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The Great Unknown

by Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus

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  • Full Digital Discography

    9
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    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Going the Distance, Live at Jumping Dog Studio Halloween Eve 2020, 27 Voices (Live), I Never Give Up (live), Collection 2008-2018, The Hard Part of Flying, The Great Unknown, Ray of Hope, and 1 more. , and , .

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1.
On the Day I Leave This World 04:01
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On The Day I Leave This World On the day I leave this world The sun will still rise in the sky Birds will take wing; dogs will chase squirrels Somewhere a newborn babe will cry Cause on the day I leave this world This merry-go-round will keep on spinning And I’m hoping what seems like the end Will just be a new beginning On the day I leave this world On the day I leave this world Somebody’s daughter will be getting married That foolish boy; that long-legged girl All the burdens they now carry But on the day I leave this world Our love will go on living And for all the times I may have acted otherwise I hope that I will be forgiven On the day I leave this world Everything comes to an end Not just good things, bad things too What’s left are seeds in the wind On the day I leave this world On the day I leave this world I’ll leave some friends behind me Somewhere my old pals will play guitars and sing About how some ties are binding On the day I leave this world Cause on the day I leave this world There will be no need to cry The sun will still go down at Venice Beach And I’ll try to wave goodbye On the day I leave this world © words & music by Jim Patton Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)
2.
Rebels Without Applause 03:00
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Rebels Without Applause Not everybody knows their names I must confess that’s true But I don’t know if that’s so bad On account of the work they do If they were rich and famous It would not serve their cause Telling the story of the Great Unknown Rebels without applause They have hearts of lions They don’t give in to defeat Their joy is like lightning flashed Their sorrow is bone deep Their aim is straight and true, my friend, They do not double cross Hats off to the Great Unknown Rebels without applause All of them are dreamers Though they’ve been burned a time or two Their minds are still wide open To someone else’s point of view They still don’t what they are told They answer to a higher boss Say a prayer for the Great Unknown Rebels without applause Sometimes they wish they hadn’t flown So close to the sun Sometimes they wish they could walk away Before their work is done But they are Keepers of the Flame No matter what the cost Give thanks for the Great Unknown Rebels without applause They’re the ones who shine a light When everything seems lost God bless the Great Unknown Rebels without applause © words & music by Jim Patton Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)
3.
Just a Memory 04:44
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Just A Memory Your sister's got herself a Facebook page She shot me a message the other day Just to say hello And of course I started thinking about you So I pulled some old photographs out of a drawer There was Sam & Janey & Ned & George And you and me Back when our world was new Everything changes That's a fact Those days are gone And they're not coming back Everything fades into history Time baby moves so fast Freight train rolling down a one way track All that’s left is Just a memory We were hanging out at Round Bay Beach All our dreams still within reach And I was playing That Epiphone guitar Now years and years have come and gone I turned our story into song Even when wounds heal They leave a scar Everything changes That's a fact I don’t waste time thinking about the things I lack Or hanging on to the man I used to be Time baby moves so fast When did the past become the past? When did you turn into Just a memory? Sam left Nora, we all saw that comin' And Ned's a Human Resources Director or somethin' And Janey went crazy and ran off with a married priest That was after she married George Yeah he lives in Austin, comes to all our shows He works with kids in trouble, kids in need Everything changes That's a fact Remember when he gave us all a heart attack Driving into those courthouse steps at full speed Time baby moves so fast Some people manage to escape their past And turn it into Just a memory I remember one night after the football game For the first time in my life I didn't have to explain We lay on our backs starin’ up at that midnight sky There were a million stars but all I saw was you We swore forever we'd be true My world was so full and so alive Everything changes That's a fact Those days are gone And they're not coming back Everything fades into history Time baby moves so fast Sometimes the past doesn't feel like it's past And you turned into Just a memory © words & music by Jim Patton Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)
4.
Drown 03:45
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Drown Well, he earned his reputation As a man who can’t be saved Every new addiction’s One step closer to his grave And I wish we could have helped him Instead of watch him spiral down But you just can’t throw a lifeline To a man who wants to drown He drags his best friends with him He wrecks his family He makes promise after promise We all know he’ll never keep He abandons his convictions At Joey’s bar in Harbortowne And you just can’t throw a lifeline To a man who wants to drown He’ll pull you in He’ll pull you in He used to be your friend But he’ll pull you in He tried a 12 step program He tripped on number four He couldn’t face the mirror So he closes every door The friend we all remember Isn’t really in him now And you just can’t throw a lifeline To a man who wants to drown You just can’t throw a lifeline To a man who wants to drown ©words and music by Jim Patton, Sherry Brokus, Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP), & Jeff Talmadge (Tot Ziens Music BMI)
5.
I'm Alright Now 03:49
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I'm Alright Now I got a little drunked up Down at the Anchor Inn When the switchblade flashed I thought I’d reached the end But I'm alright now Baby I’m okay I did my best Houdini And I got away I’m alright now I’m alright I took Dead Man’s Curve At 110 Beneath a hurricane sky Inside a skeleton wind But I’m alright now Let me make that plain I’m as good as gold I’m as right as rain I’m alright now I’m alright I’ve been betrayed But I survived I’ve been left for dead But I’m still alive Yeah I’m alright now Let me make that clear It's been a long hard climb But I'm finally here Yeah I’m alright now I feel brand new I’m alright now I’m hoping you are too © words & music by Jim Patton Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)
6.
Happy Anniversary 03:28
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Happy Anniversary Would've written you an letter But I couldn’t find your current address Just moved to a new apartment Everything's still a mess I know you told me not to call you But that was such a long time ago I’m glad your husband didn’t answer Be sure to tell him hello Remember what today is? Happy anniversary Happy anniversary Happy anniversary to us Yeah I see your name in the paper Every once in a while Helping out some drug abuser & I can't help but smile Wasn't it you who was with us That Saturday night? At that crazy Lithuanian party, You were high as a kite And the cops came in But I won't let on about your past Whatever happened, We probably grew up too fast Happy anniversary Happy anniversary Happy anniversary to us You're probably thinkin’ I’ve been drinkin’ Well I haven't, not much You’re probably wondering why I bothered To get back in touch I just called you to say I hope you’re doing ok Don't read too much Into anything that I say But I still remember When every song that I wrote Was for you And I want you to know Every word that I said Still rings true Happy anniversary Happy anniversary Happy anniversary to us Happy anniversary to us © words & music by Jim Patton Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)
7.
Crystal City 03:25
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Crystal City You can run from Crystal City Make a new life by the sea You can hide out on the boardwalk I’ll be there eventually You can’t disappear forever I won’t let go that easily You can run from Crystal City But you can’t run away from me You can run off with your lover I’ll be with you in your bed Baby when you least expect it You will see my face instead Or you’ll reach out in the darkness Before you remember it’s not me You can run from Crystal City But you can’t run away from me Keep an eye out your back window Put a chain around your heart Keep your phone number unlisted Sweetheart that’s the easy part You can change the locks on everything I already have the key You can run from Crystal City But you can’t run away from me © words & music by Jim Patton Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)
8.
I'll Never Be Satisfied 02:45
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I’ll Never Be Satisfied I got a dollar in my pocket Got a beer in my hand Got a couple close friends Got a rock ‘n roll band That would satisfy most men I know it’s true But I’ll never be satisfied Cause I ain’t got you I got a ’95 Toyota Hardly ever been broke A warm bed to sleep in, I ain’t hooked on dope I got a steady job And an occasional girlfriend too But I’ll never be satisfied Cause I ain’t got you I got everything That a man could need I got a stereo I got a Gene Clark CD I got a place to go When I need something to eat Because Evangeline’s Is right down the street We used to hang out there Once upon a time When we still harmonized When our thoughts would rhyme When our roads were one And our love was new Now I’ll never be satisfied Cause I ain’t got you I got everything That a man could need I got a stereo A Little Pink CD I got a place to go When I need something to eat Because Evangeline’s Is right down the street We used to hang out there Once upon a time When we still harmonized When our thoughts would rhyme When our roads were one And our love was new Now I’ll never be satisfied Cause I ain’t got you I’ll never be satisfied Cause I ain’t got you I’ll never be satisfied © words & music by Jim Patton Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)
9.
Glen Oak Blues 02:54
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Glen Oak Blues Your mama was a manipulator Your daddy was a world class hater Of black people, brown people, yellow people, Indians, Jews And I don’t know how you came out of that mess Why you’re not just like ‘em is anybody’s guess But somehow you escaped those Glen Oak Blues The nuns at school were petty tyrants Your lovers filled with senseless violence Your bosses nearly always hit on you Still you grew up straight and you grew up true In spite of everything they tried to do to you Somehow you escaped those Glen Oak Blues Your daddy’s daddy used to beat him So he beat you till you were fifteen Your mom denied she ever saw a bruise Both her folks were alcoholic, Melancholic, hyperbolic, But somehow you escaped those Glen Oak Blues You grew up brave and you grew up strong In spite of everyone that’d done you wrong They offered you their chains but you refused And I don’t know how you came out of that mess Why you’re not just like ‘em is anybody’s guess Somehow you escaped those Glen Oak Blues Somehow you turned out kind With an open heart and a fearless mind They offered you their chains but you refused And I don’t know how you came out of that mess Why you’re not just like ‘em is anybody’s guess But somehow you escaped those Glen Oak Blues Somehow you escaped those Glen Oak Blues © words & music by Jim Patton Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)
10.
Ordinary Life 04:08
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Ordinary Life You could never make me happy My whole life I’ve never bent There’s a great big world still out there But I’ve yet to make a dent An Ordinary Life An Ordinary Life The only thing that really scares me Is an Ordinary Life I swear heaven heard me talking Every time I knelt to pray Sometimes I even stopped to listen But no wisdom came my way An Ordinary Life An Ordinary Life The only thing I never prayed for Is an Ordinary Life Myself I promised I would never live a lie I feel unworthy But you just look at me and sigh Tonight you’re in my arms and dreaming That’s enough to make me smile Those little dreams that seemed beneath me Are looking bigger all the while An Ordinary Life An Ordinary Life The only thing that really scares me Is an Ordinary Life An Ordinary Life An Ordinary Life The only thing I never prayed for Is an Ordinary Life © Eddie Walker (Unorthodox Music BMI)
11.
After the Dance 02:41
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After The Dance After the dance is over After your waltz in the sun You stay out on the floor And you ask for one more After the dance is done After the song has ended The melody still lingers on You can hear it so clear Ringing right in your ear After the dance is done The ballplayer hangs on to play one last season The old man still stumbles out on to the stage And Pete still calls Nikki without any reason In his eyes the girl hasn't aged After the dance is over After your moment is gone You stay out on the floor And you ask for one more After the dance is done © words & music by Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus Independent Alligator Publishing Co (ASCAP)

about

“I met Jim and Sherry when I first moved to Austin in 1998. I had the opportunity to work on a record with them and I’m glad it worked out. They are so passionate about their music. I’ve always been drawn to artists who write about their life experiences, and that’s just what Jim and Sherry do. I’m glad to be a part of their music.” - Lloyd Maines

JIM PATTON & SHERRY BROKUS/HIMES/LINER NOTES 2013

By Geoffrey Himes

In his early 60s, an age when most singer-songwriters have been in decline for a decade or more, Jim Patton has improbably deepened and broadened his art. For his new album with his wife and longtime musical partner Sherry Brokus, The Great Unknown, Patton has crafted 10 new songs that do more than explain himself to his listeners; these songs explain those listeners to themselves. For many years Patton has shined a revealing light on his own past and the inside of his own head. But with this record, he aims his flashlight into other skulls and into the future. The Great Unknown, indeed.

The new album begins with one of his best-ever songs, “On the Day I Leave This World,” which allows him to imagine his eventual, inevitable death. It’s a surprisingly humble song; it doesn’t describe that death as a momentous event but rather as another turning of the page. Some friends will be sad, but dogs will go on chasing squirrels as they’ve always done; “This merry-go-round will keep on spinning.” That balance of sadness and naturalness is tricky to capture, but Patton does it not only in his writing but in his vocal as well.

Patton’s willingness to climb inside other people's heads has created an expanded role for Brokus in the duo's music. For the first time on one of their albums, she takes more lead vocals than he does, and her long career as a therapist allows her to convincingly assume the personas of the troubled narrators of “Drown” and “I’m Alright Now.” Neither she nor her husband have ever suffered the addiction and trauma of these two men, but they’ve been close enough to understand it and articulate it as the men themselves never could.

There are similar songs about ex-lovers who can’t let go, brow-beaten children who can’t forget, middle-aged rock'n'rollers who won’t give up. All these characters want to reach new territory, unknown and perhaps greater than anything they’ve known, before the day they leave this world. “It’s easy to show when someone has a problem and when someone has overcome the problem,” Brokus says, “but it’s getting from point A to point B that's hard to describe.” But that's just what Patton and Brokus capture in these songs, thanks in large part to the terrific Texas musicians who frame their voices: producer Ron Flynt, lead guitarist Mary Cutrufello, mandolinist Marvin Dykhuis, fiddler Warren Hood, cellist Julie Carter and percussionist John Bush.

credits

released July 1, 2013

Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus
The Great Unknown

1 On the Day I Leave This World 4:01
2 Rebels Without Applause 3:01
3 Just a Memory 4:44
4 Drown 3:45
5 I'm Alright Now 3:50
6 Happy Anniversary 3:29
7 Crystal City 3:26
8 I'll Never Be Satisfied 2:45
9 Glen Oak Blues 2:55
10 Ordinary Life 4:08
11 After the Dance 2:42

Produced by Ron Flynt

© and (p) 2013 Jim Patton/Sherry Brokus PO Box 93081 Austin TX 78709-3081
(512) 280-8455 pattonbrokus@gmail.com pattonbrokus.com berkalinrecords.com

Jim Patton: acoustic guitar, vocals
Sherry Brokus: vocals, additional percussion
Ron Flynt: bass, piano, keyboards, acoustic guitar, vocals
Mary Cutrufello: lead acoustic guitar
Marvin Dykhuis: mandolin, mandola, classical guitar
Warren Hood: fiddle
Julie Carter: cello
John Bush: percussion

Produced, Recorded & Mixed by Ron Flynt at Jumping Dog Studios, Austin TX

All songs written by Jim Patton (© 2013 Independent Alligator Publishing Co., ASCAP) except: “Drown” (Jim Patton-Sherry Brokus-Jeff Talmadge) (©2013 Independent Alligator Publishing Co., ASCAP and Tot Ziens Music, BMI) , “Ordinary Life” (Eddie Walker) (© 1995 Unorthodox Music, BMI), and “After the Dance” (Jim Patton-Sherry Brokus)

Mastered by Jerry Tubb at Terra Nova Digital Audio, Inc., Austin TX

Design by Matt Eskey, front cover and inside photos by Matt Eskey, back cover photo by Jeff Tveraas.


For Ellen Volk Patton

In memory of Tim Henderson, Mike Watters, and Dick Walker.
Your presence is all through this record, as well as our lives.

special thanks to Jeff Talmadge,
who played the role of Maxwell Perkins in the birthing of the CD.

Jim & Sherry would like to thank:
everyone who played on the record, played in the band, recorded us, promoted us, gave us airplay, loaned us money, came to the shows, listened to the songs, bought our records, put us up for the night, or otherwise helped us on our way. You are too numerous to mention individually, too important not to mention at all.

the rest of the band:
Rich Brotherton, John Cronin, Alan Oresky, Stuart & Hilary Adamson, Richard Dobyns, Beth Galiger, Richard Bowden, Doug “E” Rees, Jeff Tveraas, David Glaser, Bruce Balmer, John Fullbright, Doug Cox, Bettysoo (vocals and accordion)

Above and Beyond:
Michael Fracasso, Cash & Roger, John & Candy, Bill Wence, Erik Balkey, Vanessa Lively, Andy & Katie, 49 West, John & DL, Joe and Bev, Marilyn & Bill Duncan, Brian & Pam, Charlie Stewart, Lee Cadorette, Freddie Wilson, Greg Gaughan, Don Cunningham, Dana & Graham & Chase, Kate Whitaker, Carole Moody, Kamp Kantigree, and our gang at our Folk Alliance and not/SXSW Third Coast Music shows, and the incredible music community of Austin, TX.

Spiritual adviser: R. Gene Munger. Thanks to Sid Griffin for the loan of the title “Rebels Without Applause”. John Bush plays Gon Bops congas & percussion

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Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus Austin, Texas

Austin folk rock songwriters Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus return with their 7th CD on Houston's Berkalin Records. This time they're leaning toward the rock side of their folk-rock equation with a sound more comparable to Tom Petty or the Byrds.

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