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The Best of​.​.​.​.​.​Songs of Possibilities

by Walter Ehresman

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1.
No Tengo Sangre (una cantata en español) 13:31
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No Tengo Sangre (versión español) (© 2015 Walter Ehresman) --translation donated by Aaron Romo/Anne Nicolai) [verso #1] Me he trasladado a su país, donde la sangre es el mortero, La onda en la tela de la cohesión social, el pegamento que sustituye lo que el gobierno no era buena en proveer a las personas en necesidad. [verso #2] Yo me paro fuera del sistema de los siglos— un hombre sin familia (aunque algunos todavía respiran); Una historia tan larga para contar a los extraños ... Es mucho más fácil decir que mi sangre está toda muerta. [coro #1] Porque no tengo sangre, pero aún camino en la tierra; Para ti, soy un fantasma que acecha tu ciudad; Una idea extraña, una concepción preocupante; Un destino del que preferirías no pensar nunca. [verso #3] Linaje es algo que nunca he seleccionado; Una cosa que no voy a dejar que defina quién soy. La familia que amo es la que yo he escogido; La sangre que compartimos es la sangre que derramaremos uno para el otro—así que sabe que estoy nadando en sangre. [coro #2] Porque no tengo sangre, pero aún camino en la tierra; Para ti, soy un fantasma que acecha tu ciudad; Una idea extraña, una concepción preocupante; Un destino del que preferirías no pensar nunca. Pero la sangre que compartimos es la sangre que derramaremos uno para el otro, así que sabe que estoy nadando en sangre. La sangre que compartimos es la sangre nos derramaremos uno para el otro, así que sabe que estoy nadando en sangre. --click on the song "I Have No Blood", also on this collection, to see the English version of the lyrics.
2.
Outside of Time, You Call 04:38
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Outside of Time, You Call (© 2008 Walter Ehresman) Falling through that space, no purpose here, no trace of hope I find. Outside of time, you call–a line to me–resolve to crawl to your light. [chorus] ‘Cause I love you and I reach from the space between all that I want; And eyes wide open, I step from the dark; And your strong heart will welcome me, I know; And this new love will banish the wounds of the past as we look to the dawn. Radiance surrounds you, in my life I’ve found all roads lead here.
3.
Evan's Waltz 02:56
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Evan's Waltz (© 2006 Walter Ehresman) --Written and recorded for Evan Overstreet, age 3 1/2.
4.
Kathleen 04:18
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Kathleen (© 2006 Walter Ehresman)
5.
I Have No Blood 04:56
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I Have No Blood (English version) (© 2015 Walter Ehresman) I’ve moved to your country, where blood is the mortar, the weave in the fabric of social cohesion, the glue that replaces what government never was good at providing for people in need. I stand on the outside of centuries’ system— a man with no family (though some still draw breath); A story that’s too long for telling to strangers….. much easier to say that my blood is all dead. [chorus #1] For I have no blood, but I walk the earth still; To you, I’m a ghost who is haunting your town; An alien notion, a troubling conception; A fate that you’d rather not think of at all. Lineage is something I never selected; A thing that I won’t let define who I am. The family I love is the one I’ve selected; The blood that we share is the blood we would spill for each other—so know that I’m swimming in blood. [chorus #2] For I have no blood, but I walk the earth still; To you, I’m a ghost who is haunting your town; An alien notion, a troubling conception; A fate that you’d rather not think of at all. But the blood that we share is the blood we would spill for each other—so know that I’m swimming in blood. The blood that we share is the blood we would spill for each other—so know that I’m swimming in blood.
6.
Too Rude To Rule--Bass-In-Yer-Face extended mix 05:21
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Too Rude To Rule (© 2016 Walter Ehresman) I see you spewin’ on the TV— a full borosie with a harbour shark style; Throwin’ gas onto the fire; Spread your hate beneath a big smile; Too rude to rule; too rude to rule. You diggin’ poison from a deep well-- you celebrate it like it doesn’t have smell; You put a lie into the mirror; You make a little man swell, aye? Too rude to rule; too rude to rule. Too rude to rule, now; too rude to rule. [break—dancehall toasting] With your white hood meetings, you’re a real upsetter, man; The baldheads getting’ giddy with your Brownshirt rhetoric; The shockwaves you creatin’ never move that weave, man, and everything you say is just a whim and not a plan; And you tap into that river of American intolerance (and everyone of color surely seen that Southern dance); And you look into the mirror, say “who is that cool dude?”; You think you’re too bad but you’re just too rude. You actin’ fassy with a big mob; You light the torches as they march to my town. You got them huntin’ for the dark kids; Machine guns at the feet of a clown. But I’ve been hearin’ something risin’— a better sound from the positive souls; A hurricane is a’brewin’— a pressure drop for your bankroll. Too rude to rule; too rude to rule. Too rude to rule, now; too rude too rude. *Jamaican slang: “borosie”=a jerk; “harbour shark”=someone who is greedy; “fassy”=like an asshole; “rude”=criminal.
7.
A Bump in the Road 04:55
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A Bump in the Road (©2005 Walter Ehresman)
8.
Snipe Hunt - All Possible Dances 05:13
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All Possible Dances (© 2002 music-W. Ehresman/V. Ramirez; lyrics-W. Ehresman) The Carpmeister has always been such a good friend to me; So I queried him ‘bout why he seems amused by all he smells and all he sees; He said “My boy, I insert distance between all that nasty stuff and me; ‘Cause if I didn’t, I’d be tempted every day to employ Rule 303.” And I know that what he’s sayin’ is the only way to keep your sanity; And I know some jobs need doin’, even though they desecrate morality; But I gotta keep things simple when you’re talkin’ ‘bout my walkin’-‘round creed; So if I will not shake your hand, then it’s the price I pay for no hypocrisy. [chorus] Truth, trust, and honor I take so seriously; But otherwise I dance between the lattice of possibility. When the whistle blows, the Sheepdog and Coyote stop to have a cup of tea; So when the trial is over, should I take the killer’s lawyer for coffee? And when your friends cross over, how can things remain the way they used to be? And when the dust has settled, is there anyone left standing next to me? [chorus]
9.
Snipe Hunt - I Ain't Such a Bad Guy 04:17
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I Ain't Such a Bad Guy (© 1992 Walter Ehresman) Well, I didn't sink Amelia Earhart, momma, and I didn't put the smog in the sky; Never cast a vote for George Bush, baby, so why don't you give me a try? There ain't no heavy starch within a mile of me, darlin' and I'm hopin' that it's easy to see I ain't such a bad guy. Well, I never co-wrote a Stallone movie, and I never went out with Cher; and don't say a word about the Persian Gulf, because I swear I wasn't even there. I ain't selling crack, I ain't a quarterback posing in his underwear; I don't use my guitar as an extension of my penis and I never put mousse in my hair. Ain't a Polo shirt within a mile of me, darlin' and I'm sitting here telling you why I ain't such a bad guy. Well, I never did hire a billboard, baby, never flushed a fish down the commode; If I done all the things that your look suggests I don't think that I could carry the load. Now I understand that livin' in this land might generate suspicious minds, but if every man is hatched out evil then a good one must be sure hard to find. There ain't a Gucci belt within a mile of me, baby and I'm beggin' you to give me a try; I ain't such a bad guy.
10.
Kismet? 06:45
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Kismet? (cante hondo) (© 1998 Walter Ehresman)
11.
BONUS TRACK: No Tengo Sangre--instrumental version 13:06
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No Tengo Sangre--instrumental version (© 2015 Walter Ehresman)
12.
BONUS TRACK: Those Rare Moments of Confidence 05:20
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Those Rare Moments of Confidence (© 1990 Walter Ehresman) I got a feeling, found it just inside of my heart; Just a feeling-- don’t know if I can cut it any more. [chorus] I see the writing on the wall, I see the writing there for me, for me. I got a feeling, every time I recheck the score; Just a feeling-- where I was rich I now am poor. [chorus] [break] Get a’hold of everything--can’t believe I was listening to ya; Alarm bells rings--damn near fell into it; The joker, he moves fast--slips through a hole in the wire; With a backwards glance--gonna light your funeral pyre; Gotta make the music--sing about recesses of desire. We need a Renaissance today; Feed the art or the body will die; I think the head is gone anyway, but I’ve got mine.

about

2017 marks 30 years of recording his songs for release out into the world and, to celebrate this milestone, Walter Ehresman has been releasing a series of "Best of......" compilations throughout the year, organized by style and mood. They draw from the over 200 songs he has written and released, across 16 solo and four band albums, between 1987 and 2017. No song is repeated across any of the collections.

As those of you familiar with his prodigious output know, Ehresman tends to jump genres on pretty much every song on any given album. As he said in February of 2017, "....This is because I take the musical inspiration as it comes, and also have just never wanted to release an entire album of songs all in the same genre, with the exception of 2007’s experimental dark ambient album “The A.D.G. Project” (written for use with a large art installation at Burning Man that year).......Like many musicians, I rarely think of genre at all when I write and record.....I just pursue the idea wherever it leads, and in the end it 'is what it is,' as they say.

"I never have a good answer when asked by people: 'Oh, you’re a songwriter…..what kind of songs do you write?'...... Some songs are in recognizable styles, and some I frankly don’t what genre you’d put them in. But given all that, I think all my songs can be sorted out into a few general categories that have as much to do with mood as with a recognizable genre."

This ninth compilation completes the series, and is the only volume which is organized based on commonality of concept rather than similar musical style or mood. As the title states, these are songs about possibilities.

Ehresman tells us: "Here at the end of 2017, I feel a real sense of culmination, completing this year-long compilation project......It had been in the back of my mind for a very long time to try something like this, and the 30 year milestone of me recording my songs for release seemed like a good time to undertake it......As I was figuring out the categories for the nine releases, I began to see how they could come out at certain times of the year that would have some relation to the content of each......Having the weird, experimental material come out on Halloween was easy, but it wasn't as obvious to me, at first, what approach I should take to the final volume coming out in December......But after thinking about it, it occurred to me that when one year ends and we pass through New Years Eve to the next year, the feeling is really about a renewal of possibilities........It gives our minds the opportunity to gather forces and enter into a new period of optimism, primed with the energy and focus to sense potential in our lives."

He continues "And so this last compilation album for 2017 is unified by songs that deal with the crux of moments.......where things have the possibility to go either way......they reflect those types of moments in my life, and strive to capture and express something universal."

As an aside, this volume can also bee seen as a good sampler which captures many of the musical styles Ehresman has worked with in the past.

Although this approach to Volume 9 is a break from how the other eight volumes were assembled, it seems somehow appropriate as the final summation of this phase of Ehresman's long musical journey to date. One senses that he is assessing his own potential for exploring new, uncharted musical and lyrical horizons, now that this broad summation project is behind him. As he is already half way through recording his next solo album, to be titled "South of the Wall", fans of this eclectic and fearless musician will likely not have to wait too far into 2018 to get the first missives from Phase Two of Ehresman's never-ending musical journey.

Stay tuned.

Cover photo by Sean Reagan.

credits

released December 2, 2017

--produced and compiled by Walter Ehresman.

p. 2017. Snipe Bog Records. All rights reserved.
© as indicated at each work.

Discography
--solo albums: "Honor in the Swine?" ('89); "In the Path of the Cat Chasers" ('90); "Split Brain Theory" ('91); "The Blue Shoat Special" ('96); the spoken-word "The Rants" ('97); "Handwedge from the Trap" ('99); “Le Cafard“ (’01); "The Feral Rugby Team Must GO!" ('03); "No Unifying Theme" ('04); "March, Scream or Cry" ('07); "The ADG Project" ('07); "Monkey Paw Situation" ('09); “Well…..Let‘s Look at Your Track Record, Shall We?” (’10); “Life Outside the Tent“ (’12); “Blue-Eyed Devils” (’14); “Pinches Topes” (’16); "The Best of.......Singer/Songwriter" ('17); "The Best of........World Music" ('17); "The Best of.......Party Mix" ('17); "The Best of......Hard Rockers" ('17); "The Best of.......Electronic Rockers" ('17); "The Best of......Chill" ('17); "The Best of.......Blue Mood" ('17); "The Best of.......the Weird Ones" ('17); and "The Best of......Songs of Possibilities" ('17).

--with Snipe Hunt: "We'll Be Right Back!" ('99); "Dirty Ditties and Cover Tunes" ('00); and "I Saw the Future (But the Damn Train Hit Me Just the Same)" ('02).

--with Los Platos: “Oh, No” EP (’08).

--with Delphi Rising: “For Granted” (‘10)

--compilations (various artists):
(with Swine Patrol) “The Austin Cassette Compendium” (‘86);
(solo) "Monkey Boy Sampler" ('01, '05); and "Several Famous Orchestras" ('03).

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Walter Ehresman San Miguel De Allende, Mexico

Called "the quintessential Austin DIY artist" by famed local disc jockey Charlie Martin , Walter Ehresman was an eccentric presence in the Austin music scene from the '80s until his 2015 move to Mexico. A prolific songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and recording artist...and a restless musical spirit, always looking for something new, expressed with fearlessly honest, socially-conscious lyrics. ... more

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