[Verse 1] The leaves were red and golden, The moon was riding high; Eight lads went forth on Halloween Beneath the autumn sky. But Pipkin never joined them, And none could tell them why; Till a house beyond the hollow Shone beneath the darkened sky. [Verse 2] There stood Carapace Moundshroud, In a coat as black as night; Behind him rose a towering tree, Its pumpkins all alight. Each grinning face held candle-flame, Each shadow seemed to stare; And one bore Pipkin's likeness— As though he waited there. [Chorus] Oh, Halloween Tree, your lanterns glow, What roads do your old branches know? From the first fire against the night To the bells on the towers of stone, You have kept the years aglow, And the paths our feet have known. Oh, Halloween Tree, shine on, shine bright; Lead us onward through the night. [Verse 3] From old circus bills and posters, They fashioned wings to fly; The October Kite rose on the wind And climbed the midnight sky. The tree sank down beneath them, Its lanterns dwindled small; One pumpkin light burned on ahead, Beyond the years' dark wall. [Verse 4] Where the first men nursed their fire, And feared the coming night, They watched the embers trembling And guarded every light. Then Egypt's lamps shone softly Where the ancient dead were laid; They heard the mourners calling And the prayers the living prayed. [Verse 5] Through Greece and Rome they traveled, Where rites were kept for those Who'd crossed the shadowed border That no living mortal knows. Then Britain rose beneath them, Where the Druids watched the flame; A giant strode among the fires— And Samhain was his name. [Verse 6] The old fires sank to embers, The witch-fires burned below; Through fear and faith the years swept on, As autumn winds would blow. At Notre-Dame in Paris, Where stone-eyed demons stare, Pipkin's face was carved in stone High in the midnight air. [Chorus] Oh, Halloween Tree, your lanterns glow, What roads do your old branches know? From the first fire against the night To the bells on the towers of stone, You have kept the years aglow, And the paths our feet have known. Oh, Halloween Tree, shine on, shine bright; Lead us onward through the night. [Bridge] The fire beside the cavern, The lamp beside the dead, The candle kept for those we love, The prayers that still are said— Each age has kept its vigil, Each age has feared the night; And each has raised a little flame Against the failing light. [Verse 7] In Mexico, the candles Burned brightly through the night; The skulls were sweet with sugar, Their faces pale and white. They found their friend grown fainter, His life near spent and done; And Moundshroud stood before them, His dark work nearly won. [Verse 8] “One year from each,” said Moundshroud, “One year from each you give; The years shall be the price you pay To let your friend still live.” They shared the skull between them, Each lad gave up a year; And Pipkin's light burned bright again— His friends had brought him near. [Final Chorus] Oh, Halloween Tree, your lanterns glow, Now we know what your old branches know. Each flame recalls a life gone by, Each branch stands black against the sky. Though every road must end somewhere, And none can keep the years, A friend may yet be brought back home By those who conquer fear. [Outro] The dawn came pale and golden, The leaves lay still below; The lads returned to their own town Through streets they used to know. And though the tree stood dark behind them, One light had weathered the night; For the flame that friends have carried Need not go out of sight.
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