Stories from the Exile
Words, music and arrangements by Vincent Lockhart
Words, music and arrangements by Vincent Lockhart
African Mirrors
Nigeria, Kenya and Zambia
Nigeria, Kenya and Zambia
I was driving along
the banks of the River Niger
watching the thieves floating by
in the August rain.
Watching the wounded from the war
begging on the roads from Enugu
to Onitsha,
looking with hope at each passing car,
still trying to come to terms with the scar
left behind in their history.
O Nigeria.
I can see them fade away
in the rear-view mirror.
I can see them fade away
leaving only my own eyes.
And here, after all these years,
the man in the mirror changes.
Somewhere in the sky
between Nairobi and Lusaka
I heard my father’s voice saying,
“It’ll be alright”.
Kilimanjaro shines
above the clouds and the crowded cities
like some word of God for me.
Where are we going to?
Can we still hold the thread
between the living and the dead,
between the past
and who we are all supposed to be?
O Africa.
I can see the plains of Africa
from the aircraft window.
I can see my reflection
in the African sky.
And here, after all these years,
the man in the mirror changes.
Background
I wrote this song in bits and pieces during several journeys I made to Nigeria, Kenya and Zambia.
The opening lines refer to a time I was in Onitsha, a large city in eastern Nigeria that lies on the banks of the River Niger.
Mount Kilimanjaro in east Africa is considered the home of God and the ancestors.
The connection between the ancestors, the living and those who will be born into the family is a key idea in what it means to be African.
Vocals, guitar and orchestral sequencing:
Vincent Lockhart
Backing vocals: Alicia Devine, Bethany Friery, Noreen Lockhart and Deirdre Morrison
Percussion: Dudley & Claire Ray