• After the Parade

    Released Digitally December 17, 2017. CD Version released January 2018. BillBoard Chart in January 2018

  • Lyrics

    1. Cheap Guitars

    Had to park on Bay State Road

    'Cause Fenway's all aglow

    Up Brookline Ave to Lansdowne Street

    Guitar in hand and a summer heat

     

    The faithful in their red and blue

    A crowd outside the House of Blues

    I'm dodging vendors, hawkers, and rock band stalkers

    In my way

     

    Breaking strings on cheap guitars

    Close my eyes, pretend we're stars

    Across that alley seems so far

    But tonight it could all be ours

     

    The soundman brought his harp to play

    The doorman lends a smile away

    One and two and three and four

    Heads perk up, we couldn't ask for more

     

    Breaking strings on cheap guitars

    Close my eyes, pretend we're stars

    Across that alley seems so far

    But tonight it could all be ours

     

    Cheap guitars, beat-up bars

    No we ain't stars, but someday, someday

    Someday we'll climb that stage

    Across that alley, beyond that velvet cage

    Until then, here we'll remain

    With our singing, stringing, ringing ways

     

    Breaking strings on cheap guitars

    Close my eyes, pretend we're stars

     

    Across that alley seems so far

    But tonight it could all be ours

    Breaking strings on cheap guitars

    Close my eyes, pretend we're stars

     

    Across that alley seems so far

    But tonight it could all be ours

    Tonight it could all be ours

    Tonight it could all be ours

    2. Take My Hand

    It was the kind of kiss

    You'd best forget

    Until it somehow led to more

    When she flipped that claddagh ring around

    In the backseat of my buddy's Ford

     

    Take my hand, don't let go

    Keep it steady as she goes

    She said yes, I said no way I'm gonna let this go

     

    Take my hand, don't let go

    Keep it steady as she goes

    She said yes, I said no way I'm gonna let this go

     

    It's kind of thing, you don't forget

    That night she let me learn

    Just a dumb luck kid driving 'round

    In a station wagon

    She lit a fire that still burns

     

    Take my hand, don't let go

    Keep it steady as she goes

    She said yes, I said no way I'm gonna let this go

     

    Take my hand, don't let go

    Keep it steady as she goes

    She said yes, I said no way I'm gonna let this go

     

    We didn't know nothing about it, nothing much

    But we were on to something more

    There ain't no secret to this fairy tale

    Except the boy and the girl who won't let go

     

    It was the kind of kiss, you don't forget

    Even years on down the road

     

    When she flipped that claddagh ring around

    I knew I wasn't letting it go

     

    Take my hand, don't let go

    Keep it steady as she goes

    She said yes, I said no way I'm gonna let this go

     

    Take my hand, don't let go

    Keep it steady as she goes

    She said yes, I said no way I'm gonna let this go

     

    Take my hand

    Take my hand

     

    Take my hand

    Take my hand

    Take my hand

    Never gonna let this go

    3. You Ain't Her

     I see you standing over there.

    You're all made up from head to toe.

    From the way you walked yourself in here

    It's clear you're all about the show.

     

    You're looking good, but you should know that I ain't fooled

    And understand I'll play that song, but not for you.

     

    I play guitar for the girl who waits for me when the night is through

    She pulls off heels in a little black dress in ways unknown to you.

    So dance right there, in your barely there, cause I see through you

    Cause you ain't her and she ain't you.

     

    So sip your drink and bat your eyes.

    And flirt your way to drinks for free.

    Cause that may work for other guys

    But it sure as hell don't work for me.

     

    You're looking good, but you should know that I ain't fooled

    And understand I'll play that song, but not for you.

     

    I play guitar for the girl who waits for me when the night is through

    She pulls off heels in a little black dress in ways unknown to you.

    So dance right there, in your barely there, cause I see through you

    Cause you ain't her and she ain't you.

     

    I see you standing over there…

     

    Two! Three! Four!

     

    I play guitar for the girl who waits for me when the night is through

    She pulls off heels in a little black dress in ways unknown to you.

    So dance right there, in your barely there, cause I see through you

    Cause you ain't her and she ain't you.

    4. Flying Down a Backroad

    Sixteen and flying down a back road

    Radio cranking makes the pedal go, down

     

    Blame it on the radio, blame it on the stereo

    Blame it on the things we were too young to know

    On your summer glow, blame it on the love you show

    Blame it on the things that make you go

     

    Woah, woah

    Woah, woah

     

    Top down down, dying just to see you

    Radio cranking out my favorite tune

    Sing it now, sing it now, sing it now

    Top down down just to see you

     

    Blame it on the radio, blame it on the stereo

    Blame it on the things we were too young to know

    On your summer glow, blame it on the love you show

    Blame it on the things that make you go

     

    Woah, woah

    Woah, woah

     

    Can't go slow, she's the song that makes me speed

    Flying down a back road

    To the girl that I still need

     

    Boston lights fading in my rear view

    I'm still flying home to see you

     

    Blame it on the radio, blame it on the stereo

    Blame it on the things we were too young to know

    On your summer glow, blame it on the love you show

    Blame it on the things that make you go

     

    Woah, woah

    Woah, woah

    Woah, woah

     

    Woah, woah

    Sixteen and flying down a back road

    6. After the Parade

    Cross-country charter, after a loss in overtime

    Suits on a tarmac, heading off to warmer climes

    But there's a black car waiting to take him back to the city

    Cause if he makes that flight, he'll be bar down at South Side tonight

     

    He's trading palm trees for memories and cold ass Boston nights

    With the same ten guys he skated with back in 1995

     

    Cause rusted chain-link little towns have a certain way of finding

    Ways to let you know, who you are, when you need reminding

    After your worst or your best damn day, when the crowds have gone away

    I thank the Lord this town is made of folks who stay

    Long after the parade

     

    Across the bar guys are laughing, they're pounding their Bud Lights

    Just like their dads did in parking lots, after hockey Friday nights

    Life took from them the kind of things, that make you question why

    He'd ever let that kind of thing happen in our lives

    But they made plans, so damn the chair, they're boarding Nashville flights

    And they're singing out to the ones they lost, every Wednesday night

     

    Cause rusted chain-link little towns have a certain way of finding

    Ways to let you know, who you are, when you need reminding

    After your worst or your best damn day, when the crowds have gone away

    I thank the Lord this town is made of folks who stay

    Long after the parade

     

    Now Boston ain't the kind of town to let a good dream die

    We've got our bars, our dreams, our scars and they're the ties that bind

     

    Cause rusted chain-link little towns have a certain way of finding

    Ways to let you know, who you are, when you need reminding

    After your worst or your best damn day, when the crowds have gone away

    I thank the Lord this town is made of folks who stay

    Long after the parade

     

    Hey, hey, hey, hey

    Long after the parade

    Hey, hey, hey, hey

    Hey, hey, hey, hey

    8. Orion's Belt

     Past the package store, on a dead man's curve

    Where the last hill rises up to meet the sea

    There's a little house on a dirt road drive

    Where late at night Orion's Belt settles down into the bending trees

     

    A guitar man, a thousand times

    I've made that drive, when the morning meets the night

    I'll follow stars back home to you

     

    I'm driving home to Orion's Belt tonight

    It's just the latest of a thousand late night drives

    The songs are written, they line the corners of my mind

    They light up the sky

    I'm driving home to a riot's bell tonight

     

    Mountain drive on a Tennessee night

    Three stars above me, burning bright

    A thousand miles from that dirt road drive

    Up and down, left and right, rolling on worn out tires

     

    A guitar man, a thousand times

    I've made that drive, when the morning meets the night

    I'll follow stars back home to you

     

    I'm driving home to Orion's Belt tonight

    It's just the latest of a thousand late night drives

    The songs are written, they line the corners of my mind

    They light up the sky

    I'm driving home to Orion's Belt tonight

     

    Just one more drive

    One more time

     

    If you know the stars, you can see the signs

    The constellations hiding there in the nighttime sky

    Cause on certain nights when the stars align

    I swear I hear the notes and the songs that they shine

     

    I'm driving home to Orion's Belt tonight

    It's just the latest of a thousand late night drives

    The songs are written, they line the corners of my mind

    They light up the sky

    I'm driving home to Orion's Belt tonight

    9. Left Turn at the Beach

    Ain't got a whole lot of money

    Singin' nights to pay the bills

    Get up early on a Monday

    Work again, you know the drill

    When it gets too much

    We load up all our stuff

    And get that car headed east

    Drive the roads we know

    From so long ago

    Take a left turn at the beach

     

    And it's salt air

    Blue skies

    A little peace from the cold blue sea

    Skippin' rocks

    In the water

    Lighthouse blinkin' one, four, three

     

    We were married in the summer

    After college by the sea

    A little girl and her brothers

    Same blue eyes starin' back at me

     

    It ain't like there aren't times 2 a.m. and cryin'

    When that weekend's out of reach

    Drive the roads we know

    From so long ago

    Take a left turn at the beach

     

    And it's salt air

    Blue skies

    A little peace from the cold blue sea

    Skippin' rocks

    In the water

    Lighthouse blinkin' one, four, three

     

    It don't matter about that money

    Singin' nights does pay the bills

    And even early on that Monday

    I love this life and always will

     

    Cause even when we're fine

    We still make the time

    Get that car headed east

    Drive the roads we know

    From so long ago

    Take a left turn at the beach

     

    And it's salt air

    Blue skies

    A little peace from the cold blue sea

    Skippin' rocks

    In the water

    Lighthouse blinkin' one, four, three

    11. Nashville Star

    Hands more skilled than these

    Have chased down these three-chord dreams

    But I've got a reason to believe

    Yeah, I got you up my sleeve

     

    So I'll keep searching this guitar

    Fighting chords and bending words

    Into the shape of who you are

     

    You'll be my Mona Lisa

    You'll be my piece de resistance

    The kind of face that launches a thousand songs

    Without you, I'm just another ball cap strumming on an old guitar

    You're the next big thing, every song I sing

    You're the real Nashville star

     

    This battered Martin wears the scars

    Of every chorus written about this love of ours

    So many songs are locked inside

    This wood, these strings, this one four five

     

    So I'll keep searching this guitar

    Fighting chords and bending words

    Into the shape of who you are

     

    You'll be my Mona Lisa

    You'll be my piece de resistance

    The kind of face that launches a thousand songs

    Without you, I'm just another ball cap strumming on an old guitar

    You're the next big thing, every song I sing

    You're the real Nashville star

     

    A thousand rhymes since the first day that I met you

    A thousand more, 'til I find the one that breaks through

     

    You'll be my Mona Lisa

    You'll be my piece de resistance

    The kind of face that launches a thousand songs

    Without you, I'm just another ball cap strumming on an old guitar

    You're the next big thing, every song I sing

    You're the real Nashville star

     

    Oh, oh, oh, oh

     

    Without you, I'm just another ball cap strumming on an old guitar

    You're the next big thing, every song I sing

    You're the real Nashville star

    12. SEVENTEEN

    You and me, at seventeen

    All dressed up, in a dusty picture frame

    Oh, you and I, that blue dress and a borrowed tie

    Waiting on the rest of our lives

     

    And damned if I know, where we were that day

    You've changed your hair since that picture was made

     

    But your, blue eyes, still shine, for me

    Like when we were seventeen

    Look right, in mine, my heart, heart still skips a beat

    When I feel, when I find

    This life gets too much

    I look in your blue eyes and I'm alright

    And they still shine for me

    Like we were seventeen

     

    It was first love, first sight

    First day of high school, trying to catch your eye

    A picked up a guitar

    Cause out of my league just doesn't describe that

    Sunny hair, little smile

     

    Damned if I know, how it went my way

    Once they shined for me, I didn't ever let them change

     

    But your, blue eyes, still shine, for me

    Like when we were seventeen

    Look right, in mine, my heart, heart still skips a beat

    When I feel, when I find

    This life gets too much

    I look in your blue eyes and I'm alright

    And they still shine for me

    Like we were seventeen

     

    Young love never dies

    Unless you let it

     

    But your, blue eyes, still shine, for me

    Like when we were seventeen

    Look right, in mine, my heart, heart still skips a beat

    When I feel, when I find

    This life gets too much

    I look in your blue eyes and I'm alright

    And they still shine for me

    Like we were seventeen

    Just like when we were seventeen

    Just like when we were seventeen

    Just like when we were seventeen

    13. Call IN SUMMER

    Hey girl, summer sure looks good on you

    And I think this Monday would look better with an ocean view

    Now, how about you?

    I can see your favorite pair of Ray Bans

    Sitting on your nightstand

    Sandy from the weekend

    Tell you what I want to do

     

    Find a salt air breeze and rolling waves

    A sandy beach where we can misbehave

    Cape Cod Ice over Bud Light blue

    Call your boss and break the news

    Pick up a beer, put down your phone

    Think I caught a little something from the summer sun

    Let's be under the weather together

    I want to call in summer with you

     

    'Round here, summer always ends too soon

    So trade your 9-to-5

    Stuck inside

    for 95 with me and skies of blue

    You know you want to

    It would be a shame to waste that sundress

    water cooler small talk and all the office politics

    Tell you what I want to do

     

    Find a salt air breeze and rolling waves

    A sandy beach where we can misbehave

    Cape Cod Ice over Bud Light blue

    Call your boss and break the news

    Pick up a beer, put down your phone

    Think I caught a little something from the summer sun

    Let's be under the weather together

    I want to call in summer with you

     

    Come on, leave it all behind

    For me and you in the weekday sunshine

     

    Find a salt air breeze and rolling waves

    A sandy beach where we can misbehave

    Cape Cod Ice over Bud Light blue

    Call your boss and break the news

    Pick up a beer, put down your phone

    Think I caught a little something from the summer sun

    Let's be under the weather together

    I want to call in summer with you

     

    With the beer in hand and the salt in sand

    You're killing the two piece in your workday tan

    Thinking tomorrow we should do it again

    The boss won't mind a day or two

     

    Pick up a beer, put down your phone

    Think I caught a little something from the summer sun

    Let's be under the weather together

    I want to call in summer with you

    13. Young Man's Game

    I wasn't built for your skinny jeans

    I ain't Nashville's type of star

    I'm just an Irish kid from Boston town

    Sometimes for better, sometimes for worse

     

    My Red Sox cap, it ain't new like yours

    Neither is this old guitar

    But they were there, they picked up dorm room scars

    The night Papi broke the curse

     

    And I ain't changing who I am

    Just to make myself a name

    I write these songs, cause it's who I am

    I ain't changing your kind of fame

    So go dress it up, look the part

    You ain't the one to blame

    I submit, I give.

    You got me beat

    Cause yours is a young man's game

     

    I don't write songs about tequila

    Then again, neither do you

    Cause if I'm drinking, it ain't for show.

    It's cause my buddies like drinking beer

     

    And I ain't changing who I am

    Just to make myself a name

    I write these songs, cause it's who I am

    I ain't changing your kind of fame

    So go dress it up, look the part

    You ain't the one to blame

    I submit, I give.

    You got me beat

    Cause yours is a young man's game

     

    Now fame and glory, you might find

    Singing songs that you've never lived

    But hands down, I'll take going home to mine

    All tucked up in their beds

     

    And I ain't changing who I am

    Just to make myself a name

    I write these songs, cause it's who I am

    I ain't changing your kind of fame

    So go dress it up, look the part

    You ain't the one to blame

    But I leave writing the songs, to guys like me.

    Cause that ain't a young man's game

    No, that ain't a young man's game