“As Is, Where Is”
Digital downloads are available through Bandcamp.
Liner Notes and Lyrics
Cover Photo: The Cisco Store in Cisco Utah. Taken October 2012 by Jenine Abarbanel while driving from Cisco to Moab.
The Cisco Landing Store: “Information – Open Daily”
Track listing
1. Turn the Page Again (Tim O’Brien)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
This was Jenine’s favourite Bluegrass song for a long time before someone pointed out it wasn’t technically bluegrass with it’s percussion-laden rendition on “Traveler.” That didn’t stop it from becoming one of our favourite songs of all time to play, even if it still isn’t quite bluegrass.
We play it in the key of A, something like this:
Bm E A G# F#m
December nights come early, wait a while to see the light again
Bm E A G# F#m
A question left unanswered, sent out on the evening wind
D E A G# F#m
If winter is a stranger, maybe spring will be my friend
Bm E A
Seasons change, turn the page again
Summer days are longer, I’m still waiting for your call
Left hanging like a promise, like summer leaves the fall
Sometimes she’s a stranger, sometimes she’s my friend
But people change, turn the page again
The car is packed and runnin’, my heart is racin’ fast
Kiss you just one more time and hope it’s not my last
The past will be a stranger, the future is my new friend
So let it change, turn the page again
[Bridge]
G D A
I’m soaring like an eagle, I’ll find a place to land
G D A E
I’ll let the west wind take me, see what he has planned
F#m D F#m D
My home is in my heart now, or any place I stand
D E A G# F#m
I’ll go where I’m a stranger, I’m gonna try to be a friend
Bm E A
I’m not afraid to turn the page again
D E A G# F#m
If winter was a stranger, maybe spring will be my friend
Bm E A
Seasons change, turn the page again
2. Hitchcock Railway (Don Dunn / Tony McCashen)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Vocals and mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
First recorded by José Feliciano in 1968, and made famous by Joe Cocker in 1969, this song was recorded by another handful of bands in the following 3 years, then left to languish until Claire Lynch remodelled and revived it in 1997. This song was on the mix tape Barry first gave Jenine to introduce her to Bluegrass, and one of the first songs we started playing. Even after 6 years, it’s still challenging and fun.
We play it in G, a bit like this:
Intro: G C D C (2x)
G C D C
[G] Two train [C] tickets [D] to L.A.[G]
[G] One round [C] trip the [D] other one [G]way
[C] I make my bed where the feather falls
[D] I start to move when forever calls
[G] (Home trip) [C] Ticket to sail-a-way
[G] (Hand grip) [C] Hitchcock railway
[G] (Soft ride) [C] Made for comfort
[G](Been tried) [C] Guaranteed passport
[G] Hitchcock railway, yeah you better not fail to pay
[G]Hey I’m gonna ride [C] lift my mind
[C] Testify till the [G] crowds arrive
[G] Quick stop [F] Good day [C] Hitchcock [G]Railway
[Two Instrumental Breaks]
Two train tickets to L.A.
One round trip the other one way
I make my bed where the feather falls
I start to move when forever calls
And I start runnin’
(Home trip) Ticket to sail-a-way
(Hand grip) Hitchcock railway
(Soft ride) Made for comfort
(Been tried) Guaranteed passport
Hitchcock railway, yeah you better not fail to pay
Hey I’m gonna ride lift my mind
Testify till the crowds arrive
Quick stop, Good day, Hitchcock Railway
[Two instrumental breaks]
G C D C (x 5)
I’m gonna buy me a ticket at the station
Yeah I’m gonna go away
On a train ride
On a train ride
On a train ride!
(Free fare) The conductor’s comin’
(Prepare) You better start runnin’
(On time) Ask the track man
(State line) Jump on anyway
Hitchcock railway, yeah you better not fail to pay
Hey I’m gonna fly, lift my mind
Testify till the crowds arrive
Quick stop Good day Hitchcock Railway
3. What Does the Deep Sea Say (Traditional)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Vocals and guitar. Nat: Mandolin. Barry: Guitar.
This traditional and oft recorded Irish tune has long been a favourite amongst the fishing and sailing communities in and around Leigh. You’d think it would bother them that it doesn’t end well for the “Sailor Boy.”
We play it in the key of A. That chord at the end of the third line is a Bm. 🙂
Where is my sailor boy
Oh where is my sailor boy
He lies on the bottom of the deep deep sea
And he can’t come back to me
Please tell me deep blue sea
Is he sleeping peacefully?
The wind from the north is blowing icy cold
Please keep him warm for me
[Chorus]
What does the deep sea say
Oh what does the deep sea say
It moans, it groans, it flashes and it foams
And rolls on its weary way
I stand on the beach alone
And gaze at the misty blue
Deep sea as you hold him to your breast
Does he mention my name to you
If only my dreaming soul
Some token of love could find
If only a wave would show me where he sleeps
Then I’d leave this world behind
[Chorus]
A beautiful rose one day
I placed on the crest of a wave
I said take it please
And let the petals fall above his watery grave
The driftwood I watched in vain
It never came back again
So wave take another message to my love
Saying I’ll meet him above
[Chorus]
4. Cisco to Moab (Barry Torkington, Garry Bigwood, Nat Torkington)
Barry: Guitar. Nat: Banjo. Garry: Mandolin. Jenine: Bass.
In the arid canyon country of Eastern Utah, there’s a lonely road that winds along the Colorado River. It’s a landscape full of drama and menace. And when we think of it, it sounds a bit like this.
This tune is released under a Creative Commons License, attribution, share-alike.
5. Annabelle (Gillian Welch)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Vocals and guitar. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
We liked this song from the first time we heard it, but knew we could never replicate what Welch and Rawlings had created, so we didn’t spend a whole lot of time learning it as written. Instead we passed it around again and again until something that sounded like us came out of it. We hope we didn’t ruin your favourite song.
We play it in Am. The turn around is Am F G Am
ANNABELLE (Am) Gillian Welch
Intro: (Am)
(Am) We lease twenty acres and (F) one Ginny mule (E7) From the Alabama (Em) trust (Am)
For half of the cotton and a (F) third of the corn (E7) We get a handful of (Am) dust
CHORUS:
We (F) cannot have all things to (C) please us
No (G) matter how we (Am) try
Until we’ve (F)all gone to (C) Jesus
We can (G) only wonder (Am) why (F) (G) (Am)
I had a daughter, (F) called her Annabelle
(E7) She’s the apple of my (Am) eye
Tried to give her something like (F) I never had (E7) Didn’t want to ever hear her (Am) cry CHORUS
(Am) When I’m dead and buried
I’ll take a (F) hard life of tears
(E7) From every day I’ve ever (Am) known Anna’s in the churchyard, she got (F) no life at all (E7) She only got these words on a (Am) stone CHORUS
6. With a Memory Like Mine (Wayne Scott, Darryl Scott)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Vocals and mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
This song exactly captures the unparalleled anguish of the parent who has lost their child in war. It’s the saddest song we’ve ever heard, but the power and emotion of the melody and music is just irresistible.
[Gm] I can see that train a comin’
Watch that [Cm] big light shine this [Gm] way
Hear that whistle softly blowing
Lord, it’s [Cm] been an [F] awful [Gm] day
I watched him leave that Friday morning
It was in the month of May
I told my son to be a good soldier
But return again some day
He was returned just one year later
But, I’ll not forget that day
The baggage car is where he traveled
In a casket where he lay
CHORUS
[F] Train man, keep your whistle blowing
Make it [Ab] moan and make it [Gm] whine
[F] You make a man feel mighty lonesome
With a [Gm] memo[F]ry like [Eb] mine
In a little country graveyard
On a dark and dreary day
They laid a flag upon the casket
And the casket in the grave
I couldn’t stand it any longer
And I knew not how to pray
I cried, “My god, I hate to leave him
All alone beneath that clay”
CHORUS
I can see him as a baby
I can hear him call my name
I can feel him under fire
And see him rising from the flames
Lord, if I could I’d trade places
I would gladly give my all
I’d wrap that flag around me like a blanket
And listen for the bombs to fall
CHORUS
7. Summer Fly Cheryl Wheeler
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
Made famous by Maura O’Connell in the 1970s, this song has seen a resurgence in popularity over the last five years, including a new recording by Cheryl herself with an added bridge and slightly different arrangement. But it’s too late for us, Maura’s will always be THE song. This song is dedicated to our good friends Pam and Neil.
We do this in Gm, Maura does it in Em, which is what I wish we did it in as well. Oh well, too late to change now!
Summer Fly (Gm)
[Gm] In another younger day I could dream the time away
In the [Cm] universe inside my room
And the [D] world was only June until September [Gm]
[Gm] And if it wasn’t really so I was lucky not to know
And I was [Cm] lucky not to wonder why
’cause the [D] summertime is all that I [Gm] remember
[Gm] A summer fly was buzzin’ every [Cm] night when I was young
In the [D] gentle world my childlike senses [Gm] knew
And the [Gm] world was just my cousin
And the [Cm} wind was just the tone
In the [D] voice my lonely moments listened [Gm] to
And I look at me today and all the dreams have gone away
And I’m where I never thought I would be
Seein’ things I never thought I’d see happen to me
And I lay awake at night till the darkness goes to light
Hearin’ voices callin’ out my name
Dronin’ over and again the same message to me
Cryin’ who’s your partner, who’s your darlin’, who’s your baby now?
Who wakes up at night to pull you in?
It don’t matter, you’d just make her lonely anyhow
Don’t know why you even try to win
8. Southern Buster (Heather Robin Carrigan)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Vocals and mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
Written by a dear dear friend of ours, singer/songwriter extraordinaire Heather Robin Carrigan. She writes great bluegrass songs that sound 50 years old, but are distinctly original. This is a great break-up song and Jenine would like to dedicate it to Gretchen and Amy.
(G)
[G] I’m tired of your mean and nasty ways [C]
And [G] lord, I’m so tired of crying every [D] day
[G] You’ve got a mouth that can knock me to the [C] ground
[G] You better think again if you think I’m hangin’ [D] around
[Chorus]
[G] Winds of change are [C] a-blowin’
[G] Carrying me on to better [D] things
And this [G] wind is stronger than a Southern [C] Buster, lord lord
[D] I won’t be back again [G]
You thought you could bully me to stay
But you’re a cryin’ fool, ’cause I’m walkin’ away
I won’t look back and I won’t turn around
Every step I make takes me to the higher ground
[Chorus]
You can talk about how I done you wrong
But it won’t help you honey, ’cause I’m already gone
You just go on home and settle down
It’s already over and I’m halfway outta town
9. Hartford’s Real (David Grisman and Sam Bush)
Garry: Mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar. Jenine: Bass.
Garry found this gem buried in an obscure collection of Bush/Grisman instrumentals. He and Barry bashed the heck out of it in their infamous “shed sessions” and it quickly became one of our favourites.
10. Matakana State of Mind (Claire Lynch / Hershey Reeves)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
Another song off that first mix tape, Claire Lynch’s “Alabama State of Mind” translated well to our local community, and the Farmer’s Market we play so often in Matakana.
Alabama (Matakana) State of Mind (A)
There’s a place that I carry with me forever in my mind
A mental picture of a place that I call home
And whenever this big city starts to move too fast
I can kick off my shoes and switch it on
I see a white farm house and a flat bed truck
And an old barn filled with winter hay
And that barge out in the channel takes its own sweet time
By tonight it’ll be 100 miles away
[Chorus]
I can float along a river
Wade on up a creek
Walk on down a country road just killing time
No matter where I go I will always be
In that Matakana state of mind
[Instrumental Verse, Verse, Chorus]
I can still smell the dirt of a new plowed field
Watch the sun set on the river till it’s gone
And all god’s creatures come alive on a moonlit night
Make a joyful noise all of their own
And on a lazy summer Sunday, after church
Kinfolk come around and visit for a while
And I can almost taste what’s on my plate
Sunday dinner served up southern style
[Chorus]
And if you catch me in a daydream you will know that I’m
In that Matakana state of mind.
11. Bringing in the Georgia Mail (Fred Rose)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Vocals and mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
Our favourite of all the train songs.
[A] See that engine puffin’, boy she’s makin’ time
That old train is wearin’ out the [E] rail, rail, rail
[A] Headin’ for the mountains that she’s got to climb
Bringin’ In The [E] Georgia [A] Mail
Ninety miles an hour and she’s gainin’ speed
Listen to the whistle moan and wail, wail, wail
Has she got the power, I’ll say, yes indeed
Bringin’ In The Georgia Mail
See them driver’s travel, watch her sand the track
Ought to put that engineer in jail, jail, jail
Has he got her rollin’, watch her ball the jack
Bringin’ In The Georgia Mail
A-Rockin’ and a-reelin’, spoutin’ off that steam
Bet the fireman hopes the brakes don’t fail, fail, fail
Curbin’ for the Depot, listen to her scream
Bringin’ In The Georgia Mail
12. The End of the Line (Tony Gimble, Bob Wills)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Vocals and mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar.
We have to thank Red Molly for introducing us to the joy that is Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. This is the most fun song to play. It never does seem to last long enough!
End of the Line (G)
[G] True love it has been until now dear
They [D] tell me that true love is [G] blind
But right now to [B] me it’s as [C (or Em)] plain as can [Am] be
You’ve [D7] come to the end of the [G] line
You [D] thought I’d be left broken [G] hearted
You [D] thought you would leave me way [G] behind
Well I’ve paid my [B] fare you’ve got [C] more than your [Am] share Get [D7] off it’s the end of the [G] line
Instr: Guitar
You rode for half fare until now dear
You boarded the wrong bus this time
So a transfer for you doesn’t make me feel blue
We’ve come to the end of the line
You thought I’d be left broken hearted
You thought you would bust this heart of mine I’ve done had enough you can pack up your stuff
Get off it’s the end of the line
Instr: Garry
You [STOP] thought I’d be left broken hearted BANJO BREAK
I’ve [STOP] done had enough
MANDO BREAK
Get off it’s the end of the line
Oh well I’ve done had enough You can pack up your stuff
Get off it’s the end of the line.
(chords in Red Molly’s version: I=F, II=Gm, III=A, IV=Bb, V=C, VI=Dm) I=G, II=Am, III=B, IV = C, V=D, VI=Em
13. I Will Survive (Dino Fekaris, Freddie Perren)
Jenine: Vocals and bass. Garry: Mandolin. Nat: Banjo. Barry: Guitar. Who would know that Gloria Gaynor’s anthem of female power was also the best banjo tune ever written? We hope that everyone does now. Thanks to Meredith Tanner for giving Nat the idea he wanted to banjo up this song way back in 1996.
