The Town
You said: “I’ll go to another land, to other seaways wandering,
Some other town may yet be found better than this,
Where every effort of mine is a writ of guiltiness;
And my heart seems buried like a corpse. My mind---
How long is it to be in this decay confined?
Wherever I turn, wherever I lift my eyes,
The blackening ruins of my life arise,
here I have spent so many years spoiling and swquandering.”
“You’ll find no other places, no new seas in all your wanderings,
The town will follow you about. You’ll range
In the same streets. In the same suburbs change
From youth to age; inn this same house grow white.
No hope of another town; this is where you’ll always alight.
There is no road to another, there is no ship
To take you there. As here in this small strip
You spoiled your life, the whole earth felt your squanderings.”
poem by Constantine P. Cavafy
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The City
You said, "I will go to another land, I will go to another sea.
Another city will be found, a better one than this.
Every effort of mine is a condemnation of fate;
and my heart is -- like a corpse -- buried.
How long will my mind remain in this wasteland.
Wherever I turn my eyes, wherever I may look
I see black ruins of my life here,
where I spent so many years destroying and wasting."
You will find no new lands, you will find no other seas.
The city will follow you. You will roam the same
streets. And you will age in the same neighborhoods;
and you will grow gray in these same houses.
Always you will arrive in this city. Do not hope for any other --
There is no ship for you, there is no road.
As you have destroyed your life here
in this little corner, you have ruinded it in the entire world.
poem by Constantine P. Cavafy
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Small Town
Well I was born in a small town
And I live in a small town
Probly die in a small town
Oh, those small communities
All my friends are so small town
My parents live in the same small town
My job is so small town
Provides little opportunity
Educated in a small town
Taught the fear of jesus in a small town
Used to daydream in that small town
Another boring romantic thats me
But Ive seen it all in a small town
Had myself a ball in a small town
Married an l.a. doll and brought her to this small town
Now shes small town just like me
No I cannot forget where it is that I come from
I cannot forget the people who love me
Yeah, I can be myself here in this small town
And people let me be just what I want to be
Got nothing against a big town
Still hayseed enough to say
Look whos in the big town
But my bed is in a small town
Oh, and thats good enough for me
Well I was born in a small town
And I can breathe in a small town
Gonna die in this small town
And thats probly where theyll bury me
song performed by by John Mellencamp
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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This Fire Burns Tonight
White lines on the highway
Rolling out into the night
Got no bag to slow us down
Were travelling light, travelling light tonight
Feel the wheels roll away
How many miles have I been gone
Listen girl you never knew
The road goes on all night long
*this fire burns tonight
The streets are alight
Out on this town we are bursting
This fire burns tonight
The streets are alight
(and) out on this town we are bursting
Now me and my partners are moving
We run on from town to town
And this here road surface
Is setting them up rolling them down
Theres girls out in the neon
Singing blues every night
And you that theyll never love you
Theyre travelling light, travelling light
(repeat* 3 times)
song performed by by Ufo
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Ghost Town
This town is becoming like a ghost town;
Many of our local shops are closing down.
Once upon a time, this town was really hopping,
But now people go elsewhere for their shopping.
The life from our town has been sucked out,
And nowadays there is hardly anyone about.
Local people go to other towns and cities:
That it has ended up this way, is a real pity.
The town's population is rapidly growing,
But trade in our shops is rapidly slowing.
Many units stand empty for years and years:
Owners found the rents were just way too dear.
We need some life breathed back into town;
We need to turn this situation back around.
Of help for new businesses, we need much more,
So that our town can be the place it was before.
poem by Angela Wybrow
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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White Town
Its midnight down in sector two
Little girl walkin dressed in innocence and cool
Only fourteen and dressed up for the score
Hold that breath now boy, he(? )
She dances, baby, to the beat
Of breaking glass and running feet
Down in white town
Down in white town
Down in white town
Oh, she comes home from work and grabs something to eat
Turn the corner and walks down her street
In a row of houses, chic, shiny and dirty and grey
Disappears like the scenery in another mans play
And as she dances, oh, to the beat
Oh the trooper stickin dresses for the number on the sheet
Down in white town
Down in white town
Down in white town
Down in white town
Yeah, mr. outside, youre walkin so free
If you turn your eyes so you dont see
You act like youre the hand turns the key
And you become the hand that turns the key
And no matter how I try I cannot understand
The way that they will turn a man
Into a stranger in his own land
Down in white town
(repeat to fade)
song performed by by Bruce Springsteen
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Rocket Town
Let me take you down down down to rocket town
Yeah we're going down down down to rocket town
Let me take you down down down to rocket town
Yeah we're going down down down to rocket town
Every time I see you baby(hey yeah, hey yeah)
There's always a tear to be found(hey yeah, hey yeah)
This request just won't stop coming(hey yeah, hey yeah)
So come with me now(go Fred go, go Fred go)
Let me take you down down down to rocket town
Yeah we're going down down down to rocket town
Let me take you down down down to rocket town
Yeah we're going down down down to rocket town
Every time you keep me guessing(hey yeah, hey yeah)
It's always the same run around(hey yeah, hey yeah)
Ammunition won't stop gunning(hey yeah, hey yeah)
So come with me now(go Fred go, go Fred go)
Let me take you down down down to rocket town
Yeah we're going down down down to rocket town
Let me take you down down down to rocket town
Yeah we're going down down down to rocket town
Rocket town is a state of mind
Close your eyes, it ain't hard to find
Everytime I taste your honey
There's always a sting to be found
This suggestion won't stop buzzin'(hey yeah, hey yeah)
So come with me now(go Fred go, go Fred go)
Let me take you down down down to rocket town
Yeah we're going down down down to rocket town
Let me take you down down down to rocket town
Yeah we're going down down down to rocket town
Hey yeah, hey yeah, let me take you down
Ooh hey yeah
Rocket town is a state of mind(go Fred go, go Fred go)
Close your eyes, it ain't hard to find
Rocket town is an attitude
Good for the head
Mental food(repeat)
song performed by by Right Said Fred
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Smalltown
When youre growing up in a small town
When youre growing up in a small town
When youre growing up in a small town
You say, no one famous ever came from here
When youre growing up in a small town
And youre having a nervous breakdown
And you think that youll never escape it
Yourself or the place that you live
Where did picasso come from
Theres no michelangelo coming from pittsburgh
If art is the tip of the iceberg
Im the part sinking below
When youre growing up in a small town
Bad skin, bad eyes, gay and fatty
People look at you funny
When youre in a small town
My father worked in construction
Its not something for which Im suited
Oh, what is something for which you are suited
Getting out of here
I hate being odd in a small town
If they stare let them stare in new york city
As this pink eyed painting albino
How far can my fantasy go
Im no dali coming from pittsburgh
No adorable lisping capote
My hero, oh, do you think I could meet him
Id camp out at his front door
There is only one good thing about small town
There is only one good use for a small town
There is only one good thing about small town
You know that you want to get out
When youre growing up in a small town
You know youll grow down in a small town
There is only one good use for a small town
You hate it and youll know you have to leave
song performed by by Lou Reed
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Goldrush
Bless my heart and soul
I've discovered gold
Spread the news around
Get the ship afloat
A rock and roll the boat
Let's get into town
I am living down by the creek
Getting mired in the mud
No liquor for a week
I feel the cold in my blood
Here's a very busy lady
On her knees in the sludge
Well I do believe she's crazy
You know she's working like a drudge
Bless my heart and soul
She's discovered gold
Spread the news around
Get the ship afloat
A rock and roll the boat
And let's get into town
Even though she smelt like a drain
She's an angel to me
Her intentions are plain
And the whiskey is free
Breaking out another bottle
Keep it cool in the dirt
Well it's a water baby heaven
I got the papers in my shirt
Bless my heart and soul
We've discovered gold
Spread the news around
Get the ship afloat
A rock and roll the boat
And let's get into town
Bless my heart and soul
We've discovered gold
Spread the news around
Get the ship afloat
A rock and roll the boat
And let's get into town
You work hard all your life little honey
But you can't afford to save any money
You lay it down you leave the town
To see what you could find
For more than 20 years you're a diggin'
Then you can't believe what you are a pickin'
It's a piece of change just like a mountain range
Whoopee we're gonna lay it down
song performed by by Supertramp
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Her Town Too
Shes been afraid to go out
Shes afraid of the knock on her door
Theres always a shade of a doubt
She can never be sure
Who comes to call
Maybe the friend of a friend of a friend
Anyone at all
Anything but nothing again
It used to be her town
It used to be her town, too
It used to be her town
It used to be her town, too
Seems like even her old girlfriends
Might be talking her down
Shes got her name on the grapevine
Running up and down
The telephone line
Talking bout
Someone said, someone said
Something bout, something else
Someone might have said about her
She always figured that they were her friends
But maybe they can live without her
It used to be her town
It used to be her town, too
It used to be her town
It used to be her town, too
Well, people got used to seeing them both together
But now hes gone and life goes on
Nothing lasts forever, oh no
She gets the house and the garden
He gets the boys in the band
Some of them his friends
Some of them her friends
Some of them understand
Lord knows that this is just a small town city
Yes, and everyone can see you fall
Its got nothing to do with pity
I just wanted to give you a call
It used to be your town
It used to be my town, too
You never know till it all falls down
Somebody loves you
Somebody loves you
Darling, somebody still loves you
I can still remember
When it used to be her town, too
It used to be your town
It used to be my town, too
song performed by by James Taylor
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Old Town New
On a lover's leap with a freeway view
Sittin' on the hood, thinkin' 'bout you
Playin' over in my mind every kiss
and every fight
Yeah, the fool on the hill is beaten
down another night
There were days so hard that I
thought I had to go
I'd get in my car and just follow the road
But this is my home and it's who I am
And I know I'd stay if I could...
Chorus:
Make this old town new again
Color other than blue again
I'd have something to do again
Instead of thinking of you again
But the people I know and the places I go
Remind me of you
Oh won't somebody come around
And make this old town new
There were nights so long, I thought
the sun burned out
There were girls so wrong I don't
wanna talk about it
I was burning up the night in an
alcohol flame
Lighting my way, trying to...
Chorus:
Make this old town new again
Color other than blue again
I'd have something to do again
Instead of thinking of you again
But the people I know and the places I go
Remind me of you
Oh I'm just hangin' around
Trying to make this old town new
But the people I know and the
places I go
Remind me of you
Love goes wrong but life goes on
And I know what I gotta do
Oh won't somebody come around
And make this old town new
song performed by by Tim McGraw
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Chestnut Street Revisited
Written by John Mellencamp
Well I've lived and breathed and been disbelieved
In these small town streets too long
I've held nothin' but aces and been many places
And hung on the corner 'til dawn
But my hands have been tied
To a life I've been denied
I'm just a small town boy bein' used like a toy
And workin' a nine to five
Well I worked like a fool 'til after done with high school
Just to form a rock and rollin' band
But the streets were exploding and my life I was decoding
Had a dream I couldn't understand
And I work it out everyday
For no fun and very little pay
I'm just a smal town boy bein' used like a toy
And doin' what other people say
Well I've drooled and fooled and been ridiculed
For havin' dreams just above my reach
And I've lied and died and tried suicide
For all the things you people wanna preach
But I always had to turn the other way
When I heard those homefolks say
(They say) You're just a small town boy bein' used like a toy
And livin' on a day to day
But you must believe that when I walk down the tracks
All those young girls fall back and say
There goes that sleek young silhouette
He don't drive no Corvette
but he stings just like a Sting Ray
And that's my only redemption in this house of detention
That keeps me from simply blowin' it all away
'Cause when I walk down the street in the hot summer heat
I say, God don't take this away
Well by the end of the day, all the kids would go play
And I'd come staggering back home
With a dream in my hand and a master plan
That wouldn't leave my mind alone
Well I compromised all my schemes
And I fluct
song performed by by John Mellencamp
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Chestnut Street
Written by John Mellencamp
Well I've lived and breathed and been disbelieved
in these small town streets too long
I've been up with the winners and down with the sinners
And hung on this corner 'til dawn
And my hands they have been tied
To a life I've been denied
I'm just a small town boy bein' used like a toy
And workin' from nine to five
By the end of the day, all the kids would go play
And I'd come staggering home
With a dream in my hand and a master plan
That wouln't leave my mind alone
I compromised all my schemes
And flucturated all my dreams
I'm just a small town boy bein' used like a toy
And nothing is like it really seems
(bridge)
But you must believe that when I walk down the tracks
The young girls fall back and say
There goes that sleek young silhouette
He don't drive no Corvette
But he stings just like a Sting Ray
And that's my only redemption in this house of detention
That keeps me from simply blowin' it all away
'Cause when I walk down the street in the hot summer heat
I say, God don't take this away
I keep hopin' and wishin' that these romantic positions
Gonna help me hide my pain
And all the hurt that I've felt underneath my leather studded belt
Of not finding fortune and fame
But some day I'll blow 'em away with the things that I may sing and
might say
I'm just a small town boy bein' used like a toy
And waitin' for my pay dirt day
I'm just a small town boy bein' used like a toy
And waitin' for my pay day
song performed by by John Mellencamp
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Lucky Town
House got too crowded clothes got too tight
And I dont know just where Im going tonight
Out where the skys been cleared by a good hard rain
Theres somebody callin my secret name
Im going down to lucky town
Going down to lucky town
I wanna lose these blues Ive found
Down in lucky town
Down in lucky town
Had a coat of fine leather and snakeskin boots
But that coat always had a tread hangin loose
Well I pulled it one night and to my surprise
It led me right past your house and on over the rise
Im going down to lucky town
Down to lucky town
Im gonna lose these blues Ive found
Down in lucky town
Down in lucky town
I had some victory that was just failure in deceit
Now the jokes comin up through the soles of my feet
I been a long time walking on fortunes cane
Tonight Im steppin lightly and feelin no pain
Well heres to your good looks baby now heres to my health
Heres to the loaded places that we take ourselves
When it comes to luck you make your own
Tonight I got dirt on my hands but Im building me a new home
Down in lucky town
Down in lucky town
Im gonna lose these blues Ive found
Down in lucky town
song performed by by Bruce Springsteen
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Louis' Trip
Few, nephew, sew, threw, brew, flew, dew, drew;
And like Louis' Trip in the land of your muse,
But, try to understand the muse of my love around you in this town.
Proposed, posed, opposed, dosed, hosed, bossed, nosed;
And at 'Peduase Lodge in Aburi (Ghana) '! !
But, try to understand the muse of my love around you in this town.
Crew, hew, Jew, stew, shrew, strew, new, mew, yew;
And like the dust from your eyes! !
But, try to understand the muse of my love around you in this town.
This was like my life in Conakry in those days,
But, bring me home with the sweet muse of your love;
For, i have a message for you in this town.
Long, belong, along, song, among, dong, cong, pong, strong, gong, wrong;
And over many different places!
But, try to understand the muse of my love around you in this town.
Cream, ream, bream, beam, dream, steam, stream;
And over many different ways! !
However, i do have a message for you in this town.
Over many different years,
Over many different ways,
Over many different types,
Over many different places,
Over many different styles,
Over many different acts,
Over many different works,
But, do remember me always in your heart;
For, the future depends on the positive muse of this life today.
poem by Edward Kofi Louis
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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London Town
I do believe
I must believe
I think I can begin again
Become again the man I was back when
So Im walking on your streets again
Feeling now as I did then
Ive since become a different man
London town, turn be around
London town, carry me back
O london town, lost and found
And I feel like going back
I can remember lots of time and space
If I lose the name, still I know the faces
Time as come and left its traces
London town, turn be around
London town, carry me back
O london town, lost and found
And I feel like going back
When I grew too old and dull to rock n roll
Like to hold on tight to you darling
And when my fires have all burned out
Id like to think I can still think about
The things I used to sing about
When I was spending all my time alone
By myself and on my own
Seldom seen and quite unknown
London town, turn be around
London town, carry me back
O london town, lost and found
And I feel like going back
song performed by by James Taylor
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Her Town Too
Shes been afraid to go out
Shes afraid of a knock on her door
Theres always a shade of a doubt
She can never be sure
Who comes to call
Maybe the friend of a friend of a friend
Anyone at all
Anything but nothing again
It used to be her town
It used to be her town too
It used to be her town
It used to be her town too
Seems like even her old girlfriends
Might be talking her down
Shes got her name on the grapevine
Running up and down the telephone line
Talking bout someone said someone said
Something bout something else
Someone might have said about her
She always figured that they were her friends
Maybe they can live without her
It used to be her town
It used to be her town too
It used to be her town
It used to be her town too
Well peopled gotten used to seeing them both together
But now shes gone and life goes on
Nothing last forever
Oh no
She gets the house and the garden
He gets the boys in the band
Some of them his friends
Some of them her friends
Some of them understand
Lord knows that this is just a small town city
Yes and everyone can see you fall
Its got nothing to do with pity
I just wanted to give you a call
It used to be your town
It used to be my town too
But you never know til it all falls down
That somebody loves you
Somebody loves you
Darling somebody still loves you
I can still remember
When it used to be her town too
It used to be your town
It used to be my town too
Ah but you never know til it all falls down
That somebody loves you
Somebody loves you
song performed by by Indigo Girls
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Only Joy In Town
I want to paint a picture
Botticelli style
Instead of venus on a clam
Id paint this flower child
You are the air my flowers breathe
He calls, and the ladies turn around
On the first day of spring
Im looking at the only joy around
Hes the only joy around
The only joy I found
The only joy in town
The spanish steps are crowded
Bunch of bodies brooding there
Dead pan side-walk vendors
Hustling vacant stares
Making all the more exceptional
This fool in a flower crown
On the first day of spring
Im looking at the only joy in town
Hes the only joy around
The only joy I found
The only joy in town
The botticelli black boy
With the fuchias in his hair
Is breathing in women like oxygen
On the spanish stairs
In my youth I would have followed him
All through this terra-cotta town
On the first day of spring
Wed dance and sing
And be the only joy around
Wed be the only joy around
The only joy in town
Hes the only joy Ive found
All day
At night these streets are empty
Where does everybody go
Where are the brash and tender rooms
In roman candle glow
Where are fellinis circus
La dolce vita clowns
On the first day of spring
Im looking
At the only joy in town
Hes the only joy around
The only joy I found
The only joy in town
song performed by by Joni Mitchell
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Small Town Girl
(arnold goland / aaron. h. schroeder)
Am I just a small town girl
With big town dreams
That wont come true?
Thinking everything that means anything to me
Means something to you, too?
Am I just a small town girl?
Hey, big town boy
Dont let me down
You know I got it real bad
I gotta make good somehow
cause thats all theyre saying now
(shes a small town girl with big town dreams)
(big town dreams that never will come true)
Yeah, Im just a small town girl with big town dreams
But, just you wait
Ill make em all come true, yes I will
Oh, take this little small town girl, yeah
In your arms and hold her tight
Make her life start tonight, yeah, yeah, yeah
Come on and take this little small town girl
With big town dreams that wont come true
Come on and make her dreams
cause she loves you
Come on now, big town boy
Come on, dont let her down
You gotta fill my heart
You gotta
song performed by by Dusty Springfield
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Painter’s Agony
I want to paint that river
And the scene behind it
The boat and the boatmen
I know everything about
That river
My association with the river
Many a hundred memories
Evenings and sunshines
Floods and slow water
I have lived my life
On the bank of that river
I want to paint
Paint it with the most beautiful colors
I want to borrow some colors
From the colors of paradise
And I love the town
That lives beside the river
Old and dusty
Where shall I take you
In that small town
Every nook and corner
Shall tell you that it knows me
I want to paint that town
In colors of heaven
I want to carry a few children
And take them on a tour
I want to see the town with their eyes
And then go to the riverbank
And meditate for a while
Drink the wine of nature
And get lost into the world of beauty
And flow with the river
Enter every house
My heart throbs in harmony
With every heart in the town
Give me colors divine
Colors from the other world
For I want to paint
That river and that town
(This poem is about a small town on the bank of river Indus)
poem by Sadiqullah Khan
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The Piper
No, he never led them far away,
willing as they were to follow
and not to go back.
The mountain never opened
to take them in.
Just over the mountain
he left them.
Having heard such music,
they believed,
they could never again be the children
of that sad town.
Somewhere ahead must lie,
they believed,
the joyous land from which he came.
But they did not believe
that they might find it without him.
Some, in the end, went forward
and some went back.
You may know them and their kind
by a small empty place
in the corner of the eye
in every town where the young
pine for a distant land,
in every land
where they mourn the remembered town
poem by Eric Torgersen
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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