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The Lyrics ... A Selection

A rumor has circulated for years that I am a writer, of sorts.
Some have accused me of being a lyricist ... and I neither confirm, nor deny, these accusations.

Many years ago, my friend and collaborator, John Keating, took some of my words and gave new life to them by surrounding them with his music. For that, I thank him.

Our songs are noted as such below their titles ... the remaining pieces are lyrics or poems which, at this time, have no musical accompaniment written for them. And some will stay that way.

And by the way, don't believe all the rumors you hear.


No Words - June 1, 1998 (A poem)

The day has been so long

... And there is a point when words simply flow
Aimlessly
Unattended
Useless

Thoughts cannot always be captured
So goodbye is only letters

And love can be a question
An answer
Or an excuse
When it is simply relegated to a word

Feelings cannot always be conveyed
By this limited language
That we hide behind

And so what does it really mean
If I say
I love you
Goodbye

What does it really mean

Crazy Shadows
(music J. Keating / Lyric T. Traguardo © 1997)

I've seen loneliness before
But the rain seems to wash it so its clean and pure
I've been waiting for a sign
Uncertain as you left, but now you're sure

And the light of the moon
Shines in my room
And your image still pounds in my brain
And I'm seeing crazy shadows ...
Crazy shadows
Crazy shadows through the midnight rain

Well the darkness is already here, and you are gone
I should have seen this coming from a mile away
Daylight anger, should have been your late night sighs
While I was hoping and praying to the shadows that you would stay
... Anyway

There were so many times before
My feelings tried to hide what I refused to see
I've been looking for a light
But the darkness showed the simplest truth to me

And the light of the moon
Shines in my room
And your image still pounds in my brain
And I'm seeing crazy shadows ...
Crazy shadows
Crazy shadows through the midnight rain

The Wrong Road - November 10, 1997


There we stood
And despite the things you'd said to me
With our difference in philosophy
We couldn't last

So there we fell
Our problems insurmountable
And I'd be held accountable
For a sordid past

I had one more chance - and it was you
And to spite me and despite you we're through
What else could you do

And you can't stay forever
On the wrong road
Can't weigh your shoulders down
With someone else's load
You can't stay forever
On the wrong road
Can't weigh your life down
Carrying someone's load

And here we are
And now that everything has changed
Our friends and contacts rearranged
All in their place

And we'll move on
Like troopers to the very end
We'll always try to see a friend
In a lover's face

There was one more chance for this heart
And to spite me and despite you we're apart
You've got a fresh start

And you can't stay forever
On the wrong road
Can't weigh your shoulders down
With someone else's load
You can't stay forever
On the wrong road
Can't weigh your life down
Carrying someone's load

Local Valentino
music J. Keating / lyric Tony Traguardo (1985) ©1997

I'm feeling so Warren Zevon
Just another excitable boy
Me and my humble libido
Heading out to bring the world joy

Despite the fact that I sleep alone
Don't think my thoughts aren't polluted
Me and my horrible appetite
Have a reputation that's undisputed

And you know I can get so Valentino
No one stronger or more silent around
And you know I can get so Valentino
I write my name on every ladies room wall in town

At night I count up my victories
All the women that I've loved and shaken
Me I've got no ties to bind me
And my freedom won't be forsaken

Sometimes I do have my off nights
Although I'm up and feeling fine
And if you're curious you'll find me
Home alone and in bed by nine

And you know I can get so Marlon Brando
You'll see me throwing my weight around
And you know I can get so Valentino
I write my name on every ladies room wall in town

Years
music J. Keating / lyric Tony Traguardo © 1997

I'm fading fast ... so tired
Why do I tire so quickly these days?
I'm changing thoughts ... midstream
Why are my thoughts so scattered these days?

Years ... lend no consideration
There are things that I still need to do
Years ... give no compensation
Simply take your time away from you

I'm falling out ... of favor
Why am I so out of touch these days?
I'm holding back ... opinions
Why am I so skeptical these days?

Years ... offer no solution
There are things that I will never know
Years ... send no contribution
Simply push you till it's time to go

Oh, but the thinking man of strong mind
Finds a way to leave something behind
For the ghosts of his future to find
While woman is blessed with the power
To carry us hour to hour
Try to tend to the world as her flower
... as the years carry on
And the years carry on.

I'm slowing down ... reactions
Why are simple things so difficult these days?
I'm thinking back ... nostalgic
Why do old dreams stir up tears these days?

Years ... give no strong suggestions
There are things that I will have to learn
Years .. lend their wealth of questions
And all the rest, I will have to earn

Fly On The Wall
music J. Keating & B. Fisch
lyrics T. Traguardo

Your words, like hope, spring eternal
You write in your journal
While I ... I keep nothing more inside
Old friend, she listens intently
Undressing me mentally
While I ... have lost all sense of pride

Buy a bottle of wine
And borrow an ear
And you have stumbled upon
My darkest fear

Every day as time fades away
The further from grace I will fall
In the light of a full moon night,
It's a stranger who's making the call
To the man who wanted to be
A fly on the wall

Sly fox, was trapped in a corner
With no one to warn her
Sometimes ... eternal feelings grow old
Kept score, of the vast contradictions
The pure science fiction
That from ... this poor dreamer is gold

And with some late night talk
A suspicious mind
Alters the history
That we left behind

Simple Shame
music J. Keating (April 11, 1996)
lyrics T. Traguardo (March 19, 1996) © 1997

Simple isn't easy
Easy isn't fair
Sometimes I'm like the devil
Sometimes I'm devil may care
You're looking for a simple solution
When you know one isn't there

Oh, it's love by another name
We can both be the victims and the ones to blame
Oh - it's love by another name
It's a simple shame
It's a simple ...

Beauty isn't perfect
Perfect isn't real
If you'd pay for an illusion
Maybe I'm a better deal
You're looking for a quick way out
Honey I know how you feel

Oh, it's love by another name
We can both be the victims and the ones to blame
Oh - it's love by another name
It's a simple shame
It's a simple ...

Well it's a shame that you found me
In need of a friend
And it's a shame that the painful truth
Is that I'll be there to the end
We'll be two straight lines running on forever
Neither one can possibly bend

Oh, it's love by another name
We can both be the victims and the ones to blame
Oh - it's love by another name
It's a simple shame
It's a simple ...

Mr. Man
music J. Keating / lyrics T. Traguardo © 1995

Man in the chair ... man in the chair
His eyes wander, his eyes dart
He holds your fate in his hands
And ice in his heart
He's what's current, he's what's now
As he thinks with his wristwatch, and wrinkles his brow

Mr. Man can you tell me where I am
Mr. Man can you tell me where I am
The sign on the office says "No Sale"
With no bars around me can I be in jail?
Mr Man ... Mr. Man

Man in the chair ... man in the chair
His story's old, his story's true
He's got the money to buy time
From fools like you
He holds the strings, he has control
As he squeezes your life into a penny roll

Mr. Man can you tell me where I am
Mr. Man can you tell me where I am
I'm paid by the hour like a cheap motel
With no fire around me can I be in hell?
Mr. Man ... Mr. Man

Here's my lot in life
With title and deed
And you'll be sure to keep me
As your friend in need

Death of Silas
(inspired by a character created by John Entwistle)

Silas Stingy was a man who only cared for money
He cared not if it rained outside or whether it was sunny
One day SIlas Stingy died and he did go to heaven
St. Peter said "These pennies here are not enough to get in"
For your many sins you see, you've become quite indebted
Pay up now or the heat goes on, and friend, I hope you get it

And he had laughed at all the poverty and strife
That he had seen go on around him all his life
And though he tended to his finances so well
He couldn't pay to save his soul from hell

Silas Stingy owned a company in Mayfair on the Thames
Provided furs and precious stones to many famous names
The day that Silas died the papers said "Great Loss Today"
And it was on that day the looters came and took his things away
He had left behind his riches, but he took with him his name
So he hadn't any children or a wife to stake their claim

And he had laughed at all the poverty and strife
That he had seen go on around him all his life
And though he tended to his finances so well
He couldn't pay to save his soul from hell

And all the homeless drunkards by the water
Grabbed a trinket to give to their wife or daughter
And though in life it was the bank who loved him most
Upon his death a dozen shaky hands would raise a toast ... to Silas Stingy

Girl's Best Friend
lyrics T. Traguardo © 1998

This was no stroke of luck
This was fate’s only chance
You struck like a mack truck
Took the lead in our one dance

I made the call, you answered the phone
A little heavy breathing and my cover was blown
With all your guilty feelings I should have known
That I’d be left here standing all alone

Your halo shimmers, it sparkles like diamond
And you’re anybody’s girlfriend’s best friend
For a cat away, you’re the mouse that runs away
For any man who wants you, you’re a dead end

This was a big girl’s game
You took a childlike stance
You had a come hither smile
An icy chill for hot romance

I made the play, you carried the ball
But back there in the end zone I took a hard fall
With all your of your confusion I should have thought
That I’d do nothing and still get caught
(repeat chorus)

Five Cents A Lemonade
music J. Keating (September 12, 1998)
lyric T. Traguardo (July, 1998) © 1998

I’ve always talked too much
That’s been my problem from the start
I’ve worn out my heart
From taking it on and off my sleeve

I’ve always tried to hard
And that’s why I’ve been caught off guard
When some wild card
Tears down the things I’d come to believe

A nickel won’t get penny candy anymore
And one thin dime won’t let me call the general store
A dollar won’t buy a gallon of gas
And I wonder how quickly my life will pass

This lemonade stand has just closed down
The time has come to feel guilty
As guilty as sin
And the results are in
Growing up is highly overrated

And I thought I’d be in fashion
When I gave up on compassion as a rule
It’s something that I should have forgotten
Back in school

I’ve always dreamed too much
Sure that’s alright when you’re a child
But left to run wild
It can take away your sense of what’s real

I’ve always stayed too close
Always surprised when someone goes
And all the hurt shows
And I’m left with all these things that I feel

A penny found won’t bring luck anymore
That penny for your thoughts can’t tell me what’s in store
A stich in time will never close this sore
And I’m right back where I was once before

This lemonade stand has just closed down
The time has come to feel guilty
As guilty as sin
And the results are in
Growing up is highly overrated

Five cents a lemonade ... five cents a lemonade ... five cents a lemonade

Rebel
music J. Keating / lyric T. Traguardo © September 12, 1998

When you’re recklessly abandoned
Blues take you from the whole
And the pressure on your heart takes its toll
You stop thinking

When you’re in your little corner
Seperated from your mind
Things you can’t avoid, you get behind
You stop winning

You say ...
Sometimes I’d like to be a rebel
And never have to change the way I think
Sometimes I’d like to break the chains
And make myself a missing link

Sometimes I’d like to be a rebel
Just taking on the world on my own
Sometimes I’d like to wander off
And simply be a rolling stone

When you’re barely treading water
In a fight to stay alive
Convincing your will it can survive
You start falling

But when the sunlight skims the mountain
And daybreak paves your way
You can feel the winds that blow another day
You start dreaming

You’ll say ...
Sometimes I’d like to be a rebel
And never have to change the way I think
Sometimes I’d like to break the chains
And make myself a missing link

Sometimes I’d like to be a rebel
Just taking on the world on my own
Sometimes I’d like to wander off
And simply be a rolling stone