Get all 23 Beth Patterson releases available on Bandcamp and save 35%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Singles [comp.], Firebrand [comp.], Return to Our Caves / This Goes to Eleven [single], Red Lenses [single], A Winter's Day [single], Air Dance [single], Digging Up My Bones [single], Senzorga [EP], and 15 more.
1. |
Scorch
03:06
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Common sense would tell us
To share and share alike
But now the iron’s hot as hell
I say it’s time to strike
I sought to ask one question:
Have once again I failed?
What must I do to qualify,
My efforts to avail?
She told me scorch
Clear the damage with a torch
Raze it to the ground and start it all again
Drive out all impurities
Purging flame will set you free
Rise from the scree and face down what’s within
Go forth and scorch
For don’t you know that if you strike
An iron that’s still hot
Then it won’t even matter
If you qualify or not
I posed another question:
How can I sustain the burn?
How can I keep on going
With blind corners every turn?
She told me scorch
Clear the damage with a torch
Raze it to the ground and start it all again
Drive out all impurities
Purging flame will set you free
Rise from the scree and face down what’s within
Go forth and scorch
I had a final question
(The darkest of my fears):
Can it truly break the curse
That I’ve borne so many years?
No more the sword of Damocles
Will hang above your head
A lion’s heart, a steady hand
Will be your lot instead
She told me scorch
Clear the damage with a torch
Raze it to the ground and start it all again
Drive out all impurities
Purging flame will set you free
Rise from the scree and face down what’s within
Go forth and scorch
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2. |
Say Nothing and Run Free
05:06
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Darkening sky
Sun and moon exchange a passing glance
Thoughts asunder, twinkling fires as they fly
Catch them all
Gather up into a soul jar
They light the way and clarify...
An open road
My chance at last
To rise above
But I’m falling fast
Still I will say nothing and run free
Until the scars no longer disfigure me
Safe in my head
Protective bubble, thin cocoon of hope
A room of one’s own brings the wolf right to my door
Who’s afraid?
It’s only blind anticipation
A signal sent to something more...
An open road
My chance at last
To rise above
But I’m falling fast
Still I will say nothing and run free
Until the cards reveal my place to be
Slowly it dawns
The sharpest blade would never hurt me now
I feel the earth tilt, and I laugh at fading stars
The world still spins
So build a loop and throw me in
It’s worth the journey and the scars...
An open road
My chance at last
To rise above
But I’m falling fast
Still I will say nothing and run free
Until the gods decide to favor me
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3. |
Nature of the Beast
03:26
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Bring the cat in, darlin’
Instinct is still wild
He’s keeping that poor thing alive
To play with it awhile
He’s really such a sweetheart
It’s really not his style
But he’s letting that thing live So he can play with it awhile
I say...
catchit letitgo, catchit letitgo, catchit catchit
cachtit letitgo, catchit letitgo NOW!
Nature is cruel
That’s the natural order of things
But somehow in the equation
There’s something still missing
It’s all about the hunt
With no compassion in the least
Act and reenact
It’s just the nature of the beast
We’re not meant to understand
How nature has no empathy
But all the same, we’re thinking
He should let that poor thing be
It’s not for us to intervene
With creatures wild and free
But a tame feline should put that thing
Out of its misery
I say...
catchit letitgo, catchit letitgo, catchit catchit
cachtit letitgo, catchit letitgo NOW!
Nature is cruel
That’s the natural order of things
But somehow in the equation
There’s something still missing
It’s all about the hunt
With no compassion in the least
Act and reenact
It’s just the nature of the beast
He was born domestic
That’s why it just seems wrong
Why does this loving pussycat
Keep stringing it along?
Something doesn’t add up
For a cat that loves to play
He’s only showing interest
When it tries to run away
We’ve tried to teach him kindness
But he he hasn’t shown it yet
He might lose a bit a wildness
Once we take him to the vet
I say...
catchit letitgo, catchit letitgo, catchit catchit
cachtit letitgo, catchit letitgo NOW!
Nature is cruel
That’s the natural order of things
But somehow in the equation
There’s something still missing
It’s all about the hunt
With no compassion in the least
Act and reenact
It’s just the nature of the beast
I say...
catchit letitgo, catchit letitgo, catchit catchit
cachtit letitgo, catchit letitgo NOW!
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4. |
Viceroy
03:47
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Viceroy, pretty viceroy, what are we posing as?
Who is it we are pretending to be?
I promise I won’t speak my thoughts when I see you
As long as you swear not to tell yours to me
Boldly displaying my colors of brashness
The birds unaware that I’m quite good to eat
But all things delectable are still ephemeral
And in time the wine would no longer be sweet
Viceroy, pretty viceroy, what are we posing as?
Who is it we are pretending to be?
I promise I won’t speak my thoughts when I see you
As long as you swear not to tell yours to me
Glorious part of the splendor that moves me
To shed my disguise, the American dream
“Your buildings and your eyes,” but it’s back now to improvise
Finding my way again, swimming downstream
Viceroy, pretty viceroy, what are we posing as?
Who is it we are pretending to be?
I promise I won’t speak my thoughts when I see you
As long as you swear not to tell yours to me
Caught in the middle, a lunatic riddle
The bovine jumped high by the light of the moon
The laughing dog rises, illusion surprises
And now that we’ve finished this dish, shall we spoon?
Viceroy, pretty viceroy, what are we posing as?
Who is it we are pretending to be?
I promise I won’t speak my thoughts when I see you
As long as you swear not to tell yours to me
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5. |
Unsurpassed
03:40
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Lonely spark of hope is sought
A miracle cannot be bought
My room upstairs a hermit’s lair
With just my sketchbook and my thoughts
I ask the gods of reason now
Some mercy could they please allow
Compassion’s crumbs on twiddled thumbs
I beg to have my turn somehow
The half moon shines a proud display
It cruelly mocks me while I pray
The mirth below an undertow
I only turn my face away
Frozen in my silent stare
While others take the lion’s share
No matter how I shatter now
Convince myself that I don’t care
The roads I’ve trod, the paths I’ve taken
Paradigms of progress shaken
I’d trade it all for a shred of stability
Having loved the seeds I’ve planted
Just this once may I be granted
A taste of what the real world seems to be
Refusing to give in to grief
And clinging to this mad belief
A heresy, insanity
I always thought would bring relief
My cold bed coaxes me at last
To rest my head from thoughts amassed
What can I lose, each day I choose
To hold out for the unsurpassed
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6. |
Curve
02:48
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Sometimes when life throws you a curve
You think it’s less than you deserve
But you’ve got to hold on and see what’s in store
We’ve all got some crossroads to bear
But if you pause to wonder there,
You might find that it’s better than before
Silver stars in smoky bars
The sound of Argentine guitars
Oh, life throws you a curve
Life throws you a curve
Sometimes when life throws you a curve
You hold fast and refuse to swerve
But you’ve got to stop, reflect, and count your tears
For fate so often has a twist
But ask yourself why you resist
It might be the very reason for your fears
Raising sights to greater heights
A jaguar stalking in the night
Silver stars in smoky bars
The sound of Argentine guitars
Oh, life throws you a curve
Life throws you a curve
Nothing you can do to change the force of nature’s plans
Only stop to see what sort of gift is in its hands
Sometimes when life throws you a curve
You seize the moment to preserve
But you’ve got to lose the fear that it won’t last
For there’s only here and there’s only now
So shake down from your worried brow
The phantoms of the future and the past
Flowers bloom beneath the sea
A tiny goddess running free
Raising sights to greater heights
A jaguar stalking in the night
Silver stars in smoky bars
The sound of Argentine guitars
Oh, life throws you a curve
Life throws you a curve
Life throws you a curve
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7. |
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8. |
Labyrinth
02:55
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Into the labyrinth
Cut down to just a tenth
Nothing to face but your thoughts
Omen and oracle
Phantasmagorical
Casting and drawing their lots
Cast the final stone or simply vanish in a heartbeat
Throw a phony trail or turn around and make tracks
Lose yourself in spirals or find yourself as incomplete
Hide away from logic and slip through the cracks
Robbed of an innocence
Plagued by a pestilence
In a sense, that would be fine
Counting the missing lights
Working up appetites
Searching for something divine
Some would gladly take a leap of faith into the darkness
Some know deeper hells than just a quiet despair
Some would walk away to flee the prospect of a falseness
Some are terrified to face emotion in there
Malbec and sassafras
Smoke and the looking glass
No time for stake in a claim
Calling and camouflage
Saving and sabotage
Sometimes are one and the same
Nothing to be done but bunker down like in a hurricane
Try in vain to change or just accept what you see
Look into the truth or simply shatter like a windowpane
Rest assured there’s not a thing to fear from me...
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9. |
Lyrebird
03:04
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Come on, pretty girl, let the tears flow free
You don’t have to hold them back for me
It’ll be okay, from what I’ve heard
The world’s gonna send you a lyrebird
And when that bird flies from its cage,
The world’s gonna put you up on stage
And when that stage wins you no fame,
The world’s gonna send you a crooked game
And when that game tries to steal your light,
The world’s gonna send you a shining knight
And when that knight denounces you,
The world’s gonna send you a final clue
And when your heart begins to break,
Listen to my words, for your own damn sake
If you resolve to end the hurt
Then give the world its just dessert
And if that dessert’s not good enough
Then give the world a talk so tough
And if that tough can see you through,
Then give the world some sweetness, too
And if you see it in their eyes
Then teach the world to recognize
And if you overcome at last,
Then vicious lies won’t come to pass
And if you live, or if you die
The world’s too big to at least not try
It’s the scariest thing you’ll ever do
But if you make ‘em smile, you just might smile, too
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10. |
Dangerous Things
04:20
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Sometimes too much perspective
Is more dangerous than none
Sometimes a lofty pedestal
More deadly than a gun
A shining adulation
That you yourself create
Can be the deadly blindfold
That seals your self-made fate
Don’t go there
It’s where angels fear to tread
Don’t lose yourself in fantasy
You’ve got to keep your head
Learn the rules as you go along
Blindfolded and spun around
Dangerous things
They all abound
Sometimes a frivolous game
Is more treacherous than war
So choose your battles carefully
And games to just ignore
Sometimes great expectations
Can hurt more than the lash
Sometimes a single candle
Can reduce a tower to ash
Don’t go there
It’s where angels fear to tread
Don’t lose yourself in fantasy
You’ve got to keep your head
Learn the rules as you go along
Blindfolded and spun around
Dangerous things
They all abound
Sometimes wishes are more potent
Than curses flung in ire
And sometimes they are twice as jinxed
When forged in passion’s fire
So be careful what you wish for
Or the dreams you might reveal
In the long run they may haunt you
And distort your true ideals
Don’t go there
It’s where angels fear to tread
Don’t lose yourself in fantasy
You’ve got to keep your head
Learn the rules as you go along
Blindfolded and spun around
Dangerous things
They all abound
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11. |
You and Your Shadow
03:51
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You and your shadow
Compelling and shy
Full of secrets and sweet mystery
And a beautiful vision,
Though I can’t catch a dream,
If I sit still enough, I might see
And though I wasn’t searching
For what I have found
It could not be more perfectly planned
So I’ll wait for that moment
In motionless bliss
Like a butterfly lights on my hand
So go where you want to
And come when you will
Always welcome, but never confined
For there’s plenty of room
For you and your shadow
In my heart, if you feel so inclined
There’s lore to be laughed at
And words to be said
There are songs that are still yet unsung
Oh, the tales ripe for telling
As they slowly unfold
Such perfection at the tip of your tongue
My legs won’t support me
I can’t catch my breath
It escapes when your lips are on mine
Running wild in a heartbeat
I’ll savor one pulse
As I’m frozen this moment in time
So go where you want to
And come when you will
Always welcome, but never confined
For there’s plenty of room
For you and your shadow
In my heart, if you feel so inclined
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Beth Patterson New Orleans, Louisiana
**Click the banner at the top of the page for the Stone Groove merch store**
Beth Patterson -
a Louisiana player of the Irish bouzouki who easily crosses genre boundaries ranging from Irish to Cajun to Metal. She has performed in 18 countries across the Americas, Europe, Oceania & Asia. She has 7 solo albums & appearances on over 170 albums, soundtracks, videos, commercials & voice-overs.
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