Buck Irony and the Bucket of Truth| Political Folk Music

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Buck Irony: Political Folk Music for the Middle 70%

These songs weren't written to convince anyone.

They came from listening:

to conversations half-finished,

to arguments that never really ended,

to things people said quietly once the shouting stopped.

Some of what I heard didn't agree with itself.

Some of it didn't agree with me.

I didn't try to fix that.

I just carried it along

and set it down here,

the best I could.

No One Owns The Truth. We All Share It.

Truth in Tow

Buck Irony

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Truth In Tow

Found it behind the State House Fence,

Half Buried under broken sense.

Said “Bucket of Truth" on the side in grime,

Guess the good stuff don't age like wine.

Poured out the rain, kicked off the rust,

Heard an echo hum, said “In rust we trust.”

Ain't much left that you can hold in your hand,

“Cept a bucket named Rusty and a broke-down van.

So I packed up my sins and my strings and my plans,

Tied ‘em all down in my tired old van.

Headin' north with a bucket and a dream in my hand,

Singin' truth's got wheels, and she ain't done yet, man.

Roll on, Rusty-roll on.

Wiped the bottom clean, saw “1776”,

Stamped in steel like a rebel fix.

Heard it once held notes from the writer's room,

Where freedom first learned how to bloom.

I laughed and said, “Well hell, old friend,

Looks like history's ridin' again.”

Fired up the van, it coughed and began,

With a prayer and a rattle and a one-man band.

So I packed up my sins and my strings and my plans,

Tied ‘em all down in my tired old van.

Headin' north with a bucket and a dream in my hand,

Singin’ truth's got wheels, and she ain't done yet, man.

Roll on, Rusty-roll on.

Don't mind the noise, that's freedom's song.

You'll get used to the bumps before too long.

You just hum the key, I'll strum the chord-

We'll find what's left that's worth fighting for.

Now the map's just a rumor and the gas light's on,

But every mile hums the same old song.

If freedom's a bell, I'll carry its clang,

In this busted-up bucket and my beat-up van.

Roll on, Rusty-roll on.

Spin is Sin

Buck Irony

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Spin Is Sin

Ask ‘em a question, you'll get a speech,

All polished up, just out of reach.

They dance around the yes and no,

Like truth's a wire they can't let go.

They'll thank your family, bless your pain,

Quote a verse, then change the lane.

By the time they circle back again,

You forgot what you were askin’ them.

Spin is sin, and I've had enough,

Tired of the twisters callin' it tough.

Tell me plain, don't make me guess,

If truth's a mess, just say it's a mess.

Spin is Sin - so cut the fluff,

If you can't stand straight, you ain't strong enough.

They talk about hope, then hedge the bet,

Like we ain't learned how bad it gets.

Left hand waves while the right hand signs,

The fine print says “it takes more time.’

They sell redemption by the pound,

Smile for the feed, not the battleground.

But when the mic goes off and the lights go dim,

Even they can't believe in them.

Spin is sin, and I've had enough,

Tired of the twisters callin' it tough.

Tell me plain, don't make me guess,

If truth's a mess, just say it's a mess.

Spin is sin - so cut the fluff,

If you can't stand straight, you ain't strong enough.

Now I don't mind if we disagree,

But don't use words to lie to me.

If north means north and wrong meens wrong,

Then how come every answer's a song?

Spin is sin, you can feel it blow,

Every channel, same old show.

I'll take a truth that hurts my pride,

Over a lie that smooths the ride.

Spin is sin - say it again,

If we can't stop spinnin', we're gone with the wind.

Ask Once, Duck Twice - Spin's a Sin.

The Middle 70

Buck Irony

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The Middle 70

They tell me I've gotta pick a side,

But both sides say the other one lied.

I checked the math, it don't add right,

Seems most of us are stuck in the middle of night.

Fifteen left, fifteen right,

That leaves seventy still in sight.

Ain't hard to see who's makin' noise,

But the silence has a million voice.

Here's to the middle 70,

Where common sense still draws a breath with me.

Where folks work hard, pay bills on time,

Raise their kids and stand in line.

While the edges shout for vanity,

We keep this ship upright, the middle 70.

Those TV fights sell fear by the pound,

We buy it just to pass it ‘round.

But out here where the fences lean,

We fix what's broke and keep it clean.

The loudest 30 love their show,

But 70 ain't buyin' what they know.

We're not the trend, we're the foundation,

Holdin' up this lopsided nation.

Here's to the middle 70,

Where common sense still lives rent free.

We mow our yards, we mind our ways,

We shake hands even when we disagree.

While the far ends spin insanity,

We stay balanced, the middle 70.

If you're fifteen left or fifteen right,

That means eighty-five don't see your light.

Don't mean you're wrong, just outnumbered friend,

Maybe step inside and try again.

Raise a glass to the middle 70,

We're the heart that keeps the beat steady.

No flags to burn, no sides to win,

Just neighbors tryin' to start again.

While the pundits trade profanity,

We build the road, the middle 70.

Funny thing ‘bout common sense,

It never needed a headline to make a dent.

Echo Chamber Choir

Buck Irony, The Fiddler(vocals)

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Echo Chamber Choir

Welcome brothers, welcome sisters,

To the Church of What We Knew.

We've got headlines for the faithful,

And the facts that fit our view.

Raise your phone, repeat the sermon,

Let the algorithm bless your mood.

You'll never feel alone

When the choir sounds just like you.

Hallelujah, we all agree,

Sing it louder, same old key.

Harmony's a mirror when the truth retires,

Amen to the Echo Chamber Choir.

Left pew hums a righteous anthem,

Right pew belts a holy fight.

Each convinced the other's crazy,

But both glow in the sacred light.

They pass the plate of confirmation,

Feeding on the proof they crave.

While the truth hums quietly,

From the back row of the nave.

Hallelujah, we all agree,

Sing it louder, same old key.

Harmony's a mirror when the truth expires,

Amen to the Echo Chamber Choir.

Solo voice tries to sing off key,

But the crowd just turns him down.

Can't have dissonance in heaven,

When the echo runs the sound.

You can change the channel,

But it's still the same song.

Different logo, same beat,

Just a different kind of wrong.

Hallelujah, we all agree,

Prayin' for the proof we need.

Every echo builds the fire higher,

Amen to the Echo Chamber Choir.

Amen… Amen.

Amen to the Ech Chamber Choir.

Patchwork Politics

Buck Irony

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Patchwork Politics

They say money's speech since that Citizens United fight,

Well if cash is gonna talk that loud, let’s say it clear and bright.

No dark rooms, no secret checks, no backdoor money lines,

If you're bought and paid for buddy, you should wear the signs.

Patchwork Politics, stitch it on tight,

Show us who bought you in the broad daylight.

If every dollar's honest, don't hide the light,

Citizens United? Nah, let citizens unite.

Patchwork Politics, truth on display,

Wear your sponsors like the rest of us pay.

If Exxon paid the rent, sew it on your sleeve,

If Meta bought your bus tour, say it when you leave.

If Big Pharma got you smiling, make the patch real wide,

Let the whole damn country see the folks you ride beside.

Patchwork Politics, stitch it on tight,

Show us who bought you in the broad daylight.

If every dollar's honest, don't hide the light,

Citizens United? Nah, let citizens unite.

Patchwork Politics, truth on display,

Wear your sponsors like the rest of us pay.

I ain't sayin' cap it down,

I ain't sayin' close the door.

Spend what you want, just tell the truth,

And wear the proof you're speakin' for.

Now I askin' miracles, just sunlight on the scene,

If you won't list your donors, what else ain't what it seems?

Me? I'm sponsored by nobody, ‘cept Rusty and the road,

A truth bucket and an old guitar, no logo overload.

Patchwork Politics, stitch it on tight,

Show us who bought you in the broad daylight.

If every dollar's honest, don't hide the light,

Citizens United? Nah, let citizens untie.

Patchwork Politics, truth on display,

Wear your sponsors big as the lies they pay.

Can't spin the truth if it's sewn on your skin.

The Silence You Keep

Buck Irony, Shortwave Sally(vocals)

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The Silence You Keep

You said you'd break the silence,

You swore you'd name the names.

All the files, the flights, the patterns,

The shadows in the frames.

But now you're in the Oval,

Behind a soundproof door,

And all that talk of daylight

Don't reach us anymore.

So don't tell us its nothing,

While you're guarding every spark.

You're just scared that the truth,

Might light up half the dark.

You say it's for their safety,

But it's really for your seat.

We know the sound of power,

It's the silence you keep.

You said there'd be disclosure,

You said we'd get the facts.

But promises to people,

Don't survive these backroom pacts.

The moment that the pressure shifted,

Your memory got thin,

And every truth you swore to tell,

Got locked back up again.

So don't tell us it's nothing,

While you're dimming out the spark.

You're just scared that the truth,

Might show us who you are.

You say it's for their safety,

But it's really for your seat.

We know the sound of power,

It's the silence you keep.

The truth don't break a country,

But cover-ups sure do.

You say we can't take chaos,

But yoou lived off chaos too.

So don't call it protection,

When it's cover for your name.

The truth was never fragile,

It's the ones who play the game.

You say it's for the people,

But it's comfort that you seek.

We know the sound of power,

It's the silence you keep.

We know the sound of power,

It's the silence you keep.

Revelations and Revolutions

Buck Irony

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Revelations and Revolutions

Rollin' past the headlines on an old FM,

Every channel blamin' “them" again.

Left says right, right says left,

But both sides keep quiet ‘bout who's really blessed.

And somewhere between the noise and the spin,

A voice inside me whispered, “Look again.”

I pulled the van to the gravel's edge,

Stared at the fields and the endless stretch.

Thought maybe truth ain't red and blue,

Maybe it’s the part they hide from you.

Revelations and Revolutions,

Come from seein' past the cheap illusions.

Ain't your neighbor takin' what you're missin’,

It's the kings above who keep you wishin'.

When the people wake, the story bends,

Revelations and Revolutions, my friends.

They tell us choose a team and take the fight,

But both those jerseys cost ‘em nothin' overnight.

They feed us fears like county fair fries,

While the real game's played up in the sky.

And every time we argue what's left or right,

They count their money just outta sight.

But I heard a truth on a late night drive,

Soft as hope but sharp as a pocketknife.

The line ain't between you and me,

It's the fence ‘round their prosperity.

Revelations and Revolutions,

Come from seein' past the cheap Illusions.

Ain't your neighbor stealin' what you're missin',

It's the kings above who keep you wishin'.

When the people wake, the story bends,

Revelations and Revolutions, my friends.

Now I ain't preachin' fire and stone,

Just sayin' we've been lookin' at the wrong throne.

If power trickles down like they claim it should,

Why's the top stay dry while we're stuck in the flood?

So here's to the folks with nothin' left to lose,

Tired of the lies that the mighty choose.

Here's to the middle, the heart, the ground,

The quiet ones who never back down.

When we rise together, hand in hand,

Even giants learn to understand.

Revelations and Revolutions,

Not by force but by resolution.

Once the people see who writes the rules,

You can't divide a crowd that ain't playin' fools.

When the truth shows up, the charade just ends,

Revelations and Revolutions, my friends.

Funny thing ‘bout waking up…you don't go back to sleep.

The Playbook

Buck Irony

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The Playbook

Start with a slogan, twist it ‘till it bleeds,

Make truth the enemy, plant fear like seeds.

Call the press corrupt, the courts unfair,

Say, “Only I can fix it", and no one cares.

We laugh it off, “that’s just the show,”

But the cracks get deep before you know…

We're humming along to tyranny,

While they're rewritting history.

Step by step, it's all so clean,

It doesn't look like what it means.

Yeah, humming along to tyranny,

Smiling whle they take the key.

The drift feels like safe, the lights still gleam,

But the dream's dissolving in the screen.

Fire the watchdogs, flood the feed,

Make outrage routine till no one reads.

Pack the courts, change the rules,

Turn believers into tools.

Praise the cops who look away,

Make dissent a crime one day.

We post, we scroll, we shrug, we yawn,

And wonder where the daylight's gone.

We're humming along to tyranny,

The chorus sounds like liberty.

A thousand lies in harmony,

And truth's the one off-key.

They’ll build the walls, they'll close the door,

Say “law and order,” then take more.

Call it safety, call it pride,

While freedom's slipping on the slide.

Heroes fall, the crowd still cheers,

“We saw this coming” disappears.

First they gaslight.

Then they rewrite.

Then they silence.

Then they fight.

Then they “win.”

Then they grin.

And you wonder how it all begins…

We're humming along to tyranny,

Dancing blind in 4k streams.

Every lie's a catchy beat,

Till silence hums beneath our feet.

Yeah, humming along to tyranny…

But the bridge is burning quietly.

Broken On Purpose

Buck Irony, Reggie(vocals)

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Broken on Purpose

I've been drivin' past the courthouse,

Since the day I learned to drive.

Thought the stone was carved forever,

Turns out it's paint on plywood sides.

Found the cracks behind the columns,

Heard the truth from old-timers:

“This whole thing's a movie set, son,

But the script ain't written for the grinders.”

They claim the system stumbled,

That it just needs one more fix.

But I've built things with my own two hands,

And mistakes don't look like this.

‘Cause it ain't broken by mistake,

It was built this way from scratch.

Just a Hollywood street of freedom,

with nothing holding up the back.

They painted on the sunshine,

So we'd think we had a say…

Yeah, it's broken on purpose,

‘Cause it works for them this way.

They got doors we can't walk into,

Meetings held behind the scene.

We got front-row seats to chaos,

They get quiet rooms and green.

They leave the fronts of buildings standing,

Like a promise made to keep.

But behind ‘em it's bare lumber,

Where the real decisions sleep.

They say the countr's struggling,

Blame the workers, blame the news.

But broken things collapse on folks,

This one only fall on who the choose.

“Cause it ain't broken by mistake,

It was built this way from scratch.

Just a Hollywood street of freedom,

With nothing holding up the back.

They painted on the sunshine,

So we'd think we had a say…

Yeah, it's broken on purpose,

“Cause it works for them that way.

I seen strong men hold this nation,

With their knuckles split and sore.

I seen widows making miracles,

Stretching paychecks just for more.

They say we're part of the story,

But they lock us off the stage.

While the credits roll for people,

Who never felt a working wage.

No, it ain't broken by mistake,

It was built this way from scratch.

Just a Hollywood street of freedom,

With nothing holding up the back.

They painted on the sunshine,

While they walked behind the gates.

Yeah, it's broken on purpose,

‘Cause it works for them that way.

One day the paint'll peel,

And the wind will take the lies.

Till then we keep on living,

Under manufactured skies.

And every time they call it freedom,

I remember what they say.

It ain't broken by accident…

They made it break this way.

The Price of Every Promise

Buck Irony

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The Price of Every Promise

I clocked out late on Friday,

Barely made it to the store.

Prices jumpin' like they're trying,

To outrun the working poor.

They talk big on TV,

Say they're looking out for folks,

But I ain't seen ‘em in the checkout line,

Or hearing blue collar jokes.

Yeah, They're cutting deals at dinner,

While we're cutting overtime.

Every “change is coming soon",

Feels like someone else's line.

“Cause there's a price on every promise,

And it always falls on us.

We're paying with our backs and knees,

They're paying with our trust.

Every handshake in the spotlight,

Turnes into a bill to cover,

Yeah, the price of every promise,

Hits the worker not the one who offered.

I'm raising kids on lunch breaks,

Patching tires, making rent.

Politicians talk in circles,

‘Bout a world they never spent.

They don't know the early mornings,

Or the busted knuckle grind.

They just wave around solutions,

That somehow leave us all behind.

I's a shortcut for the money,

But a slowdown for the man.

Who's doing all the heavy lifting,

In a country built by hand.

“Cause there's a price on every promise,

And it always falls on us.

We're paying with our backs and knees,

They're paying with our trust.

Every handshake in the spotlight,

Turns into a bill to cover.

Yeah, the price of every promise,

Hits the worker, not the one who offered,

I ain't asking for a miracle,

Just for straight talk, not a show,

Someone whoo's seen a punch clock,

Knows what real people know.

We keep this whole thing running,

We fix it when it breaks.

But they're giving out the credit,

To folks who never ache.

There's a price on every promise,

We've been paying all our lives.

They keep talking “bout the future,

While we're taking extra shifts at night.

Every vow they make for cameras,

Turns to dust once they recover,

Yeah, the price of every promise,

Is the worker they forget to cover.

So next time someone talks big,

“Bout the change they're gonna bring,

Check who's holding up the ladder,

Check who's pulling every string.

“Cause the price of every promise,

Ain't the number that they're naming.

It's the folks on factory floors,

Who keep the whole damn country changing.

While We Were Fighting

Buck Irony

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While We Were Fighting

While we were fightin' over bathrooms,

They were raisin' up their pay.

While we argued over book lists,

They were cuttin' lunch lines away.

While we shouted ‘bout a flag pin,

Left or right upon a coat.

They were meetin' in the back room,

Where we never get to vote.

And all that noise on the TV set,

Turns out it's just their safety net.

“Cause while we were fightin’, they were smilin’,

Countin' every click and view.

Sellin' outrage by the hour,

Gettin' rich off red and blue.

We thought the battle was each other,

Turns out the enemy was sightin',

On the folks who’d never notice,

‘Cause we spent the night fightin'.

While we were postin' at the neighbors,

Callin' strangers “enemy".

Both the parties cashed donations,

From the same damn industry.

While we cursed the folks on Main Street,

Sayin' “pick a side or leave,”

They were buildin' bigger fences,

‘Round the things we can't perceive.

And that chantin' from the partisan crowd?

Just keeps the real thieves laughin' proud.

“Cause while we were fighting, they were smilin',

Countin’ every click and view.

Selllin' outrage by the hour,

Gettin’ rich off red and blue.

We thought the battle was each other,

Turns out the enemy was sightin',

On the folks who'd never notice,

“Cause we spent the night fightin'.

I pulled the van over just past mile fifty-two.

Turned off the radio, looked at Rusty,

And said, “Hell…we been played, ain't we?”

All this time, while we were pickin' teams…

They were pickin' pockets.

And maybe the biggest lie they ever sold,

Was that we're nothing alike.

Truth is…

We're all tired.

We're all broke.

And none of us ordered this damn circus.

So here's to the folks who work the mornings,

And the one's who close the store.

To the nurse who pulls a double,

And the vet on his third tour.

We ain't enemies, we're neighbors,

Both just tryin' to make it right.

It's time to turn and face the towers,

That been hidin' in our sight.

“Cause while we were fighting, they were smillin’,

Buildin' empires out of spin.

But the second we stop swingin',

That's the second truth walks in.

When the Middle 70 rises,

All the phantoms lose their lighting.

Yeah, the story starts to change,

The day we quit fightin'.

“Not you against me… It's all of us against the machine.”

Common Knowledge Blues

Buck Irony

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Common Knowledge Blues

Everybody knows the truth's gone quite,

But nobody knows that everybody knows.

It's hiding behind a headline riot,

In the space where reason goes.

So speak the truth out loud, my friend,

Let the echo make its rounds.

“Cause silence turns to power,

When no one makes a sound.

If a lie breaks a window and no one hears,

The glass will cut the years to come.

Norms don't die with swords or spears,

They fade when hearts go numb.

Shine your candle in the daylight,

Let ‘em see you still believe.

Democracy ain't a birthright,

It's a song we gotta weave.

Show your vote, show your care,

Make the caring common air.

It's not just knowing what is true,

It's knowing the know too.

So hum the rule, the line, the pact,

Let conscience make a comeback act.

A country's saved not by decree,

But by what we all agree to see.

The Band

Collected on the way.

Buck Irony -Vocals, guitar

Didn't set out to start a band.

Just kept moving long enough for one to happen.

He listened more that he talked.

Wrote things down when they stuck.

Sang them back the way he found them,

Unfinished,

Honest,

And still figuring themselves out.

Some songs came from him.

Most passed through.

The Fiddler - fiddle, vocals

Found outside a room that had already gone quiet.

Played like the tune had been waiting for him longer than we had.

Never rushed the melody, never explained what it meant.

Joined without asking how long the road was,

or who was supposed to be in charge.

Reggie - Keyboards, piano, harmonica, vocals

Picked up somewhere between stops.

Heard the space where something was missing.

Filled it without taking over.

Played the song needed, then got out of the way.

Never played the same thing twice.

Never needed to.

Shortwave Sally - Bass, vocals, long range comms

Came through static and half-clear signals.

Knew how to tune in when everything else sounded wrong.

Carried harmony like it was a listening skill, not a spotlight.

Left the noise behind and stayed with the song until it settled into itself.

Big Paw - Rhythm, Timekeeper

Big Paw showed up early and stayed late.

Never missed a beat, never asked for credit.

Kept time while the rest of us figured out what we were trying to say,

And whether it was worth saying.

Ate a lot of tacos…

Seriously, a lot of tacos.