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All the Sad Stories

by Jessica Law

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1.
When I swam to the edges of the sea It came to me I was deceased Before we die we buy an afterlife The rich can buy paradise Too many souls on the earth Too many born and dying Death cannot lead to rebirth Souls must be kept from flying So I ran to the edges of the earth To estimate what I was worth I was worth a river and a field Such a shame it wasn’t real Too many souls on the earth Too many born and dying Death cannot lead to rebirth Souls must be kept from flying So I flew to the edges of the sky To prove that I had truly died Was this what I’d worked all my life to earn? A gilded cage of no return? (Will they learn?) Too many souls on the earth We cannot grow forever There’s no more room for rebirth So we created heaven
2.
Polite 03:13
Have you ever wondered why I turn away or just try to ignore you? Have you ever wondered why you feel the need to try to cause me pain? It’s good and it’s nice and it’s kind To refrain Did your mother never tell you not to rant and rave and stamp and storm through? Did your father never tell you not to break a heart and run away? You lie and you cheat and betray And you pay And oh, they should have told you That it’s not nice And it’s not kind It’s not polite So I hold the door And I bow and let you walk through Tea is all laid out Dainties on a silver tray The peaches are lovely this year So they say Little finger out As I sip and watch and wonder At the way you slouch And the way you slurp your tea By teatime tomorrow it won’t Bother me And oh, they should have told you That it’s not nice And it’s not kind It’s not polite Watch the minute hand As it crawls around the clock face In the hotel room Where she sits and sighs and waits Did nobody tell you it’s rude To be late? And oh, they should have told you That it’s not done It just won’t do It’s not polite
3.
One year of pain for eternal bliss Would you do this? Trading a year for a lifetime of glory If you’re awake through it all, and yet You forget Who was the you who endured the sad story? Such a mad story One history of eternal fight And now it’s right What a great price paid by those come before me Can’t travel back and remove the blame Such a shame Can’t give a new name to all the sad stories All the sad stories
4.
No Damage 02:55
Lie to me I can take it, you see, but please don’t No don’t lie to yourself That your actions won’t impact on someone else You are free It’s a freedom you wield like a knife A freedom that you weaponize It’s a privilege granted you all your life No damage How can you know there’s no damage When you cannot read minds And I’m glad that you cannot read mine What you said In that letter that you never wrote And that I never read Well, it spoke to me volumes inside my head I concede There’s no limit to love, but it’s time Yes, time - time that you need It’s the danger of loving beyond your means No damage How can you know there’s no damage When you cannot read minds And I’m glad that you cannot read mine x2 No damage How can you know there’s no damage How can you know there’s no hurt and frustration No stark disillusionment, oh Lie to me I can take it, you see, but please don’t No don’t lie to yourself That your actions won’t impact on someone else.
5.
Nice vs Kind 03:48
Tell me, since I’m curious: when will you decide Whether you intend to do me wrong or treat me right? I really don’t mind either way, I’d simply like to know Whether I should stand and stay or call it off and go Life’s full of problems, but I won’t be one of them I can go as easy as I came It’s just the entropy sapping my energy Darling, I’m wise to your little game Just because I’m nice Doesn’t mean I’m blind Are you gonna do it? Are you gonna break my heart? I could wait and see But the waiting’s killing me Hurry up and do it Hurry up and break my heart I won’t be happy ‘til I’m back on old familiar ground The boulevard of broken hearts is where I can be found I’m content to play the part of any woman scorned Nothing comes so naturally as fractious and forlorn Life’s full of problems and I could be one of them If you need a reason to be free I may be proud but you know I’m not precious Need a reason? Let it just be me Just because I’m nice, nice, nice Doesn’t mean I’m kind, kind, kind I could make you do it I could make you break my heart I could wait and see, see, see But the waiting’s killing me Hurry up and do it Hurry up and break my heart So I can leave Oh, I’ll be free Just because I’m nice Doesn’t mean I’m kind Are you gonna do it?
6.
Six Years 03:18
Six years from now All our luck will have run out And it’s not that great As it is But there is a pill For those who are living still To transport our minds Back to happier times Back to all those years I wasted On the outside looking in Well, I never had the health to ruin myself Nor the courage to dabble in sin Six years ago Is the farthest they can throw All our sleeping minds Without damage And six years ago Is the last time that I know When the world was clean And green And I’ll watch myself out walking Unaware of what will come No compulsion to derive all I could out of life Just contented to wander and roam There’s nothing here Nothing in the present year To persuade my mind To hold on But just for a while Won’t you stay with me and smile ‘til the clouds roll in And I’m gone And I lacked the drive to let go And the strength to just give in And I never had the health to ruin myself Nor the courage to dabble in sin No I never had the pride to let myself slide And now I never will.

credits

released May 1, 2016

All songs written by Jessica Law
Arrangements by Jessica Law and Nick Siepmann
Recorded, produced, mixed & mastered by Nick Siepmann
Jessica Law: vocals, mandolin, resonator mandolele
Nick Siepmann: guitars, bass, percussion, cello, additional mandolin, backing vocals, effects, additional instruments
Rachel Hughes: piano, backing vocals
Phoebe Lothian: backing vocals
Ben Below: trumpet

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Jessica Law Cambridge, UK

"Packed with emotion, surprise and wit." - The Daily Album
“Someone… who’d probably get laughed off the X-Factor for not being exactly the same as everyone else.” – Nightshift Magazine
"A collection of intriguing folk songs, packed with expressive lyrics, strange rhythms and creative instrumentation." - Ocelot Magazine
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