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Mortal Enemies

by David Nagler

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  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Mortal Enemies is a collaboration with Josh Kaufman, known as a member of supergroups Bonny Light Horseman and Muzz, and for his work on records by Bob Weir, The Hold Steady, Taylor Swift, and many more. Recorded in 2013, Mortal Enemies blurs the line between confessional writing and character-based narratives with staggering intimacy. Comprised of nine Nagler originals and one cover (Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy"), the adventurous musical arrangements touch on folk, psychedelia, soul, and Tropicália. Vinyl includes an MP3 download card.

    Includes unlimited streaming of Mortal Enemies via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
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      $12 USD or more 

     

  • Streaming + Download

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

      $12 USD  or more

     

  • Full Digital Discography

    Get all 4 David Nagler releases available on Bandcamp and save 25%.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Mortal Enemies, Songs of Advice and Adversity, The Appointees, Volumes 1 & 2, and Carl Sandburg's Chicago Poems. , and , .

    Purchasable with gift card

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1.
Mortal enemies Never recoil Never swear off a habit Mortal enemies Never recoil Once they're already at it They just want to shine In the eye of their beholder Too busy drawing the line And no more wise, just older Oh, can they ever talk it out Mortal enemies Tattered and torn And born under a bad sign Mortal enemies Tattered and torn Can't even walk a straight line Only wanting to know How much damage they can do Oh, can they ever talk it through
2.
Crazy 04:06
3.
Jimmy Darren 04:27
Jimmy Darren You're my finest vanity endeavor Contrary to what you may have heard from your mother You've got my eyes You've got my eyes And you'll always have my eyes Jimmy Darren She wasn't always so insane Every now and then I'll even stroll down memory lane You've got her smile You've got her smile And you'll always have her smile And when you grow up you won't be just another no one You'll be strong as a wrestler and tall as a mountain Good friends, good times and good fortune Will shoot up towards you just like a fountain And you'll make me proud You'll make me proud Jimmy Darren One day I'll take you to Europe As soon as You've got your boots in the stirrups You've got my name You've got my name And you can always have my name And when you grow up You won't be just another no one You'll be sharp as a switchblade and cool as the ocean And if you keep your head up and always stay in motion You'll make me proud You'll make me proud
4.
If I had a knife I could trim away all of Bobby's insecurities The pain inside that brings out all these drunken nights and felonies He wouldn't enable me to fail I wouldn't have to pay his bail He once was such a showman Now I feel like I don't know him anymore If I had a knife I would trim away all of Bobby's insecurities I wouldn't have to hide When they hound me with his constant infidelities I wouldn't have to wear these sunglasses I wouldn't be surrounded by these jackasses It's all champagne and cocaine and trying to explain why he's not here If my mother was still alive she's slap me upside the head And I'd make a scene as I often do though I know it's true I know it's true If I had a knife I could trim away all of Bobby's insecurities He'd change his life He would only be addicted to his family He's past the point of no return I don't think he'll ever learn That I love him still more than he ever will
5.
I'm not one of the four people she loves I'm not one of the four people she loves I'm not one of the four she turns to when her world is turned around and she can't sleep soundly I'm not one of the four people she loves I'm not one of the four people she loves I'm not one of the four she calls when she's lost her job and another lover has robbed her I'm not one The four people she loves are: Her mother Her aunt on her mother's side Her first serious boyfriend and the first professor who took her seriously But not me not no more I'm not supposed to talk to her and tell her I will go on living unlike what I would often say as the dawn was approaching
6.
Oh baby this is not a busy night for me I’m as useless as an evangelist on Avenue B Don’t ask me what the time is my watch stopped hours ago Don’t ask me what my sign is I don’t even know What’s the matter baby What is it you don’t see What’s the matter baby Are your eyes not working properly I am a creature of habit a real-life recurring nightmare So I keep on happening when there’s no one left to scare Do I love you? Will I stand by you? Probably not. Get me out of here baby I didn't save up all my cash for this Get me out of here baby I didn’t shave off my mustache for this I’m full of common courtesy and I'm full of common sense but abstinence and temperance just leave me on the fence Do I love you? Will I stand by you? Probably not. I didn't read the manual until everything had broken down and the manufacturer tried to explain that There’s no silver ball and chain and no one is listening no one is listening no one is no one no We are among the weak in rock We are among the weak in rock And the child of the moon is now the new kid on the block
7.
Crowded 03:53
I'm in a situation and all that can get me out of it is one more drink I need to sit in the park watch the chess players stare at their pieces and think You say it's like pulling teeth getting me to speak a word that isn't shrouded but you can't be my girl or live in my world it's too crowded You say I'm wasting time I can go back to school and I don't even have to pay tuition You've got all these big plans that with timing and commitment will come to fruition I say it's like shoveling snow Hearing you go on and on about it But you can't be my girl or live in my world it's too crowded It's too crowded with ghosts of bedrooms future and past It's too crowded to fill it with anything that might last We need to get the check say good night and walk to our respective destinations If we were wrong in retrospect we'll just have to use our vivid imaginations You say I'm just letting go and I've given you no reason to doubt it that's why you can't be my girl or live in my world it's too crowded
8.
Meeting Eva 03:50
Meeting Eva for the first time since I was a boy at her daughter's place in Washington Heights When my mother was out selling real estate Eva watched over me most days and many nights She said Put your toys away Listen to what I say and always remember you will forget me someday I would try to make her feel unwelcome and say things to her face that would turn her pale Eva was no genius but she knew enough to know that I was a fool who was bound to fail She said Put your toys away Listen to what I say and always remember you will forget me someday Meeting Eva for the first time since I was a boy when the word came down that she was frail I ring the doorbell I practice saying hello but there's no answer so I go
9.
Your flight touched down on Tuesday at JFK and I offered to come and collect you in the usual way With the shades on your head that you borrowed years ago I shouldn’t cry, because I know You’ve always had her heart I left you at her doorstep like an abandoned child Holding a fresh bouquet of lilacs and with your eyes all tired and wild With the news that she had waited several lifetimes to hear I shouldn’t cry, because it’s clear You’ve always had her heart You’ve always had her heart and liked to flaunt it You’ve always had her heart but didn’t want it And you hurt me more than you know without any cruel intent As vague as you had been before I knew what you meant When you said you were coming back to seal your fate I shouldn’t cry, ‘cause it’s too late You’ve always had her heart I shouldn’t cry, but I can’t wait You’ve always had her heart
10.
I must be trying too hard I must be trying too hard I’ve gone back on my word more times than I can count I must be trying too hard I must be trying too hard I must be trying too hard My own dissatisfaction caught me off guard now I’m trying too hard I huffed and I puffed but it was never enough and I knew exactly what they’d all say: You can come to the party but you can’t stay I must be trying too hard I must be trying too hard I’ve gone back on myself more times than I can count I must be trying too hard I huffed and I puffed but I was rebuffed I said I was a lover and a fighter but at every new knockout my heart grew tighter I must be trying too hard I must be trying too hard Everyone is gone, so from now on I’ll try not to try so hard I’ll try not to try so hard

credits

released March 1, 2022

Produced & arranged by Josh Kaufman & David Nagler.
Recorded in Brooklyn, NY at Saltlands, Homeward Sound, Saltmines & Tiffany Recording, and in Woodstock, NY, at The Isokon.
Engineered by Halsey Quemere, Pete Wells, Josh, and David.
Mixed at The Isokon, Woodstock, NY, by Daniel James Goodwin with Josh & David.

Musicians:
Chris Buckridge: vocals on “The Weak in Rock”
Therese Cox: vocals on “Crazy,” “Crowded,” and “The Weak in Rock”
Brian Kantor: drums, percussion, vocals on “Jimmy Darren”
Josh Kaufman: bass, guitars, keyboards, string arrangements, Omnichord, electronics
Chris Mills: vocals on “Mortal Enemies”
David Nagler: vocals, guitars, pianos, organs
Annie Nero: vocals on “Mortal Enemies”
Karen Waltuch: viola on “Mortal Enemies,” “Crazy,” and “You’ve Always Had Her Heart”

Mastered by Jamal Ruhe at West West Side Music, New York, NY.

All music & lyrics by David Nagler (The One That Sings Music [BMI]) except “Crazy:” lyrics & music by Brian Burton, Thomas Callaway, Gianfranco Reverberi, Gian Piero Reverberi (Underground Animals / Chrysalis [ASCAP] / God Given Music / Warner Chappell [BMI] / BMG Ricordi Music Publishing SPA).

Cover photograph by Alan Chin. Taken above the Gulf of Mexico, June 19, 2010: View of the site of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill from helicopter over-flight as oil is burned off. facingchangeusa.org

Design by Mike Taylor-Mozer and Sheila Sachs.

Thanks to everyone who helped create this record, especially Josh and Daniel, without whom this record would have been inconceivable. Kudos to Niall and everyone at Song Club for providing a place where these songs could start coming to life. Love to Therese.

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David Nagler New York

David Nagler is a Brooklyn-based musician and songwriter. His groups include As For the Future, Tape Hiss, and Nova Social, and he is the musical director for Wesley Stace’s Cabinet of Wonders.

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