The part where I walk alone into the night
   The part where some cowboy starts a fight
   The part where I never get my fill
   Put on a fist raising anthem and I’m ready to kill
   Raise your fists
   Raise your voice
   Sometimes they don’t leave you
   With no other choice
   I’m raising my flag
   And I’m waving it proud
   Put on a fist raising anthem
   And I crank it up loud
   And now I’m throwing punches in the air
   Tellin’ all the world that I don’t care
   I don’t wanna fight, but if you push me I will
   Put on a fist raising anthem and I’m ready to kill
   Raise your fists
   Raise your voice
   Sometimes they don’t leave you
   With no other choice
   I’m raising my flag
   And I’m waving it proud
   Put on a fist raising anthem
   And I crank it up loud
   We must always remember to celebrate…the marathon that is life.
   RUN
   Run, Run, Run
   At the sound of the gun
   Row, Row, Row
   Wherever the tides might go
   Give me courage to carry on
   Life is like a marathon
   I’ve got to run to keep from going mad
   Every day is like an Olympiad
   Run for the sun
   Run for the rain
   Run until it stops
   And then you run again
   Run for the glory
   Run for the pain
   Run until you drop
   And then you run again
   Run, Run, Run
   Until the race is won
   Row, Row, Row
   Down the river of the melting snow
   Long distance message from me to you
   I won’t stop running until I’m through
   I’ll carry my torch, my burden, my name
   There’s an inner-strength that feed my flame
   Run for the sun
   Run for the rain
   Run until it stops
   And then you run again
   Run for the glory
   Run for the pain
   Run until you drop
   And then you run again
   Run, Run, Run
   Run, Run, Run
   Better run for your life
   Run, Run, Run
   Run, Run, Run
   Better run for your life
   Do you ever wonder what might happen if all men and women of all races and religions joined forces in a solemn prayer for peace? Could it not happen, could it not be arranged now that we live in this age of world-wide internet communications?  Could it really be that simple?  I propose that we will surely never know unless we give it a try! 
   THE BROTHERHOOD
   Did you ever get to wondering if we’re doing all we can?
   So put down that flaming cross my friend, let’s join a different clan
   I’m tired of all the politicians who talk but never speak
   And then when push finally comes to shove, they play a game of hide and seek
   I’m tired of being a spectator, I’m tired of being a fan
   I know just what I’m a gonna do now, come and listen to my plan
   I’m gonna form a brotherhood
   Storm the brotherhood
   Start a brotherhood
   The brotherhood of man
   … the brotherhood of man
   People killing people, this ain’t how it should be
   Country vs. country, it don’t mean shit to me
   Neighbor vs. neighbor, Hatfield and McCoy’s
   Project vs. project, guns become a toy
   City vs. city, town vs. town
   South don’t like the Northerners, it just goes on and on
   I’m gonna form a brotherhood
   Storm the brotherhood
   Join the brotherhood
   The brotherhood of man
   … the brotherhood of man
   Now they’re joining up in East Berlin, in the fields of Vietnam
   They’re joining up in Russia, in the Square of Tiananmen
   They’re joining up in Pakistan, Iraq is in the fold
   Terrorists and dictators, this war is getting old
   They’re marching in the streets, all around the world
   Human rights here and now, for every boy and girl
   I’m gonna form a brotherhood
   Storm the brotherhood
   Start a brotherhood
   The brotherhood of man
   … the brotherhood of man
   Hey we all like to boast and act tough sometimes (as for me, I prefer to do it with my guitar!).    
   REEFER SMOKING, GUITAR PLAYING, MOTHER FUCKIN’ JUNKIE
   I ain’t no doctor, ain’t no pimp
   I ain’t no DJ, don’t walk with no limp
   I’m no ice man and I ain’t no gansta
   I’m no MC and I’m no gang banga
   I’m just a reefer smoking, guitar playing, mother fuckin’ junkie
   I play it slow and I play it low but I play it oh so funky
   I’m twice your age but I ain’t chilling
   My gears might slip but my mind is willing
   I ain’t no heavy, ain’t one of the boyz
   But I can make some funked up noize
   I’m just a reefer smoking, guitar playing, mother fuckin’ junkie
   I play it loud and I play it proud but I play it oh so funky
   Just gimme some time, I can get it on
   Get over here bitch and hit this bong
   Light it up, smoke it down, smoke it right to the bone
   Slide right up, next to me, and feel my Telecaster tone
   I’m just a reefer smoking, guitar playing, mother fuckin’ junkie
   I play it slow and I play it low but I play it oh so funky
   Is it an emptiness in my heart…or have we all just become so damned hollow?    
   HOLLOW (DOWN THE ROAD)
   My clothes are wet and my feet are muddy
   My heart is hard and my face is bloody
   My soul is dark and my feet they follow
   Down the road, my heart is hollow
   Must we always be so deaf and dumb?
   Sometimes I think the world’s gone numb
   But a leap of faith, it keeps me going
   Down the road, never knowing
   Whichever way the wind is blowing
   Whatever weight your heart is towing
   Whichever way your boat is rowing
   Down the road, the river’s flowing
   We are lost with no direction
   As we approach the intersection
   Is it to myself I keep on lying?
   But down the road, I keep on trying
   In deep despair we seem to wallow
   Down the road, my heart is hollow
   A truth we cannot seem to swallow
   Down the road, my heart is hollow
   I was so despondent when my dad died that I wasn’t sure whether I could go on any longer.  But instead of moping around, I channeled that sorrow and wrote this song in his honor, and believe it or not, somehow I immediately felt better afterwards; it was as if he was shining down from above, listening to my every word.
   I WILL PAVE THE WAY
   When you don’t know where you’re gonna turn
   And it’s hard to see the way
   With all the smoke from the bridges burned
   Confusion ruled the day
   When the road gets rough, just take my hand
   I will pave the way
   When you can’t go on and your world is gone
   I will pave the way
   I will pave the way
   I will pave the way
   Love will save the day
   You know that I will pave the way
   When you’re lost and when you’re searching
 &nbs 
					     					 			p; I’ll be the light that guides you
   When the Nazis come to take you
   I’ll be the one that hides you
   I will pave the way
   I will pave the way
   Love will save the day
   You know that I will pave the way
   When the time has come for us to part
   And the afterlife begins
   The journey home is the longest one
   But I will pave the way
   I’ll lead you to the Promised Land
   To the ones who’ve gone before us
   I’ll make this sacrifice for you
   I will pave the way
   I will pave the way
   I will pave the way
   Love will save the day
   You know that I will pave the way
   It’s said that time goes by
   In the blink of an eye
   For no one does it wait
   The tears that you cry
   Become the sky
   When they evaporate
   They’ll leave you blind and reaching out
   Trying to find a way
   That’s when I’ll be there for you
   I will pave the way
   This one is dedicated to all of the guitarists in the world…and to all those lonely nights spent plucking away, trying to master your craft, with no audience in the room; just you and your guitar.
   ME AND MY GUITAR
   I got my guitar in my lap
   But there’s no one here to clap
   There’s no one here to clap
   For me and my guitar
   I got a telephone in the hall
   But there’s no one I can call
   There’s no one here to talk
   To me and my guitar
   I got on my fancy pants
   And I’m ready to do a dance
   But there’s no one here to prance
   With me and my guitar
   I got a bottle of apple wine
   It could make her feel so fine
   But there’s no one here to drink
   With me and my guitar
   I got friends who ain’t around
   When I’m feeling down
   There’s no one here to help
   Me and my guitar
   I got women who mistreat me
   Always out to cheat me
   There’s no one here to love
   Me and my guitar
   I got six good strings
   And we’re learning how to sing
   I’m gonna make a star
   Of me and my guitar
   This blues-based tune was always a staple of our live shows.
   SOUTHBOUND ROCK N ROLL RAILROAD TRAIN
   Oh she’s a southbound rock n roll railroad train
   One way ticket here we go again
   Got a show to do, across the tracks
   Don’t know when I’ll be coming back
   And I might not have a place to stay
   But we go anywhere the people wanna hear us play
   I say we go anywhere the people wanna hear us play
   Get on that train and it’s all aboard
   She got all the luxury you can afford
   Left my baby back in Boston
   She don’t know what the trip is costin’
   And I might not have that much to say
   But we go anywhere the people wanna hear us play
   I say we go anywhere the people wanna hear us play
   Oh she’s a southbound rock n roll railroad train
   One way ticket here we go again
   Southbound rock n roll railroad train
   Nothing to lose, nothing to gain
   Coast to coast, sea to sea
   Come on baby rock n roll with me
   North to South, East to West
   Baby you know you do it the best
   Tonight New York, tomorrow LA
   I say we go anywhere the people wanna hear us play
   Yeah we go anywhere the people wanna hear us play
   Oh she’s a southbound rock n roll railroad train
   One way ticket here we go again
   Southbound rock n roll railroad train
   Nothing to lose, nothing to gain
   This is for that girl who could never quite figure out what she wanted out of life.
   CONFUSION IN YOUR EYES
   You don’t like the night and you don’t like the day
   You don’t like to work and you don’t like to play
   You keep on winning the loser’s prize
   And all I can see is confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in our smiles
   You’ll live a life of lies
   So give love another try
   You don’t like the heat and you don’t like the cold
   You don’t like being young and you don’t like growing old
   You do what you will, but time just flies
   And all I can see is confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in our smiles
   You’ll live a life of lies
   So give love another try
   You don’t like to laugh and you don’t like to joke
   You don’t like to drink and you don’t like to smoke
   You’re lost in the maze of your own disguise
   And all I can see is confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in our smiles
   You’ll live a life of lies
   So give love another try
   Give love another try
   Give love another try
   Don’t be afraid to
   Give love another try
   You don’t want to live and you don’t want to die
   You don’t tell the truth but you don’t like to lie
   Everything you love you seem to despise
   And all I can see is confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in our smiles
   You’ll live a life of lies
   So give love another try
   You don’t want to slander and you don’t want to pray
   You don’t want to go and you don’t want to stay
   When will you be big enough to try me on for size?
   And all I can see is confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in your eyes
   Confusion in our smiles
   You’ll live a life of lies
   So give love another try
   Give love another try
   Give love another try
   Don’t be afraid to
   Give love another try
   Back in the early days of internet dating I met a woman who went by the user name Hourii.  Naturally, being the curious sort that I am, I couldn’t resist asking her about the origins of her peculiar handle, and of course she was more than happy to enlighten me; apparently some sort of ancient Middle Eastern legend has it that Hourii was a virgin goddess allotted to those special few who were worthy of attaining eternal paradise.  
   Sadly, my relationship with the woman who was hidden behind the Hourii moniker didn’t last very long, but at least I got this poem out of it (and I must say that she was kind of awestruck by it as well).
   Also featured in the novel “From the Eyes of a Juror”, available as a free e-book download from the following link: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/258503
   HOURII
   PART 1 – The Surrender
   Hourii, Hourii
   As pretty as a girl can be
   Smile of pearls, your eyes unfurl
   That white flag of surrender
   You sacrifice your soul for me
   Bear the child, humanity
   Blinded by faith, yet too blind to see
   That in the end, it’s you that captures me
   Hourii, Hourii
   It’s you that captures me
   Ancient Middle Eastern prose
   You stand there in you statue’s pose
   Your eyes they call 
					     					 			 me with a stare
   I’ll follow you now, anywhere
   I know it’s me you must possess
   It’s come down to this fate I guess
   Hourii, Hourii
   I’ll be the one who loves you
   PART II – The Seduction
   You take me to your secret loft
   The lights are low, the music’s soft
   You take me where I’ve never been
   Back to Adam, Eve and Sin
   Silk gives way, revealing skin
   I close my eyes, my head it spins
   Our arms caress, your scent so sweet
   Gently now, our lips they meet
   We hold each other, soft and smooth
   I feel something in my spirit move
   So entwined, I can’t let go
   I worship you from head to toe
   A taste of your forbidden fruit
   A serum, sticky sweet with truth
   Hourii, Hourii
   I’ll die for you
   PART III – The Eternal Flame
   I’ve given up my life for you
   And still there’s more that I can do
   Eternity and that’s for sure
   I’ll be with you forever more
   Hourii, Hourii
   I’ll burn for you
   You study stars and moons and tides
   For signs of births, of dates, of times
   Hourii, Hourii
   Who knows what we will find…in our flaming paradise
   Hourii, Hourii
   Who knows what we will find…in Heaven…or in Hell
   Wouldn’t it be a much better world if somehow we could all just get along?
   AIN’T INTO DEATH SYNDROME (AIDS)
   They’re falling like flies in the neutral zone
   Cease fire don’t even slow them down