Get all 5 John D. Lamb releases available on Bandcamp and save 30%.
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1. |
Spring Would Come
03:04
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Spring Would Come
Baby Cakes, you were quite the gardener
I was your Johnny Boy, your garden partner
We planted our tulips side by side
I became your man, you my bride
Baby Cakes, well, you were prideful
And your Johnny Boy, well, he can be mighty spiteful
I had to get to the roots, it tore me up inside
Wounded our garden, flowers died
Weeds will grow, without you here
Used to be tulips, year after year
Spring would come, and they’d reappear
Baby Cakes, at the end of the war
I’m not your Johnny Boy, anymore
Used to be we’d kiss, and we’d open wide
Just can’t brush it aside, baby, we tried
Weeds will grow, without you here
Used to be tulips, year after year
Spring would come, and they’d reappear
Used to be tulips
Spring would come, and they’d reappear
2022©John D. Lamb
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2. |
Avenue of Fashion
02:44
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Avenue of Fashion
Did a bump with some Milky the clowns
Met ‘em at the State Fairgrounds
Go-go Bozos on the Avenue of Fashion
Blew a wad at the Keyboard Lounge
Wiggin’ out digging them sounds
A little more blow to keep from crashin’
Well, a little turned into a lot - And I lost my parking spot
Instead of cruising down the avenue - I should’ve been home with you
Wish I could tell you I’m a lost and found
But this’ll be my last night on the town
I’m a go-go Bozo when the red light’s flashing
Tell my wife I need to see her
Not to worry just a broken femur
Hey officer, high marks for your compassion
Tell her to kiss the boys
McNichols and Livernois
I’m all dressed up on the Avenue of Fashion
A little turned into a lot - And I lost my parking spot
Instead of cruising down the avenue - I should’ve been home with you
Well, a little turned into a lot - Can I be happy with what I got?
Instead of cruising down the avenue - I should’ve been home with you
2022©John D. Lamb
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3. |
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I Work at Wixom
I work at Wixom making Lincolns and Marks
Build ‘em I don’t fix ‘em, take mine to Clarks
Got a purple Continental, needs spark plugs
Bought it from a pimp, he got it off a couple of thugs
The buses roll in on Tiger nights
Willie Horton, Al Kaline, in left and right
Mom and dad moved out to Sterling Heights
But I like it here on Trumbull under the stadium lights
I work at Wixom, but I live in Detroit
Never been robbed in the hood at gunpoint
The MC5 sold me a joint
I work at Wixom, but I live in Detroit
I work at Wixom, making luxury cars
Hop on 96 and – it ain’t that far
Working on my pension, lifelong pay
You can move to Novi, think I’ll stay
I work at Wixom, but I live in Detroit
Got a rich uncle with a big house in Grosse Pointe
Might be family, did time in the joint
I work at Wixom, but I live in Detroit
White guys, black guys, we call each other “baby”
Not just to crack wise - That’s how we say “hey”
Who’s our best pinch hitter? Hands down Gates Brown
Hey, I’m not a quitter, never gonna leave Corktown
I work at Wixom, but I live in Detroit
Never been robbed in the hood at gunpoint
I’m a Cass Corridor Midnight Cowboy, got a jacket just like Jon Voight
John Sinclair rolled me a joint
I work at Wixom, but I live in Detroit
I work at Wixom, but I live in Detroit
I work at Wixom, I work at Wixom, I work at Wixom but I live in Detroit
2022©John D. Lamb
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4. |
Astronaut's Husband
03:19
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The Astronaut’s Husband
Where’s my kiss?
Something is amiss
If you’re not bothered by this there’s reason to doubt
How did you come about?
You’re freaking me out
You must be her twin, when did you move in?
You look like my wife but there’s something that’s strange
Do you think I hadn’t noticed you’ve changed?
Are you playing a game?
If so, what’s your aim?
Your perfume is the same as hers
But she’s more than demur
Yes, I’m her connoisseur
If you think I’m a fool, well, who’s to blame?
You look like my wife but there’s something that’s strange
Do you think I hadn’t noticed you’ve changed?
Where’s my Mrs.?
The one who gives me yeses
She’s Molly in Ulysses, where did you take her?
Oh, she’s my brownie baker
You’re my climax faker
A fairy child left out in the wild
2022©John D. Lamb
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5. |
Take Your Time
03:49
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Take Your Time
You nearly ran away with me – when our hearts were wild
But my dear cousin broke it, she was carrying your child
She put a hold on you, made sure I knew
Just as I feared, you took your time
You were fascinated by her age of innocence
Manipulated while contemplating your existence
Who used who? The boy’s not mine
What’s he doin’ up here while you take your time?
Well, take your time
You can take the elevator, you can take the stairs
Twenty-six years later, let’s consummate this love affair
I can see you down there, takin’ your time
I’m the one you wanted, your dreams are haunted by my radiance
Maybe you got rattled, didn’t want to be saddled with high maintenance
Like I needed your care – like you needed mine
I can see you down there, takin’ your time
Well, take your time
Well, I’m no Winona Ryder, but I can be Michelle Pfeiffer in my window
Daniel Day, you loved me, let’s let our love rekindle
I’m up here now, and I’m in my prime
You’re still down there, takin’ your time
Well, take your time-You might love me in your mind, and still you find you take your time
You take your time
2022©John D. Lamb
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6. |
When You’re Family
03:22
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When You’re Family
Sister used to call me a brat
I used to say, “You take that back”
Or I’m gonna get you eventually
Twelve kids, one’s bound to get riled
She’s the oldest, I’m a middle child
Hungry for attention, naturally
When you’re family you fight
You fight to be loved
You love to fight, to be loved
When you’re family
Sister is a democrat
Not afraid to tell me when my face looks fat
No apprehension, she can be so mean
Today, she’s the village clerk
I’m the mayor but we manage to work
Without embarrassing each other before the citizenry
And you people of my village, you’re family, too
Even though we don’t see eye to eye, My sister and I will fight for you
Sister says I ain’t all that
I say I’m telling mom and dad
You made me cry and you been so bad to me
When you’re family you fight
You fight to be loved
You love to fight, to be loved
When you’re family
When you’re family you fight
You fight to be loved
You love to fight, to be loved
When you’re family
You love to fight, to be loved
When you’re family
2022©John D. Lamb
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7. |
This Guitar Kills
03:01
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This Guitar Kills
You wanna be on Where Are They Now
You wanna be the lead player again
Think before you open your mouth
Don’t give ‘em a moment of Zen
If you speak ill of someone you know
Take a pill, chill, don’t slit your own throat
If you drink with the host of the show
Don’t give him an anecdote
Don’t ya feed doom scrollers and Tik Tok teens to get your crazy thrills
You’re just an old rock and roller
Don’t let your hippy lead player play lazy fills.
Look out – This guitar kills
You wanna preen on Where Are They Now
Say something mean just to get your kicks
Take your foot right out of your mouth
Stick to your guitar licks
If you trash some one
If you bash someone and gloat
If you must do blow with the host of the show
Don’t give him an anecdote
Don’t ya feed doom scrollers and Tik Tok teens to get your crazy thrills
You’re just an old rock and roller
Don’t let your hippy lead player play lazy fills.
Look out – This guitar kills
So, you wanna make a fool of yourself on
Where Are They Now
Look how you do, you’re so full of yourself
Like a, hey mama, look at me now
You wanna dish on Where Are They Now
You wanna wish you weren’t a has-been
There’s a hot mic right next to your mouth
Take a bit off your bitter end
Now, strap on that thing
And give me just one note
Now bend it like you mean it, don’t you in-between it
Baby, that’s all she wrote
You know, Robert had Jimmy to supply the chills
Ozzie had Tony and his power drills
Bruce gets the hammer from a guy named Nils
Even Crosby and Nash had Stephen Stills, Roger has Pete’s windmills
None of these guys
Yeah, none of these guys
None of these guys play lazy fills.
Look out – This guitar kills
2022©John D. Lamb
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8. |
Reds
03:13
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Reds
I’ve had a few, now I only go for you
No one holds a candle, burning brave, burning true
It’s you that I can handle, no other crave will do
Let’s pretend I’m a rugged man
Hold you like this - cupped in my hand
And when I kiss you, I’m a cowboy in that rodeo
Marlboro Red, I love you so
Vantage was a bandage, Viceroy a whim
Virginia couldn’t manage; a little too slim
But you can do no damage, my lungs hold you in
No other smoke, kick starts my day
Sometimes I choke, but that goes away
And when I’m broke, I bum you like a hobo on skid row
Marlboro Red, I love you so
They say I should quit you, save some dough
They just don’t get you, they’ll never know
How much I need you, you go straight to my head
Marlboro Red, I love you so
Marlboro Red, let me go
2022©John D. Lamb
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9. |
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Never the Twain Shall Meet
I don’t do what’s expected - I do whatever the hell
Rode in on a comet - Stories I could tell
Some words are affected - Some are bittersweet
Some folks want ‘em corrected - Never the Twain shall meet
I don’t do what’s expected - I do whatever the dickens
Can’t be resurrected - Can’t publish new editions
Some words are rejected - Some words you can’t repeat
Under these conditions - Never the Twain shall meet
I don’t do what’s expected - I do whatever the fuck
Named him Huckleberry - Most people call him Huck
Hemingway suggested - I coulda quit when they sold Jim
Boy should’ve been arrested - For hanging out with him
I don’t do what’s expected - I do whatever I want
I can make a prince talk proper - a pauper nonchalant
Yeah, some words are inflected - Some are incomplete
My copyright’s protected - Never the Twain shall meet
I don’t do what’s expected - I do my duty
Slang oughta be respected - Lainghorne wrote a beauty
Get that bee out of your bonnet - I’ll use my own techniques
Me and Halley’s comet - Two unaccountable freaks
I don’t do what’s expected - I do my own drumbeat
And just as you suspected – What’s expected gets neglected
This refrain ought to be ejected – Statue erected, sayin’
Never the Twain shall meet
2022©John D. Lamb
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10. |
Second to No One
03:01
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Second to No One
No one can take your place, baby, no one
No one takes your place, baby, no one
If they had a race for the quickest pretty face
Baby, you are second to no one
No one beats your smile, baby, no one
No one beats your smile, no one
Out of every style of smile, yeah, in my smile file
You beat ‘em all by a mile, you’re second to no one
I know that feeling, yeah, it’s the worst
It can leave you reeling, you can’t be anything if you can’t be first
No one can be so smart, baby, no one
No one be so smart, no one
Honey Pie, you win the part, ‘cause you break my stupid heart
Why you so smart? You’re second to no one
I know that feeling, yeah, it’s the worst
It can leave you reeling, you can’t be anything if you can’t be first
No one else is on my mind, baby, no one
No one else is on my mind, no one
Not a single name in my brain, only your sweet refrain
That’s what you’ll find on my mind, you’re second to no one
2022©John D. Lamb
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11. |
Push Mower Theme
03:02
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Push Mower Theme
On the cover of my album, I am mowing the lawn
Mowing the lawn and singing a song
That’s her idea, she saw it in a dream
She pushed me to go with a push mower theme
My record promotor said don’t use a motor
I’m mowing the lawn the way I want to, I told her
You gotta mow, she insisted, with no gasoline
She pushed me to go with a push mower theme
In her dream, my lines are straight, grass is green, photo’s great
She proposed that I should landscape shirtless and shorn
Mowing half-naked as the day I was born
She insisted I manscape, shook my shaving crème
She pushed me to go with a push mower theme
My record promoter, she’s making all the calls
Unbuckling the buckles of my bib overalls
You gotta mow she insisted, here try some Vaseline
She pushed me to go with a push mower theme
In her dream, my lines are straight, grass is green, photo’s great
On the cover of my album, I didn’t do what I was ordered
I’m mowing the lawn with a Toro I borrowed
No need to push, hey, what’s the crime?
Borrowed that Toro from a neighbor of mine
My record promotor said don’t use a motor
I’m mowing the lawn the way I want to, I told her
Oh no, she insisted, you’re blowing my scene
She pushed me to go, she pushed me to go, she pushed me to go with a push mower theme.
2022©John D. Lamb
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12. |
You Weren’t So Bad
02:23
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You Weren’t So Bad
Your smile is legal now, don’t frown
Show some teeth, don’t look so down
Hold your head up high, have a ball
You weren’t so bad, after all
Your smile is legal now, don’t cry
Let me be that twinkle in your eye
You paid the price, took the fall
But you weren’t so bad, after all
Busted in your high school parking lot
Busted in your college dorm
Then you trusted a narc and you got popped
On the day your son was born
Misdemeanors, felonies, and fines
Paranoia, probationary times
They watched you pee in the lavatory
A gallon of Klean tea, naturally
You had a record before you had me
Your smile is legal now, so get high
It’s okay if you give it another try
Your smile is legal, wake and bake
Your smile is legal, have some cake
Happy birthday, dad, I just had to call -You weren’t so bad, after all
2022©John D. Lamb
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John D. Lamb Detroit, Michigan
Lamb spins a tale of love and woe full of true irony and forlorn humor…Lamb has given us a slice of life in which we find common ground, but is anything but commonplace…
Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
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