Strange Affair

Richard Thompson

This is a strange affair

The time has come to travel

But the road is filled with fear

This is a strange affair

My youth has all been wasted

And I'm bent and grey with years

And all my companions are taken away

And who will provide for me

Against my dying day

I took my own provision,

But it fooled me and wasted away



Oh where are my companions?

My mother, father, lover, friend, and enemy

Where are my companions?

They're prisoners of death now,

And taken far from me

And where are the dreams I dreamed

In the days of my youth

They took me to illusion when they

Promised me the truth

And what do sleepers need to make them listen,

Why do they need more proof?

This is a strange, this is a strange affair



Won't you give me an answer?

Why is your heart so hard

Towards the one who loves you best?

When the man with the answer

Has wakened you, and warned you,

And called you to the test

Wake up from your sleep that builds

Like clouds upon your eyes

And win back the life you had

That's now a dream of lies

Turn your back on yourself and if you follow,

You'll win the lover's prize

This is a strange, this is a strange affair