THE LADY AT THE CROSSROADS [Verse 1] It’s whispered by purple tones, Where the winter mountains rise, A belief stirs in the morning, A promise under changing skies. That all could be so different, If only we believed, And an echo crossed the eastern shore Singing quietly of liberty. [Verse 2] From the mountain rocks to pebble coves, From the high ground to the sea, There came a voice upon the wind That seemed to speak to me. No man may build a golden cage For only chosen hands, No few may take the commonwealth And call it all their land. [Refrain] Ride, lady, ride, Where the cold mountain waters run. Ride, lady, ride, Before the rising of the sun. Carry the word from hill to hill, From the valley to the sea: The mountain men are waking, And the wind is singing liberty. [Verse 3] They saw her riding northward On a pale and restless mare, A fine lady dressed in winter green, With silver at her hair. Raven-black fell down her shoulders, Her skin was winter fair, And every man who watched her pass Felt something ancient there. [Verse 4] A rook flew on before her, A raven at her side, A crow came black across the moon And followed where she rode. Three dark wings above the road, Three shadows on the snow, And none could say from where she came Or where she meant to go. [Refrain] Ride, lady, ride, Where the cold mountain waters run. Ride, lady, ride, Before the rising of the sun. Carry the word from hill to hill, From the valley to the sea: The mountain men are waking, And the wind is singing liberty. [Verse 5] She rode north towards Glencullen Where the mountain pathways crossed, Through blackthorn, frost and heather, Through fields the winter lost. And there beneath the naked trees She raised her gloved right hand, And called the men of mountain farms To rise and make a stand. [Verse 6] She spoke not loud of glory, She promised them no gold, She spoke of fields their fathers worked And stories they were told. Of men who build their fortunes By taking what belongs To every hand that tills the earth, To every voice and song. [Bridge] And some said she was mortal, A lady of good name, Some swore they knew her family, Her household and her place. But an old man at the crossroads Would neither laugh nor speak. He watched the three black birds descend And settle at her feet. He said: “I saw those eyes when I was young. My father saw them too. There are older things upon these hills Than either me or you.” [Verse 7] Now in these last days of winter, When another year is born, Beneath the shadow of the Sugarloaf A stirring bird has flown. And when it rises, spreading wide Its feathers towards the sea, I hear her voice upon the wind Still singing liberty. [Final Refrain] Ride, lady, ride, Let the mountain hear your call. Ride, lady, ride, Where the winter shadows fall. Rook and raven, crow above, Black wings against the sea, And the men came down from the mountains For the promise of liberty. [Outro] Was she woman? Was she queen? Was she something in between? Raven hair, Winter skin, Three black feathers on the wind. Some still call her The Morrígan. But no one living knows. Only that she rode north Through the purple tones And wherever her horse passed, The people rose.
