DANClNG IN THE Martin Murphey
When the snow-fields thaw and the beds crawl to the waterfall and river, I'll turn my face to the bright space of the mother, my life-giver. No man has made a ring of like green corn in the husk. No man could own a turquoise as deep blue as the dusk. So come away from working day and laugh and let your head go, And along an old-time song for dancing in the meadow.
Leave your bedside for a moonlight where the midnight air is warmer. We'll sing for the quail and the cottontail who still the farmer. Deep plum thickets and bramble bushes where the quiet hide Are part of me, a which I accept with pride. If I must stay and lay all day like a hare in hedgerow, When the hunter's gone, it's all night long, for in the meadow.
When the summer's over and come when the evening air is crisper, In the mist and smoke by the twisted oak, listen to the branches whisper. Barn dancers reel, the furrowed must yield and quickly turn. Harvest gone, the hoot-owl is one we now must learn. "Who, who, who are you?" and "If you, who said so?" "Who it be?" "It's only me. I'm dancing in the meadow."
the seasons pass and the hourglass has all too quickly shattered, You'll lay me low the snow and wonder if I mattered. Late in the night, your hair white will surely stand on end. You'll hear me sing, my banjo ring, the voice of old friend. If you get brave, run to my and holler, "Are you dead?" "No!" No can cover my bones. I'm dancing in the meadow.
[Sung by Martin Murphey on "Swans against the Sun" and "Wildfire 1972-1984."]