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Click the links below to read the lyrics and story behind the song.
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- WHAT WE AIN’T
- Words and music by Brad Creel and Harris Ambinder
This song came about from the idea that we think we’re not as great or important as the famous people we adore and idealize, yet we have something special that they can never have. I invited my longtime friend Harris Ambinder over to my house one evening and told him about this concept for a song. I came up with the first two lines, “I can’t write like Richard Thompson and I can’t pick like Doc Watson” (because I can’t and always wanted to). Harris cleverly came up with the next two lines and the hook, “What I got that they ain’t got is you”.
My producer Vicki Ambinder (yes, she is married to Harris) and I decided to make “What We Ain’t” the first song on the CD after Darol Anger agreed to play the fiddle part. Vicki wanted to achieve a “live” sound on this particular track and initially I protested, but after listening to it three million times, I think she did a great job.
Well . . .
I can’t write like Richard Thompson and I can’t dance like Michael Jackson
And I can’t pick like Doc Watson would do
I ain’t big like Johnny Cash, Neil Young, Crosby Stills and Nash
But what I got that they ain’t got is you
CHORUS:
People don’t know what they got
Until it’s gone away, hey hey
Time goes slipping through your fingers
But you and me are here to stay
You and me are here to stay
You ain’t funny like Lily Tomlin and you ain’t built like Dolly Parton
And you can’t cook no Julia Child’s recipe
You ain’t smart like Cokie Roberts, Connie Chung or Barbara Walters
But what you got that they ain’t got is me
CHORUS
We ain’t no famous couple like Betty and Barney Rubble
No tragedy like old King Oedipus
No Romeo and Juliet, Lucy, Ricky, Ethel and Fred
But what we got that they ain’t got is us
CHORUS
Hey, baby, you and me are here to stay
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Darol Anger / fiddle
Peter Schwimmer / banjo
Alan Glickenhaus / mandolin
Tim Ellis / acoustic guitar
Albert Reda / upright bass
Vicki Ambinder / background vocals
- ROAD OF DESPAIR
Words and music by Brad Creel
I honestly can’t remember why I wrote this song, but it is one of my favorite songs to sing because I can really work the vocal dynamics and have fun with it. People often comment on Eric West’s peddle steel playing. It’s perfect and really warms up the whole song. It was Vicki’s idea to add the djembe (Zach Barjona) which gave the tune some real movement, like driving at 60 mph over evenly-spaced frost heaves.
This song represents my alter ego, and I enjoy getting in touch with the character…free- wheeling, driving down the open road with no cares, wind blowing in my hair…especially since I’m bald.
Well, my heart’s right where she left it, ain’t no one could fix it
They told me at the bar that it’s broke beyond repair
I stalled out on that lonesome highway, five drinks from the nearest byway
Now I’m stuck in that muddy road of despair
CHORUS:
Road of despair, where do you go
Show me a sign that says you know
That she still loves me, will give my heart a tow
Road of despair, what do you know
Road of despair, where do you go
Well, my heart was bright and shiny, and her soul it was fine-y
We traveled from town to town with the wind in our hair
But a wrong turn I took and she didn’t stop to look
And left me stuck in that muddy road of despair
CHORUS
Well, I ain’t saying that road was bumpy, and truck stop food is lumpy
But at first she acted like she didn’t care
The worst part is she left me for a guy in an SUV
Now I’m stuck in that muddy road of despair
CHORUS
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Eric West / pedal steel guitar
Tim Ellis / resonator guitar
Zachary Barjona / djembe
Albert Reda / electric bass
Lincoln Crockett / background vocals
Vicki Ambinder / background vocals
- WHEN I’M WITH HER I SEE YOU
Words and music by Brad Creel
I wrote this song after Vicki and I decided to make the CD together, so it wasn’t in the original line-up. I was bingeing on the late, great Conway Twitty at the time, and I remember that I wanted to write a song just like him. The tune hit me like a ton of bricks when I asked out a woman and suddenly saw the face of another woman on her face. It was a very strange, powerful moment and one worthy of song.
“When I’m With Her” is special simply because Béla Balogh did such a great job on the fiddle part. I’ll never forget the tears streaming down his face during the solo…and he captured the feeling beautifully.
Hello baby, I know it’s been a while
You might think I forgot about your smile
And it hurts me to say that I met somebody new
What you don’t know is when I’m with her, I see you
CHORUS:
I saw your face when I asked her to dance
And I felt your fingers when I touched her hand
And when I hold her in my arms
Lord, if she only knew
That’s when I close my eyes and I see you
I see your rosy red lips
I see your hair in curls, and your hips
And when she asked me if I love her true
I looked into her eyes and I saw you
CHORUS:
I saw your face when I asked her to dance
And I felt your fingers when I touched her hand
And when I kiss her
Lord, if she only knew
That’s when I close my eyes and I see you
I know that someday I’m gonna pay
‘Cause I can’t forever hide my shame
But until then, well, what am I supposed to do
To leave her would be like leaving you
CHORUS:
I saw your face when I asked her to dance
And I felt your fingers when I touched her hand
And when I lay her down
Lord, if she only knew
That’s when I close my eyes and I see you
And when I lay her down
Lord, if she only knew
That’s when I close my eyes and I see you
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Béla Balogh / fiddle
Tim Ellis / acoustic guitar
Albert Reda / electric bass
Vicki Ambinder / background vocals
- CAVEMAN SONG
Words and music by Brad Creel
I wrote this song years ago and never quite took it seriously. I always played it at bluegrass jams just to crack people up, and I didn’t even think it deserved to be on the CD. Vicki convinced me that it was a fun tune and we should record it straight-up bluegrass style. Ironically, it turned out to be one of my favorite songs on the CD.
Listen to Peter Schwimmer’s banjo opening to see if it reminds you of anything familiar. By the way, Pete is a musical genius.
When I die, lord, I want to go home
Back ten thousand years to a place unknown
Where with my fellow uprights I’d sit around that fire pit
Eating wooly mammoth and carving stone
And I’d find myself a cute cave girl
And I’d be happy in my Fred Flintstone world
I’d probably die at 22 in a fight with a saber tooth
But it’s better than rotting in some bed
And I wouldn’t care if my hair fell out
About my career, or a missed workout
I’d be living off the land, I’d be hunting with my hands
An uncivilized life is what it’s all about
So when I die, lord, won’t you take me back
To where I can make an ancient artifact
That science can find one day when they’re digging up my grave
And they put me on a museum rack
When I die, lord, I want to go home
Back ten thousand years to a place unknown
Where with my fellow uprights I’d sit around that fire pit
Eating wooly mammoth and carving stone
Where with my fellow uprights I’d sit around that fire pit
Eating wooly mammoth and carving stone
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Peter Schwimmer / banjo
Béla Balogh / fiddle
Alan Glickenhaus / mandolin
Tim Ellis / acoustic guitar
Albert Reda / upright bass
Words and music by Brad Creel
My friends call this “the stalker song”. I remember writing this tune after seeing Gillian at the Bagdad Theater. It was one of those songs where the pen pulls your hand across the page. I probably wrote the whole song in ten minutes, and it’s definitely my most requested song when I play live. Vicki and I initially wondered if the fiddle and mandolin solos should be as long as they are (making the song almost six minutes), but then we realized that Gillian’s songs are all pretty long, so we kept the solos.
I actually met Gillian Welch once after a show at the Crystal Ballroom, but you’re going to have to see me perform live to hear the story of what happened!
As I sit here drinking a beer
I get excited and let out a belch
Slapping my knee to my favorite CD
Her name is Gillian Welch
I want to go to her show and say hello
And tell her I want her this much
And I know that she’ll see that we should be married
Just me and Gillian Welch
CHORUS:
Drinking whiskey and listening to Waylon and Willie
Just me and Gillian Welch
Well, I know it sounds silly when I call her Gillie
Just me and Gillian Welch
David Rawlings is bawling into his Tom Collins
For their relationship I did squelch
Drinking whiskey and listening to Waylon and Willie
Just me and Gillian Welch
She’ll change her last name to Creel, Gillian Creel
And everyone will say, “Gillian, what’s this?”
And she’ll say, “A creel is a fishing basket”, and then they will ask it,
“Why grape juice to a basket of fish?”
And then maybe we’ll have a few babies
And name them Dolly and Del
And as a family we’ll pick music magnanimously
Just me and Gillian Welch
CHORUS
Now I lay under the covers, guilty, thinking of others
I know I need some psychiatric help
But I want to bring home from a bar Lucinda and Dar
And have Natalie all to myself
And tonight I won’t dream about no MTV queen
All painted, plastic and such
I’ll dream of a scene, yes, a wonderful scene
Just me and Gillian Welch
Just me and Gillian Welch
Just me and Gillian Welch
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Béla Balogh / fiddle
Alan Glickenhaus / mandolin
Tim Ellis / acoustic guitar
Albert Reda / electric bass
DOWN AT THE BAR
Words and music by Brad Creel
This is probably my second-most requested song. Boy, did we have fun recording this one. We jammed a bunch of my friends into a studio and just pressed “record”…well, actually, it wasn’t that easy. I wrote this one when a girlfriend was always complaining about how I wasn’t good enough. So I thought to myself, well, you might not think I’m rich, handsome, or tall, but there are probably other women out there who might think I am…and a song was born!
This is a great number to perform at bars when everyone is in the drinking mood. I quit drinking about six months after penning this tune, but I always enjoy getting in touch with my inner drunk when I play it live.
Well, I heard you been hanging out with another guy
‘Cause you don’t like my drinking and my getting high
Well, honey, I’m gonna do what any real man would do
And go down to the bar and get back at you
CHORUS:
Down at the bar, where I ain’t nobody’s fool
Down at the bar, as long as I can stay on my stool
Down at the bar, just ten drinks and anyone will do
Down at the bar I’ll be getting back at you
Well, it looks like things are over between you and me
But this old heart can’t be broken, just you wait and see
‘Cause tonight I got Rosie, or maybe Linda Lou
Down at the bar I’ll be getting back at you
CHORUS
Lord knows I ain’t rich, dark, handsome or tall
But just you wait and see who’s under my arm at last call
Well, I met you at the bar two years ago
So I can find me another, that much I know
I ain’t trying to make you jealous, I got nothing to prove
Down at the bar I’ll be getting back at you
CHORUS
Down at the bar I’ll be getting back at you
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Eric West / pedal steel guitar
Tim Ellis / resonator guitar
Zachary Barjona / djembe
Albert Reda / electric bass
Bar crowd (in alphabetical order):
Harris Ambinder, Susan Blythe, Lincoln Crockett, Alison Crosby, Rob Geistwhite, Susan Hawes, Michael Kenna, Abram Rosenthal, David Rubin, Lisa Silbert, Larry "Hollywood" Smith, Camille Solyagua, Ron van Dongen
SONG ABOUT NOTHING
Words and music by Brad Creel
My friend Alison Crosby likes to call this one “Song for the Single Person”, because that’s exactly what it is. I wrote it after seeing a movie about a broken heart and then coming home to an empty house and washing the dishes. I never meant the song to be preachy, but people have said that it has a Buddhist twist to it.
I like how Vicki only allowed Albert Reda’s bass to come in late during the song and leave early. I’ll never forget watching Albert play this. The guy was moving all over the place with his eyes closed, just totally getting into it.
Last night I went to the movies
Saw a picture about a broken heart
As I left, I thought about my life
And then I started up my car
First thing I did when I got home
Was check the messages on my machine
Went to the sink and washed the dishes
And I got them kind of clean
CHORUS:
This is a song about nothing
And nothing is all it will ever be
We all try to make something out of nothing
But sometimes it’s nothing that sets us free
Sometimes it’s nothing that sets us free
So I went upstairs and I sat down
I began to wonder what to do
It was too early to go to bed
So I started to wish that I owned a tube
Well, I went back downstairs and I looked about
I picked up an old magazine
Read an article about the Middle East
And I wondered how people could be so mean
CHORUS
Then I brushed my teeth and I went to bed
Under the covers I did lay
A dog barked and a car drove by
And I closed the door to another day
A dog barked and a car drove by
And I closed the door to another day
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Tim Ellis / electric guitar
Albert Reda / electric bass
DEAR JESUS
Words and Music by Brad Creel
I wrote this one years ago when I was leaving my therapist’s office, and he mentioned to me that he saw this funny bumper sticker on the way to work that said, “DEAR JESUS PLEASE PROTECT ME FROM YOUR FOLLOWERS”. I guess this makes the song part of the bumper sticker genre. People really laugh when they hear this one, and it really rocks when my band plays it live.
The fiddle intro to the song was written by Vicki. She hummed the parts to Béla and he interpreted her humming noises. It was fun watching them figure it out.
CHORUS:
Dear Jesus, please protect me from your followers
I pray for you to use some of your special powers
I know heaven’s here on earth
And thank you for my birth
Dear Jesus, please protect me from your followers
I know one of them has a gun, and he shoots it ‘cause it’s fun
One of them spent my cash, another she smoked my stash
You know, I read about them in the paper, and I’ve seen them on TV
Dear Jesus, please protect me from your followers
CHORUS
Well, I saw one eating meat, he was walking down the street
He had a burger in his hand, so I tried to make a stand
I said, “Hey, man, don’t you know you’re eating your fellow being?”
He shook his fist, called out your name, and kept right on eating
CHORUS
There’s an exception to the rule, ‘cause Jimmy Carter’s cool
But you ain’t gonna see me taking one out on a date
Just give me your nature girls, and your big old beautiful world
And please, please protect me from your followers
CHORUS
I know heaven’s here on earth
And thank you for my birth
Dear Jesus, please protect me from your followers
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Béla Balogh / fiddles
Alan Glickenhaus / mandolin
Tim Ellis / acoustic guitar
Albert Reda / upright bass
Lincoln Crockett / background vocals
I DID IT FOR SOME REASON
Words and Music by Brad Creel
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to record this tune, simply because it’s so self-deprecating (even though that’s part of my shtick). But now when people ask me why I chose to include this song on the CD I say, “Well, I did it for some reason…”. The phrase comes, again, from my therapist, who pointed out that I always said it while trying to explain my actions.
The verses about stealing stuff at the office and waking up with my underwear on my head are made up (sorry to disappoint). The last verse is true, though.
Last night I did a bad thing, I robbed the company
A stapler, an eraser, and a bag of coffee
The next day while on the job the boss gave me a call
He said I was caught on video with a hidden camera on the wall
CHORUS:
I did it for some reason, I just don’t know why
I don’t know why the reason of why did I
What reason it did, know don’t I
I did it for some reason, I just don’t know why
I went out last night to a bar, I wasn’t feeling that great
I drank too much the night before and was out late
So I drank and I stayed out late again
And woke up with my pillow across the room and my underwear on my head
CHORUS
My old girlfriend, well, we broke up a few months ago
She came by to pick up her stuff and to say hello
I’m not gonna say much more except her stuff is still here
I don’t know why, but for some reason old feelings don’t disappear
CHORUS
I did it for some reason, I just don’t know why
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Eric West / pedal steel guitar
Tim Ellis / acoustic guitar
Albert Reda / electric bass
YOUR WELLS ARE RUNNING DRY
Words and music by Brad Creel
I wrote this song while running in Forest Park. I actually wrote most of my songs while running in the woods. I’d get in touch with the rhythm of my stride and then put words to it. This one came to me like a bolt of lighting, so I sprinted back to my van in the parking lot, opened up my glove box, and scribbled the words of the song on the back of my DMV registration so I wouldn’t forget them.
My friend Lincoln Crockett sings back up vocals on this one, and he was able to nail it in a few takes. Now when I sing this live with Lincoln I always think about that day in the studio, because his vocals were the last tracks we recorded for the CD, and it took us two years to get to that point from when first started recording.
You said, “Well, I’ll be good”
And you said, “Well, I’ll treat you right”
I heard you say to me, honey, “Well, I’ll stop staying out late at night”
Don’t you think this country boy ain’t never heard no lie
You know, baby, your wells are running dry
CHORUS:
Your wells are running dry, no more promises can you fill
Don’t you know what happened to poor old Jack and Jill
I can only dip my bucket when the water is running high
And now, baby, your wells are running dry
You said, “Well, I’ll be true”
And, “Well, I’ll give it my all”
And may I quote you saying, “Well, I’ll stop spending at the mall”
Don’t you know us good old boys, we give it a second try
But baby, this time, your wells are running dry
CHORUS
You said, “Well, I love you”
And “Well, forget the past”
You told me, “Well, you’re the first”, and then I find out I’m the last
Honey, I got these tears welling up in my eyes
You know, baby, your wells are running dry
CHORUS
CHORUS
I can only dip my bucket when the water is running high
And now, baby, your wells are running dry
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Peter Schwimmer / banjo
Béla Balogh / fiddle
Alan Glickenhaus / mandolin
Tim Ellis / acoustic guitar
Albert Reda / upright bass
Lincoln Crockett / background vocals
WERE BEFORE
Words and music by Brad Creel
This song came about when I got divorced and moved into an empty house in the middle of the winter (talk about depressing). Actually, “Were Before” means a lot to me because it started me down the path of writing songs. At the time, I found that writing had a “healing” quality, and creating many of these songs helped me get through some tough times.
Tim Ellis came up with the cross-picking guitar arrangement, and he really captured the feeling of the song. In addition to being a top notch guitar player, Tim is also really funny and a great storyteller. He had us cracking up regularly throughout the recording session.
I come home from work and I sit down at the table
And I drink as I stare down at the floor
And I think about a baby in a cradle
Wishing things could be like they were before
CHORUS:
Were before, were before
I knew it would be different when I walked on out the door
And darling, I’m sorry that I’m unable
To make things the way they were before
I spend my days swinging a hammer
You know I always wanted more
And you’re working hard as a schoolteacher
If only things could be like they were before
CHORUS
So I go to bed and I stare up at the ceiling
And I think about a long time ago
And I know you’re out there somewhere feeling
That you wish things were like they were before
CHORUS
And darling, I’m sorry that I’m unable
To make things the way they were before
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Tim Ellis / acoustic guitars
Alan Glickenhaus / mandolin
Albert Reda / electric bass
Vicki Ambinder / background vocals
INTO THE DUST
Words and music by Brad Creel
I love Tim’s guitar work and, especially, Alan Glickenhaus’s mandolin solos on this song. This tune was written while I was driving out to eastern Oregon to, well,“visit a friend”. It’s sort of a breakup song, even though I wrote it before we actually broke up…nothing like trying to stay ahead of the game.
Vicki does a nice job on the backup vocals on this one, as she does with all the backups throughout the CD. I definitely owe a lot to the people behind the scenes, but especially to Vicki, who arranged all the songs, found all the musicians, and took the time make my dog Mazama feel welcome in the recording studio.
I went up to the high desert to visit a friend
I stopped by the mountain next to the fields of pain
And when I cross that valley and go deep into the crust
Like a lonesome bird, I’ll fly into the dust
CHORUS:
Into the dust, into the dust
Like a lonesome bird, I’ll fly into the dust
Into the dust, into the dust
Like a lonesome bird, I’ll fly into the dust
Well, I dove into the water, and the water it was clean
I swam that hollow storm inside the big machine
And when the ice is drifting and I don’t know who to trust
Like a lonesome bird, I’ll fly into the dust
CHORUS:
Into the dust, into the dust
Like a lonesome bird, I’ll fly into the dust
Into the dust, into the dust
Like a lonesome bird, I’ll fly into the dust
Do you see that person, well, he’s living out his life
Wondering about his day and the moment of a knife
Rolls of steel and rain and land, we hold them ‘cause we must
Like a lonesome bird, we fly into the dust
CHORUS:
Into the dust, into the dust
Like a lonesome bird, we fly into the dust
Into the dust, into the dust
Like a lonesome bird, we fly into the dust
CHORUS:
Into the dust, into the dust
Like a lonesome bird, I’ll fly into the dust
Into the dust, into the dust
Like a lonesome bird, I’ll fly into the dust
Brad Creel / lead vocal
Tim Ellis / lead and rhythm acoustic guitars
Alan Glickenhaus / mandolin
Zachary Barjona / djembe
Albert Reda / electric bass
Vicki Ambinder / background vocals
