1. |
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I write protest songs and shopping lists
Slogans on Amazon boxes
Old fashioned songs
To help me when I go wrong
And I serve the same woman coffee every day
She sits there shivering, hiding from the rain
And I watch her scratching, scratching away
She still thinks it'll all change some day
While I write protest songs and shopping lists
Slogans on Amazon boxes
Old fashioned songs
To help me when I go wrong
And she asks me, kindly, " Will you count out my change?"
She's not sure if it's worth anything these days
And I fight her loneliness on minimum wage
With a latte and a polite "How was your day?"
And I write protest songs and shopping lists
Slogans on Amazon boxes
Old fashioned songs
To help me when I go wrong
Oh, I'm a 21st century activist
Who can't help but wonder how much they'd be missed
I never feel like I am doing enough
For the people, the planet or the country that I love
I just write protest songs and shopping lists
Slogans on Amazon boxes
Old fashioned songs
To help me when I go wrong
So come write protest songs and shopping lists
Slogans on Amazon boxes
Old fashioned songs
To help us when we go wrong
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2. |
Angel in Doc Martens
03:39
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Never before had I seen such an angel in Doc Martens
But she came to me in a dream and her blue cuffed jeans
Long pink hair and a smile to get lost in
And a badge on her lapel reading 'Vote Scottish Greens'
Now, I grew up in the church so I know what I am saying
She was a vision sent by God on a mission to save me
A can of monster in her hand, a punk rock band to sing in
And a kindness for strangers in her holy trinity
Girl in Red records as our hymns to be played
We'll have a colourful choir for our newfound messiah
Not a Judas to be found she could never be betrayed
And unlike Peter we'll never deny her
We'll never deny her all the stars in the sky
Never deny her when she bakes them in a pie
Never deny her or ever ask her why
Never deny her or ever tell a lie
Plant-based recipes for all who obey
Her scriptures, her teaching and her preaching to the choir
About love, acceptance and intersectionality
Of these commandments we'll never tire
And we'll never deny her all the stars in the sky
Never deny her when she bakes them in a pie
Never deny her or ever ask her why
Never deny her or ever tell a lie
The return of the carpenter will not be how they told it
In churches across the world where they preach easy lies
Of capitalism, bigotry and homophobia
I can't wait to see their faces when she comes down from the skies
And never denies us all the stars in the sky
Never denies us our macaroni pie
Never denies us or ever asks us why
Never denies us or ever tells a lie
About what she's come here to do
Or say that five is two and two
Oh, she'll welcome us with open arms
To all of the gay bars
In the sky
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3. |
For us all
03:59
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There's a girl crying at the loss of a glove
While her mother says "I'm sure it'll show up"
But it's sat on a railing in an unfamiliar place
It was placed by a stranger, it's been there for days
There's the words of an artist in a school jotter
Jotted down next to the words 'I love her'
But it's sat in a drawer forgotten
For getting older must happen
To us all
To us all
It's the glimpses of life that a stranger sees
Bringing you ever close to me
There's a photo of an old man on a mantle
With his widow who forever will
Keep flowers on the windowcill
To let us watch as they wilt
There's a woman with her head down at her door
Watching the neighbour she used to abhor
Head down the street in his box
As she realises, for a moment, it all stops
For us all
For us all
It's the glimpses of death that a stranger sees
Bringing you ever close to me
There's a poet watching me crying on a train
Trying to figure out how to use this public pain
As some clichéd hard work of art
And he realises there must be a broken heart
For us all
For us all
It's the glimpses of life that a stranger sees
Bringing you ever close to me
There's a man unloved by his lover
Lying in a hospital just waiting to recover
As he looks at the flowers from his friends
He realises this is how it ends
For us all
For us all
It's these glimpses of death that a stranger sees
Bringing you ever close to me
It's these moments of being strangers
That tie us together as creatures
Forever destined to see
Forever destined to be
Strangers
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4. |
Quote Clichés
03:25
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When I think back to that fateful day
When I back to you crying in the rain
I suppose you were just stating your views
While I was finding quotes to abuse
I said "Let it end we're both weary of it"
She said "I know that's your old period shit
"Some ugly man with a beautiful soul
"This isn't one of your stupid shows"
And I could quote clichés of love and ardant admiration
But I'll never find it in my imagination
I can tell you tales from a century ago
But I couldn't find the words to let you know
How I love you so
How I love you so
I said "The world is all that is the case"
She said, "I'm not one for Wittgenstein these days
"And you only know it from The History Boys"
As the true meaning of the words cloys
And I could quote clichés of love and ardant admiration
But I'll never find it in my imagination
I can tell you philosophy from a century ago
But I'll never find the words to let you know
How I love you so
How I love you so
I tried to tell her that I was just a girl
Standing there trying to make you love her
She said "Well, you ain't no Anna Scott"
But I guess I'll make do with what I've got
And quote clichés of love and ardant admiration
But never find them in my imagination
Oh, I'll show you films from decades ago
But I'll never find the words to let you know
How I love you so
How I love you so
How I love you so
How I love you so
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5. |
Cold
02:36
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You laughed at me on the street that day
And I'd never been embarassed in such a subtle way
You told me there was no such thing as being free
And you told me there was nothing left here for me
And I begged you to run away
I begged you to let me stay
I begged you to be with me
And I begged you to set me free
You told me there were things I would never grasp
And you told me all the questions I could never ask
And I tried so hard to understand
Oh, I tried to take your cold and sweaty hand
And I begged you to run away
I begged you to let me stay
I begged you to be with me
And I begged you to let me be
I cried onto your shoulder
Oh, I searched the eye of the beholder
But I couldn't find any beauty in there
Just a distance and a darkness in your blank stare
And I begged you to run away
I begged you to let me stay
I begged you to be with me
And I begged you to let me be
Just set me free
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6. |
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I woke up groggy, checked my phone
To the news I didn't want to know
Solidarity with foreign shores
And the daily Wordle scores
And beneath all the tweets and all the memes
People disconnected through their screens
Are the kids with their colouring books
And their parents sharing terrified looks
Stuck there under ground terrified of the sound
Stuck there under ground wondering if they'll make it out
Stuck in the traffic jam waiting for a plan
Stuck in the traffic jams they're doing all they can
And as I watch that baffoon make his statement
I'm wondering how he can face it
Knowing that they funded his campaigns
Got those ads rooted in our brains
And now they're stuck there under ground terrified of the sound
Stuck there under ground wondering if they'll make it out
Stuck in the traffic jam waiting for a plan
Stuck in the traffic jams they're doing all they can
And I can't stop thinking of those kids
Wondering what they did
To deserve the hours in the basement
Offered up by some friendly neighbour
While we slept soundly in our beds
Tossing, turning our heads
And they're stuck there under ground terrified of the sound
Stuck there under ground wondering if they'll make it out
Stuck in the traffic jam waiting for a plan
Stuck in the traffic jams they're doing all they can
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7. |
Tourist Town
03:06
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We live in a picturesque, picture book town
And I'm trying my best to be polite with my frown
But I'm tripping on cobblestone, staring at the sky
You'd prefer to be alone, well, so would I
But we would get lonely if we got what we want
And I would give you all of me to forget what you're taught
About life and loss, heaven and hell
And the things you said that God could only tell
And the castle catches your eye as she begins to cry
And there's tourists buying postcards of the place we're gonna die
I remember you said we will forever be free
But I'm living in fear of people who've no time for TV
and I'm crossing desserted morning roads
Wondering if it's worth it or should I go home
As the castle catches my eye as I'm staring at the sky
And there's tourists taking photos of the place I'm gonna die
So I'm using this solitary loneliness
And reaching out to elderly relatives
Who live among these stones that I'd forgotten could hold
Everything and more that I need to grow old
As the castle catches his eye as I begin to cry
And there's tourists taking photos of the place we're gonna die
Oh the castle catches our eye as we're staring at the sky
And there's tourists buying postcards of the place we're gonna die
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8. |
What a poet would do
02:40
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I could waste my time
Trying to describe
The blue of your eyes
With the hue of the skies
And I could waste my hours
Picking wild flowers
Oh, I'd sing you the dictionary
Every other day
Cause that's what a poet would do
And I remember the squint of your teeth
The day you smiled at me
Modern dentistry
Has gone astray
And I could waste my youth
Unsaying the uncouth
Or say in uncertain terms
The way my heart yearns
But that's not what a poet would do
I would let you lie in bed
With the pillows at your head
And mine in my arms
With your dreams in my heart
Oh, I'd listen to your favourite song
Try to sing along
Yeah, if I was in love with you
I would do
All the things that a poet would do
But I am just a songwriter
An imposter composer
And I just like your irises
Blue as the sky is
And I don't know any more
About the things that you adore
Than a passing stranger
As the thought passes by her
About the blue of your eyes
And the hue of the skies
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9. |
19 in 1993
02:51
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They're not getting the impression
That I've ended my obsession
With the strange looking man
In the stranger sounding band
But I just love the way he forces
His words through verbal corsets
Ready for dephiling
Got this lyricphile smiling
He can't quire look in the lense
And I can't quite not tell my friends
That I wan't to marry this man
Or his mind if I can
Would you mind?
Oh, his wife might
So I'm watching a video
Of him when I was six years old
And there's distance and emotion
In age and in ocean
But I just cant help myself
My heart begins to swell
As I listen another time
To that devine rhyme
And he might not seem essential
Or all that instrumental
With his simple guitar strumming
And his background humming
But if you listen a little closer
You'll see the soul of the composer
In every line written
And then heard, I am smitten
So his words are ringing in my ears
And theyre stripping away the years
I'm not turning 20 in 2023
I am 19 in 1993
So is he
19 in 1993
Nah, I'm not turning 20 in 2023
I am 19 in 1993
So is he
He's not turning 50 in 2023
We are 19 in 1993
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10. |
Wee-er & Dearer
03:39
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Oh, it's wee-er and dearer she mumbles to herself
She's standing in the checkout and she's looking for some help
It's wee-er and dearer to feed the kids
And to live like her mum and daddy did
Oh it's wee-er and dearer these days
It's wee-re and dearer she says
It's wee-er and dearer he does pronounce
He's counting the price per ounce, oh he's tryna heat the house
And it's wee-er and dearer to fill the car
And to not even take it very far
Oh, it's wee-er and dearer these days
It's wee-er and dearer he says
It's wee-er and dearer they have to shout
They've counted all their pennies and they've got to go without
'Cause it's wee-er and dearer to find a flat to rent
They're starting the month with all their money spent
And it's wee-er and dearer these days
It's wee-er and dearer they say
And it's wee-er and dearer he cries
As another one of his best mates goes and dies
Oh, it's wee-er and dearer to care for your health
Spending months on a waiting list before topping yourself
And it's wee-er and dearer these days
It's wee-er and dearer he says
Oh, it's wee-er dearer she says
It's wee-er and dearer these days
Aye, it's wee-er and dearer today
Oh, it's wee-er and dearer to live
And to try and find any love to give
Oh, It's wee-er dearer to survive
And it's wee-er and dearer to die
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11. |
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I don't want to be a millionaire
I don't think the money could make me care
And I don't think that this time next year
I'll be anywhere but here
And if there's anyone with whom I empathise
It's those who photosynthesize
They may have to sit down and shut up
But come five o'clock nah they dont give a fuck
In the basements of pubs across the globe
Their time is their own
And if you ask me there's nothing more punk
Than folk singing songs in pubs
'Cause you'll find them on the picket lines, you'll find them in the streets
You'll find them helping those in need
And they may not have a light show or adoring fans
But if you ask me this is where it's at
So I don't care how I pay my bills
If it's behind a mic or the checkout tills
You'll find me down the pub, Out the Bedroom
Listening to all my favourite tunes
And you'll find me on the picket lines, you'll find me in the streets
You'll find me helping those in need
And I may not have a lightshow or adoring fans
But if you ask me this is where it's at
This one's for the ordinary
The powerful majority
The workers, the fighters and the union folk
Living the only lives they've ever known
And you'll find them on the picket lines, you'll find them in the streets
You'll find them helping those in need
And they may not have a light show or adoring fans
But if you ask me this is where it's at
So join us on the picket lines, Join us in the streets
Join us and help those in need
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Elsie MacDonald Edinburgh, UK
edinburgh's coolest folk-punk singer-songwriter from Dundee
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