Many Miles to Go
(© 1990 Andy Hill)
In the late 80’s Bob Dylan brought to a close an interview with a local journalist with the words, “I got a lot of miles to go…” The phrase became a springboard which conjured up images to me of Martin Luther King, Bobby Kennedy and others who had to fit a lot of life into a short time span.

He was just a young man without much to leave behind
A future still uncertain on a path still undefined
He learned the hard way not to let relationships grow old
For he’d only just begun
And he had many miles to go

He walked among the disenfranchised, the hungry and the cold
Those who’d lost their lives and land in parcels bought and sold
He planted seeds which skeptics criticized and then watched grow
For their map was not his road
And he had many miles to go

He wrote his songs the same way a young man goes to war
Burned his boats upon the beaches once his soldiers took to shore
Corrupted was the empire he pledged to overthrow
Turning back was not our choice
For we had many miles to go

Upon these frontier questions the best minds we have divide
Where each reveals his skeletons in closets deep and wide
Did he discover truth or did he just uncover error?
What was once a prophecy to us is now a prayer

He pushed his questions forward till those with much to lose pushed back
When they couldn’t stop the dream they tied the dreamer to the track
He’d said someday I’ll die for change you can’t see ‘cause it’s so slow
As a light to those still living
And those with many miles to go

I’ve read the myths of heroes with problems just like me
How their names survived the battles once their empires washed to sea
The objectivity of retrospect serves us well I’m told
But me I still hear voices
And I have many miles to go

Andy: Vocals, Harmonica, Acoustic Guitars, Electric Guitars, Piano, Organ
Renee: Vocals, Tambourine, Shaker
Marty: Bass, Slide Guitar, Electric Guitar
John Hoke: Drums