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This Dirt

by Lucas Lawson

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1.
This Dirt 03:20
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Well there’s fields of fresh filled dirt That I walk upon Well there’re fields of plenty Where I’m from So I dig my toes in deep Stretch my arms up high Knowin that someday I’ll have to say goodbye Light a candle for your loved ones Light a candle watch it burn There’s more to this planet Than plain old dirt Let the wick keep on burning Don’t let your love ever die Well this burning It opened my eye We keep on walking lookin down Trying to burn ourselves up We branded our home We destroyed what we claimed Now we’re stuck wonderin who to blame I’m made of this very land I’m sick of trying to not understand So I walk here to feel the pulse Of my own beating heart Reclaim what I’ve lost And start from where I forgot Light a candle for your loved ones Light a candle watch it burn There’s more to this planet Than plain old dirt Let the wick keep on burning Don’t let your love ever die Well this burning It opened my eye
2.
County Line 04:23
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Well I’m walking along this county line Oh I grew up on practically both sides My feet just walk away from each other Don’t know who to call my sister Don’t know who to call my brother Well I’m walking along this county line Oh I’m doing fine on my own I’m doing fine on my own I’m doing fine on my own Well the hills to the east The water to the west I carry both sides on my chest But you hold them like a baby Asleep in your arms Oh I dig up the soap root Tryna clean out the soles of my shoes Cause I’m bleeding from the blisters now And they say carry on It’s not far Well I’m walking along this county line I grew up on practically both sides My feet just walk away from each other Don’t know who to call my sister Don’t know who to call my brother Well I’m walking along this county line Oh I’m doing fine on my own I’m doing fine on my own I’m doing fine on my own
3.
Burn the Wood 03:18
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So burn the wood Let the charcoal stain your hand What did you come here for Why did I lose my head if I need it to be sure That these walls are caving in So burn the wood Let the charcoal stain the sky Then it’ll stain your lungs Oh it’ll stain your mind It’ll stain all of your damn insides So burn the wood Let the charcoal stain the ground Oh it poisoned the roots And the ground water is grey Oh I don’t have a place to walk that is stable or safe So burn the wood Burn the plastic filling your eyes Burn the oil on the water Burn your evergreen lawn Burn the lyrics to this song Why don’t you just burn each other Or burn till the oxygens gone
4.
Dance Under the Sky 03:43
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We dance to the sound of a fiddle But picture the ballroom in the sky The floorboards creak beneath us As my feet try to move in time My feet follow yours like the moon follows the sun And the city lights won’t glisten Like the sunrise over the ridge But it’s not a lost cause And this fiddle keeps playing Day after day
5.
Empty Birdhouse 04:09
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I’ve got a birdhouse But it’s empty I’ve got some seed and a tree nearby If only a sparrow would stay awhile Then this seed wouldn’t go to flower I can’t hear the birds sing when I wake up I can’t hear the crickets at night If only the traffic would stop blaring by Then this seed would get somewhere Can’t you see I’ve been workin quite a while Tryna get my birdhouse to host a few They don’t like the rumble and air Tryna reach the country side where They don’t need me or you They don’t need me or you I can’t hear the birds sing when I wake up I can’t hear the crickets at night If only the traffic would stop blaring by Then maybe seed would get somewhere Maybe we’d get somewhere Oh maybe we’d get somewhere
6.
Plant the Flowers by the Riverside 03:58
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I’ll walk backwards a few million years Just to know how to stand The smudging on the cave walls The imprint of a hand Could they have been an allegory Could they have known the truth By God there’s a thousand names Don’t know which ones to use So many interpretations That were took to the grave The ones that made it out were exiled Burned at the stake Well if the vine crawled up tall Maybe the flowers would’ve bloomed But you try to read your life page for page And you look the other way As you dig away Trying to uncover your own worth Do you even read the scripture That you found The years of expertise Won’t amount to much Unless you plant the flowers by the riverside Unless you plant the flowers by the riverside Unless you plant the flowers by the riverside Unless you plant the flowers by the riverside Unless you plant the flowers by the riverside
7.
The Little Things 04:44
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Sometimes I question all the little things Oh I protect them and hold them dear Did I mention that I’m still learning Did I mention that I’ve got the time Oh I didn’t hear you mention in your rambling confession That your story does not define mine Your past is not my future And my eyes are full of images that you can’t picture Stop taking all the little things That I once wished for I’m not yours to own Oh I don’t need your words in my throat It’s hard enough to find myself without Your cynical thoughts in my head Instead start listening Stop praying your past on me Cause it’s not a definition of my countless possibilities Do you overlook the little things Is your voice the only one you can hear Did I mention that my ignorance Is not asking for a lesson Still you try to make me learn I’m not yours to own I don’t need your words in my throat It’s hard enough to find myself without Your cynical thoughts in my head Instead start listening Stop praying your past on me Cause it’s not a definition of my countless possibilities
8.
The Old River 03:01
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Oh the time slows in the cold until it stops As I slowly sink under the pier and the docks Where the fishermen wait for me to thaw I’ve had time to think for a long long while Melt me down into the earth Pick me up for the sky This cold river will never run dry And this old river flows Take me down to the sea Oh this old river flows by me I pass through villages In I go I pass through the heart of a mountain Oh no But can you freeze me Like I can freeze your bones Oh I am my own home Oh I am my own home Melt me down into the earth Pick me up for the sky This cold river will never run dry And this old river flows Take me down to the sea Oh this old river flows by me
9.
Last Words of a Dying Man 03:32
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Oh if I could speak in a thousand tongues I wouldn’t speak for you Oh if I could speak in a thousand tongues I’d probably pretend to be mute Oh if I could dream just for one night I’d probably dream the truth Oh if I could hear the last words of a dying man They wouldn’t renew my youth What good is luck if it is cursed What good is one more step Well things fall apart And you can’t disguise The absence of breath Oh I’ve payed my way in labor I’ve clung to the sides of this train I know there’s space I push my own weight Tryna push past these words Well if I could speak in a thousand tongues I wouldn’t speak for you Oh if I could speak in a thousand tongues I’d probably pretend to be mute Oh If I could dream just for one night I’d probably dream the truth Oh If I could hear the last words of a dying man They wouldn’t renew my youth Oh if I could hear the last words of a dying man They wouldn’t renew my youth
10.
Forward Bound 04:21
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Well the rich paid in silver The people paid in gold We need someone to douse the burning mountains Counting their paper trials What is my currency What could I be livin off of but love And no matter how hard it is We’re forward bound And no matter how hard it is We’re forward bound Well there’s thick smoke in the air He couldn’t breathe The red sun staring down Eyes full of greed But you better not flee What is my currency What could I be livin off of but love And no matter how hard it is We’re forward bound And no matter how hard it is We’re forward bound

about

In August of 2020, the CZU Complex fires, a wildfire that spread 86,509 acres across the Santa Cruz Mountains, reached Lucas’s home and the surrounding landscape. A few days after a lightning storm sparked the flames, Lawson’s family and neighbors faced evacuation orders as the flames climbed over the ridge towards them. The lasting impact of the fire embedded itself into Lawson’s music, as he processed the loss he and his community had faced. "This Dirt," a tribute to all that was lost to the flames, was the first of many songs that emerged from the remains scattered around his home. Lucas begins the song by singing about his home and his expectation that part of it would be taken from him. The lines, “Well this burning / it opened my eye,” coming after, “Light a candle for your loved ones / light a candle watch it burn,” speak of loss from the wildfire and of a community working toward recovery. The second verse of the song dives into Lawson's frustration with our country's lack of effort in protecting our Earth. Lawson pays his respects to the land through transformative lyrics and heartfelt melodies, forging a bond with listeners who have endured struggles akin to his own.

credits

released November 25, 2022

Recorded and Engineered by Mike Formenti at Quilted Fish Studios in Bonny Doon, CA
Mastered by Michael Romanowski at Coast Mastering in Berkeley, CA
(c) 2022 Lucas Lawson
(c) 2022 Mike Formenti

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Lucas Lawson Santa Cruz, California

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