Barny
(Words and music; Colin Reece)
From the
Album ‘No Choice For A Beggar’ by Colin Reece
A young friend of mine went away to
the Falklands in 1982.
Before he went he was a normal easy going teenager. By the time he came back,
not surprisingly he'd changed and seemed to be possessed by some kind of hidden
anger, and ended up pasting a good friend of us both close to pulp.
This is by no means an anti-squaddie song. In fact I hope it comes across as
being as sympathetic to Barny as it is unsympathetic to the danger of suppressed
violence.
Audio clip from ‘No Choice For A Beggar’
Click here for a You Tube clip of this song
Within his hand made shelter he sits frozen to the core
Trying to wipe the memories of what it was he saw
For what was once bizarre to him has now become the law
But Barny ain't got no-one left to fight no more
He just ain't got nobody left to fight no more
And now that it's all over he can take a well-earned rest
But that ain't what he's trained to do, it ain't what he does best
And with all that in mind I ask you 'what else is there left'
When Barny ain't got no-one left to fight no more
He just ain't got nobody left to fight no more.
And you feel it when he shakes your hand with all his best regard
The friendly pat upon your back comes on a shade too hard
And you feel that somewhere deep within he's quietly marked your card
You see Barny ain't got no-one left to fight no more
He just ain't got nobody left to fight no more.
Barny's war is over
But Barny ain't been told
Barny's ticking over
He's ready to explode.
And in alcoholic argument he seems to make good sense
Opinionated, guarded but a tiny touch intense
And then physical attack becomes the best form of defence
You see Barny ain't got no-one left to fight no more
He just ain't got nobody left to fight no more.
So within his mind made shelter he sits frozen to the core
Trying to wipe the memories of what it was he saw
For what was once bizarre to him has now become the law
You see Barny ain't got no-one left to fight no more
He just ain't got nobody left to fight no more.