Echo Dancing, by Alejandro Escovedo (2024)

1.

I wanna know why you talk so loudWhy you seem so proudLike you won the crowdI wanna know why you walk like thatJust to crawl right backJust to crawl right backI wanna know why you suck so hardLike a vampire bratOn a drunken rantI wanna know why you try so hardJust to fall so farJust to fall so farIf I stop the world from spinning aroundThen I never see you coming aroundAnd if I stop the world from spinning aroundDon’t you call my nameDon’t you call my nameIf you call my nameDon’t you call my nameIf you call my nameI will change my nameIf you call my nameDon’t you call my nameWhat do you see when you look back at youWho will follow youIf you spread more gloomIf I made me and you made youWhat I made is trueCan’t say that for youI wanna know why you talk so loudWhy you seem so proudLike you won the crowdI wanna know why you walk like thatJust to crawl right backJust to crawl right backIf I stop the world from spinning aroundThen I never see you coming aroundAnd if I stop the world from spinning aroundDon’t you call my nameDon’t you call my nameDon’t you call my nameOr I’ll change my nameDon’t you call my nameIf you call my nameDon’t you call my nameI will change my name

2.

The moon is brighter than the sunMy shadow is long as night and it follows meAs I drive your wayThe tree hangs from the branchesThe moon hangs from the skyWater lies flat in the gutterWhile a rose climbs up the staircaseAnd falls upon the landingAnd falls upon the landingAnd as I wonder where you areI'm so lonesome, yeah, I could crySometimes I come home at night, I'm glad that you are sleepingSo I don't have to pretend that you are thinking of meOr something like that, in the middle of the nightShe really is breathtaking as she lies there softly sleepingUndisturbed, and I wish my breath, my voice, my touchCould awaken herYeah, awaken her againI'm under a spell, her nameYeah, I spell her nameI'm under a spell, her nameYeah, I spell her nameThere really is no reason for the way that I am feelingIt could've been the weatherOr something less than thatI need to shed this old skin for something that's much lighterMaybe different colorsMaybe not so tightMaybe not so tightI'm under a spell, her nameYeah, I spell her nameI'm under a spell, her nameYeah, I spell her nameIt singes and it burns like a delicate veilThe pressure of her kissFeels like it's all over nowI never could jump from high enoughI never could jump from high enoughThird story jump ain't high enoughIt's just a mess on Market StreetI'm under a spell, her nameYeah, I spell her nameI'm under a spell, her nameYeah, I spell her namePalo Alto Hotel at Sacramento and PolkThe neighbors spend their days washing their socksAnd staring out the window in a Thorazine hazeThey don't know what to do with their handsThey vaguely remember some plansBut that was so longThat was so long agoI'm under a spell, her nameYeah, I spell her nameI'm under a spell, her nameYeah, I spell her name

3.

If I should die ‘fore I turn 43Bury me beneath the justice treeBury me with the lies I toldBury me with a rusted swordIf I should die ‘fore I turn 46Lay me next to old Saint ChrisDress me in my suit of blueAnd my favorite picture of youIf I should die ‘fore I turn 49Bury me with my last silver dimeYou might get a long distance callMight tell a lie, might tell it allIf I should die ‘fore I turn 51Bury me with a loaded gunSo I might lose my miseryPlease erase my memoryIf I should not make my way up thereIf I should find myself somewhereWhere it's always cold inside

4.

Well, I walk, I crawl, but I never runSometimes I fall away like the setting sunWell, I swim, I surf, but I never drownEverybody says they love me but I don't know whyYeah, I don’t know whyI don’t know whyWell, I watch you walk like a rhythm trainI love the way you kiss, I just can't stand the painWell, I believe in truth, but sometimes I’ve liedEverybody says they love me but I don't know whyWhoa, I don't know whyYeah, I don't know whyWell, I walk, I crawl, but I never runSometimes I fall away like the sunI believe, I believe in truth, sometimes I’ve liedEverybody says they love me but I don't know whyI don't, I don’t, I don’t know whyDon't know whyI don’t know whyDon’t know whyNo, I don’t know why

5.

Well, the sun comes upJust like a lollipopThen the sun goes downLike a golden crownI need your hungry kissIt's all I missI need your hungry touchJust a little too muchThere's too many tearsThere’s too many tearsThere’s too many tearsFor a night like thisI don't need your attentionBut I'll take itYou're like a habitI don't want to break itPut on some red lipstickJust don't fake itLet's light up the cakeYeah, let's light up the cakeThere's too many tearsYeah, too many tearsOh, too many tearsFor a night like thisBlinded by the camera flashWe dance on broken glassThe band plays out of tuneBut the rhythm is trueSo let the band keep playingKeep the dancer swayingBreak out another flaskOur love will always lastThere's too many tearsThere’s too many tearsToo many tearsFor a night like thisFor a night like thisFor a night like thisFor a night like thisFor a night like this

6.

Yeah, she plays castanets, without a netToca castañuelasHey, hey, hey, heyToca castañuelasMove, move like a rhythm trainToca castañuelasLove the way, way she dancesMoves, moves like a rhythm trainToca castañuelasLove the way, love the way she walks awayToca castañuelasLove the sun, love the sun silhouettesLove her hair, love her hair in a tangled messToca castañuelasTurns me on like a pickup truckToca castañuelasTurns me on, turns me on and I can’t get upToca castañuelasI love the sun, love the sun shining through that pretty dressLove her hair, love her hair in a tangled messToca castañuelasToca castañuelasToca castañuelasOh yeah, oh yeahOh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, ohToca castañuelasPlays castanets, works without a netToca castañuelasLove the way she walks awayI love the sun, it silhouettesToca castañuelasHair, hair in a tangled messToca castañuelas

7.

Outside your doorA strange thing happenedAn angel fell to the floorTo see what she could seeIt’s the same old songThat I just keep singingI know I got it wrongWhat it used to beAnd I know that you are sleepingAnd I know we’re always oneInside the night, somewhere you’re sleepingAll by yourselfSomething I saidYou’re the only one leftI awoke alone in bedA dream wrapped in memoryThere’s a record spinningSmokey sings to meAs I dance aloneWrapped in reverieAnd I know that you are sleepingI know we are always oneThose jewels that you are keepingI’ll place them in your crownOutside your doorA strange thing happenedAn angel fell to the floorTo see what she could seeIt’s the same old songThat we just keep singingI know I got it wrongWhat it used to beWhat it used to beWhat it used to be

8.

Sensitive boysIn sensitive clothesSensitive wordsWrapped up in sensitive poemsBig dreamy eyesLong French sleevesShivering in the cold lightOf this New York City heatSensitive boysHere they comeNothing's ever what it seemsToo much just ain't enoughYeah, we wore it like an open woundWe always felt too muchFaded postersPeeling off the wallsSensitive boys want all your loveOr they want no love at allSensitive boysDon't let ‘em get you downSensitive boysTurn your amps up loudYeah, go ahead and run us offMake your baby proudThe road to nowhereThey'll rub it back in your faceBut I'm still out here somewhereAnd no one can take your placeSensitive boysThe world needs you nowSensitive boysI need you more than ever nowSensitive boysI need you more than ever now

9.

Thought I’d let you knowParty’s overThere’s no more furniture to breakGlasses left to smashChildren stare into the windowThey all have pretty hairAnd pretty voicesAnd sing like their mothersWe’re not aloneWe are all aloneWe’re not aloneWe are all aloneNow the leaves fall downLeaves are always falling downThese bones are brittle bonesThese bones are noisyWe’re not aloneWe are all aloneWe’re not aloneWe are all aloneWe’re not aloneWe are all aloneJust thought I’d let you knowParty’s overThere’s no more furniture to breakGlasses left to smashChildren stare into the windowThey all have pretty hairAnd pretty voicesAnd sing like their mothersWe’re not aloneWe are all aloneWe’re not aloneWe are all alone

10.

Gonna crawl upon the shoreRoll in the mud and the clayLike the swallows of San JuanGonna get back somedayA thousand steps to the waterA thousand steps you must takeThere's a thousand worlds on the head of a pinA thousand rules to breakNext time you see meI'm gonna smile for the cameraLike some wild man from PompeiTake my word, go down to the seaIt's breaking bigger than anything, anything I’ve ever seenI'm gonna crawl upon the shoreRoll in the mud and the clayLike the swallows of San JuanI'm gonna get back somedayHad a blonde TV specialAnd an English halfstackI lost ‘em both in a dealBut someday, someday I'll get ‘em backNext time you see meI'm gonna smile for the cameraLike some wild man from PompeiTake my word, go down to the seaIt's breaking bigger than anything, anything we’ve ever seenI'm gonna crawl upon the shoreRoll in the mud and the clayLike the swallows of San JuanI'm gonna get back somedayGonna get back somedayGet back somedayI’m gonna get backGet back someday

11.

The last to knowParty's over and we won't goNo one to laugh at our jokes anymoreThere's the door, don't forget your hatThe stores are all closedCouldn't buy a break anywaySaint Jude, he couldn't save you or me, I supposeMore miles than moneyLook at our lives and it's so funnyMore miles than moneyWe fall in love and it's never funnyWe're the lastThe very last to knowThe last to knowWe play the jokers in this minstrel show‘Cause no one cares in this showbiz crowd anymoreGot another cigaretteI'm not quite through with this story yetThere’s nothing here that we should fear, I supposeMore miles than moneyLook at our lives and it's so funnyMore miles than moneyWe fall in love and it's never funnyWe're the lastThe very last to knowMore miles than moneyLook at our lives and it's so funnyMore miles than moneyWe fall in love and it's never funnyWe're the lastThe very last to knowFrom the cradle to the graveAll the memories never savedThere’s nothing here that we should fear, so I'm toldAs the night slips awayAnd we stumble towards another dayThere's nothing more that we can say, I supposeMore miles than moneyLook at our lives and it's so funnyMore miles than moneyWe fall in love and it's never funnyWe're the lastVery last to knowYes, we’re the lastVery last to knowYes, we’re the lastJust the lastThe last to know

12.

Hip hop, I wanna make your love dropNothing on the radio makes me wanna breakdownTurn it up, turn it upWanna watch the cones danceYou’re looking so goodWanna make your love quakeI’m feeling overloadedFeeling overloadedMy Italian shoesGonna take the bandstandMy feedback rageGonna make my last standTake my hand, take my handI wanna love youIn my snakeskin pantsWe’re gonna dance the last danceI’m feeling overloadedI’m feeling overloadedUp against the wallThey used the kerchief that you gave meOne long kissMary Jane gave me a last smokeNo one smiledNo one crossed their fingersI’m not a guilty manI just made some mistakesI’m feeling overloadedI’m feeling overloaded

13.

This moment will last foreverAnd nothing is everythingInside this danceInside this danceYour whispers and echo dancingAgainst the emptiness of everythingInside your glanceInside your glanceForever dance with me, my loveForever dance with me, my loveThe stars will shine foreverThe sun will come to passWe'll have this danceWe'll have this danceYour eyes forever lingerOur kiss will never fadeInside this danceInside this danceForever dance with me, my loveForever dance with me, my loveThis moment can last foreverAnd nothing is everythingInside this danceInside this danceYour whispers and echo dancingAgainst the emptiness of everythingInside your glanceInside your glanceForever dance with me, my loveForever dance with me, my love

14.

Wave goodbyeEverybody waves goodbyeClimb aboard the trainTurn and wave goodbye againSome go north, some go southMaybe east, some left outSome are rich, some are poorBut everybody's got to waveWave goodbyeThey’ve headed for the other sideThe sun shines brighter thereAnd everyone's got golden hairThey went north, they went southMaybe east, some left outSome are rich, some are poorBut everybody's got to waveMy cousin saidWe're gonna find the ones that leftA boy climbs aboard the trainNever to wave bye againHe went north, he went southMaybe east, some left outSome are rich, some are poorBut everybody's got to waveDon't you cryI made it to the other sideThe sun’s not brighter hereIt only shines on golden hairI went north, southMaybe east, some left outSome are rich, poorBut everybody's got to wave

Alejandro Escovedo's New Album ECHO DANCING is an Adventure in Life

No one has really ever been able to define themselves and their music like singer-songwriter Alejandro Escovedo does. His life in music of all kinds sometimes feels like a swirl through the sky, where his songs point out all the majesty and mystery of how he sees the world. The sounds he makes take him places that he might not even predict, but once there, greatness always follows. It's just the way Escovedo is. It has happened over and over for decades, almost like a fateful agreement he has with the cosmos. There is a good chance it cannot be explained, especially by him.

Maybe that's because this is a musician who feels magic, both in himself and the world around him, and is open to the experience of whatever comes his way. It is not always easy, and can have a high demand on how a person lives. But it is the way that Escovedo is always moving forward.

On this new album, Alejandro Escovedo has taken a road rarely traveled, which is totally in keeping with how he has lived his life in music. Echo Dancing is an experiment in how to use the past to shape the future. By recording completely new and repurposed versions of songs from his past, Escovedo actually gets a chance to rewrite his own history. It's also an idea that pushes growth into the present, and asks an artist to see themselves anew. "I always feel that a well-written song can withstand a lot of abuse," Escovedo says. It is an area of creativity that the man has always honored. "Turning a past song inside out leads to discovery of new ideas you might not have understood about the song," he says. "Even lyrical refurbishing has proven helpful and effective. It's like interpreting your own work anew. The songs never seem to be complete. They are always evolving."

And with those words, Alejandro Escovedo succinctly explains the new levels of artistic exploration he's undertaken on his new album. It's a unique adventure into recording new versions of songs from his past, and approaching them as challenges to totally express what the music means to him today. Songs like "Bury Me" and "Castañuelas," while they were powerful in their original form several years ago, now announce themselves as highlights of Escovedo's long career. They speak to an eternal world that lives inside so much of his music, like it was formed in a way that cannot age. There is something very permanent in the career of the Texas-born artist, an inner flame that is always there. It feels like it is a part of musical history that is rarely captured at such peak performance, let alone reappears with a new life. If the life of an artist is always to push ahead, to leave what was done alone in favor of contemporary creations, then Escovedo's basic concept of Echo Dancing is a revolutionary concept of high beliefs. That the past can live again as a reborn entity.

"I was planning this record just prior to boarding a plane to Italy to record with Don Antonio and Nicola Peruch," Escovedo says. "My original idea was to record an album of new material. But then I changed my mind and thought that revisiting songs from my various past albums throughout my career would be more interesting. I have a great faith in these two artists to always create something interesting with whatever I might bring to the session. These songs were already dressed for the dance."

Everything on Echo Dancing has a feeling of absolute freshness about it, and at the same time, there is a strong link to the past. It's almost like reincarnation in the recording studio, but everything seems brand new. All the musicians are dedicated to finding the new amongst the songs' prior history. It is not something that happens often, and it surely has never occurred quite like it does on this fascinating new collection.

Alejandro Escovedo knew that an experience like the one he was embarking on needed all the freshness he could find, and off he went to Italy. Sometimes there are now choices in how to approach a new vision. It simply has to be started with total dedication. "I find that recording in a foreign country opens the creative eye in a way that working at home lacks," he says. And the way the experiment works was proof that today's approach to these songs has a rock-solid beauty to it. A new sonic world has opened. "Surprises were a daily occurrence," the musician says, "and we embraced them with exuberance. Is it the beginning or the end? I feel there have always been certain songs on my albums that have guided me to new approaches in my music. That is really the goal of recording. To keep moving forward no matter what it takes. That's why I continue to work on new ways to tell these stories."

Truer words were never spoken than Alejandro Escovedo's love for exploration in the music he writes and plays. The son of a Mexican immigrant and a Texas native, the sounds that Escovedo first discovered and then performed morphed into all kinds of exciting styles of his life. A member of the first-wave punk rock group The Nuns in San Francisco, he moved to New York and joined the Judy Nylon band and experienced the total electricity of the late 1970s there. Moving then to Austin was a radical shift of geography and musical style when Escovedo helped form one of the country's first so-called Cowpunk adventurers. It often seems like the man has been on a pirate-like adventure through the kinds of music he is drawn to. Those sounds are usually new and often have a strong edge of the avant-garde in them.

Deeply embedded in the burgeoning Austin scene in the 1980s, Escovedo was a prime architect in the new band True Believers, which included his brother Javier and Jon Dee Graham. In many ways the band helped build the gateway to the whole burgeoning Americana music scene which prospers to this day, but it was also the turning point for Alejandro Escovedo to take his life in his control and record solo albums. In the thirty-plus years since that decision has come a wild roller-coaster ride of groups, spinoffs, tribute albums and even original dramatic projects and experiments. In 1998, No Depression Magazine named him Artist of the Decade. For this musician, though, that was just the start of a life that twists and turns wherever Escovedo's clearly uninhibited imagination takes him.

The 21st century has been a time of widely successful excursions that only a few American musicians are able to create. Between adventurous solo albums, continuing collaborations with other musicians, and an ever-growing sense of boundary-breaking, Alejandro Escovedo has created his own definition of what a modern rock artist can accomplish. Which is exactly why Echo Dancing comes at the perfect time for this man. While it does seem Escovedo has his own category of accomplishments, to now bring together these songs he has previously recorded and inject such exciting new and different life into them is a complete exoneration of his belief in the future.

"I said goodbye to certain phases of my life as I have grown," the musician says. "I greeted new acquaintances musically. And I was extremely surprised by the outcome. That is the thrill of being alive. I feel we have now made a beautiful collection of songs recorded in an effortless vibe of collaboration and camaraderie. I can't give Nicola and Antonio enough credit and thanks for their musicianship and wide-open approach to making this album. And I should also mention Ivano Giovedi, who incredibly engineered the recordings. He did an amazing job."

"Everyone involved has guided me to new approaches to my music, like other musicians have my whole life. I have always worked hard to discover new ways to tell the story. I've never hidden my love for Brian Eno, Roxy Music, Judy Nylon, Cluster, along with the Stooges, New York Dolls, MC5, Roky Erickson, Lightnin' Hopkins, Joe Ely, Terry Allen; you get the picture. There is always more work to be done and joy to be made. I am nowhere near finished."

Echo Dancing makes sure Alejandro Escovedo's evolving circle remains unbroken.

released March 29, 2024

2024 Yep Roc, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

All songs written by Alejandro Escovedo

Arranged and Produced by Alejandro Escovedo, Don Antonio and Nicola Peruch
Engineered by Ivano Giovedi
Studio assistant: Francesco Cinque
Mixed by Ivano Giovedi at Waveroof Studio
Mastered by Brent Lambert at The Kitchen Mastering

Alejandro Escovedo: voice, guitars
Don Antonio: guitars, bass, bass VI, organ, mellotron, electronics
Nicola Peruch: piano, hammond, farfisa, wurlitzer, programming, modular synths

Sergio Marazzi: backing vocals on “Wave”
Nancy Rankin Escovedo: backing vocals on “Castañuelas”
Gianni Perinelli: soprano saxophone on “MC Overload”

Art Director + Photography: Nancy Rankin Escovedo
Layout: Nathan Golub