The Butcher Baronet
Lyrics
Welcome to this city
So steeped in history
Where we’ll follow the trail of bold John Duck
So cloaked in mystery
Step into his buckle shoes
And come along with me
First we’ll raise a glass then raise him up
Out of obscurity
From Fleshergate he was cast out
By the Butchers’ Guild it seems
They sought to put an end
To all his hopes and dreams
But all poor determined dreamers
Will fight hard to defend
Their dreams to go from rags to glory
To the bitter end
Paint yourself a picture
For his likeness and his character
Have slipped through history’s net
John Duck who went from Butcher’s Boy
To Butcher Baronet
Here on Framwelgate Bridge he stood
In a deep despondency
Till a fateful raven woke him
From his dark melancholy
Would you have the drive to do
What John Duck did then?
Would you have the pluck
To chance your luck?
Would you turn and start again?
Throw a coin into the air
And where it lands see if your own luck can reflect
John Duck who went from Butcher’s Boy
To Butcher Baronet
Here on Silver Street there stood
His mansion on the hill
And but for mad town planners
It would be here still
We can now but imagine
The view he must have seen
Would all the works that he achieved
Be part of that rich scene?
Step into the Town Hall
For he became the mayor
The Butchers’ Guild must all have been
Tearing out their hair
But when he arose as Sir John Duck
It must have hurt them deeper still
To see him made a Baronet
At Haswell-on-the-Hill
Take a leaf from his book
Seize your luck and run with it
And be just like him yet
John Duck who went from Butcher’s Boy
To Butcher Baronet
We’ll repair at last
To a pub named the John Duck
And we’ll raise a glass or two
And another one for luck
And then we’ll raise another
Lest we all forget
The man to whom this song is set
The Butcher Baronet
Paint yourself a picture
For his likeness and his character
Have slipped through history’s net
John Duck who went from Butcher’s Boy
To Butcher Baronet
This man who went from Butcher’s Boy
To Butcher Baronet
(Gary Miller)
© 2018 Whippet Records
Copyright Control MCPS/PRS
Helen Temperley's first illustration from the project 'The Butcher Baronet'.
Notes
This song was commissioned and specially-written for the upcoming project 'The Butcher Baronet', in collaboration with Lone Pine Pictures, about the 17th Century Durham City historical figure John Duck.
Other songs and tunes from this project include : -
'Golden Journey: Through Air / Over Water / To Earth / On Fire'
