A FEW CLOSE FRIENDS

LOVE POWER

A friend recently gave me a Phillips cassette recorder from back in the day so I dug out my old C90s and found some early songs that we recorded in the late 80s. This was our homage (rip-off) to Stock, Aitken & Waterman. Vocal by Lorna Stucki.

ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD

Réveillon de Noël (Christmas Eve)

When life has lost its meaning, lost its way

The sky is closing in and clouds are grey

Here comes another gloomy afternoon

You bring to me the 30th of June

 

When sometimes I get weary in my mind

You always seem to recognise the signs

And when I ask myself a simple question

The answer’s you… and yes is true


 

You’re there to put a smile back on my face

You're there because you’re someone that I can’t replace

There when I’m down and I’m blue

You’re there to tell my troubles to

 

You’re there like summer sunshine after rain

There when that old feeling comes around again

There to whisper gently “I love you”

You’re there to tell my troubles to



 

Whenever there’s confusion in my head

Hurt by all the things that people said

I ask myself again a simple question

As I sometimes do… the answer’s you, you

 

You’re there to put a smile back on my face

There because you’re someone that I can’t replace

There when I’m down and I’m blue

You’re there to tell my troubles to

 

You’re there like summer sunshine after rain

There when that old feeling comes around again

There to whisper gently “I love you”

You’re there to tell my troubles to

There to whisper gently “I love you”

You’re there to tell my troubles to

THERE

Winner of the UK SONGWRITING CONTEST 2016(Love Song Category)

Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx17phvoC3A&t=22s

And if I close my eyes I can still remember
All the funny little things you used to do
And when I close my eyes I can still recall
The sunshine and the sadness of it all
I know sometimes things they happen for a reason
But that don’t make it easier today

I’m just waiting for a break in the rain
Falling from the heavens – it just won’t stop
Draining from the heart of me drop by drop
I’m praying for the weather to change
I’ve been trying to make the best of my time
Living without you just ain’t my line
You and I together it felt so fine
And talking ‘bout the weather again
I’m just waiting for a break in the rain

And I can see you in the snow – it’s late December
In the tiny garden where we used to play
But I guess if hide and seek’s on the agenda
I’ll close my eyes and you will fly away
I know some things they happen for the better
But that don’t make it easier today

Chorus

Well nothing lasts forever, so the people say
Those days are past and gone so who cares anyway
It’s hard enough to see with raindrops in your eyes
I brush them all aside and look up to the sky
Just me, myself and I’m just…

Chorus

BREAK IN THE RAIN

We’re an odd looking pair I confess
I’m a real snappy dresser – you’re a mess
No letter or call, you might disappear for a while
On your face there’s a permanent scowl
And your temper is often quite foul
But I’m easy going and most times I’m wearing a smile
Well I know you’ll never be good for me
Still I pray one day you’ll chop wood for me

Call me a fool – if fools live their lives loving you
Call me a fool – if fools spend their days feeling blue
Don’t make like a stranger
Can’t you see what a spin I’m in
Angels stay away from danger
But fools they rush in again and again
So call me a fool – there’s many like me to be found
Walking the streets with their feet off the ground
I’m head over heels, whoops a daisy!
Without you I’d go crazy
Once a fool….always a fool

Instrumental

Well it’s true you don’t have the looks for me
I know you’ll never write hooks for me

Chorus


CALL ME A FOOL

You, you can’t help yourself
You were born to dream
Many childish dreams
Maybe sometimes
You, you can’t help yourself
Life has set you free
And that’s alright with me

All you need’s a wall to lean on
Just the strings on your guitar
The sound of laughter in the distance
A friend who knows how cool you are
The ching of change deep in your pocket
And someone to have faith in you cos

You, you can’t help yourself
You were born to dream
Like a child it seems
Maybe sometimes
You, you can’t help yourself
Life has set you free
And that’s alright with me

Then your thoughts turn to your loved ones
Keep them close enough to care
Try to treasure every moment
Cos they won’t always be there
Gotta keep yourself together
For all those who believe in you cos

You, you can’t help yourself
You were born to dream
Many childish dreams 
In the end my friend
You, you can’t help yourself
Life has set you free
And though I wish you well
You can’t help yourself

YOU CAN'T HELP YOURSELF

A wonderful piano arrangement and performance by Phil Best of our Christmas song. 
Christmas category winner in the UK SONGWRITING CONTEST 2016

In My Dreams (Piano arrangement by Phil Best)

You Can't Help Yourself (no drums)

I’ve been walking slowly down a one way street
Smiling like a fool at everyone I meet
And that can drag you down - mm it can drag you down
Feels like I’ve been riding on a cable car
Flying through the night just like a shooting star
And that can drag you down - yeah it can drag you down
But all I ever wanted is to be right there wherever 
Be right there wherever you are
And if it isn’t on the brightest star 
Then somewhere that doesn’t seem so far

I’m on a one way street
In a no go town
On the southbound spiral – I go down, down, down
Like the same old faces with their eyes so blind
They all think I’m crazy – out of my mind
Clean out of my mind

I’ve been running slowly out of your sweet fuel
Walking through the mountains like a clapped out mule
And that can drag you down - mm it can drag you down
I don't know what's going on inside my head
I just don't know whats going on inside my head
And that can drag you down - yeah it can drag you down
But all I ever wanted is to be right there wherever
Be right there wherever you hide
And if it isn’t on the mountainside 
Then I guess you may have realised

Chorus

ONE WAY STREET

I told myself it’s just a rumour
There’s no truth in what I’ve heard
These small people love a drama
I closed my mind to every word
Much more than a part of me 
You were the soul and the heart of me
Like some kid shot a dart at me yeah

But I’ve got eyes here in my head
Though by the morning they’ll be running red
And you can say that I have lost the thread
Should I ignore what I see right there in front of me?
No I think I’d best believe my eyes
Better believe my eyes
Best believe my eyes

Just yesterday you had me thinking
That our future was secure
Well I know I’m prone to dreaming
This time I’ve never been so sure
Now nothing makes sense to me 
You are my life, my destiny
Didn’t I give you the best of me yeah?

But I’ve got eyes here in my head
Though by the morning they’ll be running red
And you can say that I have lost the thread
Should I ignore what I see right there in front of me?
No I think I’d best believe my eyes
So I know it’s true
And they can look into the heart of you
And through these tears I’ve the clearest view
Should I ignore all I see right there in front of me?
No I think I’d best believe my eyes
Better believe my eyes
Best believe my eyes

BETTER BELIEVE  (retro mix)

We wrote this song for our very special friend and former band member who was taken from this world far too soon. Graham, we miss you x

What you see if you ever look down
From your cloud to the streets of this town?
Nothing changes much here on the ground
Without you

There’s the park and the kids from the block
Our first school and the wedding dress shop
Maybe time like the traffic has stopped
Without you

Don’t get me wrong
I want you right here where you belong
Cos it’s been too long
You’re looking down from a better place

But if you see me daydreaming
Believe I dream of you
And if you see me daydreaming
You know I dream of you, yes I do
Time is a thief not a healer
A low down, no good stealer
So if you see me daydreaming
Preoccupied, all misty-eyed
You know that I’ll be dreaming of you

So you’ll see that the place looks the same
All the girls they remember your name
They say life isn’t much of a game 
Without you

So let’s keep it real
I find it hard not to show what I feel
These cuts need to heal
Still you've found yourself a better place

Chorus

Look down, you will see me daydreaming
Look down, you will see me daydreaming

DAYDREAMING

I told myself it’s just a rumour
There’s no truth in what I’ve heard
These small people love a drama
I closed my mind to every word
Much more than a part of me 
You were the soul and the heart of me
Like some kid shot a dart at me yeah

But I’ve got eyes here in my head
Though by the morning they’ll be running red
And you can say that I have lost the thread
Should I ignore what I see right there in front of me?
No I think I’d best believe my eyes
Better believe my eyes

Just yesterday you had me thinking
That our future was secure
Well I know I’m prone to dreaming
This time I’d never been so sure
Now nothing makes sense to me 
You are my life, my destiny
Didn’t I give you the best of me yeah?

But I’ve got eyes here in my head
Though by the morning they’ll be running red
And you can say that I have lost the thread
Should I ignore what I see right there in front of me?
No I think I’d best believe my eyes
So I know it’s true
And they can look into the heart of you
And through these tears I’ve the clearest view
Should I ignore all I see right there in front of me?
No I think I’d best believe my eyes
Better believe my eyes

BETTER BELIEVE

Animation lyric video by Alex Parkinson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCrrfSXbMzs

I’m a chameleon - see me change!

The ways of love are strange and beautiful
So many colours there to keep me alive
I need them all – that’s indisputable
Just one emotion
I could never survive
Look now I’m turning red
Coz of all those things you said
Like a motion picture running round in my head

I’m an itty bitty lizard walking on the sand
I got two feet, I got two hands
I’m not a woman, I’m not a man
I’m an itty bitty lizard walking on the sand
I’m a chameleon, I’m a chameleon 
See me change!

And all this crazy shit is down to you
I feel the rhythm from my head to my toe
I’m green, I’m yellow then the deepest blue
So if you’re ready lets get on with the show
And everytime we meet
Gotta feel your body heat
Then you kiss me and the transformation’s complete

Chorus

So let this game begin
Together we’re the sweetest thing
Feel you moving closer now I’m shedding my skin

Chorus

CHAMELEON

This is a song we wrote for the amazing jazz singer and pianist Diana Krall - if only we could get it to her I think she would like it!

A canyon stands between us, you and me
As deep and wide as our love used to be
Little stones have turned to mountains
Both my hands have lost their grip
And two sailors risk a drowning as they leave the sinking ship

I watch the changing colours in the sky
And know this sunny day will soon be night
Can I stand to pull the curtains? 
Shall I reach to draw the blinds?
This time there’s no escaping, no mistaking all the signs

Games that we play no more
Words that we say no more
Is there still something for my heart to do?
Too cool to care we are
Like dust in the air we are
Is this the last hurrah for me and for you?

I count the passing strangers on the road
But where they may be heading I don’t know
We could dance around in circles 
Like the moon up in the sky
But I’d stop the world from turning if your lips could tell me why

Chorus

THE LAST HURRAH (original version)

I’m lonely, so lonely - washed up on the shore
Untie me, unchain me – I can’t breathe no more
Been holding out so long for you to rescue me
And when tomorrow comes I’ll still be waiting, anticipating

I’m stranded, I'm stranded, stranded, so stranded 
On the edge of love, 
Stranded, stranded, so stranded
On the edge of love – on the edge of love
On the edge of love – on the edge of love

Please save me, I’m falling – a castle built on sand
I’m waving, I’m drowning – just reaching out my hand
In dreams I hear you calling ‘sail away with me’ 
But when the morning comes I’ll still be waiting, anticipating

Chorus

So hear me when I call – don’t sail away from me
Cos when the morning comes I’ll still be waiting, anticipating

I’m stranded, I'm stranded, stranded, so stranded
Oh stranded, stranded, stranded, so stranded
Don't leave me on my own, no
I'm lost and all alone
Don't wanna live, I don't wanna live my life
On the edge of love, on the edge of love
On the edge of love, on the edge of love

STRANDED

Thirty days of rainfall
That don’t seem so painful
Gazing at my boots when I’m alone
Cos soon I’m in my Chevy
Before the sun sets on the levee
That’s why I call Louisiana home

Lying in my hotel room
Listening to some Cajun tune
I’m crying to my folks there on the phone
Get me on that jumbo
Fix me a sea of Gumbo
That’s why I call Louisiana home

Catch the 16:30 fast to Evangeline
I can’t wait to see you again
If I thought that I was bound for New Orleans
Well I just might outrun the train
Yeah, yeah

The world’s a big old kitchen
Still I get to itchin
Wherever these here southern feet may roam
I can’t get no higher
Than walking around the bayou
That’s why I call Louisiana home

Take me home

My Louisiana, my Louisiana, my Louisiana home (repeat)

MY LOUISIANA HOME

One more thing - remember while you're far away
Flowers will be on display - so take care
The rose she's cruel - her thorns can tear people apart
Leave scars on your arms and your heart - so please beware

Seal your room - stare at the walls or the moon
Close all the blinds and the windows
Hide, take cover, lie low

Yes I know - you've always loved flowers its true
But these ones are no good for you my sweet honey bee
So don't touch the flowers please come home to me

Can't you see the dangers in gardens and parks
Bad things go on after dark so stay away
Hear me out - that's where the irises grow
And jasmine she's pretty but no - just one more day

Then head for home, think of me here alone
Why should I wait any longer?
Please come back where you belong

Yes I recall you used to leave flowers at my door
But we don't need flowers any more my sweet honey bee
So don't touch the flowers please come home
Don't touch the flowers please come home
Don't touch the flowers just come home to me

DON'T TOUCH THE FLOWERS

Lyric video: 
https://vimeo.com/user52684754

On a purple alligator
Saw you eating a potata
Drew it on a piece a paper
Come and see me little later
We were singing Masquenada
With your mama and your fada
What a funny little drama
Yeah, yeah, yeah!

Then you’re sitting by the water
With your pretty little daughter
You were drinking a tequila
Maybe waiting for a dealer
He was walking a chiwauwa
Getting later by the hour
Think I’m gonna take a shower
Yeah, yeah, yeah!

Hey! What you doing to me?
People live your life how you want it to be, I said
Hey! What you doing to me
We can make our life what we want it to be

Now we know that love is life
Come with me and hold me tight
Where you lead I’ll follow too
U 4 me and me 4 U
Now we know that life is love
You’re the one I’m thinking of
Feel the air - the air is free
It’s me 4 U and U 4 me


And I’ll always be your lover
No there’ll never be another
But you’re working undercover
With your sista and your brudda
Just another Margarita
I can drink it by the litre
But your kiss is so much sweeter
Yeah, yeah, yeah!

U4ME

Winner of the UK SONGWRITING CONTEST 2018 (Love Songs category)
https://vimeo.com/514956539  Peter plays Lisa on the piano just after having written it.

In a bar with a friend, there’s a tear in his eye
How could anybody hurt such a sweet looking guy
So I say mister pick yourself off the ground
You just haven’t found your Lisa

Broken hearts they can mend in the fullness of time
And your life it will change just like Lisa changed mine
So think of tomorrow though tonight you feel down
You just haven’t found your Lisa

Well Lisa came my way about a year ago
She walked into my world from where I’ll never know
You think you won’t find love again
That isn’t so
You just haven’t found your Lisa

Then through the happy crowd I saw that girl appear
I stood and kissed her gently, said I’ll get us all a beer
The bar was crammed with people
It was hard for me to see
And when I got back to our table
There was no-one there but me

Well my girl went away just a few days ago
Walked out of my world to where I’ll never know
Searched the streets and the cities – no sight and no sound
I just haven’t found my Lisa
I still haven’t found my Lisa

LISA

https://vimeo.com/324975894
Came up with this little tune while doodling around. Orchestral version coming soon!

Another Place and Time (improvised piano solo)

S h o w r e e l

Winner of the UK Songwriting Contest 2022 (Adult Contemporary category)

Lyric video: https://vimeo.com/452241536

I can hear your song from a place inside my room
And I understand that you’ll be leaving soon
Didn’t think that I would see you again
But here we are together my old friend

When we talk – we talk about those ordinary things
The simple pleasure that a conversation brings
But when all is said and done
And you turn towards the sun
Remember me this way
Then spread your wings and fly away 

You’re a bird of beauty and of wisdom I know
As surely as the gentle breezes blow
I can feel the sting of something in my eye
As I watch you swooping through the endless sky

When we talk – we talk about those ordinary things
The simple pleasure that a conversation brings
But when all is said and done
And you turn toward the sun
Remember me this way
Then spread your wings and fly away

I can hear your song from a place inside my room
And I understand that you’ll be leaving soon
Maybe you came here to mess with my mind
But I know you’re really not the hurting kind


Cos when we talk – we talk about those ordinary things
The simple pleasure that a conversation brings
But when all is said and done
And you turn toward the sun
The words we shared I won’t forget
Nothing’s lost – I’ve no regrets
So feel the wind upon your face
Me to you - a last embrace
Remember me this way
Then spread your wings and fly away
Then spread your wings and fly away

WHEN WE TALK

And when she’s here it’s not as if the world has just begun
Though something sweet and tender happens to me
And if she’s not, the earth will still be staring at the sun
And all the time her eyes are looking through me

We come, we go
As twilight’s low and mournful shadows fall
As endless ghosts of ages gently call
And one more silent someone sheds a tear for me
We come, we go
I fool myself as all deceivers must
But lies are ever lies and never just
And still I trust
The flicker of the candle that you burn
Will light the way for me when I return

And when it’s clear that yes once more the course of love is done
It only takes a memory to renew me

We come, we go
She with her illusions, me with mine
But stars will often fade before they shine
And ours is not a love of perfect symmetry
We come, we go
The game goes on as dawn becomes the day
And countless nameless strangers lead the way 
But still I pray
The flicker of the candle that you burn
Will light the way for me when I return

WE COME WE GO

ANOTHER PLACE & TIME (orchestral instrumental)

It wasn’t meant to be part of the plan
To let someone like you slip through my hands
To stand here while my head is spinning round
To call your name and then to hear no sound

Too many words I can’t forget
But not enough said to forgive today
Too many hours that I regret
But without you how can I live today?

I still see there on the floor the tears that I chose to ignore
A few short steps away
And very soon they’ll start to dry like raindrops from the sky
Or they’ll be swept away

The air I breathe inside this place is you
The walls I touch have you inside them too
I close the window just to hold you in
I can’t let you escape me once again

Too many words you can’t forget
But not enough said to forgive today
Too many hours that I regret
But without you how can I live today?

I ask the mirror to reflect the thing of beauty that I wrecked
Before you turned away
Does the world need more than one, one more slowly setting sun
But I can’t look away

Today – as I listen to the rain 
I hear the storm clouds shouting out your name
Today is all I have now you are gone
And tomorrows that go on and on and on

Too many words you can’t forget
But not enough said to forgive today
Too many hours that I regret
But without you how can I live today?

If I could I’d turn back time just to take your hands in mine
And fan this dying flame
I close my eyes but cannot rest without the face I once caressed
Oh how I wish that it was yesterday
Wish that it was yesterday today
I wish that it was yesterday today

TODAY feat Dan Chettoe

Though nothing stays the same
You are and will remain the loved one
Softer than the sea
Sweeter as the years go by
Close when there are clouds around me
Knowing the right words to say
You fold me in your arms
And take my breath away

Not so long ago
My heart it came to know the loved one
I hear you in the wind
I see you in the summer sky
Even when the dark surrounds me
You can ease my troubled mind
And just three simple words will set my spirit free
To me the loved one you will always be

But who can say where love will live today?
It’s just a dream – a mystery
And come the rain
Reach out and you will find
A power so divine, a love so tender

Some things never change
Forever you’ll remain the loved one
I know that you’ll be there
With sunlight shining in your smile
I’d send to you a thousand roses
But flowers fade as time goes by
I give you all my love
Cos that’s what life is for
You’ll be the loved one forever more
The loved one, the loved one
The loved one forever more

THE LOVED ONE feat Daniel Chettoe

Girl you should see my face every time they call me to the phone
All my friends say – I’m just a hopeless case
But you give me more hope than anyone I know
Back in the day I was chasing dollar signs
Lost my way almost made me lose my mind
But that’s all over now and I’ve done my time
And it’s time to take me home

You know I don’t need no diamonds and pearls
You make me feel like I’m king of the world
Yes I was down, down without you girl
But now I’ve been crowned the king of the world
You know that you’re the key, my dream of freedom
The light inside my room
Silver and gold?
I don’t want for nothing but you

Something about this place – hours change to days and fade into years
I count the moments – not many left to waste
I think of you and time just disappears
And I’m on the edge of reason it’s killing me
Unlock the door to your love and set me free
I’ll be twice the man that you thought I’d be
When they let me out of here

Chorus

King, king, king, king of the world etc

KING OF THE WORLD

A canyon stands between us, you and me
As deep and wide as our love used to be
Little stones have turned to mountains
Both my hands have lost their grip
And two sailors risk a drowning as they leave the sinking ship

I watch the changing colours in the sky
And know this sunny day will soon be night
Can I stand to pull the curtain?
Shall I reach to draw the blind?
This time there’s no escaping, no mistaking all the signs

Games that we play no more
Words that we say no more
Is there still something for my heart to do?
Too cool to care we are
Like dust in the air we are
Is this the last hurrah for me and for you?

I count the passing strangers on the road
But where they may be heading I don’t know
We could dance around in circles
Like the moon up in the sky
But I’d stop the world from turning if your lips could tell me why

Chorus

THE LAST HURRAH

https://vimeo.com/413663387

What's there left to say?
The words gave you away
Should have known it from the start
I'm not gonna cry
But you still just broke my heart

Why ever should I care?
He's waiting for you there
On gambler's boulevard
I'm not gonna cry
But you still just broke my heart

So now you feel like confessing
You've kept me guessing for a while
I should have learned my lesson
So go with my blessing

The weeping willow may
Shed tears all night and day
Like its world is torn apart
I'm not gonna cry
No I'm not gonna cry
I'm not gonna cry
But you still just broke my heart

Ooh now you feel like confessing
You've kept me guessing for a while
I should have learned my lesson
So go, go with my blessing

What's there left to say?
The words gave you away
Should have known it from the start
I'm not gonna cry
No I'm not gonna cry
I'm not gonna cry
But you still just broke my heart

I'M NOT GONNA CRY

Though nothing stays the same
You are and will remain the loved one
Softer than the sea
Sweeter as the years go by
Close when there are clouds around me
Knowing the right words to say
You fold me in your arms
And take my breath away

Not so long ago
My heart it came to know the loved one
I hear you in the wind
I see you in the summer sky
Even when the dark surrounds me
You can ease my troubled mind
And just three simple words will set my spirit free
To me the loved one you will always be

But who can say where love will live today?
It’s just a dream – a mystery
And come the rain
Reach out and you will find
A power so divine, a love so tender

Some things never change
Forever you’ll remain the loved one
I know that you’ll be there
With sunlight shining in your smile
I’d send to you a thousand roses
But flowers fade as time goes by
I give you all my love
Cos that’s what life is for
You’ll be the loved one forever more
The loved one, the loved one
Oh the loved one forever more

THE LOVED ONE

I'm Not Gonna Cry

What's there left to say?
The words gave you away
Should have known it from the start
I'm not gonna cry
But you still just broke my heart

Why ever should I care?
He's waiting for you there
On gambler's boulevard
I'm not gonna cry
But you still just broke my heart

So now you feel like confessing
You kept me guessing for a while
I should have learned my lesson
So go with my blessing

The weeping willow may
Shed tears all night and day
Like its world is torn apart
I'm not gonna cry
No I'm not gonna cry
I'm not gonna cry
But you still just broke my heart

So now you feel  like confessing
You've kept me guessing for a while
I should have learned my lesson
So go, go with my blessing

What's there left to say?
The words gave you away
Should have known it from the start
I'm not gonna cry
No I'm not gonna cry
I'm not gonna cry
But you still just broke my heart

I'M NOT GONNA CRY (Remix)

Winners of the UK SONGWRITING CONTEST 2016 in 2 categories - Love Songs and Christmas.  Winners of the UK SONGWRITING CONTEST 2018 in Love Songs category .  Winners of the UK SONGWRITING CONTEST 2022 in Adult Contemporary category.                                                                                        Welcome to our Soundcloud page. Here you can hear all our songs as soon as they come out of our studio in the garden.  Some of our songs are available to download from our Bandcamp site.

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