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Some Days I'm a Lion

by Tyler Stenson

/
1.
So, you've fallen behind— Oh, no, not again. And you can see that you are Hard-pressed against a wind That hits just like a hammer On a nail that's bent— Oh no, not again. Oh no, not again. Oh, I know these days are hard And I know it’s hard to last But, believe you me, Just sturdy up your heart And this too shall pass. If there are wars being waged But they're not your voice And if good love has gone away But it wasn't by choice— If it's out of your hands But you just can't let go And if there's a whole lot on your mind But a whole lotta no one to show... Oh, I know these days are hard And I know it’s hard to last But, believe you me, Just sturdy up your heart And this too shall pass. So, you’ve fallen behind— Oh, no, not again. And you can see that you are Hard-pressed against a wind That hits just like a hammer On a nail already bent— Oh no, not again. Oh no, not again. Oh, I know these days are hard And I know it’s hard to last But, believe you me, Just sturdy up your heart And this too shall pass.
2.
Oh, give me a dime For each year of my life That lasted uncomfortably long And I'll be as poor as an orphan That spent his life knowing That there's nowhere he really belongs. Cause the world as it spins Creates such a wind That nothing is safe from the ride You can stare at the face Of the wind as it races And causes the decades to die But my, how they fly... Leaves blow by. Leaves blow by. Oh, much like the years and the people inside, The leaves blow by. Now, stronger is Heart Than a gun on the run— That's something I’ve learned like a Song Because a bullet can kill In an instant at will But heartbreak is forever long. So, hold on to love Because leaves blow by. Leaves blow by. Just like the years and the lovers inside, The leaves blow by. And Heaven is a Moon That is selfish as glue—- It pulls on us just like the tide. All you can do is hope That it pulls on you slow So you can make much of your time—- Cause my how it flies. Leaves blow by. Leaves blow by. Oh, much like the years and the people inside, The leaves blow by.
3.
The Arsonist 03:46
I was tired of always tasting All of that dust you were kicking up— I just never liked how it looked Upon my white skin. Oh, I swear (and I would testify) That you just love the run around... Baby, why build a bridge If you're just going to burn it down? Bind me not to the velvet of your gown. Chain me not to your grounds. Set me free— But may your answers long leave you bound; Baby, why build a bridge If you're just going to burn it down? There are reasons to believe That I am enough for anyone And that the Arsonist in you Is just a cold heart trying to get warm. So, while you’re building fires that burn like Hell, Hallelujah! I've been lost and found... Baby, why build a bridge If you're just going to burn it down? Bind me not to the velvet of your gown. Chain me not to your grounds. Set me free— But may your answers long leave you bound; Baby, why build a bridge If you're just going to burn it down? Little bit by little bit My nerve is starting to turn So, it won't be long now Until I'm the one that lights That bridge's burn And it'll light up Like that orange Western sky on the Fourth of July Or like a comet tail that finally found its stride— Cause I've been a pawn for way too long And now, I'm proud traitor to your crown— Baby, why build a bridge If you're just going to burn it down? Bind me not to the velvet of your gown. Chain me not to your grounds. Set me free— But may your answers long leave you bound; Baby, why build a bridge If you're just going to burn it down?
4.
Often & Much 03:46
I've been drifting for days on the blue And that horizon is telling the truth— It says, the land is a lonely distance from this view, But there is a lighthouse cutting through Because you're my hope. You're my sail. You're my crutch. So, my head returns to you often and much. I've been saving up all of my time And sorting buffalo nickels from dimes And I've been reading books (Just to learn from those lines) But those words don't rhyme But you're my hope. You're my sail. You're my crutch. So, my head returns to you often and much. So, pull up the anchor— Release the white doves And set sail for the sun And pray this gale Will guide that sale To the one I love Because you're my hope. You're my sail. You're my crutch. So, my head returns to you often and much.
5.
Best laid plans fail And wrong winds catch sails But that don't mean you lay down And lose your boat to the treacherous sea. No, you must believe: That which might have been, can yet still be. I've seen a beautiful sky turn gray As I stood by watching weather change But that don't mean the Sun is long-gone And all of our Hope should leave. No, you must believe: That which might have been, can yet still be. The greatest place ever known fell down. It was the Fall of Rome-- But I've seen the Vatican and Coliseum Under a summer's gleam (And it was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen) So, I'm telling you, That which might have been, can yet still be. Those best laid plans fail And those wrong winds catch sails But that don't mean you lay down And lose your boat to the treacherous sea. No, you must believe: That which might have been, can yet still be.
6.
Lover Things 04:39
I think back to the Garden's first days, And the reason that a woman was made, And believe it was an "up above" gesture to say: So long Emptiness, hello Sweet Grace. But it seems the words have changed And all their meanings have faded away— But, when I say, I love you, I mean it the same way as it was made. Cause you and I want nothing to do With the constant bending that sorrow brings. No, you and I want nothing to do But lover things. So, let's forget about the failed love we see And how the world is a brand new machine That drags the lovers through the mud And all other things that are so far from you and me. Cause you and I want nothing to do With the constant bending that sorrow brings. No, you and I want nothing to do But lover things. Oh, it seems the words have changed And all their meanings have faded away— But, when I say, I love you, I mean it the same way as it was made. Cause you and I want nothing to do With the constant bending that sorrow brings. No, you and I want nothing to do But lover things.
7.
Easy, No 04:32
There's 2,200 miles and 22 days Between you and me— It don't sound like much But it's a hell of a weight And it just might burry me. So, don't tell me it's easy Because in all of history They've never seen hard times like these. Like the 1930s in the Dust Bowl, When they fell on hard times, Was it easy? No. Not one bit. Like the Pioneers walking in the winter snow, With their backs to their homes, Was it easy? No. Not one bit. But love is patient. So, the days just pass by Slower than wine and brittle as bone— And if it don't sound like much Then you must not know love Or the hole that it leaves behind when it goes. So, don't tell me it's easy Because in all of history They've never seen hard times like these. Like the 1930s in the Dust Bowl, When they fell on hard times, Was it easy? No. Not one bit. Like the Pioneers walking in the winter snow, With their backs to their homes, Was it easy? No. Not one bit. But love is patient. Love is patient. Love is patient—it must be. Love is patient. Love is patiently waiting for me.
8.
"There is a fork in the road Leading where the soul goes; Heaven above or hell below." Then, with a grin, the Shadowed Salesmen said, "... And the first to die is the lucky first one going home." The Devil came knocking at my door today And tried to sell me something kind But I had heard it all before (And didn't want to hurt no more) So, I didn't pay him no mind. I don’t care where my bones lie when I go Or what the words might say on stone And if you ask me if I would like to be the last to die, NO, cause then I'm the first to be alone. The Devil came knocking at my door today And tried to sell me something kind But I had heard it all before (And didn't want to hurt no more) So, I didn't pay him no mind. But he's persistent as the beating of the heart in your chest And he don't stop until you've signed that dotted line. So, when I looked him in the eye and said, "I'm not your guy," I saw the rage build in his eyes and his horns rise. He snarled like a beast engulfed in misery And I remained stone cold in the face Because in a world as dark as this, I am unimpressed With a lone devil and briefcase. So, he came back with an army of his Broken Hearted To try and strong arm me into the deal But when you show up uninvited and bring with you the fight, Oh, Devil, your problems just got real. So, when the Devil came knocking at my door today I think he thought he'd worn me thin 'Til I invited him inside and delighted in his cries As I showed him I'm darker man than him And now he won't come knocking again.
9.
Head & Heart 03:55
Look at me walking this tightrope wire And hovering above a red-hot coal fire, Split down the middle with a definite seam— Looking for a place where the Head and Heart agree. Because lately, it seems I find no rest— My Head is on my shoulders, but a mile from my chest And my Heart pumps blood, but it just won't bleed— Always pining for a place where the Head and Heart agree. Head and Heart oh please, Could you finally make your peace? Do me right oh please, And take me to the place where the Head and Heart agree. Oh, nothing hurts more than a one-man war; Both sides would die, but who knows what for? Killing in the name of a nameless greed— Man, there's gotta be a place where the Head and Heart agree. Head and Heart oh please, Could you finally make your peace? Do me right oh please, And take me to the place where the Head and Heart agree. Gonna stick out my neck and let it be A bridge to the place where the Head and Heart agree.
10.
With every song I write I try to picture just what color it could be. It's the best way that I know (To pair the words with the notes that I sing). So, my love songs turn out red And all my sad songs are a melancholy hue But, since I've yet to write that perfect song, I have yet to use a True Royal Blue. Because it's a color like no other; It has been mixed just for the majesty of sky And those perfect circled isles That rest softly in the oceans of your eyes And the bluebird on the wind, Beautiful and elegant in what they do. Oh, what shame to be caged— That does no justice to a True Royal Blue. So, when those shadows start to bite And reduce us down to black and white, Let the music chase away those dreadful grays And let us pray some color stays. I am a peasant here by birth (No part of me was colored like a king) And although I'm just a subject, You are my Queen. So, if I offered you some bread And sang a song that I had written just for you, Would you lie down beside me And watch this simpleton progress from gray Into a True Royal Blue?
11.
I've gotten good at being alone Through the Valentines and the mistletoe (Though I've tried to find my heart's muse)— Oh, that I'll know you when I see you. I've pictured it a thousand times, My hands have run the length of your spine, Down to your thighs, to your glass shoe... Oh, that I'll know you when I see you. So, shine sun, shine And burn brighter than the others So that I might see your brand of beam And want another and another. I cannot call your name Because I don’t know who I’m calling too... Oh, that I’ll know you when I see you. It's not that I have never loved, It's that my timing has been a victim Of the Winds of Change—My, how they blew. Oh, that I'll know you when I see you. So, to My Love I haven't met, Where for art though Juliet— You see, I switched the lines But the play reads true. Oh, that I'll know you when I see you. So, shine sun, shine And burn brighter than the others So that I might see your brand of beam And want another and another. I cannot call your name Because I don’t know who I'm calling too... Oh, that I'll know you when I see you.
12.
My Love, My Love, You've got me up against a wall But, like a rodeo clown, The blood and bruise are part of the call. Some days I'm a Lion And some days my spirits crawl Across the floor, to you, who started it all... My Love. It's a head game Honey. It's easy to believe that I'm a foolish fish Inside a starving sea That just might swallow me whole (Or give me just what I need). So, be kind to me My Heart— My Muse— My Queen— My Love. My Love, Don't count me out just yet Cause my day will come. God damn you siren! You crawled into my bed And if I walked away, You would just do the same to my head— And your pedal steel would haunt me Like the Ghost of a Melody That a deaf man misses most. My Love, my love Don't count me out just yet Cause my day will come— This I know, Because there's a flower Buried in my chest That continues to grow. My Love, my love Don't count me out just yet Cause my day will come.

about

Above all, this is an empowering album about belief in self. Penned by an award-winning singer/songwriter of "elegant folk" music, this 12-track creation blends melodic acoustic sounds with ever creative lyric and a digestible hint of pop.

credits

released October 19, 2012

Recorded at Yellow Room Recording in Portland, OR.
Produced by Peter Rodocker and Tyler Stenson.
Engineered by Peter Rodocker.
Mastered by Nettleingham Audio in Vancouver, WA.

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Tyler Stenson Portland, Oregon

Tyler Stenson is singer/songwriter in Portland whose music is elegant at its core. Twice-named Portland's "Songwriter of the Year" by the Portland Songwriters Association and recently named "Best Male Artist" at the Portland Music Awards, Stenson's music is refreshingly reminiscent of classic singer-songwriter greats such as James Taylor and Cat Stevens. ... more

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