|
 |
Hanging in the Balance - 1993
Lineup:
Guitars: John Marshall, Craig Wells
Drums: Kirk Arrington
Bass: Duke Erickson
Vocals: Mike Howe
|
|
|
Gods Of Second Chance (5:25)
M. Howe / K. Vanderhoof / P.O'Neill
In an act of desperation, he put a gun to his head
In his mind confusion, nothing but delusion, thinking he was better off dead
No one to be his savior, from the vices he made
Voices callin' to him, left his life in ruins, drugs have led his mind astray
God, don't you hear me? God, don't you care?
Cause if you did, my friend, you wouldn't leave me hangin' on this way
Somebody turn on the lights, somebody give me some air
I'm in the middle of a nasty situation that is leading me on nowhere
I gotta hear you tonight, I gotta know that you care
You got me down on my knees and I'm praying and I gotta know you're really out there
The second hand is ticking, time moves ahead
Feel the shadows breathing, whispering and seething, dealing inside my head
A Candle flame before me, flickers in dance
As I sit here praying, hoping that I'm swaying the Gods of second chance
All cry to heaven, all cry for truth
And while we wait for lights and thunder, the devil is on the loose
Somebody turn on the lights, somebody give me some air
I'm in the middle of a nasty situation that is leading me on nowhere
I gotta hear you tonight, I gotta know that you care
You got me down on my knees and I'm praying and I gotta know you're really out there
Back to top
Losers In The Game (5:06)
M. Howe / K. Vanderhoof
The endless years and hardluck tales, and some that have just moved on,
I guess it could be envy when I wonder what's gone wrong
Fingers point at all the problems, but that won't change my mind
I must have been held back in hardknox school a few more times
A few more years, a few more tears, are we the losers in the game?
When time is done and kingdom come, we'll not be losers in the game!
No one ever said it's easy to watch the world go by
Console myself by trying and trying, and trying just one more time
Put on a smile and fake your way in through another door
But only if you have more luck than a thousand times before
A few more years, a few more tears, are we the losers in the game?
When time is done and kingdom come, we'll not be losers in the game!
Try again, change direction, spend more money, new horizons, what's it gonna be?
Take your hits, I hate my job, live like who, think like what, no thanks I'll just stay me
A few more years, a few more tears, are we the losers in the game?
When time is done and kingdom come, we'll not be losers in the game!
Back to top
Hypnotized (4:40)
M. Howe / J. Marshall / K. Vanderhoof
You won't find me, in my bed right off the bat
'Cause I've been working, all night long for centuries
Bloody Mary, the drink of choice for those who dabble
In the nightlife, a well dressed beast with savoir-faire
Great God Almighty, I get the craving whenever you're near
You are just the right type, a little bit closer my dear
When you start to realize, it's too late, you're hypnotized
I'm in the shadows, don't cross my path or stake my claim,
'Cause you'll fall victim, and you will not be seen again
Holy water, no thirst can make me drink it
My cup runs over, the crimson liquid that I need
Great God Almighty, I get the craving whenever you're near
You are just the right type, a little bit closer my dear
When you start to realize, it's too late, you're hypnotized
Prince of Darkness, just the thought of daylight sends me
Into hiding, waiting for the night to come
Great God Almighty, I get the craving whenever you're near
You are just the right type, a little bit closer my dear
When you start to realize, it's too late, you're hypnotized
When you start to realize, it's too late, you're hypnotized
You're hypnotized
Back to top
No Friend Of Mine (3:56)
M. Howe / K. Vanderhoof
No one's born with hatred, it's something that you learn
How do you think the good Lord feels, about the crosses you burn
What makes you hate the difference of someone's skin or race?
You must think you have more rights to be living in this place
I don't know what you feel, or have you lost your mind?
Afraid to take a look at yourself, afraid of the things you will find
You're no friend of mine
The Dark Ages are over, in case you haven't heard
While you're lost in ignorance, you killed a mockingbird
Hide behind your bedclothes, meet in some secret place
One day soon this hate you've brewed will blow up in your face
I don't know what you feel, or have you lost your mind?
Afraid to take a look at yourself, afraid of the things you will find
You're no friend of mine
Black and white and yellow, living side by side
The children always play together, we taught them otherwise
All men created equal, all have human rights
So tell me why we hate each other, no winners in the fight
I don't know what you feel, or have you lost your mind?
Afraid to take a look at yourself, afraid of the things you will find
You're no friend of mine
Back to top
Waiting For A Savior (5:45)
M. Howe / K. Vanderhoof / P. O'Neill
Night time, see the castles burning
Smoke in the skies and tears in their eyes
As the world keeps turning
Sleep now, hear a distant thunder
It's far away, at least for today
Close your eyes and wonder
Spring turns so quickly to summer
Summer so quickly to fall
It seemed far away, or it was yesterday
When time didn't matter at all
And then you met your winter
While dancing with her daughters
Till tired and cold
Were much wiser than bold
You wait for tomorrow to call
All of your life you have waited alone for a Savior
He's not coming
A carousel horse, who is constantly lost
Standing still but always running
And all of those things that you needed so bad
You have found they mean nothing
Oh Lord, I'm coming home
I'm searching through the haze that's drifting through my mind
Stare in the looking glass and wonder who I'll find
No one would listen to a man upon the water
Until they were old and their mountains of gold couldn't buy any more time
All of your life you have waited alone for the Savior
He's not coming
A carousel horse, who is constantly lost
Standing still but always running
And all of those things that you needed so bad
You have found they mean nothing
And Oh Lord, I'm coming home
Back to top
Conductor (4:08)
C. Wells / K. Vanderhoof
I'm your conductor, welcome to the station
Always got an empty seat, no need for reservation
There's no need to hesitate, come and step inside
Take a chance, climb aboard, come enjoy the ride
Here we have the secrets, here we have the answers
All forgotten heroes, lost and crippled dancers
Come and take my hand child, step onto the stage
Dreams that can unlock your mind, like keys unlock a cage
Step into the lamp child, 'neath the engine's gaze
If you never quite belonged, this train it welcomes strays, for they return
Look into my eyes and see they burn
Take a look at history and learn
All the lessons that the years have earned
Still they return
I'm your conductor, what's your destination?
There's no need for baggage here, so leave it at the station
Tell me what you want child, tell me if you see
Beckoning in the dark, immortality
Yesterday's a dream now, nearly an illusion
Tommorrow's just a fantasy that's bordering delusion
All the days you've yet to live are rushing towards the past
Curtain's up, climb aboard, through the looking glass
Step into the lamp child, 'neath the engine's gaze
If you never quite belonged, this train it welcomes strays for they return
Look into my eyes and see they burn
Take a look at history and learn
All the lessons that the years have earned
Still they return
Back to top
Little Boy (8:12)
J. Marshall / K. Vanderhoof
Mama, I'm crying, did the silver angel warn the earth
From a blue sky falling?
Father, I'm frightened, what will happen if it falls again?
Will you be there to shelter me?
The little dot that falls, a little boy, that's all
That's all...
Morning comes, I walk to school, but something's in the air
Things have changed, there's war at hand, but I'm too young to care
My home is a paradise, a jewel in the east
My family, they have seen the battles, they're praying for relief
Soon to be over, my father he said, victory is ours son
We will mourn all of our dead
I wonder what happens when a world is at war
In order to win, does someone else keep the score?
I think of my future on this beautiful day
How could I have known that the end's on its way?
The sky is quiet
Just one single plane
To bring destruction
Has mankind gone insane?
What happened to the land?
Metal fused with stone
Nothing remains, nothing lives
Burned through the bone
The sun touched the earth somehow, life melts away
One city barren wasteland, a split-second blaze
The heat turned the men to shadows, the sand into glass
A master stroke of evil in a blinding flash
The sea of dead and dying increases by the day
For years to come we pay the price of science gone astray
Back to top
Down To The River (4:58)
M. Howe / K. Vanderhoof
I've got nowhere to go
I've got some rocks to throw today
A child so lost in time
A kid whose mind's been blown away
He's heard all he can hear
And seen more than he wants to see
This town's all dead end streets
Signs saying what young men should be
He will take it down to the river
Face down on the ground
The day is pounding on your head
Lonely in a crowd
'Cause she's in someone else's bed
These halls are paved with gold
A combination lock on every door
The things he's learned today
Are stuck in books thrown on the floor
He will take it down to the river
Another daily grind
At sixteen you ain't got time to waste
Make some future plans
A blueprint of someone else's fate
Be yourself they say
As long as you do it like we say
What's wrong with kids today
They need a place to get away
They just take it down
Take it away
Take it all away
Down to the river
Back to top
End Of The Age (7:17)
M. Howe / K. Vanderhoof
I hear it in a minstrel wind, it's crying out the tune
Of a prophet's only hope to tell the world
He wrote down it on parchment, but alas no one believes
Of the vision only one man could conceive
He knows it's true
Will the people have the ears to hear or will they turn their heads
And blind their eyes to the truth once again
How is it that you know the season's changing by the leaves
But still you do not know that summer's near?
It's near
So many teachers preach a lie to the sheep who need a guide
They need a God that they can touch and see
But only if your faith is strong and hope for the unseen
You'll find peace amongst the tragedy
Woe to those who hear not
Woe to souls who've been bought
Oh, it's written on the page
Woe to those who fear not
Woe to souls who've been bought
You don't see the ending of the age
You wandered throught the wilderness for forty years or more
To lead you to the promised land, promised years before
Yet still you bowed down to a calf you made with your own hands
Have you still not learned a thing, the wickedness of man
And oh, hands up to the sky
And oh, the angel passes by
One bowl for the wicked
One bowl for the sea
One bowl for the rivers
Men screamed in agony
The sun will then be darkened
The moon will give no light
The earthquakes will shake up the earth
The terror in the night
And oh, hands up to the sky
And oh, watch the beast begin to rise
Remember what I've told you
Remember what you've seen
And tell the human race just what it means
Lovers And Madmen (3:56)
J. Marshall
Back to top
A Subtle War (4:05)
J. Marshall / K. Vanderhoof
Extended hand a friendly man who doesn't trust a soul
I wonder why that meeting eyes could put your life on hold
Do people feel humanity is something of the past?
A kind hello, a favor done, these days could be your last
Bar your windows, lock your doors, choose your colors and stay down on the floor
Amidst a subtle war that's right outside your door
Amidst a subtle war
You can't go there at night unless you're feeling immortal
'Cause all of them have guns and knives, at least that's what we're told
A neighborhood or DMZ, but people call it home
Scared to death of living there, but got nowhere to go
Bar your windows, lock your doors, choose your colors And stay down on the floor
Amidst a subtle war that's right outside your door
Amidst a subtle war
Pick your weapon
Talk to no one
Paranoia
Can we take this anymore
Amidst a subtle war that's right outside your door
Amidst a subtle war
Back to top
Low To Overdrive (4:27)
K. Vanderhoof
|