(see also music by Tom & Sera)
SONG REVIEWS
CD PURCHASE
LYRICS
Tom and Sera completed their latest CD called
"Where the Sun Meets the Blue"
at the Cold Brook Productions studio in Bearsville, NY - with Julie
Last
as producer and recording engineer. This CD was released on April 21,
2007.
CD: "Where the Sun Meets the Blue"
Recorded
May 2006 -March 2007 @ Cold Brook Productions, Bearsville, NY, 845-679-7429
Contact: Julie Last - e-mail:julielast@earthlink.net
Mastered
by Rich DePaolo -
e-mail: rd@richdepaolo.com
 |
| Amy Merrill |
Off-Beat Rhyme (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY - 2005
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Amy Merrill - viola
Julie Last - harmony vocal
Keep Crossing That Line (Mank) written in Bearsville,
NY - 2006
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello, hand claps
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Kirsti Gholson - harmony vocal, hand claps
Julie Last - harmony vocal, hand claps, egg
 |
| Pam Daley |
 |
| David Hornung |
Where the SunMeets the Blue (Mank)
written in Ithaca, NY - 2006
for Molly K. Finn, lost at sea
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, duet vocal
Pam Daley - duet vocal
David Hornung - accordian
See What the Night Brings (Mank) written in Ithaca,
NY - 2005
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Amy Merrill - viola
Edward Biko Smith - congas
Kirsti Gholson - harmony vocal
Julie Last - harmony vocal
  |
| Julie Last and Kirsti Gholson |
 |
| Julie Last |
Meet Me on the Mountain (Mank, Last) written in Bearsville,
NY - 2006
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello, bundt pan, Torrens bell
Tom Mank - guitar, harmony vocal
Julie Last - vocal
 |
| Tom Mank and Sera Smolen |
Sarkori (Smolen) written in Bearsville, NY - 2006
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Saint Paul Street (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY - 2005
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Michael Veitch - electric guitar
Julie Last - harmony vocal
 |
| Michael Veitch |
Where's That Train (Mank, Last Wijnands) written in
Bearsville, NY and Amsterdam, NL- 2006
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Kirsti Gholson - harmony vocal
Julie Last - harmony vocal, egg
 |
| Josh Roy Brown |
Lit By the Moon (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY - 2006
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Josh Roy Brown - lap steel
Kirsti Gholson - harmony vocal
Julie Last - harmony vocal
CD: "Souls of Birds"
Recorded
July-November 2004 @ Electric Wilburland Studio, Newfield, NY, 607-564-1832
Contact: Will Russell - e-mail:will@wilburland.co
Mastered
by Rich DePaolo -
e-mail: rd@richdepaolo.com
 |
| Tom Mank |
Happy Ending (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY - 2003
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Dee Specker - violin, harmony vocals
 |
| Dee Specker |
Souls of Birds (Mank) written in Keene, NH - 1999 and
Ithaca, NY - 2003
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Laura Branca - harmony vocals
Michael Galloway - trumpet
 |
| Danny Birch |
Heart of My Dreaming (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY - 1986
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, duet vocal
Dee Specker - violin, duet vocal
Big Red Moon (Mank) written in an airplane over the
Atlantic Ocean and in Ithaca, NY - 2002
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Danny Birch - sarod
Dee Specker - harmony vocals
 |
| Ruth Roland |
Where Do You Bury a Gypsy (Smolen) written in Ithaca,
NY - 2002
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
 |
| Paul Fairbanks |
Takes Your Breath Away (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY
- 2002
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Whisper to Each Other (Mank / Witten) written in Ithaca,
NY - 2003
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Ruth Roland - violin
Patti Witten - harmony vocals
 |
| Patti Witten |
Without You (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY - 2003
Sera Jane Smolen - cello, harmony vocals
Tom Mank - guitar, duet vocal
Laura Branca - duet and harmony vocals
Will Russell - hamrmony vocals
Paul Fairbanks - banjo
 |
| Sera Smolen |
Khack and Bone - 1918 (Mank / Witten) written in Ithaca,
NY - 2003
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
CD: "Conversations in Waves"
Mixed
and mastered October, 2001 @ Electric Wilburland Studio, Newfield, NY,
607-564-1832
Contact: Will Russell
e-mail:will@wilburland.com
Silver Rose (Mank) written in Keene, NH and Ithaca, NY
- 2000 and 2001
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Patti Witten - harmony vocals
Great Aunt Betty Died With Her Shoes On (Smolen) written
in Ithaca, NY - 1998
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar
Victoria Paterson - violin
 |
| Victoria Paterson |
Hearts and Souls (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY - 2001
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Conversations in Waves (Mank) written in Keene, NH and
Ithaca, NY - 2000 and 2001 (hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Tommy Beers - harmonica
Laura Branca - harmony vocals
Love's in Motion (Mank) written in Ithaca, NY - 1981
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, duet vocal
Laura Branca - piano, duet vocal
Tazmanian 5 (Smolen) written in Ithaca, NY - 1997
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Always Roses (Mank / A. Burns) written in Ithaca, NY
- 1986 and 1990
(hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Victoria Paterson - violin
 |
| Rick Manning |
Waiting For the Sky to Break (Mank) written in Ithaca,
NY - 2001
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Rick Manning - mandolin
Patti Witten - harmony vocals
International Waters (Mank / Smolen) written in Ithaca,
NY - 2001
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Llanfairpwllgwyngllgogerychwyndrobwylllantisyliogogogoch
(Mank / Smolen) written in
 |
| Sera Smolen |
Ithaca, NY - 2000
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar
Tommy Beers - harmonica
Going to New York (Mank) written in Columbia, MD and
Ithaca, NY- 1999 and 2000
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Laura Branca - harmony vocals
CD:
"Almost Time"
Mastered August, 2000 @ Electric Wilburland
Studio, Newfield, NY, 607-564-1832
Contact: Will Russell
e-mail:will@wilburland.com
Songs:
|
|
To
listen to samples of this album, you'll need an audio player
such as Media Player or Real Audio, then click on the underlined
tracks. |
Baltimore
the Blues written in Ithaca, NY - 1991 (hear sample
RA)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tommy Beers - harmonica, vocals
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Almost
Time (Mank) 4:56 written in Beverly Farms, MA - 1999 (hear sample RA)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
New Mown Hay (Smolen /
Mank) 5:01 written in Keene, NH - 1999
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Margo's Garden (Mank
/ Smolen) 2:14 written in Ithaca, NY & Keene, NH - 1999 (hear sample MP3)
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar
Ghost
in This Town (Mank) 3:20 written in Keene, NH - 2000
Sandy Mandel - duet vocal
Tom Mank - guitar, slide guitar,
duet vocal
One of Those Times
(Mank) 5:14 written in Ithaca, NY - 1993
Dee Specker - harmony vocal
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Angel in the Rain (Mank
/ Specker) 3:19 written in Ithaca, NY - 1993 (hear sample MP3)
Dee Specker - duet vocal
Sera Jane Smolen - cello
Tom Mank - guitar, duet vocal
Some Big Town (Mank) 4:44
written in Ithaca, NY - 1992 (hear
sample MP3)
Tommy Beers - harmonica
Timmy Brown - electric mandolin
Tom Mank - guitar, vocal
Trouble in the Neighborhood
(Mank) 4:07 written in Ithaca, NY - 1992
Tommy Beers - harmonica
Tom Mank - guitar, slide guitar, vocal
Rain Day (Mank / Smolen) 0:51
written in Ithaca, NY - 1994
Sera Jane Smolen - cellos
Tom Mank and Sera Smolen
Mank approaches this album like a modern beatnik, picking subjects on the edge and presenting them with unerring touch. For instance, Off-Beat Rhyme. A seemingly simple look at an unrequited love of sorts, he creeps into the nebulous shadows of emotional turmoil, yet with a light and practical air brought off by his superb guitar and the absolutely laughably excellent cello of Sera Smolen. Throw in a magnificent performance, magically understated of course, by Amy Merrill on viola and some otherworldly voice by producer Julie Last and the stage is set. A great first chapter and the good news is that it just gets better.
If you didn't live through the beginnings of the Civil Rights struggle, you might not know about the riots in Baltimore in the early sixties. It is hard to forget: sizzling temperatures, rising tensions, minorities packed into inadequate housing (forget inadequate—some of it was downright uninhabitable). In short, the right ingredients for exactly what happened—a disaster of stunning proportions. Keep Crossing That Line is a Mank remembrance of one of America's most shameful incidents and at the same time a musical memorial to the Civil Rights movement. Solid bass lays the tone (actually, it is Sera Smolen's cello—how she gets it to emulate an upright bass is beyond me, but wow), Mank's guitar is minor chord magic and then there is Kirsti Gholson and Julie Last. Their voices combine with light hand claps to push this way over the top.
An aside: I discovered Kirsti Gholson just this past year, uncovering her very impressive self-titled solo CD (circa 2000) by fluke (I have since learned that Last also has a solo album from years past—how do these things get past me?). Such flukes make music fun, let me tell you, and I have looked for her since, thus stumbling upon Prana, a Baird Hersey-led vocal group of, ahem, throat singers and chanters (Check it out. It is fascinating.), another of whom is, not surprisingly, Julie Last. To find Last and Gholson on an album of this stature proves that occasionally the stars do align. Their work here is brilliant, though confined, and leaves me salivating for more.
Things slow down with the melodic title track, ethereal beauty taking over for a minute amongst the jazzy folkiness. A bit quieter, it utilizes the clear tones of Pam Daley whose voice is perfect match for Mank's deeper emotional textures.
When it comes to the outer edges of folk and jazz, it never hurts to bring in the right percussion, or so it seems, and Mank calls upon Edward Biko Smith to lighten things up a little on See What the Night Brings. Smith's congas and the dissonant voices of Last and Gholson help push this into jazzville, if you will, and once again Smolen and Merrill rise to the task. I have no idea what their backgrounds are, but man, they can play!
Attention to detail at times is the difference between good and great and Mank/Smolen/Last nail it on Meet Me On the Mountain. From Smolen's sliding cello/bass and use of bundt pan and and Torrens bell (that's right, I said bundt pan) to Mank's unique finger-picking on the acoustic to Mank and Last's vocal excellence, this is something else. Laid back, almost siesta-like, it breaks the mold. If the devil is in the details, this is downright devilish.
Smolen takes the cello for a short solo ride with her self-penned Sarkori next, a jazz- and classical-influenced recital more than worth hearing and perfectly sequenced here, setting up the more open and (acoustically) brash Saint Paul Street. Smolen's cello is more percussive on this track than previously and it fits flawlessly with the dual dissonance of Mank and Last and the almost psychedelic fuzzed out guitar of Michael Veitch, whose reverb and tremolo will push many a guitarists' buttons. It is unexpected and most welcome.
The beginning of Where's That Train captures audience applause way in the background and one has to wonder if this or portions of it were not recorded live. If so, Mank and Smolen just jumped to the top of my "must see" list. To be honest, to this point the album has me convinced that these two are truly out there and I don't mean that negatively. These guys are in territory few have covered, at least not this well. Mank and Smolen do more with a simple acoustic guitar and cello than some chamber orchestras or jazz ensembles and when you add Last and Gholson… Ah, the track isn't live. It uses an intro and outro by one Michael Jay. Still, it could easily have been.
It is a shame you have to end an album as good as this one, but Mank does it professionally. Sounding more folk than on any track heretofore, he steps into the surreal. Quiet, melodious and ethereal, Lit By the Moon whispers its way out, helped along by Mank, Smolen, Gholson and Last, of course, but especially by the eerie lap steel of one Josh Roy Brown. An entrancing end.
Let me correct an omission, of sorts. Up to this point, I have not really talked in terms of expertise. After having listened to this album numerous times, I am of the mind that Tom Mank and Sera Smolen are easily Grammy material. They are expert at their craft, but more than that, they develop it. At their level, I am not at all sure that it is a craft but art. Regardless, I know one thing. There can't be a gig they play where a large percentage of their audience is not comprised of fellow musicians. That, my friends, is a given, and it speaks volumes."
- Frank Gutch, Jr. for the Folk and Acoustic Music Exchange,
August 2008
“Sera’s sinuous cello and Tom’s driving guitar generate a firm beat beneath metablues that’s homespun yet exotic, hinting of smoky nights in Istanbul or Calcutta. The blend of Dave Van Ronk and Mose Allison in Mank’s voice pins your ear to delicious synesthesiac lines like ‘the sky won’t bend and the wind won’t cry’. As a centerpiece Smolen’s ‘Sarkori’, a cello nocturne evoking Dave Brubeck and Phillip Glass, nestles in nicely. Throughout, Sera gives the cello an uncannily human voice”.
- Spider Barbour for Woodstock Times, August 2008
Tom Mank knows how to translate his own lyrics into poetic language: about
segregation in Baltimore, lost lovers, for short songs of complaint, nostalgia
and desire. But it is the Robert J. Spear cello, already for fifteen years
the loyal companion of Sera, that provides the fairytale-like frame with
bass-lines that sometimes reach to atmospheric heights.
The 'spacy songs' wander between jazzy rhythms and folky textures with
Sera's cello constantly braiding the fragments of melancholy. But she
studied at the Conservatory and played in orchestras many times, which
you can hear from the instrumental 'Sarkori' with a classical interpretation
and being of a liberating beauty.
Known for her improvisations, she has been invited by painters, poets
and sculptors to frame their performances with her music or take part
in cello-festivals. She also gives seminars and has her own cello-studio.
On the other hand, her husband Tom Mank taught himself to play the guitar
and is an inspired songwriter already since 1980. From Ithaca (N.Y.),
where he lives for 30 years already, he roamed the country to disseminate
his folk-blues and blue-grass live to the audience.
This album is his 4th already as a duo with Sera. His talent lies in songwriting
and in creatively dreaming away to horizons 'where the sun meets the blue'.
His songs remain on that emotional line which perfectly keeps the balance
between jazzy bluesnotes and improvising day-dreaming-blues. Sometimes
his voice resembles Nick Drake. He also knows how to embrace the nostalgia
of the fall as well as the spring-breeze in his songs.
(This is) an album to become silent out of respect for the wandering spirits on dancing feet, reaching out for a melody and the rhythm of the beat. No better words than this 'free translation' of the passage from Tom Mank's 'Where's That Train', to describe this CD."
- Marcie for Rootstime, January, 2008 (translation: Yvonne Böhm)
Tom Mank and Sera Smolen
If you brought a pile of CDs home from a folk festival, “Souls of Birds” is the one that would end up on the top of the pile. It is risky, real and pushes boundaries in a very natural way with nary a hint of pretentiousness.
Tom Mank’s low-key Lou Reed/Leonard Cohen-ish vocals have a compelling, spoken word quality to them. Mank is one of those singers who could be reciting the phone book and you’d go “yeah, there’s something to that!” The lyrics, thankfully, are a lot better than that though!
Sera Smolen’s cello takes us all kinds of places weird and wonderful, while never losing touch with the emotional roots of the songs. She’s soloistic, but always in a way that supports the overall thrust of the music. Her cellistic terrain includes emotive, whacked-out natural sound effects and high-energy solos drawn from many influences, such as 19th century etudes and Indian ragas, to name but a few. Smolen is a passionate player who is clearly intimate with the inherent joy in taking musical risks.
Though there are a few guest spots (violin, sarod and trumpet are featured) it is Mank’s guitar and Smolen’s cello that are the instrumental mainstays of the songs. Due to their willingness to keep changing things up, the sounds of their instruments are continually fresh and inspiring, as are the arrangements. There is always some cool new surprise poking its impish head around the corner ahead of us as the CD progresses.
It is thrilling when artists dig in and craft a work as rich and vibrant and authentic as this.
Five stars."
Corbin Keep, Cello City Ink, Fall/Winter 2004/2005
"The former album was self-released, but for the brand -new album
'Souls of Birds' singer-songwriter Tom Mank and cellist Sera Jane Smolen
have found hospitable shelter with I-Town Records in their hometown Ithaca,
New York. This label can call itself independent indeed, because it is
a collective, run by the musicians themselves as equal partners. Maybe
a good idea, deserving to be copied? In any case it guarantees the artists
enough rest and creative freedom to come to tour de forces, because that
is how we may qualify the work of Tom and Sera Jane. It is hardly possible
to compare with other music, the only ones coming close are the Walkabouts
in an acoustical mood.
Tom has a very calm recital and a somewhat hoarse voice, which in a wonderful way does justice to the beautiful harmony-singing of the various female guest-singers. For example 'Heart of My Dreaming' is a perfect duet with violist Dee Specker. Elsewhere we hear Patty Witten, who wrote two songs together with Tom. Laura Branca sings along in the title-song, with intriguing lines : 'Like a motionpicture she knows nothing about'. Of course a prominent role is for Sera Jane with her dedicated 1992-Spear cello! She plays virtuoso on every track; 'Where Do You Bury A Gypsy' is a solo, composed by herself, while the long 'Big Red Moon' exists of almost 7 minutes instrumental teamwork of cello and sarod.
It's a fascinating album, that also presents beautiful ,originally composed illustrations on the cover. Tom and Sera Jane should like to come to the Netherlands next summer and and we can only welcome that idea!"
- Johanna Bodde, RealRootscafe, January 2005
"Tom Mank and Sera Jane Smolen produce some beautiful sweet sounds
together, and their lyrics on Souls of Birds perfectly complement the
instrumentation of guitar and cello. Opening with 'Happy Ending,' the
duo immediately entrances the listener. The wonderfully eponymous title
track is one of my favourites on here. Its story unfolding will hold the
attention through almost seven minutes. At 10 minutes and 57 seconds "Big
Red Moon" is one of the longest tracks I have listened to in a long
time. It opens with a very Eastern motif, which I feel may be just a little
too long, before moving on to the guitar and vocals that are almost lost
in the last quarter.
The playing and performing on this album are top-class, but they may lose
some audience reaction in being just a little too long and slow to reach
the point. On "Take Your Breath Away," however, it is worth
the wait. "Khaki & Bone 1918" is likewise an excellent track.
You may only get nine tracks here but you get more than a fair share of
good music well played and lyrics well written."
- Nicky Rossiter, Rambles.NET, February 4, 2006
"Tom Mank and Sera Jane Smolen prove with their recent musical tete
a tete that with an original approach one may well be on the way to a
successful album. ‘Soul Of Birds’ is sort of oppressive but
also intriguing as a hybrid of folk, roots and pop. With a voice that
reminds me of Leonard Cohen, Terry Lee Hale and Chris Eckman (of the Walkabouts),
Mank drapes his lyrics over Smolen’s cello contributions in a decisive
layering of modern pop and folk variations. The most
remarkable pieces are without a doubt the movie-like orientally inspired
‘Big Red Moon’ which contains a seven-minute long intro, ‘Heart
of My Dreaming’, a dark romantic duet with Dee Specker, the rather
agitated ‘Whisper To Each Other’, co-written by Tom Mank and
Patti Witten and finally the powerful yet slightly creepy opening track
‘Happy Ending’. Strange title for an opening track....
All in all, ‘Soul Of Birds’ is not an ‘easy’ album.
But those who take the time to get used to it will
agree with us that the album’s complexity holds the real strength
of the work. There are not many CD’s that stand the test of time
and remain interesting, but this is sure one of those few."
- Benny Metten , www.ctrlaltcountry.be, March 2005
"‘Soul Of Birds’ is the title of a fusion of acoustic
guitar and cello of - respectively - Tom Mank and Sera Jane Smolen. Mank
wrote eight of the nine folk-like songs. Only the energetic ‘Where
Do You Bury A Gypsy’is Smolen’s. Another feat of arms of Smolen:
she does the seven minute intro to ‘Big Red Moon’ - the song
is11 minutes long -after which Mank takes over with guitar and voice.
Mank has already twenty years of folk and blue grass under his belt. He
made his CD-debut with ‘Almost Time’ in 2002 with Smolen,
who was also part of the second CD ‘Conversation In Waves’
It is clear that they are seasoned in their cooperation, which is mostly
evident in the center part of their new album."
- Bart Ebisch, www.altcountry.nl/, March 2005
"Because we are way ahead of our time, we can already tell you that
Tom Mank & Sera Jane Smolen are coming to Amsterdam in November 2005.
It’s all confirmed in a letter accompanied by the new CD of the
singer-songwriter duo from New York. Interesting tidbit: ‘Souls
Of Birds’ is the first album for I-Town Records. Earlier albums
I own are ‘Almost Time’ (2000) and ‘Conversation In
Waves’ (2001). Anyway, it’s all about the content of ‘Soul
Of Birds’. It is sometimes surprisingly folk-like for an Americana
album. Americana fanatics will be very impressed by the brilliant harmonies
and the painfully slow beauty of old bluegrass in considerably rare tracks
like ‘Whisper To Each Other’. The tempo is always very slow.
Only when Sera Jane solos on cello, as in the instrumental ‘Where
Do You Bury A Gypsy’, are you blown out of the water, as compared
with the considerably academic country music of opener ‘Happy Ending’
and ‘Heart Of My Dreaming’, the latter raising some eyebrows
at the start. Earlier on ‘Big Red Moon’ already confirmed
suspicions that the conservatory-like music of this duo can appear willful
and strong. Luckily those incidents are interchanged with more unique
moments, causing ‘Soul Of Birds’ by Tom Mank and Sera Smolen
to be a rather unique Americana album."
- Maurice Dielemans, www.kindamuzik.net/twang, April 2005
Conversations in Waves
Tom Mank and Sera Smolen
"The cello is a wonderful musical instrument, it has clearly something of the human voice in its sound. It can play little basslines, support a guitar or a vocal, also have a conversation with them and excel in fine solos. Provided of course, that the instrument has a professionally skilled lady-boss, like Dr. Sera Jane Smolen here. She studied at the school of music, plays in various orchestras and teaches at the University of Mansfield.
The friendly looking gentleman at her side is singer-songwriter Tom Mank from Ithaca, NY and he has, like so many of his colleagues, learned everything by himself! He writes poetic lyrics with pretty, recognizable moods and images.
On the album 'Conversations in Waves' we find three instrumentals, in 'Tazmanian 5' the cello faces the world all by itself. The other eight songs are sung by Tom, sometimes in spoken style, nice and relaxed like the typical folksinger, while he plays his acoustic guitar with great ability.
Besides the characteristic cello some other musical instruments and vocals participate. I hear intriguing whisper-harmony by Patti Witten ('Silver Rose') and fresh mandolin sounds by Rick Manning in 'Waiting for the Sky to Break', 'Love's in Motion' is a duet with pianist Laura Branca, just mention a few things that attract attention. Why would anybody push the cello into playing classical music? This exclusive combination is at least just as beautiful!"
- Johanna Bodde, Real Roots Cafe, The Netherlands, April 2004
"Guitar and cello…what’s that sound? Mank (guitar) and
Smolen (cello) have
background in everything from 20th-century classical to bluegrass. Perhaps
alt.-folk (whatever that is) is the easiest tag, allowing for subtle influences
from
and brief forays into other contemporary acoustic musics.
The album sounds like they did a lot of woodshedding, months of playing
together, sifting strengths and weaknesses, before getting a satisfactorily
true and individual sound, one that calls the Ithaca area home.
The duo often have guests, but those contributions retain the spacious,
walk-through feel and are limited to backing or duet vocals,
harmonica on two cuts, violin on two and piano and mandolin on one each.
Mank has an inflected, sculptural guitar style, with enough bevels, dadoes
and other ornamentations to rough in rhythmic richness. Smolen’s
cello
is all ink-brush calligraphy, long legato strokes of longing and excited
writings of exuberance. The combination is like smooth chutes and discretely
stepped ladders working in harmony. The program of original material runs
a nice gamut.
There are refreshing instrumentals and sturdy love songs. There are songs
about limit and travel
and urban nocturnes about the human sound. There are dream details like,
“Every home I pass/Has the ball game on in the kitchen.” Mank’s
half-sung,
half-recited vocals took a couple listenings to get used to, but the guest
vocals help a good deal,
adding buoyance.
The disc underlines the idea that the imaginations of the musicians in
any
musical project are more telling than their instruments. This would put
nice corners on anybody’s stocking".
- Bert Patterns, Ithaca Times, December 5, 2001
"I was captivated by the very title of this CD, it just sounds so
poetic. I had never heard of the performers before and I approached it
with great curiousity. Would the product live up to the promise of the
title? Yes, it does.
The title track is a very witty report on love and couples and dating,
and it reminds me of the other song with a similar title, Paul Simon's
'Angling Conversations.' 'Conversations in Waves, breaking everywhere,
people laughing and falling in love.' 'Hearts and Souls' is another beautiful
song celebrating the everyday things of life. It shows the writer to be
a very observant and interested being: 'clotheslines are always dancing
along the alleyways.'
Interspersed with these love songs of the 21st century are some beautiful
instrumental pieces, which are always more difficult for a reviewer to
do justice to. In general I can only say how these pieces sound to me,
and on this CD they are well crafted and beautifully played.
Love lost is the theme of 'Always Roses' and it will strike a chord with
anyone who has been dumped, however sensitively it was done. One person
falls out of love while the other remains encoiled and hopes against hope
for a new chance. 'It's always roses when I see you, I can't stop the
way I feel.'
This is a very good album with a nice blend of song and instrumental pieces.
Some of the songs are worthy of a wider audience and could, with the right
spark, become standard love songs".
- Nicky Rossiter, Rambles Magazine, April 13, 2002
"Ithaca duo Tom Mank and Sera Smolen combine bluesy guitar with improvisational
cello work for a sound as refreshing as rain after a drought. Mank's raspy
vocals give you the sense that he's letting you in on a secret; coupled
with Smolen's flights of melody, that secret is full of passion".
- Joe Cleveland, The Folkus Project, April 15, 2002
Almost Time
Tom Mank (with Sera Smolen)
"Tom Mank, a guitarist and singer-songwriter … with the able
assistance of
cellist Sera Jane Smolen … has created his best recording yet. The
songs are
built on basic blues or folk chord progressions with thoughful lyrics
that gently
understate some high and low points of Mank's life. Mank's voice is a
warm
baritone with breathy or husky stylized moments that lean toward a whisper.
Sadness rather than anger is often the singer's reaction to the moment
portrayed
in the lyrics. Harmonies are provided at various times by Ithacans Tommy
Beers and Dee Specker, and Sandy Mandel of Massachusetts. But it is
Smolen's cello playing that sets Almost Time apart from the get go."
-IthacaTimes, August 2000
"The tracks that I thought really stood out on this album were the
ones where Mank was joined by a female vocalist. His voice blends
very well with both Specker and Mandel, and the harmonies were
beautiful. I was particularly fond of 'Angel in the Rain'. 'One of
Those Times', also bringing together the harmonies of Specker and
Mank, had a great guitar introduction, and once again, a good
melody and great vocals".
- Cheryl Turner, Rambles Magazine
"Tom Mank, from Ithaca, writes songs about real people with real
problems. His recent CD, "Almost Time," is filled with stories
of big cities, small towns, and neighborhoods just like yours. With a
voice reminiscent of David Wilcox and a bluesy-folk guitar style Tom Mank,
along with cellist Sera Jane Smolen, is a welcome addition to our stage."
- Jason Vatter, Happy Endings, Syracuse, NY
Hearts and Souls - semi-finalist in the 2001 "Great American
Song Contest"
"Wow! Some great lines and descriptive imagery in this song. Music
and melody is distinct and original. Overall, this shows exceptional songwriting".!"
- Great American Song Contest, April 2002
Baltimore the Blues - semi-finalist in the 2000 "Great American
Song
Contest".
"I love this music and melodic arrangement - fresh and powerful.
Really
excellent musically … awesome!"
- Great American Song Contest, January 2001
"'Baltimore the Blues' featured some excellent harmonica playing
by
Beers, and Mank is a very expressive guitar player".
- Cheryl Turner, Rambles Magazine
Always Roses
"I absolutely love this melody and arrangement!! It's beautiful!
- Great American Song Contest, April 2002
Silver Rose
"Excellent lyrical imagery in verses and wonderfully atmospheric
music".
- Great American Song Contest, April 2002
"'Margo's Garden' is an instrumental piece featuring the
guitar and
cello. Again, the instruments go together well and I liked the tune".
- Cheryl Turner, Rambles Magazine
"'Some Big Town' and 'Trouble in the Neighborhood'
are a pair of
tunes which had a definite bluesy feel to them. They both featured
the capable Tommy Beers on harmonica, and some excellent guitar
strains by Mank".
- Cheryl Turner, Rambles Magazine
"The cello and guitar complement each other well in 'Almost Time',
with a poignant cello melody at the beginning and end".
- Cheryl Turner, Rambles Magazine
"In 'New Mown Hay', Smolen's cello plucking joins Mank's
guitar for
great sounding instrumentals".
- Cheryl Turner, Rambles Magazine
"Flashes of brilliance in this song, both musically and lyrically".
- Great American Song Contest, January 2001
Angel in the Rain: "Obviously some excellent talent and skill
in this song. Outstanding
musically… great song!"
- Great American Song Contest, January 2001
CD Purchase
NEW in 2006 - "Where the Sun Meets the Blue":
To download this entire CD ($9.99) or individual songs ($.99 each) from this CD click on the Digistation button below:
OR
Purchase "Where the Sun Meets the Blue" or "Souls of Birds" using a credit card at CDBaby.com. Just click here.
OR
Buy directly from Tom and Sera using PayPal (includes shipping):
| Where the Sun Meets the Blue CD | $14.00 | |
| Souls of Birds CD | $12.00 | |
| Conversations in Waves CD | $12.00 |
|
|
Almost Time CD |
$12.00 |
The Almost Time can also be purchased through FolkWeb. All you need is a credit card. Click here to go see for yourself.
The Souls of Birds CD can also be purchased through I-Town Records. All you need is a credit card.
OR
If you want to purchase any of the CDs using a check, send to:
Tom Mank
210 North Corn Street
Ithaca, New York 14850
Thanks!
In a hospital midnight to three
The doctors get ready to think about me
The long halls look like a creeping vine
The ceiling lights like the morning sky
It’s almost time, almost time, to get ready
I remember walking high on a hill
Watching the sunset standing still
Then down through the woods our hearts in flight
And walzing together by the woodstove light
It’s almost time, almost time, to get ready
A cool stream running
The sounds of laughs
The far away motion where all dreams pass
The sound of children racing and crowds that roar
And the smell of the ocean on a New England shore.
© 1999 Tom Mank (BMI)
Always Roses
When I came down here today to see you
I didn’t really want to change your mind
You have your own dreams now to surround you
So how can I move you these times
Still it’s always roses when I see you
And I can’t stop the way I feel
It’s always roses when I’m with you
I see you have another dream as your lover
And the will to move on
I guess it’s the wrong time to hold you
I think that I’m slowing you down
Still it’s always roses when I see you
And I can’t stop the way I feel
It’s always roses when I’m with you
You were always the one
You will always be the light shining in the sun
And if you ever need a friend
Just remember that my love for you never ends
It’s always roses when I see you
And I can’t stop the way I feel
It’s always roses when I’m with you
© 1986 and 1991 Tom Mank (BMI) and Annie Burns (BMI)
Angel in the Rain
She sits on the front porch as the sun drops down
And she starts shaking inside
She’s thinking about some holy place
As the sun slips from the sky
The sun’s in her face so she moves to the shade
Sitting alone she whispers a song
A faraway sound from a faraway place
About an old friend who’s gone
Angel in the rain waiting alone
On the front porch that she calls home
The lights in the city the stars in the sky
Sparkle like teardrops in an angel’s eyes
She whispers out loud “How’d it come to this?”
Rocking alone she opens eyes
The radio says there’s a storm ahead
She remembers his sweet face and cries
Angel in the rain waiting alone
On the front porch that she calls home
The lights in the city the stars in the sky
Sparkle like teardrops in an angel’s eyes
© 1991 Tom Mank (BMI) and Dee Specker
Baltimore The Blues
She took the evening sun
And packed her clothes away
She took a handful of diamonds
From the Chesapeake Bay
She got a cool, cool haircut
And a rose tattoo
And an autographed photograph
Of Johnny U
She left Baltimore the blues (2X)
He had his southern cause
And his neutral kiss
And an old Mustang
From 1966
And he drove it downtown
Past the National Boh
And the B & O railroad
And the home of Edgar Allan Poe
He left Baltimore the blues (2X)
She came from Virginia
By way of San Antoine
She had the kindest eyes
He’d ever known
One day he picked her up
And they blew that town
And they didn’t look back
Until the sun went down
They left Baltimore the blues (10X)
© 1990 Tom Mank (BMI)
Big Red Moon
Walking in to some old café
In the company of an old friend
To hear a guitar and a mandolin
Playing big red moon
Today she came to her senses
On a train barely moving
Her senses come and then she’ll lose them
To the big red moon
Walking by the ocean
By the waves weaving
She called her lover to say she was leaving
For the big red moon
© 2002 Tom Mank (BMI)
Conversations in Waves
There’s a crowd tonight
Coming down the stairs
Conversations in waves
Breaking everywhere
And people laughing
And falling in love
On barstools and benches
And at tables for four
An ocean of hands
And dancing feet on the floor
And people laughing
And falling love
I’ll be there soon
I’ll be there soon
I will meet you
And be there soon
There was almost a fight
But they talked it out
Never seen so many faces
Whisper and shout
And people laughing
And falling love
I’ll be there soon
I’ll be there soon
I will meet you
And be there soon
© 2001 Tom Mank (BMI)
Ghost in This Town
You say we’ve got it made
We’ll move right through
Now that you’re done with him
It’s just us two
Now come the wild ideas
And new breakthroughs
But no matter what we talk about
It’s the same old news
There’s a ghost in this town (2x)
Now you say it feels so right
To be here with you
I’m so happy to be through with him
In all I do
Now is the season
For new things to come
No matter what we talk about
My heart’s undone
There’s a ghost in this town
Beneath the images
And under the moon
Your broken heart holds on tight
To all we do
Now is the season
For letting go
In the wild on night
Ummm
There’s a ghost in this town
© 2000 Tom Mank (BMI)
Going to New York
I’ve moved fourteen times in seven years
I’ve got a whole lot of memories packed in tears
And unpacking left to do
My body’s tired and feeling strange
And my heart is tired looking for a change
I’ve got see some friends that I once knew
I’m going to New York
Before the rain
I’ve lived by the ocean I’ve lived in the woods
I’ve lived in third floor apartments in city neighborhoods
I never seem to find my place in time
So I took this job in the sunny South
And I’m trying to raise my voice above the crowds
But I can’t find my rythym or my rhyme
I’m going to New York
Before the rain
I spent most of life doing what I was supposed to do
Instead of spending my nights beside you
I never thought that change would take so long
So walk around this lake in the Southern cold
Thinking of warm kisses I have known
I need to find a place to sing these songs
I’m going to New York
Before the rain
© 1999 Tom Mank (BMI)
Happy Ending
The night is still and the weather’s so dry
The past is like one long day in my mind
When this war is done
We’ll continue on with our happy ending
Happy ending
Thinkin’ bout the cool moon in your eyes
With kisses so sweet could make your angel cry
When this war is past
We’ll return at last to our happy ending
Happy ending
I rock the baby to sleep in our car
Look up at the moon and wonder how you are
When this war is gone
We’ll go on with our happy ending
Happy ending
© 2003 Tom Mank (BMI)
Heart of My Dreaming
Walking you home in the night
Through the cold mist that’s falling
Past the bright shop windows calling
To the city in the dark
Your eyes retreat in the cold
As we cross the bridge by the harbor
Waiting for the chance to uncover
The feelings we hide
Falling in love is the heart of my dreaming
Falling in love is the heart of my dreaming
All of the pictures we play
All the of words replaying
Are caught on the wind delaying
Leaving alone
All of the dances inside
All of the feelings suspended
Are caught on the heart’s unending
Dream to love
Falling in love is the heart of my dreaming
Falling in love is the heart of my dreaming
© 1986 Tom Mank (BMI)
Hearts and Souls
I pass the preacher standing solo on the corner
And a street vendor singing an original song
Dancing along
Dreaming of the stars
Past the row homes
The rythym of our hearts and souls
The clotheslines are dancing
All along the alleyways
An improvisation
Throughout time
Dancing along
Dreaming of the stars
Past the row homes
The rythym of our hearts and souls
Every home I pass has the ballgame on in the kitchen
And this midsummer night
keeps on standing
Dancing along
Dreaming of the stars
Past the row homes
The rythym of our hearts and souls
© 1999 Tom Mank (BMI)
International Waters
Leaving the country across the Peace Bridge to Canada
And half way out is international waters
Free of any country you stand still in the wind
Before going back in to the civilized world
International waters blood of the wind
It has no time and no alliances
Stand on any bridge taken in time
Before going back in to the civilized world
© 2001 Tom Mank (BMI) and Sera Jane Smolen
Keep Crossing That Line
In Baltimore in 1963
A street runs through the city
One side white and one side black
And if you cross that line you can't go back
Keep crossing that line
Dr. King came to town and he did say
It was the most segreagated city in the USA
One part love and two parts fist
If you cross that line you're gonna be kissed
Keep crossing that line
In Baltimore in 1963
Dr, King came to town and he did see
One side white and one side black
Once you cross that line you can never go back
Keep crossing that line
© 2007 Tom Mank (BMI)
Khaki and Bone - 1918
Prisoner, soldier, vanished son
Wander home when they open the gates
Out of the camps, khaki and bone
Onto the steamships and onto trains
Follow the stars, follow the sun
Follow your heart home
In the Paris the lights are all back on
Now look at the shadows in rags
Frail phantoms in a slow promenade
Defenders of humanity and flags
Follow the stars, follow the sun
Follow your heart home
In your eyes ripening fields
Silk swaying under the sun
Ghosts of mystery travel this road
Lest we forget what they have done
Follow the stars, follow the sun
Follow your heart home
© 2003 Tom Mank (BMI) and Patti Witten (BMI)
Lit by the Moon
Pull into town
Look past the cartoon signs
Just like 1969
And smile
Meet a friend
In the dwindling rain
A poet's refrain
She looks to the sky
Past the cafe
Into the darkening woods
Where the world's still one neighborhood
After all
A stone's throw
From New York (City)
You stop by a cold brook
Lit by the moon
© 2007 Tom Mank (BMI)
Love’s in Motion
I don’t want to leave you but I’d rather be alone
Then have to worry all the time
It’s always easy when we’re free to smile
This love’s in motion all the time
I don’t want to hurt you but I always make you mad
And all my weakness brings the house down
You know that I can reach you if you let me live awhile
This love’s in motion all the time
Rest your head
I want to say
This diamond loving is life
The summer’s finally cracked and the leaves are falling down
And all the colors drive me crazy
I hope the winter is gonna bring us both around
This love’s in motion all the time
© 1981 Tom Mank (BMI)
Meet Me on the Mountain
Break it down to the parts that make the sum
Break it down to the silence in the drum
Break it down to the distance we have come
Break it down
You can call
You can fly
Leave it all
And meet me on the mountain
Meet me on the mountain
I'll whisper to your skin
Meet me on the mountain
The sky will take you in
Break it down from the penthouse to the slum
Break it down to what we've overcome
Break it down to the sweet delirium
Break it down
You can call
You can fly
Leave it all
And meet me on the mountain
Meet me on the mountain
I'll whisper to your skin
Meet me on the mountain
The sky will take you in
© 2007 Tom Mank (BMI) and Julie Last/Landing Leaf Music
New Mown Hay
Young men marching through these fields today
The last thing they smelled was the new mown hay
New mown hay piled on high
Witnesses to those who died
Now far away thirty years or more
Can’t remember what we died for
Women’s lovers and children’s Dads
And mother’s sons have all gone mad
Now far away 90 years or more
Can’t remember what we died for
© 1999 Tom Mank (BMI) and Sera Jane Smolen
Off-Beat Rhyme
Fell in love and I can’t get out
The one I love is in a shadow of doubt
I walk all over town
Caught in the middle of an off-beat rhyme
Waiting
To see my baby
Waiting
To see my baby
I want to dance all over town
But the one I love can’t be found
I search a long time
Caught in the middle of an off-beat rhyme
Waiting
To see my baby
Waiting
To see my baby
So I walk under the sky
But the sky won’t bend and the wind won’t cry
I wait a long time
Caught in the middle of an off-beat rhyme
Waiting
To see my baby
Waiting
To see my baby
© 2005 Tom Mank (BMI)
One of Those Times
Somewhere on the road lost in a dream
Your head’s on my shoulder and you start to sing
It’s one of those times when you can’t hide
And you can’t run from the feelings inside
It’s like song from when you were a child
It keeps you warm in the night
Somewhere in St. Louis in a small hotel
Got your arms around me so far, so well
It’s one of those times when you can’t hide
And you can’t run from the feelings inside
It’s like song from when you were a child
It keeps you warm in the night
Somewhere in the country you’re here with me
The rain drops on the window and the air smells so sweet
It’s one of those times when you can’t hide
And you can’t run from the feelings inside
It’s like song from when you were a child
It keeps you warm in the night
© 1993 Tom Mank (BMI)
Pack it All Away
Take away the faces you brought to change my mind
Gotta get away into the dawn
Going all the way today beyond my senses
The streets are empty and standing still
Take it all away
Leave it all behind
Pack it all away
Some crazy faces stand still in my mind
Like monuments to a dream in time
As I watch them fade away something slips inside
Alone is nowhere and I’ve lost my mind
Take it all away
Leave it all behind
Pack it all away
Fall into my fadeaway where to can’t catch me
These city lights don’t move me
Into open spaces to cool winds washing through my hair
I may be lost but I’m going somewhere
Take it all away
Leave it all behind
Pack it all away
© 1981 Tom Mank (BMI)
Saint Paul Street
The sky is out in stages
I hope that it lasts
As the moment ages
Into the past
Think I’ll go down to St. Paul St.
To see if you’re home
(I really want to see you now)
Think I’ll go down to St. Paul St.
To see if you’re home
(I really want to see you now)
Once we were dancers
Gliding on the stars
Balancing on stages
‘til the curtain calls
Think I’ll go down to St. Paul St.
To see if you’re home
(I really want to see you now)
Think I’ll go down to St. Paul St.
To see if you’re home
(I really want to see you now)
Motion pictures
On the window pane
I’m thinking of you
Suspended in the rain
Think I’ll go down to St. Paul St.
To see if you’re home
(I really want to see you now)
Think I’ll go down to St. Paul St.
To see if you’re home
(I really want to see you now)
© 2007 Tom Mank (BMI)
See What the Night Brings
When I met you
Through one of our friends
You didn’t want to talk
You didn’t want to dance
No kiss and tell
If the first kiss stings
Just slow down
And see what the night brings
When you feel love
In this circumstance
You don’t want to move
Or take a chance
No kiss and tell
If the first kiss stings
Just slow down
And see what the night brings
We meet in parks
And moonlit side roads
We talk about love
And all that the heart holds
No kiss and tell
If the first kiss stings
Just slow down
And see what the night brings
© 2007 Tom Mank (BMI)
Silver Rose
Washington DC is in a trance
Young men and women in a commutal dance
Voices stand inside alone
Waiting for the Metro to take us home
To our silver rose
Crooked streets and C-Span stars
Dancing feet in land locked cars
Pushing through one by one
Returning from work when the day is done
To our silver rose
As crowds recede and don’t come back
And the Metro trains have left there tracks
One last look and my night starts
With a glass of wine and an open heart
To my silver rose
© 1990 Tom Mank (BMI)
Sixteen Hours on the Road
My Dad says “sit still son”
“Why don’t you put the radio on?”
The road ahead is very long
Find anything but those rock-n-roll songs
My Mom says “Settle down son
You and your sisters are going to have to hold on
Listen to the country music on the radio
And watch the southern roads going by slow”
Driving from morning until the night
This old Chevrolet is like a wild bird in flight
After sixteen hours on the road
This young boy begins to rock and roll
We’ve been driving through Virginia all day long
Now we’re in the heart of Knoxville and still going strong
We’ll be in Alabama by midnight
If these southern roads will treat us right
Driving from morning until the night
This old Chevrolet is like a tired bird in flight
After sixteen hours on the road
This young boy begins to rock and roll
My Dad’s still driving through the night
Both of my sisters are in the back seat out like a light
The road ahead’s still very long
Find anything but those rock-n-roll songs
© 1991 Tom Mank (BMI)
Some Big Town
When I was younger I got real ticked off
Got on a bus thought I’d never get caught
Somewhere around St. Louis the bus slowed down
Called up my sister and told her I was bound
For some big town
Some big town (3x)
Now I’m in this town where things don’t move too fast
You wake up in the morning you're already living in the past
Don’t know what to say don’t know what to do
Except move into some big town
Some big town (3x)
Gonna run to you but I don’t know how
Run to the big town but I don’t know how
Now I’ve got this job don’t know how to get through it
There’s a whole lot of rockin’ but not a lot of roll to it
Gonna push out the windows and run outside
Throw back my hair and thumb a ride to some big town
Some big town (6x)
© 1991 Tom Mank (BMI)
Souls of Birds
She wakes in the dark too tired to sleep
Move her eyes out to the street
As she watches a child moves out
Like motion picture she knows nothing about
In her mind’s distance there’s a road
With somewhere to walk and someone to hold
Where nobody’s distant and no one’s a fool
And moving in time is so cool
If I had stayed with you
The sunrise would be waking
Across the bay
If I had stayed with you
She buys a newspaper and slips it under her arm
Keeps her eyes to herself and her memories warm
As she boards the bus a child cries out
Like motion picture she knows nothing about
In her mind’s distance there’s a road
With somewhere to walk and someone to hold
Where nobody’s distant and no one’s a fool
And moving in time is so cool
If I had stayed with you
The souls of birds
Would fly across the sky
If I had stayed with you
© 2003 Tom Mank (BMI)
Takes Your Breath Away
You walk in the morning with the wind in your face
As you turn towards the mill
And old sweetheart speaks to you
Is she waiting for you still
You’ve traveled far to work in this place
Had to leave some dreams behind
The dust dances to the rhythm of the wheels
Sometimes it traps your soul inside
And takes your breath away
The sky is layers of yellow and blue
As you make your journey home
You take a breath and listen
As you leave your day of stone
And it takes your breath away
© 2002 Tom Mank (BMI)
Trouble in the Neighborhood
Early in the morning I hear my Dad in the kitchen
I hear that lock as it latches the door
He’s gone to work
Don’t want to come home anymore
Sister’s getting married in the morning
That means there’s trouble in the neighborhood
Won’t be any large crowds or loud applauding
Cause she’s marrying a man that ain’t no good
Now there’s trouble in the neighborhood
Late in the afternoon
As the wind blows through the curtains
I hear some crying coming down the hall
It’s my mom I’m thinking she might fall
Sister’s getting married in the morning
That means there’s trouble in the neighborhood
Won’t be any large crowds or loud applauding
Cause she’s marrying a man that no one should
Now there’s trouble in the neighborhood
Some people’ve gone crazy and some are just plain mad
Even some of her best friends don’t give a damn
They raise their eyes to the angels trying to understand
Sister’s getting married in the morning
That means there’s trouble in the neighborhood
Won’t be any large crowds or loud applauding
Cause she’s marrying a man that no one should
Now there’s trouble in the neighborhood
© 1992 Tom Mank (BMI)
Waiting for the Sky to Break
As I approached the hill
Wishing I wasn’t trained to kill
I think I’ll fall with every step I take
Waiting for the sky to break
Waiting for the sky to break
Through the fog and the fallen snow
Step by step when time’s so slow
My heart’s jumpin’ and my fingers shake
Waiting for the sky to break
Waiting for the sky to break
My mind drifts to a different snow
Before this war got out of control
Thinkin’ of all the love we’d make
Waiting for the sky to break W
Waiting for the sky to break
© 2001 Tom Mank (BMI)
Waltzing Until the Dawn
I’ve got good friends all around me
Telling old tales and tunes
Laughing and drinking and thinking
That we can still dance on the moon
I’m not alone since you left me
Friends keep dropping by
Trying to make life sweeter
Without you tonite
Time passes quickly
And doesn’t wait long
Part of me is still with you
Waltzing until the dawn
The moonlight falls around me
' til the moon climbs up on the wall
In my mind are traces of faces
I recall
Time passes quickly
And doesn’t wait long
Part of me is still with you
Waltzing until the dawn
© 1987 Tom Mank (BMI)
Where’s That Train - 1940
I used to play in halls
Dense in conversation
Back when our band was
The sensation
Now I’m here tonight
In this slow café
I can still remember
When our music took the day
Now where’s that train (2x)
Now where’s that road
To marry space and time
All the trains are gone
Like whispers in the night
Where’s that rythym
Expanding through the haze
Hovering inside
‘til caught up in your gaze
Now where’s that train (2x)
When swing called
To young lovers dancing
In mystery towns
The rythym was romancing
Now among these chairs
Are the ghosts of dancing feet
Whispering a melody
And tapping out the beat
Now where’s that train (2x)
© 2007 Tom Mank (BMI), Julie Last/Landing Leaf Music, and Marijn
Winands
Where the Sun Meets the Blue
Way out there on the horizon
Where the sun meets the blue
She is there waiting
Way out there for you
If you set sail in the springtime
To where the sun meets the blue
She's still there waiting
Way out there for you
© 2007 Tom Mank (BMI)
Whisper to Each Other
When we meet
There’s something in your eyes
So familiar
Will circumstances
Come and pass us by
Or will we get the chance
To whisper to each other
A handful of times
In this life
We get to be real
Will circumstances
Come and pass us by
Or will we get the chance
To whisper to each other
Where would I be without you
Who would you be
If we ever got together
© 2003 Tom Mank (BMI) and Patti Witten (BMI)
Without You
Think I’m gonna go outta my mind
Think I’m gonna go outta my mind
Without you
Think I’m gonna walk around all night
Think I’m gonna walk around all night
Without you
An open hand on a silent drum
Anticipating a song
Without you
Think I’m gonna go wild
Think I’m gonna go wild
Without you
© 2003 Tom Mank (BMI)
