What Stays

F'N Magic

Clare Bennitt

F'N Magic

acoustic ballad, intimate folk, lullaby-like tenderness

CUSTOM

[Intro]
[soft acoustic guitar, sparse, warm room tone, very intimate, no dramatic swell]

[Verse 1]
[almost spoken, close-mic, tender, fragile, soft breath at phrase endings, slight catch in the throat]
You came to me
like a storm gone thin
Like a whispered vow
on the edge of the wind

With the wild in your eyes
and the road in your hands
Like a man half-remembered
from a dream I once had

And I stood in a house
made of ribbon and light
Of old wooden floors
and the hush of the night

With my heart like a lantern
I covered in lace
Trying to keep something holy
from drifting away

[Chorus]
[do not belt, lift gently, lullaby-like, aching but controlled, warm and trembling]
And what stays, what stays
When the moon turns all things silver
And the young girl slips
like water from my hands

Is it love that leaves its mark there
Is it time that draws the veil back
Till I see
I was never meant to stay as I began

[Verse 2]
[conversational, reflective, soft and steady, intimate storytelling, slight ache in the delivery]
I watched my mother
with the window thrown wide
With the wind in the curtain
and tears she would hide

She wore her silence
like a chain made of pearls
Like a queen
who had long ago buried her girl

And I wore my own youth
like a charm at my throat
Like a word you say once
just to see if it holds

I thought love was a fire
that answered your call
Never knowing the flame
does not ask you at all

[Chorus]
[a little fuller, but still restrained, emotional pressure rising, voice softening rather than expanding]
And what stays, what stays
When the rooms grow deep with shadow
And the mirror holds
a face I’m learning still

If I open both my hands now
To the roses and the cinders
Will I find
I have been broken, or becoming by His will

[Bridge]
[hushed, spacious, almost prayerful, very human, let the lines breathe, slight trembling tenderness]
There is a field
beyond the sleeping pines
Where the stars hang low
like unfinished signs

I go there
when the world turns strange and loud
To hear what waits
beneath the sorrow and the cloud

And I’m not afraid of changing
only slow
Like the river stone
that lets the green moss grow

Something in me bows
before the season turns
Something in me learns

[Final Chorus]
[most emotional point, but still no belting, soft ache, layered harmony kept subtle, voice on the edge of tears]
And what stays, what stays
When the stars have quit their calling
And the young face fades
like light along the wall

It is time
and it is mercy
It is grief
and it is wonder

It is every shattered thing
that did not let me fall

[Outro]
[drop to near-whisper, intimate, exhausted tenderness, final lines very close and human]
If you see me years from now
passing by
With the frost of many winters
in my eyes

Know I did not vanish
into blue
I became the kind of woman
That the night already knew

2854/7500

[Intro] [soft acoustic guitar, sparse, warm room tone, very intimate, no dramatic swell] [Verse 1] [almost spoken, close-mic, tender, fragile, soft breath at phrase endings, slight catch in the throat] You came to me like a storm gone thin Like a whispered vow on the edge of the wind With the wild in your eyes and the road in your hands Like a man half-remembered from a dream I once had And I stood in a house made of ribbon and light Of old wooden floors and the hush of the night With my heart like a lantern I covered in lace Trying to keep something holy from drifting away [Chorus] [do not belt, lift gently, lullaby-like, aching but controlled, warm and trembling] And what stays, what stays When the moon turns all things silver And the young girl slips like water from my hands Is it love that leaves its mark there Is it time that draws the veil back Till I see I was never meant to stay as I began [Verse 2] [conversational, reflective, soft and steady, intimate storytelling, slight ache in the delivery] I watched my mother with the window thrown wide With the wind in the curtain and tears she would hide She wore her silence like a chain made of pearls Like a queen who had long ago buried her girl And I wore my own youth like a charm at my throat Like a word you say once just to see if it holds I thought love was a fire that answered your call Never knowing the flame does not ask you at all [Chorus] [a little fuller, but still restrained, emotional pressure rising, voice softening rather than expanding] And what stays, what stays When the rooms grow deep with shadow And the mirror holds a face I’m learning still If I open both my hands now To the roses and the cinders Will I find I have been broken, or becoming by His will [Bridge] [hushed, spacious, almost prayerful, very human, let the lines breathe, slight trembling tenderness] There is a field beyond the sleeping pines Where the stars hang low like unfinished signs I go there when the world turns strange and loud To hear what waits beneath the sorrow and the cloud And I’m not afraid of changing only slow Like the river stone that lets the green moss grow Something in me bows before the season turns Something in me learns [Final Chorus] [most emotional point, but still no belting, soft ache, layered harmony kept subtle, voice on the edge of tears] And what stays, what stays When the stars have quit their calling And the young face fades like light along the wall It is time and it is mercy It is grief and it is wonder It is every shattered thing that did not let me fall [Outro] [drop to near-whisper, intimate, exhausted tenderness, final lines very close and human] If you see me years from now passing by With the frost of many winters in my eyes Know I did not vanish into blue I became the kind of woman That the night already knew

0/500