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Jean Rohe & The End of the World Show

by Jean Rohe

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    Comes in a fold-up box with illustrations by Melanie Ida Chopko, with lyric and story cards for each song.

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1.
Umbrella 05:51
Umbrella We come from a place where the rain never fell; Can’t you see the sun straining at the empty well? The clothes were always drying out on the laundry line And it was always picnic weather but our mouths were parched and dry. We were thirsty all the time. Now, Noah had a house where God kept knocking on the door; Can’t you hear him hammer away on his two by fours? We all thought him harmless but unusual, too, and all the children loved his polar bears, giraffes, and marmosets Oh, his goats and his kangaroos. Then, so it was, a great miracle came. First, we saw the lightning and then we felt the rain And as the children danced and moistened their tongues That’s when we first saw that man Alone beneath the falling rain He silently surveyed the scene; oblivious to the revelry he called out singing: Umbrella umbrella umbrella umbrella… The man held aloft an object we had never seen before A thing to keep us dry in our first downpour. But no one paid him mind, no one paid him any heed And all the people marveled as the dirt made mud beneath their feet Oh, the mud beneath their feet. Then, so it was, the waters began to rise And for days the rain kept falling down from the sunless skies And as the children shouted, searching for air Our neighbor Noah sailed away—we saw what kind of guy he was He never turned a tender eye to the people screaming, babies crying, and somebody singing: Umbrella umbrella umbrella umbrella… I’ve been called a skeptic and I’ve been called worse And they say the sins of humans brought the water curse A sinner and believer as I stand before you now In the power of a peddler to spare our lives somehow Oh, he saved our lives somehow. Then, so it was, we floated on for days In our overturned umbrellas, braving rain, and wind, and wave And as the people shouted, sighting the shore We knew we’d found the way back home, that God could not just kill us all Though Noah’s stony heart was cold, but those who love this life of ours Will always find a way to live it, long as there is joy and awe and somebody singing: Umbrella umbrella umbrella umbrella…
2.
La Coqueta 05:31
La Coqueta Una copa más de vino Una botella más No jires aún los ojos No mires pa’ atrás Cuando tú me llamaste A través de tu canción Fue cuando tú me atrapaste And you didn’t let go And I always get my way In a tug of war And I won’t let you forget What you’re pulling for Oh, the quickness in my hips A flash of tongue between my teeth Cómo yo te encontré y cómo me perdí la la la la la Te traigo una semilla Y un caracol Pa’ que nasca en tu pecho El mar y el sol No dejes de hablarme a mi My clever words, my hands, my face Dáme todo lo que puedas, I’ll let you win this race (Another cup of wine A bottle more Don’t avert your eyes Don’t look behind When you called me Through your song Was when you trapped me How I found you And how I lost myself I bring you a seed And a snail So that the sea and the sun May flower in your chest Don’t stop talking to me Give me everything you can)
3.
The fisherman heads out by moonlight Leaving the city behind The music in the bars is still playing And the shanty lights illuminate the yellow line "Vem, menina, vem," he calls me. "O mar não te vai esperar As cores da água se mudam com as transformações do luar Vivo do pescado Morro da pesca Mas minha vida não é só pescar Conheço a paciência das estrelas Conheço os caprichos das ondas Conheço a graça dos ventos E eu sei que há sal e há solidão, Que cada dia o sol vai raiar de novo Eu sei que há sal e há solidão, Que cada dia o sol vai raiar..." The boat wears its early winter mornings In the chipping of its paint and its wood Silver nets hang down to be mended Bridal veils for mermaids he would catch if he could "Tão velhinho sou," he smiles As the waves shift the sand along the shore "O mar já viu todos os meus dias E um dia destes vai levar toda a dor." Vivo do pescado Morro da pesca Mais minha vida não é só pescar Conheço a paciência das estrellas Conheço os caprichos das ondas Conheço a graça dos ventos E eu sei que há sal e há solidão, Que cada dia o sol vai raiar de novo Eu sei que há sal e há solidão, Que cada dia o sol vai raiar..." (“Come, girl, come,” he calls me “The sea won’t wait for you The colors of the water change With the moonlight’s transformation I live on fish I die by the fishing But my life is not only fishing I know the patience of the stars I know the playfulness of the waves I know the gracefulness of the wind I know that there’s salt and loneliness That every day the sun will rise again I know that there’s salt and loneliness That every day the sun will rise” “How old I am,” he smiles As the waves shift the sand along the shore “The sea has seen all my days so far and one day soon it will take all the pain. I live on fish I die by the fishing But my life is not only fishing I know the patience of the stars I know the playfulness of the waves I know the gracefulness of the wind I know that there’s salt and loneliness That every day the sun will rise again I know that there’s salt and loneliness That every day the sun will rise”)
4.
Red Rover 03:11
Red rover, red rover (Send your best one over) (4x) If you ever come to my side of the town, You will know me by the jewels in my crown I am the princess, I’m the mattress, I’m the pea I can charm the stripes right off a bee All of the little children want to play with me All the ladies want to take me out to tea All the gentlemen want my company And the sailors want to row me out to sea CHORUS You can see it in the sparkle of my eyes That I wander through this world without disguise It’s in the fire of my convictions when I fight And the quiet of my breathing in the night I will rewrite all your philosophy books And rival all the city’s famous cooks Run a marathon and never break a sweat And some other things I might live to regret CHORUS You will tell me everything I want to know About your dreams and your life and where you’ll go And our laughter will bubble up to the skies You will lie awake at night and not know why When you ask me to marry you I’ll say no I got oceans to leap, orchids to grow But by then you will have rearranged your life And left your job and your mortgage and your wife CHORUS But one day I will wake up and realize that I have grown older The beauty of my younger days has gone to find another one A shiny shock of flowing hair was traded for a rocking chair For feeble knees and raspy wheeze, still you have to admit that there’s A force that draws you to my side, attraction that you just can’t hide A fire burning in my eyes and something sneaky in my smile Now it all makes perfect sense that they were jealous when they said A woman like that will come to no good.
5.
Some people like their alcohol They drink too much and then they call their gods As they walk down Pacific Street They stop beneath your window where They laugh too loud and they pull their hair in anguish ‘Cause the world has made them weak But mysteriously last night Through the window came a streetlamp light And with it came a singing voice, so sweet. The moon, the stars, the autumn air Some other drug, I don’t know or care but there she was She sang angelically No secrets here, I like to drink I stay up late and I start to think of all The other places I could be. In Edmonton or Bamako Somebody’s mom or all alone, a farmer Or a seahorse out to sea. Any memories of home Start to sink beneath the barley foam And swim around somewhere where I can’t see. Then I’m unsure where I belong And all that’s left is a wordless song that bounces Off the brick walls back to me. I do believe you’ll live a life That’s long and sweet and each day rife with boundless Whimsical cacophony. And I will fall for other men And leave for good or come back again, chaotic And unlikely symphony. But this moment all that’s true Is a song I hear; you hear it, too. It rouses us from sleep into a dream. For just a while I feel the ground, Our lives are joined, aware of sound, a matrimony Made by melody.
6.
May there always be sunshine, always be blue skies Always be Mama, may there always be I. Little child, your questions are enormous And little child, my words don’t seem to satisfy You ask, “Why was I born? Why will I die? Oh, why don’t you know, oh why?” Little child, your path is for the curious The way is paved with rare and heavy stones Far too many to turn in this lifetime So the questions will only grow Go ahead, I cannot follow with you The stones are there to be turned by you alone There’ll be happiness and much sorrow For a boy who just needs to know. And all I know for sure, nothing lasts forever But everything that’s here has been here all along Planets born of dust, and the moon pulls the tides along the shore Suns will die, continents slide And a heart beats in a chest Pulse pumps an ancient tune Music fills a room, till the people are singing, their dances ringing Calling, oh they’re calling, to the silent sky. Halla, halla, halla ya… And all I know for sure, nothing lasts forever But everything that’s here has been here all along Planets born of dust, and the moon pulls the tides along the shore Suns will die, continents slide And a heart beats in a chest Pulse pumps an ancient tune Music fills a room, till the people are singing, their dances ringing Calling, oh they’re calling, to the silent sky. Don’t lock it up, now Go and we’ll follow Wash your head in the river And call me tomorrow And who shall bring me to see what shall be after me?
7.
Water 05:44
Birds tell of the coming flood Clouds descend into fields of mud The rain, the rain, the hurricane Oh, the rain, the rain, the hurricane. Give and take and the undertow Arrive with your dinner or arrive down below The salt, the roar, and the unseen shore. The salt, the roar, and the unseen shore. She who rocks you, she who can knock you down. Late summer; the fields are cracked and dry The river is low but the temperature is high Oh, the river, the river, the life-giver Oh, the river, the river, the life-giver Count the steps from the village to the well Count out your pennies or they’ll give you hell Oh, the road, the road and a heavy load Oh, the road, the road and a heavy load She who rocks you, she who can knock you down. And you so thirsty, you who’d drink her dry Oh, there’s poison in her tears when the mother of the waters cries You so greedy ‘till there’s nothing left to buy Voda, paani, maya Agua, agua, aqua, water Maaji, una Ob, su, nsuo, shue Crystal bubbles flowing down the mountain Better bottle it and sell it like your own private fountain What’s mine is mine is mine is mine What’s mine is mine is mine, that’s fine. Turn the tap and you’ll hear a rush Miracle of waters but you don’t listen much To the water, the water to her sons and daughters The water, the water talking to her sons and daughters She who rocks you, she who can knock you down. And you so thirsty, you who’d drink her dry Oh, there’s poison in her tears when the mother of the waters cries You so greedy ‘till there’s nothing left to buy
8.
Forget Remember I’m forgetting to remember anymore Indispensable details of a human life A line of years, months, and days Family faces and places and names. Tying a shoe One loop then two Gotta bring it around and pull it through Forget Remember It’s a vicious tug of war between the two But the less you remember The more I forget how I could remember you Forget Remember The piano and your tools upon the floor The smell of your work shirt, orange marmalade And the letter opener at noon If I looked in your head would I find those things, too? Body and soul Which stays, which goes? Ties are untied, the book is closed Forget Remember Still, a song can fill your empty eyes with dew But the less you remember The more I forget how I could remember you.
9.
New Year 04:07
All the trees are bare and brown and the frost has covered everything Be near me now There are longer days awaiting in the new year. As the hollow weeks wore on, still, the puddle on your pillow grew Be near me now. There are brighter days awaiting in the new year. You will find the missing key (it shall be, it shall be) And you’ll reveal the hidden door (it shall be, it shall be) You will banish all the demons to a sparkling glow (it shall be, it shall be) No one said it would be easy but you’ll find your way home (it shall be, it shall be, it shall be) Oh, you raised your voices high and still the mighty shot your banner down Be brave, my friend There are peaceful times awaiting in the new year. And the light within your eyes from the flame of life ablaze in you Stay close, my friend I will need you more than ever in the new year. You will find the missing key (it shall be, it shall be) And you’ll reveal the hidden door (it shall be, it shall be) You will banish all the demons to a sparkling glow (it shall be, it shall be) No one said it would be easy but you’ll find your way home (it shall be, it shall be, it shall be) You will paint your palette green (it shall be, it shall be) And you will mend the broken shoes (it shall be, it shall be) We will walk into the sunlight of another broad day (it shall be, it shall be) With our pockets full of juniper and nothing to lose (it shall be, it shall be) You will find the missing key (it shall be, it shall be) And you’ll reveal the hidden door (it shall be, it shall be) You will banish all the demons to a sparkling glow (it shall be, it shall be) No one said it would be easy but you’ll find your way home (it shall be, it shall be, it shall be)
10.
No Work 03:37
There is no work on these streets anymore Where is the harbor for the weary? Many are the nights my heart feels hard as a bone A quiet drone. I told him, “Don’t come back until you’ve found work.” I told him, “I’m caring for your babies.” Family’s far away, out on an island in the sea Oh, mercy me. He tells me it’s different, he tells me he’s changed And I know that he’s doing all he can But sometimes all he can is stumble home after dark A burning spark Once we had eyes that shone brighter than the stars And we lifted them up into the sky But now we are so tired from all the strength it takes to live No more to give There is no work on these streets anymore Where is the harbor for the weary? Many are the nights my heart feels hard as a bone A quiet drone All alone A sinking stone
11.
Some days I wake up in the morning With a hole in my heart There’s a hole in the place where my heart should be And I think that I could be happy I could plug it up and go on. But on days when I wake with a hole in my chest, it’s to hell with the future, the present, the rest is the part that will matter until I get dressed and it’s all I can do not to cry for the longing. Those days, I wake up in the morning With your face on my mind There’s your face in the place where my mind should be You are standing out in the pasture In the light of shimmering stars. On the days when I wake with your smile in my eyes We are standing again under widening skies Where I’m slowly removing my careful disguise And I swear by my life, I could stand there forever O bright city. O bright star. I cry for water to heal my heart Down, bright bucket, down deep well Arms hold steady, can we pull it up full? There’s a slick of oil on the ocean There’s a war ablaze overseas There’s a tide that’s tugging my body down And there we are in the pasture Where the words are leaving my lips Even if it’s worth saying it can’t be unsaid Still there’s no point in holding it till we are dead Even if I might find myself pinned to the bed Every morning from now till the end of forever. O bright city. O bright star. I cry for water to heal my heart Down, bright bucket, down deep well Arms hold steady, can we pull it up full?
12.
Atlantic and Pacific flow The Great Lakes and the Gulf of Mexico The land between sustains us all To cherish it, our tireless call Arise! Arise! I see the future in your eyes. To a more perfect union we aspire And lift our voices from the fire. We reached these shores from many lands We came with hungry hearts and hands Some came by force and some by will At the auction block, in the darkened mill CHORUS We died in your fields and your factories Strange fruit hangin' from the poplar trees With an old coat hanger in a room somewhere A trail of tears, an electric chair CHORUS Our great responsibility To be guardians of our liberty 'Till tyrants bow to the people's dream And justice flows like a mighty stream
13.
They told me what to think, they told me what to do They told me who to scorn and who to bow down to They told me who was righteous and who could never win They told me my defiance was tantamount to sin And they told me what to say and what to keep inside They told me to be obedient; there was nothing I could hide They told me they were everything, everything I'd ever need And they told me what I'd find in store if I ever disagreed, but Nobody told me to dance (it just started) Open up the door into the streets (and the clouds parted) Feel the pulse of freedom move our hands and feet (open hearted) Nobody told me to dance, it just started. Rahmani wrote the music, Ibrahim sang the song 'Till they found him in the river with his vocal cords gone But the fire was lit already in the hearts of everyone And so we'll keep on singing 'till our victory comes: Yalla erhal ya Bashar, yalla erhal ya Bashar Yalla erhal ya Bashar, yalla Yalla erhal ya Bashar, yalla erhal ya Bashar Yalla erhal ya Bashar, yalla Nobody told me to sing (it just started) Open up the door into the streets (and the clouds parted) Feel the pulse of freedom move our hands and feet (open hearted) Nobody told me to sing, it just started. Now we tell them what we want from every window, every door Their lies and their barbarities aren't secrets anymore We write it and we stream it, show it in our videos We paint it and we play it until the whole world knows And they wonder how we do it, how we brave their guns and tanks With our ragtag band of singers dancing dabke in our ranks Well, if I meet a reporter from the Times or BBC I'll look him in the eye and I'll explain so he can see that Nobody told me to dance (it just started) Open up the door into the streets (and the clouds parted) Feel the pulse of freedom move our hands and feet (open hearted) Nobody told me to dance, it just started. Nobody told me to sing (it just started) Open up the door into the streets (and the clouds parted) Feel the pulse of freedom move our hands and feet (open hearted) Nobody told me to sing, it just started.

about

Jean Rohe & The End of the World Show was produced collaboratively with Jean's long-time artistic partner, Liam Robinson (Becca Stevens Band), and mixed by Todd Sickafoose (Ani DiFranco, Anaïs Mitchell). It is a travelogue, relating stories in several languages from her lone journeys through her city and beyond. The eleven songs on the record blossomed from melodies heard outside apartment windows, excerpts from Jean's journals, snippets of poems, and street vendors' cries. Much of the arranging came together through an exploratory process with her 8-piece band, comprised of Richie Barshay, Christopher Tordini, Ilusha Tsinadze, Skye Steele, James Shipp, Rogério Boccato, and Liam Robinson. Physical copies of the album are accompanied by companion essays for each song, enfolded in a custom designed package by Ilusha Tsinadze and Melanie Ida Chopko.

credits

released November 27, 2014

Jean Rohe – mandolin, guitar, lead vocals
Ilusha Tsinadze – acoustic and electric guitars, dobro
Christopher Tordini – acoustic and electric bass
Liam Robinson – accordion, keyboards
Skye Steele – violin
Rogério Boccato – percussion
Richie Barshay – percussion
James Shipp – vibraphone and percussion
And everyone sings.

Ljova Zhurbin – viola on 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11
Dave Eggar – cello on 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11

Tony Hdez – radio announcer on 4

All songs by Jean Rohe
Produced by Jean Rohe & Liam Robinson

String arrangements on “Fisherman”, “Pacific Street”, “Water”, and “O Bright Star” by Liam Robinson.

“Who Shall...” incorporates part of a Russian children's song in translation, “May There Always Be Sunshine (Пусть всегда будет солнце)”.
Field recording in “Umbrella” from Uskudar, Istanbul, Turkey, 2011.

Recorded by Chris Bittner at Applehead Studios in Saugerties, NY
Additional recording by Oliver Straus at Mission Sound, Brooklyn, NY, and Aaron Nevezie at The Bunker Studio, Brooklyn, NY.

Mixed by Todd Sickafoose at Earycanal

Mastering by Alan Douches at West West Side Music

Illustrations by Melanie Chopko
Photo by Jen Painter
Layout and design by Ilusha Tsinadze

Humble gratitude to the bearers of the folk traditions from which I've drawn so much inspiration for this music.

Thank you Liam, Ilusha, Chris, James, Richie, Skye and Rogério for making the music. Your skill, creativity, collaborative spirits, and dear friendship mean the world to me. It's the dream band and so much more: kitchen staff, garden party, event planning agency, entertainment department, legal aid, mental health services.

Thanks to my family for their unwavering love; to Andy and Nicole for providing provisions; to Yggdrasil and its inhabitants for hosting so many rehearsals; to Melissa (and Timor and Marquette) for sharing the war room; to Lizzy for the car loan; to Becca for the No Work guitar; to Tony, Vitor, Rogério, Julia, Ashley, Skye, Jake, and that guy on the train for language help; to Andy, Liam, and James for reading the essays; to Melanie for her keen visual translations and fierce belief in the music; to Nitzan for helping me stay on track with loving nudging and support; to the Blue Mountain Center for the gift of stillness.

Thank you to the venue bookers, radio Djs, concert inventors, and friends who made space for this music to have a life in the world.

Thank you, Ima, for saying yes. This whole process would not have been nearly as good without your help. You show me how to live the life every day.

Thank you, Spilo, for being ever by my side, even when I'm no fun to be beside. You're the real deal and I love you.

www.jeanrohe.com

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Jean Rohe Brooklyn, New York

Jean Rohe writes one-of-a-kind narrative songs, concerned as much with the interior lives of her narrators as with the wider world outside them. She is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Council Community Arts Grant recipient. Her latest full-length record as a bandleader, "Sisterly," won best Adult Contemporary Album at the Independent Music Awards in 2019. ... more

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