INSTRUMENTAL track of a song regarding the tragic circumstances faced by the tens of thousands of Syrian asylum seekers pouring into European countries over the past several months. The ongoing and distressing news stories and photographs led to the writing of the lyric.
Though the current track is instrumental, I've included the text. I thought it might help listeners to know the story that the music is reflecting. A vocal track from a female singer is in the pipeline.
*The word 'habibti' in Arabic means 'darling'.
*The track won the instrumental category in the 2015 SongDoor International Songwriting Competition.
Music/instrumentation/arrangement/production: Billy Playle
Lyric: Donna Devine
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Run, Habibti, Now Run!
V1
Her husband and son
Are the blood on her blouse
Which stained the debris
Of what was a house
Her mother's last words were
Run, Habibti, Now Run!
Pre-chorus
She's a drop in an ocean
Of refugee souls
A swell that won't stop
And oh, what a toll
Chorus
Past barbed-wire borders
She hurries along
Driven by waves of despair
...Past angry red scrawls
On signs that inform her
In capital letters
…She's not welcome there
V2
The pains have begun
Though she's still on the tracks
She longs to lie down
But no going back
Her mother's last words were
Run, Habibti, Now Run!
Pre-chorus
She's a drop in an ocean
Of refugee souls
A life without war
Their desperate goal
Chorus
Past barbed-wire borders
She hurries along
Driven by waves of despair
...Past angry red scrawls
On signs that inform her
In capital letters
…She's not welcome there
Instrumental bridge
Chorus
Past barbed-wire borders
She hurries along
Driven by waves of despair
...Past angry red scrawls
On signs that inform her
In capital letters
…She's not welcome there
Outro
'Run, habibti'
Run, habibti'
'Run, Habibti, Now Run!'
© 2015 Donna Devine
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