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A short stay in longevity

by Simon Beavis

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1.
Tobogganing 02:53
1. Tobogganing She is going away from him Skimming down the hill on a blue toboggan Snow sprays over her shoulders She is going away from him Caught in the magic wonder of the ride Laughing She is going away from him In a blaze of cold sunshine The snow smells smoky; frost bites her eyes She is going away from him And he watches her going down the hill Until she is too far away to call to
2.
Gaby's song 07:27
2. Gaby’s song And now the first fat sleepy bees Are sipping blossoms In the sunshine and the breeze And lazy planes chalk-mark their way Across this blue and golden day She rides a red bike with a basket on Carries flowers, wears a hat And freewheels in the sun He’s held in stillness as she hurries by Caught by the shadows and the laughter in her eyes And Gaby is this what you mean The metal days will turn to green And suddenly the light will shift And you will feel your spirit lift I see it now; now I see The sea goes silver as the big moon climbs And last birds scatter Over the deep Spring tide Long days come and long days fly But night still throws so many stars into the sky And Gaby is this what you mean The truth may not always be seen And though the days will surely race The truth will one day find its place I see it now; now I see
3.
3. She fears the loss of love The rain is inconsolable It will not stop lamenting Lamenting into These great broad fields of scrub Where wheat was crudely cut And bundled into bales And the clouds, the low skies Will not stop their brushing at me Will not stop their rushing at me Will not stop their raining
4.
Reach 02:40
5.
Breath 03:39
6.
7.
Geese 04:18
7. Geese Did you hear the geese going over? Did you hear their quirky claxon shouts, And their wings creaking, as they travelled out? They were so low, so close. It was a soft September morning All watery sunlight on the willow And there was a breeze Which seem to make the day billow like a piece of cloth. The world was in reverse The cars were a distant sound And all around the leaves were only swaying But were louder – they were so close. And the chuckling geese were flying In a perfect V of twenty-two or twenty-three Over the station, up to the park And they laughed away the dark in my heart.
8.
Maps 04:15
8. Maps A fine wing tilting on the wind A flash of white out in the blue She is the wanderer Carefree follower Of thunder clouds and the lift and fall Of all her dreams He is the traveller Cautious master Of high ground, horizons And the biggest seas Measuring days out in contour lines Isobars and the rhythm of the waves Each breath she drew An act of faith in winning through She flew but took no heed Of the landing places she might need He craved the certainty of maps And all the things they let you know But never thought enough about The things that maps can never show She takes the photograph down from the shelf Captures the distance between themselves He finds it later broken on the floor Collects the pieces, shuts the door.
9.
Lost 05:17
9. Lost I am feeling lost Don’t know what to say Don’t know where to look To find my way Want the sky to clear Just want to feel new But my broken heart Is cut in two. Once it seemed You and me Together we would be But the love Just leaked away You go I stay. Gonna take this boat Gonna sail away Won’t be coming back For many’s a day Want to feel the wind And the ocean spray Won’t be coming back Till I’ve found my way.
10.
In Aix 04:51
10. In Aix In the city of fountains You stopped on the hill In a purple shadow, and said: I play with paint Like the men in the bistro Play with cards – Sometimes I win Sometimes I lose. We drank coffee by the Hotel de Ville You were shy and precise At four, you adjusted your clock And went back to watching the sky The light in the leaves was never still Your eyes seemed to ask Where does distance begin and end? And I knew the yes and the no Had cut you in two. But later you became tranquil You placed the fruit bowl by the window Took an apple And rubbed with your thumb At the speckled skin With this, you said, I can say everything It is enough.
11.
12.
12. Hide and seek Tea over, we played a game of hide and seek And I ran to the red room at the back The one we never went to much as kids The one that they insisted was kept black With big thick curtains always drawn To stop the sunshine bleaching mother’s baby grand. And there I steeled myself and hid The bright side of the deep red drapes Hoping I would soon be found Among the folds of soundless velvet. It took an age before the door Pushed open and then shut again And someone turned a low lamp on. I heard my father say – come here And the woman that we always called Aunt Is Replied, half with that lovely chuckle that she had: Are you sure it's safe in here, my darling? And he said: Just be still, my love. The breath all tight around my heart I pulled the curtain back the smallest bit To see him fumble with the buttons of her shirt And saw her tilt her long neck back And fan the corners of her skirt As dancers sometimes do. Such was the mist of heat and blood across my eyes I can’t recall what happened then Except they heard the children rattle at the door Before I did and nonchalantly they hid All signs of love and passion. Hello there, my father said, She’s not in here! Let’s try the garden and the shed - And hurried out with them, leaving the red room black again. At bedtime, with the story read, my sister asked my father: What were you doing with Aunt Is this afternoon? And mother, standing at the window, said: So many questions, kids, so many questions When it’s time for bed! And drew the curtains on the moon.
13.
Amsterdam 04:24
13. Amsterdam I left you in a shower of rain Heading home on the evening train Will I ever know love like that again? Oh Amsterdam Got the music of bicycles in my ears I’ve been on the run all these years One day I’ll stop and face my fears Oh Amsterdam You waved goodbye and blew me a kiss I knew right away all the things I’d miss The agony of just touching bliss Oh Amsterdam Now I glimpse you in shadows in the park The sun on the water, the lights in the dark Maybe somehow I left my mark On you Amsterdam And home lies over the cold North Sea There’s nothing much left here for me At least I loved, at least I was free, In Amsterdam
14.
14 She sat on a train Watching the dance of travellers On the station concourse Seeing the greetings and the farewells Some kisses cold Others faint as a powder brush And some a crush, a crescendo Of joy, or imminent loss So many tones of taking Giving, holding on or letting go The people clicking in and out of view Like the names of distant cities On the arrivals and departures board That she knew but would not travel to. And later, with rain falling like rivets, Straight and grey, She watched fields and woods, Odd isolated homes, farms, Villages and country towns Flash past the streaming windows of the train And knew her heart was getting ready To be alone again.
15.
Bygones 04:07
16.
Unquiet 05:50
16. Unquiet In the sea mist Strong hills hush Soften and go silent The wind lies down On the glassy bay And sleek boats slacken On their oily chains. Often a darting seabird calls Shrieks not of laughter Not of pain Which seek but find no echo In the black hill’s bracken Nor on the grey stone lane. It is the purple evening That time when unquiet minds Lie still and say This bright day is done And watch a hundred tattered crows Start flocking into the wet woods To wait for night.
17.
Red and gold 05:16
17. Red and gold The first street lights are coming on It’s only five and the day’s just gone Rain is tipping down Splashing in puddles on the ground around me Winter’s coming on And there’s a breeze, Blowing though the trees It’s shaking down All the last leaves What is it telling me? It says Autumn is your time of year It’s the time when we first got near I remember walking on frosty nights Under the moon and the orange street lights Shadows kissing on the wall The fear and the sadness growing small There’s no need to feel cold Can’t you see – we’re going, we’re going red and gold. The kids coming back to school With their bags and their crayons And their brand new shoes Kicking through the leaves in the park Watching the river till it gets dark Strolling down to the sea Get on a train to the west country There’s no need to feel old Can’t you see – we’re going, we’re going red and gold. I am a cave you are the sea Rolling into me Constantly. Met a man once he said to me Open your eyes it’s amazing what you can see Come on open up your heart too It’s amazing what you can be. When I think about what he said I know one thing is true All this going gold and red I couldn’t have done it without you.
18.

about

This collection of 18 original songs, tunes and poems, described by one listener as “an epic exploration of the everyday”, deals with love, loss, regret and finding peace, the resonance of small events and the importance of living in the present. It was originally released as part album, part poetry book in a beautifully designed limited edition hard back pamphlet, with words offset by the atmospheric photographs of Alida Bea - many featured here. 80% of the proceeds from the album are going to support the international charity, Children in Crisis, and copies of the limited edition pamphlet are still available at www.ashortstay.co.uk. Thank you for listening.

credits

released May 25, 2013

Musicians:

Simon Beavis: vocals and spoken word, Spanish, tenor and bass guitars, baritone ukulele, accordion, piano, and keyboards.
Andy Bell: flute on Maps.
Theseus Gerard: body percussion, cymbal and Tibetan bell on Maps.
Tony Hobden: 12-string on Maps and Amsterdam.
Dave Loach: Bass on Gaby’s, Maps and Amsterdam and backing vocals.
Rob Lowry: acoustic guitar and dobro on Later, electric guitar on Bygones.
Penny Marler: Mandolin and vocals on Maps and Amsterdam; vocals on Gaby’s and Breath.
Nodd McDonagh: bass on Later and Bygones.

Music and words by Simon Beavis.
Maps and Amsterdam are remastered songs that first appeared on the in cahoots album, Newtimber.
Recording, mixing and mastering by Paul Pascoe at Church Road Studios in Hove.
Photography by Alida Bea – www.beazneaz.blogspot.co.uk
Website design by Harry Hodge.
Printing and artwork by GP – generationpress.co.uk.

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about

Simon Beavis Brighton, UK

Simon Beavis is a writer and musician based in Sussex in the UK. This is his first solo album, bringing together songs, tunes and poems written over 15 years. He has also written songs for two albums by the acoustic roots band, in cahoots.

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