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Natural State

by Steve Wharton & Danny Wood

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1.
A man has many faces worn At work, at home, out late But when a man is on his own He will return to a natural state As he surrounds himself with nature The granite and the slate It reminds him he is of this earth And he will return to a natural state Blessed with few desires And simple tastes to sate With a bellyful of food by a fire He will return to a natural state A natural state, a natural state Far down an elusive lane If I were to find my way back there How long til I left it again?
2.
Take blue sky days when I can Take red letter days like a man Cos I'll work till I drop I'd rather stop Walk by the water again See those green eyes watching over me Old yellow belly telling on tales me In a few weeks i'm on my way Be nice to stay But I want to Walk by the water again Walk, walk, walk Seems like that's all I ever do There's no home for me And there's no hope for you Take your medicine and hush up your mouth You're the type who could drown in a raging drought My unfurled sails are full of your noise Wish I had a choice but you're pushing me to Walk by the water again Walk walk walk Seems like all I ever do There's no home for me And there's no hope for you
3.
Up on the ridgeline looking over dallas In a hidden meadow reading her postcard She stopped in Sanford, her father hates it Should have listened to advice he always discards How does it compare? Is the water sweeter? Do the stars shine bright? How does it compare? Is it different when someone else is holding you at night? Through Texarkana, lost hope in Camden Struck gold in little El Dorado Met a man called Jackson from Tallahassie That was enough to get them to Orlando How does it compare? Is the water sweeter? Do the stars shine bright? How does it compare? Is it different when someone else is holding you at night? I've been wandering around Trinity Park Lost in my thoughts trying to get lost in the dark Down by the river staring up at the sky And I feel so cold How does it compare? Is the water sweeter? Do the stars shine bright? How does it compare? Is it different when someone else is holding you at night? Cos I've been reading and re-reading and I wanna know...
4.
Letter 02:40
I’ve been the letter that’s left unopened I’d have done better if I'd left you alone And now all I know is the ink stains my heart The longer I leave it the darker it grows. The ink stains my heart; Till you read it, it just won’t go. Once you whispered in my ear sweet nothings. Now you've got nothing left to say. I’ve been the letter hidden in the drawer Shouldn’t really matter but I think I've been here before. And now all I know is the ink stains my heart The longer I leave it the darker it grows. The ink stains my heart; Till you read it, it just won’t go. Once you whispered in my ear sweet nothings. Now you've got nothing left to say.
5.
Loch Rock 03:29
The wind brushed your kindness on me The night announced your grace The moonlight painted shadows so gentle Your figure I could not trace In the quiet time after the chase You calm my fever, soothe my sleep Lay kisses upon my face Guide my thoughts from my twisting body To a higher, peaceful place In the quiet time after the chase What will i repay you with What willingness would endure What will i repay you with What gift could be as pure As the quiet time after the chase Building a bridge would be a start Driving myself crazy sleeping in this car Crashing waves wake me half the night The morning starts too early and it starts too bright In the quiet time after the chase
6.
Ebb & Flow 03:08
I've only lived round here for a short while Seen them tear down the buildings and resurrect them tile by tile Come and they go, they come and they go The squats and the mansions rise and fall Come and they go, they come and they go The city's an ocean that ebbs and flows I went to a bar I used to frequent. Saw boarded up windows and a sign that said 'For Rent'. Come and they go, they come and they go Drunken best friends that nobody knows Come and they go, they come and they go The city's an ocean that ebbs and flows Cracks in the pavement begin to show As they tunnel new metro lines down below Glass elevators soar into the sky While the birch and the oak trees wither and die Come and they go, they come and they go Block out the light so nothing can grow Drunken best friends that nobody knows Come and they go, they come and they go The city's an ocean that ebbs and flows
7.
Heartwood 03:22
They kissed their girls on Valentine’s morning Then began their shifts Fixing the rails on the west coast main line Before disaster hit Cloud hung low in the Tebay valley A crane lifted rails from a condemned truck It's hydraulic brakes were disconnected Instead its wheels were chocked with wood This all happened underneath Heartwood Added to the aching of the heart-shaped wood With a jolt from the crane, the truck broke free Stole down the smooth, hard track Running unseen and gathering speed Forty miles an hour in the cold and dark Buckley, Burgess, Waters and Tindall May their names be blessed Sixteen tons of silent steel Four miles later came to rest This all happened underneath Heartwood Added to the aching of the heart-shaped wood This is no tale of Victorian navvies In the days before employment law They died as you and I were sleeping February fifteenth 2004 Beside the River Lune and the north Howgills A rock now bears their names They kissed their girls on Valentine’s morning Never went home again This all happened underneath Heartwood Added to the aching of the heart-shaped wood This all happened underneath Heartwood Added to the aching of the heart-shaped wood
8.
No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as any manner of thy friends or of thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind. And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee. As we get dragged down Into those grinding streams Tide waits for no man And it doesn't hear our screams We face our own Corryvreckan Pulled in, pulled down Friends are gone In a second So hold on, hold on Take the tiller, I'll grab the oar Lift your head up to the sky We'll set a course for the shore, We face our own Corryvreckan Pulled in, pulled down Friends are gone In a second Ride out the storm Turn the boat around When the water Wants to pull you in Ride out the storm Turn the boat around When the water Wants to pull you down We face our own Corryvreckan, Only you know where the edges lie And how to pull away When it beckons
9.
With 03:05
With time on my hands This simple luxury I can achieve anything I want Know the difference between want and need With a blanket and a pillow With a candle at my feet I can go anywhere I want Know the difference between want and need With a promise on a whisper With a prayer as I breathe I can see all simple things together Know the difference between want and need
10.
You’re a blank page with stories to be told You’re a dark rage with a mellow soul You’re counting down the hours till you go You’re a fast train but you want to go slow Many years from now we’ll meet Many years from now Many years from now we’ll greet Each other, like brothers again I’d better run if I wanna keep up with you Cos you’re so far ahead of your years A jump of faith is what I’ve got to do I’ve seen you fly, I’ve seen you conquer you fears Many years from now we’ll meet Many years from now Many years from now we’ll greet Each other, like brothers again Time keeps marching on The days when we laughed are gone And memories are what we have left Hope still lingers on A happiness grown so strong And stops me from feeling bereft Many years from now we’ll meet Many years from now Many years from now we’ll greet Each other, like brothers again There’s so much I’d like to say to you But I think that you already know Those songs we’ve played will always get me through I’ll play them as I get old Many years from now we’ll meet Many years from now Many years from now we’ll greet Each other, like brothers again
11.
A man has many faces worn At work, at home, out late But when a man is on his own He will return to a natural state As he surrounds himself with nature The granite and the slate It reminds him he is of this earth And he will return to a natural state Blessed with few desires And simple tastes to sate With a bellyful of food by a fire He will return to a natural state A natural state, a natural state Far down an elusive lane If I were to find my way back there How long til I left it again?

about

Following my debut album Lake District Songs & Poems in 2018, I am excited to present the fruits of a collaboration with musician and producer, Danny Wood; an album of rock songs with influences of folk, Motown, protest song, RnB and shamanic chants. Written between 2009 and 2015, most have been performed and honed in front of audiences in England, Finland, China and Czech Republic, either solo or with bands (Dram in China 2013-2015 and Herdus in England 2016-2019). A few have never been performed live. Danny has taken a fresh look at the acoustic versions, arranged them for a full band sound, added the polish I never could and brought new ideas to each song. This has given me the opportunity to concentrate on singing the main vocals and—equally as important—the backing vocals.

Having been written over 11 years and arranged during 2019 and 2020, this is a varied collection of songs without obvious links to each other. However, in both writing the lyrics and approaching the vocals, I found that I was creating characters, short stories, vignettes. The opening line of Natural State, "A man has many faces worn..." sets up the album as a insight into ten characters, who are all wrestling with emotions and situations, the resolution of which they hope will lead to “a natural state”, a restoration of some inherent qualities which they have lost along life’s path. The reprise of Natural State (Tuva Mix) lowers the curtain on these dramas with a renewed spirit. Enjoy.

Steve Wharton, Arlecdon, 6th December 2020


For those who are interested in knowing more about each song I have listed them below with date and place of writing. In due course I will post details about the writing of each on here and on www.facebook.com/stevewhartonartsandmedia

Natural State (2015, Shenzhen)
Walk By The Water (2012, Sodankyla / Lancaster)
How Does It Compare (2013, Shenzhen)
Ebb & Flow (2014, Shenzhen)
Letter (2015, Prague)
Loch Rock (music 2017, lyrics: 2009, Kendal, melody 2020, Arlecdon)
Heartwood (2010, Kendal and 2015, Whitehaven)
Corryvreckan (prose: 1624, song 2014, Ulverston)
With (2015, Prague)
Like Brothers (2009, Ambleside)

All arrangements 2020, Longtown/Arlecdon

credits

released December 1, 2020

Steve Wharton: music*, lyrics, vocals
Danny Wood: arrangements, instruments** and production

*except Loch Rock: music written by Danny Wood
**except Ebb & Flow and How Does It Compare: harmonica by Steve Wharton

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about

Steve Wharton England, UK

A singer, songwriter and storyteller with a great passion for his native Lake District, world mythology and music.

1st album - solo (folk & poetry)
2nd album - collaboration with Danny Wood (rock/various)
1st book - Sylwedyth
2nd book - Contemporary Cumbrian Folk Songs (and how to write them)
... more

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