Plate Lyrics

Plate 2015



1. The Colour

Well I heard there was a colour
Beyond the power of any human word to ever describe
And I saw it myself one day
It was a long way away and dark was the glass that covered my eye
It was the glory whose story will not be contained

Well I fought in the battle
And I prayed every night that the side on which I fought was right
But my hands were covered
In the blood of the brother whose life I tried to save
Where was the glory whose story will not be contained?

Well I walked in the desert
I was weary and worn in that dry and thirsty land
But my thirst was not quenched that day
I was sustained by a hope my words cannot describe

I walked on and on 'till there was nothing left
Only skin and bones and feeble breath
My flesh consumed by the passion of my soul
And i must confess in my weakened state
I saw demons in just about every place
And every one of them offered me the world

But I could not stop to trade with them
Their flesh blood bones held no temptation
My eyes were fixed on what I could not see
And eventually they left me there
And angels came to carry me
But I still wasn't any closer to what I seek

2. Scent of Eden

Oh, the sweet sweet scent of Eden.
It was carried to me on a breeze through the bars of my cage.
Oh, the sweet sweet taste of freedom.
It was torture to me but somehow also a promise of the end of the age.

Oh tell me. Are you the one that I've been waiting for?
Are you the one that I've been praying for?
Or should I wait for someone else?

Beautiful dancer, no man could refuse her,
But all that she asks for is my head on plate.
So cheap, so easy, the life of a messenger.
How faithfully I served but now I rot here in this cage.

Oh tell me. Are you the one that I've been waiting for?
Are you the one that I've been praying for?
Or should I wait for someone else?
Tell me, tell me, are you the one that I've been waiting for?
'Cos I can hear the footsteps of my executioner
And now he's standing at my door

I heard the lame were dancing
I heard the blind had been made to see
I heard that freedom was advancing
But I fear it's all a bit too late for me

3. Poured Out

On the very same moonlit night
On which you were wounded
I was not there
For I stood upon the opposite shore
But I heard your cry of dereliction
And I saw your blood upon the water
And I knew that for every drop that was shed
I was the pourer

Poured out, like and offering to the gods of old
Warm blood, on the waters of the lake so cold

And when the sun rose the next morning
What did it reveal?
And did you bones serve as a warning
To all who seek what's real?
And when the sun showed its face
Five hours too late for you
And its rays caressed your body
Was there any warmth in it?

Poured out, like and offering to the gods of old
Warm blood, on the waters of the lake so cold

On the very next moonlit night
They came for me
Opened up my veins as well
And took it all from me.
And did you hear my cry of dereliction?
And did you see my blood upon the water?
And did you know that for every drop that was shed
You were the pourer?

4. Mercy

I sit before you and hang my head
For every ugly deed for every thoughtless word I said
No excuses, just my shame
For how I've betrayed you again and again

I was selfish and I was wrong
And I've been doing things this way for far too long
Sweet sweet mercy, come fall on me
I must confess I am in need.

I sit in darkness to hide my face
I can't receive your love I cannot take your grace
Your pity, your kindness, it kills.
I saw it take your life upon a skull shaped hill

5. Let there be Light

This hymn by John Marriot (1780-1825) can be found here.
This was the official hymn of my high school. Giving it a different tune has helped redeem it from those negative associations!

6. Dorian's Revenge

This instrumental began as an idea for a song about a woman who becomes tired of all the billboards and magazines imposing impossible standards of beauty on her and goes out at night to vandalise and subvert their messages. The song never got written. Dorian is both the woman's name and also the mode in which the tune is performed.

The voice over says, "And so she creeps into the night, a solitary figure unremarkable in any way, except for the devious plans inside her mind. For tonight Dorian will have her revenge upon all those who mock her."

I reckon this instrumental would be a great theme tune for a TV series of the same name. TV producers let me know if you are interested.

7. Late for Dinner

There was this girl that I knew
She could never remember my name
One time she called my Bob, one time she called me Sue
One time she even called me Wayne

So I said, Baby you can call me anything you like
Wont make me loser or winner
Baby you can call me anything you like
Just don't ever call me Late for Dinner

Stick and stones might do me harm
But your words can't pierce my hide
No name that you could call me could ever break my arm
At least as long as I've got three square meals inside

So I say, Baby you can call me anything you like
Wont make me saint or sinner
Baby you can call me anything you like
Just don't ever call me Late for Dinner

I've been called so many things it's like it's a tradition
Some of them cruel some of them kind
But as long as they don't result in my malnutrition
I must confess that I don't mind

Now it may seem to you unseemly
For a grown man to make such a big deal
But you don't ever wanna see what happens to me
In the event that I miss my main meal

Baby you can call me anything you like
As long as it don't make me any thinner
Baby you can call me anything you like
Just don't ever call me Late for Dinner

8. Kearsney Abbey

There is a river that runs
Over the ruins of old Kearsney Abbey
I went there today

And I took your hand in my hand
Where foundations remain but the walls no longer stand
And I heard you say

We're gone tomorrow but we're here today.

We watched the flight of the swans
That live on the lake by old Kearsney Abbey
They nest in the reeds

And we cast our bread on the waters
Someday it might come back to us but I'm not waiting
I have all I need

We're gone tomorrow but today we're free.

All of the paths we have walked
And all of the road we are still yet to travel
I'll walk them with you

And all of the threads of our lives
Woven so tight on the loom but soon to unravel
I know that it's true

We're gone tomorrow but today I have you.

9. Higg's Boson

This instrumental is named after but really has nothing to do with the "god particle" AKA Higg's Boson. I wrote the tune over 10 years before the discovery of the HB but only named it when that was in the news. Instrumentals are hard to name sometimes.

10. Rumours

Well isn't this a nice surprise?
I didn't see it coming with my eyes
Nor with my ears I didn't believe
The rumours that I could be free

For I heard those lies so frequently
That it seemed they must be truth to me
The rumours you spread
Had not yet reached my heart

When I was a stone cast into the sea
Untouched and untouching no one will ever find me
This is my country. This is my home.
When I am alone.

The darkness grows wherever it lives
And it takes and it takes and it never give
I was trapped so long
I never thought I'd leave

The darkness held me down so long
That my lungs were sore and my breath was gone
So how do you just tell me now to breathe?

When I am a stone cast into the sea
Untouched and untouching no one will ever find me
This is my country. This is my home.
When I am alone.

Well hello my friend we meet again
I knew that I'd feel better when
I saw your faces smiling down on me

And with you here I breathe again
For there is no fear with you my friend
And love's sweet life now flowing through my veins

No longer a stone cast into the sea
I am touched and I am touching you
You've finally found me
I'll be your country. You'll be my home.
Now I'm not alone.

11. Legend

You will never be seen on the movie screen or the evening news
The newspapers and websites will never be filled with the things you do
But that doesn't mean a thing, you see I've got my eye on you
I saw the way that you saved the day
Even though nobody else knew

You will never be famous or have medals pinned to you chest
No certificate is in the mail to say you passed the test
And no one thinks to raise your pay but that doesn't disturb your rest
You do the right thing anyway
Because you are the best

Yes you're a legend in your own lunchtime
You don't need to make the headlines
To be a legend in your own lunchtime
And if you're nobody's hero then you can be mine.

They wont throw you a party or a ticker tape parade
There's no table in the restaurant for you unless a reservation has been made
But you have never worried if they think you've made the grade
Your self respect is its own reward
And that you'd never trade

'Cos you're a legend in your own lunchtime
You don't need to be wined and dined
To be a legend in your own lunchtime
And if you're nobody's hero then you can be mine.
 You don't have a themetune or wear your underpants on the top
There's no comic books names after you or evil villains to stop
But if I needed a rescue I know you would everything drop
And you'd be braver than Batman, and the Avengers and Robocop
All put together

'Cos you're a legend in your own lunchtime
You don't need to be fighting crime
To be a legend in your own lunchtime
And if you're nobody's hero then you can be mine.

12. Elisha's Jig

This instrumental track was being composed at the time my son was born. Hence the name. Strictly speaking it wasn't actually composed on the occasion of the arrival of a baby but I think it is a jolly enough tune to be used as such, just put the baby down somewhere safe before dancing please.

13. Humpty Dumpty

I heard that you might be arriving sometime soon
I saw the signs on your horizon
It seems that we have made a mess
When what should be so perfect is so much less

All the kings horses, all the kings men
Wont you please help us put this together again?

We sat upon the wall to gain a better view
We did not hear the warning
And in the fall we lost sight of you
How quickly were the cracks a-forming

Broken pieces lie scattered upon the ground
Jagged edges and confusion
Still we try to make some sense of the patterns here
Search in vain for a solution

14. Oh, the Deep

This is a traditional hymn. Words by Trevor Francis (1834-1925) tune EBENEZER by Thomas John Williams (1869-1944). Lyrics here.

15. The Burglar

Well I saw the burglar, as with a wicked grin
He stole the souls held captive by sin
That cunning thief poured out his blood
The fires of Hell drowned in the flood
Where there was burning he made it snow
You see Hell froze over a long time ago 

He took the wood on which he was slain
Made him a ladder to climb out again
And as he rose what treasure did he bring?
He took the victory and he took the sting!

Worthy oh worthy is the one who steals
Those caught up in the Devil's deals
Worthy oh worthy is the one who breaks
The rule of law for mercy's sake

The strong man did not understand
How his hands were tied
Or how he'd be plundered
The day the burglar died

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