cd booklet ackermann

michel ackermannand band

Lyrics by Paul Robert Thomas

Not Long For This World

I am not long for this worldPlease treat me kindI am not long for this worldIf you don’t mind The stars are fadingThe sun don’t shineI’ve lost all feelingAnd all sense of time

I am not long for this worldI must move onI am not long for this worldSoon I’ll be goneMy boat is waitingTo take me homeNo time for fakingI must go alone

Shed your skinChange your clothesLose to winShrink to growCrack the eggRaise your handsBend your legUnderstand

I am not long for this worldJust passing throughI am not long for this worldYou know it’s trueThe glass will shatterThe winds will blowThe past don’t matterThey’re seeds that we sow

How Long?

How long can I pretend it’s all rightWaiting for the morning lightWhen all good people are goneI can’t keep on keeping on

How long can I stumble through the darkFeeling for the frozen ArkThere is no trace of the manJust faint foot prints in the sand

Oh babe don’t you understandYou should never grab the handOf a drowning manNever grab the handOf a drowning man

How long can you remain in this placeLooking at my twisted faceI take my last breath of painAs you tighten up the chains

How long can you listen to my criesWatching the high water riseThere is no trick I can doI can’t keep from missing you

Oh babe don’t you understandYou should never grab the handOf a drowning manNever grab the handOf a drowning manA drowning man

I can see shadows on the wallI can hear voices in the hallI feel they’re coming for meI can hear the jangle of the keysThey’re coming for meThey’re coming for me

I am not long for this worldNo need to fearCoz I’m not long for this worldAll is so clearYour heart is weepingYour lips are dryYour hands are shakingThis is not goodbye

Shed your skinChange your clothesLose to winShrink to growShave your headRaise your handsBend your legUnderstand My boat is waitingTo take me homeNo time for fakingI must go alone I am not long for this worldSo please be kindCoz I’m not long for this worldIf you don’t mind

Sailing Through the Storm

I’m sailing through the stormTryna find somewhere warmTryna get as far awayFrom myself as I can

My conscience is awakeI’ve made many mistakesI know that it’s no excuseBut I am just a man

I’m sailing away from youI tried my best to be trueBut it just wasn’t to beI hope you understand

All I’ve got left is this boatAs long as she stays afloatI’ll make it across the seaAnd once again feel dry land

Maybe the storm’s a signMaybe I’m wrong this timeMaybe I should have stayed

I can’t help but rememberThose times we were togetherAnd in your arms I laid

I’m in desp’rate need of sleepThe boat shudders and creaksBut soon I’ll find rest and peaceI hope that you can too

I’ve been tossed and turnedI’ve been hurt and burnedBut no matter what I’ve doneI know I’ll make it through

What went down in the floodHas long gone and been lostSo Senoretta, adiosI hope you make it through too

How long can the battle take to winFighting webs that people spinIt’s as clear as words through timeWhat you did you broke the line

How long can we deny who we areHiding all our inner scarsGet up don’t you lie no moreSome one’s knocking at your door

Oh babe don’t you understandYou should never grab the handOf a drowning manNever grab the handOf a drowning manA drowning man

Absolutely No-One To Blame

This is aimed to whom it may concernTo those who would like to see me burnAnd to those who may wish me wellAnd to anyone to whom my name might ring a bell

I’m just a no-one like you are tooA silent shadow passing throughA grain of sand on the beach of timeThe echo of the bell that long since stopped to chime

And if no-one will remember my nameThere’s absolutely no-oneAbsolutely no-oneThere’s absolutely no-one to blame

Guess I’m just tryna leave my markTaking a big wild shot in the darkOne day you’re here next day you’re goneAnd only your memories of your life lingers on

And if no-one will remember your nameThere’s absolutely no-oneAbsolutely no-oneThere’s absolutely no-one to blame

So you think you finally know me by nowI kinda guessed you’d think you would somehowBut after all this time walking straight down the lineI just got one thing to say to thatYou haven’t got a clue where I’m at

I’m just a no-one like you are tooA silent shadow passing throughA small nickel in a handful of dimesA little drop in the ocean of time

I try to get by with out disgraceSometimes that’s hard to do in this placeSome aim for fame with one big blastBut even there they surely will not last

And if no-one will remember your nameThere’s absolutely no-oneAbsolutely no-oneThere’s absolutely no-one to blameThere’s absolutely no-oneAbsolutely no-oneThere’s absolutely no-one to blame

Cole Porter’s Blues

We stood by the Ark / just us twoAbove the stars / were fringed with blueThe waves crashed down over our headsSometimes I’m not sure if I’m alive or dead

For no one can-feel like I doWhen I’ve got Cole Porter’s Blues

Some may say that I’ve / lost my mindI need to be / loved by your kindMy life is a fight to be trueSometimes it feels like my mind is-split in two

You don’t want to be in my shoesWhen I’ve got Cole Porter’s Blues

Blues in the morningThe Blues when I riseBlues in the ev’ningWhen I close my eyes

I feel the turning of the screwWith these damned Cole Porter’s Blues

From now on the sun / will not shineNever was yours / and you weren’t mineI did all I could to please youSometimes I wish you could see my-point of view

The scars are starting to show throughCan’t hide these Cole Porter’s Blues

Just don’t kiss me KateDon’t you fence me inFor the day is lateAnd night tastes of gin

I guess it’s something we all knewYou’re born with Cole Porter’s Blues

All There Is?

I heard the king died on the throneFor sure he died there all aloneHear what was wrote on his head-stoneCan this be all there is?Can this be all there is?

Fortune and fame was what he cravedHe prayed a lot but wasn’t savedAnd it still calls out from the graveCan this be all there is?Can this be all there is?

No one can have it allOne day you’re forced to quitYou may be bound to fallWay down into the pit

So when you hear the callYou’ll have to answer thisCan this be allCan this be all there is?

The champ was beaten black and blueHe bit off more than he could chewThey say he got what he was dueCan this be all there is?Can this be all there is?

He climbed as high as he could goUp with the stars he brightly glowedBut then he fell, it went to showThis can’t be all there is?This can’t be all there is?



As I made love with Mary JaneAt a bus stop in the cold rainShe shouted out as the bus cameCan this be all there is?Can this be all there is?

I’ve loved and lost much through the yearsBut I can smile coz I’m still hereI still am wand’ring through the tearsCan this be all there is?Can this be all there is?



Drunk on the Moon

Wash that morning fog from your eyesBrush that birds nest from your hairThe sun is beginning to riseYou treat me like you don’t care

You fell asleep on meThen asked me how it was?You’re killing me by degreesDon’t ask me why just because

Like a sugar cube melting in the rainYou’ve dissolved my love revealing the pain

I can’t wait to get away non too soonAs far away as I canI’m gonna get drunk on the moonOn the moonOn the moonOn the moonI’m gonna get drunk on the moon

Can’t believe I’ve made it this farMaybe I took a wrong turnI must have followed the wrong starIt’s never too late to learn

Through all those shattered nightsThrough all those broken daysI always looked for the lightPeering through the foggy haze

Running as far as I can from my fateCrashing foreign cars into iron gates

Dropping through the sky like a lead balloonAnd hanging on for dear lifeI’m gonna get drunk on the moonOn the moonOn the moonOn the moonI’m gonna get drunk on the moon

We all sleep in the never worldBut we’re not ready to stayPictures and shadows are swirledResurrected the next day

T.V.’s smoking my mindTelling me what to thinkI have wasted so much timeI’m not that far from the brink

Maybe I should stop fighting and go downIn these rough seas it won’t take long to drown

No, I’m gonna fight my impending doomAnd get away in my mindI’m gonna get drunk on the moonOn the moonOn the moonOn the moonI’m gonna get drunk on the moon

For You

For youI sing this songI’ll right the wrongFor youI climb that hillTo fight on stillJust to show you

For thoughThey see me sadThey say I’m badFor thoughThey just don’t knowI cannot showThey just don’t know

How much I love youHow much I love youHow much I love you

For whenI feel aloneIt’s you I phoneFor whenI’ve lost it allWhy don’t you call?Answer me

For nowOur true love callsAnd tear drops fallFor nowI just don’t careWhen people stare

Because I love youBecause I love youBecause I love you

To Save Us All

He was born in hopeBut he died in despairThere’s children like himAround the world everywhere

Too many to countLike stars up in the skyIt’s easy for the worldJust to turn a blind eye

But you had a soulAnd life and laughter tooYou were so uniqueThere was no-one quite like you

Just coz you were poorYou didn’t have a chanceTo dress up in a suitAnd go to the ‘Prom’ dance

Played in the sewersThat flowed along your streetAmongst all the fliesIn the never ending heat

For when you got illThere wasn’t a debateYour parents didn’t thinkUntil it was too late

But when the end cameAnd you could not be savedYou gave a last smileAnd let go you were so brave

“You were taken butNow is the time to give”Said his father in tears“So another might live”

Take my hand, we’ll walk through timeWe’ll show them all, that there’s no linesThat dare to keep, us far apartYou’re my breath, you’re the beat of my heart

For loveI’d be a monkI’d be a punkFor loveI’d shave my hairI’d dye it fairJust to please you

ForgetThings I’ve forgotBut please do notForgetThe times we hadThe words we said

Because I love youBecause I love youBecause I love you

ForgiveThis foolish manI hope you canForgiveThe things I’ve doneTo everyoneIncluding you

For allThat people sayI wish you’d stayFor allThe world to seeThat you’re with me

You know I love youYou know I love youHow much I love you

Inside anotherHis heart it beats strongHe gave life to themSo that they could carry on

Unknown child of GodNo-one knows your nameUnknown child of GodYour loss was not in vain

Hear the 4 winds call“You died to save us allYou died to save us all”

Unknown child of GodNo-one knows your nameUnknown child of GodYour loss was not in vain

Hear the 4 winds call“You died to save us allYou died to save us all”

Man of No Tomorrow

I’m a man of no tomorrowWaiting for the nightI’m a man of no tomorrowI’ll never know the light

I known trouble all of my daysOn pain and strife I was raisedThat’s just been the way it isWhat you ain’t had you can not miss


I been trav’ling the road too longI guess it’s time I passed onIt chills me through to the bonesI can’t look back I’ll turn to stone


From the corner of this strange roomI sit like in a dark tombI think back on what has passedWhere will I find true peace at last


All those people that I have know’dAll those seeds that have been sowedI don’t know where it all wentI can’t keep count of what I spent

Bye, Bye, Bye

We laugh, we cryWe’re born, we dieWe’re here, then goneIn a blink of an eye

Bye, bye, byeBye, bye, bye

They say that the good go firstLike to be good is a curseBut what could there be worseThan being near water and dying of thirst?

No time, to loseYou must, now chooseWhich road, you takeIs your sky black or blue?


Your time is right now right hereSo come and lend me your earFor you don’t have to fearThose coming days falling for ever are near

Do good with your time you’ve gotDon’t want for what you have notDon’t take all that you seeFor sometimes it’s too late to say you’re sorry

We laugh, we cryWe’re born, we dieWe’re here, then goneIn a blink of an eye


Footsteps smash the silence of the nightThere’s darting flickering lightsI see shadows on the wallI hear voices in the hallI feel them coming for meThey’re coming for meComing for me



michel ackermann & bandcole porter’s blues recorded at studio erde, berlin nov.2009-feb.2010by johannes göpelt, tobias nöthen

mixing and additional sounddesign by johannes krause, berlinall songs written and arranged by michel ackermann

further arrangement by maik antrack, julian heinemann, sabine zlotos

all lyrics * by paul robert thomas* except for ‘kite’, lyrics by michel ackermann & ron randolf

cover-art by dirk uhlenbrock, ersteliga.de

michel ackermann - acoustic piano, synthesizers, vocalsmaik antrack - bass, double bassjulian heinemann - drums (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 11, 12)sabine zlotos - drums (6, 7, 8, 10)leo clemens - violingeorg fischer - saxophone, bass-clarinet, tubabackground vocals - zoey zoley (10, 12)- sophie daedelow (9)

thank you!!!... all who helped me in many ways to produce this cd.

1. Not Long For This World

2. How Long?

3. Sailing Through the Storm

4. Absolutely No-One To Blame

5. Cole Porter’s Blues

6. All There Is

7. Drunk on the Moon

8. For You

9. To Save Us All

10. Man of No Tomorrow

11. Bye, Bye, Bye

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cd booklet ackermann