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1. |
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One foot on the shore
One foot o’er the sea
What’s the use of fighting for?
Let it be
Took a trip across the blue
Flying into starry skies
Truth and darkness must ensue
Blind her eyes
Finding an anchor, a mental mirror
Losing her footing along the way
Gone is the ease of a young girl’s journey
Bright lights entice her to fly away
Let the anger go
Quiet takes its place
Hide your hearted sleeve
Keep your feelings safe
Home is but a maddening word
Shining faintly, silver pearl
Quietly she leaves the herd
Nowhere girl
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2. |
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For those times when you are traveling
Writing postcards on the go
I keep company with yearning
Pretend that I don’t miss you so It’s a quiet existence
While you drink booze for free
And I keep hoping you’ll return And write some songs
With me
Your calendar is ink-filled
A different town each day
You’ve barely taken off your boots
And then you’ve gone away
I bite my tongue so sorely
To silence any plea
That you’ll take time off from the gig
And write some songs
With me
The road’s a pleasing mistress
Her highs, her lows, your drug
She knows I stand here in her dust
I’m bitter and she’s smug
She doesn’t care to reason
She’s got you by decree
I yell in vain to empty rooms
For her to set you free
And though you try to charm me
With your fleeting phone calls home
The crackling line just echoes
All the rotten seeds you’ve sewn
Your words, a blur of static
They’re falling on deaf ears
And all you get is silence
As I fight back my tears
Your face succumbed to wrinkles
Your dark hair turned to grey
The road, she kicked you to the curb
And you came home to stay
My youthful patience worn out
I moved down by the sea
And now you sit in empty rooms
Writing songs
For me
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3. |
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Feathered blades softly stroke
My newly woken feet,
Bare-heeled and clean,
Brushed with dew the pastoral scene they greet.
Oh air, so cold,
I must be first to breathe
Your fragrant tones,
A taste so pure I stand entranced alone.
For fear
The joy deserts me,
I find the words to say
A morn so bright before me
May every moment stay.
Cautious rays, so faint
Anoint the grassy sea,
A blade, a bloom,
A pool of shade in balmy warmth set free.
I bathe in sunlight breathing,
I bathe in sunlight breathing ,
I bathe in sunlight breathing quietly.
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4. |
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A flower she grows
in the desert,
all alone,
incandescent.
Beneath the great sky,
vast as ocean,
rays of fire,
burning down.
Sand expanse,
no forgiveness,
waves of heat,
dance through air.
Her roots thirst for life,
single droplet,
searching far,
search in vain.
She sees a mirage,
hopeful vision,
sign of life,
vivid dream.
She can see it,
can’t believe it,
how she yearns
for pools of joy.
Drinking deep from the land,
her wishes are its command.
Searching for liquid blue,
she cannot see the truth.
Stopping only to breathe,
she hopes that it never leaves.
Cooling, magical force,
she feels that she is
closer to the source
and she is finally home.
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5. |
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Have you ever been
To New York City?
Where the lights shine so bright
Your eyes don’t close.
They feed the fire
Down on forty-second.
Some kind of magic
As the billboards glow.
At the end of every corner
There’s a man accepting bills.
Magazines and rainbow wrappers
And the next day, he’s selling still.
It’s a train
Hurtling forward without breaks.
If you get off
It’ll be too soon, or so they say.
So you hang on
Just a bit too long
And start to enjoy the pain
But at least you’re on this train.
Subway cars and empty packets,
Like confetti tossed with cigarettes.
Angry people and mad hatters,
Chasing rats, and placing bets.
She drinks coffee laced with sweetener,
Sits alone, her kindle on.
No one stops to greet her
But she’s glad when they’ve all gone.
It’s a train
Hurtling forward without breaks.
If you get off
It’ll be too soon, or so they say.
So you hang on
Just a bit too long
And start to enjoy the pain
But at least you’re on this train.
Spring arrives,
The cherry blossoms
Line the busy avenues.
Clouds depart,
She breathes easy
Till they come back into view.
Well I’ve been
To New York City,
Where the lights shine so bright
Your eyes don’t close.
It’s a joyride
For a small town child
But when the fire burns out
It leaves you cold.
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6. |
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I saw you go out wandering,
Your head bowed silently,
Your tennis socks pulled up mid-calf,
Your shorts above the knee.
I didn’t ask to join you,
I wasn’t so inclined,
But if I’d run it by you
I know you wouldn’t mind.
You vanished into orchards,
Alone but with your thoughts,
And home you came by sunset,
A basket full of plums you brought.
Your face alight with pleasure,
The first fruit of the season,
Your joy was quite contagious,
We didn’t need a reason.
Oh, father, where do you go?
A wife and three kids grown.
Oh, father, what do you know?
Somehow you found the secret
To make an orchard grow.
The night sky darkens surely,
You sit and light a fire,
Within four walls your darlings gather,
Contentment they inspire
And once your brood is sleeping,
You head towards the loot
But the basket sits there empty,
Your children’s stomachs lined with fruit.
Oh, father, where do you go?
A wife and three kids grown.
Oh, father, what do you know? Somehow you found the secret
To make an orchard grow.
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7. |
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I walk the cobbled stones
I dodge the tossed out cigarettes I see the Seine alone
I am in Paris
A day’s discarded crumbs
The birds have long flown away And then the night winds come And gently blow in Paris
Too many macarons
They tempt like pastel-coloured gems And melt upon my tongue
So sweet in Paris
I gaze up at the Arc
And leave my lock on Pont des Arts
So many lovers past
Did come to court in Paris
So now I climb the steps divine
And look down from the Sacred Heart
A choir sounds, bright light abounds
As close to heaven I have found
A free man in Paris
She wrote and sang of whimsically
A place for hide and seek
For magical illusions
So now I climb the steps divine
And look down from the Sacred Heart
A choir sounds, bright light abounds
As close to heaven I have found
Paris, I came to see
The lights they talk of endlessly
They flicker in the dark
Illuminate the shadows
Now I say, “Au revoir”
And pack my bags and board the train
But still this sweet refrain
Takes me back to Paris
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8. |
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Some say a heart is just like a wheel
When you bend it, you can't mend it
And my love for you is like a sinking ship
And my heart is on that ship out in mid ocean
They say that death is a tragedy
It comes once and it's over
But my only wish is for that deep dark abyss
Cause what's the use of living with no true lover
When harm is done no love can be won
I know this happens frequently
What I can't understand
Oh please God hold my hand
Is why it should have happened to me
And it's only love, and it's only love
That can wreck a human being and turn him inside out
That can wreck a human being and turn him inside out
Some say a heart is just like a wheel
When you bend it, you can't mend it
And my love for you is like a sinking ship
And my heart is on that ship out in mid ocean
And it's only love and it's only love
And it's only love and it's only love
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9. |
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Love is for the birds
For the chosen few
For people who are willing
to go a round or two
Love is for the birds
For the young at heart
At least that’s what I’ll tell myself
When we have grown apart
That love is for the foolish
Not the smart
Love is for the brave
I say this as I leave
I pull my coat on
Just to hide the heart
worn on my sleeve
Love is for the loons
Those free and crazy few
Don’t even try to hide their happiness
From me and you
It makes us bitter, jealous
Crazy too
Poets say
Poets say
That it’s best to fall
But only fools
Only fools
Are gonna risk it all
Love is for the birds
Don’t recommend you fall
‘Cause falling more than often
Leaves you broken and so small
So don’t you waste your time
With love at all
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10. |
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Can you keep it simple, keep it good?
Can you go the distance as you should?
Can you silence chatter that you hear?
Online, offline, everywhere.
Are your choices balanced, well thought out?
Can the smallest voice rise o’er the shout?
Do you find you‘re on the road to ruin
To the sound of someone else’s tune?
Keep it simple
Keep it up
Keep it simple
And that’s enough
Can you keep it simple, keep it clear?
Shut out all the critics far and near,
While you helm the ship you were born to steer,
Trust your guiding light won’t disappear.
Keep it simple
Keep it up
Keep it simple
And that’s enough
Though sometimes it’s hard
To march to your own drum.
Someone’s beating louder,
Your marching comes undone.
You find a little Headspace,
Highlight reels start to fade.
The masquerade is over,
You can join the great parade.
If you’re worried that you can’t compare,
Best put pen to paper, start anywhere.
For the more you write, the less you fear.
There’s no greater thrill,
Feeling time stand still,
Learning to keep things simple.
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11. |
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Dusty roads, they stretch for days
Into the darkness of my mind
Yellow ribbons weaving softly
In the Summer haze
A mirage, a still life painting
Both perfect and yet breaking
A place of heady hope
It never goes away
Oh my love
Oh my land
Running children, running wild
Lives so different from their elders
Generation brightly coloured
Rainbow arching high
Dust dances where they shuffle
Feet are bare, shouts unmuffled
True elation for a newer day
The future wide
Oh my love
Oh my land
I would like to go back home
And raise a family of my own
Relive my youth
Discover all those halcyon days
Moth to flame, time marches on
Hard to know where I belong
Despite the time this longing
Never goes away
Oh my love
Oh my land
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At times, living in different cities has tested my ability to find a sense of belonging in any one place.
I was born in London and grew up in Cape Town, South Africa. I moved to New York City to attend the Manhattan School of Music for graduate studies. After five years in the Big Apple, I then moved back to London and Cape Town before setting my sights on Toronto, Canada in 2020. I was armed with experience and the desire to forge meaningful musical relationships with like-minded musicians. This music is the result of that wish.
I am immensely grateful for the opportunity to gain new perspectives and experiences that I may not have had if I had stayed in one place. The album was named "Nowhere Girl" because of this journey, as it both sets me apart as an individual and unites me with so many others who relate to the same feeling.
