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1. |
Daddy's Girl
03:59
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(Verse 1)
I’m a daddy’s girl or at least I’d be if I knew where my daddy was
‘Cause he left mama when I was three and now it’s just the two of us
Heard he took his guitar to play honky-tonk bars up and down the Georgia line
Where the talk is cheap and the liquor is clean and the people pay you for your time
(Verse 2)
Mama made the best of a perfect mess and she worked hard to win our bread
She said, “The Lord behaves in mysterious ways and I hope that that bastard’s dead”
And when my friend’s ask, “Joan, where’s your daddy gone?” I have to fight the feelings back
And I learned the hard way that even church folks will talk behind your back
Yea they’ll talk behind your back
(Chorus)
O, I would walk a hundred miles to see his face
And ask the questions that have shadowed all my days
Like, “Why, why, why’d you have to go?
And leave me here out on my own?”
(Verse 3)
Well, I love to sing more than any - thing, it’s a feeling like being free
The one thing I got before daddy took off was his way with a melody
I’d sing along to a Carter song and my mama would stop and sigh
And all the pain and hurt, all the beauty and dirt, made sense for a little while
It’d make sense for a little while
(Chorus)
O, I would walk a hundred miles to see his face
And ask the questions that have shadowed all my days
Like, “Are you lost out on the road?
And will you ever come back home?”
(Verse 4)
Well, on the mountain here the people pay dear just to catch a little news
It’s all wedding bells and market sales, “How’s the weather?” “When’s your baby due?”
But then the word came round you were back in town for two nights, or maybe three
You got a whole new life, a brand new wife and a girl who looks a little like me
I heard she looks a little like me
(Chorus)
O, I would walk a hundred miles to see his face
And ask the questions that have shadowed all my days
So sing your sad and lonesome songs
‘Cause daddy’s little girl is gone
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2. |
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(Verse 1)
When I get a little money
I'm gonna buy a bird that sings
Of the things that I might say
When you look at me that way
I'm gonna buy us a bird that sings
(Verse 2)
When I get a little money
I'm gonna buy a fishing boat
But it's only an excuse
Just to sit and talk with you
I'm gonna buy us a fishing boat
(Chorus)
'Cause you can't buy a tender whisper
You can't sell a sad goodbye
But I can buy the things that might keep you close to me
And it's worth it just to have you by my side
(Verse 3)
When I get a little money
I'm gonna buy a wishing well
And we'll toss our pennies down
'Til our heyday comes around
I'm gonna buy us a wishing well
(Chorus)
'Cause you can't buy a tender whisper
You can't sell a sad goodbye
But I can buy the things that might keep you close to me
And it's worth it just to have you by my side
(Bridge)
When I get a little money
When I get a little more
Well give it all away building missions in your name
'Cause after all that's all that money's really for
(Chorus)
'Cause you can't buy a tender whisper
You can't sell a sad goodbye
But I can buy the things that might keep you close to me
And it's worth it just to have you by my side
When I get a little money
When I get a little money
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3. |
The Bells of Heaven
04:58
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(Verse 1)
As far back as I remember I’ve had a hair-trigger temper
I learned to settle scores with my two hands
Mama tried to cure my fighting, sometimes praying, sometimes crying
But you know I would not be a decent man
(Verse 2)
I lost a hand on a bad deal, I had to turn and walk on my heels
While the man who won just laughed and called me green
He was smoking out by the back door, he said, “Son, whaddya come back for?”
And I drew the pistol tucked into my jeans
(Chorus)
Ring the bells of heaven, ring the bells of heaven
O, let the bells of heaven ring
Ring the bells of heaven, ring the bells of heaven
O, those bells won’t ring for me
(Verse 3)
I shot him one, two, three times, dropped my piece beneath the moonlight
I don’t worry ‘cause I know my prints are clean
But I fear I’ve made a mistake, my friends all look at me strange
And I fear deep down I’ve made an enemy
(Chorus)
Ring the bells of heaven, ring the bells of heaven
O, let the bells of heaven ring
Ring the bells of heaven, ring the bells of heaven
O, those bells won’t ring for me
(Verse 4)
I went back to see my mother and her cheeks drained of their color
I don’t know if she’d thought that I was deal
And I told her ‘bout all that had gone down, but I spared her on some of the detail
Of the man I was and the life that I now led
I said mama you’ve got to help me the way that family would for family
And she looked at me with tears all in her eyes
She said, “Son, I’ve tried to help you, but now there’s only one thing that I can do”
And that’s when I saw the flashing lights outside
(Chorus)
Ring the bells of heaven, ring the bells of heaven
O, let the bells of heaven ring
Ring the bells of heaven, ring the bells of heaven
O, those bells won’t ring for me
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4. |
Always Been My Home
04:19
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(Verse 1)
It rained all spring till the crops were late and the river got so high
Then the summer sun wouldn't let it rain, I remember it was dry
Those were troubled days but they came and went like a hundred times before
Papa did his best to make ends meet but the hard times owned his soul
(Chorus)
Now I'm going back to Avery Ridge, I guess I know the way
It helps to know there's still a path that leads to yesterday
And even though it's fifteen years since I've been on my own
That old house on the dusty road has always been my home
(Verse 2)
We were country raised in a city world but to-day we hardly know
Bout a way of life that used to be a long, long time ago
All the countryside seems empty now and the farms are tumblin’ down
There's an ageless dream in the rich, black dirt but the kids all moved to town
(Chorus)
Now I'm going back to Avery Ridge, I guess I know the way
It helps to know there's still a path that leads to yesterday
And even though it's fifteen years since I've been on my own
That old house on the dusty road has always been my home
(Verse 3)
I saw lightning flash in the summer night but the thunder never came
It's a quiet sound that fills the air and my old world feels the same
There's a whippoorwill singing on the breeze and I think I understand
That there's no such thing as being poor when you grow up on the land
(Chorus)
Now I'm going back to Avery Ridge, I guess I know the way
It helps to know there's still a path that leads to yesterday
And even though it's fifteen years since I've been on my own
That old house on the dusty road has always been my home
That old house on the dusty road
Will always been my home
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5. |
Mama's Hands
04:04
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(Verse 1)
I remember watching my mom work with the strength of the cavalry
How her hair reflected sunlight when she washed the dishes in the sink
But her hands are frail and soft now like they must've been at 17
'Cause minds falter and bodies fail
But I can't help but think of mama's hands
(Chorus)
Mama's hands, hands that worked to love us
Hands that held our prayers
Hands that bathed and fed us
Hands she thought were ugly
Hands she said were plain
But in mama's hands I was saved
(Verse 2)
It was sweet and lonely when the time to say goodbye
Now my heart aches slowly like a rib torn from my side
Like a smoldering candle, a bruised and broken reed
In harder times they held me
In harder times I'd sleep in mama's hands
(Chorus)
Mama's hands, hands that worked to love us
Hands that held our prayers
Hands that bathed and fed us
Hands she thought were ugly
Hands she said were plain
But in mama's hands I was saved
(Bridge)
I forget who I am sometimes, I don't know how or why
Some days I feel like praying and I'm not the praying kind
And in the morning when I wake up
You're the first thing to cross my mind
And if I can't hold on to your hands
I'll hold what's left behind
(Verse 3)
Mama's soul is rising like smoke from an ember glow
Sometimes the only words we speak are in a language we don't know
But I know the words of faith and I know the words of love
And I know the truth is plain and I know the truth is tough
As mama's hands
(Chorus)
Mama's hands, hands that worked to love us
Hands that held our prayers
Hands that bathed and fed us
Hands she thought were ugly
Hands she said were plain
But in mama's hands I was names and I was raised
In mama's hands I was saved
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Nathan Barrow Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Nathan is a multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter rooted in Americana music. Recorded by country-rock legend Chris Hillman ("When I Get a Little Money," also produced by Tom Petty), Nathan's music blends character-driven storytelling with catchy melodies and infectious rhythms. ... more
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