Songs for Ashley

Verse 1

Paper flags are strung up crooked Nobody cares, we hung them fast Every year we do this for you Because the first one wasn't the last

Pre-chorus

Grab a can, grab a light We're not waiting one more minute Something's building, hold on tight

Chorus

Ashley, this whole yard is yours tonight We're loud because we love you madly No candle counts what you mean to us Nothing about you comes out badly

Verse 2

Brass cans lined up by the doorway Somebody filled them all with cheer You walk past and things get brighter That's the trick you pull off every year

Chorus

Ashley, this whole yard is yours tonight We're loud because we love you madly No candle counts what you mean to us Nothing about you comes out badly

Bridge

Blow it out, make it count Let the whole street hear us shout

Chorus

Ashley, this whole yard is yours tonight We're loud because we love you madly No candle counts what you mean to us Nothing about you comes out badly

Outro

Flags still hang there crooked and proud We'll sing this again out loud

Verse 1

Boots piled up beside the door Muddy proof of who we're for Every trip you drag us through Somehow feels like something new

Chorus

Ashley, light the whole room gladly Every year you shine so madly Nobody loves this hard, this true We're all better stood by you

Verse 2

You never wait for perfect weather Pull us out and hold us together Every mess you make feels right You turn a grey day into light

Pre-chorus

So raise a glass, don't wait, don't stall Stand up now, we're singing all This is the part where we get loud

Chorus

Ashley, light the whole room gladly Every year you shine so madly Nobody loves this hard, this true We're all better stood by you

Bridge

Here's to the tracks you leave behind The kind of heart that's hard to find We'll follow you through mud and rain

Chorus

Ashley, light the whole room gladly Every year you shine so madly Nobody loves this hard, this true We're all better stood by you

Outro

Kick off your boots, stay a while We're just glad to see you smile

Verse 1

Old brass taps still dripping slow Over glasses lined up in a row Under that fading photograph on the wall You're the reason we still glow

Pre-chorus

Every year the room gets brighter Every story feels a little lighter So lift it up, here comes the sound

Chorus

Ashley, we came here for you Dancing madly, nothing to prove Every candle burning gladly This whole night belongs to you

Verse 2

That picture's curled up at the edge Still you're the one we all pledge You never once let this old room go cold You keep us close to the ledge

Chorus

Ashley, we came here for you Dancing madly, nothing to prove Every candle burning gladly This whole night belongs to you

Bridge

Pour it out, let the glasses ring Nobody sits when your name gets to sing We're loud because we mean it true Every year we choose you

Chorus

Ashley, we came here for you Dancing madly, nothing to prove Every candle burning gladly This whole night belongs to you

Outro

Taps still drip, the glasses shine Here's to you, one more time

Verse 1

Cold bar, wet metal, waiting bus Your glove finds mine without a fuss Nobody else would notice this But it says more than either of us

Pre-chorus

I never planned on needing you But here we are, the whole thing true Something in me wants to say

Chorus

Ashley, I would wait all night Just to feel your hand hold tight You make the quiet feel alright Ashley, you and I fit right

Verse 2

Rain keeps falling, bus is late We don't mind, we'll gladly wait Your shoulder leaning into mine Feels like something close to fate

Chorus

Ashley, I would wait all night Just to feel your hand hold tight You make the quiet feel alright Ashley, you and I fit right

Bridge

I've loved you loudly, loved you slow Loved you in the ways that show And in this small, unnoticed place I'm loving you the way I know

Chorus

Ashley, I would wait all night Just to feel your hand hold tight You make the quiet feel alright Ashley, you and I fit right

Outro

Buses come and buses go Our hands stay touching, steady, slow

Verse 1

Wind keeps pulling at the sheet Still I plant my careful feet One peg down and then one more This is what I'm keeping you for

Pre-chorus

Nothing here is fast or loud Just my hands and this grey cloud But watch how steady turns to true

Chorus

Ashley, I don't love you fast I love you built to last Piece by piece I choose you madly Ashley, quiet, never sadly

Verse 2

Basket's heavy, canvas damp Still I light this little camp Every peg a small clear choice Every choice is in your voice

Pre-chorus

Nothing here is fast or loud Just my hands and this grey cloud But watch how steady turns to true

Chorus

Ashley, I don't love you fast I love you built to last Piece by piece I choose you madly Ashley, quiet, never sadly

Bridge

Some days the wind wins for a while Still I hang on, still I smile You are the hands that make this good

Chorus

Ashley, I don't love you fast I love you built to last Piece by piece I choose you madly Ashley, quiet, never sadly

Outro

Last peg drops, the line holds true Everything I have holds you

Verse 1

We open the book together dust rising soft and slow I watch your hand turn the page more than the words, I want to know

Pre-chorus

You never asked to be chosen you just stayed through the weather and now I can't read a line without wanting you near

Chorus

Ashley, you're the quiet in the room the calm I keep coming back to nobody holds a page like you Ashley, I'd choose this life anew

Verse 2

Some evenings we don't talk much just the sound of turning leaves but I feel you thinking beside me and that's enough to believe

Chorus

Ashley, you're the quiet in the room the calm I keep coming back to nobody holds a page like you Ashley, I'd choose this life anew

Bridge

Time keeps thinning like paper but you're still here, still true every hour feels less like waiting and more like loving you

Chorus

Ashley, you're the quiet in the room the calm I keep coming back to nobody holds a page like you Ashley, I'd choose this life anew

Outro

Close the book, leave the dust settling I'm still turning pages toward you

Verse 1

The silver light is moving soft along the wall tonight It slides so slow above your head and settles where you lie Nothing in this room will ever hurry you or startle you You're held here safer than the moon is high

Pre-chorus

Close your eyes now, let the quiet gather round you deep Every shadow here is gentle, none of them will keep You are wrapped in something warmer than the dark, so drift to sleep

Chorus

Ashley, Ashley, rest your head and let the light go by Nothing here will ever hurt you, nothing here will pull you far You are loved beyond the counting, past the reaching of the sky Ashley, sleep, and know exactly who and where you are

Verse 2

The paint above you wears its years so gently on the wall It's seen a hundred quiet nights and this one most of all Whatever moves across the ceiling only means the world turns kind There's nothing in the shadows you should fear at all

Pre-chorus

Close your eyes now, let the quiet gather round you deep Every shadow here is gentle, none of them will keep You are wrapped in something warmer than the dark, so drift to sleep

Chorus

Ashley, Ashley, rest your head and let the light go by Nothing here will ever hurt you, nothing here will pull you far You are loved beyond the counting, past the reaching of the sky Ashley, sleep, and know exactly who and where you are

Bridge

Long after this light has slid away and left the wall behind You will still be held as gently, always kept, always mine to mind

Chorus

Ashley, Ashley, rest your head and let the light go by Nothing here will ever hurt you, nothing here will pull you far You are loved beyond the counting, past the reaching of the sky Ashley, sleep, and know exactly who and where you are

Outro

The silver light still moves so slow above where you now sleep Rest now, Ashley, you are held, you are the peace I keep

Verse 1

Somewhere a wicker chair sighs low against the floor Warmth is folding round you like it did before A quiet hallway holds its breath tonight Sleep is waiting gently by the door

Pre-chorus

Hush now, let the humming of the house be all you need Every little creak is just the night here settling in Close your eyes and drift where nothing asks you to be seen

Chorus

Ashley, the dark is only softness in disguise Nothing in this house would ever wish you harm or lies Rest here, Ashley, where the quiet loves you madly You are held here safe until the morning light will rise

Verse 2

Under woollen blankets warm as summer come to stay Even shadows move so slowly they forget to sway Nothing hurries here, no clock, no chime This is where your worries drift away

Pre-chorus

Hush now, let the humming of the house be all you need Every little creak is just the night here settling in Close your eyes and drift where nothing asks you to be seen

Chorus

Ashley, the dark is only softness in disguise Nothing in this house would ever wish you harm or lies Rest here, Ashley, where the quiet loves you madly You are held here safe until the morning light will rise

Bridge

No need to keep your small eyes open, love is standing guard Whatever waits tomorrow can wait a little longer yet

Chorus

Ashley, the dark is only softness in disguise Nothing in this house would ever wish you harm or lies Rest here, Ashley, where the quiet loves you madly You are held here safe until the morning light will rise

Outro

Somewhere that same old chair still creaks its slow goodnight Sleep now, you are carried gently till the light

Verse 1

Dark water moves so slowly over the smooth grey stone The window's open just to let the cool night in You're curled up warm beneath the blankets, never alone This quiet house holds you as gently as kin

Pre-chorus

Listen how the water hushes, soft against the ground Nothing out there means you harm, nothing but that sound Close your eyes now, let the dark wrap slowly around

Chorus

Ashley, sleep is coming, easy as the tide There's nothing in the shadows, nothing left to fear Ashley, you are held here, safe on every side Rest your head, my Ashley, morning will be here

Verse 2

The pebbles never worry as the water rolls them round You don't have to carry anything tonight Every little sound outside is just a gentle sound And you are wrapped in something warmer than the light

Pre-chorus

Listen how the water hushes, soft against the ground Nothing out there means you harm, nothing but that sound Close your eyes now, let the dark wrap slowly around

Chorus

Ashley, sleep is coming, easy as the tide There's nothing in the shadows, nothing left to fear Ashley, you are held here, safe on every side Rest your head, my Ashley, morning will be here

Bridge

However far the water travels, it comes home to shore You are loved as surely as the tide returns once more

Chorus

Ashley, sleep is coming, easy as the tide There's nothing in the shadows, nothing left to fear Ashley, you are held here, safe on every side Rest your head, my Ashley, morning will be here

Outro

The water keeps on turning gently over smooth grey stone Sleep now, you are steady, and you never sleep alone