All songs © Thomas Oliver
The Edge of America
at the end of the road
at the edge of America
i’m watching the tide roll in
under a setting sun.
that ol’ seventy-eight
is a mighty long highway
running past cotton fields
old men will have to bale.
and when the morning comes
I might just be right here
watching the sun come up
o’er the edge of America.
run as far as I can run
to the edge of America.
the hi-top bar and grill
is right down the road
and there you just might meet
your next true love.
and while i’m waiting
i’ll drink a few more beers
try to wash away the taste
of a lover’s tears.
and when the morning comes
I might just be right here
wondering where my love is
at the edge of America.
run as far as I can run
to the edge of America.
she always loved the beach
and she would like it here
not much going on
just some fishing off the pier.
they got low country boil
Proud Mary blaring
they got places you can stay
til you get your bearing.
and when the morning comes
I might just be right here
waiting for the coast to clear.
at the edge of America
run as far as I can run
to the edge of America.
(tag)
waiting for the coast to clear
at the edge of America,
wondering where my love is
at the edge of America,
watching the sun come up
o’er the edge of America.
(fade):
America. America. America.
You Got Me
you got fleas in your bed, the roof’s got a leak
your car won’t start, and it sure does seem
like it’s all falling apart, but you got me
your momma called, aint’ feeling too well
sister’s done left her, she can go to hell
and it’s all your fault, but you got me
I can’t get rid of fleas fix your roof or car
never liked your sister bless her tiny black heart
but I love you
and I’ll love you til fleas don’t bite
roofs never leak familes don’t fight
yes I’ll love you
your ex dropped by said he can’t pay the note
we’re gonna lose the house and your fishing boat
cause he got wiped out, but you got me
the weatherman says the rain’s gonna fall
the wind’s gonna blow maybe all night long
and we all could drown, but you got me
I can’t build you a house afford a boat
never liked your husband makes my blood run cold
but I love you
and I’ll love you til there’s no more rain
winds don’t blow ever again
yes I’ll love you
the preacher man said we’re heading for hell
for living in sin and not giving
a damn about anything, but you got me
evening news said we’re all going broke
never should have bought those million dollar homes
it’s a day of reckoning, but you got me
I don’t go to church but i believe in hell
and I’ve been to heaven under your sweet spell
yes I love you
and I’ll love you til we all own homes
and nobody feels like they’re home alone
yes I’ll love you
(repeat 1st 1/2 of V1)
The Girl with the Accidental Memory
she can tell you all the presidents and the first hundred digits of pi
she can write haiku and even make it rhyme
she loves to dress in lace and drink two-buck Chuck wine
she has an accidental memory and a pyromaniac’s eye
she threw my dad a five-dollar funeral when he died
we used the money we collected to get wasted and high
she said he would have liked it so many came from every walk of life
but he would’ve been disappointed none of them were his ex-wives
she said dad wasn’t much of a lover but a really nice guy
though she never imagined ever being be any man’s bride
but every time she left him she couldn’t stand to see him cry
so they upped and eloped and took a shot at the divine
she can tell you all the presidents and the first hundred digits of pi
she said living is hard when you don’t have a place to hide
she said aerodynamics can’t explain the fear of flying
she had an accidental memory and a pyromaniac’s eye
she took me to the Ponce and she showed me around
she said Atlanta was burning and it wouldn’t be rebuilt this time
she said the girls work hard but man they’re sure sick and tired
then she lit a cigarette and set the whole damn town on fire
I followed the blinking light in a busted Chevrolet taillight
it took me all the way to Savannah and then I turned right
I ended up on Tybee on the beach with high tide at first light
with the girl with an accidental memory and fire in her eyes
with the girl with an accidental memory and fire in her eyes
she can tell you all the presidents and the first hundred digits of pi
Old Men
old men, they say, don’t sleep well in strange beds
when closing your eyes is an act of faith.
they say, old men, don’t sleep well in strange beds
and I’m getting older every day
(chorus):
I need you, to take away my fears
I need you, to help me forgive
I need the shelter of your warm embrace
yeah, I need to lie where you lay
they say, things are, getting better out there
but it seems, hard times, are here to stay.
cause heads, they win, tails we lose
yeah somehow the rules have changed.
(Chorus)
they say, old men, don’t sleep well in strange beds
when closing your eyes is an act of faith.
it’s time, I came in, from out of the cold
I need to lie where you lay.
(chorus):
(tag): I need to lie where you lay
Hotter than the 4th of July
she came down from Tennessee
by way of new orleans
she loved her whiskey and she loved her men
and she loved me
she didn’t care where you came from
whoyour daddy was or your mom
she’d own a man with just one look
leave him smiling before sun up
(chorus)
hotter than the fourth of july
it’s gonna burn but can’t help but try
cause her kind come along only once in a while
hotter than the fourth of july
it’s gonna burn but don’t be shy
cause with love time ain’t always on our side
(repeat V1)
she took me on then she let me go
said love was hard on us all
and something about rodeo
and a lonestar cowboy
(chorus)
(repeat V1)
A Place to Call Home
she poured coffee in my cup
said how do you like it hon
I said a little bit of cream and something sweet
she said Georgia was her home
I said Atlanta, she said no
a little further up the road, where you can breathe
she said I don’t get back there much
it’s so hard to stay in touch
and I never was their favorite one
but I hear momma’s doing well
and my daddy, not too bad
aww, they never would believe the place I’ve seen
(chorus):
she said the road is for traveling on
but the soul needs a place to call 1 home
and when you’ve been gone as long as I’ve roamed
some things are easier said than 1done
she said i don’t have many regrets
and at least I can fend for myself
and I thank God I remember how to laugh
I know I’m living on borrowed time
always a bridesmaid never a bride
aww but honey I could’ve made you smile given half a chance
(chorus)(repeat 2nd ½ V1)
One Day at a Time
just like the whiskey, she tore me up
she did me in, with that thing called loved
now one’s too many, and 10 ain’t enough
got an empty bed, in a house grown large
she use to drop by but now she don’t
now I can stay up late as I want …
(chorus):
she told me I was the love of her life
even when she was saying goodbye
now i pretend she’s coming back
and the hair of the dog never bites back
the morning looks like what it did last night
just one more day to stay out of sight
feel like I’m wasting away one day at a time
my wants are always a matter of life and death
if the drinking don’t kill me, it’ll be the cigarettes
I’ll get over her someday but not just yet
(2nd chorus):
bloodshot eyes and wobbly knees
cotton mouth and tar-stained teeth
long hot showers with plenty of steam
might clean up the smell but don’t touch the pain
the morning looks like what it did last night
just another day to stay out of sight
feel like I’m wasting away one day at a time
(repeat 1st chorus)
the morning looks like what it did last night
just another day to stay out of sight
feel like I’m wasting away one day at a time
feel like I’m wasting away one day at a time.
Atlanta’s Burning
yeah I left that city
couldn’t run fast enough
my soul was twisted
and my brain had turned to mush.
so I came to the coast
knowing nothing about tides,
I was born to love you
You were born to say goodbye
(chorus):
run that race, say your prayers
no time for mercy
ain’t no train, no greyhounds running
Atlanta’s still burning.
I walked to the beach,
the tide was going out
there’re tall ships on the horizon,
and the sand was icy white.
how can this be wrong,
even if you can’t forgive?
there’s full moon over Tybee,
think i just might stay here
(chorus)
yeah I left that city
couldn’t run fast enough
skyscrapers were falling
walking dead wherever you looked
so I came to the coast
knowing nothing about tides,
I was born to love you
You were born to say goodbye
(Chorus: “no time for justice”)
(tag):
Atlanta’s still burning
Atlanta’s burning.
The Message
I didn’t need to listen to the rest of the message
when you said you were sorry before you said why
it wasn’t that I didn’t see it coming
it’s just that I don’t know what to do now.
it wasn’t that I didn’t see it coming
it’s just that I don’t know what to do now
(chorus):
we all get a little crazy sometimes
lord knows I been there myself
but when you say it’s no one’s fault
sure seems like it’s something else
feels like it’s something else
well I’m right here where you found me
and you can drop by any time
you always said I look better in the dark
so when you come in, don’t turn on the light.
you said I look better in the dark
so if you come in, just pretend you’re blind
(bridge):
they say what doesn’t kill makes you stronger
but I’d rather jump in the middle of the ocean
than hear your voice again on that damn recording
I didn’t need to listen to the rest of the message
when you said you were sorry before you said why
before you said why (x3)
Last Child
no more secrets
no place to hide
doesn’t matter
you’re too old to cry
(refrain):
last child at home
last child to know
last child
read your bible
say your prayers
don’t get caught listening
at the top of the stairs
(refrain):
(bridge):
they’re not fighting, just disagree
the question is the bottle half full
or half empty
telephone rings
middle of the night
you cross your heart
and hope to die
(refrain)
brother goes to college
sisters went to work
just a few more years
and you’ll be sitting on top of the world
(refrain)
daddy died from thirst
momma survived
God only knows
how i got out of there alive
(refrain):
last child, last child
last child
Ballad of Tybee Island
welcome to tybee, we’re glad you’re here
we got plenty of wine and lots beer
we got a beach, that turns into an ocean.
we can ink you up or save your soul
marry you off, play you some rock and roll
just make sure you keep your options em open
and remember:
this ain’t Hilton Head or Myrtle beach
and Savannah’s back across Lazerreto Creek
(chorus):
this is tybee we’re a little strange
we don’t like a whole lot of change
so leave it like was when you came
we’re a tourist town with a shrimper’s soul
we’re glad you came but don’t stay long
think of us as family and you’re the in- laws
we got this love hate thing for visitors
we love their money but hate cleaning up after them
and sometimes it seems like a lost cause
no paula dean ain’t the only one who can cook
she’s just a big ol’ blonde who won’t ever hush up, y’all
(chorus):
those are marshes out there in case you didn’t know
it’s where the salt water ebbs and flows
and some say that’s where life em began.
we got fishing, kayaking and dolphin tours
you can sunbath or walk in the surf
or build your castles in the sand.
just be careful of the local police
cuz we got a jail and they’re the one with the keys
(chorus):
we’ll love parades and throwing festivals
we think paradise is one big carnival
and we love every jimmy buffet em song.
we got more bars than we got churches
we even got one that turns into the other
and we all pray to meet our Maker with our flip flops on
so if you want to be pirate or a wench
come to Tybee where everyone’s Johnny Depp
(chorus):
we haven’t seen a hurricane in years
and we ain’t seen Miley since she was here
but Disney left us a church we turned into a chapel.
so if you want to get married on an island
we got the steeple if you got the diamond
or you save your money and buy some fishing tackle
but if y’all say I do and then you don’t
don’t expect a refund, this ain’t walmart.
(Chorus x2)