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The Angel of Anfield

1 Leave a comment on verse 1 0 The Angel of Anfield came down from heaven
He has a red scarf in one hand in the other a bible
He was watching the kids with their mothers, their aunties
And their uncles, their cousins, some twice removed, their memories
Collected like rain in a shoe, they were sat with the ould uns who spoke
Of Bill Shankly, they were sat with the young uns who spoke of him too
And the Angel he smiled at the faces familiar and watched the kids
With their fathers as they came to the table and the songs they were singing Went straight to his heart, there’s a girl on the kop with the sun in her eyes She looks for the past in the present of dreaming
The boy with his heart on the pitch with his heroes, give him one chance He could be Michael Owen…
Down on the sidelines with the wolves growing hungry
There’s “Le Boss” Gerard Houllier, Is time still his bride?
His moments of glory like our Liverpool buses
Nothing at all, then 3 all at once…

2 Leave a comment on verse 2 0 Thommo his passion still worn like a badge
and he’d pull on the red shirt if he had the chance,
but the vine once so sweet is now threatening to sour
And the Angel he sat amongst those come to worship
The husband, the wife, the girl gone 3 months, the newly engaged
And there’s those who are slaves to their pre teen age hormones
They gaze down at Harry with the thoughts of those older
Their make up too heavy their skirts way too short, football and life…
At the top of the house is the rustle of footsteps they want to clear out the attic take a broom to the dust from the ghosts on the wall,
progress or profit?
No one is talking, nobody is sure…

3 Leave a comment on verse 3 0 And the Angel he smiles at the girl on the kop with the stars in her eyes
On the skin of her soul she has scribbled her words
The goals that she witnessed stitched to the soles of her dreams
There’s a prayer for the sold out the moments that passed by
The given the taken the blessed and the damned
There’s a prayer for the few going up from the many there’s a prayer for a win as a lone voice says grace for a forlorn Emile Heskey
There’s those wrapped in scarves those wrapped in flags those wrapped in thoughts that they know they should discard, still…
We can bask in the time that we all sit now as one, “you’re here” is what matters and not where you’re from, with the truth still reflected
The colours of football, and life…

4 Leave a comment on verse 4 0 There’s a girl on the kop alone but not lonely
Remembers the journey the names there now different
But the passions the same, and the faces and memories remain
The kop starts to chant and they cheer on their heroes they’ve spent all
Their money and paid all their dues, their hearts joined together
Man Woman and Child, the lads in the red race out to their family
The roar for the redmen goes up to the stars…
And the Angel of Anfield he smiles again as he whispers:
“If we give up on Liverpool, we give up on life”.

5 Leave a comment on verse 5 0 (c) tobyjones january 2nd 2004

Notes

(c) tobyjones january 2nd 2004

Source: http://footballpoets.org/poems/the-angel-of-anfield/