Artist: Ian Anderson rupisdance: Rupi's Dance {1968}

I sit in judgement on the market square
I have my favorite table and I have my chair
Natives are friendly and the sun flies high
All kinds of crazy waiters, they go drifting by

Hours last forever in the Calliandra shade
Conversation going nowhere and yet everywhere
Kick off those sad shoes and let the bare toes tingle
Slip off that shoulder strap, loosen the thick black hair

Come, sit with me and take decaf designer coffee
Come, laugh and listen as the ragamuffin children play
Lame dog and a black cat, now, they shuffle in the shadows
You got cappuccino lip on a short skirt day

Electric afternoon and shrill cellphones are mating
Lame dog is dreaming, dreaming of a better life
Where bed is fluffy pillows, table scraps are filet mignon 
Flicked indiscretely by the lazy waiter�s knife

Come, sit with me and take decaf designer coffee
Come, laugh and listen as the ragamuffin children play
Lame dog and a black cat, now, they shuffle in the shadows
You got cappuccino lip on a short skirt day

Hours last forever in the Calliandra shade
Conversation going nowhere and yet everywhere
Kick off those sad shoes and let the bare toes tingle
Slip off the shoulder strap, loosen the thick black hair

Come, sit with me and take decaf designer coffee
Come, laugh and listen as the ragamuffin children play
Lame dog and a black cat, now, they shuffle in the shadows
You got cappuccino lip on a short skirt day

Come, sit with me and take decaf designer coffee
Come, laugh and listen as the ragamuffin children play
Lame dog and a black cat, now, they shuffle in the shadows
You got cappuccino lip on a short skirt day

She dances through the flower-filled room
Sea-green eyes a-sparking
Or are they blue - the message clear
Seduce the master, winking

Dainty feet circles inscribe 
Upon the frozen parquet
Arabesque in compound time
Stately Pavane or Bour�e

Sultry smile, come hither gaze
Black hair softly shining
Calls me up to half-lit bed
Sweet cloud with golden lining

Oh, so young with ageless smile
Born of ungodly maker
Draws me - moth to candle bright
Fiery pleasure-seeker

Sultry smile, come hither gaze
Black hair softly shining
Calls me up to half-lit bed
Sweet cloud with golden lining

Right

She dances through the flower-filled room
Sea-green eyes a-sparking
It�s Rupi�s dance - the message clear
Her movement does the talking
It's Rupi's dance

I get lost, I get lost, I get lost in crowds - if I can, I remain invisible
To the hungry mouths I stay, I stay unapproachable
I wear the landscape of the urban, of the urban chameleon
Scarred by attention and quietly addicted to innocence

At starry, at starry, at starry parties where, amongst the rich and the famous
I�m stuck for words, or worse, I blether with the best of them
I see their eyes glaze and they look, and they look for the drinks tray
Something in the drift of my conversation bothers them

So, who am I - come on - ask me, I dare you
So, who am I - come on - question me, if you care to
And why not try to interrogate this apparition
I melt away to get lost in this quaint condition

In scary, in scary, in scary airports, in concourses over-filled
I am detached in serious observation
As a passenger I become, I become untethered when
I get lost in clouds, at home with my own quiet company

So, who am I - come on - ask me, I dare you
So, who am I - come on - question me, if you care to
And why not try to interrogate this apparition
I melt away to get lost in this quaint condition

I get lost, I get lost, I get lost in crowds - if I can, I remain invisible
To the hungry mouths I stay, I stay unapproachable
I wear the landscape of the urban, of the urban chameleon
Scarred by attention and quietly addicted to innocence

So, who am I - come on - ask me, I dare you
So, who am I - come on - question me, if you care to
And why not try to interrogate this apparition
I melt away to get lost in this quaint condition

So, who am I - come on - ask me, I dare you
So, who am I - come on - question me, if you care to
And why not try to interrogate this apparition
I melt away to get lost in this quaint condition

Herald Tribune, Herald Tribune, Herald Tribune or USA Today
Sauvignon Blanc or oaky Chardonnay
Asleep for the movie, awake for the dawn 
Dancing on England and hedgerows
Embossed on a carpet of green
I descend and, forgive me
I mean to get lost in crowds

A raft of penguins on a frozen sea
Expectant faces look down on me
Shuffle uneasy, the whistler plays
Counting eleven, they begin to pray

Tenuous but clinging, the missing link
Joins us, closer than we might think
Some half-remembered coarse jungle drum
A naked heartbeat, trill and hum

This world�s no stage for the faint at heart
Each symphony, a sum of parts
Each overture, a sweet foreplay
Let�s crash and burn some other day

Bonded in terror or suspicion deep
Tentative tiptoe or giant leap
Call down the angels to guide them in
A raft of penguins take to the wing

A raft of penguins on a frozen sea
Expectant faces look down on me
Shuffle uneasy, the whistler plays
Counting eleven, they begin to pray

A week of moments, a clutch of days
Ten thousand minutes of a Passion Play
Medley of quavers informs the tune
It�s all too much, over all too soon

Sweet condensation on chilling wine
Traveler�s palm, flamboyant tree
Fast photos ripped and lost consign
A week of moments to faint memory

A week of moments plucked from the page
Found far horizons, a sunset stage
Suitcases bulge, in silence packed
A chapter closed, no looking back

The lightest touch upon my arm
No fierce restraint, no call to stay
Hushed room maids glide like pawns to king
With pool attendants in chess piece array

A week of moments, a clutch of days
Ten thousand minutes of a Passion Play
Medley of quavers informs the tune
It�s all too much, over all too soon

Sweet condensation on chilling wine
Traveler�s palm, flamboyant tree
Fast photos ripped and lost consign
A week of moments to faint memory

My hand of thumbs is shaking
I am so glad to meet you
All tongue-tied and twisted
My lips stuck like glue

More than a lifetime to say, "How are you?"
More than an ocean to cross becalmed
Less than a second to sink in silence
Yours truly, I remain disarmed

Saw you peeping from the corner
Your eyes seemed to call hello
I�m all too easily mistaken
My feet unsteady as they go

More than a lifetime to say, "How are you?"
More than an ocean to cross becalmed
Less than a second to sink in silence
Yours truly, I remain disarmed

Was I a suave and confident trickster
I would sweep you up and carry you down
To raspberry meadows under diamond skies
And just mess around, just mess around

My hand of thumbs is shaking
I am so glad to meet you
All tongue-tied and twisted
My lips stuck like glue

More than a lifetime to say, "How are you?"
More than an ocean to cross becalmed
Less than a second to sink in silence
Yours truly, I remain disarmed

INSTRUMENTAL

My old black cat, he passed away this morning
He never knew what a hard day was
Woke up late and he danced on tin roofs
If questioned "Why," answered, "Just because."

He never spoke much, preferring silence
Eight lost lives was all he had
Occasionally sneaked some Sunday dinner
He wasn�t good and he wasn�t bad

My old black cat wasn�t much of a looker
You could pass him by, just a quiet shadow
Got pushed around by all the other little guys
Didn�t seem to mind much, just the way life goes

Padded about in furry slippers
Didn�t make any special friends
He played it cool with wide-eyed innocence
Receiving gladly what the good Lord sends

Forgot to give his Christmas present
Black cat collar, nice and new
Thought he�d make it through to New Year
I guess this song will have to do

My old black cat
My old black cat
My old black cat
Old black cat
My old black cat

A Morris Minor, a caf� noir
Banana smoothie, snails in a jar
Three dodgy sailors, a girl on skates
A little too muscled from doing weights

The crumpled sheets of a long hot summer
Stored images like an acorn, drop
Squirreled away, but still remembered
By the man in the photo shop

A family wedding, a sushi bar
Sand in the Seychelles, karaoke star
Lads on the razzle get lost in love
Paddington station, rain clouds above

The crumpled sheets of a long hot summer
Stored images like an acorn, drop
Squirreled away, but still remembered
By the man in the photo shop

Rush hour on Praed Street, behind the glass
A picture process, in just one hour fast
Intimate portraits of topless wives
Flashed indiscretions, snap-happy lives

The crumpled sheets of a long hot summer
Stored images like an acorn, drop
Squirreled away, but still remembered
By the man in the photo shop

I�m thinking free like the bird
Flying over, over the animals 
In the zoo. How do you do
What�s it like to be in there, think about it

You�re locked behind wires
Safe and warm - under house arrest protection 
From the wild, wild storm and tempest 
Raging here on the outside, think about it

Pigeon I, pigeon toed
I�m pigeon-friendly as pigeons go
Pigeon lonely, pigeon English
What�s it like to be in there, think about it

Harsh spaces, empty freedom
Scary concept, wrong side of the window
Which one of us will wake imprisoned 
Come tomorrow, think about it

Pigeon I, pigeon toed
I�m pigeon-friendly as pigeons go
Pigeon lonely, pigeon English
What�s it like to be in there, think about it

I�m thinking free like the bird
Flying over, over the animals 
In the zoo. How do you do
What�s it like to be in there, think about it

Pigeon I, pigeon toed
I�m pigeon-friendly as pigeons go
Pigeon lonely, pigeon English
What�s it like to be in there, think about it

Give it due consideration
Weigh it up and kiss me quickly
Pigeon friendly, let me in there
To be with you, mull it over
Give it due consideration
Weigh it up and kiss me quickly
Pigeon friendly, let me in there
To be with you, think about it

INSTRUMENTAL

Dinner table chattering classes
Tell all we need to know
Like it, lump it - dig it, dump it
On your late, late show

And do you think you�re Ralitsa Vassileva
You�re just hand-me-down news in a, a cookie jar
And it�s a long way from here to CNN in America
And a red-eyed opinion too far

Dish the dirt or dish the gravy
Spill the beans to me
Sinking fast in terminal boredom
Feigned interest flying free

And do you think you�re Ralitsa Vassileva
You�re just hand-me-down news in a, a cookie jar
And it�s a long way from here to CNN in America
And a red-eyed opinion too far

Talking monkey, breaking news junkie, tragedies to reveal
Light and breezy, up-beat squeezy, close in to touchy-feel

Pass the Merlot, dance the three-step
Cut to a better chase
Align yourself with no proposition
And simpler thoughts embrace

Let�s talk about me, let�s talk about you
In a world of private rooms
Hide a while from dark stormbringers
sad messengers of doom

Sadly, you can�t be Ralitsa Vassileva
You�re just hand-me-down news in a, a cookie jar
And it�s a long way from here to CNN in America
And a red-eyed opinion too far

And do you think you�re Ralitsa Vassileva
You�re just hand-me-down news in a, a cookie jar
And it�s a long way from here to CNN in America
And a red-eyed opinion too far
And a red-eyed opinion too far
A red-eyed opinion

Find some way to square the circle
Feet slipping, sliding on the level
Connect to reason, is there anybody there
Drum it in to me now if you dare

Triangles by Isosceles
Principles by Archimedes
Amo, amas - even amat
Make for one less way to skin the cat

Two short planks
Try my luck on another day
Must be thick as two short planks
That�s about all that I have to say

They say truth comes flooding if you let it
But what happens if I just don�t get it
I�m blissful in my sweet ignorance
And delight in my incompetence

Two short planks
Try my luck on another day
Must be thick as two short planks
That�s about all that I have to say
Two short planks
Pop the question, I sit the test 
Must be thick as two short planks
Spin me round till I come to rest

Two short planks
Try my luck on another day
Must be thick as two short planks
That�s bout all that I have to say
Two short planks
Pop the question, I sit the test 
Must be thick as two short planks
Spin me round till I come to rest

Two short planks
Try my luck on another day
Two short planks
That�s bout all I have to say
Two short planks
Try my luck on another day
Two short planks
That�s bout all I have to say

Got a birthday card at Christmas
It made me think of Jesus Christ
It said, "I love you," in small letters
I simply had to read it twice
Wood smoke curled from blackened chimneys
The smell of frost was in the air
Pole star hovered in the blackness
I looked again, it wasn�t there

People have showered me with presents
While their minds were fixed on other things
Sleigh bells, bearded red suit uncles
Pointy trees and angel wings
I am the shadow in your Christmas
I am the corner of your smile
Perfunctory in celebration
You offer content but no style

Whoa, that little baby Jesus
He got a birthday card or three
Gold trinkets and cheap frankincense
Some penny baubles for his tree
Have some time off for good behavior
Forty days, give or take a few
Hey there, sweet baby Jesus
Let�s share a birthday card with you