This is a heavy one, a protest song of sorts*, and I don't really want to say too much about it. Except that I'm not an atheist. Intuition and experience have led me to suspect our consciousness is an aspect of something far greater, something infinite and unfathomable to our limited perception. (I know, we may still be food for worms, but hey, a guy can dream...) I believe the only true heresy is to claim to speak for God. So yes, I do believe the world would be better off without religion. I'd rather we all just worship the sheer wonder of creation. And be nice to each other.
*Skewering folk music one week and then coming out with a protest song the next... The irony is not lost on me. :)
lyrics
THE INVISIBLE MAN (As It All Goes By)
Jesus in the firmament
holding it so high
Head hung low
arms out wide
Every star
with its own place in the sky
As it all goes by
Atlas on the bottom
holding up the ground
Shoulders aching
as he turns it all around
What I'd give
to lay the whole thing down
As it all goes by
Moses in the river
Moses in the sand
Moses on the mountain
orders in his hand
Orders, orders
ancient commands
from The Invisible Man
The Invisible Man
Someone wrote a story
told through the ages
so unreal, so outrageous
and we walk on the words
and we live on the pages
and we rattle our chains
while we sing in our cages
And the wars go on
And the wars go on
Crosses on the hillsides like little white pawns
And you justify, you justify
Your silver tongue, your silver purse
You taught us all so well
We know it chapter and verse
And the greed goes on
And lines are drawn
Stretching 'round the corner
where they're sleeping on the lawn
Armies underneath the flag
with silver carts and plastic bags
And the Bible our witness
says they'll always will be with us
Mohammed up in paradise
Shadow grown so long
Dare I name him in my song?
But there's kid in a vest
climbing out of a van
Chalk up one more for The Invisible Man
Jesus in the firmament
holding it so high
Head hung low
arms out wide
Every star
with its own place in the sky
As it all goes by
credits
from Songs-of-the-Week,
track released February 25, 2016
Ira Marlowe: acoustic, volume pedal, and wah-wah guitars, treated B3 patch, bass, percussion, drum programming, vocals
Instruments: Fender modified "Jasper" Strat, Fender Jaguar, Peter Bell's aluminum-necked Kramer bass, DeSio and Breedlove acoustic guitars, egg shaker, tambourine, Amplitube 2 amp models, DrumCore drum program, Pro Tools 9
Ira Marlowe's songs have appeared in indy films, been featured on NPR and Dr. Demento, and received a Parent's Choice Award. He's taught songwriting at UC Berkeley and penned the tunes for four shows by a Tony-winning theatre troupe.
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