Name: An Empire in its Glory
Duration: P00H04M20S
Description: My greatgrandfather joined the British Army aged 14 in 1867 and was posted to India as a bandboy, starting a musical tradition for him and all his children. Two of his brothers went to Canada, also musicians. This song is about leaving one's home, never to return.

An Empire in its Glory

from Climb Sheer The Fields Of Peace by Alison O'Donnell

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Digipak with lyrics. Artwork Richard Moult (original painting and photograph).

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Handsome artwork limited edition 250 lathe cut single from the album Climb Sheer The Fields Of Peace. Back cover photograph by Steven P. Collins. Mega Dodo release January 2018.

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Climb Sheer The Fields Of Peace
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Limited edition black vinyl LP with lyric sheet. Cover painting by Richard Moult. Back photograph by Richard Moult. DODOLP26.

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Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Alison O'Donnell & Gayle Brogan Double A-Side Single, Hark The Voice That Sings For All: new songs in an ancient tradition, Christmas 2011 unreleased tracks Bajik, The Travels of Janus, Spread Your Sailing Angels Over Me (50 years of song): a compilation, Five Forests by Head South By Weaving & Alison O'Donnell, Exotic Masks and Sensible Shoes, Climb Sheer The Fields Of Peace, and 10 more. , and , .

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about

My greatgrandfather joined the British Army aged 14 in 1867 and was posted to India as a bandboy, starting a musical tradition for him and all his children. Two of his brothers went to Canada, also musicians. This song is about leaving one's home, never to return.

lyrics

Close those books until another day
There is an answer to your prayer
The house is full of mould and giant cobwebs
And a mawkish air

Sign your name and state your age
The paper will grow old but never die
For an empire in its glory is bound to own you
Until the seas run dry

A lad who kneels in church is full of worship
The clink of his buttons so percussive
He will bang the drum and march with a brass band
But never combative

He left behind a faith and family
He clenched a ball of sodden earth
And shouted loud to the raging sky
In the land of his birth

Fold your kit and move along
On desert sands and tangled wildwoods
And when the wars are coursing through your veins
Remember childhood

credits

from Climb Sheer The Fields Of Peace, released July 13, 2017
Alison: vocal
Dave Colohan: acoustic guitar
Michael Tanner: acoustic guitar
Grey Malkin: electric guitar/glockenspiel/piano

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about

Alison O'Donnell Dublin, Ireland

Singer, musician, writer of songs & soundscapes. Collaborator in a number of bands across folk, trad, alternative & cross genres. Long career going back to Mellow Candle as a teenager. Student of United Bible Studies. Songs are meaningful and frequently pastoral and poetic, sung with passion and heart.
alisonodonnell.com
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