Vortex (Into The)

3 Mallory Arms

DUEL 1971

SAVE IT FOR A RAINY DAY

save it for a rainy day. put it under the covers.
tie it with a ribbon and cast it to the wind.
put it in a bottle and toss it out to sea.
wrap in a present and put it under an old oak tree.
tear it from its tether and say a silent prayer.
burn it in a bonfire and watch the smoke evaporate.
take it to the river and fling it in the current deep.
save it for a rainy day. put it where the heart lies.

DREAMWALKER

FOR JOHN AND PAUL

THINGS WE SAID TODAY


WALRUS GUMBOOT

MORE AND MORE

DREAMWALKER


OCTOBER


IT'S JUST LIFE


DREAMTHEME

DREAMLAND

In 2005 I wrote, directed and produced an indie film called
DREAMLAND. It told the story of an amusement park in
Greenville, SC that was open from the 1920's to the 1940's.
It was owned and operated by the Floyd Family. This special
place meant alot to members of "The Greatest Generation"
who spent their youth there during the Great Depression
and World War II. The story of DREAMLAND is one of
love, hope and devotion. I also wrote and recorded a
song cycle based on the DREAMLAND story. It is a story
worthy of such heartfelt efforts.

Here is the Dreamland Film split into 4 parts.

DEMOS

2 NEW SONGS (INSTRUMENTAL VERSIONS)
"DEMOS FOR THE BAND." ALL INSTRUMENTS
BY WM. BATES. HOPE TO RECORD THESE
SOON WITH DAYS I KNEW.

SEE YOU ON THE FLIP
LET THE CURTAIN CLOSE


SEE YOU ON THE FLIP, TIME TO RUN
GRIP THE WHEEL, WALK IN THE SUN
TURN LEFT AT THE CORNER
SEEING STARS
NO MORE BARS
FORGET THE SCARS
SEE YOU ON THE FLIP

LIVING IN THE MOMENT, IT'S ALL I GOT
FROM 0 TO 60 IN 3 SECONDS TOP
HIGHWAY IS GLISTENING
DIAMOND IN THE SAND
GIVE ME A HAND
IT'S AT YOUR COMMAND
SEE YOU ON THE FLIP

IF YOU'RE THE KING OF NOTHING, YOUR RAIN WILL STING
AND ALL YOUR PRAYERS WON'T MEAN A THING
YOUR ONLY SERVANT
IS YOUR OWN IGNORANCE
DON'T SIT ON THE FENCE
MAKE SOME CHANGE WITH YOUR SENSE
SEE YOU ON THE FLIP

SEE YOU ON THE FLIP, IT'S RAGING OUTSIDE
YOU GOT NOWHERE TO RUN, NOWHERE TO HIDE
TURN LEFT AT THE CORNER
SEEING GHOSTS
MAKE THE MOST
SKIP THE ROAST
SEE YOU ON THE FLIP

SEE YOU ON THE FLIP
WORDS AND MUSIC BY WM.BATES
T21MUSIC2010


WITH ALL MY HEART, I GIVE UNTO YOU
ALL I AM AND EVER WILL BE
WITH ALL MY SOUL, I WILL BE TRUE
NO TORTURED COURSE IN FRONT OF ME

STORMS MAY COME AND GO
LET THE MYSTERY RIVER FLOW
LET THE CURTAIN CLOSE
LET THE CURTAIN CLOSE

IN THE FOREST DEEP
WHERE THE ANGELS SLEEP
LET THE CURTAIN CLOSE
LET THE CURTAIN CLOSE

UP ON A HILL, SEE THE VALLEY BELOW
HOW IT SHINES IN THE GHOSTLY GLOW
THINGS MAY LOOK SO BAD TODAY
BUT IT'S NOT ALWAYS GONNA BE THAT WAY

REPEAT CHORUS

LOVE IS LIKE A WILL-O-WISP
IT'S A PHANTOM, FIRM IN YOUR GRIP
HOLD IT CLOSE, DON'T LET GO
LET IT BURN THEN LET IT GROW

REPEAT CHORUS

LET THE CURTAIN CLOSE
WORDS AND MUSIC BY WM.BATES
T21MUSIC2010

It is What It is: A Short Take

The leaves are falling and October is drawing nigh.
The heart beats on waiting for winter to arrive like a snake
in the grass. The pull of depression cuts like a knife yet
the brain rebels against the onslaught. What difference does
it all make anyway? We must enjoy the time we have for it
is fleeting. People grow crazy under the pressure of bad
economic times and the overabundance of information.
Beware of those that prey upon fear with whispered words of prayer.

Love is the cure. Unconditional and forgiving. And yes, the
belief that with time all things improve. Without belief,
this life is but an empty vessel. So fill the cup with smoke
and mirrors if you have too. Fill it with dreams. Fill it with
cliches. Fill it with the past. Fill it with the present gift.
Fill it with the future. Just don't pour it full of regret and
the sting of "what might have been". We are all on this boat
adrift in a mysterious and vast dark sea. We all want to walk
in the sun.

To walk the razor's edge is quite a thing to do. I am not an
acrobat. I am just like everybody else. Search for the
common sense of purpose (even while paying for cigarettes you
surely don't need with change counted out like diamonds
in a parking lot.)'Tis rather funny in a way. One has to
laugh at how low one can go. And one has to believe that
the heights can be reached again. God will not desert us.

GRAY EVENING BLUE

GRAY EVENING BLUE

ALL INSTRUMENTS/VOCALS BY WM.BATES

It’s the gray of the evening, the tail end of a dusty day
It’s the gray of the evening, the tail end of a dusty day
A storm is raging, I wish it would carry me away

I wish I had a dollar for every mistake I’ve made
I wish I had a dollar for every mistake I’ve made
I’d surely be a rich man, sleepin’ in the summer shade

I’m just like Absalom, my hair caught on the tree
I’m just like Absalom, my hair caught on the tree
I keep on a-swingin’ in the hellish breeze

Please pardon me sister, I’m feelin’ sorry for myself
Please pardon me sister, I’m feelin’ sorry for myself
But that’s alright, I’m just like everybody else

INSTRUMENTAL INTERLUDE

It’s the gray of the evening, the tail end of a dusty day
It’s the gray of the evening, the tail end of a dusty day
A storm is raging, I wish it would carry me away

Gray Evening Blue
Words and Music by William Bates
365 Music 2010

IT ONLY HAPPENS IN THE MOVIES

SOMETIMES WE WANT SOMETHING TOO MUCH
BEYOND OUR REACH, BEYOND OUR TOUCH
WE DREAM, WE CLING, WE BUILD, WE BREAK
WE LOVE, WE RISE, WE FALL, WE ACHE.

COULD IT COME TRUE?
COULD IT GRAB THE LIGHT FROM THE BLUE?
HAVE YOU DONE ALL YOU COULD DO?
HAVE YOU DONE ALL YOU SHOULD DO?


IN SPRINGWOOD WHERE LIVE’S ARE CARVED IN STONE
BENEATH THE TREES WHERE I WALK SO ALONE
TO THE SULLEN ANGEL LOOKING DOWN FROM THE HILL
SHE SPEAKS, I WHISPER, SO DESPERATE, SO STILL.

COULD IT COME TRUE?
COULD IT GRAB THE LIGHT FROM THE BLUE?
HAVE YOU DONE ALL YOU COULD DO?
HAVE YOU DONE ALL YOU SHOULD DO?

I GOT A SCARLET LETTER HIDDEN IN MY SOUL
I GOT MILES ‘FORE I SLEEP, I GOT MILES TO GO
TO THE CROSSROADS JUNCTION, TO THE MIDNIGHT CRAWL
TO THE DEPTHS, TO THE HEIGHTS, TO NOTHING, TO ALL...

COULD IT COME TRUE?
COULD IT GRAB THE LIGHT FROM THE BLUE?
HAVE YOU DONE ALL YOU COULD DO?
HAVE YOU DONE ALL YOU SHOULD DO?

IT ONLY HAPPENS IN THE MOVIES
WORDS AND MUSIC BY WM. BATES. WMS
OCTOBER 2010
T21MUSIC ASCAP

famous last words

EMBED-Famous Last Words Montage - Watch more free videos

Lately I have been taking walks at Springwood Cemetery with my
girlfriend Laura. We enjoy the serenity and beauty of the place.
One particular monument stood out to me and after doing a little
research on the person buried there I came across this somewhat
macabre article:

For The Forgotten

There is a cemetery near my boyhood home that is in ruins.
Many say that it is a haunted place. Regardless, I do
believe the spirits rest uneasy there...one can feel it
in the atmosphere..

SAVANNAH

SPRINGWOOD GHOSTS

YET, ANOTHER SLIDE SHOW

NEW BRIAN WILSON

Brian Jones and The Rolling Stones

To the World: JoeyQuotable

JoeyQuotable
Directed by WilliamBates
For Guru

365

YOU MUST FIND STRENGTH
YOU MUST FIND STRENGTH (REMIX)

Superstar country hick. Make it quick.
Flick your bic. That you lost.
It was tossed. Annihilated .
I’m so jaded. The future’s faded.

Reason is as reason is. There’s No pleasin’
quit your teasin’ Chipper’s choking
Infante smokin’ bobby cox he’s still hopin.
So am i. do or die. Do or die.

Trouble in the halls of congress.
I don’t care they are harmless.
Sign up For the coming wave.
The more you spend the more you save.
New world order it’s ok.
Light the oil let it burn.
Just another lesson learned.

If I die before I wake I pray the lord
your soul I take. Careful now please
don’t shake. Accept your fate. Delineate.
Watch out for the things you ate.
Look you better clean your plate.
Stealing home don’t be late.

Dust bowl darkened sky. Hang on to
the string you tied. Wicked winds
blowing fast. If you stop you will be last.
The beggars in the rodeo. They had to
let it all go. Time passed slow.
Waiting for the grass to grow. Grow. Grow.

The kingdom is so far from reach.
The ghosts are surfin at the beach.
Those who can’t I hear they teach.
One thing or another man.
Stop your whinning make a stand.
If you wanna see the promised land.


365
BY WM.BATES
MAGIC ROOM MUSIC 2010

FROM THE CP81 ALBUM
GET BAKED: INSTRUMENT
MIX: COUSIN

may day: cloudy like coffee
smokin' radical cigarette.
no pretense of anything
'cept the faceless afternoon
surrender. accept.
move. forward.

LENA HORNE: ROCKY RACOON

LET IT BE: SOME RUSSIAN PEOPLE

New OLD STONES 1972

Get Baked: T21 Mix

GET BAKED

musicfromtheforthcoming
cdreleasecountypimp:starriva

Beatles Cover by Wm Bates

I'll Be Back

Strawberry Fields

The Beach Boys 1972