Beautiful Stranger

John Cale: piano, harmonium, brass arrangement Pat Donaldson: bass Gerry Conway: drums Tony Cox: VCS 3 Soft lapped the bark boats A wounded shoulder hurt me not Snake - like branches quietly hid my eyes so bright in the swamp-red sun Soft edged the foreign words Coloured by the dark waves splash in the mist Brown the breasts and purple-stained Dye deep-pounded with the stone The warm wind now lifts the haze I looked and I caught my breath And I raised my head up high And I shouted out loud in my soul Beautiful stranger I'm glad I found you Bright the sky above my head Streaked with red and yellow wing Warm the mud between my toes Darkest green the inland trail Distant now the bark boats Golden beads on silver wire of sea Long bathed by salty spray Visions float on the dry earths smell Drifting back through younger days I looked and I caught my breath And I shouted out loud in my soul Beautiful stranger I'm glad I found you Moist and cool the river bank Laid me down against a tree Remembering as in a dream Shoulder cut in the dark waves splash In that place no wound there was Only a ring of finest bronze there gleamed Soft lapped the back boats Brown the breasts and purple stained River green reflect the gaze I looked and I caught my breath And I raised my head up high And I shouted out loud in my soul Beautiful stranger I'm glad I found you