Ode to Jimi

The days are long
when the sky is wide.
When you look both ways
nothing can hide.
I like to slow down and
take time for the little things.
And if you go around and
ask them why, they’ll tell you,
save it all up for when you die.
I like it, but I know now
I’ve got to take time to
sow some seeds.

It’s nice to have time to spend time
with other people.
Don’t forget that love is golden,
and it’s worth the weight of holding.
It’s nice to have time to sip wine
and sip it slowly.
When it’s gone you feel it most,
that space is mighty,
mighty holy.

I know if I walk
I’m bound to fall sometimes.
And sometimes I’ll fall the same way twice.
I need to slow down and
take time for the little things.
And if you go around and
ask them why, they’ll tell you,
do all you can until you die.
I like it, but I know now
I’ve got to take time to
just breathe.

It’s nice to have time to spend time
with other people.
Don’t forget that love is golden,
and it’s worth the weight of holding.
It’s nice to have time to sip wine
and sip it slowly.
When it’s gone you feel it most,
that space is mighty,
mighty holy.

-tMT song, “Ode to Jimi”, lyrics written by Holly Monet

Let Me Be

I tried to bring you flowers,
you say the stems are too long.
I cut them down so you would like them,
you say the color’s too strong.
Feels like I can’t do a damn thing,
without you tellin’ me I’m wrong.
I ain’t here for your advice,
I don’t keep what don’t belong.

So,
stop your cryin’ and just let me be.
I ain’t lookin’ for no company, that can’t
‘ppreciate I’m barely gettin’ on by,
darling, without you I’ll be fine.

And in our final hour,
you had me feeling so cold.
You’re tryin’ to pick a fight,
this routine has grown old.
Feels like I can’t do a damn thing,
without you tellin’ me I am wrong.
I ain’t looking for more problems,
I don’t keep what don’t belong.

So,
stop your cryin’ and just let me be.
I ain’t lookin’ for no company, that can’t
‘ppreciate I’m barely gettin’ on by,
darling, without you I’ll be fine.

Mmmm, we can say that we tried,
we can say that we tried,
we can say that we tried. (repeat 4 times)

-tMT song, “Let Me Be”, written by Holly Monet. Sometimes…you gotta let people go that hurt you, and that’s ok.

Flight of the Bodhi (body)

We ride,
yes we ride
on faith and grace, hardly resting our bones.
The brave,
are not afraid to answer their calling my name…
and I wait, until the clock strikes my time…
I’m awake, and I will not leave you far behind.

We arrived,
we arrived
tasting fate, so bright in the eyes.
We walked up in stride,
singing songs, carrying their sadness.
We knew inside, it’d be worth,
it’d be worth our sacrifice.
When it got quiet,
we would cry, cry about the fight.

And we dreamt about our freedom,
lo and behold we were set free,
we were set free.

We survived,
we survived
climbing higher, higher than the waves
that passed us by…
it all goes by, it all goes by.
And from darkness, I see light.
Mmmhmm.

And we dreamt about our freedom,
lo and behold we were set free,
we were set free.

-tMT song “Flight of the Bodhi (Body)”, written by Holly Monet

New, old song: ‘Merry Travelin’

photo credit Veronica Mullen

I remember it just like any other morning,
when I heard your footsteps and you walked right in.
You always said I was the rain to your roses,
and in that moment, I felt the same.

Tell me where have you been on your merry travelin’,
hang your hat next to your feather bed.
Tell me how has it been to have been gone so long,
do you remember every road you’ve been on, was every turn unexpected?

Did you see what you hoped to find?
Did you dig up a capsule from another time?
Did you ever cross that painted line?
Are the stars a little brighter on the other side?

When you’re on the road and you’re merry travelin’,
home is where you lay your head.
Your heart is a haven, the sky is a garden
you make time to listen to what an old woman said.
Birds fly high, we sing until the sun dives,
over the horizon. Here comes the moon, singling lullabies,
for you.

Lavender fields and your train’s passing by,
can’t take it with you still it makes you cry.
Learning how to live just when you think you’ll die,
are the stars a little brighter on the other side?

When you’re on the road and you’re merry travelin’,
home is where you lay your head.

-written by Colin, Charlie, and Holly, when missing Asher and trying to get him back home ❤

#notmypresident & recording

I’ve been workin’ like a dog,
I’m just tryin’ to get ahead.
Lord I’m gettin’ so damn tired,
guess I’ll sleep when I’m dead

I hear the man they call the president,
he said he needs more for the war.
But no man is my president
who feeds the rich & starves the poor

How do you do what is good and true,
when peace is told it must fight.
When love is lost, and out of sight,
when darkness comes, and knows no end,
except the grace of light. 

My old man, he said, 
“don’t pay your taxes,” he said,
“you’ve got a right to peace.”
As I held his hand on his death bed,
he said, “I’ll regret the war ’till I’m released.”

I hear the man they call the president,
he says he needs more for the war. 
But no man is my president
who removes indigenous for oil. 

How do you do what is good and true,
when peace is told it must fight.
When love is lost, and out of sight,
when darkness comes, and knows no end,
except the grace of light… 
…except the grace of light. 

-lyrics of tMT song “Not my president”, written by Holly & Charlie

Recording day 2//Holly vocals & guitar

I’ve notoriously hated recording in the past. I’m happy to announce that I dislike this bout of recording less than any other time before, so I’d say that’s growth. We’re recording our first album with our friend Sam, in Urbana. It’s comin’ along slowly but surely, this last week I’ve been laying down recordings of my vocals and acoustic guitar. Sam is super cool and has this strobe tuner that tunes perfectly. A 1970’s innovation that’s never been topped. Expected release of the album: late summer or early fall of 2019 (we hope.)

Walk Softly

The old and the wise, 
the master of the land. 
He lives on a mountain under the sun,
and he works all the day that he can. 

He knew all the magic of that mountain, 
he breathed through soil that was sunk in his skin. 
He said you’ve got nothing to be afraid of,
this life dear child, is your friend.

He said go slowly, move slowly, walk softly. 
He said go slowly, move slowly, walk softly. 
He said go slowly, move slowly, walk softly. 
And then he sang that life is sad and beautiful. 

You’ve got to live off the land, 
or so he told me by the fireside. 
We drank on red wine of his making, 
tipped the glass to our lips with such care. 

How I learned from that man, 
you can speak with the side of a mountain.
She’ll tell you of the giving and the taking,
and she’ll show you all the fruit that she bears. 

He said go slowly, move slowly, walk softly. 
He said go slowly, move slowly, walk softly. 
He said go slowly, move slowly, walk softly.  
And then he sang that life is sad and beautiful. 

-A true story of time spent working on an organic farm in Italy,
time spent side-by-side with the founder of the farm, Guisseppe. 
A most wonderful human.
Written by Holly. 

Merch for your Merry Travels

Travel art & cards::totally recycled, made by us, & no two are the same ❤

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Yellow and Blue (& a precious moment from the road)

A lovely little story from the lovely New Orleans: As Charlie and I are sitting in Cafe Envie, two people collide in front of the cafe microwave, to which we are the closest table. It’s a man and a woman, she is posh and spotless & he is a grungy older fellow wearing a bright yellow traffic director sort of vest with the words “veterans for peace supporter” written on the back. He says he was going towards the microwave, “so am I,” she says. “We can both go,” he says, “yea, that sounds good,” she responds. They both put their cups in, side by side, hers is the coffee shop’s paper cup, his is a black mug that he brought himself. “How long should we go?” the woman asks, and he says, “I always do 35 seconds.” “I think we should do a minute since there are two cups,” she suggests, “good point,” he responds. And so it goes. As their coffees heat up there is some small talk about how they have to heat up the coffee extra hot since it’s so cold out, which everyone keeps saying around here, but to Charlie and I we feel like we are in a tropical paradise. After 45 seconds the veteran for peace supporter says he thinks his is good enough and goes on his way. She sticks around and adds 30 more seconds. He returns twice more in the next hour to nuke his coffee again. So it goes. I love these little happenings.

Yellow and Blue by The Merry Travelers
I am hungry, I am tired, I am weary, oh so weary. 
I have found myself on the road. 
Oh mother, please oh please take me home. 

Wake up, oh wake up, to the sun in your eyes,
and the light of the day beaming through you.
One step, oh one step, take one step at a time, 
every moment is the moment for that moment. 

Tell me what you see when you close your eyes. 
Tell me what you see when you close your eyes. 
I see yellow & blue, like the sun sinking into, 
the bottomless and overwhelming waters. 

Oh I trust, yes I trust, in the questions with no answers. 
I’m not afraid of things I don’t know. 
And I know, yes I know, 
give, forgive, & let go.

Tell me what you see when you close your eyes. 
Tell me what you see when you close your eyes. 
I see yellow & blue, like the sun sinking into, 
the bottomless and overwhelming waters. 
-lyrics by Holly Monet

You are love. ❤

Road trip to New Orleans, a long time comin’ (for much)

The extent to which I am in wonder of this current phase of events is breathtaking, at moments. Half a decade after our first bout of merry travels, and with a long pause of independence in the middle, a creative friendship continues to find ground to flourish. I recently found some old adventure movies that I always thought I’d make into a short film, the dream still holds. Check out this raw footage from adventures in The Netherlands in 2013:

The simplicity of the dream-come-trues of the present is perhaps what makes them so sweet. Charlie and I will be driving Asher back to his home in New Orleans in a few short days, we’ll stick around for a few days for some fun and some final songs (for now). We’ll be playing with him on the street for a day or two, & we’ve got a show at a local spot called The Starlight Lounge on January 8th. It’s been so good to play these shows with him again these last few months, when we said our goodbyes nearly a year ago it was always hoped our musical escapades would continue. When Asher and I parted ways 5 years ago it was always hoped our creative escapades would continue. So it goes, there is hope.

We’ll be back to business as usual once we leave New Orleans, you can catch the full band live on the air towards the end of the month. Stay tuned.

p.s. The Lotus & the Bee (Holly’s novel from 2014) is going through a “revised edition” stage–excerpts & re-release coming soon. ❤

Winter in Urbana, show coming up this Friday with Asher (original trio)+surprise news

This poster was done in collaboration with Effingham artist, Haley Hansen. Smile Politely gave it an A+, so we are pretty happy!

We are approaching the 2 year anniversary of The Merry Travelers, it was The Alter Ego in the Evening’s Christmas radio special of 2016 that brought us all together. Asher sprung into town only hours before the show, Holly & Charlie were set to play as a duo, but then Asher crashed in. We ran through the songs two times, at most, and then headed to WEFT 90.1 Champaign. From there, tMT was born. 

Asher moved to New Orleans nearly a year ago, The Merry Travelers is generally a new lineup of Holly & Charlie, plus Cody & Louie. But every now and then, Asher comes back to town and the “old group” gets back together. This Friday we will be playing a mix of Holly & Asher’s original tunes. Charlie, of course, is our director. Eli & Sam are a local duo opening up the night, their soulful sound captivated Holly and Charlie at a show a few weeks ago. 

Exciting news ahead, the surprise. Holly, Charlie, & Asher are headed to New Orleans after The New Year for a little tMT reunion tour/friendly hang in Asher’s cool new city. We’ve got some performances lined up for this merry travel, be on the lookout for those announcements. ❤