Song #43 200 Years

 

Salcombe, Devon

200 YEARS

(Listen HERE)

You left home as a boy to ride the ocean breeze

You left home as a boy to sail the seven seas

Christmas Day on the ocean so far away from home

If ever you had one on England’s green shores

On England’s green shores

 

And tonight you are certain that you’ve somethin’ to sing

Yes tonight you are sure that you’re so full of song

You’ve come back for a party and a tragic event

To celebrate history however it went

However it went

 

But have you heard of a black man who lives here in pain?

For whom Christmas means nothin’ after 200 years

He’s never been on the ocean nor left his land

For the earth is his mother and the source of all being

The source of all being

 

But you the white wanderer who travels the world

This planet is your backyard to live and to grow in

You’ve come back for the party, the drinks and the song

And how could one blame you - you’ve done no wrong

You’ve done no wrong

 

Sing Happy Birthday Australia with your flag wavin’ and cheers

You’re covered with white skin so go drink your beers

It may as well be this day; it’s as good as any

To bid a warm thank you to this great southern land

This great southern land

 

Sing Happy Birthday Australia with your flag wavin’ and cheers

You’re covered with white skin so go drink your beers

It may as well be this day; it’s as good as any

To bid a warm thank you to this great southern land

That’s very much older than 200 years

Than 200 years

 

(© Michael Coghlan, December 1987)

Commentary

Best read in conjunction with the song before it - Third Fleet. Had just arrived back in Australia for the festive season and wanting to balance the ledger a little. Definitely a folk song; has a kind of sea shanty feel.

 

 

Song #42 Third Fleet

 

THIRD FLEET

(Listen HERE)

Eleven big ships left England one day

They’re gonna sail into Sydney Harbour one day

And all of those people with their skins black or brown

May well see it as a day to frown

And remember the day they lost their land

 

But I’m gonna be there when those boats sail in

I wanna feel the thrill and remember the day

That the white people came and paved the way

For people like me to be here and say

 

CHORUS

I don’t expect you to cheer with me

But I want you to know I’ve travelled the sea

I keep comin’ back to this land you see

‘Cos it’s the best that I’ve seen north or south

I wanna thank you for sharing this land with me (and mine)

 

I’m sorry we didn’t treat you right

We can all get together and make it right

There’s enough room for back, brown and white

Can’t you see that I love this land

I’m no black Australian but I call this home

The hum of this land is a part of me

 

CHORUS

 

But I’m gonna be there when those boats sail in

I wanna feel the thrill and remember the day

That the white people came and paved the way

For people like me to be here and say

 

CHORUS

 

(Copyright Michael Coghlan, 1987)

Commentary

I wrote this song on the eve of Australia's bicentennial. I was living in Holland at the time and feeling quite disconnected from my homeland. I realised that I missed the land of Australia: the land, the dirt, the hum of the desert, the colours, its sense of majesty. And the song tries to reconcile these feelings with the fact that my forebears stole the land from the Aboriginal people. I actually think it's one of my better songs. It has something of a reggae feel. I did make a proper recording of it years ago but I've lost it. So it's another one for the ever-growing to be recorded list. 21/10: a new rough version

Song #41 Northern Winter

 

NORTHERN WINTER

(Listen HERE) 

Northern winter northern home

Northern winter northern home

The sun shines clear here today

Snow lingers shining

The air seems clear

It’s as good as a day gets here

In this northern winter, northern home

 

The forest stands quietly

As the cold wind blows

The few leaves left hanging

Rustle dry sounds

And off in the distance

Unseen but well heard

The cars on the highways

Of this northern land, northern home

 

Take a stroll through the woods

Smell the fresh air

There’s moss underfoot – all gentle and soft

On a carpet of leaves

So precious this day

That calls us outside

In its own wintry way

 

Well I know that it’s beautiful

But you need too many clothes

 

The sun shines clear here today

Snow lingers shining

The air seems clear

It’s as good as a day gets here

In this northern winter, northern home

 

Northern winter, northern home

Northern winter, northern home

Northern home

 

© Michael Coghlan 1987

 Commentary

A song I'm quite proud of. Slow and wistful in the way that still cold days made me feel during Dutch winters. Still to be recorded - DONE!

 

Song #40 Rock'n'Roll Anthem

 

(Don Henley and Band, 2017)

ROCK’N’ROLL ANTHEM

 

Somebody told me it had all been done

Rock’n’roll had nowhere to go

I don’t believe them anymore than I believe you

When you tell me I’m a liar

 

You see I remember when rock was young

Full of life and with places to go

Change the world we cried and off we marched

You tell me it all went wrong – oh so sadly

 

The music lived on but the spirit died

Lead guitar faded but the keyboard soared

Long peaceful hair became short and angry

Tell me I don’t know what I’m saying at all

 

Now we’re living in the 1980s

Every new direction somebody has followed

Every new tune sounds like another of old

 

Feed the world somebody cried

Millions of people are going to die

Now rock’n’roll’s got somewhere to go

I know I’m not lying – the starving are living again

(1987)

Commentary

Trying to say something about rock music needing to reclaim a higher purpose and that perhaps the Live Aid concerts fulfilled this goal. No memory of writing this or singing it. Seems to have been triggered by something specific but don't know what they may have been either. However, in the interests of full disclosure .....

Escape from Manus - Australia's Shame

 

Find this book: Escape from Manus by Jaivet Ealom. Read it. Then ask yourself if you are happy for Australia to behave like this in your name. In our name. Appalling. Disgusting. Every Australian Prime Minister from Howard to Morrison – all of them – should be charged with crimes against humanity. How could we stoop so low?

Like most Australians I am aware of the offshore detention policy applied to refugees who attempt to come here by boat. I have always totally opposed it and it is in stark contrast to what happened in the 70’s when Australia accepted thousands of boat people from SE Asia. But what I was not aware of was the calculated and meticulous torture Australia has designed to break the spirit of these people who merely sought refuge on our shores from tyranny elsewhere.

If you have ever wondered whether Australians could behave as people in Nazi Germany did, well here’s your answer. The answer is a very scary YES. The Nazis would be proud of what Australia has accomplished in our offshore detention centres. After reading Jaivet Ealom’s account of the hell he was subjected to by the Australian authorities there is no doubt in my mind that Australia embarked on a deliberate policy of psychological torture of our most recent boat peoples. While the goal was to discourage people smugglers operating out of Indonesia and Malaysia Australia embarked on an inhumane policy of punishing the victims to achieve this goal. From the moment Jaivet arrives in Christmas Island and is given his tag with a number – he becomes EML109 - he becomes a nameless, stateless nobody to be tortured to breaking point. He could just as well have had the Star of David sewn to his sleeve.

I have never been so ashamed of my country. Somewhere deep down within our collective psyche we have lost our humanity; we have lost our soul. I repeat - find this book: Escape from Manus by Jaivet Ealom. Read it. Then ask yourself if you are happy for Australia to behave like this in your name. Whatever the goals may have been, nothing excuses the deplorable and planned humiliation of people who simply wanted our help. Nothing.

Song #39 Hollywood's Real

 

HOLLYWOOD’S REAL

 

I’ve finally been to the US of A

I started my journey in the town of LA

Screamin’ down the freeway

Doin’ it their way

In the US of A

 

I finally knew that it ain’t no dream

Hollywood’s real, not just silver screen

They’re all cruisin’ down the freeways

Doin’ it their way – in LA

 

They got black people and they got white

All playin’ together on a summer’s night

But killin’ on the freeway

That could only be their way

In the US of A

 

Busker begs money (havin’ a bad day)

Too much talk, not enough song boy

“Get down” says a brother

And no one smiled ‘cept me

 

Pancakes for breakfast

In Lily’s Country Kitchen

You know what she told us?

It was the best in LA!

 

Putting every place on the map in a song

Putting every goddamn town in a song

Now listen to me

I’ve been to Sydney

But I sing of LA

In the US of A

In the US of A

 

(© Michael Coghlan 1987)

Commentary

It's true. After year's of swearing I'd never go there we decided to go back to Australia the long way - via the US. It was exciting to be there. I enjoyed singing this song for some years but have no idea how to play it anymore. Still like the lyrics :)

Light Cycles - Illuminate Adelaide

July 18th, 2021

Light Cycles is one of the flagship events of Illuminate Adelaide, and has been created by Montreal-based multimedia studio Moment Factory. The light and sound installations that entrance as you wander the lit path through the darkness are tailored to specific parts of the gardens. The bamboo garden becomes this wondrous spectacle of dancing light on the densely packed bamboo stalks. Mesmerising beams of light dance and bounce of trees on the other side of the lake in a hypnotic, wondrous spectacle. Elsewhere a myriad of twinkling lights gives the effect of wandering through vast open fields. And the beautiful Victorian glass (Palm House) seemed like it has been sitting there for a hundred plus years just waiting for Light Cycles to realise its full potential.

Each installation is accompanied by soundscapes that are part music, part sound effects. They tantalise as you draw near the next installation and perfectly complement the visual fantasies on offer.

It was a brilliant decision to hold this event in winter. OK – so a few nights may be lost to poor weather – but dragging yourself out into the cold winter night makes you somehow appreciate the whole experience even more. The cold no longer matters as you’re transported to a world of fantasy and wonder – just a little bit Zen really!

No doubt everyone wandering through Light Cycles is aware of how fortunate we are to be living virtually COVID free in South Australia. So it was even more alarming that the early part of the session I attended was a logjam of people in long queues ignoring social distancing and not wearing masks. Organisers have to sort this. Let fewer people in per session and monitor the crowd movement to keep people properly spaced. (As I write Illuminate Adelaide management are working on a plan to address this issue.)

But once past the logjam it was possible to enjoy the rest of the circuit wandering at a leisurely pace and let the senses take over; let your eyes, ears and mind explore the colourful darkness as art, light, technology and sound transform the gardens into – yes it’s a cliché – a winter wonderland!

Song #38 Song for Peter

SONG FOR PETER

LISTEN 

Hey, why are you going away?

Goin’ away you say?

I’ve been away

I’m goin’ home

 

I’m not saying it’s easy

I’m not saying it’s wise

But I know that it’s high time

To retrace my steps

To pick up my roots

To live in the sun and be warm

 

So it’s a journey way down south

As far south as you can go

To see how the other

The other half live

I know this was my home

You’ve all been so fine

There’s a place in my heart for you always

 

But I’ve lived on the other side of the world

The person you’re looking at grew up there

Maybe I’m crazy; maybe I’m wrong

Maybe I can’t stand that southern air

But I’ve got to find out

I’ve got to know

I’ve got to know if I’m dreaming

 

Goodbye good luck good friend

Goodbye good luck good friend

Goodbye

(Amsterdam 1986)

Commentary

Peter and I had gone to the same school in Adelaide, but we weren't close friends. I had just finished a busking in session Amsterdam one day and this guy approached me and said, "Remember me?"  I did and we became close friends. Peter had actually been born in Holland but some time later he decided he needed to return to Australia. I wrote this song for him as a parting gift. I sang it at his farewell party in the big white house in the picture above.

Song #37 Has Anybody Seen the Sun?

 

HAS ANYBODY SEEN THE SUN?

 

Has anybody seen the sun? (x2)

I know it’s shining way down south – shining way down south

On the other side

I know it’s not so important

There are people dying in far off lands

But it’s cold and grey right here

 

Has anybody moved from a land of sunshine

To a land where there’s always rain

If you have you will understand that rain can mean pain

As you sit around inside all day

Waiting for the sky to clear

As you sit around inside all day

Waiting for the rain to go

It’s depression and frustration inside

 

Have you ever lived in a world of beauty

Of space and clear bright light?

Where even in the middle of the darkest winters

The world will still seem right

‘Cos the sky still dawns a deep dark blue

And the sun shines down on you

Or so it seems

And though you may have your problems

They don’t seem quite so bad

When you can walk out into the sun

 

Has anybody seen the sun? (x2)

I know it’s shining way down south – shining way down south

On the other side

I know it’s not so important

There are people dying in far off lands

But it’s cold and grey right here

I’m cold and grey right here

(Holland, 1985) 

Commentary

I really struggled with the weather in northern Europe. In Australian terms they have a 9 month winter and a 3 month spring. And so much of life is spent inside. I did a a few solo gigs in Holland and sang this song at one of them. Went down like a lead balloon! Quite cheerful and upbeat despite the bleating. Needs to be recorded. Still play it live occasionally. 

 

Song #36 Face the Fire

 

FACE THE FIRE

There’s a river on the horizon

It flows any way you want it to

You can move the great big mountains

Move the ground in front of you

 

While the fire burns in front of you

The chance is offered just this once for you

To make your move towards your future

To take what’s there for you

 

You say there is no reason for never doing what you say

Take the path you know is calling

Before the chance is gone away

 

Now the fire burns in front of you

The future lies on the other side for you

Listen deeply to what you know

To what you know is true

 

It’s time to face the fire folks

To put it out before they do

They being those who hold the power

They who know not what they do

 

Yes it’s time to face the fire folks

Yes It’s time to stop all of these jokes

Before the fire burns forever

And swallows up me and you

 

(1985)

Commentary

I can't remember much about the background to this. I still remember how it goes - slow and melodic. It seems to be a metaphorical reflection of both what what was going on in my inner life, and in the external wider world.