The soft kiss of your lips, it felt like I’d been born all over again
You’d never been kissed before; those were the words that you said
And in the shelter of the shadows that were hiding from the sunlight
In the middle of the world, you were always there by my side
Close your eyes and take a breath, feel the electric
Darling I can hold you tight, and promise this kiss you’ll never forget it
We were just two desperate lovers, with youth on our side
Caught up in the moment, so beautiful the street beggar cried
Wishing she was youthful again and remembering the feeling
Of her own first kiss some moons ago beneath the run down school hall ceiling

Time she moved fast, is anything this good really meant to last ?
Your kiss is still mine, and for your sweet love, I still pine
I was besotted by the thought of you and you make me kind of crazy
Tell me I can kiss your lips once more, tell me pretty lady
I aint good enough to be your man and is this just a joke
You were an angel in my wildest dreams emerging from the smoke
And months they passed our silence grew as we ran out of things to say
When all we ever did before was French kissing night and day
The honeymoon periods over, pack up your bags and run
I said I’m sorry Maria, it’s all been kind of fun
But we don’t have that much in common when it’s all said and done
And maybe I was caught in the moment thinking my first kiss was the one
I walk down the same street, past the spot where we first kissed
And now and then I glance over and see our ghosts caught in the bliss
Of an eternal love locked kiss

I’d lie at night and dream one day you’ll be mine
Watch you from one of those passing cars
Slowing down to get a glimpse of you looking so fine
Sitting in the window of some coffee bar
Sipping some skinny late,
And I’d wish that cup in your hand was me

I’d dream I was that cup in your hand
And your lipstick would be stained on me too
I wish I could get as close to you
As those waiters do
Who bring your coffee cup
I stare intoxicated, drunk on your beautiful looks

I’d dream I was the person sitting in your company
I dream about you a lot but hey a boy got to dream
It’s the fuel that guides me
And keeps me going when I know I have no chance
Of being the mug your lips kiss, or the waiter who longs for
Something more than a summer romance

Maybe I could stop my car and stare no more
If I sat near you then maybe I’d see
That stolen cars and coffee bars are just places within my dreams
I see you smile but hey, what does that smile mean ?
It’s the not knowing and always guessing that keeps this red blooded man keen
It’s not the rejection that’ll hurt, for being with you might not be all that it seems
Because if I’m with you and your not as good as you were last night in my dreams
Then I’m cheated of my desires, my dreams are all lies
And I won’t know who I am anymore!
So I’m happy being that guy, driving some rusty car always slowing down past the coffee bar
Admiring you from afar and I’m going to dream of you again tonight!

Daniel left for work, late last night
Past the rusty cars and sports hall clubs where fat Eddie Shaw got his title fight
Walking the streets, lunch box in hand, through the hard metal gates where the gate house sits
Through the entrance of the steel mills land
There’s a furnace over there blasting out smoke but is smoke all its making?
There’s some politician sitting in his executive suite always just taking
Like you give your life and blood to these mills but it’s never really going to be enough
When times are good my god they’re great but when they’re bad they’re awful tough
Tonight I saw the steelers come from the mills like a snake from beneath a rock
Such empty eyes trying to read past the Westminster lies wondering how much more work he’s got
Then they fall through the floodgates with banners in their hand chanting please don’t close our mills
I’ve a wife at home, and some children to keep, I’ve got a mortgage, I’ve got bills
Into the Concast plant where Big max stands with sweat dripping from his hand
There’s something wrong, is there a conspiracy, is our fate already planned ?
And little Tommy McCann on his first school trip was told this mill’s where your grandfather worked
They want to close it down, his legacy will be lost, they want to raise this mill to the earth
Maybe in some office there’s a plan on it’s way
But it’s getting too late, save our children they say
And the workers who worked there working life at these works still pleading something needs to be done
Daniel he walked into the smoke of the four queens, towering over the houses and chimney stacks, have you ever seen them
Into the furnace, he shelters from the rain, looks up to the stars over the steel town that’ll never be the same
And he remembers as a boy he’d sit on the knee of his grandpa below the pipe from his lips as he choked
Grandpa rubbed my back, his lips pressed to my ear and told me one day you’ll taste the furnace smoke
You see in this town there’s nothing else around and my boy it’s a done deal
The tracks the trains roll on and supports that hold up the towers are all built from this towns steel
One day Daniel you’ll take your place in the line like me and my daddy before me
And when you have some kids they too will work the mills and you can tell them all my steelmaking story’s
Like when I was thirteen years old and watched a man go cold after getting covered in molten metal
And the way the furnace roars then settles down, the Devils cry from hell
Back in the cold air, on top of the furnace, a shooting star shot past him and upon it he made a wish
My grandpa died, back in 93
although I miss him I’m pleased he’s gone so he don’t have to see
The closing of the mills and the tears in the eyes of all the desperate men
Telling their wife and kids they can’t pay the bills and can’t pay the rent
Daniels sixty three now, the mills closed a long time ago
Sits his grandchildren on his frail knees and tells them of the town that once blew smoke
And they stare at him, with amazement in their eyes,
Daniel’s getting ready for work back at the convenience store but his heart’s grown weary and tired
Long after I’m gone remember the words I tell about the mighty steel mills
My darling grandson keep safe those stories, promise grandpa that you will
They were a sacred land in the middle of a town and they should never have closed the beautiful place down
And now all that’s left of the mills and where they stood is some open grass field

Will you tell me please my darling, what have I done
Will you tell me is it those words I spoke, tell me what’s wrong
We’ve been holding hands now for six years, and seven days
Will you tell me sweetheart, has our love ran away
You just stood there standing in your evening gown, just walking these walls of our old town house
And the only thing you tell me now is that you’re filled with doubt, and you don’t know where to go
You see before there was only you and me, then you gave birth and it was so sweet
But it left you confused and needing me, but you didn’t tell me how you feel
So I pulled out the wooden chair,
took hold of your hand and guided you there
Sat you down and told you my ears are now yours
You said some days I just don’t want to get up, some days I’m happy, others I’ve had enough
When I look in the mirror I’m a little lost, and I just want to close my eyes
And when you’re there it’s really great but in those evening when it’s dark and it’s getting late
There’s a baby she’s screaming for something to eat and I’ve not yet found my own feet
And for these feelings I have do they make me bad
I’m the mother you are the dad
But does that mean we now forget all the fun we had, before we settled down
It feels like these four walls are now my life, but your my husband and I’m your wife
And you’re not strong enough to hold the tears I cry so I just keep on going on
Then you stand up and give me a smile
I kiss your head and tell you it might take a while
But anything you ever need, darling come see me
The very next day you were singing around, dancing with our baby ******* the ground
Laughing and smiling, I love that sound,
baby look at you both, now you’re fixed You told me you were never broken
It’s not a condition I have that’s been diagnosed It’s just I feel a little heart broken
And I don’t know what for, because it’s still you I adore
I just need to feel like me again, instead of sitting here I should be out in the rain
Breathing the air from the world and washing away the pain
So when I’m down, when I’m in a mood, when I say some things that hurt and I shout at you
It’s because the clocks still ticking but time don’t move
And I just want you to hold me in your arms

It's never been my goal in life to make lots of money
It's just, something I learned along the way now honey
I'm just stranded in this big old world trying to make my way through
With no money but pockets full of love to give I try to take care of you
We would sit together in our rags, those evenings when it's no longer sunny
And I'd still laugh at all your silly little jokes even when they ain't that funny
But now I'm laughing, laughing at those things we've done
Because I love you, you know I do but I don't know where we're going
I'm still laughing, laughing back at you, you see
Girl one day I hate you but the next I love you enough to set you free
Those things we talked about, in the evenings
You said you feel trapped girl, so I packed my bags, I'm leaving
But hey that ain't really, really what you want
I say I want to leave you but my heart tells me I can't
What are we doing, to ourselves my pretty girl
All we are is two small dots on the face of this small earth
And now you're laughing .... How I loved our laugh so sweet
I want to walk right over to you, and sweep you off your feet
Smiling at me, why can't we just get along
Every night I dream about you and by the day about you I write songs
I think about you, with every single breath I take
It's a constant struggle with you by my side in this world to make it
Lets laugh .... Laugh together at what we've done
Let me hold your hand when you need a friend or a shoulder to cry on
Together honey, it's pretty clear we ain't that good no more
But I cherish the love we used to have and you know I still adore you
And just maybe, when we both know what we want
We could meet up, then just maybe we could have then what we now can't
Let me kiss you, just one last time kiss me
Then I promise I'll love you just enough to set my baby free

It was never enough; my love was never good enough they said
For you, for you, for you
You were the daughter of a father who, would never let us be
I was the lover of a daughter who fell in love with me
Secret nights we spent together, beneath the summer rain
Secret nights I sat alone in my room wondering if I will see you again
But those warm nights in the empty town when there’s no one else around
When our hands kiss and our lips stroke and your breath is the only sound
I would open my eyes and see, the girl who haunts my dreams
If you ever open your eyes enough you’d see nothing’s ever quite as it seems
If I could hold you forever I’d pull you close to me
If I had the strength my love I’d pull so hard until you became one with me
And if you only remember a few words I spoke, when you sit alone in your room
Remember the promise I made when I said my love was for you, for you, for you

We were forever growing older, but nothing moves that fast, I beg for your hand but you told me
Daddy said it would never last
Run away with me, I’ll run right by your side, and our feelings that shame us, we’d no longer hide
Open hands in the day time, and walks along the beach, and when the winter storm clouds gather, we can shelter out of reach,
Far away from the cynics, from all the doubters in the town, we’d just be two silent lovers in the downpour, with all our love around
Maybe we would stay together, then again maybe we won’t,
But we’ll always keep on guessing my love if our chance to take, we don’t
Look at us sitting here, you’re a lover, I’m a fool
But remember those promises I made when I promised my love was for you, for you, for you

I saw them, those delicate cracks that cover your once red lips; I felt them as they pressed against my tiny cheeks, my eyes shut tight as I felt every rupture and the pain your lips carry, my unwrinkled skin received your kiss like a long awaited gift and then …. It was gone
I saw them, those eyes once full, they reflected everything around them, like a sponge absorbing the very essence of life, and how your eyes used to shine at me, but now as you stare at me they carry an uninhabited look about them, where have you gone?
I saw them, the convulsing of your once great hands, the same hands that cradled my infant form are now too weak to bear the weight of one’s own bones, let me hold you for a while
I hear you when you whisper to me that I am never alone, and I hold that thought forever, that is my comfort
And so here we are, your final twitch, our goodbye for now, for 48 summers you carried yourself along on this journey, should I see 49 I wish only to be half as beautiful as you
I close my eyes and you were gone, and the room was desolate with all but my love for you
The thirteenth day of June becomes a mere marker of the distance between us
And now all of these years later I sit in my own dwelling, still daydreaming of you, and within the 18 summers that have raced passed me I have borne my own offspring
And when they play as I used to, when they nestle amongst themselves and laugh, the laughter of innocence I smile and I hope wherever you are you can smile too and say “I saw them”