Whatever and Ever Amen

Leaf by Leaf page by page
Throw this book away
All the sadness all the rage
Throw this book away
Rip out the binding, tear the glue
All of the grief we never ever knew
We had it all along

Now its smoke
The things we've written in it
Never really happened
All of the people come and gone
Never really lived
All of the people have come have gone

No one to forgive smoke
We will never write a new one
There will not be a new one
Another one, another one
Here's an evening dark with shame
Throw it on the fire
here's the time I took the blame
Throw it on the fire
Here's the time we didn't speak
it seemed for years and years
Here's a secret
No one will ever know the
reasons for the tears
They are smoke

Where do all the secrets live
They travel in the air
You can smell them when they burn
They travel
Those who say the past is not dead
Stop and smell the smoke
You keep on saying the past is not dead
Come on and smell the smoke
You keep saying the past is not even past
You keep saying
We are, smoke

Fred Jones was worn down
from caring for his often
screaming and crying wife
burning the day but
He couldn't sleep at night for fear that she
In a stupor from the drugs that didn't even
ease the pain would set the house on blaze
with a cigarette.

What I've kept with me
And what I've thrown away
And where the hell I've ended up
On this glory random day
Were the things I really cared about
Just left along the way
For being too pent up and proud
Woke up way too late
Feeling hung over and old
And the sun was shining bright
And I walked barefoot down the road
Started thing about my old man
It seems that all men
Wanna get into a car and go anywhere?

Here I stand,
Sad & free
I can't cry and I can't see
What I've done
God...What have I done
So don't you know I'm numb, man
No I don't feel a thing at all
Cause its all smiles and business these days
and I am indifferent to the loss
I've faith that there's a soul
whose leading me around
I wonder if she knows
Which way is down...
I poured my heart out
I poured my heart out
it evaporated...see?

Blind man on a canyon's edge
of a Panoramic scene
Or maybe I'm a kite
That's flying high & random
Dangling a string
Or slumped over in a vacant room
Head on a stranger's knee
I'm sure back home
They think I've lost my mind.

Everyone gather round now
sing us a song
just in case by tomorrow
it happens he's gone
For two weeks and seven days
Our fair foreign friend
I have this feeling
We might never see Steven again
We thought he was gone
But he's come back again
Last week it was funny
Not the jokes wearing thin
everyone knows now
That every night now
Will be Steven's last night
in town

He's charmed everyone here
Except for Tamara Easter
Who later revealed to him
Her innermost secrets
Won us over with stories
About Linda McCarthey
Lost points with the ladies
For saying he couldn't love a
woman with cellulite

We were talking bout something
seems like was funny
Then Steven got quiet
I think Steven was mad
Maybe he wasn't mad
But we felt really strange for a moment
then the moment was gone
and forgotten

I said what you wanted to hear
And what I wanted to say
So I will take it back
Are all the dishes intact?
Let them be broken
It's easy to be
Easy and Free
When it doesn't mean anything
You remain selfless, cold and composed

You've done me no favor
to call and be nice
Telling me I
Can take anything I like
You don't owe me to be so Polite
You've done no wrong
You've done no wrong
Get out of my sight
It's easy to be easy and free
When it doesn't mean anything
You remain
Selfless, cold, and composed

Come on baby. Now throw me
a right to the chin
Don't you stare like
You never cared
I know you did
You just smiled
like a band teller
telling me bleakly
have a nice life

Do you not hear me anymore
I know it's not your thing to care
I know it's cool to be so bored
I sucks me in
when you're aloof
It sucks me in, it sucks it works
I guess it's cool to be alone

Will you never rest
Fighting the battle of who could care less
Everyday you wake up late
Sometimes I wish I was
that way

And you think Rockford Files is cool
But there are some things
that you would change
if it were up to you
So think about your masterpiece
Watch the Rockford Files
And call to see if Paul can score some weed.

Will you never rest
Fighting the battle of who could care less
Unearned unhappiness
That's all right I guess...

I've go this great idea
Why don't we pitch it to the Franklin Fucking Mint
Fine pewter portraits of
general apathy and major boredom singing...
Whatever and ever Amen
Oh well maybe not try again
This should cheer you up for sure
See I've got your old I.D.
And you're all dressed up like the Cure
Will you never rest
fighting the battle
of who could care less
unearned unhappiness
You're my hero I confess