Neil

10 weeks ago by @wondertruly

Neil

wondertruly

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Liner Notes

#acousticonetake #singersongwriter #folk

Coming at you today with another sad song in which I take something very personally that has nothing to do with me.

You may know about the Neil Gaiman scandal currently in the news; if not, the TL;DR is that the famous author, Neil Gaiman, is coming under hot scrutiny after two of his former employees came out saying Neil sexually assaulted them while they were under his employ. Neil is denying much of what they're saying.

I'm a big proponent of believing victims. I err on the side of giving people who speak out about this the benefit of the doubt. Neil's responses to the allegations have been a bit shady, so I'm even more inclined to believe the women are telling the truth.

Neil Gaiman has been my favorite author since I was a teenager. American Gods has been an annual reread in my house, and the comic which most influenced my life was a Sandman spinoff: "Death; the Time Of Your Life." When I was touring full time out of my Prius, I had the CD set of Neil's nonfiction collection, "The View From the Cheap Seats." It kept me company over thousands of miles. Hearing him speak causes me to be really emotional because of how much it meant to me having his voice as a companion over those long driving days and nights.

I have complicated feelings about the whole thing, but mostly I am disappointed in one of my heroes (which are in short supply as it is, haha).

Lyrics

Did you forget all the time we spent
On that winding road I thought would never end?
And all the nights, although we’d never met
I passed the hours with your voice in my head

Oh, oh, oh

You told me about Joan of Arc resurrected
And the view from the cheap seats
You know me, though you’ll never know my name
Now the truth of you is out, and I can’t believe it

Ooh, how could you do it?
How could you hide it?
Now you deny it

Ooh, all the years I spent reading
The ways you got me dreaming
And now we’re all seeing you
Who you really are
How easily you broke my heart

Your influence, the comfort that you brought me
The easy way you cut to the heart of the matter
Do you regret the things you did?
Or are you sorry you got caught?

You told me about graveyards and stardust
The sons of gods, how good always wins
You told me that dragons can be beaten
And I leaned in close with every word

Ooh, how could you do it?
How could you hide it?
Now you deny it

Ooh, all the years I spent reading
The ways you got me dreaming
And now we’re all seeing you
Who you really are
A brilliant legacy just falls apart

You were one of the good guys
Few and far between, and in short supply
You breathed life into a generation
While hiding this poison inside

Ooh, how could you do it?
How could you hide it?
Now you deny it

Ooh, all the years I spent reading
The ways you got me dreaming
And now we’re all seeing you
Who you really are
You, who you really are
You, who you really are

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