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lyrics

Lay it Down
© Penelope Swales 1991

Well, I saw you at last
Just walkin’ down
Larger than life, but smaller than memory
In a place – well, I never thought I’d see you here
Escaping your peers
For the New Year weekend
Sneering at people
Who don’t live by the rules
You’ve never shaken since childhood

Lay it down,
Lay it down, down
Lay down your arms
Lift up your arms
And see if you can’t be
Just a little bit kinder

You were very proud of your news
And your pride belies the state you’re in
The level your at, and the feeling it gives you
I’m glad if you’ve found something to do with your skin
But I feel like I’ve left you a long way behind
And refreshing my memory, your smile and your face
Makes me think my old spectre’s a little out of place
And while I still feel for the dreams you erased
You know, I really don’t mind
Lay it down, down
Not after all this time
Lay it down, down, down, down
And see if you can’t be
Just a little bit kinder
Now

Coz lookin’ in behind
Your frightened eyes
You envy the people
You say you despise
And you rail and you rant
At the bars of your cage
But there’s no way you’d leave it
No, not while you think it makes you special
No, not while you think it makes you better
No, not while you think it makes you different

And you’ll find another scene to shine in
New, young and bewildered to laugh at your wit
And you’ll hate them
For not making you laugh, for not making you think
But you’ll cling to them
Coz they’ll take your mind off it

And yet, you long to be good and useful and kind
And a guru, but still guarding your heart and your mind
In case any should dare to love you and lay it down
Dare to want you and lay it down, lay it down, lay it down

Well, I saw you at last
Just walkin’ down
Larger than life, but smaller than memory, ah-ha..
In a place – well, I never thought I’d see you here
Escaping your peers
For the New Year weekend
And although I don’t really
Know what to think
A closer look tells me volumes
A closer look tells me volumes

So tell me now
What was that all about?
Lookin’ back, lookin’ down
What was that all about?
For the love of the pear-shaped princess
What was that all about?
For the love of the sweet, would-be Jesus
What was that all about?

And if irrelevance is the name of the game
Lay it down, down, down,
Lay it down, down, down…..

credits

from Archive Vol. 2: Songs from the Borderline 1989​-​1992, released July 1, 2005
Vocals, Guitar - Penelope Swales
Recorded live at One-C-One folk club, Mechanics Institute, Brunswick, Melbourne by 3CR Dynamic Recorders, Engineered by Trish Anderson

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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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