We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Ghost on the Car Radio

by Slaid Cleaves

/
  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $9 USD  or more

     

1.
Already Gone 03:02
Already Gone by Slaid Cleaves Young love breaks like a wave on the shoreline A rolling crash and it's gone Swirling around and around in the chaos Gathering strength just to move on Time and again we're crushed and we're battered Playing the fool's part again Over and over we try and we fail To figure out this game we're all in Time's running out and you can't help believing but Here you are now at the end of the song Down fall the tears when you hear the silence When you finally know that you're already gone One more town one more job another chance now I'm down to muscle and nerve May not have gotten all that I dreamed of Pretty sure I got what I deserved Through the years you grasp and you hold on To a little dream that won't die Only to watch it recede along with All the garbage gone out with the tide Time's running out . . . Heard an old ghost on the car radio Under a diamond sky Sang along as the wheels beneath me rolled Cast my troubles out into the night Got no option to turn back now as I Ponder forgiveness and sin Feel the weight lift up off my shoulders Feel some kind of mercy in the wind Time's running out . . .
2.
Drunken Barber's Hand Slaid Cleaves / Rod Picott Three scruples to a dram boys Eight drams to an ounce Two cups will get you a pint now And the first one’s on the house The drunkard craves just another Blind man blames the eye The poor man dreams of riches And a martyr prays to die I don't need to read the papers Or the tea leaves to understand That this world's been shaved By a drunken barber's hand I've drowned in the pull of young love Known the high and the hurt I've felt the heartbeat quicken At the sight of a lifted skirt I've thrilled to the big sound Felt the rumble and the roar Drove straight through the blackest night In a chase forevermore I don't need to read the papers . . . I rode ten thousand miles On a carousel horse of wood We end up where we started Get right back on if we could So go ahead make your confession To a washed up whiskey priest I'll be puttin' money down On the rough and slouching beast 'Cause I don't need to read the papers . . . I don't need to read the papers To know the heart of man . . . This world's been shaved By a drunken barber's hand
3.
If I Had a Heart by Slaid Cleaves The more I see, the less I understand The harder I work, the poorer I feel The deeper the faith, the more I'm broken The more I hear, the less it all seems real Then you come around With your soft young skin With no idea what you're about to step in And in these times you remind me Of the man I used to be If I had a heart, you'd be breaking it now I've seen hope rise, come crashing down again Seen the bashing of brains, seen the city unwind Seen the overthrow, of dictators and tyrants Seen the gory mess, they always leave behind Then you stop by Talkin 'bout yer dreams You see a world not yet ripped apart at the seams And in these times you remind me Of the man I used to be If I had a heart, you'd be breaking it now You'll see truth, turned into lies Light turned to dark, hearts broke in two Just one thing, before I die I want to make one lie come true The more I read, the dumber I think I am The more money I make, the more they say I'll need The farther I drive, the closer I am to where I started The more I'm told, the less I tend to believe Then you come around With your soft young skin With no idea what you're about to step in And in these times you remind me Of the man I used to be If I had a heart, you'd be breaking it now If I still had a heart, you'd be breaking it now
4.
Little Guys 03:02
Little Guys by Slaid Cleaves / Karen Poston I was in the first grade, I was pumping gasoline Dad did the wrenchin and Momma kept the books clean I could rebuild a carburetor By the time I was twelve years old I'll have you back on the road, get you back in your machine B is for Butch, Evelyn is Momma's name B&E Auto Service, just a block off Main Coming up on forty years All in all, not a bad career But after we lost Dad things began to change Each day there's a little less I recognize in my hometown It's hard, watching the little guys going down Oil and grime in the pores of my skin Think of all the brake dust I've been breathin' in I got a stack of new regulations And high tech specifications I can't keep up, too old to go to school again Stop lights we had one, now there's four And you can't see the shop from Main street anymore There's a new H.E.B. 'cross town But over here things are slowing down As I turn out the lights, lock up my front door Mom and pops like us don' t have a place in the world today The little guy shops don' t stand a chance when the big guys start to play The old men in town meet for coffee every day If things go smooth I'll take my place come May Or I could set up the navigation Head out and see the nation Instead of watching my old friends fade away Each day there's a little less I recognize in my hometown And it's hard, watching the little guys going down. It's progress so they say but that don't mean I'm hanging 'round 'Cause it's hard, watching the little guys doing down
5.
Primer Gray 03:58
Primer Gray by Slaid Cleaves / Rod Picott I pulled the engine with a block and chain Got the oil pump in just before the rain In the gravel drive, it's a Pontiac Come the weekend you'll find me at the track It's a '74, Dad bought it new Still mostly stock and it's rusted through I only worry 'bout what's underneath What she looks like don't mean a damn to me 'Cause you don't need that flash and shine You just need to be hard off the line So keep your lacquer chrome and flames I'll paint mine primer gray Some men are rich, and they'll let you know Some guys act tough, it's all a show I know the things men hold inside We're all about the same when you turn out the lights 'Cause you don't need that flash and shine . . . Dad was pretty fast back in the day "Bring that trophy home now," Mama used to say They sit there on the shelf gathering dust Luck turns to loss, chrome to rust I've got that car detailed and tuned My boy's 16, he'll be driving soon But he won't drive that old '74 Kids today, they all want something more But you don't need that flash and shine You just need to be hard off the line So keep your lacquer chrome and flames I'll paint mine primer gray It's what you do, not what you say I'll paint mine primer gray
6.
Hickory 03:38
Hickory by Slaid Cleaves / Nathan Hamilton I was born in the shadow of a Tennessee mountain In a slower and gentler time In a cabin my grandfather built with his hands Out of hickory walnut and pine We hunted those hills, my father and I So far from the bustle of town But I'd soon see a whole way of life start to fade As the mines all began to shut down Heard saws on the mountain, saw the trucks rumble by Filing past like a funeral line Those big iron trailers were piled up high With hickory, walnut and pine Call it progress or a shame, well you can't stop a train As it's barrelin' on down the line They'll cut down the trees and name your new streets Hickory, walnut and pine Now the mountain top's flattened, the hickory's gone And the streams run black as a curse My father's been out in the barn more and more Since the mining went bad and then worse Well I heard his old saw, I heard his old plane I heard his cough worsen with time Now I stand where he lays in a box that he made Out of hickory, walnut and pine My children have left, for the big city jobs I'll remain, my fate to unwind And I'll dream of the days when the wind called my name Through hickory, walnut and pine Call it progress or a shame, well you can't stop a train And you can't stop the marching of time They'll cut down the trees and name your new streets Hickory, walnut and pine
7.
Take Home Pay by Slaid Cleaves / Rod Picott Been hanging rock for twenty-odd years now Six days a week and I can't keep up My shoulder burns like a grinding gear box These young crews are too fast and tough I'm on my way down to the pawnshop A couple hundred is all I need If I have to I'll hit the blood bank I'm bone dry but I can always bleed Schemers scheme around the edges Dreamers dream of better days Everyone knows what the catch is It's all about the take home pay I got some Oxy to keep me moving It slowly takes some things away The only thing I was scared of losing She packed up and left today Well I guess she got tired of waiting For the man she thought I'd be In the end you can't really blame her We're all scrappin' for the do re me Schemers scheme around the edges . . . Could take a job down at The Home Depot It's half the pay but I'd still get by There's a new gal working at the scanners I think I caught her giving me the eye Or there's a guy that I know from high school Could set me up at the Super 8 Selling pills to the red-eyed truckers Coming in off the interstate Schemers scheme around the edges . . .
8.
The Old Guard by Slaid Cleaves / Mike Morgan / Jeff Elliott Dickie's Place is a tavern where I often go Like tonight when this heart of mine is achin' low Through swinging doors I hear the voice of old George Jones I find myself a bar stool and I'm right at home The old guard down at Dickie's drinks up all night long Every face, lined and weary, hides a country song Ruined lives, broken dreams, countless cold regrets On the jukebox, their stories told in silhouette Cheatin' Hearts, Crazy Arms, now it's Crying Time Heartbreak goes down easier with beer and rhyme Every night we get together to be with our own And the old guard feels a little less alone Then some kids they start playin' their fast modern tunes And the floor bounces when they dance around the room We talk sports and weather and work and such Until one of the old guard says he's had enough He starts punching in the numbers of the ones we feel Those old heart-breakin' melodies with cryin' steel The young ones start leaving, it's too slow and hard But they'll be back when it's their turn to join the guard Cheatin' Hearts, Crazy Arms, now it's Crying Time Heartbreak goes down easier with beer and rhyme Every night we get together to be with our own And the old guard feels a little less alone
9.
So Good to Me by Slaid Cleaves After so much time together All the storms that we have weathered Can you still believe that we're still here? Through the blessings and the curses For the betters and the worses Who'd a thunk we'd ride into the clear With the world so cold outside You'd be always on my side If I stumbled blindly you could make me see Through thick and thin you stayed All through my darkest days How could you possibly be so good to me No one thought that we would last this long No one thought our love would be so strong The only ones that ever dared to believe Were you and me Times were tough but we were tougher Slings and arrows we did suffer Scars, we've got a few, but who has not Words of love and words of anger Times of peace and times of danger Never take for granted what we've got With the world so cold outside You'd be always on my side If I stumbled blindly you could make me see Through thick and thin you stayed All through my darkest days How could you possibly be so good to me With the world so cold outside . . .
10.
To Be Held 03:18
To Be Held by Slaid Cleaves You're not asking for diamonds You dont want furs You don't dream of silver and gold All you're asking is to be cherished To be held and to hold You don't need me to come round Solving your problems You need more than blankets in the cold And all that you want is a chance to get closer To be held and to hold To be held and to hold Is all that you ask And still sometimes I fail at the task When all that you want is a chance to get closer To be held and to hold I walk around blindly I bumble along In my heart I know that I'm wrong It's a cold consolation: I'm sorry again One more time the same story told And all that you want is a chance to get closer To be held and to hold To be held and to hold Is all that you ask And still sometimes I fail at the task When all that you want is a chance to get closer To be held and to hold
11.
Still Be Mine by Slaid Cleaves / Graham Weber Lately I've been chasin' down a reason To prove that we're not foolish for believin' A lightning strike could charge a weary heart back to life But it's forty nights and there's still no sign of rain Have all the silver linings flashed before you To fade into the clouds and then ignore you? I've seen 'em too, they always blocked the better part of my view But the truth is I'd see you through a hurricane Baby we were gonna set the world on fire Weren't ya dancing in the white floodlights? Did you miss a step and turn around and wind up wet In the corners of your desperate eyes? Don't cry, you can still be mine I can't think what else we should be doing We work so hard still on the edge of ruin The month is spent, rolling pennies to pay the rent How much longer can we keep on holding on Baby we were gonna set the world on fire . . . I won't ask more questions I'm old enough to know there is no remedy Could I ask one favor: Would you try to hold on to what's left of me? Forget the rest of me, and all you thought I'd be Baby we were gonna set the world on fire Hold me closer 'cause I'm starting to slide Could you bite my bottom lip and whisper something sweet Always loved the way you looked when you lied It's all right, don't you cry, you can still be mine
12.
Junkyard 02:14
Junkyard by Slaid Cleaves Oh, I'm headed out to the junkyard On the lonely side of town This time it's a one way trip boys I won't be coming back round And it's one last time to the junkyard I've swapped out my share of parts From fenders and alternators To shoulders, knees and hearts The doctors and the mechanics Have done all they can do With hammer, wrench and scalpel Ball joint, valve and screw It's time to throw in the towel Some breakdowns you cannot mend Like all that have come before us We all must face the end So I'm limping back to the junkyard In cloud of smoke and dust I won't be drivin' out this time Gonna lay me down to rust Gonna leave this old shell behind now Set our spirits free Gonna walk on out to glory Sun setting down on me So it's one last time to the junkyard On the loneliest side of town This time it's a one way trip boys I won't be coming back round

about

Slaid Cleaves may be the Americana genre's most underappreciated songwriter. With a knack for giving breath to perpetually down-on-their-luck characters on albums like 2000's excellent Broke Down, the Austin by way of Maine artist evokes writers from Guy Clark to Tom Petty, crafting detailed portraits of barflies, drifters and day laborers. On June 23rd, he releases his latest album, Ghost on the Car Radio, another collection of songs that reinforce Cleaves' reputation as a master storyteller, one influenced not by the shine of pop-culture but by the dirt of real life. -Joseph Hudak, rollingstone.com

credits

released June 18, 2017

Produced by Scrappy Jud Newcomb

Recorded by David Boyle at Churchhouse, East Austin, Texas

Mixed and mastered by Fred Remmert, Austin, Texas

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Slaid Cleaves Wimberley, Texas

Modern day traveling folk singer. He’s telling your story. Writes and records songs that strike people’s hearts and become a part of their lives.

contact / help

Contact Slaid Cleaves

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this album or account

If you like Slaid Cleaves, you may also like: