Angie Nussey
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Little Tragedies
Click on the player to hear the songs....
1. Broken
2. Change
3. You Test Me
4. Mrs. Smith
1. Broken
2. Change
3. You Test Me
4. Mrs. Smith
Little Tragedies
(released 2007)
Buy it here
1. Grassy Knoll
2. Broken
3. Change
4. You Test Me
5. Mrs. Smith
6. Little Flaws
7 The Quest
8. Tempted
9. The Song (for Matt Osborne)
10. Under-Qualified
11. Unwritten Pages
12. Don't Give Up
(released 2007)
Buy it here
1. Grassy Knoll
2. Broken
3. Change
4. You Test Me
5. Mrs. Smith
6. Little Flaws
7 The Quest
8. Tempted
9. The Song (for Matt Osborne)
10. Under-Qualified
11. Unwritten Pages
12. Don't Give Up
Musicians:
Brian Lahaie: Drums, Percussion, Marimba, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar.
Ayron Mortley: Bass Guitar
Ben Sures: Slide, Electic, Acoustic, and Noise / Feedback Guitar
Angie Nussey - Piano, Acoustic Guitar, Organ
Paul Macdougall - Electic Guitar (tracks 1, 6,
and 8)
Chris Eakins - Organ, Wurlitzer (tracks 4 and 7), Rhodes (track 8)
Ayron Mortley: Bass Guitar
Ben Sures: Slide, Electic, Acoustic, and Noise / Feedback Guitar
Angie Nussey - Piano, Acoustic Guitar, Organ
Paul Macdougall - Electic Guitar (tracks 1, 6,
and 8)
Chris Eakins - Organ, Wurlitzer (tracks 4 and 7), Rhodes (track 8)
Brian Kobaykawa - Double Bass (tracks 10 and 11)
Rebecca Hennessy - Flugelhorn and Trumpet (track 5)
Front Cover Photo by Neil Jorgensen
Back Cover Photo by Scott Donelly
Inside Photos by Lana Royce
CD Design and Layout by Brendan Fitzpatrick and David at Media Express Printing
Back Cover Photo by Scott Donelly
Inside Photos by Lana Royce
CD Design and Layout by Brendan Fitzpatrick and David at Media Express Printing
1. The Grassy Knoll
He was a matter for the legal affairs.
They had him right from the start.
Fourteen and lost behind the matters of despair.
Raised up a lonely heart.
He lost a battle he could never have won.
They had him right by the throat.
Three hours and a chase that made the Saturday Sun.
Shot dead by the devil in a police coat.
D.C. gasped a sigh of relief.
No more blood to be spilled.
Three years of question and disbelief.
Nineteen witnesses killed.
How could the media be so over-ruled?
What with the president gone?
You’d think we’d figure what went over our heads.
But still the lies go on and on.
Some think the mafia was in on it to.
So was the CIA.
No doubt the republicans hated him too.
No war and a roll in the hay.
There was a player who was headed for a win.
No doubt the public approved.
Shot dead in the car he was riding in.
Blame the one with a destiny to lose.
We watch as history repeats itself.
We wait with baited breath.
We hope for motive that is better than wealth.
So far it hasn’t come yet.
We hope for a motive that is better than wealth.
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2006
2. Broken
You could have waited. ‘Cause I would’ve gotten better.
Would have come to you with vigor.
You’d have never seen me down.
I would have been polished.
I would have been rested.
I would have been all the things it takes for your time to be invested.
(Chorus)
But you took me anyway. Full knowing. All my weakness showing
You took my hand into your arm and without another word spoken…
….took me when I was broken
You were kind and you were thoughtful.
When I was shaking, you were careful.
I found strength to be myself.
You were everything I needed at the time.
Like nobody else.
(Chorus)
There was a time when I knew nothing of the person I could be
and I was haunted by the demons that you didn’t even see.
You took me in when I thought never would I find a place to land.
It was a time I needed someone more than just another man.
And I held onto you like someone who would never leave you then.
And here I go again, hoping you’ll remember when.
(Chorus)
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2007
3. Change
I don’t want to walk dogs.
I don’t want to count money.
I don’t want to be affected by the words of somebody who just doesn’t know me.
I don’t want to be weak.
I don’t want to be angry.
I don’t want to panic.
I don’t want to stutter.
I don’t want to accept all that’s given to me.
So I’ll hold up my hands.
I will make amends.
I will change.
I will change.
I want to feel hate towards no one.
I want to clear up all my misunderstandings.
I want to feel no grudges.
I want easy beginnings and soft landings.
I want to believe everybody.
I want to trust a man’s word.
I want to cry when I feel it. Say how I see it.
I want to be heard.
So I’ll hold up my hands.
I will make amends.
I will cling fast to the powers that be.
I will change. I will change.
I will hold up my hands
And make amends.
I will help another.
I will change.
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2006
4. You Test Me
You test me.
You wear me down and drive my patience.
Have me screaming to the nations.
Leave me feeling for abrasions.
Have me making accusations.
You fool me.
You break down and apologize when I have barely a ground to stand on.
Never hiding what’s inside is not the course I had planned on.
You fool me.
And they say wanting someone is like digging a hole in the ground.
But I still say the hopeful songs make the sweeter sounds.
And if there is danger in staying here with you,
then let me stay I’ll risk it, it’s all plan to do.
I want what stands in front of me how insufficient it may be.
I couldn’t even if I wanted to leave.
I wouldn’t even though it’s you who tests me.
You choose me.
I know I’m not for every guy.
I bare the faults that you despise.
Still you walk with open eyes.
I sometimes still wonder why you choose me.
And they say wanting someone is like digging a hole in the ground.
But I still say the hopeful songs make the sweeter sounds.
And if there is danger in staying here with you,
then let me stay I’ll risk it, it’s all plan to do.
I want what stands in front of me how insufficient it may be.
I couldn’t even if I wanted to leave.
I wouldn’t even though it’s you who tests me.
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2007
5. Mrs. Smith
Mrs. Smith is outside putting laundry on the line.
She’s got fresh bread in the oven and today she’ll pull some carrots for the church.
“Every moment here is like a gift” she used to say, but you can tell that time has changed her. The more she reads, the less she understands.
Mrs. Smith remembers when the world was much more simple.
She recalls the day she kissed her husband sending him to war.
And even though he died she always felt there was a cause.
And when the war was over surely we would see the true destruction in the end.
How could we be so misled again?
How could we be so misled again?
Jacob went to college.
My goodness he was handsome.
And when him a Sarah married they looked just like two young stars from Hollywood.
Sandra was the wild one. You couldn’t help not love her.
Her wee one is now twelve years. Just like his grand-dad used to be.
Chorus
How bravely he walked out the door.
How bravely he walked out the door.
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2006
6. Little Flaws
My temper flew because I knew I couldn’t have you no matter how I tried.
Your list of details on what I should and shouldn’t do won’t keep you satisfied.
I want to stay because I’m scared of what might change and so are you.
And so we carry on pointing out our little flaws…searching for distractions from the truth.
And I know it’s not your fault but I still hate you anyway.
And I swear that I’ll be fine so long as nothing more is said today.
I’m sounding crazy, even foolish, but I know that this is not for me.
I need a man who loves me from all angles and not just the little pieces of what he thinks I aught to be.
And you need someone who’s consistent.
Someone who won’t wear you out.
You need a lady who will take you in, keep you warm, and you will never have these feelings of doubt.
And I know it’s not your fault but I still hate you anyway.
And I swear that I’ll be fine so long as nothing more is said today.
I thought about my luck when I saw a broken down truck beside the highway.
And I wondered what kind of fate could have put it in this state you know it must have been driving quite a while before it broke down.
It reminded me of you and I.
We must have been broken from the inside.
On and on we drove and drove hoping we could fix all these problems we created…
only when we were together.
And I know it’s not your fault but I still hate you anyway.
And I swear that I’ll be fine so long as nothing more is said today.
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2005
7. The Quest
Ever since I can remember.
I’ve been on this quest to be satisfied…not that kind of satisfied you know what I’m talking about.
I mean in my mind.
Oh, it’s such a frail, frail, mind…darker in the day and lighter in the night.
And I wonder if people think I’m crazy.
Oh, I think I’m crazy myself sometimes.
But who are they and who am I to judge.
Lord knows we could use a little less judgement around here nowadays.
Now couldn’t we?
Back to me I’ve got this problem.
I’m trying to work this thing out.
I try to prove myself to someone.
I don’t know who I’m talking about.
And I burn my bridges.
Oh, don’t you look at me that way I know you burn your share of bridges too.
We all do.
Oh, I run until I’m tired.
But slow and steady is what I crave.
To be satisfied.
When all I need is to survive.
(back to first verse)
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2005
8. Tempted
He caught my eye around the neighborhood.
Had me over cause he knew he could.
He was a looker and from what I understood:
through and through he was up to no good.
A guy like that can get in your mind.
It kind of feels like overdrive.
When they’re smooth it’s hard not to stay the night.
They don’t let you see the wrong for the right.
It’s not the fact his the type of man for so many years that I’ve resented.
It’s not the fact he laughs in the face of the woman I’ve represented.
The problem is: I’m tempted.
Aren’t we all sometimes? Aren’t we all?
His attitude was questionable.
He had a voice that was sweet and low.
He had a body but it didn’t quite show.
He had the lines only good ones know.
It’s not the fact his the type of man for so many years that I’ve resented.
It’s not the fact he laughs in the face of the woman I’ve represented.
The problem is: I’m tempted.
Aren’t we all sometimes? Aren’t we all?
Pathetically and shamelessly attention seeking deviants we are, we are.
‘Cause is we weren’t and we acted like the church girls we were trained to be he would never get that far.
It’s not the fact his the type of man for so many years that I’ve resented.
It’s not the fact he laughs in the face of the woman I’ve represented.
The problem is: I’m tempted.
Aren’t we all sometimes? Aren’t we all?
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2005
9. The Song (for Matt Osborne)
He was a poet.
He was a voice.
He was a joker.
He was a thinker.
He was a friend to many and a hero to some.
He was an influence to me and careless to no one.
He was all that is pure in a world full of brick walls and pavement.
He was all that is right in a world full of wrong.
He was a song.
If we were a team.
He’d be the MVP.
And if I were a talent scout….he’d be Gretzky.
And if you were down and out, he was a brother.
And if you were scared and vulnerable, he was a mother.
He was all that is great in a world full of mediocre.
He was all that is right in a world full of wrong.
He was a song.
“oooh ooooh”
“Down, down, descending we go. The choral is beautiful this time of year.”
“I want to be the mayor. I’d kick some backs around behind my doors.”
“I want a girl with glasses. I prefer the narrow lenses with the tasteful trim around the frame.”
“If they make my movie (and don’t we all deserve one) it will all be explained in the last scene. So why have I been screaming all these years for attention? Because if you bury the loud, there’s nothing.”
“There’s a light ahead somewhere. It’s to far away for me to care. I hope it’s warming someone now. It’s too cold down here to gather ‘round the flame.”
The flame.
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2006
Words in quotation by Matt Osborne
10. Under-Qualified
I can tell by your eyes when you look at my face you don’t love me anymore.
And the pain that I feel was not part of the deal I must say.
For a trooper like me you would think I would be so much stronger in my ways.
But the weight of the hurt takes me back to my earlier days.
We tried our best to keep alive the love we had before.
So sadly under-qualified, it always left us hoping for more.
There are times when I wish we’d forget all of this and go back to our earlier days.
I could be who I am if only could see who I was.
We were close in the past I was sure it would last.
I was wrong in every way.
And the leaving’s the part that is breaking my heart without cause.
We tried our best to keep alive the love we had before.
So sadly under-qualified, it always left us hoping for more.
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2005
11. Unwritten Pages
I may not know you that well, but I do see the look on the face of the girl I have known all my life.
I don’t know you that well, but I can say you posses everything and more than what she has dreamed.
I can’t give much advice.
Lord knows I’m never quite sure.
But I do know the look on the face of the girl who has found the one…who has found the one for her.
Years have gone by since the walks up the ski hill.
Peach Schnapps in summer under the Santala bridge.
Years have passed since we sang out our future and laughed about how we might end up and where we might live.
Though we never had answers, we were certain our dreams could come true.
I can tell by the comfort she has in her heart.
She’s the one…she’s the one for you.
She’s the one who can sense when you’re hurting miles away over a crackling telephone.
She’s the one who will stand by your side when your worries arise and it feels like you’re coming undone.
It’s not every day when you meet a kind spirit who’s laughter’s contagious.
All the things you won’t have to say will be floating around you like unwritten pages.
I may not know you that well.
But I do see the look on the face of the girl I have known all my life.
I can’t give much advice.
Lord knows I’m never quite sure, but I do know the look on the face of the girl who has found the one, who has found the one for her.
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2004
12. Don’t Give Up
There are guys in the corner with the TV on. And when I finish this song I’m gonna go over and ask them if they can turn it down. I’m singing up a storm…a song called “ As it is.” I have good friends watching and they feel bad for me. I wonder if I feel bad for myself?
I called up my mother today. I said, “I think it’s time I stopped.” She said: “now, that sounds funny. You were finally getting somewhere. But if there was at time you’d want to…now would be it. You’ve given almost everything you have. It’d be a good time to quit. You would not be the first to stop here and you will not be the last. You could save what’s left of your dignity. You could go out with class. But that’s not what I see for you.
That path never made sense to me.
This was never a race.
It was never a choice.
You are just one little person with one little voice.
And you may not move mountains, but you will surely play a part.
You are much stronger than you’re feeling now.
You have a lion’s heart.
Don’t give up.”
So I went down to the washroom. I stared in the mirror. Looked at my eyes. What am I doing here? Can I make it through the night? Can I make it through if this is all am for the rest of my life?
We break out of our starting gates with no fear in our hearts. There’s no mold that we can’t break. There’s no choice that is too hard. It’s funny how we get stuck in between what we are today and what we could have been. Tonight I can’t carry on this way. Sometimes I still need to hear her say:
“This was never a race.
It was never a choice.
You are just one little person with one little voice.
And you may not move mountains, but you will surely play a part.
You are much stronger than you’re feeling now.
You have a lion’s heart.
Don’t give up.
I know people who were just like you and they chose not to stay. They took a road more traveled and they regret it to this day. You are not unsuccessful and if you carry on you’ll find that the only time you fail yourself is when you don’t try. Don’t give up.”
Words and music by Angie Nussey © 2006
