Close Your Eyes

Track Listing

• Close Your Eyes
• Dolores' Dream

  Music/solo by Wayne Shorter
  Vocalese lyric by Kurt Elling based on Wayne Shorter’s improvised melody on “Dolores” from the 1977 recording VSOP: The Quintet

  The white, electric skillet of a day
  threatened to sear us all away –
  fat frying, spluttering – rank Chicago smeltering along,
  smothered in heavy, wooly sweat,
  the city knew a sad regret
  for staying long in summer’s heavy.

  No escape. Delirious.
  So I went subterraneous.
  Maybe I’d dream about Dolores’
  kinda’ auburn hair & hazel eyes.
  Looking at her made chills go (indecipherable)
  even if she wasn’t even there & so I tried.
  Put Wayne Shorter on to hide
  and slept, completely mystified.

  ‘Honk!’ went a taxi cab outside to remind me night time was dawning.
  Then Laurie & Guy call -say, ‘let’s go dancing & romance perchancing.
  Summer times are sweeter at night.
  The music is swinging all the night.’
  I put a bowl of coffee on. I took a hit.

  What with the day time on the lamb – jumped in my car, Uptown to scram.
  Popped in a great Von Freeman jam and the coffee hit. Bam!
  We hit a Jazz club called, ‘The Mill’.
  Dig it! My second domicile.
  We had a great time hanging, until

  I saw Dolores sweep into the room.
  And then my head began to swoon.
  I got a yen.
  She came right up to me & when
  she spoke my sweat broke. No joke.

  Then came on the thrills,
  and came on the chills!
  She got me to dance –
  I took a chance
  replying, although she was kinda’ shy,
  I stole a sweet kiss on the sly (to simplify).
  And when Dolores sighed a sigh,
  you know, it got me kinda’ high –
  she hit me right between the eyes!

  If there’s one girl I’ve gotta’ remember, it’s her.

• Ballad Of The Sad Young Men
• (Hide The) Salomé
• Married Blues
• Storyteller Experiencing Total Confusion
• Never Say Goodbye (For Jodi)

  Music by Kurt Elling and Laurence Hobgood
  Words by Kurt Elling

  Laura was like a cloak to me;
  as warm and comforting as a cloak should be –
  making every day a mystery. And then she said,”Goodbye”.

  Jenny was like a healing fire,
  with a voice just like an angel choir –
  making my heart burn with pure desire.
  And then she said, “Goodbye”.

  Too many lovers in a life, they come and go;
  just making love and then making tracks.
  Soft to touch, but hard to hold –
  they go for a walk and they don’t walk back.

  One day, I know, she will come my way;
  bringing a warmer night and a cooler day.
  We will build our life like a sculpter molds her clay.
  And we’ll never say goodbye.

  And I’m waiting for the girl who will never say good bye.
  Little girl, don’t ever say goodbye. Never say goodbye.

• Those Clouds Are Heavy, You Dig?

  Music by Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond
  Lyric by Kurt Elling
  Originally titled “Audrey” from the 1954 recording Brubeck Time
  Based on the short story, How the Thimble Came to be God, by R.M. Rilke

  Once upon a time a cloud (a little cloud)
  gathered her friends together and began to say, aloud,
  “Friends, we can’t find God. Isn’t it odd?”

  And they all agreed it was very odd, indeed,
  to blow about the sky like a brainless seed.
  “Something’s really gone awry when older clouds oversimplify
  when they say that it’s just another day.

  It’s imperative we be somewhat more truly demonstrative
  in becoming provocative.
  Our parents neglect God, it’s true – all their world is askew.

  They go about bickering and scheme of possessing things
  as though they own us, too, and own all that we do.
  Yet they can’t understand
  just how foolish it is to build a house on sinking sand.

  And when we cry
  they say, “Oh my!
  You’ll grow out of it soon
  and start singing a grown-up tune.'”

  So the clouds made a vow,
  since the grown-ups had lost God, somehow.
  They would pick something out that would keep them aware
  that they could take with them anywhere (like a lock of hair, or a pear)

  – not an animal, or too big.
  So the little ones looked around and up and down and in and out
  and came up with a list:

  They had a feather, erasers and string
  pen knives and pencils and pieces of things
  that they found in their pockets to spare
  (and which they began to compare).

  But the shiniest object (when looking them over) the thimble was brightest
  and so they decided the thimble was rightest
  for taking along and for knowing God was staying long and in their every day.

  They knew where to find
  their peace of mind
  playing a game of tag or ‘fame’
  they simply had to call out the thimble’s name.

  Then, one day, the smallest
  cloud took a big fall and
  dropped the thimble from her hand.
  And God turned to sand.

  Just then, a wise old woman cloud happened along
  and she asked the little cloud, “What’s wrong?”
  And the little cloud replied, “God’s gone.”

  But the older cloud knew right away,
  so she said to the little one, “Here’s your thimble. I found it today.”

• Wait 'Till You See Her
• Hurricane
• Now It's Time That Gods Came Walking Out
• Never Never Land
• Remembering Veronica