Songs and Poems by Scotty Melton
As posted to the about-townes mail list
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Subject:
about-townes: a song inspired by townes
Date:
Mon, 30 Jun 1997 07:03:06 -0400
From:
b wayne melton
Reply-To:
about-townes@physitron.COM
To:
about-townes@physitron.COM
i very seldom use this thing but felt compelled to share this w/ all of
you. the first time i
saw townes was in july of '96. unfortunately, it was the last time. but
it was (& is) somethin'
i'll never forget as long as i live. to keep it short, i'd like to write
for you my feelings on
townes in a song i wrote for him that night. i hope you don't mind &
also know that this is as a tribute
to the greatest songwriter who ever lived.
IT'S A LONESOME ROAD YOU'RE TRAVELIN' DOWN
IT'S A LIFE OF WHISKEY & HARD LIVING
IT'S A MEAN OL' SONG & IT LEAVES A HOLLOW SOUND
LIKE A SIN THAT'S TOO LATE TO BE FORGIVEN
IT'S A YOUNG MAN'S DREAM THAT'S SOON TURNED GRAY
& IT WEIGHS HEAVY ON HIS SOUL
LIKE THE POET WHO GAVE HIS LIFE AWAY
& WAS SOLD FOR THE PRICE OF PAPER GOLD
IT'S A LONESOME STAGE YOU'RE STANDIN' ON
& THE LIGHTS THEY FRY YOUR BRAIN
BUT THEY BURN OUT SO FAST & YOU'RE LEFT ALL ALONE
& THERE'S NOONE THERE TO HOLD YOU FROM THE INSANE
YEAH, YOU'RE UP THERE JUST LIKE JESUS HANGIN' ON YOUR CROSS
DYING FOR EVERY EYE TO SEE
TEARING OUT THE SORROW FROM A SPIRIT LONE & LOST
BUT THIS ROAD IT WILL NEVER SET YOU FREE
BUT THIS ROAD IT WILL NEVER SET YOU FREE
thank you townes,
scotty melton.
Subject:
about-townes: here you are
Date:
Wed, 16 Jul 1997 01:19:03 -0400
From:
b wayne melton
Reply-To:
about-townes@physitron.com
To:
about-townes@physitron.com
Here this just might fit
don't you send me no sunshine
when the grieving is over & the laughter's beginning
when you leave me alone least i know where i stand
on the numb side of sorrow where the losers are winning
drinkin' up all the answers from this bottle in my hand
{don't you send me no sunshine don't you send me no rain
don't you send me no kissin' when your love's all in vain
'cause i'm all through w/ cryin' & i've thrown out my shame
don't you send me no sunshine don't you send me no rain}
well now that i see the clear picture unfolding
i've decided that i would be better off blind
so i'm blurrin' my vision w/ these booze that i'm holding
& i'm flyin' off the wagon one drink at a time
{chorus}
well i've taken more punches than a boxer could handle
& my heart's like a sponge soaking up this misery
so won't ya give me a try 'til i shake & i tremble
then you can wring out my heart 'til it fills up the sea
{chorus}
scotty melton 1997c
Subject:
about-townes: here's another one
Date:
Wed, 16 Jul 1997 01:25:06 -0400
From:
b wayne melton
Reply-To:
about-townes@physitron.com
To:
about-townes@physitron.com
Here's another one for you'll to think about for anyone who might care.b
wayne melton wrote:
>
> Hey Barry, I thought you might enjoy this song if I can figure out how
> to transfer it without typeing.
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------
dirge(in A minor)
i heard you laugh as you said goodbye
the mad wind echoed it's soft wicked sigh
& the trees brushed upon the naked sky
a portrait of black on black
threw me down 'gainst the ground my pieces were scattered
like ashes in the ditches of hearts that lay shattered
of all of the things that seemed so to matter
you gave unto me & took them all back
i kicked & threw screams in my lunatic dreams
& struggled myself to be free
but could not break my soul from the strangling hold
the devil's hand held upon me
i tasted the love i tasted the pain
i tasted the wine of all earthly things
& fell to my weakness & burned out my brain
'til insanity came over me
heard whispers all 'round me of fear & of shame
i acted my role as a pawn in your game
& all that i lost was all i had gained
& i gathered my misery
& i forced it inside this place where i hide
i threw pins in my eyes not to see
but it busted within 'til my spirit caved in
& my burden of sin carried me
you claim that you know the true meaning of
these words that you use to protect you from love
& you curse at the wisdom of the gods above
for the prayers that you send go unanswered
oh, but love it ain't nothin' but a lie that's a fact
it's only a word & a play for to act
it's something you give & you never get back
& it'll eat up your heart like a cancer
like the flowers you've planted have grown slightly slanted
& they break & they bend in the wind
'til they crumble & fall w/ the winter skies call
& fly on the cruel october wind
scotty melton 1997c
Subject:
about-townes: how about just one more
Date:
Wed, 16 Jul 1997 03:51:00 -0400
From:
b wayne melton
Reply-To:
about-townes@physitron.com
To:
about-townes@physitron.com
Here's just one more...food for thought, good for the mind, think this
one over, see what your mind does with it.
non-antidisestablishmentarianism blues
well i woke up this afternoon & fell outta bed
fragments of the night before still screaming in my head
the telephone was ringing, the cops kicked in the door
then i woke up; i was dreaming, peeled myself up off the floor
hit the door & ran outside, a plane fell from the sky
when i called up my psychic friend to see what she'd reply
she said...
"hey, wake up! where ya been? welcome to '97!
caller #13 don't receive no free trip to heaven"
so i called up my preacher man to get my reservations
he said "come on down, we're handing out free samples of salvation"
damnation of a generation rated triple X
in the age of masturbation, drag queens & cyber sex
so i turned on my television looking for good news
97 channels i just sat there flipping through
the news man yelled at me trouble's a-brewing in the east
brothers killing brothers in the fight to save world peace
in the streets they're holding signs look ahead the end is near
i, ME, MINE, GET IN LINE! bumper stickers have no fear
the border sign says welcome to the land of the free
i won't tread on you if you don't tread on me
i got desires, i got dreams, i got wants, i got needs
for green is the color of the hunger known as greed
hey what's in it for you? hey,no! what's in it for ME?
the brady bunch, hawaiin punch, cd rom society
from the time you learn to walk & talk they send you off to school
then it's SIT DOWN! SHUT YOUR MOUTH! obey the teacher's rules!
get a wife, get a kid, factory job in town
sweat & slave your life away for a hole in the ground
while the poor man is standing in a welfare line
the rich man is eating caviare & drinking wine
from the riots in l.a. to david koresh
they're showin' me the pictures on my television set
what people will do for fortune & fame!
you can get away w/ murder if you got the money & the name
& the ratings go sky high for courtroom t.v.
it all sounds like geraldo rivera shit to me
people gather 'round like vultures at the scene of the crime
they rip & claw their way up front to the top of the line
then it's turn on the cameras, smile for the freakshow
get your thrills beverly hills 90210
sex, drugs, violence, money, rock & roll
supermodels, mtv, aids & just say no! (NO!NO!)
scotty melton 1997c
Subject:
about-townes: is there a point
Date:
Wed, 16 Jul 1997 04:01:36 -0400
From:
b wayne melton
Reply-To:
about-townes@physitron.com
To:
about-townes@physitron.com
Is there a point or are we in the land of Oblio? Then here's me and my
arrow. An easy one, light hearted little ballad!
to please my woman(the jump off the bridge song)
i'm a-goin' down to the fishin' lake & drown
lord i'm jumpin' high off that old bridge
i've stumbled once or twice before
i've hit my head three times or more
now i'm standin' on the air side of the ledge
well my pa left when i took my first breath
ma got drunk, cried herself to death
my brothers all throwed rocks at me & spit
my aunt don't call me honey
my rich uncle won't gimmie no money
my girlfriend tells me i ain't worth a fit
{but lord i try so hard
just to mow the yard & to cut down the weeds
only come home drunk three nights a week
get up in the mornin' to a job i dread
just to please my woman & to bring home the bread}
well my ol' dog he grins & he begs
today he bit me on the leg
he said he ain't my best friend anymore
my boss he had to let me go
for reasons that you should not know
my preacher he won't let me through the door
i've tried AA i've tried jail, hell & sunday school
when i needed you most hare-krishna where were you?
i've tried lovin' i've tried livin'
i've tried sin just to be forgivin'
i've tried everything i know to do
{chorus}
scotty melton 1997c
Subject:
about-townes: last one folks
Date:
Wed, 16 Jul 1997 04:17:00 -0400
From:
b wayne melton
Reply-To:
about-townes@physitron.com
To:
about-townes@physitron.com
Let's see now...lets sort through here and find just one more for
now...maybe light hearted and fun...oh yeah, here's just the one we all
need. Add a little art to this shit!!
philosophy cigar
well i wake up in the afternoon
roll outta bed just a quarter past two
i go sneakin' into the kitchen
w/ these late night talk show blues
then i pull back at the curtain
let the sun come shining down
but there's clouds in my eyes
'cause i can't lose these blues i've found
but there ain't no need to worry myself
about the way things sometimes are
& everything's alright long as i got my
philosophy cigar
hey now if you're feelin' down
& your friends are outta town
well honey you know you've got a friend
we'll get high & watch the world go by
come back down & do it again
well it rolls up nice you hits it once or a-twice
& throw your troubles out the door
man i don't need no doctor please
i think i've found the cure
{so let's burn another twig & blow our minds
if we rolled up one half as big as the sun
all the world'd get along just fine
life'd be just like a fig newton pie
& a brand new shiny car
we ain't committed no crime we just havin' a time
everybody's puffin' on a philosophy cigar}
let's roll one boys let's roll two
let's roll all the way to ten
i don't care what the people say
feelin' this good ain't no sin
so you can put me down & say what you will
but brother heaven ain't so far away
& when we climb them stairs if we make it up there
i betcha ol' saint peter'll say
{chorus}
you know just one a day keeps the hard times away
a philosophy cigar
scotty melton 1997c
Subject:
about-townes: food for thought
Date:
Thu, 17 Jul 1997 16:56:53 -0400
From:
b wayne melton
Reply-To:
about-townes@physitron.com
To:
about-townes@physitron.com
Well, I think we're back on line thanks to the true friends and 'family'
who all share our common interest in the arts and artists. Especially
one of the greatest in our eyes, Townes. I'd like to say that our friend
and brother, Brock Jones from out in west Texas made a very good point
with which I think most of us can relate to very well. We can't all be
the great poets and troubadors as the ones we admire and appreciate, if
we were, there would be no audience and it would be hard for them to
make a living. No, I myself am not a poet, could you imagine if I was
able to make all of my bullshit rhyme and put some chords with it? I'd
really stay in trouble! I do play guitar but for my own enjoyment and
only pick with Scotty and Willie here at home on the porch. I heard
Billy Joe Shaver say once that when he picks up a guitar, the boys
always try to take it away from him. When my boys were very young, they
thought I was a pickin' fool, thay grew up, learned how....hell found
out the fool part was more accurate. Scotty does however use the things
we've learned together and our common philosiphy to put into verse and
sometimes asks for my help with words meanings and symbolisms.
Especially the Texas frases and there meaning. We thank Guy Clark for
introducing him to Townes' works, I would tell him how great I thought
he was but Guy had a lot more impact on him in that case than I ever
could. He grew up on me using Guy's lines to help me say many of the
things I thought he needed to know. When they first met, Scotty told him
he felt like he's known him his whole life, Guy said, "Hell I guess, in
my songs, you have."
By the way, Jeanene, I printed out a couple of catalogs from your page
and some extra order forms and left them with the gang at Down Home and
WETS radio and they were all tickled for them, I think you probably know
how they feel about Townes and his work, so get ready, the orders should
flying soon, I think they've got something planned. They asked me to
convey their feelings about Katie Belle's injury and speedy recovery. I
think the once-a-month song writers shows that Scotty leads are going to
be dedicated to the memory of Townes. We'll se how things turn out. I
just want you to know, we're for real folks and not just a bunch of
'kooks" who are 'wanting something for nothing', there are no short
cuts, Scotty and Willie pay their dues like anybody else who makes a
living in this very tough business. You will be very surprised someday
soon, so just stay busy and watch for plesant surprises. We all love you
and think of you and the kids daily.
I want to share this song Scotty wrote with you all if you don't
mind...Guy told him it's a keeper;
he was a brother of mine
they said there was no hope for him
& if any at all it was to late to try
said he'd fallen into this world a stumbler
& like the wind his life passed him by
long side the road's where they found him
& they said he was drunk when he died
long side the road his body lay in the snow
oh, and he was a brother of mine
they said he had no home & no family
& there was few for his soul to weep
the preacher read from the good book isaiah
& prayed his soul the good lord to keep
& asked that his sins be forgiven
that he should slip heavens other side
said he's better not 'mong the living
oh, but he was a brother of mine
i heard some folks say that he was a sinner
& that his eyes had ne'er seen the light
they cursed his soul to damnation
to be cast in that ol' lake of fire
yes, they flung many a stone in judgement
though only god knew of what lay inside
& jesus christ was his only begotten
& it was for our sins that he died
now john 3:16 is a verse of'en qouted
though of what it means i ain't quite sure
for i've seen many who in the name of jesus
turn their backs toward the helpless & the poor
though their tongues be entwined w/ gossip
not an earnest tear have i heard 'em cry
not even one shed o'er that poor lost soul
that i called a brother of mine
so remember, next time you see a stranger
long the road w/ his thumb in the air
the man in the jailhouse or the tramp on the street
for it could be jesus christ standing there
would you toss him a blanket, a kind word or a prayer
open your door & let him inside
or would you turn your back on him & walk away
as they did at calvary where he was crucified
scotty melton 1997c
Subject:
about-townes: daily tune
Date:
Sun, 20 Jul 1997 13:43:07 -0400
From:
b wayne melton
Reply-To:
about-townes@physitron.com
To:
about-townes@physitron.com
Is anybody ready for 'the daily tune'? You don't have to applaud!!! Just
don't forget the tip bucket!!!
sister mary
sister mary carry me back home
i don't think i belong here
i'm sick of myself & i'm tired of it all
everywhere they stop & stare
& they crucify me w/ their eyes
but they never seem to notice they're all blind
[mother, please don't disown me
is it that you see yourself in me?
jesus christ, why don't you stone me?]
just for living another day
i can feel myself slipping away from you
brother joseph cover me awhile
it's gettin' cold outside
the rain's a-fallin' & there's nowhere i can go
i think i lost my faith in god & religion
oh, but i don't know;
ain't sure if i ever did anyway
[chorus]
just for living another day
i got this feeling i can't stay in here
sweet sister comfort me awhile
w/ your sweet, soft lies
can you forgive me for loving you?
when all the days of my life
i've walked in your blinding light
but my feet are tired & it's getting hard to see
[chorus]
for crying out like a helpless child
i got this feeling i can't stay in here
& i got this feeling i don't belong in here
scotty melton 1997c
a nation is weeping
yesterday was just a dream
a bitter sunshine drapes tomorrow
save a place for all your sorrows
there'll be a time for you to cry
as a child i played alone
noone was there to console my pain
through all the years it seems
i've searched in vain
for an answer to this mystery
{justice is bleeding now
a nation is weeping
america how are you now?
your timekeeper is sleeping
somewhere a baby cries
oh mother can you hear me?
& the people walk on by
pretending not to see him}
mother, please don't turn away
when you let your children out to play
don't let 'em take hold of a strangers hand
for he may lead them astray
jesus christ, where are you now?
for we're in need of your healing hand
or is it all part of the master plan?
to teach the children there's a better way
{chorus}
scotty melton 1997c
