
All songs words and music by J.M.François (c) 2019
A Silent storm
we can't choose were we come from
but we can choose were we go from here and still leave a trace
one day we will all be stories
one day we will all be a name by the fireplace
we accept the love we think we deserve
no questions asked
no real understanding even if it hurts
there's a silent storm below the surface
and the world goes on
a silent storm
a silent noise
and the sound of a rush through the trees that keeps on calling your name
what about the time you said “we're gonna change it all”
what about the games we played?
mountains never high enough
what about the promises, we were so young so undecided and yet so certain of it all
we've come to terms with our mistakes,
they are just stepping stones
we crossed the waters we kissed our last goodbye so long ago
did you hear the fleeting winds around our fate
did you hear the silent storm around our hearts abate
can you feel the love we shared and lost
and we did not contemplate
because we did not know,
we did not know
Staying on the safe side
I keep longing for a time when joy was in a green fairy
dancing was a silent movie, and love a game to play
masquerades were smoke grenades
we were much too wary
moving on
staying on the safe side
for much too long
it’s past your curfew
the deed is done
your time ran out before you even tried
don’t hide your magic tricks
when the circus comes to town
don’t speak those soothing words to me
running low and burning slow
a touch of fortune in your hand
i can hear the safe and wistful child
through the banter behind the door
her laughter always heals me
the captain she’s been waiting for
is on a far and distant sea
on a leisurely shore
Above the whisper
Well I guess i am way too old to carry secrets of this kind, but I still do
And I’m far too old to wander round the city late at night, but sometimes I still do
So you change a little bit, but not too much
You wouldn’t want the outside world to get out of touch with you
Although there will be talking here today, I can’t say I mind
‘Cos I’m above the whisper anyway
There is a strange and awkward feeling every time I meet a stranger here
And in an instant you just know , It doesn’t need to grow
You can taste it in the atmosphere
Maybe there’s a look or a twinkling in your eye
Or the way you smile when you say goodbye
I really don’t mind what other people say
I am above the whisper anyway
Are you still looking in the rear view mirror,
do you still regret the choices that you made
you got to stop doing that, it won’t get any better
Yes I know there was a price you paid
So for now just tag along, Be resilient and strong
And float upon the waves of life, cherish all the love you made
Go on rely on your gut feeling boy
You are above the whisper anyway
Away, Away
You used to ride your bike so gracefully
Ride into the setting sun
Away, away, You used to say
I’ll find my freedom moving on
You used to drive around in no-man’s land
Across the pitfalls and the cracks
Away, away, go with the wind
No one will stop you in your tracks
Out where horizons never lie
Into a place where you can fly
Away from all controlling eyes you roam
You don’t look back, You don’t rely on any promise passing by
Before you compromise, you told me once, “you’d rather die”
And now you sit there counting morons, little demons, petty woman you all gathered on your ride
You seem distracted, you only acted superficial but your opportunities are still open wide
I think you need to ride again
Away, away
I wonder why you never took the lead when all the favours where on you
Away away you said, This praising;
It’s nothing special that i do
And I won’t begin to mention all the girls you liked
Or how the girls would worship you
Away away my darlings
I’ll trade my loving gladly too
You missed your window,
Time went by your little circle in the sky
You had the chance but you didn’t try, you roamed
You found contentment so you say
As if your blue turned into grey
While you were only longing for
A place to stray
So now you sit there, oh so quiet, I wonder what goes on inside your head
Your wasted talent, and how it went
And how you turned your back on everything that doomed your day
I think you need to ride again
Away away
And now your bike is gathering dust in time
It’s just a picture on the wall
Away away These mem’ries
Away, away before i fall
Mothers & Fathers
Mothers and fathers
Oceans and seas
Brothers and sisters
Forrest’s and trees
Teachers and Schoolyards
It was nothing but play
We were Cowboys we were Indians every day
Children and birthdays
We had lemonade and cakes
Not a worry in the world
There was nothing yet at stake
You remember the changes
And your first kiss in the park
I still smell the sweet spring and hear the sound of the singing lark
But in a wink you grow older
While you thought it would always last
Now you look over your shoulder
God it went so fast
Mothers and fathers, Daughters and sons
Paintings and photographs
Of landscapes and views
Afternoon sunshine And morning dew
I see girls in white dresses
Dancing in the field
As the time keeps on slipping the memory gets more and more real
Melancholy
This is where we watched the cows graze
You and me dad, in long forgotten days
In the distance I still see The shipyard where you used to work
Where you made a living for your family
This is where we used to ride our bikes
Along the riverbanks across the dykes
Now where the meadows used to be I see an oil refinery
Oh progress has a price
And you did not know me
And I did not know you very well
And we never tried hard to ring each other’s bell
But time has shown me
Time has a way to tell
Gee I never reckoned I would feel so melancholy
I look around this land, It is where our hearts lie
The ocean clears a message in the sand
Just like the words you said are washed away in time
And I still wonder
We only ruled our own dominions
Maybe it’s not too late to say
Maybe the years have softened our opinions
Yes love has many ways
Heroes must die first
So this here is the life that you’ve been looking for
This here is as good as it can get
Along the way the stranded ones have vaporised
Apostate and unwillingly, abandoned and deprived of love and calling
Well in retrospect you can always see your flaws and your demeanour
As something of a learning process
You win some, and you lose some
And the values you once cherished
Just like the seasons they’ve all passed
But you must not cry because the sun goes down
It will rise again tomorrow
Don’t dwell on yesterday
Don’t consummate your sorrow
The only thing you have to do before you quench your thirst
You mustn’t die before your heroes do
Heroes must die first
Now with all your knowledge all your knowhow and all the wealth that you can think of
you're still so dissatisfied
do you still believe our main goal is to misuse and to plunder
then are you aware that you never even tried?
so this is why the brave ones, the ones that we look up to
must go before our time is through
the adulated set examples
they disregard their own needs
but all their deeds
they need to be adored by you
No angels
There are no angels here
They have upped and gone away
they left me here abandoned
they could not stay
There are no angels here
Maybe there never were
But traces of their goodness
Must be lying ‘ round here somewhere on this earth
Grief has made me angry (grief and indignation)
Grief has made my heart grow cold
I’m trying to exist, I’m trying to resist the sound
of a peace and quiet sphere
it’s definite, it’s undisputed
there are no angels here
i wish there was an angel here
to comfort me to soothe my soul
to chase away the demons
and forsake this bad existence as a whole
but there are no demons here
there are only demons in your head
they are only bad ideas and memories of some words you later thought, well
you shouldn’t have said
Welcome to the real world
Ten years ago, it Seems like yesterday
twenty years like the day before
Your “gold and shiny” hair shows a little grey
Still remember that blouse you wore
There’s no regrets, today is precious
Age has put a smile on me
It’s in my head I’m keeping treasures
And I’m the one who holds the key
I was never one for church or for belief
So I never wondered why I was around
Feeling blessed right now, well, It cannot be a great relief
But it seems too late to turn around
There’s no defence today is precious
is that the wonder of it all?
This here’s my castle in the ashes
This here’s the fire of my love
And it’s burning down
Let's light another candle (still burning down)
If it's still too hard to handle (still burning down)
so many reasons not unfurled
And my common sense is not enough,
Welcome to the real world
I try to understand the words I read
I try to grasp the evening news
These days you don’t count when you’re incomplete
And you’re more likely bound to lose
It’s all pretence, but is it really precious
Now aren't we just a bit naive?
Here our celebration crashes
Here our expectations fall
One and all
I Still believe I'll wake up one day
Finding all the sounds around me take me back to the fields were we used to play
Hiding in the tall grass, I feel your tender kisses take my innocence away
Broken hearts & Cancelled dreams
25 years of nothing
25 years of a working life for a stupid car
or a house you’ll never own
25 years of nothing, 25 years
25 years of suffer
Suffering in a working plant or a factory
Or in a shop to sell the latest news about the refugees or the homeless people In a foreign land
25 years
How to mend the broken pieces of the mirror you looked in long ago
The friends you’ve known remind you
Of the Broken Hearts & Cancelled Dreams,
The shadows of that first hello
25 years of loving
25 years of girls and women,
dates in darkened alleys, wrong decisions, sad divorces, forced accords I was way off course
for 25 years
25 years of living
Living a lie, or half a truth or half a made up story about the boy you used to be.
Never setting free the dreamshe had, is rather plain pathetic, Rather sad
And 25 years ahead or maybe less,
but please no more to contribute or add to this distress.
I may have no desires, only less,
Or lesser expectations.