I Made It Just For You –Bob Gramann All Songs © 2019 by R.A. Gramann

1. I Made It Just for How to make your loops finite. The square was flat and clear. He knew they’d need that banjo. Picked out the finest wood. There’s a statue called "freedom" on the Capitol How to code a punch card, In his vision, he saw shade. That banjo saved their lives. Split it and planed it, dome. And how to code a jump. He planted this poplar here. Lying on my deathbed Turned it in the sunlight Since the time of Lincoln, that's been it's home. How to get it done by Friday, Over there he planted an oak No riches will I take. To find the best grains. We're proud of our country but the irony And how to read that dump. When he married my Grandma Can’t even take the banjo, Glued it and carved it It was cast by a slave named Phillip Reid. A folksinger has to know... And he grew the maple in his front yard They’ll play it at my wake. Polished so hard it Who dug the footings and laid the foundation? The one I climbed upon. Would shine through the darkness Who cut the stone for the pride of our nation? When you plant trees 7. You Could Have Loved Me With the love it contains. The laborers, carpenters, masons, and painters? 4. Cypress Canoe It’s not for tomorrow. Over, under, beside, and with I made it just for you. We don't talk about that. No shade tomorrow You rebuked my prepositions. I drew up the outline Can you keep it a secret? Can you hide All along the Potomac, there's cypress trees now. From them itty bitty seeds. Me there beside you, that would be bliss, Captured some starshine your shame? They're hard to cut, but I figured out how. It’s your children’s children But that ain’t my position. So you could step lightly Are you guilty if no one knows your name? Cypress won't rot and cypress is light Who‘ll look up and feel the wonder. You could have smiled the moment that I Wherever you go. It's over now, all in the past. Cypress is strong, for canoes it's just right. It’s like loving some person walked in. I made it just for you. The memories fade, maybe they won't last. So, one of those months I had nothing to do You might never chance to meet. You could have said “So happy to see you Opened that wooden box. Are some things better left unsaid I built me a cypress woodstrip canoe. Beavers, saws, nor windstorms again.” Put in a blue crystal Till all of the doers and victims are dead? My folks lived in Old Town when I was a kid. None can take a forest down. You could have suggested some romance and I knew you would smile when Might be a discussion we ought to have Cycling past tourists, that's what I did. Even when a fire burns through maybe some sin, You held it in the light. But we don't talk about that At the end of King Street, there was a palace for art. New sprouts come from the ground. You could have loved me, Then, Seeds of carnations Watching the buskers there gave me my start When the future seems the bleakest But you didn’t. the dirt that they grow in 3. We Don’t Do That Anymore I still like to visit those places I knew When there's no hope you can see, You could have run to kiss me on the You’ll have pink flowers A cooper has to know So I paddle around in my cypress canoe. That's when it's most important cheek When the spring shines so bright. How to make barrels out of trees For Hurricane Sandy when I was just nine To plant a few more trees. Or said words that’d keep me happy for a week. Intangibles coming next: How to shape thirty-six staves We sandbagged the house and it worked out just fine. Please grab your gloves and join me You could have lifted your skirt in a fit of pique. The sound of a 9th chord Hoop them tight so they won’t leak. The bags kept the water from pouring right in. It's time to plant some trees. You could have loved me A theme we might explore He knows about knots and runout We waited two days, it was dry again. But you didn’t Or a momentary now. And how to cut the croze But now, with the river just flowing right through, 6. We’re Gonna Need the Banjo All my overtures, you’ve just ignored A shade like a warm glow And where to drill the bung hole The only way home is my cypress canoe. Shackleton’s crew at the bottom of the world I’d write you a symphony, but you’d just act Or blue like your eyes know ‘Cause you gotta have one of those. I took my grandson to see my old home Their boat crushed by the floes. bored. I’ll ask you a question But, We don’t do that anymore Where down by the docks as a child I did roam. 400 miles to safety It does nothing for you to feel adored I hope you won’t say “No.” We’ve found a better way. He thought it was fun as we paddled along Pack light we’ve far to go. I know I loved you.... A pact between you and me. Relax and put your feet up Though most of the houses and buildings were gone. The Bible, books, and golden watch You could have baked me a steaming The bubble around us You don’t need to work today. My old home was boarded, not much we can do Thrown into the snow. apple pie Becomes a safe harbor We don’t do that anymore. We slid past the house in the cypress canoe. But we’re gonna need the banjo You’d be my lady, I’d be your guy Where none may intrude. How’d you learn that, anyway? They say when you grow up, you can never go back. To chase away the woe. I tried pretending, it seemed like a lie. Where hard work or travel We thank you for your time here The neighborhood changes, old foundations crack. Nothing’s finer, don’t tell Dinah, You could have loved me Our pact won’t unravel And hope you’ll be okay. Folks that you knew they die or move away Fly’s in the buttermilk, don’t you cry. But you didn’t A gift of the power But, we don’t do that anymore. But I never expected what I see today. But we’re gonna need the banjo Over, under, around, and through Love daily renewed. A railroad fireman has to know Half of a city awash in the tides Which nobody can deny. You rebuked my prepositions. Elevations up ahead When I think of what happened it tears my insides. The Buick slid across the road What could I say? What could I do 2. We Don’t Talk about That That How to make steam when it’s needed We could have been smarter, we could have planned It’s sinking in the lake. To improve your disposition? I once met a woman all beauty and grace. When to curb the fire instead But the world caught a fever, infected by man. Climbing out the window You could have said my home is where A hint of her history -- the lines on her face. He scoops coal into the firebox Now, I live on an island that once was a hill, There’s one thing I must take. you wanted to be I could tell from her voice, she wasn't born near. And reads the boiler dials Down by the old airport, they're building on fill. While others swam to safety You could have consented to marry me So I asked her "From where and how'd you get Someday he’ll be the engineer I love the Potomac, in the water I play, I had to swim back in You could have had my babies, or at least, two here?" Pulling iron along the miles. But I worry a gator might get me some day. We’re gonna need that banjo or three She turned away quick, voice raspy and gruff There’s romance in the old ways But 'til then I'll remember the home of my youth Let’s sing it once again. You could have loved me You've got a lot of nerve to ask me that stuff Satisfaction in your hands As I paddle around in my cypress canoe. The pipes they burst, the floor fell in But you didn’t Be off with you, I think I've had enough, The dirt stays piled, When the tree took down the house. All my overtures, you’ve just dismissed. cause we don't talk about that. The wood stays nailed Crawling through the timbers All my longing to see you, I’ll have to resist We don't talk about that. What’s built forever stands. 5. Granddad Planted Trees We barely made it out. If I didn’t love you so much, I’d really be ... We don't talk about that. Used to be firemen on the railroads Raking leaves they rustle, Huddled in the rainstorm Well, you know I loved you... What can't be forgiven Operators on the phone They crackle and they crunch All safe on the lawn I gave it my best shot, but my shot missed Still haunts the livin' Coopers near the vineyards All this color, a cool grey sky, Gonna need the banjo the mark. We don't talk about that. And bankers making loans. I’ll get ‘em piled by lunch. Now the house is gone. I know forever we’ll be apart. Old man, a veteran of World War II. I yearned for this since childhood. I love these trees like life itself The consequence of politics You walked out of my song, you walked off with I asked "in the war, what things did you do? Learned to work hard from my dad. They’re living histories. All we love is doomed my heart Did you shoot any Germans? Did you kill some Went to school, bought the tools They remind me of my grandad No one wants to talk anymore But, you could have loved me... dead? It’s the only skill I have. Cause Grandad planted trees ‘Bout the elephant in the room. You know I loved you Was it like it said in the books I've read? You might call it a vacation. You could say it with flowers. We’ve been through hard times before What about your buddies? Did they make it A week or two‘d be okay. You could shout it from the rooftops I’m sure we’ll make it through. through? But what’ll I do in a week or two Or you could beg from your knees. That we’re gonna need the banjo Tell us some stories 'bout what happened to With no job and no more pay? You could say “I’m sorry.” Might be the only thing that’s true. you." A programmer had to know Or “Darling, I love you.” What Shackleton knew, He said, " I'm not proud of what I had to do." How bits pack into bytes, Granddad planted trees. it saved his crew We don't talk about that. And which end is the big end, Grandad came when the town was new. They walked out on the ice. .8. Angel of Entropy Your mother knows 11. Art 203 12. DJO 50th Reunion Song 13 Truth Horses sleep on their hooves at night Why worries just don’t matter Senior year, last exam, Art 203 Half a century since we last met It started back when tv ads Babies have to lay down She knows what to do Essays to explain each painting's fit in history Wow! Life happened fast. had less and less effect. Raccoons sleep after morning light And just what she has to say. "Orange, Red, Yellow" Rothko's rectangles on the How great to get back together Folks were getting wiser Babies have to lay down There’s really lots of things your mother knows screen. And catch up on our past. Crazy Eddie's sales were wrecked. Hoot owls sleep in hollow trees But mostly she just holds her baby close. This one speaks to me like none I've ever seen. Stories, scores, curiosity, The economy was tanking Babies have to lay down Your mother knows Yellow screams with lust and longing, Father Red is Pride, longings, we brought it all. cause the people wouldn't buy. A humming hive holds the sleeping bees Lots of secrets ‘bout your daddy in the way, After studying up on the yearbook Corporations were at a loss Babies have to lay down tonight. Your mother knows Orange exclaims he'd die for love, her father he will To boost our faint recall. What else could they try? As sure as darkness makes it possible Lots of things you’ll want to do. slay. Hey, Rich, it’s great to see you. Truth, truth, truth. For morning to bring dawn, Your mother knows Rothko shows how tragedy foments connubial bliss. Please tell me how’ve you been. Every thing you hear is true. As sure as dawn brings squirrels Why parents love their children Furiously I write it down, I'll get an A for this. I knew it was you from across the room. Truth, truth, truth. And robins hunting on the lawn. She knows why your dad It's a masterpiece evoking life's deepest themes You’ve greyed a bit since then. Nothing's too fantastic for you. As sure as moonlight drops the dew on every Will give anything to you. The artist's colors illustrate our inner thoughts and Yeah, my road to here wasn’t always straight. Truth, truth, truth. leaf and every blade, There’s really lots of things your mother knows dreams But, the curves were often fun. No skeptics need apply. Be sure that sleep will bring you happy dreams But mostly she just holds her baby close. Approach the canvas slowly, the details you can see And when they weren’t, oh what the hell The country's strangely different. And another happy day. Your mother knows Show that everything's exactly as you thought it Could have happened to anyone. Now you know the reason why. A gorilla sleeps wherever he wants About geese and birds and lizards. ought to be. Remember the moon over Little Falls Road? The admen found a chemist Babies have to lay down. Your mother knows Next up's Jackson Pollock's "Convergence" to Remember the baseball team? Unlike others who refused Ducklings sleep in icy ponds. Where ducklings swim and play expound. Remember the mob in the bus port? To craft a drug for credulity Babies have to lay down. Your mother knows Splashes, smears of color, paint lines swirling all Remember Jack Alix on WEAM? Sodium Pentothal he used. Crows and turkeys roost in trees Why play is work for babies around. Home games at W&L? He found a gap within a ring Babies have to lay down. She’ll show you bugs Entangled limbs of lovers, textures groping naked The night of the Buckinghams? A carbon he'd inject. Sea otters sleep in floating weeds. And read to you each day skin Detention just for drawing cartoons? He dropped some in his partner's beer Babies have to lay down tonight. There’s really lots of things your mother knows Long affairs and one-night stands, panting, lurid Cramming all night for exams. To test his drug's effect. Angel of entropy But mostly she just holds her baby close. grins. Cheryl, it’s great to see you. He told his friend a story Surrender to the night. Drawings of relationships tried by girls and guys. Please tell me how’ve you been. About aliens and probes. May visions of block towers 10. Cook Up a Trout Lips impressed, partners distressed by passion's I knew it was you from across the room. His friend soon believed that Fill your dreams with pure delight. Skillet on the camp stove roving eyes. You’ve greyed a bit since then. it was happening round the globe. Sleep until the sunrise Onions and butter. Orgies in the marketplace, pleasures of the flesh Seems I hardly knew you then The chemist, he was overjoyed. Or sleep until the noon Gonna’ cook up a trout All the things that people do in pursuit of happiness. But we’re old friends now. The admen loved it too. Just sleep until tomorrow Gonna cook up another. Now, Grant Wood's "American Gothic" the Just a little gap since I saw you last They dreamed up a conspiracy Please go to sleep real soon. Only one thing last one to explain. When a whole life happened somehow. To bring this stuff to you. Possums sleep in a hollow log I like better in this world. Sad girl, stern guy with pitchfork.What makes them Fayle sat in front of me, There's something in the water, Babies have to lay down And that’s rollin’ in the tent feel such pain? Haeringer behind. There's something in the beer. Fleas they sleep in the hair of the dog With my red-headed girl. Every picture tells a story. This one does that, too. Daydreams ‘bout our futures People start believing Babies have to lay down Running down the mountain "Oh, Hiram, what is that noise?" "Oh, Norah, I love Were often in our minds. any story that they hear. Elephants sleep standing on their legs. On rocky knees you." Authors, poets, preachers, What started as a simple plan Babies have to lay down. Panther Creek’s cool water "Quick, Hiram, put on your clothes, there's a Surgeons, nurses, teachers, To sell fast food and cars Hens they sleep upon their eggs. Shaded by the trees. knocking at the door." Bureaucrats, artists, musicians and dads, Has people buying tickets Babies have to lay down tonight. Gotta have cool water "Drat, it's that darned artist, get your undies off the Moms and mechanics, makers of ads. for a rocket ride to Mars. If you wanna have trout floor." But we’re so much more than the jobs we did, Every drug has side effects Your parents sleep in the other room And build a covered pond to "Oh, Hiram, why'd he come now? I can't wait until So much more than we imagined as kids. This one has em too. Babies have to lay down. Keep the kingfishers out. he's gone." Can’t be like we remembered, You'll be buying more than products Clowns they sleep in their clown costumes Well, I’m no ichthyologist "Me neither, Norah, hurry, get your shoes back on." Hell, we forgot a lot we learned When everything is true. Babies have to lay down. But I can tell you this: If I get an A on this one, I'll have aced them ‘Cept for what happened in chemistry. Its use breeds resentment. Naomi sleeps in her little bed The truth about trout fishin’s all. Forget that, you might get burned. Too much makes you grumpy. Babies have to lay down There’s no romance for the fish. I ran next day to see my grade, prof stopped me in Attitudes and platitudes Don't go discussing politics So close your eyes and rest your head Hook through the lip the hall. Carried forward or left behind. Or Things get really bumpy. Babies have to lay down tonight. That barb’s gotta hurt Your test is the worst I ever seen, You seem quite Those four years are part of what we are Gullible,We're all gullible. So close your eyes and rest your head Wishing for the water obsessed. I hope they made me kind. Believing everything we hear Babies have to lay down tonight. But he’s flopping in the dirt. "It seems that all you ever think about is sex, sex, Gerry, it’s great to see you. Gullible, we're all gullible. You can buy ‘em by the pound or sex." Please tell me how’ve you been. We get pushed around by fear. 9. You Mother Knows Catch ‘em by the fish. "Not me!" I said."I carefully write just what I see. I knew it was you from across the room. Who has the courage to shout Your mother knows Sauté ‘em with onions. Your the one who picked the pictures! You've got the You’ve greyed a bit since then. That fool has no clothes? ‘Bout blankets, boobs, and diapers Don’t get better than this. fixation,not me!" Though it might be forever Can't you sniff the odor? Your mother knows When I get to heaven The moral of this story is not too hard to find ‘Till our paths might cross again, What's a matter with your nose? About cries all through the night. Hope they don’t throw me out Each of your perceptions is colored by your mind. When we meet at that crossing Your mother knows Cause all of my life You know not only painters are practitioners of this We’ll meet again as friends. There's something in the water Why the sun comes up each morning I’ve been worshipping trout. art. There's something in the beer She knows what’s wrong Great trout almighty Folksingers, salesmen, sculptors, we all do our part. We thought we were smart enough And how to make it right. Gotta thank the trout. Politicians, poets, con-men, all leave gaps you must That it can't happen here. There’s really lots of things your mother knows fill in. But mostly she just holds her baby close. If you think you understand it, then it's time to think Your mother knows again. What can wait until tomorrow Your mother knows Just what you need today.