Lyr Req: The Old Mill Chimney

Subject: Lyr Req: The Old Mill Chimney
From: GUEST,Singerdave
Date: 20 Feb 19 - 10:06 AM

Can anyone provide the lyrics for the above song wrote by the late Mike Canavan please.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE OLD MILL CHIMNEY (Mike Canavan)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 22 Feb 19 - 06:23 PM

Here's the best I can do. There may be errors, but hopefully, someone else will correct them. You can hear the song at YouTube.


THE OLD MILL CHIMNEY
as recorded by Mike Canavan on "Fred Dibnah: A Musical Tribute to a Unique Man" (2005)

1. Monument to industry, round giants(?) are the best,
Built in times of sweat and toil when things were made to last.
Nothing lasts forever; judgment(?) day had come,
Neither use nor ornament, past days of glory gone.

CHORUS: Ignore the warning crack.
Don't heed the sickening thud,
And turn your face from the empty space
Where the old mill chimney stood.

2. They'd given out the contract to a Boulton steeplejack,
Asked him if he'd put the old mill chimney on its back.
"I'll bring it down," he says, "if you've got the brass to pay,
Not with sticks of dynamite, but in the old time-honoured way." CHORUS

3. They sweated and they toiled and patched(?); the bricks fell from the base.
Set two wooden pier-props positioned in their place.
Then the fire was started and the flames they quickly grew,
And the onlookers drew back and watched as the wooden prop burned through. CHORUS

4. And the watchers all fell silent as the stack began to sway,
And the warning cry of a Claxton horn told them it was on its way
As a hundred thousand bricks came swiftly plunging to the ground
With a noise like a mighty thunderclap, you could hear it for miles around. CHORUS

REPEAT FIRST VERSE AND CHORUS


[I had never heard of Fred Dibnah before looking up this song. Indeed, he sounds like an interesting man.]

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Old Mill Chimney
From: GUEST,henryp
Date: 23 Feb 19 - 03:00 AM

Bolton Evening News 4th January 2019 Fans of Fred Dibnah have the opportunity of owning his former home for just £10.

Leon Powsney, the owner of legendary Bolton steeplejack Fred Dibnah’s home, has decided to sell-up. But, instead of simply putting the property on the housing market, he has launched a ‘spot-the-ball’ contest with the Victorian detached property as the prize!

The house dates back to 1854 and has a market value of £450,000. It was originally the gatehouse to the woods at the rear, which belonged to the Earl of Bradford’s estate. Mr Powsney and his wife Jan bought the property in 2008 for £185,000 and spent thousands creating the Fred Dibnah Heritage Centre, dedicated to Fred’s love of steam.

Sadly, the centre was closed for good last winter and Mr Powsney held an auction of Fred’s machinery and tools earlier this year. “I couldn’t sell the centre as a going concern – it was a big responsibility - but a lot of people told me they’d love to live here but couldn’t afford it . That’s when I thought of the idea of running a competition,” said Mr Powsney.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Old Mill Chimney
From: GUEST,Singerdave
Date: 23 Feb 19 - 08:07 AM

Jim, thanks again for your help. Yes Fred Dibnah was indeed a very interesting man, one missed by many. It's a shame his property has ended up that way.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Old Mill Chimney
From: GUEST,henryp
Date: 23 Feb 19 - 10:04 AM

1. (Aye) A monument to industry, round giant of the past,
Built in times of sweat and toil when things were made to last.
But nothing lasts forever; Judgement Day had come,
Neither use nor ornament, past days of glory gone.

CHORUS: Ignore the warning crack.
Don't heed the sickening thud,
And turn your face from the empty space
Where the old mill chimney stood.

2. They'd given out the contract to a Bolton steeplejack,
Asked him if he'd put the old mill chimney on its back.
"I'll bring it down," he says, "if you've got the brass to pay,
Not with sticks of dynamite, but in the old time-honoured way." CHORUS

3. They sweated and they toiled and hacked; the bricks fell from the base.
Set two wooden pit-props positioned in their place.
Then the fire was started and the flames they quickly grew,
And the onlookers drew back and watched as the wooden props burned through. CHORUS

4. And the watchers all fell silent as the stack began to sway,
And the warning cry of a Klaxon horn told the end was on its way
As a hundred thousand bricks came swiftly plunging to the ground
With a noise like a mighty thunderclap, you could hear for miles around. CHORUS

Did you like that?