MUSIC, SONGS
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POETRY
& POETRY
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MUSIC
SONGS
POETRY
WEBSITE COPYRIGHT KEITH HOUGHTON 2005 COPYRIGHT FOR CONTRIBUTIONS REMAINS SOLELY WITH AUTHOR OR COMPOSER |
POETRY DREAMS AND SCHEMES They're building a brand new shopping centre And another high-rise office block There's now luxurious apartments Where once stood a working dock Architects dreams and planning schemes Come together in the Capital of Culture They talk of rejuvenation And a promise of a brighter future
Where we'd see a closed down factory They'd see a prime sight with retail potential They say it's a buoyant consumer economy Though shipyards are standing idle Wine bars and fancy restaurants Now share space with fashionable trendy shops There's a giant D.I.Y superstore On the street where I grew up
It doesn't seem that long ago Since the motor car was king When the flyover and the underpass Would an end to congestion bring But of course it just became grid locked With no one going anywhere And that heavy smell of exhaust fumes Hung choking in the air
But again they've found the answer Contained in their study report The tramway and the bus lane Prioritised public transport So put your car aside, and park and ride Let pedestrians reclaim the streets But who'll count the cost, as more greenbelt is lost Beneath a car park of flattened concrete
Libraries, parks and gardens The list goes on and on You don't know what you've really lost Until it's finally gone Services we took for granted Now lie in ruins all around For it's true, you can raise a tidy sum Selling off another school sports ground
Because for generations they did nothing As the city's problems grew And the prosperity it was built upon Disappeared to the pockets of a few Though now they rejoice in their victory And wallow in their glory But there's places round here, where you will hear A far more different story
Still, you probably think people like me Just run this city down Because we won't follow, refuse to swallow All this crap that's flying around With the cynics point of view, you can see right through All the hype that's going on For to me it's clear, I'll still be here Long after, this Capital of Culture bandwagon has gone
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