Steve Hackett Album

Watcher of the skies, watcher of all
His is a world alone no world is his own
He whom life can no longer surprise
Raising his eyes beholds a planet unknown

Creatures shaped this planet's soil
Now their reign has come to end
Has life again destroyed life?
Do they play elsewhere, do they know
More than their childhood games?
Maybe the lizard's shed its tail
This is the end of man's long union with Earth

Judge not this race by empty remains
Do you judge God by his creatures when they are dead?
For now, the lizard's shed it's tail
This is the end of man's long union with Earth

From life alone to life as one
Think not now your journey's done
For though your ship be sturdy
No mercy has the sea.
Will you survive on the ocean of being?
Come ancient children hear what I say
This is my parting council for you on your way

Sadly now your thoughts turn to the stars
Where we have gone you know you never can go
Watcher of the skies watcher of all
This is your fate alone, this fate is your own

[No lyrics]

The path is clear, though no eyes can see
The course laid down long before
And so with gods and men, the sheep remain inside their pen
Though many times they've seen the way to leave

He rides majestic, past homes of men
Who care not or gaze with joy
To see reflected there, the trees, the sky, the lily fair
The scene of death is lying just below

The mountain cuts off the town from view
Like a cancer growth is removed by skill
Let it be revealed

A waterfall, his madrigal
An inland sea, his symphony

Undinal songs urge the sailors on
'Till lured by the siren's cry...

Now as the river dissolves in sea
So Neptune has claimed another soul
And so with gods and men, the sheep remain inside their pen
Until the shepherd leads his flock away

The sands of time were eroded by
The river of constant change

And now I stand, forsaking pride
The time has come to turn the tide
I've drawn the line, I've built my wall
And I won't let one more dream fall

All days of innocence, I surrendered long ago

Where's the wind that takes me higher
The hand that offers peace
The heart that still gives shelter'

I wanna go back to find
The innocent days that I left behind
I still believe they're holding ground
Behind the battle lines
If it takes a million miles over land and sea
Gonna swim in the rivers of purity
I know they still run free
Behind the battle lines

One more mountain I must climb
I've scaled so many in my time
And if the sun goes down on me
The light of truth will help me see

All days of innocence, I surrendered long ago

Where's the voice that speaks of mercy
The eyes that are not blind
The love that's never ending'

I wanna go back to find
The innocent days that I left behind
I still believe they're holding ground
Behind the battle lines
If it takes a million miles over land and sea
Gonna swim in the rivers of purity
I know they still run free

A vision of eternity
Oh, Lord! Never take the dream from me
Here I am, standing at the edge of destiny'

I wanna go back to find
The innocent days that I left behind
I still believe they're holding ground
Behind the battle lines
If it takes a million miles over land and sea
Gonna swim in the rivers of purity
I know they still run free...
Behind the battle lines

Walking along the Camino Royale
The Mississippi sighs
Soft in the night when the wind starts to rise
And I'm lifted high around the corner
So I spin
Fast as a ride at the fair
Like a snake that flies through the air
When I cry enough I'm fired from a gun
And thrown through the doors

Only the fool learns to get through

Ahead I see candles floating in pails
Each placed upon a chair
Into a tent where they turn round the bend
Through a kitchen leading to a staircase
Now I stop
Seems that I've been led astray
There are no new answers today
This road is blocked
Only the fool learns to get through

The rusted chains of prison moons
Are shattered by the sun
I walk a road, horizons change
The tournament's begun
The purple piper plays his tune
The choir softly sing
Three lullabies in an ancient tongue
For the court of the crimson king

The keeper of the city keys
Put shutters on the dreams
I wait outside the pilgrims' door
With insufficient schemes
The black queen chants the funeral march
The cracked brass bells will ring
To summon back the fire witch
To the court of the crimson king

The gardener plants an evergreen
Whilst trampling on a flower
I chase the wind of a prism ship
To taste the sweet and sour
The pattern juggler lifts his hand
The orchestra begin
As slowly turns the grinding wheel
In the court of the crimson king

On soft grey mornings widows cry
The wise men share a joke
I run to grasp divining signs
To satisfy the hoax
The yellow jester does not play
But gently pulls the strings
And smiles as the puppets dance
In the court of the crimson king

[No lyrics]

[No lyrics]

I never meant to be so bad to you
One thing I said that I would never do
A look from you and I would fall from grace
And that would wipe this smile right from my face

Do you remember when we used to dance
And incidence arose from circumstance
One thing lead to another we were young
And we would scream together songs unsung

It was the heat of the moment
Telling me what a heart meant
Heat of the moment showed in your eyes

And now you find yourself in 82
The disco hotspots hold no charm for you
You can't concern yourself with bigger things
You catch a pearl and ride the dragons wings

'Cause it's the heat of the moment
Heat of the moment
Heat of the moment showed in your eyes

And when your looks are gone and you're alone
How many nights you sit beside the phone
What were the things you wanted for yourself
Teenage ambitions you remember well

It was the heat of the moment
Telling me what your heart meant
Heat of the moment showed in your eyes

It was the heat of the moment
Heat of the moment
Heat of the moment showed in your eyes

[No lyrics]

As New Orleans slips far away
When the gas lights dim and the street cars fade
When the beast within takes on a new shape
The blood runs cold make no mistake

You're just a vampyre with a healthy appetite
And you stay awake half the night

A band strikes up and they're starting to play
When the sirens wail but they're way too late
The crowds don't see they're drunk anyway
The inquest said it was coming her way

You're just a vampyre with a healthy appetite
And you stay awake half the night

Well you ran to ground as you always do
And then they finally caught up with you
Well they sent you down and Old Smokey was waiting
But pressure groups being what they are these days
You were released after five years at a funny farm
In upstate bankrupt New York
To walk the streets once more

Said the straight man to the late man
Where have you been?
I've been here and I've been there
And I've been in between

I talk to the wind
My words are all carried away
I talk to the wind
The wind does not hear
The wind cannot hear

I'm on the outside looking inside
What do I see
Much confusion, disillusion
All around me

I talk to the wind
My words are all carried away
I talk to the wind
The wind does not hear
The wind cannot hear

You don't possess me, don't impress me
Just upset my mind
Can't instruct me or conduct me
Just use up my time

I talk to the wind
My words are all carried away
I talk to the wind
The wind does not hear
The wind cannot hear

I talk to the wind
My words are all carried away
I talk to the wind
The wind does not hear
The wind cannot hear

Said the straight man to the late man
Where have you been?
I've been here and I've been there
And I've been in between

Veiling the nightshade bride stalks a flower revealed
Nearing the hour make haste to their threshold concealed

Lost in thought in search of vision
As the moon eclipsed the sun

Casting the same steps glimpsing his own fate to come
Melt in the dream void from which he never can run

Lost in thought in search of vision
As the moon eclipsed the sun

Tears fill the fountains breaking their promise to heal
Rippling the waters mirror an ended ideal

Deep in thought but robbed of vision
As the moon eclipsed the sun

[No lyrics]

[No lyrics]

[No lyrics]

It's one o'clock and time for lunch - dum dee dum dee dum
When the sun beats down and I lie on the bench
I can always hear them talk

There's always been Ethel:
"Jacob, wake up, you've got to tidy your room now"
And then Mr. Lewis:
"Isn't it time that he was out on his own"
Over the garden wall, two little love birds cuckoo to you
Keep them mowing blades sharp...

I know what I like
And I like what I know
Getting better in your wardrobe
Stepping one beyond your show

Sunday night, Mr. Farmer called, said:
"Listen son, you're wasting time
There's a future for you in the fire-escape trade
Come up to town"
But I remembered a voice from the past:
"Gambling only pays when you're winning"
I had to thank old Miss Mort for schooling a failure
Keep them mowing blades sharp...

I know what I like
And I like what I know
Getting better in your wardrobe
Stepping one beyond your show
I know what I like
And I like what I know
Getting better in your wardrobe
Stepping one beyond your show

When the sun beats down and I lie on the bench
I can always hear them talk
Me, I'm just a lawnmower
You can tell me by the way I walk

[No lyrics]

[No lyrics]