Once More To The Garden

ONCE MORE TO THE GARDEN

There's an old ghost

In a grey suit

On a green road

Where the time flew

Where the words hide

And the dreams fade

And the cause died

As the world frayed

It was then

It was when

There the tide was love

And the clouds were doves

And the fields were home

Where your hopes were grown

And your stride was sung

In a voice so young

And your wars were won

In the rain and sun

There you saw them

In the garden

And the wheel still turns

But the light still burns

And the wind blows

Falls and grows

In your muse

Dove coes

March You Did

MARCH YOU DID

March you did, for your right to refuse

To die in a war they were losing

But to fight the injustices on your home soil

That was a war of your choosing

The Children’s Crusade filled up the jails

The students and women came out fighting

Jim Crow and the Gays and The Vets led the trails

Marched along for the wrongs they were righting

March with your cries to the Lords of Democracy

Force them to open their doors

Turn the world’s eyes to their shame and hypocrisy

Force them to rewrite their laws

Stand you did, when the Civil Guard stormed

Sticks against Billyclubs bashing

Fall you did, when the Bull raised his horns

And set the dogs free with teeth gnashing

Run you did, when the rifles were drawn

There now were the rights they were reading

Cry you did, when shots killed the dawn

And the streets were aligned with the bleeding

March with your cries to the Lords of Democracy

Force them to open their doors

Turn the world’s eyes to their shame and hypocrisy

Force them to rewrite their laws

March your demands in the face of authorities

Storm their troops with your banners and words

Rally for your war against civil atrocities

Get yourself heard

Mourn you did, the ones who were killed

Then as one with the bullied and beaten

You marched to defy those who’d have you be stilled

With a heart that would truly defeat them

And cheer you did, for the words of the brave

The speeches and voices that led you

And shout you did, for a world you would save

With the slogans that fired and fed you

March with your cries to the Lords of Democracy

Force them to open their doors

Turn the world’s eyes to their shame and hypocrisy

Force them to rewrite their laws

March your demands in the face of authorities

Storm their troops with your banners and words

Rally for your war against civil atrocities

Get yourself heard

Like A Long Time Ago

Like A Long Time Ago

Remember those days of the freaks and the squares

hearts in the clouds and flowers in your hair

testing ideals that were raised in the dorms

questioning rights of the established norms

challenging all who refused to believe

there was any way other than those of authority

which cloaked all the truth and fed you on lies

and ask you be silent and cover your eyes

and when you rose up they would not understand

and when you dropped out they would lift up their hands

and scold you for throwing your chances away

like mud in their faces – now those were the days

Remember the ideals the dreams and the goals

away with those antiquated values and roles

away with the arms race – stop all the wars

the only thing worth fighting for was the cause

your right to freedom – free to be free

your right to undisputed equality

for women and gays, black man or white

freedom to demand your true civil rights

to practise your love and peace – expand your mind

alter your consiousness, yourself to find

respect for the earth and all of the garden

to listen to Gaia and beg for her pardon

Remember the heroes, the ones who spoke out

the ones who dared stand up, the ones who dared shout

remember the fallen killed by our own

as well as those tragic souls far from their homes

remember the battlegrounds of Birmingham and Chicago

Jackson state, Madison, Kent state Ohio

the cries and the blood flowed over to europe

and from London to Prague the young they all stood up

And remember san francisco, the gathering of tribes, 

the summer of love, the vision and the vibes

the human be-ins, the robes and the beads, 

and the music and dancing that coloured the streets

and remember the weekend that captured it all  

 and the 500 000 who answered the call

And took to the road to join woodstock nation  

 and bathe Yasgurs fields in peace and celebration

and remember the poets the minstrels and bards, 

who wrote for your souls and sang for your hearts

and gave you the music that could never lie, 

and carried your legacy through years gone by

Through a world rearranging –

 for the times were a changing...

Far as it seems now

What does it mean now 

Where are the dreams now

It's like a long time ago, like a long time ago – like a long time...

It´s Easy

IT’S EASY

It’s easy just to play the game - to pass the buck in times of change

There’s always someone else to blame - it’s easy, it’s easy

Defend your morals handed down - your right to fear, your right to frown

To serve the flag and save the crown - it’s easy standing common ground, it’s easy

As day is day and dark is night - it’s easy knowing wrong from right

So long no-one turns on the light - it’s easy, it’s easy

So long you’re not put to the test - the devil that you know is best

It’s one for one, forget the rest - it’s easy, it’s easy

Wear your blinds, pull down the hood - See private gain as common good

And tell each other how you should - it’s easy, it’s easy

Patch up the holes and sew the seams - and fence off all your hopes and dreams

Turn the truths and call them lies - it’s easy just to close your eyes, it’s easy

It’s not that hard to open out - to question what it’s all about

To speak your heart and let it shout - it’s easy, it’s easy

To stretch your arm with open hand - to make a different kind of stand

A different march, a different band - it’s easy when you understand, it’s easy

To learn to see beyond the wall - to love yourself, to love them all

While dancing to dove’s bugle call - it’s easy, it’s easy

It’s not so hard to save our race - arm in arm and face to face

No place like here, no time like now - it’s easy when you just know how, it’s easy

Like I Was Coming Home

Like I Was Coming Home

I sit before my tv screen and watch your world go by

I see you dance and hear you sing and feel you on your high

I wasn't there to walk with you for I was just too young

But I can dream along – I can dream along

I bathe me in nostalgia's tones for years that were not mine

I share your pains all filled with hope and clothe them in these times

Where stone hearts preach to fearful and blame you for making waves

But that's how man behaves – that's how man repays

Though I know my pretty picture is but half the tale

It guides me still to dragons slain and my own holy grail

And was I younger maybe I would even grow my hair

And flowers I would wear – and would not give a care

But maybe it's you now who rule, by power and money bought

Who raise the flag and wear the suit and smile the face you fought

And if that's so, I grieve for you and hope freedom you'll find

From your disillusioned mind – from your disillusioned mind

Give me your dreams of peace and love, they soothe these confused days

They give me words and voice when I feel lost upon my way

In brother's melodies they call and warm me to my bones

Like I was coming home, like I was coming home, like I was coming home

I sit before my tv screen and watch your world go by

I see you dance and hear you sing and feel you on your high

I wasn't there to walk with you for I was just too young

But I can dream along – I can dream along

But I can dream along – I can dream along

But I can dream along.

Studio Session 1

Finally, finally... some video.

It's still early days - I've got 7 songs written for the album but they're still in their basic form. Marnix has joined me and Geert for the percussion and this video is from our first session playing together. But this song isn't for the album.

This session is from 30th October - we ran through the 7 new songs and then finished with some old ones from....years... ago. So it's really a jam session. It was also a test to see what quality the video camera would give me. Now I'm happy about the visual and audio - but I have to do something about the lighting, and the position so you're not just looking at the back of Marnix's head. It's a cramped room, but maybe it just needs a little tidying.

I had problems with getting this edited too - my camera makes video files with a complicated extension which doesn't play on my laptop - so I had to find a converter that worked, and then learn how to use the "new" version of windowsmoviemaker... it's taken me three days to get this up, finally.

I'll be videoing every session from now on so there will be lots more videos coming up regularly - and I plan to video any story sessions I do too.

So this song... to start this series off, is originally from 30 years ago. I wrote it on the Greek island of Naxos. But the lyrics really only worked on Naxos, so I rewrote them 15 years ago with a different and more general theme. One day I'll get round to making an album of all my "older" songs, but for now they can live again here on video, live and acoustic. This one's called "BREAK MY HEAD". Lyrics here...

SongLyrics - Break My Head

BREAK MY HEAD

My input really makes no sense

My presence mostly makes you tense

My best is never good enough for you

All the truths bent into lies

I can't be good, I can't be wise

I break my head tryin' to get through to you

If I could only find a word that's right

Find the spark to set your heart alight

Turn your head around enough to notice me

There's nothing that I wouldn't do for you

Well I could even write a song for you

I might even make you fall in love with me

I wonder why I waste my time

Like turning water into wine

I must be dumb to take what I go through

The ways that you can put me down

If I couldn't swim I'd surely drown

I break my head tryin' to get through to you

If I could only find a word that's right

Find the spark to set your heart alight

Turn your head around enough to notice me

There's nothing that I wouldn't do for you

Well I could even write a song for you

I might even make you fall in love with me

Feed the dog that bites my hand

I'm not even sure I understand

I break my head

Tryin' to get through

Tryin' to get through

Tryin' to get through

Get through to you...