Toadfish Monastery

Don't you wonder sometimes
'bout sound and vision?

Blue, blue, electric blue
That's the colour of my room
Where I will live
Blue, blue

Pale blinds drawn all day
Nothing to do, nothing to say
Blue, blue

I will sit right down, waiting for the gift of sound and vision
And I will sing, waiting for the gift of sound and vision
Drifting into my solitude, over my head

Don't you wonder sometimes
'bout sound and vision?


David Bowie - Sound and Vision

I wanted to be with you alone
And talk about the weather
But traditions I can trace against the child in your face
Wont escape my attention
You keep your distance with a system of touch
And gentle persuasion
I'm lost in admiration could I need you this much
Oh, you're wasting my time
You're just wasting time

Something happens and I'm head over heels
I never find out till I'm head over heels
Something happens and I'm head over heels
Ah don't take my heart
Don't break my heart
Don't throw it away

I made a fire and watching burn
Thought of your future
With one foot in the past now just how long will it last
No no no have you no ambition
My mother and my brothers used to breathe in clean in air
And dreaming I'm a doctor
Its hard to be a man when theres a gun in your hand
Oh I feel so...

Something happens and I'm head over heels

And this my four leaf clover
I'm on the line, one open mind
This is my four leaf clover

Tears for Fears - Head Over Heels

[Spoken]
The most interesting thing about King Charles the First is that he was five
feet six inches tall at the start of his reign,
but only four foot eight inches tall at the end of it. Because of...

[Sung]
Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England (Puritan)
Born in 1599 and died in 1658
(September)
Was at first
(Only)
MP for Huntingdon
(But then)
He led the Ironside Cavalry at Marston Moor, in 1664 and won
Then he founded the New Model Army
And praise be! beat the Cavaliers at Nazeby
And the King fled up north like a bat! to the Scots

[Spoken]

But under the terms of John Pym's solemn league and covenant, the Scots
handed King Charles the First, over to...

[Sung]

Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England
(And his warts)
Born in 1599 and died in 1658
(September)
But, alas!
(OY VEY!)
Disagreement then broke out
(Between)
The Presbyterian Parliament and the military who meant to have an independent
bent and so
The Second Civil War broke out
And the Roundhead ranks faced the Cavaliers at Preston, Lancs
And the King lost again, silly thing
(Stupid git)


Monty Python - Oliver Cromwell song

Mr. heseltine you drove into our town
The northern rain always drizzling down
Shoppers at the window stopped to look
As you signed another copy of your book
'cause you have all the power
And you have all the wealth
And we've got nothing but ourselves
We've got nothing but ourselves
We've got nothing but ourselves
So we'll do away with leaders, bosses and police
Reclaim our actions, rediscover our voices
Salvage our integrity, reassert our dignity
Power in the heart of the community
Mr. heseltine listen to me
We don't want power
And we don't want money
We're fighting for the right to decide
How the power and the wealth
Be equally divided
Old people in seacroft need money for bills
Single mums with kids want decent meals
And we all want new coats
When all's said and done
They're all worn out
From being walked upon
There comes a time when we organize
When we take control of our daily lives
When we don't obey orders from authority
When we disbelieve the myths of democracy
Democracy street, britain's longest running soap, with the added illusion of audience participation. our act tonight, on the left, capitalism that's right, on the right, capitalism is it, in the middle, probably the best capitalism in the world. remember it's your choice, your five seconds worth of action that counts. i mean that most sincerely voters. sit tight, keep quiet, 'till the next time. the next time being one thousand eight hundred and twenty-five days away. well if freedom is the choice between greed and practically the same impression (?), then i'll take the one thousand eight hundred and twenty-five days. never mind the ballots, here's the rest of your life.
Mr. heseltine drove away
Two more appointments in the north today
Helpless and powerless
We join the queue for the metro bus
And mr. heseltine i've made up my mind
I'll never give support to you and your kind

Chumbawamba - Mr Heseltine Meets His Public

Fat man lookin' in a blade of steel
Thin man lookin' at his last meal
Hollow man lookin' in a cottonfield
For dignity

Wise man lookin' in a blade of grass
Young man lookin' in the shadows that pass
Poor man lookin' through painted glass
For dignity

Somebody got murdered on New Year's Eve
Somebody said dignity was the first to leave
I went into the city, went into the town
Went into the land of the midnight sun

Searchin' high, searchin' low
Searchin' everywhere I know
Askin' the cops wherever I go
Have you seen dignity?

Blind man breakin' out of a trance
Puts both his hands in the pockets of chance
Hopin' to find one circumstance
Of dignity

I went to the wedding of Mary-lou
She said 'I don't want nobody see me talkin' to you"
Said she could get killed if she told me what she knew
About dignity

I went down where the vultures feed
I would've got deeper, but there wasn't any need
Heard the tongues of angels and the tongues of men
Wasn't any difference to me

Chilly wind sharp as a razor blade
House on fire, debts unpaid
Gonna stand at the window, gonna ask the maid
Have you seen dignity?

Drinkin' man listens to the voice he hears
In a crowded room full of covered up mirrors
Lookin' into the lost forgotten years
For dignity

Met Prince Phillip at the home of the blues
Said he'd give me information if his name wasn't used
He wanted money up front, said he was abused
By dignity

Footprints runnin' cross the silver sand
Steps goin' down into tattoo land
I met the sons of darkness and the sons of light
In the bordertowns of despair

Got no place to fade, got no coat
I'm on the rollin' river in a jerkin' boat
Tryin' to read a note somebody wrote
About dignity

Sick man lookin' for the doctor's cure
Lookin' at his hands for the lines that were
And into every masterpiece of literature
for dignity

Englishman stranded in the blackheart wind
Combin' his hair back, his future looks thin
Bites the bullet and he looks within
For dignity

Someone showed me a picture and I just laughed
Dignity never been photographed
I went into the red, went into the black
Into the valley of dry bone dreams

So many roads, so much at stake
So many dead ends, I'm at the edge of the lake
Sometimes I wonder what it's gonna take
To find dignity


Bob Dylan~~~Dignity

We can build our dungeons in the air
And sit and cry the blues
We can stomp across this world
With nails hammered through our shoes
We can join that troubled chorus
Who criticise and accuse
It don't matter much
We got nothing much to lose
But this wonderful life
If you can find it
And when you find it
And when you find it
It's a wonderful life that you bring
It's a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful thing

Sometimes our secrets are all we've got
With our lives we must defend
Sometimes the air between us, babe
Is unbearably thin
Sometimes it's wise to lay down your gloves
And just give in
Come in, come in
Come in, come in
To this wonderful life
If you can find it
And if you find it
It's a wonderful life that you bring
It's a wonderful, wonderful thing
It's a wonderful life
It's a wonderful life

Nick Cave - Wonderful Life

Life is a moment in space
When the dream is gone
Its a lonelier place
I kiss the morning goodbye
But down inside you know
We never know why
The road is narrow and long
When eyes meet eyes
And the feeling is strong
I turn away from the wall
I stumble and fall
But I give you it all...
Chorus:
I am a woman in love
And I do anything
To get you into my world
And hold you within
Its a right I defend
Over and over again
What do I do?

With you eternally mine
In love there is
No measure of time
We planned it all at the start
That you and i
Would live in each others hearts
We may be oceans away
You feel my love
I hear what you say
No truth is ever a lie
I stumble and fall
But I give you it all
Repeat chorus
I am a woman in love
And Im talking to you
Do you know how it feels?
What a woman can do
Its a right
That I defend over and over again......

Barbra Streisand, Woamn in love

You gotta be fortunate
You gotta be lucky now
I was just sitting here
Thinking good and bad
But I'm the kinda woman
That was built to last
They tried erasing me
But they couldn't wipe out my past
To save my child
I'd rather go hungry
I got all of Ethiopia
Inside of me
And my blood flows
Through every man
In this godless land
That delivered me
I've cried so many tears even the blind can see

Chorus:
This is a woman's world.
This is my world.
This is a woman's world
For this man's girl.
There ain't a woman in this world,
Not a woman or a little girl,
That can't deliver love
In a man's world.

I've born and I've bread.
I've cleaned and I've fed.
And for my healing wits
I've been called a witch.
I've crackled in the fire
And been called a liar.
I've died so many times
I'm only just coming to life.

Chorus

My blood flows
Through every man and every child
In this godless land
That delivered me
I cried so many tears even the blind can see

Chorus

Neneh Cherry - Woman

"Fields Of Gold" - Sting

You'll remember me when the west wind moves
Upon the fields of barley
You'll forget the sun in his jealous sky
As we walk in the fields of gold

So she took her love
For to gaze awhile
Upon the fields of barley
In his arms she fell as her hair came down
Among the fields of gold

Will you stay with me, will you be my love
Among the fields of barley
We'll forget the sun in his jealous sky
As we lie in the fields of gold

See the west wind move like a lover so
Upon the fields of barley
Feel her body rise when you kiss her mouth
Among the fields of gold
I never made promises lightly
And there have been some that I've broken
But I swear in the days still left
We'll walk in the fields of gold
We'll walk in the fields of gold

Many years have passed since those summer days
Among the fields of barley
See the children run as the sun goes down
Among the fields of gold
You'll remember me when the west wind moves
Upon the fields of barley
You can tell the sun in his jealous sky
When we walked in the fields of gold
When we walked in the fields of gold
When we walked in the fields of gold

---

This song moves me in a way that I find hard to define.  I especially like the version by Eva Cassidy, but Sting's original is still pretty good.

Sibling Bluenose

Nibblin' on sponge cake
Watchin' the sun bake
All of those tourists covered with oil
Strummin' my six-string
On my front porch swing
Smell those shrimp - they're beginnin' to boil

Wastin' away again in margaritaville
Searchin' for my lost shaker of salt
Some people claim that there's a woman to blame
But I know it's nobody's fault

I don't know the reason
I stayed here all season
Nothin' to show but this brand new tattoo
But it's a real beauty
A mexican cutie
How it got here I havent a clue

Wastin' away again in margaritaville
Searchin' for my lost shaker of salt
Some people claim that there's a woman to blame
Now I think... Hell, it could be my fault

I blew out my flip-flop
Stepped on a pop-top
Cut my heel had to cruise on back home
But there's booze in the blender
And soon it will render
That frozen concoction that helps me hang on

Wastin' away again in margaritaville
Searchin' for my lost shaker of salt
Some people claim that there's a woman to blame
But I know it's my own damn fault

Yes and some people claim that there's a woman to blame
And I know it's my own damn fault

- "Maragaritaville", Jimmy Buffet

Young Abdel Mahdi (Shahmay) was only 18 years old,
He was the youngest of nine children, never spent a night away from home.
And his mother held his photograph, opening the New York Times
To see the killing has intensified along the road to peace

There was a tall, thin boy with a whispy moustache disguised as an orthodox Jew
On a crowded bus in Jerusalem, some had survived World War Two
And the thunderous explosion blew out windows 200 yards away
With more retribution and seventeen dead along the road to peace

Now at King George Ave and Jaffa Road passengers boarded bus 14a
In the aisle next to the driver Abdel Mahdi (Shahmay)
And the last thing that he said on earth is "God is great and God is good"
And he blew them all to kingdom come upon the road to peace

Now in response to this another kiss of death was visited upon
Yasser Taha, Israel says is an Hamas senior militant
And Israel sent four choppers in, flames engulfed, tears wide open
And it killed his wife and his three year old child leaving only blackened skeletons

It's found his toddlers bottle and a pair of small shoes and they waved them in front of the cameras
But Israel says they did not know that his wife and child were in the car
There are roadblocks everywhere and only suffering on TV
Neither side will ever give up their smallest right along the road to peace

Israel launched it's latest campaign against Hamas on Tuesday
Two days later Hamas shot back and killed five Israeli soldiers
So thousands dead and wounded on both sides most of them middle eastern civilians
They fill the children full of hate to fight an old man's war and die upon the road to peace

"And this is our land we will fight with all our force" say the Palastinians and the Jews
Each side will cut off the hand of anyone who tries to stop the resistance
If the right eye offends thee then you must pluck it out
And Mahmoud Abbas said Sharon had been lost out along the road to peace

Once Kissinger said "we have no friends, America only has interests"
Now our president wants to be seen as a hero and he's hungry for re-election
But Bush is reluctant to risk his future in the fear of his political failures
So he plays chess at his desk and poses for the press 10,000 miles from the road to peace

In the video that they found at the home of Abdel Mahdi (Shahmay)
He held a Kalashnikov rifle and he spoke with a voice like a boy
He was an excellent student, he studied so hard, it was as if he had a future
He told his mother that he had a test that day out along the road to peace

The fundamentalist killing on both sides is standing in the path of peace
But tell me why are we arming the Israeli army with guns and tanks and bullets?
And if God is great and God is good why can't he change the hearts of men?
Well maybe God himself is lost and needs help
Maybe God himself he needs all of our help
Maybe God himself is lost and needs help
He's out upon the road to peace

Well maybe God himself is lost and needs help
Maybe God himself he needs all of our help
And he's lost upon the road to peace
And he's lost upon the road to peace
Out upon the road to peace.

Tom Waits - Road To Peace

I'm just an American boy raised on MTV
And I've seen all those kids in the soda pop ads
But none of 'em looked like me
So I started lookin' around for a light out of the dim
And the first thing I heard that made sense was the word
Of Mohammed, peace be upon him

A shadu la ilaha illa Allah
There is no God but God

If my daddy could see me now – chains around my feet
He don't understand that sometimes a man
Has got to fight for what he believes
And I believe God is great, all praise due to him
And if I should die, I'll rise up to the sky
Just like Jesus, peace be upon him

A shadu la ilaha illa Allah
There is no God but God  

We came to fight the Jihad and our hearts were pure and strong
As death filled the air, we all offered up prayers
And prepared for our martyrdom
But Allah had some other plan, some secret not revealed
Now they're draggin' me back with my head in a sack
To the land of the infidel

A shadu la ilaha illa Allah
A shadu la ilaha illa Allah

- "John Walker Blues", Steve Earle

I've been a martyr for love
And I will die in the flames
As I draw my last breath
As I'm close in on death
I will call out your name

I've been a martyr for love
Nailed up on the cross
While you're having your fun
As the damage is done
I'm assessing the cost

I knew what I was letting myself in for
I knew that I could never even the score

I've been a martyr for love
I need to be by your side
I have knelt at your feet
I have felt you deceit
Could have leave if I tried

I've been a martyr for love
Tortured every hour
From the day I was born
I've been moved like a pawn
By the greatest of powers

I knew that I would have to suffer in vain
Aware that I would never outgrow the pain

I've been a martyr for love
I've been a martyr for love
I've been a martyr for love

Depeche Mode - Martyr

One for Bluenose?

In South Australia I was born
Heave away, haul away
South Australia 'round Cape Horn
We're bound for South Australia

Haul away your rolling king
Heave away, haul away
Haul away oh hear me sing
We're bound for South Australia

As I walked out in London fair
Heave away, Haul away
'Twas there I met Miss Nancy Blair
We're bound for South Australia

There's just one thing that's on my mind
Heave away, Haul away
That's leaving Nancy Blair behind
We're bound for South Australia

And as we wallop round Cape Horn
Heave away, Haul away
You'll wish to God you've never been born
We're bound for South Australia

In South Australia I was born
Heave away, haul away
South Australia 'round Cape Horn
We're bound for South Australia

Haul away your rolling king
Heave away, haul away
Haul away oh hear me sing
We're bound for South Australia

- "South Australia", Traditional (this version by the Pogues)

Are you going to Scarborough Fair?
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
Remember me to one who lives there
For once she was a true love of mine

Have her make me a cambric shirt
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
Without no seam nor fine needle work
And then she'll be a true love of mine

Tell her to weave it in a sycamore wood lane
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
And gather it all with a basket of flowers
And then she'll be a true love of mine

Have her wash it in yonder dry well
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
where water ne'er sprung nor drop of rain fell
And then she'll be a true love of mine

Have her find me an acre of land
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
Between the sea foam and over the sand
And then she'll be a true love of mine

Plow the land with the horn of a lamb
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
Then sow some seeds from north of the dam
And then she'll be a true love of mine

Tell her to reap it with a sickle of leather
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
And gather it all in a bunch of heather
And then she'll be a true love of mine

If she tells me she can't, I'll reply
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
Let me know that at least she will try
And then she'll be a true love of mine

Love imposes impossible tasks
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
Though not more than any heart asks
And I must know she's a true love of mine

Dear, when thou has finished thy task
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme
Come to me, my hand for to ask
For thou then art a true love of mine

Scarborough Fair - Traditional, arrangement Martin Carthy