[Intro] [Instrumental] [Solo Highland bagpipes, slow drone, single low drum] [Verse 1] A stranger came at dusk, Rain still on his sleeve. He took my hand too warmly And he asked too much of me. The dogs would not go near him, The candle leaned away. [Verse 2] He praised the hall, the harvest, The bread upon the board. He swore he'd walked from Skye And called me honoured lord. Yet his boots were clean as Sunday, And his hands had never known the cold. [Chorus] Oh, I'll watch the door, I'll watch the door, I've been sold by a smile before. Trust is a bridge over deep black water, And I have seen how bridges burn. Pour his cup, but I won't drink, I'll sleep with one eye on the door. [Verse 3] Past midnight came a whisper Low beneath the stair. Two voices, and I knew one well, My brother's, speaking there. The same warm voice that blessed my bread Now soft as a knife in wool. [Interlude] [Instrumental] [Bagpipe lament, slow and uneasy, low drum answering] [Bridge] [Stripped back, voice and drone only] And if I'm wrong, If he meant no harm, If a hand was only a hand, Then I've bought my peace With a cold and empty hall. But if I'm right, Then silence is the only friend Who never lied to me. [Chorus] Oh, I'll watch the door, I'll watch the door, I've been sold by a smile before. Trust is a bridge over deep black water, And I have seen how bridges burn. Pour his cup, but I won't drink, I'll sleep with one eye on the door. [Verse 4] Morning came with frost on the glen, The stranger's bed was cold. My brother's cloak hung by the door, Its pockets full of gold. [Outro] I watched the door. I watched the door. And the one I trusted most Walked through it. [Bagpipes hold one low unresolved drone] ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A slow, brooding Highland ballad about distrust. A guest arrives with a too-warm smile and clean boots. The narrator slowly realises the betrayal comes from someone they trusted. The pipes act as the second voice, uneasy and watchful, and the song ends unresolved. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © 2026 Ande Records Lyrics by Ande All rights reserved. https://ande-records.se/
