A selection of songs with a ‘folk’ flavour.
A song conceived in the garden of a local pub (Queen’s Head, in Icklesham) one summer afternoon, just wondering where the clouds had come from and where they were going to.
A song about the ‘circle of life’.
Writing this song helped lift my spirits when I was feeling a little low. Life doesn’t have to be too serious.
A song born on the island of St. Lucia, in the Caribbean. The song is loosely based around a young man called Mikey who I met out there. Mikey played in a band, his girlfriend was expecting, and he was one of the most laid-back people I’ve met; I imagined he was living his life on Caribbean time.
This is a true story; a song about a young woman and her children caught in an abusive relationship.
“Molly” now lives happily on her own in sheltered accommodation, and her three children are grown-up and see their Mum regularly. So, it all turned out OK in the end, thanks largely to a wonderful solicitor and an incredible lawyer, both determined to do their best for her.
I love London, and this song is about family trips up there.
This song was conceived at the top of the Jungfrau mountain in Switzerland; you reach there via a funicular railway that goes through the famous Eiger mountain.
When you step out at the top, you need to catch your breath – the air is very thin at 13,000 ft. – and the sky is – well – impossibly blue.
This is another song conceived on the beautiful island of St. Lucia. “Welcome to Paradise” was a phrase we heard a lot.
Open a newspaper, and there’s usually a lot of doom and gloom inside. This song is meant as a counter to that; you can be light-hearted and enjoy simple pleasures.
A little song about how sometimes we ‘move on’ due to circumstances, and get to make new friends, and it all turns out well.
A song about loneliness – and how the support of loved ones is invaluable.
A song about ‘starting over’.
A simple love song; some of us forget to say those three little words, and we shouldn’t.
I lived in Amsterdam for two and a half years, and it’s still a magical city to me.
This is a song – with a borrowed folk tune – about the football club I’ve supported since I was a young child – AFC Bournemouth. They reached the Premier League of English football for the first time in their history in 2015, and it was one of the most magical things I’ve experienced; we’re a little club and we earned the right to mix it with the ‘big boys’… Manchester Utd, Arsenal, Liverpool…
A simple love song – with additional long-term commitment thrown in.
A ‘happy to be alive on a beautiful day’ song.
A little lullaby.
I entertained at dozens of Care Homes for a few years and enjoyed getting to know elderly people. I learned that behind the wrinkles and lines, there are often some wonderful and incredible stories.
A song about enjoying each day and not wasting them.
I travelled a lot on the railway network – going to and from football matches – and this song came from my frustrations with Southern Rail.
The tune is borrowed from Doc Watson’s ‘Deep River Blues’.
This is a tune – rather than a song – composed and played on the dobro, which our old cat Snowy used to like. He would sometimes sit on my lap while I was playing this tune, so I named it after him.
This is an instrumental, played on the guitar.
A tune written and played on the dobro at a time when I was getting to know the instrument and loving the different sounds it made.
Steve Bennett Songs 