In Full Flight - New Album
When I think about writing a song, I think what a wonderful Gift. I could go out and take 20 minutes to an hour and buy a cool present for someone or I could sit down for hours upon hours pondering and reflecting over how special that person is and why, and then spend more hours trying to compliment those qualities perfectly in song.
This CD is my Gift to the International Softball Community.
Track Listing
1. Stand and Deliver
The Japanese Softball team finished 4th at the 1996 Athens Olympics and 12 years later they won a Gold Medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. My favourite pitcher to watch is the Japanese Ace, Yukiko Ueno. At first this song was about her. Then I reflected on a dinner I shared with her coaches in May 2008, Taeko Utsugi and Reika Utsugi, where I had a rare opportunity to discuss Japanese Softball and Culture. I wanted to capture their Olympic journey with this song.
I am the Spirit Bird and you’re so strong and young
It’s time for me to fly away against your rising sun
You are a warrior, the first the World has seen
You smile and then you fire, a brilliant energy
You showed the World that you can Stand and Deliver
You learned the Secret of all the Great Rivers
To start as a drop on the mountain top
And slowly you gain speed and you say
"Fate, follow me!"
I do remember when we all gathered for dinner
Red Wine and wisdom flowed, a buzz filled the room
We spoke of great things and locked them up with laughter
But you found the key and Gold is yours forever after
You show the World that you can Stand and Deliver
You learned the Secret of all the Great Rivers
To start as a drop on the mountain top
And slowly you gain speed and you say
"Fate, follow me!"
Hour after hour, day after day
Oh the repetition, my head is spinning
Suddenly, everything finds its place
And you see that luck isn’t something that happens…
It’s something you can create
You showed the World that you can Stand and Deliver
You learned the secret of all the Great Rivers
To start as a drop on the mountain top
And slowly you gain speed and you say
"Fate, follow me!"
2. The Day You Said Goodbye
This song is a tribute to the career of Michele Smith, 2 time USA Olympic Gold Medal Pitcher; Japan Professional League, 1993-2008.
The day I heard you were leaving, I could not believe it
It was something that had to be seen to be real
Here I find myself, along with everybody else
Just making measure of your mark on time
But the way I see it and this is just my feeling
To be that good, for that long
You knew how to keep everything strong
Take a bow, take anything you want
You are the Master of making a moment memorable
And I thought I saw a tear in the Kyoto sky
On The Day You Said Goodbye
As my fortune did fall, my feet followed you
Around the world, a hero full view
And if anybody asks, the best that I learned
You’re only as good as the last
And if you did not see it, the lady knows how to leave it
She glows like the moon and shines like the sun
This is the light that keeps the things she loves strong
Take a bow, take anything you want
You are the Master of making a moment memorable
And I thought I saw a tear in the Kyoto sky
On The Day You Said Goodbye
No hit, no run, a Perfect Game
You know you have thrown some
No hit, no run, a Perfect Game
You know you have thrown some
And the end is here, now the legend begins
Take a bow, take anything you want
You are the Master of making a moment memorable
And I know there were tears in my eyes
On The Day You Said Goodbye
Goodbye
3. Aussie Spirit
My beautiful mother passed away in March 2003. More than ever, I had a deep sense of who I was and where I came from. This song is dedicated to my mother, Judy Flynn, and written for the 2004 Australian Olympic Softball Team who won a silver medal.
May your heart be enormous with your family and mates,
Talk to a stranger and smile along the way, just like Jude
So you ask me what it means to represent Australia
I think long and hard, a quick answer could fail you
I listen to the flow of blood through my veins
It’s a rumbling sound of a spirited wave
And our people have toiled through some bloody tough times
Built a nation on hard love, persistence and drive
I give you my answer, it’s privilege, it’s a chance
To step out and compete and let this Aussie Spirit dance
We all go into battle throughout the course of our lives
There is nothing more powerful than a true friend by your side
The knowing they are there for you, the feeling they would die for you
And that no amount of money on this earth could ever buy it for you
Our people have toiled through some bloody tough times
Built a nation on hard love, persistence and drive
So I give you my answer, it’s privilege, it’s a chance
To step out and compete and let this Aussie Spirit dance
When the moment arrives and it moves you to tears
And you suddenly realise that’s just why you’re here
And in difficult times promise me you’ll have faith
That the character you’re made of will never break
May your heart be enormous with your family and your mates,
Talk to a stranger and smile along the way, just like Jude
Find it in yourself to be strong, to be true
Find it in yourself to be, just like Jude
4. Happy Times
A song about friendship, a road trip between Sydney and Brisbane and everything that comes with flying happy and free.
Hey Porter, what you doin’
I’m passing through your town are you up for cruising?
In my car, we’ll drive
Cool chicks humming up Highway 15
Windows down, we were windmill spotting
I was looking so hard I could feel my eyes popping
Sweaty palms, I dig the competition
But your winning smile isn’t something I’m missing
Oh Happy Times
Miles of smiles and great party nights
Oh these Happy Times
Are the memories for the rest of our lives
Tolly tuned in and cranked us up a gear
We had laughter in the front seat, cold beers in the rear
My favourite time was the bet we made
To buzz all night and never fade
But Tol kicked it in early that night
Disappearing to bed in true ‘Canetoad’ style
I believe I was the last ‘Blueblood’ standing
Who cares if you laugh at my dancing!
Oh Happy Times
Miles of smiles and great party nights
Oh these Happy Times
Are the memories for the rest of our lives
Perhaps at times, not all went smoothly
And words were exchanged with cold-hearted cruelty
Tolly had ‘A’ (attitude), Porter was ‘J’ (jealous)
I was pumped up and ‘Pupule’ (Hawaiian for crazy)
Oh Happy Times, Happy Times
Oh these Happy Times
I thank you for the friendship and this great time in my life
5. Beautiful Butterfly
This song was inspired by a phenomenon called the butterfly effect, which is based on the notion that something small can effect bigger systems. Occasionally, we encounter special people in our lives who have this impact too.
Like slow change, we didn’t see it coming
Until the morning we woke together, our hearts two feet running
You went your way and I found mine
Only to meet in our dreams night after night
You are the best to ever enter my life, with all your pretty colours
My Beautiful Butterfly
It was nothing new watching you in full flight
It was just a different view when you landed by my side
I was a storm and you as light as a feather
With one flap of your wings you changed my weather forever
I don’t know how you do what you do
But it’s a ripple effect every time you smile, every time you move
Then I discovered one day
That I am the Collector
And I swore to the stars
I would love and protect it
For you are the best to ever enter my life, a True Soul
My Beautiful Butterfly
6. You Cannot Keep a Spirit Down
This song is dedicated to the International Softball Community. My dream is for our sport to return to the Olympic Stage.
In my lifetime, I have had room to grow
It’s not all been winning, I carry a losing load
My heart is strong but these bones are aching
And now somebody’s taking this love away from me
This love away from me
You Cannot Keep a Spirit Down
Who wants to get up and fight again
You Cannot Keep a Spirit Down
Who wants to get up and fight again
My feeling you cannot touch
Your feeling I cannot trust
What doesn’t kill us, will only make us stronger
I don’t want to learn that lesson any longer
I can’t cry, I’m past hurt
My line is in the sand
I’ve got a roar in my core and a kick ass plan
I’ve got a kick ass plan
You Cannot Keep a Spirit Down
Who wants to get up and fight again
You Cannot Keep a Spirit Down
Who wants to get up and fight again
My feeling you cannot touch
Your feeling I cannot trust
In this life, there is loss
I know the cost
I gave you 16 years
And you give me this
Luckily, I believe
In the strength and power of a journey
Thank you for firing up this feeling
You Cannot Keep a Spirit Down
Who wants to get up and fight again
You Cannot Keep a Spirit Down
Who wants to get up and fight again
My feeling you cannot touch
Your feeling I want to trust
7. Growin Old Together
This song is for Australia's first ever Olympic Softball Team in Atlanta in 1996. We won a Bronze Medal but we also won a lifetime of friendship together. Since 2000, we meet every 2 years for a reunion.
Pull up a seat next to me, we’re Growing Old Together
Why don’t you buy me a beer, we’re Growing Old Together
Who would have thought back in Atlanta 1996
That we’d be gathered here together for reunions like this
It’s time for another round, we are Growing Old Together
Get out a map, let’s put in our pins
All the way from Normal, Illinois to St Johns, Newfoundland
You’ll never let me forget, the trip from Vancouver to Connecticut
With my parties, missed planes and apologies
I know I’m lucky that you still love me
And Pepe LePew (Haylea Petrie), you’re lucky too
Who would have thought back in Atlanta 1996
That we’d be gathered here together for reunions like thisv
It’s time for another round, we are Growing Old Together
I’ve always pondered, do you get back what you give
And now I know it’s true because we were all so different
On the field we were one of the same
We played with heart and we loved the game
And all that time I only had one wish
To win Gold but I got this and I gotta say
It was a fair trade
Who would have thought back in Atlanta 1996
That we’d be gathered here together for reunions like this
It’s time for another round, we are Growing Old Together
I just want to say thank you, for your 15 beautiful kids
So when we retell our stories, we’ll always have an audience
Let’s promise each other to keep it clean
To make them laugh and never be mean
We all love a happy sing-a-long
A toe-tapping version of ‘Delta Dawn’
If there is one thing to teach
It’s our favourite song ‘Reach… Higher’
Who would have thought back in Atlanta 1996
That we’d be gathered here together for reunions like this
Hey hey it’s Joycie’s shout, we are Growing Old Together
