Touching From a Distance

Moving along in our God given ways,

Safety is sat by the fire,

Sanctuary from these feverish smiles,

Left with a mark on the door,

Is this the gift that I wanted to give?

Forgive and forget’s what they teach,

Or pass through the deserts and wastelands once more,

And watch as they drop by the beach.

This is the crisis I knew had to come,

Destroying the balance I’d kept,

Turning around to the next set of lives,

Wondering what will come next.

Colony (1980)

A cry for help, a hint of anaesthesia,

The sound from broken homes,

We used to always meet here.

As he lays asleep, she takes him in her arms,

Some things I have to do, but I don’t mean you harm.

A worried parent’s glance, a kiss, a last goodbye,

Hands him the bag she packed, the tears she tries to hide,

A cruel wind that bows down to our lunacy,

And leaves him standing cold here in this colony.

I can’t see why all these confrontations,

I can’t see why all these dislocations,

No family life, this makes me feel uneasy,

Stood alone here in this colony.

In this colony, in this colony, in this colony, in this colony.

Dear God in his wisdom took you by the hand,

God in his wisdom made you understand.

God in his wisdom took you by the hand,

God in his wisdom made you understand.

God in his wisdom took you by the hand,

God in his wisdom made you understand.

God in his wisdom took you by the hand,

God in his wisdom made you understand.

In this colony, in this colony, in this colony, in this colony.

A Means to an End (1980)

A legacy so far removed,

One day will be improved.

Eternal rights we left behind,

We were the better kind.

Two the same, set free too,

I always looked to you,

I always looked to you,

I always looked to you.

We fought for good, stood side by side,

Our friendship never died.

On stranger waves, the lows and highs,

Our vision touched the sky,

Immortalists with points to prove,

I put my trust in you.

I put my trust in you.

I put my trust in you.

A house somewhere on foreign soil,

Where ageing lovers call,

Is this your goal, your final needs,

Where dogs and vultures eat,

Committed still I turn to go.

I put my trust in you.

I put my trust in you.

I put my trust in you.

I put my trust in you.

In you. In you. In you.

Put my trust in you, in you.

Heart and Soul (1980)

Instincts that can still betray us,

A journey that leads to the sun,

Soulless and bent on destruction,

A struggle between right and wrong.

You take my place in the showdown,

I’ll observe with a pitiful eye,

I’d humbly ask for forgiveness,

A request well beyond you and I.

Heart and soul, one will burn.

Heart and soul, one will burn.

An abyss that laughs at creation,

A circus complete with all fools,

Foundations that lasted the ages,

Then ripped apart at their roots.

Beyond all this good is the terror,

The grip of a mercenary hand,

When savagery turns all good reason,

There’s no turning back, no last stand.

Heart and soul, one will burn.

Heart and soul, one will burn.

Existence well what does it matter?

I exist on the best terms I can.

The past is now part of my future,

The present is well out of hand.

The present is well out of hand.

Heart and soul, one will burn.

Heart and soul, one will burn.

One will burn, one will burn.

Heart and soul, one will burn.

Twenty-four Hours (1980)

So this is permanence, love’s shattered pride.

What once was innocence, turned on its side.

A cloud hangs over me, marks every move,

Deep in the memory, of what once was love.

Oh how I realised how I wanted time,

Put into perspective, tried so hard to find,

Just for one moment, thought I’d found my way.

Destiny unfolded, I watched it slip away.

Excessive flashpoints, beyond all reach,

Solitary demands for all I’d like to keep.

Let’s take a ride out, see what we can find,

A valueless collection of hopes and past desires.

I never realised the lengths I’d have to go,

All the darkest corners of a sense I didn’t know.

lust for one moment, I heard somebody call,

Looked beyond the day in hand, there’s nothing there at all.

Now that I’ve realised how it’s all gone wrong,

Gotta find some therapy, this treatment takes too long.

Deep in the heart of where sympathy held sway,

Gotta find my destiny, before it gets too late.

The Eternal (1980)

Procession moves on, the shouting is over,

Praise to the glory of loved ones now gone.

Talking aloud as they sit round their tables,

Scattering flowers washed down by the rain.

Stood by the gate at the foot of the garden,

Watching them pass like clouds in the sky,

Try to cry out in the heat of the moment,

Possessed by a fury that burns from inside.

Cry like a child, though these years make me older,

With children my time is so wastefully spent,

A burden to keep, though their inner communion,

Accept like a curse an unlucky deal.

Played by the gate at the foot of the garden,

My view stretches out from the fence to the wall,

No words could explain, no actions determine,

Just watching the trees and the leaves as they fall.

Decades (1980)

Here are the young men, the weight on their shoulders,