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Dizzy Edge of Freedom

from Live at Woodford '96​-​'97 by Penelope Swales

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lyrics

Dizzy Edge of Freedom

© Penelope Swales

I see you
Standin' on
The dizzy edge of freedom
But it takes courage to take the leap
On the edge
I hold my breath
To see you soarin', but
Will you do it?

Here's a story
'Bout a very talented man that I once knew
Who could write song and tell stories
That put all the hardest things
About life into words for me,
And every time I saw him I felt
New worlds opening up before me
I wished the world could hear him sing

He played guitar and sang in a band
That played in a town that some people call a city
And sometimes worked his nine-to-five
And sometimes schemed his unemployed schemes
And came from a culture that said
Tryin' to live for music is a foolish dream
And you must be stable and serene

I saw you standin' on
A stage that I'd just stepped from
"Who's the spunk with the guitar?"
We both thought
I drove miles
Out of my way to drive you home and
You said, "I'm sorry, It's not to be,
I've been well and truly caught."

And you said
"As my thirties yawn before me
I'm getting edgy.
I've always dabbled, but never done
I have stayed safe,
Stayed close to the hearth
Close to love
Ah, but something's gonna have to give soon."

I wheeled wide, far in my
Orbit of the East Coast
The next time through, I cocked my ear
A hunted smile, a matter of time
You said "I love her
But I can't keep shedding these tears"

Gossip and debate were raging
'Bout your behaviour
Then Rome crumbled in a day
Amid the cries of accusation
The condemnation
We took our chance
In the warm afternoon,
For one sweet hour we lay

I held my breath
To see what you'd do next
Would you take the chance and fly away
To where opportunities lay
You were making plans
That changed and changed and changed again
In the unexpected fragile dawn of a new day
I think you were realisin' you were
Gonna have to go away

I saw you
Wrestlin' with a
Stage that I have been through
I takes courage to follow dreams
Livin' with the
Fear of failure
Takes getting used to
To leave your home and what that means

Amid all your intoxication
The exhilaration
I could see the fear of freedom in your eyes
In your moment of doubt and hesitation
There was somebody waiting
And she took the chance to secure her prize

The next I heard,
The new word was
- well, maybe next year
And I knew next year would never come
And I hear your
New lover
Don't like to share you with the music
she's gonna feed those fears
And keep you close to home

Darlin', love is not always the answer
Sometimes it's a cancer
You can swap one prison, one lover
For another
On and on and never have to
Face your life

I saw you
Standin' on
The dizzy edge of freedom
But it takes courage to take the leap
On the edge
I held my breath to see you soarin', but
You didn't do it

Here's a story
'Bout a very talented man that I once knew
But like so many others of us
When he got the chance to make his dreams come true
He hesitated, deliberated
Liberation is scary and new and well,
He didn't do it

It's just a story
'Bout a very talented man that I once knew
Who could write song and tell stories
That put all the hardest things
About life into words for me,
And every time I saw him I felt
New worlds opening up before me
And I wish you could have heard him sing

credits

from Live at Woodford '96​-​'97, released January 7, 1997

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Penelope Swales Boolarra, Australia

Penelope Swales has been articulating the human condition with passion and humour for 30+ years. She sings about politics, love, friendship, the unbreakable bond between us and dogs and the impact of the Internet on society. She won the 2019 Alistair Hulett Songs for Social Justice Award with “Cambridge Analytica”. “The Ides of March in Christchurch" was short-listed for the same award in 2020. ... more

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