Get all 28 Fred Gillen Jr releases available on Bandcamp and save 50%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Kaaterskill (Winter Instrumentals), Turn Off The Lights, Birds, See The Light, Into the Darkness, All In, If I Woke Up This Morning and Died, If I Woke Up This Morning and Died (Unplugged), and 20 more.
1. |
Prayer For America
03:12
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I may not believe in God
but I'll say a little prayer for America
governors are lining up to stop the refugees
they forget their grandparents who came to this country
immigrants built this land and they will keep it strong
how quickly we forget this any time something goes wrong
I may not believe in God
but I'll say a little prayer for America
senators protest, they have a sit-in on the floor
but they won;t do their job and pass a simple righteous law
that can talk all night and say nothing or sound grand
but none of it amounts to more than castles made of sand
I may not believe in God
but I'll say a little prayer for America
WE WILL FIGHT AND WE WILL SING
THOUGH NO ONE HEARS AND WE WON'T WIN
WE WILL LIVE WITH LOVE UNTIL IT DROWNS OUT ALL OUR FEARS
THOUGH I DON'T BELIEVE THAT WE CAN POSSIBLY SURVIVE
TOGETHER WE CAN TRY
I may not believe in God
but I'll say a little prayer for America
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2. |
Return Of The Buffalo
03:35
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Return of the Buffalo
Just before the last herds were destroyed
a silent film director filled a ship with buffalo
bound for Catalina, to star in a movie show
but no one ever thought to bring them home
the return of the buffalo
like the sound of thunder on the prairie wind
the herds like blood
flowing ‘round the black heart of America
they grazed and lived their lives
and soon their numbers grew
they overran their new island home
the years ticked by, as the herds multiplied
they needed prairie grass and room to roam
the return of the buffalo
like the sound of thunder on the prairie wind
the herds like blood
flowing ‘round the black heart of America
the vanishing american
was the film they had a role in
but when the final cut came in
there was no sign of them
as the sage grows back, the prairie comes to life
that great ghost herd was returned just in time
when man is long forgotten, just a shadow on the land
there will be peace and bounty where the buffalo stand
the return of the buffalo
like the sound of thunder on the prairie wind
the herds like blood
flowing ‘round the black heart of America
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3. |
Future Americans
03:57
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Future Americans
brought from Burma at six years old
my parents fled for their lives
pursuing freedom from tyranny
and a safe place to raise their child
when they tried to enroll me in school
in the land of the free
there was a place for every kid
except for this refugee
we are future Americans
we started as refugees
its time to give us a place here
our dreams don't threaten your dreams
down at the mill I learned to cut
faster than anyone could
I have a knack for that type of work
and I love the smell of the wood
I've tried to watch NASCAR and drink a few beers
with some of the guys at the bar
though my English is good, there's so much I don't get
even though I've come so far
we are future Americans
we started as refugees
its time to give us a place here
our dreams don't threaten your dreams
I married a woman from Burma
that I met in my neighborhood
we had a traditional wedding
the guys from the mill loved the food
we had a beautiful child
innocent and free
but all she’ll ever hear from the people in power
is that she threatens her dreams
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4. |
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Some Call It Karma, Some Call It Grace
They said there was a chance
so you rolled the dice
you listened to the experts advice
they added two years of horror to your life
the only benefit was you got to say goodbye
some call it karma and some call it grace
but neither one helps with the things we must face
sitting in that hospital room with your ass out of your gown
tubes and wires keeping you alive but powered down
your body keeps on working long after you are gone
everything about this scene is wrong
some call it karma and some call it grace
but neither one helps with the things we must face
as I stare out at the twilight in the emptiness you left
I’ve lost my sense of wonder, it went the way of my innocence
as I ponder life without you, there’s no comfort to be found
in sacred words or ceremonies, which used to seem profound
I’m left with only memories, delicate and thin
scattering with your ashes in the wind
some call it karma and some call it grace
but neither one helps with the things we must face
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5. |
She Loved
03:44
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She Loved
She never went to college
finished high school pregnant
gave birth that July
learned most of what she knew
on the streets of her home town
spent most of her life too poor to cry
but she loved, that's what she did
she made it her work, she gave it her soul
she loved, she loved, she loved
she sang show music
but could't carry a tune
and she loved John Denver and Johnny Cash
though we barely had food on the table
when one of us needed something
she'd always pull a few dollars from some secret stash
she loved, that's what she did
she made it her work, she gave it her soul
she loved, she loved, she loved
Seven grandchildren and she was close to every one
was there when each one was born
and they all cried when she died
she became a Catholic
to marry in the church
and wound up more devout than her husband was
she knew how to laugh
was not afraid to cry
and her children were perfect in her eyes
she loved, that's what she did
she made it her work, she gave it her soul
she loved, she loved, she loved
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6. |
Price of Progress
03:48
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Price of Progress
we had a funeral service for two thousand trees today
singing songs and saying goodbye on public lands we thought were safe
roots ripped from the earth, down the middle of a reservation
but they had to move a forest of us before they could get to the trees
there were veterans of protest there, but mostly neighbors and friends
making it clear by our numbers that we won;t let this happen again
no- we won;t let this happen again
the price of progress
what have we lost?
paying the cost
of the price of progress
I picked up an extra shift guarding the pipeline job site
just looking to pay my bills, not thinking 'bout wrong or right
I've been paid to serve and protect someone in another state
and now I'm arresting my neighbors for standing up for our home town
standing up for our home town
the price of progress
what have we lost?
paying the cost
of the price of progress
working people working against each other
how did we get here, is there another way, to pay
the price of progress
what have we lost?
paying the cost
of the price of progress
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7. |
Julia
04:30
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Julia
Julia Butterfly climbed a tree
something every child does, but now her climb is history
the logging company demanded that she move
they claimed she was on their property
how can anybody own
a thousand year old life?
in the canopy of an ancient redwood tree
for two years she played her part
she didn't set out to change the world
she was just caring for her heart
Julie, Julia
It's not just you and me
Julia, Julia
our whole world is in that tree
Julia Butterfly headed west without a plan
after a car crash almost took her life
at her first sight of ancient redwood trees
she stopped wandering to climb
in this holiest of temples
she fell to her knees and cried
she was no activist, not anti-corporate
just not willing to betray her heart
Julie, Julia
It's not just you and me
Julia, Julia
our whole world is in that tree
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8. |
Divided We Die
04:07
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Divided We Die
On a mountain of sorrow looking down on a country
dark clouds gather like vultures in wait
upon the cold wings of the last golden eagle
we live or we die defending our love
with power and pen all death and destruction
is cast down to those who carry the load
to take away life and any remembrance
of what a man was before he believed
I am the wolf, I am the warrior
I fight for my family, I fight to survive
have you forgotten that I am your brother?
together we live, divided we die
where is the air that carries all memories?
where is the air that all things can breathe?
if it is true that all life is sacred
why is it so hard defending our love?
bloody the path of war torn survivors
broken and mangled and childless and lost
all for some other man's fear and addiction
what is the price of your brother's life?
I am the wolf, I am the warrior
I fight for my family, I fight to survive
have you forgotten that I am your brother?
together we live, divided we die
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9. |
Baltimore Burns
04:06
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Baltimore Burns
Baltimore Burns as Dr King rolls in his grave
and the dream that he gave us is buried along with him
Baltimore Burns as preachers preach peace
to ears that wouldn’t hear Jesus when he preached it in Palestine
Baltimore Burns as Trevor hangs on a cross
nobody saw because white sheets obscured their view
Baltimore Burns as the thirteenth amendment
is riddled with bullet holes at the police shooting range
Baltimore burns as the world turns
to stare at their screens, block out the nations’ screams
Baltimore Burns as the first black President
shakes hands with an oil executive and thanks him for the check that’s in the mail
Baltimore Burns as most of the local fire brigade
is conspicuously absent, watching from jail
Baltimore Burns, no number two pencil
could unravel the mystery of failing ghetto schools
Baltimore Burns as the minimum wage
still does not get raised and senators collect their pensions
Baltimore burns as the world turns
to stare at their screens, block out the nations’ screams
Baltimore Burns, a new news cycle is born
networks rise and fall on the tide of violence in our streets
Baltimore Burns, now black lives really matter
they’re raising the ratings with each window that they smash
Baltimore burns as the world turns
to stare at their screens, block out the nations’ screams
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10. |
Alive
03:55
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Alive
Chemicals course through your body
draining your natural warmth
leaving a pale reminder
of what lies at the end of this story
to cure you they must kill you
one cell at a time
something goes numb inside you
as you feel each one die
Will you be reborn?
will you become a new creation?
I've lost my religion, used up all my faith
but I'm still standing, though my strength is shaken
alive
they lie every time you see them
and look off into space
they can't coldly deceive you
while looking at your face
who will pay the price?
is the first question they ask
calculating your survival
into cold, hard cash
Will you be reborn?
will you become a new creation?
I've lost my religion, used up all my faith
but I'm still standing, though my strength is shaken
alive
do they feel a sense of power as they sentence you to hell?
do they feel cheated when you die?
do they ever lay awake all night long?
and I wonder- do they ever cry?
Will you be reborn?
will you become a new creation?
I've lost my religion, used up all my faith
but I'm still standing, though my strength is shaken
alive
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11. |
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Fine Line Between Greatness and Desperation
My father worked like some people love
every job he did was do or die
even if it hurt or was impossible
a man DOES, a man doesn't try
There's a fine line
between greatness and desperation
a fine line
we never lived in the same town
he'd moved on, mother scared him away
she'd put me on a bus for hours to see him
and I'd cry all the way
There's a fine line
between greatness and desperation
a fine line
I remember one time he took me hunting
teach me how to shoot, hold a shotgun in my hands
I wound up on the ground, the recoil too strong
I was a child, but he didn't understand
There's a fine line
between greatness and desperation
a fine line
when he entered the room, he made sure you knew it
drinks for the house every time
he never got elected because of his record
but he was the mayor of the bar for a while
five foot eight but always seemed bigger
until I saw him in that hospital bed
pale and drawn and all but disappearing
stark pillow halos around his head
There's a fine line
between greatness and desperation
a fine line
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12. |
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Where Are You Tonight Fallen Angel?
I searched all the worst motels around
every grungy hole in this whole town
I asked the beat cop and the liquor store guy
I even gave the hospital a try
Where are you tonight fallen angel?
are you looking at the same fallen star in the same sky as I?
I walked the docks where the men come to pray
prostrate to the gods of despair and pain
where they don't even want to know your name
as they ride with you to hell on the devil's burning train
Where are you tonight fallen angel?
are you looking at the same fallen star in the same sky as I?
maybe you are that star, is it all you ever dreamed of?
do you ever feel afraid when you fall?
or is the night sky just so high that you don't care?
and when I find you will it matter much at all?
Where are you tonight fallen angel?
are you looking at the same fallen star in the same sky as I?
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Fred Gillen Jr Athens, New York
NYFA grant recipient Fred Gillen Jr has released 12 solo albums, and 6 ep’s, has toured all over the U.S. and Europe solo, and Nepal/ India with Greenheart. His songs have been on ABC's "All My Children," NPR's "Car Talk," CMJ, and his version of Woody Guthrie's "I Ain't Got No Home" was featured on Pete Seeger's "Pete Remembers Woody." He is also a founding member of THE TRIKE rock trio. ... more
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