And I walked

Into the rolling fields;
Under the tumbling clouds;
Through the blooming grass
That wet my knees
With life’s sweet dews.

In the endless sky 
The jackdaws cracked
Their shouts of communion
And joy.

As the swallow tilts
On bending wing;
As the lapwing flings 
Himself through the buffering wind;

As the otter’s fluid, midstream motion;

As the hawk’s unyielding foot
Takes life
And eternity sits in her 
Sunlight yellow eye

So all my heart sang

That I am not lukewarm
And I will run my life
In the innocence 
Of the burning sun.

I have felt eternity
In my mind
And my brothers and my sisters 
Have called me to the fields
Where nothing changes
And our brief lives
Come and go
From and to oblivion
And the slow curve of the stars
Brings everything 
Down in time.


And I Walked

You Can Have Riches

Did you ever wake up
And find no forgiveness in the morning;
Did today’s tears
Poison tomorrow?
Yes. You can have riches - but they won’t mean anything
If your heart grows hard, hard as a diamond ring.


Did you ever see the sun
And think the day was surely run;
Did you ever see the moon
And think it will be over much to soon?
Yes, you can have riches – if you can reach for them;
If your broken heart can reach to them.

Broken people, broken hearts, broken dreams, broken stars.
Broken people, broken hearts, broken dreams, broken stars.


Did you ever learn to live
When you thought you had forgotten learning;
Did you find a simple thought
Would turn your life, turn your life around?
Yes, you can have riches, they are within you
And you can learn and you can live. 

Broken people, broken hearts, broken dreams, broken stars.
Broken people, broken hearts, broken dreams, broken stars.


You Can Have Riches

Your kiss is soft and warm and as perfect as the night
It speaks to me of loving that you give to me tonight
For it bears no calculation and it bears no soft dismay
It tells to me of giving that you give to me today
And tonight your kisses were true
Giving love as you wanted to
And tonight I was filled to be with you
Here with your love
And so I sing a three o'clock song to you
And so I sing a three o'clock song to you

We moved together towards the night times warmth
Giving love the way that only broken hearted lovers do
You are not my woman and I am not your man
We both dream of a lost love and we both understand
That we've lost the love we had 
To keep the one that held out love
To keep the one we'd welcome back tomorrow
With a ready heart
And so I sing a three o'clock song to you
And so I sing a three o'clock song to you

I've loved and given and I've had so much to give
My life is barren without her - this is a lonely place to live
I saw her the other day and was glad just that she smiled
At the back of my heart I was thinking "Maybe in a little while.."
Everything will turn around
I'll hear again her sweet love's sound
Maybe this time she'll be back to stay ...
You love me well
And so I sing a three o'clock song to you
And so I sing a three o'clock song to you

Now love making has brought us to the edge of sleep
The love I've given I hope you'll cherish and you'll keep
And I want you to know that though I love someone else
I've had so much love to give since I've been by myself
But of course You know all this
It's just the same for both of us
And you have so much love to give to me
Give it to me now
And so I sing a three o'clock song to you
And so I sing a three o'clock song to you

Three O' Clock Song

Here am I looking for you again,
In pale shadows under a silvery moon;
Rain in the branches dripping down,
into the grass and falling down. 

I will always feel this way I know.

Here am I in the bright sunshine,
I can feel its heat on my skin:
I can feel the heat in my blood,
Sap soaring to the height of the trees.

I will always feel this way I know.

We can be together,
In the twilight's softening light;
With the sun's smile spread across our eyes
Swimming away down a river of desire.

I will always feel this way I know.



I Will Always Feel This Way

Awake! Awake!
It’s a new day
And the sun 
Caused hope to shine.
Arise! Arise!
From your blue dream;
Rise and greet the bright new day.

I was sleeping when I heard your voice call.
Like a butterfly in an empty room
Joy was reborn to flutter brightly
Away from mirrors to the windows light.

And my arms were filled with strength
And I cast the windows wide.
The clean, fresh air swirled ‘round the room
Filling my wings – through the window I flew.

I flew high and I flew low
In the clean light of the sun:
I had heard deep in blue dreams
That you’d call me to the fields.

Awake! Awake!
It’s a new day
And the sun 
Caused hope to shine.
Arise! Arise!
From your blue dream;
Rise and greet the bright new day.

Artwork by Marion Morrison www.marionmorrison.co.uk


Awake! Awake!

And if I brought you…

An empty sky
Or a river’s rain 
In winter’s cold.

A cold sunset
That didn’t care 
Where you had been.

A forest fire
That spoiled a sweet stream
With its desires.

An empty night
Where no one walked
Beneath the stars.

A thrush’s song
That he poured out
From the thorns.

A lapwing’s wing
To throw yourself 
Through the air with joy.

A seeled heart*
That waits upon
When it is opened.

My blind desires
That you may   
Know me more.

Would you turn your love to me
Or leave me crying?

Oh ring, ring, ring!
Such treasures I bring!

Oh ring, ring, ring!
Such pleasures I bring!


“Seeled” and “waits upon” are falconry terms. “Seeling” is a practice used in medieval times where a newly caught, wild falcon would have its eyes sewn up as part of the training process. To “wait on” is when a falcon waits above the falconer for food or the opportunity to hunt.  


Riddle Song

Don't sit too long 
In your cold room,
Where your fire is out 
And the ashes are cold, 
Or you will slowly fall
And lose you way
Among the roots and coils 
Of confusion.

Don't fall asleep
In your cold room
When your fire's moment 
Has long gone.
Or you will slowly fall
And lose you way
Among the roots and coils 
Of confusion. 

The window opens
And the cold air comes in
To chill your flesh 
And dull your bones.
There's a light on the sea,
On the horizon;
Promising something
You can never reach.

Don't think on days
That have long gone
Leaving only frost 
And ash behind
Or you will slowly fall
And lose you way
Among the roots and coils 
Of confusion.

This is the time
To wake up
And move your cold limbs
To walk out across the open fields.
Or you will slowly fall
And lose you way
Among the roots and coils 
Of confusion.

Don't Fall Asleep

May The Summer Go On For Ever

Open your eyes
My darling;
Raise your eyes
My darling;
The night is gone, the dark has become the dawn.

Fidelity and Grace
My darling;
Shines in your face
My darling;
Turn from mirrors, open up your door.

The spectres we have created
Do not exist 
Save in the mind.
The heart desires 
Simple pleasures
And turns from
Our imagined night.

Dave Kirsopp's Album

Open Your Eyes

I Miss the Soft Meres and the Flashes

I miss the soft meres and the flashes;   
The enfolding rolling hills                       
And sandy lanes;                                  
Calling foxes                                         
On the edge of twilit woods;                   
Badgers in deep night                            
Lit by a bright hunter’s moon.

The senses and the sounds 
And faces of my friends
Rise in my mind
From long ago,
So long ago.

Climbing thorns
To half-stable nests
Of pigeons, crows and magpies;
Hunting rabbits and trout
In fields and streams half-savage
And wishing to be savage
In timeless England.

The senses and the sounds           
Of life’s sweet riches               
Rise in my mind                     
From long ago,                      
So long ago.                           

Training falcons to the lure
In long, late summer days
Learning a falcon’s ways
Cherishing the purity
Of simplicity of service 
To the line of a wing.

The senses and the sounds
Of the familiar
Rise in my mind
From long ago,
So long ago. 

Walking through the night
To sit by comfort’s fire
Away from swirling snow.
While the meres were silent
And ancient carp and bream
Swam beneath the reeds
Away from heron's eyes.

The senses and the sounds 
Of my Cheshire land
Rise in my mind
From long ago,
So long ago.

Ah my brother my sister 
I cannot express how much you mean to me, 
How much I love you, 
How you are so dear to my heart.





Looking back at a rural childhood. 

(Meres and flashes are Cheshire names for lakes. There is also an intended word play with the words mere and flash.) 


I Miss the Soft Meres and the Flashes

Cell

I am aiming to write songs that at heart express some sort of inner joy - and how that sense relates to the natural world.  

I am using Garageband and a very basic set up in my home. I am no perfectionist - and where so called "bum notes" seem in some way to enhance the composition I have left them in. I am not trying to create easy listening!

Ask why swallows - those most mercurial of birds -  never travel in straight lines? 

Dave Kirsopp

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