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The White Eagle

by Cotton

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1.
I take a shovel and put it into the ground I dig a hole until I am too far down and from the moment that it starts to the end when we must part oh to the seasons of our hearts The sound of rolling thunder echos the rain The tears in her eyes mirror my pain and from the moment that it starts to the end when we must part oh to the seasons of our hearts The leaves on the tree turn from green to brown They fall one by one onto the cold cold ground and from the moment that it starts to the end when we must part oh to the seasons of our hearts
2.
To sit alone To sing songs until I no longer feel right or wrong Until I am six feet under and my spirit has flown To die alone Only to be reborn more alive than before Like a caterpillar transformed and nothing more A star is born Out of the dust, out of the gas, out of the debris a mass is formed A light so bright that it can guide a sailor to a shore To drink alone To numb the pain, to lessen the horror that one day I will be as I once was before A silence so vast, a darkness as dark as the depths below To live alone To be nothing but the air I breathe and the words I'm about to flow No different than the sea, the trees and the breeze that blows No different than the birds, the bees and the flowers that grow
3.
Green 02:18
I like sailing on a boat I like swimming in a moat I like leering at girls like a goat I like wearing my green coat I like doing the dead man's float and I like how you float my boat (I like green) I like girls who are young and lean I like girls who are old and mean I like girls who love to make a scene I like to lay on my big soft bed I like to have a place to hang my head and I like to pretend that I am dead (I like green) I like to smoke the color green I know you know just what I mean and I like the idea of not being a machine I like the creatures that come out at night I like the ghouls that cause a fright and I like to hear the birds sing with dawn's light with dawn's light
4.
Lilium 02:59
No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back to the likes of you You were so hard to swallow You were so hard to swallow You were so hard to swallow I swear it's the truth You and your tomorrows You and your tomorrows Sweet lies you wish would come true No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back to the likes of you No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back to the likes of you I used to beg, steal and borrow I used to beg, steal and borrow I used to beg, steal and borrow just for a kiss from you Oh, how I used to wallow Oh, how I used to wallow Oh, how I used to wallow in it, it's true No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back to the likes of you No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back to the likes of you Parting was such sorrow Parting was such sorrow It was so hard to say goodbye to you There'll be no more tomorrows There'll be no more tomorrows There'll be no more tomorrows to look forward to No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back to the likes of you No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back to the likes of you No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back No I ain't never going back to the likes of you
5.
Little Bird 02:44
Fly down, fly down Little bird, come down and sing a lullaby with me Lay down, lay down Little bird, lay down and won't you bless me with your company Don't frown, don't frown Little bird, don't frown it breaks my heart to see you lost in misery The wet ground, the wet ground Little bird, the wet ground is saturated with the tears I've cried for thee So get down, get down Little bird, get down and shake your tail feathers to the beat Slow down, slow down Little bird, slow down there's no reason for you to rush to your destiny Cast out, cast out Little bird, cast out the demons that seek to destroy your peace Fly south, fly south Little bird, fly south to where the sun shines and hangs like a wreath to where the sun shines and hangs like a wreath to where the sun shines and hangs like a wreath
6.
When I get up in the mornin' I groan, I cuss and I seethe I wish I was a rich man With acres of rustling trees When I drink my coffee I take a little sugar and cream One foot in front of the other I carry my sweet misery Sometime I imagine myself on a boat with a sail and a breeze and you are there with me Sometimes I imagine the both of us facing each other on our knees and you still think fondly of me When I return in the evening I lay myself down to sleep All the wolves start a howlin' and they begin to circle around me
7.
I opened my eyes I looked up into the sky That's when I realized Oh God, one day I will die All the words That I use just to get Oh just to get by When did I turn into a lie Oh God One day I will die Oh God One day I will die All the promises That I made Just so I could lay by Oh lay by your side All the thoughts That I still crave Just so I can feel like Feel like I am alive Oh God One day I will die Oh God One day I will die Oh God One day I will die
8.
Crack Whore 02:00
I sing songs about hobos When I paint pictures I paint pictures of elbows I don't care about what you may know So please just give me some room For my toes to wiggle I take baths With the lights low I don't own a t.v. But I own a crystal When I'm high I like to whistle When I'm low I like to drink and shoot off my pistol I take the bus To get to where I go When I get to where I go I still don't know Why I got out of bed In the first place Only to find myself Standing here, in last place Now I can carry on Just like a crack whore Whose in need of a fix and has a back door Down on my knees I swallow 'til I'm sore Just to get to that place Where I don't have to feel anymore and down on my knees I swallow 'til I'm sore Just to get to that place Where I don't have to feel anymore and down on my knees I swallow 'til I'm sore Just to get to that place Where I don't have to feel anymore
9.
Knot 02:03
Maybe I am or maybe I'm not Maybe you are or maybe you're not Some call it crass but I call it a fart Some call it stupid but I call it art Maybe it's all for gold or maybe it's all for naught I might be lost or I might not and when I'm scared I wish I was not and when I die this body will rot and when I lie it's to protect what I've got Maybe it's all for gold or maybe it's all for naught Maybe I'm sorry or maybe I'm not Maybe I'm jealous of the things that you got Maybe you're buyin' or maybe you been bought Maybe you're lyin' and it's time you got caught Maybe it's all for gold or maybe it's all for naught
10.
I am coming down fast I'm gonna break like glass I don't I'm gonna last Much longer here with you All things that come will pass Just like a bad case of gas I can be such an ass When it comes to dealing With the likes of you Oh I can't wait for you To go away That moment will shine Like the brightest day Oh my hips Will begin to sway On that day When you go away It was your lovely ass That had me in such a trance It was never meant to last But for one moment I swear my love was true But now that moment has pass All is quiet at last One foot on the gas I am movin' far away from you Oh I can't wait for you To go away That moment will shine Like the brightest day Oh my hips Will begin to sway On that day When you go away I am coming down fast I'm gonna break like glass I don't I'm gonna last Much longer here with you
11.
Helium 01:04
Helium is the air I want to breathe Suffocate the life that lives inside of me Helium is the air I want to breathe To bring about the death that will set me free
12.
Inheritance 01:52
You're only as real as you imagine yourself to be You are not a cog in a great big machine So never do the work on your knees and always remember there are no guarantees and knowledge cannot always be measured by degrees I'm sorry to say but your heart will come to bleed and all of your thoughts will eventually grow wings take to the sky and color all that you see and remember to look both ways before you cross the street and always remember to smile at everyone you meet Now a lot of people'll try to tell you what it all means and some will try to sell you a dead man's dream
13.
I'd like to find a little peace of mind While I'm here, while I'm alive, while I'm killing time and sometimes I dust off all of my ribbons to remind myself that I've won some of the time and it seems all I ever remember are the times that I've stumbled I'll always remember the times I've been unkind Well now I'm waiting here the last in line Now I'm hanging here Dying on the vine and oftentimes I wonder if I'll ever get out from under from under this place that I find myself in from time to time and just as Cain slayed Abel I just up from the table I lost my head then I took what wasn't mind and I remember when I used to rape, pillage and plunder I remember when my heart was thought of as being unkind Well now I'm waiting here the last in line Now I'm hanging here Dying on the vine

about

J. Han - Singing, Guitar, Organ and Casio
Shannen Hansen - Singing, Floor Tom and Cabasa
Sam Gray - Tenor Saxophone

Stephen Steinbrink - Singing on "Knot"
Calvin Johnson - Singing on "Knot"

All song made up by J. Han

Recorded by Calvin Johnson
Recorded Mixed and Mastered at Dub Narcotic Studio
from June 10 to June 13, 2014
Mixed by Calvin Johnson and Ephriam Nagler
Mastered by Ephriam Nagler

This record is dedicated to Christopher Hinzmann, Arun, Riley Holland, John Vecchiarelli and my parents

credits

released December 14, 2014

Willamette Week:
At Dub Narcotic Studios in Olympia, less is more. Calvin Johnson’s audio office is a place for artists to bask in their idiosyncrasies, and it’s a fitting context for Portland’s J. Han, who plays bony DIY folk as Cotton. The White Eagle is a sparse and daydreamy sort of record, made up of two-minute-plus vignettes too brittle for a big studio. Built primarily around an acoustic guitar and Casio riffs, Cotton’s newest work is honest, impure and playful. The subject matter strays from love and mortality to farts and weed, and it’s as impulsive and erratic as a conversation around a campfire. Opening track “Seasons of the Heart” feels like a Woody Guthrie tune, while “Green” touts a whimsical, Ween-ish kind of vibe. Highlights “Lilium” and “Knot” demonstrate Han’s ability to uproot four-chord country waltzes and, with the help of his expressive vocals, arrive on a different plane. It’s an extremely intriguing and downright human take on modern folk.
www.wweek.com/portland/article-23639-album_review_cotton.html

krecs.com/dub-narcotic-studio/in-the-studio-with-cotton/

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Cotton Portland, Oregon

Cotton is a musical project based out of Portland, OR, fronted and founded by J. Han. Cotton's songs make use of minimal instrumentation, using only his voice and a guitar, keyboard or organ. The lyrics have a poetic quality to them; they rhyme and tell anecdotes that point to something hidden. ... more

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