NOT SHOULD’VE KNOWN
I crawled down, in a wishing well about
as deep as I could go, and I found there’s
still no drawing water there, without a
bucket and a long rope. And, then, the
thought occurred to me, that, I shoulda
spent more time on other things than
wishing wells, like, learning how to climb.But, what if I knew, and not shoulda
known? What if I knew, and not shoulda
known, not shoulda known, and not
shoulda known? Well, at least I’ve learned
to wander, and at least I learned to
leave the hucksters and the conjurers
and the land of make-believe. Yeah,
I danced out of those hallowed halls,
where their dust still fouls the air. And,
if I’m not laughing when my number’s
called, well, at least I’ll not be there. What
if I knew, and not shoulda known? What
if I knew, and not shoulda known, not
shoulda known, not shoulda known? And
then, a man in a yellow jacket, with red
death inside his eyes, he asked me for
directions. He said, “Hey, how do I get to
95?” “Well,” I just said, “I’m not from here.”
But he didn’t care or wish to wait. He
just said, “Well, if not 95, then how about
Highway 8?” That’s when I reached into my
pocket and I, I quickly gave the cashier
cash, and then, I hurried out the door
before its wind could hit my back. But
he ran right out behind me, and he, he
put his dark sunglasses on, and like that
devil in the night, he brushed my shoulder
and then was gone. Now I’m just sittin’
here in my car, thinkin’ about how you
and I have changed, and how there’s no
guarantee our destiny could ever be the
same. Because, no matter how much care
we take, there’s still danger on these
roads. But, I’m not lookin’ for what’s fair to
break, and it doesn’t need to show. No,
I’m just waitin’ for the courage to acceptwhat I can’t change. Still, I can’t help but
worry ‘bout how sometimes things turn
strange and, how, with every situation that
confronts me to my core, there comes
a realization that I seem to have had
before. So, I’m not askin’ you any questions
about why you wanna be alone. I saw the
love was gone from your eyes when you
said it was all true, “And, you? You shoulda
known.” But what if I knew and not shoulda
known? What if I knew and not shoulda
known, not shoulda known, and not
shoulda known?
Musician Credits
Not Should’ve Known
Bill Scorzari-Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Juan Solorzano-Baritone Guitar
Brent Burke-Resophonic Guitar
Fats Kaplin-Pedal Steel Guitar, Fiddle
Kyle Tuttle-Banjo
Will Kimbrough-Mandolin
Danny Mitchell-Piano
Michael Rinne-Upright Bass
Neilson Hubbard-Drums, Percussion
Produced by Bill Scorzari and Neilson Hubbard
Recorded at First Thunder Recording Studios, Huntington, NY by Bill Scorzari and at Skinny Elephant Recording, Nashville, TN by Dylan Alldredge
Mixed by Dylan Alldredge, Neilson Hubbard and Bill Scorzari at Skinny Elephant Recording, Nashville, TN; Tryin’, Tryin’, Tryin’, Tryin’ Mixed by Bill Scorzari at First Thunder Recording Studios, Huntington, NY
Mastered by: Jim DeMaine at Yes Master Studio, Nashville, TN
Album and Lyric Book Photography: Jacob Blickenstaff
Album and Lyric Book Art and Design: Anna Berman
Special Thanks to Ty Allison, Caleb Bydone and David Bydone for translating the lyrics to Tryin’, Tryin’, Tryin’, Tryin’ from English to Navajo and helping me learn to speak them in Navajo as best I could. I am honored by, and grateful for your friendship.
“…singer-songwriter Bill Scorzari transcends titles like songwriter or poet. He catapults past categories into a dark
ruminative and ultimately life-affirming realm where folklore, memories, pain, prayer, and incantation meet.” - March/April 2020 issue, Acoustic Guitar Magazine
Look for his 4th album, “The Crosswinds of Kansas,” in the spring/summer of 2022.
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