ALEXANDER - written and performed by Andy Brook (londonvision)
The story Alexander can be read as an allegory of the journey from being on a high in life, to the depth of depression and back again, but it is, in fact, the faithful desccription of an accident 30 years ago when I fell down a lift shaft in an abandoned building, and my escape from the black depths of its basement. Only the name has been changed.
The building was the famous old coldstore on the bank of the Thames at Vauxhall, where St George's Wharf is located today. In spite of the theme, it is quite a happy song.
Alexander is my entry for the 2019 Home Composed Song Contest (aka Amateur Eurovision). Please wish me luck!
ALEXANDER
Alexander needed more and more excitement in his life,
He went looking for adventure, on the sharp edge of a knife
The thrill was all embracing, though he knew the danger was quite clear
He was overwhelmed by adrenalin and then overcome with fear
He fell down to the bottom of the deepest, darkest hole
He was falling, still falling, totally out of control
But when he thought his time had come
He saw a distant light
And he knew that, if he followed, he would find it
But he knew it would be a fight
The fight of his life
So Alexander started climbing, he was fighting through the pain
It was two steps forward, and one step back, but it was progress all the same
And through the dark at last he sensed that he had reached an open door
And he cried and cried from sheer relief - until he couldn’t cry any more
He fell down to the bottom of the deepest, darkest hole
He was falling, still falling, totally out of control
But when he thought his time had come
He saw a distant light
And he knew that, if he followed, he would find it
But he knew it would be a fight
The fight of his life
Then Alexander hurried home
Before the shock began to bite
He was rocked by the experience
And had a new found love of life
He fell down to the bottom of the deepest, darkest hole
He was falling, still falling, totally out of control
But when he thought his time had come
He saw a distant light
And he knew that, if he followed, he would find it
But he knew it would be a fight
And he knew that, if he followed, he would find it
But he knew it would be a fight
Words and music by Andy Brook, August 2019