How could we have known?
2019© by John Schofield
Verse 1
We bought a van in Amsterdam
And drove to Kathmandu
Smoked some dope, made some friends
I was so in love with you
Verse 2
We settled down in this small town
Had everything we’d dreamed
Each other and a family
Just the perfect life it seemed
Chorus:
When we fell in love that summer
And swore we’d never part
How could we have known then
That you would break my heart?
Verse 3
A sense of dread grew in your head
You felt its cold caress
Sometimes there were two of us
But at other times, one less
Chorus:
When we fell in love that summer
And swore we’d never part
How could we have known then
That you would break my heart?
Bridge:
Then you went into another world, another time and place
I don’t know what you see there, in that other space
Verse 4
You won’t know many people now
My heart breaks but it’s true
You can’t recall too much at all
Do you still see Kathmandu?
Chorus:
When we fell in love that summer
And swore we’d never part
How could we have known then
That you would break my heart?
Are they going to find you dead?
2020© by John Schofield
Verse 1
Out of the darkness
Comes the night owl’s hoot
You take to the alley
A much shorter route
Verse 2
You sense a presence,
Hear nothing at all
Your eye catches something
A shadow on the wall
Chorus:
Breathing’s hard, sweating hands
Chest is gripped by steel bands
It’s in the mind, it’s in your head
Or are they going to find you dead?
Verse 3
The night owl’s warning
Hoots again in your mind
Was that the faint footsteps
Of something behind?
Chorus:
Breathing’s hard, sweating hands
Chest is gripped by steel bands
It’s in the mind, it’s in your head
Or are they going to find you dead?
Bridge:
I want a world where it’s safe to tread
Alone at night without this dread
Chorus:
Breathing’s hard, sweating hands
Chest is gripped by steel bands
It’s in the mind, it’s in your head
Or are they going to find you dead?
Zanzibar
2020© by John Schofield
Verse 1
On a moonlit beach in Zanzibar
Strumming my old guitar
Our eyes met across a driftwood fire
Smouldering with desire
Verse 2
Beside the fire’s dying embers
That’s where we surrendered
On a blanket, under the stars
That night in Zanzibar
Chorus:
African rhythms, eastern spices
Sultry nights, a million stars
Exotic dishes, papaya slices
That’s the magic of, Zanzibar
Verse 3
I wonder now if she remembers
That night beside the embers
Of a driftwood fire under the stars
One night in Zanzibar
Chorus:
African rhythms, eastern spices
Sultry nights with a million stars
Exotic dishes, papaya slices
That’s the magic of Zanzibar
Climate Hero
©2020 John Schofield
Verse 1
I used to be a jetsetter
Around the globe I’d trot
Now I do it virtually
On my super slim laptop
Verse 2
If I want a new adventure
I Google it on line
About a minute later
I’m cruising down the Rhine
Chorus:
You’ll be a climate hero
Your carbon footprint zero
You’ll be a climate hero
I promise you it’s so
Verse 3
Not the same as really going
Not quite so face to face
But I am not complaining
Coz I’ll save the human race
Bridge:
Let your fingers do the flying
And stop your fellow man from dying
Chorus:
You’ll be a climate hero
Your carbon footprint zero
You’ll be a climate hero
I promise you it’s so
I’m OK now
©2020JohnSchofield
Verse 1
I’m not sure I loved you all that much
I guess it wasn’t love, as such
Just a silly crush, I thought
Some kind of nasty bug I’d caught
Verse 2
When you told me I should take a hike
When you said, go on, get on your bike
I didn’t really care too much
Coz, y’know, it wasn’t love as such
Chorus
You prob’ly thought it really hurt, but
I’m OK now
Bet you thought I cared a lot, but
I’m OK now
I cried myself to sleep last night, but
I’m, OK now
Verse 3
You were going for the fatal blow
But I’m never going to let it show
I’ll hide the pain so deep within
Because I couldn’t let you win
Chorus
You prob’ly thought it really hurt, but
I’m OK now
Bet you thought I cared a lot, but
I’m OK now
I cried myself to sleep last night, but
I’m, OK now
Repeat Verse 3
Repeat chorus
Keep On Moving On
2020© by John Schofield
Verse1
I used to come here as a kid
I’d play my guitar and sing
On a real good night I’d get paid
And sometimes I’d get laid
Verse 2
Now the bar stools are all empty
And the till has lost its ring
A dish towel on the beer pumps says
That this old place is dead
Chorus
Nothing stays the same
Everything moves on
You can’t go back
What’s gone has gone
Just keep on moving on
Verse 3
I called out loud but no one came
There’s nothing here but ghosts
I turned around and walked away
The memories could stay
Chorus
Nothing stays the same
Everything moves on
You can’t go back
What’s gone has gone
Just keep on moving on
Mixed Messages
©2020JohnSchofield
Verse1
At first your look said don’t you dare
But then it said you must
My first thought was well I don’t care
The second one was lust
Verse2
I wish you’d just speak clearly
And then not change your mind
Don’t wanna act prematurely
I’m really not that kind
Chorus
You’re sending me mixed messages
You’re playing with my head
Half of me is outa here,
And half is in your bed
Verse 3
Do you really want to boogie
Or are you saying stop?
I can’t wait much longer for
The other shoe to drop
Chorus
You’re sending me mixed messages
You’re playing with my head
Half of me is outa here,
And half is in your bed
Outro:
OK, now I’m done with this
We’re never gonna’ dance
You’re sending me mixed messages
Yeh, I think we missed our chance
Momentum
©2019JohnSchofield
Verse 1
Tires thudding on the blacktop, wheels slapping like a drum
Bennies with a can of Coke, my head begins to hum
Radio blasting Springsteen, and then Kristofferson
I’m on the road, I’m heading west, I’m chasing down the sun
Verse 2
I left her place in Mobile some time before the dawn
She’ll be drinking coffee now, maybe stiflin’ a yawn
Wrinkled tee shirt, mussed up hair, wondering where I’ve got
I’ll call her when I stop for gas, well maybe, maybe not
Chorus:
Momentum, Newton called it, a body on the move
Likes to stay that way, he said, and what he said is true
I can’t stop now, can’t slow down, this rig is coming through
Verse 4
Sheet lightning blooming brightly, billowing thunder clouds
Big Easy and then Baton Rouge, always westward bound
Windshield wipers slashing, headlights cutting through the night
Houston comes then Beeville, and the Rio Grande’s in sight
Verse 5
Unloading at this one-horse town, just outside Laredo
Easing off now, coming down, I’m starting to feel low
Kick a tyre, slap the hood, shake my head and moan
Gotta turn this rig around, it’s a thousand miles back home
Chorus:
Momentum, Newton called it, a body on the move
Likes to stay that way, he said, and what he said is true
I can’t stop now, can’t slow down, this rig is coming through
Outro:
On the road and rolling, back into the groove
Yeah, momentum, that’s the thing for me
Always on the move
You can’t eat money
©2021 John Schofield
Chorus:
Watcha gonna eat when we’ve only got money?
When the bees are all gone
And there’s no more honey
Watcha gonna buy with all that bread?
When the waters gone sour
And the fish are all dead
Watcha gonna eat, cos you can’t eat money?
Verse 1
Walking on the tideline
Picking through the driftwood
Most of it is plastic
None of it is any good
Chorus:
Watcha gonna breathe when we’ve only got money?
When the trees are all gone
And the air’s turned funny
Watcha gonna buy with loads of cash?
When the rains have failed
And the crops are all trash
Watch gonna eat, cos you can’t eat money?
Verse 2
Watching all the animals
Running from the bushfires
The icecaps are melting
Governments are liars
Chorus:
Watcha gonna eat when we’ve only got money?
When the bees are all gone
And there’s no more honey
Watcha gonna buy with all that bread?
When the waters gone sour
And the fish are all dead
Watcha gonna eat, cos you can’t eat money?
Bridge:
You can’t eat money, no you can’t eat money
No, no, no, you can’t eat money…
Verse 3
Let’s destroy the planet
Suck up all that black gold
Dig it out, burn it up
Greenhouse gas uncontrolled
Chorus:
Watcha gonna breathe when we’ve only got money?
When the trees are all gone
And the air’s turned funny
Watcha gonna buy with loads of cash?
When the rains have failed
And the crops are all trash
Watch gonna eat, cos you can’t eat money?
Outro:
You can’t eat money, no you can’t eat money
No, no, no, you can’t eat money…
Alternative verse 3:
Never mind the planet, Gotta dig the black shit, Dig it out, burn it up, Gasoline cheap as chips
UKSC2021 5 stars, semi-finalist
Shades of Grey
©2020John Schofield
Verse 1
You were my artists palette
Every colour on the planet
My private colour chart
A work of abstract art
Chorus:
My world was filled with colour
Before you went away
Now everything is duller
All I see are shades of grey
Verse 2
You were my English garden
My blue, my green, my carmen
Like a double rainbow
A sunset’s afterglow
Chorus:
My world was filled with colour
Before you went away
Now everything is duller
All I see are shades of grey
Outro:
Yes, everything I see now
Is just a shade of grey
My world was filled with colour
Now all I see is grey
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