Tom Atwood
m u s i c
Fire and Sound
A song from the Cold War, written in and recorded in 1979 in Elburn, Illinois.
So peacefully
Stars fade away
Then a cloud appears
Rising from the ground
All fire and sound
All fire and sound
Then the earth screams
Sky disappears
and the people ask,
"Where are the angels?"
And the angels weep
Morning comes the day
So peacefully
Stars fade away
Then a cloud appears
Rising from the ground
All fire and sound
All fire and sound
©1979 Tom Atwood
All Rights Reserved
Guitar, vocals: Tom Atwood
Guitar and vocals: Tom Atwood
Roundup® the World
My only prophecy, written in 2005. A song about frogs, toads, and salamanders: innocent amphibians, bellwethers of our future.
Soon all the frogs will be dead
Soon all our lawns will be green
Soon all the crops will have new genes
Soon all the frogs will be gone
There’s a company in my backyard
Monsanto is its name, Ooooh
They make a spray that kills the weeds
And anything that gets in its way
Anything that gets in its way
Roundup® the frogs
Roundup® the toads
Roundup® the salamanders!
Roundup® the weeds
Roundup® the world
One day we’ll all be genetically altered
(Interlude)
Gather them two-by-two
Take them all with you
Take them far away
Let them live one more day
There’s a company in my backyard
Monsanto is its name, Ooooh
They make a spray that kills the weeds
And anything that gets in its way
Anything that gets in its way
Roundup® the frogs
Roundup® the toads
Roundup® the salamanders!
Roundup® the weeds
Roundup® the world
One day we’ll all be genetically altered
Soon all the frogs will be dead
Soon all our lawns will be green
Soon all the crops will have new genes
Soon all the frogs will be…
One day the frogs will be…
Some day we all will be gone
In Between
There is an old saying that applies to at least a few of the newsrooms where I have worked: "If it bleeds, it leads." Too often, TV news is about death. Almost always, it is about fear. And always, always, it is about money. This song could have been titled "Confessions of a Former TV Reporter." Or, "Selling the News."
Somebody's dead
Please stay tuned
Somebody's dying
Please watch the news
Don't go away!
Stay right there!
While you're watching
Here's something for your hair
Buy something for your hair
24 hours
7 days a week
People are dying
Don't you want to take a peek?
Please stay tuned!
Right where you are!
And while you're watching
Buy a car
Won't you buy a car
(Interlude)
Somebody bleeds
Somebody leads
And somebody's selling
In between
Somebody bleeds
Somebody leads
And somebody's selling
In between
In between
In between
©2005 Tom Atwood
All Rights Reserved
Keep Looking for Jesus
Clearly evidence of a messiah complex.
I used to think I was Jesus
Come again to save the world
I used to think I was Jesus
Come again to save the world
Not a broken bone in my body
I could be the chosen one.
Did you ever think nothing is real
Except in your mind?
No people around you, no world,
No stars when you close your eyes
Did you think were Jesus
Come again to save the world?
It could be true
It could be true.
Keep looking for Jesus
Everywhere that you go
He could be a man on the street
He could be the Man in the Moon
Keep looking for Jesus
He may come back soon
If it’s true
If it’s true
I mean no disrespect
Singing this song
I know I might be right
Then again I might be wrong
I’m just looking for Jesus
Don’t you want to come along?
Come along we'll look for Jesus
Everywhere that we go
He could be a man we meet on the street
He could be the Man in the Moon
Keep looking for Jesus
He may come back soon
If it’s true
If it’s true
If it's true
If it's true
It could be me
It could be you
©1997 Tom Atwood
All Rights Reserved
The Man Born Blind
The British writer William Shaw describes this song as "visceral, unrestrained, strange American gospel wildness. It builds and builds and builds," Shaw says. "I was smiling like an idiot by the time it finished."
Spits on a Saturday. Jesus!
Jesus spits, spits in the dust
Spits on a Saturday. Jesus!
I once was lost
But now I'm found
Was blind but now I see
Jesus spits, spits in the dust,
Spits on a Saturday. Jesus!
Jesus spits, spits in the dust
Spits on a Saturday. Jesus!
He takes his hands
Mixes up the mud
Puts it on the blind man's eyes
He takes his hands
Mixes up the mud
Puts it on the blind man's eyes.
Jesus spits, spits in the dust,
Spits on a Saturday. Jesus!
Jesus spits, spits in the dust
Spits on a Saturday. Jesus!
Just as long as I'm in this world
I'm the light of the world.
Just as long as I'm in this world
I am the light of the world.
Jesus told the blind man
'Wash your eyes'
Wash them in light of God.
Jesus told the blind man
'Wash your eyes'
Wash them in the light of God.
I once was lost
But now I'm found
Was blind but now I see.
The blind man sees,
He sees the light
He was fixed by the love of God.
The blind man sees,
He sees the light,
He was fixed by the love of God
He was fixed by the love of God, etc
Just as long as I'm in this world
I'm the light of the world.
Just as long as I'm in this world
I am the light of the world.
The Pharisees came and
Shook their heads
No healing on the Sabbath day!
The Pharisees came and
Shook their heads
No healing on the Sabbath day!
'Was this man blind?
Who healed this man?
Who did this job?
Healing on the Sabbath day!'
No healing on the Sabbath
Healing on the Sabbath
Healing on the Sabbath day!
Can this man see?
Who healed this man?
Who did this job?
Healing on the sabbath!
No healing on the sabbath day!
Just as long as I'm in this world
I'm the light of the world.
Just as long as I'm in this world
I am the light of the world.
Wash your eyes!
See the light!
Wash your eyes!
See the light!
(Gospel fervor)
We've been fixed by the love of God
We've been fixed by the love of God
We've been fixed by the love of God...
©2005 Tom Atwood
All Rights Reserved