ALBUM: Caravan of Dawn
ALBUM: My Friend Hafiz
THE LEVINS
ALBUM: CARAVAN OF DAWN: © 2019
All music/lyrics written by Ira Scott and Julia Bordenaro
(except #5- Silence- lyrics by Carl Sandburg and the quote: "Eternity's in love with the productions of time" by William Blake in #1- Story I Can Hear)
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The Story I can Hear (inspired by Joseph Campbell) -Music and Lyrics* The Levins, © 2019
If we see it all as literal it might end up in a fight, But if we see it as a story, it might work out alright. Alright!
Let's go out to meet the modern, willing to embrace See the gold inside the dust… Be the change that's taking place. Hey hey!
Pre chorus : I long to tell the story I can hear. One that fills my eyes, opens up the skies.
Chorus: Not just for believers or those that think it's true- But that holds me in its arms as it reaches out for you.
Reaching out. Reaches out for you.
Something beyond name - something beyond measure Sings inside this temporal house built of pain and pleasure.
Inside understanding shines the poet's rhyme: "Eternity is in love with the productions of time.*” Alright (*- William Blake)
Pre chorus and Chorus: Bridge: We’re busy telling stories, Meanwhile life plays on.
It’s listening to our verses It sings all of our songs - One song / our songs Sings all of our songs.
One song/ Our songs. Chorus
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Caravan of Dawn - Music and Lyrics The Levins, © 2019
Side by Side- wide as the horizon. Giddy as a bride, the universe inside them.
There’s a caravan of dawn, lighting up the curve, always moving on… Breaking up the darkness with an aviary song.
Singing: “Beauty has claimed you. Seasons have changed you. This moment reveals you. Nothing conceals you!”
Lighting up the streets, lighting up the fields. Splash the sky in streaks, of azure, lilac, gold and teal.
“Beauty has claimed you. Seasons have changed you. This moment reveals you. Nothing conceals you!”
Gather up all of the broken hearts. Put them in a river of seamless starts.
Set them in motion, lighten their burden. Head for the ocean, flowing out over, Away from the falls.
Rising like mist, until they can’t recall… not being kissed by sunbeams.
“Beauty has claimed you. Seasons will change you. This moment reveals you. Nothing conceals you!”
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Let’s Be Big - Music and Lyrics The Levins, © 2019
If Al were here, I’m sure he would agree, if you want to move around at light’s velocity
You’ve got to think big, as infinity. So, take the afternoon and come along with me.
Chorus: Hey! Let’s be big today. We’ll travel all around chasing troubles away.
They’ll never see us coming. They’ll wonder why they’re humming. Come on, what ya say? Let’s be big today.
Sitting on a moving mountain of gold. Riding out past everything that I’ve been told.
Internal navigation, blindsided by degrees. The fear of not succeeding was defining me.
I’d rather think big. So I’m getting out of my way. Out into the open where it’s not so gray.
Chorus
Bigger than heart-ache, bigger than strife. Breaking the chains of darkness and light.
When I am in tatters and about to cave, in elementary matters, be the particle and the wave.
When you’re scared and loose your way- be the particle and the wave.
Stand and be brave- be the particle and the wave.
Chorus Hey! Let’s be big today.
We’ll travel all around chasing troubles away. Bigger than heart-ache, bigger than strife.
We’re breaking the chains of darkness and light. Be the particle and the wave.
Hey! Let’s be big today. We’ll travel all around chasing troubles away. They’ll never see us coming.
They’ll wonder why they’re humming. Come on, what ya say? Let’s be big today.
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Leela - Music and Lyrics The Levins, © 2019
Leela's got her face on the magazine. Leela's got her face on everything that you've seen.
Dancing on the streets of the Champs-Élysées, Out beyond the lights of the Milky Way.
Leela, Leela play. Leela, Leela play.
Blinded by the lights of the paparazzi. Singing the song of the new born baby.
Leela tends the sick in the heart of Bombay. She’s lifting the ocean every time she waves.
Leela, Leela play. Leela, Leela play.
She's the ivy on the wall. Leela, Leela play.
She's the rise and fall. Leela, Leela play.
She’s the answer, she’s the call. Leela, Leela play.
She’s the impulse of it all. Leela, Leela play.
Riotous elation, a mother's lamentation,
river flowing drowning daughter, hand that pulls her from the water.
In hopeless darkness Leela shouts: “No one puts this candle out!”
Leela, Leela play.Leela, Leela play. Leela, Leela play.
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Silence - lyrics from “To Know Silence Perfectly” by Carl Sandburg Music -The Levins, © 2019
There is a music for lonely hearts.
Nearly always If The music dies down,
There is a Silence
Almost the same as the movement Of Music (almost the same)
To know silence perfectly is to know music.
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Indivisible - Music and Lyrics The Levins, © 2019
It’s like knowing the password when I see you. A secret part of me opens to greet you.
When I see the gleam still in your eye, I could laugh until, until I cry
Wondrous strange, in the midst of all this change…
Chorus: Indivisible, our bond Invisible in plain sight.
Indivisible, our bond, Sending never-ending songs into the night.
No need to recreate the past. Open the endless part of us that lasts.
The loyalty our love affords, finds the notes and forms accord.
Wondrous strange, in the midst of all this change… Chorus
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Life Comes Pouring - Music and Lyrics The Levins, © 2019
Without warning, the skies are pouring. But I don’t need a reason to complain
Cause I can find fault with just about anything, again and again -again and again.
But even when things aren’t going my way. I can smile on the grayest of days
CHORUS: More than I can understand, I’m cheered on by the rain.
Even in darkness, moonlight on the land, soothes me like a sweet refrain.
I thought I knew, what dances all around me & the troubles that confound me through the day.
But holding on tightly, thinking of what might be, leaves the child I used to be no time for play.
Even though, I’m riding in the hourglass, I can stretch these moments as they pass.. on .. by.
CHORUS
Life comes pouring into everything. Sometimes it’s bound to overflow
All within a sigh, or the turning of the trees, watching sorrow as it goes.
CHORUS:
Round inside the sound we go, learning to sing the song again.
Round inside the sound we go, learning to sing the song whose end, we’ll never know.
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Sing Along - Music and Lyrics The Levins, © 2019
With nostalgic conviction we gather for the legend. He hits the stage and smiles from within.
And points the way to where we’ve been. His banter leaves us hazy, he’s gone out there completely.
When he speaks he’s crazy but then he sings so sweetly. It makes us wonder where he’s been,
Makes us wonder, wonder where he’s been.
We all long to sing along with you. Give us something we can hold onto.
He’s left the sadness and the cynical yoke. He’s laughing at punch lines but we don’t know the jokes. (We don’t know.)
His logic makes no sense, we strain to catch a strand. The concepts are too dense. When he sings we understand.
If you sing, we’ll understand. We’ve been waiting, waiting for so long.
We all long to sing along with you. Give us something we can hold onto.
“How can I speak to you of freedom with everything I’ve seen? I stand here before you like a broken figurine.
So, I go to the stars, far away from the pain but when I sing it brings me back again.”
“For I long to sing along with you. Give you something you can hold onto. I long to sing along with you. Give you something
Do we come back again and again? Are we prisoners of fate? Do we fly past the horizon?
I finally found an internal gate that opens up with song and guitar.”
Here you are!- “I’ve been waiting for so long.” Here you are! “I’ve been waiting and waiting.”
“Here we are.”
I long to sing along with you. Give you something that will see you through.
I sing along with you, I sing along, sing along...with you.
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Sorrow Inside Joy (Joy Inside Sorrow) -Music and Lyrics The Levins, © 2019
Sorrow, inside joy. Joy, inside sorrow. Navigate the ever changing ocean with the swallow.
I cried, because I lost you. I lived, because I loved you. I laugh, because I knew you. I’m vast because you are with me.
We all want to be happy. No-one wants to suffer. I am keeping myself open, to see what can occur.
I have colored myself in before, with shades of certainty. This time, I won’t be so sure, I’ll keep a space inside of me.
Last time we talked on the phone, you said you were finally going home. I tried to read you a psalm, you said, “No, no time for that now.”
“Be at peace. You don’t have to be my priest. I am past the point of fear. If you need me I’m here. I’ll always be here.”
I cried, because I lost you. I lived, because I loved you. I laugh, because I knew you. I’m vast because you are with me.
I have colored myself in before, with shades of certainty. This time, I won’t be so sure, I’ll keep a space inside of me.
Sorrow, inside joy. Joy, inside sorrow. Navigate the ever changing ocean with the swallow.
I cried, because I lost you. I lived, because I love you. I laugh, because I knew you. I’m vast because you are with me.
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Brighter Day - Music and Lyrics The Levins, © 2019
It’s a brighter day, brighter right away. It’s a brighter day.
All of us were crowded in a public place, singing a song we all knew.
As I looked around me from face to face, a vision of the future grew brighter.
It’s a brighter day, brighter right away. It’s a brighter day.
I was standing on the tracks and I was dragging my heels. Until I looked up at the sky.
A heartbeat of birds, like a wave on the sea waving hello and goodbye.
It’s a brighter day, brighter right away. It’s a brighter day. It’s a brighter day, brighter right away. It’s a brighter day.
We sang in a room, we sang a new song. When it was through, we all sang along.
We don’t need to wait for the end of the world.
When we need a revolution, it’s right here, right now. right here, right now, right here, right now.
It’s a brighter day, brighter right away. It’s a brighter day. It’s a brighter day, brighter right away.
It’s a brighter day. It’s a brighter day. It’s a brighter day. It’s a brighter day.
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ALBUM: Trust
THE LEVINS
TRUST : Lyrics
© 2015 - All music/lyrics written by Ira Scott Levin and Julia Bordenaro Levin except #3 - Love Song by Bruce Cockburn
Contact:
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TRUST
I read a quote of
Eleanor’s at the Cafe:
“Do something that
scares you everyday.”
Ever since then, I have
stopped hiding away.
I can’t keep this light
to myself on my way, on my way.
You’ve got to move to change the state you’re in. You’ve got to roll
to strike all the pins. You’ve got to get on
if you’re driving the bus. The race has begun
and we must trust.
When I find myself
in an unknown place,
I can see old friends
in each new face.
And when the fear
takes hold, you will find
I am beside you.
The road may curve
but we’ll just have to ride;
we’ll just have to ride through...
You can hide from your fate, you can hide from your day. You can hide from your pain ‘til your light goes away.
If you don’t like what
you’re thinking about,
then you can shift.
You can turn it around.
Hope brings motion,
motion brings change; Change is your friend when the going gets strange.
When the going gets strange...
...and we must trust.
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I AM HERE
It's so isolating
to ride up on this cycle with fear of being idle, with my anger on parade.
In saying that I have no time, I limit my lucidity,
become an addict to validity, take myself out of my prime. I have time, I have time
If I step out of the story
then I get the chance to see- There's a bigger picture here, something more for me.
I am here and I am needed.
I will stand up and be greeted by what comes my way.
I will fill my day with love; with love, with love, with love.
Always justifing my existence, always chained to my reactions, In a moment of resistance,
I might get some satisfaction.
In saying that there’s not enough, I’m holding on to scarcity, clinging to adversity
as if I’ve got it rough.
I have enough. I am enough.
If I step out of the story, then I get the chance to see here's a bigger picture here. Something more than me...
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LOVE SONG ( Lyrics and Music by Bruce Cockburn)
In the place my wonder comes from, there, I find you. Your face shines in my sky.
In your heart where the world comes from, there, you will find me. Your eyes dance in my mind.
So, come with me. We will sail on the wind. We will sway among the yellow grass. When you be beside me, I am real.
Though my eyes be closed forever, still, I would find you. You shine across my time.
So come with me. We will sail on the wind. We will sway among the yellow grass. When you be beside me, I am real.
In the place my wonder comes from, there...I find you.
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LINES IN THE LAND
Traipsing the Michael-Mary as the sky lanterns rise
in an arc-aligned sign
over Glastonbury.
We feel the power
going into our hands
on this New Year’s night.
It’s the land’s way of saying
“hello, I’ve got so much to tell you, there’s so much to know.”
There’s a circle of stones
in a green carpet field,
there’s something inside us
that’s starting to yield.
Standing over us... watching over us.
The red and white springs rising. Tiny candles, they guard.
they are holding a space when our hearts becomes hard.
When our hopes become barren, the branches of trees
reach out to embrace us,
before our souls freeze.
Go out past the ruins
and see what this means. There’s an intricate weave between seen and unseen, pulsing life into Winter until white becomes green.
Standing over us, Watching over us
There are lines in the land that are unmarred by time. They hum to us softly converging in rhyme.
Like the song that we sing at the start of the year,
it was penned in the past and it calls us to hear.
Standing over us, Watching over us
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STUCK
I was stuck sitting inside self pity
in the heart of the city of Woe-Is-Me. Peace came along
saying you can be strong.
Look inside and see.
But I ran away saying that’s okay,
I will see you another day;
Too many things that I must do. Until then, there’s no time for you.
So I climbed a ladder and I scaled a wall, and I reached the top and I began to fall.
I was losing power,
I was losing steam,
I was so unhappy,
I had lost my dream...
So I wrote a book
and then I sang a song, and I painted a picture but before too long
my thoughts ran dry and I started to cry,
I’m stuck in the desert and I don’t know why.
I was stuck sitting inside self pity
in the heart of the city of Woe-Is-Me. Peace came along saying
you can be strong.
Look inside and see.
So I heaved a big sigh
and I opened wide
and I let peace come inside.
Well, all at once I was feeling strong, time was sweet and life was long. There’s so many things
that I’d like to do,
but with peace inside they can all ring true.
So if you’re stuck
sitting inside self-pity
in the heart of the city of Woe-Is-Me, when peace comes along
saying you can be strong...
don’t wait as long as me.
Look inside and see. Look inside.
Contact:
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GOD’S SPIES
(King Lear:Act 5, scene 3)
(Inspired by Shakespeare / King Lear)
Sometimes love's depths can find no words
to paint the picture properly. Break the silence,
speak your truth,
or court uncertain misery.
For some it's all a battleground; reaping sorrow from mock rage. But the two of us,
together we’ll sing like birds; even when we're feeling caged.
As we head off, it occurs to me there are so many ways to give, like in King Lear act 5 scene 3... “So we’ll live...
and we’ll pray and sing and tell old tales
and laugh at
gilded butterflies,
and take upon us
the mystery of things,
as if we were God's spies.”
We can rail against the storm, keep the fool for company. Be sad, go mad,
become a crown-less king, Still, it's down to you and me.
The news is like the tide,
with who loses and who wins. Pacts and sects of great ones,
who is out and who is in,
ebbs and flows like the moon
while we’re wandering on the heath. Oh, that fickle changing loon
with us playing underneath!
As we head off it occurs to me, there’s still time to forgive.
Like in King Lear act 5 scene 3... “So we’ll live...
We are telling different tales; secrets falling from our lips.
When our eyes are free from scales, we can see what was eclipsed.
“So, we’ll pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh At gilded butterflies,
And take upon's
the mystery of things,
as if we were God's spies.”
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DREAM UNSPOKEN
Driving in my car today, trying to find some color in a world gone gray.
I heard an old song, made me leap inside;
I thought of you and
I laughed, and then I cried. I remember, I remember the twinkle in your eye, the fire in my heart.
A bond of understanding that can't be torn apart. Remember a time when
your lungs filled with song? It was a new sensation...
you knew that you belonged!
I remember,
I remember,
a dream unspoken
by us all,
a love that
broke down every wall. I remember,
I remember it all.
It seems so
easy to forget
the splendor
of a single sunset,
the importance and the beauty of friendship.
It keeps us alive.
We can never let it slip.
I remember, I remember, photographs
and phone calls,
visits and the letters, help repaint the pictures which over time
have weathered.
I sing to you now
of who we were then, all that we are
and what we’ll be when we meet again...
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A WORLD OF PEACE
Sometimes I am afraid of change. I want things just to stay the same. I think that we’re moving too fast when we say forgive the past.
There’s so much to learn
from each other;
we can only make it together.
I’ll give you smile; a smile is for giving. Now is the time for living.
A world of peace, war will cease.
I can see you are me in disguise.
Let me open up my eyes.
A world of peace, war will cease.
I can see you are me in disguise.
Let me wipe the tears from your eyes.
Sometimes, I think that there’s a way, only one way to play the game. Holding onto the dark of night,
trying to hold back the incoming light. There’s so much to learn
from each other.
We can only make it together.
I’ll give you a smile; a smile is forgiving. Now is the time for living...
We can only make it together. We can only make it
a world of peace...
Sometimes I am afraid of change.
I want things just to stay the same. But what if peace could come at last, if we chose to forgive the past?
Contact:
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THE GREAT CONSTELLATION
For Madmen Only (Inspired by Hermann Hesse / Steppenwolf)
“If I had the pieces in my pocket and
I could change my life, would I change my life?”
Harry Haller and Hermann Hesse sat down
in Hermann’s mind to play a game of chess. Harry did the foxtrot while Hermann made his move and he spoke about Siddartha
and the need for solitude, inside.
Harry is half-wolf and with his queen
denies the bishop access to the castle, which is where he keeps his pride.
“I will take your queen but then I’ll be your pawn. Cheer up, Harry; sing a madman’s song tonight!”
“You are the Great Constellation!
Not just one soul in isolation.”
Your King is in check, and your life is a wreck. Leave the razor and blaze a new trail.
Harry loves the knight and he is seeking second sight. “Don’t be so worried that you’re life is going to fail. Listen to life’s music on the radio.
This sadness is a tyrant you can overthrow.” ...
“Laugh with the immortals, overcome the hurdles! Handel is disfigured by the radio
but it doesn’t bring him down.
You know that genius isn’t tarnished by technology. Play this little game with me, you’ll see. Listen to life’s music on the radio.
This sadness is a tyrant we can overthrow.”...
A sky full of souls, you play all the roles.”
You are the great constellation!
“I have the pieces in my pocket. I can change my life.”
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CHILD IN SPACE
We are all part of a child in space.
One body, one heart, one race.
We are all atoms dancing face to face, and the bond that we can’t see between us, keeps us in this place.
While the left hand wrestles with the right, the belly goes hungry, eyes shut tight.
If I could reach across the great divide, our tears would become nourishment and heal us from inside.
And the darkness would fade... if I could hasten the day.
We are all part of a child in space. One body, one heart, one race.
We are all atoms dancing face to face, and the bond that we can see between us, keeps us in this place.
One body, one heart, one race.
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RELIEF
I was empty, I was tired.
I was drowning there in grief.
But I know If I had to hate you,
I would never know relief.
You silenced every mother singing, “Safe from harm.”
Sisters, friends and brothers, they were stolen from our arms. Now, we are lights cast into darkness. We are hope from love’s lost strength. But I know I must have hope for you. I must believe we all can change.
I must let Mercy lead the way.
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LAUGH WITH ME
I used to think that life was just a race to reach a point called win; to be happy in the end, but the point is to begin.
Every day’s a lifetime, another chance to choose
how I’ll be remembered; as a blessing or the blues.
What I have to give inside becomes the portion that I’ll keep. The love that I receive becomes the harvest that I’ll reap.
Let me be remembered for something true.
Not for what I am alone, but for who I am with you.
Laugh with me and life bursts open into Spring.
Sing with me and see what harmony we’re bringing. Hold my hand and I’ll lead you to a quiet stream. Together we will understand the meaning of this dream...the meaning of this.
Without you I’m a shadow dancing in the frame of time, a scribbled line of prose but with you, an endless rhyme. Every day’s a lifetime, another chance to choose
how I’ll be remembered; as a blessing or the blues...
A book, a song, a story, without love there’s no glory. What is the center of it all? ...
Contact:
So grateful to everyone
Sid and Sally Levin, Marilyn Bordenaro, Barbara Roehrer, Mark Dann, Nancy and George Doherty, Brody Lowe, Kari Estrin, John Platt, Ellen Dreskin, Carolyn Honey, Peter Kasturas, Susan Katz, Shakespeare, Hermann Hesse. And all of our amazing fans, listeners and supporters.
Trust Funder
Andrew Shaw
Trust Fund Executives
Sidney and Sally Levin, Barbara and Gordon Roehrer
Engineered, Mixed and Mastered by
Mark Dann / Mark Dann Studios New York City and Woodstock, NY
Produced by
The Levins
MUSICIANS
Ira Scott Levin- vocals, guitar
Julia Bordenaro Levin- vocals, piano
Dan Hickey- Drums (1,2)
Sean Dixon- percussion
Sara Milonovich- violin (5, 8)
David Moss- cello (2, 9, 10, 12)
Aharon Bolsta- tabla, (9,10) Indian Bansuri flute- (10) Mark Dann- stand up bass, tenor guitar (5), acoustic guitar (4,7)
nylon guitar (6), 12 string (10), octive mandolin (7)
CD Artwork and Layout
Brody Lowe
All music/lyrics written by
Ira Scott Levin and Julia Bordenaro Levin; except #3 - Love Song by Bruce Cockburn and #5 Chorus - words of Shakespeare
Contact, Like, Connect, Share
www.thelevinsmusic.com www.twitter.com/thelevins www.facebook.com/thelevins www.reverbnation.com/thelevins www.sonicbids.com/band/thelevins
Booking: Acoustic Music Agency broehrer@optonline.net
© 2015 All rights reserved
Album: My Friend Hafiz by The Levins
Music: Ira Scott Levin & Julia Bordenaro Levin
Lyrics: Hafiz/Ladinsky/Levin © 2013
- inspired by the poetry of Hafiz of Shiraz as rendered by Daniel Ladinsky
Dropping Keys : Hafiz/Ladinsky/Levin © 2013
I am one of many, I’m not one alone.
When I sing from the center of my soul
I shine like a diamond in the old king’s throne. Ah –ha! Hey, hey!
I shine like a diamond in the old king’s throne.
The small minded man locks up everyone he knows
But the sage ducks his head when the moon is low.
And all night long he’s dropping keys,
To the beautiful prisoners at his knees.
All those beautiful rowdy prisoners must be freed!
Doubt came along and captured me
he stuck me in a trunk at the bottom of the sea.
The wise old sage had mercy on me
and his words of wisdom set me free.
All those beautiful words of wisdom set me free. Chorus
The king takes a diamond off his throne
and he sticks it in the ground where the seeds are sown
and up from the ground comes a groove of trees
sprouting words to the wise in the shape of keys.
The poet and the wise man climbing trees
so they can sing us songs like these. Chorus
END: Ah-ha, hey, hey- Shine like a diamond in the old king’s throne!
The Sun Never Says
Even after all this time, the sun never says to the earth: “
You owe me!”, “You owe me!”
Look what you can do with a love like that… I
t lights up the whole sky – hi hi- hi hi – hi hiiii
Chorus -
I give to you and you give to me, it raises us up and allows us to see
When I give to you and you give too, then it frees me
―I can see me and you.
Even after all this time, the river never says to the sea,
“You owe me!”, “You owe me!”
Look what you can do with a love like that…
It covers the whole earth with life- hi hi- hi hi- hi hiii Chorus
Bridge: When I give then I get so much more than I give
when I give then I get so much more. (4x)
Look what you can do with a love like this . . .
it covers the whole sky with bliss Hi hi- hi hi- hi hiiii
Chorus + And it frees me, I can see me and you.
Even after all this time…
Your Mother and My Mother
We’re all renting rooms in this house,
fear is the cheapest one here.
I’d like to see you in a room in this house,
one with a little more cheer.
For I know the Inn Keeper who runs this galaxy,
happy to help you with one word from me.
Tonight get some rest and let your heart mend,
sing me tomorrow, we’ll go see my friend
Chorus:
For your mother and my mother
are good friends who care for each other
Your heart and my heart
belonged to each other right here from the start.
Old, old friends, very, very old friends
We’re all renting rooms in this house,
joy is the finest one here.
We can explore all the rooms in this house,
with a view that is forever clear.
For I know the Inn Keeper who runs this galaxy,
the drinks will be flowing tonight and they’re free.
To leave a tip of a generous size
—let love and playfulness show in your eyes.
END: Send that thought up with your heart wide open,
somewhere, something good will happen (2x)
When the Violin Hafiz/Ladinsky/Levin © 2013
When the violin can begin to forgive the past
- it starts singing.When the violin can begin to stop worrying
what the future will bring - it starts laughing.
Lean down and comb me into your hair.
Let me know, let me know you are there.
When the violin, can begin
to forgive all the wounds
that the others are bringing - it starts singing:
Yi li yi li li li li- Yi li li li li li li
When the violin can begin
A Root In Each Act and Creature (Sun’s Eyes)
Hafiz/Ladinsky/ Levin © 2013
Sun’s eyes are painting fields again.
Disguised eyelashes sweep the land.
Embraced by sunlight’s masquerade,
the Earth’s a canvas on parade.
Chorus -
If just a little clay and water in a bowl
reveals these wonders to behold.
What new delights will soon unfold?
The endless petals of the soul.
One heart resides in everything
Renew your body, hear it sing.
Each act and creature we perceive
has roots in one who can conceive. Chorus -
The endless petals of the soul (3x)
Sun’s eyes are painting fields again.
Disguised eyelashes sweep the land.
Illuminated scents and sounds
Exquisite whirling forms abound. Chorus –
The endless petals of the soul (3x)
END: Sun’s eyes are painting fields again.
Like a Life-Giving Sun
Hafiz/Ladinsky/Levin © 2013
You could be, you could be a Wild Horseman
Help to free, help to free us all from the state that we're in…
What if you and love become sweet lovers?
What if you and prayer become one?
It’s naïve to believe we’re not in battle.
And I grieve, as the brave are falling like cattle.
Fall in pain, gone insane
Oh, the brave are falling like rain.
You could be, you could be a victorious horseman.
And carry your heart through this world. Free yourself and this world.
Carry your heart through this world like a life giving sun.
What if you and love became sweet lovers?
What if you and love became one?
So below as above Sweet love
Don’t sit grieving. Go where you’re needed
Carry your heart through this world like a life giving sun.
You could be, you could be a great horseman.
Carry your heart through this world. (Help to) free yourself and this world
Carry your heart through this world like a life giving sun.
What if you and love became sweet lovers?
What if you and love became one?
Act Great
Hafiz/Ladinsky/Levin © 2013
What is the key to unlock your mind to untie the knot of suffering blind?
What is the secret to silence the madness?
That tramples the landscape, the heart’s tender bliss?
That imprisons the eye with all its denied, from the cold golden idol to the forbidden kiss?
Chorus:
Act great! Act great! Act great! Act —great!
Whatever life hands you, you don’t have to wait.
Act great! Act great! Act great! Act —great!
One act of kindness can overcome fate.
...Always act great my dear. Act great!
What is the cure to this poisoned well?
Where is the ladder set here when we fell?
What is now sacred and how shall I care?
What can I cling to as true as my true love’s hair?
My Friend Hafiz he whispers two words
Two little words with the beauty of birds
with the beauty of emeralds of angels and light.
two words that restored me and gave my eyes sight.
Chorus
Benevolent thought, benevolent sound,
benevolent movement around and around (2x)
Always act great my dears. Always act great my dear.
Always act great my dears. Act great!
Forgive the Dream
Hafiz/Ladinsky/Levin © 2013
I see your sky is winter and know your wounds that will not heal
You long for the warmth of a perfect one’s circle
Only complete when love becomes real. –when love becomes real.
Your hands and feet and heart are wise
Still the tears they sting your eyes
Allow yourself to view the brow that allows this universe to rise
this universe to rise this universe to rise
Chorus:
Are you still listening to that old alley song?
It brings you such pain and it goes on far too long.
Train your ears to hear this gentle stream
until you can forgive —forgive this dream.
We can drink wine from a gourd that I hollowed in my house.
We can eat cheese from a calf that I raised up by myself.
We can feast upon this truth throughout the night
We can break bread on a carpet made of light. Chorus
A saint is an Earth in eternal spring. Hafiz is a poet whose song I sing
Inside the veins of a petal of a redbud tree are hidden worlds where he may be.
I see your sky is winter —forgive this dream.
Know your wounds will finally heal —forgive this dream. And become real.
I see your sky is winter —Oh, forgive this dream.
Wounds of love will finally heal —forgive this dream. And become real.
A saint is an Earth in eternal spring. Hafiz is a poet whose song I sing
Inside the veins of a petal of a redbud tree are hidden worlds where he may be.
Forgive this dream ―and become real. Forgive this dream ―and become real.
Every Child
Hafiz/Ladinsky/Levin © 2013
Every child has known God. That’s quite a claim.
For they don’t know God
as a ‘God of Names’ as a ‘God of Don’ts’ a ‘God of Shame,’
of stormy moods or any strange behavior. Not a king or a queen, a giant, tyrant or savior.
But every child knows God. Not as someone you can see,
But the God who only knows four words:
Come Dance with me! Come Dance with me!
Come Dance! Come Dance! Come Dance! 2x
END: —with me. Oh, Come Dance with me!
The first chord is an open one on the 3rd and 4th strings 3rd string on fret 9 and the 4th string on fret 11.
The second chord is a minor interval on the 10th and 11th fret on the 2nd and 3rd strings.
the 3rd chord is an open E 5.
Troubled
Hafiz/Ladinsky/Levin © 2013
Troubled? Stay with me I’m not. Lonely? Play with me.
I’ve got two ancient caves behind my eyes where true love lies.
Chorus:
Write them all down all your worries and your fears
even from a thousand yearsI will lean into today,
and the flame inside my heart will burn them all away.
Frightened? Be with me ―and cope.
Weary? Dance with me —there’s hope.
“If I wrote my troubles down, they would wind this earth around.”
Offer them in prayer and in a flash
―they’re holy ash, incense in the air-
And we’ll rise and we’ll rise until all the earth and sky
disappear with your fear
And we’ll sing and be the space containing everything. Chorus
Old Sweet Beggar
Lyric: Hafiz/ Ladinsky/ Levin Music- The Levins © 2013
Once I was envied as having what seemed to be all you could want to possess
People revered me, Powerful feared me, but soon all I wanted was less.
I gave up privilege, feathers of vanity
Begging for change and filled with desire to be:
Kindness, humility, peace, and tranquility - Kindness, humility, peace, and tranquility
Chorus:
Love turned me into a sweet old beggar.
Love itself fell into my bowl
I rose from the ditch, infinitely rich
All that is left is one goal –one goal, -one goal . . .
All I want to do is empty my emerald filled pockets on this tear stained world for you.
—empty my emerald filled pockets on this tear stained world for you
Chorus - END: For you, for you, for you. (2x) This love, this love, this love. (3x)
The Chorus in the Eye
lyrics: Hafiz/ Ladinsky/ Levin Music: The Levins © 2013
Your eye has a melody we want to hear.
The sun and moon will gladly wear robes and sway like children at play;
when the Pir directs light, when the saint conducts sight.
Slipping magic into sounds, won’t you pour them in the ground?
into the earth’s bruised ear. Can’t you hear?
Mashuq, Mashuq ―Mashuq! Sweetheart, Sweetheart, you are my counterpart.
Hafiz won’t you whisper of luminous bliss
that kisses each traveller through time
won’t you tell all the world of nature sublime?
“Yes” (he says,) “I will.” (Listen,) he is whispering still.
Slipping magic into sounds, won’t you pour them in the ground?
of the earth’s bruised ear. Can’t you hear?
Mashuq, Mashuq ―Mashuq! Sweetheart, Sweetheart, you are my counterpart.
Love is royalty moving ceaselessly. The chorus in the heart needs to sing
like the tuned clay drum humming all day long to everything:
Mashuq, Mashuq ―Mashuq! Mashuq, Mashuq ―Mashuq! Mashuq! Mashuq!
From The Gift Poems by Hafiz as rendered by Daniel Ladinsky – Penguin Compass books
ALBUM: Barely Contained
Barely Contained - Lyrics & Music- Ira and Julia Levin
© 2010 The Levins
My thoughts and my body are not me.
I can play them both like a violin.
Their melody reminds me of who I am and where I’ve been.
I once saw a fish in a tall tree, when she saw me she began to grin
She said, “Your melody reminds me, there’s water in air” and she started to swim.
Chorus:
I’m barely contained, you can’t buy how I feel.
I give it away, I’m a bright summer’s day with the
Colors of Fall.
I’m all things at once, and I’m nothing at all.
I used to think power was outside, and that strength was just a muscle show.
Strength funnels through from the inside.
I can bench press the world by just letting go.
I once saw a rose in an old book, when she saw me she began to grin.
She said, “Your melody reminds me of who I am and where I’ve been.”
I’m barely contained, you can’t buy how I feel.
I give it away, I’m a bright summer’s day with the
Colors of Fall.
I’m all things at once, and I’m nothing at all.
Breathing is more than a pastime, it’s a fine line
And you can’t hold on.
Laughing is healing and loving is really a wind chime;
It’s a song.
Chorus. I’m all things at once and I’m nothing at all.
I’m all things at once and I’m nothing.
I’m all things at once…
My thoughts and my body are not me.
I can play them both like a violin.
Their melody reminds me of who I am and where I’ve been.
Blue skies- Irving Berlin © 1926
The Levins arrangement © 2010
Blue skies
Smiling at me
Nothing but blue skies
Do I see
Bluebirds
Singing a song
Nothing but bluebirds
All day long
Never saw the sun shining so bright
Never saw things going so right
Noticing the days hurrying by
When you're in love, my how they fly
Blue days
All of them gone
Nothing but blue skies
From now on
Coffee my Love- Lyrics & Music- Ira and Julia Levin
© 2010 The Levins
I’d like to see you, early in the morning.
I like to hold out, hold out till noon.
I might go crazy, crazy if I see you.
I might go crazy if I see you too soon.
But it’s a love affair, when your perfume’s in the air
I love this love affair, you perk me up! Oh!
Pre-chorus:
Coffee, you’re my cure-all, you’re my panacea paramour.
An ounce of hope in every cup, you pick me up from shore to shore.
If I never had another sip from today, I would love you – ever more.
Chorus: Coffee my love, black as the night.
You make me- bright as the sun- ar-o-matic delight!
If I’m on the run or at my leisure, it’s a pleasure to be together.
It’s a pleasure to be together. Do- doo do dooo. Do Do Do Dooo Do Doo Dooo.
When we meet at your house, atmosphere is everything.
Linger over Whitman while the songwriter sings.
At the diner in a booth, at a counter in Deluth,
Local history as decure, beehive waitress: Want some more?
At the café, you and I will steal away. Grab a quick bite, catch up with friends,
Find time to write for hours on end…Oh.. Pre-chorus/Chorus but after… ‘It’s a pleasure to be together’ the 2nd time straight into:
Viennese is such a tease, Costa Rica love to see you; Fly to Paris- sit outside, Go to
Venice- take a ride, why Rome? When we can make our own at home?
Pre-chorus/ Chorus
It’s a pleasure to be together.
Not as Dark as it Seems -Lyrics and Music: Ira Levin & Julia Levin
© 2010 The Levins
Were we all aware that every dish was made with care?
A symphonic rendezvous, and when the time is through
you’re doing dishes after midnight.
It’s not an unfamiliar sight.
And your cup of coffee
says: “Do they ever think of me?”
It’s not as dark as it seems
Just put in some cream,
and add some sweet memories
It’s not as dark as it seems.
Keeping busy all the time
To scale this mountain that you climb;
You’ve got a yearning and a longing there that’s burning.
Burning late into the night, it’s not an unfamiliar sight.
And your coffee cup
says: “I’m full but fill me up.”
It’s not as dark as it seems
Just put in some cream
and add some sweet memories
It’s not as dark as it seems Yi di di di…yi di didi
The bottom’s an opportunity to see what you are made of
and your own divinity.
A cup that’s made of clay is bound to hit the ground one day,
but don’t let that bring you down.
All that’s lost is found.
We’ll meet one day at eternity’s café.
It’s not as dark as it seems
Just put in some cream
and add some sweet memories
It’s not as dark as it seems. Yi di di di…yi di didi
Time To Go- Lyrics & Music- Ira & Julia Levin
© 2010 The Levins
It’s all one big day. The sun is a maypole and we are winding away.
How many moments, reflected like diamonds, gather around you
to light up your way?
Time to go. Time to go on our way.
Time to go. Time to go on our way.
Laughter that rises up from the center.
Tears that are taken away to the sea.
A house without walls, open to enter.
That is the time that you spend with me.
Time to go. Time to go on our way.
Time to go. Time to go on our way.
Raise your glass. Raise up your hope.
Raise your courage up high.
All that we share will not be forgotten.
We’ll see you again by and by.
Time to go. Time to go on our way.
Time to go. Time to go on our way.
Ale Brider – The Levins’ version
© 2010 The Levins
We are all together and we sing and dance forever
Ale brider, ale shvester, michbucha!
(We are all brothers, we are all sisters- family!)
When we sing we’re not divided. When we dance we are delighted-
Ale Shvester, ale brider, mishbucha!
(We are all brothers, we are all sisters- family!)
Un mir zinen ale brider- un mir zingen frelich lider
(We sing happy songs as brothers. We stick together like nobody else does!)
Ale shvester, ale brider- mishbucha!
(We are all brothers, we are all sisters- family!)
Ya la li li li li li li li – yay li li
Ya la li li li li li li li
Ya la li li li li li li li – yay li li
Oy, Oy, oy, OY, oy yoy yoy, yoy yoy!
La la la la…
Because we are a family, we treat each other joyously
Forgetting all our quarrels and our cares.
No matter what we have we share and when we sing we care
For one another, sister brother, mishbucha! (Family)
Un mir halten zeekin anum
Azelkis is nito bi canum
(We are all united whether we are many of few and we love each other.)
Ale brider, ale shvester- Mischbucha!
(We are all brothers, we are all sisters- family!)
Ya la li li li li li li li – yay li li
Ya la li li li li li li li
Ya la li li li li li li li – yay li li
Oy, Oy, oy, OY, oy yoy yoy, yoy yoy!