Songs for Ella

Verse 1

Paper streamers caught the wire Yellow ribbons in a knot Someone tied them there for you Marked the gate to say you're loved a lot

Pre-chorus

Every colour means a cheer Every knot means someone stayed So let the whole street hear

Chorus

Ella, light the candles now Twist like ribbon, shine like Stella Every year you take a bow Sing it loud, sing it, Ella

Verse 2

Wind comes round and pulls them loose Still they hold on, still they sway Just like you when things get tough You find your feet and greet the day

Bridge

Blow the candles, make a wish Let the paper catch the breeze We're not going anywhere We'll stand here cheering, if you please

Chorus

Ella, light the candles now Twist like ribbon, shine like Stella Every year you take a bow Sing it loud, sing it, Ella

Outro

Streamers fade but you don't fade We'll tie new ones at the gate again

Verse 1

Up on the roof the sun is slow Candles waiting in a row Nobody lit them, doesn't matter You make the whole sky feel like laughter

Pre-chorus

We don't need the flame to burn Every year we watch you turn Brighter than the sun could be

Chorus

Ella, Ella, light of the crowd Sing your name and sing it loud Bright as yellow, warm as Bella Nobody shines the way you, Ella

Verse 2

The wax runs down the old brick wall Slow and easy, watch it fall You don't need a wish to send You're the best part of the weekend

Bridge

Pass the plate around again Every voice here calls your name Rooftops, gardens, kitchens, halls Today the whole world stops and calls

Chorus

Ella, Ella, light of the crowd Sing your name and sing it loud Bright as yellow, warm as Bella Nobody shines the way you, Ella

Outro

Let the candles melt away slow We already got our glow

Verse 1

Paper hats out on the street Left behind in melting snow Nobody minds the mess tonight Because you're the reason we glow

Chorus

Ella, this whole room is yours Light as any umbrella Every candle leans your way Nothing dims you, Ella

Verse 2

You walked in and changed the air Even strangers felt it show Half the coats got left at the door Just to catch you in the glow

Pre-chorus

Count the years however you like They never weigh you down Something in you keeps rising up

Chorus

Ella, this whole room is yours Light as any umbrella Every candle leans your way Nothing dims you, Ella

Bridge

Let the whole street turn to slush We'll still be here singing your name Cold can't touch what we feel for you Warm as the first match struck aflame

Chorus

Ella, this whole room is yours Light as any umbrella Every candle leans your way Nothing dims you, Ella

Outro

Somewhere hats still float in snow We kept the warmest one for you

Verse 1

I hold this mug beneath the tap and I am thinking of your face the water runs, my hands go slow because I'm in no kind of race

Chorus

Ella, this is how I love you steady, plain, and never rushed not some grand and burning fire just this quiet that I trust

Verse 2

You left this cup out on the ledge one small sign that you were here I turn it over in the light and something in my chest goes clear

Pre-chorus

I could dress it up in bigger words call it fate or call it flame but the truth sits smaller than all that

Chorus

Ella, this is how I love you steady, plain, and never rushed not some grand and burning fire just this quiet that I trust

Bridge

No one sees this moment but me just suds and steam and your name I wouldn't trade it for anything louder

Chorus

Ella, this is how I love you steady, plain, and never rushed not some grand and burning fire just this quiet that I trust

Outro

I'll set this mug back on the shelf still loving you when the water's still

Verse 1

Two wooden pegs click in my hand I hold the sheet, you hold the line We hang the wet day out to dry Nothing about us feels like design

Pre-chorus

It's not the big words that I trust It's how you stay when mornings turn So say the name and watch it burn

Chorus

Ella, you're the calm I lean on Ella, steady through the grey Nobody holds a line like you do Nothing shifts you, come what may

Verse 2

The pegs don't hold much, only cloth But you hold on to far more than that You keep the ordinary things from falling And that's no small thing to be at

Chorus

Ella, you're the calm I lean on Ella, steady through the grey Nobody holds a line like you do Nothing shifts you, come what may

Bridge

I've watched love get loud and lose its way But yours just clicks in place and stays

Chorus

Ella, you're the calm I lean on Ella, steady through the grey Nobody holds a line like you do Nothing shifts you, come what may

Outro

The sheets come in, folded and dry You're still the one I'm standing by

Verse 1

Two sleeves touching, nothing said Room too loud and table spread Still I felt you close to me That small space was all I'd need

Pre-chorus

Nobody else was looking then I wasn't watching for it, when Something settled, quiet, true

Chorus

Ella, that's the moment I knew Nothing loud, just me and you Stella never held me so Ella, this is how I know

Verse 2

Papers scattered, chairs too close You laughed at something, I don't know what Elbow bumped and stayed right there Neither of us moved an inch

Bridge

I don't need the grand or gold Just this staying, growing old Ordinary rooms turned right When you're the one inside the light

Chorus

Ella, that's the moment I knew Nothing loud, just me and you Stella never held me so Ella, this is how I know

Outro

Sleeves still touching, years gone by You're still the reason I don't move

Verse 1

Somewhere a small door swings open and closes so slow keeping the hours the only thing it seems to know back and forth in the dark it goes on turning and under that rhythm is you, safe here below

Pre-chorus

Every tick is a hand that will not let you fall every hush in this room is wrapped around you all so let your eyes grow heavy as the quiet starts to call

Chorus

Ella, sleep now, the night is gentle and slow you are held here closer than you'll ever know softer than starlight, warmer than yellow Ella, rest now, let the whole world go

Verse 2

The pendulum swings like a heart that never will race steady and sure in its small and shadowy space nothing can hurry it, nothing can shake it and nothing will ever take you from this place

Chorus

Ella, sleep now, the night is gentle and slow you are held here closer than you'll ever know softer than starlight, warmer than yellow Ella, rest now, let the whole world go

Bridge

Time can keep swinging its long patient song you are not measured by how it moves along you are the stillness it swings itself around

Chorus

Ella, sleep now, the night is gentle and slow you are held here closer than you'll ever know softer than starlight, warmer than yellow Ella, rest now, let the whole world go

Outro

Somewhere that small door is closing so slow and you are the reason it swings soft and low

Verse 1

I keep the radio low so the hiss can hold you gently the songs have gone quiet but I stay close and attentive that small soft static is a sound I want you to trust it hums like the house does when it settles into dust

Pre-chorus

Nothing in this room is asking you to wake or wonder there is only breath and blankets and the hush beneath the thunder and here beside your ear the whole wide world grows smaller

Chorus

Ella, the static hums so soft and slow tonight you are the calm I listen for beneath that light no song could ever hold you half as close as I do sleep now, my Ella, there is nothing here to frighten you

Verse 2

Somewhere a station hisses between one tune and another you are the quiet part I never want to smother I trace your name the way a hand rests on a cello's string and hope you dream of something warm and wordless, gathering

Chorus

Ella, the static hums so soft and slow tonight you are the calm I listen for beneath that light no song could ever hold you half as close as I do sleep now, my Ella, there is nothing here to frighten you

Bridge

Let the small grey noise become a blanket, soft and endless hold you like a hush that always meant to find you

Chorus

Ella, the static hums so soft and slow tonight you are the calm I listen for beneath that light no song could ever hold you half as close as I do sleep now, my Ella, there is nothing here to frighten you

Outro

The dial stays low, the night keeps humming steady and slow and you are the song I chose beneath that quiet glow

Verse 1

The streetlights slide across the buckle by your chin Soft orange waves that drift and glow and fall You watch them go with sleepy eyes half open Riding home where no harm comes at all

Pre-chorus

Every light that passes you is turning into rest Your breathing slows to match the hum below Hold on to nothing, let the dark be gentle

Chorus

Ella, the night is wrapping soft around you now Nobody's calling you home but home is here Ella, you're carried safe through every shadow Sleep is close and love is always near

Verse 2

The world outside grows quiet as the wheels turn slow Your small hands rest like they've stopped needing to hold Nothing can reach you in this warm and moving cocoon You're the softest thing this whole night ever told

Bridge

Let the hush settle deep into your shoulders Let the glow outside just blur and fade away

Chorus

Ella, the night is wrapping soft around you now Nobody's calling you home but home is here Ella, you're carried safe through every shadow Sleep is close and love is always near

Outro

The last light slides across the buckle, dimming low You're already dreaming, and it's time to let you go