Quotations by James Alan Gourley

7/21/2008 at 12:58 PM

“The Devil's greatest triumph is mankinds' perception of God” (RELIGION/HUMANITY/WAR)

“Humanity is the only species that ever afforded itself the true luxury of gullibility” (HUMANITY)

“The person that ain’t you doesn’t exist” (INDIVIDUALITY)

“Beware the thief who would steal your dreams but welcome all those who would donate to your daydreams” (WISDOM)

“Only dumb gods call the intelligent to lead” (MISC)

“I always had a problem with sunshine…I could never quite look it in the eye” (SELF/DEPRESSION)

“I may have taken drugs but I never swallowed bullshit” (SELF)

“The most terrifying monsters are the ones that lurk under the floorboards of one’s conscience” (HUMAN NATURE)

“A half ounce of wisdom is worth ten hundred weight of gold” (MISC)

“The greatest reward is gained in the acceptance of losses” (WISDOM)

“The more I look at my hands the less I point the finger” (WISDOM)

“Only the dumb would speak that the genius is mad” (US AND THEM)

“I may not have been a “holy man” but neither was I a “fakir” ;) (SELF/WORDPLAY)

“The unexceptional usually end up at sixes and sevens” (MISC)

“Careless planters sow grimmest reapers” (MISC)

“Only those of poor design deem to follow fashion” (INDIVIDUALITY)

“Sinsimella turns the most mundane trip to the corner shop into a fascinating journey of high adventure” (GRASS)

“The most cynical of professions is that of the lifelong barmaid” (HUMAN NATURE)

“Beware the pursuit of mammon may build and furnish the most luxurious palace in which to spend eternal damnation” (MONEY)

“You take the low road to riches and ruin and I’ll take the high road to austerity and happiness” (MONEY)

“Humanity is the only species that ever destroyed its own evolution” (HUMANITY)

“The fool meets humility at the second of his death…The wise man invites it to walk with him through life” (WISDOM)

“More people burn the higher the stakes” (HUMAN NATURE/WAR/GREED)

“When churches close…minds are released” (RELIGION)

“The one with no hidden agendas will be noted in many false dossiers” (HUMAN NATURE)

“Those incapable of self re-invention will end up in a zoo awaiting blissful extinction” (HUMAN NATURE)

“The ultimate folly of humanity was to be arrogant enough to think they could control natural selection” (HUMANITY)

“My relationship with my Creator is strictly “Platonic” (RELIGION/WORDPLAY)

“ “Thou shall not kill”…It’s hardly rocket science” (RELIGION)

Those that sleep in false dreams must awake to real nightmares” (WISDOM)

“If one conducts oneself well then they may be invited to play in the orchestra”(WISDOM)

“Americans have indeed been abducted by aliens…They’re called Neo-Conservatives” (POLITICS)

“Apathy is a dress-rehearsal for death” (HUMAN NATURE)

“Those who can’t give credit usually end up blacklisted” (HUMAN NATURE)

“Scarification works equally well on humans as on lawns” (FEAR)

“I tried to address God…but I couldn’t remember if, when and where I had lived” (RELIGION)

“The concept of life after death is the depressive’s greatest fear” (DEPRESSION)

“I took a six and a half year masters diploma in chronic clinical depression for the chance to apply for a junior apprenticeship in the primary school of wisdom” (DEPRESSION)

“For who is to tell between the scream of the banshee, the call of the siren, or the voice of an angel?” (DAMIAN)

“Birdsong matters more the less frequent and louder it becomes” (EXTINCTION)

“Negativity is positive to the uncharged mind” (PSYCHOLOGY)

“Those who never remember the dead will never truly know what it is to live” (WAR)

“The richest gifts are often left by those who died penniless alcoholics” (DEPRESSION/CREATIVITY)

“If we ploughed together maybe we could combine harvesters and re-seed a world free from the scythe” (PEACE/HUMANITY)

“You’ll never hear the music till you turn down the noise” (MISC)

“The loneliest of travellers is the one who walks ahead of his time” (SELF)

“Only the jester has the wit to fool the king” (MISC)

“Depth of character is found the lower one sinks” (DEPRESSION)

“…”Planetary evolution has been delayed because of an unanticipated fault…As soon as humanity destroys itself normal service will resume”…” (THE WORLD/EVOLUTION)

“Some that loved me only did because they learned through my mistakes” (SELF)

“Most people are caught in a trap of such ingenious cunning that death will be their only escape” (MISC)

“If one follows the crowd one tends to develop the characteristics of a lemming” (INDIVIDUALITY)

“We must learn how to boo at overtures” (ADVERTISING)

“If you ain’t prepared to drop the gun, best prepare to bite the bullet” (WAR)

“The only mans eyes I ever have to meet are the ones in the mirror” (SELF)

“The one responsible for ringing the bell is the one who must hold up their hands if they drop a clanger” (MISC)

“If you can’t sort the wheat from the chaff does it mean your poorly bred?” (HUMOUR)

“If you want to stand out from the crowd first learn to stand in the rain” (WISDOM)

“While you bought your defamation I just paid my last respects” (CAPITALISM)

“Your quality of picture improves the longer the level of exposure” (SONIA/LIFE)

“Those who strive to keep up with the Joneses really ought to have listened to the Smiths” (MISC/WORDPLAY)

“Diamonds are allegedly forever but worms are definitely eternal” (DEATH/GREED)

“When they draw up the lines…Then we know we must cross them” (US AND THEM)

“To scale the heights of justice we must be prepared to dredge for perfect balance” (HUMANITY)

“I always dress in black because I was born colour-blind” (SELF/DEPRESSION)

“The busier the bee? The more lethal the sting…” (MISC)

“Gold will show as much interest in you in death as lead” (MONEY/GREED)

“If you seek new solutions prepare to tackle old problems” (MISC)

“The gold age will re-invent the stone age” (CAPITALISM)

“One of humanities greatest diseases are its medicines of immunization” (HUMANITY)

“Everyone spices up their own personality with the scent of someone else’s pain” (HUMAN NATURE)

“If people accuse you of being “too deep” you’re probably threatening their very foundations” (PSYCHOLOGY)

“A career in the pursuit of wisdom is poorly paid but well rewarded” (MISC)

“I’d rather die a martyr than a pilgrim” (MISC)

“Charisma is the finest and most priceless perfume” (PSYCHOLOGY)

“The only thing worth killing?...Old habits that die hard” (MISC)

“Do good rather than do well” (WISDOM)

“The only art form worthy of derision is the “art” of being a good liar” (MISC)

“Integrity suffers deeply every time the buck is passed” (CAPITALISM)

“The finest principle I ever held was my guitar” (SELF)

“Wisdom is always the sickest, weakest and most vulnerable child” (MISC)

“It is my blessing, and my curse, that my prime directive is to gather knowledge” (SELF/DEPRESSION)

“The most well travelled path has the most pot-holes” (INDIVIDUALITY)

“To discover self-belief one must first ambush arrogance” (WISDOM)

“One is either a character or a statistic” (INDIVIDUALITY)

“Those that would deny you the existence of dragons consistently re-invent dinosaurs” (US AND THEM)

“My only crime?...Wrong place…Wrong time” (SELF/DEPRESSION)

“No perfume can ever mask the stench of conscience” (HUMAN NATURE)

“Never be an actor…Be a player” (HUMAN NATURE)

“Greed and spite are the bastard children of wit and wisdom” (MISC)

“Many things are buried as scrap and later dug up as treasures” (WISDOM)

“Old McDonald bought a farm and sold well fattened pigs” (GREED/CAPITALISM)

“Many were called
Few were chosen
The rest squabbled over line 2” (MISC/HUMOUR)

“Anyone who needs someone else to write their speeches ain’t worth listening too” (POLITICS)

“Money brings prosperity when respected but devastation when worshipped” (GREED)

“Meltdown is the inevitable destiny of the plastic people” (US AND THEM)

“Beware settling down may leave you thick with dust” (MARRIAGE/RELATIONSHIPS)

“Is war worthy of “cannonisation” purely for sheer volume of victims?” (WAR/RELIGION)

“I only write because I’m terrified of death” (SELF/DEPRESSION)

“Life is shit but fossilized turds are history” (HUMOUR)

“Only true poets would never insure the underwriters” (WISDOM/WORDPLAY)

“Thought is like a mine…The deeper one drills the more dangerous yet rewarding it gets” (PSYCHOLOGY)

“I learned to walk away from those who preferred to crawl” (SELF)

“The fool dismisses his fears…The wise man addresses them” (WISDOM)

“Do people who cross themselves ever come across themselves?” (RELIGION/HUMOUR)

“Things that come thick and fast are usually bullets” (WISDOM)

“How Satan chuckled when humanity invented gunpowder” (WAR/RELIGION)

“They perfected social mannerisms to ease the polite into death” (HUMAN NATURE)

“Those refused entry to Heaven are the ones who assumed they had been granted the divine right to entry” (RELIGION)

“Idle gossip is one of the most effective assassins” (MISC)

“The fool enters politics…The wise man infiltrates” (POLITICS/WISDOM)

“Beware the twist in your knickers may strangle your attraction” (WOMEN)

“Churches and mosques have the same atmosphere as the dentists waiting room” (FEAR)

“Dysfunctional governments beget dysfunctional families” (POLITICS)

“I only cry for those immune to tears” (SELF/HUMANITY)

“Never trust those who would applaud while looking bemused” (WISDOM)

“Imitation begets mediocrity” (INDIVIDUALITY)

“Prehistoric beasts are alive and well and seeking your vote!” (THE CONSERVATIVE PARTY/HUMOUR)

“Cocks crow…Pricks merely posture” (MEN)

“If you don’t question everything be prepared to fall for anything” (WISDOM)

“Show me a child strong enough to deny indoctrination and I’ll forecast you a giant” (MISC)

“Never fall for the one who would have you teeter on the edge of brinkmanship” (WISDOM)

“My greatest curse was that I was a deeply disturbed young man. My greatest blessing is that I’m exactly the same at twice the age!” (SELF)

“Beware your God may arrive unannounced” (RELIGION)

“My favourite book in the bible was Numbers. It gave me an insight into the mathematics of the probability of impossibility” (RELIGION)

“The art of disappearance is essential in the greater art of self re-invention” (SELF)

“The twins of birth and death demanded that I write inbetween the lines of my time” (SELF/LIFE/DEATH)

“There used to be a sucker born every minute but mass-production has greatly improved this figure” (MISC)

“Most great men are destroyed by poor men rich in jealousy” (HUMAN NATURE)

“How much longer must I watch my species scale the heights of the sublime and trawl the depths of depravity?” (HUMANITY)

“Every word I ever write is dedicated to all who gave their lives for my right to write it” (WAR/WW2/HUMILITY)

“Beware the Dutchman who bears balloons, pins and wooden footwear…For he may pop ones clogs” (UNKNOWN)

“I only drink a lot of water so I can cry properly” (SELF)

“Hymns are medicine that sustain the ill in anticipation of a miracle cure” (RELIGION)

”If my old man had said “don’t follow the band” then the Somme may never have been so richly irrigated” (WW1)

“Can’t they dissolve parliament permanently…In acid like Haig did with his victims?”
(POLITICS/BLACK HUMOUR)

“The pursuit of truth is the only thing worth standing for and the alter of wisdom the only one worth kneeling before” (PROFOUND)

“I’d eat any variety of rice apart from Condoleezza” (POLITICS/HUMOUR)

“The mouse on the wheel is Nature’s closest imitation of humanity” (HUMANITY)

“They used to be alchemists…Now they are all chemists” (HUMOUR/WORDPLAY)

“The Devil plays his finest tunes on the instruments of vanity and ignorance” (RELIGION)

“Those who accept what has gone before without question must prepare for the inevitable wrath, vengeance and tragedy of the breakdown of the merry-go-round” (HUMANITY)

“ Those that are deemed worthy of damnation in their day invariably attract worship much later on” (HUMANITY)

“Criminals used to be held in stocks…Nowadays they invest their assets in them” (CRIME/HUMOUR)

“Beware that what you would perceive as your strengths may be perceived by others as your weaknesses” (WISDOM)

“If you ain’t prepared to address your own past beware you distress another’s future” (WISDOM)

“If God truly works in mysterious ways then I must concede…It's female” (WOMEN)

“To truly live one must gaze into the most of honest of eyes…The reflection of oblivion” (DEATH)

“And when It’s time..We’ll crawl out of the caves and the woodwork..To inherit your Earth..” (US AND THEM)

“Such empty pages..Multi-messed-up mutant mages” (TABLOIDS)

“The true “food for thought” is the least easiest digested” (WISDOM)


(c) ALL James Alan Gourley 2008

(Disclaimer - I am fairly certain that many people have had similar thoughts put into writing throughout literature. I have not knowingly used anyone else's words in these quotations and am happy to remove any that may be seen as the published or quoted work of someone else.)

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Abum Lyrics (A Place In The Sun)

7/21/2008 at 12:56 PM

Sign on the line for the life of your time
You don't have to say what you see
You can scar with a word, an obsession absurd
Carved too deep a shadow in me
Face to the wall with the thrill of it all
I may as well scream at the sky
Left with no voice or alternative choice
I may as well learn how to fly

So you turn on your TV
And learn what you should be
And if you do this
You'll be all that you could be
Through anoraks eyes
You see cellulite thighs
So send us an cheque
And we'll sure exorcize

And I'm sure there's a place in the sun for people like you
Yes I'm sure there's a place in the sun for people like you

Come meet the demands of the heart on your hands
Please try to grin as you bear
Must carry the can for the child and the man
Weighed down with the burden of care
Up to my eyes in the shit and surprise
I may as well turn on the fan
Dragged down to the wire with the depth and desire
I don't know if I could - If I can

You can pool your long faces
Your airs and disgraces
Paste plasterboard smiles
In the dark empty spaces
- Fuel up the fires
Of your darkest desires
While hypocracy hangs
From your steeples and spires

And I'm sure there's a place in the sun for people like you
Yes I'm sure there's a place in the sun for people like you

And I go to the clinic
A terminal cynic
They pass me some pills for the fine art of mimic
I rake through the bins
For my soul and my sins
Far too few tonics
And too many djinns

But I hope there's a place in the stars for people like me
Yes I hope there's a place in the stars for people like me
Oh there must be a place in the stars for people like me
Shall I pray there's a place in the stars for people like me?


(c) James Alan Gourley 2008

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Album Lyrics (Shame)

7/21/2008 at 12:55 PM

January came
- The smile of a child through the rain
Little boy blue how'd you do?
Come play with the pain
I'll be a good friend
I'll stay to the end of the game
So lend me your ear
And I'll whisper my name
Shame

Company crawled from a mile
Then left me alone
Destiny called for a while
Then put down the phone
Each cute Miss-conception
Passed on the infection of blame
Aborted affection through lethal injection of
Shame

Shadows concealed and congealed
- Crept up unawares
I picked up a plan from the man
Who lives under the stairs
Son you must write
As a child of the night stake your claim
For youth unfulfilled,
Shelved, silenced and killed through the
Shame

I love how you stand in your bands
- Your backs to the wall
Lords of mistruth and mistrust
False gods of fuck all
Christ how I've cried
For the millions that died in Your name
Who'll pick up the pieces
You sad little species of
Shame?


(c) James Alan Gourley 2008

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Album Lyrics (Legacy)

7/21/2008 at 12:54 PM

What better way
To say “Goodbye”
What softer shroud
In which to lie
What lasting testament
To will
My legacy
That time can't kill

More faithful friends
No man could know
Than wind and rain
And ice and snow
What finer things
Than silk and gold
My legacy
That can't be sold

And who knows what
The future brings
It only whispers
- Never sings
Come rest your head
Come lay your wreath
My legacy
Can rest in peace


(c) James Alan Gourley 2008

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Album Lyrics (The Toll Of The Bell?)

7/21/2008 at 12:53 PM

So you heard the voice of Jesus
Tucked 'tween the lines of greed
The Noble Lie doth satisfy
And give you all you want
- But never need

So you strolled off to the churches
Then you marched off down the mall
You worshipped God and mammon
Camels, needles' eyes
- You must recall

And you think you're going to Heaven
The big black dogma bit your brain
So who's the true believer
And who's the damned insane?

You hide behind your whitewashed fences
You barbie hard on well mowed lawns
Money laundered, squandered whores
Of more and more and more and mores
While the Uber - Cut and yawn

And you think you're going to Heaven
The big black dogma bit your brain
So who's the true believer
And who's the damned insane?

Yet you think you're going to Heaven
The big black dogma bit your brain
So who's the true believer
Who's the damned?
Who's the damned?
Who's the damned insane?


(c) James Alan Gourley 2008

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Album Lyrics (Embers)

7/21/2008 at 12:52 PM

Well she says I don’t smile too often
And my eyes seem far away
And I don’t dance like I used to
And I didn’t phone today
And we don’t go out as much now
And we haven’t much to say
The hours drag on forever
- They used to slip away

Could we ever re-discover the feeling
If we still had the notion to try ?
We touch briefly and we call it forever
We drift and we never know why
All the time that you can’t understand it
As you cry in your search for a cause
You know that you’ll never define it -
It’ll never be the way that it was

I need a little more time - to find the things need
Just a little more time - to find the things I need
I need a little more time - to find the things need
Just a little more time - to find the things I need

But she says I don’t smile too often
And my eyes seem far away
And I don’t dance like I used to
And I didn’t phone today
And we don’t go out as much now
And we haven’t much to say
The hours drag on forever
- They used to slip away

I need a little more time - to find the things need
Just a little more time - to find the things I need
I need a little more time - to find the things need
Just a little more time - to find the things I need


(c) James Alan Gourley 2008

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Album Lyrics (Scene Of The Crime)

7/21/2008 at 12:42 PM

Well I'd just like to say I was there
At the scene of the crime
Please trust my disgust and despair
At the blood of our time
And I know you must judge us but please
- Oh please you must understand
We were led by the Neverbeen people
To a Neverworld land

- Rattled every third bead on the rosary
How we wailed at the wall
Cut down with our Crescent and Crucifix
Answered every false call
We had sad superstitions and ignorance
We had gods of kinds
Maimed and mindfucked all those with the vision
As we pulled down the blinds

We had Emperors, Kings, Mullahs, Ministers
Each one all bled the same
Never stopped to say pause this insanity
That we kill in Your name
We had tyrants and Popes, we had Presidents
We had martyrs and fools
And we sharpened the stakes of our suicides
- Fell impaled on our rules


(c) James Alan Gourley 2008

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Album Lyrics (Map To The Morning)

7/21/2008 at 12:40 PM

Won't you come with me
Through sapphire skies and diamond eyes
To “Tranquility”
Where the mermaids play
At the side of the bay
What do you think you'll find
If you trade in an eye to be king
In the land of the blind?
I want to see
Atlantis serene
In aquamarine

Open your eyes
And I'll make out
A map to the morning
Open your mind
And I'll build
A bridge to the sky
Open your eyes
And I'll make out
A map to the morning
In a land where the unicorn run
And the phoenix still flies to the sun
Somewhere to dance
Beneath a snowdrift of stars

Tell me where would you rather be
Just stuck in the smoke
Or seduced by the sound of the sea
I want to feel
That whats here is the dream
And whats there isn't real
So which is the priceless find
The large nugget of gold
Or a small piece of mind?
I want to to try
To recall how to laugh
And forget how to cry

Open your eyes
And I'll make out
A map to the morning
Open your mind
And I'll build
A bridge to the sky
Open your eyes
And I'll make out
A map to the morning
I'm sure we could slip away soon
So I'll meet you out under the moon
We can slip off our shoes
Sign our souls in the sand

Open your eyes
And I'll make out
A map to the morning
Open your mind
And I'll build
A bridge to the sky
Open your eyes
And I'll make out
A map to the morning
In that land where the unicorn run
- The phoenix still flies to the sun
Somewhere to dance
Beneath a snowdrift of stars

Open your eyes
And I'll make out
That map to the morning
Open your mind
And I'll build
A bridge to the sky
Open your eyes
And I'll make out
A map to the morning
I'm so sure we could slip away soon
So I'll meet you out under the moon
We can slip off our shoes
Sign our souls in the sand


(c) James Alan Gourley 2008

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