Smoke and Mirrors!

VERSE 1

Street lights blur to rain Another night, another town, the same old same Packed up dreams in a beaten case Twenty years of chasing fame The marquee lights spell out my name But nobody here knows my face

CHORUS

It’s all smoke and mirrors A trick I’ve played too long Smoke and mirrors The audience see what I want them to know But the curtain hides the truth That I’m just passing through With my smoke and mirrors

VERSE 2

“Hotel rooms all blend into one / With four walls that hold secrets I can’t tell / Letters home get shorter every month / ‘I’m doing as fine as a showman sells’ / But the mirror tells a different story / Of a soul I barely know myself

CHORUS

It’s smoke and mirrors It’s a magic trick I’ve been performing for far too long It’s smoke and mirrors The audience can only see what I allow them to know But hiding behind the curtain is the realness The truth that I’m just passing through With my smoke and mirrors

BRIDGE

Three a.m. and I’m wide awake Staring up at a ceiling I don’t own The applause still ringing in my ears But I’ve never felt so alone They always love the character I’ve created The lines I’ve perfectly rehearsed But would they stay if they knew the actor Was as broken as the words?

VERSE 3

Morning arrives with coffee, black Newspaper scattered across the bed My review in wee print “Captivating,” they said If they only knew how much I loved unsaid How much of me is unread

CHORUS

It’s all smoke and mirrors A magic trick I’ve played for far too long Smoke and mirrors The audience sees what I want them to know But behind the curtain is the truth That I’m just passing through With my smoke and mirrors

BREAKDOWN

(Spoken softly) I sometimes wonder if I disappeared Would anybody notice a difference? Or would the show simply go on With someone else holding the curtain?

VERSE 4

I called my mother yesterday Her voice was far away, tired "When are you coming home?" she said I didn’t have the right words For what it means to have home now Not feel like home For it to be a suit of clothes that is too small for me That I am in-between two worlds But belong to neither

FINAL CHORUS

Smoke and mirrors It’s all a magic trick I’ve played too long Smoke and mirrors The audience sees what I want them to know But behind the curtain Is the truth That I’m only passing through With smoke and mirrors Just smoke and mirrors

OUTRO

The lights go dim, the curtain’s drawn I take my bow, I claim my due Tomorrow night, another town Another chance to renew This beautiful, terrible, wondrous lie That somehow is now my truth.

Dancing Through the Flames

VERSE 1

Cardboard boxes piled high Against the wall Memories packed, some large, some small One final glimpse at a place I called my home Two decades of living, yet here I am alone The burden of decisions weighing on my heart Leaving behind each thing I called art But sometimes in order to grow, you need to sever the chain Sometimes in order to feel better, you ought to confront the pain

CHORUS

Into The Flames I’m dancing through the flames As the bridges burn behind me I’m not the one to blame For the life I couldn’t see With every step I take The future’s coming clear I’m dancing through the flames And I’ve never felt so free

VERSE 2

Dad said “Stay put, build a life right here” Mom just smiled with eyes that held back tears Friends all settled for the dreams they were sold While something in my heart refused to fold Small town whispers follow where I go “Such potential, such a shame, you know” But the skyline’s calling from beyond the pines And I’ve spent too long reading between the lines

CHORUS

I'm dancing through the flames As all the bridges burn behind me I'm not the one who failed For the life I couldn't see With every step I take The future's drawing near I'm dancing through the flames And I've never felt so free

BRIDGE

The midnight train is calling me by name These wheels take on what I had not rearranged The distance growing mile by mile These are the last one thousand lies

Home is where the heart is they say But my heart beats to a different sway So I'll run the races, run the sun Till I find a place for me

VERSE 3

First night in the city, stars nearly extinct Neon lights consume them until three in the ink Sirens in the distance, strangers everywhere Feel so little but so wanted, got space when I’m there Called home from a pay phone on the corner Ma asks when I’m coming back to see her again Wanna be like "Not soon" with tremor in my throat First time I felt like I there was a hopes

CHORUS

I'm dancing in the flames As the bridges fall behind me I'm not the one to blame For the world I can't perceive With every step I take The future's growing near I'm dancing in the flames And I've never felt so clear

VERSE 4

Half a year on, still getting my bearings Working two jobs to make my keep Some nights I cry for what I had So far behind I can’t go back But morning brings that sunlight through the desk So as I’m waking up, here’s what I know No more yesterday's girl in yesterday's mess I've got new work, new things, things going slow

CHORUS

I'm dancing through the flames As the bridges burn behind me I'm the one to blame For the life I couldn't see With every step I take The future's coming clear I'm dancing through the flames And I've never felt so free

OUTRO

The fire is fading from where I am ablaze Ashes of a bygone day weighed in hand I'm not running anymore, I walk fierce and bold Into the blinding light where I’ve always belonged

Oh, I'm dancing Still dancing Dance through the flames And I have finally found my way home