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An Ape's Progress

by Pawlie

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  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    Deluxe CD package with full set of gorgeous printed artwork, lyrics, credits, and more. Eco-friendly fold-out design with 24-page color booklet and cool recycled disc tray. Nothing beats a spectacular physical edition! First 50 copies signed and numbered.

    Includes unlimited streaming of An Ape's Progress via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 2 days

      $20 USD or more 

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

    Includes 24-page Digital Booklet (PDF) containing all album artwork, lyrics, credits, and more!
    Purchasable with gift card

      $10 USD  or more

     

  • USB Flash Drive

    An Ape's Progress USB music card (flash drive), containing all album tracks in both high-quality Apple Digital Master AAC and uncompressed 24-bit WAV formats — straight from the mastering studio! Includes Digital Booklet (24-page PDF) with all artwork, lyrics, credits, and more. Doubles as a handy USB drive, too!
    ships out within 2 days

      $15 USD or more 

     

  • Save BIG and get all four deluxe-edition CDs (An Ape's Progress, Little Green Man, The Small Time, and Pawlie), plus a handy USB music card containing all four albums in Apple Digital Master AAC and uncompressed WAV formats, PLUS a 15-piece collection of swag — stickers, buttons, coasters, and magnet — in An Ape's Progress canvas tote bag. Too much is never enough!
    ships out within 2 days

      $100 USD or more 

     

  • Full Digital Discography

    Get all 9 Pawlie releases available on Bandcamp and save 25%.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Americanwr Balch, All for Nothing [single], Crazy Crow (for Joni) [single], An Ape's Progress, Proud American [single], Opposable Thumb [single], Little Green Man, The Small Time, and 1 more. , and , .

    Purchasable with gift card

      $33.75 USD or more (25% OFF)

     

1.
Hell and high water It’s getting hotter It’s getting harder to breathe It must be something But I did nothing That’s what I wanna believe Dump in the ocean Big wheels in motion That’s what the governments say Drop in the bucket So I say… Let’s hit the midnight buffet! I’m a proud American I believe what they teach me on the news Proud American — Short attention span is my excuse I’m better than you ‘Cause I’m an American Check the horizon The market’s rising There’s no reason to save Tie yellow ribbons I’ll be forgiven Here in the home of the brave Hey take my daughter Sell me some water So I can fill up the pool The poles ain’t frozen But I’m the chosen I ain’t nobody’s fool 'Cause I’m a proud American I believe what they teach me on the news Proud American — Short attention span is my excuse I’m better than you ‘Cause I’m an American Push comes to shove When it’s money or love And the empire’s fading fast Trillionaires toil Last barrel of oil Becomes a thing of the past This pale blue dot won’t last I’m a proud American I believe what they teach me on the news Proud American — Short attention span is my excuse I’m better than you It don’t matter what you can do I’m better than you ‘Cause I’m an American Proud American
2.
Wake up everyone There’s a rat race still to run Feel like I’m playing to lose Fumbling all around Knuckles on the ground Dressed up like a monkey in shoes Staring at the floor Another corporate whore Stuck between suck and succeed In the land where cash is king Stock is everything So worship that shareholder greed! Each and every day I try to wish it all away Maybe someday I‘ll find peace of mind Stop wasting my time With this nickel and dime Get everything for free Come online with me Strive for those five thousand friends Download and install It takes no time at all Follow the tweets and the trends Out here in the Wild West The NSA knows best Facebook’s got your world in real time So come on, like my post It’s what I need the most Don’t worry I’ll be just fine Each and every day I try to wish it all away Maybe someday I‘ll find peace of mind Stop wasting my time With this nickel and dime How many kids would ever dream big About mortgages and paying off cars? I’d rather fly or gaze up at the sky Hey, let’s go walking on Mars And learn the youth secrets of stars... Each and every day I try to wish it all away Maybe someday I‘ll find peace of mind Stop wasting my time With this nickel and dime
3.
Standing on two feet Cradled from his birth Here comes the baddest Monkey on the Earth Handy with tools And a dandy with a gun Three cheers — For the opposable thumb Master of technique It’s all in the wrist Start with a finger Finish with a fist God’s greatest ape Oh, he’s a lot of fun! Beware — The opposable thumb I’m not asking for a rocket grenade Or a float in the Macy’s parade But we’ve still got a long way to go Better watch the weather Keep it together Modern Java Man His mission has begun Terraform and terrorize The fourth rock from the sun! I’ll hitch a ride Well, depending on who comes With my — Opposable thumb
4.
It’s alright in my life All’s right with the world Tough guys are freaks And the geeks get the girls Fact checking’s fake And the bullshit’s all true Ask for the cash And they’ll pass it to you That’s all you do Someone shake me Try to wake me Make my everyday Thrill me, floor me Reassure me Tell me it’s okay It’s alright in my life We’re fine me and you The nightmare’s not real And the feeling is true The planet is healthy The president’s sane Drivers polite Every time you change lanes Folks use their brains Someone show me Like you know me Call me by my name Text me, send me Facebook-friend me Pop that good champagne! Ain’t life grand? (Yeah, it’s fantastic) Head in the sand (No need to be sarcastic) Everything’s fine (Things are what they are) So pass the wine (Case Syrah, Syrah!) Someone shake me Try to wake me Make my everyday Thrill me, floor me Reassure me Tell me it’s okay Someone show me Like you know me Call me by my name Text me, send me Facebook-friend me Pop that good champagne... It’s alright in my life All’s right with the world
5.
Rabble with guns Babbling in tongues That’s just who we are Eyes to the ground As we orbit around This yellow dwarf star I wanna go back in time Now I stand here a man Wondering how it began How did I come so far? You’re standing with me We’re at the edge of the sea Understanding the stars Staring at space-time Stranded at the scene of the crime Though the madness never ends The universe still bends All that once was old will soon be new again We can discuss it in a song But it won’t be very long Till it’s all for nothing Bad DNA What can you say? That’s our fatal flaw The history of man Just a flash in the pan As the spaceship runs ashore Wait five billion years Till the Milky Way disappears Though the madness never ends The universe still bends All that once was old will soon be new again We can discuss it in a song But it won’t be very long Till it’s all for nothing Earthling fraternity Code word: absurdity Trade in your vanity For temporary sanity Though the madness never ends The universe still bends All that once was old will soon be new again We can discuss it in a song But it won’t be very long Till it’s all for nothing
6.
Man in the sky Hear me when I cry Keep me after I die Oh, man in the sky Man in the sky Look me in the eye Tell me a little white lie Oh, man in the sky Fall to my knees I’m begging please Come rescue me From the king of jealousy In a land of fantasy Man in the sky Maybe you could try To be a nicer guy Oh, man in the sky Flowers and trees Wasting disease Come set me free From stone-age reverie And old-time make-believe Man in the sky Two hundred miles high Call me when you pass by Oh, man in the sky Fall to my knees I’m begging please Come rescue me From the king of jealousy In a land of fantasy Lies beyond the pale Grown-up fairy tales Man in the sky Man in the sky Man in the sky
7.
Red-hot days in paradise Rising tides and melting ice Minds are open for business But don’t think twice Rich until our luck runs out Desperate for a speck of doubt Homo sapiens wonders What’s it all about? All aboard This ship of fools Praise the lord It’s so hot in the swimming pool Here in Denial We’re the new fossil fuel Gaia’s laid it on the line Doubled down on humankind Got to remember the future Or we’re out of time Gravity you know it’s real Never mind that Man of Steel Just like natural selection — It’s the real deal! All aboard This ship of fools Praise the lord It’s so hot in the swimming pool Here in Denial We’re the new fossil fuel Just six thousand years you say? Planet Earth was made this way? If you don’t believe in carbon dating — sail away! Sail away Sail away Sail away…
8.
Smile 04:25
Beautiful days I can’t see them When it’s raining in my mind So many names I can’t be them Nor can I reach the other side All around I’m losing ground To legions of total imbeciles Stay with me So I can feel your kindness Your love — And your smile Meet you halfway I’ll try to make it Another day another dime Who can say? Who can fake it? Who can take this waste of time? All around I’m losing ground To legions of total imbeciles Stay with me So I can feel your kindness Your love — And your smile Fool me twice And then a third time Maybe I’ll make it four or five! Oh, it’s good advice — Just wave the peace sign And try to make it back alive All around I’m losing ground To legions of total imbeciles Stay with me So I can feel your kindness Your love — And your smile Your smile
9.
The Fool 02:59
Inside out There’s no doubt Always something small To fret about On demand From high command Here in wonderland So proclaims the fool Upside down Same sad clown Always there to laugh And joke around Act in kind Free your mind Get it right next time So proclaims the fool… Climb the tower Sing it to the stars Forgive the hanged man Just come as you are Spin the wheel of fortune Tell it to the moon The sun will always light your way But I’m still the fool One fine day Who’s to say? I might change and Pigs will fly away!
10.
Black crow in a blue sky Big empty space to fill Ghost town of the future Living in that house on the hill Out on this lonely road It’s a devil’s bargain Deserts and cactus trees Lead me back to the garden Thanks a billion crazy crow For breaking trail on the high road Paint your joy — Sing your sorrow Dark clouds above me Vapor trails across the sky Blue moon at my window Still I’m just a lone passerby Big money — dog eat dog Corporate coyotes feed Stardust and the gold Unraveled by their greed, so… Thanks a billion crazy crow For breaking trail on the high road Paint your joy — Sing your sorrow Turbulent citron and indigo Swirling high above No regrets and no apologies For the crazy cries of love Oh, your crazy cries of love! Here at icy altitude My hexagram of strings Melancholy comfort From the beating of black wings Yellow taxi wait for me Don’t wanna drink alone Find my secret place My surrealistic night ride home So thanks a billion crazy crow For breaking trail on the high road Paint your joy Paint your joy Paint your joy…

about

Pawlie's fourth album consists of ten new songs built around one central theme: Homo sapiens (the “ape”) and its ongoing struggle to survive and evolve here on its home planet.

The album's title is a play on words from William Hogarth's eighteenth-century painting series, A Rake’s Progress. A modern-day re-imagining of Hogarth’s cautionary tale, the songs on An Ape’s Progress touch on subjects that challenge us to this day: nationalism (Proud American), greed (Nickel and Dime), the environment (Opposable Thumb, Ship of Fools), faith (Man in the Sky), optimism (All’s Right with the World), and self-reflection (The Fool, Smile, All for Nothing). The album’s closing track, Crazy Crow (for Joni), is a tribute to the great Joni Mitchell — a musical and lyrical tip of the hat, with a special painting in honor of Ms. Mitchell included as part of the album’s artwork.

Co-produced with Santa Barbara producer/mixer extraordinaire Thom Flowers (Steve Perry, The Ataris), An Ape’s Progress features an all-star cast of musicians. Instrumental tracks were recorded in the summer and fall of 2020, with each player working in isolation at his/her home studio and delivering tracks via internet. Vocals were recorded during the winter of 2020, with mixing and mastering completed in the spring of 2021.

In the concept-album tradition, An Ape’s Progress also features spectacular artwork. A series of thirteen acrylic paintings was created specially for the album by brilliant visual artist Igor Koutsenko. In addition to the haunting cover image, Koutsenko created a unique illustration for each song, as well as a surreal Pawlie portrait and a few other surprises. All artwork appears in the downloadable album’s PDF booklet — but shines most brightly in the 24-page printed booklet included with the deluxe-edition CD!

credits

released August 13, 2021

Produced by Pawlie and Thom Flowers
Mixed by Thom Flowers at Hi-Volt Sound
Mastered by Adam Ayan at Gateway Mastering

Pawlie — Vocals, Acoustic & Electric Guitars, Percussion, Synth (10)
Jake Hayden — Drums (and certified Master of the Click™)
Dean Dinning — Bass (1-9), Organ (1, 2, 4-8)
Mike Keneally — Electric Guitar (1, 3-9), Rhodes (3, 8, 9), Wurlitzer (7)
Roger Joseph Manning, Jr. — Piano (1, 5), Accordion (2), Synth (1-6)
Dallas Kruse — String Arrangement (5), Rhodes & Synth (10)
Allen Hinds — Electric Guitar (2, 10)
Travis Carlton — Fretless Bass (10)
Lyle Workman — Guitar Solo (10)
Alastair Greene — Resonator Guitar (2)
Angus Cooke — Cello (6)
Libby Patten — Backing Vocals (1, 2, 3, 7, 10)
Michal Patten — Backing Vocals (5, 6)

All songs written by Pawlie
© 2018-2020 Mr. Potato Head Music (ASCAP)
℗ 2021 Flying Meatloaf Records

Illustrations by Igor Koutsenko

Package design by Pawlie

My deep gratitude to all the amazing humans
who helped create this album!

pawliemusic.com

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about

Pawlie Santa Barbara, California

Pawlie’s original brand of acoustic/electric music draws upon rock, jazz, folk, and progressive influences.

Album releases include Pawlie (1994), The Small Time (1998), Little Green Man (2011), and An Ape’s Progress (2021).

Pawlie lives in Santa Barbara with his wife Libby, and their pampered feline, Penny.
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