Текст песни «Oysterband - Wild Blue Yonder»

The Oyster Band -Wide Blue Yonder

-The generals are born again

The generals are born again, born again, born again
The generals are born again, they're going to save the world
Their armament is seeing right, doing right, being right
Their armour of righteousness is going to save the world

They're sending in the cavalry, cavalry, cavalry
The bugles and the banner-boys are waiting for the word
The captain is a blind man, blind man, blind man
A blind man is reaching for a terrible swift sword
Born again: the generals are born again to save the world

I'll never get to heaven no matter what I do
I'll never be a blue eyed boy although my eyes are blue
And I will not work and I will not work and I will not work for you

They'll put a stop to history, history, history
Cut through this confusion with the purity of steel
For time is just a can of worms, can of worms, can of worms
They'll blow away corruption when they break that seal
Born again: the generals are born again to save the world

A star is in the firmament, firmament, firmament
A new star in the firmament Wormwood is its name
Everyone will see the light, see the light, see the light
And though my eyes are shut I'll have to see it just the same

For peace to last a thousand years, thousand years, thousand years
Prophecy has struck a match and held it to the fuse
They're wheeling up the cameras, cameras, cameras
They're timing Armageddon for the evening news
Born again, the generals are born again to save the world

-The early days of a better nation

I fall asleep with the TV on
Wake with an ache it's another week gone
And consider how my light was spent
And where it was that the real thing went
I asked a wise man for advice
I told him once and I told him twice;
My life is one long damage limitation
He smacked me hard around the head
He handed me a card that read:
Work like you were
Living in the early days of a better nation
Living in the early days of a better nation
Play that tune again! I cried
It's dead and gone the band replied
But as they slowly tried it through
The hands remembered what they had to do
Give it poke and give it licks
The name of the tune is Laying The Bricks
I Stood outside the Albert Hall
And wept, and wrote upon the wall;
Work like you were
Living in the early days of a better nation
Living in the early days of a better nation
We take the water to the tree
She says, Now do the same for me
It takes your sweat as well as art
To dig a channel for the human heart
There is no garden of delight
Unless you weed it day or night
Don't leave your life a lifelong long vacation
I hear her whisper when we meet
And when I crawl between the sheets, she says;
Work like you were
Living in the early days of a better nation
Living in the early days of a better nation

-Pigsty Billy

Walking through the world of Pigsty Billy
You can feel the sun go down
Holes in your soles and nothing in your pockets
Grinning at the edge of town

Sow the yard with broken bottles
Find a message now and then
Lose the key in a patch of nettles
Never find that door again

Don't you whistle when the wind is rising
Don't tell a chicken who's got the knife
Don't you ask for drink on credit
Don't look twice at any man's wife

The Stars are hard, it's a long December
Bait your line on a frozen pool
All the things you can't remember
Spring will thaw them out, the fool

Buried round behind the chapel
All tied up with a piece of string
A photograph of Greta Garbo
Rabbit's foot and a curtain ring

-The Oxford girl

I met a man whose brother said he knew a man who knew the Oxford girl ....
Is it true what you hear, did he do it out of fear?
Was the day drawing near when a child would start to show?
Was it rage or shame or damage to his name?
Was it something worse, does anybody know?

Did she pay a price for making them look twice?
Like a glimpse of paradise across a dull and bitter land?
Did she pass them by, did she dare to meet their eye?
Did she scorn them all and did they understand?

A grief to her father -did she really leave him?
a lover to her brother -yes we all believe him
temptation to her betters -no better than she should be
unfaithful to her lover -he always new she would be

She says: I never had a chance to prove them wrong
My time was short, the story long
No I never had a chance to prove them wrong
It's always them that write the song

Did he go to ground, was the suitcase ever found?
Did the police come swarming round on a trail already cold?
Did he lead them a dance, did he run away to France?
Or did he shop himself before the day was old?

O she was bound to loose if she set her face to choose
They never could excuse her for stirring up their fears
She was much to young, the earth has stopped her tongue
You can hear the voices calling down the years

She says: I never had a chance to prove them wrong
My time was short, the story long
No I never had a chance to prove them wrong
It's always them that write the song

I met a man whose brother said he new a man who knew the Oxford girl ....

-The Rose of England
(Nick Lowe)

Taking nothing but his daddy's old bone-grip knife
He traded but a little for the wayward life
Faint heart never won fair hand
So says the Rose of England
So says the Rose of England

>From high on a hill came the clarion call
to win young men, come one, come all
Make muster 'gainst the foreign hand
That's raised to the Rose of England
Raised to the Rose of England

For her feckless boys she did weep and wail
Crying, Lord have mercy where did I fail?
Out of my belly and the pick up a gun
And fall for the Rose of England
Fall for the Rose of England

God knows it's cold outside
It's a fire by day and a freeze at night
I know it's a hell out there
How loud the mouth when the heart don't care

He's damned if he don't, he's damned if he do
He'd die if he ever found out we knew
Hot potato, drop it and run
Far from the Rose of England
Far from the Rose of England

-Hal-an-Tow
(traditional; ar. by the Oyster Band)

Take the scorn and wear the horns
It was the crest when you were born
Your father's father wore it
And your father wore it too

Robin Hood and Little John
Have both gone to the fair-o
We shall to the merry green wood
To hunt the buck and hare-o

Hal-an-Tow, jolly rumbelow
We were up long before the day-o
To welcome in the summertime
To welcome in the May-o
For summer is coming in
And winter's gone away

What happened to the Spaniards
That made so great a boast-o?
They shall eat the feathered goose
And we shall eat the roast-o

God bless Aunt Mary Moses
With all her power and might-o
Send us peace in England
Send us peace by day and night-o

-Flatlands

In the middle of the journey, in the middle of the day
I came to a city and I stopped to ask the way
What does it matter? Said the people with a sneer
You can't get there from here

You may be a gallant runner, you may hobble with the lame
There are forty crooked hedgerows and they all look just the same
Traveling gets weary, you get funny in the head
Stop right here instead

Well, says I, I was only passing through
I'd like to stop and rest a while, it's true
Then I asked them for a job to do
They gave me life insurance and a straw to chew

Welcome to the flatlands
All the maps agree
Far as the eye can see
It's level, dead level
Flatlands: life meanders by
Chew a straw and watch the grass grow high

And it's stand we stand together, fall you fall alone
Authority's a leash of love to bring you safely home
Fools look out for trouble where foreign breezes blow
Tell your children so

They've got to keep things ticking, they must never go on strike
They'll be standing there till Doomsday with their fingers in the dyke
There's faith and hope and patience and patience is the best
Turn your face from the rest

Well, says I, I'm much obliged to you
Everywhere I go I'm learning something new
If I understand your point of view
You don't believe we're dying our whole life through

Welcome to the flatlands...

And if they waste nothing they can keep their little pile
And if they say nothing they will not be on file
And if they see nothing no one will see them
No one will take down their name

And if they do not panic the pain will vanish soon
And if they never sing they'll never be out of tune
And if they are faithful they will get their reward
And if they are meek they will be spared

Well, says I, I was only passing through
I'd better get a move on 'cause the days are few
Poppies are red, cornflowers blue
The scythe is sharp the mowing's due

Welcome to the flatlands...

Wonder where the flying years go
Chew a straw and watch the grass grow high

-The lost and found

This is the hour when the city turns blue
This is the time of the lost and found
They loose the nutters in the Underground
Everything's far and nothing is true

When the streets don't feel like a neutral zone
Or the strangers eye like a neutral glance
The very next step might blow your chance
Of finding your way home alone -

Look sharp
It's like an opening door, look sharp
It's what we came here for, look sharp
You never know what the wind may blow

And your life's like the voice in the room upstairs
Raised to someone you never hear
You can try and try, it never comes clear
Are you saying or swearing your prayers?

But the eyes are wide that were shut for shame
Dogs in their backyards jump up and bark
Hull and Halifax wake in the dark
Like someone was calling their name -

Look sharp
It's like an opening door, look sharp
It's what we came here for, look sharp
You never know what the wind may blow

This is the hour when the city turns blue
This is the time of the lost and found
There's no saviours hanging around
Keeping a watch over you

There's words on the wall and a stinking lift
I hold my breath to the 14th floor
Empty-handed I knock at your door
My empty hands are my gift -

Look sharp
It's like an opening door, look sharp
It's what we came here for, look sharp
You never know what the wind may blow

-Another Quiet Night in England

Just another quite night in England
And far away the dogs are barking
Just another quite night in England
Decent folk are all in their beds
And he is sleeping like the dead
And another quiet night goes by

His father used to own the factory
But his son cashed in and he sold the site
And a town fell silent overnight

Where is the pit and the mill
Where is the skill and the sweat from their hands?
Gone with the smoke and the heat
The noise and the beat of the heart of the land

And money moves without a whisper
Money has no home or nation
It has no friends and it won't stay long

Another quiet night and the dogs are barking
You wake to the smell of burning tyres
Sirens wail and the street's on fire

And another headline hits the presses
The truth runs in, the news creeps out
People stare if you scream and shout
And another quiet night goes by

-Coal Creek Mine
(Green Bailey; arranged by the Oyster Band)

Shut up in the mine of Coal Creek
We know that we must die
But if we trust in Jesus
To heaven our souls shall fly

Our lamps are burning dimly
Our food is almost gone
Death wraps his shirt around us
Soon we'll be carried home

Goodbye dear wife and children
May you be treated kind
For now our time has come to die
Locked up in the Coal Creek Mine

Eleven of us were imprisoned
And two dear ones have died
Nine more are left to suffer
And die in the Coal Creek Mine

Dear friends, you should take a warning
And listen to what we say
You're now in the world of sunlight
And there you'd better stay

-Between the wars
(B. Bragg)

I was a miner, I was a docker
I was a railwayman between the wars
I raised a family in time of austerity
With sweat at the foundry, between the wars
I paid the union and as times got harder
I looked to the government to help the working man
They brought prosperity, down at the armoury
We're arming for peace, my boys, between the wars

I kept the faith and I kept voting,
Not for the iron fist, but for the helping hand
Theirs is a land with a wall around it
And mine is a faith in my fellow man
Theirs is a land of hope and glory
Mine is the green field and the factory floor
Theirs are the skies all dark with bombers
Mine is the peace we knew between the wars

Call up the craftsmen, bring me a draughtsman
Build me a path from cradle to grave
And I'll give my consent to any government
That does not deny a man a living wage
Go find the young men, never to fight again
Call up the banners from the days gone by
Sweet moderation, the heart of this nation,
Desert us not, we are between the wars

(the mumbling is said to be "And behold when they opened the sixth door
there was a great earthquake,
and the sun became black as sackcloth.")

-The lakes of Cool Flynn
(tradd. arr. Oyster Band)

It was early one morning Willie Leonard arose
Into his comrade's bed chamber he goes
Saying arise my loyal comrades, let nobody know
It's a fine summer's morning and bathing we'll go

But as they were walking all down a long lane
Who should they meet with but a keeper of game
Go back Willie Leonard, do not venture in
There's deep and false waters in the lakes of Cool Flynn

Young Willie jumped in and he swam the lake round
Till he came to an island but not the right ground
Go back my loyal comrades, do not follow me in
There's deep and false waters in the lakes of Cool Flynn

It was later that morning Willie's sister arose
And straight to her mother's bedchamber she goes
Saying mother, dearest mother, I have had a strange dream
Young Willie lies floating in a watery stream

It was later that morning Willies mother got there
Wringing her hands and tearing her hair
Saying where was he drowned where did he fall in?
There's death in false waters in the lakes of Cool Flynn

O the day of his funeral it was such a fine sight
With four and twenty young men and they're all dressed in white
Four and twenty young men to lay him in cold clay
Said adieu to young Willie and they all marched away

-Following in father's footsteps

I used to come home very very late
Boots by the hob and gob on the grate
Father waiting with his pipe in his hand
He blew me upstairs with his reprimand

One fine day I was out all night
There he was gone, it gave me a fright
I went out looking in my little boat
So full of hope it could hardly float

Following in fathers footsteps
down the line, down the line

I came to an island, the shape of a cross
It had to be my mother's, she met me with a kiss
She said, You're looking thin (I was feeling fat)
And no girl's gonna look at you with shoes like that

Wishes are sharks if troubles are a sea
She arms herself with another pot of tea
A long long time she's been marooned
Dishing up her love with serving spoons

Following in father's footsteps
down the line, all down the line

I found him in the end, years down the roads,
Rowing home without any load
Why has your hair gone so white I? I cried
And have you brought us gifts from the world so wide?

A finger to his lips, he took me aside
He looked like a man with something to hide, he said
All I ever got from following my wish
Was a wet arse and not a lot of fish

Somewhere in his mind he's waiting up for me
Like a fisherman whose sons have run away to sea
Sometimes the lines get slack, so it's
High time I covered up my tracks

Following in father's footsteps
down the line, all down the line

-A careless life

If nothing is given
nothing is required
sent early to bed
the boy never tired
alone in the dark
he learned not to cry
then in his dream
he could fall, he could fly
(the bird's on the wing
there's blood on the thorn)
alone in the dark
he learned not to cry
then in his dream
he could fall, he could fly
(the bird's on the wing
there's blood on the thorn
the snails on the runway
a comet is born)

It was a careless life in any sense
A long way out with no defense
Another careless life
Another tilt at staying free
Blessed are the poor in spirit
We'd better be

The women fell silent
when trouble began
they carried the babies
they carried the can
they carried his cases
out to the car
waving him off to
another small war
(everyone thinks and
no one knows
everyone knows and
no one thinks)

It was a careless life in any sense
A long way out with no defense
Another careless life
Another tilt at staying free
Blessed are the poor in spirit
We'd better be

Trawling the desert
the whole press-card jive
tempting the guns
to be sure he's alive

dictating impressions
for memoirs to come
the sky held its breath
the stones were dumb
they blew his driver
out of the jeep
headlines on Sundays
make editors weep
all these adventures
all of these rhymes
don't stand a prayer
in desperate times

(the bird's on the wing
there's blood on the thorn
the snails on the runway
a comet is born
everyone thinks and
no one knows
everyone knows and
nobody knows)

It was a careless life in any sense
A long way out with no defense
Another careless life
Another tilt at staying free
Blessed are the poor in spirit
We'd better be

To join the Oysters e-mail list write to oysters-request@blowfish.taligent.com
Please report comments or errors to hlbrstdt@netcom.com

-------------------e-mail hlbrstdt@netcom.com---------------------------

Call up the craftsmen, bring me a draughtsman
Build me a path from cradle to grave
And I'll give my consent to any government
That does not deny a man a living wage
Go find the young men, never to fight again
Call up the banners from the days gone by
Sweet moderation, the heart of this nation,
Desert us not, we are between the wars