These Hands, by Martha Groves Perry

These Hands

by Martha Groves Perry

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Compelling 4-panel Digipak with original photography by Katie Chapman and Barbara Cromarty. Graphic Design by Sabiné Heusler-Schick at b3pmusic.com.

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1.	The Target 03:00	lyrics	buy track
You’re on your own but not alone Lose yourself within the stream Result unknown, resilience sown Keep your heart turned to your dream Aim for the target, but remember the target’s not the goal Aim for the target; it demands something from your soul Unless you chase your heart’s delight you’re just not doing it right Aim for the target, but remember the target’s Not the goal A breathing space, uncertain face You are way out on a bough A hiding place has been erased Take a look around you now Aim for the target, but remember the target’s not the goal Aim for the target; it demands something from your soul Unless you chase your heart’s delight you’re just not doing it right Aim for the target, but remember the target’s Not the goal One eye on the moment, one eye on the mark The chase is the objective; the target is the spark Watching every moment for the next right thing Even unexpected paths deciphering When no one’s there do you dare Work towards who you’re meant to be? Your heart’s aware how much you care About the gifts you have to bring Aim for the target, but remember the target’s not the goal Aim for the target; it demands something from your soul Unless you chase your heart’s delight you’re just not doing it right Aim for the target, but remember the target’s Not the goal Words & Music © 2017 Martha Groves Perry
2.	These Hands 02:58	lyrics	buy track
What am I to do with these hands? It seems that now you have your own plans I walked you to the water, and you dove in and swam What am I to do with these hands? They hang here like two discarded tools Silent servants follow the rules Now I reach inside myself and risk ridicule Truth laid bare can make me a fool Something’s clawing, trying to make its way out of me Scratching, gnawing, yearning for integrity Heal the split in what you see And what lies in the secret me Integrate my identity Pass through a ring of fire to be free What am I to do with these hands? I’m now recalling where I began I jump into the water, and I don’t give a damn I know what I will do with these hands Something’s clawing, trying to make its way out of me Scratching, gnawing, yearning for integrity What am I to do with these hands? What am I to do with these hands? This is what I’ll do with these hands Words & Music © 2016 Martha Groves Perry
3.	Hold On 02:44	lyrics	buy track
Don’t have to like it to be grateful for it No one can blame if you choose to have grit No harm complaining if you get over it Commit Gotta be clear, Gotta be calm Gotta dump fear, Gotta hold on Gotta be fierce, Gotta be strong Gotta stay weird, Gotta move on Got what I prayed for and the tears overflowed Another debt was paid that only I owed Filled up with gratitude to carry the load Bestowed Gotta be clear, Gotta be calm Gotta dump fear, Gotta hold on Gotta be fierce, Gotta be strong Gotta stay weird, Gotta move on Losing all perspective, lie awake at night But I’ll learn, I’ll learn Twisted in my bedclothes, putting up a fight But I’ll learn, I’ll learn To live my life right is to have no regret Some paths unchosen are not closed to me yet As long as love compels me I won’t forget Not yet Gotta be clear, Gotta be calm Gotta dump fear, Gotta hold on Gotta be fierce, Gotta be strong Gotta stay weird, Gotta move on Hold on Words & Music © 2018 Martha Groves Perry
4.	Hand in the River 03:25	lyrics	buy track
Hand in the river holding on Missing the people who have gone Slip through my fingers, memory lingers Whispering names into the dawn Flowing between banks and bed The water streams ahead Fed by currents far upstream The river flows with dreams, flows with dreams Hand in the river letting go Releasing the people that I know Yield to the changes, a heart rearranges Just being carried by the flow Flowing between banks and bed The water streams ahead Fed by currents far upstream The river flows with dreams, flows with dreams Paths of rain that collect deep inside my brain Riverbeds are the cradles for watersheds Banks embrace the path every river takes It’s the flow that makes every river go Hand in the river feeling grace Seeking reflections of a face I’ll flow with the river, be a forgiver Pray that my heart is keeping pace Flowing between banks and bed The water streams ahead Fed by currents far upstream The river flows with dreams, flows with dreams Words & Music © 2017 Martha Groves Perry
5.	Butterfly 03:34	lyrics	buy track
I’d like to get a picture of just where you are And where you’re going I sometimes get the feeling that I’ve gone too far To keep if flowing Then you look at me and then I can see You are not so far from me How can I help you when what made us two Is now just old history? It doesn’t matter how much time has come and gone Your heart breaks in me I know this world demands that we just carry on But I am listening Then you look at me and then I can see You are not so far from me How can I help you when what made us two Is now just old history? You’re the man you always dreamed you’d be Right now it’s just hard for you to see Even when each day includes a sting Let that butterfly unfold its wings Then you look at me and then I can see You are not so far from me How can I help you when what made us two Is now just old history? Then you look at me and then I can see You are not so far from me How can I help you when what made us two Is now just old history? Then you look at me and then I can see You are not so far from me How can I help you when what made us two Is now just old history? Words & Music © 2019 Martha Groves Perry
6.	Tender Lover 03:28	lyrics	buy track
The kind of man you find and keep Feeling lucky that I swept him off his feet He treasures me and every curve I thought that this was something that I don’t deserve He such a tender lover Such a tender lover There’s something to discover With such a tender lover Eyes of blue smiling wide First time in my life that I don’t have to hide In his arms murmuring Sometimes we don’t even have to say a thing He such a tender lover Such a tender lover There’s something to discover With such a tender lover He loves me with a romance that yearns He holds me with a fervor that burns He thrills me with all that he discerns Pleasure to uncover He such a tender lover Such a tender lover There’s something to discover With such a tender lover Words & Music © 2017 Martha Groves Perry
7.	Three Days 04:13	lyrics	buy track
When the first few moments hit me, I barely know my name I’m triggered from my heart down to my soul I swim in only feelings and irrational waves of pain For the next three days, saying nothing’ll be my goal It takes three days to pull myself together It takes three days to know what’s in my heart It takes three days until I might feel better It takes at least three days to own up to my part Recriminations fly out, injustice fills my head A sudden blindness to my faults descends I gorge on bits of blaming, I need to go to bed Be unconscious ‘til my mental state unbends It takes three days to pull myself together It takes three days to know what’s in my heart It takes three days until I might feel better It takes at least three days to own up to my part In sleep my conscience greets me, invites me to arise A creeping sense of sorrow pools around my eyes My faults come into focus, sanctimony dies A tender way of seeing comes with the sunrise After three good nights of slumber, I can face the stubborn facts My heart’s a bit more lined up with my head My words are framed with forethought, my boundaries are intact At least I’m far less prone to leave a mess It takes three days to pull myself together It takes three days to know what’s in my heart It takes three days until I might feel better It takes at least three days to own up to my part Words & Music © 2012 Martha Groves Perry
8.	Patiently 03:46	lyrics	buy track
Patiently, patiently, patiently I give you space to be Patiently, patiently, patiently I look for room to breathe And the words you spoke ring through my head What I should have answered stays unsaid It follows me into my bed instead Patiently, patiently, patiently I always turn a cheek Patiently, patiently, patiently I look for room to speak And the words you spoke ring through my head What I should have answered stays unsaid It follows me into my bed instead Slowly I get my feet under me Slowly my eyes rise up from my feet Slowly my words form between my teeth And I speak And I speak Patiently, patiently, patiently I bring out more of me Patiently, patiently, patiently I speak authentically And the words I spoke ring through my head What I said instead was spirited It leaves me in my bed so comforted And the words I spoke ring through my head What I said instead was spirited It leaves me in my bed so comforted Patiently, patiently, patiently I dream of what will be Words & Music © 2016 Martha Groves Perry
9.	Take My Hand 03:24	lyrics	buy track
You always seem to pass it around The grace that pours from you is profound Your feet are always firm on the ground Humility The beauty of your heart is so rare Reflected in how deeply you care Abundance you’re determined to share Charity Take my hand and share a smile I’m gonna be your friend, I’m gonna stay a while Take my hand and I’ll be true No matter where you go, no matter what you do I’ll always be right here for you You’ve mined the deepest parts of your soul You’ve faced the things beyond your control A faithful quest to make yourself whole Bravery Take my hand and share a smile I’m gonna be your friend, I’m gonna stay a while Take my hand and I’ll be true No matter where you go, no matter what you do I’ll always be right here for you She’s got an open heart for you A river of love that flows through A fierce pursuit of what’s true She’s got an open heart for you You call the good from all that you see Determined search for honesty Stubborn in your fight to be free Integrity Take my hand and share a smile I’m gonna be your friend, I’m gonna stay a while Take my hand and I’ll be true No matter where you go, no matter what you do Take my hand and share a smile I’m gonna be your friend, I’m gonna stay a while Take my hand and I’ll be true No matter where you go, no matter what you do I’ll always be right here for you I’ll always be right here for you I’ll always be right here for you Words & Music © 2017 Martha Groves Perry
10.	Threshold 04:39	lyrics	buy track
Her face turns to a threshold only she can see Seeking to escape from her heredity Unfamiliar ‘cause she’s halfway there Of my presence fully unaware Longing for the coming mystery And then I touch her, lay hands upon her, kiss her forehead While she calls out loud for her mother and her sister All her loved ones she can see right now but not reach My name is spoken in her ear, she turns to see Her sightless eyes declare that she remembers me She beckons me again to make her laugh Will it help her to discern her path? Her crooked hand feels warm and velvety And then I touch her, lay hands upon her, kiss her forehead While she calls out loud for her mother and her sister All her loved ones she can see right now but not reach Aye Eee Aye Eee Hearing Aye Eee Aye Eee Seeing Aye Eee Aye Eee Calling Aye Eee Aye Eee Longing A kiss transported us into a light-filled space She smiled into my soul in a familiar way Our smiles reflected what our hearts could see Her delight in just beholding me Just a moment to be bathed in grace And then I touch her, lay hands upon her, kiss her forehead While she calls out loud for her mother and her sister All her loved ones she can see right now but not reach Aye Eee Aye Eee Hearing Aye Eee Aye Eee Seeing Aye Eee Aye Eee Calling Aye Eee Aye Eee Longing Words & Music © 2017 Martha Groves Perry
11.	See Me 03:41	lyrics	buy track
I’ve never had a caricature drawn of me Because I’m terrified of what I might see My nose out to there and my crazy hair And eyes as big as the sea Full of nothing but a pathetic plea I remember his eyes, they were emerald green The night before my wedding they fixed on me Trying to bridge the space, the gaze was out of place But he told me what I’d always dreamed That he loved me though I’d always felt unseen See me, see me, thinking I will see me in your eyes When all I see is what I am to you And I forget why I looked as if I ever knew See me, see me, thinking I will see me in your eyes You see therefore I am, I am because you see That’s pretty much the shape of my pathology I conjure you when you’re not there ‘Cause I feel I might vanish without the stare But to vanish would mean that I’d once been seen And believing that doesn’t have a prayer If the truth is something I can share See me, see me, thinking I will see me in your eyes When all I see is what I am to you And I forget why I looked as if I ever knew See me, see me, thinking I will see me in your eyes In your eyes, in your eyes Words & Music © 2012 Martha Groves Perry
12.	Cheers for Tears 04:05	lyrics	buy track
Try to be less weepy, you’re probably just sleepy You’re making up that sadness to flaunt your tears You don’t know what I see, I can feel the beauty I can taste the heart grief in all I see There’ll be cheers for my own tears, cheers for my own tears Celebrate intensity And the cheers for my own tears, cheers for my own tears Liberate the fire in me I can weep with you, and you can call out, too for a Dream down in your heart that you wish were true Can I see the book where crying shows that you dare To open to a feeling and own it, too There’ll be cheers for my own tears, cheers for my own tears Celebrate intensity And the cheers for my own tears, cheers for my own tears Liberate the fire in me Wash out all the residue, pour it out to make life new Passion in this moment can heal Cry out all your liquid prayers, open up ‘til you’re bare Reality lies past what you feel I may not have a buffer, that doesn’t make you tougher Can you lift the burden in one real tear? I can handle much more, I release what is sore Free your deepest longings with one real tear There’ll be cheers for my own tears, cheers for my own tears Celebrate intensity And the cheers for my own tears, cheers for my own tears Liberate the fire in me Words & Music © 2016 Martha Groves Perry

about

THESE HANDS is Martha’s first full-length CD release, following up on the release of her 4-song EP SOMETHING GOOD in 2016.

The EP SOMETHING GOOD was an experiment to see if my musical stuff – all of it – was any good. Much to my delight, the response to SOMETHING GOOD was overwhelmingly positive, which allowed me to release some insecurities and just do the music …

The result in THESE HANDS is an unencumbered focus on what the songs are calling to themselves. I got to work with Kenny Schick again as my producer, and his exploration of texture and style in each song freed me to respond vocally to its demands and to uncover qualities of my voice that I am now confident to explore.

The two years of recording have been both wonderful and a bit harrowing for reasons that have nothing to do with music, but my focus never wavered, and my progress was slow and steady. My methodical preparation calms and centers me, allowing me to bring everything I am and can do to each session. If I didn’t love playing live so much, I could spend every day recording or prepping for recording because I love being in the studio. I am as at home in my music as I ever have been, and this is a lovely feeling.

Thank you for visiting, and please feel free to reach out to me … I’d love to hear from you!

In the meantime, please buy my CD when it releases, follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and come to a show!

"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced."
~ Vincent Van Gogh

credits

released March 1, 2020

All songs by Martha Groves Perry (MapleDream Music/ASCAP)

Vocals, cello, acoustic guitar, and backing vocals by Martha Groves Perry
All other instruments and backing vocals by Kenny Schick

Recorded at ToneFreq Studio, San Jose CA by Steven Glaze and Don Budd and at Nice n Up Studios, San Francisco CA by Kenny Schick

Produced, mixed and mastered by Kenny Schick at Basement3Productions
Released by MapleDream Music

Cover photo by Katie Chapman
Cover design by Sabiné Heusler-Schick
Song Image photography by Katie Chapman, Barbara Cromarty, and Martha Groves Perry
Song image design by Martha Groves Perry
Special thanks to Scott & Katie Chapman and the New Ballet, San Jose for their hospitality during a particularly intense recording prep period in April 2019.

mgpthesehands.com
marthagrovesperry.com
info@marthagrovesperry.com

© (P) 2020 MapleDream Music & Martha Groves Perry
All Rights Reserved; unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws.

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about

Martha Groves Perry San Francisco, California

Martha Groves Perry is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist based in San Francisco, California. Her bold, alternative Americana original music has a straightforward, compelling and sometimes edgy clarity with strong blues, rock, and experimental influences. Her penetrating, poetic lyrics reflect the fearless truth-telling and unbothered amusement of a seasoned, female point of view. ... more

discography

Call Out

Apr 2023
These Hands

Mar 2020
something good

Sep 2016

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