From the STCU stage at KSPS, it's Inland Sessions.

[But you keep telling me I wont...] Folk singer-songwriter Jake Rozier is no stranger to lifes rough edges.

But he can draw you into his stories with his distinctive soulful voice and upbeat melodies.

Jake Rozier and The Implication on Inland Sessions.

[...long lost friend.]

All right.

My name is Jake Rozier.

This is Ben Vogel.

Gunnar Nelson.

And song's called Won't Be Waiting for Me.

[Wont Be Waiting For Me by Jake Rozier] I've been working through the night just like a dog without a bone To catch a glimpse of something I can try to call my own and I get so restless when I think of her alone.

That keeps me digging deeper just to make that garden grow But I got one Foot in the door Keep taking on all that I can But I can't take it anymore And she's got one Promise she cant keep ‘Cause if I see my day, well I know my baby And she wont be waiting for me [instrumentals] My baby she don't like way We spend all of our time Cant get through one night with her without Working on my mind So, I keep getting out of bed Kiss her head and say goodnight She shrugs and says It's fine, but I can see it in her eyes.

That I got one foot in the door.

Keep taking on all that I can But she cant take it anymore And shes got one Promise she cant keep ‘Cause if I see my day, well I know my baby And she wont be waiting for me [instrumentals] Well, I got one Foot in the door Keep taking on all that I can But I cant take it anymore And shes got one Promise she cant keep ‘Cause if I see my day, well I know my baby And she wont be waiting for me I'm going to see my day But I know my baby and she won't be waiting for me It's a song about a river.

Its not really even about a river.

Its a metaphor.

[River by Jake Rozier] Well, this world it seems was built for someone bigger than us So we trip and fall at the beck and call Of those we blindly trust But when your luck starts to turn and your stars align You'll get to thinking that you know a little bit about this life But when you crash and burn, child youll come to find Its really just a role of the dice Its cold where this rivers bound but baby keep traveling downstream There's gold waiting to be found If we can keep out from the deeps Well, some things will change, some will stay the same And some will hurt before you get that ring So, dont let me drown if you dont want this boat to sink [instrumental] Well, these shields of ours They gaurd us from the whip of the night But they weigh us down and when morning comes around Well, we can never seem to stand ourselves upright So, hold onto me and I vow To keep my grip And even if that means risking everything Well honey, you can send me right down with the ship Its cold where this rivers bound But baby keep traveling downstream There's gold waiting to be found If we can keep out from the deeps Well some things will change, some will stay the same And some will hurt before you get that ring So, don't let me drown If you dont want this boat to sink [instrumentals] So, slow down Were takin water fast Well, dont you jump the gun, theres no need to run From what weve already passed Its cold where this rivers bound But baby keep traveling downstream Theres gold waiting to be found If we can keep out from the deeps And some things will change, some will stay the same And some will hurt before you get that ring And I wont let you drown 'Cause I dont want this damn boat to sink Uh, so, this is a new one.

Um, it's called Where You've Always Been.

I wrote this like a month or two ago, I think.

We were on the road and I wrote it the morning we left.

And then I showed it to the guys who got to the hotel and they both learned it.

And somehow I remembered all the lyrics when we played it that night and yeah, I don't really know what I'll say about this song other than that.

So, it's called Where Youve Always Been.

[Where Youve Always Been by Jake Rozier] If I could fly, I can't say that I would even know where to go.

Waste my life Chipping chunks from a knife That I still think I need to hold And I believe So, why can't I see The truth in the things I resent?

I guess Im not The man that I thought Could withstand the rot of regret So, I know why you fight You got it all justified But you cant hide The grit to your grin And you bend so damn far Just to end where you are And its right back Where youve always been [instrumentals] If I could see Through the smoke that I breathe Then Id find more gasoline to pour down ‘Cause to hurt is to hope And to heal is to know That theres nothing I need, I aint found So, I know why you fight You got it all justified But you cant hide The grit to your grin And you run so damn fast That you cant face the facts When youre right back Where youve always been And you run so damn fast That you cant face the facts When youre right back Where youve always been Youre just right back Where youve always been [instrumentals] So, we just put out a new EP.

It's called Bulletproof, and this is one of the tracks on there.

You can find it on Spotify or Apple or we have CDs and all that too.

So.

[Gone (Again) by Jake Rozier] Well, Ive been running from myself for so damn long Fighting hard as hell to right my wrongs Its been a blessing and a curse Learning to come to terms With who I am and shed what Ive become And its difficult for me to understand How seeking validation is enough to make a man No, you dont need nobody else To make you feel right about yourself And if you do, well youre no better than I am ‘Cause I know that I have got my problems too But Id take all of my burdens over turning them to you So, if you see me walking down the street Just pass me by Just leave me to myself and Ill be fine [instrumentals] So, go throw all your friends under the bus But do it in a way to keep their trust Be careful what you say Dont show your cards and give away That this is not the game they thought it was And Im thinking now its time for me to go ‘Cause if I got to be alone, Id rather be it on my own And a friend is just a friend ‘til they take all they can get And then youre just back to shaking hands That you dont know And Im tired of all the people in this town They only build you up So, they can knock you further down And Im picking up today and Ill be gone by the night Just one full tank of gas and Ill be fine [instrumentals] And Im tired of all the people in this town And Im tired of losing things that I have never even found And Im tired of promising myself That this is the last time Just get me far from here and Ill be fine [Instrumentals] All right.

This is a new one.

It's called When You Were Mine.

Wrote this for an ex-girlfriend of mine.

[When You Where Mine by Jake Rozier] Cast out to sea Some boy losing sight of the shore And a girl, So fragile and naive Thought she could swim through the storm And I don't know what she saw in that damn boy But I'm sure as hell glad she did But bringing him back left her all but destroyed Now you need to go find her again If I could go back and erase all the bad In myself, maybe wed be all right.

But then maybe not Maybe you should have thought About what this has been the whole time Well, darling, just go Dont you look back and dont Worry about me, Ill be fine Just go find yourself And then go find someone else To show you the light you once shined When you were mine [Instrumentals] This aint the plan At least not the one that I made When you say you cant wait to see where I land But I am where I am by mistake You planted a seed She taught me to breath As we waited to see it in bloom But I swear to God, whether you're here or not, You will always be right at the root If I could go back and erase all the bad In myself, maybe wed be all right But then maybe not Maybe you shouldve thought About what this has been the whole time Well, darlin just go Dont you look back and dont Worry about me, Ill be fine Just go find youself Then find someone else To show you the light you once shined Pick up where we left behind ‘Cause God only knows that I tried Ohh, when you were mine When you were mine [Instrumentals] All right, this is an old, old time fiddle tune.

Theres no singing or anything, its all instrumental, But Gunnar wanted to show off a little bit, so I figured we'd let him do it.

This is called Whistler Waltz.

[Whistler Waltz by Lloyd Wanzer] All right, this is called Hiding From The Sun.

[Hiding From The Sun by Jake Rozier] Well, tonight in this graveyard With the bones of your old man beneath your feet Do they shine a light on whats to come from living how you are?

Is there anything left to make you see?

Well, I know that curse has been weld to your name It never gave you too much of a choice But hopefully you'll learn some That shaking off the blame Will only overshadow your own voice So, dont you go giving up Just like your daddy did And lay yourself to waste Like the men that came before him But dog dont gotta bite If you can tame what lies within But if you dont get up and fight Youll never leave that hell youre in Some things get left behind Some people die young You say youre doing fine With your knife against a gun Well, I don't blame you Youre minds just so damn spun Youll never see the light When youre hiding from the sun And broken families A story that itself is old as time Well, some of us are saved, while others slip away And some of us just keep on that thin line So, who are you gonna be, son?

You say youll never change, but its already been done So, give youself a chance before you find that your last dance Is with the same thing That kept daddy on the run So, as you stare At that wall so vacantly You say youre hanging on but does that really mean much of anything?

Do you care If all youre gonna be Is the shadow of the man That this world may never see?

Some things get left behind Some people die young You say you're doing fine With your knife against a gun Ohh, I don't blame you Your minds just so damn spun Youll never see the light When youre hiding from the sun [Guitar strums] Some things get left behind And youre not doing fine child But I don't blame you You're not the only one It's killing me, its killing us [Guitar strums] Well, its killing us Uh, so this next song is off our last album.

Hard to Kill a Ghost.

I quit drinking about a year and a half ago, and wrote this about trying to stay sober and dealing with all that kind of stuff.

So.

[If I Get Old by Jake Rozier] Well, Ive been digging through my mind Just trying to fine something that I can use to justify Going back to living how I used to think that Id die, but I Just keep on digging through my mind But you keep telling me I wont You say you wish I knew all of these things that I still dont And sometimes giving up Feels like its getting real damn close But you keep telling me I wont And I fight with myself every day I made a habit out of getting into my own way and I Can feel it killing me real slow And vices feel like a long lost friend ‘Til they beat you down all over again and I Know that Ill have to let them go If I get old [Instrumentals] Well, Ive been standing on the edge For so long now its gotten too damn hard not to pretend That this is just how I am bound to be until it ends So, I keep standing on that edge But you keep pulling me right back Further, but not far enough that Im able to relax And its hard to see what you have over everything you lack So, you keep pulling me right back And I fight with myself every day I made a habit out of getting into my own way I keep picking up more weight that I can hold And I cant see me how she does Its dark in the shadow of who I was But someday those weeds will be overgrown If I get old [Instrumentals] And I fight with myself every day I made a habit out of hiding from my own damn brain Just feed the flame, pray that it gets cold But I got my woman and I got myself And I know that I dont need nothing else To shed the weight and sift through all the smoke And if Ive gone this far and still got by Give me one good reason that I cant still try to Buy back the parts of me I sold And I never thought Id live to see twenty-five And when theres nothing to lose theres nothing to mind What scares me most is Im starting to hope That Ill get old That Ill get old [Instrumentals] Hear more from the artists on this program on the Inland Sessions Podcast.

Available now at ksps.org/podcasts