Land of Green and Gold © David Mason, November 1997 I see you in my memory, as timeless as you're old A land of breathless beauty, a Land of Green and Gold Touched by verdant forest, peaked by mountain high Where pastel painted deserts kiss a pure expanse of sky. I see you in my memory, bright colour in my grey From the foothills of the Drakensberg to the surf in Jeffrey's Bay Namaqualand to Griqualand and across the vast Karoo Veld and vlei rejoice today I sing this song for you. I see you in my memory and though you're far away Ten thousand miles between us may yet disappear some day In these distant lands of winter, how my fantasies unfold I'm soaring as my heart beats with you, Land of Green and Gold.

Late In The Night Lyrics © Misty Drake, Music © Dave Mason Jan 2020 I had a dream late in the night - we did not send our sons to die They turned 18, they learned a trade, would never have to throw grenades No sons sent home in flag topped box - instead their days spent skipping rocks Youthful lives of games and fun, not playing tag with bombs or guns. No mothers weeping at the plane, no missing fathers - just a name No wives, no girlfriends getting news to tell their unborn children to Growing up meant jobs and wives, not suiting up, not taking lives Can’t we fix more without a war? What are we always killing for? Can we just let each other be? We all want peace and harmony Then I awoke I saw the news - the anniversary of murdered Jews All stood to fight for the worthwhile cause yet sixty million lives were lost How many of the dead were kids who had somehow lost their right to live A war zone is no place to play, smoke fills the air, the sun turns grey Barren lands, dust cloud streets - their blood is spread beneath our feet A soldier cries out to the Lord, another just can't cry no more A father holds his little girl - she was his love, his life, his world It starts right here, this thing called peace - I live my life, I let yours be Can’t we do more without a war? What are our children dying for? I had a dream late in the night - we did not send our sons to die

This Road © Dave Mason, May 2020 This road goes for ever, for ever on and on From humble beginnings, I have wandered my life long Through the white snows of winter, the heat of summer sun,
 Chasing rainbows wherever I have gone… This road waits for no-one - always time to move on Past these places of darkness where the light has never shone,
 Are we cursed by the fires of things that we have seen? 'Cause, they still haunt me, sometimes, in my dreams…. Each crazy adventure, these songs I sing Each magical moment - means everything This fortune called friendship - leaves me no doubt That this road is what life’s all about…. I’ve walked slow and easy, the path clear and sure Felt fear when horizons turned dark and obscure Met the ragged, the broken - in fear-filled dead-end streets Where doubt changes dreams to defeat…. There are roads well remembered - I’ll share them with pride There are those best forgotten - I’ll keep them inside My road will continue - when all is said and done Over moons, skipping stars and to the sun....

Guernica © Dave Mason Feb 2020 I recall the bombs from heaven, I was just a child - eleven It was April, nineteen thirty seven - in Guernica….. Three hours felt like three lifetimes, my friends all slaughtered in their prime Living here our only crime - oh, Guernica….. Cacophony of tortured screams, the roaring buzz of those freak machines I still hear them in my dreams - of Guernica… From questions that will never cease, to Picasso’s childish masterpiece I wonder, will the world find peace - for Guernica.... Now, for eighty years, I’ve wondered why Death still haunts us from the sky The guilty have their alibi Some nations even justify The UN seeks to clarify While innocent and children die In Syria …

Snowflakes © Dave Mason Dec 2019 Spinning, swirling, twisting, twirling, tumbling through the sky Snowflakes, softly shimmering, a million fairies fly Oh heart, dear heart, no fear can thwart these feelings that I feel The street lamps’ beams create a scene so sensual and surreal …. Dancing in and out of spotlight - quasi silhouette Like tiny ballerinas poised in tight spun pirouette Frozen pleasures, sparkling treasures, shining oh so bright The essence of the Yuletide on this cold, dark winter’s night… Wind that blows the drifting snows that rush then disappear On and on, through winter storm my destination draws near The flakes all weave, soon I’m believing wishes do come true How good it is, once more, dear friends, to spend this time with you… So, let’s drink a toast to those we’ve lost, to new friends yet to come Let’s give three cheers to this past year - it’s been a difficult one But, our epithets are not done yet - we, each one, have the power To bring an end to poverty, to hatred and to war…

Song For A Circus Clown © D. Mason Sept 26 2019 Nobody comes to the circus no more We are yesterday’s heroes, today’s dinosaurs The animals smell, the tent leaks when it pours - we are no more entertainment… Still, we eked out a living for as long as we could I am thinking that this time we’ll be gone for good Society’s changing and we are driftwood - washed up and so inconvenient… I joined the circus when I was fifteen, I made people laugh with my foolish routines And I fell in love with the next year’s May Queen - oh, her innocent beauty beguiling… I lost my job when the circus closed down Now, what’s there to do for an old circus clown Nobody’s laughing in this winter town - As I sit beneath the grey, weeping sky… My make up is running and I don’t really care My clown suit’s soaked through, there’s a chill in the air The folks rushing by me, they stop and they stare - the rain hides the tears in my eyes… Where have the years gone, my how time flies, being a clown is the perfect disguise Because, she danced with the devil and I lost my prize - I still see her in my dreams smiling… Now, Freedom, New Hampshire is no place to be For a clown with no business ‘round Lake Ossippee So, I guess I’ll head east to the sand and the sea - and across the Canadian frontier… If I persevere, will I learn how to smile? Rediscover the world through the eyes of a child? Or find love again on Prince Edward’s Isle? - but, just who’s fooling whom is unclear here… My dreams, like the circus, they soon will be gone, she was my hope, my strength to go on But, I laid her to rest down in Cimmaron - oh, my sweet Kansas rose, ever shining… Nobody comes to the circus no more …..

Destiny © Dave “Hedgehog” Mason Jan 2020 Be joyful, be gentle - be faithful and true Be helpful, be hopeful - be friendly, be you Dream yourself a dream you can hold on to You can make it real, I know you want to You are your destiny… Be fearless, courageous - be steadfast and strong Be daring, relentless - though things do go wrong You can find the way to your tomorrow Roads can be unclear and pathways narrow You are your destiny… Be loving, be loyal - devoted and kind Be grateful, be thankful - believe in your mind Face the future with determination Look inside yourself, find inspiration You are your destiny…

Oh, Winter….. © Dave Mason, November 2019 Oh, winter, you came like my old enemy The last person on earth that I wanted to see Still, you showed up - frigid and obscene Bringing snowflakes to my Halloween…. Oh, winter, you came like a thief to my door Like the beggars on Main Street, hands outstretched for more And your wind howled, whistling through the eaves Trees surrendered their final, cherished leaves…. Winter, winter, winter, whatever can I do? Give you cause to leave here and bid us all adieu? Spring is surely waiting for me somewhere in the wings Where the skies are blue, the days are warm and my friend, the robin, sings…. Oh, winter, you stayed like an unwanted guest The ice on my windows to this can attest Although seasons forever come and go Sometimes winter leaves us far too slow….

Droeë Wors en Biltong © David Mason, March 1998 Die wekker skrik my wakker net na vyf uur elke oggend
Buitekant nog donker val dit saggies-saggies reën
Binne in my slaapsak, warm, lê-lê soos 'n baba
Bewus maar onbewegend, stokstil soos 'n steen. Die plaaswerk is uitputtend, ek werk my hele dag lank Dorings in my hande en met water in my skoen Met opgewonde vreugde verwag ek dan sy opkoms As die hemelslig kom kuier my gesiggie warm te soen. September hier in Engeland is ek so vêr van my tuisland My haart verlang na Afrika se goue, sonbruin veld Storms elke middag oor die hoëveld of plateaurand Natal se warm nagte waar die piesang staan nog held. Vanaand is daar 'n bloedmaan in donker rooi-oranje Val sy lig ook op my tuiste nou so baie myle vêr? Ek bid my klein gebedjie, sy beskerming oor my vriende Soms is dit dat niks sin maak, als net wense op 'n stêr! Suid Afrika is meer as net van droeë wors en biltong Meer as van proteas, van die springbok en die leeu Die betowerende berge en die leë, droeë woestyne Meer as reuke en geluide, meer as trane in my oë. Van die woude daar in Knysna tot die sig uit God se Venster Sien die olifant in Addo en die slimjan bobbejaan In Gauteng sal jy die pas kan voel van na aan tien miljoen mense En op die weskus, die vlamenke en die voeëls van Langebaan. Een dag sal ek teruggaan na die land van al my drome Een dag sien ek weer sy ware skoonheid as ek kan Maar, intussen, soos 'n swerwer deel ek mee my klein gedagtes Ek sing van leef en liefde, 'n wandelende man. (translation) The alarm clock wakes me just after five o'clock every morning. Outside it is still dark, it is gently rining Inside my sleeping bag, warm, lying like a baby Conscious but motionless, still as a stone. The farm work is exhausting, I work my whole day Thorns in my hands and with water in my shoe With excited joy, then, I expect its rise When the sun comes to kiss my face warmly. September here in England I am so far from my homeland My heart longs for Africa's golden, tanned fields Storms every afternoon over the highveld or plateau edge Natal's hot nights where the banana still is king. Tonight there is a blood moon in dark red-orange Does its light also fall on my home so many miles away? I pray my little prayer, his protection over my friends Sometimes it's like nothing makes sense, just wishes on a star! South Africa is more than just dry sausage and biltong More than proteas, the springbok and the lion The enchanting mountains and the empty, dry deserts More than smells and sounds, more than tears in my eyes. From the forests there in Knysna to the view from God's Window See the elephant in Addo and the cunning baboon In Gauteng you will be able to feel the pace of close to ten million people And on the west coast, the flamingoes and the birds of Langebaan. One day I will return to the land of all my dreams One day I will see its true beauty again if I can But, meanwhile, like a wanderer, I share my little thoughts I sing of life and love, a walking man.

Getting Ready To Shine © Dave Mason, November 2019 Flying through the universe, are we running out of time? A speck of dust that we call the earth - this world is yours and mine Just one of a billion planets spinning in this vast unknown Give us the facts not the science fiction - ‘cause this our only home… Our home… A Swedish schoolgirl with a special mind is urging us to make amends Like every prophet who has come before, she’s made more enemies than she’s made friends Some say she’s crazy, doesn’t understand; some say that she’s just spreading fear A voice crying in the wilderness - but do we even want to hear? To hear… How much longer can the earth survive if we no longer seem to care? Spewing our filth into the land and rivers, poisoning the atmosphere? We need clean air and we need clean water - it’s time for us to make a stand ‘Cause, all along the watchtower, baby, the hour is now at hand At hand… Alarm bells ringing for Mother Earth I cannot believe my eyes There's got to be a way to tell the truth instead swallowing a pack of lies We may be poets, bards and writers but we're soldiers on life’s battle lines It’s time to sing your heart out, darlin’ - we're getting ready to shine To shine…