Track Information and Lyrics
Secrets of a Bass Player
My first co-write with renowned musician, Lindsay Gould. A thoroughly enjoyable experience where I wrote the lyrics and Lindsay added a most thought provoking melody. The song is inspired by my friend, and favourite bass player; name and address withheld!
Secrets of a Bass Player
Here I am I must confess, trapped in lustrous nakedness
Trying to find my way out, with no success
I'm dreaming.
Another night, another day, I don't want to feel this way
My dark days are over, they say
No meaning.
Chorus
When the night is done and the lights grow dim
a demon called The Pimp comes in.
Even though I wear a sold sign on my ring finger,
I'm an easy conquest then
This weakness that exists among men
When I'm done, I hope she doesn't linger.
One idea that could work out fine
Is take my gigs in a gay bar sometime
The girls don't want me and the boys don't either.
But perhaps I like the ego trip
Makes me feel young, makes me feel hip
The secrets of a bass player reaper.
Chorus
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Copyright Jane Laws 2014
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Purple Poodle
While chatting with the locals on Fitzroy Street, St Kilda, it was mentioned you can get anything you like on Fitzroy Street, even purple poodles. I knew there was a song in there somewhere.
Purple Poodle
There's a tiny store selling fancy wares
They got purple things for purple hair.
People gather round and they stop and stare
If they find a purple poodle in the window fair.
Chorus
There's a purple poodle on Fitzroy Street
You gotta get out, you just gotta meet.
Sure to make you smile its a fancy treat
If you catch a purple poodle on Fitzroy Street.
Late on Friday night you will find this guy
Outside a burger store, and if you wait a while.
He'll do a circus trick on a purple trike
When a posey purple poodle comes passing by.
Chorus
Why not take a ride on a purple tram
Down to the purple store and say "here I am."
Take a look around see the purple man
Buy a purple poodle in a purple pram.
Chorus
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Copyright Jane Laws 2008
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Six Hundred Outback Miles
One of the most enjoyable experiences of my life have been the long days I have spent on the open road on my motorcycle. The idea for this song came to me when riding between Barkley Station and Daly Waters in the Northern Territory. By the time I arrived at the camp site, the tune and the first verse were set in stone. Over the next few weeks I had the pleasure of musing with the lyrics while I enjoyed riding the roads of the Northern Territory and listening and learning about Aboriginal Culture and Country.
Six Hundred Outback Miles
Today I’m gonna ride me six hundred outback miles,
I’m not searching for something, just a face full of smiles.
Some folks who pass the other way they wave as if to say g’day,
I’m riding for the love of riding till the sun goes down.
Today I’m gonna ride me six hundred outback miles,
Where the brolgas dance, and the eagle flies.
I’ll drink my fill of local beer with a bush poet and a balladeer,
I'm riding till the sun goes down.
Today I’m gonna ride me six hundred outback miles,
And I’ll find myself a friend with blood shot eyes.
Music sticks will beat the way by firelight at the end of day,
I’m riding till the sun goes down.
Today I’m gonna ride me six hundred outback miles,
Where stories are told from a distant time.
If there’s tucker in my old rucksack and water in my camelback,
I'll be riding for the love of riding till the sun goes down.
Today I’m gonna ride me six hundred outback miles,
Where they hear the earth has begun to cry.
Purple flowers bloom to say it’s time to burn the land again,
I'm riding till the sun goes down.
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Copyright Jane Laws 2013
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Trackless
In 2014 I was asked to proof the novel, Trackless, by my friend and author M.A. Hill. Writing this song was the inevitable conclusion of that experience and singing Trackless at the book launch was a memorable artistic moment.
Trackless
Chorus
Suddenly you're here and I am nowhere,
Suddenly you're here, then you're gone.
I'm going trackless 'til I'm out of sight,
Going trackless 'til I've seen the light.
I'm afraid of choosing and loosing and crashing down
The stones in the road I know they're true.
Seems that I've been waiting all my life
To go from nowhere to somewhere with you.
Chorus
Only a ghost from hell can tell my full story
Trapped in the dungeons of my mind.
Fragile as a broken wing, see me dance, hear me sing
Alone in the dark, my past far behind.
Chorus
I will learn to lust and to trust over you
Every moment of each day, in every word you say.
Take me in the moonlight 'til I call your name
From now until forever
From now until forever
From now until forever; always.
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Copyright Jane Laws 2014
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Mr Dinosaur Bones
The colourful characters who run the pubs and the gem shops in our outback towns hear the beat of a different drum. Thanks for the inspiration Mr Dinosaur Bones.
Mr Dinosaur Bones
He hangs out Black Soil Plains
Livin' it up in life's natural drains.
Met his bro, name was Boo
He likes to sup on a whiskey or two.
And if you ask him "what's your name?"
He says "I don't go much for fame
But hey dude, you can call me - Mr Dinosaur Bones."
He's got a chick and a chicken
He says "this one is for finger lickin'."
There's a twinkle in his eye
I haven't seen for quite a while.
And if you ask him "what's your name?"
He says "I don't go much for fame
But hey dude, you can call me - Mr Dinosaur Bones."
He runs an outback highway store
Where you can get a little more that you bargain for.
Take a room, stay the night
Get woken up by the midnight fight.
And if you ask him "what's your name?"
He says "I don't go much for fame
But hey dude, you can call me - Mr Dinosaur Bones."
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Copyright Jane Laws 2014
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Jump-Up
I am completely in love with the outback that is Western Queensland. The cattle trains, gem fields, and dinosaur bones are all music to my ears. In a quiet moment, you can still feel the spirit of the great poets who passed that way so long ago. Jump-Up is my tribute to the magic I found there.
Jump-Up
There is a place called Poverty Plains and I know what they found there.
And if you take a peek at Billaboo Creek you might find a dingo’s lair.
Cattle trains, running on lunatic soup, pass with a yaw and a sway,
And the wild pigs and roos who didn’t hear them coming, took their last breath that day.
We called at a pub in Longreach, and there was an old bloke propped up at the bar.
And I said “Are you a local 'round here?” And he said “I’m no local by far.
There are not many locals in this town and there are none in here to be found.
To be thought of as a local you've got to have someone in the ground.”
We rolled out the swags on a Jump-Up and we looked out over the Black Soil Plains.
They call this land Channel Country, she keeps pushing up fossilised remains.
This year the drought has taken hold, even ghost gums struggle to breathe.
And if it doesn’t rain in the next three weeks, all the sheep and cattle must leave.
Next morning we’re drinking billy tea and warming ourselves in the desert sun.
I said “Where to next, is it south is it west?” “Let’s try out luck at Opalton.”
In the distance the cattle are kicking up the dust, taking part in a bangtail muster.
And there’s a stockman, cracking his whip in the air, getting the beasts to do what they oughta.
The folks out west seem to smile a lot as they go about their day.
And there are bush poets and there are balladeers, who all pass this way.
As we roll up the swags and we head on down just another dusty track,
I know part of me will always ride free, in the outback.
Yes I know part of me will always ride free, in the outback.
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Copyright Jane Laws 2013
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Does it Rhyme?
The title song to this album is a simple list of whimsical and thought provoking life questions.
Does it Rhyme?
Does it snow in Tokyo?
Does it rhyme on Disney time?
Does it rain when you fall in love on the desert train?
Do you hope for inner peace?
Do you pray all wars will cease?
Do you hide from the struggles of a starving child?
Do they queue in Timbuktu?
Do you glow when you start to show?
Do you smile when your spirit comes alive?
Do you feel the world might end?
Do you try our love defend?
Do you cry when you hear a child’s lullaby?
Is it time to close your eyes?
Is it mine to fantasise?
Can you feel the difference between make believe and real?
Does it snow in Tokyo?
Does it rhyme on Disney time?
Does it? Do you? Can you? Is it? Does it rhyme?...............
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Copyright Jane Laws 2012
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
The Wobblebox Song
A touch of comedy for all the grey nomads who travel north each winter, caravan (wobblebox) in tow, to join the travelling community until it's time to go home again.
The Wobblebox Song
Chorus
If only the sliding doors and the bloke who snores and the gennies could sing in tune.
Stray dogs are a pest when we stop for a rest at the camp late afternoon.
I wouldn’t swop a day on the old highway for a day in the old back yard.
Though there’s queues for the loos and the barbeques, life out here ain’t hard.
There’s a big wobblebox on the road ahead
We’ll overtake him before the next bend,
The race is on for the last campsite where we don’t pay no fees.
We’ll be packed in tight without an ounce of shade
Where lunch is done and tea is made,
If they say it’s going for free we say “yes please.”
Chorus
There’s a strong head wind on the road today
When we fill up with gas we’ll have to pay
And we’re pulling off the road for the trains with the big wide loads.
There’s a herd of cattle on every bend
And a tonne of red dust inside the tent
But it beats staying home and growing old.
Chorus
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Copyright Jane Laws 2013
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Windforce
After the success of Trackless, M.A. Hill commissioned me to write another song for the second book of her trilogy, Windforce.
Windforce
Chorus
There are storm clouds building at sea and on land
And the touch of your heart keeps my heart beating.
If I believe in forever, and let you slip through my hands
I might never know this love that I'm feeling.
The sea is just the sea, the waves are just the waves,
A summers night, with a silver moon, we call halcyon days.
The sea might tear my boat apart, but the sea won't break my heart,
I love to sail the waves and steer beneath the stars.
Chorus
When it comes to you and me, so much more to give and take.
Through the love and the lies, the deceit and desire there are scores to make.
And if I take what is yours, and if you keep what is mine
Our storm will build and last beyond our lifetime.
Chorus
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Copyright Jane Laws 2015
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
The Coal Miner
“The Coal Miner” is a deeply personal song for me and my mother, as I pay tribute to my grandfather's life's journey.
My Grandfather (Andrew Eardley 1905 – 1985) lived all his life in Norton-In-The-Moors, and worked underground in the collieries around Norton for fifty years until his retirement in 1970.
The Coal Miner
In a coal miners house in 1932 by candle light she was born.
Her mother lay resting, and her father lay by her side,
But she was gone by morning.
And so he held her like Joseph held Mary, so long ago.
And they found cold comfort with hardly a penny
She shared a grave with someone they didn't know.
Yes she shared a grave with someone they didn't know.
On his hands and his knees, with a pick and a shovel he did fifty years or more.
Nothing of gold to remember this journey just a paper to hang on the wall.
He lost many a mate to the 'perils of the miner,' fate would spare him.
And each new years day a lamp burned in his window
And he watched till the flame from within burned dim.
He watched till the flame from within burned dim.
A man of few words, only lived for his family, slept in the same bed all his life.
And he never shed a tear when the doctor told him, he never told his wife.
It wasn't his way to trouble or worry her, this was his secret to keep.
And one cold winters day as he sat by his window
Without a goodbye he was gone in his sleep
Without a goodbye he was gone in his sleep.
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Copyright Jane Laws 2005
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Take You to Vegas
Lindsay Gould and I had so much fun with Secrets of a Bass Player we decided to collaborate on another song; this time we went to Vegas.
Take You to Vegas
I'm gonna take you to Vegas get the lights burning low.
Win at a round table to help with cash flow.
Get down and get dirty where nobody knows.
I'm gonna take you to Vegas, come on let's go.
I'm gonna ride the highway with the wind in my hair.
Hangout at a jukebox joint where nobody cares.
Wearin' leather and boots with a style and a flair.
I'm gonna take you to Vegas, come on let's go.
We're gonna step out in the city where nobody sleeps.
Get drunk and get married, we're playing for keeps.
We'll check-out the trannies, the drugs and the cheats.
I'm gonna take you to Vegas, come on let's go.
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Copyright Jane Laws 2014
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
Kilkenny
A story telling folk song in the more traditional style.
Kilkenny
There’s a boy down old Kilkenny, he spends his days in the old school yard.
Though he earns a pound he doesn’t have a penny
And you can see him looking far.
So he left to find a rich man's daughter, he needed someone to call his own.
And he was gone 'til the end of summer,
And I was waiting when he came home.
Chorus
Brighter than the sun, bluer than the winter that has almost gone.
She’s swifter than the breeze blowing through the leaves upon trees
That grow in the garden.
So he found the fairest maiden, she was lovely from the day she was born.
But she was not a rich man's daughter, her clothes were washed but torn.
So at five each day he'd pass by my way
And when he came home there was more salt in his shoes.
And she was waiting there, she seemed without a care
But she had known what it was like to loose.
Chorus
There’s a girl down old Kilkenny,
She spends her days in the old school yard.
For every pound he earned she gave away nine pennies
There was love in her heart.
She ran the lost and found, the children would gather round
She taught them how to laugh their cares away.
She said 'you should greet each day, take what comes your way
Don’t go worrying what might not happen.'
Chorus
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Copyright Jane Laws 2000
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
In The City
Sometimes you just have to write a feel good folk-pop song.
In The City
There's a girl lives in the city
She's got long blond hair and she's kind of pretty.
I caught her looking at you
When there's not much happening
Nothin' goin' on, not much to do.
Chorus
She might say 'look don't touch me'
It doesn't matter much I tell you it's true
She's making eyes, over you, over you ou ou ou.
There's a guy lives in the city
Drives a flashy car, way to pretty.
He's looking for love that lasts
Likes motor bikes and going fast
Feeling good, drinking wine, having a good time.
Chorus
Find the girl lives in the city
Don't miss your chance that's a pity.
She's doin' it nine to five
And learning fast how to survive
Lonely days and nights thinking of you.
Chorus
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Copyright Jane Laws 2005
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
The Spell of Acrospire IV
Sailing is another one of my favourite pastimes and it was a pleasure and a privilege to write this song about one of Australia's historic sailing vessels. Built in 1929 and lovingly restored by her current owner, I always enjoy a sail aboard Acrospire IV.
The Spell of Acrospire IV
Chorus
This is how they sail in heaven
She glides along like a ghost from the distant past.
If I had only one more boat to sail
Acrospire would be my last.
The first time I saw her she cast her spell upon me
And I smiled as I watched her waltzing by.
The reflection in her top sides of the crew all wearing bow ties
And her skipper dipped his cap as he caught my eye.
Chorus
In the creaking of her timbers lie the voices of the sailors
Who sailed this gallant maiden through the years.
And if you listen closely to the whisper on the wind
You'll hear their cries, and their laughter and their cheers.
Chorus
In a crowded harbour her graceful lines will find you
And you'll wonder where she’s been and where she’s going to.
As she sails over the horizon, her silhouette will haunt you
And you will long to ask if she remembers you.
Chorus
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Copyright Jane Laws 2011
Unauthorised copying, public performance, broadcasting, hiring or rental of this song prohibited.
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