Part Folk, part Americana, part Blues, part Country, The Devil May Care (and I Do Too) represents new territory for J Roth. The album’s acoustic overcoat stitched together with zig-zag wordplay won’t sound so unfamiliar to those who’ve heard J’s music before, but there’s something a little different in this offering…
Here J rides his bucking bronco of rhyme and nuance, trying to stay on the saddle long enough to deliver to himself (and perhaps some like-souled minds) a new insight or two into this bizarre rodeo we call Life.
Though this album will likely only ever be streamed, it is modeled in vinyl LP format, containing a Side 1 and a Side 2.
Side 1: One Trick Pony
Here is the whimsical and unrepentant. In the midst of it all, there’s even a moment or two of classic, country wistfulness.
Interlude: Three Stones‘ Throw
A one song instrumental interlude, transitioning the listener between the varying moods of the two different sides.
Side 2: Ghosts We Leave Behind
This more folksy side brings with it melancholic, searching reflection upon those who – though no longer physically present – have a presence that remains.
Instruments employed on the album include: six-string guitar, twelve-string guitar, electric hollow-body guitar, piano, mandolin, clarinet, snare drum, cymbal, tambourine. Also featured for the first time on one of J’s albums are his playing of bass guitar, Irish spoons, and Appalachian dulcimer.
All songs are written by J Roth except “Danny Boy” (a.k.a. “Londonderry Air”) which was adapted by J from the traditional.
Cousin Ryan Murphy lends his voice for a cameo appearance on “Bridget Gray Eyes” (a song of homage to our great-great grandmother).
LYRICS
Devil May Care (and I Do Too)
There’s a tar inside, the jar inside ya
You use to brew up some tea for two
And as you pour me some, I just gotta hum…
And in your hot air balloon, you expect me to swoon
At the grandeur of your view
But there’s no disguisin’ through the scrim on the horizon
The bill’s comin’ due…soon
So get back, you sly cat, I’m not scratching your back
For the mammon you’re glammin’ all ’bout you
The devil knows where and the devil may care
And I do too
(And you there) You take that coin, you flip it up high,
Heads or tails, it don’t matter to you
With your churlish grin, you spit into the wind
Declarin’ you’re nobody’s tool
And your middle finger, how it does linger
Oscillatin’ ‘tween the flag and the pew
When comes the point where it turns and points
At the line between me and you?
Hey cat, I know that, you won’t go to the mat
For the rest of us locked up here with you in the zoo
Well, the devil knows where and the devil may care
But I do too
So jump back, alley cat and hiss at those rats
That are chewin’ on the rope of your noose
Yeah, the devil knows where and the devil may care
And yeah, I do too
I do, I do, I do, I do I do, I do, I do, I do, I do…care
(I wish I didn’t but) I do, I do, I do, I do, I do, I do, I do,
I do, I do, I do, I do, I do, I do…
So slink back, you old cats, I’m not taking the rap
For the notions you refused to disabuse
Yeah, the devil knows where and the devil may care
And I do too
So think fast, all you cats, you’re puncturin’ the raft
Man, I feel the seawater sloshin’ in my shoes
Yeah, the devil knows where and the devil may care
And I, I, I do too
From the Clan of Gingerbread Men
I’m from the clan… of gingerbread men
One of those that hopped out of the pan – and ran
Now I know you’ve known me since I was only in short pants
But since you last saw me I’ve left the army
of the those who follow the plan
‘Cause I am… from the clan of gingerbread…
Man overboard! Came the cry
But I drifted away with tide
The world was broad, man, it was wide
and I laid in a new course
And divorced myself from that picture on the shelf
You know the one – where I’m with you smiling – not yet realizing – I might be somebody else
Like a man – who’s part of a gingerbread clan
One of those that got up and hopped out of the pan
Who’d he-be high, who’d he-be low
Who’d-he-be good, who’d-he-be poor
Who’d-he-be fast, who’d-he-be slow
Who’d he-be, who’d he-be, look at him go go go go
(He must be from the clan)
Man overboard! Came the shout
And after I was fished out
The ship was, it was set about and put back on course
But the boy’s been changed
After you’ve been in it things are, things are never really the same again
Now I’m a stranger living in a strange land… that I used to know
And you no longer see me for who I am – ’cause to you I’m supposed
To be some kind of Peter Pan – who never grows
Up into someone different than you once knew
You say any different is a fraud …it can not be true
But the time we once had together…all those years ago…
Is your, is your only proof…
But now I’ve got to break it to you:
I’m from the clan of gingerbread men
One of those that hopped out of the pan – and ran
Yeah, catch me… yeah, catch me… catch me now…if you can
Scared of Livin’
You’re scared of livin’ and you’re scared of dyin’
Scared to love and you’re scared to try again
Now all your life… is walkin’ that line
You’ve seen a lot of lovers, you’ve seen a lot of friends
Come crash in and then crash out again
But when, oh, when you gonna take a chance
and give me some time?
What’s yours ain’t mine
And that’s just fine by me
Yeah, yours and mine need not
Be entwined
Oh, you see that kind of lovin’
Yeah, it takes the fluff out of my stuffin’
You’re scared of livin’, so you’re scared of dyin’
You’re scared to love and you’re scared to try
But all your life… you gonna walk that line?
You want to be sure
That I’ve got the cure you need
Say you won’t endure
Anything less than pure
Well, hey, sister… that kinda lovin’
Takes the fluff outta your stuffin’
So you’re scared of livin’, and scared of dyin
Scared to love, but why not try?
To take a step off of that old line
Yeah, you’ve seen a lot of lovers, you’ve seen a lot of friends
Come crash in and then crash out again
But Hon, come on, give this old teddy bear a try
I may be missin’ a button, I may be missin’ an eye
But I still got enough fluff left to satisfy
Hold Me from Myself
There was a sailor marooned on an isle
All the while a future life in style stayed in his plans
When a friendly ship came into sight
Back into his cave he ran
And there is a rocket man
Kicking stones up there on the moon
His ship sailed back to Earth
He told ’em, no way he was going
Isolation…
Will take you in its sweet cold embrace
Isolation…
It will erase…those feelings
So please help me, won’t you hold me
You gotta help me and hold me from myself
Please help me, won’t you hold me
You gotta help me and hold me from myself…
There’s a woman, sitting on a park bench
People stay clear of the nonsense and stench
She’s telling her story to the pigeons
But even they aren’t interested, no
And there’s a boy against the wall
Playing hide and seek – he wouldn’t come out when they called
Was so enthralled…to be so small…he didn’t want to be found
Now years later he’s wishing and dreading they’ll come back around
Isolation…
Will take you in its sweet cold embrace
Isolation…
It will erase…those feelings
So help me, won’t you hold me
You gotta help me and hold me from myself
Please help me, won’t you hold me
You gotta help me and hold me from myself…
There’s a man playing a guitar
Wondering how that star became a reach too far
He shrouds himself in his cloak of song
Doesn’t care no one’s there to sing along
Help me, won’t you hold me
You gotta help me and hold me from myself
Please help me, won’t you hold me
You gotta help me and hold me from myself
Please help me, won’t you hold me
You gotta help me and hold me from myself
Please help me, won’t you hold me
You gotta help me and hold me from myself
Hey, Old Friend
A young man can’t stand dressin’ up for the part
So he writes himself a new role so he can be the star
But the cast he thought would last no longer feeds him his lines
His soliloquies can’t fill the seats, he’s starting to mime
(Oh, no look at him there…playing trapped in the box…)
And that young gun had his fun, his posse by his side
Was a rootin’ and a tootin’ revolution against time
Now upon his limping steed he weaves through mesas all alone
One-by-one his posse rode off, they all went home
(Oow….Happy trails to you…)
Hey, old friend, should I stir it up?
To find the reason why, you and I grew tired of each others’ guff
‘Cause, hey, old friend, it’s a, it’s a bitter cup
That I’m drinkin’ as I’m thinkin’ ’bout those days when it felt like love
Maybe it was time and place, we filled each others’ tanks,
I should give thanks and keep on crankin’ it down the road
But the load’s gotten heavy and this old Chevy’s got a bevy
of grudges in tow
Why?
Why why why why did our levee run dry?
So from a friendship oh so rare to “ah, who really cares?”
Where did we go wrong?
The songs we sang popped and sprang from the pains we wrangled up
We Midas touched ’em – believed we’d shoved them across the Rubicon
(But ah, shoot…et tu… et tu… et tu, Brute?)
Well, hey, old friend, should I stir it up?
To find the reason why, you and I decided we’d had enough
‘Cause ah, hey, old friend, it’s a, it’s a bitter cup
That I’m drinkin’ as I’m thinkin’ ’bout those days we held each other up up up…
And hey, old friend, should I be stirring it up?
To discover why our druthers turned to other elbows to rub
Yeah, cause ah, hey, old friend, here is the rub
If our bond’s a bust how to ever trust again in love…
(Of a certain kind)
One Trick Pony
I used to visit my grandma
With my guitar and a song
And as she worked there in the kitchen listenin’
Sometimes she’d hum along
I said “Grandma, why is it that two people look in the same sky
One says “cloudy” and the other “clear”
These songs I’ve been playing for you, oh, they just knock me out
But outside of you… sad but true… no one else seems to hear”
She said: “Son, everyone’s got a cornfield
They planted and they gotta mind
You want them to watch you sing and dance their crows away
But how do you expect ’em to see you, with their corn so high?
Now later when my grandma was cleaning up
I played for her some more
Her broom was helping keep time
As she swept across the floor
I said “Grandma, I just don’t get it, I mean,
I’m tellin’ you it feels like heaven threw these songs down on me
Now I know my voice ain’t suited for the angels’ choir
But it’s got to be enough to get a few people higher – make ’em
want to listen – maybe even sing”
She said: “Everybody’s got toys in their attic
That they keep hidden away
You shout: “Try mine, ain’t they fine?”
But did you ever ask them if they wanted to bring theirs out to play? (And furthermore…)”
“Everybody’s got a one trick pony
That they love to show at the county fair
But it’s human nature – yeah, most are gonna hate ya
If your pony starts doing one more trick than theirs”
So before leaving my granny
I put aside the music and I helped with a chore or two
While I was working she took up my guitar and started pickin’
I wouldn’t say her fingers flew, but that old lady sure knew what to do
I said: “Grandma, look at you – you’ve gotta be kidding. Really?
All this time you’ve known how to play?”
She winked at me and she said: “Just hush up now and listen,
I mean, ain’t that the very gist of what you been goin’ on and on and on
about all day?”
So I did
Ghosts We Leave Behind
I don’t believe in ghosts
But being haunted, well, that’s another thing
I’m haunted by those living there in my memories
Now I’m not saying they rise up and go boo!
Though some do… no, in truth
The ones that haunt the most are the ones that were so close
They came up to my walls and passed right through… and
This is no séance
You’re not dead to me
And I’m not trying to summon you up
In hopes of finding a little peace
I’m just calling as I’m falling farther and further into…
An afterlife without you
Friends, foes, family… not forgotten, they’re all in there
Specters from the spectrum of my life, from everywhere
I’ve ever been… and now when…
I’d rather be left alone… they won’t leave me alone
And you, you’re in there too… still appearing how I once knew ya:
So lost, star-crossed and oh,
So lovely… you took my world that was trending ugly, and you
bent the sky above me and cracked it open and poured out
new hues of blue, and
This is no séance
You’re not dead to me
And I’m not trying to summon you up
In hopes of finding a little peace
No, I’m just calling as I’m falling farther and further into…
This afterlife without you
You weren’t tryin’ to
But you left your ghost behind
I know that you weren’t tryin’ to
But you left a ghost behind you… inside of me
Now as I sit upon this imagined cliff
With spirits swirling below
I suppose there’s a ghost of me too
Haunting those I once knew
Maybe you expected more from me
Maybe you wanted to believe
I wasn’t one just whistling in the graveyard
Oh, but I played hard
Even if I didn’t play until the end
Of the scene you were hoping to screen
Again and again
And if you’re holding a séance
‘Cause I’ve been a bugaboo
And you want me to come and explain
Why I’m still haunting you
Just talk to that guy, that shadow of me inside
Maybe he… maybe he’s got a clue
Of why when…
I wasn’t even tryin’
I left him – that ghost of me behind, inside ya
I wasn’t tryin’
To leave that ghost behind, inside you
And oh, when… we meet again
In that place where no séance is needed to conjure an old friend
Maybe then… it will make more sense of why when
We weren’t even tryin’
We left our ghosts behind inside each other
We weren’t tryin’
But we left our ghosts behind
We weren’t tryin’
But we left our ghosts behind
We don’t try to
But we leave ghosts behind
Leave ghosts behind
Leave ghosts behind
Leave ghosts behind
Leave ghosts behind…
Bridget Gray Eyes
Bridget gray eyes
Knew hard times
Was born on the Isle of Alderney
An Irish lass
Of the lab’ring class
‘Scaping famine’s grasp, she crossed the sea
Some are born into a morn without night
While others are born into a day not bright enough
To light the way
Some live under Murphy’s law
And watch others draw
All but the short straw… leaving it for you
Bridget gray eyes
Became a child bride
Died without knowing even one of the
Forty-seven
Her children’s children
The descendants of her line
Some are born and live to a great age
Some are born and are quickly taken away
Ah, Bridget…
So you aren’t forgotten, and might live o
I’m putting you in this song
And I’m bringing you along with me
Bridget, I wish you could see
The branches of your tree
If you took a look at the leaves, would you perceive the
Piece of you that’s in me?
May be in the eyes, it may be in the lips
May be the way I never let my guard slip
May be the shade or slight curl in the back of my hair
Or… or the way it ain’t cut right and I don’t really care
But Bridget would you see… a piece of you that’s in me…?
Bridget, I wish you could see
The branches of your tree
If you took a look at the leaves, would you perceive the
Piece of you that’s in me?
It may be the way I laugh, may be the way I walk
May be the way I mumble too often when I talk
May be the shape of my nose or the line of my jaw
Or how I have to be the first one to point out my flaws
Bridget, I wish you could see
The branches of your tree
If you took a look at the leaves, would you perceive the
Piece of you that’s in me?
It may be my stiff neck or the way I furrow my brow
Or how after nailing the landing, I won’t take a bow
Maybe it’s my hands or my funny little thumbs
Or the way I won’t sign on the dotted line for any kingdom come
And I… And I wonder what color your eyes really were
Blue, brown, green, hazel, black?
I can’t tell from that old picture
And it’s such a wonder that without you I wouldn’t be here at all
Yet I’ll never know any of the things that those eyes of yours…
Never know what they saw
But now I wish they could see
What’s become of your family
If you took a look at us all, would the smallness of your
Time now seem more complete
Oh, Bridget, I wish you could see
And I wish that you knew me
Oh, Bridget, I wish you could see
And I wish that you knew me
Bridget gray eyes
I realize
I’ll never get to see you smiling
But might you beam
If you could see
The piece of you that’s in me?
Table in Your Kitchen
I called you up, you said you’re home but not there
I said: “Ah, I know just the place where
I’ll meet you there at the table in your kitchen”
That table’s scratched and worn, it’s got nicks and scars
It’s got water rings from mason jars
Yeah, it’s in perfect condition
We’ll sit there, we’ll have a cup or two
We’ll do just like your kin used to do
Take turns talkin’ and listenin’
So put a candle in the bottle, let that ol’ fridge hum
Leave the dishes in the sink, I’ll get my guitar strummin’
We’ll find life in song there in the kitchen
You’re saying: No god, no sense, no reason
You got nothin’ left to hold on to
But just go on plop your bones down there on that chair
And let the table get hold on you
Just like it used to… for your dear old ma and your daddy too
Well, I’m not exciting, I’m nothing new
I’m no doctor, but I’m prescibin’ to you
A little time sittin’ with me at the table in your kitchen
When you get tired, we’ll hit the hay
I’ll sleep under the table or head on my way
I don’t need to stay, that’s not part of my mission
Just seems to me as long as I’ve known you
The one place in the world that helps you get on through
Is at that old table there in your kitchen
You say you want the bright lights, the neon out on the town
Strike up the band – yeah, send in the clowns
But babe, those sorrows you’re drowning, will be here tomorrow
And will have compounded
Why not lay those troubles down on this table?
Just like your grandma and grandpappy found they were able to…
And you… You can too…
Heaven’s Porch/Danny Boy
Then…
When… those final days were
Spent… tryin’ to make
Sense… of those years we were
Lent… of those hours
When… t’ward each other we
Bent our lives
Leaving one small dent… in time
We were waitin’ on heaven’s porch
One eye on the door
Sittin’ on heaven’s porch
Might have been enough, but we wanted more
And now… when I
Allow… memories of you to
Prowl in without reason to
Plow past my grieving, makes me
Vow that I’m leaving this
Vow I have of achieving
Dreams… that I’m not sure are even mine
Waitin’ on heaven’s porch
One eye on the door
Sittin’ on heaven’s porch
Should be enough, but I want more
It’s a cold hand
That brings down the stamp
Certifying a plan
That was not your plan
And… now here I stand…
Without you
On heaven’s porch
And I’m watchin’ that door
Waitin’ on heaven’s porch
Knowing there’s nothing more
In store for me now
Than heaven’s porch
Why’d you leave me here
Without you on heaven’s porch?
Oh, Danny boy…
The pipes are calling
From glen to glen and down the mountainside
Summer’s gone
And all the flowers are dying
‘Tis you had to go
And I abide
But come back when summer is in the meadow
Or when the vale is hushed and white with snow
‘Tis I’ll be there…
In sunshine… or in shadow
Oh, Danny boy
Oh, Danny boy
I loved thee so
Tomorrow Came
Tomorrow came
I knew it would, just the same
Now the rain’s spilling off the pane
And watercoloring the wall
Tomorrow came
No one is to blame
The grain in the picture
It eclipses one and all
And it’s hard to climb a mountain that’s just a hill of beans
But it’s so easy to add a little conflict to set up the final scene
And what a shame I have too many words to say what I mean
Tomorrow came
I knew it would, just the same
Now the rain’s watercoloring the wall
And if yesterday comes back
I think I’ll remove the laugh track
To take the tacks/tax out of my smile
And if today
If it starts slipping away
Well, that’s okay
I’m not going to put myself on trial for wiling it away
Tomorrow came
And no one’s to blame
The grain in the picture
It eclipses one and all