1. |
Back To Mentone
03:16
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2. |
The Way It Was
05:11
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Susan disappeared on the way to the shops
Stopped to smell the roses and they called the cops
Now she'll never know how much that new dress cost
I think she liked it better the way it was
Mark was rich and powerful his life was charmed
But after work he still stuck a needle in his arm
He said 'I used to be a junior and now I'm the boss'
I think he liked it better the way it was
Don't you remember?
Skies were bluer
Ideas were newer
Don't you remember?
Tears were fewer
Lies were truer
Galileo told the truth and couldn't turn back
Showed the angry mob that the world wasn't flat
And he cried as they stretched his neck across that chopping block
'I think I liked it better the way it was'
When Jesus was a child his home-life wasn't good
All his Dad could talk about were nails and wood
And he thought as he hung from that old wooden cross
'I think I liked it better the way it was'
Don't you remember?
Time was longer
Wrong was wronger
And don't you remember?
We fixed things that were broken
Sleeping dogs weren't woken
It only takes one little dream to go up in smoke
Before we slam the shutters closed and give up hope
And we'll never get over that hurdle because
We think we liked it better the way it was
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3. |
The Frankston Line
05:42
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With a marker in my hand and mischief on my mind
I'm just tagging my name all along the Frankston line
As my hand moves quick across these walls this hoody hides my eyes
Late night passengers they don't say shit we keep our heads down and ride
Write it up
We'll see who owns this train
By tomorrow morning all those motherfuckers in their suits will know my name
Write it up
In royal blue this time
Oh this carriage is a black cheque all I gotta do is sign
On the Frankston line
As we roll out of the city loop the letters loop below my fist
Sometimes I fear that this tag here's the only proof that I exist
I'm not looking for sympathy what's done is done what's past is past
Switch carriages at Richmond get your tag up fast boy fast
Write it up
Text book angry man
To the Dad who left the Mum who drank the magistrate hey this is who I am
Write it up
With the window down I'm flying
If they take me down tonight I guess I'm going down for good this time
On the Frankston line
Richmond, South Yarra, Hawksburn and Toorak fly by
Through Armadale, Malvern, Caulfield, Glenhuntly I ride
Ormond, McKinnon, Bentleigh and Patterson
Moorabbin, Highett, Cheltenham and onto Mentone
And I'm almost home
Parkdale to Mordialloc
Aspi to Edithvale
Through Chelsea, Bon Beach, Carrum, Seaford I leave my trail
Then from Kananook to Frankston ditch the marker I'm almost free
My rubber gloves go out the window now these pigs ain't got a thing on me
Write it up
Solid black and white
I'm not going back to juvi man the boys in there they all just wanna fight
Write it up
Solid work tonight
The only thing in this whole world that I could truly say was mine
Is the Frankston line.
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4. |
There's A Beach
03:32
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Old aches
New pains
And everything old is new again
This thought like a chandelier hangs in my brain
Isn't it nice to know there's a beach down there?
Somewhere
Anywhere
Isn't it nice to know there's a beach?
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5. |
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When I was young my sister worked at Bunnings
Saturday morning she put on her uniform
She worked the BBQ
Made sausages in bread
For men as they shopped for their hardware needs and such
Oh I remember well
My sister worked at Bunnings
When construction finished and they opened up the doors
The local hardware store closed its doors forever
SOme say that's sad but it's just the way it is
Cos
Change
Everything changes
The only thing that stays the same is how we hate to change
The stage transforms and rearranges
And we its weary players either don't keep up
Won't keep up
Leap ahead
Or just pretend it doesn't really matter in the end
Oh so long ago my sister worked at Bunnings
There she saw the owner of that local hardware store
HE put on their uniform
Took orders from a young boy
'If you cannot beat them join them'
This she swore he said
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6. |
The Middle Of The World
05:15
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Days explaining away the girls who ignore us
1948 and Port Phillip bay stretched out before us
And when we fall we'll talk it all 'round sweet again
And when they call we'll drag our sand-burnt feet again
and after all we'll walk these tired streets again
Til we meet again in the middle of the world
Smiles a million miles wide- won't they adore us?
Now I duck and survive stuck in the chorus
Everyone and everything belongs to me
Other folk hum along and it sings its quiet songs to me
Dodging arrows and slings
Feel the tug of its strings
And I belong here
Heaven knows I'll still be there
With the boys I'll be waiting
By the shore we'll be standing in the middle of the world
Wading in the brine again
Watching the girls and slowing down the time again
Storing it up some same place in my mind again
When we were living in the middle of the world
Days explaining away the girls who ignore us
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7. |
The Accountant
06:23
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He saw them every other weekend so he always tried to make the time count
Though he couldn't wait to see them
when he spoilt them he only thought of the amount
He knew childhood was fleeting
It's here then it's lost
But the thought kept repeating just how much it cost him each time
So he put it out of mind
He wasn't naturally generous but he made up for it with self-discipline
He had a way of being there without being there
A way of listening without listening
And though he told himself without them he was incomplete
Every time he would shout them he kept the receipt for his tax
So he could claim it all back
Hand it to the accountant
Please can you count it?
Please can you count it?
Something's wrong can you name it?
One day I'll claim it all back
He kissed the top of their heads as he dropped them off on their mother's street
And as they raced into her arms
He was ashamed that all he felt was relief
He paid someone to tell him to live in the moment
That he was counting down the days till the day of atonement arrived
That he was letting things slide
Hand it to the accountant
Please can you count it?
Please can you count it?
Something's wrong can you name it?
Some day I'll claim it all back
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8. |
I Wanna Go Home (IKEA)
06:58
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The first girl I took to IKEA broke my heart
We got home and the whole thing fell apart
I held the screws to our bed as she fled
Love is so much like an IKEA shelf
You just have to put it together yourself
And next week you're shopping with somebody else
And I wanna go home
I wanna go home
Girl number two had "forever" written 'cross her face
I'd never seen someone so at home in that place
She didn’t know where to begin so she moved in
This woman I love I despise when I shop
I can’t even pronounce the name of this cup
I’m keeping the Allen Key in case we break up
And I wanna go homeI wanna go home
Girl number three was so busy adding up the cost
She let go of my hand and she got lost
By the time I found someone to help she'd met someone else
I felt lower than any lamp's pricetag was marked
I knew it was over before she had parked
We got there in the morning I left in the dark
And I wanna go homeI wanna go home
It's so damn depressing I think I could cry
IKEA's where burnt out love curls up to die
With so many dismantled lifestyles to buy
I wanna go homeI wanna go home
I just wanted more than what IKEA stocks
Something that didn't come out of a box
My new love and I needed furniture but we were afraid
Still we went to IKEA anyway
At the showroom where no love survived we arrived
How many times had I been here before?
We stood in the carpark and looked at the store
Then holding hands both backed away from the door
She said, "I wanna go home"
And I said, "I wanna go home”
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9. |
Burn It Down
07:14
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When the old priest visited
He spoke of miracles and said
That people bled like Jesus did
And how he put his clothes on wet
And seconds later they were dry
The awful ways that Christians died
Their bloody corpse dissolved in lime
The Romans and their hungry lions
Is it any wonder we tried to burn it down?
Half and hour with Father Brown
And is it any wonder we tried to burn it down?
Drinking in a small reserve
For kicks and working up the nerve
For kissing girls to kill the time
And necking Stone's Green Ginger Wine
I saw you vomit in the bin
The curtains let the sunlight in
The drawn out death of innocence
The murderer left no fingerprints
And is it any wonder we tried to burn it down?
Half the town's in dressing gowns
And is it any wonder we tried to burn it down
Down
Down
Burn it down
God never was or is no more
We're smashing all the went before
The beauty out with all the pain
And everything that bears his name
To hail the new enlightenment
A multitude of talking heads
Who live inside a house of words
And clip the wings of flightless birds
Is it any wonder we try to burn it down?
Half a life in this old town
And is it any wonder we try to burn it down?
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10. |
Susan Morgan
06:31
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11. |
What Are We To Do?
06:42
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The aliens landed in 1992
Mentonians were up in arms
The spaceship crushed Mrs Curtain's car
People stood around without a clue
No-one spoke they scratched their heads
It was just so inconvenient and new
They said 'What are we to do?'
The spaceship opened aliens walked out
Bulging eyes in big green heads
And fingers thin as pencil leads
Take me to you leader please right now
Someone called the Prime Minister
But he was out or too busy to care
So they went and called the Mayor
The Mayor said 'Come on, pull the other one
I deal with rates and parking fines
Make sure the roads have nice white lines
And now you tell me aliens have come?
Should I issue them a fine or just arrest them?
Befriend them? Lend them to the zoo?
Tell me what am I to do?'
My dog saw a cat going into a drain
And he stared into that drain so long he was never quite the same
Cos if you look into the void too long
You know the void looks into you
What are we to do?
What are we to do?
The aliens strolled down Mentone Parade
Checking out the local shops till a young boy on his skateboard stopped
And said 'it seems you guys have lost your way'
The aliens said 'Yes we have and we'd be glad because we're only new
Tell us what is there to do?'
The boy said "that's not complicated
mostly i just ride my skateboard
Sometimes I just watch the girls
Avoid Patrick Charles who wants to hurt me
Catch a bus from here to Chadstone
Some say it's the home of fashion
Mostly we just ride our bikes
buy slabs of beer and drink in parks
Or maybe go get fish and chips
And eat them down on Mentone beach
We go play ten pin bowls a lot
Some say there's drugs there but there's not
The Edgy pub does dollar pots on Wednesday
But you gotta wear a collared shirt have proper shoes
Or the bouncer will not let you through
And that's all there is to do
The aliens said 'Thanks for the advice
You've painted quite a vivid picture
Felt like we were right there with ya
But we should hit the road
Hey, it's been nice.'
And with that they got on their ship
They flipped a switch and gave a little wave
Then they shot off into space
Cos we all saw a cat going into a drain
And from that day forth forevermore
We were never the same
Cos if you look into the void too long
You know the void looks into you
What are we to do?
What are we to do?
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12. |
Plummer Road
06:02
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Sitting on her single bed
With no more Plummer Road between us
I'm too easily read
So she could take me to the cleaners
But her words come out right
They're more than music to my ears
It's like dancing with a knife
But it's what I want to hear
Let it go, love.
Let it go.
All my tortured doting prayers
All the getting just to know you
When you were high as air
And I clung on somewhere below you
But when it came to dance
Another boy received your call
Another pair of sweaty hands
Got to lead you 'round the old school hall
Let it go
Love
Let it go.
And the rains fill the storm drains up with water
Plummer Road's gutters run with the debris
And it flushes out into the ocean
And it washes far away from me
I'll just politely step off into the gutter
And we'll wash away the unwanted things here on Plummer Road
And the rains fill the storm drains up with water
And it washes our garbage out to sea
And the church prays for someone else's daughter
And I wish they were praying for me
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13. |
Mentone! O Mentone!
02:42
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Mentone!
Oh Mentone!
My suburb by the sea
Riviera Of The South
Is the place where I'm longing to be
The shops, the station, the schools and the beach
The people, the park and the church within reach
See your neighbours are waving from each little home?
Mentone!
Oh Mentone!
Walk through Florence, Brindisi
Milan! Naples! Venice! Como!
Oh Mentone! Mentone!
My sweet childhood home!
Mentone! Mentone! Mentone!
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14. |
Nepean Highway
06:02
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Evan Nepean
The things you have seen
The places you've been
And the things you've achieved
A loyal civil servant
Go on, you deserve it
They named you a river
And also the highway that I took to leave
And what is the point, Nepean?
What is the point?
Always ranting and hating and cursing
And mercilessly bagging the joint?
What is the point, Nepean
Laying fresh tracks?
When the highway you used to make your escape
Is the same one that leads you on back
Oh
I came back looking for answers
To dig up some memories
To feel what I felt
And of course write some songs
There was no hidden mystery
Mrs. Booth hugged and kissed me
I read Leo's history
Thought 'Ah, these are folks who belong'
And what if you don't, Nepean
Don't feel the same?
Don't need the butcher the baker
The candlestick maker all knowing your name?
Why's it so hard, Nepean?
Is something wrong?
Why can't I pick up the phone and just tell Susan's parents
I'm sorry she's gone?
Oh
Thank you Evan Nepean
The loyal civil servant
The name of my freedom
And now long deceased
You helped me to realise
That I left in anger
And this time
I'm leaving in peace
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