NIGHTHAWKS LAMENT - Marisa Yeaman

Did you get your feet wet in the baroque and twisted night
‘tween the smell of stale cigarettes and the burned out spotlights
Rooms bursting at the seams- full of sweat and broken hearts
Endless indescretions - young blood burning bright

The barmaid's counting tips while the drunks recite the truth
The lonely troubadour lies tangled in the proof
In the early hours of morning with the ringing in your ears
The cold wind blows the gutters and the nighthawks disappear

The trams outside beat their own rhythm- And the corporates ply their trade
Melbourne winter bites down hard -As an era slips away/ As the music fades away

Stretch the time that’s dormant between the twilight and the dawn
As the black curtain comes up and another band gets born
Disciples to the scene are loyal to the cause
Lost now to the echoes of long silent applause

They give you twenty for the petrol and a belly full of booze
If you don’t like the deal - well there’s a hundred more that do
Devils in the darkness - thieves basking in the shade
and no one gets a break in this town unless someones getting paid

The trams outside beat their own rhythm- And the corporates ply their trade
Melbourne winter bites down hard -As an era slips away/ As the music fades away

Boards upon the windows - another bar closed down
In it’s place, a slick cafe - or a taberet is found.
And a big screen TV takes the place of the stage
it’s easier for business - we save money on PA.

There’ll always be circus, hell there’ll always be a clown
But will anyone be listening when the warning siren sounds
Now they’re stealing all the music and streets don’t rock at night
The great minds and mouths are silent coz you can’t give a blindman sight

The trams outside beat their own rhythm- And the corporates ply their trade
Melbourne winter bites down hard -As an era slips away/ As the music fades away

Somewhere in a back room on the outskirts of the town
Some kids they get together, searching for their sound
But baby it’s a long way to where they wanna be
Unless you sell your soul to idol or reality TV
Now they can’t find an audience, they can’t even find a bar
Coz everyone’s in their loungeroom now - playing air guitar
Dreaming it comes easy, that life on MTV
They’ve got the whole world at their fingertips and nothing to believe.

The trams outside beat their own rhythm- And the corporates ply their trade
Melbourne winter bites down hard -As an era slips away/ As the music fades away

Tough way to earn a living - hoping spark will turn to turn flame
breathing passion from the soul bringing truth to slay their shame
like flowers in the desert or diamonds in the dark
In the age of reproduction - you can forget about art

The trams outside beat their own rhythm- And the corporates ply their trade
Melbourne winter bites down hard -As an era slips away/ As the music fades away
©2010 Marisa Yeaman