TENNESOTA LYRICS

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YOU NEVER LAST WHERE YOU LAND
(words and music by Jonathan Rundman)

I saw you runnin' through the darkness, baby
down along the cemetery road
what were you doin' on the outskirts, baby?
why were you out there in the cold?
you got no excuse for me
you got no excuse to be
out there where you should not go alone
I see you takin' lots of chances, baby
don't say that I never told you so

still you push your luck, you get out of touch
well, you know I never understand
and I wonder how you can keep your mind
when you never last where you land

I wish I never even met you, baby
you don't bring me nothin' but regret
when will I see you in the headlines, baby?
I'm surprised that hasn't happened yet
I got nothin' else to say
you ain't listening anyway
I guess I'll take this as a lesson learned
everybody's got a date with trouble, baby
watch it, 'cause you're gonna get your turn

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ALONE IN A NEW CITY
(words and music by Randy Kerkman)

well, we drove our truckload all the way from Chi-town
anticipation filled the skies
but it wasn't long before the axe had fallen
in just four short days, the scales fell from our eyes

when did you notice the Y in the road?
when will you discover--not all lies are told
oh, alone in a new city

we spent the next five months just hoping to tread water
waves of intention crashing in
felt like a rat led to the slaughter
living in the shadow of the House of Wigs

I'd like to recall my fond memories
if I get one, I'll give you a call
somewhere there's a black hole full of welcome
followed by a trip and then a fall

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HOMETOWN
(words and music by Beki Hemingway)

Nobody likes you in your own hometown
They shake your hand and then they throw you out
You're not supposed to let it bring you down
Nobody likes you in your own hometown

So when I got back home to Galilee
I went to church to see who I could see
A lot of people there had heard of me
They let me read the scroll

Isaiah wrote the Spirit of the Lord
Annointed me to preach unto the poor
Good News and freedom, healing, even more
They asked me to go on

I told them that scripture was fulfilled
They said I spoke with grace and taught with skill
But when I wouldn't do a miracle
They quickly changed their tune

They chased me up the hill and to the cliff
They said that I didn't deserve to live
But God was with me and He let me slip
Right on past, right on through

Nobody likes you in your own hometown
Just ask Elijah and Elisha now
You'll do much better if you just branch out
Nobody likes you in your own hometown

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EASY CHAIR
(words and music by Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman)

Easy chair
He's sitting there
I watch it all
Hopelessly small
Easy chair

Easy come, easy go
That's what I'm told
I ought to know
Easy chair

It isn't easy at all
It isn't easy at all
It isn't easy at all, easy at all

The world isn't fair
Easy chair
Who'll take his place
If I can't erase
His easy chair

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LIST OF THINGS TO DO
(words and music by Jonathan Rundman)

tune up the engine, polish the floor
dust the piano, fix the screen door
stop by the bank when I go into town
check my savings account

yeah, I got it down on my list of things to do
at the top of that list is me taking care of you

look for yourself, baby, you gotta see
you're my number one priority
more than money or country or sound
nothing else matters as much

don't you don't you don't you worry
you can count on me
I don't mind and I got time and I got energy

everyone's busy, everyone's tired
everyone's manic, everybody's wired
running their sanity into the ground
baby, I'll keep it together

I'm gonna take good care...
at the top of that list is me taking care of you

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EVERYTHING TO EVERYONE
(words and music by Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman)

What did I not do right?
What have a done?
The girls have all gone off without me
and had their fun

They were conscious, even prayerful
They heard me when I said be careful
They knew exactly what it means to come undone

And oh, now I know
You can't be everything to everyone

There is a place I know
Not far away
The girls stop in now and again
But I cannot make them stay

They complain about the weather
They don't see that it is better
Where storms can travel through
But they cannot have their way

And oh, now I know
You can't be everything to everyone

What did I not do right?
What does it mean?
I cannot hold the future
I can only be here in-between

And oh, now I know
You can't be everything
You can't be everything to everyone

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NO REGRETS
(words and music by Jonathan Rundman)

you would grade those papers underneath the lamp
I would climb five flights of stairs with my Fender amp
beneath the bedroom window, state highway 64
a straight line West a hundred miles or more

everyone we talk to says we must be feeling sad
to leave behind the home we knew and the life we had
describing it is difficult but somehow it makes sense
how we could leave with perfect confidence

I got no regrets, and it's time to hit the road
I got no regrets, baby, you and I both know
the work we did was good and the time we spent was right
and I got no regrets so let's go in peace tonight

peace be with the windows holding back the snow
peace be with the highway rolling down below
peace be with our footsteps left upon the floor
peace be with the closing of the door

the deal was done, the place was locked, we left behind the key
the car was now our home and I drove North past the trees
the setting sun behind a cloud lit up the evening sky
and the tri-state tollway said its last goodbye

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MARY'S SONG
(words and music by Beki Hemingway)

We haven't had a moment's rest
Since the baby was born
Lord, you put me to the test
You gave me a chance to change the world.

Joseph had a dream
I guess we're on the move again
Strange as it may seem
I do believe you speak to him
And so...here we go

Lord, I am your servant
If you lead, I will go
Where you are, wherever you take me
Is where I'll be 'cause that's my home

The news back home is bad
Many neighbors in despair
Mourning children slain by Herod's men
But You have led us safely away from there

And we know he will keep looking
But we know he will not find us
Your hand is on your chosen one
And it holds me in these troubled times

Lord, I am your servant
If you lead, I will go
Where you are, wherever you take me
Is where I'll be 'cause that's my home

You're my home though we are far away
From friends and family
You are keeping me close
And your angels speak in dreams that tell us
All we need to know

Lord, I am your servant
If you lead, I will go
Where you are, wherever you take me
Is where I'll be 'cause that's my home

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VACANCY SIGN
(music by Beki Hemingway, words by Jonathan Rundman)

they're shutting down the diesel stops as I drive the final mile
how I wish that you could meet me with an answer and a smile
but you are seven states away and this I know too well
so I take the nearest exit towards this lonely old motel

a vacant stare, a vacant heart
yeah, that's all I got left since driving away and tearing us apart
I had it all when you were mine
those memories are flashing like that vacancy sign

the passing headlights on the highway are helping me to see
match the number on the doorframe to the number on the key
I can see the skyline from the third floor balcony
and I know you're out there somewhere finding words to say to me

I try dialing up your number but my recall ain't the best
so I kill the lights and settle back for three days worth of rest
I see electric outlines through the window and my mind
there's a cruel reminder in that flashing neon sign

a vacant heart, a vacant stare
yeah, that's all I got left since driving away and leaving you standing there
I had it all when you were mine
those memories are flashing like that vacancy sign

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FORGIVENESS WALTZ
(words and music by Jonathan Rundman)

it's like a dance, it's like a wheel
less like math, less like a deal
more like a heartbreak beginning to heal
we can start over, we know forgiveness

these are hard words to hear in a world where nothing is free
and it's hard to trust in a promise that sounds too good to believe
but know that it's true: this is for you

it's so easy to drown in the numbers and the judgements and earnings
keeping score, keeping track, keeping time, as the hours keep turning
but you can turn a new way - it's a new day

it's like a dance, it's like a wheel
less like math, less like a deal
more like a desert becoming a field
we can start over, we know forgiveness

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CONSOLATION PRIZE
(words and music by Beki Hemingway, Jonathan Rundman, and Randy Kerkman)

Well, this aint my first time at the Dusty Rose
And I'm not just a flower on the wall where everybody knows
How she walked up to me and pledged to do me right
But she found another just the other night

So if you wanna dance with me, I guess I should advise
You may be my consolation but you're no prize

Well, you've heard this one a million times before
It echoes here beneath the neon and hangs above the floor
Nobody's a fool here, we're the same
And when the morning comes, I'll take the blame

So if you wanna say those things, I'll believe your lies
You may be my consolation but you're no prize

So if you wanna dance with me, I can close my eyes
You may be my consolation but you're no prize