RELEASES
LET IT HAPPEN
Such a sad procession
winding down the lane
What a strange impression
was branded on my brain
A band was playing endless mindless
It was like a hooligan's lament
It was dumb but it was timeless
I still wonder what it meant
But whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
"Behold the lights of London"
the skipper said as his hands shook,
his aura eaten by his jealousy
and all the drugs he took
He said "This is the real world, Buddy
Toughen up your ass or it'll break"
I said "I'm not your buddy, Buddy
and your real world is a fake"
And whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
The D.J. took his vengeance
as the wedding guests arrived
There was malice in his handshake,
quicksand in his eyes
As he slunk across the courtyard
from far-off I heard a horn
Somewhere in the bleak mid-distance
something beautiful is born
And whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
I stumbled down a street of shadows
a black hallelujah split the night
anarchists and priests were playing stripjack
underneath the crude lamplight
I came upon a weeping soldier
he said "I'm all washed up now hush !"
But when I glanced across his shoulder
he held the royal flush
And whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
I'm still here, I'm still breathing
I'm who I thought I was or just about
I'll be walking down this boulevard
until my legs give out
Thoughts like storms and seas are raging
I know it is a matter of degree
but it's not the world outside that's changing
it's me
And whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
Whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
Findhorn - London November 1997
MY LOVE IS MY ROCK IN THE WEARY LAND
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
Yes my love is my rock in the long low weary land
None of this moves me
I should be weeping but it only hurts when I yawn
I let it blow through me and it's gone
I'm dressed like a scarecrow
stripped of all my power as if some judge in judgement said
"Off with his greatcoat and his head !"
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
Meaningless movies
on the screen behind the band that's blowing, throwing shapes
Half of the music is on tape
My mentor and champion
is busy tilting at the windmills of his stately home
The demon he's grappling is his own
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
His letter lies open
His accusations flow like poison from his every word
My heart would be broken but for Her
The fag-end of winter
I'm in shock, I'm on the ropes, I don't know what's to come
She plucks the splinter from my thumb
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
Yes my love is my rock in the long low weary land
In the weary land...
Ladbroke Grove, London March 1998
IT'S ALL GONE
It's all gone
so send the rain
London February 1998 IS SHE CONSCIOUS ?
Is she conscious
Is she really wide awake
Is she conscious
of her beautiful mistake
Is she conscious
as she moves among the crowd
She's got the world upon a piece of string
She's got the world upon a piece of string, it's so
He was ugly and she was beautiful
He was ugly and she was so....
Is she conscious
Is she asleep or just afloat
Is she conscious
of the letter that she wrote
Is she conscious
of the muzak in her ears
The Queen of Sheba could have shined her shoes
The Queen of Sheba could have shined her shoes, it's so
He was ugly and she was beautiful
He was ugly and she was so....
Is she conscious
as she sways across the room
Is she conscious
of the weeping of the moon
Is she conscious
as she leaves the door ajar
Is she conscious
as she gets into the car
I don't even want to say her name
I don't even want to say her name, that's all
I want to sing it from the toppest top
I want to sing it from the toppest top, that's all
The Queen of Sheba could have shined her shoes
The Queen of Sheba could have shined her shoes, it's so
He was ugly and she was beautiful
He was ugly and she was so....
Is she conscious
of the chauffeur as he drives
Is she conscious
as the ambulance arrives
London November 1997
WE ARE JONAH
And the well known fox
stepped up to make his speech
His ship was on the rocks
and rescue out of reach
spotlit he stood
said what he thought he should
Half the crowd did laugh
though there was no joke
and soon the other half
were swallowed up in smoke
a robber on the wing
could be heard to sing
the strangest thing...
Grandma
We are Jonah
rolling along
in the teeth of the whale
Then the plane did land
for some it did not crash
From it emerged a man
in trainers and moustache
down he laid his load
upon the hated road
Then the road did part
and the tar did melt
he loosened up his heart
he tightened up his belt
like a piece of string
then he began to sing
like a pearly king !
Grandma
We are Jonah
rolling along
in the teeth of the whale
Then the scene did shift
to a sunkissed sea
there was Montgomery Clift,
Jonah, the whale and me
as the sun it set
Montgomery placed his bet
Then the whale did yawn
and fell asleep in four
from dusk till dawn
you should have heard him snore
from Tierra Del Fuego
to the Alaskan snows...
There she blows...
Grandma
We are Jonah
rolling along
in the teeth of the whale
My dear old Grandma
We are Jonah
rolling along
in the teeth of the whale !
London 1996 and Findhorn 1997
MALEDICTION
I am walking in the last rays of the setting sun
whistling a hangman's tune with head held high,
swinging my gun
I say this little boy is angry
I say this little boy is mad
This little boy comes to destroy, stone eyed, hard faced,
in swathes of vengeance clad
And the black cock crows
and a dead wind blows
In my wake are seven women who tried to steal my soul
In my belly six wild wolves curse and howl
from their foul hole
I say no earthly will may stop me
I say no earthly will may try
No earthly will may halt the spill of blood from wounds
and tears from grieving eyes
And the black cock crows
and a dead wind blows
Below me burn the city lights like fires of pearls and jewels
I'm climbing down the city walls, unseen, unfussed -
the sentries must be fools
I say all pleasantries are over
I say all pleasantries are past
My enemies you pimps and thieves prepare to meet
your nemesis at last !
London March 1998
Lyrics copyright 2000 Sony/ATV Music Ltd.
DUMBING DOWN THE WORLD
I'm dumbing down the world
Yes, I'm dumbing down the world
And my head is held high
and the glint in my eye
and my arrogance rumbles before me
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
And my thoughts are banal
like a stagnant canal
and my sycophants shamble behind me
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
And my hour is come around, is come around !
Yes my hour is come around, it's come around...
Look around !
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
And my works are designed
to suck blood from your mind
for your energy feeds and sustains me
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world and I love it !
London July 1999
HIS WORD IS NOT HIS BOND
"Just let me tell you what a liar will do
He's always comin' with something new
He'll steal your heart with false pretensions
makin' out like he's your bosom friend"
(Rev Isaiah Shelton 1927 "The Liar")
He lives in a waste
void of culture and taste
his eye on a prize beyond
His every word
is in the right place
but his word is not his bond
His face is comely
his heart it bleeds
yet it's but a mantle he has donned
Mark him only
by his deeds
for his word is not his bond
I'd love to take him
out of his room
and gently break him
I'd love to see him dance !
His protege deals
in confusion and fog
Of power he is fond
Wheels within wheels -
like master, like dog
His word is not his bond
I'm trying to swim
but I'm caught in the shallows
and I sense that I've been conned
Deliver him
...to the gallows !
His word is not his bond
On tour, England October 1997
THE CHARLATAN'S LAMENT
At long weary last
this game is over
The sins of the past
have fled from my shoulder
The sleep that I need
is all I ask
In thought and in deed
I have burned the mask
Here I am...
Here I am...
Enchantment is broken
I merge with the crowd
Oaths have been spoken
inside and out loud
Emerging from under
notions of god
In tears
and in wonder
I venture abroad
Here I am...
Here I am...
Can you walk a smithereen
Can you walk a smithereen
closer to me
Could you love a thimbleful
Could you love a thimbleful
harder for me
Encountered a loathly hag
Blood on the snow
She said "I've a burden to drag
and leagues to go"
I left her down by the seaside
in someone's hall
By dawn's empty light I cried
for no one at all
Here I am...
Here I am...
Can you walk a smithereen
Can you walk a smithereen
closer to me
Could you love a thimbleful
Could you love a thimbleful
harder for me
I swing between tears and wonder
I swing between tears and wonder
I swing between tears and wonder
I swing between tears and wonder
tears and wonder !
Can you walk a smithereen
Can you walk a smithereen
closer to me
Could you love a thimbleful
Could you love a thimbleful
harder for me
Harder for me
London February 1998
THE WIND IN THE WIRES
Wake lady wake
the hills are in flood
and the road we must take
is a river of blood
and the wind in the wires
and your heart like a cup
and I'm down in the war
and you've got to get up
for mercy's sake
wake lady wake
Dress lady dress
put on your skullcap and boots
for the priest has confessed
and the chase is afoot
and the hounds are behind
gunmen around every tree
and if it's all in our minds -
well where else would it be ?
I suggest
you dress lady dress
This is the day, this is the day, this is,
this is the day, this is,
this is the day, the day, this is the day
This is the day, this is the day, this is,
this is the day, this is,
this is the day, the day, this is the day
our kingdom will crash
like a poor piece of trash
Swim lady swim
lady don't refuse
though our chances are slim
and we're totally confused
there are clues to be found
and I'd ask my peers
but they're all dumbing down
till this bad weather clears
we're out on a limb
so swim lady swim
This is the day....
London December 1998
CROWN
I've had money
and I lost it
seen an ocean
nearly crossed it
I have been to another world
and I have returned
and for every high joy
a hard lesson learned
but when love comes tumbling down
I will wear a Crown
I've had power
I've used and abused it
tasted glory
I have wooed and refused it
tried to live in a sacred way -
I did and I did not
and for everything I lost
there's been something else I got
and when love comes tumbling down
I will wear a Crown
I've been up and I've been down
sometimes almost level with the ground
once in every hundred years I can
still remember who I am
Been in danger
tried to face it
saw a mirage
and for seven years I chased it
I'm not through with my changes
I've got a long way still to run
I'm gonna play this show
even if nobody comes
and when love comes tumbling down
when love comes tumbling down
when love comes tumbling down
I will wear a Crown
Findhorn January 1998
Such a sad procession
winding down the lane
What a strange impression
was branded on my brain
A band was playing endless mindless
It was like a hooligan's lament
It was dumb but it was timeless
I still wonder what it meant
But whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
"Behold the lights of London"
the skipper said as his hands shook,
his aura eaten by his jealousy
and all the drugs he took
He said "This is the real world, Buddy
Toughen up your ass or it'll break"
I said "I'm not your buddy, Buddy
and your real world is a fake"
And whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
The D.J. took his vengeance
as the wedding guests arrived
There was malice in his handshake,
quicksand in his eyes
As he slunk across the courtyard
from far-off I heard a horn
Somewhere in the bleak mid-distance
something beautiful is born
And whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
I stumbled down a street of shadows
a black hallelujah split the night
anarchists and priests were playing stripjack
underneath the crude lamplight
I came upon a weeping soldier
he said "I'm all washed up now hush !"
But when I glanced across his shoulder
he held the royal flush
And whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
I'm still here, I'm still breathing
I'm who I thought I was or just about
I'll be walking down this boulevard
until my legs give out
Thoughts like storms and seas are raging
I know it is a matter of degree
but it's not the world outside that's changing
it's me
And whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
Whatever needs to happen
let it happen, let it be
through all I am protected
grace is effected over me
Findhorn - London November 1997
MY LOVE IS MY ROCK IN THE WEARY LAND
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
Yes my love is my rock in the long low weary land
None of this moves me
I should be weeping but it only hurts when I yawn
I let it blow through me and it's gone
I'm dressed like a scarecrow
stripped of all my power as if some judge in judgement said
"Off with his greatcoat and his head !"
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
Meaningless movies
on the screen behind the band that's blowing, throwing shapes
Half of the music is on tape
My mentor and champion
is busy tilting at the windmills of his stately home
The demon he's grappling is his own
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
His letter lies open
His accusations flow like poison from his every word
My heart would be broken but for Her
The fag-end of winter
I'm in shock, I'm on the ropes, I don't know what's to come
She plucks the splinter from my thumb
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
My love is my rock in the long low weary land
Yes my love is my rock in the long low weary land
In the weary land...
Ladbroke Grove, London March 1998
IT'S ALL GONE
It's all gone
so send the rain
London February 1998 IS SHE CONSCIOUS ?
Is she conscious
Is she really wide awake
Is she conscious
of her beautiful mistake
Is she conscious
as she moves among the crowd
She's got the world upon a piece of string
She's got the world upon a piece of string, it's so
He was ugly and she was beautiful
He was ugly and she was so....
Is she conscious
Is she asleep or just afloat
Is she conscious
of the letter that she wrote
Is she conscious
of the muzak in her ears
The Queen of Sheba could have shined her shoes
The Queen of Sheba could have shined her shoes, it's so
He was ugly and she was beautiful
He was ugly and she was so....
Is she conscious
as she sways across the room
Is she conscious
of the weeping of the moon
Is she conscious
as she leaves the door ajar
Is she conscious
as she gets into the car
I don't even want to say her name
I don't even want to say her name, that's all
I want to sing it from the toppest top
I want to sing it from the toppest top, that's all
The Queen of Sheba could have shined her shoes
The Queen of Sheba could have shined her shoes, it's so
He was ugly and she was beautiful
He was ugly and she was so....
Is she conscious
of the chauffeur as he drives
Is she conscious
as the ambulance arrives
London November 1997
WE ARE JONAH
And the well known fox
stepped up to make his speech
His ship was on the rocks
and rescue out of reach
spotlit he stood
said what he thought he should
Half the crowd did laugh
though there was no joke
and soon the other half
were swallowed up in smoke
a robber on the wing
could be heard to sing
the strangest thing...
Grandma
We are Jonah
rolling along
in the teeth of the whale
Then the plane did land
for some it did not crash
From it emerged a man
in trainers and moustache
down he laid his load
upon the hated road
Then the road did part
and the tar did melt
he loosened up his heart
he tightened up his belt
like a piece of string
then he began to sing
like a pearly king !
Grandma
We are Jonah
rolling along
in the teeth of the whale
Then the scene did shift
to a sunkissed sea
there was Montgomery Clift,
Jonah, the whale and me
as the sun it set
Montgomery placed his bet
Then the whale did yawn
and fell asleep in four
from dusk till dawn
you should have heard him snore
from Tierra Del Fuego
to the Alaskan snows...
There she blows...
Grandma
We are Jonah
rolling along
in the teeth of the whale
My dear old Grandma
We are Jonah
rolling along
in the teeth of the whale !
London 1996 and Findhorn 1997
MALEDICTION
I am walking in the last rays of the setting sun
whistling a hangman's tune with head held high,
swinging my gun
I say this little boy is angry
I say this little boy is mad
This little boy comes to destroy, stone eyed, hard faced,
in swathes of vengeance clad
And the black cock crows
and a dead wind blows
In my wake are seven women who tried to steal my soul
In my belly six wild wolves curse and howl
from their foul hole
I say no earthly will may stop me
I say no earthly will may try
No earthly will may halt the spill of blood from wounds
and tears from grieving eyes
And the black cock crows
and a dead wind blows
Below me burn the city lights like fires of pearls and jewels
I'm climbing down the city walls, unseen, unfussed -
the sentries must be fools
I say all pleasantries are over
I say all pleasantries are past
My enemies you pimps and thieves prepare to meet
your nemesis at last !
London March 1998
Lyrics copyright 2000 Sony/ATV Music Ltd.
DUMBING DOWN THE WORLD
I'm dumbing down the world
Yes, I'm dumbing down the world
And my head is held high
and the glint in my eye
and my arrogance rumbles before me
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
And my thoughts are banal
like a stagnant canal
and my sycophants shamble behind me
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
And my hour is come around, is come around !
Yes my hour is come around, it's come around...
Look around !
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
And my works are designed
to suck blood from your mind
for your energy feeds and sustains me
I'm dumbing down the world
Dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world
I'm dumbing down the world and I love it !
London July 1999
HIS WORD IS NOT HIS BOND
"Just let me tell you what a liar will do
He's always comin' with something new
He'll steal your heart with false pretensions
makin' out like he's your bosom friend"
(Rev Isaiah Shelton 1927 "The Liar")
He lives in a waste
void of culture and taste
his eye on a prize beyond
His every word
is in the right place
but his word is not his bond
His face is comely
his heart it bleeds
yet it's but a mantle he has donned
Mark him only
by his deeds
for his word is not his bond
I'd love to take him
out of his room
and gently break him
I'd love to see him dance !
His protege deals
in confusion and fog
Of power he is fond
Wheels within wheels -
like master, like dog
His word is not his bond
I'm trying to swim
but I'm caught in the shallows
and I sense that I've been conned
Deliver him
...to the gallows !
His word is not his bond
On tour, England October 1997
THE CHARLATAN'S LAMENT
At long weary last
this game is over
The sins of the past
have fled from my shoulder
The sleep that I need
is all I ask
In thought and in deed
I have burned the mask
Here I am...
Here I am...
Enchantment is broken
I merge with the crowd
Oaths have been spoken
inside and out loud
Emerging from under
notions of god
In tears
and in wonder
I venture abroad
Here I am...
Here I am...
Can you walk a smithereen
Can you walk a smithereen
closer to me
Could you love a thimbleful
Could you love a thimbleful
harder for me
Encountered a loathly hag
Blood on the snow
She said "I've a burden to drag
and leagues to go"
I left her down by the seaside
in someone's hall
By dawn's empty light I cried
for no one at all
Here I am...
Here I am...
Can you walk a smithereen
Can you walk a smithereen
closer to me
Could you love a thimbleful
Could you love a thimbleful
harder for me
I swing between tears and wonder
I swing between tears and wonder
I swing between tears and wonder
I swing between tears and wonder
tears and wonder !
Can you walk a smithereen
Can you walk a smithereen
closer to me
Could you love a thimbleful
Could you love a thimbleful
harder for me
Harder for me
London February 1998
THE WIND IN THE WIRES
Wake lady wake
the hills are in flood
and the road we must take
is a river of blood
and the wind in the wires
and your heart like a cup
and I'm down in the war
and you've got to get up
for mercy's sake
wake lady wake
Dress lady dress
put on your skullcap and boots
for the priest has confessed
and the chase is afoot
and the hounds are behind
gunmen around every tree
and if it's all in our minds -
well where else would it be ?
I suggest
you dress lady dress
This is the day, this is the day, this is,
this is the day, this is,
this is the day, the day, this is the day
This is the day, this is the day, this is,
this is the day, this is,
this is the day, the day, this is the day
our kingdom will crash
like a poor piece of trash
Swim lady swim
lady don't refuse
though our chances are slim
and we're totally confused
there are clues to be found
and I'd ask my peers
but they're all dumbing down
till this bad weather clears
we're out on a limb
so swim lady swim
This is the day....
London December 1998
CROWN
I've had money
and I lost it
seen an ocean
nearly crossed it
I have been to another world
and I have returned
and for every high joy
a hard lesson learned
but when love comes tumbling down
I will wear a Crown
I've had power
I've used and abused it
tasted glory
I have wooed and refused it
tried to live in a sacred way -
I did and I did not
and for everything I lost
there's been something else I got
and when love comes tumbling down
I will wear a Crown
I've been up and I've been down
sometimes almost level with the ground
once in every hundred years I can
still remember who I am
Been in danger
tried to face it
saw a mirage
and for seven years I chased it
I'm not through with my changes
I've got a long way still to run
I'm gonna play this show
even if nobody comes
and when love comes tumbling down
when love comes tumbling down
when love comes tumbling down
I will wear a Crown
Findhorn January 1998