Stan

BillS

This is the story of a gentleman who fled his native Poland when the Nazis invaded, ended up in Britain and became a pilot in the RAF. After the war he married a Brit …eventually the marriage ended and he couldn’t bear to go back to the marital home. He spent years living rough in north London and became quite well known locally. Stan’s full story (or as much of it as is known) is linked below.

https://www.camdennewjournal.co.uk/article/do-you-know-what-happened-to-stan

In the shadow of a war-torn dawn, he journeyed west to carry on
From fields of Poland, skies of grey, to the island’s shore a world away
A fighter pilot in the night, wings of freedom for the fight
But when the battles came to cease, he failed to find his inner peace

Oh Stan you wandered far from home
A ghost among the streets you roamed
Those winter nights, a photograph, a memory
Of a man who lost his destiny

English rose with eyes of blue, a love he thought would see him through
But with her gone his world unwound, his luck had finally run aground
He made his bed in the station’s fold, a silent sentinel in the cold
No drink, no smoke, no words to say, his life had seemed to slip away

Oh Stan, you wandered far from home
A ghost among the streets you roamed
North London’s alleys Camden’s lights
A man who lost his will to fight

As your story starts to fade, there’s those who still know your name
Stan the Polish, the story goes, weaved into every cobblestone
Forgotten few but still remembered , in those hearts is how it ended
To fight, to love, to lose, to roam, until the day you find your home

myapologies

You turned this story into a great song. The guitar playing is really nice, production sounds sharp all around, and I like the way you faded out the vocals. “But when the battles came to cease, he failed to find his inner peace” is probably my favorite line

LinearLineman

Very well done and great to hear a narrative song. Haven’t heard another good one since Rocky Raccoon. Till now

Paulieworld

Lovely sad but true story set to music. Reminds me of the music we heard in the Irish pubs when we vacationed there back in the 60s. Every song had a story. Back then they allowed kids in the pubs, with their parents, of course. Very well done

BillS

Thanks for listening and taking the time to comment @myapologies @LinearLineman @Paulieworld

I tell stories in many of my songs but musically I branched out on this one, in that I adopted a sort of a shuffle beat (at least I think that’s what it is) for the first time. To get the rhythm guitar to fit I played bass notes with my thumb on the on-beat, and sort of clawed up with my fingers on the offbeat. Sort of bom-chick, bom-chick rhythm (good technical explanation eh?!) So that was new, and it’s always nice to do something new at my age.

belldu

This was a story worth telling, and the musical style fitted it well.
Would have been all too easy to pick a more sombre tone, but the drums really drove it forward in a engaging way throughout.

GeoTony

I think bom-chick should officially be a new genre.
Loved the guitar playing and excellent vocals / lyrics as usual 👌

BillS

@belldu Duncan, thank you. I’ve often sung sad stories to the backdrop of a happy upbeat tune. I blame The Smiths (There’s a light that never goes out, Girlfriend in a Coma et al)
@GeoTony thanks again Tony, I’m in an acoustic mood right now, and bom-chick is the way forward 😂