Song #21 Go Where You Will

 

GO WHERE YOU WILL

 

Take a walk down by the sea

What do you see there - please tell me

Do you see your dreams in a golden sky?

Or does the wind blow cold in your eye?

 

            REFRAIN

            Tellin’ you things you’d rather not know

            ‘Bout the pain inside cos you’re on your own

 

What do you see if you look at the sky?

Crystal plumes of a bird so high

Gates of paradise open wide

Or thunder and lightning; heaven on fire?

 

            REFRAIN

 

Take a walk down to the desert

Mirage of beauty but you can’t have it

Dunes of glory and soft palm trees

But if the sun goes down you’re gonna freeze

           

REFRAIN

 

Talk a walk anywhere you will

Where the sea is calm and all is still

Where the air is clear; you can feel the thrill

Breathe in and enjoy it; it is not real

           

Nothin’ reminds you of the feeling inside

The pain is gone but you’re still alone

 1981

Commentary

Still struggling with being alone.... does the beauty of the natural world bring joy or pain? I don't remember how this went. It must have had a tune at some point but clearly not very memorable! It will live on as a poem.

 

Song #20 Lights Across the Water

 

I have briefly referred to my time on Patmos earlier in this blog. Friend Peter and I landed on Patmos quite by accident sometime during 1981. That is where 'the next boat to a quiet island' was heading when we inquired at Piraeus. Them were the days! On Patmos we met a group of people who were part of a self-help group. They were led by an Australian couple who interviewed/counselled/advised everyone who joined the group. Peter and I rather interviewed them as I remember and we decided we didn’t need to be part of the group.

After a wonderful week or so hanging out on the remote beach of Psili Amos it was time for me to leave. I left by ferry and by chance the Australian couple were on board. We sat out on deck for a while that night and I chatted to the golden-bearded Australian guy while his partner clung to his arm sobbing. He quite happily chatted away with me while ignoring his distraught partner. Fascinating way for people running a self-help group to behave I mused. The image has never left me and some time after I wrote a song that referenced this strange, unsettling event.

The song’s called Lights Across the Water. There's also a set of slides to the song on YouTube.

Lyrics are in this earlier post, together with the song itself – a simple but slowly building arrangement that I’ve always enjoyed playing. Despite it's simplicity, or perhaps because of it, the song has a power about it.