For many years our favorite songwriter in the traditional style has been Ewan MacColl and for the first time we have tackled one of his songs on album. The song concerns the "travelling people" of our country who have been not only a living source of material for countless performers but also an endangered culture well worth saving by the might of the pen and the melody (if not by stronger means).
This is by way of a lament for the beauty of their life style which has been, and is, constantly spoiled by legislation and, in many cases, non-understanding people.
lyrics
The heather will fade and the bracken will die
Streams will run cold and clear
And the small birds they'll be going
And it's then that you'll be knowing
That the terror time is here
Where will you go aye and what will ye dae
Noo that the works a' done
And the fermer doesnae need ye
And the cooncil winnae heed ye
And you're on the road again
Woods give no shelter and the trees they are bare
Snow's lying all around
And the children they are crying
For the bed on which they're lying
Is frozen to the ground
When you need the warmth of your own human kind
You're no near a town and then
The sight of you is offending
The police they are sending
And you're on the road again
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supported by 7 fans who also own “The Terror Time”
Dystopia was my introduction to Talisk when the live version of it was out on youtube. Between the energy and life not just by the music itself, but the people playing it being so engrained into the songs themselves, Talisk has become a foot-stomper, and an absolute jam of a band to put on full volume. ladyoforion