Folk Songs written around 2004
Walking Down The Road
Walking down the road in the wrong direction,
Five hundred miles from home, in a brand new city,
Hey, taxi man stop, Hey, taxi man stop.
Give me a lift in your shiny new car,
I’ve got blisters on my feet,
And my soul has travelled too far,
It would be something good,
It would be something good.
For the highway is long,
And incidents of joy are far apart,
Chasing my dream,
And the low down is that it’s very hard work,
Hard work, every day,
Hard work every day.
If I left my heart in the middle of the street,
Would the loss of my burden make my life complete,
I’d stand a chance, I’d stand a chance.
I’d fill up the vacuum with crazy joy,
Play with my soul, like a brand new toy,
I’d find my place, I’d find my place.
For the highway is long,
And incidents of joy are far apart,
Chasing my dream,
And the low down is that it’s very hard work,
Hard work, every day,
Hard work every day,
And the further I go, the further away.
2004
The Ships are Sailing
The Ships are sailing into the harbour,
White sails, like the wings of a swan.
For twelve lonely months I have sorely been waiting,
Waiting for the return of my love.
Teas and sweet spices from far eastern countries,
Cloth of silk and satin so rare.
But none as precious as the sight of my true love,
None so fine, and none so rare.
He promised to come back this year in the springtime,
A sillouhette ship in the setting sun,
But the geese have migrated,
The oak leaves have fallen,
The last flower is frosted,
And the swallows have flown.
The wind plays a tune in the trees dark branches,
A lonesome sound, under the starlit sky.
I will walk these cliffs and sing for my true love,
Call him home with the words of my song.
2005
(The tune "Carolan's Air" is played alongside this song on flute.)
I can go or I can stay
Oh, I can go or I can stay,
These are the choices, that I make,
But when to love, or when to care,
These are the burdens that I bear.
Oh do you love my golden hair?
Would you love me if I was not fair?
Oh do you love me young and pure?
Will you love me in my old age too?
Oh, I can go or I can stay...
I brought to you five hundred pounds?
Would you love me if, no wealth abounds?
Do you love me dressed in silk and satin?
Would you love me dressed in raw cotton?
Tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor,
Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief.
Tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor,
Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief.
He loves me, he doesn’t, he loves me ,
he does,
He loves me, he doesn’t, he loves me,
he does.
Oh, I can go or I can stay...
You travel far, so far from home,
I cannot tell, where you roam,
What do you think? What do you say?
Where will you be, the following day?
Oh, I can go or I can stay...
Tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor,
Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief.
Tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor,
Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief.
He loves me, he doesn’t, he loves me ,
he does,
He loves me, he doesn’t, he loves me,
he does.
He might do!
2004
