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POKER FACE by Uncle John
As I rode into this west Texas town With this dancer and this clown They were only going to spend the night Just trying to find a way to their light And me, I´m just a desert man A man who has lived his life in the sand
As I walked into the local saloon Me, this ballerina and this buffoon They sat down and ordered some whiskey But me, I just want to be I just come here to play my cards And if you´re willing to show yourself pard I´m just a poker face A man who likes to play the ace
I sat down with this fellow to play some poker The fellow turned out to be a joker So I figured oh what the heck As I casually stacked the deck I let him deal and he dealt me an ace Then dealt himself a very straight face I knew we were playing for very high stakes So I couldn´t make any mistakes We were only playing a single hand Him, he was betting all of his land Me, I was betting my life I figured it wasn´t worth a dime
Then he dealt me an ace of spades I figured then and there I had it made And sure enough I had won When he quickly reached for his gun I drew quicker filled him with lead Before the night was over the joker ws dead
So I said to this dancer and clown You no longer have to wear that frown Come with me to the land of the free We´ll begin a new family We´ll invite our brothers and sisters everywhere Who are open and willing to share To come and live with us We´ll build a land and life of trust
Now I´m no longer a poker face Just another member of the human race Before I go I have to play this last ace My heart which is your face You´re the love of life so real I could sing all night to you what I feel
SHOWDOWN Lyrics & Music by Uncle John
From the edge of darkness There is a glimmer of light Leap for the daytime Leave behind the night
People are afraid of getting old Because all old people die Have you wondered why Time In your heart of inspiration Time To stop discrimination Time Look inside to realize Time Through space and stars And follow the weather Changing Time
Some have been waiting a lifetime for me to show my hand Time for the showdown waiting for the band This midnight gambler Will become a full time rambler Singing my heart here now for you
Coming into a deserted town For the showdown Yes it all comes around After the slowdown The sound
I look in my heart And there you are Your magic eyes And dancing guitar
Our eyes are like windows and mirrors too That can be like a star´s light of truth
The child can see And is realized Waiting to manifest An inner light
For her name is wonder Staring through you The golden gate is open To the sky & ocean blue
Looking in to the eye of the sun In order to see Radiate beautifully The way to do is to be For the sea that bore me Shall free me to be
And this gentle rider Going to go one higher Dreaming up a story Of their morning glory
This began with a bird you know Begins again here with a show Surrounded by kind love And a sunshine rainbow
No longer carrying a frown I´m coming into town Going to show up For the showdown
I been waiting for you Yes, waiting here for you Like the sea of tranquil desire Like the sun with its heart on fire Like a rose like a rose Coming home coming home Like a road like a road Leading home
SING YOU A SWEET SONG NOW MOMMA Lyrics & Music by Uncle John
Sing you a sweet song now momma Sing you all the way back home Sing through the wind and the rainbows to the desert sun and the travelling show
Came down the highway to get ready cause it's getting late Past waiting mystery to the heart's gateless gate As a humming voice is heard Flying free as a bird The plan is set in motion with a sound yet not a word
Looking back to where the circle began Where we come all this way sifting through grains of sand I wake up my eyes inside one morn to find a clean new land
Sing past the edge of darkness and night Sing through here and follow the light Sing you a sweet song now momma Sing you all the way back home
Get into your dream Open up my mind The dead are asleep Rise and shine on time
Now the trail has been laid And we've pulled out the spades Heading straight to twilight day But in sleep I have seen There's more to this here dream Now do you think you know what it really means You can't fool the river So don't push so hard The dead are awake Playing the hand and not the card
Like the sea devouring the tower Those walls of time Like the man who changes & learns to be kind Like the sweet lonesome river washing away the load When the reaper brings the harvest We'll be celebrating in our home
Sing you a sweet song now momma Sing you all the way back home Sing past the darkness & the cold to the everlasting sun's bright glow Sing you a sweet song now momma
Me & Casey McAllister Lyrics & Music by Uncle John
Back when the time That the wheel stood at ten Me & Casey McAllister Were brothers from the pen
Now Casey was a good man Even though he had done time Even when they treated him badly He was always kind
Me & Casey would often dream That there would come a time When we could live like children & let everything be so fine
We were playing in the sand & running under the moon His momma calls out to him Said son be home soon
He said now hey momma He said momma please listen If I don’t watch my step I’m gonna end up back in prison
Now this was two years ago In the town of Ontario When I jumped over the fence And ran on down the road And ran back into Casey Who says listen here you bird You might have jumped over the fence But you can’t jump off the world
And we’d go & gather roses By the cemetery trail Rejoicing each & every day That we’d been out of jail
Now me & Casey were brothers But not in the usual sense We travelled to the mountaintop & shared time in the pen
One day we sat down with a deck of cards I drew the king he made But the queen of his heart Soon came to his aid
Casey chased that lady All the way to Frisco bay And he came back again With the sun shining through the day When we found a balance That we know we’d never lose We woke up with the morning Every day was ours to choose
Now me & Casey were brothers But not in the usual sense We travelled to the mountaintop & shared time in the pen
We’d go riding in our chariot And let our hearts shine Now Casey was a good man Even though he had done time MOUNTAIN TOP Poetry by Uncle John
He stood upon balanced rock In the garden of the gods A mountain peak in a twilight storm In a castle with rock and rod Wander into sunlight Climbing watching little bear Sunshine peakin' through the clouds In the cool big top air And meet at the summit Of the pyramid there Powwow with Red Cloud In the old roundup you steer One fresh breath of air And you know God is near His handiwork is everywhere Provides for the birds in the air And the feathers they wear
We climb a mountain to its elevation Look to the center core of the eluviation All along the wall of rock up and down the stairs Cool wind whistlin' mountain top blowin' her hair
We can go back four centuries Follow three rivers through the mountains and trees Two sides of reality One bright light of an idea suddenly It is the cool of nighttime beat The earth rose until the moon set under our feet
The bees and birds and butterfly All know what to do Work and stay busy Always be true Willing to change for the best you can do
Red rocks and roses Forever family bustin' poses Who seen the sun set over the ocean And the red rising sun in motion
Looking out round and rounder windows On a ship sailing around the world With an original creative and wise Independent girl Able and mature Kind to all nature Paint a picture of her
We rode up and around and around And around the mountain And up and around and around And around hula up To where you can't climb any more stairs You can't elevate to the caves in the rocks that are there Peaceful and aware Among the tree tops we feel in the cool mountain air
CLUES TO OUR EXISTENCE Songs by Uncle John Mystery Rivers* Sing You A Sweet Song Now Momma* Poker Face* Showdown* The Lover Let The Good Times Be * Clues to Our Existence: Part 1 Metamorphosis* Clues to our Existence: Part 2 Butterfly* Hello to My Heart* Home Sweet River Peace to All Who Enter Here Wedding Band* Tombstone (The Fool´s Journey) Me & Casey McAllister* Gambling Man Singing In The Band Dune* The Moon The Awakening Sun The Journey=
The Dancer Sunrise Lady* The Hunter* Twenty-two Roses+
=live reading@ Sweetwater Music Hall, Mill Valley, California, October 21, 2019
I wrote these songs in the 1970´s, all of them inspired by the Grateful Dead, except for “Dune”, an interpretation of science fiction writer Frank Herbert´s book, Dune. I am not a musician because I don´t have the ear for music. Whenever I been on stage with a guitar I had to rely on other musicians to tune it for me. Even with the new tuning devices, I still can´t get it consistently precise. I was fortunate to have professional vocal lessons that enable me to be a singer. These 24 lyrics (light editing of the originals) will be published this year. The songs listed with an asterisk * are the songs I wrote music to and hoping to record these songs. I was inspired to learn the guitar by Chuck Berry. Back then, I saw him at the Golden Gate Racetrack in Albany California one afternoon and this simple man who travelled with a guitar, and relied on local high school musicians to be his backing band wherever he showed up, showed me what was possible. I learned to play “Promised Land”. The chords in his songs were easy to learn and the Grateful Dead added some of his songs to their repertoire. This encouraged me to write music to my poetry and lyrics. The arrangement+ for “Twenty-two Roses” is with Bob Weir. --Uncle John, 3/15/21
UNCLE JOHN.org When The Moment Comes
The Embrace by Sergey Gorshkov, Russia 2020 Wildlife Picture of the Year He set up a camera in the remote wilderness and it captured this picture
WOLF MOON Photo by John Lund It´s January 28, and I´m awake at 2 am when I hear this loud whining crying human sound that seemed to come from inside the house, then another sound that is like a growling animal sound, loud, but I´m still focused on the darkness inside, searching for the sound. Then I realize it´s coming from outside, and I open the blinds to look out the front window, and I see a wolf standing at the edge of the sidewalk in front of my door, his long snout angled up, howling at the moon. Wolves are very rare in California, but I know this one resides locally. I listen to the howling like it´s music and I´m surprised no one else is awake. Is this a sign? A few years ago there was a mountain lion in the same spot in front of my doorway. It reminds me of Aldo Leopold´s lesson about wolves in "Thinking Like A Mountain" that characterizes ecological thinking. "Only the mountain has lived long enough to listen objectively to the howl of a wolf." Having once believed that the eradication of predators, the wolf and mountain lion, would preserve the deer, but didn´t recognize the imbalance it caused, Aldo transformed his thinking to recognize the wolf with a sentiment of ecological integrity. He understood the nature and mystery of the howl. I listen for several minutes, amazed that the animal does not go away, and the howling is louder than any other animal I´ve heard outside. I ran to my room to get my phone to realize I could take a picture. I looked through the peephole of the door and he´s in the same position howling, and as soon as I open the door, the wolf runs away. I didn´t realize it was January´s Full Wolf Moon until I read Bob Weir´s twitter feed when I got up: "Welcoming in the first Wolf Moon of 2021! Occurring in Leo, it's said to be the luckiest and most prosperous day of the year. The sun shares its light with the generosity of Jupiter, marking new and bright beginnings..."
It reminds me of this book, and quest for completion: LAST FLASH OF THE GRATEFUL DEAD by Uncle John Excerpt ¨I have a message for you from Jerry¨ Rock Scully tells me. We´re backstage at the Old Waldorf in San Francisco and we sit down in a booth with musician Warren Zevon. Warren is a small man, quiet, watchful, intense, and he is sober tonight. There is a large unattended bar next to us , kind of like a trophy, no bartender, no drinking, and it reminds me of when Warren fell off the stage drunk and broke his leg, “Bad luck streak in dancing school” was his response and the title of his next album. Rock, the way he´s dressed, looks just like a wolf, reminding me that Warren is the author of ¨Werewolves of London¨, and across the room from us is Wolfgang, that´s what his mom called him, we know him as Bill Graham, the premier impresario, and this is Bill´s club holding about six hundred people, a place for big stars to play in front of small audiences. I´ll send Jerry a letter, I tell Rock, and I´ll see Garcia at his show Saturday night. The first time I met Rock, the road manager for the Grateful Dead, was in an elevator in New York City on his birthday, and he arranged an interview for me with Jerry Garcia, in Philadelphia.
The wolf does more than howl to communicate. They whimper and whine, growl and bark, yelp and snarl, smell, about 100 times stronger than our ability , as is their hearing and sight, they are strong with sharp teeth, and they fear humans and tigers, but humans are not their enemies and they will not attack unless provoked or threatened. The wolves can be our brothers, protectors, workers and lovers as their mates and mothers feed their babies with milk.
These wolves come to play, prancing with their fingers, happily, and causing others to dance merrily, rump in the air and bushy tail wagging. Listening to Warren Zevon, his piano and vocals blasting out ¨When Johnny Strikes Up The Band¨, the notes keep escalating, his voice energizing as an angel´s, lifting us as the crowd eats, drinks, dances, and is merrily living life like a dream.
ALL MATERIAL IN THIS WEB SITE PROTECTED BY:
Ain´t no time to hate Barely time to wait
Hello to my Heart
Lyrics & Music by Uncle John
"Es lo que es, pero se convertirá en lo que tú lo hagas".
"Northern Lights" by Jerry Garcia
LEAP-YEAR
In the sky and in the breeze Clouds over seas Leaves rustlin´ trees
North of midnight
Lyrics & Music by Marcela Gándara
Uncle John @ Terrapin Crossroads Bar with Terrapin Family BandLyrics & Music by Bob Dylan Canción de Grateful Dead
(Robert Hunter, Jerry Garcia)
Translation: Tania Carrasco & Jhon Ramirez
Performed live in Spanish @
Terrapin Crossroads 12/26/2018 Vocals, Uncle John
Guitars, Ross James & Alex Koford (Terrapin Family Band)
Keyboards, Jason Crosby (Terrapin Family Band)
Bass, Brian Hasrap (Casual Coalition)
Drums, Danny Luehring (Casual Coalition)
¨Box Of Rain" rehearsal 8/1/2020 for RAINDANCE play
HALLELUJAH PRESSING ON FRANKLIN'S TOWER THUNDER ON THE MOUNTAIN BOOK OF DANIEL ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER THINGS HAVE CHANGED
GOTTA SERVE SOMEBODY NEW SPEEDWAY BOOGIE
"Where do I stand spiritually? Oh God!!! (with laughter) Somewhere between Jesus and the devil." --JERRY GARCIA
UNCLE JOHN reads @ Sweetwater Music Hall, Mill Valley, California, October 21, 2019
When your past becomes your path & you come to answer what you ask & the angels take you down to your grave I´m not here to follow the parade
You begin to understand That you were just a man But to be a man is to stand in your doorway I´m not here to judge in a world among friends You know the beginning from where the song ends
Your journey leads us to wake Up in the eyes of the world You been working here so long To fill our hearts with song Help us to understand our rights From what´s wrong
I look around for you In all the places we have been On a mysterious winding path The gold of sunshine shining through seven golden rings with seven golden powers that makes good men immortal Same revelation and secret Surrounding all of you Child of magic With words of wonder You stopped the world So the blind man can see Grateful you shall always be
We are lifted up by the spirit To soar like an eagle high above On the wings of the power of love ¨Sometimes the light is all shining on me Other times I can barely see Lately it occurs to me What a long strange trip it´s been¨
UNCLE JOHN'S BLOG @ http://www.air.bz
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