"The Tallest Man, The Broadest Shoulders" lyrics - SUFJAN STEVENS
[Sufjan Stevens]
I count the days the Great Frontier
Forgiving, faced the seventh year
I stand in awe of gratefulness
I can and call forgetfulness
[Sufjan Stevens & Shara Worden]
And when I, and when I call
The Patient, the Patient fall
The Spirit, the Carpenter
Invites us to be with her
[The Illinoisemaker Choir]
What have we become America?
Soldiers on the Great Frontier
Carpenter and soldier, one on one
It's the battle, volunteer
[The Illinoisemaker Choir & (Shara Worden)]
The prairie, the frontier, the perfect farm, it's from here
(Run from yourself, from your friends)
The fortress, the faker, the cornerstone, the baker
(Run for your life, for your friends)
The dancer, the fisher, audition and the disher
(America)
The boxer, the fetcher, the chewing gum, dream catcher
(Oh, Illinois)
[Sufjan Stevens]
I count the days the Great Frontier
Forgiving, faced the seventh year
I stand and strain to make ends meet
Five Spirits on the Grand Marquee
[Sufjan Stevens & Shara Worden]
And when I, and when I call
The Patient, the Patient fall
The Spirit, the Carpenter
Invites us to be with her
[Sufjan Stevens & Tom Eaton]
There was a man at the wall
He was grateful for us all
I saw the wise woman sing
She wasn't asking anything
She wasn't asking anything
How she made the nations sing!
[Shara Worden & The Illinoisemaker Choir]
What have we become America?
Soldiers on the Great Frontier
[The Illinoisemaker Choir & (Shara Worden)]
The mattress, the floozies, the actress at the movies
(Run from yourself, from your friends)
The lantern, the lotion, the wind that wakes the ocean
(Run for your life, for your friends)
The Standard Edition, the architect's rendition
(America)
The fashion, the fevers, the house we got at Sears
(Oh, Illinois)
[Instrumental]
[Part II: Come to Me Only With Playthings Now]
[Sufjan Stevens, Shara Worden & (Katrina Kerns)]
Oh Great Fire of Great Disaster
Oh Great Heaven, oh Great Master
Oh Great Goat, the curse you gave us
Oh Great Ghost, protect and save us
Oh Great River, green with envy
Oh Jane Addams, spirit send thee
Oh Great Trumpet and the singers
(Given what you lost are you better off)
Oh Great Goodman, King of Swingers
(Given what you had, has it made you mad)
Oh Great Bears and Bulls, Joe Jackson
(Celebrate the few, celebrate the new)
Oh Great Illinois
(It can only start with you)
Illinois (2005)
- Concerning The Ufo Sighting Near Highland, Illinois
- The Black Hawk War
- Come On! Feel The Illinoise!
- John Wayne Gacy, Jr.
- Jacksonville
- A Short Reprise For Mary Todd, Who Went Insane, But For Very Good Reasons
- Decatur, Or, Round Of Applause For Your Stepmother!
- One Last "Whoo-Hoo!" For The Pullman
- Chicago
- Casimir Pulaski Day
- To The Workers Of The Rock River Valley Region, I Have An Idea Concerning Your Predicament
- The Man Of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts
- Prairie Fire That Wanders About
- A Conjunction Of Drones
- The Predatory Wasp Of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us!
- They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From The Dead!! Ahhhh!
- Let's Hear That String Part Again, Because I Don't Think They Heard It All...
- In This Temple As In The Hearts Of Man For Whom He Saved The Earth
- The Seer's Tower
- The Tallest Man, The Broadest Shoulders
- Riffs And Variations On A Single Note
- Out Of Egypt, Into The Great Laugh Of Mankind, And I Shake The Dirt From My Sandals As I Run
- The Avalanche