Traveling Map

from Willows Motel by Jason Paul Johnston

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lyrics

Traveling Map (4:03)
© 2004 Jason Paul Johnston

Been in this town for a while, so it's time,
Tired of watching all the clocks round here unwind.
Throw my bag into my '79,
It's all that I own, leave the rest behind.

Somewhere out in Indiana State,
Came the only dollar that I made.
I was forced to spend it there that day,
I wished I could save it for the train.

Somewhere in Kentucky it got late,
Later than the sun wanted to stay.
So I got a room and stayed away,
From the only friend that I had made.

Then I poured over the map again
(to see that I was off again)
I'm lost...
So I looked up to the sky
And folded the USA over my eyes

Tennessee's the place of love and hate,
Full of all my family and my fate.
The heat it seems to saturate my brain,
I'd rather spend my summers off of Maine.
Ohio seems to be the billboard state,
They've got a highway with some taste.
Everywhere I drive it looks the same,
Farms are being replaced by buffets.

Heading in the wrong direction
Too much pride to pull aside
I hate to stop for some correction
Cause I feel like it just takes too much time...
Don't want to waste my time..

Shaking out the sleep at some rest place
My coin bought meal, I stopped and ate
I was all alone and yet I faced
All the friends I passed, there in that space
Brothers and sisters in this race
Not talking 'bout the kind you win first place
I'm thinking 'bout the way we looked the same
Squinting at the state map in the rain

credits

from Willows Motel, track released July 14, 2009
Steel Guitar: Tommy Detamore

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about

Jason Paul Johnston Lexington, Kentucky

Jason is the son of a preacher from the Great White North (Canada) and a music teacher from Tennessee, giving his muse northern and southern winds. Jason released his first album "Willows Motel" in 2009. It was an americana inspired album of eleven originals and one old gospel tune. Jason is now working on a series of follow-up albums: 100 Stories Volumes 1-10 ... more

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