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Two Gallants

from The Stern Task of Living by Hibsen

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    The CD for the Stern Task of Living is a beautifully designed 4 panel package with a booklet containing some background information about how the album was conceived plus lyrics of all the songs. The artwork, which was painted by Mark Keogh, captures the guests arriving at the 'Little Christmas' dinner from the short story 'The Dead', which is the most famous short story from James Joyce's Dubliners.

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lyrics

Through faint moonlight two young men stroll
A closer look show life’s taken its toll
Well-dressed to deceive their eloquence hides
Dishonesty hiding behind tired eyes

At the corner of Hume St. half turned on her heels
Swirling a sunshade a slavey reveals
Her joy as one of the young men appears
Naively thinking his motives are real

[Chorus]
Under cover of darkness there’s no forgiving
The lying and the leaching the stern task of living

As the couple retreat into the warm night
The other young man feels hunger’s sharp bite
Gnaw at his stomach like often before
An unwanted visitor known to the poor

Retracing his steps to the cheap side of town
He seeks out an inn where comfort is found
Oh what he’d give for a good job that paid
To not have to pull the devil’s dark tail

[Chorus]

To settle be happy is all that he wants
To leave the streets that he constantly haunts
Dreams of a wife some ready a home
For all of his hopes have not yet gone

Killing time he circles the Green
Until his good friend and the slavey appear
From the shadows he watches his friend work a charm
Relieving the girl of a solid gold coin

[Chorus]

His heart leaps with joy at the sight of the haul
The biggest of fish they’ve caught in a while
Without even a nod to his earlier thoughts
He’s back in the game as a man about town

[Chorus]

[Chorus]
The lying and the leaching the stern task of living

credits

from The Stern Task of Living, released May 26, 2023

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Hibsen Dublin, Ireland

Hibsen are an Irish contemporary folk music ensemble formed by folk artists Gráinne Hunt and Jim Murphy. They released their debut album 'The Stern Task of Living' on 26th May 2023. The album was inspired by the book of short stories 'Dubliners' by James Joyce. Each of the 15 songs on the album is named after the short story on which it is based. ... more

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