Saints and Sinners (reprise, with bells on)

from Saints and Singers (Our Christmas album) by Peacock's Tale Musical Storytelling

/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      £1 GBP  or more

     

  • Buy the Full Digital Album

about

“Everything – voices, harmonies, guitars, percussion – is mixed so it jingles like a bell, including some actual Fring Church bells (rung by the vicar) and church organ (played by church organist) fed into the live mix.”
youtu.be/xdBI4GQp-eY

lyrics

[Verse 1]
It was Sunday morning in our town
And I sat on they steps and I stared at the ground
And I bowed my head while they shuffled past
All the saints being called to the morning mass

[Chorus]
And off in the distance there rang a bell
Way off in the distance there rang a bell
And it rang for saints and the sinners as well
Way off in the distance there rang a bell

[Verse 2]
I remember the lessons of Sunday school
And I can't help but think, maybe I'm the fool
But I see no sign of a greater plan
Just the joy and sorrow of my fellow man

[Chorus]
And off in the distance there rang a bell
Way off in the distance there rang a bell
And it rang for saints and the sinners as well
Way off in the distance there rang a bell

[Bridge]
And here we stand while life rushes past
Between the first breath and the last
And here we stand between East and West
And here we stand between birth and death

words and music © David Francey 1999.


[Verse 3]
I was watching the news the other night
There was a war on the Left, there was a war on the Right
And it's no surprise that it's us or them
It's a long way from heaven to Bethlehem

[Chorus]
And off in the distance there rang a bell
Way off in the distance there rang a bell
And it rang for saints and the sinners as well
Way off in the distance there rang a bell

©David Francey 1999

credits

from Saints and Singers (Our Christmas album), released December 6, 2022
David Francey (hailing from Ayrshire and moving to Canada aged 12) worked as a rail yard worker and a carpenter for 20 years and only began a career in folk music at the age of 45. He is not the first carpenter to progress to a more illustrious later career.

His themes are working-class life; the natural beauty of Canada and traditional folk themes of love and loss. He wrote and recorded 'Saints and Sinners' in 1999. In 2004, he won first prize of the Folk Category of the 9th Annual USA Songwriting Competition and the John Lennon Songwriting Contest in 2010.

We first heard and fell in love with this track sung live in a glorious duet by Jeana Leslie and Siobhan Miller as winners of the 2008 Young Folk Awards on the Mike Harding Folk show and thereafter on their album 'In A Bleaze.' Their vocal harmonies enact the bells described. We attempt to extend that principle to everything so that harmonies, acoustic guitar, bass, bass drum and percussion should all ring out together like a bell.

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Peacock's Tale Musical Storytelling image

Peacock's Tale Musical Storytelling Sedgeford, UK

It's all right, folks, we're married. A marriage of melody and rhythm ( flirting with harmony & timbre.) Old married woke folk, indie, Norfolk noir, beat poems, ghazals & Americana for the world from NW Norfolk. Maz lead & harmony vocals, acoustic guitar. Gaz lead & harmony vocals, drum & bass. Traditional tunes with contemporary beats.
garethcalway.blogspot.com/p/doin-different.html ... more

contact / help

Contact Peacock's Tale Musical Storytelling

Streaming and
Download help

Report this track or account

If you like Peacock's Tale Musical Storytelling, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Seafood Sam joins the show to discuss his newest album, " Standing On Giant Shoulders".
listen now