost here The old one’s on its last legs And I may disappear ‘Cause lately I’ve been thinking You’re going the wrong way Going the wrong way You’re not where you expected The dreams you collected Might cost more than you can pay And I almost fell on St. Michel ‘Till I found what I forgot A year can change a lot// There is no language to catch the beauty Of the moon over Montparnasse And I can’t explain for the life of me How this could come to pass That a family was torn And your first child born All the people that we’ve become I’ve given up predicting It’s leaving me conflicting And wondering where it all comes from Why a friend was lost And another one found Some lessons they can’t be taught Oh, a year can change a lot// A year can change a lot You’re worried ‘bout the end But you’re missing all the plot One moment you are freezing And the next you are red hot A year can change a lot// It looks like I’ll leave on standby This airport is like a heart It pumps me out with a million souls To make a brand new start And wars will rage Then turn the page And fortunes will rise and fall The old ones will leave And I do believe That I’ll surrender to it all ‘Cause the best laid plans Unfold like fans Then snap tight on the spot And a year can change a lot Another orbit around the bright star Guess I’ll give it another shot ‘Cause a year can change a lot//
8.
Out Of Range 05:44
OUT OF RANGE Well you disappeared this morning And you’ve been gone For the good part of the day With your invisible radio crackling And those eyes that say Stay away Where you go is a mystery ‘Cause your body never leaves It’s only your expression that turns strange When you get out of range Yeah, when you get out of range// There are rivers raging below these streets And mountains growing underneath the sea When you hear hidden decibels You ask does it happen much to me Then you beg me to come find you And pull you back to ground Tether you to something that won’t change// When you get out of range Yeah, when you get out of range When you get out of range// When you come back to the moment And the water settles clear Then we can both be citizens of nowhere Nowhere else but here And gravity will cradle you Call out your return And never give you reason to exchange// When you get out of range Yeah, when you get out of range When you get out of range Yeah, when you get out of range//
9.
I’M IN, COME IN I’m in, come in I’m in, come in All of this time where have you been Stuck in a box of paper wings Worried about the strangest things Now I’m afraid I’m gonna pop If I begin I’ll never stop This is the head from which I think These are the eyes from which I blink Doing the dance upon the knife Trying to carve a second life One with a cherry on the top If I begin I’ll never stop// And I’m fading I’m fading But I don’t want to go But, I don’t want to go I’m fading I’m fading But I don’t want to go But, I don’t want to go// I’ve got a gypsy hobo heart I’ve always known it from the start It keeps me wondering what to do It’s gonna to split me right in two Can’t find the cure in any shop If I begin I’ll never stop I want to go to Mexico Find me a beach that no one knows Ride every wave that comes along Not ever wonder if it’s wrong All I would need is just a drop If I begin I’ll never stop// And I’m fading I’m fading But I don’t want to go But, I don’t want to go I’m fading I’m fading But I don’t want to go But, I don’t want to go// Show me the way I feel alone Hand me the bloody microphone If this is it I won’t complain From all that I can ascertain I’d never want to make a swap If I begin I’ll never stop Know that I love you everyday Know that I try in my own way To be the leaf that floats along To be the maker of the song I’m in, come in, I’m in, come in God willing I will now begin// And I’m fading I’m fading But I don’t want to go But, I don’t want to go I’m fading I’m fading But I don’t want to go But, I don’t want to go//
10.
HOUSE UPON THE HILL This house Called us on the other coast It knew that we’d become a ghost It said as far as it could tell We should come out and stay a spell And it took us in with open arms High above the lights and car alarms Of the carnival that can’t be killed This house upon the hill// This house Sends me to the streets below To go and play another show But it loves it when we come home fine To drink another bottle of wine And it makes our bed upon the porch Under starlight’s silver torch And it stays up when I can’t sleep ‘Cause it knows I’ve got a plan to keep// This house Is going to take the fall for me While I walk away free While I walk away free While I walk away free// This house Has seen it all done before Had a hundred people through its door And it knows we’re not getting young But it wants our song to be sung And it’s sad that we’ve got to go Though I told it we’ll be back, I know And I hope it will be standing still This house upon the hill//
11.
MAY YOUR SOUL GET TO HEAVEN If you see a magpie remember this rhyme “One for sorrow and two for joy Three for a girl and four for a boy Five for silver and six for gold Seven for a secret never to be told” Where a spider ‘round your neck in a walnut shell Keep a folded newspaper in your shoe Stick the pages up with wallpaper glue The devil has to read every word Before he can get to you I’ve heard// May your soul get to Heaven May your soul get to Heaven Get to Heaven So the devil knows you’re dead// Don’t you let the robin in keep the white moth out See the seventh son of the seventh son If you need healing he’s the one It never bodes well to see a dog cry You dreamed of snow now your parents’ gonna die If she doesn’t drop the scissors then she’s been true But don’t part ways on a bridge, my friend ‘Cause you’ll never see each other again And if you catch a sparrow on Valentine’s Day You’ll marry poor but be happy anyway// May your soul get to Heaven May your soul get to Heaven Get to Heaven So the devil knows you’re dead// Throw the windows up, move the birdcage out If the doors are locked, his soul can’t leave Take all the buttons off his sleeve Sew up his pockets and close his eyes Turn all the mirrors and tell no lies If you lived a good life there’ll be flowers on your grave And they’ll keep one half of your comb But don’t ever try to follow them home ‘Cause they don’t want you there no more at all// May your soul get to Heaven May your soul get to Heaven Get to Heaven So the devil knows you’re dead//

credits

released April 7, 2009

Chris Velan: vocals, guitar
Adam Topol: drums
John Hofer: drums
Paul Hoaglin: bass
Tim Bluhm: guitar, backing vocals
Sara Johnston: backing vocals
Nicki Bluhm: backing vocals
Dan Lebowitz: slide guitar, pedal steel
Jackie Greene: piano, organ
David Ralicke: horns

Produced by Tim Bluhm
Engineered by David Simon-Baker at Mission Bells, San Francisco, CA
Mixed by David Simon-Baker at Laughing Tiger, Sausalito, CA
Assistant Engineer: Charlie Knote
Executive Producer: Gar Ragland
Mastered by Mike Wells at Mike Wells Mastering

Album Art: Cloudraker, Montreal, QC
Album Design and Typography: Kevin Peacock
Photography: Chris Winter

(c) 2009 Chris Velan Music / Newsong Recordings
Administered by SOCAN / ASCAP

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Chris Velan Montréal, Québec

Montreal singer-songwriter and producer, Chris Velan, has always been crossing borders with his brand of world music- influenced, singer-songwriter pop. Drawing comparisons to the smart, genre-mixing writing of Neil Finn, Nick Lowe and Paul Simon, Velan's
latest album, “Amateur Hour”, will be released September 14th with touring to follow.
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