The Lantern by the Western Shore

[Verse 1]
By the cliffs where the wild winds roar,
Stands a lantern by the western shore,
Burnin’ low through the mist and rain,
Callin’ lost souls home again.
With a whisper carried on the tide,
And the ghosts of ships that never died,
You can hear in the ocean’s cry,
All the names that time passed by.

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[Verse 2]
Old Seamus walked that path each night,
With a weary soul and a borrowed light,
Since the storm took his love away,
On a cruel and broken winter’s day.
They say he swore by sea and stone,
He’d never let her drift alone,
So he lights that flame with trembling hand,
Guidin’ hearts back to the land.

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[Chorus]
Oh the lantern burns where the cold winds moan,
Through the dark where the lost have flown,
Shinin’ bright through the endless foam,
Singin’, “Darlin’, come back home.”
And the sea may rise and the sky may fall,
Still that light will outshine it all,
For the love that’s lost is never gone,
It lives where the waves roll on.

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[Verse 3]
Now the village sleeps by the fire’s glow,
Dreamin’ tales that the old ones know,
Of a man and a light on the edge of night,
Holdin’ fast through fear and fright.
Some swear they’ve seen her driftin’ near,
In a dress of white through the fog so clear,
And she smiles at the flame so true,
As it dances gold in the midnight blue.

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[Verse 4]
Years have passed but the flame stays strong,
Like a timeless verse in an ancient song,
And though Seamus’ bones lie deep,
Still the lantern wakes from sleep.
For love like that won’t fade away,
It’s carved in tide and carved in clay,
And the winds still hum his mournful tune,
Beneath the pale and watchful moon.

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[Chorus]
Oh the lantern burns where the cold winds moan,
Through the dark where the lost have flown,
Shinin’ bright through the endless foam,
Singin’, “Darlin’, come back home.”
And the sea may rise and the sky may fall,
Still that light will outshine it all,
For the love that’s lost is never gone,
It lives where the waves roll on.

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[Bridge]
So if you wander far from land,
And the night don’t heed your cry,
Look for the glow on the distant strand,
Where the faithful never die.

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[Final Chorus]
Oh the lantern burns where the spirits roam,
Through the dark where the lost have flown,
Shinin’ bright like a sacred psalm,
Guidin’ hearts through the storm to calm.
And the sea may rage, and the winds may call,
Still that light stands above it all,
For the love that’s true will carry on,
Like a fire that’s never gone.

Traditional Irish Folk / Celtic Ballad (tin whistle, fiddle, soft bodhrán, slow build, irish male voice