The Long Way Home, by The Skip Heller Trio

The Long Way Home

by The Skip Heller Trio

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1.	I Used To Love California 04:01	lyrics	buy track
Used To Love California Mornings, I'd have one eye open watching her as she got dressed for work Barefoot on the hardwood floor, rushing 'round in just her bra and skirt As the golden sun came creeping thru the window, bouncing off the closet door I used to love California, but these days I'm not so sure We had a little place out in the Valley, things were always safe and warm So much so I didn't notice it was getting chilly in her arms After while tho, no mistaking, there was less affection in her touch I used to love California, but lately not so much I used to love California, when California was our happy home I used to love California, til I started into wake up there alone Without her I don't care about the desert of the smell of orange trees I used to love California, but I've since moved back east People often ask me if I hate it there, the fact is that I don't I could move back there tomorrow, but probably I won't It's a little bit expensive, but you can't beat the quality of life I used to love california, back when we were man & wife I used to love California, nighttimes drifting down the 101 I used to love California, kissing in the California sun It's as good a place as any, really I don't mean to put it down I used to love California, but that was then and this is now
2.	Southern Dream 01:57	lyrics	buy track
Southern Dream For the first time since Katrina, I ambled west on Highway 10 And the city across the Pontchartrain greeted us like a battered old friend At first sight she was grey and dusty brown but underneath that color scheme She was bright as a northern man's version of an old time southern dream I walked down to the Mississippi River, it is a place I dearly love The sternwheeler Natchez was mute and still, locked up and all tied off Then her whistle, oh it rang out strong again, and I watched as she raised steam It was every bit a northern man's version of an old time southern dream Fairhope, AL, on a sweaty Friday night My arms around a little southern belle whose eyes were all subversive light Well, she walked me to the dark side of the street and kissed me til I split my seams Then she took me home and I lived my every old-time southern dream
3.	Falling For You 04:18	lyrics	buy track
Falling For You You can tell my nerves are shot if I'm back to smoking cigarettes And if my eyes look red than you can blame the sleep that I can't seem to get Maybe I'm not thinking straight but I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do Falling for you, I'm falling for you I know you've got a man at home and I know the excitement that you miss There's a woman I've been with for years and it's been ages since we kissed You & I ain't much as touched but I can't help but feel we've been untrue Falling for you, I'm falling for you And I don't like the way this situation makes me feel about myself Much the same as I don't like the way I wish that she was someone else And I try not to listen to the things my heart is telling me to do And I don't like the way I'm falling for you Sometimes I drive the long way home just to have a little quiet time If I can't you in my arms I'll settle for to have you on my mind Likely 'nuff I'll ride it out and muddle through my private maze of blue Falling for you, I'm falling for you And I don't like the way this situation makes me feel about myself Much the same as I don't like the way I wish that she was someone else And I try not to listen to the things my heart is telling me to do And I don't like the way I'm falling for you
4.	Duke Ellington In Tears 02:55	lyrics	buy track
Duke Ellington In Tears It was sometime in the spring of '68, and Duke Ellington stared into an abyss Of faces hard to make out in the dark, as his band threw down a fanfare you can't miss It was a gas money gig at a high school in some tiny town in Central PA He shut his eyes real tight, and launched into "Satin Doll", as if the good times weren't so far away Though the A train had long since left the station, the sophisticated lady long since aged Tonight he's playing some high school gymnasium, instead of someplace with a proper stage And I wonder how he felt when it all come down to this, after putting in his forty-some-odd years There was a quiet grace the maestro carried through hard times, no one ever saw Duke Ellington in tears I'm in Tucson, Dallas, Baton Rouge this week, past that I'll have to check my list of dates I take a lot of pride in what I am, even if my life ain't turned out all that great A gas money gig at some fish fry, on my anniversary wishing I was home How many miles travelled before it's been too far, and everything I held onto is gone? I watched as my loving wife erased me from the life we sealed together with a vow And I stayed on the road like it don't phase me, and I lie and say I'm just as happy now I came to this world alone and alone I guess I'll leave, I've seen the love I lived for disappear And I venerate the grace the maestro carried through hard times, no one ever saw Duke Ellington in tears
5.	San Fernando Valley Blues #1 04:41	lyrics	buy track
San Fernando Valley Blues #1 It's 100 in the shade, the sun is sinking slow & hot (2X) Summertime here in the Valley, hitting me with all it's got And this woman by my side, she won't be by my side for long (2x) Summer out here in the Valley, and I'm watching love gone wrong I could lose my temper, but it's too damn hot to scream I could maybe plan to leave her, but I'm too beaten down to dream Summer out here in the Valley, I see the worst about myself Cuz I'm lying here beside her, wishing she was someone else Evening sun is setting, but it ain't cooling down at night And I'm out of cigarettes, I can't sleep tonight 108 here in the Valley, waiting for the morning light
6.	At My Age 04:22	lyrics	buy track
At My Age At my age I should expect more out of my life Than one day a week at a motel with another man's wife A cubicle job at just over the minimum wage I should have more to show for my life at my age I admit that I'm the genius who oughta be thanked For the kids I don;t have and the money that ain't in the bank The tiny apartment that I stomp around like a cage Not much of a home to come to, no, not at my age At the rate I'm going, I'll be a broke and lonely old man Whatever happens, happens, I'll worry about it then At my age I oughta own me a piece of the rock A slice of the pie, at least I should be outta hock It's diminished returns with the passing of every phase I should have more to show for my life at my age
7.	Too Hot To Sleep 03:32	lyrics	buy track
Too Hot to Sleep Pour myself a cup of coffee, so late, you know it's awfully quiet out there The DON'T WALK sign is blinking bright, there's no cars on the street tonight, and the summer air Is so thick and humid, too heavy to breathe deep It's too quiet to think, and it's too hot to sleep I should dial my sister Marianne, she's someone who understands what love has wrought I'd give the world just to hear her voice, hell, I'd give the works for any noise that drowns out the thoughts Of a love that I had once that I somehow couldn't keep It's hours after midnight, and it's too hot to sleep It would seem that folks like me don't get to hold on to our dreams It's all ships that don't come in At least that's how it seems Pour myself another cup, the morning sun is coming up and the dawn is grey Remind myself I'm not depressed, I shower shave and then get dressed for work today My love for you is over, heaven knows that it's to weep I've never felt this far from anyone, and it's too hot to sleep
8.	When I Come to Pledge My Heart 03:14	lyrics	buy track
When I Come To Pledge My Heart I have been through snow & water, I've worn holes clean through my boots Done my best to keep a-movin', as my kind is prone to do I've made my deals with devils, I arrived here from the dark It won't be angels who present me, when I come to pledge my heart I won't ask to be forgiven just cuz I ventured down this path I've walked with both the saints and sinners. How much of which? Well, do the math So now a gamble stands before you. No, I'm not trying to be smart. I just figure, best be candid when I come to pledge my heart Just another broken dreamer in my old common labor shoes After years and over miles, come to pledge my heart to you I had spent myself on others before I ever knew your touch Never love just sort of lovers, never added up to much And I've rehearsed this speech forever, but now I don't know where to start The words aren't coming out so easy since I've come to pledge my heart
9.	San Fernando Valley Blues #2 02:45	lyrics	buy track
San Fernando Valley Blues #2 She's long, she's tall, she's every schoolboy's dream (2x) But doncha look too close because her eyes are hard and mean In Panorama City, she's dancing in some bar In Panorama City, she's in some topless bar How many years since she ventured west to be a star? She's got a long-term case of the San Fernando Valley Blues (2x) Don't try to save her, she'll only give her blues to you She's looking for a daddy with a place on Easy Street She's looking for a daddy put her up on Easy Street Them Sherman Way bars pay well but they leave her beat
10.	Tracy Lee 02:48	lyrics	buy track
Tracy Lee It was back in 1981, even then I couldn't dance I wrote love notes to Tracy Lee tho I never stood a chance Bountiful prose tho I did provide, she never wished for me And some nights I cursed and others I cried for the love of Tracy Lee Tracy Lee had long dark hair and she squinted when she smiled A college girl at the new wave bar driving all us punk rock boys wild She'd leave on the arm of some big strong guy and I wished that I was he And I prayed to an unresponsive god for the love of Tracy Lee Tracy Lee, Tracy Lee -- belle of my tender years Tracy Lee, Tracy Lee -- start of my grown-up tears Time starts small but it stacks up high over years that I can't see And I wonder do I ever cross your mind now Tracy Lee Well I'm older now and I'm almost smart even if I'm not quite wise In my heart of hearts, I'm still a fool to a pair of sweet brown eyes man of the world tho I may now seem, deep down I'll always be Some skinny kid writing words of love to unattainable Tracy Lee

about

Ropeadope Alumni Skip Heller is back again for another release with his always talented, impressive trio. The trio’s music this time around follows a mixture of country and rock, a nice reminder to the simplicity, but beauty that can exist within music. Calling the music simple is not to downplay Skip Heller and company’s musicianship, but a raw, not heavily produced masterpiece. One that allows the listener to be captured into a calming, yet focused listening state.

Skip Heller’s ability to craft songs that make one wish for more and yet be satisfied with the creation of “The Long Way Home”. In fact, the idea of even classifying this album is too hard to do, it just doesn’t quite fit into any specific genre,

Songs ranging from a lonesome decision about a place that once meant much more than it does now in “I Used to Love California” to the wishes for a lover once gone, who has moved on in “Falling for You”. Skip Heller’s voice remains a unique one, deep and soulful. It allows for a glimpse into the thoughts put together for the album, and how the words truly roll off his tongue with a calmness, but also with a sense of importance of the story he’s telling. One just needs to listen to “At My Age” and they will hear a song crafted around the beautiful concept of one looking back over the course of their life and what they have accomplished, in Skip’s case he feels not enough.

Strictly speaking, this probably shouldn't be filed under "jazz", but Skip HAS been called the "greatest living jazz guitarist in America (Jazz times), so it probably will, but it really shouldn't. Skip’s famous saying "artistry always defies explanation", fits this album in ways other words couldn’t. How can the album be explained correctly? The complicated answer ultimately comes to it can’t. One must just sit and listen and try not to over think this album.

“Skip Heller is a bad-ass guitar player but to me, calling Skip a guitar player, or musician is limiting. He is an artist like Pollack or Picasso”.