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Louis J Barabbas - Things Are Hotting Up

from The Skye & Lochalsh Community Album Project by Louis Barabbas

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  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    Glass mastered compact disc in gatefold digipack with artwork by Philippa Thomas. Includes lyric booklet featuring archive images and recording session photos.
    Profits go to Alzheimer Scotland.

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about

An account of what it's like to be an on-call firefighter in Skye.
Recorded as part of the Culture Collective project funded by Creative Scotland and co-ordinated by local events charity SEALL. Profits from album sales go to Alzheimer Scotland.
www.seall.co.uk
www.culturecollective.scot

lyrics

The trees begin to blacken
Delta branches are attacking
More persistent than the bracken
Crowding in around our ears
The reassuring snap of braces
All our clothes have zips not laces
We can squeeze through confined spaces
And we’re bringing all our gear

Now the roof ladders are rattling
And the elements we’re battling
I think someone has been meddling
With the roadsigns around here
We don’t smoke but we can smolder
We give hot stuff the cold shoulder
We keep meticulous records
In our developmental folders

In the highlands and the islands
Where the heather hides the hydrants
The wind blows on thin roads
And the sheep bleats cut the silence
Keep your eyes on the horizon
We’ve got sirens
And blue lights on
If you called us then we’re coming
Through the ash and embers we’ll be running
Oh things are hotting up

On coast roads we meander
Like some raging salamander
We don’t take bribes or back-handers
But won’t say no to a cup of tea
There’s domestic fires from chip pan fryers
Cars in ditches, burning byres
Emergency
Cat stuck in tree
That happens less than on TV

And no we can’t wait until
There’s a pleasant weather frontal
Now the rain is horizontal
But there’s no moment to spare
There are people in the way of harm
Drag them out but do it with charm
It might just be a false alarm
But we won’t know ’til we’re there

In the highlands and the islands
Where the heather hides the hydrants
The wind blows on thin roads
And the sheep bleats cut the silence
Keep your eyes on the horizon
We’ve got sirens
And blue lights on
If you called us then we’re coming
Through the ash and embers we’ll be running
Oh things are hotting up

Now the watch commander’s shouting
We’ve got fire in the mountains
Ten miles but who’s counting?
Don’t accept no substitutes
It don’t matter if we’re sleeping
Because if that pager’s bleeping
You can bet there’s nothing keeping
Us from pulling on our boots

We’ve got hose jets and BA sets
We’ve got acronyms for all events
We tackle threats and rescue pets
I’ve got midges in my helmet
We’ve all got midges in our helmets

Things are hotting up
In this cold and misty isle
We put out fires in style
And we do it with a smile
Things are hotting up
On this wet and windy rock
If we find a door is locked
We’ll break it down but always knock
Things are hotting up
We’ve got the magic and the science
All stored on the appliance
We treat danger with defiance
Things are hotting up
But it’s going to be okay
We’ve got protective gloves on
To help us seize the day

credits

from The Skye & Lochalsh Community Album Project, released August 4, 2023
Written by Louis Barabbas

Lead vocals and bass: Louis Barabbas
Drums: Graeme Deas
Guitar: Matthew Cleghorn
Tuba: Mike Norton
Trombone: Biff Roxby
Spoken vocals: Daniel Cullen
Backing vocals: Elaine Ferguson, Lian Na Rose, Ian Laing, Sylvia Porter, Meg Rosher, Andy Rose, Carys Turner-Jones, Marian Wright, Scott MacLucas-Paton, Miriam Ascher and Iain MacPhie

license

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about

Louis Barabbas image

Louis Barabbas Manchester, UK

Louis Barabbas is a writer, performer and firefighter, best known for caustic love songs and energetic stage shows.

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