David Subacchi (Remove filter)
THE SONGS WERE GOOD
THE SONGS WERE GOOD
(For Les McKeown - Bay City Roller)
There's not much in Wiki
Just the basics
Edinburgh born of Irish parents
Lead singer of the Bay City Rollers
During their most successful period
The hits and money made
The disputes and addictions
That go with the territory
Stuff like that
In 1974 we looked up
As the band waved
From ...
Monday 16th August 2021 4:19 pm
INSIDE A CHRISTMAS CARD
INSIDE A CHRISTMAS CARD
Inside a Christmas card
From prisoners afraid,
In a factory in China
Where nothing much is paid,
A handwritten message
From poor souls enslaved,
In oppressive conditions
Where festive things are made.
Telł somebody beg the authors
The truth about this trade,
That those who make big money
Our wretched lives degrade
So in this season of goodwill
When joy sho...
Thursday 26th December 2019 1:24 pm
ILLUSION
ILLUSION
Just for a while
The feel of summer,
Fields of sunflowers,
Light dazzling,
Heat caressing,
France not Cheshire
Kind of summer.
Smell of lusty earth,
Taste of young wine
That won't travel,
Freshness of fruit
And vegetables,
Proudly displayed
On market stalls.
Just for a while
The illusion of summer,
Ou...
Monday 27th August 2018 10:18 pm
BANER GLYNDWR
BANER GLYNDWR
Steel the gauntlet
Sharp the blade
Hot the conflict
Fierce the raid.
From the mountains
We came down
Barred their passage
To each town.
Fired our arrows
Flung our spears
Red their faces
Bloody tears.
Drove them far
From our land
We fought bravely
Hand to hand.
Baner Glyndwr
Owain’s flag
Flying now
Fr...
Tuesday 22nd May 2018 8:15 pm
EVACUATING HEREFORD
EVACUATING HEREFORD
From Fir Tree Lane junction and the Straight Mile
Near where World War Two hand grenades were found,
They shut roads and placed a cordon around
So they could make things safe army style;
People were moved out of homes for a while
Taking all their pets, every cat and hound;
As warning cones were put down on the ground,
A real nuisance there was hardl...
Wednesday 7th March 2018 11:26 pm
BETWEEN TWO STONES
BETWEEN TWO STONES
Horses raced here
Until the railway
Cut the field in half
Between two stones
And a third
No longer standing.
The first excavation
Proved this to be true
From the clay pipes
And wine bottles
Now cleaned
And catalogued.
More recent surveys
Using methods
Geophysical
Indicated the presence
Of se...
Friday 5th January 2018 4:48 pm
PALM TREES
PALM TREES
The palm trees at Alghero
Are of impressive height and girth
Their solidity demonstrates confidence;
Sometimes we touch them
Hoping to be made strong too.
In their shade we shelter
From baking sun,
Under their protection
Friendships are made
On sultry August evenings.
Nearby in an ornate church
Time ticks away in marb...
Sunday 1st October 2017 4:06 pm
SONNET FOR ROONEY
SONNET FOR ROONEY
So I gets this call from Gareth Southgate
And he's laying it on like marmalade,
Saying come back Rooney you've got it made
Playing for Everton, O what a state!
I thought your ambition was to be great!
England's not a problem don't be afraid,
At Goodison you'll always make the grade,
So get those three lions back on you mate.
But I though...
Thursday 24th August 2017 8:37 pm
BASS GUITAR
BASS GUITAR
The bass guitar is not loud enough
He explained solemnly
Unless it rattles your cufflinks
In the back row
It's not concerned with melody
Just there to add some body.
That was a long time ago
In our long hair days
The next time we met
His locks had disappeared
Mine were slowly thinning
I reminded him of his saying.
...
Thursday 29th June 2017 4:37 pm
A PIECE OF IRON
A PIECE OF IRON
Here in accordance with Italian tradition
A piece of iron, a vintage bottle opener;
How easily it slips into the hand,
How hard it worked and for so long
Removing numerous crown tops,
How often thrown across bar or café
From one sweating palm to another,
Then how long redundant, abandoned
In a drawer or some dark corner.
May your marriag...
Sunday 7th May 2017 10:23 pm
DEATH OF NELSON
DEATH OF NELSON
(Benjamin West 1738-1820 – Walker Gallery, Liverpool)
Some think victory complete
Raising hats celebrating,
But others huddled solemnly
Around the pale figure
Know death is waiting,
That he only lingers awhile
To say farewell and to savour
A little of the triumph.
In the background a confusion
Of sails and streaming signal...
Saturday 8th April 2017 5:08 pm
GEORGE MARTIN
GEORGE MARTIN
Some of us never get to feel it
That magical moment
When you hit the ball just right
Or that high note
The one that shatters glass.
And we never experience
The thrill of discovery
As Lord Carnarvon
Staring into history
At the tomb of Tutankhamun.
But you had more than your share
Though you never looked for it
They say...
Friday 10th March 2017 10:47 pm
1916
1916
What moved them to throw caution to the wind
To break out of committee room and bar
Ignoring those who warned this was too far
Those who later condemned and said they'd sinned
What fearsome lightning their resolve confirmed
To face artillery and armoured car
What deafening thunder what shooting star
Incited rebellion, what fire that burned
In bra...
Monday 16th January 2017 10:07 am
ALEPPO
ALEPPO
Experts say if the stones remain
What was within can be restored,
But they make bombs now
That can penetrate
The strongest cover;
Expensive but occasionally
They use them.
And lives destroyed
Cannot be recreated
By mechanical diggers,
Architects or builders;
Only silent museums
Filled with the debris
Of destruction.
The...
Sunday 9th October 2016 7:15 pm
SIDOLO
SIDOLO
Spent shell casings everywhere
gleaming in the July sun
bodies of three martyrs lie
victims of a German gun
Italy is crying now
see how fast the tears run.
Three priests in nineteen forty four
slaughtered by the devil’s hand
innocent of all misdeeds
outrage sweeps throughout the land
...Sunday 7th August 2016 10:50 am
A WELSHMAN IN CROATIA
A WELSHMAN IN CROATIA
In Croatian the word for three is tri
Just as it is in the Welsh language.
It is tre in Italian and trois in French
And in Spanish it is tres,
But the Croatians have got it right
Although all their other numbers
Are quite different in Welsh.
Here in the summer Dubrovnik sunshine
There is time to wonder about such things
Seated...
Tuesday 21st June 2016 12:14 am
TOMORROW
TOMORROW
Tomorrow is Remembrance Day
The sea rises and falls
A great abdomen
Gasping for breath.
We enjoy 'winter sun'
Freakish for November
But we don't complain
They didn't either.
Outside on the promenade
Soldiers paraded
Before leaving for France
We have the old photos.
Here too a salute was taken
Near where ice c...
Sunday 8th November 2015 10:28 pm
CROSSWORDS IN THE PUB
We’re doing crosswords in the pub
Because that’s what lovers do
When they fall out of love
Crosswords in the pub
We don’t speak much anymore
Except to discuss clues
Because that’s what lovers do
When disenchantment ensues
We’re doing crosswords in the pub
But at least we’re still together
Keeping each other company
Uncom...
Thursday 17th September 2015 11:09 pm
MY FATHER'S WATCH
MY FATHER’S WATCH
Almost a year after he died
I’m wearing my father’s watch
Automatic, Swiss, 1947
I looked it up on line
The local old fashioned jeweller
Says it’s a very nice watch
Leave it alone, don’t mess with it
Just wear it all the time
It has old fashioned ways
A turn before bed, another
In the morning and one
Just about midday
Although automatic
It needs the attention
...
Thursday 9th July 2015 11:54 pm
NOT REALLY A STRANGER
NOT REALLY A STRANGER
I don't know what the right term is
For this kind of tide
It is high but not stormy
Grey flecked with white
Slightly misty, bad tempered
I get the feeling it would like
To burst through the walls
And drown me quietly.
I stare through the windows
Of a seafront bistro
Designed to show the bay
At its best to visitors
But the waves are not playing
It is only ju...
Friday 15th May 2015 7:53 pm
FIELD GUNS
FIELD GUNS
A pair of field guns stand
Backs to the castle
Redundant barrels
Harmlessly aimed
At the high street
A sign reads
'Please do not
Climb on the guns'
As if children
Could pose a threat
To these two
Retired killers
Worn with age
Weary with boredom
Never to speak again.
We stare for a while
Examine them closely
Find nothin...
Friday 3rd April 2015 6:00 pm
THE DAY BEFORE VALENTINE'S
THE DAY BEFORE VALENTINE'S
Is this ritual or adventure
See how quickly
The words are written
No longer anonymous
Is this a box to check
A form to fill
A contract to renew
An essential procedure
The mind indifferent
Even irritated but....
The heart restless
Insistent that this
Is not an option
Ink on cardboard
Flesh on flesh
One forever...
Friday 13th February 2015 3:06 pm
PLASCRUG
PLASCRUG
There was a great ditch
And an avenue of trees
Leading directly
From the busy town
To the cemetery’s silence
Ornate gates sick with rust
Relics of grander times
When they marked the way
To ancient Plascrug
Back and forth we jumped
Across the weed choked water
There was a Scout Hut
Near a playground
A row of park benches
Where we sat i...
Friday 21st November 2014 6:57 pm
EXCITEMENT
EXCITEMENT
That snow white Vauxhall Cresta
With its red leather seats
And stunning chromium bumpers
Flashing through the town streets
In the front passenger seat
I waved to friends going by
As dad raced the engine
Keeping the rev counter high
That pure white Vauxhall Cresta
With its iconic look
A classic sixties motor
The best one in the book
The pu...
Monday 16th June 2014 6:23 pm
THE OLD COMMODORE
THE OLD COMMODORE
This faded slab stands to commemorate
David Lewis of ‘The Conqueror’ late
A Montgomery man ‘The Old Commodore’
Who served under Nelson in times of war
Then as a harbourmaster in peacetime
A grand old seadog not far past his prime
Here in Aberystwyth he lived and died
His watchful eye always on the tide
In this peaceful town on Cardigan Bay
He dropped...
Sunday 23rd March 2014 7:50 pm
THE BOMB THAT DIDN'T EXPLODE
THE BOMB THAT DIDN'T EXPLODE
It’s still remembered today
The bomb that didn’t explode
That crashed through the church ceiling
During the Second World War
Sparing some three hundred lives
A replica may be seen
Here in the vestry corner
At St Mary’s in Mosta
With photos of the soldiers
Called to make the real bomb safe
And despite votive candles
...Tuesday 24th December 2013 8:06 pm
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
This man won medals for bravery
Served in a world war
Mourned for his dead comrades but never
Complained about it
Came home, collected his demob suit
Walked away whistling
Determined to make the best of it
This other man lost a limb, didn’t care
That you would notice
Completed his education then
Went on to hack it
Never asked for...
Friday 15th November 2013 8:21 pm
IMPATIENT SPRINGTIME
IMPATIENT SPRINGTIME
Impatient springtime
caressing the shore line
under a watercolour sky,
gentle white tipped
blue waves with breezes
blowing in our ears
whispering of warmth,
teasing us to put away
colder morning memories,
urging the shedding of
woollen scarves and the
lengthening of dog leads.
Copyright(c)David Subacchi.2012
Friday 15th March 2013 11:36 pm
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