TEARS AND PAVAN: AN INTRODUCTION TO THE STRAWBS - LYRICS
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New World
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
There's blood in the dust
Where the city's heart beats
The children play games
That they take from the streets
How can you teach when you've so much to learn
May you turn
In your grave
New world.
There is hate in your eyes
I have seen it before
Planning destruction
Behind the locked door
Were you the coward who fired the last shot
May you rot
In your grave
New world.
There is death in the air
With the lights growing dim
As those who survive
Sing a desperate hymn
Pray that God grants you one final request
May you rest
In your grave
New world.
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.
Oh How She Changed
(Cousins/Hooper)
Not available
She leaned forward in the lamplight
In her eyes an amber glow
She was promising the earth
And yet somehow saying no
We talked of pleasant summer days
Kew Gardens, Hampton Court
The jewellers where we bought
The ring that held us close together.
Oh how she changed with every passing day.
In the swirling misty morning
As the day began to break
In the heavy dew her footsteps
I am floundering in her wake.
Oh how she changed with every passing day.
The shutters of indifference
Have close to bar the view
A person I once knew.
Oh how she changed with every passing day.
Witchwood
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
I dropped down in the witchwood
To see what I could find
The trees had taken time out
To blow away my mind
All that I could hear there
Was the sound of my own voice
But the music it was making
Was nothing of my choice.
The interwoven branches
Were laden deep with snow
A rainbow shone so softly
To show which way to go
I observed its many colours
Till my eyes were rimmed with frost
I tried hard to trace my footsteps
For I feared I might get lost.
The witchwood started singing
With a strange unearthly sound
My fingers grew like branches
I stood rooted to the ground
And the spell is still unbroken
I am still her bidden slave
Till a casket from the witchwood
Bears my body to the grave.
Where Is This Dream Of Your Youth
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
Wake up one day, you're left alone
From now on you're on your own
The sands of time are running low
You'll have nothing left to show
The months slip by and change to years
Soon the twilight gloom appears
And then one day before you know
You'll have nothing left to show.
Where is this dream of your youth.
The pictures on the walls are shaking
They can hear the storm a-breaking
Storms may come and storms go
You'll have nothing left to show
They can hear the earth a-quaking
Buildings come and buildings go
You'll have nothing left to show.
Tomorrow brings another dawn
It might be better from now on
Before too long that day will go
You'll have nothing left to show
You'll have nothing left to show
You'll have nothing left to show
You'll have nothing left to show.
Where is this dream of your youth ?
Grace Darling
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
You have been my lighthouse
In every storm
You have given shelter
You have kept me safe and warm
And in my darkest nights
You have shone your brightest lights
You are my saving grace
Darling I love you.
You have been the pilot
Who guides me home
You have been the my rock
As on the seven seas I roam
And when I was becalmed
You were the strength in my arms
You are my saving grace
Darling I love you.
And when I found my back
Was torn and broken on the reef
You sailed your tiny boat
Across the dark seas of my disbelief.
You have been the anchor
And I the chain
Straining as we hold ourselves
Together in the rain
I have found you ever there
My constant keeper's daughter fair
You are my saving grace
Darling I love you.
Queen Of Dreams
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
Spoke the Queen of Dreams
I was Lord of the Forest
Walked within her paths
Sheltered within her bowers
Pine needles for my pillow
The dove my only true friend
I was Lord of the Forest.
Spoke the Queen of Souls
I was Lord of the Ocean
Swam beneath her waves
Sheltered within her shipwrecks
Precious gifts I bring you
From rusting hulls of the deep
I was Lord of the Ocean.
Spoke the Queen of Heads
I was Lord of the Mountains
Scaled her highest peaks
Sheltered within her valleys
Climb high upon my shoulders
I will show you the world
I was Lord of the Mountains.
I had no head for heights
But close my eyes to make the climb
Oh Queen of Dreams
Oh Queen of Souls
Oh Queen of Heads
It's time.
Tears And Pavan
(Cousins/Hudson/Ford)
Old School Songs/Fazz Music
Tears
(Cousins)
Where are the tears
That you should be crying right now
I see the world weariness
In your eyes
I hear your voice
Soft and sad
Yet your laughter rings
Like carillons of bells
In my ears
I feel your heart
Beat like the wings of the wild goose
I smell your love
On me
I can still taste the tears
That you should be crying right now.
Pavan
(Hudson/Ford/Cousins)
And when she lies in need of care and comforting
So as a child's toy she is caressed
And yet when cast adrift upon the changing tide
So as a ship becalmed she lies at rest
Oh darling go to sleep
For the night is young
There are many songs
Yet to be sung
Oh but I will sing them all to you
Before the night is through.
Round And Round
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
I drew the blade across my wrist
To see how it would feel
Looked into the future
There was nothing to reveal
For we were just the product
Of the ever spinning wheel
Round and round we go
Round and and round we go.
Come and see me
When the screw has turned another turn
It's not that I'm confused
But I've an awful lot to learn
But I will be the one
To make you work for what you earn
Round and round we go
Round and and round we go.
After all it's just the revolution I despise
The dawn of revelations and the flower power prize
And I pity those poor children with no sunshine in their eyes
Round and round we go
Round and and round we go.
So Shall Our Love Die
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
The rose buds are hard and firm;
Erect and proud they stand
On slender stems,
Wrapped in silk
And tied with a velvet ribbon.
"Tie the ribbon in my hair,"
She says,
"Your gentle touch upon my brow
Can make me close my eyes
In sleepy pleasure."
Low the candle burns
And flickers shadows on the wall;
It's crimson lips are closing
Round the flame.
As the flame dies
So shall our live die?
The roses stoop lower
As their petals fall.
So shall our love die?
"What is it,"
She says.
"Nothing,"
Say I,
"Nothing but the west wind,
The wind of change."
Lay Down
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
By still waters I lay down with the lambs
In pastures green I made peace with my soul
And I cared not for the night
While my guiding star shone bright
By still waters I lay down
I lay down.
Lay down, I lay me down
Lay down, I lay me down
Lay down, I lay me down
For my soul.
At the roadside I took toll of my times
In dirty streets I found peace for my soul
May the merciful be right
Are you ready for the night
At the roadside I lay down
I lay down.
Lay down, I lay me down
Lay down, I lay me down
Lay down, I lay me down
For my soul.
In deep sorrow I took flight with the sun
From mountains high I gained strength for my soul
I proved stronger than the test
When my spirit came to rest
In deep sorrow I lay down
I lay down.
Lay down, I lay me down
Lay down, I lay me down
Lay down, I lay me down
For my soul.
Down By The Sea
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
Maybe you think, a lot like me
Of those who live beside the sea
Who feel so free, so I surmise
With their comfortable homes, and wives
Who end up drinking tea together
In the afternoon of their lives.
They build their homes upon the seashore
The quicksand castles of their dreams
Yet take no notice of the North wind
Which tears their building at the seams.
In their dismay and blind confusion
The weeping widows clutch their shawls
While as the sea mist ever deepens
The sailors hear the sirens' calls.
And in the maelstrom sea which follows
The lifeboat sinks without a trace
And yet there still remain survivors
To bear the shame of their disgrace.
Last night I lay in bed
And held myself
Trying to remember
How it once was with you
How your hands were softer.
Yesterday I found myself
Staring into space
Rather like the sailor
In my own home surroundings
I'm not sure I know me.
If you were me what would you do
Don't tell me I don't need you to
It won't help me now.
Ghosts
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
Sweet Dreams
Go to sleep my babies
Don't you wake up
The stars will keep you company
So close your eyes
Old Uncle Moon will shine his dearest sweetest dreams
And hold you in your arms
Until the morning comes.
Night Light
Dark the night, not a sound
Damp and cold, frosty ground
Above your head the lion screams
To tear you from your moonlit dreams.
Damp with sweat, mouth is dry
Twisted branches catch the eye
Beside your bed the angel stands
You cannot touch his withered hands.
Guardian Angel
As the lion's eyes dance before me
They are kindly yet bloody red
I can see that he is smiling
But I cannot live inside his head.
There the needle stands before me
I climb inside it towards the light
Where the angel stands in glory
His sword of peace defends the night.
So the world is spread before
As I fly high on angel wings
But the angel is deceiving
For he is weeping as he sings.
Night Light (continued)
Early birds, morning breeze
Spinning leaves, sleepy trees
Gently tap the window pane
It's good to see the sun again.
Hero And Heroine
(Cousins)
Old School Songs
Hero's face was gaunt and tanned
His sail was set in search of land
His life-raft, solely by him manned
Was guided by the tide
Heroine wore fleecy white
She beckoned like some saviour bright
Shipwrecked sailors in the night
Were bid welcome to her side.
Where one man's search must surely cease
The irresistible white fleece
Led Hero in search of the peace
That she alone could offer
Thus he knelt before her feet
Wary lest their eyes should meet
He knew his life was incomplete
For he had yet to suffer.
Enticing Heroine, so calm
Took Hero firmly by the arm
Told him that she meant no harm
That she alone could save him
Hero could no longer speak
While realising he was weak
His life increasingly grew bleak
For all the love she gave to him.
While storm clouds gathered high above
The heroine he grew to love
Turned slowly to a snow white dove
And spread her wings to fly
Crushed and broken in the end
Hero watched his soul ascend
Knowing that he was condemned
To sail all alone to die.