SECRET PATHS - LYRICS
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Song Of A Sad Little Girl
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
She looks so frail beside you
As she wears her sick disguise
You say she'll soon be better
As you dry her tearful eyes
You tell her fairy stories
She tries to understand
She looks to you for comfort
And holds out her little hand.
But early in the morning
When the sun shines
Into her tiny room
She wakes up like a bird
And she's fine again.
You gently kiss her forehead
And from the room you creep
But you linger in the doorway
As she whimpers in her sleep
Her cheeks are flushed like sunset
And her head's an open fire
All night she turns and tosses
As her temperature gets higher.
But early in the morning
When the sun shines
Into her tiny room
She wakes up like a bird
And she's fine again.
The nightlight in the corner
Casts a soft and peaceful glow
Her face becomes much cooler
And her breathing much more slow
She dreams of clowns and princes
Sailing boats and trains
The fairies come by moonlight
To take away her pain.
But early in the morning
When the sun shines
Into her tiny room
She wakes up like a bird
And she's fine again.
She wakes up
Like a bird
And she feels fine.
Plainsong
(Cousins)
Old School Songs/Sony ATV Music
I found a curious place born of emptiness
The silent solitude of the evening sky
Sycamore seeds scatter life on winter days
The robin and the wren break bread in thankfulness
Ever will I rest
Sadly as I weep
Close against your breast
Soundly when I sleep
I hear an ancient air sung with tenderness
A gentle ambient sound full of innocence
Shape-notes of a plainsong hymn through the chapel walls
Green for Epiphany, gold for Trinity.
Come my little darling with your deep-set eyes
The dragonfly will rest on your fingertips
The lightest of touch to celebrate the past
In porcelain, paint and wood, then cast aside
The Shepherd's Song
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
The heavy air was scented by
The disappointed flowers
The weatherman had promised them
Warm soft summer showers
They bowed their weary heads
Resigned to wait a few more hours
And we walked together in the half light
Down secret paths
Climbed wooden fences
Till a dancing meadow
Enveloped us within its grassy web.
There was no need for discussion
It was surely no disgrace
Her soft skin had the texture
Of the finest silken lace
Waiting moist and trembling
It was just the time and place
And our woven bodies sang together
In harmony
With understanding
Till we fell back smiling
Rejoicing in the music we had made.
The blood red summer sunset
Was a slowly spreading stain
That rose behind the bandstand
As the shepherd played again
We heard his silver trumpet
It had blown away the rain
And we lay together in the long grass
Holding hands
And making sweet talk
Till the smell of woodsmoke
Reminded us that it was to go.
I Turned My Face Into The Wind
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
I wandered far onto the lonely moors
Sparse coarse tufts of grass reached out to trip me
And above my head the leaden clouds hung low
As I turned my face into the rain.
I huddled close against a tumbling wall
Wrapped in a cloak to shield me from the bitter cold
The solitude weighed heavy on my mind
As I turned my face into the rain.
The mist rolled down across the countryside
I thought I heard the coastal sirens sound
As I turned my face into the rain.
I tried to peer into the deepening gloom
To glimpse a lighted window in the distance
But just too far to penetrate the rain
As I turned my face into the rain.
And yet somehow I sensed her presence near
And tufts of sheep's wool hanging from a gorse bush
Were as though her hands were beckoning me home
As I turned my face into the rain.
Ringing Down The Years
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
We met when you were still a girl
In nineteen sixty eight
You wore a white dress and a hat
I touched the hand of fate
Your sweet voice took my breath away
Your smile lit up your face
You still had both feet on the ground
I was out in space
That certain sadness in your eyes
The secret of your smile
I've carried all these memories
Down many's the weary mile
And every time I hear your name
My eyes moist up with tears
As every word you ever sang
Comes ringing down the years.
We sat and talked the whole night long
Of all our rights and wrongs
Of mutual acquaintances
We sang each other's song
You were with me when the morning broke
The birds refused to sing
They knew when they were beaten
They hid beneath their wings.
I was in a Cleveland hotel room
When they telephoned the news
I drowned my sorrow all night long
The Southern Comfort blues
The show went on to great applause
Choking back the tears
As every word you ever sang
Came ringing down the years.
I reached out for the hourglass
To turn it face about
But who knows where the time goes
When your time is running out
I know someday we'll meet again
And I know just what I'll find
You'll have taught the angels how to sing
Georgia - Georgia on my mind.
Canada
(Cousins)
Old School Songs/Sony ATV Music
Far distant mountains covered in snow
Wilderness highways where wicked winds blow
Prairies reach out to the end of the earth
The seaways and lakes sing the song of their birth.
Canada oh Canada
The journeys are endless but never too far
Canada oh Canada
Toujours j'ai trouve
La force dans les bras
I have found strength in your arms.
The sun rises high over wild rugged shores
Fiddles sing sweet over long-settled scores
The fishing fleet rests on the Maritime shelf
The Titanic risses, a ghost of itself.
Toronto the good brings a smile to your face
A meeting place fit for the whole human race
Vieux Montreal et l'esprit Quebecois
Le cuisson d'amis - creton, foie gras
Victoria reigns in a haven of peace
Rest my head easy before my release
The sea to the sky meets the high lonesome pass
The brazen sun sets on the city of glass.
How I Need You Now
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
My ashtray's flowing over,
And the 'phone's left off the hook.
I've been staring for three hours
At the first page of a book.
Day and night I keep the curtains drawn,
And curse the very day that I was born,
And get to thinking,
How I need you,
Now.
I keep staring at my wristwatch,
Until it's ticking fills the room,
And the hollow sound reminds me
Of the silence of a tomb,
And as the ceiling and the walls close in,
And the furniture begins to spin,
I get to thinking,
How I need you,
Now.
And as the days go passing by,
And I never get a letter,
How I need you.
Days turn into weeks,
And it doesn't get much better,
How I need you.
The gaslit streets lean slowly
As I reel against the wall,
And my musty head is aching
As I stagger down the hall;
Then I fill the broken glass once more,
And fling the empty bottle to the floor,
And get to thinking,
How I need you ...
I'll Show You Where To Sleep
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
Just paint a picture of the world
In gentle pastel shades
Indistinct and somehow blurred
Like childhood escapades
The painting box is rather dear
But the paints themselves are cheap
Leave your pack at the side of the road
I'll show you where to sleep.
Dead brown weeds in a ditch at the side
Of a field of burning corn
The road opens out before you
Like the womb where you were born
There's no need to pretend again
To try and earn your keep
Leave your pack at the side of the road
I'll show you where to sleep.
And crowds will gather in the sun
As stone madonnas weep
And the shepherd is a good man
As he tends his flock of sheep.
In case you find your tortoise shell
Is getting rather tight
You can wrap yourself in your magic cloak
And disappear from sight
And I will stand guard over you
As through the door you creep
Leave your pack at the side of the road
I'll show you where to sleep.
Beat The Retreat
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
The rat race was over
Before it was won
And I started walking
When I could have run
Like a child who missed out
On a sunday school treat
Now you know how I feel when
I beat the retreat.
I slept like a soldier
My gun at my side
My uniform folded
I wore it with pride
I could not rest contented
Till I joined the elite
Now you know how I feel when
I beat the retreat.
This winter wind brings
Such a chill to my bones
Erect in my memory
A small cairn of stones
So that those from afar
Can see where our paths meet
Now you know how I feel when
I beat the retreat.
The last post is sounding
Now it's time to be gone
There's no further reason
For singing this song
The battle is over
I accept the defeat
Now you know how I feel when
I beat the retreat.
Falling In Love Again
(Hollander/Lerner)
Chelsea Music Publishing
Falling in love again
I never wanted to
What am I to do
I can't help it.
Love's always been my game
Play it as I may
I was made this way
I can't help it.
Girls gather round me
Like moths around the flame
And if their wings burn
You know I'm not to blame.