Dark Side Suite

Unfortunately for some, yet profitable for others
There reaps a bitter dark side which roams about and smothers
The souls of our brothers

THE DARK SIDE

Northeast in Penn’s land where mountains touch the sky
It’s shadow glooms this man, it feasts on tears he cries
It moves about and grins
It is the face within the bitter taste of sin
With deception, fear, and lies
While most are unaware and hardly even care
They’re just trying to have some fun
They’re the trigger for it’s gun
I guess I shalln’t complain, but it’s hard to bear this pain
On the eve of going insane do I have something to gain?

Yet through these tragic years
With disappointment, sorrow, and tears
I’ve come a long, long way to reach that special day
And if I do survive, I’ll scream and praise “alive”
Although the battle is lost for sure, we can still win the war

Yet through these tragic years
With disappointment, sorrow, and tears
I’ve come a long, long way to reach that special day
And if I do survive, I’ll scream and praise “alive”
Although the battle is lost for sure, we can still win the war

But for right now the sadness glooms
The happiness is gone
And not a soul around me will listen to my song
I guess I shalln’t complain, but it’s hard to bear this pain
On the edge of going insane do I have something to gain

Loneliness haunts my night, questions haunt my day
No answers ever seem right, so much has been thrown away
Discouragement is all I get, no matter what I try to say
Don’t want to hear my words but yet so much can be gained if they
Listen to what I have to say
Give me just a little time of day
Listen to what I say, give me the time of day
Together we can destroy the dark side now!

TEARS

A stranger a long, long way from home
A life of love replaced by chrome
A finding of your deepest fears
A wasted time in magical years

A massacre of all want, torn up and thrown in a fire
A good intention shot right down to fulfill a cold desire
A loss of love, a loss of hope, a steel cage with iron beams
A storm of such excruciating pain, suffering, and screams
Guess they’re not tears of love

Didn’t want to end up this way
Didn’t want to speak the words I say
Didn’t want to cry alone
Didn’t want to be the dog
That went and bit the poison bone

Didn’t want to be the one left out in the rainy cold
Didn’t want to sit around and pray to God I don’t get old

But this time you’ve gone too far
Need to know just where you are
Know somehow you could hear me
Need to know just what you see
Pray somehow the end is near
End of all these painful tears

But this time you’ve gone too far
Need to know just where you are
Then maybe I’ll have tears of love

Composition © 1989, 2003 Ric Albano
Publication © 2011 Cygnus Wave Music

Performers
Ric Albano
Electric Guitars, Ricter Synth, Keyboards, Bass, Harmonica, Drums, Vocals
Sinclair Soul
Vocals

Listener Guide
Grade

Analysis: This is the only true multi-song medley in the collection. It consists of the original songs “The Dark Side” and “Tears”, as well as a new intro section which was constructed in 2003. The new minute-plus intro drew samples from several songs which were part of The Dark Side project in Spring 1989 with a doomy, Ricter backing in a loop. This leads to the eerie beginning of “The DarK Side”, which eventually builds to a heavy rock song with frenzied movement and lyrics. After building to a crescendo, this collapses into the mellow and moody “Tears”, with its dreamy guitars and dualing vocals. All told, this is the longest “song” in the collection.