ONE STEP TO MIDNIGHT
It’s the real world, it’s the routine
A love affair, a misunderstanding
Getting on and checking out
Shouting and screaming in the madhouse
It’s what you know and who you don’t
Same time, same place, same picture show,
You’ve got a chain reaction, a leap in the dark
All fall together and all fall apart
One step to midnight!
It’s the real thing, day in day out
Day after day just thinking out loud
It’s the fist fight to be right in the firing line
The Minuteman moving in the darkest night
Oh one step forward and one step aside
Never so blind as when your vision’s so bright
A miss is as good as a million miles
Look around, check around, alright
One step to midnight!
All material copyright: I.Rock / Beat Strangers
WINNING THE BATTLE
(And Losing The War)
Lunatics speaking the truth and nothing
But the truth is stranger than imagination
All is fair in emotional warfare
Winning the battle and losing the war
Choirs of voices are singing in unison
From prison and palace they speak of liberation
They dry your eyes as they tie your blindfold
Winning the battle and losing the war
Winning the battle and losing the war
All material copyright: I.Rock / Beat Strangers
DANCE TO THE BEAT
(Hour of Darkness)
Dance to the beat, Dance to the beat,
Dance to the beat of a different drum
Rap chorus
Dance, beat, marching feet,
The sound of a siren in the street
Whose heart is a heart that broods and beats,
Broke the back of the harness
Now if you want to hide, you’d better step aside
As the lights collide from under us
This is no repeat of the TV bleat
This is the hour of darkness
All material copyright: Beat Strangers
LIVING IN THE CITY
Living in the city is an occupation
Another blank face in the population
Sun shines down upon stagnation
Throws no light on my situation
Can’t see the point of any action
Drugs, sedation, stupefaction
Got no reason, got no passion
Everything is out of fashion
Chorus
Falling, falling into the future, into the future we’re…...
No receiver, no connection
No belief and no direction
I’m just left with my reflection
No relief and no protection
Into the future ( x 4)
There’s no sense in this confusion
Can’t tell fact from illusion
You just draw your own conclusions
Explanations, no solutions
All material copyright: I.Rock / Beat Strangers
STRANGERS IN PARADISE
What are we doing here?
Nothing is moving
Everyone takes their place
It’s so confusing
What happened to me?
We used to see eye to eye
What happened to you?
You seem to be in disguise
Chorus
Think once, don’t think twice
We’re living like
Don’t look at the price
We’re living like strangers
Strangers in paradise….(x2)
Biting the hand that feeds
Promises broken
Walking around these streets
I hear every words that’s spoken
What’s going on?
I used to understand
What’s right and what’s wrong
Now everything’s out of hand
Chorus
Think once, don’t think twice
And my expectations
Turned out to be wrong
And your aspirations
Have taken too long
What happened to me?
We used to see eye to eye
What happened to you?
You seem to be in disguise
Chorus
Think once, don’t think twice etc.
All material copyright: Beat Strangers
VICTORY
Is this the dawning of my discontent?
Or just the frozen skies reflected in you?
Drink to happiness, I’m happy to pretend
Whenever you’re in sight, you’re out of mind
Is this the twilight of my destiny?
Or just remorseless winter reaching out
Touch the skyline’s sleepless silhouette
Awaken you I hear a distant shout
New hope, new crisp, white snow, new songs of victory
Bread and guns before you come to me
Confront the wastelands of frozen imagery
Whenever you’re in sight you’re out of mind
All material copyright: Ian Alistair Rock
BAD LUCK
Bad luck, from the cradle to the grave
Bad luck, the poisonous embrace
Bad luck betraying with a kiss
Bad luck’s forsaken promises
Chorus
Savage in its vengeance
Desperate but generous
Bad luck the poisonous embrace
Bad luck, courting with despair
Bad luck, silent as a prayer
Bad luck, dancing with a stranger
Bad luck, cursing like a traitor
Chorus
All material copyright: I.Rock / Beat Strangers
WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?
The people who live in my street don’t know what they’re missing
They turn on the telly watch Americans hugging and kissing
I put on my jacket, take the money and head for where the lights go down
It doesn’t matter if nothing moves, it’s gotta be better than that sound
Chorus: I say who do you think you area x4
Down in the underground, something’s following me
From the down escalator to my platform seat
Behind darkened glass they look and they listen
And they got all of us on sound and vision
Chorus: Who do you think you area x4
Here come the first editions, headlines of pain and ecstasy
Black type telephone camera speak in tongues to me
And there go the movie goers looking for some action
A kind of stardom window shopping for love and a real reaction
Chorus: Who do you think you area x4
All material copyright: I. Rock / Beat Strangers
CLOSE FOR COMFORT
Get Up! Let’s get close for comfort
Work out! I’ve got your name and number
Change your face, make up your mind
Everyone’s keeping occupied
With shaking heads and talking eyes, the look of love tinged with surprise.
CHORUS (x 3)
Too late to evacuate, too soon to call the tune
I’l fit you to my fantasy, we’ll take a Roman honeymoon
Love is tainted painted red, whenever I’m with you
See the sparkle in your eyes, let’s light the fire, burn all night
CHORUS
All material copyright: I. Rock / Beat Strangers
POLITICS
I didn’t used to think about politics
All I wanted was women and beer
Fast cars football fancy feminines
I wish I could say that I don’t care
Here we all are, standing on a tubetrain
Thinking about the money we earn
Crowded together on the Northern Line
Trying not to look too concerned
Chorus
Hey, Hi dee de dee dum, etc
Now people call you radical
Just because you don’t agree
With the things that happen in the world around you
Or believe what the newsguy says on TV
One day I won’t think about politics
All I’ll want is to stand and stare
I guess you could call it serenity
I wish I could say that I don’t care
All material copyright: I. Rock / Beat Strangers