Sometimes (I Wake Up Naked) © 1999, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. Sometimes I wake up naked, I smile at the sight I see. Sometimes I touch the mirror, and I wonder if that’s me. Sometimes I run from the sunshine, avoiding the shadow behind. Sometimes I want to go deeper still, but worry at what I find. Sometimes I stand in the open, expose myself to friends. Sometimes I crawl into corners, and wait for the fear to end. Sometimes I laugh at the questions, but still I collect my prize. Sometimes I cry at the answers, and shake my head at the lies. CHORUS Sometimes I wake up naked, sometimes it’s only a dream. Sometimes I have to hold my breath, or else I have to scream. Sometimes I think you don’t know me, sometimes I know you do. Sometimes I don’t want to know myself, but that would never be true... Ooo… Ooo... Ooo... Ooo... Sometimes I wake up naked, I play the helpless fool, Sometimes I feel my body breaking underneath the rules. Sometimes I join in the struggle, by answering the calls, Sometimes I make my great escape, by scaling over walls. Sometimes I call out slogans, I follow the party line, Sometimes I keep my mouth tight shut, when every word is mine. Sometimes I stand at the edges, and look at the rocks below, Sometimes I just want to clip my wings, when every voice says, Go! Chorus Sometimes I wake up naked, I look for a place to hide. Sometimes I peek behind the mask, and wonder what’s inside. Sometimes I think I’m transparent, I’m the Invisible Man. Sometimes I think I’m drowning, when I do the best I can. Sometimes I kiss the sweet façade, so delicately thin, Sometimes I hate the monster, that lives just under skin. Sometimes I stand in the limelight, and cover myself in gloss, Sometimes I lie in the darkness, and weep at the terrible loss. Chorus Coda Sometimes I wake up naked!

I Just Want to be With You © 2001, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. CHORUS I don’t want your mansion on the hill, No, I don’t want to taste that bitter pill. There’s nothing else in this world I’d rather do, I just want to be with you. Your dad is rich, and your mother’s in control, I know they think, I am digging for your gold. But all I want is one minute of your time, Every minute of the day. CHORUS I may be poor, but I have a heart of gold, And that is one thing that can’t be bought and sold. I make this promise that no matter where or how, I will steal your heart away. CHORUS ‘Cos I don’t want your mansion on the hill, (No, I don’t care…) No, I don’t want to taste that bitter pill. (I won’t go there…) There’s nothing else in this world I’d rather do, (You know it’s true…) I just want to be with you. BRIDGE Don’t even care for your island in the sun, (No, I don’t care…) Don’t want to chase false passion on the run. (I won’t go there…) There’s nothing else in this world I’d rather do, (You know it’s true…) I just want to be with you. LAST CHORUS I don’t want your mansion on the hill, No, I don’t want to taste that bitter pill. There’s nothing else in this world I’d rather do, I just want to be with you.

Is This The Promise? © 1998, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. CHORUS Is this the promise that you made, When you looked deep into my eyes? When you held me tight in your arms? When you pressed me close to your side? I this the ode to love we sang, Watching the blood-red sunset fall? As we held hands along the beach? I don’t remember them at all. You keep me trapped inside this dream, I wake up crying in the night. My lips afraid to voice the scream, Pretending it will be all right. You hold the power in your arms, And leave me dying on my cross. Is this the magic spell you wove? You do not understand your loss. Chorus You led me to another place, I’ve never been this way before. You hide the truth behind a mask, And keep me locked behind your door. What is the reason for your fear? Where is the faith behind your test? What is this need to keep control, And kill the love within my breast? Chorus You are the keeper of my fate, You lead me dancing by a thread. Sweeping away the broken dreams, Fearful of every word you said. I keep on praying for a change, Searching for pathways in between. Looking for answers in your eyes, Mourning the love that might have been. Chorus

The Crying Ground © 1999, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. I hit the highway running, from the girl I left behind, She could have seen it coming, but I guess she’s not that kind. There’s nothing left between us, but this highway out of town, And a thousand other back roads, leading to the crying ground. I should have told her something, as I walked out of the door, But anything I had to say, had all been said before. I closed the door behind me, and I did not make a sound, I just headed down the highway, leading to the crying ground. CHORUS And I’m cry-y-ing, for the dreams I left behind, Cry-y-ing, for the shadows in my mind, Shadows I don’t understand that cause my head to pound, And they chase me down the highway leading to The Crying Ground. A thousand words lie on my lips, but still I can not find, A way to say ‘I love you’, without crossing over lines. I don’t know where I’m coming from, and I don’t know where I’m bound, I’m just heading down the highway, leading to the crying ground. Chorus BRIDGE And there are faces I remember, that have called me to their side. But how can I embrace them, when I only run and hide? The highway goes forever, it feels good to be alive, Tyres go on singing underneath the overdrive. I turn my radio up loud, and I cover up the sound, Of me heading down the highway, leading to the crying ground. Chorus I hit the highway running, from the girl I left behind...

Feel The Fear (and make it run) © 1997, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. Stand before the open portal, look into the dark beyond, Take a step into the future, feel the fear and make it run. It’s a challenge to the senses, it’s a battle for the night, Throw away the smoking candle, walk in to the fading light. Deliver up your fears and troubles, place them in the gunny sack, Drop them into raging water, lose the monkey on your back. Let it wander where it wishes, do not think to call it home, Let it face the world in silence, there’s no need to feel alone, and... CHORUS Dance across the broken headstones, whirl beneath the rising moon, Roaring out a final challenge; Now can never be too soon! Do not fear the thunder warnings, let the timid have their say, Send them back to bed a-weeping, while you wait to greet the day. Every day another nightmare, every night a waking scream, Every morning try to sort through all the pieces of the dream. Every day a new sun rising, every night a dying sigh, Glory in a new beginning, wipe away the teary eye, and... Dance across the broken headstones, whirl beneath the rising moon, Roaring out a final challenge; Now can never be too soon! Do not fear the thunder warnings, let the timid have their say, Send them back to bed a-weeping, while you wait to greet the day and Dance… Hold aloft the Golden Saber, symbol of a new resolve, Stand upon the broken mirror, you are master of your soul. Look toward a new day dawning, feel the warmth upon your skin, Turn your face toward the future, open wide and let it in, and... Dance across the broken headstones, whirl beneath the rising moon, Roaring out a final challenge; Now can never be too soon! Do not fear the thunder warnings, let the timid have their say, Send them back to bed a-weeping, while you wait to greet the day. And stand before the open portal, look into the dark beyond, Take a step into the future, feel the fear and make it run, and dance…

The Ballad of Billy Winter © 2000, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. The Outlaw Billy Winter, man, he never had a chance, But the reputation that he had, was built on circumstance. They say that Billy Winter, was a man that you could trust, But he had one fatal weakness, and that weakness it was lust. In a downtown city bar-room, called the Amarillo Star, Billy saw her sitting on her own, and knew that she’d go far. And her name was Rosalita, and she dealt a line in greed, But Billy didn’t want no smoke, he had another need. Now Billy didn’t know that day, Rosalita’s name was ‘mud’, And she had a low-life keeper, and he liked to deal in blood. And bloody was his anger, when he caught them both in bed, And while his gun was smoking, Rosalita fell back dead. And the second bullet smashed into the door by Billy’s ear, And Billy knew at once what it was like to live in fear. But the shot from Billy’s pistol, went through the keepers head, Who danced a lovely pirouette, and fell upon the bed. The hanging judge had syphilis, and he spread it near and far, And when he wasn’t in the whore house, he was drinking in the bar. And when he looked across at Billy, all the judge could find to say, Two people dead on a bloody bed, and Billy, you will pay. On the day set for the hanging, the hangman he was late, And Billy knew that he’d been blessed by all the hands of fate. So he made a jump for freedom, under boiling Texas sun, Shouting, Adios amigos, I’m an outlaw on the run. Ride Billy... Run... Go… The outlaw Billy Winter headed down to Mexico, A US Marshall close behind, by just a day or so. And the Marshall’s name was Randall, and his head was full of spite, He was looking for some glory, but he was spoiling for a fight. And Randall had a secret, but he kept it deep inside, He’d caught his own wife cheatin’, and how it hurt his pride. And ever since that faithless day, he swore he’d catch that man, And now at last he had him, Billy Winter, close at hand. Look out, Billy! Randall found him late one day, by the Rio Grande banks, The horses they were foaming, and there was sweat along their flanks. And there was Billy Winter, trying to cross that raging stream, And heading out into the sun, and reaching for his dream. And Randall swore as Billy tried to cross that flowing river, He had a point to prove, by God, and now he would deliver! He rained a curse on Billy’s head, that left the angels blushing, And he spurred his horse into the mighty Rio Grande rushing. Hiya!!! As soon as Randall left the bank, like lambs to the slaughter, The tired horse beneath him sank, and dragged him under water. Now Randall was no swimmer, and he knew he was in trouble, With his foot caught in the stirrup, and his life reduced to bubbles! A choking breath, a flailing arm, the drowning horse and Randall, No-one to mourn his bitter life, no-one to light a candle. One dying breath before the end, but look, the foot is freed By the outlaw Billy Winter, helping in his hour of need! Why Billy... Why? The outlaw Billy Winter, headed down through Mexico, To the town of Acapulco, where the pretty women go. And why Randall never brought him in, that man would never say, But Randall knew he owed a debt, that only he could pay. And ever since that fateful day, by the Rio Grande river, Where two men saw the Fates at play and both men felt a shiver. They saw too, that there are things more powerful than lust, But all these things we speak about are hidden in the dust. Hi-Hi-Hi-Yo!; Hi-Hi-Hi-Yo!; Hi – Hi! Hi – Hi!

Tuesday Night in The Jungle © 1998, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. Tuesday Night in The Jungle, and the dogs are moving in, They’re looking for some action, and they’re kicking over bins. The night is full of shadows, and the air it smells of rain, While music drifts across the street and covers up the pain. Tuesday night in the jungle, and the dogs begin to run, They found the scent of blood, and now they want to have their fun. The Night Patrol is running, but y'know they’ll be alright. There’s nothing they like better, than to start another fight. Tuesday night in the jungle, and the dogs are moving out, They’re heading for the high ground, there isn’t any doubt. The water table is rising, and the temperature is too, So lock and bar the door, because they’re coming after you. Inside The Lonely Bar & Grill, they’re talking final calls, They’re wiping down the tables, and racking up the balls. No-one is in a hurry yet to shuffle out the door, Except perhaps the drunkard, leering at the whore. Tuesday night in the jungle, and the dogs have gone to bed, There are secrets in the darkness, that are better left unsaid. The Night Patrol is busy taking statements underground, The dogs are twitching in their sleep, making little sounds. Tuesday night in the jungle, and the dogs have settled down, They’ve had their fill of corpses, and they’re sleeping on the ground. Stars behind the neon shine, and look like purple lights, There’s movement at the edges, and I wonder if it bites. Tuesday night in the jungle, Oh... oh...

I Want to be Eight Again © 2000, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. I Want to be Eight Again, I want to be nine or ten, I want to chase butterfly's under mountainous skies, Collapse on the grass and then... I want to be free of my troubles and woes, I want to dirty my favourite clothes, I want to lie on the ground; hear every sound, Kick at the sky with my toes. I want to be eight again, I want to be nine or ten, I want to be just like a child, that is happy and wild, Go back to that moment when... Every day was a pleasure reborn, When the world didn’t threaten and warn, When the thoughts in my head, were for stories I’d read, And lived out each day on the lawn. I want to be eight again, I want to be eight again. CHORUS I want to live without any regrets, Stop counting what everyone gets, Act like a clown; spin ‘round and ‘round, Follow the vapor of jets. I want to be eight again, I want to be eight again. I want to live without any regrets, Stop counting what everyone gets, Act like a clown; spin ‘round and ‘round, Follow the vapor of jets... I want to be eight again, I want to be nine or ten, I want to sing out of tune, rhyme silvery moon, With June or spoon, and then... I want to shed all my covers and skins, And remember when I had no sins! Stop dragging my cross, forget profit and loss, In a world where nobody wins! I want to be eight again, I want to be eight again. CHORUS CODA: I want to be eight again. I’ll even settle for nine or ten. I want to be eight again.

Madeleine & The Devil © 1999, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. Madeleine stands at the edge of the photo; And quietly closes her eyes. The Devil is playing at ‘Happy Families’; Madeleine plays with the lies. He smiles the craven look of the fallen, Pretending that everything’s fine. Madeleine skips off to play with the fairies That wait in the back of her mind. Madeleine lies in her bed under covers; And quietly cries in the dark, The Devil is creeping from out of his corner; Carefully finding his mark. Light from the street filters in through the window; Shadows creep over the walls. Madeleine slowly descends into nightmares, As Devil is making his calls. Chorus And Madeleine is playing with teddy and friends, Always afraid to ask, Why? Wondering whether the nightmare will end. Praying for Devil to die. Madeleine looks at the tree through the window; Flowers are starting to bud. The Devil himself is now under the covers, As Madeleine wipes away blood. The sky is a river of thunder and lightning; Rain with a venom it falls. The Angel of Mercy is riding the thunder, As Devil tip-toes down the hall. Chorus Madeleine whispers; Madeleine dances, Madeleine hides behind dreams. The neighbourhood children are having a party, But Madeleine jumps at their screams. The eyes of the child are losing their wonder, Rainbows are lost behind clouds, Rain is pouring like tears down the window, The Devil fades into the crowd. Last Chorus And Madeleine is playing with teddy and friends, Always afraid to ask, Why? Wondering whether the nightmare will end. Praying for Devil to die.

Night Falls Over Manhattan © 2001, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. Night Falls Over Manhattan, And angels soar into the sky. Stars shine down on the city, As God wipes a tear from His eye. The dead and the living are walking together, They tremble in awe at the sight. Skylines are falling as angels are calling, And vanishing into the Light. Night Falls Over Manhattan, As sorrow embraces the land. Stars shine down on the city, As courage and fear make a stand. Hate is an evil that walks in the shadows; Dream of a future that lives. Peace is a beacon that lights up the darkness, And Joy is a world that forgives. BRIDGE Night Falls Over Manhattan again, Hope is alive on the wing. Faith is the essence that binds us, and then, Love is the song we all sing. Night Falls Over Manhattan, And angels soar into the sky. Stars shine down on the city, As God wipes a tear from his eye. God wipes a tear from his eye. CODA: Night… Falls...

Some Mother's Son © 2000, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved. Some Mother's Son is taking uppers tonight, Some Mother's daughter’s going down. Some Mother's Son is slowly losing the fight, Some Mother's daughter hit the ground. Some Mother's Son is breaking every rule, Some Mother's daughter’s on the game. Some Mother's Son is dropping acid in school, Some Mother's daughter kills the pain. CHORUS There doesn’t seem to be a reason to live, It doesn’t matter what you say. Some people can’t take what the rest of us give, I hope they find another way. Some Mother's Son is sick of feeling the heat, Some Mother's daughter found a vein. Some Mother's Son is sleeping out in the street, Some Mother's daughter hides the shame. Some Mother's Son is crying deep in the night, Some Mother's daughter dreams of home. Some Mother's Son is drinking black into white, Some Mother's daughter dies alone. CHORUS Some mother's son, some mother's daughter cries, Some mother's son, some mother's daughter. Some mother's son, some mother's daughter dies, Some mother's son, some mother's daughter. Some mother's son, some mother's daughter cries, Some mother's son, some mother's daughter. Some mother's son, some mother's daughter dies, Some mother's son, some mother's daughter. CHORUS There doesn’t seem to be a reason to live, It doesn’t matter what you say. Some people can’t take what the rest of us give, I hope they find another way. I hope they find another way. CODA Some mother's son... some mother's daughter.