• From: London, England
  • Registered: 2009-05-11
  • Posts: 23

Topic: New town lament

Here in England, after WW2, they built  'new towns' to cope with the exodus and need for housing of Londoners.  My parents were typical of this generation and I was born, 47 years ago in a new town.  It was a fresh, exciting and pleasant place to grow up.  Now, it is a festering hell-hole.  So I wrote some lyrics, which I'm in the process of morphing into a song ...    apologies for the negativity of the whole thing !  Quick notes - the Reverend is a guitar playing friend of mine and staffies are awful status dogs that the scum infesting these Isles own to make themselves look tough.



town of my birth, I have travelled so far
now it hurts me to see just how dirty you are
but the Reverend, he still strums away on his black guitar

who are you people and when did you come
how did you strike those proud Londoners dumb
you've got all the money but still you keep asking for some

with your staffies and benefit books and fake gear
burgers and scratchcards, fags and your beer

muggers and robbers are having a ball
christians are drowned out by cheap alcohol
sometimes I wonder if I am in England at all

and where are the children dancing round maypoles ?
who stole the flowers from outside the old cenotaph ?

now how I wish I had never come back
to see how my new town is under attack
they celebrate Englishman's head coming home in a sack

and there's staffies and benefit books and fake gear
burgers and scratchcards, fags and their beer

Stronger than the sun....harder than a gun

Coffeefairy47's Website

  • From: Belfast
  • Registered: 2009-03-31
  • Posts: 330

Re: New town lament

Interesting point of view - I know what you mean about the staffies -  dog-rough some of them !

You made me think about somewhere just across the city from me now - I'm going to post a poem about it.

"Don't play what's there, play what's not there." Miles Davis

StranSongs's Website

  • upyerkilt
  • upyerkilt
  • Unofficial king of Scotland
  • Offline
  • From: Balloch, Scotland, UK, Earth
  • Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 3,290

Re: New town lament

coffeefairy
Excellent poem!

I am all for humans living wherever they feel like in the world but losing traditions in any country is a sad thing. And Englands traditions are slowly dying away too, but I mostly blame computers for all this.

At least ye still have that race down the big hill wit hlumps of cheese lol That is a tradtional I tihnk that will only grow more and more popular.

Ken

ye get some that are cut out for the job and others just get by from pretending
  • From: London, England
  • Registered: 2009-05-11
  • Posts: 23

Re: New town lament

Thanks, Ken.  I totally agree - England will fall to dark powers on the day that cheese rolling becomes a health and safety issue. 

And please give my regards to Dumfries and Galloway - glorious place.

David

Stronger than the sun....harder than a gun

Coffeefairy47's Website

  • From: The Land Of Song
  • Registered: 2007-12-10
  • Posts: 5,649

Re: New town lament

hi coffeefairy

it's a pandemic more spurious and infectious than the most virulent form of aids or swine flu.

my home town was a nice place to grow up in, but maggie thatcher came along and the place has gone down hill ever since.

as industry moves out, drugs move in. there's always been an underlying drug culture here as everywhere, it's just that in the last 10 years everything has spiraled out of proportion. streets where decent people lived are being taken over by druggies and hoodies. boy racers and their small cars with big exhausts and stereo's. i'd like to just up and go, but who's going to buy my house? you need money behind you to get away! and you know, sooner or later the dross of society will follow...

so endeth today's sermon

nice work by the way, and as you can see, topical, thought provoking and makes you wish for a time gone by.

phill

Ask not what Chordie can do for you, but what you can do for Chordie.

Phill Williams's Website

  • From: London, England
  • Registered: 2009-05-11
  • Posts: 23

Re: New town lament

Hi, Phill.

There are 100 songs just waiting to be written on this subject !  Perhaps we should all write a song dedicated to our hometowns, the good, bad and ugly - and produce a CD for our own purchase and enjoyment ?  A kind of transatlantic effort.

Stronger than the sun....harder than a gun

Coffeefairy47's Website

  • buvvy
  • Senior Member
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2008-06-01
  • Posts: 273

Re: New town lament

Hi Coffee, great words which I think are fairly descriptive of most cities in the world, it doesn't really say much for progress does it. By the way, is your friend the Reverend Al, the lead guitarist for the Blood Island Raiders, a London based group. Just curious, as my nephew Warren, who is originally from Cape Town, is the vocalist. Once again, great writing.

Keep on Rocking and remember Animals Feel Pain Too.
  • From: London, England
  • Registered: 2009-05-11
  • Posts: 23

Re: New town lament

Hi, Buvvy .. .. .. .. ..
No, ' The Reverend' in question is Paul Green - he's a legend in these parts
I've been going to see this guy in various bands for 25 years and I guess I was just driving at that no matter what else changes, he's always around and still playing ....
Thanks for the compliments - looking at what's been posted since I can't help but feel I was over-negative       hmm

Stronger than the sun....harder than a gun

Coffeefairy47's Website