The Wild Colonial Boy

Well I'm the Emerald Isle`s own son,
I was born on Stateside, Wisconsin
And your troubles sound like Hollywood,
They sound real good to me
The rush to be Irish now is on,
The queue is standing ten miles long
And would be green men stand in line,
To swap their stories tall
Well I have traced my past right back,
I`ve even checked and double checked
And I`m as sure as ever now
That I`m a leprechaun
And I know that if I get my chance,
That I can jig and reel and dance
Well, in between the killing
That`s what all us Irish do
And now a word from our sponsor;
"eat up all your TV dinner,
open up your wallet wide,
and let your green be seen
A people cannot live that way
Or so the songs and leaflets say
And all this time we`re trying hard,
To keep the niggers down
What with collection time and all,
With charities, functions and balls
It really gives me quite a thrill,
To kill from far away.

(Burgess/Coulter)

The Ruah

A whisper on the breeze
Has stirred the loose tent flap
There`s nothing there at all
The overhanging trees,
On the windows lightly tap
There`s nothing there at all
There`s nothing there at all
And so the Ruah comes
With no sound, nor shape, nor form
As a silent messenger
Brings the calm before the storm
And the sand will turn to glass
And the dark will turn to light
But there`s nothing there at all
And the dumb shall speak in tongues
And the blind regain their sight
But there`s nothing there at all
No there`s nothing there at all
And so the Ruah comes,
In a way that no-one thought
Casting pearls before the swine
giving gifts that can`t be bought
When the wind becomes a hurricane
That rages to the sky
There`s nothing there at all
And blows away the falsehoods
Of a life that lives a lie
There`s nothing there at all
There`s nothing there at all
And so the Ruah comes,
When our efforts have been spent
Pay homage to the spirit
The temple veil is rent

(Burgess/Coulter)

By the Shadow Line

"Hold hard and fast", the captain said
"give us this day our daily bread",
"if the tide turns now we`ll all be dead",
by the shadow line
All down below deck hummed a sad refrain of love,
and death, and life and pain
When you reach rock bottom you come up gain,
By the shadow line
Some will be lost, some will be found
Some will be spared, some will be drowned
But the cabin boy laughed
And the mate just frowned
By the shadow line
Loose your innocence as the wall clock chimes
Loose your sweet young life when its in its prime
And never forget the match of time
By the shadow line

Paid in Kind

McLaverty lies drunk in doorway 51
His state conceals his mission,
His coat conceals the gun
To kill the last man of the foot patrol
Is what the orders say, and soon "no sweat about it,
we`ll have you down on Galway Bay".
The street lamps wash blue silhouettes
Dogs bark and howl somewhere
For effect McLaverty warbles "The Londonderry Air"
Strangled notes that slur together,
Forgotten words are forced to rhyme,
Shop front windows "Cut Price Discount",
The only witness to the crime.
On down the road in single file,
Hugging shadows, feeling lost
More statistics, more reminders
Of a weary, pointless, cost.
Now McLaverty shakes with readiness,
His hand is on cold steel
For the animal that he`s become
Has forgotten how to feel.
"Are ye alright mister?"comes from nowhere
"Are ye hurt or anything?"
McLaverty`s finger on the trigger
Voice forgotten how to sing
From the depths of a too large parka,
All curious and brassy bold
comes the voice of Eamonn Duffy,
eyes of blue and ten years old.
Now the men are near upon him,
English oaths and English talk,
But little Eamonn Duffy, refuses now to walk.
Instead he sits right down beside him,
"hey mister, what`s your name?"
and all McLaverty`s thinking is,
"I`m not the one to blame".
Two young boys died for nothing,
In that mindless, senseless act,
Another in the riots of twisted tangled facts.
And McLaverty just ran, and never looked behind,
To finish three months later,
In Armagh, and paid in kind.

One by One

Shall we sit down together for a while
Here o the hillside?
Where we can look down on the city
in the sunset
so old, so sick with memories
Old woman,
some they say are damned
but you I know,
will walk the streets of paradise…..
The old woman said no
By Dennis Johnson
From the foreword of
`Strumpet City` (James Plunkett)
One by One - See the mighty all have fallen
One by One - The townspeople hide and cry
One by One - Bodies laid under tarpaulin
One by One
Seeking refuge in the basement
One by One
Helping no-one but yourself
One by One
Stranded children seek replacement
Cyanide escapes upon the shelp
Panic, panic - Respected citizens are on the run
Panic, panic - All the kings and queen are dying
One by One
One by One - Metropolises painted still
One by One - Standards slump where chaos reigns
One by One - Seeking Hamlyn`s secret hill
Frozen snakes in traffic lanes
One by One
Believers climb the only towers
One by One
Bibles clutched in bloodied hands
One by One
Authorities to clear the grounds of flowers
To bury friends of Uncle Sam
Panic, panic - Masses try to find a chosen one
Panic, panic - False prophets, profit always one by one

(Burgess/Coulter)

Mr. Renfield Reflects

Little fly thy summer`s play
My thoughtless hand has brushed away
And if a spider had spied thee
much better from him than me
Open flowers thy bouquet sweet
Enduces bees to come and eat
And if I`ve spoiled their glutton feast
Have I then gave where life has ceased?
"Host of angels look away from my face,
the misery I bring.
Kindred spirits come to stay,
Captured, cut and dried
Now there`s a thing."
Speckled thrush thy song so clear
Doth never change from year to year
And if you die and I survive
Then what price death If I`m to thrive?
Human race, the love thou bear
Cause dormant feelings now to stir
Despite my needs I know the crime
To steal away your numbered time
"Sleepless days and nights in jackets,
straight, and stiff, and white, I spend
Whilst plotting my behaviour
They can`t know that he and I, still plot their end
Little fly thy summer`s play
My thoughless hand has brushed away
And if it`s souls that I hold true
Then am I not a fly like you?

(Burgess/Coulter)

In the Traps

Starting prices favour failure
Gates are open, heads are down
No tails wag with paper seizure,
A silent pause, a cheated frown
Off and running, jumping questions
Stroking comma`s, flustered brow
Wished I`d taken running lessons
Barked up wrong trees, too late now.
What`s the odds they`re going to give?
Certificates are now held high
Some must die so you can live
Your leash, the hallowed old school tie
Competitors gain thorough bred
Your kennel owners only mumble
Pointed ears still hear what's said,
You warped, unwanted, wasting mongrel
In the traps, got to earn your pedigree
Must pass you, so you don`t pass me

(Burgess/Coulter)

Flowers for all Occasions

The tests had come back `positive`,
It rained all that April day,
They could stay and face the banns
Or just leave and run away
Now her mothers found the letters,
There was nothing more to say
In a gown one size too big,
She swore her youth and life away
There were flowers for all occasions
As the bridesmaids gathered round
Confetti, petals, broken dreams
Lay scattered on the ground
Midnight snacks became a nuisance,
Morning sickness came and went
She worked hard to fix the spare room,
He worked hard to pay the rent
While she laboured in the ward,
He kept his panic stricken seat
Sweater pulled on inside out,
Odd shoes on different feet
There were flowers for all occasions
And cigars and smiles and sighs
He`s got his daddy`s temper,
He`s got his mammy`s eyes
The child was not to know hiss father
Who would die that winter day
In a dark and stinking alleyway,
Always the innocent who pay
And the clergy sang it out,
Their damnation and their prayers
And the police and politicians blame sectarian affairs
There were flowers for all occasions
as they shouldered heavy grief
Sickly sweetness filled the senses
they had kept the service brief
There were flowers for all occasions
Floral tributes to the dead
Orange lilies, shamrock green
Bloody scarlet, poppy red.

(Burgess/Forgie)

Even in the Dark Hours

Mornings come and go,
Times passed me by
And I don`t fee l like food anymore
My mail lies unopened,
the phone doesn`t ring,
and I`m lying alone on the floor.
What use are my friends,
Well they give me advice
About how I should make a new start
Well it`s alright for them,
They can listen and learn
While another kid pours out his heart.
I`ve read every line
But still I refuse
To accept that you`re not coming back
Well they're too many heartaches?
Well maybe it`s me
But I`d change if I just had you back
And even in the dark hours, I hope and hope
Days come and go,
Times passed me by
Never thought it would come to this
But now it`s begun, I don`t think that I
Could stop even if I tried.
Mornings come and go,
Times passed me by
And I don`t fee l like food anymore
My mail lies unopened, my mail lies unread
And I`m dying alone on the floor

(Burgess/Forgie)

Correct Your Fireside Manner

The chairs and the tables, casting shadows
going nowhere, meeting no-one
but the doors and the windows
they know the things,
that no-one ever tells you
The cracked pots and the cutlery,
Left in cupboards, locked in drawers
Shut away from the children
And the ashtrays, yes the ashtrays,
Have burned black for your pleasure.
The cushions and the colour set
Closed down now and folded neatly
Safe to go to bed yet?
Still the embers, yes the embers,
Feel the power and glow the fury
And up in the bathroom,
Taps that babble and gurgle
Drip and talk till morning
And the bottles, ah the bottles,
Swapping sweeties with the babies
Meanwhile in the cellar,
Refrigeration fooling no-one
Immersion danger glowing red
Whilst the heaters and the burners,
Will still dine on midnight toxic
So rest if rest is needed
Having depluged and decoded,
close your eyes now, close your eyes now
And the sources and the energies
Will resume obeying no-one

(Burgess/Coulter)