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The Dandy at the End of the World

by The Songs of Tom Smith

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1.
Come and See the Apocalypse 02:56
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Between Europe and Asia, they looked for a short cut route For centuries the sailors ate each other and their boots Now the ice is melting, it’s too good to refuse For the North-West Channel, board the passenger cruise CHORUS Come and see the Apocalypse The package tour is sold Destruction’s the attraction It’s a wonder to behold Take a tour of sacred lands, wave at the native tribes Through a delicate eco-balance, on board a luxury line There’s no venue for the travellers, where everyone can fit So the village welcome dance will take place on the ship CHORUS The Sahara Desert’s covered a blanket of snow 3 feet Pacific Islands sink under the plastic coated sea Australia is on fire, in twilight most of the day The sun’s a blood red orange light through the smoke-filled haze
2.
I am the Virus 03:02
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Got off the bus at the library but if I’m so unclean Not allowed in public space, they want me quarantined Never been so worried before / about my health As when you’re on the end of disease I could spread I am the virus Everyone needs a home to go to I am the virus And I’m looking for a host I went back to the shelter, told I have to get out Inspectors have decreed it’s dangerous and crowded Wash your hands, share no food / plates or knives It’s too late, sharing is our / way of life CHORUS Wasn’t me brought it back from a foreign holiday Put me up in hotel room, let the government pay When it’s cold I stayed awake / all night on speed Who will bring me my fix / now I cannot leave CH
3.
Drugs in Lockdown 02:49
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Mum let me grow couple of plants in the backyard for personal use Neighbour wanted a crime watch medal, let the drug squad have the news Since lockdown you just can’t score, borders are all closed Everyone’s polishing off their dregs, I need my daily dose CHORUS Trapped inside without my stash How do you score drugs in lockdown? It’s an ever diminishing patch How do you score drugs in lockdown? Normally I find the guy at the gig with the backpack and white boy dreads Or the hakki sackers at the local park are happy to take my bread At record shops with ironic mullets, t-shirts with cut-off sleeves Sniff out patchouli, let them come to you, hippies love to share their weed CHORUS You can’t get weed on the dark web, put in an order for ice Don Bradman in the outer suburbs of Sydney, keep the legend alive Or when it’s delivered to your address, use Elvis or Batman’s name Comes inside a birthday card in a vacuum sealed sachet Can’t get rehab or counselling, Mum bought a reinforced cage I was ready to top myself, kept me there for 4 weeks straight I could make orders on my laptop but couldn’t get to the mail That’s deprivation of liberty, didn’t dare have charges laid
4.
Let the Exorcism Begin 02:47
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Living with homeless women and children 91 Gulf War Eve The government planned homelessness and death In Iraq for the sake of freedom Disarmed a weapon of mass destruction Poured a cross of human blood We asked the soldiers to pray with us When they turned up with their guns CHORUS 1 Let the exorcism begin Corporation, Church and State The Institution is possessed Let Evil reveal its name Keep your hands visible and do not move We said ‘Love your enemy’ Say one more word and we’ll blow off your head Got us on the ground spread-eagled Kicked me in the guts, poked me with his gun Said where are your bombs concealed? We’ve got no bombs, you’re the one with bombs That’s why we’re here CHORUS Soldiers come, kidnap your brother Humiliate your parents Rape your sister destroy your home Who is buying terror? Retails on your local main drag Plant a car bomb in the street Wholesales at the big end of town Drop napalm from thousands of feet
5.
Like the Plague 04:01
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Along the Silk Road to Crimea for merchant ships rat fleas Wiped out half of humanity, forests and the land were freed up Serfs demand payment for tasks, no Church holds Heaven’s hearth Rediscover philosophy and science, find ur perspective in Art CHORUS Nothing will destroy you Leave you with no choices No one can avoid it No one can avoid it No one can avoid it Like the plague Farming’s left in the back seat, Industry’s a runaway train Cities connected and overcrowding, let the wilderness bear the strain In the Great War we maintain morale, sensor influenza It kills more soldiers than died in battle, put the war to an end CHORUS Bridge Is it part of your nature or is it of your own making? In love n war it might be fair, it’s the disease we’re all gunna share To get to the logs and mines, through the forest there’s a road Kill the animals or cage them, shake a virus loose from its host Dare a disease to discriminate, I could point out the connection Now you’re feeling vulnerable, you speak to me my precious CHORUS Spread the news (like the plague) No excuse (like the plague) Make your peace (like the plague) Friends in need (like the plague)
6.
Dumpster Dive Dinner Party 02:47
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The guard on duty says he gets so bored If it wasn’t his job he’d help me with my haul All the dumpster divers are his friend There’s a dumpster full of fresh food round the bend CHORUS Another day another dumpster No one has to starve Pitch a tent in your backyard Dumpster dive dinner party Surveillance cameras are just positioned to scare you No one ever monitors them who cares The smell of fresh fruit and vege’s in their prime The use by date’s only meant as a guide CHORUS Bridge A fregan never goes hungry A fregan always has friends Nothing should go to waste Everybody shares Dumpster dive dinner party The less the money I part with at the shop The more I am a connoisseur food snob Smoked fish, fresh pasta, sourdough bread Imported cheese, olives, dips and spreads
7.
The Code For Social Change 02:40
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Saw a lizard beheaded by a cat in the mountain Death allows transformation What do I want from the psychedelic rite The code for social change When you’re empty of love ask the medicine what moves Or fill the space with fear Don’t go into the foetal position You have to sit up and sing CHORUS 1 How can you understand death, stand back and observe Like inside a prison cell, if the greater good is served Comforts I can’t bear to give up Grief beckons fortitude There’s a deep-seated trauma we live in scarcity That nature will not be renewed That we’re strangers each to the other Powerless to realise a plan We can only all come together In Civil Defiance en Masse CHORUS 1 CHORUS 2 Separated from the system, stand back and observe How can you understand death for the sake of life on earth
8.
The Count of St. Germain 03:58
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You retire alone in the evenings with Loius the XV Madame de Pompadour isn’t jealous in the least She hangs on every word, lost in your eyes so blue Pleads for one more story and says yes yes it must be true CHORUS Call me The Count of St. Germain, the man who will never die I have magical powers, I never confirm or deny You may have heard the rumours, I never confirm or deny I’m St. Germain at your service, the man who will never die Does alchemy’s mastery your riches to explain Snuff box, garter stud, diamonds on display Do you have the elixir that brings eternal life When I ask the question, why do you only smile (and say) CHORUS Inst. For 50 years we know of you’ve been 35 years in age Darling of the nobility, tell me your real name Fluent in 12 languages, on the edge of our seats You speak like the true witness of all civilised history Could you stage your own death only to re-appear After 5 years in hiding, storm the Bastille Weren’t you marked 50 years hence in Napoleon’s campaign Pray weren’t you with Jesus Christ on crucifixion day? CHORUS (Extra verse) A General for Catherine the Great, Czar Peter displaced Might a spy disguise himself with courtly manners and grace Washington values your advice on the War of Independence Queen of Sheba and Cleopatra are personal friends (yes)
9.
Thanks to the Establishment 03:41
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Paths have been mowed through the tall grass and Ironbarks Washing lines and tents pegged between the trees In the kitchen they’re making lunch, vege gardeners r out the back Media crew catch the verandah breeze I’ve officially left my job now to be an activist full-time I am feeling nervous but not afraid I loved my work as a midwife bringing babies into the world But now I wanna know their future’s safe CHORUS Thanks to the establishment We went along for the ride The shareholders are pulling out We’re implicated in the crime Thanks to the establishment Goodbye to the debts We’re building on the trust Investing in our friends Down the hill they’re running a direct action drill In an exercise in role play you learn To confront an angry worker, it’s not just food from his baby’s mouth Your decision to be arrested or moved on CHORUS Walked 12 hours in the dark, re-plant the forest cleared You always sensed a calling you’re resigned As bunnies we’re arrested for the future of the grandkids Your superannuation pays the fines
10.
The Project Will Go Ahead 04:05
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The totems for this country are the emu and the eel you say You own the knowledge to the secret of your past Your flag you say represents Waikiburra and Ballianda River As panted once on boomerang and bark You declare sovereignty Establish camp to practice Custom and lore and peace With your ancestors CHORUS La la la la la The project will go ahead x2 You say we’re cutting down the trees to dig into the ground for coal Where the spirit of the dreamtime can hold you Only the land you say can teach you to sing and dance And belong in ceremony You open it up to First Nations Come protect the water And everyone help celebrate Survival of your culture CHORUS You say we paid off people The meeting was a sham You say you never agreed To let us use your land CHORUS La la la la la The project will go ahead Bridge The project will go ahead, the mining will start and end Before you prove connection to country We haven’t broken any laws, can you even follow yours? Before you prove connection to country CHORUS
11.
Strike it off the Record 03:06
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From Porstmouth in 87 Low on ammunition By Rio de Janeiro Muskets still not fixed yet Blacksmith had not tools Sent for supplies Smallpox is in bottles But nothing else arrived CHORUS It was only ever just in case Strike it off the record You could wipe out the whole race Strike it off the record January 88 First fleet arrived Soldiers were unfit Went missing or were dying We dragged nets across the harbour Cut off food supply Smallpox is in bottles As the natives mobilise CHORUS Have to reload every shot Muskets were inaccurate Aboriginals became accustomed Less prone to scattering Blankets could be infested Strategically placed Smallpox is in bottles On the ship just in case CH
12.
The Earthquake and the Pandemic 03:51
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6 in the morning waiting outside for the aftershock to subside Social distance utmost in your thoughts Freezing as the north winds blowing morning mist into faint snow We’re all denied proximity and warmth CHORUS The Earthquake and the Pandemic Come together without intersecting Love and survival never been so at odds One is unpredictable The other creeps around invisible Love and survival never been so at odds Buildings cracked, rooftops damaged, streets are littered with concrete slabs Mothers ejected bearing newborn babes Cathedral spire collapsed on the floor, if you’re the one crushed under a door I’ll take your hand the protective mask can wait I call up my disabled mother, just had a stroke she’s one of the vulnerable Somehow on my soul a peace descends The buildings will all be repaired, virus immunity developed I will see my mother walk again CHORUS
13.
Last Man Stands 03:29
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14.
Dandy at the End of the World 04:02
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Everyday I take a bus to the Evacuation Centre Wear my top hat, twirl my cane, greet dispossessed there The finest threads distinguish me from drab ‘n’ ordinary Money is a grubby business but leisure is my calling Bridge I’m a dandy at the end of the world x 2 Ready for the water rations, my bucket has pride of place It’s simple and it’s elegant, I fetch it home with grace Stockin well up on cosmetics, prepare f supplies to finish I parade in front of ruffians and blow the soldiers kisses CHORUS I’m a dandy at the end of the world I was born to play this part I’d be seen dead nowhere else I’m a superhero dressed for the part Come on down to the epicenter the aftershock‘s settled M’ sweet scent wafts right thro for volunteers assembled I have no status or profession, trust me I believe in nothing There’s always beauty to be found, especially in destruction

about

Now that humanity cannot be saved and extinction is certain, there are a lot of ideas doing the rounds. We’re all taking the situation very seriously. Everyone, that is, except for one individual. He doesn’t really have an opinion about anything. He does however love a good story. Well, he loves a good story as long as he’s the one telling it! And most of all he loves being the centre of attention.

Money might be a grubby business but leisure is his calling. Allow me to introduce:

The Dandy at the End of the World

credits

released November 26, 2022

David Laczko – Guitars, Synth and Lead Vocals (2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12) and backing vocals; Dave Beard – Bass, Synth and Backing Vocals; Tom Smith – Guitar and Lead Vocals, Lindsay Hooper – Drums and Backing Vocals, Laura Cantrill – Backing Vocals (1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12, 13), Elise Clark – Backing Vocals (4, 6, 8, 11, 14). Thanks to Cam for Extra Synth and Keys

Recorded on the stolen lands of the Jagera and Turrbul people. Sovereignty was never ceded.

CD artwork and design by Jarren Gallway

Recorded mixed and mastered by Cam Smith at Incremental, Coorparoo, Qld 2021/2022

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The Songs of Tom Smith Brisbane, Australia

The Songs of Tom Smith is a recording and performance project created by Tom in 2012. It has a large pool of musicians across Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide.

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