Author: Joel D Canfield

what kind of day

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Bb C F
get up every morning and put on my shirt and pant
down to the table for egg and toast and tea
put on my sock and shoe and head out the door
dive into the day to see what kind of day it’ll be

slip behind the wheel fire up Betty Lou
just an old Beetle but we get from B to A
looking sharp in a new sunglass da da da da
pootle along with a song on another day

C F
I cook with a tong, eat with a chopstick
cut coupon with scissor to save a few cent
Bb C F Bb
pretend to wonder what it was that happened
don’t need a binocular to see why you went

errand run and had some fun on the coast
heading home I turn on my headlight
park at the curb and pat Betty Lou on the head
swap shoe for slipper and settle down for the night

get up every morning and put on my shirt and pant
down to the table for egg and toast and tea
put on my sock and shoe and slip through the door
out for the day to see what kind of day it’ll be
out for the day with just I myself and me
out for the day to see what kind of day it’ll be

Lullaby in Ragtime

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

[1] Won’t you play the
[3m] music so the
[1(6)] [0022] cradle can
[1] rock to a
[2m7] [5566] lullaby in ragtime
[2m] Sleepy hands are
[6aug] [0123] creeping to the
[2m7] end of the
[5] clock, play a
[2m7] lullaby
[1] ragtime

[1] You can tell the
[3m] sandman is
[1(7)] [1011] on his way
[4] by the way
[4m] [0112] that they play As
[2(7)] still as the
[6m7] trill of a
[2(7)] [3230] thrush at twilight’s
[5] hush

[5] ..so you can hear the
[1] Rhythm of the
[3m] ripples on the
[1(6)] side of the
[1] boat as you
[2m7] sail away to dreamland

[2m] High above the
[6aug] moon you hear a
[2m7] silvery
[5(7)] note as the
[2m7] sandman
[5(7)] takes your
[1] hand
[1(7)] So
[4] rock-a-bye my baby,
[4m] don’t you cry my baby,

[1] sleepy
[6#7] time is
[6(7)] nigh Won’t you
[2m] rock
[6(7)] me
[2m] to a ragtime
[2m7] lull-
[5(7)] a-
[1] by
[1(6)]

Taylor Swift

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

an unfinished masterpiece. yes, I had a strange and slightly disturbing dream.

i don’t know why I dream the kind of things I do
no one da da da da da unconscious mind
despite all their degrees and studying and science
they haven’t yet convinced the sleeping secrets to unwind

they say dreams can teach you something about life
this morning what I learned was all about my wife

you kiss way better than Taylor Swift
maybe it’s the practice, maybe it’s a gift
I hope that you don’t take this wrong
hope you don’t get miffed
but you kiss way better than Taylor Swift

while you sleep your brain is cleaning up its house
flushing out the nonsense and sludge
now maybe that’s the reason my dreams are full of junk
I try real hard to let ’em go, try hard not to judge

but while you’re in the middle it always seems so real
and lest you get the wrong impression this is how I feel

you kiss way better than Taylor Swift
maybe it’s the practice, maybe it’s a gift
I hope that you don’t take this wrong
hope you don’t get miffed
but you kiss way better than Taylor Swift

now you know I know you know that I’m joking
dreams are just the dust of tidying your brain
we both know the we belong together
in case somebody missed it I’d like to say it plain

when I’m asleep at night I ain’t the driver of that bus
it’s all a lot of nonsense, and between the two of us

you kiss way better than Taylor Swift
maybe it’s the practice, maybe it’s a gift
I hope that you don’t take this wrong
hope you don’t get miffed
and there’s no rift
we haven’t tiffed
I don’t get biffed
I’ll make a shift
now that I’ve riffed
you get my drift
it’s just your gift
but you kiss way better than Taylor Swift

notes

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

bring

  • cajon
  • snare and sticks
  • picks
  • seagull
  • chester
  • tenor and cable
  • mandolin and cable
  • four instrument stands
  • foot switch, power cord, instrument cable
  • amp and power cord
  • speakers and cable
  • three mics with stands and cable
  • iPad holder and stand (camera tripod)
  • both drum stools
  • tambourine
  • ORS at least a gallon

Stuck in the Middle with You

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

D D
Well I don’t know why I came here to-night
D D
I got the feeling that something ain’t right
G7 G7
I’m so scared in case I fall off my chair
D D
And I’m wondering how I’ll get down the stairs
A
Clowns to the left of me
C G D
Jokers to the right, here I am,
D
Stuck in the middle with you.

Yes I’m stuck in the middle with you
And I’m wondering what it is I should do
It’s so hard to keep this smile from my face
Losing control, yeah, I’m all over the place
Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right
Here I am, Stuck in the middle with you.

G7 G7
Well you started out with nothing and you’re proud that you’re a
D x2
Self made man.
G7 G7
And your friends, they all come crawlin, slap you on the back and say
D x2 A7 x2
Please…. Please…..

Trying to make some sense of it all
But I can see that it makes no sense at all
Is it cool to go to sleep on the floor
Cause I don’t think that I can take anymore
Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right
Here I am, Stuck in the middle with you.

bridge

repeat first verse

Shoulda Been a Cowboy

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Intro: A E D E

E A E D E A
I’ll bet you’ve never heard ole Marshall Dillon say
E D E A
Miss Kitty have you ever thought of running away
Settling down, would you marry me
If I asked you twice and begged you pretty please
She’d have said yes in a New York minute
They never tied the knot His heart wasn’t in it
E D E
He just stole a kiss as he rode away
A E D
He never hung his hat up at Kitty’s place

chorus
A E D
I should’ve been a cowboy
E A E D E
I should’ve learned to rope and ride
A E D E A E D
Wearing my six-shooter, riding by pony on a cattle drive
E A E D E
Stealing a young girl’s heart
A E D
Just like Gene and Roy
E A E
Singing those campfire songs
D E A E D
Oh I should’ve been a cowboy

I might have had a side kick with a funny name
Running wild through the hills chasing Jesse James
Ending up on the brink of danger
Riding shotgun for the Texas Rangers
Go west young man, haven’t you been told
California’s full of whisky, women and gold
Sleeping out all night beneath the desert stars
A dream in my eye and a prayer in my heart

chorus, then

E A E D
Yeah, I should’ve been a cowboy
E A E D E
I should’ve been a cowboy

I Can See Clearly

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

D G D
I can see clearly now the rain is gone
D G A
I can see all obstacles in my way
D G D
Gone all the dark clouds that had me blind
C G D
It’s gonna be a bright, (bright) bright, (bright) sun shiny day
C G D
It’s gonna be a bright, (bright) bright, (bright) sun shiny day

Yes I can make it now the pain is gone,
All of the bad feelings have disappeared.
Here is the rainbow I have been praying for.
It’s gonna be a bright, (bright) bright, (bright) sun shiny day

C G D
Look all around, there’s nothing but blue skies
C G D
Look straight ahead, there’s nothing but blue skies

F C
Look all around, there’s nothing but blue skies
F A C#m G C#m G C Bm A
Look straight ahead, there’s nothing but blue skiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiies .

I can see clearly now the rain is gone
I can see all obstacles in my way
Here is the rainbow I have been praying for.

It’s gonna be a bright, (bright) bright, (bright) sun shiny day
It’s gonna be a bright, (bright) bright, (bright) sun shiny day
repeat as desired

Nothing

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Think Sam Cooke, if you can.

you were all I ever wanted
but you never wanted me
you’re long gone but I’m haunted
haunted by your memory

been too long and I’m crying
’cause I can barely remember your face
I lay awake and keep on trying
trying to find a trace

nothing means nothing
nothing means anything at all
nothing’s all should have expected from you
nothing, that’s all

I thought that I could make you love me
I tried so hard to catch your eye
I knew I knew I knew I knew you were thinking of me
and I’ll think of you till I die

nothing means nothing
nothing means anything at all
nothing’s all should have expected from you
nothing, that’s all

love will take your mind
love will take your soul
love can be so unkind
love can make you lose control

nothing means nothing
nothing means anything at all
nothing’s all should have expected from you
nothing, that’s all
nothing, that’s all
nothing

Coal

Posted on by Joel D Canfield

Reading Grisham’s fine muckraking novel “Gray Mountain” put me in a mood, and when I tried to go to bed this came to me almost complete.

A D
Take the top off that mountain
E
Strip it bare
Bring in the world’s biggest dozer
Scrape out all that’s there

Maybe a boulder smash your house
Maybe the sludge floods your land
Maybe your kids all get cancer
Maybe you just don’t understand

D E
Gotta have coal
E A
Keep the country burning
Coal
Fire up the night
Coal
Natural resources
You keep talking wrong and right

Our lawyers get paid more than your lawyers
Don’t work half as hard
Oughta save your money
For cleaning up your yard

Chorus

Business is business
Nothing more
Nothing personal
No one keeping score

Chorus

Ain’t personal
So why you keeping score?