Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus

Plans Gang Aft Agley

1 Fortunate Man (3:08)

2 Aliceanna St (4:04)

3 Somewhere Else There’s A Promised Land (3:07)

4 Finest Hour (3:01)

5 I’ll Still Stand By You (2:22)

6 27 Voices (2:51)

7 Wings Of An Airplane (3:31)

8 Another Pretty Deep Hole (3:00)

9 Tonight I’m Just Thinking About You (3:02)

10 Tarnished Angel (3:02)

11 Son of My Father (3:29)

12 Don’t Say Goodbye (2:57)

Produced by Ron Flynt

Ó and (p) Jim Patton/Sherry Brokus PO Box 93081 Austin TX 78709-3081

(512)280-8455 info: pattonbrokus(at) gmail.com, www. pattonbrokus.com

“The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men
Gang aft agley”

— Robert Burns, “To A Mouse”

Jim Patton: acoustic guitar, vocals

Sherry Brokus: vocals

Ron Flynt: bass, keyboards, vocals

Rich Brotherton: acoustic guitar, mandolin, cittern

Scrappy Jud Newcomb: acoustic guitar

Warren Hood: fiddle

John Bush: percussion

Produced by Ron Flynt

Recorded and mixed by Ron Flynt at Jumping Dog Studios, Austin Texas

Mastered by Jerry Tubb at Terra Nova Digital Audio, Inc., Austin Texas

Cover and art by: Matt Eskey

Front cover and interior photos: Valerie Fremin

Back cover photo: Winker

Website: Melissa Webb

John Bush plays Gon Bops congas & percussion

Spiritual adviser: R. Gene Munger;

This one’s for Jim Brady, the Great Monteef, too soon gone

Jim & Sherry would like to thank everyone who played on the record, played in the band, recorded us, promoted us, gave us airplay, loaned us money, came to the shows, listened to the songs, bought our records, put us up for the night, or otherwise helped us on our way. You are too numerous to mention individually, too important not to mention at all.

Above & Beyond: Karen Deschamps, Jeff Tveraas, David Glaser, Karen Mal, Bill Passalacqua, the Ginn Sisters, John & DL, Duggan, Jeff Talmadge, Bradley Kopp, Cash Edwards, Kari Estrin, Lee Cadorette, Lisa Fancher, Charlie Stewart, Bill Wence, Geoffrey Himes, Frank Mirenzi, Don Cunningham, Andy & Katie, Christina Fajardo, Brian Kalenic, Lloyd Maines, Austin & Connie, Joe & Bev, Liz Rouse, Peg & Glynda, Chris Gage & Christine Albert, Randy & Gaye Auxier, Danny & Rene’, Kathryn Ross, Mike Porter, KUT, KGSR, KOOP, every club that’s booked us, every station that’s played our songs, and the incredible music community of Austin, Texas.

Fortunate Man

This isn’t the life that I pictured

But this is the life that I chose

Measured by jewelry,

My life isn’t much, I suppose

Cause I’ve never made any money

And fame was a Tuesday night stand

In spite of all that

I am a fortunate man

For I have the fairest of lovers

And I have the truest of friends

And I have a place I can go

When my darkness descends

And I have a dream still inside me

And I’ve got this guitar in my hand

Measured by that

I am a fortunate man

For I have the fairest of lovers

And I have the truest of friends

Measured by that

I am a fortunate man

words & music by Jim Patton Ó 2002 (Independent Alligator Publishing Co) (ASCAP)

Aliceanna St.

See the people in the morning on their way to work

Or maybe just looking for a day’s pay

I see ’em leaving in the morning

I see ’em come home at night

Looking like they lost something along the way

I see my man coming home, so down and tired

The bottle’s open before I get supper on

But I’m not complaining; it makes him feel better

Aliceanna Street ain’t what we counted on

It’s not the working hard

It’s not the being poor

It’s the feeling deep inside us

We could be so much more

It’s not the bitter cold

It’s not the August heat

It’s being stuck without a choice

On Aliceanna Street

Now I work part-time while my kids are at school

There’s no one home when they let themselves in

And I tell them they’ll have it different

And I tell them they’ll have it better

Christ, I tell them anything that I can

The nuns say you gotta suffer to earn your place above

It’s a sin to expect any more

Well, I don’t believe that and I don’t feel guilty

I know this ain’t what living’s for

Sometimes we take the kids on that old ferry boat

And we wave to all the people on the shore

Someday we’ll pack our bags and ride across that water

And we won’t come back here anymore

words by Frank Mirenzi and Jim Patton;

Somewhere Else There’s A Promised Land

My dad never left our town

Except when he went off to war

And two weeks every summer

He’d take the family down to the Eastern Shore

Never went to college

Never hit the open road

Never had the chance, he said

Before he got too old

He started work at Bethlehem Steel

The summer that he turned 16

That same year he took a wife

And he had a kid; the kid was me

He’d sit in his easy chair

Drinkin’ beer, watching the Orioles play

“I let them wall me in,” he’d say

“Don’t you end up this way”

We’d sit out on the rowhouse step

He’d point down the road with a shaky hand

He’d say: “Get out of here as soon as you can,”

“Somewhere else there’s a promised land”

I wore a leather jacket and pointed boots

And I thought my old man was just a fool

I’d go drinking with my friends

In my Camaro instead of going to school

Got a job at a bar downtown

I’d play guitar there all night long

“Louie Louie”, “Hanky Panky”

“I Fought The Law & The Law Won”

And sometimes in the evening

I’d drive my car past those rowhouse steps

And think about daddy’s promised land

And all those things he did not get

Then I had myself a kid

Got a job at the IGA

Put a lot of things on hold

That I keep there to this day

Bought a house in Towson

Watched my daughter grow

Thought about what I’d say to her

Before she gets too old

We’ll sit out on our townhouse step

I’ll point down the road with a shaky hand

I’ll say: “Get out of here as soon as you can,”

“Somewhere else there’s a promised land”

words & music by Jim Patton & Geoffrey Himes Ó 2002 (Independent Alligator Publishing Co/Red Wheelbarrow Publishing CO) (ASCAP)

Finest Hour

Well there were no knights in armour

Come along to save the day

And there were no men on horseback

No Eastern star to show the way

There was only you

Wishing you could somehow get away

In your finest hour

The king was in the counting house

Counting all his money

And his closest friends were laughing

At some joke that wasn’t funny

And the rain came down like justice

On the land of milk and honey

In your finest hour

There were no cheers

No screaming crowd

No one to strike up the band

No escape from your fears

Nobody calling your name

Nobody shaking your hand

There was moonlight on the open road

A cold wind in your face

And a light on in the kitchen

All night long at Frankie’s place

And a frightened kid inside you

Who felt completely out of place

In your finest hour

I’ll Still Stand By You

We looked into each other’s eyes

Upon our wedding day

The Reverend Frank Mirenzi

Gave us cards with words to say

But we didn’t need those cards at all

We knew that song by heart

Ben E. King sang “Stand By Me”

And we swore we’d never part

The road we took from Paradise

Was not always straight and true

We did some damage to each other

You hurt me and I hurt you

I know we can’t turn back time

To when our love was new

But if you hold me close tonight

I’ll still stand by you

Twenty years have come and gone

Since our wedding day

Battles lost and battles won

Plans gang aft aglay

But you’re still standing by my side

And one thing I know is true

If you hold me close tonight

I’ll still stand by you

I know we can’t turn back time

To when our love was new

But if you hold me close tonight

I’ll still stand by you

27 Voices

I’ve got 27 voices in my head

25 tell me I’d be better off dead

Twelve get scared in the middle of the night

One says: Jim you better hold on tight

Most of them are pretty sure I’ve been misled

By the other 26 voices in my head

I’ve got 27 voices in my head

27 voices

I’ve got 27 voices in my brain

Two remind me of my greatest shame

Three can’t even remember my name

Four of them are clinically insane

One voice howling like a hurricane

At the other 26 voices in my brain

I’ve got 27 voices in my brain

27 voices

One voice fills me with regret

Second voice says: forgive and forget

Third voice tells me: that’s a sucker’s bet

Fourth voice says: You take what you can get

One voice wishing he had never met

The other 26 voices in my head

I’ve got 27 voices in my head

27 voices

Wings Of An Airplane

On the wings of an airplane

He’s coming back home

She waits at the airport

In the bar, all alone

She’s waiting for someone

That she don’t even know

The only man that she ever loved

Is coming back home

On the wings of an airplane

He moved to the coast

She used to call him at Christmas

When it hurt her the most

She once was his daughter

She became like a ghost

The only man that she ever loved

Disappeared, just like smoke

He used to fight with her mother

Over money and love

Then he walked out forever

Said: “It hurts too damn much”

He walked out on his old life

And the seeds that he’d sown

On the wings of an airplane

He’s coming back home

On the wings of an airplane

He’s coming her way

He called her last Thursday

Hoping it was ok

Now she’s drinking tequila

She’s got nothing to say

The only man that she ever loved

Is coming too late

Another Pretty Deep Hole

You woke up in the bathtub

Where you probably fell asleep

After the fight

You’re out of cigarettes;

You can’t remember

Coming home last night

The last thing you remember

Is someone shouting at you:

“Look what you done now!”

You dug yourself another pretty deep hole

But you’ll get out somehow

You’ll start apologizing

Just as soon as you find out

Who you done wrong

You’ll swear this is the last time

You’ll stay out of trouble from now on

You talked yourself into this mess

And now it’s time to talk your way back out

You dug yourself another pretty deep hole

But you’ll get out somehow

And you’re still digging

You can’t stop digging

You’re still digging down

You’ll head back down to Peter’s

You’re pretty sure that’s where you left your car

If it’s just a dented fender

You can maybe have a quick one at the bar

Then you’ll start explaining

Giving us the wherefore and the how

You dug yourself another pretty deep hole

But you’ll get out somehow

words and music by Jim Patton Ó 2007 (Independent Alligator Publishing Co) (ASCAP)

Tonight I’m Just Thinking About You

Well hello how are you?

It’s been a long long time

It’s good to hear your voice on the phone

Yes, it’s me; I’m calling from Austin, Texas

No, I’m not looking for a loan

I just missed you

And I was wondering how you were doing
Remember when we stole that blue canoe?

Boat started leaking; we laughed so hard

Tonight I’m just thinking about you

How many kids?

Are they gonna go to college?

Do you think they’ll be as crazy as me and you?

No, I hope not, too,

That’s a long hard road

And some of our friends did not make it through

Are you rich? Are you happy?

Do you still love your lover?

Have any of your biggest dreams come true?

No, I wouldn’t ask that,

That’s not why I’m calling

Tonight I’m just thinking about you

Yeah, I gotta go too

My wife will start wondering

Maybe next year we can get back home

Do you ever see Frank?

Ah, what am I saying?

Go on now, I know you gotta go

What I wanted to say was: ah, never mind

Some things are better left unsaid; it’s true

Yes, it’s me; I’m calling from Austin, Texas,

Tonight I’m just thinking about you

words and music by Jim Patton Ó 2002 (Independent Alligator Publishing Co) (ASCAP)

Tarnished Angel

Once she was his perfect angel

Heart so pure, face so fair

And when she wrapped

Those wings around him

And swore to be faithful

He took comfort there

Now she is a tarnished angel

The moon and stars no more to roam

Now she is a tarnished angel

Descended from heaven

Can’t find her way home

Now her heart

Is filled with sorrow

Now her eyes

Are filled with regret

Now her wings

Are torn and tattered

All for a lie

That she can’t forget

Now she is a tarnished angel

The moon and stars no more to roam

Now she is a tarnished angel

Descended from heaven

Can’t find her way home

Now she smokes a cigarette

Alone in the darkness

As she watches her husband playing guitar

And she sips Grand Marnier

And she thinks about flying

And she wishes for heaven

So near yet so far

Now she is a tarnished angel

The moon and stars no more to roam

Now she is a tarnished angel

Descended from heaven

Can’t find her way home

Son of My Father

My daddy was a gambler

He lost everything we had

He used to love to play the horses

The only luck he had was bad

Spent a couple months in prison

We lied about where he’d been

I am the son of my father

Swore I’d never be like him

My brother is a junkie

Played the drums in my first band

We used to practice in the basement

Making jokes ’bout our old man

Now he lives in public housing

His life revolves around the man

Another son of my father

Swore I’d never be like him

But I take my chances

I live my life without a net

And I’m just as addicted

To things I want but cannot get

And who am I to tell you

Where they leave off and I begin

I am the son of my father

I have his blood beneath my skin

Now my daddy was a gambler

So I have seen through that romance

And my brother, he’s a junkie

So I will never dance that dance

But who am I to tell you

Where they leave off and I begin

I am the son of my father

Swore I’d never be like him

I am the son of my father

I have his blood beneath my skin

Don’t Say Goodbye

Heard you’re leaving town today

For a new and better life, well that’s ok

Toward thinner air and bluer skies

Just say so long

Don’t say goodbye

A wheel can turn without some spokes

But without the center, that wheel’s just broke

Now this old wheel’s been shot to hell

Don’t say goodbye

Say fare thee well

Now that red sun is setting strong

And I know, I know you must be moving on

500 miles before the dawn

Don’t say goodbye

Just say so long

Now my old friend, we’ve often been apart

Ah, but never, never, never in my heart

You wrote the words, I sang the tune

Don’t say goodbye

Say see you soon

I wrote the words, You sang the tune

Don’t say goodbye

Say see you soon

Just say so long

Don’t say goodbye

I’ll say fare thee well

Cause I don’t say goodbye

words and music by Jim Patton and Frank Mirenzi Ó 2004 (Independent Alligator Publishing Co) (ASCAP)

Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus

"music for those of us who never joined up"

Plans Gang Aft Agley Liner Notes and Lyrics

Fortunate Man

I’ll Still Stand By You

27 Voices

Tonight I’m Just Thinking About You

Don’t Say Goodbye

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Fortunate Man

I’ll Still Stand By You

27 Voices

Tonight I’m Just Thinking About You

Don’t Say Goodbye

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