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Only Stories (Let The Cards Fall Revisited)

by The Breath

/
1.
We’re in the water Faded shadows Winter at my cheek Fighting fliers Flickered fires Summer at our feet Pieces of me, lost at sea, out on the tide Hear the yearly wields of the wild The only stories my mother told me They’re only stories mo dhadaí left me Only stories, only stories own me Frightened flickers, stolen whispers, bathed in the dark Clasp your hand in my hand, never wanting to part Pieces of me lost at sea, out on the tide Hear the yearly wields of the wild The only stories my mother told me They're only stories, mo dhadaí left me Only stories, only stories own me Only stories, only stories own me
2.
Hideaway on your own Let the time go Your mind know All near the hurt will see You praying to yourself And me Let it calm you down Let it calm you down Let it calm you, calm you, let it calm you down Something sooth is written on the wind You’re looking for your truth in other women And i’ll hold my weapon out and raise a glass For all you’ve done to me and all you’ve cost Yet it calms me down Yet it calms me down All the suffering going on, the pit in my chest One turn of your cheek and I am second-guessed And it calms me down For you, I know of fate For you, before you I knew ways To cut men where they stand and lose their ways I found joy in the suffering that i could entail And you rise upon the tide with history's page Somethings written in the ways of all you take Can't you see thewcaves are calling to the seas For all it could give for you and me, for you and me And you calm me down, you calm the storm reigning down Yes you calm me down, you calm me down You take the suffering of the world upon your shoulder blades And you give it all out with every breath you take Yes you calm me down, yes you calm me down Oh you calm me down, you calm the world down And you slow it down, you slow the world down And take me down, take me down to china town
3.
Lift your head Raise the dead Love abound the bi-motional peace Won’t you sever empty dread Come play with me instead Count the truth a terminal release Dancing sorrows were they fall None sooth’s but win the soil Go into battle drawn with all the sea For the waves will turn you o’er The wind will blow you more The land will roll the last out in you and me Our children bathed in blood Who will howl for their home The history books may victor written be My bones will shake with gall, get carried with their hoards Remember all that you have been Our children bathed in blood Will howl for their homes Their history book may victor written be
4.
[Verse 1] I wouldn't know another As I heard them sleep at night Wouldn't set you free to wander When you could not always fight She took you for a mother Held you in her eye If you could only need you Weary of another’s arms [Chorus] And you only nay, curse of now Pulls at your chords, and curses down You know that I know And i know that you know [Verse 2] If she could not leave you Holding on to me tight If you could love another Half as bright So when if you lay your way down in night Say a blessing for others ‘fore you centre your strong light Remember those others [Bridge/Outro] And untangle me... untangle me... From all the good it did for me And all the suffering that it seen You can keep it... you deserve it Lord knows you’ve earned it All the good it did for me All the suffering that it seen You can keep it... you deserve it Lord knows you’ve earned it
5.
Worn out, brazen lost lovers holding on Reached for his tin, hide all your secrets in Born under covers Heaven as lead Poisoned your parents bed Hanging on The house spills it’s cowards out My heart pulls his colours out To sea... Calling his name given yesterday Shed the skin the same To have our own truths Had our own secrets too Guiding us through If i held you again Like all women Lay the same way Course crossroads they’d win Written for other men’s history Page turns the same In truth, given into, truth, the spell’s all your into...
6.
stolen from home , lost in the night taken by re to hasten their flight And the rattle and creak of boards ‘neath their feet, buried the scars underneath but the sea is wide, they cannot forego it and long, long is the tide that has taken thee so sing them a boat song to carry them over sing them a boat song, return them unbroken pray keep them safe, let them be unafraid for dark are the hearts that take them to their graves lost souls in the tide, they turn to the shore where wringing of hands plead for deliverance and the sea is wide, they cannot forgo it and long, long is the tide.... that has taken thee....taken thee so sing me a boat song, to carry me over ...who will replace this sailor boy when he goes? his love still watches the tide for his return oh, for his return oh
7.
Ever wanna know this? Ever wanna know this me? I’m working in colours Working in colours you can’t see And i’m breathing it backward Searching for the sun Do you ever know which way is won? Do you know me Do you see Are you waiting for the dawn to take me will you hold me Will you see Will you wait until the dawn to take me i’m working it harder I’m working it harder Long enough to call a knife Cut it into pieces where i writhe Linger in the other head, directionless where our people rest and know me best do you know me Do you see Will you wait until the dawn to take me will you hold me Will you be Will you wait until the dawn to bury me
8.
Time lets its keepers to stay Some mothers battle their way Kept a run away hate Suhail my old friend won’t you rest a day Though you walk the ill-trodden path Strong brother, strong brother won’t you wait Pieces lost with the ills of the world Long gone, easy late Timeless as the day where earths are made Though you walk the ill-trodden path Though you shy the ill-gotten way Though you forge the long road ahead Let the cards fall where they may Though you seek the ill-gotten truth Though you shake the ill-gotten turn Though you walk the long forgotten path Loyalty Lochlainn

about

In November 2018, singer Ríoghnach Connolly and guitarist Stuart McCallum embraced, beaming out at an audience that had leapt to their feet at the close of their intimate show in Brighton. They too had felt that something very special had just happened.

Stuart and Rioghnach are the creative heart of The Breath. For this show, they had performed their first duo set, minus their full band, allowing their extraordinary connection to shine through. Stripped bare, they found a new depth and beauty in their unadorned, heartfelt songs that had connected with their audience in such a remarkable way.

A few weeks later, they travelled from Manchester to Real World Studios to re-record eight tracks; five taken from their highly acclaimed 2018 release, Let the Cards Fall. In a set-up that mimicked the gig setting, tracks were recorded in one take, live, immediate and in the moment.

“Whilst feeling a bit daunting at first” says Stuart, “we knew after the Brighton gig that the space in the music allowed for more subtlety, presenting the songs in a new light and really capturing the lyrical narrative and performance nuances in an extremely intimate way. It felt important to go to Real World Studios and revisit these songs in this intimate, raw duo setting.”

Only Stories (Let the Cards Fall Revisited) is the result; a duo recording of immense power and emotion. Stuart’s beautifully insistent, infinitely subtle guitar is the perfect partner to Ríoghnach’s intoxicating, deeply passionate voice, at times, as described by the Guardian, as “tender as the grasp of a child’s hand” others, robust and intense.

Only Stories revisits a selection of the Breath’s skilfully crafted songs. Written by Ríoghnach they are raw, poetic and deeply personal, touching on subjects that mean most to her— cultural dislocation, injustices, family, love and grief. Throughout, the Celtic nuances of her voice and skilful, distinctive flute playing underscores her traditional Irish folk roots; balanced by warm, yet sparse soundscapes: their unique twist on alt-folk.

credits

released April 5, 2019

Stuart McCallum: guitar
Ríoghnach Connolly: vocals.

Recorded, mixed and mastered by Oli Jacobs at Real World Studios.

Filming by York Tillyer. Photography by Duncan Elliot.

Original versions appear on the album Let The Cards Fall, except ‘Boat Song’, which features on Carry Your Kin.

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The Breath Manchester, UK

A journey from hushed storytelling to uplifting anthems, Ríoghnach Connolly & Stuart McCallum present Manchester’s unique take on alt-folk.

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