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Ghosts & Whispers

by Mike Stocksdale

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1.
Bad Bad World 03:56
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don't believe a word they say counting up some numbers on a page don't matter I don't really know what does but being here with you makes me feel better when they tell you it’s a bad bad world well I really wouldn't trust that shit I've found that the loudest sounds only matter for a little bit Some days it can get so crazy all I really wanna do is quit God knows it’s a heavy load but together we can carry it can't believe the things I hear people say we're better off with guns than flowers everybody lives in fear why the hell give anybody so much power? when they tell you it’s a bad bad world well I really wouldn't trust that shit I've found that the loudest sounds only matter for a little bit Some days it can get so crazy all I really wanna do is quit God knows it’s a heavy load but together we can carry it I been on pavement, son soaking up the beat while the pain gets smaller anyone would guess I'm done but you gotta get down before you stand up taller we can try we can try we could fail but at least there's a chance that we make it if we don't take a shot this is it there's no way that we'll ever escape it Yea the first step is hard hold my hand and lets take it when they tell you it’s a bad bad world well I really wouldn't trust that shit I've found that the loudest sounds only matter for a little bit Some days it can get so crazy all I really wanna do is quit God knows it’s a heavy load but together we can carry it
2.
Andersonville 03:43
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I am riding on the redline moving backward in slow motion while the Vietnam cafes on argyle drift beyond my reach I am lost and I am lonely still a fool but not the only one who's searching for September in the February cold if anybody really sees me they don't tell me they just go through all the mundane Monday morning motions everybody knows who can tell between a place and where it lives in time and space? andersonville my heart still beats in andersonville Man it’s colder in Chicago than I ever thought i could be who knew winter was a season that would freeze your heart and soul no one knows it but I'm waiting more like hopeful hibernating wanting more but knowing better than to tell someone your dreams so I am riding on the redline through a sea of Sunday mornings longing for the shore of michigan to thaw and flow again I am summer spring and fall but I am winter through it all in andersonville my heart still beats in andersonville all those years went by full throttle tried to catch them in a bottle with every song I wrote about you now you're trapped inside the pages of my composition book you know the black one that I took to every dive bar and cafe on clark it's filled with all these words and they paint pictures they make movies in my mind and they shake groupies to the bone but truth is I'm unknown to everyone but you so I ride on and on and on because I've never really gone from andersonville my heart still beats in andersonville
3.
Matador 04:28
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you don't need to be scared I can tell that you're unprepared but I gotta be honest now I do you don't believe in the facts unless they're shouted or tweeted back by a beautiful big shot with no clue truth isn't always very sexy and that's why God made the kardashians Yes I know that some day you're gonna find what you've been looking for take the big bull by the horns I know that some day you're gonna find what you've been looking for no more chasing matadors you think science is shit But you got nothing to do with it your opinion don't matter nor does mine we haven't run all the stats we haven't done the experiments until we do we go with what they find truth doesn't have to make you feel good and that's why God made BTS Yes I know that some day you're gonna find what you've been looking for take the big bull by the horns I know that some day you're gonna find what you've been looking for no more chasing matadors you don't gotta be pissed I'm not trying to blame you for this we've all been a fool for someone's lies they can seem pretty great so great that we can't see straight til there's nothing but madness in our eyes truth is the truth can sure be boring but that's why god made scientists and scholars and teachers to make knowledge more palatable and exciting and interesting so we can learn and progress as a society Yes I know that some day You’re gonna find what you been looking for take the big bull by the horns I know that some day You’re gonna find what you been looking for find what you've been looking for I know that some day we gonna find what we been looking for leave the bullshit at the door I know that some day we gonna find what we been looking for….no more chasing matadors
4.
Thunder 04:11
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there are days I don't believe that I can even get out the door when the clouds are rolling in and I can hardly see the sky anymore and the wind and the rain get to pounding my soul like a hurricane come for me out of control while it seems like the sun has been shining on you evermore Am I the only one who can see the lightning? am I the only one who can feel the thunder? every minute every hour every single day of the week my head has got a million thoughts inside it but I can't even speak and I'm stuck like a fly on the wall of your room so scared that I might wreck it all if I move I could take to the air but I'd rather not ruin the groove Am I the only one who can see the lightning? am I the only one who can feel the thunder? yea I know it's a beautiful life but sometimes the darkest parts can seem so damn bright so how do i overcome this spell Riding a lonely carousel spinning around and around stuck on the ground with a storm coming' at me that don’t slow down oh no Am I the only one who can see the lightning? am I the only one who can feel the thunder?
5.
One Way Ticket 04:53
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That child doesn’t know much. He’s brand new. You were like that too. Someone will tell him or show him the way. Or wont do enough of that kinda stuff. So who do we blame? If everyone’s looking through some sort of stricture we ain’t raised the same we might paint a picture But someone else chooses our frame this child doesn't know much. more or less, it's all my best guess. don't get me wrong I think I'm pretty wise, but truth is my truth could be nothin but lies so where does that leave me? if anything I could be kinder to you when you don't believe me what else can I do we only give what we receive see we only give what we receive -- I left the radio blasting 'cause they played a song I knew opened all of the windows so you could hear it too we only give what we get see, I thought I'd share with you and I been lonely lately so any attention will do feels like I been hanging out with ghosts and whispers but all I really wanna do is find me a friend in need -- baby if you want my love I got more to give and it's never enough baby if you want my love I got all there is but it's never enough baby if you want my love I'll waiting here till the sun comes up baby if you want my love I got more to give to you -- stranded at the airport on a cold November day plans that we had planned on now faded all away we need a one way ticket one way ticket to the top you asked me for the time and I stretched past everyone a moment can be fleeting or everything you become we got a one way ticket one way ticket to the top fly us away from here if we get high enough the stars will heal us on a night so clear even the tiniest of looks reveal us oh and it's plain you need a trip so climb upon my ship and let's ride til we drop we never gonna stop take a one way ticket out of this thicket a one way ticket...to the top
6.
The Rest of the Night 04:52
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seventeen days til the fourth of july I am riding the concrete and wind in between trips to the cafe I slip through daydream mazes again there is firewood, coal and old newspaper Locked tight and ready to burn the spark is a mystery but I know it's history and darlin it always returns we gon' be up for the rest of the night we gon be out til the morning is light ain't gonna stop til it feels all right we gon be up for the rest of the night Madison waits for me down by the river laid out in the afternoon sun she's a beautiful stain on a desolate plain Where long ago water would run we careen through the ditches and over the cracks as we hunt through the shadows and heat she suddenly swoons and communes with the daisies fighting up through the gaps in the street we gon' be up for the rest of the night we gon be out til the morning is light ain't gonna stop til it feels all right we gon be up for the rest of the night oh oh oh We gonna fly so high that we can’t come down down down Take us miles away from the ground oh oh oh Madison drove from Chicago to New York in summer of twenty ought three stared at hole in the the ground there for hours couldn't believe what she'd seen she cried that night from a motel window looking out over bowery bay in the morning awoke and shouted life is a joke but I won't let it stand in my way we gon' be up for the rest of the night we gon be out til the morning is light ain't gonna stop til it feels all right we gon be up for the rest of the night there's a world outside whether we like it or not and beyond that another one more and beyond that an infinite plane of existence makes us wonder what we are here for and who knows maybe nothing buildings crumble lives are shattered some will say it’s beyond our control but when life wakes us and breaks us so much we fix it until we are whole, so…
7.
Some Old Fashioned Way 03:24
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you stole a record of me while I was carrying on I caught a glimpse of you leave just like that you were gone what a fool I had been thought i'd see you again I stood there waiting for you and though I know better now don't have much of clue where you went to or how what a fool I had been thought i'd see you again Where do we belong? anyone could tell us but they’re probably wrong who am I to say if you and I had met in some old fashioned way just what might a been we all need someone to love why am I governed by fear? you stole a record of me and now the future's unclear I coulda taken a shot but barely gave it a thought so will a pattern emerge or will a puzzle piece fall? for all my faith in the world I don't know nothing at all except the iron was hot coulda struck but did not Where do we belong? anyone could tell us but they’re probably wrong who am I to say if you and I had met in some old fashioned way just what might a been I stole a record of you and kept it locked in my head built a life for us there it's probably better instead I woulda blown it I'm sure if I had known who you were Where do we belong? anyone could tell us but they’re probably wrong who am i to say if you and I had met in some old fashioned way just what might a been
8.
Rich Man Too 02:58
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you got dollars I got sense you got mansions I got tents But all the world's a home for me and you maybe you're rich man I'm a rich man too you got style you got grace but I got things you can't replace and no one owes me nothin but the truth maybe you're rich man I'm a rich man too it would be a lie lie lie to say that I don't want it I still try try try to get them dollars in my pocket if i buy buy buy happiness well what's the cost when all we really need is a little bit of love? you got rockets I got shoes you fly by but I walk through and I know every path and avenue maybe you're rich man I'm a rich man too it would be a lie lie lie to say that I don't want it I still try try try to get them dollars in my pocket if i buy buy buy happiness well what's the cost when all we really need is a little bit of love? all I really need is a little bit of love you got soldiers I got friends you start wars that we will end there's more of us than there are of you maybe you're rich man we're all rich ones too maybe you're rich man we're all rich ones too
9.
Another Love Song 03:23
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where do we go from here my darling? how do I stand when i can't stop falling in love with you? what does that make me? whenever I get locked up it's you who holds the key I know that's cheesy but I couldn't decide if it was bad or the best thing I ever did write and the fact remains it's just how I feel whenever I get broken you're the one that heals ahhh it's a wide wide world I'm told but all I want is to hold you close to me call in sick lay in bed all day and we got time time time we're told but no one knows when the worst will get hold of us let's stay safe lay in bed all day you get the door I'll draw the curtain everything out there's so uncertain and all we need is in-between these sheets tomorrow we can battle, today let's just retreat ahhh it's a wide wide world I'm told but all I want is to hold you close to me call in sick lay in bed all day and we got time time time we're told but no one knows when the worst will get hold of us let's stay safe lay in bed all day so where do we go from here my darlin? it's hard to believe that the future's calling and I just can't wait to face the unknown whenever I get stolen (lost babe) it's you who brings me home whenever I get stolen it's you who brings me home
10.
Captive of One 03:31
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I am a fool shouting out to a crowd where everyone's watching and I'm on the spot can't say if anyone really believes me but I'd rather be here than not taking a shot you are the sun breaking out of the clouds when my valley is dark as the night I am a flower shut tight in the morning that begins open when I feel your light hold on tight set a course for the future who knows what might be in store that's the thrill of it all I am a swimmer and you are the ocean there's no way to control you but I'm glad to be there you are a fire and I am the forest I know I should run but can't get nowhere you are a road and I am the traveller no choice but to use you when it's time leave you are the wheels babe and I am a window you're always moving but I let you breathe hold on tight set a course for the future who knows what might be in store that's the thrill of it all what is this power I hold in my hand it keeps making me do things I don't understand I keep staring inside it like it's got all I need but the only thing in there is trouble for me so what do we ask in this age of no answers well there's plenty of answers but who knows what's right I stopped asking questions, that's one solution and polluted my mind watching tik Tok all night in the morning got high on a strong cup of coffee that's all I needed to get over you I wrote ten thousand words 'fore my arrogance faded and odds are I'll end up with a good one or two hold on tight set a course for the future who knows what might be in store that's the thrill of it all If this is a war then you’ve already won but I’ll fight a battle til my weapons are gone and I’ll take a beating til the daylight has come and wake up beside you a captive of one
11.
Believe it or Not 04:14
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I don't need much but I still want it all got a doorstep that's covered up in packages but still got a hole in my heart that I can't seem to fill and who knows? maybe there is something more there was something here before and I know that long after I drop it'll be here whether I believe it or not I don’t do much But I still know it all Got a window that shows me a world can I fear Got a door to the truth but I don’t get to near And so what? if I never really see past my own reality well the facts are the facts that we got they'll be true whether we can believe em or not it took a long time losing to realize something so small That you getting worse don't make me any better at all I don't want you to leave me alone got some space and some time to myself and I found that I always been better when you are around oh yes maybe everything's a mess love is anybody's guess But I hope that long after I drop it'll be here whether I believe it or not it took a long time losing to realize something so small That you getting worse don't make me any better at all I don't have much but I still got it all yea the wealth in my life can't be counted up in bills and the things I possess won't end up in landfills yea it's true life is really something great there are days I don't relate but I hope that long after I drop It’ll be here whether I believe it or not Yea I hope yea I hope that long after I drop It’ll be here whether I believe it or not
12.
Rail Train Blues 03:53
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i’m riding on a rail train, it’s picking up speed i’m riding on a rail train, it’s picking up speed don’t know how i got here, don’t know where it’s taking me who the hell is driving (this thing)? who made him the boss? who the hell is driving? who made him the boss? we're racing toward an ocean, with no bridge to get across maybe if you wish it, the truth is up to you maybe if you wish it, the truth is up to you and this train ain’t really crashing, cause you believe the things you do so let’s all have a party, we can burn this mother down so let’s all have a party, oh let's burn this mother down this train is bound for crazy, unless we stop and turn around i’m riding on a rail train, it’s picking up speed I am riding on a rail train, it’s picking up speed don’t know how i got here, don’t know where it’s taking me
13.
Poor Boy's Vision 03:48
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where do I wake up? where do I go? after our shake up I just don't know got no instructions for where I should steer only my instincts that brought me here after all we said and done I fear I might be overcome with a poor boy's vision a poor boy's vision after all we said and done I fear I might be overcome with a poor boy's vision a poor boy's vision of it all everyone's watching everyone knows we've been on fire while holding the hose I feel like a failure for fanning the flames but this blaze's brightness lights a new way after all we said and done I fear I might be overcome with a poor boy's vision a poor boy's vision after all we said and done I fear I might be overcome with a poor boy's vision a poor boy's vision of it all where did I come from? where will I go? I'm suddenly slender with room to grow all that I wanted all that I'll be is some sort of medley of you and of me after all we said and done I fear I might be overcome with a poor boy's vision a poor boy's vision after all we said and done I fear I might be overcome with a poor boy's vision a poor boy's vision of it all
14.
Gone Gone Gone 04:11
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We lost Charlie Watts today Paul McCartney sure looked sad but he wouldn't say it I know all souls they must depart but me and Paul would rather hold 'em in our hearts where will we go when it's all gone gone gone? where will we go when it's all gone? I lost a part of me today cut out a piece of my heart with a pen upon page some days you don't believe you have it and though you can you don't reach out enough to grab it where will we go when it's all gone gone gone? where will we go when it's all gone? No one knows but that ain't bad we don't go looking for the things we have If you met my sons I know you'd see it There’s no way to look back and want to do things differently ya There's no world without them in it I swear god damn It took me a long time to get it but now I understand where will we go when it's all gone gone gone? where will we go when it's all gone? where will we go when it's all gone gone gone? where will we go when it's all gone? It’s Michael Doman’s birthday He was a legend but you probably never knew his name mike once told me to write more love songs so I did I bet he never knew how much he meant to this dumb kid where will we go when it's all gone gone gone? where will we go when it's all gone? where will we go when it's all gone gone gone? where will we go when it's all gone? No one knows but that ain't bad we don't go looking for the things we have we don't go looking for the things we have we don't go looking for the things we have
15.
Cryin' About It 03:27
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My dad never taught me how to play guitar or how to write a simple song or who the Beatles are but if you saw me ballin at the park you'd know that I don’t miss too much behind the arc So I can’t complain He gave me the game Who knows what I would have been without it that's why I don’t get upset We all get what we get Ain’t no use in cryin about it momma never learned to play an instrument how to compose a symphony or what Bob Dylan meant but she could feel your pain across the room and I was raised to empathize and feel it too then I just write it down til it rhymes and sounds Who knows what I would have been without it that's why I don’t get upset We all get what we get Ain’t no use in cryin about it can anybody really become anything they want? or are we stuck with destiny? am I a stubborn or just late to bloom waiting for a rendezvous with the rest of me? I Didn't sing a note til I was 24 and suddenly those crowded rooms started heading for the door I tried so hard my friends called me a masochist but baby failure's always been my greatest gift so I can't complain there's growth in the pain and who knows what I would have been without it now I shoot from the hip and sometimes it slips ain't no use in crying about it yea I shoot from the hip and sometimes it slips ain't no use in crying about it

credits

released September 7, 2023

All songs written by Michael Jeffrey Stocksdale ASCAP.

Mike Stocksdale – Vocals, Acoustic and Electric Guitars, Bass
Anders Mouridsen – Electric and Acoustic Guitars, Keyboards, Piano, Frankenslide
Ulf Mickael Wahlgren – Drums, Percussion
Kate Strand – Backing vocals
Jason Swift – Backing vocals on Matador

Engineered and Mixed by Mark Rains at Station House Studio in Los Angeles, CA.

Additional recording by Mike Stocksdale at his home studio.

Mastered by Eric Conn at Independent Mastering in Nashville, TN.

Produced by Mike Stocksdale.

Cover art photo taken by Shane Liem.

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Mike Stocksdale Culver City, California

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