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Night Birds

by Stephen Simmons

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During the "Hearsay" recording sessions we recorded a song I had written put to a Bukowski poem (Bluebird). Musically it didn't fit the laid back country folk feel of the rest of the album, and I was never able to get clearance from Bukowski's estate to use it anyway; so the track went unreleased. A few years later I stumbled across another song about birds that I had written but never recorded. I rearranged it to the melody I wrote for the poem and re-recorded it using the original band tracks. We had recorded it late at night live in the studio (like the rest of that album) and I always loved the music on the recording. So I'm glad for it to finally see the light of day.

lyrics

NIGHT BIRDS

A bottle of whiskey in a flask
Some old dirt road from my past
It seems a bit risky to reminisce
Confuse the meaning of history’s kiss

But you don’t know when it’s your first time
Just try to breathe in, try to relax, try not to try

A truck on the back roads, a Saturday night
The cage ajar, two birds take flight
Hills come alive as the night birds sing
Sixteen and spreading young wings

An old man in a country store sells you the Marlboro Lights
With the crow’s feet walking right out of his eyes
Youth is wasted on their own
Time done been ain’t no more, but not the want

Dreams play tricks on my old mind
Where time stands still as the past desires

It’s nice enough that the night birds still sing
But these days only in my dreams





Words and Music by Stephen Simmons / Shiny Geode Music / SESAC all rights reserved

credits

released July 28, 2016
Recorded & Mixed at Eastwood Studios by Eric Fritsch
Mastered by Alex McCollough at True East Mastering

Stephen Simmons: acoustic guitar, vocals
Eric Fritsch: electric guitar
Alex McCollough: pedal steel guitar
Jen Gunderman: b-3, piano
Tim Marks: bass
Martin Lynds: drums

Cover artwork: Stephen Simmons

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Stephen Simmons Nashville, Tennessee

Stephen Simmons was raised in the small town of Woodbury, Tennessee. As a songwriter and Ten years as a Road Dog, Stephen’s vision has grown to entail more than just reflections of rural America. Stephen’s records (which were compared to everyone from Johnny Cash to Ryan Adams) combine virtuosic songcraft and musicianship with unparalleled artistic honesty. ... more

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