1. |
01-KeepMyMuzzleOn
03:47
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KEEP MY MUZZLE ON – capo 4
(Slow)
C D7 Dm7 C
C D7
I once was called a perfect boy
Dm7 C
Who would grow up and then enjoy
C7 D7
Getting to crow whenever I wanted
F Fm
But now I'm older, and I just feel haunted
(Speed up Fm, swap to 3/4 time)
When the words came
C
Out I had Trans-
D7
formed into a
Dm7
bitter beast and
C
Molted all the
D7
Feathers glued on
Dm7
carefully, grew
C
Predatory
D7
Eyes unwise and
Dm7
Then the flock all
C
Scattered all those
D7
Years proclaiming
Dm7
Peace none of it
Em
Mattered
Am
Broken like my tail
E
An incoherent story
Am
I lacked the skill to to say
C7
It's led up till today
F Fm
But my courage fades
C
So I'll keep my muzzle on
C D7 Dm7 C (x3)
Keep my muzzle on
F C
F C
F G
C D7
Work's been good, I'm getting paid
Dm7 Am
I’ve received no lack of praise
And winter's been a breeze this year
My Snow boots gather dust I fear
But my car's been making noises
Found this drink I really like
The washer/dryer's on the fritz
That's when it hits me and I'm
Em Am
Matured and wiser now
E Am
There's something I should say
C7
Words of wisdom to impart
F Fm
Sharing from the bottom of my heart
But I'll keep my muzzle on
C D7 F C (x3)
Keep my muzzle on
F C
F G
C
Oh, you want my thoughts
D7
Philosophy
F Fm
Thoughts on next catastrophe
C D7
Well listen up and listen clear
F Fm
Nobody ever wants to hear
C
The world is complicated
D7 F
There's no easy answers that's the
Fm C
the one truth I have found
D7 F
And it's what keeps my paws on solid ground
Fm C
So fly away, go on escape
D7 F
And when you come back down
Fm C (BACK TO THREES)
I will have my muzzle on
D7 Dm7
Don't you worry I will keep my muzzle on
(Muzzle on riff)
C D7 Dm7 x5
MUZZLE ON RIFF BUT IN THREES
(threes)
C D7 Dm7
This sounds wrong, doesn't it?
C D7
I know it sounds wrong
Dm7 C
That's why I keep my muzzle on
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2. |
02-WontAskCantTell
03:11
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WONT ASK CANT TELL – capo 4
Intro: G E Am D7
G E C D
G E C (Cm D)
Don't ask, don't tell
Let's see how far down into the status quo I can go
I don't feel well
But with my muzzle on it's easy to not let my teeth show
Break: G E Am D7
I like numbers
I gather data, put it all in excel to know my plan of attack
But these tracks
Are hard to follow, If I make a wrong turn how do I find my way back
I remember
Thinking I was crazy these were even queries I could entertain, but
G E C Cm ->
If I let my two sides duke it out which one will remain
(Chorus)
C G Em B (B7)
Am I the rooster guarding the henhouse
Or am I the vixen gonna tear it all down
Am I digging a tunnel to a better future
Or will I make my whole world sink through the ground?
C G Em B B7 C -> D# D
Don't ask, Can't tell
The crash has cycled but I'm still not feeling well
(verse2)
If you asked me
When I was fourteen if I would still have my tail attached
I would tell you
I felt it was there from the moment that I hatched
Now I'm not sure
Easy to muzzle up, don't tell anyone anything since
It's all a blur
I'm scared, unsure there’s no simple answers there’s no simple cure
(Chorus2)
(Chorus)
C G Em B (B7)
Am I the rooster guarding the henhouse
Or am I the vixen gonna tear it all down
Am I digging a den for safety
Or just to spite everyone living above ground?
C G Em B C -> D# D
Don't ask, Can't tell
The crash has cycled but I'm still not feeling well
G E Am D7
G B C Cm
The conversation at the kitchen table
Has gone silent
I know better than to make eye contact
That turns violent
No need to make excuses
(C extra) -> Cm
With this muzzle, I think that I've solved that puzzle
Chorus 3
I will be the rooster guarding the henhouse
And I will be the vixen gonna burn it all down
It's not worth asking
My muzzle stays on after all that's gone around
C G Em B B7
I will not tell you, let's just coexist for now
C Cm
So far this is the way that I know how
C G Em G7 D7 G
I won't ask, I can't tell
What you would really say
It's fine, I'll keep my muzzle on anyway
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3. |
03-Wires
05:48
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WIRES – capo 4
D Bm
It's a full moon tonight
D
Everyone can see clearly
The music's booming tonight
Hope no one hears me
A
I just want to watch
G D
Just want to sit idly by
A
Observe a life
G D
That passed me by
D Bm
Far beyond their wires where I live
G D
I watch their fires glow
D Bm
And I've got nothing I can give, but
G D
Nobody has to know
A Bm G D
My eyes are locked in wonder|| or in hunger I can't tell
A Bm G D
For the feathers I abandoned|| to regain my sense of smell
A Bm G D
I've been away for too long|| there's no more wishing well
I see One break from the flock
Going through the wires
I watch them hike to my spot
G
I'm not sure what's about to transpire
Bm G
My muscles tense my vision narrows
A Em G D
My paws feel stapled to the ground as if they're pinned with arrows
A
There is no test
Bm
My hackles rest
A
They brush my fur
Bm
with pinioned wings
A
Whispering gently, little vixen
G D
I'd like to hear you sing
A Bm G D
I see myself beside them|| exuberance in play
Muzzle never needed|| knowing all the words to say
A Bm Em Bm
Suddenly I feel my claws|| unconsciously display
Em Bm G Em (drop string 5 d->c#)
I recall them but it’s too late|| I recall why I stayed away
Bm A Em G
Bm A G D
It's too dangerous I tell her, There's too much at stake
One wrong move I tell her, I couldn't live with my mistake
Bm D (no g)
She descends with poise
Feathers slightly ruffled
Our gazes meet beneath the noise
Both of us muffled
A Bm G D
A Bm G D
Later I approach the wire
To watch her preening late at night
She's conflicted by the feeling
If what she asked was right
She spots me for a moment
G (drop string 5 d->c#)
Before I dash
Bm A G
November chill has hardened our hearts
Em Bm A
The wire and the muzzle both protect us
G D
And keep us safely apart
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4. |
04-Building
03:59
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BUILDING – capo 4
E A Am(x2)
E
I spent my life
A Am
Staring up the trunks of trees
My friends had flown
E
To the top of the canopy
A Am
If only I had known
E
What I know now
A Am
It wouldn't have kept me down
C#m A E (x3)
Cause I'm gonna build a plane
I'm gonna fly so high you might all think that I'm insane
But if I can put my mind to it
I think I'm really gonna go through with it this time
I'm gonna build a plane
I'm gonna build a plane
I'm gonna fly so high and I'll never be the same
(CONSTRUCTION BRIDGE- Excited)
B7 A7 B7 A7 B7 F#7->G#7->F#7
E Am
But there's something missing
I went too high
I thought I could reach them
See them eye to eye
Show I wasn't scary
No need to be wary
A Am
But I flew so fast they thought that I was saying goodbye
(START OVER)
E A Am(x2)
E A Am
I spent my life
Staring up the trunks of trees
My friends had flown
To the top of the canopy
If only I had known
What I know now
It wouldn't have kept me down
C#m A E (x4)
Cause I'm gonna build a tower
It'll be so tall
They'll see I'm not so different after all
I lack wings
But I can climb stairs
Brick by brick I can prepare
(C#m B A E)
I'm gonna build a tower
I'll reach the perfect height
I'll be grounded at their level
Waving to my friends in flight
(CONSTRUCTION BRIDGE)
E Am
But I'm missing something
I built too fast
As my paws cling to shoddy railings
I'm seeing now that it won't last
In that moment I recall
They all fly south after fall
A Am
And my tower will crumble before winter has passed
(START OVER. again)
E A Am (x2)
E A Am
I spent my life
Staring up the trunks of trees
My friends had flown
To the top of the canopy
If only I had known
What I know now
It wouldn't have kept me down
C#m A E (x5)
Cause I'm gonna build a moon base
At the very least I can stay in a single place
We'll be far away
A E
But at least nothing will change
I sound deranged
C#m
I realize now
A
But the course is charted
E
Might as well finish what I started
I'm gonna build a moon base
I'm gonna build a base on the heckin’ moon
You'll be able to see me there quite soon
(CONSTRUCTION BRIDGE)
E Am
I've got a telescope
I watch the earth
E
From my base on the moon
Am
Where everyone can see just what my skills are worth
The spacesuit's itchy
My radio broke
A
It's just a different type of muzzle
Am (MUTE)
I was so frightened I awoke
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5. |
05-SummerShadow
04:02
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SUMMER SHADOW – capo 4
So Fast So Maybe progression, E G C Am
Winter coat's gone now
Lost it through a sudden spring
Now a nimbler fox takes wing
I've got a very different song to sing
Too long I've been quiet
Disciplined and pure
My instinct to meet expectations was the most
Dangerous lure
(CHORUS ALSO)
Coming on out it's my summer shadow
Don't stop now, we got a ways to go
Up from the deep where your mind can't reach
Beyond everything you know
Coming on out it's my summer shadow
Emerging from the dark where you don't dare go
Watch the blood on my teeth glow in the moonlight
so now you know
I was a Good kid Nice kid followed the Rules
Thought I could have it All straight A's in Sunday School
ALone at ccD
Listened to the teacher Speak her anxieTY
Was she teaching us well?
Or were we all going straight to hell
we sailed the ark through stormy weather
Didn't think we could do much better
I got lost in the dogma
Vulpine believing I could turn canine
Hungry for flesh, thirsty for blood
Killing flamingos trapped in the mud
(CHORUS)
(CHORUS ALSO)
Coming on out it's my summer shadow
Won’t stop now, I got a ways to go
So many victims that I’ve yet to reach
Beyond everything they know
Coming on out it's my summer shadow
Starvation took me to a brand new low
Lick the blood off my teeth as they glow in the sunrise
so now they know
I let it all out
Silently because I didn't dare say
Viciousness I couldn't speak aloud
Muzzle still on tight, muzzle still on proud
And yet from somewhere inside me
The dove’s already been bled
That let me hide inside a bright view of the world
After all what I have instead
Now is a patch of shade
Keeping me away from the rays of light
Glow so strong they could turn a fox blind
What should I take, what should I leave behind?
(CHORUS)
(CHORUS ALSO)
Coming on out it's my summer shadow
Can't stop now, I got a ways to go
Up from the deep where no-one can teach me
Anything I know
Coming on out it's my summer shadow
Lost mid-day no place to go
Smelling dried blood on my teeth in the sunlight
When will I know
(One Round blank into plucked)
(Full chord plucks)
I see my white fur littering a den
Wet with death from a Fresh killed Robin by my
own Labor as I flip through the pages of a blood-stained
hymnal, Do me a favor
When I swing back
And dive in the snow
From black to white from day to night
Could you just forget could you let it go (x3)
(fancy fingerpluck)
See you after the fall
By then I'll have my white coat regrown after all
See you after the fall....Or not
because by then I'll blend in perfect after all
See you after the fall
By then I'll have my muzzle back on after all (x3)
(bar3, bar5 variant at the end)
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6. |
06-Tracking
05:38
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TRACKING – capo 4
A Dm (bar)
They think they've tracked my trail
Following my tail so long and
yet to no avail
I’ve long smelled them there
and believe me I'm prepared
A Dm C G
Because I've done the numbers
You bet I've done the math
A Dm
And when all of this is over
C G
they’ll wish they took a different path
I bark taunts into the darkness
So they know I've not been lost
And when they think they've caught me
They will see the cost
G F E
E F G G# ABar nightmare
A C
There's a train a-coming
F E
Following my tracks
A C
My timing is impeccable
F
I've taken countless packs out
E
Underneath its wheels
A
The world so turns
C
That dogs will die
F
Before they've earned
E
The right to say
A C
they've hunted me successfully
F E7
I turn to see I flash a grin expect a sneer up to the end and yet instead
F#m E A A7
F#m E
I look into their fearful eyes
A A7
Too afraid to ask for mercy
F#m E A
It's all come together there's no escape
A7
their end approaches quickly at my claws
F#m
Kindergarten lessons cast aside
E A
No place left to hide from righteous cause
A7
Was I justified?
F#m
Should I have kept my muzzle on
E
Not spurred this thing along
A
Refused to play the game and deciding I would hide
A7
What if I just lied?
F#m
And kept my muzzle on? They still might be alive if I
E A
Kept my muzzle on
(End on A) (NON-BAR Here)
A Dm
I grew up on the train
Tail curled underneath me
Sitting by the door to study, catch a wink
or contemplate and think regardless
I’m not heartless
Sliding doors invite a chill that wakes me
I am one who makes see
Those that never had the chance
Of course they won't know the dance
They'll never understand my instincts
Maybe gained through circumstance
I memorized the schedule it makes them all
Amaj7
Afraid
A Amaj7 Bm7 (F#m7, E)
I grew up on the train
I’m used to traveling to reach a better life
It doesn’t make me vain
Some people are content to complain about the smell but they can’t smell
Possibility, where the train might take them
Where does it take me
A Amaj7 (loop 2, add upper e string G)
I’m standing on the tracks out in the rain
The weather’s gotten colder my paw’s frozen to the tracks I see the train
(I see the train, I see the traint
(Basic: Am Dm C Em)
I break free at the final moment
Now the train goes twice as fast
My calculations need some work
I'll need to do the math again
What if I miscalculate
And end up like those hounds
What if I’m no longer tracking
But the train still loops around
Em F E
E F G G# F#m
F#m E A A7
There's a train a-coming
Rushing down my tracks
Its timing is inscrutable
It’s taken countless packs out
Underneath its wheels
The world so turns
We all will die
Before we've earned
The right to say
That we have learned
From our mistakes
A
The train will never break
A7
There’s no escape
It's coming for me
It's coming for me
The train comes for us all
I've got to pay my toll
If I can keep my muzzle on
I just might save my soul
The train comes for us all
How do I pay my toll
If I can keep my muzzle on
I just might save my soul
The train comes for us all
No change left for my toll
But if I can keep my muzzle on
I just might save my soul
(Voice falls behind the rhythm)
If I can keep my muzzle on I just might save my soul
If I can keep my muzzle on,
not shovel vindication into boilers like coal
I just might save my soul
If I can keep my muzzle on
Disappear into the dawn
Erase past guilt and move along
F#m Dmbar
Use the time that I have left
Abar
To keep my muzzle…
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7. |
07-Elegy
02:09
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Elegy – capo 4
Capo 4
D D7 E G
I went to a funeral today
My nemesis has passed away
He was the first bird that I bit
Teething as a little kit
My parents knew that my fangs would grow
But never said I had to go
Still I felt it only right
To keep my muzzle on
and not get into another fight (9)
What do I owe Now that he's gone
A reminisce A bitter song
A book about the life he led
Verbatim words that he'd want said
He warned the world about folks like me
With tails and teeth across the seas
He saw the globe, and then he said
His perfect world would be,
G
one where every fox like me was dead
I placed a rose upon his grave
My paw was pricked from thorns it saved
What do I say now that he's gone
E G D
I think I'll keep my muzzle on
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8. |
08-KeepYourMuzzleOn
03:07
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KEEP YOUR MUZZLE ON – capo 4
G D Am C
Somehow I am making peace
Without continual release
From expectations and restrictions
Letting fate guide my convictions
Of a world that I can't change
As a fox with a lower vocal range
Brain split beyond all reconciling
D7
Like code continually compiling
G D Em C
G7 Am Em C7
Now I know that it's okay to not have anything to say
When your words bring claws of violence you can leave them in the silence
D7
Keep your muzzle on
G D Am C (x2)
G D Am C
Sometimes I’d take off the cage
In a meadow vent my rage
Then I put it right back on
If that's how we all could get along
I've said some things that I regret
And yet somehow I haven't died yet
Words are cheap, memories fade
Come and sit, rest in the shade with me
(chorus)
We won't scream or shout
Somehow we'll learn to live without
A broader purpose or a mission
a vulpine life lacking ambition
D7
Keep your muzzle on
G D Am C (x2)
Your muzzle may not be who you are
But your muzzle's kept you singing so far
Your muzzle is your voice
But your muzzle can also be your choice
(Early into C here, rough transition style) (C D7 G G7 (x4)
Your Life goes on
Just like this song
If you can’t (can) Keep your muzzle on
C D7 G
Your life goes on, keep your muzzle on (Final note is third, not first or fifth)
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Atha Fox Reston, Virginia
Thank you for finding me. I am a Fox who was raised by Chickens, and it left me in a bit of a confused state. I write songs to help me understand who I am and where I'm going. I hope you can find something in them that helps you understand your own journey. ... more
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