Take it easy
Lyrics
Today I was wandering
down the old street
And guess who I found -
an old drinking buddy
He was drinking too much then
and I guess even now
Some things don’t change -
they just settle somehow
We talked through the tears
as we crisscrossed the years
with - you know -
the inevitable beers
Through heartbreak and bad breaks
and chances misplayed
through debts and lost stakes
and some reckless days
Oh… our journeys weren’t so wrong
Oh no — our hearts were just too strong
and I’m not just speaking, like we do
Oh no — I wouldn't want this for you
Though our hair’s thinning out
and our faces are worn
there’s something still stubborn
quietly sworn
We haven’t given up
but we’ve taken some blows
It’s the day after day
everybody knows
And standing there with him
I remembered a man
Met him years back —
Didn’t talk much, just ran..
a hand through his hair
Looked at me straight
and said,
“Take it easy — But take it.”
Oh… our journeys weren’t so wrong
Oh no — our hearts were just too strong
And oh, I’m not just speaking, like we do
There must be better ways for the likes of you
And I looked at my friend
And I saw in his eyes —
we’re bent by the weather
but we’re not living lies
We’ll take it easy —
And then we’ll take it.
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Music video
This song grew out of a story my brother Charles told me. He met an older man who carried a quiet authority and confidence — someone who seemed certain about how life should be lived. In a brief exchange, the man said to him: “Take it easy, but take it.”
Neither my brother nor I had heard that version of the phrase before. The way it was delivered — and the presence of the man who said it — gave it weight. It stayed with us.
That moment became the seed for this song. I also wove in a related theme about experience, regret, and the way we carry our lives forward
