RAY COLLINS


RAY COLLINS
Who the *#"* is Ray Collins???


i am a belfast punter ray collins is my name
i’ve travelled throughtout this world in search of fame and gain
been down and out in london in paris and in rome
but come the day i’ve always found a way to get myself back home

i terrorized my teachers y’know i broke their hearts and minds
forgot to do my homework and never turned up on time
but it wasnae me blew up the science labs though i disrupted all their plans
and i made them squirm at every turn 'cause i passed all my exams

we chanced our arms in the darkness of the picture-houses way back then
the arcadia the clonard the alhambra and the diamond
but there are no more strong programmes nor balconies nor stalls
just a lone movie on a wee screen in a gleaming shopping mall

we jived away our youth y'know till the dance halls met their doom
romanos and the plaza the maritime and boom boom rooms
bought cheap guitars in smithfield long since burnt down and gone
then had to hock them in the pawnshops for no more than a song

i've drunk cheap wine 'n' scrumpy with my crazy mad-dog friends
been comatose and nearly froze yet came back to life again
long week-ends got longer start 'n' finish were the same
conspicuous consumption became the name of the game

wild sessions in the auld house pat's bar and kelly's cellars
jam-packed airless rowdy smokey beer-soaked bars
raucous argy-bargy wine women and song
caught in crossfire running riots dodgin' bullets dodgin' bombs

so i'll raise a glass to belfast a great wee northern town
to hell with the begrudgers and all those other useless clowns
here's a toast to belfast its warmth its pride its joy
here's to all the punters
men and women
girls and boys

where are you now my friends
through all the laughter tears and pain
most are dead all are gone
will we ever meet again?
will we ever
meet again?


in belfast town


in belfast town
i was born
in the jubilee ward
of a mid-march morn
to an existence
where the pains of love
greet cold huddled houses
in sleet drenched streets

the ballyhoo bark of scabby dogs
heralds a new dawn
a pot of thick sweet tea
bread 'n' drippin'
slimy blistered eggs
in a pan of black speckled grease
the racing form digested
a dole cheque
cigarettes
gee-gees and pints
the new day old already

deathly
night descends
on suspicious day's
nervous watch
unbiased
it entombs
the falls, the shankill
andytown and finaghy
the markets
the 'murph
the village
the 'row
the bone
and tiger bay


 

as published in the New York Quarterly issue #61

poetscraft.com

WHAT  THEY  "SAY" ABOUT  RAY


      "A fine tribute to the punters of Belfast from one of their own."                  
     
                                                                                                      BELFAST TELEGRAPH

     
      "Belfast Punter".. a surefire hit.."

                                                              
IRISH NEWS, BELFAST


  "A versatile musician as well as a noted balladeer, "As I Roved Back",
is his most mature work to date...the raw energy and passion
of his earlier music being harnessed into a disciplined set of self-penned songs."

                                                                                                                 ANDERSONSTOWN NEWS,  BELFAST


  "As I Roved Back provides, through its largely autobiographical material,
a clear view of what makes Ray Collins tick,
as well as providing an exciting entry in a growing trend.
 Forget what you've heard about Seattle.
 Ireland and Irish New York are the cutting edge of music today. "Rock on.

                                                                                                                   IRISH PEOPLE, NEW YORK


      "Ray Collins is a musician who writes songs that sum up life-
all the little things that make living bearable (or not),
who see traits, normally ignored or taken for granted,
which pinpoint the essence of a character.
He writes with humor and pathos and performs in an absorbing style.

                                                                                                           IRISH EDITION, PHILADELPHIA


   "..another excellent recording from Ray Collins..
 just wish he'd manage to get to the Bay area a bit more often,
 especially after his previous rousing visits here...

                                                                                                                       SAN FRANCISCO GAEL


 "An excellent recording.
Ray is tough and witty like the city he hails from" 

                                                            
             FILMMAKER JIM SHERIDAN   

"I'd rather be at home ..with RAY"


                                                                   AMY WINEHOUSE



"A Darhling Boy, A Darhling Boy, my favourite Irish Rebel Singer"

                                                                                                 
QUEEN ELIZABETH II


"Don't believe a word he says, lying bastard, we never had incestuous sex"
 

                                                                                                              
Joan Collins