Wrote this whilst staying in a remote cottage in Carmarthenshire in 2008. On the day in question it rained like it only can in Wales and it was also the day Lehman Brothers went bust which signalled the start of the banking crisis.

Thunder clouds fill the sky, the rain is pouring down
The hillside’s like a waterfall, fountains all around
The river’s frothing, rumbling, as it races through the town
And I just stand here, wondering, staring at the sound

It’s not the first time that I’ve seen, a nightmare turn into a dream
Things are never what they seem, until you face the truth
Until you face the truth

I met a man a while ago who wished his life away
He raced through every moment, wasted every day
Till someone came and wrapped him up and showed another way
And now he plans his garden, and he plants his holiday

It’s not the first time that he’s seen …

The City pinstripes did for us by pocketing the dough
Our money’s lost its value and recovery is slow
But if we don’t get fooled again, we’ll let the robdogs know
Our wealth’s not just in money, so watch our riches grow

It’s not the first time that they’ve seen …

Don’t come here complaining that you don’t have what you need

Society’s conditioned us, filled us up with greed
Face up to what you really need, it’s what you’ve always known
JFDI, get on with on it, and make your life your own

It’s not the first time that we’ve seen …

Face The Truth

An old song of mine, possibly the oldest I still perform. Written on November 18th 1974 when I was still a little boy! Something about it has kept me playing it and, apparently, continued to make listeners enjoy it.

Sailing on through the evening, faced with fear and awe
Lights of land have enticed me but I dare not touch the shore
A hero on the water, all majesty aglow
The common track has turned its back and that’s what you refuse to know

It seems your figurehead’s matchwood, your flag is gleaming white
There are ulcers under the varnish and they’re showing through tonight
The voice that said you were frightened, it wasn’t all that wrong
But truth’s not what they’re paid for, and they’ll find my will too strong

The pumps are choked with deception, frustration turns the wheel
Fires are flaming around me and I really feel how they feel
But the furnace just throws out blackness, the heat’s of a negative kind
And all these strains of creation, well, they’re surely too much for one mind

So we’re sailing on through the evening, faced with fear and awe
Lights of land have enticed us but we dare not touch the shore
Heroes on the water, all majesty aglow
The common track has turned its back and that’s what you refuse to know

The Ship

The words were written by my wife, Brigid, and she promises it refers to days before I knew her. What a bleak feeling it has. Don't think the tune makes it any less gloomy. 

A couple of friends requested this when Tony Burt & Friends played support for Clive Gregson in Bromyard. So here 'tis!

You are a forest, you are a den
You are springtime, you are rain

Your sound is a murmured I love you, your colour is grey
Your world is shifting sand, you wish me away

I am a leafless tree, a creature with nowhere to lie
The season inside me is winter, I am a leaden sky

If I were a sound I’d be snatched by the wind
If I were a colour I’d be blue
If I were a world I’d be frozen water
If I were a wish, I would not come true

If I Were A Wish

TheVillage

Lyrics by Fiona Hannon, my tune. This recording includes violin by Allyson Craigan and electric bass by John Davis. Otherwise known as the Tony Burt Band. Added Cooley's Reel at the end -  gives them something to dance to!

Written at Moniack Mhor near Loch Ness, late October 2014. Many thanks to all who provided inspiration.

Limerick Gypsy (Tony Burt & Fiona Hannon)

To the gypsies just for luck Marie was sold
And a life on the road did then unfold
But the people that she’d meet, never gave out any heat
And the light from the fire it did grow cold, did grow cold
And the light from the fire it did grow cold

The love in William’s heart it then grew bold
From all the people he did carefully withhold
The secrets that he’d keep, till he knew that they could meet
When the light from the fire it did grow cold, did grow cold
When the light from the fire it did grow cold

Of their love many stories have been told
As they danced and they roved throughout the world
Where they stopped, ne’er a seat, as they danced them off their feet
Till the light from the fire it did grow cold, did grow cold
Till the light from the fire it did grow cold


Limerick Gypsy + Cooley's

Wote the lyrics in a small hotel in the Scottish Borders back in November. "Monica" was an extremely efficient and elegant waitress, unusually tall and with quite an aura. Partly from the drink and partly from the boredom I couldn't help watching her intently and simply enjoying the sight of her. No improper thought crossed my mind.

So this, unusually for me, was a song where I wrote the words without music. In fact I only sorted the tune out today (20th December) and made this rough-ish recording so I won't forget  how it goes.

Very proud of rhyming "juicy" and "retroussé" :-)

Monica Is Taller Than Me by Tony Burt

Monica is waiting on tables, Monica is waltzing through tables
As she moves all the eyes are drawn unto her
Monica is taller than me, three inches taller than me

She knows exactly what she’s doing, she’s in control of what she’s doing
I think she has noticed that I’m watching her
Monica is taller than me, looking right down on me

Her mouth is small, her lips are juicy
Her eyes, Scottish grey, her nose retroussé

Monica’s not really her name, in truth I don’t know her name
I have to call her something, I have to call her soon
Shooting for the moon, I’d just be shooting for the moon

Monica’s much younger than me, noticeably younger than me
I know that I can dream, but I’m really what I seem
Monica’s taller than me, thirty years younger than me

Her mouth is small …

Now she is down on her knees, clearing up carrots and peas
My evening’s nearly done, I’m not her kind of fun
She’s so much taller than me, she’s so much younger than me
Monica is taller than me


© Tony Burt 2014. All Rights Reserved.


Monica Is Taller Than Me

Written June 2017 at a Songwriting Workshop with Boo Hewerdine and Darden Smith at Halsway Manor in Somerset.

Winter Sun, Summer Rain (Tony Burt)

Winter sun will warm your heart
Seasons change and I follow
Summer rain a world apart
Seasons come and go

Autumn birth a joy to share
Seasons change and I follow
Spring decay will prompt a prayer
Seasons come and go

Chorus:

Seasons come and seasons go
Sun and hail, rain and snow
Changes catch you unawares        
Seasons come and go

Happiness can make you cry
Sadness bids the tears goodbye
Sickness makes the day go fast
Rosy cheeks will make it last

Chorus

A lonely man hides in a crowd
A busy man lives life out loud
You think you know just who you are
Life is writing your memoir

Chorus

Repeat Chorus

© Tony Burt 2017. All Rights Reserved.

Winter Sun, Summer Rain

My good friend John Taylor died suddenly in September 2015. As well as being a steady and expressive guitarist and singer of a wide range of styles he was a consummate shantyman.

I wanted to write a song for John and here it is, This was recorded by Ben Seal with help from Mike Vass on fiddle in April 2016 at a songwriting workshop at Moniack Mhor, near Loch Ness.

At first I felt uneasy performing the song; it was somehow too personal. I've performed it a few times at sessions John attended and have been encouraged to make it public. Here goes!

Farewell To The Shanty Man (Tony Burt)

It’s farewell to the shanty man, he’s left these shores for good
He’s led our songs, helped right our wrongs
And brightened up the mood
Farewell to the shanty man

And it’s farewell to the shanty man, to every one a friend
He’d time for all, both great and small
A shipmate to the end
Farewell to the shanty man

Chorus:
Heave and pull my Johnny-O
Heave and pull away
Heave and pull my Johnny-O
We’ll sing again one day

So farewell to the shanty man, he left us far too soon
We wanted more, to help us roar
Our shanties at the moon 
Farewell to the shanty man

Chorus:

Farewell to the shanty man, his like we’ll not see more
He’s left a hole, God Bless his soul
Too special to ignore 
Farewell to the shanty man

Chorus:

Farewell to the shanty man, his like we’ll not see more
He’s left a hole, God Bless his soul
Too special to ignore 
Farewell to the shanty man

© Tony Burt 2016. All Rights Reserved.

Farewell To The Shantyman

Five String Hammer was written in June 2017 at Halsway Manor in Somerset by Monica Shepherd and Tony Burt.

We decided we needed three verses and a chorus and then spotted that his classic song “If I Had a Hammer” gave us a structure. First verse “the hammer of justice” (hence Five String Hammer), second “the bell of freedom” and third “sing a song about the love between my brother and my sister”. Virtually all the lyrics came from that. The tune almost fell out of the words.

FIVE STRING HAMMER  (MONICA SHEPHERD & TONY BURT)

Sing it out across the land
Five string hammer in his hand
Standing up for those pressed down
Claiming justice all around

Chorus:

Sing like Pete and sing it long
Sing it loud and sing it strong
Sing it loud and sing it strong
Sing like Pete, the song rings on

Ringing out the freedom bell
From the chains he knew so well
They tried to stop his freedom song
He raised his voice, the words ring on

Chorus:

Songs of love for everyone
Brother, sister, daughter, son
Singing out across the land
Five string hammer in his hand

Chorus: x2

Five String Hammer

I think the song ended up describing the difficulty of living with depression, although I didn't start with that in mind. The fear of seeming weak and a failure. The embarrassment of asking for help. The issue of having "good" days and "bad" days.

Was I depressed when I wrote this? Probably not. Have I ever suffered from depression? Almost certainly although never diagnosed as such. Anyway here's the lyrics for those who might like them.

ROCK ME IN YOUR ARMS by Tony Burt - All rights reserved.

Rock me in your arms, wrap me in your soul
Take these broken pieces, make the pieces whole
Tomorrow’s always fine, it’s today that takes its toll
Rock me in your arms and make me whole

I’ve never been a loser, I’ve always earned my pay
I’ve known success and failure and doubts along the way
Sometimes I feel so empty, no hope left to extoll
Rock me in your arms and make me whole

Chorus:

My confidence is real, but some days it isn’t there
I can’t look out the window, can’t even leave the chair
I need a loving push, to get me back in role
Rock me in your arms and make me whole

Chorus:

Middle 8:
Life just paints me in a corner, and sucks the breath out of the room
I need some help to turn it over, let positivity resume

I feel a bloody fool, for leaning on you now
My thirst for independence just makes it wrong somehow
I need to grab the chances to loosen self-control
Rock me in your arms and make me whole

Chorus:

© Tony Burt 2013. All Rights Reserved.

Rock Me In Your Arms

Tony is a highly versatile singer and musician who began singing and playing in his mid teens in the folk clubs of 1960′s Birmingham.  Writes intriguing and poetic songs with strong and memorable melodies.

He plays a variety of instruments including guitar, mandola, mandoline, banjo, dulcimer and harmonica. He often describes his repertoire as ranging from “sea shanties to Jerry Lee Lewis” and he takes in most styles in between. He writes his own songs too which are distinctive and thought provoking. He has played as a solo performer for many years but also has been involved with bands such as Trilogy and Witches’ Brew but most particularly as a member of Dempsey’s Lot, a Midlands based Irish band led by the near legendary Tommy Dempsey. 

At present he is playing with a number of local musicians and is recording a new album with these using his own songs. Tony is a keen member of Bromyard Sessions, a loose group of local musicians who play for free every Tuesday evening in the Falcon in the Herefordshire market town of Bromyard..