Grand Dark Feeling of Emptiness
Bonnie 'Prince' Billy Lyrics

Well I felt like I was born today
I woke up with a new perspective on life

So I took it upon me to go away
I decided to leave and distance myself from everything

To gather my thoughts and go away
I needed to clear my mind

Where I could (be used by) somebody
I wanted to belong somewhere, to have purpose

Now over the hill, like always you know
As usual, there were people hanging around nearby

Were Billy and Frankie and Henry and Joe
My acquaintances were present

And they beat and broke me hard and slow
I was physically and emotionally abused

To prove I was nobody
To make me feel worthless and insignificant

And no-one I was and so I remained
I was reduced to nothingness

Knocked-out in a hut, no mother, no name
I was left unconscious with no one to care

And filled up my heart with one and the same
I was overwhelmed by a single emotion

That grand dark feeling of emptiness
I felt a deep sense of emptiness that consumed me

And was it a friend that turned me loose
Did someone help me escape?

Or was it a girl come to baste my goose
Did a woman rescue me?

Or was it my great god who laid on his finger
Did a divine intervention save me?

And started my clock anew
Did something give me a new beginning?

Ah no, it was rain ; ah no, it was gunning
It was something unexpected or uncontrollable

It was point-break and buckle
It was a sudden, shocking event

And singing and cunning
It was a combination of factors

That skinned me, re-skinned me
That forced me to change, and then change again

And started me running
That motivated me to move forward

And I never looked back from then on
I didn't dwell on my past

And now I am learning bit by bit
I am gradually gaining knowledge and experience

About the make and model shit
About the workings of life

The muddy bowl I live in it
The difficult circumstances I find myself in

And all the mucks that tire us
And all the obstacles that wear us down

And I'm afeared if I don't have
I'm scared that if I don't obtain

A piglet, lamb or little calve
Something to nurture and care for

I'll chop my human-ness in half
I'll lose my humanity

And be as worm or virus
And become insignificant and unimportant

But kids I've had, and they are sung
I have children who are remembered and cherished

Upon folks' ears my babes are hung
My children are remembered by others

Rhythmically they live among
Their lives continue in a harmonious way

And grow but don't get old
They mature but remain timeless

Not in a box, not in a void
They exist in people's memories and hearts

Not if their voice is never hoid
Unless their story is told

Nor if no-one repeats a woid
Unless someone remembers them

But if their tune is told
But if their story is shared

Then we can age and fall away
Then we can grow old and pass on

To meet again some golden day
To reunite in the afterlife

And fill it in our happy way
And enjoy it in our own way

In starlight and in gold
In a beautiful and glorious manner