BrianCottrill.com

Dream Trippers self-titled debut CD

All songs written by Brian Cottrill

The Original Atom
I'm looking for answers in the world outside
The universe
The end of time
But the answers are not there
I'm looking for answers deep inside myself
All the way in
Before the begin
And the answers are there
With more questions everywhere

I am a piece of the original atom
Through space and time, it’s so hard to fathom
When infinite energy decided to splatter
I am a piece of the original atom
I can change the world or just watch it happen
When E=mc squared turns to matter
We are a part of the creation start
A fragment torn from the creator's own heart

My Momma's little baby
I'm one in a million
Another face in the crowd
Just a man among billions
I could have been Einstein, Moses, Tubman, or Monet
Alive yesterday, tomorrow, and today
I am mortal, normal, dying, a big mess
Part Nagasaki bombing dust and Cleopatra’s dress
Part Hershey bar and valentine, I was Churchill’s hat for a month
I’m nothing and everything all at once

Gotta break free, gotta break free
Gotta break free, time is against me
Gotta break free, gotta break free
God how this life is just killing me

I am a piece of the original atom
Through space and time, it’s so hard to fathom
When infinite energy decided to splatter
I am a piece of the original atom
God's Big Bang before he made Adam
When E=mc squared turned to matter
We are a part of the creation start
A fragment torn from the creator's own heart

I am here and far away, inside and beyond
I am insignificant and I am God
Out into society, running fearfully
Trapped in mortality, lost in eternity
I'm a tiny spot in space in time
I'm a reason looking for a rhyme

Sleeping In A Dream
I start dreaming on the Fourth of July
I fell asleep, but what is truth or just a lie
Saw my girlfriend making out with another guy
Reading poetry, talked politics and they were getting high

On the TV news they predict tomorrow
The more I understand, the less I really know
She sits and stares weeping in a scream
While I lay here sleeping in a dream

She asks me what's hiding in your pants
I’m too shy to dance or take a chance
Out for herself she has nothing to hide
She never was a bridesmaid, always a bride

How much power would you kill for
How much money would you lie for
How much power would you lie for
How much money would you kill for

Billionaires board a ship to take them into outer space
The poor are left behind to clean the mess they made of this place
Why can't I ever dream when I sleep
Instead I lay here sleeping in a dream

Open your mind
Open your mind and feel the universe glowing
Open your arms and touch the blue oceans flowing
Fly into forever and melt into the light
Bring yourself together and join us on the flight

Open your mind
Open your spirit
Drifting through time
Pulling you near it

Open your mind and see birth of beginning
Open your eyes and feel the universe spinning
Hurt your neighbor hurt yourself and you hurt us all
One is all and all is one as we rise and fall

Open your mind to the feelings deep inside you
You feel the past and pain that others have cried to
Within you are answers to the questions of time
Tomorrow yesterday right now are all alive

Listen to hear it
No need to fear it
Drifting through time
Open your mind

Apple
I took a bite of an apple
It fell from a tree
I took a bite of an apple
Now it’s a part of me

The apple bloomed from the tree
The tree grew from a seed
The seed was under the ground
It grew when the water fell down

I took a bite of an apple
I took a bite

The water came from the sky
A rain cloud up on high
The cloud formed up from the sea
Over the earth water flowing free

The sea came from a comet in outer space
Flying from a far away place
Shooting fast across the universe
With water and rock to disperse

I took a bite of an apple
From a far away galaxy
I took a bite of an apple
Now it’s a part of me

What Were You Thinking
You can’t do it on your own
No you’re not that smart
Someone has to tell you how to act
Tell you what to do
Tell you what to think

Was it posted by a friend?
Did you hear them say it on TV?
Did you read it everywhere?
Or just one man’s conspiracy?

Oh what were you thinking
Oh tell me do you think at all
It’s not that hard to know who to believe
Oh what were you thinking
You better start before we’re done
Wake up now you’ve fallen under a spell and been deceived

Do you even care about the facts?
Do you even care about the truth?
Is it coming from the pulpit?
Is it coming from the oval office?
Is it coming in a tweet?

Did you see it with your eyes?
Don’t let them say it never happened
And when the story gets revised
If you believe it then I’m laughing

Use your brain, use your brain, use your brain,
If you got one to use

I know the minute we were done
When we were lost and hope was gone
When reality became fiction and fiction became reality

They are trying to divide us
Hate can’t be stronger than love

Fade To Black
Through the day I hear your voice
And in my mind, I made the choice
You know the words to free me
Why can’t you just believe me

In the night I see your face
You look at me, I’m a disgrace
Now I know that I can’t turn back
Don’t say goodbye, just fade to black

Say goodbye
Feel so lost and lonely
Say goodbye
No one really knows me

Through the fog and in the rain
I look for ways to stop the pain
Sometimes it’s never ending
I live my life pretending

Eternity goes on and on
And now I see, it won’t be long
Soon we will be together
Tomorrow lasts forever

Say goodbye
You know that I can’t turn back
Say goodbye
And fade to black

Saints Of The Holler - Devil's Garden EP

All music and lyrics by Brian Cottrill

Devil's Garden

I crash landed in the darkest night
I woke confused and infected
I’m holding all the pain inside
You showed me a new perspective
Hypnotized by the perfume
The flowers start to bloom

In the devil’s garden
In the devil’s garden
In the devil’s garden
Come on in

My problems seem to disappear
I can have it any way I want
I see I’m dying in the mirror
I laugh so nonchalant
I never felt love this strong
I feel like I belong

A garden this beautiful
You may never want to leave
If you decide to leave you can’t
No you can’t

I keep your picture by my bed
But I can’t recognize you
I drank the wine and refused the bread
I fell down naked on the avenue
In the cold and on the street
Oh the fruit grows sweet

In the devil’s garden
In the devil’s garden
In the devil’s garden
Come on in

So Alive

Up early in the morning
Take the bus in to town
It’s cold outside and raining
My job it wears me down
But when I get to see you
Got you by my side
When you’re here with me
I feel so alive

I may not have a tomorrow
I may not have next week
I may not have any money
Some days my future’s looking bleak
But I’ve got today
Got you by my side
When you’re here with me
I feel so alive

Forget about the politicians
Forget about the traffic jam
Forget about your day in the office
Just come over here and take my hand

Better Than Living This Way

I’m asking you, do you want your freedom
I’m asking you, can you find a way
You tell me to try and pretend
I just can’t get away from those mistakes that I made

Flashes before my eyes
Cornered and terrified
Why do I feel so ashamed
It’s really hard to see
I know it’s gotta be
Better than living this way

Better than living this way
I was so wrong I didn’t know
Better than living this way
I have no where else I can go
Better than living this way
Didn’t know I could stoop so low

When I fell down, there was no bottom
I needed help, you showed me the door
Does it make a difference to you
When you try to look back when did you know we were through

Look me straight in the eye
Tell me it’s not a lie
Why do I feel so betrayed
It’s time for me to go
You just gotta know that it’s
Better than living this way

Flashes before my eyes
Cornered and terrified
Why do I feel so ashamed
It’s really hard to see
I know it’s gotta be
Better than living this way

Change

It's burning in my brain
It's under my skin
It's time for a change
Watch the revolution begin
Your archaic rules need to go the way of the dinosaur
Yesterday's philosophies are as dead as their philosophers

The time is now
The past looks strange
Throw away your hate before it's too late
It's time for a change
The time is now
Let the world rearrange
We are parting ways with your old ways
It's time for a change

The new face of prejudice
Looks a lot like the old
Different is not a crime
Let the truth be told

Gold sits on the throne
But everything must die
Greed is all we know
We believed the lie

The time is now
The past looks strange
Throw away your hate before it's too late
It's time for a change
The time is now
Let's break the chains
One man one vote, my God what a joke
It's time for a change

Megaphone Inside My Head
All songs written by Brian Cottrill
Copyright 2020
BMI

Gonna Love You

I’m gonna love you til the day I die
I’m gonna love you through and through
I’m gonna love you though I don’t know why
I only know I do, I do

Spin That Record

Hello how ya doin
Ya wanna get together tonight
Yeah I’ve been on the run
I wanna have some fun
I’m hungry and ready to bite

You say you want it
I want it more
You say you need it
I need it more
Can’t live without it
Don’t leave no doubt about it

Spin that record
Baby let’s rock and roll
Spin that record
Shake it and lose control
Spin that record
Baby just let it go
Spin that record
Feel it all down below

I don’t feel like waiting
I gotta get some action today
Yeah you got it all
You can rock and roll
You know how to take me away

You say you want it
I want it more
You say you need it
I need it more
Can’t live without it
Don’t leave no doubt about it

Spin that record
Baby let’s rock and roll
Spin that record
Shake it and lose control
Spin that record
Feel it all down below
Spin that record
Baby let’s see the show

Spin that record
Baby just let it go
Spin that record
Feel it all down below
Spin That Record
Baby let’s see the show
Spin That Record
Baby let’s rock and roll
Spin that record

Teenage Kids

I ain’t gonna cut my hair, oh no
I got no cool clothes to wear, oh no
I got some looks from the cutest girl
Yeah, we’re gonna take over the world

We were teenage kids in a rock and roll band
Someone called the cops and practice was canned
We're playing at the talent show making a stand
We were teenage kids in a rock and roll band

Got me a guitar a yard sale, oh yeah
It was 5 bucks so what the hell, oh yeah
Wick got an amp and got a bass
Turn up the volume make a face

We were teenage kids in a rock and roll band
We don't have any groupies don't have no fans
The teacher heard our lyrics and we got banned
We were teenage kids in a rock and roll band
Just learn a few chords
And we’re on our way
Just pound on the drums
And we hit the stage
We were teenage kids in a rock and roll band
Our parents think it's noise they don't understand
We gonna have the crowd at our command
We were teenage kids in a rock and roll band

We were teenage kids in a rock and roll band
We need to learn how to play yeah we need a plan
These guitars will take us to the promised land
We were teenage kids in a rock and roll band

You Can’t Stop Me

You don’t understand my life
You don’t like the things I say
Your time has come and gone
get out of my way

You can’t stop me
When you think you got me
You can’t stop me
You can do your best knock me down
On no you’ll never stop me now

I don’t wanna hear it anymore
Don’t tell me what to do
I’m gonna sing my song
Don’t wanna be like you
You can’t stop me
When you think you got me
You can’t stop me
You can do your best knock me down
On no you’ll never stop me now

You can’t stop me
You can’t stop me
You can’t stop me
You can’t stop me

Take It Or Leave It

Take it or leave it
It's over and done
You better believe it
You're not the only one

Take it or leave it
It's falling apart
If you could see it
Hiding in the dark

You say I’m always wrong
And maybe you’re right
But this is taking too long
Goodbye goodbye

Take it or leave it
You had your fun
You sayin’ you feel that
You're not the chosen one

Take it or leave it
It’s slipping away
If you really mean it
You’d be leading the parade

You shoot your arrow
Close your eyes you can’t see
When you lost your hero
Don’t blame it on me
Take it or leave it
You’re closing the door
I’m thinking you need it
Yea you’ll be back for more

Take it or leave it
Take it or leave it
Take it or leave it
Take it or leave it

Boyfriend

You’re beautiful, yeah you look amazing
You’re breathtaking and captivating
Do you ever feel like misbehaving
I gotta know who you’re dating

Baby can I be your boyfriend
We I could be the one for you
Baby can I be your boyfriend
Baby can I be your boyfriend

When your day is bad and you’re feeling blue
When you need somebody you can talk to
The world out there is mean and cruel
I’m gonna be right here for you

Baby can I be your boyfriend
We I could be the one for you
Baby can I be your boyfriend
Baby can I be your boyfriend

Don’t Tell Me What To Do

You got your big ego and you vamp, Marshall stacks
Turn up the stereo, I’ve got a 5 watt combo amp
And it’s on fire now
You want authority and you say you got God
In the minority, I won’t listen to a fraud

Don’t ya dare try to tell me what to do
I don’t care, scream and yell, it’s no use
Don’t ya dare try to tell me what to do

You got some money and I see it buys friends
Here’s something funny now, tune in for how the movie ends
Can’t take it with you now
You want something beautiful but you have to control
So diabolical, so selfish, nothing to behold

Don’t ya dare try to tell me what to do
I don’t care, scream and yell, it’s no use
Don’t ya dare try to tell me what to do
Don’t ya dare try to tell me what to do

What’s Her Name

She just appears and then she disappears
She appears in my fears and dreams
She’s gone where did she go
I’ve got to say hello
My chances falling down like dominoes

She’s got me mesmerized
I’m fantasizing about her
I look into her eyes
What’s her name?
What’s her name?
I gotta know what’s her name?
What’s her name?

It’s no surprise she wears a new disguise
My heart melts look into her eyes
I sit up in my bed
Just a ghost in my head
Conjure her up is she alive or dead

She’s got me mesmerized
I’m fantasizing about her
I look into her eyes
What’s her name?
What’s her name?
I gotta know what’s her name?
What’s her name?

Ice Cream Angel Baby

When the Summer sun is hot and dry
There’s a place I go that’s cool inside
My dream girl I have found her
She’ll be standing by the counter
She’ll say, “How can I help you?”

My ice cream angel baby at the Dairy Queen
My ice cream angel baby at the Dairy Queen

They got Snickerdoodle cookie dough
Blizzards made from chocolate Oreo
Strawberry sundae pleasure
Raspberry slushy treasure
My angel’s sweeter than them all

My ice cream angel baby at the Dairy Queen
My ice cream angel baby at the Dairy Queen

She’s got the sweetest smile
One look just drives me wild
Her eyes are filled with fun
One look and she inspires
She sets my soul on fire
When she laughs my heart is done

My ice cream angel baby at the Dairy Queen
My ice cream angel baby at the Dairy Queen

If Tomorrow Never Comes

I should known something had changed
I should have known something felt wrong
I wish felt the joy of every second I held you close to me
Before everything was gone

If tomorrow never comes
And this darkness never turns to light
If tomorrow never comes
At least I have you tonight

No matter what the doctors say
As long as I can breathe
I won't give up the fight, I won't quit holding on
We both have to believe

If tomorrow never comes
And this darkness never turns to light
If tomorrow never comes
At least I have you tonight

I wish the cancer could be gone
And now it won’t be long
Could our time be ending
There’s no sense in pretending

If tomorrow never comes
And this darkness never turns to light
If tomorrow never comes
At least I have you tonight

All songs written by Brian Cottrill

Through The Keyhole

Remember My Name

Someday after you've collected all the payments from the bankers and prostitutes you owned
Someday after you've enjoyed the favors from the queens and pawns you control

When you're upside down looking up
When your plans dry up with your luck
When there's no escape and you're a sitting duck
Don't forget
No, Just remember
Remember my name

Someday when society doesn't belong to you and singers have stopped singing your song
Someday when all of your followers and fake friends and hangers on have gone

When a winter storm steals your coat
When your stomach turns up in your throat
When you're lost at sea with no one to steer the boat
Don't forget
No, Just remember
Remember my name

Someday maybe you'll see everyone pushed aside in the name of progress
Someday maybe you'll see what you've done but I guess that might be too much to expect

Erica

When you're tired at the end of the day
All the demands, no one understands what you have to say
When the world looks down on you again
Take a while to stop and smile
You’ll win in the end

Erica, you say you don’t know what to do
Erica, you painted your world blue
Don’t worry, it’s a journey that you choose
Erica, I believe in you

When it rains outside and dark is moving in
You’re always smart, you got the heart
To prove yourself again
When you’re wondering, don’t overthink what’s done
You crack me up, let’s laugh a lot
Go out and have some fun

Erica, you say you don’t know what to do
Erica, you painted your world blue
Don’t worry, it’s a journey that you choose
Erica, I believe in you

All I've Got Is You

There's two dollars in my wallet
there never seems to be much more
spent the morning dark inside the closet
all alone I lock the door
On my clothes are wrinkled
I've got nothing I can wear
someone calls out your name
I crumble in despair
I could talk about the pain
but I know that you don't care
no no

Don't leave me now
What am I gonna do
I'm alone and lost
all I've got is you

I see that look in your eye
it says the end is coming soon
now I sit and wonder why
Or pace up and down across the room

I can't watch TV
the lines just fade into red
I feel sick every day
I just lay around in bed
I can't look at your picture
it reminds me of what
you said

Our time together just can’t be history
I took advantage of you
You took advantage of me
I thought you would get mad but
You just cot yourself free
And left

All I've got is you
All I've got is you
All I've got is you
Don't leave me now

Lace

Two shadows against the window blind
Coming from the house next door
The outline of Sally's figure is easily adored
A cool breeze bows this autumn night
And the leaves dance in the wind
The lights go out, the shadows fade
A silent rage begins

Sally looks so beautiful in the morning light
On the front porch all dressed in lace
She thinks about last night
Well he walks toward her and draws in close
As he goes to kiss her goodbye
But she can't look, she turns away
And slowly walks inside

So she ain't the Virgin Mary, and she's made a few mistakes
But can't you sense the innocence and can't you see her face
There's an aura around her that could calm the human race
Can you believe she's standing there in that white dress and lace

Time moves on the seasons change
But Sally never will
Her soft, sad face tells all there is
She has to think to feel
She holds a crucifix
Her fingers wrapped in rosaries
She's filled with centuries of guilt
Thinks that's how it's supposed to be

Oh Baby have you ever been lonely
Have you ever been scared and cold
Baby have you ever needed someone
Have you ever needed a warm heart to hold

There's a big blue car in front of Sally's house
It's been there for weeks
It's been driven down a thousand roads
But no guilty history
Now this guy thinks what he wants
No matter what the signs may say
If you really want something bad enough
You have to be blind
You have to look the other way

Arrangements made, everyone's in place
Forget about the past
Together they'll walk down the aisle
But she will come in last
There's a stain on her wedding dress
No one can see the place
But she'll never forget it's there
Underneath all that lace

The Murder Farm

The lonely hearts club ad said, "Wealthy widower
With a beautiful home where we could live"
You sent them love letters, they ran away with you
They were never seen alive again

You took all their money and you tied them up
And you strangled them to death
It really turns you on to hear them scream
Is that what you confessed
Dorothy, and Asta and her three kids you killed in Quiet Dell
You planned to marry Bessie, and take her underground, to torture in your cell

You hit 'em with a hammer to the head
You're gonna hang by the neck till dead
You hit 'em with a hammer to the head
You're going to hang by the neck till dead

After they arrested you, a lynch mob formed to kill
They had to move your trial to the opera hall
The jury came back quick
Guilty in the first degree
A verdict cheered by one and all

Is your name Harry Powers, or Cornelius Pierson, or is it Herman Drenth
The ad says you're a lonely widower, but you have a chamber of death
Are you a furniture salesman, an engineer, or run the Fairmont Hotel
Did you kill fifty before you killed these five, and will you ever tell

You hit 'em with a hammer to the head
You're gonna hang by the neck till dead
You hit 'em with a hammer to the head
You're going to hang by the neck till dead

The crowd has gathered round
Your last 13 steps
They put a black hood over your head
Your hands and feet are tied
You fall through the trap below
The doctors say that you are dead

Lost And Forgotten

Second left after the light and underneath the bridge
She holds a paper bag with extra clothes in it
Turn the lights out kill the engine coast in quietly around the back
Seems funny now I don’t know why we did the things we did

And I wonder if you’ll ever hear this song
Cause I’ll never figure out where things went wrong

I don’t know why every time they have to put you down
You can’t see through the things they do how they push you around
Do you know where you’re going
Do you know where you’ve been and remember when
They took us for granted and they left us all alone
We were lost and forgotten (forever) by everyone

As I’m digging in the sand she hands the box to me
Don’t know if I can find a spot to dig it up again
Can’t she see that I’m the only one who hangs on every word she says
She never saw that I was there for her until the end
No I’ll never know just what was going on
And I wonder can you hear me sing this song

I don’t know why every time they have to put you down
You can’t see through the things they do how they kick you around
Lost and forgotten we were together and then
Lost and forgotten do you remember when
We were lost and forgotten we were together then
Lost and forgotten do you remember when we were lost

When The Fire Comes

Ooo when the fire comes there’s nowhere to go run and hide
You know I want you near, I want you here by my side
Ooo when the fire comes, no it doesn’t care who it harms
You know I want you near, I want you here in my arms

I’m too scared to watch the TV news reveal disasters of the day
And I’m nervous as I think of you, a 1000 miles away

Another day another night of time, together we stare at the moon
I guess there’s no way we can make it last, the end will come too soon

Ooo we’re gonna fall
Ooo I feel so small
Who will end it all

Ooo there is nowhere to run and hide
Ooo you know I want you in my arms
Yea you better run
When the fire comes

Uncertain Keyhole Jangle

Everybody out on the street was making big predictions, yeah
But you know you can’t get too caught up in all this science-fiction, no
You can’t spend your whole life worrying if you’ve got a date, no
Tomorrow you might wake up and meet somebody that was worth the wait, yeah
And through the fog with her umbrella in the rain
I see her laugh, try to forget about the pain
Don’t let it drag you down there’s so much more
Don’t let it fill you up we’re never sure
Look through the keyhole look at the painting that is hanging on the wall
Look through the keyhole see all there is to see I’m not so sure that’s all

The other day I saw a little girl all dressed in black, yeah
She said she was leaving home probably never coming back, no
I said now Janie how bad can your life really be, huh
She said you don’t know what I’ve been through I don’t need you singing songs about me, no
Lay down my head and I pull the covers tight
Down through the cracks come all the monsters of the night
The things they do to me they are obscene
I can’t run I cannot hide I cannot scream
I’m a toy soldier marching in line to battle blindfold on my face
Look in the newspaper look in the telescope now put me in my place

So now I’m driving down the road on my way to see your friend, yeah
And I’m thinking you never really know what’s coming around the next bend, no
There’s not much we can do living with this uncertainty, no
Not much I’ll ever really know not much I’ll ever get to see, no

Sammie Lee

A knock at the door told Texie May
Her husband was killed in the mine
She had a young daughter and another on the way
She’ll figure out how to get by

Texie May, she took sick
Died following a surgery
Granny had to raise these little girls
Nancy and Sammie Lee

In a four room house in the hills
Granny and Grand Pap did the best they could
Took ‘em to church, sang hymns to Jesus, tried to teach them good

And they sang hallelujah
Hallelujah
Praise the Lord
Amen

They didn’t have much
No bath or running water
Just an outhouse and a well
No fancy clothes
Just one good dress when you hear that church bell

After church, family and friends
Came by for dinner and a song
Granny played her fiddle, Aunt Winnie on guitar
Everyone sang along

Sammie Lee got married at 15
Roger had job and a car
They got an apartment
She had had something now
Man she felt like a star

Roger just finished two years in the army
Was cutting meat for the grocery store
Soon they had three baby boys
Couldn’t ask for anything more

Sammie Lee got cancer
The odds were not good
An operation and radiation blasts
She couldn’t leave her little boys
Without a mother that fast

Roger got run over by an asphalt truck
Inspecting roads for the state
They told him he could collect disabled checks
He worked past the age of 68

Sammie Lee beat cancer again and again
Roger beat it once and fights it still
Now they got grandkids and great grandkids
They’re alive and together still

Gates Of Venus

We fly through the lonesome darkness
Look out on the golden ray
Leave your worries far behind us
I'll take you far away

Inside the gates of Venus
We're hiding no one can see us
You fire up a sexy storm
I know you'll keep my body warm tonight
Inside the gates of Venus

Outside it is cold and empty
Inside you hold on to me
Tonight they are looking for us
But they will never see

Inside the gates of Venus
We're hiding no one can see us
You fire up a sexy storm
I know you'll keep my body warm tonight
Inside the gates of Venus

Won't you come through the gates
Oh won't you come through the gates
Goddess of love and beauty
I fall for all your charms
I only have one duty
Just fall into your arms
Everyone's a bit insane
But love can free us from the pain tonight
Inside the gates of Venus

Inside the gates of Venus
We're hiding no one can see us
We won't wait to eat our slice
We'll live inside this paradise tonight
Inside the gates of Venus