Ave, Maria, gratia plena,
Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus,
et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Jesus.

Ave, Maria, gratia plena,
Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus,
et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Jesus.

Sancta Maria, Mater Dei,
ora pro nobis peccatoribus,
nunc et in hora mortis nostrae.

Nunc et in hora mortis nostrae.

Amen.

Gratia Plena (Full of Grace)

And that's how it goes
In this world of woes,
When one softly knows
That one loves a rose.

***

For he doesn't understand
Just how much she loves him,
And he doesn't understand
Just how bad she wants him,

And he doesn't understand
Why she's been so harsh to him,
So he walks away, once more
From his loved one's open door ...

By the fountain where they met
He is there on odd days,
Mondays, Wednesdays and the Fridays,
That is where he will stay,

And on Sundays, he goes home,
And he lets his eyes pour
Tears, awaiting the return
Of a flame that's no more.

***

And that's how it goes
In this world of woes,
When one softly knows
That one loves a rose.

***

For she doesn't understand
Just how much he loves her,
And she doesn't understand
Just how bad he wants her,

And she doesn't understand
Why he's been so harsh to her,
So she walks away, once more
From her loved one's open door ...

By the fountain where they met
She is there on even days,
Tuesdays, Thursdays and the Saturdays,
That is where she will stay,

And on Sundays, she goes home,
And she lets her eyes pour
Tears, awaiting the return
Of a flame that's no more.

***

And that's how it goes
In this world of woes,
When one softly knows
That one loves a rose.

When One Loves A Rose

By the rivers of a strange land
They have asked me to sit down,
By these rivers, I softly cried
When I remembered my home town.

Used to have a little fountain,
By whose side we'd gently play,
Used to have a little window,
By whose sill we'd talk and stay.

Then I slowly made my way here,
And was asked to write a song ...
How shall I now write and sing,
Since all I know has gone wrong?

Then they asked me: "Praise His Name!"
And they pushed me on my knees ...
How shall I open my lips
When, on them, my tears just freeze?

By the rivers of a strange land
They have asked me to sit down,
By these rivers, I softly cried
When I remembered you, my love.

Rivers Of A Strange Land (the acoustic version)

Then, Maybe Again

Rivers Of A Strange Land

You may laugh
As you look at me,
Lost in song
As you hear me,

Hopes all dashed
As you pity me,
But tell me:
Have you ever been in love?

^^^

You may smile
When my memory
Bittersweet
Comes back to me

You may think
I've lost my mind,
but have you ever been in love?

***

Laugh,
If it pleases you,
Smile,
If it cheers you,

Judge,
If that's what you do,
Have you ever been in love?

Pity me,
If that's all you see,

Patronise me,
If that's what you think of me,

But please tell me ... please tell me,
Have you ever been in love?

Have You Ever Been In Love?

I know
That you want to go away
"There's no point", you think
If you stay ...

I know
That it is your stance
Not to give us, both,
That one more chance

And yet, if you go, right now
You'll never know what could have been
So, please, before you close that door
Remember: we're worth fighting for.

We're worth fighting for.

I know
That you think we're scarred
By our history, and yes,
It's hard

To drop
All our pride, you see,
Give us one more chance
At victory

And yet, if you do go, right now,
We might as well have never been,

So, please, before you do decide
To close this one last door
Remember, baby, we're but human
But our love's worth fighting for.

WE are worth fighting for.

Worth Fighting For

from the Sonata No. 2 for Solo Violin, by J.S. Bach. Arranged by J. Delsono

BACH (arr: Delsono): Andante

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date;
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;
Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st:
   So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
   So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

music: James Delsono
lyrics: William Shakespeare

Sonnet 18

Wanted to write a grand old classic;
To write a song that would just simply soar,
To write a song that would just simply tell you,
How I would always love you, ever more.

It is so sad that you've let this love fade,
A love that would once just simply fly;
And now, I can only turn and tell you:
I'm sorry, it's now time to say goodbye.

You've messed me round too many times,
You've played too often with my heart,
And, now the sun sets on our time together,
I see no other ending but to part.

I've loved you so, I would have given
My life, to save your own, I truly would have done,
I thought that you had truly loved me,
That you had truly been "the one".

I know that, if you were to turn around,
And, full of tears, beg me for a second chance,
I would perhaps be swayed, just for a minute,
And wonder if I should ask you again to dance ...

but you see,

You've messed me round too many times,
You've played too often with my heart,
And, now the sun sets on our time together,
I see no other ending but to part,

Though I must say you'll ever be in my heart.

In My Heart

I wish I could just say
How grateful I am you came my way;
So I will write a song, instead,
To show you how much I'm glad.

I bless each moment you have
Spent with me, so much,
And I thank the Lord for letting me feel
Your sight, your voice, your touch.

For every word is a prayer,
Alike a breath of fresh air,
When I am with you

With every moment we share,
I see how strongly you care,
I'm so happy you love me too.

When the night draws in
And the world will stop to spin,
I will call to mind the time we spent together,

When our lives are up,
I will gladly take that cup,
And fly with you into the aether.

For every word is a prayer,
Alike a breath of fresh air,
When I am with you

With every moment we share,
I see how strongly you care,
I am so happy you love me too.

I will always love you.

Every Word (acoustic)

Sad Waltz

After The Dreams Have Gone

Pōkarekare ana, ngā wai o Waiapu
Whiti atu koe hine, marino ana e.

E hine e, hoki mai ra
Ka mate ahau i te aroha e.

Tuhituhi taku reta, tuku atu taku rīngi
Kia kite tō iwi, raru raru ana e.

E hine e, hoki mai ra
Ka mate ahau i te aroha e.

Pōkarekare ana, ngā wai o Waiapu
Whiti atu koe hine, marino ana e.

E hine e, hoki mai ra
Ka mate ahau i te aroha e

Pokarekare Ana (public domain cover)

The acoustic version of James Delsono's classic first single, Ave Maria.

Lyrics:

I look around me now
And hear our children cry
I see them hurting so
And ask myself one question:

Why?

And prayers seem futile
If we can't find a way
To love one another
The same way,

every day ... and so I pray ...

Holy Mother, hear our plight
Holy Mother, stop the hate ...

They swim towards the shore
To run away from bitter
War

They get shot down in schools
Because we love our tools
More

Their cries we do not hear
Because we do not want
To see ...

But for a twist of Fate,
Their parent could be you ... or me ...

Holy Mother, hear our plight
Holy Mother, stop the hate ...

Ave Maria

***

(and more)

We're cutting down their trees
So that they cannot
Breathe

(and more)

We drug kids with a pill
Just to make them
Sit still

And as they wilt away
With every passing day
Who cares?

We send our thoughts and prayers
And carry on the same
Nightmares ...

Holy Mother, hear our plight
Holy Mother, stop the hate ...

Buy for War Child

Ave Maria (acoustic)

Silent Prayer

Flight

Untitled

Elegie

Springtime Dance

It's been
Many, many, many years since we last spoke
It's been
Many, many, many times my heart you broke,

I still
Think of you, every time a white rose is in bloom,
Thinking
That perhaps, at last, God will reunite us, and soon,

But Rumi says you're inside of me,
And Rumi says: why look outside of me,
See, Rumi says that we will never meet
For inside one another our hearts will beat,
Rumi says.

I thought
Many, many, many years ago I did see,
Such a
Stunning, stunning, stunning girl, outside of me

Then I
Looked, ever so oft, for you, the one I saw then ...
I let
Countless, countless songs of love flow out, from my own pen ...

But Rumi says you're inside of me,
And Rumi says: why look outside of me,
See, Rumi says that we will never meet
For inside one another our hearts will beat,
Rumi says.

I'm no mystic, nor poet, nor singer-songwriter, see,
So all I can do is pray you one day will come back to me,

Though Rumi says ...

Rumi Says

Rumi Says (v2)

Not marble nor the gilded monuments
Of princes shall outlive this powerful rhyme,
But you shall shine more bright in these contents
Than unswept stone besmeared with sluttish time.
When wasteful war shall statues overturn,
And broils root out the work of masonry,
Nor Mars his sword nor war’s quick fire shall burn
The living record of your memory.
’Gainst death and all-oblivious enmity
Shall you pace forth; your praise shall still find room
Even in the eyes of all posterity
That wear this world out to the ending doom.
   
 So, till the Judgement that yourself arise,
 You live in this, and dwell in lovers’ eyes.

Sonnet 55

I'm sorry I still love you ever so much
I'm sorry I still wish so for your touch,
I'm sorry, I'm a man, and we don't state
What we feel, out loud, it's just our trait ...

Our pain, we keep hidden inside,
By our fate we always try to abide,
But you, the only one I e'er held dear,
Whether near, or far, all through these years

I can't help loving you
I can't help wanting you
I can't help missing you
I can't help wishing for you ...

***

In silence I dream of you,
In prayer I beg for you,

Just you ...

Just you ...

You.

And I saw you from across the room
Quite so, by chance ...
And so, suddenly, my heart went boom
Seeing your glance ...

I looked down ... and so did you
Once our eyes met ...
We both blushed ... and, tout d'un coup
The moment went ...

And I wonder what it would've been like
To hold you into my arms
And I wonder what we'd have started that night
Had I asked you ... asked you to dance.

***

Many years have passed e'er since that time
I saw you first
And, in my heart with a burning flame,
I see the ghost

Of a beautiful, stunning lady
Who smiled at me ...
With a photo in my hand, so hazy,
Still you I see ...

***

And I wonder what it would've been like
To hold you into my arms ...

And I wonder what we could have started that night
Had I asked you to dance ...

***

Had I asked you to dance.

James Delsono

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