JOHN COLETTA & THE
HUMPFF FAMILY REVIVAL
Click on images for links
John Coletta Mandolin Tutorial
Unique tunes - Shanty From the Song Shanty on the
Humpff Family Revival CD
SHANTY (J Coletta/D FitzPatrick
The Lochaber boys and Buckie loons
Parked their fleets and stowed harpoons
Paid in cash, shower and shave
Bait for girls who
And hour on land and they still
Seven pints on a small tin tray
The barman rolls the empty
The fuel that loosens up their legs
The dancing’s on the wilder side
A guttered boy and loon collide
Glasses smash to the snare drums rattle
The band play through a rage and battle
We played “la mer”,
Bottle o rum with the drunken sailors
As they punched one another
yo ho ho with the drunken sailors
Fishing for puns
Early in the morning with the drunken sailors
By “sole to sole” they
Woke up in a long boat with the with the
Had each other’s throats
drunken sailors yo ho ho ho ho!
Get back to your boats
The doormen soon admit defeat,
and leave the loon the boy to beat
But in a trice the fight was fought,
hands were shook and drinks were bought
Before the peace the boss had fled,
so bar staff drank as band were fed
Amidst apocalyptic ruin,
sleeping trawler-men were strewn
A waitress says "that went well",
the drummer chokes "they fought like hell!"
She said "you don't understand,
If they like the gig they wont trash the band"
Bottle o Rum with the drunken Sailors
Yo ho ho with the drunken sailors
Early in the morning with the drunken Sailors
Woke up in a long boat with the with a Yo ho ho
Bottle o Rum with the drunken Sailors
Yo ho ho with the drunken sailors
Early in the morning with the drunken Sailors
Woke up in the morning with a Yo ho ho
© J Coletta
Sorry Is A Useless Word (J Coletta D Fitzpatrick)
There's nothing I can say to make amends
I will always regret what occurred
Can't give you a day to live again
sorry is a useless word
My face is in shock as you scream out my crime
(ooo---------------------------ooo what a big shit)
I wince at your obvious hurt
(ooo-----------------------ooo what a shit)
Apologies are a waste of time 'cause
(ooo----------------ooo what a big shit)
Sorry is a useless word Sorry is a useless…
(Sorry is a useless word...)
word Sorry is a useless word.
(Sorry is a useless wo---------------------rd.)
Sometimes it seems I'm a selfish shit
It’s not I don't care. I don't think!
And if I'm content then that's where I sit
And let the world go to the brink
Like we sit at the top of the food chain
Out-competing until they’re extinct
Things I've never heard of are never heard of again
And let the world go to the brink
© J Coletta
YOUR UNHEALTHY KINGDOM
(John Coletta)
as I walked in the door your averting eyes dart
You aim the lost composure from across the room
You perfectly express a sinking heart
Mine broke again on the same old wound
I felt the moment pass as our eyes never met
As we drive each other to opposite spaces
your body language a mime of regret
Our atoms can't share the same places….
Is it ‘cause I Know I love you, ‘with all the heart in my chest?
Is it ‘cause I'm so proud of you, when you're playing at your best?
Is it ‘cause I will defend you, when your useless friends are fake?
Is it ‘cause I will cook for you, just the way that you dictate?
Is it ‘cause I fixed your house, to be just the way you wanted?
Is it ‘cause I dug for you, in a garden that I hated?
Is it ‘cause I roll your cigarette, despite cigaretti breath?
Is it ‘cause when I drive, you can drink yourself to death?
Only now I share your indifference, Thank you for calling time
For a long time I was left alone to fight our stubborn grime
Why be lonely in your house, When I can be lonely in mine
Lonely in yours when I can be Lonely in mine
Is it ‘cause you fill the floor, with your useless precious stuff?
Is it ‘cause I’m not disgusted, at your filthy sheets and fluff?
Is it ‘cause I’ll clean your tooth-brush, when it becomes encrusted?
Am I aging like my car, clapped out, old and rusted?
Is my flat another country, with customs you can’t fathom?
I'm your minion to command; in your unhealthy kingdom
Its part of all these things, my perspectives rearranged
That's the moment that you loose me,
'cause I see how we have changed
© J Coletta
YOU’RE SO FINE (J Coletta/D FitzPatrick)
Your dancing started, like a child
And stony hearted, critics smiled
The tough moves were smooth, perfected to prove
You survived, more alive
Your body's changing, not your style
Maybe age brings, freedom while
The music is hot, and you see just what
Is left to loose, the steps you choose
You can make the day change colour,
When you chase cats up the tree
Without you life is duller, I believe I believe
And if my faith is tested,
I won't say amen
To fears and years arrested,
I'll watch you dance again
When you’re moving, sharp and clean
a lithesome, fluid, fine routine
Each bend and curve, each smile and swerve
You have been, loved and seen
© J Coletta
This Kind Of Love ( J Coletta D Fitzpatrick)
He thought he had it hidden, the workings of his mind
She was the stuff of casual fantasy
He summoned up all the spirit he could find
She caught his eye, emphasised a curve
Flattered or bored enough, for any kind of love
Something deep, something hidden,
Something she can’t quite define,
Made him smile, think she's shallow
But she knows, he knows,
That her face is more important than her mind
Staring at the ceiling, watching shadows glide
A careful skirt around the compromise
Amazed to see how much that decent cloths can hide
He wants to talk, about someone else
She fights the urge to try and justify herself
She knows the lies, and the excuses,
She knows exactly How it rhymed
And while he names the few exceptions,
That show, they go to show,
That her face is more important than her mind
Oh Este Typo de querer
Este Typo de querer
Todos Quieran amar
© J Coletta
HAUNTED (Coletta)
The radio mutters, from a warm room far away
The market has crashed, and there are fingers of blame
Today was like yesterday, a template for more
Haunted by hatred, regrets and remorse
This is the future, this is some sunny day
The wind shakes the window, and spits gusts of rain
You relax in the water, cut tension in half
But it's suddenly cold, when you wake in the bath
Time is telling you, to make a decision
So you size it all up, without discussion
And you come round in yesterday's world
The only one who knows, that your not the same girl
You don't feel the heat, you just see the sunshine
And the burden on shoulders, that can't live without overtime
You don't see the smoke, that cuts the blue sky
You feel the embers of friendship, but don't say good- bye
© J Coletta