Poetry - Volume 1
(April 1985 - October 1986, originally penned as song lyrics)
(92) Rhyme and Reason (Lynette's Song 11/11/79)
I wasn't there when the end finally came.
I could have been. I should have been.
Like always, I was thinking only of myself;
I wasn't there for your final farewell scene.
Appaloosa ponies, old kings and queens,
John Wayne movies and chocolate ice cream.
Where's the reason, where's the rhyme?
So much to do, never enough time.
Not even to say good-bye. Why?
I never thought it would come to this.
Sitting in the dark. Living in the past.
Talking to your photograph on the wall.
I never thought that time would be the last.
Too late I realise what I had lost.
And then I cried. If only inside.
I spent five years just trying to forget.
Too late I realised there was nowhere to hide.
(42) Who Cries
In a Narrow little street in Dublin,
schoolchildren are playing in the cold.
The troubles of the world are far away,
for these innocent eight year olds.
Suddenly there is a blinding flash,
soldiers come running seconds too late,
Innocent and guilty have paid the price -
IRA bombs don't discriminate.
Who cries for the children in Ireland?
Who cries for the children in Israel?
Who cries for the children in Vietnam?
Who hears a dying child's wail?
I do...
On the outskirts of Tel-Aviv,
a tiny village hides in the hot sand.
Dusty brown urchins play hide and seek;
children of God in the promised land.
High above in the cloudless blue sky,
a lost and wounded aluminum bird
jettisons its cargo of fiery death -
the screaming from below goes unheard.
In a flooded rice field near Saigon,
a cannon shell from a war now past,
does what its maker always intended.
And a child dies in a sudden blast.
Mr President - Comrade Premier -
Prime Minister - You, Chairman!
Shed a tear for these children;
Their blood is on your hands.
(53) Allison
It's raining here in Townsville again,
I can hear it on the corrugated iron.
I let my thoughts drift back to when
your smile cause the sun to shine.
And I thought we'd both live forever,
with a mind to young to really care how.
I thought we'd always be here together,
oh how I wish you were with me now
Allison, you know how much I miss you.
If I could I'd have gone in your place.
I tried but there was nothing I could do.
Through the tears I still see your face.
It's raining here in Townsville still,
just like on that day you went away.
I remember standing on that lonely hill,
as the minister said what he had to say
The tears were there but I held them back -
still I know you saw them all the same.
That day my heart turned cold and black'
late at night I wake calling your name.
It's raining here in Townsville Town,
I can here it against the window pane.
For six long years it's been coming down,
since you went all it ever does is rain.
I miss you a little bit more each day,
the emptiness inside me doesn't melt.
The songs don't say what I want to say,
but you always seemed to know how I felt.
(75) Not Always
Your perfume in an empty room,
footprints on an empty beach.
You're always a moment away,
always that bit out of reach.
But not always, no, not always.
Somewhere in the middle of all this,
is a place where we will meet.
Eventually there will come a time
we'll dance to the same beat.
Red lipstick on an empty glass
and the sound of closing doors.
I'm always seconds too late,
we're always on different floors.
But not always, no, not always.
Your words echoing in still air,
or reflections in window panes.
But always just an after image,
we're always in different lanes.
But not always, no, not always.
I believed from the very start,
waiting is the only hard part.
But not always, no, not always.
(62) Telephone Tears (Rob's Tale)
I remember those hot summer days
back in nineteen sixty five.
The moon hadn't felt man's touch,
God it was good to be alive!
My best mates were both engaged,
like me and my sweet Suzanne.
There was so much we had to do -
we'd never even heard of Vietnam.
Have you ever had to tell a girl
her bloke won't be coming home?
Have you ever heard brokenheart tears
on the other end of a telephone?
Oh it cuts to the bone;
how it cuts to the bone.
That lousy jungle owes me a lot.
Those two mate died in there.
One gave his life for mine...
try telling his girl that's fair.
The other one just bled to death;
I can still see him in my dreams.
I covered his mouth with my hand,
so the Cong didn't hear his screams.
I made it back, but what a price.
It cost two women their lovers.
Paula knows her man died a hero;
I only hope Elizabeth never discovers.
So we all did what had to be done -
that doesn't make it right.
No one's at fault, no one's to blame.
But I still lie awake at night.
(91) Even After All These Years
An old friend I knew called me up yesterday.
She wondered how I was getting along.
We talked about all the good times we'd had,
and tried to guess where it was we went wrong.
Funny how some feelings never go away.
Even after all these years we still care.
(and I do... and I do... and I do...)
Funny how you never know quite what to say.
Even after all these years we still care.
She told me about her husband and two kids.
How they almost had the house paid for.
Said she'd heard I'd got marries at last,
asked me if I was happy... I said sure.
Said she was glad and she was happy too,
but we both knew we were lying.
So I said good-bye and wished her well.
Then I heard static or someone crying...
And as I hung up, I smiled sadly to myself,
and wondered why my throat felt so dry.
Like sad songs and old Bogart movies,
some things always seem to make me cry..
(72) Doomsday Man
Five hours out and five miles high.
Death inside my belly; on and on I fly.
I am the Doomsday Man.
Metal bird and I drone on in the night.
I follow my orders; I deliver the Light.
I am the Doomsday man.
I know not why, I'm trained to obey.
I am sky warrior, oh hear what I say.
I am the Doomsday Man.
I do what I must. I don't have a choice.
I am directed by the metallic voice.
I am the Doomsday Man.
Finger on the button; Grim Reaper at my side.
Too high to be heard. Why even try to hide?
I am the Doomsday Man.
But I am my own death.
And by my own hand.
Yes we will meet again.
I am the Doomsday Man.
(74) Never the Twain
So, at first we had a lot in common,
Both born and bred in the country.
But you gave up your country ways,
And along the way you gave up me.
Now our values are too far apart,
The division is all too easy to see.
And never the twain, never the twain,
Never the twain shall meet.
All through the rain, never the twain,
Never the twain shall meet.
Even after the pain, never the twain,
Never the twain shall meet.
And when I was happy with the moon,
You had to shoot for the stars.
To me beauty was each new sunrise,
To you it was an exotic new car.
All I wanted was bread and butter,
But you had a taste for caviar.
And you never cared where we went,
As long as you were the one who led.
While I listened to Fleetwood Mac,
You got off on the Grateful Dead.
Even if you heard me when I spoke,
You never understood what I said.
So you go off chasing your dreams,
While I sit dreaming by the fire.
Leave me with my friends and family,
You can have you cheats and liars.