The Quiet Went Missing

[Verse 1]
They sold the old hall for a car park
Paint flaked from the saint on the wall
The box where we kept all the candles
Is filled up with lotto forms now
A man counts his winnings at daybreak
A woman folds flyers for war
We drink in a bar called “The Mercy”
That doesn’t mean mercy at all
[Chorus]
Where did the quiet go?
The one that sat beside us
When we had little, but we had enough
Where did the neighbours go?
We used to know their stories
Now every eye is a locked front door
And I’m grieving for a country
That doesn’t know it’s dying anymore
[Verse 2]
The lad with the blood on his knuckles
Says “It’s only business, you know”
He learned that from those in good jackets
Who smile for the cameras at shows
They bulldozed the pitch by the river
For towers of glass and steel
We buried the goalposts at midnight
Like something we weren’t meant to feel
[Chorus]
Where did the quiet go?
The one that sat beside us
When we had little, but we had enough
Where did the neighbours go?
We used to share the sorrow
Now every hand is a loaded stone
And I’m grieving for a country
That put a price on every bone
[Bridge]
We used to leave soup on the doorstep
Now we leave numbers to ring
We used to say “Come in, you’re freezing”
Now we say “Who sent you? And why are you asking?”
I light a small flame in the kitchen
For people I’ll never now meet
And whisper a name for the country
It was
Before it crossed the street
[Chorus]
Where did the quiet go?
The one that sat beside us
When we had little, but we had enough
Where did the neighbours go?
We used to know their stories
Now every eye is a locked front door
And I’m grieving for a country
That doesn’t know my name
Anymore

Melancholy Irish folk, female vocals only