Ticket to Paradise

I’ve been hankering to write this song since 1966. That year, I got ensnared by a (Black) Magician named Camp and his apprentice, Frank Powers—perfect name, wouldn’t you say? I ended up with Scarlet Fever, a damaged heart, and wrote my second novel, A VIRGIN STAYED. The book drew interest from agents Toni Mendez and Scott Meredith… but it vanished. You read that right—it vanished.
While entangled in that witchy world out in Southampton, Long Island, I once asked Camp, “Why does God take the innocent? Why do so many suffer needlessly?” His answer: “The ticket to paradise is dear.”
Ever since, those words have been my stock answer to that question. And now, having written this song, I’ve finally served that inner hankering. You need not endure this very sad song—but keep what Camp said always in mind. Because it’s true. Whether that be the rich man's heaven or the monk's; the hedonist or the scientist's, artist and musician, the explorer or the grid iron warrior's heavenly goal. A price must be paid.
Cathy's voice melds often with my music. I advise clicking on the CC icon. The words have meaning in this song.

🎟️ Ticket to Paradise
[Verse 1]
Why struggle, ignore my friends, and sacrifice all my time?
Work single-mindedly, polish every surface ‘til it shines.
Chase a dream I barely defined—
Gain a bundle, just to leave it behind.
[Verse 2]
Why’d you take the children, the innocent?
The mother and father, my brothers, my friends?
Why must the good ones disappear,
And leave us counting every tear?
[Verse 3]
I built a shrine from memory and pain,
Lit candles for each forgotten name.
I begged the stars to send them back—
But silence answered every track.
[Chorus]
A ticket to paradise is dear,
Its price is counted in heartache and fear.
Nothing and no one comes nearly as near—
The cost of heaven is very dear.
[Bridge]
Maybe someday I’ll meet the scribe
Who etched this fate in stars and sky.
But until that day, I’ll cry this prayer—
For all the souls no longer there.
[Final Chorus]
A ticket to paradise is dear,
Its price is counted in heartache and fear.
Nothing and no one comes nearly as near—
The cost of heaven is very dear.