tindog music & stuff
​
a
project
Each album has its own page with lyrics, track lists, and personal notes. (because we no longer have real albums with inserts or booklets)
This collection is called Sterling Pieces because it contains pieces that were no less significant or deserving of a place in my previous two albums but were the victims of simple numbers...
This is partly the second disk of Fedorable and of Painted Sky. I feel no less about these songs,
and sometimes more.
Songs are stories, and songs have stories. Some of those stories are literature, some are pulp, some are notes or memos. The simplest, shortest song can often have a deeper, more profound message,
than something longer, and more verbose... I think that depends on the ear that hears.
STERLING PIECES Track List & Lyrics
Clouds on the Run - 3:44
Lines in the Dust - 4:45
April Dogs - 4:12
Mask - 4:52
Here's to You - 4:23
She Holds Me Close - 4:26
Somebody Tell My Heart - 5:02
Walls (Like Berlin) - 4:15
Unfinished Symphony - 5:04
A Tear without a Net - 7:26
Wait for Me - 3:10
White Collar Blue - 3:28
Click on the artwork or title for each song to go to its Bandcamp download page!
by Richard Schweitzer
Clouds on the Run was an attempt to create a song that I could hear Fleetwood Mac doing. It speaks of a devoted hope for something unrequited becoming requited. I was challenged by FM's ability to somehow joyously celebrate melancholia.
The sun may not be shining right now
And I may not be here tomorrow
But you may never feel the sorrow
if you look at it this way
I’ll always feel your love inside me
And I’ll stay warm beneath the covers
And though we were never lovers
I’ll be living for the day
Hover over me, love is free
For those who can afford the jealousy
When it comes down to those conventions
Love is like a cloud, it can rain down
on those that you would most love to miss the storm
I'm hurt and torn, so hover over me
I’ll be back and I’ll be ready
And I hope you can say the same
Cause I can’t stand the rain
And you look so good in the sun
Have I ever told you this…
I have never felt so strong
as when I had you along
and those clouds were on the run
Hover over me, love is free
For those who can afford the jealousy
When it comes down to those conventions
Love is like a cloud, it can rain down
on those that you would most love to miss the storm
I'm hurt and torn, so hover over me
lines in the dust
by Richard Schweitzer
Lines in the Dust was inspired by a moment I had when working construction. I was clearing out a room and there were still old dusty curtains on the window. I stepped up on a ladder to remove the rod, and when I pushed aside the curtains there was a heart traced in the dust on the glass. It had a crack drawn through it, and just the message "miss you, S." I didn't write the song immediately, but the image stuck with me. How many more people do we miss than we stay connected with...?
You moved out, then I moved out
It was a mess but it ended with a whisper
I almost wish that we had never
promised each other we’d never
have contact again
Days were quiet, nights were loud
I couldn’t stop you from crying in my sleep
The place was very empty
all the memories that were lived here
were reminders of when we were good friends
The dust has settled, it took a year
I came back, just one more tear
The curtains were pulled but I pushed them aside
There were lines in the dust on the window that cried
I-L-O-V-E, there was more that I just couldn’t bear to read
I sat against the wall where the bed had rested once
and cried like a child for some silly little lines in the dust
So long gone, don’t even know where
I’d look for you but nothing would be different
I think I’m better off just knowing
somewhere in your heart you’re holding
a little bit of love aside for me
And just in case, if by some chance
You should come again and push aside these curtains
To assure you that I love you and I know that you had been here
I left a little answer for you to read
The dust has settled, it took a year
I came back, just one more tear
The curtains were pulled but I pushed them aside
There were lines in the dust on the window that cried
I-L-O-V-E, oh there was more that I just couldn’t bear to read
I sat against the wall where the bed had rested once
and cried like a child for some silly little lines in the dust
by Richard Schweitzer
I was using the April Dogs as analogy for the idiosyncrasies of personality and fear that tear at relationships, especially nascent relationships. It was, for me, a specific situation at the time, the details fail me anymore. I was also comparing building a relationship to composing poetry, or songwriting, as if we start off creating the characters we will be, and want to be with. (So I ended that sentence on a preposition... with it, live.) The April Dogs were a regional legend I came across while researching UK folklore for my musical fantasy Henge. I can't find any reference to them on the wide wonderful web, but they are a thing, I promise.
It doesn’t happen every day
Now the words are wrong, it’s nothing I’m writing
Just the things I try to say
Nothing fits the song, the dogs just keep fighting
Outside my window the snow is falling
Outside my door stands you
I don’t see the logic
You were safe in my pocket
Why do you insist on riding in my shoe
where I might step on you
Now it’s time to change the song
If you can’t change the bridge then lower the water
Maybe then the chords are wrong
The image I created might not have caught her
Outside my window the snow is falling
Outside my door stands you
I don’t see the logic
You were safe in my pocket
Why do you insist on riding in my shoe
where I might step on you
That’s not the kind of song I write
Maybe if I change you, you’ll fit the music
If the dogs begin to bite
We can change the melody as we choose it
I will protect you just stand behind me
You will be safe from the April Dogs
I don’t see us running
Soon spring will have sprung
and the April Dogs will vanish into the fog
Somewhere in the song
by Richard Schweitzer
Mask. I guess I'm intimating that if you play a character, live a charade, for yourself or your friends, or the world in general, it can have an effect (for good or ill) on those around you; and that you may get lost in that persona, so choose your mask wisely, it may become your face. Sometimes words and ideas just sort of ooze out of your fingertips, and the source is a mystery.
There's a car on a road
and it's going very slow
It can't turn right, it's not allowed
And can't turn left, there's such a crowd
Can't turn around, the road's so close
The driver is a manic mess
afraid to take the driving test
No longer scared of what he fears
and not aware of all the years
but hopelessly aware of all the rest
A boy is in a little room
considering the crack of doom
A girl is there, she's so alight
her skirt is short, her skin is nice
The boy will walk away to find a spoon
The girl begins to cry
The skirt is just a lie
What she wants with no one there
is just a moment she can share
But she just drive's home thinking...
I have become the mask I wore
Even I don't matter anymore
The mask is me and I am free
To try and recall the I I was before
for I've become the fucking mask I wore
by Richard Schweitzer
The lyrics for Here's to You were adjusted slightly for general consumption, the original was a bit specific, and to be honest, amateurish. The saying goes "if you love something let it go..." Here's to You is the first step of the process. Break-ups don't have to be animus, sometimes it's simply letting go.
I can’t be sure of your feelings
I’m not even sure of my own
You changed my life in some ways
Now you can change it some more
Here’s to you finding your own mind
Here’s to you making your way
Here’s to you, finding all the love in the world
Here’s to you winning your game
Could you be seeing your peril
Could you be squeezing your bear
Next time you’re over the barrel
Ask yourself, who put you there
Here’s to you finding your own mind
Here’s to you making your way
Here’s to you, knowing whose love is for you
Here’s to you winning your game
Here’s to you finding your own mind
Here’s to you making your way
Here’s to you, knowing whose love is for you
Here’s to you, finding all the love in the world
Here’s to life happening our way
Here’s to you winning your game
Here’s to you
Here’s to you
Here’s to you
She Holds Me Close
Lyrics by Leland Dan Schweitzer
Music by Richard Schweitzer
She Holds Me Close. This is a lyric my brother wrote for his late wife, but he was having trouble putting music to it. He handed it off to me. Unfortunately, he wasn't overjoyed with the result, but I like it. I think romanticism comes in all meters.
The girl just won't believe she can sing
But I can hear her heart when she's smiling
And we can sing together when we're near
Without a sound another soul could hear
She rarely comes to hear me when I play
But I can feel her love all around me
She thinks she'd scare the other fans away
But I think love is just that much more sweet light to shine
She holds me close to her heart
Even when we are apart
And if I stood upon the moon, I could not feel alone
She holds me close when we're near
And her love's so strong and clear
Wherever we're together, that's my home
She holds me close
She holds me close
She knows all my weak points and flaws
But accepts me just as I am
And when I make some damned-fool mistake
She just smiles, and lets it go at that
If I had drawn up my own plan
To give to God and say, "Here's what I want!"
I would have fallen so far short
of the woman she is and who I’ve become
She holds me close to her heart
Even when we are apart
And if I stood upon the moon, I could not feel alone
She holds me close when we're near
And her love's so strong and clear
Wherever we're together, that's my home
She holds me close
She holds me close
Oh, she tells me what I do for her is more than what I see
But all I've ever done is love her, and I love her lovin' me
She holds me close to her heart
Even when we are apart
And if I stood upon the moon, I could not feel alone
She holds me close when we're near
And her love's so strong and clear
Wherever we're together, that's my home
She holds me close
She holds me close
She holds me close
somebody tell my heart
by Richard Schweitzer
"My heart and I aren't talking"... Even when you know the truth, it's hard to let go of the blame; your blame, or the other person's. But often it's yourself you have to convince. I like to say, "I don't hold grudges, I learn character." And I like to think that's true, but I know where my self is concerned, well... not so much. HGHG, Hearts Grifted Hold Grudges. I've not figured out how to fix that, if anyone else has, Somebody Tell My Heart.
My heart and I aren’t talking
It blames only me
We both dream alone at night
and we used to love to watch her dream
I can’t get through to tell it
it hears what it wants
And it’s been beating so hard for so long and so loud
that it can’t hear me crying and trying so hard…
to explain
there just isn't anything we can do
It's too plain
No complexity to get lost in
She just isn’t part of our world
She just isn’t part of our world
There was so much more to it
it wasn't my fault
I understand that
but somebody tell my heart
Love isn’t just a game now
I once thought it was
But living without her has gotten so old
And breathing without her is like breathing dust
And my lungs are empty
Like New Year’s balloons in March
It’s just that I’m tired of trying I don’t have the strength
to get through and my heart has lost the heart…
to believe
there just isn’t anything we can do
It’s too plain
No complexity to get lost in
She just isn’t part of our world
She just isn’t part of our world
There was so much more to it
it wasn't my fault
I understand that
but somebody tell my heart
There just isn't anything we can do
It's too plain
No complexity to get lost in
She just isn't part of our world
She just isn't part of our world
There was so much more to it
It wasn't my fault
I understand that
but somebody tell my heart
It wasn't my fault
I understand that
but somebody tell my heart
It’s nobody’s fault
I understand that
but somebody tell my heart
by Richard Schweitzer
Walls (Like Berlin) - a promise made to an insincere heart. The emotions of a new situation can wash over you like persistent rain. In this case, I failed to notice I was the only one getting wet.
I think we saw it coming
It approached us like a rainstorm, walking across the water
as it grew closer, we forgot to go inside
How can I tell you?
This rain feels so warm as it washes across my face
Your heart's so close now, and I know I'm gonna get there...
Stone by stone, brick by brick
No structure you can build could keep me away from it
Piece by piece, I'm all in
If it's up to me, I swear, those walls are comin' down...
like Berlin
It's never been this easy
So subtle came the changes
as if my heart just found a purpose
As you grow closer, I look into your eyes
And I surrender
Don't be afraid to fall, I'm already there to catch you
Now I'm holding out my hand, and I'm asking you to take it
I know the rain is falling and there's nowhere you can hide
It's either walk away and leave me to the storm or let me try
Oh, let me try
Stone by stone, brick by brick
No structure you can build could keep me away from it
Piece by piece, I'm all in
If it's up to me, I swear, the walls are comin' down...
like Berlin
Stone by stone, brick by brick
No structure you can build can keep me away from it
Piece by piece, I'm all in
If it's up to me, I swear, those walls are comin' down...
like Berlin
by Richard Schweitzer
Unfinished Symphony. Sometimes, things get left unfini...
I’d like to write a symphony for you
In fact I started once but never saw it through
There just aren’t enough instruments to play
All the notes that it would take to express my love for you
I’d like to write you someday from afar
Just to see how things are going, how ya’ are
But more than missing you from far away
I’d like to find a way to stay, would that be so hard
I think I loved you much more than you feel
I wish that I could love you like you need
But there’s no trust and no heart left to steal
And now, all that’s left to do is bleed
There just aren’t enough instruments to play
All the notes that it would take to express my love for you
I’d like to write you something short and sweet
the song’s too shallow the love is far too deep
And if you ever do find your own mind
We can add another line to our unfinished symphony
And I hope you loved me much more than you knew
We fade to black before the love could tell
And maybe time can heal this weeping wound
The songs we sing together dance so well
There just aren’t enough instruments to play
All the little notes that it would take to express my love for you
And if you ever do find your own mind
We can add another line to our unfinished symphony
by Richard Schweitzer
A Tear without a Net. The song is long enough, the comment will be short. Sometimes we inadvertently open someone's eyes or heart with a perfectly placed validation, observation or compliment at just the right time in their lives, and we may never even be aware of it. Acknowledge it if you can, the gifter may not be around later.
She was crunching numbers for a man that sold used cars
Dreamed in points and commas, but wanted to see stars
And the night would close around her like a sea of rushing tears
And her bed, a lonely island as she drifted on her fears
You have heard the story, probably lived it some yourself
She is just a grain of sand on a continental shelf
Waiting for the big one that will shake her world apart
So she can start tying ends together, and find her long lost heart
He didn’t turn her world around just walking in the door
She noticed his disinterest in the room and nothing more
When she met him in a doorway, coming in and going out
He melted into sadness that was louder than her doubt
She always stood her ground alone… nothing broke her seal
Always knew just how to act… if not how to feel
Then he turned her world around… with eyes both blue and white
And said, now I know why God created light
Now I know why God created light
He held her eyes just briefly, then he disappeared
She found he’d already left when the room had cleared
In the night, in silent dreams, his eyes were always dry
But she knew he was crying, in a way she can’t define
If he could say that to her face, she wanted to believe
So she packed away her points & commas and unpacked all her dreams
Then held them out before her, like a compass, in her hand
And leaped out on her future, like a leopard on a lamb
He didn’t turn her world around just walking in the door
She noticed his disinterest in the room and nothing more
When she met him in a doorway, coming in and going out
He melted into sadness that was louder than her doubt
She always stood her ground alone… nothing broke her seal
Always knew just how to act… if not how to feel
Then he turned her world around… with eyes both blue and white
And said, now I know why God created light
Someone, one day told her, on that night they’d almost met
That he leaped from a window, like a tear without a net
Now she thanks him everyday just by believing he was right
As if he’d passed his life to her through eyes both blue and white
She always stood her ground alone… nothing broke her seal
But now she tries to trust her heart… and act the way she feels
A heart that he had turned around… by looking in her eyes, sayin’
Now I know why God created light
What seems to be a window, to some is darkest night
And now I know why God created light
Wait for Me is a lyric from my late partner Rus Stedman, so
I can't speak to his inspiration, but on hindsight, it seems like the sentiment of someone much older than we were at the time. That being said, I find I'm still trying to catch up.
Well it’s another lonely evening
I’ve been drinking club to club
Dancin’ with the pretty girls
and falling in and out of love
But there’s one that I’ve been aimin’ to
catch up with for some time
A little girl who smiles and waves
as she goes dancin’ by
Wait for me
These old legs don’t move the way they used to do
Wait for me
Cause if I catch up soon I’m gonna make ‘em dance for you, just
Wait for me
Wuh wuh wait for me, my darlin’
This affair can’t get nowhere unless you wait for me
Been watchin’ her forever,
never said a word
But there’s nothin’ I could say to her
that she ain’t already heard
Told myself I’d wait until
the time was just right
But I will just get older waiting
for a better night
Oooo, what can I do?
Every guy who tries tonight,
gets his lonely heart broken in two
Been another wasted evenin’
I’ve been plastered to my seat
Ain’t much a girl like her could see
in a dumb ol’ fool like me
Just when I’m as close as I am sure I’ll ever get
She sneaks up right behind me sayin’
"Haven’t you caught up yet?"
Wait for me
This old heart don’t beat the way it used to do
Wait for me
Cause if you hold me tight you’re gonna feel it beat for you, just
Wait for me
Wuh wuh wait for me, my darlin’
This affair can’t get nowhere unless you wait for me
This affair can’t get nowhere unless you wait for me
No, this affair can’t get nowhere unless you wait for me
White Collar Blue
by Rus Stedman
& Richard Schweitzer
White Collar Blue. Another Rus Stedman lyric. As songwriters, we realized that there was more need for songs in the Country genre than Rock or Pop. I had been writing from my Country roots all along, so this was one of Rus's first attempts at going Bubba. But we didn't want to toe the standard line or wax cliche, we wanted to be relevant to the new Country that tends to embrace the entire American culture.
Momma said she weren’t gonna raise no fool
Made me do my book reports and stay in school
Well I can read and write and do my tables too
I even learned some Algebra I’ll never use
After schoolin’ I got me a city job
I became Robert instead of just Bob
In my three piece suit I climbed the corporate stairs
I can’t breathe up there where the air’s so rare
Gonna dye this white collar blue
Trade my wing-tips in for steel toed boots
Climb on down this tree and try to find my roots
Gonna dye this white collar blue
Gonna dye this white collar blue
Get back where right is right and truth is truth
And no one gives a damn how much fat is in my food
Gonna dye this white collar blue
Go on home
I just wasn’t cut out for this corporate schtick
Chasing little white balls and the big white kick
Well I’m a beer man, champagne makes me sick
It’s sushi to you but it’s bait to this hick
Too many butt draggin’, money grabbin’, back stabbin’
Son of a Bs up here
Don’t need no nip-n-tuckin’, million buckin’, mother…
Well you know what I mean
You know what I mean
I’m gonna dye this white collar blue
Trade my loafers in for some bowlin’ shoes
Get all liquored up, get stupid and confused
Gonna dye this white collar blue
Gonna dye this white collar blue
Go back to the country where hearts beat true
And all the kids at school still say the flag salute
Gonna dye this white collar blue
head on home
Gonna dye this white collar blue