WHEN I WAS YOUNG When I was young I never needed anyone To help me hold the gun when I was young. And I could piss my name Clean across a wall Fada and all. Fada and all. And drink- (THE WORD DRINK IS SUNG BY ALL) I could mix whiskey and vodka And Guinness and wine And I'd be fine Most of the time And women – (WOMEN -SUNG BY ALL) I've forgotten some names! And to my shame I came - And left too fast, too fast When I was young I never needed anyone To help me hold the gun When I was young And just around the corner It was all about to kick off Time stretched languidly out in front With no end in sight And God and Heaven and hell Could be addressed way way down the line - When I was young When I was young I fired off cheap shots Straight from the hip I didn't suffer fools I was self contained And rules: (RULES SUNG BY ALL) Rules were for others When I was young I knew with certainty All that is uncertain now When I was young When I was young

NO CITATION. If I'd been a gambler and gambled all my luck Then I might at least be worth a mention - But I just walked around this town with my enigmatic air Folding every time the game got interesting. Now looking out across the tracks At the chimneys on the rooftops Where I proclaimed my love When I was younger All I see is distance smoke and fighters on the gable ends For people who are taught not to surrender Tell my boys, I'm sorry There was no time to write the book And it would only have contained vague indications I've told my stories so many times In bars and beds and dinning cars It's hard to know the The truth from fabrication A ticket for the first train out Further north or way down south, Makes no difference as long as we're moving. Tell my boys, I'm sorry There was no time to write the book And it would only have contained vague indications I've told my stories so many times In bars and beds and dinning cars It's hard to know the The truth from fabrication A ticket for the first train out Further north or way down south, Makes no difference as long as we're moving I'll set up in another town Where my stories will be new And for a while they'll believe the man I show them La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la x2

NESSA DOES THE BLUES I Love you McCarthy, she said No you don't - I wasn’t in the mood for her bullshit. I know, she conceded, I just wanted to hear you saying it back Then we went to bed without promises. I was just another one of her lovers - I'd share the blame, but no more. Of course there were those who imagined themselves in love with her And she adored the attention But her for all her generosity Her heart was a stone. How many lives did she deny? In those days - by boat, Alone - paid for by ghostly men, who might just as well have chipped in - Drawn straws When she opened her mouth to sing, Her voice was soft and deep With an unexpected breaking point That could melt your heart. The fame of her mouth had already spread - It was her calling card: Her lips ruled the world - When she dropped to her knees with the poise of a penitent; Her confessions, sweet and adamant Yielding noisy exclamations to God And not a seed spilled on the ground. Nessa... Nessa does the blues Nessa... Nessa does the blues Nessa... Nessa does the blues Nessa... Nessa does the blues

THE ADDICTS I will be strong And you won't be mean We'll go out on the town Dressed up like a king and queen We'll hold hands and we'll -eat outside And the moon will appear With all the stars in the sky We'll drink some wine But no excess And if we smoke at all We'll share a couple of cigarettes And we'll count our blessings With soft spoken words And the moon will appear And the stars. And we will be clean -Why shouldn't we be clean? Clean and well – and I will still be here Lal de ral lal de lal de ley Lal de lal de ray lal de ral de ral x2 Ah, stop crying crying baby We can just stay in I'll go out and buy a bottle And maybe even - meet our man But please - lets take it easy Try not to fight And then the moon will appear And all the stars in the night And we will be clean -Why shouldn't we be clean? Clean and well – and I will still be here

TODAY IS THE END Today is the end: Today is the start Of days when we'll be forced To conceal our bleeding hearts And days when we SHALL be moved And SHALL NOT overcome And days to reflect on what the fuck they've gone and done And there'll be days when history will repeat itself before our disbelieving eyes And days when we'll long for days gone by And today - is just the start.

THREE DREAMS We were wearing our dressing gowns on the street It looked like the North Circular Road. As we strolled, you said softly - I'm dying How long? - I asked A few weeks - you replied And then anticipating my ineffectual verbiage you said - Come on, lets go for a pint. The whole family were boarding a bus to attend a wedding down South. I saw you from behind In your flecked green overcoat He didn't die - I thought And lunged forward to catch you up You disappeared into the crowd on the bus. By the time I got on board you had vanished. The sea broke through the East Wall. Your coffin was being lashed by the tide I swam along side, trying to steer it towards the new shoreline. I didn't panic. Brenner! Breno! Brenser! Brendain! Brandon! BRENDONAVITCH... Brenner! Breno! Brenser! Brendain! Brandon! BRENDONAVITCH... Brendanavitch...

I HEARD YOU CALLING I heard you Calling/I heard my name/I thought I heard you calling me home You opened your door/I opened my heart/I felt I was no longer alone People will say it’s just one of those things/A passing fancy, a caprice, a whim/I’m young and impressionable… a little in awe/I’m star struck …naïve, it’s all one sided, all in my head/But I know what I felt when you beckoned me. The touch of your hand/The sound of your voice/I sensed that we had felt it all before/The depths in your eyes/The way they met mine /As though I was the sea and you were the shore. If the world stopped revolving/Or the moon fell down/Or the sun didn’t rise or sank into the ground/Or the sea dried up and the planets collided/This feeling here - would persevere /And my only fear, I swear/ would be that it’s only me who feels this way…

WAITING IN THE WINGS Swept aside by loathsome time - I played a part never meant to be mine Skilfully imparting each practised line - luminescent, lofty, yet secretly lupine Waiting in the wings; exiting and entering - like a puppet, just no strings When will this curtain come crashing down? Ludicrously attired I await my cue - make up perfect, not one hair askew Patiently praying, my heart in my mouth Racking my brains to find a way out - waiting in the wings; exiting and entering - this play had had too long a run - when will this curtain come crashing down? When I was young, I had no fear: And just around the corner was fame and fortune and unimaginable love I only had to reach out my hand - Grasp it all and hold on fast But I kept turning around and ‘round and ‘round, ‘til suffering from dizzy spells I fell down hard to the ground/and glimpsed the fires of hell. Jester smile over lugubrious pout, I face ravaged people who shed rabbles tears Chanting in unison they accusingly stare at their painted teacher with his powdered hair Waiting in the wings - exiting and entering - like a puppet, just no strings, When will this curtain come crashing down? Swept aside by loathsome time/I played a part never meant to be mine Skilfully imparting each practised line - luminescent, lofty, yet secretly lupine Waiting in the fucking wings - exiting and entering.

WHEN HE TAKES MY HAND When he takes my hand I long for your hand As he plays in sand I dream of our sand. And every word of love Or words of reprimand Are echoes of before. With every wave that nearly knocks him down I gauge the sea between you and me And as I watch him like a hawk Every inch of me wants to hold you safe. And every time I act the clown He laughs - his is own sweet sweet melody And my heart beats like a clock And I wish you luck and joy and grace. And in the night when he is sleeping I listen to make sure that he’s still breathing As I would for you, thought you were sixty I’d hobble in to hear your breath.

WHAT AN ACTOR He was the best I ever saw At playing dead Sitting in his armchair Or on his bed Very convincing - very still And alarming when prolonged And suddenly, fearful, I'd shake him, hoping for that smile Of course - I knew he was alive all the while - What an actor! And then the years caught up And the scares turned real And one night the doctor said, this time he was finally gone But I had a feeling that the doc was wrong He always opens his eyes Gives you the smile I was right. Bullet proof he was - he'll outlive them all. But in the end, no long goodbye, no death scene, no fuss – just a trace of that smile. just a trace of that smile. just a trace of that smile. What an actor!