Both Sides

(Collins)

‘Though we might hate to admit it, there are always two sides to every story…’


Find yourself in the gutter in a lonely part of town
where death waits in the darkness with a weapon to cut some stranger down
sleeping with an empty bottle, he’s a sad and an empty hearted man
all he needs is a job, and a little respect, so he can get out while he can

We always need to hear both sides of the story

A neighbourhood peace is shattered it’s the middle of the night
young faces hide in the shadows, while they watch their mother and father fight
he says she’s been unfaithful, she says her love for him has gone
and the brother shrugs to his sister and says “looks like it’s just us from now on”

We always need to hear both sides of the story

And the lights are all on, the world is watching now
people looking for truth, we must not fail them now
be sure, before we close our eyes
don’t walk away from here
’til you hear both sides

Here we are all gathered in what seems to be the centre of the storm
neighbours once friendly now stand each side of the line that has been drawn
they’ve been fighting here for years, but now there’s killing on the streets
while small coffins are lined up sadly, now united in defeat

We always need to hear both sides of the story

And the lights are all on, the world is watching now
people looking for truth, we must not fail them now
be sure, before we close our eyes
don’t walk away from here
’til you see both sides

White man turns the corner, finds himself within a different world
ghetto kid grabs his shoulder, throws him up against the wall
he says “would you respect me if I didn’t have this gun
‘cos without it, I don’t get it, and that’s why I carry one”

We always need to hear both sides of the story

(Collins)

‘No matter how much you think you want or need it, the past
has to remain just that, the past…’


Could’ve given you everything that you need
but I cannot turn back the years
The perfect love was all you wanted from me
but I cannot turn back the years

So we have to be strong, and I’m finding that hard
we have to move on, but no matter how hard I try
if your heart’s in pieces, you look for the truth
and when I look deep down inside I know, it’s too bad I love you

Sometimes. hits me in the morning, hits me at night
that I cannot turn back the years
so I look out my window, turn off my light
but I cannot turn back the years

Can’t make it seem easy, when you’re all that I see
can’t live in a dream and I won’t serenade the truth
people are hurting and they’re looking to me
and I look at you there’s nothing more to say, it’s too bad I love you

But I’m never gonna give it up

All that I lived for, all that I dreamed
but I cannot turn back the years
You’re the water i drink, you’re the air that I breathe
but i cannot turn back the years

So we have to be strong, and I’m finding that hard
we have to move on, but no matter how hard I try
if your heart’s in pieces, you look for the truth
and when I look deep down inside I know, it’s too bad I love you

But I’m never gonna give it up

(Collins)

‘Love can make you do things you never dreamed possible…’


I got lost, couldn’t find my way
and I guess there’s nothing more to say
love can make you blind, make you act so strange
but I’m here and here I will stay

So everyday I cry
yes everyday I fall
do you ever wonder why, why I love everything about you

But everyday I say I’ll try to make my heart be still
’til then every way there is to cry, ourselves to sleep we will

It picked me up, knocked me off my feet
I’ve got no way to explain
still I love you, love you, love you but this fire inside
will never see the light of day

So everyday goes by
and everyday I fall
it makes me wonder why,
my life’s worth nothing without you

But everyday I say I’ll try
to make my heart be still
‘cos every way there is to cry,
ourselves to sleep, we will

You’ll never know, no, no, no ,no ,no
you’ll never know just how close we were
you’ll never know, no, no, no ,no ,no
you’ll never know
no you’ll never see

The book closes and we try to forget
but I know that things won’t change
how we feel, how life goes on
and that seems so strange

And so the light fades away
try, try, try as I may
I can’t stop thinking about you
it seems my life’s worth nothing without you

But everyday I say I’ll try
to make my heart be still
’til then every way there is to cry,
ourselves to sleep, we will

Everyday, everyday you know I try so hard
everyday, everyday it gets a little harder

(Collins)

‘…I get along without you very well’ (Hoagy Carmichael. 1939)


I’ve forgotten everything about you
’til someone says your name
I’ve forgotten all the reasons I loved you
’til someone tells me that you rang

The memories are hazy now
I don’t recall at all
there’s nothing, there’s nothing there
just me
and I don’t understand why

I can’t recollect my feelings
’til someone mentions that they saw you
I really don’t remember all the things you said
’til someone shows me where you live

Why is everything so hazy now
I don’t recall at all
there’s nothing, there’s nothing there
just me
and I don’t understand why

I can’t recall your smile
the touch of your hand holding mine
and I can’t remember why
holding you seemed so right

The memories they’re hazy now
I don’t recall at all
there’s nothing, there’s nothing there
just me
and I don’t understand why

I’ve forgotten everything about you
’til someone says your name
I’ve forgotten all the reasons I loved you
’til someone tells me that you rang

(Collins)

‘It seems that family values have changed since I was a kid, at
least I remember it that way…’


When I grow up to be a man
like my father was when I was young
I hope i can make him so proud of me
Proud enough to call me his son

What makes these people so different now
what makes these times so strange?
seems most people got most everything they need
how come we see this change

Our sons and daughters seem to be beyond our control
their smile is fading fast, they’re losing their soul
when will we ever learn, yet I’m a believer

When I was a boy, did we have more respect?
this world seemed a nicer place to be
but time slowly passes and one day you look around
you hardly recognise what you see

Our sons and daughters seem to be beyond our control
their smile is fading fast, they’re losing their soul
now when will we ever learn, yet I’m a believer

They’re beyond our control

We’re all sons of our fathers
sometimes I feel like mine
and I can hear him say, the things I say
seems all things come around in time

Why these things happen we’ll never know
guess that was then and this is now
we always knew that change was gonna come
but I want to go back, please tell me how

Our sons and daughters seem to be beyond our control
their smile is fading fast, they’re losing their soul
when will we ever learn, yet I’m a believer

(Collins)

‘…To try to do the right thing…always the right thing.’


I’ve been doing some thinking, here on my own
it’s been on my mind
this debt I owe to you
I have to repay in kind

But I can’t find my way

Tired and weary, I follow the path
that leads to your door
but it occurred to me, all that I have
is already yours

But I can’t find my way

Oh, just to sit a while
Oh, just to sit and watch you smile

But I can’t find my way

Keep the faith you say
to keep the faith I pray
be strong you say
just follow the light

Wheels keep turning but the close I get
the farther I seem
peace will only come
finding the peace within

But I can’t find my way

(Collins)

‘…I never meant to break your heart, please forgive me.’


No I never meant to hold you back
I never meant to turn away
please forgive me

I never meant to break your heart
I’d give my last breath before I do
please forgive me

No I never meant to hold you down
I never meant to break your heart
somehow, somehow
we are survivors

No I never meant to hold you back
I never meant to turn away
here we are standing here
survivors in the night

No I never meant to break your heart
I’ll always be here for you
here’s my word, take my hand
survivors in the night

No I never meant to let you down
I’d give my last breath before I do
all I ever wanted was to be right here
survivors in the night

When all is said and done
we’ll find a way
to put all this behind us
we’ll find some way
‘cos you know that I won’t be leaving
yes I’m here and i won’t be leaving

No I never meant to cause you pain
no I never meant to hurt you
all I want to do now, is to try my best
survivors in the night

When all is said and done
we’ll find someday
we can forget all this
somehow, some way

And as long as I’m here
there’ll be no worries any more
and all these promises I’m making now
I’ll hold each day

So don’t ever. don’t ever, don’t forget
that I never, never meant to break your heart
all I ever wanted was to stand beside you
survivors in the night

We are survivors in the night

(Collins)

‘We never realise just how close we come to disaster
whether in love or everyday life…’


My harbour lights are fading fast
soon they’ll disappear
alone I sit in darkness
hoping someone might come near
though I wait, though I try
no one ever comes
and the feeling that I have flood over me
the river starts to run

We fly so close
we fly so close
sometimes we fly too close

Every place you run to, everywhere you turn
there are places that you know you should not go
but some bridges just won’t burn
all my life, though I try
I cannot change the past
and the ghosts that come back to haunt you
make you realise at last

We fly so close
we fly so close
sometimes we fly too close
we fly too close

My heart is racing much faster now
life passes before my eyes
something’s I see, they make me smile
something’s they make me cry
so I look, so I try to find
a lesson I can learn
the passing of time hasn’t changed my mind
and the ghosts I know return

You know we fly so close
we fly so close
sometimes we fly too close
we fly too close

We fly so close, you and I sometimes
sometimes we fly so close,
we’ll never know how many times
we fly so close
we fly so close

(Collins)

‘…There’s a place for us, somewhere a time and a place.’


So here we are together
just you and me
sitting side by side
don’t know why
with time just racing by
but I don’t want to go

Well I don’t know much about it
‘cos all I am is what you see
in front of you
there’s no more
feels so close and yet so far
but I don’t want to go

Here I am, take my hand
here I am, please take my hand

I’d like to sit here with you if that’s alright
if you don’t mind I could sit and stare all night
sit here waiting for you to hold me tight

It’s sad but I know it’s true
you see I know you well
you’d only laugh at me
and that would hurt me so
just look at me here
you’ve got me pleading with you
but i don’t want to go

‘Cos you know that I love you so
yes you know that I love you so

Here. I will be here love
for you love, I will always be here love

If you look real close
you’ll see my heart is on my sleeve
and it’ll be here waiting
waiting for you, waiting for me
someone once said that if you truly, truly believe
you can make things happen
make things appear to be all that they seem
tell me do you believe?

We’ll find a hideaway
together we’ll find a way
somewhere, somehow, we’ll find some way
there must be somewhere
there must be someplace
we can find somewhere
where they don’t know my face
believe me we can find it
yes we can find it
somewhere, there’s a place for us
somewhere, a time and a place for us
somewhere

(Collins)

‘To the outsider it seems that we in Britain live daily
under the cloud of terrorism. That familiarity sometimes
makes you think of it as almost normal, then suddenly
something will happen…’


We stand, hang our heads disbelieving
then not knowing how could such a thing be wrong
we wonder just what they must be thinking
to take a life of one so young

So tell me when will it be over now, how soon?
how far must we go, to prove to you?

We wait and we wonder how this happened
killing the old, the innocent, the young
while sons follow in fathers footsteps not understanding
that what they do could somehow be so wrong

So tell me when will it be over now, how soon?
how far must we go, to prove to you?

So we will wait and we’ll wonder

No regrets, no forgiveness, no compassion
these brave heroes only know to hit and run
slowly my sadness turns to rage and we wonder
how can these scars ever heal, when all is said and done

So tell me when will it be over now, how soon?
how many tears must fall to prove to you?
please tell me, when will it be over now, how soon?
and how far must they go, to prove to you?

So we wait and we wonder

(Collins)

‘…When all is said and done, there’s just you and me.’


Please come out tonight I need you here
its been a long, long time and I can’t wait
let’s find out, let’s see what it’s like out there
if it rains we’ll find somewhere, somewhere dry and warm

You’ll say “my, it’s been a long, long time”
I’ll say “how are you? I’ve been fine”

Please come out tonight, let’s go out and see the world
we can try to find, find somewhere
it seems so long ago, I can hardly remember the time
it’s all I want, it’s all I want, so let’s see what we find

You’ll say “there’s so much you need to know”
I’ll say “are you really sure you have to go?”

We don’t need a reason, no explainations
just stay with me here, tonight
I won’t say a word
I just need you here

Please come out tonight, let’s go out and find ourselves
you can lean your head on my shoulder, remember?

You’ll say “My, is that the time?”
I’ll say “why not stay with me tonight?”

We don’t need a reason
it’s so warm inside
there’s no one between us
if someone comes we can hide
just lay here beside me
just see what it’s like

Please come out tonight