The Emigration Song		Copyright ©2011 Colin Ward

V1
Stirring tea in the afternoon,					
In a china cup with a silver spoon,				
A biscuit with Typhoo, an afternoon treat,			
Something hot and something sweet				

V2
A Hillman Minx, still warm in the drive,				
Back from the country where they felt so alive,			
The silence is broken by the radio,				
BBC News and the Archers show				

Chorus 1
The clock ticks loud and the clock ticks slow,			
A chill in the air, 						
And the coal… makes a fiery glow				

V3
The needles click as the sweater grows,				
A black cat watches, licking milk from his nose,			
A boy reads quietly sitting on the floor,				
Lost in homework, never saying he’s bored			

V4
A sweater and tie, wool pants to his knees,			
Wet socks by the fire, in from the freeze,			
Mud-covered shoes from puddles and rain,			
The cold and damp drives them all insane				

Chorus 1
The clock ticks loud and the clock ticks slow,			
A chill in the air, 						
And the coal… makes a fiery glow				

Bridge
Six months later they’re warm in the sun,				
Ninety degrees, they sweat when they run			
The new clock’s quiet and plugs in the wall,			
An Oldsmobile waits at their beck and call			

V final
The countryside is dry and flat,					
They don’t miss the rain, there’s not much of that,		
They miss the folks who they left behind,			
But the memories fade to the back of their minds		

Chorus 2