Past Lives (Acoustic)
by Michael Garfield
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about
The lyrics say it all, really.
But the accompanying painting maybe helps contextualize things:
michaelgarfieldart.com/products/flying-white
Watch the video:
youtu.be/338_qN0bJdM
But the accompanying painting maybe helps contextualize things:
michaelgarfieldart.com/products/flying-white
Watch the video:
youtu.be/338_qN0bJdM
lyrics
I think I used to be scaly
Breathing fire and burning countrysides daily
I remember being giant and scary
Golden, potent, gleaming, loud, and a terror
But the cost of all that tonnage is steep
Guarding horde but all I wanted was sleep
I could soar but they all thought me a creep
So I shed it all for smaller and sweet
Now I need more help but I feel complete
I recall when I had great cosmic power
And before me everybody would cower
If I wanted something it would appear
And the limited all quivered with fear
But it isn’t easy being a djinn
Gold gets dull and silver loses its sheen
And God help you if you are an ifrit
Moving boulders you just long to be freed from the ring
Now I have to work but feel great relief
I have memories of wreaths of white flame
And the trumpets when they called out my name
Best avert your gaze or you’ll go insane
Taught Descartes how to conceive of the plane
But the modern world believes I’m a dream
And that dreams are a distraction from things
And so fails to see me when I appear
Though Reality’s immeasurably queer
In this body I am finally here.
Breathing fire and burning countrysides daily
I remember being giant and scary
Golden, potent, gleaming, loud, and a terror
But the cost of all that tonnage is steep
Guarding horde but all I wanted was sleep
I could soar but they all thought me a creep
So I shed it all for smaller and sweet
Now I need more help but I feel complete
I recall when I had great cosmic power
And before me everybody would cower
If I wanted something it would appear
And the limited all quivered with fear
But it isn’t easy being a djinn
Gold gets dull and silver loses its sheen
And God help you if you are an ifrit
Moving boulders you just long to be freed from the ring
Now I have to work but feel great relief
I have memories of wreaths of white flame
And the trumpets when they called out my name
Best avert your gaze or you’ll go insane
Taught Descartes how to conceive of the plane
But the modern world believes I’m a dream
And that dreams are a distraction from things
And so fails to see me when I appear
Though Reality’s immeasurably queer
In this body I am finally here.
credits
released September 1, 2023
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about
Michael Garfield Santa Fe, New Mexico
Singer-songwriter, avant-guitarist, and live electronic producer all at once, Michael's dynamic live shows and intricate albums takes listeners on emotional trips spanning folk tradition and the avant-garde.
discography
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Apr 2024 -
Nov 2023 -
Sep 2023 -
Aug 2023
contact / help
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