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A Byronic Sort of Blighter

from CURLY'S AIRSHIPS by JUDGE SMITH

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lyrics

CURLY:-
Too piss elegant, too aristocratic,
Too infernally suave
For the post-war world,
So they gave him a peerage instead;
'Baron Thompson of Cardington'
Was the title he chose.
That's right, I said Cardington,
The Royal Airship Factory;
I call that betting pretty hard
On our success...

Urbane and charming, a glamorous figure,
He got things done
And made powerful friends.
But safer not to get in his way;
He was hard as nails
And ambitious as hell.
A Byronic sort of blighter,
He was having an affair with
Some Romanian princess...

Or was she Swedish? I forget.
Well anyway, we didn't trust him,
'Cause nothing's what it seems
Where politicians are concerned;
Just what was going on
Behind that noble profile?

THOMPSON:-
This is magnificent;
I shall fly this ship to India and back
Just before I speak
At the Imperial Conference next October,
Fresh from a record-breaking flight
With a speech
On Air Travel and the Empire:
For the Government a major coup
And for me a modest promotion...

Descending from the clouds
Above the Indus,
My flying palace wafts me to Karachi.
A mythological hero
From the Maharabhata,
They're sure to give me the job,
The job that's made for me,
The Viceroy of India.
The Viceroy of India.

Lord of a continent,
The Hand of Imperial Power,
As near as damn it to royalty itself,
And then I'll lay my viceregal crown
At the feet, the adorable feet,
The haughty and proud and desirable feet,
The feet of my princess,
Worthy at last of the feet of my princess.
Viceroy and Vicereine,
Me and my princess!

I can pull this off if I crack the whip
And take no excuses
From these grubby little men
With their endless delays
And technical problems
And their costings going up hand over fist.
They've got the time to get it right
And two months start
On those bastards in Yorkshire;
So if they value their jobs,
They had better deliver.
I don't want bad news.
I don't want 'can't do'.
I won't take 'no' for an answer...

credits

from CURLY'S AIRSHIPS, released April 10, 2020
Vocal Credits:-
CURLY - JUDGE
LORD THOMSOM - PETER HAMMILL

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JUDGE SMITH Glastonbury, UK

Judge Smith co-founded the band Van der Graaf Generator in 1967 with Peter Hammill, & has since been involved in many music projects as writer, composer or performer. He has written stage musicals, classical & rock libretti, songs for television & a book on Life after Death; directed a prize-winning short film, & released fourteen CDs & two DVDs. He was born in 1948 & lives near Glastonbury, UK. ... more

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