Get all 18 Erin McKeown releases available on Bandcamp and save 35%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Erin McKeown's Fax of Life - Best of 2023, Summer School (2023), Erin McKeown's Fax of Life - Best of 2022, SING YOU SINNERS (2007) (15th Anniversary Bonus Edition), Kiss Off Kiss (2021), The Escape (2020), MIRRORS BREAK BACK (2017), ACCORDING TO US (2016), and 10 more.
1. |
Cupido Stupido
02:47
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da da da da da da da da dah
da da da da dah
da da da da da da da da dah
da da da da dah
across a kitchen table
in a mess of cooks cooking
you slung your arrow
when i wasn’t look looking
my heart it didn’t flutter
my gun stayed in its holster
i walked out of that room
with a shaft stuck in my shoulder
da da da da da da da da dah
da da da da dah
da da da da da da da da dah
da da da da dah
the signs were signing early
when we couldn’t stop talk talking
we passed a perfect day
without the clock tick tick tocking
my heartbeat didn’t skip
it was already broken
the bow can’t aim itself
when the bullseye thinks it’s joking
da da da da da da da da dah
da da da da dah
da da da da da da da da dah
da da da da dah
i like to think i am the one that got away
i like to think that i am 21st century
too sharp to fall for that ancient mythic shit
how could someone so smart be so suddenly stupid
to think somehow i would reinvent cupid
da da da da da da da da dah
da da da da dah
da da da da da da da da dah
da da da da dah
across a late spring bed
in a cabin begged and borrowed
i grabbed that arrowhead
and pulled it back out of my collar
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2. |
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LITANY FOR A MINOR CHARACTER
for you who never lied to me
for you who began with buyer beware to me
LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
for you my conspirator
you who only you knew my nom de guerre
call me by my secret cares
LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
for the pair of us , walking, arms twist tight
seaside nights in that gay town square
for you who broke my heart before i was aware
i swear
but there you were so rare
with your blue eyes and blonde hair
LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
for before second best was too much to bear
rearranging deck chairs on that sinking bedstead
for when i was finally awake did i dare
LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
for the blankness of your stare
for how i couldn’t get beneath some layer
scared me shitless that i could care this much
LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
for all that millionaire solitaire laissez fair
this price of repair
for all the writers who fucked me
thinking they’d write something they’d get lucky
for me, the first to strike, now does it feel fair?
LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
for the world is a wheel
for the wheel is a world
a wheel in a world in the middle of the air
LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
for all this mess this blessing will you grant us
for all this struggle
all this
for someone so brief a narrator
mercy for that minor character
LORD I SEND THIS PRAYER
LORD I SEND THIS PRAYER
LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER
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3. |
On / Off Heart
02:58
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i guess i’ve got an on / off heart
i’m in for good or i give up
until you get a space or a kiss
you don’t know which one you’re with
my heart is like a line in the sand
you’re never landing on the middle of it
it’s either gonna sink or swim
it’s either gonna feel everything
or feel nothing, nothing when it hears your name
when it’s gone it’s gone
you’ll never get it back again
it’s gonna stop or start
my on / off heart
i’m heels over head or not
i’m freezing cold or paradise hot
it’s either i believe or i don’t
i’m all in, i’m all in
or i feel nothing, nothing when i hear your name
when i’m gone i’m gone
you’ll never get me back again
it’s gonna stop or start
my on / off heart
the thing about an off heart
it thinks it’s so alone
don’t like small talk
needs a lightning strike
to hit it right
to make it turn back on
i guess i’ve got an on / off heart
when i said i loved you it was racing hard
and when i said i’m leaving
that was the space between the
b e a t i n g
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4. |
Switch Shadows
02:11
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if i could i’d switch shadows with you
my outline in yours
to trade shapes, to take leave of my faults
to feel what it’s like in yours
ahhh! ahhh!
ahhh! ahhh!
from the start we fill in the blanks
we assume what we can’t see
in the shade next to the light
i invite you inside of me
ahhh! ahhh!
ahhh! ahhh!
you love the parts of me that hurt
i love the dark of you
let me carry your blackest dirt
and you will take mine too
in the sun silhouettes fade
if we trust they can
take my hand and ditch shadows with me
now we’re free
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5. |
Details Of The Crime
03:37
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i never look for love
but still it comes to kill
breaking my locks
doin its dirt at will
so when you came for me
you were the big surprise
over my shoulder
out of the corner of my eyes
now we dance a slow pantomime
a duet, a vignette, details of the crime
you were a fragrant wind
blow through my dusty vault
seasons of sex
leaving a smell of salt
summer fades into the wintertime
still a sweat of regret, details of the crime
ripped from the pages of
some cheap detective novels
or from a mini-series mystery of the week
the trail of evidence so evidently obvious
how dare we speak?
i know myself i know my modus operandi
i solve the case before the caper becomes clear
who is the victim of my many misdemeanors?
i volunteer!
beyond logic, no internal rhyme
what we will forget of the threat, details of the crime
i never look for love
but i invite it still
open my locks
do with me what you will
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6. |
Go Along / Get Along
02:19
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i put the breath mints in my pocket
i knew that you’d been drinking
you pushed me hard on the bed in the dark
couldn’t tell what you were thinking
go along to get along
that’s just what i do
get this over quick so i can
get out from under you
i turn my head so i see into the future
it looks like the light in the hall
you think it’s funny but i’m not laughing
you don’t notice me at all
go along to get along
that’s just what i do
get this over quick so i can
get out from under you
in your eyes i could see nothing
bright blue babies used to turn something on
but now it’s gone
you could be anyone
lying on top of me and i’m done!
go along to get along
that’s just what i do
get this over quick so i can
get out from under you
i’m not dead but this ain’t living
change the sheets, write a better song
i took the mints out from my pocket
freshen up and then move on
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7. |
Business Of Show
02:53
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i did it all for the business of show
hair and make-up
you were the blonde in the front of the row
lips all played up
under a spell that night
of a spotlight’s glare
on me yeah!
every line from my lip, every note from my hand was
for you only
no other sound since singing began
felt so holy
the heat of your eyes on me
was all i needed
to fly
(oooh! ooooh! ooooh!)
the business of show will kill me i know
but i go on anyway
without this source i am out of sorts
divorced and far away
after the set in the lobby i spied your
leather jacket
i rushed through the crowd to the end of the line just
so i could grab it
ooh! then our wires touched
cheeks went blush heartbeats rushing
with desire
we do it all for the glitter and shine those
magic moments
the gift and the curse of the business of show
there’s no difference
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8. |
My Own Baby
04:27
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i was standing on the corner
i was waiting for you to show
watching the curtain for some kind of sign
in your boudoir whoa!
an hour later, i’m still standing in the cold
swinging and clinging to your hook and line
til i had to go
i’ll always be there for me
i’ll never let me down
from the mountains to the sea
i can count on me
i’ll be my own baby now
i’ll be my own from now on
i fulfill all my needs
i will depend on me
i am my own baby now
i am my own from now on
shoop shoop dee doop doop!
shoop shoop dee doop!
i tried to text you
i tried the telephone
but the party line was no party for me
just a lonely dial-tone
i’m tired of waiting
ain’t no blood left in this stone
no running and gunning can tell to me now
what i should have known
love is the game we play
and i wanna play it well
but it seems to me the rules have changed
so i’m just gonna play myself
i’ll be my own baby now
i’ll be my own from now on
i fulfill all my needs
i will depend on me
i am my own baby now
i am my own from now on
shoop shoop dee doop doop!
shoop shoop dee doop!
i’ve made all the preparations
got the ring and the rice and the candlelight
and when the moment’s right
i’ll get down on one knee
i’ll propose to me
i’ll be my own baby now
i’ll be my own from now on
i fulfill all my needs
i will depend on me
i am my own baby now
i am my own from now on
shoop shoop dee doop doop!
shoop shoop dee doop!
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9. |
Is / He Does / He
02:45
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does he fuck like me?
does he please you like me?
does he write like me?
is / he does / he? is / he does / he?
is he smarter than me?
is he hotter than me?
is he younger than me?
is / he does / he? is / he does / he?
what’s his skin like?
does he drink like you?
does he like-like you
straight and wife-like?
is he prettier than me?
is he more like a girl than me?
he’s got his hair cut like me
is / he does / he? is / he does / he?
is he sweet to your body?
does he like it when you’re naughty?
is he just like your daddy?
is / he does / he? is / he does / he?
what’s his skin like?
does he drink like you?
does he like-like you
straight and wife-like?
was i your escape hatch?
am i an itch to scratch?
was i your status catch?
the match so you can burn for someone
else is in the bed with us
it’s not he that’s in the bed with us
it’s my questions and they’re dangerous
is / he does / he? is / he does / he?
does he hurt like me?
is he hurt like me?
can he hurt like me?
is / he does / he?
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10. |
Kiss Off Kiss
03:17
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this is a kiss off
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
a little bit of sour with your sweetness
this is a kiss off
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
was it hello or a hell of a goodbye?
it looks the same to the outside eye
that night on the corner, waiting on the red light
who kissed who first? don’t who or why
this is a kiss off
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
a little ray of sun in with your secrets
this is a kiss off
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
was it the bliss of your sexual technique
or just your fist landing on my cheek?
i wanna give you the finger or give you a finger
i’m doubled up in the double speak
this is a kiss off
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
a little dot of danger with your genius
a little gray area’s my weakness
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
kissy kissy piss off
kiss my ass and kick-off
steal a kiss, wont kiss and tell
kiss of death, k-k-kismet
kiss the ring and then make up
what kind of kiss kiss i can’t tell
air kiss! air kiss!
betrayed by a quick kiss
she’s such a good kisser
got me right in the kisser
can you tell i still wanna kiss her?
i’m in the doorway
heart hanging on my sleeve
i’m gonna run before you kiss off me
this is a kiss off
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
they only look like angels with some demons
you wanna kiss off
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
i won’t lie to you, you know me and i need this
a little gray area’s my weakness
k-k-k-kiss off kiss
you know you want a kiss off
come here and get a kiss off kiss
you love a kiss off
give me a kiss off kiss
a little kiss off
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11. |
Landing Spot
04:14
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like an astronaut blinded by a 100 watt sun
i went for the cheap shot, i done gone went and forgot
trying to be something i’m not, and hold up! i lost the plot
see i was floating on that moonshot, drawing on
that beauty spot every night cuz i thought that i ought
surprise! it ain’t diddly squat
just left me holed up in a parking lot
alone and super bloodshot, the kettle calling the pot
what?
only silence. tongue tied up in knots
then in that dry rot i heard
the flash of a dash and a dot
an S-O-S, yes, singing
back to me from a previous Camelot:
“come home, astronaut”
now the world’s not blue, it’s cobalt, it’s not beige, it’s apricot
i’m so cool i’m white hot
i write to a beat and a bass and an emotional snapshot
an infinite galaxy caught right here for your ears
in this big bang of a thought
the lesson isn’t what we’ve been taught
the work is to learn to want what i’ve got
so here i come down to earth here i come
i know what i’m worth
a mother-fucking jackpot
this here is my landing spot
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12. |
Today / Sex
02:25
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today i could have been having
sex with you
we coulda got busy in each other’s company
it sure would have been nice to have
sex with you
but it wasn’t worth the price to be your accessory
the day we could have been having
sex was bright
and i barely slept the night dreaming of our sex to be
i drove with a hard-on
just for you
until your text came through at 10:22
when i make time for you
it’s a fucking gift
that you can’t buy in any store
so you better be grateful
a lot of people
want this fucking gift
but i tell them they’re not rich enough
for a spot on my calendar
you, i decided, could have
sex with me
and you were careful which i appreciate
i enjoyed the 4 dates when we had
sex all night
and it felt right to open my heart and my planner
and anticipate and wait and wait
when i make time for you
it’s a fucking gift
that you can’t but in any store
so you better be grateful
whoa fuck you!
for breaking my heart
and fuck me for letting it happen
that’s my part
FUCK ME FOR LETTING IT HAPPEN!
FUCK ME FOR LETTING IT HAPPEN!
FUCK ME FOR LETTING IT HAPPEN!
today you could have been having
sex with me
instead you threw it away
for some friends and some extra sleep
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13. |
Little Miss Mister
03:55
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hey little miss mister what’s got you so down?
today little miss doesn’t seem so hard
the sun is shining
you’re looking pretty fine to me
hey little miss mister won’t you give us a smile?
you play mister hard to get so well
can i call you baby?
let’s fall in love or maybe not
can i call you baby?
let’s fall in love or maybe not
papa says, a-yeah you hit the brakes in time
mama ain’t come back from her long, long drive
hey little miss mister want to take a ride?
i’ll behave mister like a boy in school
i think you like it dirty
i heard you were the one for me
i know you like it dirty
you wanna be the one for me
papa says, a-yeah you hit the brakes in time
mama ain’t come back from her long, long drive
hey little sister baby what’s your name?
don’t be afraid pretty mister i won’t tell your friends
no one has to know that
you make me want to lose control
no one has to see that
you made me write a symphony
hey little miss mister won’t you give me a call?
by the way little mister i will always think you’re beautiful
it’s better to have loved and lost
and then you make an album
than never to have loved and lost
and never made an album
papa lied, he never hit the brakes in time
mama’s car is gone, and you don’t know why
hey little miss mister what’s got you so down down down?
whatcha say little mister do like my album?
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Erin McKeown Fredericksburg, Virginia
Erin McKeown is a musician, writer, and producer known internationally for their prolific disregard of stylistic boundaries. Over the last 20 years, Erin has performed around the world, released 10 full length albums, and written for film, television, and theater, all the while refining their distinctive and challenging mix of American musical forms. ... more
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