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True Believers

by Max Savage

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1.
I remember the suburbs I remember the roads I remember the way they cut you down And I remember you speaking The way you said they were wrong You said there was work yet to be done You were exonerated I was only fourteen Staring at your reflection Stirring up something deep Cut apart like a pendant That we hung from the gates What was still worth defending What was left in its place Country roads, stormy weather With the ones you love And the ones that never let you fall apart - this is a song for the true believers City lights in a lucky country Where you don’t think twice and you take it for granted That you’ll drink all night and you’ll say you’re a true believer And maybe you still believed it And maybe you didn’t care The way the people received it Like it was already dead And you never amounted To the man I admired But I never encountered Somebody so inspired And now I see your reflection And I hear your refrain And what was once so familiar Never quite feels the same And its hard to remember Now I work every day When you’re left with the feeling And it won’t go away Country roads, stormy weather with the Ones you love and the ones that never let you Fall apart - this is a song for the true believers City lights on the Tropic of Cancer If you lose your way Baby we can go dancing Cos it sure ain't easy But they say you're a true believer I’m living in the country Stormy weather You better believe it that it’s now or never City lights Shining brighter than before You better watch out kid or they’ll settle that score Country roads Stormy weather Maybe you and me should stick together Everybody’s talking About how they’re gonna leave Everybody’s talking bout’ the true believers
2.
Anyone but you Would let me walk away Would see the way we bruise The way we lost ourselves It’s anybody’s game I was prepared to lose To anyone but you Eyes so blue you could drown inside Walking through the evening like a burning pyre I was outclassed and outdone Light me up and let me burn to white Let me lie away into the dead of night I’m only driftwood I’m only drifting Virtue’s broken wing Kept me from the things that made it real I gave up the right To keep your love inside I could be true - to anyone but you Breakneck speed on the ocean road Try to get to Nelson fore’ you realise I’m gone But I’m gone babe well I’m gone Get a little weed and drink a bottle of wine Baby no-ones gonna help you once they run out of time And they’re busy - we’re all getting busy Ask me how to sing Ask me everything I never learned Cast your stones in sin Cast me as the villain it’s all true For anyone but you Take your things and give up your tears Nothing's getting better til' you get out of here And I’m praying, that you’ll stay Pack your bags and forget the dreams Buy a ticket somewhere on the cover of a magazine It's that easy, it's that easy Throw out rolls of film Give away the things you own and leave Sell your car for scrap Call your little sister say you’re not sure if you’re coming back it's easy to do For anyone but you
3.
Home To You 04:07
I lost all of my instinct In the heat of the day I sold my inhibitions Just to pay to see them broken down Cos summer’s the season of long legs and beautiful people I’m awake with the fever of all my lost evenings in dreams I’m caught out in a rip babe And I’m far from the shore I’m swimming out to your ship love Like a moth drawn to a flame Well you’re watching me drown And I’m over my head, all this churning emotion - I’m out of my depth Honey dive in and save me I need you now I want to breathe Your skin I want to feel You around me Cos when I'm coming home to you And the streetlights running to the beat of the drum And I'm coming home to you Well it's a story that's as old as the stones When I'm home with you To see that look in your eyes that I know so well Oh when I'm home with you Nothing's ever gonna be the same Black burning my feet girl When I follow you down White lines are relief now But I’m only halfway there When the highway’s a fever the sand’s no relief and the water is cool and inviting At least let me drown the waves of your tenderness and care
4.
My Town 03:54
I didn’t think you would feel it We left when you were still young Of all the things you remembered Of all the things that you’ve learned You’re uncle’s house by the city The road that leads to the bay The day we walked to the church and saw Your great grandmother’s grave And I remember the feeling From long before you were born Something I missed on the East coast The way you know you’re at home Down the streets after midnight The yellow lights set the stage There’s the alleyway you’re daddy used to walk down To sing your mother sweet serenades I’ve been round I’ve been all around I’ve been around But it’s my hometown Something about summer evenings That last you all through the year Sometimes our memories are cloudy But we both wish she was here There’s broken glass on the pavement Shining like the milky way You’re much too young to remember But it was ten years ago to the day I’ve been round I’ve been all around I’ve been around But it’s my hometown You got her voice and you got her grace The way your eyes light up to the radio The way we used to sing you songs I gave you the Rolling Stones but she gave you Nina Simone I’ve been round I’ve been all around I’ve been around But it’s my hometown
5.
I should have known We’d come to this I never thought we’d last this long You were wrong I was young I never felt like that before You’ll drink And I’ll drive We’re both just looking for a sign There’s white lines Green lights You can shout and I can leave my woes behind On the long long road That we always seem to follow There’s a place thats waiting to be found And we might be hurting and we might be proud but baby Diesel and whiskey make the world go round Diesel and whiskey make the world go round I was quicker When I drank liquor I funny I was strong You couldn’t fall With your back against the wall You were good enough to tell me I was wrong Four wheels They let you feel They let you see the open road While you wept I kept every Every picture every memory that we made together On the long long road That we always seem to follow There’s a place thats waiting to be found And we might be hurting and we might be proud but baby Diesel and whiskey make the world go round Diesel and whiskey make the world go round Jim Beam makes you mean And cigarettes they make you calm A big chassi and four wheels might make you happy If you fix that old transmission you can lose your inhibitions cos Third gear Brings a tear Burned out in winter rain Wake up and take your best shot baby Mornings were the best you got, nothings gonna let you on the On the long long road That we always seem to follow There’s a place thats waiting to be found And we might be hurting and we might be proud but baby Diesel and whiskey make the world go round Diesel and whiskey make the world go round
6.
Shaking It 04:01
She cut her hair off and she wouldn’t take her medicine She caught me staring and she told me she was innocent And maybe we were both too young to really understand And maybe I just let the freedom get the upper hand She used to tell me that her life was like a photograph The way that everything could make her cry and make her laugh We used to walk along the main street as the lights went on I was afraid to ask her whether anything was wrong Oh baby You can’t imagine how it makes me feel Oh baby, My hands are shaking You got me taking it all She kept a record of the things that used to make her feel The times she meant it and the times she only laughed for show She used to talk about the things that made her want to leave And her discomfort was the only thing that made it real Oh baby You can’t imagine how it makes me feel Oh baby, My hands are shaking You got me taking it all Now there’s a theory that we’re all just playing make believe That every feeling every memory’s just a crazy dream But it’s as real as anything I’ve ever felt before Its just a feeling but I’ve never ever been so sure Oh baby You can’t imagine how it makes me feel Oh baby, My hands are shaking You got me taking it all
7.
Hey little darlin won’t you tell me bout lightning Tell me bout the time you were only thirteen And you drove your daddy’s car to the shore just to see it light up Tell me bout the time you believed in ghosts And the way that your grandmother crossed herself Your little brother was scared so you stood by the door and kept watch Oh pretty baby won’t you keep on turning Oh pretty baby let me keep on earning This old hearts got a whole lotta love to give I’ve been thinking bout the way we talk How we never say nothing that would sound like love How you stare at the floor when I hold your hand in mine Oh its a dream I can always remember Oh its a fire that keeps burning and burning Over and over again, over and over again I believe, I believe in what’s gone wrong Hey its the promise that we made that summer When you spent three weeks at the house on the corner And we rode through the streets to the the jetty necking bottles of wine Hey you remember that your daddy got mad When he found the cigarettes at the bottom of your bag And you wouldn’t say nothing and no you wouldn’t say nothing at all Hey we were drinking in the beachside carpark And maybe I was thinking that you really were the one And this old heart had a whole lotta love to give Cos I’ve been dreamin bout your silhouette On the sand in the dark with the moon at your back And the night we swam in the dark with the milky way Oh its a dream I can always remember Oh its a fire that keeps burning and burning Over and over again, over and over again I believe, I believe in what’s gone wrong Hey little darlin been a long time coming And we’ve both been broken and we’ve both been running But gimme one shot and I’ll give you everything I got left Hey little darlin its a song we’ve sung before And we won’t stop singing for sure Let me take your hand and I’ll take my chance again Oh pretty baby let me keep on yearning Oh pretty baby let me keep on burning This old heart’s got a whole lotta love to give Oh its a dream I can always remember Oh its a fire that keeps burning and burning Over and over again, over and over again I believe, I believe in what’s gone wrong
8.
There's a place, People go It's the secret, That everyone knows In the city, Down an alley They're selling whiskey, Wearing tailored clothes In the rain, Such a shame Baby’s got the blues cos baby’s got the boots On the 19, Or the 86 I’m heading North of the river, Maybe there we’ll be better I worked all Sunday just to make enough money To lose it on a passing trend Can you tell I’m a musician by the way I wash these dishes Cos its something I could never define in Tim Rogers town There’s a street, make you weep All of the of the things you never thought you could keep There’s a man, it ain’t cheap But its hundred year profession that was lost in the depression Just for you, shining shoes He’s been to Berlin, and he’ll tell you what he learned About movies, Oh so groovy You can listen if you want you can read it on the blocks And I woke up Monday trying to find a little honey In the bottom of a bottle of wine You can pretend its getting warmer but I’m only getting older I don’t think I’m sticking around in Tim Rogers Town Na na na na Can you look can you see Baby’s picking outfits from the cover of a magazine So obscene All of the pink and the yellow; the 1973 See him walking - so smooth talking He’s got the rockabilly suits and the prison tattoos You can thank him you can praise him He’s got you working for free for opportunity I spent my money drinkin' long black coffee Tryin’ to keep my feet on the ground You can tell my Barista, when I go I’ll really miss The way he never really gave me the time In Tim Rogers town
9.
Well there’s a pinup girl by her elbow So she’s never drinking alone And a ship in full sail on her left arm To remind her to never go home And that fragment of poetry is fading And the meaning was lost long ago And the swallow that flies on her shoulder For the times that she doesn’t belong And her room’s at the back of the garden And its cold as winter in New York And her walls are adorned with temptation And the shelves hide the cracks in the walls And she remembers the names of great authors And the words to her favourite songs And in the early hours of the morning We can still hear the trucks and the trains and the fights and the rails And last night I was dreaming of Northcote And the city from the top of the hill And from a hotel room accross the country Well you’re crying in that kitchenette still And I dreamed of great wisdom and poetry Of the things I could say if I tried But you never could take satisfaction You were always so wounded and proud And she’s tender in all the wrong places And she’s standing just a little too close She’s unravelling ever so gently But she’s hiding it better than most And her calves are adorned with the images of birds And her feet are the fish and the sea And her past is a road that my fingers are walking But this journey is only skin deep
10.
To The Man 07:10
To the man Of compromised ideals With one hand on my shoulder Tryin’ to tell me how to feel There’s no way to be remembered There’s no way to do it right When you’re running on a memory Of how you used to fight Oh and how you used to show them Used like a burned out wagon The kind you see sitting on highways The kind you remember from the old days When you’re all out of patience When you’re sick of sitting round When it’s high time for my time When its ride on or die Won't you raise your sights above this fatal shore Cos the feeling doesn't matter when you're gone You were willing but the dream was not for sale Your money's worthless now Your money's worthless now To the rain that washes my red hands Like the threat of early compromise Like when he says he understands When you’re burned out and bleeding When you’ve seen it all before When you’re tired beyond believing When you’re angry and reformed And it speaks of empty meaning When you speak your mind at all You can’t remember being forthright You just remember getting old And then you wake up one day And the face that stares you down Is the one in the mirror Where all the lines meet in your eyes

credits

released April 9, 2016

Written and produced by Max Savage
Recorded at Mixmasters, Mary Street and Twin Earth
Mixed and Engineered by Tom Barnes at Mary Street, Unley
Mastered by Pete Maher, Topfloor Studios, Brighton

Max Savage: Acoustic Guitar/Vocals
Ross McHenry: Bass
Kevin Van Der Zwaag: Drums/Cowbell
Steve Pederson: Guitar/Pedal Steel/Mandolin
Django Rowe: Guitar
Tom Kneebone: Guitar
Lachlan Ridge: Guitar
Aaron Nash: Organ
Brenton Foster: Organ
James Bowers: Synth
Alana Jagt: Vocals
Delia Obst: Vocals
Tara Lynch: Vocals
Laura Knowling: Vocals

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Max Savage Adelaide, Australia

Beloved by fans and relatively unknown beyond their hometown of Adelaide, South Australia, Max Savage and the False Idols have developed a reputation for explosive live performances and thoughtfully assembled recordings over more than a decade of music. ... more

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