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Overspill

by James Henry

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    Immediate download of 13-track album in your choice of 320k mp3, FLAC, or just about any other format you could possibly desire. Bonus track "Wiser Fool" not available on CD - get it here!!!
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1.
Milsom Heights 03:41
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Clean spring jet of a sprinkling hose Along Milsom Heights Soaks me wet as a jet pops under the skyline Lamplight bulb has imploded Darkening Milsom Heights A knee-jerk reaction is unwise Milsom Heights! Milsom Heights! Milsom Heights........... Old girl waving at no-one Walking up Milsom Heights (walking up….walking up) They all blank her and never thank her She's not fine (walking up….walking up) But she fights on like a dog to make it In withering tights (withering tights…..) A young buck's aggression is her prize Chorus Would you find these same delights In a bungalow on Elspeth Row....? [You’ll make a packet from the sale, You can trust me….you can trust me You can TRUST me!] Buy to let in a recessed jungle On Milsom Heights It won't be gloomy, the loft is roomy And lagged right Ease your debt and consolidate Along Milsom Heights The neighbours will not be a hard time Chorus ---------La, lo-di-oh, la-dn-da (rpt)
2.
Overspill 03:25
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Overspill - living in the overspill On the edge of dominant economies Suburb evacuees pass right under the overspill Packed into a train through some tunnelling Work is such a drain But it's better than living with a padlock & grille In the overspill Overspill - such a poor relationship There is underfunding and a cemetery Buses can never be there on time in the overspill City down the road suffered overkill In relation to full employment and buildings And it's lording it, still Over the overspill Who decided on this name? "Outskirts" isn't the same That's because they're different And live behind a hill Overspill - let me take a photograph I can show the rest of a contented world Why it should have a youth club and playground The boys & girls want to hang around these environments They can learn a lot While the bulldozers elsewhere Help the workmen get ill In the overspill
3.
Checkout Idling 04:06
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Checkout idling The man in front pays on a card Just for a bag of mint creams Checkout idling There’s the conveyor belt, jerking along Waking the girl from her dreams When you put your mind to it You can do whatever you want When you put your mind to it You can do whatever you want If you get inclined to it You can do whatever you want Checkout idling Holding profanities under my breath While I’m arranging my cans Neck out Sidling up to the chip and pin Fate worse than death Girl says “Hello” as she scans When you put your mind to it You can do whatever you want If you want to strike through it You can be as bold as this font When you put your mind to it You can do whatever you want You can do whatever you want……. Checkout idling Head for the overspill, laden with bags Stopped for a light by a tramp When you put your mind to it You can do whatever you want If you want to strike through it You can be as bold as this font When you put your mind to it You can do whatever you want When you put your mind to it…….. When you put your mind to it You can do whatever you want When you put your mind to it You can do whatever you want When you put your mind to it…… You can do whatever you want……
4.
A Bus That Never Comes 03:04
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The frost on this December night is biting And feasting on my fingers and my thumbs I try to think of life that’s more exciting As I am waiting for a bus that never comes The lights of every late night shop are glaring They deafen us with neon-vested hums I ponder how I left you so despairing As I am waiting for a bus that never comes A fleeting flash of madness descended We laughed and sang believing we were free As soon as it began, it was ended For what we had was all that it could be Brief ecstasy But now I hear a motor in the distance Soon I see a van of drunken bums It passes on a path of least resistance As I am waiting for a bus that never comes It’s hard to understand what is happening To cool it when the whole world is ablaze Dividing, like a zip that is unfastening, We know we’ll have to go our separate ways And not return The frost on this December night deceives me It does not cut the bone, it only numbs My guilty feeling rises up and leaves me As I am waiting for a bus that never comes Oh-oh-oh I try to think of life that’s more exciting As I am waiting for a bus that never comes
5.
Industrial Injury 02:49
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(Instrumental)
6.
I'm So Drunk 03:25
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I’m so drunk – it’s the greatest feeling I’m so drunk – from the floor to the ceiling Flying high in the depths I’ve sunk I’m so drunk Off my head – I can lie here steaming One more red – I can stand up screaming Ain’t gonna live like no Sistine monk I’m so drunk We’re all fine We’ve got wine and we’ve got beer (get the ale in, get the ale in) We don’t care what’s out there We’re all in here (get the ale in, get the ale in) I’m so drunk – wouldn’t know my own face Out in front – going at my own pace Get the DJ to play some “Punk” I’m so drunk We’re all fine We’ve got wine and we’ve got beer (get the ale in, get the ale in) We don’t care what’s out there We’re all in here (get the ale in, get the ale in) I hear my liver beg for mercy But I’m too busy pointing Percy (If you’re a girl it will be Mary…..) I’m so drunk (get the ale in, get the ale in) I’m so drunk (get the ale in, get the ale in) I’m so drunk (get the ale in, get the ale in) I’m so drunk (get the ale in, get the ale in) Get the ale in! Hi-yo-wah Hi-de-oh-why-oh-wah Hi-yo-wah Hi-de-oh-why-oh-wah
7.
Don't Let It Happen 02:48
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I see your face and smile - I’ve seen it for a while But there is a chance you’ll run a mile Don’t let it happen We never said too much - and now we have as such But we’re on the point of losing touch Don’t let it happen When you’ve known someone so long When there’s a friendship that is strong Sometimes you take for granted, wrong or right They’ll always be around So if you feel in doubt - just try and talk it out When part of you says “Go walkabout” Don’t let it happen Repeat Middle But I see your face and smile - I’ve seen it for a while But there is a chance you’ll run a mile Don’t let it happen I’ll take the time to find - the love that’s left behind If there is a “goodbye” on your mind Don’t let it happen - don’t let it happen Don’t let it happen - don’t let it happen
8.
I'd Be All Over That 03:54
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I’d be all over that I would be there like a bad rash I’d be all over that Full coverage in a flash Attaching like a cement glue Invitation to a gathering, where I only know two people Putting lawyers under oath whenever they are up in court Never laughing at somebody who is certain they are funny Comfort where I’m sat Chorus Monday evening after finishing a working day excited Sunday dinner at the house of an amusing old friend Saturday morning with you, doing something quite disgusting A working laundromat Chorus Getting someone else to decorate whenever it is needed Eating chicken with a crispy kind of skin on its back Ian Dury singing “kippers in the grill” on “This Is What We Find” A woman with some fat (in all the right places, if you know what I mean) Chorus
9.
Freak Summer 03:54
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Hey little darling won’t you give me one chance To prove my love to you Hey little girl, won’t you give me one glance To show you love me too Come on down to my level - and I will lend you my shovel You can dig me baby - we can hold hands tonight Hold hands tonight The weather is hot, this is a freak summer December it’s not, this is a freak summer I’m so glad you could be here - now the summer is a freak Fling off your corset, let your blubber see the sun A dream is coming true I wouldn’t force it, if you want to leave it on But your face is turning blue Just make sure your decision - keeps you right in my vision I can dig you, baby - we can hold hands tonight Hold hands tonight Chorus The sandman put my ashes in his egg-timer And mounted all his friends, for he’s a social climber The heat has gotten to him - he’s been twitching all week A dance to sweep the country - now the summer is a freak Now little darling you have wrestled his dance Until your body’s sore You’ve hit some trouble, so I’m sending for my shovel (Just) to get you off the floor So get on down to my level - ditch your date with the devil I can dig you baby - we can hold hands tonight Hold hands tonight Chorus to fade………
10.
The Sun Is Cracking The Flags 03:58
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The sun is cracking the flags Shoving the nags o' the world back underneath their stones The sun is mugging the rain Making it plain to the world, she's out to ease them bones Sun in Valletta - listening to Frank & to Captain Beefheart Makes me feel better Since I split up with my childhood sweetheart Chorus Fly to the Algarve - can't forget how she used to tease me Makes me feel sex-starved Only the weather can't wait to please me Chorus Sail in to Rio - served with papers by two hyenas Dampens my brio She's taking me to the bloody cleaners Chorus In Nicosia - smash the phone in a fit of frenzy Just miss Maria Walk over, kiss her, get married Wednesday Chorus Leave me bathing, gently........... Leave me bathing, gently………. Why don’t you leave me bathing gently this evening……? Chorus Oh-ho-may-he, oh-ho-may-he (Yellow rumpled dufflecoat) I KNOW
11.
Blue Yonder Bay 03:41
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Hang glide by the clear blue seas Hang right at the rocky crags Underneath the breeze Look over blue yonder bay Sweep across the sweltering sand Like a bird of paradise Drifting into land Look over blue yonder bay And wonder why you left it for A world beyond this lonely shore Stroll along the sheltered beach Take the air that takes you where Nothing else can reach Look over blue yonder bay Golden daylight warming skin Memories of a summer gone Flooding back within Look over blue yonder bay And wonder why you left it for A world beyond this lonely shore Repeat 1st verse & Chorus
12.
October Now 03:36
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(instrumental)

about

Overspill is a short story, about those living in a modern economy, for whom the phrase “boom and bust” has no real meaning. They seem to permanently exist in a scramble for…..well, mere existence. Their houses stand in largely forgotten areas; their jobs (if they have them) are generally poor payers, even in the “good times”; their children go to schools which are mediocre at best - at worst, they are dangerous; their public services try, but often fall short through lack of funds, poor management or both. Yet these places can never be dismissed or regarded as beaten.

In many instances, that which seems ugly on the surface often masks a significant depth of beauty.

credits

released June 17, 2011

All tracks written, performed and produced by James Henry
Engineered by James Henry
Mastered by Jon Astley at Close To The Edge, London
Piano (“Overspill”, “Milsom Heights”, “October Now”) – Ben Laver
Trumpet (“Overspill”) – Dominic Cotton
Photography – Jonathan Stewart
Design & Layout - Darren Morris at Uberlab
Manufacturing - Disc International, London
“Libretto” – James Henry

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James Henry London

James Henry delivers punchy, guitar-driven songs with sweet melodies, succulent harmonies and sharp lyrics. Think Merseybeat meets Squeeze meets Weezer.

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