I wrote this song with the intent of revisiting my dysfunctional school years and the trickle down effect it had on me and so many of my classmates.
School yard decorum, strict dress codes, silence in the halls, detentions and the dreaded strap all meant to purge us of who we were.
As a life long learner I find the ghosts of this era still haunt me.
This week’s poem is from my collection Horizon. Motoring came to me while driving in Northern Ontario. A moment in time; a true event that filled me with wonder.
Fredrick Brooks - Vocal/Acoustic Guitar
Chris Pezzarello - Drums/Percussion
Robbie Grundwald - Keyboards/Bass/Percussion
Katherine McKenzie - Harmony
Joy Brooks - Harmony
Recorded and produced by Robbie Grunwald - Raven Tape Music Room
Mastered by Justin Gray - Immersive Mastering
<Click here to listen to The Lights Went Out>
THE LIGHTS WENT OUT
We were brothers back then
In the fields of pretend
Before the school-yard wars
Before the leather on skin
And we were taught to believe
Like so many before
That who we were - could be no more
Chorus
And the lights went out In my little town
Something deep inside Turned dark as night
So we hide away
Through the times of change
With their voice in our heads
That forever remains
Chorus
(The ghosts sing)
So here we are
Just a voice in the crowd
So near - yet so far away
Chorus
(The ghosts sing)
(c) Fredrick Brooks 2019
Photo by Jean Pretty (1960) from Archives at Whitby Public Library
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MOTORING
Window down
Suddenly the sounds of a passing forest speak
With the fleeting sigh of limbs
The voices of woodland birds
Then a bewildering silence settles
A prayer from sanctuary speaks
Whispers farewell
Water is the Earth’s blood
Rock and soil – terra, dirt is the Earth’s bones
The sky is the Earth’s heart
Air is the Earth’s soul
(c) Fredrick Brooks 2023