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A Twist in the Story

by Anne Lister

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1.
Little Polly Williams 04:39
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Little Polly Williams danced with the fairies Danced with the fairies when she came home from school Little Polly from the Ship Inn in Trevethin The finest little dancer in Pontypool. She took off her clogs and she danced with them barefoot She didn’t want her clumsy feet to make a sound Took off her clogs and her fine woollen stockings She never heard their fairy feet touch the ground. Little Polly Williams danced with the fairies Under the shade of a crab apple tree Little Polly Williams, dancing like a cobweb With fairies all dressed in blues and greens Her Mam told her off for walking home barefoot Her friends wondered why she wouldn’t join in their games But little Polly Williams didn’t say a word to anyone Just joined with her fairy friends to dance all the same. Little Polly Williams danced with the fairies But unlike the fairies she found that time went past Little Polly Williams grew older and stiffer She found that her dancing times couldn’t last. One day the fairies called her to dance with them Called her as usual to dance by the tree But Polly wouldn’t go, and this made them cross with her She limped on home when they twisted her knee. Little Polly Williams danced with the fairies Danced with the fairies when she came home from school Polly Williams from the Ship Inn in Trevethin The finest little dancer in Pontypool. And if one day you’re passing by the apple tree You might hear the fairies inviting you to play And if you’re not as brave as little Polly Williams It might be a good plan to just run away.
2.
The Fisherman's Song 06:07
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He sailed his boat across the blue He sailed his boat across the green Until he came to where no birds flew And he saw things no man has seen. What do you sing, fisherman, what do you sing For I have waited my whole life long I’ll bring you pearls and a golden ring I’d give up my world to learn your song. They say a mermaid can sing so sweet You’d dive from the air into waters cold The ocean floor beneath your feet You’d give up your family and sell your soul. But as she listened to what he sang She felt caught fast in his net She left the ocean to walk on land Love held them tight from the day they met. What do you sing, fisherman, what do you sing For I have waited my whole life long I’ll bring you pearls and a golden ring I’d give up my world to learn your song. What they did then is told in tales Their life, their children and their bliss One sunny day they both set sail Were never seen from that day to this I know the magic of the singing land Songs from sunset and day break But the fisherman’s song brought the mermaid’s hand Gave them both hearts no man could break. What do you sing, fisherman, what do you sing For I have waited my whole life long I’ll bring you pearls and a golden ring I’d give up my world to learn your song. Now I’m no mermaid, and you’ve no boat And we have never sailed across the sea But we have love enough to stay afloat And music sings between you and me.
3.
Locked In 02:26
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Love the sinner, hate the crime He’ll be away for a very long time Lock the door and throw away the key It hurts him less than it hurts me To be locked in, locked in, locked in. No patterns, no colours, just blacks and greys No highs, no lows, just a series of days Lock the door and rattle the chain He’s closed down to avoid the pain And he’s locked in, locked in, locked in. We’re on the outside, we’re living at home Where the door stands open but the bird has flown Wish I could lock my heart with a cast iron key It hurts him less than it hurts me To be locked in, locked in, locked in. Can’t live with him but can’t live alone Nothing about me is made of stone He’d like to lock my body, put bars around I’m screaming inside, not making a sound And I’m locked in, locked in, locked in.
4.
The Ghost 05:21
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She saw him in the shadows, standing on the stair She said it wasn’t scary, to see him standing there The shape of an older man, smiling as she passed And then he turned and climbed the stairs, not moving very fast. She saw him in the shadows, standing on the lawn She was pulling back the curtains, in the early morn She said it wasn’t scary as he watched her comb her hair She said it felt quite normal to see him standing there. But it was not her brother, and it was not her dad And it was not her lover, nor any man she’d had All the men she’d ever known, and all the men she’d kissed Had used love as a battering ram, embraced her with their fists. She saw him in the shadows, standing by her bed She’d thought it was her room-mate, but it was him instead She said he sang a lullaby and gently brushed her cheek She said it felt quite comforting, she wanted him to speak. She saw him in the shadows with a small child, hand in hand The child had eyes as bright as stars, he seemed to understand She thought she knew who stood there, she recognised the child And then she thought – it couldn’t be, that was the child that died. But it was not her brother, and it was not her dad And it was not her lover, nor any man she’d had. But if that was a ghost, she said, that I’m convinced I saw I’d rather see a ghost, she said, then the men I’ve known before.
5.
How to Stand Still 04:08
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I don’t need lessons in flying, don’t need ideas for trying I don’t need that at all ‘Cos all the time that you’re flying you’re looking down and behind And you’re scared you might fall. And everyone knows it’s true, the one thing you need to learn to do Is how to stand still. I don’t need hints on succeeding, I’ve got no pride left for feeding And I don’t need tat at all ‘Cos all the time that you’re winning you think of ending not beginning And you’re scared you might fall. And everyone knows it’s true, the one thing you need to learn to do Is how to stand still. Teach me how to stop awhile, teach me how to stay The one thing I know about is walking away Teach me how to breathe deeply Teach me how to sleep easy And most of all teach me how - how not to dream. I don’t need coaching in running, that’s a thing that I’ve done And I don’t need it a tall ‘Cos all the time that you’re racing there are things you’re not facing Everything in the world. And everyone knows it’s true, the one thing you need to learn to do Is how to stand still. Teach me how to stop awhile, teach me how to stay The one thing I know about is walking away Teach me how to breathe deeply Teach me how to sleep easy And most of all teach me how - how not to dream. And please don’t leave me here thinking, dreaming, weaving, spinning All those castles in Spain There’s only one life for the taking, and there’s no point in mistaking That we can start again. And everyone knows it’s true, the one thing you need to learn to do Is how to stand still.
6.
The Horseman of Ceunant y Cyffdy 05:25
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As she was walking home, at the midnight hour She saw a young man coming with a milk white cow Saying “Can I walk with you, and can I take you home, For it’s a dark and cloudy night and it’s best you’re not alone.” “No, you can’t walk with me, and no you can’t take me home For I’m not fond of any white cows, and I’m better off alone.” As she was walking home, round about one o’clock She saw a young man coming, with a snow white dog. Saying “Can I walk with you, and can I take you home, For it’s a dark and cloudy night and it’s best you’re not alone.” “No, you can’t walk with me, and no you can’t take me home For I’m not fond of any white dogs, and I’m better off alone.” As she was walking home, two in the morning, of course She saw that young man riding on a cloud-white horse. Saying “Can I walk with you, and can I take you home, For it’s a dark and cloudy night and it’s best you’re not alone.” “Now you’re a fine looking young man, and I must say I do like your style, And you can walk along with me, if I’m the one that rides.” So it’s up in the saddle she mounted, with the young man walking beside While in the sky the clouds all parted, and the moon and stars gave light And they were nearly at her home, so nearly at her door But then a great gate rolled behind her, and another gate before So now she couldn’t go forwards, and now she couldn’t go back And something rolled across the sky and everything turned black. He said “Now will you marry me?” “How can I answer,” she said “When what I want is to be out o this fix and safely home in bed.” “Bring me your answer,” he told her, “in a month and a day” And suddenly the gates all parted and she rode on her way. For the next four weeks she whistled, and for the next four weeks she sang And the next day she had gone from the village to the arms of that fine young man. You’ll ask me, did this all happen? You’ll ask if this story is true And all I’ll say is take care where you’re going in case it happens to you Not everyone who smiles is your lover, not everyone who tricks you a foe And sometimes there’s a twist in the story when you’re not sure where to go. But love won’t block all your choices, true love lets you be who you are And real love shines more bright in the sky than any moon or star.
7.
Masks 03:38
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We all wear a mask he said, to hide us in our skin We only show the mask, he said, keep real stuff well locked in There’s no room here for your heart, he said, there’s no room for your tears They’ll just pull you apart, he said, play football with your fears. We all wear a mask, he said, to cover up our eyes I won’t take off the mask, he said, I need it for disguise You’re not at home in here, he said, no matter what you think You don’t make friends in here, he said, they’d push you to the brink. I can’t take off my mask, he said, I can’t remember how I feel I am the mask, he said, it’s what I look like now I love my kids and wife, he said, but they can’t help me here I feel I’ve lost my life, he said, it’s cost me far too dear. Don’t judge me by the mask, he said, don’t judge me by my crime I’m really not the mask, he said, but it’s got stuck with time I’d like to change my fate, he said, to alter how it’s gone But I think it’s all too late, he said, I think it’s all gone wrong. And yet, and yet he talked with me Of love and pain and pride And now I wonder what he’ll do When the prison door stands wide.
8.
King Herla 04:02
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King Herla met a very small man while riding through the wood A small man, a very small man, his feet were shaped like hoofs. Herla rode a fine white horse, the little man rode on a goat But it was clear he too was a king from the very first words he spoke. Herla you are king of this land and me, I’m king of another I hear that you are soon to be wed, and I’ll come as your brother Then in a year and a day you’ll come to my land, he said For it is in a year and a day that I myself will be wed. When King Herla’s wedding day came the little king came along With food and drink as a gift and haunting music and song I wish you joy and health, he said, I wish you joy with your bride And at my wedding in a year and a day I hope you’ll stand at my side. So it was in a year and a day King Herla and his men set forth They didn’t know where the small king lived, to west, south, east or north But just when they were heading home a white stag led them all down Into a cave below a high cliff, to a kingdom underground. There was the kingdom and there was the king, and a wedding of style and grace The small king said “I have gifts for you before you leave this place.” And he gave Herla a puppy to hold in his arms, a strange dog, some sort of hound And said “You must ride till this dog gives the sign, don’t dismount till he jumps to the ground.” King Herla’s men came out of the cave, they couldn’t believe what they saw For wherever they rode and wherever they went nothing was how it had been before. They’d been away for what felt like a year but hundreds of years had gone by Where were their houses, their homes, their friends, King Herla’s beautiful bride? Three men in panic dismounted then, but as their feet touched the ground They turned into dust from their heels to their heads, died there without a sound King Herla looked at the pup in his arms and thought what the small king had said So he kept riding with the rest of his men, his heart now as heavy as lead. They say he’s still riding over valley and hill, with his men still riding behind Waiting for the puppy to jump to the ground, waiting in vain for the sign They ride in the moonlight, they ride on the wind, King Herla, his horses and men He keeps in his heart a green wild hope one day he might reach home again.
9.
White Powder 02:07
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When he was a young man, wasn’t he clever When he was a young man, wasn’t he fine When he was a young man he came to this city And spent all his money on white powder and wine. When we firrst met we played just like children Playing at houses and playing with pills Playing at grown-ups, playing at lovers The games are long over, but he’s playing still. What do you do when your money is all gone What do you do but to thieve and to steal You start with your friends and move on to strangers You need that white powder to think and to feel. This is no love song for he was no lover All those who loved him were left far behind There’s no room for love when all that you’re thinking Is how to get more white powder and wine. And now when I lie in my bed I start dreaming I dream of his fingers and dream of his eyes But when morning comes it makes me remember All his betrayals and all of his lies. I met him last week in that grey stone cold building No young man now, and he counts the weeks past He looks at the sky and he talks about freedom And all that I’m thinking is love never lasts.
10.
Stone Circles 04:27
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Nobody is an island, there’s no way you can cut free Nobody is an island, there’s no way you can be cut off by sea And everything I do, touches you, and everything I am, you hold in your hand And it seems to me that we are standing stones There’s no way that we can ever be on our own And even if at times it seems that we are all alone We’re in stone circles, marking time, of standing stones. Nobody’s an outsider, there’s no way you can cut loose Nobody’s an outsider, there’s always some way to pay your dues. And everything I do, touches you, and everything I am, you hold in your hand And it seems to me that we are standing stones There’s no way that we can ever be on our own And even if at times it seems that we are all alone We’re in stone circles, marking time, of standing stones. The circle stands for ever, there’s no angle there to chip or break The circle stands for ever, there’s no straight line to show a slight mistake. And everything I do, touches you, and everything I am, you hold in your hand And it seems to me that we are standing stones There’s no way that we can ever be on our own And even if at times it seems that we are all alone We’re in stone circles, marking time, of standing stones. The wind blows from the hillside, but we stand firm and we do not bend The wind blows from the hillside, the circle is a pattern with no end. And everything I do, touches you, and everything I am, you hold in your hand And it seems to me that we are standing stones There’s no way that we can ever be on our own And even if at times it seems that we are all alone We’re in stone circles, marking time, of standing stones. We mustn’t break the circle, there’s no easy way to be released We mustn’t break the circle, and if we stand together we’ll find peace. And everything I do, touches you, and everything I am, you hold in your hand And it seems to me that we are standing stones There’s no way that we can ever be on our own And even if at times it seems that we are all alone We’re in stone circles, marking time, of standing stones.
11.
The Genie of the Button 05:26
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There’s a man in a corner and he’s polishing a button Polishing a button, wishing that his life would change And the genie of the button turns his life around and sideways Puts a red nose on his face and his feet upon the stage. And life is what happens when someone pulls your strings You don’t know how to move and you’ve no choice where to go We think we’re in control when the magic turns begin And then we slowly come to learn we’re puppets, in a show. There’s a man in a shop and he’s fashioning a puppet Gives it eyes and ears, a happy smile, and then gives it a name And he still thinks he’s in charge and the puppets are his children But the genie of the button puts his red nose on again. There’s a man sitting silent in the blackened bombed out building His eyes blank as his mind, and his body still as stone And the genie of the button is powerless to help him There is no kind of magic that can call his spirit home. Put a piece of wood into his hands and let him feel the face there Let him carve another child and make his creature walk As his puppet comes to life he’ll find his voice and memories And the genie of the button grins as Irving Pollard talks. Now the times have moved on and Irving Pollard has moved with them Coventry’s bombed buildings are a long-forgotten scene There are strangers in the places where the man and clown once worked There aren’t too many people who remember what has been. But the refugees from far away now live there in Hillfields With their memories of massacres, heartache and the war And when the strolling players act the genie of the button There’s laughter once again beyond the language and the culture There’s laughter once again the way the laughter came before. We’ve rebuilt the streets of Coventry and Pollard got his voice back We’ve seen how this world can change, the process doesn’t cease The genie of the button sees the homeless and heartbroken May the genie of the button give us laughter, love and peace.
12.
On an English Lawn 05:26
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A sunny afternoon, in still warm September We were sitting there, drinking English tea Such an afternoon, that’s what I remember A simple happy time with the family. And in the sky no hint of clouds And in the air no scent of rain And then someone said aloud “Here are the good times back again.” Looking through the glass, the flowers all still blooming An afternoon as quiet as the calmest dawn Who’d have guessed the change, as we sat there talking Who’d have expected death on an English lawn? And the hawk fell stooping ouf of the clear blue sky And death came swooping, the grey dove made no cry And they fell entwined in a cloud of feathers And the dove was bleeding, red as autumn leaves Almost an embrace, as they fought together If you looked just once you might be deceived. Oh I know that hawks get their food from killing And they take their prey on the wing in flight But we stood in shock watching the blood spilling Not sure what to do, not sure what was right. And in the sky no hint of clouds And on the air not a scent of rain Just the battle on the ground And discomfort back again. And I thought of how we never see death coming A car crash or a battle, a scratch from a thorn Sometimes we sit and watch the fiercest fight before us Where we think we’re safest, on an English lawn.
13.
The Strong Door 03:49
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Close the strong door, Merlin, leave the outside world to stew The woodland path is beckoning, and so I’ll follow you. Close the strong door, Merlin, leave the inside world to stew The starlit path is beckoning, and so I’ll follow you. We sleepwalk to the clifftop, we daydream to the brink We think we know what’s going on when we don’t know what we think It is all about the money, it is all about who’s strong It’s all about the light and dark, it’s all about right and wrong. Close the strong door, Merlin, leave the outside world to stew The woodland path is beckoning, and so I’ll follow you. Close the strong door, Merlin, leave the inside world to stew The starlit path is beckoning, and so I’ll follow you. Beneath us curl the dragons, above us shine the stars We stand here in the forest and wonder who we are You might want to call it magic, you might want to call it power To see the world the way it is from your many windowed tower. Close the strong door, Merlin, leave the outside world to stew The woodland path is beckoning, and so I’ll follow you. Close the strong door, Merlin, leave the inside world to stew The starlit path is beckoning, and so I’ll follow you. The pattern keeps on shifting, there are pieces that we’ve lost Not many of us searching or counting up the cost Whose tears fall for the powerless, whose arms defend the weak Who shares wealth with the penniless, who talks when we can’t speak? Close the strong door, Merlin, leave the outside world to stew The woodland path is beckoning, and so I’ll follow you. Close the strong door, Merlin, leave the inside world to stew The starlit path is beckoning, and so I’ll follow you.
14.
Who Will Dance 03:43
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Who will dance with me now, my lover, now my lover, now my lover Who will dance with me now, my lover Now my lover has gone? I won’t look in the mirror to see what he saw I won’t follow the silver path left on the floor I won’t see life as he saw it before Now my lover has gone. Who will dance with me now, my brother, now my brother, now my brother Who will dance with me now, my brother Now my brother has gone? The steps after midnight are harder to trace The way he has danced out of time into grace I can’t follow the journey he made from this place Now my brother has gone. Who will dance with me now, my child, now my child, now my child Who will dance with me now, my child Now my child has gone? Love is a gift given free with no strings You flew to the sun on your pair of wax wings And I hear the sound that the mountain wind sings Now my child has gone. Will you dance with me now, my sister, now my sister, now my sister Will you dance with me now, my sister Now I’m here alone And oh, if you love me, my sister, my friends You’ll dance close beside me till this music ends Nothing can be broken which will never mend Now my lover has gone. Now my brother has gone. Now my child has gone.

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All songs written, performed and produced by Anne Lister, who also plays guitar on most tracks. Most of the stories are based on stories, some of which are true and some of which came from Anne's work in prisons running storytelling workshops.

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released April 29, 2022

Recorded in 2008, thanks to crowd-funding, at Parkhead Studio, Yorkshire, with Brian Bedford at the controls.

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Anne Lister Wales, UK

Anne is best known for her song "Icarus", recorded and performed by a number of different singers, including Martin Simpson and Nic Jones. "Astrolabe" is her ninth solo album.

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