Songs for Minnesota (2008)
All songs: lyrics and music by Ann Reed with the exception of "Betty Crocker" for which Ann wrote lyrics but not the music.

1. Hey, Minnesota
2. My Minnesota State Fair
3. Marching Back to School
4. Try Lutefisk
5. Love at the Fair
6. Hole in the Day
7. Northern Star
8. One Fair Fair
9. Betty Crocker (a parody)
10. Where the Earth is Round
11. Somewhere at the Fair
12. I Love My State
13. The Fair

Don't forget: Using a songwriter's lyrics and/or music without permission is very bad indeed. Frowned upon.
Quite disrespectful. Creates icky stuff in the universe.

 
 
 
 

Hey, Minnesota
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 2008 Turtlecub Publishing

Wintertime
I'm on the road
Hearing from all kinds of folks
It's not a great debate
They're talkin' about their state
Starts out
With tall pine trees
Fertile fields and prairie streams
Bullheads, walleyes, trout
Y'don't fish, y'might feel left out

    Hey, hey Minnesota
    All your people got somethin' to say
    Hey, hey Minnesota
    You're our home and we think you're okay

Don't forget
10 below, the wind,
The late, late April snows
We say we don't mind much
To tell the truth it sucks - mosquitoes and
Black flies are just our curse
Thing is, it could be worse
But when you wake up to a great sunrise
Ev'rything's alright (chorus)

Winter coats
Post-It Notes
End of the road
You can find it or
You can leave it behind
The light on a summer night
Geese in flight and they're flying over Minnesota

The North Shore
A lake that feels like an ocean
It's so unreal
The rivers, if you please
Without 'em where would we be?
Mississippi fly-away
Another thing you maybe could say
To see the state let's run
Down highway 61 (chorus - last line: the North Star State)

 
 
 

My Minnesota State Fair
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 1993 Turtlecub Publishing

Once a year I'm sittin' here
Stuck in one long line
Momma's up for a bungee jump
And the kids begin to whine
I see the crowds I'm all worn out
All I can do is yawn
While I pay ten bucks
To park my truck on some fair neighbor's lawn

    If you ask me why I go
    I would answer I don't know
    I guess like Mt. Everest 'cause it's there
    I can't miss it god forbid
    I've been goin' since I was a kid
    That hot, cheesy, way greasy
    My Minnesota State Fair

Seems to me there used to be
More tractors on the hill
Used to be when I was small
More fun, more valued thrills
I used to hit the midway
I just couldn't get enough
Now I spend my time
Exploring home improvement stuff
(chorus: last lines - sorta flashy, way trashy)

I'm steppin' in somethin' used to be somebody's supper
I'm gonna need somethin' bigger than a quicker picker upper

It took some time but now I find
The heartbreak of this place
The shocked and frozen look
Upon some FFA kid's face
If her pig should lose
I s'pose that's only pure dumb luck
But if her pig's a winner
Then she's next year's Pronto Pup
(chorus: last line - bee infested, food ingested)

 
 
 

Marching Back To School
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 2001 Turtlecub Publishing

My parents take a photograph
When I'm in college they won't do that
When I'm in college, I'll have it made
But for now, I'm in second grade
My mom is cryin' and I'm tryin' not to really mind
But I'm marchin' back to school
And mom, you gotta stay behind

Autumn looms, summer fades
I'm starting in a higher grade
It's okay, I'll make new friends
To tell the truth I'm a little tense
I've got a new fixation on my locker combination
There are higher expectations
As I'm marching back to school

Heigh-ho! It's off to school we go
And for sure we know this year
We'll do it better
Three cheers to start a brand new year
Here's a song to march us back to school

Power books, PDAs
The University starts today
I'll fill the space inside my head
But first I gotta get out of bed
One class of mine, it really sucks
The textbook costs a hundred bucks!
And I don't know where to park my truck
And go marching back to school (chorus)

Give a big hooray for teachers here today
Overworked and underpaid but we appreciate them
And in their hands the mighty lesson plan
Just like us they're marching back to school

Here I am at 53 going for my first degree
September I remember as a very special time
I've got pencils and some shiny pens
Brand new clothes and estrogen
I'm as happy as I've ever been
To be marching back to school (chorus)

 
 
 

Try Lutefisk
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 2008 Turtlecub Publishing


If you're bored with dinners you are eating
If you're searching for something more completing
Food for home - Or bringing to a meeting
Take a risk - try lutefisk!

It's a little odd, but you get a little cod
And you soak it in some lye
Only God knows why
Lots of salt and steam it well
A ton of sauce but still it smells
Give that fish a kiss - it's lutefisk!

 
 
 

Love At The Fair
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 1999 Turtlecub Publishing

Standing in line for whatever the ride
With about 18 friends and you're standing back
The cars'll seat two so now what can I do
To wind up with you by my side
I wish I had paid more attention to math
'cause I'm tryin' hard to figure & count
So I'll say Go ahead for as long as I can
And I think somehow it'll work out
Love at the Fair let's go on ev'ry ride
    I'll scream your name as I sail down the Giant Slide
    Oh what we share riding the Ferris Wheel
    Up in the air we feel love at the Fair

They worked side by side in a room not as wide
As a broom closet handing out maps and such
Second shift there was she and he knew this would be
His last bachelor days at the Fair
He said If I thought you'd have me I'd marry you right now
She replied How's next Wednesday for you?
It all goes to show how a great big love grows
From a gig in a small info booth
Love at the Fair blooming like flowers will
    Up on Machinery Hill floating on Ye Olde Mill
    Oh what we share food placed upon a stick
    Tell me you're mine real quick, love at the Fair

So modern a pair when it came to the Fair
Their schedule were never compatible
So they went different times he the day she the night
And that's how they worked it all out
She crawled into bed to her loved one she said
I'm home now and cuddled right up
He mumbled he missed her, sighed as he whispered:
You smell just like a Pronto Pup
Love at the Fair stroll through the Piggy Barn
    We can walk arm in arm watching our step, oh darn
    Oh what we share all the milk you can drink
    A restroom nearby we think, love at the Fair
    Love at the Fair blooming like flowers will
    Up on Machinery Hill floating on Ye Olde Mill
    Oh what we share fine arts & butterheads
    I'll buy you a Paula Red, love at the Fair

 
 
 

Hole In The Day
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 1992 Turtlecub Publishing

There's a hole in the day
The light peekin' through
And I'm on familiar ground
The colors all say
"Hey, don't we know you
& how come you ain't been around?"

    I've been too far too long
    I figured it out on my own
    It's now in my sight
    Dorothy was right
    It's true there is no place like home

There's a hole in the day
The trees are on fire
They're burnin' but not consumed
They're findin' a way
Brighter, higher and higher
Tonight they will color the moon (chorus)

Pine trees sway and whisper:
"Oh welcome home"
Back trails wind and twist
You're almost to the main road

There's a hole in the day
Where spirits arrive
To dance on the rollin' waves
It's to and away
They leap and they fly
Go back through the hole in the day (chorus)

 
 
 

Northern Star
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 2000 Turtlecub Publishing

You're my east my south and west
You're the one who gives me rest
And I know no matter near or far
You will be my northern star

You're the one when I'm at sea
You are there the land for me
When I've lost my way and day goes dark
You are still my northern star

You're the one I want to be holding
When the sun has wandered along
And the sky begins it's unfolding
There's no where else we belong, oh

Like the cardinal in the snow
When the trees are bare and low
The reward of spring is slow to start
You are still my northern star

 
 
 

One Fair Fair
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 1994 Turtlecub Publishing

When I go visiting the Fair I want my favorites waiting there
Honey ice cream, judging bread, Ye Olde Mill & Butterheads
No matter what I know I'll find the restroom with it's endless line
Kids on leashes, dining halls better than a great big mall

    One fair Fair in Minnesota after county fairs are through
    One fair Fair for us to go to (go ta)
    Ride the Ferris Wheel a time or two

It's not far off I know they will have skinny cows with skinny milk
Fries with no cholesterol no-fat ice cream I recall
Eating my way through the Fair didn't know & I didn't care
In the future there will be nothing left to clog our arteries

    One fair Fair in Minnesota it all happens sorta quick
    We all want to get our quota & have a day to eat until we're sick

There used to be a Hippodrome a big ol' place where hippos roamed
Cows & horses where you see 'em
This ain't Rome what's with this Coliseum?
I hope that I will never find a future barn with swineless swine
Human surgery, hmm, maybe liposuction what a treat

I'm almost sure we're going to see some virtual reality
Info highway, Internet man, we ain't seen nothin' yet
Computers like a magic wand MPR@The Fair.com
Keyword: cheesecurds got no taste, mini doughnuts go to waste

    One fair Fair in Minnesota clothes in drawers that I have saved
    I don't care not one iota I cannot wear this any other place

& as the baby boomers grey I guess each day is Senior's Day
See the Grandstand, see the stage, god those Beach Boys just don't age

    One fair Fair in Minnesota with the fireworks at the end
    You could leave with just a load-a
    Stuff you had to buy but couldn't win
    One fair Fair in Minnesota find that good ol' Pronto Pup
    One fair Fair I wanna go to (go ta)
    Change is good I'll go no matter what

 
 
 

Betty Crocker
(to the tune of Davy Crockett)
Lyrics: Ann Reed • © 2008 Turtlecub Publishing

Born in a kitchen in the great Midwest
All of her recipes put to the test
Grew up strong, grew up free
Bake her first cake when she was only three
Betty, Betty Crocker
Queen of the wild frontier

Forever young and a little bit shy
Keeps a tight lid on her personal life
Has us guessin', she always will
Did Betty shack up with General Mills?
Betty, Betty Crocker
Queen of the wild frontier

Had a hard day or in a bad mood
And all you want is some comfort food
The lady in red is on your team
'Cause Betty believes in butter and cream
Betty, Betty Crocker
Queen of the wild frontier

 
 
 

Where the Earth Is Round
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 2008 Turtlecub Publishing

From here, I can see that the Earth is round
    blessed by the bones in the sacred ground
I can see where the rivers flow, oh, they flow
I can touch the brilliant sky
    the sun and the moon and the northern lights
Oh, the dancing stars they feel so close

    I am here because of souls
    Who walked before and called this home
    Bowed their heads on a trail of tears
    Falling down and now, today
    They're resting here within this place
    Where the Earth is round [Where the seasons change]

From here is the scent of seasons change
    before the snow and after the rain
Leaves releasing, waltzing with the wind
I hear the sound of magic, oh
    the loons calling out, my heart is full
Sounds of where I am and where I've been

Land holds the lakes
Lakes reflect the sky
Sky holds our dreams
Tumbles down in light

 
 
 

Somewhere At The Fair Tango
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 2006 Turtlecub Publishing

My little sister was in her stroller
Her fav'rite blanket slipped away as they rolled her
Past all the tractors and big compactors
When the wind is right her cries can still be heard:

    Somewhere at the fair near the slow kiddie rides
    Did someone see there that dear blanket of mine?
    It's blue with a few mini-donut-sized tears
    Somewhere at the fair

I was uprooted from New York City
And I moved to St. Paul well, of course it's very pretty
A while later my brand new neighbors
Gave me a lovely invitation to the…where??
I said "You're kidding! You must be joking!
All that grease and fat and hay? I'd be choking
Air you can chew on that's what I grew on
So I went and I will never be the same."

    Somewhere at the fair amid cows and crop art
    Patience lay there with a Midwestern heart
    And gone then for good my superior air
    Somewhere at the fair

Cell 'phones and shoes
Little children, the blues, fiancés
Will power lost
But found true love at least for 10 days

She was his girlfriend, his mind was made up
He'd win that big stuffed dog for her he never gave up
She found five pounds there hanging around there
She fin'ly ran off, when he noticed then he cried:

    Somewhere at the fair is a piece of my pride
    And 35 bucks sitting there side by side
    I must get them back! might take years, I don't care
    Somewhere at the fair

    Somewhere at the fair with a smile on it's face
    Summer prepares to head for the gate
    We'll wave as we ask "Well…what shall we wear?
    Next year at the fair?"

 
 
 

I Love My State
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 2008 Turtlecub Publishing
(call and response)

I love my state (I love my state)
Through flood or drought …
And the bitter cold …
Keeps the riff-raff out …
We seem reserved …
Don't get riled up …
'Cause the weather is …
Extreme enough …

Oh, Minnesota …
Fer heaven's sake …
Oh, Minnesota …
That land o' lakes …

You ask me why …
Oh I'll begin …
I love my state …
It's the state I'm in …

In summertime
There's fish and dirt
In wintertime
There's fish and snirt
Oh, city life
We got that too
Or you can go up north
With your canoe (chorus)

The best darn place
I've ever been
I love my state
It's the state I'm in

 
 
 

The Fair
Lyrics and music: Ann Reed • © 1991 Turtlecub Publishing

Minnesota, Minnesota - We are south of Manitoba
We are east of North Dakota
We've got something really rare
It's fulfilling, entertaining
It's true culture you'll be gaining
Accept no imitations it's the Fair

Saw a friend from Wisconsin and he said "Yah hey
You gotta see the crop art it'll blow you away"
"Yah sure, you bet, boy, they don't know when to quit
I'm goin' to see the butterheads y'wanna come with?" (refrain)

At the Fair there's no lack of food you simply take your pick
You can find almost anything sittin' on a stick
Pronto Pups, mini-doughnuts & an ice cold beer
I've gotta get my cheese curds I've been waiting all year (refrain)

After all the food I've eaten now I only have a hunch
I'll go out on the Midway and I'll prob'ly lose my lunch
The Tilt-A- Whirl is one thing but I just cannot conceal
My heart'll stop right at the top of the double Ferris wheel (refrain)

Oh you gotta see Piggy Mama
The biggest sow that you have ever seen
It's a giglet for a piglet
And in the swine barn Piggy Mama is the queen

Now the combines are waiting on machinery hill
Kids are climbing on the tractors on their tires and on their grills
You may live inside a townhouse in the suburbs make your home
You've always wanted a tractor you could call your very own (refrain)

Now I need some relaxation or a soundproof room
A place to soak my achin' feet that's quiet as a tomb
All that's left inside my pocket is some lint and half a pack
Of Tums but next year you can bet I'll be comin' back (refrain)

Tag to last refrain:
There's deals and demonstrations and chicks in incubation
The whole population's at the Fair.