Harry Chapin Quotes

December 7, 1942 – July 16, 1981

Harry Forster Chapin (7 December 1942 – 16 July 1981) was an American singer, songwriter, and social activist.

All my life's a circle; Sunrise and sundown; Moon rolls thru the nighttime; Till the daybreak comes around.

Circle

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More Harry Chapin Quotes

And the wind will whip your tousled hair, The sun, the rain, the sweet despair, Great tales of love and strife. And somewhere on your path to glory You will write your story of a life.

Harry Chapin
— Story of a Life

Tags: wind, whip, tousled, hair, sun, rain, sweet, despair, Great

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And the broad who served the whisky She was a big old friendly girl. And she tried to fight her empty nights By smilin' at the world.

Harry Chapin
— Better Place to Be

Tags: broad, who, served, whisky, big, old, friendly, girl, tried

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And it shamed me into silence, as quietly she said, "If you want me to come with you, then that's all right with me. Cause I know I'm going nowhere, and anywhere's a better place to be. Anywhere's a better place to be."

Harry Chapin
— Better Place to Be

Tags: shamed, me, silence, quietly, you, want, then, right, Cause

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All my life's a circle; But I can't tell you why; Season's spinning round again; The years keep rollin' by.

Harry Chapin
— Circle

Tags: circle, can't, tell, you, Season's, spinning, round, again, years

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And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon, Little boy blue and the man in the moon. "When you coming home, dad?" "I don't know when, But we'll get together then. You know we'll have a good time then."

Harry Chapin
— Cat's in the Cradle

Tags: cat's, cradle, silver, spoon, Little, boy, blue, man, moon

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I come fresh from the street, fast on my feet, kind a lean and lazy; not much meat on my bones, and a whole lot alone, and more than a little bit crazy. The old six string was all I had to keep my belly still, and for each full hour lesson I gave I got a crisp ten dollar bill.

Harry Chapin
— I Wanna Learn a Love Song

Tags: fresh, street, fast, feet, kind, lean, lazy, meat, bones

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She was married for seven years to a concrete castle king. She said she wanted to learn to play the guitar and to hear her children sing. So I'd show up about once a week in my faded tight-legged jeans with a backlog full of hobo stories and dilapidated dreams.

Harry Chapin
— I Wanna Learn a Love Song

Tags: married, seven, years, concrete, castle, king, wanted, learn, play

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She said, "I wanna learn a love song full of happy things." She said, "I wanna learn a love song; won't you let me hear you sing?" She said, "I wanna learn a love song, I wanna hear you play." She said, "I wanna learn a love song before you go away."

Harry Chapin
— I Wanna Learn a Love Song

Tags: learn, love, song, full, happy, things, you, me, hear

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Oh, he was the sun burning bright and brittle And she was the moon shining back his light a little He was a shooting star She was softer and more slowly He could not make things possible But, she could make them holy.

Harry Chapin
— Shooting Star

Tags: sun, burning, bright, brittle, moon, shining, light, little, shooting

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There's a vacancy, won't you come to me And fill my empty spaces I'm a motel man in a promised land That's filled with empty faces So won't you bring your sorrows bring your dreams, It's a place for you to be There's no more tomorrow or that's how it seems Won't you come to me? I've got a vacancy

Harry Chapin
— Vacancy

Tags: vacancy, you, me, fill, empty, spaces, motel, man, promised

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The very day I purchased it, I christened my guitar as my monophonic symphony, six string orchestra.

Harry Chapin
— Six String Orchestra

Tags: day, purchased, christened, guitar, monophonic, symphony, six, string, orchestra

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And we would play together, like fine musicians should, And it would sound like music, and the music would sound good. But in real life I'm stuck with that same old formula, me and my monophonic symphony, six string orchestra.

Harry Chapin
— Six String Orchestra

Tags: we, play, together, musicians, sound, music, good, real, life

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"The rock is gonna fall on us," he stood and told the class The professor put his chalk down and peered out through his glasses But he went on and said; "I've seen it, high up on the hill If it doesn't fall this year then very soon it will!"

Harry Chapin
— The Rock

Tags: rock, fall, us, stood, class, professor, chalk, down, peered

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I'm in the Dance Band on the Titanic Singing "Nearer my God to thee" and the icebergs on the starboard bow Won't you dance with me?

Harry Chapin
— Dance Band On the Titanic

Tags: Dance, Band, Titanic, Singing, Nearer, God, icebergs, starboard, bow

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You see, I have no real complaints of how you've left your past behind I guess what gets me worried is you've erased him from your mind.

Harry Chapin
— I Wonder What Happened to Him

Tags: You, see, real, complaints, left, past, behind, guess, what

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You see, dream-lover of a lady, what shakes me to the core Is the thought as you caress me, you've done this all before I think about the future with me out and others in Will I, too, have disappeared like I've never ever been?

Harry Chapin
— I Wonder What Happened to Him

Tags: You, see, lady, what, shakes, me, core, thought, caress

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Strum your guitar sing it kid Just write about your feelings not the things you never did Inexperience, it once had cursed me But your youth is no handicap it's what makes you thirsty

Harry Chapin
— There Only Was One Choice

Tags: Strum, guitar, sing, kid, write, feelings, things, you, never

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If you try to look But you don't touch Then you won't touch But you'll never feel And if you don't feel You'll never cry And if you don't cry Then you'll never heal.

Harry Chapin
— If You Want to Feel

Tags: you, try, look, touch, Then, never, feel, cry, heal

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There are lessons to life That the lovers got to learn There are corners out there You know they're waitin' somewhere And you've got to be prepared to turn There are callouses that come That the lovers got to earn In the years of your youth You can't be fire proof You know you've got to get burned.

Harry Chapin
— If You Want to Feel

Tags: There, lessons, life, lovers, learn, corners, You, know, waitin'

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Now if a man tried To take his time on Earth And prove before he died What one man's life could be worth, Well I wonder what would happen to this world.

Harry Chapin
— I Wonder What Would Happen to this World

Tags: Now, man, tried, time, Earth, prove, before, died, What

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And if a woman She used a life line As something more than Some man's servant mother wife time Well I wonder what would happen to this world.

Harry Chapin
— I Wonder What Would Happen to this World

Tags: woman, used, life, line, something, more, man's, servant, mother

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And she said... "Flowers are red young man Green leaves are green There's no need to see flowers any other way Than they way they always have been seen."

Harry Chapin
— Flowers are Red

Tags: Flowers, red, young, man, Green, leaves, need, see, other

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But the little boy said... "There are so many colors in the rainbow So many colors in the morning sun So many colors in the flowers and I see every one."

Harry Chapin
— Flowers are Red

Tags: little, boy, There, colors, rainbow, morning, sun, flowers, see

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But there still must be a way to have our children say... "There are so many colors in the rainbow So many colors in the morning sun So many colors in the flower and I see every one." (Live version)

Harry Chapin
— Flowers are Red

Tags: there, our, children, colors, rainbow, morning, sun, flower, see

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Somebody said...We got to find the words Got to, got to be an answer there Somebody said that...You never get heard 'Cause nobody really cares.

Harry Chapin
— Somebody Said

Tags: saidWe, find, words, answer, there, thatYou, never, heard, 'Cause

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Remember when the music Came from wooden boxes strung with silver wire And as we sang the words, it would set our minds on fire, For we believed in things, and so we'd sing.

Harry Chapin
— Remember When the Music

Tags: Remember, when, music, wooden, boxes, strung, silver, wire, we

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Oh all the times I've listened, and all the times I've heard All the melodies I'm missing, and all the magic words, And all those potent voices, and the choices we had then, How I'd love to find we had that kind of choice again.

Harry Chapin
— Remember When the Music

Tags: times, listened, heard, melodies, missing, magic, words, potent, voices

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And I feel that something's coming, and it's not just in the wind. It's more than just tomorrow, it's more than where we've been, It offers me a promise, it's telling me "Begin", I know we're needing something worth believing in.

Harry Chapin
— Remember When the Music

Tags: feel, something's, coming, wind, more, tomorrow, been, offers, me

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And the wind will whip your tousled hair, The sun, the rain, the sweet despair, Great tales of love and strife. And somewhere on your path to glory You will write your story of a life.

Harry Chapin
— Sequel, (1999), "Story of a Life".

Tags: wind, whip, tousled, hair, sun, rain, sweet, despair, Great

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