Get all 18 Jack Howard releases available on Bandcamp and save 35%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Time Keeps on Ticking, Were You Born To Be Alive?, We're So International, Lightheavyweight 2, SECRETS AND WHITE LIES, EPIC BRASS LIVE AT THE GERSHWIN ROOM, DOG SONGS, LIGHTHEAVYWEIGHT, and 10 more.
1. |
Don't Fade Away
03:33
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I phoned a friend of mine
Who moved to London late last year
He won’t be coming home too soon
He’s where he wants to be
Soon you’ll be going too
It’s only for a while I know
Maybe I’ll finally read Ulysses
On those lonely Melbourne nights
It’s kind of strange to be
The one that’s left behind
Night is day and days turn into nights
But don't fade away
Don’t fade away
Fade away
Now it’s Wednesday night
I’m drinking on my own again
Strolling down the esplanade
Looking for those neon lights
I see some old familiar faces
From the glory days
“So how’s the ex
And how are the kids
Hope you are doing well”
One more for the road
It’s getting late
We’re not getting any younger
So don’t fade away
Don’t make a stranger of yourself
Don’t fade away
Don’t fade away
Then the cab arrives
And you rush into my arms
And my exile ends
And I’m once more safe from harm
So don’t fade away
Don’t make a stranger of yourself
Don’t fade away
Don’t fade away
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2. |
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We ran across the street
And we beat the tram
It’s raining
And it’s twilight
Street lights blind us
As we make our way
Down a disused arcade
We go laughing
Take the back door
To our favourite haunt
Where the waiters
They all know us
Tonight I order a frosty
And as the drinks arrive
You turn to me
And say
A toast to our good fortune
A toast to our happiness
Pictures of naked women
Line the walls
But we barely notice
The salmon or the steak
And don’t forget the bread
Oh please don’t forget the bread
The flames reflect off the whiskey bottles
And as the feeling rises
I could have seen this in a film or a TV show
And here’s the soundtrack
A toast to our good fortune
A toast to our happiness
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3. |
The Letter
03:37
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I spend my days in simple acts
Don’t want to make no big moves
Straighten the pictures
Dust the shelves
Maybe hang out some washing
There’s always more washing
Papers that arrived yesterday
Can wait until tomorrow
Lawyer's letter had sent a chill down by spine
Down my spine
Adjust the lamps, make sure there’s plenty of light
Got to have the light right
Small disturbances can throw me right out
You know they throw me right out
Letter sits like a forgotten memory
Suddenly retrieved
Rush of reminders
Holds me poised starting into the distance
(Here’s the trumpet)
I need a drink
I need the company of a crowd
A strong band, smoke in my eyes
A vehicle for this melancholy
They play that song again
And a golden light descends
I count the beat
and tally up my debts
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4. |
Restlessness
05:25
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She wakes at two in the morning
Climbs silently out of bed
Avoids the creaks in the floor
So as not to wake the dead
She stands naked in the kitchen
Framed in that cold and steaming light
Her brain spins like a mouse on a wheel
But neither food nor drink nor love
Can cure that endless restlessness
But neither food nor drink nor love
Can cure that endless restlessness
There’s nothing but infomercials
And Christians on TV
So she comes and stirs me awake
With her expert hands
Oh such excellent kisses
Such sweet surprise
She loves me in stealth
Like a thief in the night
But neither food nor drink nor love
Can cure that endless restlessness
But neither food nor drink nor love
Can cure that endless restlessness
I still hear those echoing footsteps
Clear and stark in the hallway
I still hear those echoing footsteps
Clear and stark in the hallway
And there’s nothing I can do
But neither food nor drink nor love
Can cure that endless restlessness
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5. |
Wiseguy Waltz
01:45
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6. |
Sweet Hand Of Mercy
03:23
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Deep in the night, I can hear you breathing
Long slow pulls, the sleeper sleeping
The moon shines down on your gleaming skin
Love to love you baby, won’t you let love in?
It’s just the sweet hand of mercy
Got one eye open and a lonely whistle
The other eye’s closed but my fingers listen
Hit a nerve, gonna do some drillin’
Close your eyes now, this won’t hurt a bit
It’s just the sweet hand of mercy
Took a drink – man, he’s eatin’ the worm
Rage is still playing – don’t know which way to turn
Spirit is weak and the flesh is willing
Mind’s playing tricks, the effect is thrilling
Study the meaning, every last detail
A sensory trap, got the dog by the tail
The closer we get, the harder we fall
Don’t care anymore, think I heard the call
It’s just the sweet hand of mercy
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7. |
Just Don't Understand
03:04
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She spends her money on magazines
She gets her nails done once a week
She drinks coffee all day, watches “Sex and the City”
Plays hard on a Friday night
She’s just discovered herself and she goes where she goes
And she keeps her love in check
She’s got better things to waste her time on
Than some sweet-talkin’ man
I see that look in her eyes
Is it real or just disguise?
I just don’t understand
I just don’t understand, yeh
We talk deep in the night on her balcony
Drinking whiskey and cheap red wine
She cries tears that are real and her make-up runs
And she seems to be so lost
But even as I take her in my arms
And try to kiss those tears away
I can feel her start to disappear
See that look in her eyes
Is it real or just disguise?
I just don’t understand
I just don’t understand, yeh
I thought I’d be the one to save her
I thought I’d be the one
I just can’t read those signs
I just don’t understand
I just don’t understand, yeh
I just don’t understand
I just don’t understand
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8. |
Heard You Cry
03:11
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Come home from work in the evening
Put my feet up by the fire
Watch TV and sink a beer or two
It’s almost time for sleep
I’m just about to close my eyes
But I thought I heard you crying
I thought I heard you call my name
It fools me every time
It’s just my memory
Now and then, I call you up
Just to see if you still care
Down the line I hear your distant voice
Why do you keep calling me?, just leave me alone
But I thought I heard you crying
I thought I heard you call my name
It fools me every time
It’s haunts me all the while
It fools me every time
It’s just my memory
When it’s time for sleep
I’m just about to close my eyes
I thought I heard you crying
I thought I heard you call my name
It fools me every time
It haunts me all the while
It fools me every time
It’s just my memory
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9. |
Counted The Ways
03:26
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Cigarette, the break up friend
Home at dawn to make amends
A flippant word, a cruel aside
The worm is turning deep inside
Darkened eye, the loosened hair
I can’t pretend that I don’t care
Cigarette, the missing band
The cigarette
I have counted the ways
I have counted the ways
And the waves that break upon the shores
The three day stubble, the gloomy looks
Won’t find the answer in your God damn books
The secrets mounting, the city’s hot
The tempered frayed, the nerves are shot
Stain is spreading, it leads right through
Voices fading, no longer true
Can’t change the river, can’t change the sea
Can’t change the tide back to me
I have counted the ways
I have counted the ways
And the waves that break upon the shores
I have counted the ways
Yeh
I have counted the days
I have counted
I have counted the ways
I have counted
The waves that break upon the shore
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10. |
You Go To My Head
04:57
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11. |
Don't Explain
04:18
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12. |
Back Where I Belong
03:46
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Baby's got the blues again
There's nothing I can do
It all ends in tears again
And all I do is lose
When I thought that I could win
But so much pain is such a careless sin
Take me back where I belong
The place where we are strong
And love can save me from myself
Love's on the run again
I don't know what to say
All my words are meaningless
I wish there was a way
That I could turn back time for you
But everything I touch just turns to blue
Take me back where I belong
The place where we are strong
And love can save me from myself
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13. |
Reign 'Til Kingdom Come
03:42
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Once I was loved
I was the king of the world
I had everything
Everything a man could ever want
I had my place in the sun
I took everything
And nothing could stand my way
I did it all my way
But like a fool I threw it all away
Now I will reign til kingdom come
I will reign in my kingdom made for one
I wonder why, I feel all hollow deep inside
Could it be
I'm not the rock I thought I was
And though I had it all my way
There's no-one left to play with
So I sit and wonder why
And I wonder where you are
Now I will reign til kingdom come
I will reign in my kingdom made for one
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14. |
The Fool In Me
03:47
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I try hard to be a good man
Maybe I try too hard
I know sometimes I make you feel so low
It seems to happen all the time
When I see you cry, it breaks my heart in two
Can't you see, it's just the fool in me
Some nights, I lay awake and try to work it out
I can't leave well enough alone
Make the same mistakes so many times
And I never seem to learn
When you turn away, it breaks my heart in two
Wish you could see, it's just the fool in me
I tried hard to be a good man
Least that's what I told myself
I learned how to make you feel real bad
When there was nothing else
When you turned to leave, it broke my heart in two
Why can't you see, it's just the fool in me
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15. |
City Lights
03:08
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Man, look at those city lights
Far above the trestle bridge
And the foggy form of Eureka
Are we feeling lucky tonight?
The planes land silently
And the ghosts of ANA boys
The dirt bikes rust in the creek below
Where in the hell does that train line lead anyway?
Down there, first kisses
And jokes I never understood
Down there, small moments of glory
Etched like a turning point in the epic novel of my life
The novel of my life
The distinctive beauty
And the unforgettable sound
Of an HD Holden going past
Ah, sweet memory, blast me from my sleep
Let it not be decided, not here not now
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16. |
Spencer's Song
02:56
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What's in the night?
You don't know what it is
It's just the wind blowing
It's just the wind blowing
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17. |
The Good Life
03:59
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We sat staring out the window watching the world go by
Full of wine and chatter and laughter
Our hands touch and our eyes meet
This is the good life, surely at last
As the evening wears on
We sit in the corner of another little bar
Surrounded by friends
A stranger passes and he catches my eye
And he catches your eye too.
And as I look back, you're disconcerted
Our conversation resumes, close to each other's ears
To overcome the noise
To recover our poise
This is the good life, surely at last
But a seed is planted and once planted has a life of its own
This could go on for days
Or bring about the downfall of Rome
In the morning, in each other's arms
I say a little prayer and I keep my peace
What you can't control, as they say
A kiss undone, a small token of my self-esteem
The seed it grows, the wheel it spins
This is the good life, surely at last
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18. |
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So who's got the kids this Christmas
Can I see them anyway?
I'll come around in the morning
To see their smiles just makes my day
I'll pick them up after lunch
Say a quick hello to your family
It's always good to see you
Well, okay, one more for the road
Maybe they don't believe in Santa anymore
Maybe it's just our little joke
Don't spoil it for the children
What everyone needs most is love sweet love
Christmas ham off the bone
Dad's to carve and carve alone, it's nice and thick
Your sister's on the phone from overseas
Go get your mum, go get her quick
Who's sick, who's having babies
You know uncle Pete's got a new girlfriend
Do you think you'll be coming home soon?
It's just not the same without you here
Maybe they don't believe in Santa anymore
Maybe it's just our little joke
Don't spoil it for the children
What everyone needs most is love sweet love
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19. |
The Dog Sat Staring
03:48
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The dog sat staring at a point beyond the wall
And she'd been like that all day
Like a compass stuck on southwest, her attention was magnetised
Like a scene from Poltergeist
I started to listen to the noises of the night
And I kept my baseball bat close at hand
Suddenly, the sprinklers sprayed into action
At the same time, the security lights burst on
Still the dog didn't waver, there was a language to these signs
That I was yet to decipher
Think man think - recall that final conversation
Oh, just think man think - recall that final conversation
Just as I was about to drift off
Nerves on edge, a shadow crept by
A knock on my window, a rattle of keys
A hiss and a curse, it's me, it's me
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20. |
Want to Fall
03:11
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I held you from behind at The Corner Hotel
My hands on your skin, the greatest necessity
Cold beer and the smell of your hair
My hands on your skin the finest of luxuries
I don't know why I get so twisted up
I don't who I want to fall
And then the band came on and the singer croons these words
What would I do without you?
And I move an inch closer
And I breathe you in deeper
Don't know why it gets so difficult
In my stupid little world
I don't know why I get so twisted up
I don't who I want to fall
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21. |
Saturday Night
03:25
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I found myself driving through town on a Saturday night
There were bells and chimes at midnight
Tolling for a new beginning
Oh, my hands felt strong and my brain was ablaze
With plans and schemes, oh a river of dream
I studied all the faces of the lonely and the lost
And the streets full of bounty for the one who kept his feet
But will I fall?
I picked myself up and brushed myself off
Checked my hair in the rearview mirror
I wasted no time, I had the world in my hand
I was spinning like a ball on a roulette wheel
I breathed in the smoke, I breathed in the fire
I breathed in the perfume of fabulous girls
I took a stab in the dark and I threw myself in
It's not so hard when there's nothing but fear
But will I fear?
Now I will get while the going is good
While still something left that is ticking
I tipped my hat to the ones who made it through
And the girl down the road that inhabits my soul
I said the ghost down the road that inhabits my soul
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Jack Howard Melbourne, Australia
Jack Howard played trumpet with Hunters and Collectors and for the last 20 years, he's been releasing his own highly- regarded music. Along the way, he's also played with The Living End, The Violent Femmes, Rodriguez and a host of others. In 2017, Jack toured the world with Midnight Oil as their trumpeter/multi-instrumentalist. He released his memoirs, Small Moments Of Glory in 2019. ... more
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