Home for a Rest
"Home for a Rest" is a song by Canadian folk rock band Spirit of the West, from their 1990 album Save This House. Although never officially released as a single, it is the band's most famous song and is considered a classic of Canadian music.
Written by John Mann and Geoffrey Kelly, the song tells of a drinking spree in London. The lyrics and the musical setting clearly revel in the fun of the experience, but also show a longing for the rest and comfort of home:
British geographical references such as Euston Station, Charing Cross Road and Yorkshire appear in the lyrics. The later choruses switch the length of time that the narrator has been gone from a week to a month, and in some live performances change from a month to a year.
The song's musical arrangement incorporates the traditional reels "Castle Kelly", "Glass of Beer" and "Swallow's Tail".
"Home for a Rest" is always the final song played at the band's concert performances, excepting encores.
Popularity
The song was one of two Canadian songs (the other being "Do the Bearcat" by David Wilcox) to appear on the 1998 compilation album Frosh, alongside such party anthems as Iggy Pop's "Lust for Life", The Village People's "YMCA", Denis Leary's "Asshole" and Beastie Boys' "Fight for Your Right to Party".
Podcasts:
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by Mudmen
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by Spirit Of The West
Home For A Rest
by: MudmenWe arrived in December and London was cold
So we stayed in the bars along Charring cross road
We never saw nothing but brass taps and oak
Kept a shine on the bar with the sleeves of our coats
You'll have to excuse me I'm not at my best
I've been gone for a month, I been drunk since I left
These so called vacations won't soon be my death
I'm so sick of the drink, I need home for a rest
Easton station the train journeyed north
And in the buffet car we lurched back and forth
Passed odd crooked dykes and through Yorkshire's green field
We where flung into dance as the train jigged and reeled
Chorus
By the light of the moon she'd drift through the streets
A rare old perfume so seductive and sweet
She teased us and flirt as the pubs all closed down
Then walk us on home and deny us a round
Chorus
The gas heater's empty, it's damp as a tomb
And the spirits we drank are now ghosts in the room
I'm knackered again, come on sleep take me soon
And don't lift up my head till the twelve bells of noon