Release date: May 4, 2012
Speedy Johnson – guitar, vocals, harmonica
Bartleby J. Budde – banjo, lap steel, back-up vocals
Kevin Labchuk – accordion, back-up vocals
Chris Byrne – bass, back-up vocals
Max Outerbridge – drums
- Whiskey Stomp
(Speedy Johnson)
What would you think about man and beast, walking together hand and hand?
One feeds the other as the other stands
Both naked as this haunted land
There ain’t no bird like a hummingbird
There ain’t no pie like sweet potato pie
There ain’t no time like the time you gotta serve
And there ain’t no love like mineWhiskey stomp, whiskey muscles
Whiskey-minded, whiskey day
I’ll build me a house
You can send your letters to 1 Whiskey Way - In The Eye of The Moonshine
(Speedy Johnson)Swingin’ chair on the front porch
Homemade ice tea, we’re singing songs
The hurricane is on its way now
But the sun still shines all the day long
We need not worry
Tomorrow’s scurries
We got the sunshine
When the storm comes
We’ll have our moonshineFall-out shelter for that big bomb
I keep my bike down there for a way out
We’re on the front lawn, we’re picking flowers
And we need not care what life’s all about
We need not worry
Tomorrow’s scurries
We got the sunshineWhen the storm comes
We’ll have our moonshineOh, when the rain starts, the winds a blowin’
The trees are losing all their branches
River’s risin’, streets are floodin’
And everyone is wondering all about their chances
We need not worry
Tomorrow’s scurries
We lost the sunshine
Now the storm’s here
We got our moonshineI lost a neighbour across the street
His name will not be forgotten
He had no way out, ‘cept a warnin’
Now I raise my final toast to a life that was his
We need not worry
Tomorrow’s scurries
We got the sun back
Now the storm’s gone
We’re out of moonshine - Underneath The Old Red Barn
(Bartleby J. Budde)Underneath the old, red barn we used to sit
Dreaming of the days to come
We’d marry for the preacher in mid-July
In August we’d start a homeI would till the fields and mind the corn
And you would feed the chicks and cows
Then we’d smoke and drink together ‘til dawn
And guard the crops from morning crowsIn the summer of 1863, you left me for a soldier man
You told me this was how it had to be, and ran off with your soldier manUnderneath the old, red barn we used to lie
Dreaming of the days ahead
We’d build a family, we’d build a life
Share the warmth of a single bedBut in winter 1864, they brought your body back to me
You were shot dead with your soldier man, rebels found you by a treeUnderneath the old, red barn I laid you rest
Where we used to sit and dream
I visit you there an old man now
When I want to sit and dream - Coo Coo
(traditional)Gonna build me a log cabin
On a mountain so high
So I can see Willie
As he goes passin’ byOh the coo-coo, she‘s a pretty bird
She wobbles as she flies
She never says coo-coo
‘Til the fourth day JulyI’ve played cards in England
I’ve played cards in Spain
I bet you ten dollars
I’ll beat you next handJack of diamonds, Jack of diamonds
I remember you of yore
You robbed my poor pockets
Of my silver and my goldOh the coo-coo is a pretty bird
She wobbles as she flies
She never says coo-coo
‘Til the fourth day July - Train to Philadelphia
(Bartleby J. Budde)Took a train to Philadelphia and left Montreal
I left my job and my woman behind
Went in search of a better life and all that I found
Gamblin’ debts, heartbreak, and strifeTook my things to New Orleans and made my home there
Heard the jazz bands, the women were fine
But the horns wouldn’t play for me, the women non plus
So I left town with hardly a dimeLeft the South and I headed west to Los Angeles
Where I heard that it never does rain
But my tears had kept my plenty wet, thinking of home
Now I’m searching that goddamned trainStole a horse and I headed north to Salt Lake City
There I thought I could make right with God
But the Almighty struck me down for sins of my youth
You spoil the child if you spare that old rodPacked my bags and I headed back to good, old montreal
I got no job and no woman I can find
But the Lord, He loves this town
And He will provide, so I’m leavin’ my wanderin’ behind - Sticks and Stones
(Speedy Johnson)Feelin’ lazy these days and I ain’t got no job
I come a long ways just to say, “I hate fuckin’ snobs”
And that woman of mine keeps a naggin’ all the time
So I drink ‘til I cannot see straightFeelin’ crazy these days, crazy as a mangy dog
I’m high on cocaine and I can’t fuckin’ stop
But we’re playing all the time for a few lousy dimes
And we’ll play, yeah, we’ll play ‘til we dieThere’s a voice inside of you
There’s a voice inside of you
It’s tellin’ you what to do
Oh, you get piss drunk and you shout
You fall down, then you pass out
In the morning find your eyes all black and blueWell, God, He speaks to me
He speaks through stones and trees
Y’know them’s the bones of things
I complain and I curse
Which makes things that much worse
I might as well be hanging from a treeI been broke and cold
I been told I have no soul
I been drinking and carousing like a fool
I been picking fights in vain
Lord knows I have no shame
And I’ll probably keep this up until I’m oldThere’s a voice inside of you
There’s a voice inside of you
It’s tellin’ you what to do
You’d better lay down that knife
It ain’t worth no goddamn life
Do I have to see you make do through and through? - Won’t Get Drunk No More
(traditional)I’d rather be in Richmond with all the hail and rain
Than to be in Georgia, boys, wearin’ that ball and chain
Won’t get drunk no more
Won’t get drunk no more
Won’t get drunk no more
Way down the Old Plank RoadI went down to Mobile, but I got on the gravel train
Very next thing they heard of me, had on that ball and chainDoney, oh dear Doney, what makes you treat me so
Caused me to wear that ball and chain, now my ankle’s soreKnoxville is a pretty place, Memphis is a beauty
Wanta see them pretty girls, hop to ChattanoogieI’ll build me a scaffold on some old mountain high
So I can see my Doney girl as she goes riding byMy wife died on Friday night, Saturday she was buried
Sunday was my courtin’ day, Monday I got marriedEighteen pounds of meat a week, whiskey here to sell
How can a young man stay at home, pretty girls look so well - Twisted Road
(Speedy Johnson)Smokestack lightning shine like gold
You’d better share the wealth before you get too old
Well, I’m an ordinary kind of man
If you feed me hard liquor, I can hardly standThis lifetime of memories
It got ya sweatin’ bullets if ya seen what I seen
I’m drinkin’, droolin’, rulin’, rollin’ on the pillow case
Oh, I never learned nothing from no high speed chaseWell, if it ain’t one thing, it’d be somethin’ else
It’s gettin’ hot in here, I’d better take my shirt off
I’m feelin’ void of heart, I’m feelin’ void of soul
Is that something to fake, is that something to holdOn 2, 3, 4, knockin’ on your door
If ya give me what I want, I might still ask for more
I’m incorrigible, I stand in the weeds
And I tell myself I need this pipe dreamLove’s a twisted road with its bums and its curves
I’ve turned right ‘round, baby, in this tunnel of words
If there’s a light on at the end of the road
I think I’ll have learned enough despair to growOut of the swamp and into your heart
Y’already have me up at night, playin’ a part
Well, I ain’t no two-faced loser, no son of a bitch
I wanta grab ya tight and get rid of this itch with you - Freed Man Blues
(Budde/Johnson)I went on down to the corner store
To get some smokes and nothing more
Lord knows I couldn’t find what I was looking for
Well, I just got out of five-year stint
Now I’m a freed man and I need my fix
I just don’t seem to know which pack to choose
Ah, back in the clink I smoked my lucky strikes
Now there’s so many choices, I don’t know what to like
Oh, Lord, I got them nicotine bluesI had a real thirst for ice and rye
The bar had ten kinds, didn’t know what to try
Said, “Give me one of each, got nothin’ to lose”
I knocked down eight, kissed the barman’s wife
Then they kicked me out after number nine
Oh, Lord, I got them ice and rye blue
Yeah, they kick me out I’ll have you understand
Now let the Devil find work for these idle hands
Oh, Lord, I got them ice and rye bluesThen I found myself at the Junk Saloon
Oh, I ain’t known a woman since ‘92
Found me a looker and I took her up to her room
Everything was goin’ real swell
She made me squeal and I made her yell
I paid her fee, then I took her out for a beer
About six months later I started to fear
Now, I got me a sore comes back twice a year
Oh, Lord, I got them dirty whore bluesWell, a freed man’s life, it ain’t all cracked up
I can’t find my smokes and I drink too much
I got me a pain between my legs to boot
Lord, I been thinkin’, I been thinkin’ real hard
I prefer me a life behind bars
Gotta rob me a bank, that’s what I’m a gonna do
Because I had me a taste, now I had enough
The only life for me is if they lock me up
Oh, Lord, I got them freed man blues - Fill Me Up
(Bartleby J. Budde)Fill my cup up to the brim
When I’m done, you’d better pour again
Fill my cup up ‘til it overflows
When I say I’m done, you’ll know it’s time to go
I just want to taste your sweetness on my tongueI need a tall drink to wet my dry
You look good to me, yeah, you’ll do just fine
I got a thirst, a big desire
You’re tall and wet, and I’m on fire
I just want to taste your sweetness on my lipsI’m all alone with a desert snake
Been bit a thousand times, but I’m still awake
Don’t need no doctor, no antidote
No magic to give me some hope
I just want to feel your coolness slide down my throatIf I ever make it home to you
Tell me that you’ll be forever true
I’ll suck you down ‘til you’ve gone dry
Your eyes will say I made you mine
I just want to taste your sweetnessFill my cup up to the brim
When I’m done you’d better pour again
Fill my cup up ‘til it overflows
When I say I’m done, you’ll know it’s time to go
I just want to taste your sweetness - She Done Gone To The Devil
(Budde/Johnson)I found me a woman, she make my corn grow high
She plant me a tree and it shoot up to the sky
She’s the goose that lays the golden egg
She brought me to my knees and she taught me how to beg
She’s the gal that opened up my eyes
She’s the gal that made these eyes go blindThe Devil stole that woman right from under me
Now she’s drunk off Sally’s hooch, takin’ shots of rye whiskey
I’m goin’ down to Hell, gotta find my baby there
I’ll bring my baby back if I gotta drag her by her hairGotta wrestle the Devil, gotta pin Him to the floor
Make him say, “Uncle”, eat dirt and then some more
He’ll be sorry he stole my Lucy Lu
I’ll butcher up his carcass, then I’ll boil him in a stewI was just about out of Hell, when I saw my baby stop
She said, “Why would I go with you? The Devil gets me off.”
I fell silent as I saw my baby turn
I reached out to grab her, then my eyes began to burn - Big Fat Mama
(Speedy Johnson)Well, I ain’t been honest and I ain’t been true
Gotta take something strong that can kill me too
She’s a big, fat mama
Got the meat shakin’ on her bones
Everytime she shimmy, baby
Some man dollar goneI’m lookin’ for a lover, you can make that two
One or the other, I just need something new
She’s a big, fat mama
Got the meat shakin’ on her bones
Everytime she shimmy, baby
Some man dollar goneThe thing about disaster is it’s unforeseen
You can walk through the pasture where it’s plentiful and green
But that big, fat mama
Got the meat shakin’ on her bones
Everytime she shimmy, baby
Some man dollar goneWhen I get home broke as can be
Baby say, “I’m gone, don’t you call on me”
Well, that big, fat mama
Got the meat shakin’ on her bones
Everytime she shimmy, baby
Some man dollar gone