Get all 19 Great Lake Swimmers releases available on Bandcamp and save 45%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Uncertain Country (Acoustic) EP, Uncertain Country, The Legend Of Bobby Bird (Art Bergmann Cover), Live At The Redeemer 2007, When We Last Shook Hands: Cover Songs Volume 1, Live In Ottawa At The 27 Club 2019-10-03, Getting To The Heart Of It / Where Are You / Thursday, Getting To The Heart Of It, and 11 more.
1. |
Your Rocky Spine
03:36
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I was lost in the lakes
And the shapes that your body makes
That your body makes, that your body makes
That your body makes
And the mountains said I could find you here
They whispered the snow and the leaves in my ear
I traced my finger along your trails
Your body was the map, I was lost in it
Floating over your rocky spine
The glaciers made you, and now you’re mine
Floating over your rocky spine
The glaciers made you, and now you’re mine
I was moving across your frozen veneer
The sky was dark but you were clear
Could you feel my footsteps
And would you shatter, would you shatter, would you
And with your soft fingers between my claws
Like purity against resolve
I could tell, then and there, that we were formed from the clay
And came from the rocks for the earth to display
They told me to be careful up there
Where the wind blows a venomous rage through your hair
They told me to be careful up there
Where the wind rages through your hair
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2. |
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Backstage with the modern dancers
She was stretching her arms
Configuring her body
While they were breathing, they were shouting
She was concentrating on her breathing
And didn’t seem to mind
As I sat there on the couch
And tuned my guitar
And played a few chords
Like roses growing their thorns
Getting ready to perform
With bare feet and painted faces
They took their places
On shivering legs beneath colourful gowns
And out there on the wooden floors
The sweat from their pores
I’m writing a list
Of songs I can sing by myself
Backstage with the modern dancers
Who feel it, like I do
Like I feel it, like I feel it
Backstage with the modern dancers
Getting ready to go on
She showed me her spin
With a beauty lit from within
And all of these things
I don’t think they should be released
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3. |
Catcher Song
04:11
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Well the ropes are taut
And the stories have all been caught
There’s a frost-cover drawn on the shore
And the catcher still seems to want more
Through the reel and through the unreal
It’s not what you see but what you feel
And what transpires here
And what I hear transpires
And it falls, falls, falls
And it falls, falls, falls
It rises up, it rises up
And it falls, falls, falls
I just want to break even
I just want to pass on through
Like a ghost through a household tune
Under light of the early dusk hues
Navigating and dealing extremes
Is not what at first it seems
But I keep my ship tight and true
For the next time that I will see you
And it falls, falls, falls
And it falls, falls, falls
It rises up, it rises up
And it falls, falls, falls
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4. |
Changing Colours
04:44
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You look at me with uncertainty
You look at me with urgency
You look at me with a fear in your eyes
Like you’re about to fall away
But don’t be afraid to change your colours now
I’ve known you all summer, and you rose above it all
I see you hesitate to fall now
But it’s a pretty good view from down here, too
And when the wind takes you, it takes me, too
When you change colours, I change mine, too
Try not to think, and I will try, to
When you let go, I will let go, too
I knew you when you were green and strong
You were like a feather on a wing, so long
You know I will miss you when you are gone
But don’t be afraid if you just can’t hang on
‘Cause when the wind takes you, it takes me, too
When you change colours, I change mine, too
Try not to think and I will try, too
And when you let go, I will let go, too
The cold air is pushing hard on you
I know what you’re saying; I can feel it, too
You’ll go through changes, and I’ll go through them too
Don’t be afraid now, don’t be afraid
‘Cause when the wind takes you, it takes me, too
When you change colours, I change mine, too
Try not to think and I will try, too
And when you let go, I will let go, too
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5. |
There Is A Light
05:06
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There is a light in you
I have fallen into
There is a light in you
I have fallen into
Fallen in too
Put all your weapons away
I won’t fight you just to spite you
Put all your weapons away
And your mask, it’s falling anyway
Falling away
Stop, listen, feel
Stop, listen, feel
Stop, listen, feel
Believe, believe
And if love is a war
I won’t have any more
If this is what we call a war
I won’t have it anymore
Stop, listen, feel
Stop, listen, feel
Stop, listen, feel
Believe, believe
Put all your weapons away
And end all your casual ties
Put all your weapons away
And end all your casual ties
Casual ties
Believe all your lives
Believe in your lives
Believe all your lives
Believe in your lives
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6. |
Put There By The Land
02:43
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There’s a mark on my hand put there by the land
There’s a mark on my hand put there by the land
Can’t you see it’s in me, can’t you see
Can’t you see it’s in me, can’t you see
There’s a mark on the land put there by my hand
There’s a mark on the land put there by my hand
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7. |
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Why are we fighting, why are we fighting
Kicking and screaming, scratching and biting
Keeping it going, wherever we’re going
Generations are generating
And what am I supposed to do
But take good care, good care of you
We have a lot of work to do
Me and you, and you, and you
Brothers and sisters are in my arms
Brothers and sisters are up in arms
Mothers and fathers, sons and the daughters
Up in the army, the men and the ladies
And we have a lot of work to do
Me and you, and you and you
Out of the money and into the storm
Brothers and sisters are in my arms
I am part of a large family
I am part of a large family
I am part of a large family
And that’s enough for me
Drop the axes, and recheck the facts, I said
Brothers and sisters, telling the story
Out of the money, into the storm
I said my peace, I said
I said my piece, I said peace, I said peace, I said
I am part of a large family
I am part of a large family
I am part of a large family
And that’s enough for me
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8. |
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I’ve been looking in churches, and looking in bars
I thought that I saw you in the oncoming cars
But it was your reflection cast up by the light
And into the sky of this dark city night
And I looked for you up in the tallest of trees
That swayed back and forth in the mid-autumn breeze
But when the leaves reddened, and left too
I knew then that it wasn’t you
Where in the world are you now
Where in the world are you now
Oh where in the world are you
Oh where in the world are you
Where in the world are you now
And I looked for you then in music and song
And I thought I could find there
But they were only notes pulled from the air
Not the kind I could read, or breathe, if I dared
Where in the world are you now
Where in the world are you now
Oh where in the world are you
Oh where in the world are you
Where in the world are you now
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9. |
Passenger Song
04:28
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One thing I’ll say for the less-traveled way
It doesn’t have subtlety, but has twice the gravity
Get in and go and be one with it now
It turns inconsistently, and arcs in a symphony
Make your mind sharp and beware of the holes
But fall through them readily
And slip through them steadily
Watch your watch spiral in and out of control
It’s beyond all that anyway
And time is dead anyway
Passenger song on the dark radio
The wheel’s in your other hand
And home’s in your other mind
The lights on the screen then shut out by the door
A forest there in the frames
The eyes which are all the same
Follow the path until it falls away
I’ve heard it is dangerous
But some say it’s glamorous
Charge through the past and the future and now
And come to it sparingly
With what you are carrying
Notes on the pages and notes in the bars
Which isn’t without its scars
But might make you see the stars
Show me it’s holy then show me to bed
I’m collapsing anyway
The edges starting to fray
Right you are right you are right you are right
You left for the interstate
Because you can hardly wait
One thing I’ll say for the less-traveled way
It doesn’t have subtlety, but has twice the gravity
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10. |
I Became Awake
05:53
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I became awake
From a very dark place
A patchwork of fear
Of poorly conceived ideas
With a blister of water
The mark of working hands
Ready to catch, or cut
The senses aligned
The animal urgency
And voices picked up
Flowing over the static
Late, quiet
I became awake
Fingers are open
Eyes they are open
The firing of images
An orchestra of scribbles
The guts of an engine
The veins of a leaf
Light onto paper, exposed
A filament in a bulb
Up above or in the ground
Together we are magic
Together we are dreaming
Together we reach endlessly
The centre of a seed
So full of possibilities
I became awake
I thought I was sleeping
But I was only forming
A structure with no ceiling
With words like a runway
A cloud of a person drifting away
I was heavy, but now I am light
I was heavy, but now I am light
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Great Lake Swimmers Toronto, Ontario
Tony Dekker’s music spans two decades as the lead singer and songwriter of Great Lake Swimmers. Over eight albums, multiple EPs, live shows and reissues, the Toronto-based group with a revolving cast of players has established itself as a beloved indie folk act in their native Canada and beyond. Great Lake Swimmers was shortlisted for the Polaris Prize and nominated twice for the Juno Awards. ... more
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