I Dreamed An Island, by Piers Faccini

I Dreamed An Island

by Piers Faccini

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Emma Love Drone dark fable but reminds of travels around Constantinople.... classical Anatolia flavours Byzantine... likewise Comets..

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1.	To Be Sky 03:32	lyrics	buy track
Found an ocean but it dried away Found a rock but it crumbled to dust Found a valley it was cold as ice Found a mountain couldn't reach the top To be lost is to be found To be sky is ever to go down to the Ground and earth and earth are bound To be sky is ever to rise up from the ground Found a fire but it burnt to ash Found a lover lover gave me up Found a dream left me for dead Found a heaven wouldn’t let me in To be lost is to be found To be sky is ever to go down to the Ground and earth and earth are bound To be sky is ever to rise up from the ground From the ground From the ground From the ground From the ground How the arc reared above the mist At the dawn of the morning bright To the gates of the temple I rode Saw the ruins of the kingdom and wept
2.	Drone 03:07	lyrics	buy track
I saw my town disappear in smoke Dust and debris on the air we choked Vengeance comes with a savage fist Coldest metal in the morning mist Drone by night Killer by day Drone by night Let the bombs away Now my brother is lying in rest Head to the east and his feet to the west Search for a prayer but the words won't come Won’t stop trying long as blood still runs Drone by night Killer by day Drone by night Let the bombs away Stone by stone and rock by rock David fought Goliath till Goliath dropped Arm in arm as the thunder rolls Hand in hand now the bells will toll
3.	Bring Down The Wall 03:25 video	lyrics	buy track
Bring down the wall break it stone by stone Bring down the wall shake it to the bone Tear down the rock take it blow by blow Tear down the rock make the tear go slow Throw down your arms believers hell fire burn Throw down your arms believers turn by turn Put down the book burn it page by page Put down the book let the fire rage Bring down the wall break it run aground Bring down the wall shake it must come down I’ll keep the flame burning burning bright I’ll keep the flame burning shine your light Veni lassa la casa toa Iessi fore veni cu nui Ca salimu subbra sta nave N’autra voce vulimu a quai  Ci uei cangi la vita toa Nu restare bloccatu a ddhai Tira ientu pe navigare Ni nde sciamu de paru moi Bring down the wall break it stone by stone Bring down the wall shake it to the bone Tear down the rock take it blow by blow Tear down the rock make the tear go slow I’ll keep the flame burning burning bright I’ll keep the flame burning shine your light
4.	Cloak Of Blue 03:26	lyrics	buy track
Fire at the tip of his tongue With a bow and arrow strung Running with the wolves by night He's gone by the morning light Like a saint or thief Turning the leaf Gathering souls like you Lambs at the slaughter Barter no quarter Wear your best cloak of blue Teardrops from a stone Over marrow under bone Words writ on the wall The higher they climb they fall At the temple and bell Bids them farewell Fishes and men like you Standing at the altar Mothers and daughters Wear your best cloak of blue He walks he walks I heard he got away He talks he talks I heard the blind boy say Wind among the reeds Like honey from the weed A horse and cart in tow Pure like the driven snow Like a saint or thief Turning the leaf Gathering souls like you Lambs at the slaughter Barter no quarter Wear your best cloak of blue He walks he walks I heard he got away He talks he talks I heard the soldier say He walks he walks I heard he got away He talks he talks I heard the blind boy say
5.	The Many Were More 03:33	lyrics	buy track
David’s son brought to the threshing floor Out of Babylon come the rules of law Carved in stone the word by fire divine Rock to island came the sacred shrine First up they counted one Then from the union two Next up they counted four A multitude in number The many were more Came a night the angel stole his rest Took him on a journey to the West Climbed a ladder up to the milky way Rode on lightning til the break of day First up they counted one Then from the union two Next up they counted four A multitude in number The many were more تـذكـارهـا ومنزلة للصبـا قـد خـلـت = وكان بنو الظرف عمـارهـا فإن كنت أخرجت مـن جـنة = فإنـي أحـدث أخـبـارهـا ولولا ملوحة مـاء الـبـكـاء = حسبت دموعي أنـهـارهـا ضحكت ابن عشرين من صبوة = بكيت ابن سـتـين أوزارهـا فلا تعظمن علـيك الـذنـوب = إذا كان ربـك غـفـارهـا From the Well of Souls the trumpets call Through full rivers deep the voices fall In the caves beneath the inner drums Beating out in time to sacred sums
6.	Judith 05:04	lyrics	buy track
Sunrise up the muezzin call Some to prayer and some to toil Some fight for love and some for gold In Cordoba our story’s told Round valley ringed by mountains bare In fig and lemon scented air There winds Al Wadi Al Kabir That now we call Guadalquivir Here’s Judith on the road With fresh fruit from the groves Where all prayers are granted under arches Horseshoe and arabesque She walks along the mountain pass Where Berber soldiers block the path They greet Salaam Alaikum She peels an orange just for him And in his mouth the nectar sings. For now this gift her fortune brings But gone the old ways that she knows The mournful call of exile blows Here’s Judith on the road Her story left untold Her tender smile was perfume to the sunlight A ghazal of snow white rose Praise be to the sky spread out like a bed Blessed all who love and lovers all blessed Lapis Indigo and Sapphires blue People of the book Al Andaluz So the books decreed Hope must sow its seed That saplings and their roots Grow and bear their fruit of divine sweetness To feed us in our weakness now Nine hundred ninety years old Judith and her orange grove told
7.	Beloved 04:27	lyrics	buy track
Ash in the fire in the heart that’s gone cold Tiniest spark but the day has grown old There could be heaven and there could be hell Watching the sky as the last star beam fell Gold was the flame of the candle we lit Light was the dance of the shadows we played Whisper of words in the amber twilight Rapture and pearl on the bed where we lay Closer closer beloved lover Closer closer beloved lover Further further beloved lover Further further beloved lover Ash in the fire in the heart that’s gone cold Tiniest spark but the day has grown old There could be heaven and there could be hell Watching the sky as the last star beam fell Moon on the bars of the cell that we kept Fall of your gaze how your eyes look nowhere Cry and cry and away desire Wings of the wind at the edge of your stare Closer closer beloved lover Closer closer beloved lover Further further beloved lover Further further beloved lover
8.	Anima 04:06	lyrics	buy track
I keep remembering can't forget I keep remembering can't forget Of all the memories I should keep And with regret I slowly weep I keep on thinking I can't stop I keep on thinking I can't stop December daydreams in the cold You could have stayed here growing old Anima anima anima Chi mi porti ri ddà? Ìsti luntanu p’ammunziddare Tutt’i ricordi ca 'un vosi taliare Ìsti p’un mari ca 'un fa turnari ‘Ncap’a na varca ca 'un vosi cchiù stare I must remember I can't let go I must remember I can't let go And reverie holds me for a while Brings back the colour of his smile Anima anima anima Chi mi porti ri ddà? Anima anima anima Chi ti porti ri ccà? Ìsti luntanu senz’aspittare Sulu l’amuri lassasti ca u sientu L’ossa luntane scrusciu ‘unn’e fannu Ma si l’ascuti addiventanu cantu E quannu nni viremu ddà Nn’avemu cos’i cuntarini Vìu r’u to viaggio l’anima Vìu li to occhi e mai n’addio
9.	Comets 06:37	lyrics	buy track
Silk is the veil and thin That colours the eye within Black are the birds that fly Ink and brush to the sky Make them raise them Carry them up from the ground Take them free them Gone where they’ll never be found Pitch is the shade of night That steals all the day from light Dying are the stars that shine Out and beyond they slide Take them break them Their time is almost come Make them wake them Their dream is almost done I gaze through bars alone and watch This light un-form return unturned This night I leave unknown unbound Despair despair the shape of love Here halos glow suns fall moons rise Where planets die time trips nowhere Here edges burn reason sleeps And elsewhere comets collide Comets collide comets collide Open your eyes
10.	Oiseau 02:46	lyrics	buy track
Oiseau ta mélodie est mon réveil La nuit est de bitume et de terreur Délivre-moi de ma douleur Oiseau que ta musique devienne lumière Eclaire la pénombre je rêve encore Et promet-moi que tu m'attendras Oiseau ton chant est pour le coeur miséricorde Du noir des ténèbres soulève-moi Tu es mon seul espoir délivre-moi Tu es mon seul espoir délivre-moi

about

I’ve always been fascinated by the Mediterranean and its rich cultural traditions, spanning Europe and Africa, as well as the Greek, Latin, and Arab worlds. My own genealogy and story are mirrored in the region’s history as well as in the countless paths that pilgrims, travelers and migrants travelled along for centuries.

Appalled by the increasingly sectarian and divisive politics spreading across the world, I Dreamed an Island was inspired by a unique moment in Mediterranean and European history when 12th century Sicily, was a haven of tolerance and co-habitation between Christians, Muslims and Jews. Making this album was a way for me to converse with my ancestry and to build a bridge between past and present.

credits

released October 24, 2016

Produced by Piers Faccini for Beating Drum Records

All songs by Piers Faccini except*

*To be Sky: music by Bijan Chemirani and Piers Faccini
Bring Down the Wall: lyrics in Salentino by Mauro Durante
The Many Were More: lyrics by Francesca Beard and Piers Faccini, music by Piers Faccini and Simone Prattico, poem My Sicily by Ibn-Hamdis
Judith: lyrics by Francesca Beard and Piers Faccini
Anima: lyrics in Palermitano by Fabrizio Cammarata
Arrangements for drums and percussion by Simone Prattico

Recorded by Piers Faccini at Fire Head Studios, Les Cevennes, France
Drums recorded at NGR, Roma by Francesco de Nigris
Zampogna recorded at Daniele and Mauro Durante’s studio in Lecce, Italy
Baroque guitar and Theorbo recorded by Luca Tarantino in his home studio, Lecce, Italy
Mixed by Francesco de Nigris at NGR, Roma
Mastering by François Fanelli at Sonics Mastering, Marseille
Executive producer: Anais Ledoux
Photos: Piers Faccini
Artwork: Uncle O

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about

Piers Faccini France

If my songs were maps I'd want them to stretch from the English moors to the Saharan dunes via the plains of the Mediterranean.