Get all 7 JOHN HANLON releases available on Bandcamp and save 30%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of After The Dam Broke, Floating, Garden Fresh, Short Stories, Higher Trails, Use Your Eyes, and NAKED TRUTHS.
1. |
6.2.4.
03:14
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Six to four
I sat by the edge of the ocean
Watching the sun go down
Dreaming you were the woman
By my side
The moon rising over your shoulder
Stars throwing light in your hair
A love that can never grow old or
Be denied
Here’s to the fools and lovers
Who go dancing in the rain
Here’s to the hearts that never know despair
Here’s to the lost and lonely
Who learn to live with the pain
Here’s to the man who said he didn’t care
Then you were gone
Through that door
Two to one
At six to four
I’ve never been one for dancing
But music has fuelled my soul
I don’t take a lot of chances
With my heart
A love that was ever easy
A flame that just flickered and died
A bond that was made in Heaven
Fell apart
Then you were gone
Through that door
Two to one
At six to four
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2. |
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Two men standing in a parking lot
Talking ‘bout the weather
Old friends of a kind who laugh a lot
And always will
Listen to the radio all the people want to know
What the hell is going on?
Broken hearts greedy eyes talk about empty lives
And everybody’s talking about the weather
Young mum walking in the pouring rain
Older than her time
Two kids, a husband who lost his job
And turned to crime
Television morning show everything you need to know
Tighten up those flabby thighs
Interviews with movie stars, cooking tips, electric cars
And everybody’s talking about the weather
Everyone’s responsible but nobody’s to blame
All of us are innocent at heart
We’d like to live in harmony but we simply can’t agree
How on Earth to play our part
Africa’s a weeping sore
The Middle East an endless war
And everybody’s talking about the weather
Old man wondering which way to go
Which way is right?
Wide eyes seeking out the road ahead
On a foggy night
Searching on the Internet, hasn’t found the answer yet
So much talk but nothing said
Half the world is lost at sea all of us are refugees
And everybody’s talking about the weather
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3. |
The Hero
04:32
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Out upon the water a fishing boat is moving through the dawn
Carrying a hero — everybody knows he’s coming home
Standing on the shore she’ll be waiting
Baby in her arms loudly wailing
And none of us will ever know the things he saw that he will never tell
We herald his arrival with soft singing and loud ringing of the bells
The coffin comes ashore
There is a small parade
We gather in the church
Some heartfelt speeches made
Let’s raise him up today
For soon he will be gone forever
Standing in the graveyard
A little boy tries hard to understand
Your father was a hero
They tell him as they shake his little hand
He served his country well
That’s what the army said
But we didn’t win that war
We try not to count the dead
Generals survive politicians lie
The people who make bombs and guns
Have businesses that thrive
And it’s been going on and on and on and on forever
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4. |
The Very Thought of You
02:53
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Gentle rustle whisper of the leaves
Hustle bustle buzzing of the bees
Far off thunder rain coming down
Runs down the rooftop
Falls on the ground
Out on the hillside cattle cry
Sound so mournful like somebody died
Winter flowers seek out the sun
Tui in the treetop happily in his song
The very thought of you here in my solitude
Instills a calm in me
Fills me with harmony
And I can’t say why so I just won’t try
There are sad songs
In the air of Muriwai
Rumble tumble rhythm of the waves
Seagull sings of all who have been saved
Children laughing clouds overhead
Old man hearing everything that’s said
And out above the cliff tops gannets dive
Hang glider wheeling feeling so alive
Distant rainbow capturing the sun
Some of us are walking others choose to run
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5. |
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Be nothing more
Just ignore the change
We going round the sun
Talking ‘bout everyone
I’ve ever known
And the sparkle in your eye
The kaleidoscopic sky
Let the colours of the day
Surround you
Walk by the rolling sea
Salted breeze in our hair
Talk of the things we plan to do
Hoping it all comes true
When we get there
And if you should feel the same way too
Let the music of the day
Surround you
Wind in the willows
Lying on my bed
Moon shining overhead
Little Tommy wonders
What nightingales would sing about
I wish I could have told him
I didn’t really know then
‘He’s happy Tom,’ is what I should have said
Be nothing more
Just ignore the change
We going round the sun
Doing what must be done
To rearrange
And the meaning of these words
Depends on what is heard
Let the music of the day
Surround you
Here we are
Driving in the car
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6. |
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Maybe it’s the magic I’ve been looking for
The reason I arrived
Or is it just a shadow in an open door
Looking out at all the passers by
Crashing waves on iron sand
Come and go
Some are caught in photographs
By people we don’t know
And in the silence the gannets overhead
Are flying home to put their kids to bed
On Muriwai Road down by the sea
Somebody I know waits … for me
Walking through the city in the pouring rain
Everybody there seems kind of strange
Echo of your footsteps in the narrow lane
Someone somewhere drops some change
And over in the doorway
Homeless and confused
Started with misfortune
And ended up in booze
Bu he can still remember
The gannets overhead
Flying home to put their kids to bed
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7. |
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I’ve been looking for it everywhere
But it’s nowhere to be found
I thought I caught a glimpse of it
Just before the sun went down
It’s the wind that moves the clouds along
It’s the rolling of the sea
It’s the rhythm of a heart that’s strong
It’s the busyness of bees
At the end of the day
When the sun goes down to rest
Slowly slips away
Way out in the west
Have you ever seen
The flash of green
Well it’s true
Yes it’s true
It’s the dancing of the happy child
It’s the singing of a bird
It’s running of the free and wild
It’s the truth that no one heard
It’s the flowers by the waterfall
It’s the rising of the moon
It’s a sailboat dancing in the squall
It’s a lonely windswept dune
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8. |
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At the end of the day a Parisian café
A girl with a small tattoo
Slowly walking by a tear in her eye
Wonder what she’s going through?
Hear the children playing in the garden
An old guy bends to tie his shoes
There’s something he’s trying to remember
A memory he’s hoping not to lose
Another glass of wine I’ve got the time
Nothing that I need to do
Promises are made, people get afraid
All the things we must get done
Day falls into night all the pretty lights
On a boulevard in St Germain
Hear the children playing in the garden
An old guy bends to tie his shoes
There’s something he’s trying to remember
A memory he’s hoping not to lose
I’m thinking of when on a bridge across the Seine
There were lovers dancing in the street
Music in the night everything felt right
That’s when I found my feet
A moment of romance that happened quite by chance
Nothing too dramatic just a little touch of magic
On a Boulevard in St Germain
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9. |
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It seems a little cold today
Feels like winter's on its way
And the leaves rustle in the trees
Overhead
I should call her just to tell her I adore her
There's really nothing more that I could say
All my reasons keep changing like the seasons
Like colours change in winter from gold and red to grey
Sometimes we just can't find the words
The ones that come are just absurd
Stumble tongued we fumble right along
Anyway
I should call her just to tell her I adore her
There's really nothing more that I could say
All my reasons keep changing like the seasons
Like colours change in winter from gold and red to grey
Far away someone's dog is barking
And the sun calls it a day
Lovers walking in the orange kiss of twilight
I wouldn't have it any other way
It seems a little cold today
Feels like winter is on its way
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10. |
Girls Around Here
03:45
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She says it’s nothing much
A matter of the heart
Another tale to talk about
Like all the other scars
And buried by the sound
The echoes of the parting words
The wind that tears the leaves apart
The screams that can’t be heard
And when it’s time to leave
And when it’s all been done
There’s only ever love
There’s only ever one
And the girls round here
The girls round here
They’re dancing
The girls round here
The girls round here
They’re dancing
And all that went before
And all that might have been
Bewildered by the thought of all
The tragedies she’s seen
And all your magic woven words
And all of your imagining
It never did get heard
It never changed a thing
And all the angry telephones
And all the hollow men
Are frozen in the photographs
Forever to remain
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11. |
Everywhere I go
03:32
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A ring on a finger
A story untold
A crack in the ceiling
A fork in the road
Does there have to be a meaning
In the rhythm of the words
Or is it just a feeling
Like a sound that’s never heard
There’s a new day coming
There’s a chill in the air
Some of us begin to stretch and yawn
The splash and the crash
As the ducks land en masse
Hiding from the hunters in the dawn
It’s everywhere I go
All I ever see
Everything I know
All I’ll ever be
It’s everywhere I go
A life of adventure
A twist in my tale
A fabulous picture
That isn’t for sale
Does there have to be a meaning
In the rhythm of the words
Or is it just a feeling
Like a sound that’s never heard
And the day is over
There’s a sigh from the sun
A gentle breeze coming from the west
Stars that whisper the promise of night
We are just the early guests
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12. |
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There’s a cold wind in the city
But the sun is coming
I don’t want your pity
I’ve had more than enough
I used to be a husband
And a father well adored
And it’s cold cold cold
It’s cold cold cold
It’s cold out here
My father was drunkard
My mother was afraid
It’s hard to hide the bruises
There’s a price the children pay
And living on the streets well
You don’t want to know
And it’s cold cold cold
It’s cold cold cold
It’s cold out here
So before you go to sleep
Tuck your children into bed
Spare a thought for me
Remember what I said
I’ve been down before
Had the road for my bed
I’ve been down But I ain’t out yet
If you find me someday
Lying cold in the street
Please take care of Gypsy
He’ll lying at my feet
He’s very good with children
He’ll try to keep them warm
Cos it’s cold cold cold
It’s cold cold cold
It’s cold out here
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13. |
This is New York
03:06
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This is New York strike up the band
I took a walk I felt like Cary Grant
Caught in the strains of a romantic tune
Lost in the thrill of a kind of euphoria
I stood in wonder in Times Square
I caught a show I was without a care
I had the mind to take on the world
I found a rhyme for Waldorf Astoria
And in the dawn I’ll take a walk in Central Park
I always cry each time I pass by
Where John Lennon died
And later on as I stroll down Park Avenue
Somebody said he’s out of his head completely
This is New York and I am King
I rule the world but I don’t own a thing
I’m on my way yes I’m moving up
I have all I need right here in this paper cup
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14. |
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Well the thing is I don’t know dear
I’ve been sitting on the fence
I’ve been busy knowing nothing
And none of it has ever made much sense
Was a time I thought I had it made
You could say I had that point of view
None of us is ever really lying
But things are rarely absolutely true
Cos the truth is just a question
It’s been bent as far as it can go
And all the nonbelievers
They don’t want to know
And all of us are equally dismayed
We don’t have a common point of view
None of us is ever really lying
But things are rarely absolutely true
Someone take a photograph
We’ll try to look our best
And years from now we’ll look at it
And laugh at how we’re dressed
Time is just a passing of the days
It can often change your point of view
None of us is ever really lying
But things are rarely absolutely true
Because you know we never have it made
We only ever have a point of view
None of us is ever really lying
And things are rarely absolutely true
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15. |
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I feel like dancing
I feel I could lasso the moon
Head’s a mess I confess
Oh yes I’m out of control
All too late
Can’t see straight
I think I’m in love
Oh no, I think I’m in love
I feel like singing
I think I could walk on the clouds
Oh no here I go
Everything’s crazy but wonderfully sane
Can’t believe the dreams I weave
I think I’m in love
Oh no, I think I’m in love
Yes it feels like that, it sure feels like that to me
I feel like flying
I feel I could ride on the wind
Sheer delight starry night
Throwing light all through your hair
Does it show? I’m all aglow
I think I’m in love
Oh no, I think I’m in love
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16. |
Isn't it a Lovely day
02:49
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The cat is sleeping quietly delighting in the sun
The woman sitting next to me has come in from a run
Her husband is a charlatan she says it’s not his fault
She has a thousand secrets she keeps them in a vault
And isn’t it a lovely day today
Isn’t it a lovely day
Isn’t it a lovely day
Isn’t it a lovely day today?
The cardinal is saying there’s nobody to blame
The proof is overwhelming he denies it all the same
But what about the children who grow up with the pain?
Here and there and everywhere it’s happening again
And isn’t it a lovely day today
There’s nothing to excite me in the morning news
Lily livered politics empty points of view
The wind is making patterns out across the bay
And all of it is wonderful that’s all I have to say
And isn’t it a lovely day today
I know I’ll never be King of the World
I’m never going to call you my girl
But isn’t it a lovely day today
Walking in the park
I wanna be one of the happy people
You and me and isn’t it a lovely day
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17. |
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What the people there will agree with
Is there was not much going on
Just a long and loud conversation
While staring at a hole in the ground
Something must be done about it
A solution should be found
But the people there can't agree so
So there was not much going on
Not much going on, not much going on
What the whole damn world will agree with
Is it's been going on too long
Nothing good ever happens
When children are carrying guns
Don't talk to me about freedom
Don't talk to me about rights
I've seen mothers bury their children
Lord that's a terrible sight
But the people there who are greedy
Know there's money to be made
All they need to do is remind you
There are reasons you should be afraid
Somebody out there will get you
Your family is under attack
Go get yourself a machine gun
And kill anyone who's black
We can't blame the policeman
He was only doing his job
We all know he had his reasons
The kid was attempting to rob
A life for a handful of dollars
That seems only fair
I believe what I heard on Fox News
From the man with a suit and clean hair
And the children there in the schoolroom
Are running for their lives
Shots ringing out in the hallway
Tears running out of your eyes
A nation looks on in amazement
This shouldn't happen at all
But when a father screams out in anger
Nobody hears the call
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18. |
We Do What We Do
04:07
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Feeling intellectual lying on my bed
Got all this ineffectual static in my head
And nothing really matters
But the bees among the flowers in your garden
Take the time to weave some rhymes
I’m not inclined to waste a line
And nothing really matters but
the bees among the flowers in your garden
You could close your mind and sit the whole thing out
You can lie there and say you didn’t know
But in the end my friend you’ve got to look life in the eye
Think about what you did and what you said
We do what we do and we don’t last forever
In the end we’re only passing through
So try to be kind do your best speak your mind my friend
‘Cos in the end it all comes down to you
There’s been truths and there’s been lies
And there’s been things you can’t deny
And nothing really matters but the bees among the flowers in your garden
The whole damned world has gone insane
Let’s break it down and start again
And all that really matters are
the bees among the flowers in your garden
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19. |
We Don't Talk About That
03:34
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We don’t talk about that
We never talk about that
We don’t talk about that
And we really should talk about that
Pity the woman
Who hides her face
All of her children live in fear
Too often hungry
Always scared
Methamphetamine and beer
Battered and abused
Conflicted and confused
This is not how it should be
But we don’t talk about that
We never talk about that
We don’t talk about that
And we really should talk about that
Cold of heart
Hot in head
Cowardly and cruel
It was just an accident
I feel like such a fool
I never meant to
Hurt the kid
It was just a flash of rage
I regret the things I did
I’d like to turn the page
Angels are weeping
Another baby dies
Can you imagine so much pain?
Somebody’s lying
Nobody takes the blame
And then it’s happening again
There’s nothing left to say
Just turn and walk away
This is not how it should be
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20. |
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I would give you the world if it were mine to give
I would hold you in dreams that I hope to live
I'd be the light that keeps your dark at bay
I'd be the why you'd never be afraid
I have lived on the run I’ve done it for so long
I have never found the words for the perfect song
I looked for love as many people do
I know I found it when I first laid eyes on you
So meet me down by the harbour
Let me come home with you
If you like I might stay all night
And if I should be there when you wake in the morning
Would you mind if I stayed for the rest of my life?
I would give you the world if it were mine to give
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21. |
Indigo
02:33
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Picking it up
Putting it down
Turn it around
Start over again
First is there
Then it is gone
This can go on and on
Come an go
Ebb and flow
Indigo
Open your eyes
Know truth from the lies
Try to be wise about that
Make your amends
Treasure your friends
And in the end you’ll know
Come an go
Ebb and flow
Indigo
Here comes the wind knocking at your window
Blowing like curse from the South
Picking up leaves they’re going round and round
And round and round
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22. |
The Rattling of Spoons
02:13
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Dogs will bark and babies cry
Owls will hoot at the moon
Building shakes as a train rolls by
Rattling the spoons
Feeling like a bird tossed upon a storm
Don’t know when I’m ever coming come
I may be back for Christmas
At least I’m going to try
I hope I won’t be coming back alone
Someone shouting in the street
Don’t know if he’s angry or insane
May be just this midnight heat
We sure could use some rain
People ask I can’t say why
Life keeps changing like the sky
Sun will rise and stars will fall
Waves will crash and sirens call
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23. |
acoustic - Daisy
02:23
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Daisy I don’t know
How much of this is true
Did we just imagine it — all that we went through?
Daisy I have tried to live without regret
And all the things that might have been
Might still happen yet
I still have dreams and so much time
And all so many mountains left
I still hope to climb
And though it seems you have to leave us now
Daisy go in peace, we’ll work it out somehow
Daisy I’m afraid
I don’t what to say
I wish that I could hold you close
And make it go away
Take all our love and the promises we’ll keep
Daisy spread your wings, fly away in sleep
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JOHN HANLON Auckland, New Zealand
Born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaya, the son of a Chinese mother and New Zealander father of Swedish, Irish and Scottish
extraction.
Raised variously New Zealand, Singapore and on an iron mine deep in the jungles of Malaya,
In the early 70’s, accidentally became a Pop Star in New Zealand.
In 1978 left the stage for a quieter, more private life
Now, nearly fifty years later, is back with a new album.
... more
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