He says “I think I’ll go to sleep, ‘cause I’m far too tired to eat
Do you think that’s wise? Do you think that’s wise?
And I don’t wanna talk tonight, I just filled myself with wine
Is that alright? Is that alright?”
So she takes herself outside, so he doesn’t see her cry
And blows smoke into the cheerless winter sky
She watches possums fight, hears them screaming in the night
Do they understand? They understand
“Can anyone else see, surely this can’t just be me?
Is it that bad? Is it that bad?
He never left a mark, just a skidmark on my heart
Where there once used to be a man
My clothes will never dry this rain keeps pouring from the sky
Look at it fall, look at it fall
But you shouldn’t complain, ‘cause the farmers need the rain
But don’t we all? Don’t we all?
So I’ll stay outside the door, ‘cause you never can be sure
What’s on the other side of the wall”
Such a loss of direction as she sees her reflection
In the knife, in the knife
“I can’t even see myself, surely this is someone else
Is this my life? Is this my life?
Is this how it’s meant to be, is this all there is for me
Is this my lot, just to be some drunkard’s wife?
“now I think I need to go, ‘cause this don’t feel like it’s my home
But am I sure? I think I’m sure
I’ve dealt with all of this distress like Job in a dress
There must be more, to life, there must be more”
She cut him one last break, one more chance he didn’t take
He opened the fridge, she opened the door
Now that she’s gone back to Sydney
He mutters to his whisky
“No this just couldn’t,
it just couldn’t be my fault
I would have been her dog or her master
her blessing her disaster
I would have been
anything at all
but tell her not to come home
scrub flesh from my bones
don’t look at me don’t listen
don’t talk
I could've been someone else
I could look after my self
but just don’t paint me as something that I’m not”
Beautifully played and full of moving vocal performances, the Bay Area singer/songwriter's latest is a stellar work of art. Bandcamp Album of the Day Feb 3, 2023
The legendary Richard Thompson's new solo album exemplifies his many musical paths, from pop and cabaret to jazz to traditional folk. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 2, 2024