Empty World (For Yasmine)
My books of wisdom are gathering dust
I’m caught in wiles and my vision’s unjust
I lost sight of the shore and away I swirled
Until I drifted all the way to this empty world
Oh baby where did you go?
People making money and they’re trying to get by
They got no strings attached and they don’t justify
Every sin brings its punishment somewhere a preacher hurled
Trying to keep the faith in an empty world
When I started I did alright
Now I’m in the darkest night
I was driving my bike along a silent road
The sky was darkened by black clouds as if something they bode
Somebody told me you died and a map unfurled
Showing every detail of this empty world
Oh baby where did you go?
Is happiness an illusion or something you can grab with both hands?
A strange creature in the night, a ghost travelling the land?
Is it a chemical reaction or a poem in the wind?
Is it the cry of the people ever since time began?
I'm waiting until...
Hundreds of people got together on a day in July
United in the sadness of the last goodbye
I used to think of you as a skinny little gypsy girl
But that day you became the queen of the empty world
With your charcoal hair and your shiny black pearls
They crowned you the queen of the empty world
The Journey Will Be Long
Beautiful people when they’re calm
When they're taking care of one another
It won’t be long before it all goes wrong
They do it every time, go ask your fathers
What are they waiting on ?
A Messiah or a time bomb ?
And when the day comes
We’ll strap the weapons on
Someone betrayed us
Someone outplayed us
We’ll put the helmets on
And when the war is done we’ll be
Beautiful people and we’re calm
We’re all here quite aware of one another
For centuries we’ve been living here in peace
I guess the message really got across the border
We all got our bellies full
Sleeping like a prince under a blanket of wool
Self-defence is only natural
But maybe there’s a few dirty tricks we pulled
There’s a war in the town where we used to work
The whole damn country has gone berserk
There’s killing and raping by a bunch of young turks
A paradise turned into hell on earth
A lot of people left their homes and are on the run
Nobody remembers how this war begun
Just trying to survive under the barrel of a gun
And when the race is run we’ll be
Beautiful people and we’re calm
All is quiet now the past has been forgotten
Some they say there’s countries we betrayed
Some of our ancestors’ hearts may have been rotten
We sail along the seas of right and wrong
So vast you wonder why you even bother
The winds are strong, the journey will be long
Some get lucky and some are making water
I'm Going Away
I had to leave the town on a ship today
I had to leave the shore
I just could not stay
I’m a-running away from a broken dream
Sometimes things just ain’t what they seem
I had to leave the town, man I had to leave the scene
Me and this place go a long way back
But lately i been feeling like packin’ a sack
Patient men win the day
But i would have lost my mind if i stayed
I had to leave the town, man i had to go away
Oh i’m a-going away
There used to be a time i was living in clover
But the last little drop made the cup run over
People think i’m crazy and i probably am but
I don’t know how and i can’t remember when
I ever felt good ‘round here
Man, i’m never coming back again
Now if you play with fire you’re bound to get burned
But the flames died down now the wind has turned
I’m feeling much better now my mind’s at ease
I’m travelling through a land of possibilities
I had to leave the town
I’m a-floating on a gentle breeze
Oh i’m a-going away
I’m sick and tired of shedding tears
I’m sick and tired of chewing on the same old fears
I’m a-leaving my cage in the land of pain
I had to leave this town
Man, i won’t let my soul be betrayed
Oh i’m a-going away
I can’t help but think something great has just begun
I think i’ll enjoy this freedom that i’ve won
My time has finally come
I’m gonna spill my wine on the salty water
I’m gonna sing my song about the judge’s daughter
Nobody likes me and nobody cares
So i’m a-sailing away into the open air
I’m feeling so good
I feel lucky like a millionaire
Oh i’m a-going away
I had to leave the town on a ship today
I had to leave the shore i just could not stay
I’m going someplace else and i’ll never return
Many years i've tried many years i've yearned
I had to leave the town, it was a hard lesson to be learned
In 2017 Stef Kamil Carlens presents “Stuck In The Status Quo”, the first album under his own name, and got great reviews in Humo (4*), Focus Knack (4*), De Standaard (4*), Het Nieuwsblad (4*), Gazet Van Antwerpen (4*), L'Avenir (4*), Le Soir (3*), La Dernière Heure (3*).
On stage, with the help of his skillful and inventive band; Wim De Busser drums, Nicolas Rombouts upright bas, Nel Ponsaers keys and Alma Auer harp he takes the audience through a range of moods reaching from the melancholic to the super-funky. Stef Kamil Carlens is constantly researching sound possibilities which results in many surprising versions of the songs from his extensive repertoire.
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